Balotelli out of Italy squad as Giovinco returns

Algeria have parted ways with head coach Rabah Madjer following a run of four successive friendly defeats.

Madjer who won the European Cup with Porto during his playing career was appointed to the role for a fourth time in October 2017.

His latest reign started promisingly, including a draw with Nigeria and victory over Central African Republic, albeit the latter result is best remembered for Madjer s astonishing outburst at a member of the media in the post-game news conference.

However, the African nation have lost against World Cup qualifiers Iran, Portugal and Saudi Arabia in 2018, as well as a surprising 3-2 reverse to Cape Verde.

A short statement on the Algerian Football Federation s website confirmed the decision was unanimously taken to sa…

Verdict: Swansea win and both teams to score

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It’s the return of the Premier League this weekend as Swansea host Newcastle at the Liberty Stadium. Both sides will be looking to build on their first league win picked up before the international break.

Swansea

Having been installed as pre-season relegation candidates, Swansea have made a pretty decent start to the Premier League. A 2-0 away win last time out to Crystal Palace and a 0-0 draw at St Mary’s mean the Swans are on a respectable four points from three games. It had seemed bleak just a couple of weeks ago when star player Gylfi Sigurdsson and Fernando Llorente left the club but some surprising signings in the transfer window has raised belief that it could be a successf…

David de Gea levelled a Premier League record by making 14 saves as Manchester United won 3-1 at Arsenal on Saturday.

The Spain international was in inspirational form as a Jesse Lingard brace saw United narrow the gap to five points behind league leaders and rivals Manchester City ahead of next weekend s derby at Old Trafford.

De Gea reacted superbly to stop Romelu Lukaku turning into his own goal in stoppage time at the end of the first half, but even more brilliance was to come after the interval with a sensational double save.

United s goalkeeper got down sharply to his right to keep out an Alexandre Lacazette snapshot and immediately leapt up and used his right boot to block the rebound from Alexis Sanchez, who could not believe he had failed to score.

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Germany left-back Marvin Plattenhardt says he feels at home with Hertha Berlin amid speculation he could move to the Premier League.

The defender, reported to be valued by Hertha at €25million, has been linked with clubs including Everton, Leicester City, Fulham and Bournemouth.

But the 26-year-old says he will not be pushing for a move from Bundesliga side Hertha, who he joined four years ago.

My agent hasn t come to me with any sort of opportunity and I am in regular communication with [sporting director] Michael Preetz, Plattenhardt told Hertha s official website.

I have a good relationship with him and it s easy for us to talk about a lot of things, including things away from football.

Neither side is pursuing anything with any other club…

Pep Guardiola acknowledged Joe Hart s status as a Manchester City legend before confirming the deal to bring in Claudio Bravo and seemingly end the England goalkeeper s career at the Etihad Stadium was close to completion.

Hart collected a clean sheet on his first appearance of the season as City progressed to the Champions League group stage with a forgettable 1-0 win over Steaua Bucharest Fabian Delph s 56th-minute header compounding the damage Laurentiu Reghecampf s side suffered in a chastening 5-0 first-leg reverse.

City s longest-serving player after joining the club in 2006, Hart was warmly welcomed on to the field as captain before the home faithful sung in protest against his seemingly inevitable departure, having fallen behind Willy Caballero in the pecking ord…

Stephen Pagliuca has pledged to keep Chelsea out of any new plans for a European Super League should his bid for the club prove to be a success.

Pagliuca is one of the interested parties in buying Chelsea, with the club up for sale after Roman Abramovich was sanctioned following Russia s invasion of Ukraine.

On Monday, it was reported that NBA chairman Larry Tanenbaum and Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin had agreed to back Pagliuca s bid, which is one of four proposals to have made a final shortlist, with the deadline for final offers to be made set for April 14.

Pagliuca had not previously commented publicly on his move to purchase the club but has now outlined his intentions for Chelsea in a statement released to Sky News.

High up in his statement, P…

With Barcelona and Real Madrid keen to strengthen their defences, one Inter star is attracting interest.

Milan Skriniar is reportedly wanted by LaLiga champions Barca and Spanish rivals Madrid.

Will Inter be able to retain the centre-back?

TOP STORY – SKRINIAR WANTED BY LALIGA GIANTS

Barcelona and Real Madrid have set their sights on Inter defender Skriniar, according to Corriere dello Sport.

Skriniar – contracted to Inter until June 2023 – has established himself as one of the world s best defenders since moving to Milan from Sampdoria in 2017.

The likes of Manchester City and Manchester United have also been linked to the 24-year-old Slovakia international.

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River Plate head coach Marcelo Gallardo told supporters the club s Copa Libertadores triumph over Boca Juniors will live forever in our hearts .

Following a second leg of the final that was twice postponed after a group of River fans attacked the Boca team bus on its way to El Monumental and belatedly rescheduled and relocated to Madrid, Gallardo s men sealed a 5-3 aggregate triumph in extra time at the Santiago Bernabeu.

That meant a foray into the Club World Cup and an embarrassing penalty shootout defeat to Al Ain in the semi-finals.

River signed off with a 4-0 thrashing of Kashima Antlers in the third-place match but, speaking at a homecoming presentation at their packed stadium in Buenos Aires, Gallardo was well aware his team s efforts in the UAE will not …

Manchester United winger Antony will return to training and be available for selection as he continues to co-operate with police inquiries into allegations of violence towards women.

The Brazil international was given a leave of absence on September 10, but returned to England earlier this week and attended a voluntary interview with Greater Manchester Police on Thursday, having always strongly denied the accusations.

United have confirmed that the 23-year-old will rejoin training with a view to returning to Erik ten Hag’s side, but he will not involved in Saturday’s Premier League clash with Crystal Palace.

A club statement read: “Since allegations were first made in June, Antony has co-operated with police inquiries in both Brazil and the UK, and he conti…

Juventus have reached an agreement with Brazilian side Santos over the transfer of Kaio Jorge, according to . Santos will receive €1.5 million right away, and another €1.5m a year from now providing Juventus don t fail to qualify for the Champions League at the end of the upcoming season. On top of that, there is a bonus of €1m in the agreement which relates to a number of appearances, and Santos will have priority over other clubs in case of a loan move.

Kaio Jorge is a 19-year-old striker, widely considered as an extremely talented player with a great future ahead of him. He is a product of the academy at Santos, and he broke into the first-team squad in January 2019. He has so far appeared in 42 matches in the Brazilian Serie A, scoring five times and producing three a…