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Verdict: France win

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Two sides who endured very different levels of success at this summers World Cup, Didier Deschamp s newly crowned World Champions will look to start where they left off when they travel to the Allianz Arena on Thursday. Up against a Germany side with their confidence at an all-time low, this will be an incredibly tough test for Joachim Löw s side.

Germany

Starting with the hosts, although Germany traveled to Russia as the defending champions, Joachim Löw s side were drastically short of form. Eventually finishing bottom of Group F, Germany s problems were epitomized by their 2-0 loss to South Korea in their final outing. Only managing to pick up three points out of a possible nine, The Whites are endurin…

have been impressed by the form of Sparta Prague s Vyacheslav Karavaev and are considering a £2.5 million bid for the Russian fullback, according to the .

The right-sided defender had a successful first season at Sparta Prague, bagging four goals and 10 assists in 37 appearances across all competitions. Despite only being 22 years of age the fullback has already played in the Europa League and Champions League, as well as being part of the 2013-14 Russian Premier League-winning CSKA Moscow side.

West Brom is the potential destination for the Russian defender and the Baggies would welcome the fresh-faced youngster. Tony Pulis side have a reputation for being a formidable defensive unit, though they are without a win in their last six games in all competitions.

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Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham says he has not decided on his international future as Gareth Southgate prepares to name his latest England squad.

Southgate will reveal his squad for the upcoming Euro 2020 qualifiers against the Czech Republic and Bulgaria on Thursday.

The in-form Abraham would not look out of place after marking his 22nd birthday with an eighth goal of the season in Chelsea s 2-1 victory at Lille in the Champions League.

Abraham won two England caps in a pair of friendlies in November 2017 but remains eligible for a change of allegiance to Nigeria.

It is always a privilege to be wanted by both nations, Abraham told the BBC.

I love both nations and for me I am clearly doing something right for Chelsea.

My time will come…

They were tipped for an embarrassing group-stage exit on home soil but Russia have defied the odds to reach the quarter-finals of the 2018 World Cup.

The lowest ranked team in the showpiece tournament, there were widespread fears Russia would bow out with barely a whimper, having failed to win a match at Euro 2016 and the 2014 World Cup.

Russia also failed to impress during last year s Confederations Cup, sparking serious concerns about the quality of the national team.

We won t have new players tomorrow. This is our main team, then-deputy prime minister and current Russian Football Union president Vitaly Mutko said at the time of the warm-up tournament via R-Sport news agency. Aliens aren t going to fly in to play for Russia.

Тренировка на…

The Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) has been unable to make a final decision on a new date for the postponed Clasico clash originally set for October 26 due to new input from LaLiga.

RFEF confirmed the postponement of the match last Friday following political unrest in Catalonia.

Violent scenes have broken out in Barcelona after nine Catalan political leaders received long prison sentences for their roles in the region s 2017 referendum and subsequent declaration of independence last Monday.

A rally in Barcelona has been called by pro-independence politicians for October 26, ultimately resulting in El Clasico s postponement for security reasons.

RFEF left Barca and Madrid to agree a date between themselves and they mutually accepted to reschedule…

1958. That was the last time that Italy failed to qualify for the World Cup. At least, until Monday evening. Certainly, November 13, 2017 will go down as one of the darkest days in Azzurri history, and the image of a heart-broken Gianluigi Buffon will be long seared in the memories of millions of fans around the world.

Next year s World Cup will truly be interesting, as Italy now join notable sides like Chile and the United States who will not feature. Chile, arguably, were dealt a hard blow from the outset as the difficulty of South America s qualifying system always means the huge likelihood that someone will have to remain at home.  The USMNT s failure to qualify for their first World Cup since 1986 after losing to Trinidad and Tobago was greeted by shock, anger, and dismay…

With the EFL Cup final upon us, focus turns to who can be the biggest difference makers when Chelsea take on Liverpool at Wembley on Sunday.

One player emerging as one of the chief influences for the Merseyside giants is Thiago Alcantara, who made his 50th appearance for the club in Wednesday s 6-0 thrashing of Leeds United.

He was a certified medal collector at Bayern Munich, and Sunday sees the former Barcelona midfielder s first opportunity to win a trophy with Liverpool. It has not all been a bed of roses for him, though.

A statement of intent

Liverpool were champions of England for the first time in three decades after romping to the Premier League title and had won the Champions League a year earlier.

Then in September 2020, the club announ…

Pep Guardiola has extended his contract at Manchester City until June 2023, the Premier League club have confirmed.

Guardiola s deal had been due to expire at the end of the season, but City announced on Thursday he had agreed to prolong his stay at the Etihad Stadium for another two years.

Since replacing Manuel Pellegrini in 2016, the Catalan has led the club to a pair of Premier League triumphs, the second coming in 2018-19 as part of a clean sweep of domestic trophies – a feat not previously achieved in England.

Pep s contract extension is the natural next step in a journey which has evolved over many years,  said City chairman Khaldoon Mubarak. 

It is a product of the mutual trust and respect that exists between him and the entire club.