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Ernesto Valverde has taken Barcelona training amid widespread reports he will meet with the club s board later on Monday.

Despite his side sitting top of LaLiga, the Barcelona head coach is under intense pressure, scrutiny which increased after last week s 3-2 loss to Atletico Madrid in the Supercopa de Espana semi-final in Saudi Arabia.

Valverde was pictured taking training as reports in Spain suggested he could lose his position depending on the outcome of talks with the Barca hierarchy.

Barca great Andres Iniesta made an appearance at the session shortly after telling reporters the saga around Valverde had become ugly , urging respect for his former boss who he felt had seen his position weakened by the constant speculation.

Workout with available fir…

Andre Onana atoned for an earlier mistake by making two superb late saves to help Ajax edge closer to the Champions League last 16 with a 1-1 draw at Benfica.

A victory would have been enough for the Eredivisie side to guarantee progression from Group E, but Erik ten Hag s men fell behind in the 29th minute when Jonas capitalised on Onana s calamitous error.

But with Jonas spurning a great opportunity to make it two, Benfica were punished midway through the second half when Dusan Tadic forced home from a tight angle.

The hosts rallied, but Onana went from villain to hero when he pulled off a pair of outstanding stoppage-time saves to deny Rafa Silva and Gabriel Pires and secure a point which puts Ajax on the verge of the knockout stages.

Benfica were…

Real Madrid star Gareth Bale hailed 14-time major champion Tiger Woods as the greatest golfer of all-time.

American veteran Woods opened his Players Championship campaign with an even par at TPC Sawgrass on Thursday six shots adrift of a crammed leaderboard which includes world number one Dustin Johnson, Webb Simpson, Alex Noren, Chesson Hadley, Matt Kuchar and Patrick Cantlay.

Woods is back challenging on the PGA Tour after a fourth back surgery, recording top-five finishes at both the Valspar Championship and Arnold Palmer Invitational in March, while he was 32nd at the Masters.

Wales international Bale, a self-professed golf fanatic, particularly praised Woods return to the sport.

Shot 1: Longest drive of the day.
Shot 2: Over the
Shot 3: Right in th…

The Champions League returns on Tuesday with the first legs of the opening pair of quarter-finals and some extremely enticing matches on the schedule.

Juventus host Barcelona in what could well be the tie of the round as the Serie A champions face off against the LaLiga holders in Turin.

Luis Enrique s men recorded one of the greatest football comebacks of all time in the last round against Paris Saint-Germain, so they would believe in their chances of overturning any first leg deficit.

In the other quarter-final on Tuesday, Monaco travel to Borussia Dortmund in a battle between two potential dark horses for the competition, with prolific strikers Radamel Falcao and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang facing off.

Both games promise to be cracking encounters let s t…

Mohamed Elneny has revealed his desire to sign a new Arsenal contract.

The Egyptian midfielder arrived to the Emirates back in 2016, but he has never been a regular part of the starting XI under any of the three managers he has worked with in North London. Looking from the outside, his days at the club seemed numbered when he joined Besiktas on loan in 2019, but the player insists that was never the case for himself.

He returned to the club last summer, and with his 30 appearances in all competitions this season, he has shown he can still be of use to Mikel Arteta as the Spaniard seeks for ways to take the team back to the top of English football.

As quoted by the , the 28-year-old said his loyalty belonged to Arsenal, and if the club were to offer him a new dea…

To be an Englishman in France at the end of June two years ago was a peculiar kind of torture.

An existence with enough head-shaking to induce neck-ache, usually mumbling shambles , dreadful or so, so sorry to anyone asking for an observation.

The questions revolved around two subjects: England 1 Iceland 2, and the United Kingdom’s vote to leave the European Union that had come four days earlier on June 23.

Colleagues from overseas and locals Parisians in my case were fascinated by the hubristic self-sabotage connecting these events that defined the strange, wonderful islands we call home.

3 Roy Hodgson won just three of his 11 games in charge of at the World Cup Euro Finals combined (W3 D5 L3). Resignation.

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe)

A na…

Leicester City manager Nigel Pearson was impressed by his side s defensive resilience during Saturday s important 1-0 win over Aston Villa.

A solid performance saw the Premier League s basement club earn a third clean sheet in four games, while Paul Konchesky s first Premier League goal since September 2009 a brilliant strike from the edge of the penalty area on the stroke of half-time -was enough to seal the win.

Both sides ended the game with 10 men, with Matty James and Ciaran Clark given their marching orders late on, but it did not take the gloss off what was a big win for Pearson s men. 

Speaking to Foxes Player after the match, Pearson insisted the win had been built on the solid defensive foundation laid out by his team, leaving the visitors unable to f…

Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Kevin Trapp has returned to Eintracht Frankfurt on a season-long loan.

Trapp lost his PSG place to Alphonse Areola last term and the signing of Juventus and Italy legend Gianluigi Buffon has further restricted his opportunities.

But the Germany goalkeeper will have the chance to get back on track at Frankfurt, who he left for PSG in 2015.

When I was in Paris, I always liked to recall the great time I had in Frankfurt, Trapp told the club s website. The Europa League season in 2013-2014 was special and of course I would like to experience it again.

I was very happy for Eintracht in May, when they won the DFB-Pokal. For me, it was important to get into an environment in which I feel good and where I can play, I m looking for…

Paulinho has called on Guangzhou Evergrande Taobao to be flexible as he chases a move to Barcelona, claiming he would accept a pay cut to push through a transfer.

The Brazil midfielder revealed Barca had made a bid for him last month, reportedly worth €20million, but the Chinese Super League champions have rejected the offer and are determined to keep hold of their man, whose contact includes a €40m release clause.

With Barca turning to the former Tottenham player as their attempts to sign Marco Verratti from Paris Saint-Germain hit the buffers, Paulinho hopes that his current employers will have a change of heart.

He told Mundo Deportivo: I was a little surprised that Guangzhou had not responded to Barca yet and it came out in the press here that they had re…

Jack Butland is ready to take over as England s number one should Gareth Southgate opt to drop Joe Hart for the final two World Cup qualifiers, says Stoke City boss Mark Hughes.

Hart has been first choice with the national team since their exit at the 2010 World Cup, taking over from Robert Green.

He has featured in all but 12 of England s internationals since then, despite a dip in form that saw him sent on loan to Torino by Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola last season.

The 30-year-old has been loaned out to West Ham for the 2017-18 Premier League campaign, but has come under scrutiny following some questionable performances.

In his six league outings Hart has conceded 13 goals as the Hammers have struggled, Slaven Bilic s side finding themselves in …