Tomas Soucek struck late on yet again as West Ham secured their passage into the knock-out stages of the Europa League despite a Serbian snooze-fest against Backa Topola.
The Czech midfielder has now scored in his last five matches for club and country after an 89th-minute volley earned a scratchy 1-0 win.
Now they need to finish the job against Freiburg at the London Stadium in a fortnight to ensure they top the group and avoid a two-legged play-off in February.
SUPER TOMÁŠ SOUČEK
— West Ham United (@WestHam)
Around 320 hardy West Ham fans made the 2,000-mile journey out to the Balkans, including a 100-mile trek up the motorway from Belgrade to the TSC Arena.
Many of them had got their wish, in the absence of injured forwards Jarro…
Turin-based newspaper that Juventus are weighing up move for Lazio star Lucas Biglia.
The Bianconeri recently added Tomas Rincon to their ranks, but they are, nonetheless, in the market for central midfielders and the Argentina international is one of the players they are looking at.
With Biglia’s contract with Lazio due to expire in June 2018, there is a good chance he will have left the club before the start of the new season.
His agents have been in talks with the Biancocelesti for quite some time, but an agreement does not appear on the horizon.
And while Inter Milan have long been keen on Biglia, Juventus have now joined the chase as well, and they are closely monitoring the situation at Stadio Olimpico.
Lucas Biglia has been one of Lazio…
Best Odds: 8/11
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Looking to open the 2023/24 Premier League campaign with an early statement in north London, Arsenal will welcome Nottingham Forest to the Emirates on Saturday lunchtime.
Arsenal
Starting with the hosts, missing out on what was billed as a golden chance to get their hands on a first Premier League crown since 2004 last season, Arsenal will be desperate to mount another genuine title charge this time around. While the Gunners might have eventually fallen short in their bid to dethrone Manchester City, Mikel Arteta’s young squad should taken a string of positives away from their domestic romp. Cruising their way to a lucrative Champions League return and really breaking the bank this summer, Arsenal will be confident of making an earl…
South Africa claimed their maiden Women s Africa Cup of Nations crown with a 2-1 win over tournament hosts Morocco in Saturday s final.
Hildah Magaia scored twice from close range in the space of eight second-half minutes in Rabat, before Rosella Ayane pulled one back in the 80th minute.
South Africa had finished runners-up on five previous occasions, including the most recent edition in 2018, but they saw out the victory to lift the trophy in front of 52,000 spectators.
First-time finalists Morocco will join South Africa in next year s Women s World Cup, along with beaten semi-finalists Nigeria and Zambia.
…
Borussia Dortmund defender Neven Subotic looks set to join Ligue 1 side Saint Etienne during the January transfer market.
The Serbia international joined German giants in 2008 from Mainz and went on to establish him as a valuable first-team member and a loveable figure on the terraces.
Subotic formed an impenetrable defensive partnership with Matts Hummels in 2011 and 2012 but injuries led to him falling down the pecking order and losing his place in the team under Thomas Tuchel and Peter Bosz.
The 29-year-old defender spent a loan spell away at FC Koln last season but now looks set to leave his club on a permanent basis.
is reporting that Neven Subotic has been given a green light by Borussia Dortmund to open negotiations with Saint Etienne over a Janu…
Paris St Germain’s teenage sensation Warren Zaire-Emery is set for a swift return to action – less than three weeks after suffering an injury playing for France.
The 17-year-old midfielder was initially expected to be sidelined for the remainder of 2023 due to a sprained ankle on his international debut – a 14-0 win over Gibraltar – on November 20.
But PSG boss Luis Enrique confirmed Zaire-Emery is in contention to feature in Saturday evening’s Ligue 1 match against Nantes.
Luis Enrique: It s important for us to play well
— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English)
“Warren Zaire-Emery is doing well,” the head coach told a press conference.
“He trained well. He is available. It is fantastic news for the players, for the team.…
Newcastle United are interested in signing Tanguy Ndombele from Premier League rivals Tottenham Hotspur in the summer transfer window, according to . The report in the French news outlet has claimed that Newcastle are in pole position for the France international midfielder, with Villarreal also keen on him.
Ndombele has been on the books of Tottenham since 2019 when he joined from Lyon. The midfielder has failed to play consistently well for the North London club and was sent out on loan back to his former club Lyon in January 2022 until the end of last season.
So far in his Premier League career, Ndombele has scored six goals and created seven big chances in 63 appearances in the Premier League. The France international made seven starts and four substitute appearance…
Jan Vertonghen believes FA Cup glory would be the catalyst for a period of sustained success at Tottenham.
Although Mauricio Pochettino has been hailed for the progress Spurs have made in four years under his leadership, silverware continues to elude the club.
Vertonghen was one of three Tottenham players included in the PFA Premier League Team of the Year on Wednesday, along with striker Harry Kane and Denmark international Christian Eriksen.
And ahead of Saturday s FA Cup semi-final against Manchester United, Vertonghen predicted one trophy would soon be followed by more if Spurs win a tournament for the first time since the EFL Cup in 2008.
Everyone at the club is looking forward to games like Saturday and being in finals, Vertonghen said.
I …
Market: Werder Bremen draw no bet
Odds: 19/20 @
Looking to extend on their bright start to the new Bundesliga campaign, Werder Bremen will travel to Hesse on Sunday afternoon when they meet Darmstadt.
Starting with the hosts, while Darmstadt might have gained plenty of plaudits last season as they clinched an automatic Bundesliga return, the Lilies have struggled to find any kind of top-flight stability this time around. Suffering a real collapse away at Stuttgart last weekend as they slumped to a routine 3-1 drumming, Torsten Lieberknecht s men are tipped as a leading relegation contender this year. Heading into September’s international break with another worrying performance as they slipped to a 4-1 defeat at the hands of a high-flying Bayer Leverkusen, the…
Prediction: Bayern Munich to win 5-0
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VfB Stuttgart and Bayern Munich will face each other in the Bundesliga this coming weekend. The match between Die Roten and Die Bayern will be held at the Mercedes-Benz Arena and is scheduled to kick off at 5:30pm UK time on Saturday.
VfB Stuttgart
VfB Stuttgart are having a terrible season and could get relegated from the Bundesliga. Die Roten finished as high as ninth in the league table back in the 2020-21 season, but during the 2021-22 campaign, they slipped down to 16th. And now there is a distinct possibility that they will go down to 2. Bundesliga.
Bruno Labbadia’s side are 15th in the Bundesliga table at the moment with 19 points from 22 matches. VfB Stuttgart are level on …