Tite has hailed his Brazil side for learning to win without injured superstar Neymar.
The Paris Saint-Germain forward fractured a metatarsal in February and consequently underwent surgery.
In Neymar s absence, Brazil defeated Russia 3-0 before recording a 1-0 triumph over Germany on Tuesday to gain a small measure of revenge for the 7-1 battering they received against Die Mannschaft on home soil in the semi-finals of the 2014 World Cup.
Tite had described Neymar as irreplaceable before the friendlies, but was happy with the way his side responded to playing without their talisman.
Our best player was out, he said. The team missed Neymar, but we are learning to play and be strong without him.
This all helps to generate team strength.
T…
Brendan Rodgers has joined Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp in warning of the dangers of over-burdening players during England s hectic festive period.
Leicester City manager Rodgers saw his players lose on penalties to Liverpool in the EFL Cup quarter-finals on Wednesday, and he will take them to Manchester City on Sunday before tackling Liverpool again in the Premier League on Tuesday.
Three games in seven days would be a strain in normal times, but with COVID-19 spreading rapidly and injuries beginning to bite for many teams, clubs are having it tougher than usual just now.
A third game was pulled from England s Boxing Day programme on Friday when Everton s trip to Burnley was called off.
Leicester s visit to the Etihad Stadium remained on though, and al…
Liverpool defender Martin Kelly says he would be delighted to play centre-back if asked by manager Brendan Rodgers.
The 23-year-old has mostly featured at right-back for the Merseyside club since making his debut in a UEFA Champions League clash with PSV Eindhoven in December 2008.
But, having noticeably bulked up during his time out with a cruciate knee ligament injury, the defender has underlined his desire to take on a central role.
It’s always ideal being able to play in two positions, he told The Liverpool Echo. I love playing right-back but if it came to it I could definitely be a centre-back.
I feel like I’ve got all the attributes. All the positional sense was drummed into me when I played there when I was a kid.
The last time I played in the mi…
Bundesliga outfit Schalke have moved to confirm they are exploring the possibility of recruiting Spartak Moscow defender Serdar Tasci.
It is no secret that the Miners are on the lookout for a quality central defender with both Benedikt Howedes and Matija Nastasic out injured.
And just as , Schalke appear to be keen on luring former Stuttgart captain Serdar Tasci to Veltins Arena.
“I can confirm that we are looking at Tasci. He is another player we are examining,” Schalke chief Horst Heldt .
Serdar Tasci has been in fine form since leaving Stuttgart for Spartak Moscow in the summer of 2013, but it is believed that he hopes to return to German Bundesliga.
With his contract due to expire in June 2017, the 28-year-old is valued at €5 million by…
Mauricio Pochettino suggested three more players could be on their way to Tottenham, but he played his cards close to his chest over reports Serge Aurier will be among them.
Spurs this week completed the signings of Ajax defender Davinson Sanchez and Southampton goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga, but his business is not yet done.
With some having criticised the club s relative lack of activity in this window, Pochettino hinted at further arrivals to follow, but would not be drawn on links with Paris Saint-Germain right-back Aurier.
That is a rumour. We cannot confirm anything until something happens, said the Argentinian, who is seeking a replacement for Kyle Walker following his move to Manchester City.
There are many, many players like always in the media. B…
While the football world attention is firmly fixed on Russia and the World Cup, clubs are still conducting transfer business ahead of next season.
One of the clubs active in the somewhat quiet transfer market are West Ham, who have snapped up Poland international Lukasz Fabianski from Swansea for a fee of around £7million. He is currently at the World Cup with his national side.
Too good for the Championship
As soon as Swansea suffered relegation, it became almost inevitable that Fabianski would leave, as no doubt, he is still good enough to play in the Premier League.
He is simply too good of a player to be plying his trade in the Championship next season. If would have been a massive surprise if he would have stayed with the Welsh club.
I am sure mos…
Best Odds: 5/6
Bookmaker:
With a spot in the final of this year s Europa League up for grabs this weekend, Manchester United will face off against a resurging Sevilla at Koln s RheinEnergieStadion on Sunday night.
Sevilla
Starting with Sevilla, picking up their own Premier League scalp in midweek and leaving it late to snatch a 1-0 win off of Wolves in Duisburg, few across Europe would have expected a remarkable purple patch for Los Palanganas. Only going from strength to strength since appointing one-time Spain boss Julen Lopetegui, the Whites now find themselves in the midst of a glittering 19-match unbeaten run across all competitions, a run that stems back to February 9th. In fact, enjoying their most fruitful patch in the club s history, they managed to se…
Best Odds: 4/5
Bookmaker:
Looking to open their Nations League campaign with three points on Saturday night, Belgium will make the trip to Denmark this weekend.
Denmark
Starting with the hosts, while Denmark might have been disappointed to have signed off their delayed European qualifying campaign with a 1-1 draw in Dublin back in November, the Reds have gained plenty of admirers over the past two years. Building off of their knockout stage finish in the World Cup finals out in Russia back in 2018, Kasper Hjulmand s men secured an automatic spot out of Group D and finished just a single point behind eventual winners Switzerland. With the mood in their camp at a real high, Denmark were one of just a handful of nations who were unbeaten on route to clinching thei…
Paul Pogba explained his celebrations after Manchester United s late winner against his former club Juventus felt strange while paying tribute to the Red Devils staying power.
Jose Mourinho s men were headed for a repeat of their 1-0 defeat at Old Trafford two weeks ago when Cristiano Ronaldo scored a magnificent 65th-minute volley but a late turnaround was made possible when Juan Mata curled in a free-kick four minutes from time.
Pogba then wheeled away in celebration after Alex Sandro put the ball into his own net under pressure from the France international with less than a minute left on the clock, but the World Cup-winning midfielder admitted he had mixed emotions.
I celebrated, but it was strange, he told BT Sport. It might have touched a lot of people.
Celtic and Rangers emerged with contrasting emotions despite both recording wins in week six of the cinch Premiership.
There were also wins for St Mirren, Hibernian and Aberdeen while Dundee and Kilmarnock shared the spoils at Dens Park.
Here are five things we learned from the weekend’s action.
Celtic get ‘monumental’ win
Heading into Saturday night with Three Points | |
— Celtic Football Club (@CelticFC)
Brendan Rodgers called Celtic’s 3-0 victory at Livingston “monumental” after the champions built on their one-goal lead despite having Joe Hart sent off.
Celtic again showed a good response to adversity four days after picking up two red cards in a 2-0 defeat by Feyenoord.
Rodgers said: “Livingston is a noto…