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Barcelona president Joan Laporta has defended the club’s controversial payments to former refereeing chief Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, insisting allegations of bribery and corruption are simply part of a ‘smear campaign’ against the club. Payments between Barcelona and a company owned by Negreira from 2001 until 2018 have prompted all sorts of questions over the club’s conduct and the validity of their La Liga title victories. Barcelona have always maintained their innocence, insisting the payments were for nothing more than advice from referees and certainly not to influence any decisions from the officials, and Laporta reaffirmed that stance during a lengthy presentation on Monday. “IRead More →

90min rounds up the latest transfer news, rumours and gossip circulating around the world… Real Madrid and Manchester City target Jude Bellingham, who was of interest to Liverpool, would rather stay at Borussia Dortmund this summer as he does not believe the right move is out there for him at this point. (The Times) Despite backing away from Bellingham over cost concerns, Liverpool could try to strike a club-record €130m deal to sign Napoli winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia ahead of Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid. (Fichajes) Liverpool have also been dealt a blow in their pursuit of Real Madrid midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni, with Los Blancos determined to stickRead More →

With the promise of an enticing Euro 2024 just a year away, let’s take a trip down memory lane and focus on those older bunch who have defied all expectations and produced some form of magic on the Euro stage. From oldest appearance maker to oldest scorer, let’s delve in! Gábor Király (40 years, 2 months and 15 days) Gábor Király in action vs eventual winners Portugal / Clive Brunskill/GettyImages Commonly known as ‘Pyjama Man’, Gábor Király is the only 40-something player to feature at a Euros. Though many will instinctively remember him for his peculiar – but solid – trouser choice, he was alsoRead More →

Xavi Hernandez has lamented the condition of the pitch at Coliseum Alfonso Perez after Barcelona’s dire 0-0 draw with Getafe. Barca kept yet another clean sheet in La Liga on Sunday but once again struggled to create chances in the final third during an eventual 0-0 draw. The scoreless stalemate is Xavi’s side’s second in successive games – the first time this ‘feat’ has occurred since 2005. Speaking to the press after the game, Xavi was keen to blame the state of Getafe’s home turf for the disappointing result for Barca, stating that his team found it difficult to play on such a ‘dry pitch’:Read More →

After a commanding performance from his Manchester United side, Erik ten Hag was left bemoaning a lack of clinical edge in a 2-0 victory over Nottingham Forest on Sunday afternoon. Rattling off 22 shots during a one-sided outing, Manchester United recorded the most attempts of any Premier League away game for the club this season. The Red Devils also became the first team to beat Nottingham Forest by more than one goal at the City Ground in the top flight since Tottenham earned the same scoreline – in less convincing fashion – last August. However, the bevvy of chances United created, particularly in a suffocatingRead More →

April may have passed its mid-point but there is still more than a fifth of the Premier League season left to play. A six-week World Cup sandwiched into the middle of the campaign has warped the natural calendar of the league season, leaving the finishing line not quite as close as the empty Easter egg wrappers may suggest. And so, the form of each side in England’s top flight still has plenty of time to decide the final standings of this truncated season. Arsenal’s damaging 2-2 draw with West Ham United on Sunday could certainly impact the title race as the Gunners threaten to buckle.Read More →

Mikel Arteta has sympathised with Bukayo Saka after the Arsenal star missed a crucial penalty in the Gunners’ 2-2 draw with West Ham, putting another dent in their Premier League title hopes. For the second time in as many weeks, Arsenal spurned a 2-0 lead to drop points in the title race. Arsenal had taken their lead inside the opening 10 minutes thanks to Gabriel Jesus and Martin Odegaard, but were pegged back by goals from Said Benrahma and Jarrod Bowen. Arsenal did have a chance to put the game to bed in the second half when Michail Antonio conceded a penalty kick, but SakaRead More →

Scoring a goal is an inherently singular outcome. There can only be one name scrawled onto the scoresheet for each euphoric event. Yet, few goals are purely solitary in their creation. There’s an argument to be made that every touch in the build-up to a goal is worthy of recognition but only recently has the final pass, the assist, been recognised as significant. In the elite realm of Premier League football, a clear supply line from one player to another is often snuffed out before the duo can dovetail to truly devastating effect. However, over the three decades of England’s rebranded top flight, there haveRead More →

The sheer quantity of multi-million-pound flesh at Chelsea is mind-boggling – and a logistical nightmare. After an absurdly extravagant January transfer window, Graham Potter was forced to field a 9v9 training match running concurrently with the standard 11v11 session just to ensure everyone had something to do. Supposedly, some of the club’s cherished assets were also forced to squat on the floor at team meetings due to the lack of chairs for the bloated squad. Four seats opened up on the Chelsea bench shortly before the hour mark when Frank Lampard made the call to draw upon his intimidating squad depth as the Blues wentRead More →

Arsenal will have to face West Ham United on Sunday without one of their key players in Oleksandr Zinchenko. The versatile Ukrainian has proved to be one of the signings of the season after making the switch from Manchester City last summer, reuniting with Mikel Arteta in north London. He has made the left-back spot his own and has revolutionised Arsenal’s style with his ability to drift seamlessly into midfield to create overloads. But the Gunners will be without Zinchenko for their trip to West Ham this weekend having picked up a groin problem in last week’s 2-2 draw at Liverpool. Read the latest ArsenalRead More →