Ex-Hearts joint-manager Anatoly Korobochka has claimed his refusal to select former owner Vladimir Romanov for a friendly against match Barcelona led to his sacking at Tynecastle.
Hearts entertained a star-studded Barcelona before a crowd of almost 58,000 at Murrayfield in July 2007, with a Ronaldinho brace and a strike from Giovani dos Santos helping the Catalan giants to run out 3-1 winners.
A bizarre subtext to the match has now emerged namely that controversial Lithuanian tycoon Romanov wished to turn out for Hearts and pit his wits against the likes of Samuel Eto o, Yaya Toure and Andres Iniesta.
Korobochka, who was in charge alongside Stephen Frail, refused this unusual request and believes it was a factor in his January 2008 departure from the dugout on …
Yaya Toure says Lionel Messi would always get his vote for the Ballon d Or ahead of Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo.
Both Messi and current holder Ronaldo have been named on FIFA s 23-man shortlist for the 2015 prize, along with Manchester City midfielder Toure.
While he admits giving two awards every year would make the decision easier, Toure has explained why he thinks his former Barcelona team-mate deserves it every time.
While Cristiano Ronaldo has had another exceptional year, I d always vote for Lionel Messi. Not only because there s a great respect between us from my time at Barca, but also because I think Leo is above the rest, he said to France Football.
In fact, ideally, with these two monsters there, they should give two Ballons d Or ev…
Diego Simeone is grateful for what Kieran Trippier has given to Atletico Madrid as the full-back closes in on a move to Newcastle United.
Trippier is reportedly undergoing a medical with Newcastle on Wednesday after an initial £12million (€14.36m) fee was agreed between the clubs.
The England international joined Atleti from Tottenham in July 2019 and has made 86 appearances for the Spanish side in all competitions.
Across his two and a half seasons in LaLiga, Trippier ranks joint-fourth for assists (10) and fourth for chances created (81) among defenders.
He played a key part in Atletico s title triumph last term and Simeone has wished the 31-year-old well at his next club.
I always look at the positives, Simeone said at a news conference on …
Germany began to click into top gear as they thrashed Slovakia 3-0 in Lille to book a quarter-final with one of their ghosts of Euros past, Spain or Italy.
After being held to a frustrating single-goal victory in their final pool game by a staunch Northern Ireland defence, Germany tore into Group B s third-placed team to assert their standing among the favourites for the trophy.
Joachim Low gambled on Jerome Boateng s fitness and the Bayern Munich man rewarded him with a first international goal to put Germany into an early lead.
Mesut Ozil had a penalty saved shortly afterwards, but Low s other team selection of note, replacing Mario Gotze with Julian Draxler,
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also paid dividends when the Wolfsburg man set up Mario Gomez for the second just before h…
Antonio Conte wants Harry Kane to sign a new deal at Tottenham, but is uncertain if his star striker will do so.
Kane seemed to be close to leaving the club where he has spent his entire career so far in 2021 when Manchester City were trying to sign him, only for Pep Guardiola s side to be reportedly put off by Spurs asking price.
Despite a poor start to last season, Kane has thrived since the arrival of Conte as head coach last November, recording 28 goal involvements (20 goals, eight assists) in 32 Premier League games since the Italian came in.
His two goals against Nottingham Forest on Sunday helped Spurs to a 2-0 win at the City Ground, and rumours have begun about Kane penning a new deal at the club.
However, speaking at a press conference ahead of…
Mats Hummels was surprised by the reaction from Borussia Dortmund supporters to his transfer to fierce rivals Bayen Munich during the close-season.
Hummels became the latest Dortmund player to move to the Allianz Arena for a deal reported to be in the excess of €30million, following in the footsteps of Robert Lewandowski and Mario Gotze.
The defender who originally moved from Bayern to Dortmund in 2008 was criticised by some fans for re-joining the German champions, something he finds hard to understand given his eight-year stay at the club.
It has quickly been made out to be ingratitude, but then what does gratitude mean? Hummels told Kicker.
Does gratitude mean that you have to spend your whole life with this one club? I feel I have always been ful…
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Looking to get their hands on a maiden Champions League crown and complete a history-making treble, Manchester City will meet Inter Milan at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul.
Manchester City
Starting with Manchester City, crowned FA Cup champions at Wembley last weekend as they clinched a 2-1 victory against local rivals Manchester United, Pep Guardiola’s side know that they are just 90 minutes away from making major history. Eventually defending their Premier League title last month and already getting their hands on two pieces of silverware, the Sky Blues are now looking to become the first English club since 1999 to be crowned treble champions. Although the former Barcelona boss might have seen his superstar squad sign off …
Juventus are interested in signing Rodrigo De Paul from Atletico Madrid in the summer of 2023, according to . The report has claimed that the former Serie A and UEFA Champions League winners have had an eye on De Paul even since his time at Udinese and remain keen on securing the services of the Argentina international midfielder.
De Paul has been on the books of Atletico since the summer of 2021 when he joined from Italian club Udinese. The 28-year-old has failed to make a huge impact at the former La Liga winners, who are willing to cash in on him and want to recoup the €35 million they paid for him.
The Argentine star has made four starts and two substitute appearances in La Liga for Atletico so far this season, scoring one goal and providing one assist in the proc…
Liverpool were beaten by Real Madrid in that notoriously controversial 2018 Champions League final, when Sergio Ramos dealt Loris Karius an elbow to the head and injured Mohamed Salah, and went unpunished for either incident.
The Merseysiders took that game personally and came back the following season, winning the trophy while Real left the competition after the round of 16. Real, on the other hand, knocked Liverpool out in the quarterfinals last season.
With all this in mind, the final this year is set to be a real treat, and Salah obviously can t wait.
When they ask me, who we want? I say Real Madrid. It was an easy answer.
Mo Salah admits he wanted to face Real Madrid in the Champions League final
— Football Daily (@footballdaily)
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Kaka is keen to see compatriot Neymar establish himself as the heir to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as he backed Brazil as favourites for the World Cup.
The South American giants head to Qatar in search of their first crown since victory in 2002, when Kaka was part of the squad, following 20 years of European dominance on the world stage.
Brazil are seen as leading contenders at Qatar 2022, alongside arch-rivals Argentina, with Kaka highlighting the fact that it is likely to be Messi and Ronaldo s last tournament.
Neymar, now 30, could have at least one more World Cup appearance in his locker before he hangs up his boots, and Kaka is keen for the Paris Saint-Germain forward to follow Messi and Ronaldo s lead at the pinnacle of the game.
The differe…