Vanni Sartini hopes a quick turnaround might help the Vancouver Whitecaps halt their skid as they visit their Cascadia Cup rivals, the Seattle Sounders, on the back of two straight losses.
Vancouver sit seventh in the Western Conference with 18 points from 12 games in 2024, though they have slipped down the standings by only taking two points from the last 12 available.
They followed up a 3-0 defeat to Los Angeles FC by going down 1-0 to the Colorado Rapids on Wednesday, playing half of that game with 10 men after Bjorn Utvik s sending-off.
The Whitecaps have little time to stew on that result before Saturday s derby clash, but Sartini hopes that could be a positive thing.
It s really hard when you don t touch the ball at all and are down on the score, …
Heading into this week of Champions League action, which kickstarts the road to Istanbul, one of the most highly anticipated clashes was between the two clubs who contested the 2010 final Inter Milan and Bayern Munich. These two teams help make up the incredible group of death in Group C and while both were hoping to get off to a great start, it was the German giants who managed to get the job done with a comfortable, comprehensive triumph that allowed them to really make a statement on the opening week.
Today, we re going to take a look at a few things we took away from an intriguing night in Italy.
Bayern s dominance
With 21 shot and a real dictation of the pace in the middle of the park, Bayern Munich came across as the champions we all know them to be. They ve mast…
Manchester United will face LaLiga opposition in the Europa League group stage after being drawn to face a Real Sociedad team who have David Silva in their ranks.
Silva is a Manchester City favourite who won four Premier League titles in a 10-year spell at the Etihad Stadium before returning to his native Spain two years ago.
Sociedad finished sixth in LaLiga last season, with United also sixth in the Premier League.
The teams are no strangers to each other, having met in the Europa League last-32 stage in February 2021, when a 4-0 win in Spain paved the way for United to win by that score on aggregate. Silva did not play in the goalless second leg at Old Trafford, with the tie effectively already lost.
United, who won the Europa League in 2017 and went…
Erik ten Hag has been named as the Premier League s Manager of the Month, joining Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford in gaining recognition for the Red Devils September exploits.
Rashford was confirmed as the Player of the Month earlier on Friday, and Ten Hag s win made it an Old Trafford double.
A truncated schedule meant United only played twice in the league this month, but they beat both struggling Leicester City and previously undefeated leaders Arsenal.
United are now on a four-match winning run heading into Sunday s derby against Manchester City – Ten Hag s first since being appointed at the start of the season.
Always a team effort. ||
— Manchester United (@ManUtd)
This is only the second time a United boss has been …
Thiago Motta insists that Federico Chiesa remains a Juventus player for now amid growing uncertainty around his future with the 36-time Serie A champions.
Chiesa, who has made 131 appearances for Juventus, was offered a new deal before the end of last season but is yet to put pen to paper on fresh terms.
The Italian s contract runs out next year with the possibility of Juventus losing him on a free, as the club are eager for the 26-year-old to make a decision.
Chiesa has been of interest to fellow Serie A sides Roma and Napoli, with several Premier League teams also keen to add the Italy international to their ranks.
The Bianconeri are currently preparing for the new season in Germany, but Chiesa not part of Motta s travelling squad.
“He’s…
Head coach John Herdman says Canada are doing everything we can to allow Alphonso Davies to feature in their World Cup opener against Belgium.
Davies has been recovering from a hamstring injury suffered with Bayern Munich earlier this month and jetted out to Qatar later than the rest of the squad, arriving on Friday evening.
The 22-year-old participated in training on Saturday, but it is not clear whether he will be cleared for involvement on Wednesday, when Canada play their first World Cup match since 1986.
Herdman acknowledged players of Davies calibre are necessary against a top-tier team such as Belgium, though he will not rush the left-sided player.
My mission is to make sure he plays at this World Cup, it s a childhood dream for him, Herdman said …
Those who celebrate at this time of year will have barely had time to throw away the wrapping paper and store their strange jumpers back in the wardrobe.
Whether they got what they wanted or not, football fans develop a different kind of lust as January approaches, with transfer season opening for another month.
Some big names are already being linked with possible moves, with the most obvious being free agent Cristiano Ronaldo after his release by Manchester United.
Deals are already being put in place for January 1, with Cody Gakpo confirmed to be on his way to Liverpool from PSV.
Before the chaos of the January transfer window begins, Stats Perform has looked at some players who could be in the middle of a tug of war and end the first month of 2023 at …
Endrick is confident he can help Brazil claim a 10th Copa America title as he prepares for his first international tournament with the Selecao Canarinho.
Brazil kickstart their campaign at the SoFi Stadium in Inglewood on Monday against Costa Rica.
Dorival Junior s side will also face Paraguay and Colombia in Group E, hopeful of going one better this time around having lost to Argentina in the 2021 final.
The 17-year-old, who officially joins Real Madrid next month, has scored three goals in his last four games for Brazil but knows he will have to remain patient for his opportunity at the Copa America.
Only God knows [when I will start], Endrick said. I am very grateful to have Abel [Ferreira] as a coach, he knew when to play me.
Everything …
Steve Clarke insists Scotland will march into next summer’s European Championship with their “heads held high” after qualifying from their group at the weekend.
The Scots reached Euro 2020 – their first major tournament since the 1998 World Cup – through the safety net of the Nations League play-off final win over Serbia on penalties.
Clarke’s men qualified for their second successive Euros on Sunday night when Norway were defeated 1-0 by Spain in Oslo.
…AND WE RE OFF TO GERMANY
…
Former Inter and Italy defender Davide Santon has announced his retirement from playing at the age of 31 due to persistent injury issues.
The full-back had spent the past four seasons with Roma but failed to make a single appearance under Jose Mourinho in the 2021-22 campaign.
Santon was capped eight times by Italy between 2009 and 2013 and was a two-time Scudetto winner with Inter during the first of two spells with the club, either side of a three-season stint with Newcastle United.
Injuries ultimately took their toll on the defender, who announced his playing days are over in an interview with Tuttomercato published on Friday.
| SANTON
The bambino who with us became a man: do you remember Davide s Nerazzurri debut?
— Inter (@Inter_…