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…

Manchester United forward Robin van Persie has blasted UEFA as cowardly following their decision to stand by referee Cuneyt Cakir.

The Turkish official controversially sent off Nani in the second leg of the Champions League last-16 tie with Real Madrid, a game which Sir Alex Ferguson s men went on to lose, having led at the time of the red card.

That red card was heavily unjustified, van Persie told reporters.

It was not even a yellow card or a free-kick. Nani couldn t do anything about it, he hardly touched (Alvaro) Arbeloa.

The worst thing is that UEFA supports him. That s cowardly, because I really don t understand it.

Why don t they just be honest and say: He hasn t seen it?

I didn t understand before the game that this man woul…

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger will not be replacing Laurent Blanc as France coach.

The Gunners boss was linked as a potential candidate to take over from Blanc after the former Bordeaux coach stepped down following their disappointing Euro 2012 campaign.

There are a lot of names, Wenger told Telefoot.

But me, I will be very busy with Arsenal where my contract still runs for two years.

France improved on their group stage elimination at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa making the quarter-finals, but the in-fighting so prevalent two years ago reared its head once more and disrupted preparations ahead of the loss to Spain.

Among the top names linked to the job are Paul Le Guen and Luis Fernandez, with Marseille coach Didier Deschamps the favour…

Market: Sweden win

Odds: 7/5 @

With a spot in the quarter-finals of this year s European Championships up for grabs on Tuesday night, Sweden will face off against Ukraine at Hampden this week.

Starting with The Swedes, managing to open up this summer s delayed European Championships with an eye-catching 0-0 stalemate against former world champions Spain, the mood in Sweden s camp should be at a real high. Building off of that 1-0 victory against Slovakia on June 18th, The Yellows wrapped up their Group E campaign in some style. Signing off their run with an action-packed 3-2 victory against Poland in Saint Petersburg last week, Head Coach Janne Andersson also saw his side book their knockout spot as Group E winners. Impressing many across the continent and recei…

Stefano Pioli feels Milan had chances to alter the course of their 2-2 draw against Genoa after missing first-half chances but believes his team are conceding too many goals in Serie A.

The Rossoneri drew 2-2 for the second match running as Davide Calabria and Pierre Kalulu each replied to goals from Mattia Destro in an exciting second half that was the antithesis of a lacklustre opening period.

Milan have conceded only 13 times in Serie A this season, tied for the fourth-best record in the league, while their four clean sheets are bettered only by three teams and just four have faced fewer shots on target.

But only one of those clean sheets has come in Milan s past nine Serie A games, conceding two or more in four of these matches, drawing on each occasion.…

All Whites fans will have a taste of the future when New Zealand travel to Seoul for Tuesday s international friendly against Asian Cup runners-up South Korea.

New Zealand coach Anthony Hudson has cast his net far and wide in attempt to build the foundations for the nation s upcoming 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign, with 10 uncapped players included in the latest squad.

Ryan de Vries, Clayton Lewis, Moses Dyer, Sam Burfoot, Adam Mitchell and Sam Brotherton, who all ply their trade in the ASB Premiership a semi-professional league in New Zealand have been included.

Overseas-based quartet Benjamin van den Broek, Themistoklis Tzimopoulos, Stefan Marinovic and Max Crocombe are also in line for debuts.

Along with the debutants, there are eight players in th…

Chelsea midfielder Oriol Romeu has joined Bundesliga side Stuttgart on a season-long loan.

The 22-year-old, who made 16 Premier League appearances in his first season at Chelsea, signed a three-year contract at Stamford Bridge last month.

A knee injury has hampered Romeu s development and he will now look to gain further first-team experience with a side who finished 15th in the German top flight last term.

I look forward to the challenge, to a new country and new people, too, which brings me further in my development, Romeu told Stuttgart s official website.

Stuttgart coach Armin Veh, who returned to the club for a second spell in May, also signed forward Daniel Ginczek and midfielder Adam Hlousek from Nuremberg in June.

Romeu has represented Sp…