Stuart Dallas struck in the 92nd minute to earn Northern Ireland a dramatic 1-0 victory over Azerbaijan and clinch a huge three points in their World Cup qualifying campaign.
Northern Ireland s grip on second position in Group C looked set to loosen with a goalless draw in Baku, but Dallas popped up in second-half stoppage time to keep the pressure on leaders Germany.
Michael O Neill took his players for a training camp in Turkey to prepare them for the heat and humidity of the Azeri capital and it paid dividends as they managed to keep fighting until the final moments.
Chances were at a premium throughout and Afran Ismayilov spurned two great second-half opportunities to give Robert Prosinecki s side a win that would have put them level with Northern Ireland.<…
Xavi says under-fire midfielder Sergio Busquets remains vital to Barcelona, insisting his captain will make his own decision on whether to stay at Camp Nou next season.
Busquets was criticised for his performance as Barcelona fell to a 3-1 defeat to Clasico rivals Real Madrid on Sunday, having been replaced by Gavi on the hour mark at the Santiago Bernabeu.
The future of the 34-year-old, who has won 30 pieces of silverware during his decorated 14-year spell with the club, has been the subject of speculation, with his contract set to expire at the end of the season.
Xavi, however, still views the defensive midfielder as a crucial component in his side, saying: When you lose, we are all exposed. For me, Busquets is still important.
There will be games in …
Yaya Toure has said that it would be a ‘great honour’ to play for Paris Saint Germain amid constant speculation surrounding his future at Manchester City, .
The midfielder’s agent spoke out about a perceived lack of respect from his club’s owners on his 31st birthday two weeks ago, leading to doubts over whether he will remain at the Etihad Stadium next season.
Toure moved to Manchester in the summer of 2010, and has since gone on to win two Premier League titles, the FA Cup and the League Cup during his time with the Sky Blues.
Last season he scored twenty-four goals in all competitions, including twenty in the league which saw him finish behind only Liverpool duo Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge in the race for the Golden Boot.
He is curren…
Brazilian newspaper that Cruzeiro are showing interest in Paris Saint-Germain full-back Maxwell.
The 34-year-old will be out of contract at Parc des Princes in the summer, and even though he would prefer to end his career with the Saints, a summer exit is a realistic possibility.
His former club Cruzeiro are reportedly keen on bringing the veteran back to Mineirao, although clubs from the United States are interested in his services as well.
It was at Cruzeiro that Maxwell started his professional career, making 27 league appearances before moving to Ajax.
Following successful spells with Inter Milan and Barcelona, the full-back arrived at Parc des Princes in 2012 and has since 117 league appearances for the Saints.
PSG will be in Champions Leag…
Neymar s €222million switch to Paris Saint-Germain underlines the anti-competitive, unjustified and illegal transfer rules governed by FIFA, according to a damning statement from FIFPro.
The world players union spoke out in the wake of the Brazilian s world-record move from Barcelona, with general secretary Theo van Seggelen calling for the European Commission to investigate transfer fees within the European Union.
He claims that the competitive balance in Europe is being eroded by a distorted market , with Neymar s eye-watering fee a prime example.
The world-record transfer of Brazilian Neymar from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain is the latest example of how football is ever more the domain of a select group of rich, mostly European-based clubs, read the s…
Robert Lewandowski and Thomas Muller impressed but Bayern Munich made hard work of beating Hoffenheim 4-3 to reach the DFB-Pokal quarter-finals.
Holders Bayern appeared to be cruising into the last eight when Lewandowski put them 3-1 up at half-time on Wednesday, yet a lacklustre second-half showing gave Hoffenheim – who had taken the lead through Jerome Boateng s own goal – unexpected hope.
Bayern had quickly levelled when Benjamin Hubner put through his own goal before Muller – who had a hand in all three of the hosts first-half goals – nosed them ahead.
Lewandowski s second made it 4-1 with 10 minutes to go before Munas Dabbur s late double set up the possibility of unlikely comeback that just fell short as Bayern ultimately did enough to book their pr…
Market: Augsburg win
Odds: 4/5 @
Desperate to make up some ground in the European chase, Augsburg will welcome Koln to Bavaria on Sunday afternoon.
Starting with the hosts, while Augsburg might have found themselves at the heart of a Bundesliga relegation scrap last season, Jess Thorup’s men have come roaring back this time around. Continuing to receive a string of plaudits from across Germany’s elite this year, the Bavaria-based outfit are still dreaming of the chance to mount a famous European charge over the final couple of months. Heading into March’s international break with a stunning performance as they stormed their way to a 3-1 romp away at Wolfsburg, the former Copenhagen boss should find the mood in his camp at a red-hot high. Opening March with…
Copenhagen coach Stale Solbakken was relieved to avoid Arsenal and Napoli in the draw for the UEFA Champions League play-off round on Friday.
Instead, Solbakken s side will take on Bayer Leverkusen over two legs for a spot in the Champions League group stage and although the Norwegian coach conceded Copenhagen will need a little luck to overcome the Bundesliga club, he claimed he was relatively content with the draw.
Having finished second in the Danish Superliga last season, Copenhagen have been forced to try and qualify through the League Route of Champions League qualifying, rather than the Champions Route that does not include the likes of Arsenal, Napoli or Porto.
In contrast, Danish champions AaB drew APOEL from Cyprus in the play-off round.
We are…
Peru have appointed former Argentina international Ricardo Gareca as their new head coach ahead of the Copa America later this year.
Ricardo Gareca will lead Peru at the Copa America after agreeing a four-year contract to succeed Pablo Bengoechea as head coach.
Peru have been without a boss since Bengoechea left his role at the end of 2014, but, with a friendly against Venezuela on March 31, Gareca has stepped into the role.
The former Argentina international – who has managed across South America during his career – will look to build on their five wins in the last seven matches during 2014 ahead the Copa America in June.
I thank Juan Carlos [Oblitas, Peru Football Federation sporting director] because they trusted me with this role. It is an honour…
แจกสูตรสล็อต2022 แจกเทคนิคการเล่นเกมฟรีๆ ที่ท่านสามารถนำไปใช้ต่อยอดความมันและสร้างกำไรได้ทุกค่าย ซึ่งเทคนิคดังกล่าวนี้จะช่วยเปลี่ยนเงินลงทุนหลักสิบหลักร้อย ให้กลายเป็นเงินหมื่นเงินแสนได้ง่ายๆ เพียงแค่ปลายนิ้วสัมผัสเท่านั้น การปั่นสล็อตของท่านจะไม่มีวันน่าเบื่ออีกต่อไป ถ้าห…