Hurzeler excited by ´excellent´ Kadioglu after Brighton move confirmed

Arjen Robben conceded that joining Bayern Munich initially felt like a step backwards when he left Real Madrid, but feels has enjoyed the best times of his career in Germany.

The Dutch winger endured bad luck with injuries at Madrid and never truly established himself as the key player his ability suggested he might, before getting moved on in 2009.

And fitness problems have also restricted his appearances in Germany, but that has not stopped him from making a significant impression, reaching double figures in goals in six of his eight seasons there before the start of the current campaign.

The 33-year-old has also enjoyed great success in terms of trophies, winning everything on offer with Bayern, including the 2012-13 Champions League, something he was sceptica…

History will be made on Wednesday when Manchester United face Young Boys for the first time.

Jose Mourinho s side will begin their 22nd Champions League campaign against a team who have never before reached the group stage of the competition.

Not a great deal is known in wider Europe about the team from Switzerland s capital and few would give them much of a chance of claiming three points against any of United, Juventus or Valencia in Group H.

It would be unwise for Mourinho s men to underestimate their opponents, though – especially given their record on Swiss soil. Here is what United can expect from their trip to Stade de Suisse.

REPLAY: Fassnachts 2:0 in Sion.

— BSC Young Boys (@BSC_YB)

What s Young Boys record in Europe like…

Liverpool are racing clear at the top of the table and it will surely take a miracle for the Reds not to win their first Premier League title.

Jurgen Klopp s side face old rivals Manchester United on Sunday at Anfield, with the Red Devils the only team to have taken points off Liverpool so far this season.

Unbeaten in 38 Premier League matches, Liverpool are overwhelming favourites, though Ole Gunnar Solskjaer oversaw a 4-0 win over struggling Norwich City on Saturday.

Can United stall Liverpool s procession, or will Klopp s men continue their stroll towards Premier League glory?

104 have accrued 104 points across their last 38 Premier League matches (W33 D5 L0); this is a record total by any team across a 38-match spell in the competition’s history, …

Sergio Romero saved Manchester United from an embarrassing exit in the EFL Cup as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer s side needed penalties to knock out third-tier Rochdale after a 1-1 draw.

Mason Greenwood put United in front in the second half on Wednesday, the teenager scoring for the second week in a row after netting the winner against Astana in the Europa League.

But the League One side stunned Old Trafford with an equaliser scored by 16-year-old Luke Matheson, who was set up by United academy product Ollie Rathbone.

That sent the game to penalties and when Romero kept out Jimmy Keohane s effort, Daniel James was able to convert United s last kick and complete a 5-3 shoot-out victory.

James nets our fifth and final penalty ⁠as advance to the fourth round of t…

Cristiano Ronaldo s move to Juventus opens up the opportunity for the Portugal superstar to win a league title in a third different country.

Having won three Premier League crowns with Manchester United and LaLiga twice with Real Madrid, Juve s dominance of Serie A makes racking up a league-hopping treble look likely.

The achievement would see Ronaldo move alongside the likes of David Beckham (England, Spain, France), Clarence Seedorf (Netherlands, Spain, Italy) and Thierry Henry (France, England, Spain) by enjoying success in a trio of European domestic leagues.

But as illustrious as that list of names may be soon to gain arguably its biggest star if Ronaldo can guide Juve to further glory there are a select group of players who have gone one better.

Her…

Arsenal are really happy with Alexandre Lacazette and contract talks will take place soon, according to manager Mikel Arteta.

Lacazette has just over one year left on his contract and has been regularly tipped as a candidate to leave the Gunners at the end of the season.

Arsenal would need to sell Lacazette then if they were to recoup a meaningful transfer fee for him, but while Arteta refused to rule out that possibility, he was positive about the forward.

Lacazette netted from the penalty spot in the comeback win at Leicester City on Sunday. He has 11 goals in all competitions this season and 59 since he signed from Lyon in 2017.

He s got a contract with us, Arteta said about the 29-year-old striker.

He played really well the other week. It s …

The last derby was a rare off-day for Atletico Madrid – and for Luis Suarez.

On a run of seven wins in a row and two goals conceded, with no LaLiga defeats all season, Diego Simeone s men were second best in a 2-0 defeat last December. As for Suarez, his 73 minutes on the pitch yielded a single, wayward shot.

Still, that result turned out to be an aberration. Three months on, Atleti head into Sunday s game at the Wanda Metropolitano with a five-point lead over Real Madrid and Barca at the top of the table, and with a game in hand. Suarez, meanwhile, has scored 11 of his 16 LaLiga goals this term since that chastening day at Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano.

Suarez s form for Atleti has made a complete mockery of Barca s decision to cast him aside last year, the sugg…

Vincent Kompany has played his final game for Manchester City, with the Premier League champions confirming that their captain is leaving the club.

The 33-year-old played a pivotal role in City winning an unprecedented domestic treble this season, making 24 appearances across all competitions and scoring one goal a stunning long-range strike in the 1-0 win over Leicester City on May 6.

Kompany joined City in 2008, and went on to make 360 appearances for the club, winning the Premier League on four occasions, as well as lifting two FA Cups, four EFL Cups and two Community Shields.

But he has now called time on his City career, with the club announcing on Sunday in the wake of their 6-0 FA Cup final triumph over Watford that the Belgium international will not be si…

Mikel Arteta has told Arsenal it is time to evolve as he looks ahead to what could be a crucial transfer window for the club.

A 2-1 aggregate defeat to Villarreal in the Europa League semi-finals means the Gunners season looks set to end in hugely disappointing fashion.

They are ninth in the Premier League with three games to go and could well fail to qualify for European competition for the first time since they were absent in 1995-96, with their domestic cup challenges having ended in December and January.

Pressure has been mounting on the manager given their apparent lack of progress, and Arteta accepts they must now build on the institutional changes at Emirates Stadium by creating a team capable of competing with the best again.

We have already had …

Stephanie Labbe was the penalty shoot-out hero as Canada took gold in their maiden Olympic final appearance following a 1-1 draw with Sweden.

Stina Blackstenius first-half opener had the Scandinavians ahead but Jessie Fleming restored parity with a spot-kick after half-time when VAR intervened for a foul on Christine Sinclair.

Kadeisha Buchanan proved Canada s last-ditch hero with a clearance off the line to take the game to extra-time before Labbe s two saves secured a 3-2 triumph in the shoot-out.

Kosovare Asllani did the initial work for Sweden s opener, dispossessing Canada midfielder Quinn before rolling to Blackstenius, whose first-time attempt benefited from a slight deflection to find the back of the net.

Sinclair, whose 187 goals for Canada make…