Pickford to become England´s record appearance maker at major tournaments

Eddie Howe will target quality rather than quantity as he embarks upon a recruitment mission to equip Newcastle for the Champions League.

The Magpies booked a return to European club football’s biggest stage on Monday evening when a 0-0 draw against Premier League strugglers Leicester handed them the point they needed to be sure of a place in the top four.

That will place fresh demands on a squad which has been boosted by the injection of more than £250million since the club’s Saudi-backed owners took charge in October 2021, but head coach Howe insists there will be no wild spending as he once again looks for astute acquisitions.

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He said: “We’ve …

Gavi is retaining faith in Spain s style of player even if the impressive teenage star knows La Rojo must learn from the mistakes made against Japan when they face Morocco in the last 16 of the World Cup.

Spain were on course to top Group E when Alvaro Morata headed an early opener on Wednesday, but goals from Ritsu Doan and Ao Tanaka helped the Samurai Blue leapfrog their opponents in stunning fashion.

For three incredible minutes, Spain even looked set to join Germany in making an early exit as Costa Rica briefly occupied second place.

Spain ultimately survived despite seeing their seven-match unbeaten run (excluding shoot-outs) at the World Cup halted, and Gavi says Tuesday s game represents a chance to right some wrongs.

The match against Japan has t…

As for the visitors, while Liverpool might hold an unbeaten run across all domestic competitions and holding a 10 point buffer at the top of the Premier League, it is no surprise that the Reds are expected to suffer their first defeat in midweek. With Head Coach Jurgen Klopp taking all of his first-team squad out to the Club World Cup in Qatar, Under-23s coach Neil Critchley will take charge at Villa Park of a team filled with debutants. With not a recognizable face in Tuesday s matchday squad, the Reds youth outfit have also continued to show some worrying inconsistencies in their Premier League 2 League One campaign. Including being hit with a 4-0 hammering against Tottenham s youth side earlier in the month, Critchley s men have failed to win any of their last three domestic matchups…

France set up a World Cup final against Argentina after goals from Theo Hernandez and Randal Kolo Muani secured a 2-0 win over Morocco on Wednesday.

Didier Deschamps side became the first defending champions since Brazil in 1998 to return to the final at the next edition with another efficient performance at Al Bayt Stadium.

Hernandez struck as France raced into a fifth-minute lead against Africa s first World Cup semi-finalists, although Morocco were in the ascendancy for large parts.

That pressure brought no reward, and substitute Kolo Muani s 79th-minute second ensured France s bid to become just the third side to retain their global crown continued into Sunday s final against Argentina.

THEO

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— Equipe de France (@equipedefr…

Brendan Rodgers is not surprised by Kilmarnock’s flying start to the season as he prepares to renew rivalries with the manager who posed him the biggest challenge during his first spell as Celtic manager.

Former Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes has had the chance to reshape his squad ahead of his second full season in charge at Rugby Park.

McInnes’ Aberdeen side finished as runners-up to Celtic in both of their title-winning campaigns under Rodgers during his first spell in charge, and in three of the five cup finals he won.

Rodgers was therefore not fazed as Killie started their cinch Premiership term with a win over Rangers and a draw at Hearts.

“It doesn’t surprise me,” he said. “Obviously he did a fantastic job at Aberdeen and when I was up …

Luis Enrique has no doubts about the quality of his Spain team but accepts their Nations League final opponents France have the best collection of individuals in international football.

Spain defeated European champions Italy in their semi-final on Wednesday, ending the Azzurri s world-record 37 match unbeaten run in the process.

World champions France await in the finale, with Didier Deschamps men having come from 2-0 down to beat Belgium 3-2, which was the first time they had reversed a two-goal deficit since May 2012.

Spain s starting XI last time out was the youngest (average age of 26.8 years) of the four teams involved in the Nations League semis, and prior to their win over Italy, Luis Enrique had the impression they were most people s outside bets for the…

Arsenal kept their hopes of winning a famous double on track with a fiery 2-2 draw in the first leg of their Europa League last-16 tie at Sporting CP on Thursday.

The Gunners took the lead, went behind and fought back to ensure it ended all square at Estadio Jose Alvalade in a four-goal encounter high on drama.

First-half headers from William Saliba and Goncalo Inacio left the two sides on level terms at the break, before Paulinho s tap-in had pushed Ruben Amorim s men in front.

But a Hidemasa Morita own goal just beyond the hour mark ensured Mikel Arteta s Premier League leaders will head into next week s second leg level with the Portuguese side.

Honours even in the first leg

Back to Emirates Stadium next week

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