Valverde backs retiring Xavi for Barca coaching role

Atletico Madrid head coach Diego Simeone is expecting a tough test against Barcelona on Saturday, even if he believes rivals Real Madrid are the better side.

Barca lead LaLiga by five points after just seven games, with champions Madrid trailing Atleti in fifth place.

But Simeone, while praising Barca s work in adapting to the loss of Neymar, still sees Zinedine Zidane s men as the best team in the world.

Barcelona are one of the best teams in the world, but Real Madrid are better now, he told a pre-match news conference.

[Barca] have reinvented themselves after the departure of Neymar. They do not stop wanting to win. They have a winning gene. They do not get tired.

 SQUAD LIST | Check out who called up for .

— Atlético de Madrid…

Amid increasing speculation over the future of Sergio Ramos, former Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon has claimed the defender wants to leave the club for Manchester United.

Spain international Ramos is a reported target for United boss Louis van Gaal, as rumours continue to link goalkeeper David de Gea with a move in the opposite direction to join Real.

And Calderon, president of Real between 2006 and 2009, says Ramos is keen on a switch to Old Trafford.

Calderon told BBC Sport: I know Sergio has told the general manager to listen to offers they get from Manchester United.

He only wants to go to United.

Reports have suggested Ramos is seeking to capitalise on the uncertainty over his future by securing an improved contract at Real.

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Peter Luccin was thrilled with FC Dallas comeback against the Portland Timbers, but still sees plenty of ways they can improve.

Dallas came out on top from a topsy-turvy match in midweek, winning 3-2.

It saw Dallas bounce back from successive defeats, and they sit 11th in the Western Conference ahead of Sunday s clash with Sporting Kansas City, who are six points behind in 13th.

Asked what he liked about his team s performance against the Timbers, Dallas interim boss Luccin said: Resilience, resilience from the team. That was huge.

After the first half, we were very passive with nothing offensively. The only thing about the first half that I liked was the compactness of the team. We were compact, but no one making runs, no one even putting more pressure …

Celtic manager Ronny Deila has confirmed former England striker Carlton Cole is set to train with the Scottish Premiership side with a view to him signing a deal.

The Norwegian boss stressed the 31-year-old free agent was not on trial, but instead getting a feel for the club ahead of a potential move.

Cole spent the last nine seasons with West Ham  eight of which were at Premier League level and played 23 times in the top flight last season.

We will have talks with him and see him in training as well this week, said Deila. We will see if it is something that will happen or not. 

It is not [a trial]. He has been in London his whole life, so he has to see what he is coming to and then we will see if it is something that he likes and we like as well. <…

Goals from Lionel Messi and Sergio Ramos helped Paris Saint-Germain secure a much-needed 2-0 victory against Nice in Ligue 1 on Saturday.

Messi struck 26 minutes in at Allianz Riviera, before he supplied the cross from a corner for Ramos second-half header.

Victory was a first in three games for Christophe Galtier s side after back-to-back defeats, although they were indebted to goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma as much as Messi.

Nice peppered the PSG goal either side of half-time, only to come away empty-handed against their former coach, suffering their first defeat under Didier Digard.

LEO

— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English)

PSG had started the brighter, knowing a victory was required to restore a six-point cushion to second-placed …

Inter Milan defender Benjamin Pavard faces a spell on the sidelines after suffering a dislocated kneecap.

The 27-year-old was forced off in the first half of Inter’s 2-1 Serie A win at Atalanta on Saturday.

“Benjamin Pavard underwent a medical examination at the Humanitas Institute in Rozzano this morning,” the Serie A leaders said in a statement on Monday.

Fitness update on Benjamin Pavard.

— Inter (@Inter_en)

“The tests ascertain that he has suffered a dislocated kneecap.

“The French defender will need to wear a knee brace for 3/4 weeks before starting his rehabilitation process.”

World Cup winner Pavard joined Inter from Bayern Munich at the end of August and has made nine appearances for the Nerazzurri.

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Real Madrid cruised into the knockout stages of the Champions League with a 3-0 win over Braga.

After overcoming an early scare when Alvaro Djalo missed a penalty for the visitors, the 14-time European champions took the lead through Brahim Diaz in the 27th minute and then seized control early in the second half as Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo added to the score line.

A fourth win out of four in Group C, and ninth straight game at home without defeat in the Champions League, saw Real book their place in the last-16 with two games to spare.

With the hosts needing only a point to be sure of progression, Carlo Ancelotti took the opportunity to rest a number of regulars.

Jude Bellingham was on the bench after suffering a blow to the shoulder at the weekend, wh…

Thomas Tuchel is hoping Marco Reus can build on his double against Tottenham when Borussia Dortmund welcome Mainz to Signal Iduna Park in the Bundesliga on Sunday.

Reus was in impressive form as Dortmund dismantled Tottenham in the Europa League on Thursday, securing a 3-0 first-leg advantage in their last-16 tie and extending their unbeaten run in all competitions to 12 matches.

The 26-year-old added to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang s opener by slamming past Hugo Lloris from close range, before adding his second with a composed finish at the end of a brilliant team move.

Injuries have once again blighted Reus season, but Tuchel who coached Mainz from 2009 to 2014 believes his fitness is steadily improving and wants more of the same as Dortmund look to make it 10 …

Barcelona, Manchester City and Bayern Munich were all big winners on matchday one of the Champions League.

However, further tests are to come in their second fixtures, with Bayern heading to Atletico Madrid in a particularly tasty face-off Atleti having beaten the German champions in last season s semi-finals.

Elsewhere, Celtic take on Pep Guardiola and City for the first time, while Rostov make their home debut in Group D.

Using Opta data, we take a look at the best stats ahead of Tuesday s eight group-stage matches.

LUDOGORETS v PSG

This is the first competitive meeting between Ludogorets and PSG.
It’s also the first meeting between a Bulgarian and French club in the Champions League (since 1992/93).
Ludogorets have only recor…

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola confirmed Kalvin Phillips is to undergo shoulder surgery but remains hopeful the midfielder could return to action ahead of England s World Cup campaign.

Phillips, a key member of Gareth Southgate s side that reached the Euro 2020 final on home turf last year, made a £42million move to City from Leeds United during the close season.

But fitness issues have restricted the 26-year-old to only three cameos off the bench for the reigning Premier League champions, with Phillips entirely absent for Saturday s 3-0 win over Wolves.

Now the defensive midfielder, named by England for this month s final pre-World Cup games in the Nations League against Italy and Germany, looks likely to require an operation to deal with a persistent s…