Lyon insist Gourcuff will stay

Hansi Flick was delighted to see Germany show their enormous quality as they hammered Armenia 6-0, though Serge Gnabry felt the victory could have been more emphatic.

Germany moved to the top of World Cup qualifying Group J in style in Flick s first home game in charge on Sunday.

Gnabry scored twice in the first 15 minutes before goals from Marco Reus and Timo Werner put the game beyond all doubt by half-time.

Jonas Hofmann and debutant Karim Adeyemi rounded off a rout that thrilled head coach Flick, who was quick to urge his side to stay focused ahead of Wednesday s clash with Iceland.

I liked this game but on Wednesday we still have a game in Iceland, so the team can be happy with their performance but we have to stay focused, Flick told RTL.

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Frenkie de Jong always wanted to stay at Barcelona  despite heavy interest from Manchester United during the transfer window.

Netherlands international De Jong was the subject of a long-running saga, with the midfielder s former Ajax boss Erik ten Hag reportedly desperate to build his new-look United side around him. 

A move looked likely after it was suggested De Jong was owed €17million in deferred wages and had been asked to sign a new contract with a salary reduction of around 40 per cent.

The switch never materialised, though, with United instead signing Casemiro from Real Madrid in a bid to strengthen their midfield.

 This was Barça s starting eleven at the Reale Arena for matchday two in the league.

It s an historical line-up. Do yo…

Will signing Nemaja Matic prove to be a masterstroke from Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho?

Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho has brought one player in and shipped two players in the January transfer window so far, but the moves are being questioned by some.

Serbian international midfielder Nemanja Matic has returned to the club from Benfica in a deal worth a reported fee of £20million.

Belgium winger Kevin De Bruyne has joined Bundesliga club Wolfsburg in a deal worth £16million, while left-back Ryan Bertrand has joined Aston Villa on-loan for the rest of the season.

Returned

Re-signing Matic was a strange one for some though.

The 25-year-old left Stamford Bridge in 2011 in search of first football after failing to establish himself in the Chelsea …

Newly promoted Parma will start the new season on a level footing with the rest of Serie A after a five-point penalty was overturned and replaced with a fine.

The sanction was originally imposed in July by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) after they concluded Parma forward Emanuele Calaio sent suspicious messages to Spezia players last term.

Calaio – who used to play for Spezia – was found to have communicated with former team-mates Filippo De Col and Claudio Terzi ahead of the Serie B fixture between the teams at the end of the 2017-18 season.

In the FIGC s case document, which named both De Col and Terzi, it accused Calaio of trying to get less commitment from the players of Spezia . Parma won the game 2-0 to secure a third successive promotion.

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Lautaro Martinez s stunning volley secured Inter a 1-0 victory over Atletico Madrid in the final match of the International Champions Cup.

Forward Martinez scored the only goal of the game in the 31st minute against the club he nearly joined last year, acrobatically putting away Kwadwo Asamoah s cross-field ball to stun the home side at the Wanda Metropolitano.

The Argentine forward  signed by Inter from Racing Club in July also demonstrated his blossoming partnership with Mauro Icardi early in the first half, sending his compatriot through on goal in the 11th minute.

Jan Oblak rushed from his line to smother Icardi’s chipped attempt on that occasion, but the Atletico goalkeeper could do little to prevent the game s eye-catching winner just after the half…

A confident Jose Mourinho said he will need only two years to win the Champions League with Real Madrid after he was officially unveiled as the Spanish giants new coach on Monday.

Mourinho joined Real on a four-year deal in the wake of leading Inter Milan to an historic treble of successes in Italy s Serie A championship, the Italian Cup and Champions League.

And after replacing Manuel Pellegrini, sacked last week after a barren season having spent 250 million euros on new players including Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka and Xabi Alonso, Mourinho feels he can do far better than the 56-year-old Chilean.

The second year is key, it is the year when you find the right balance. It was during my second year at Chelsea that we reached the Champions League final. It was durin…

Sheffield Wednesday’s appeal to find Lee Gregory’s face mask has been successful with the club confirming it is back in safe hands ahead of their Sky Bet League One play-off final.

Gregory lost his protective mask during the Owls’ celebrations following their stunning fightback against Peterborough at Hillsborough in Thursday’s semi-final.

Darren Moore’s side overcame a 4-0 first-leg deficit to win 5-1 on the night after extra time and 5-3 in a penalty shoot-out, sparking wild scenes of joy among players and fans, who invaded the pitch.

Can you help!?

In the aftermath of our stunning comeback win on Thursday, Lee Gregory’s mask is missing!

The custom-built protective cover was near the dugout. Due to a short turnaround, we cannot repla…

Sporting director Max Eberl says Borussia Monchengladbach have no interest in selling Granit Xhaka to Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich.

The Switzerland midfielder has been linked with a move to the Allianz Arena following Bayern s sale of Bastian Schweinsteiger to Manchester United.

Xhaka who signed a new four-and-a-half-year contract in February has been a regular at Borussia-Park since moving from Basel in 2012 and helped the club to a third-placed finish last term.

And Eberl has warned Bayern off the 22-year-old, telling Bild:  Bayern will not get Xhaka.

Under no circumstances will Granit move to Bayern this summer.

The only ones who will perhaps leave us are Peniel Mlapa and Amin Younes. Granit will stay with us no matter what.

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Basel have confirmed Mohamed Elneny is set to leave the club imminently amid strong links with Arsenal.

The Egypt international has reportedly already undergone a medical at the Premier League leaders, with the switch expected to be announced soon.

Arsene Wenger stressed last week that the deal was not done yet, though, with work permit issues thought to be holding up the transfer.

However, it now appears to be a matter of time before the 23-year-old is an Arsenal player after the Swiss champions revealed Elneny sat out Monday s training session ahead of a potential transfer.

Mohamed Elneny was absent from Monday s training session because he could complete a transfer in the upcoming days, read a statement on Basel s website.

The midfielder …

Italian media are reporting that Spanish powerhouse Atletico Madrid are ready to step up their interest in Juventus player Rodrigo Bentancur.

The 21-year-old Uruguay midfielder joined Serie A champions from Boca Juniors in 2017 but has failed to nail a regular first-team spot. He made 20 league appearances in his maiden season in Italy and only got seven minutes of action in the new campaign thus far.

Atletico Madrid are said to have already approached Juventus this summer with an offer worth €30 million and are expected to return for the Uruguayan in January.

Bentancur will find his first-team opportunities limited with the arrival of Emre Can from Liverpool and is widely expected to push for a move away from Turin.

Juventus are looking to get at leas…