Montpellier boss Rolland Courbis believes his side s 2-1 win over Marseille can inspire a strong second half to the Ligue 1 season.
Goals either side of half-time from Kevin Berigaud and Paul Lasne were enough for Montpellier to claim the three points over the league leaders, who could not find an equaliser despite Billel Omrani s 68th-minute strike giving Marseille late momentum.
The result sees Montpellier move to eighth in the table and ensures they come out of the winter break on a positive note, something Courbis is delighted with after they lost 3-0 to Paris Saint Germain in their final league game of 2014.
It was a good performance at a time when we have been having a difficult run of fixtures, because we finished the year against Paris [Saint-Germain] a…
Italian police have handed a five-year ban from sports events to a supporter who racially abused Mario Balotelli in Brescia s match at Hellas Verona.
The fan has not been named, with Italian media describing him as a 38-year-old from the city of Agrigento.
Widespread reports in Italy said the police commissioner of Verona, Ivana Petricca, imposed the ban after an investigation into the events of November 3, when Balotelli reported hearing monkey chants.
Italy international Balotelli kicked the ball into the stands and threatened to walk off the pitch in the second half of his side s 2-1 defeat at Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi, where he scored a late consolation goal for his team.
The abuse led to Serie A ordering a one-match partial stadium closure for Hel…
Gylfi Sigurdsson insists previous results will count for nothing when Iceland face familiar foes Croatia in a crucial Group D clash on Tuesday.
The nations reached the tournament in Russia by qualifying from the same group, with Iceland topping the table to secure their place at a World Cup for the first time in their history.
They had missed out four years earlier after suffering a two-legged play-off defeat to Croatia, though their last meeting saw Hordur Magnusson grab a 90th-minute winner for Heimir Hallgrimsson s side in June 2017.
Iceland need a similar result in Rostov-on-Don to progress to the knockout rounds alongside Croatia, with Sigurdsson admitting they have nothing to lose if they are to avoid an early exit.
Having opened their campaign…
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has revealed he received threats to his family on social media and called for more to be done to protect those in football from abuse.
Footballers being subjected to vile messages online has become an increasingly prominent issue over recent weeks, with Manchester United s Marcus Rashford and Chelsea s Reece James among those to have been racially abused.
Newcastle United manager Steve Bruce explained he had received death threats via social media and referee Mike Dean has been stood down from Premier League action this weekend after his family were abused.
Speaking ahead of Arsenal s match against Leeds United at Emirates Stadium, Arteta stated he had been placed in a similarly grim position.
I prefer not to read it, but we …
Rangers will play the national anthem ahead of the Champions League clash against Napoli, seemingly defying direction from UEFA.
The passing of Queen Elizabeth II last Thursday has impacted the football schedule, with the weekend s action being called off and a period of silence set to take place before this week s continental matches involving British sides – except in the game between Shakhtar Donetsk and Celtic.
Ahead of the match, Rangers confirmed they would pay respects with an additional tribute, with the national anthem to be played before kick-off in Glasgow.
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will be honoured this evening at Ibrox with a minute s silence, a display created by the Union Bears, and a rendition of the Nation Anthem, Rangers said on Twi…
NAC Breda have agreed a deal to sign defender Henrico Drost.
The 26-year-old is poised to put pen to paper on a two-year contract with the Eredivisie side after agreeing personal terms on Saturday.
Drost moves to the Rat Verlegh Stadion after three years at RKC Waalwijk, where he made 97 appearances, and has expressed his belief that it is now time for a new challenge.
It was not an easy choice to leave to RKC, but I was in need of a new challenge and NAC is a step up, he told the club s official website.
It s a nice club with great supporters, so I can t wait to get started.
Drost began his career with Heerenveen before enjoying loan spells at Excelsior, De Graafschap and VVV Venlo.
He moved to RKC in 2010, helping t…
Reading F.C. striker Yakubu Aiyegbeni has insisted he never closed the door on returning the England when he quit Blackburn Rovers for Chinese Super League side Guangzhou R F in 2012.
The former Nigeria international, who joined Reading via free transfer on 2 February, has scored one goal in four appearances in all competitions for the Royals over the past month.
A win at Bradford City on Saturday would send Reading to the FA Cup semi-finals for the first time since 1927.
I never closed the door to say I m not coming back to England in football you never say never, said Yakubu.
I never thought my Wembley dream was over. I had the chance to come back here so I took it.
England is one of the best places to play footbal…
Premier League outfit Everton are said to be pushing for a double deal with La Liga giants Barcelona.
The Toffees are coming off from a widely disappointing season which saw their impressive transfer activities during the summer of 2017 go to waste. But Liverpool-based club are determined to keep on pushing forward and are keen to bolster their ranks with two high-profile names.
According to the reports coming from The Times, Marco Silva is looking to add Barcelona duo Lucas Digne and Yerry Mina to his roster.
The French defender and would be allowed to change clubs in case of an interesting offer.
Yerry Mina’s stock went through a significant rise following his impressive showing in Russia and the Colombian is hoping to seal a move away from Barcelon…
Jose Mourinho will not worry too much about the race for Champions League qualification and prefers to focus on enjoying moments in the season, such as reaching 100 goals with his very negative Tottenham.
Spurs beat Crystal Palace 4-1 in the Premier League on Sunday to climb to sixth in the table, albeit with seventh-placed West Ham set to play on Monday.
The fourth goal at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Harry Kane s second, was the 100th Tottenham have scored in all competitions this term.
Only European and world champions Bayern Munich (106) have previously passed this mark across Europe s top five leagues in 2020-21.
That achievement was one aspect Mourinho chose to focus on when asked about his side s chances of climbing into the top four, occupied by Man…
I used to be a really big fan of Italian football and Serie A. My love for the Italian game was soured by the scandal and corruption which appears to be rift within the Italian game .
Dropping standards
However it wasn t so much the fact that the players or clubs were doing wrong. Its the fact that the standard and reputation of Serie A dropped dramatically when the likes of Juventus and AC Milan were punished for their part in scandals.
Inter dominance
Inter are completely dominate in the league and are a cut above the other clubs in player quality. Although I m a big Inter fan and have been since I was 10, it almost gets boring watching the Nerazzurri win title after title, almost!
European failings
Unfortunately for me and every other …