Barcelona work hard in pre-season as they await Lionel Messi renewal (Video)

Gonzalo Higuain admits he would like to stay at Chelsea beyond the 2018-19 season.

The 31-year-old has scored three goals in 12 appearances in all competitions since joining from Juventus on loan in January.

Chelsea have the option to extend the loan by a further 12 months for a fee of €18million, and the striker is now eager to finish the campaign as well as possible in order to earn the chance to stay at Stamford Bridge.

I m happy here, he told Chelsea s official website. It s always nice to try a new league and it s my first taste of the Premier League.

Obviously, it s a period where I m adapting, but I m hoping that, although I ve only got a short time, I can finish well. The best thing we can do is qualify for the Champions League and hopefully …

Juventus defender Andrea Barzagli has announced he plans to retire at the end of the season.

The former Italy international turns 38 next month and has decided to call time on a career that will soon take in a eighth Serie A title with the Bianconeri.

Barzagli also won the Bundesliga with Wolfsburg and the 2006 World Cup with his country, having made his name with Chievo and then Palermo.

The centre-back formed part of Juve s famed BBC defence alongside Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci, but he has made just six league appearances this season, prompting Saturday s announcement.

Discussing his future plans, Barzagli told Sky Sport Italia: I ve thought about it a lot. When you re a footballer, you have trouble thinking about the aftermath but because o…

Competition: CarabaoCup

Market: Manchester City to beat Bristol City

Odds:

The cup competitions keep coming in England as the Carabao Cup semi-finals are upon us. The four sides left in the competition will all harbour aspirations of the winning the cup, and with just three games standing between them and a trophy, each side will be dreaming of picking up the first piece of silverware of the season. With this in mind, Manchester City host Bristol City on Tuesday.

Manchester City have been superb this season in the league and they are looking to complete an unlikely quadruple this year. In the league, they have won 20 of their 22 games, drawing the other two, while they have scored 64 times and conceded just 13 goals. They currently have a 15 po…

Atalanta recovered from going a goal down to beat Fiorentina 2-1 at the Stadio Atleti Azzurri d Italia, progressing through to the Coppa Italia final 5-4 on aggregate.

Gian Piero Gasperini s side twice squandered a lead in their 3-3 first-leg draw in February but they showed fighting spirit of their own on Thursday to reach the final for just a fourth time, with Lazio awaiting next month.

Luis Muriel opened the scoring early on for Fiorentina, but they were unable to build on their advantage and saw their winless run stretch to 11 matches across all competitions.

Alejandro Gomez won a penalty for his side, which Josip Ilicic converted, and the former sealed the victory 21 minutes from time thanks in large part to a howler from goalkeeper Alban Lafont.

Se…

​Andrea Ranocchia is keen for Inter to continue making strides under Roberto Mancini when they take on a surging Lazio side on Sunday.

Inter ended a five-match winless streak in Serie A on Monday with a 2-0 win at Chievo, with captain Ranocchia netting the second after Mateo Kovacic had opened the scoring. 

That triumph marked Mancini s first in the league since returning for a second stint in charge at Inter last month and Ranocchia has urged his team-mates to build on that performance when they welcome Lazio to San Siro.

It was important to win at Bentegodi [Chievo s stadium], he told Corriere dello Sport. Now we must not stop against Lazio because continuity is critical.

Mancini is right when he says that it takes a couple of months to learn …

Marseille midfielder Mario Lemina will not link up with Gabon for the African Cup of Nations, despite being named in their squad on Sunday.

Lemina declared on Twitter that there has been no agreement between Gabon and me despite Jorge Costa having earlier named the 21-year-old in his 23-man squad for the continental championships in Equatorial Guinea that start next month.

The midfielder was part of France s side that won the 2013 Under 20 World Cup and has previously declared his interest in catching the eye of senior coach Didier Deschamps rather than playing for the country of his birth.

Lemina has made 12 appearances in Ligue 1 for leaders Marseille this season, starting six matches under coach Marcelo Bielsa, and it looks like he will be ready for club duty …

Aberdeen have decided against entering a B team in a proposed new fifth tier of Scottish football.

Clubs are set to vote on controversial plans to introduce a Conference League between the Scottish Professional Football League and the Lowland and Highland leagues which would include B teams.

Hearts, Celtic and Rangers all have second-string sides in the Lowland League as it stands and Aberdeen were expected to join them in putting themselves forward.

But the Dons have decided the opportunity does not make financial or sporting sense for them.

The Dons revealed that all 42 clubs had been invited to express interest in enrolling B teams, mostly comprised of Scottish under-21 players, alongside two Highland League clubs and four Lowland League sides in the n…

Joe Cole believes England s stars must learn how to play under pressure before they can mount a serious challenge for the World Cup.

Fabio Capello s side have one last chance to fine-tune their preparations for the forthcoming World Cup qualifiers when they face the Czech Republic in a friendly at Wembley on Wednesday.

But Cole is convinced the England coach needs to find a solution to a more deep-rooted problem than who should partner Wayne Rooney and what formation the team should use.

Capello can call on players who are capable of dominating the biggest club matches in Europe eight of his squad started last season s Champions League final but they struggle to reproduce those performances for England.

Cole suspects a fear of failure is the cause of…

Belgium boss Marc Wilmots will be hoping that his teams star players step-up to the plate against Wales on Friday night

These are exciting times for fans of Belgium and their national football team. The Red Devils ‘Golden Generation’ have reached the quarter-finals of Euro 2016 and face surprise package Wales on Friday night.

This game will be a challenge for the group of Belgians arguably considered as the best the country has ever produced.

A highly-rated group of individuals

To say Belgium have a group of highly-rated individuals would be a major understatement. Their squad is so strong that the likes of Everton’s Kevin Mirallas and Tottenham’s Nacer Chadli were considered surplus to requirements, although both endured poor club campaigns last…

Jose Mourinho has backed Henrikh Mkhitaryan to make an immediate impact in the Premier League following his move to Manchester United.

United announced the signing of the Armenia international from Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday for a reported fee of £26.3million.

Mkhitaryan, who has agreed a four-year deal with the option for a further year, registered 23 goals and 26 assists in all competitions in a stunning campaign for Dortmund in 2015-16.

And Mourinho has no doubt he will be able to replicate that form in England s top flight.

Henrikh is a very talented footballer who has been in such prolific form for both his club and his country, the United boss told the club s official website. He is a real team player with great skill, vision and also has a g…