Son willing to risk health to play at World Cup after training in protective mask

Italy s minister for sport Vincenzo Spadafora is hoping to confirm a May 4 date for the return to Serie A training as soon as possible.

Serie A was suspended indefinitely in March, after some matches were played behind closed doors, due to the coronavirus pandemic, which has claimed more than 145,500 lives globally.

The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) has already stated that the campaign will not resume until the health and safety of all concerned can be guaranteed.

The Italian government has extended its current strict restrictions on movement and outdoor activities until May 3, although reports suggest some clubs are keen to return to training at that time, resume playing by the end of the same month and conclude 2019-20 in July.

On a possibility of …

Next Generation is a series focusing on the young players tipped to establish themselves as the elite in the 2020s.

Every parent thinks they know what s best for their child and that proved to be a key component of Dominik Szoboszlai s development into the talented 19-year-old Hungarian midfielder who is expected to go on big things.

Zsolt Szoboszlai, himself a footballer once, was his son s coach at Videoton until he was dismissed for refusing to bump a child up to a more advanced group, as their parent requested.

But by then, Zsolt had already acquired a strong grounding in youth coaching and development, honing specific philosophies along the way that emphasised ball work.

He and the fathers of two other young players formed their own clu…

On target

La Liga

Barcelona remain two points clear at the top in Spain but Real Madrid are beginning to look more like the real deal and as though they may be able to mount a serious challenge to their old rivals.

With Barcelona not in action Real Madrid took full advantage of their game in hand by hammering Real Zaragoza 6-0 at the Bernabeu. Two from Higuain and two from Van der Vaart gave Real a 4-0 half-time lead and Ronaldo and Benzema added second-half goals to complete the rout.

Sevilla and Valencia both lost ground and left the title looking like a two horse race. Valencia were held to a goalless draw at Deportivo and Sevilla surprisingly went down 2-1 at home to Getafe. A second-half consolation from Negredo was not even that.

Serie A

Inter ar…

Manchester United s parent company s debts have topped 700 million pounds, accounts filed on Wednesday revealed.

Red Football Joint Venture Ltd, the company owned by United s American owners the Glazer family, had total debts of 716.5 million pounds (1.17 billion dollars) at the end of June 2009, up from 699 million pounds a year earlier.

The figures will intensify mounting concern among the club s supporters that the cost of servicing United s debt is acting as a brake on investment in players.

Almost one third of the debt is in the form of payment in kind loans from hedge funds which have to be repaid at a 14.25 percent rate of interest.

The amount of Red Football s debt in this form increased from 175 million pounds to 202 million in the 12 months to …

Legendary goalkeeper Dino Zoff believes teenage sensation Gianluigi Donnarumma is better than him, hailing the AC Milan star s extraordinary talent.

Donnarumma only celebrated his 18th birthday on Saturday but he has already cemented himself as Milan s undisputed number one keeper since debuting in October 2015.

The two-time Italy international, who has featured in all 26 of Milan s Serie A matches this season after making his 60th appearance for the giants in Sunday s 1-0 win at Sassuolo, is seen as the heir to Gianluigi Buffon s throne in the national team and Juventus.

And World Cup winner Zoff regarded as one of the greatest keepers of all time after earning 112 caps for Italy heaped praise on Donnarumma.

I see him even better than myself, Zoff told …

Chelsea attacker Diego Costa has jokingly suggested he would face a hefty suspension if he were to give his opinion on English referees.

High-profile managers such as Pep Guardiola and Jose Mourinho have recently voiced their dismay with some controversial refereeing decisions, with the latter labelling Manchester United the champion of wrong decisions .

Diego Costa has also had his fair share of run-ins with referees, but the Spain international opted to play it safe when asked about officiating in the Premier League.

I am not going to give my opinion on English referees because I would get a four or five-game ban if I did, the prolific striker told Onda Cero when asked about Guardiola and Mourinho s recent comments.

The 28-year-old received four yellow…

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Desperate to bounce back from their Champions League hammering in midweek, Barcelona will welcome Granada to the Nou Camp on Monday night.

Barcelona

Starting with the hosts, while Ronald Koeman might have seen Tuesday s Champions League opener against Bayern Munich as a real tester to see where his squad is at, Barcelona put in a woeful display. Completely outplayed on home soil and eventually hit with a deserved 3-0 drumming against the German heavyweights, the former Holland boss still has a real headache on his hands. Watching six-time Ballon d Or winner Lionel Messi making the move to PSG over the summer, the fading Spanish giants have the feel of a squad really in the midst of a transition. Opening this weekend s La Liga fixture…

FIFA president Gianni Infantino offered his condolences on a dark day after at least 174 people were killed in a stampede at an Indonesian Premier League (Liga 1) match between Arema FC and Persebaya Surabaya.

Police fired tear gas in an attempt to disperse rioting fans on the pitch after hosts Arema were beaten 3-2 at the Kanjuruhan Stadium in Malang on Saturday.

East Java police chief Nico Afinta said people died after being crushed and suffocated as they ran towards the same exit, with Afinta stating that 3,000 of the approximately 40,000 spectators in attendance had invaded the pitch initiating riots .

It was initially reported that about 130 people had lost their lives, but officials later confirmed the death toll had climbed.

The Football Associatio…

Louis van Gaal has encouraged Wesley Sneijder to join Chelsea to improve his chances of making the Netherlands FIFA World Cup squad.

Sneider has only started five of his country s last 10 matches, but has been an ever-present for his club Galatasaray at the start of the new season.

That has helped him work his way back into Van Gaal s Netherlands setup, and he started and scored in their final World Cup qualifying match with Turkey on Tuesday.

However, Van Gaal has hinted the 29-year-old should look to leave the reigning Turkish champions and link up with Jose Mourinho at Chelsea to help him secure a place in his plans for Brazil 2014.

I know Chelsea and Jose Mourinho want Sneijder, he told Vatan. In my opinion, if possible Sneijder should leave Galatasaray and …

Diego Maradona was so relaxed and jovial with friends Friday that one might have mistaken the retired legend for someone other than the much-maligned Argentina World Cup coach.

Everything is OK, Maradona said after a workout at the University of Pretoria, praising players several times and even yelling a profanity in surprised pleasure rather than anger.

Maradona, Argentina s all-time World Cup scoring leader who turns 50 in October, can afford to adopt a mellow attitude after the Albiceleste s 4-1 victory over South Korea on Thursday all but assured his team a last-16 berth.

Barcelona playmaker Lionel Messi, the maestro named 2009 World Player of the Year, set up a hat-trick for Real Madrid striker Gonzalo Higuain to spark the Argentina triumph.

Marado…