Luis Enrique’s side swept aside Real Sociedad in a 5-2 win at Camp Nou on Thursday as the Catalans sealed their place in the last four COMMENT No mistake from Barcelona. After Real Madrid missed out on a place in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey following a 2-2 draw at Celta Vigo on Wednesday night, the Blaugrana stayed on course for a third straight title by thrashing Real Sociedad at Camp Nou on Thursday. Barca thrash Real Sociedad to reach Copa semis Having broken their Anoeta curse with a 1-0 win in the first leg, Luis Enrique’s side were in a strong position ahead of this second match…

Mauro Icardi has refused to travel with the Inter Milan squad for their Europa League trip to Rapid Vienna after he was stripped of the club captaincy. The Argentine, whose current deal expires in 2021, is in the middle of a contract stand-off with the Serie A club as uncertainty around his future continues to grow. He saw the captaincy taken away from him on Wednesday and was subsequently not included in the squad which travelled to Austria. And Inter boss Luciano Spalletti, who described the decision to strip Icardi of the captaincy as ‘painful’, has now revealed the striker decided to stay at home. “The decision to remove the…

The star of the Euro Under-21 finals has just completed his €18m move to the capital but he is already one of the most controversial players in Spain COMMENT Prodigiously gifted Spain midfielder Dani Ceballos has been attracting attention for some time now, just not always for the right reasons. When both Barcelona and Athletic Club supporters whistled the Spanish national anthem before the 2015 Copa del Rey final at Camp Nou, the Andalusian expressed his hope that a bomb be dropped “on the stands and kill those Catalan and Basque dogs”. Real sign Ceballos from Betis Editors' Picks Sarri vindicated for dropping Kepa as Chelsea & Pedro impress in…

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will aim to make it 11 matches unbeaten as Manchester United boss when they head to Fulham in the Premier League. The Red Devils can go above Chelsea into fourth with a win over Claudio Ranieri’s side – who are seven points from safety. United beat Fulham 4-1 at Old Trafford in December in what proved to be Jose Mourinho’s final win as manager. Solskjaer will be looking to replicate his predecessor and make sure his side continue to move up the table. What time does Fulham vs Man United kick off? Fulham will host United on Saturday, February 9 with kick off set for 12.30pm. The match…

The right-back went down under a Theo Hernandez challenge in the 87th minute and faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines Barcelona have confirmed that Aleix Vidal will miss the remainder of the season with a badly dislocated ankle in the 87th minute of his team’s mauling of Alaves. Suarez & Messi destroy Alaves Luis Enrique’s side were leading 6-0 in the dying stages of the game at Estadio de Mendizorroza when Alaves’s Theo Hernandez slid in on Vidal. Editors' Picks Sarri vindicated for dropping Kepa as Chelsea & Pedro impress in Spurs win Magnificent Mane takes centre stage as league leaders Liverpool put on a five-star show Lukaku sends…

You may think Leicester City manager Claude Puel has bigger fish to fry at the moment but he has still still taken time out to name his combined Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain XI. As the European giants get ready to face-off in the Champions League, he’s picked a team based on form and fitness. These parameters mean there are no places for the injured Neymar and Edison Cavani, while there isn’t even room for legendary shot-stopper Gianluigi Buffon. And it also snubs the rejuvenated Victor Lindelof who has looked in fine fettle at the back for United in recent weeks. So, who did Puel pick when chatting with L’Equipe?…

Gareth Bale snubbed dinner with his Real Madrid team-mates for an early night and spends the majority of his spare time on the golf course, according to Thibaut Courtois. The former Chelsea goalkeeper was critical of Wales international Bale for not adapting to the Madrid lifestyle, and revealed the rest of Real’s squad have nicknamed him ‘the golfer’. “It is very hard to describe Gareth in one word,” Courtois told Belgian newspaper HLN. “I would say he has so much talent, but that it is such a shame that so often that talent is blocked from shining.” He added: “I live like somebody who is born and bred in Madrid. I…

The Premier League leaders were desperate to hold on to the teenage forward but he has moved to Madrid in pursuit of more regular game time Catch me if you can: that should be Brahim Diaz’s tag-line, both on and off the pitch. With a dribbling style compared to Lionel Messi’s, the 19-year-old forward is a slippery eel for opponents but Manchester City can’t keep a hold of him either. Diaz has made the £15 million ($19m) move to Real Madrid in the January window, defying coach Pep Guardiola, who wanted him to pen a new deal at the Etihad. Article continues below Editors' Picks Sarri vindicated for dropping Kepa as Chelsea &…

Ipswich manager Paul Lambert watched the second-half of the East Anglian derby in the stands after being sent off on the stroke of half-time on his return to Norwich. A brawl on the touchline broke out between the players and coaching staff from both sides following Ipswich man Jon Nolan’s late challenge on Norwich right-back Max Aarons. Referee Peter Bankes cautioned Nolan for the tackle but was forced to take further action against the Tractor Boys’ manager, who lost his cool after some angry exchanges with some of Norwich’s backroom staff. A brawl broke out between both sides and Lambert had to be separated from the melee by a police…

Manchester United fans were less than confident after seeing their line-up against Fulham ahead of their Premier League clash at Craven Cottage. Phil Jones, who has recently signed a new contract, and Chris Smalling start for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side. Victor Lindelof has been left out of the squad completely while Eric Bailly is on the substitutes bench. They were not the only players Solskjaer rested, with an important Champions League match against Paris Saint-Germain next week, as Alexis Sanchez, Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard were all rested. United fans took to social media to comment on the team selection and most seemed to understand the resting of players ahead…