Daniel Sturridge has never been the same player since Luis Suarez left Liverpool for Barcelona, according to former defender Jamie Carragher.
The England striker started Sunday s 1-1 Premier League draw with Newcastle United but produced a disappointing performance as Jurgen Klopp s side failed to win for the sixth time in their last seven matches in all competitions.
Sturridge has only scored once this season and managed just three league goals in 2016-17, with injury problems having curtailed his impact in the last three seasons.
The 28-year-old scored 22 times in 29 league games in 2013-14 alongside Raheem Sterling and Suarez in a ruthless Liverpool attack, but he has never regained that level of consistency.
And Carragher believes Sturridge has regres…
Rafael Marquez is hoping Mexico can take advantage of the great opportunity ahead of them as they step up preparations for the Copa America Centenario with a friendly versus Paraguay.
Mexico are unbeaten in their last 17 games and will look to build momentum after receiving an invitation to the Copa America for the 10th successive time.
They have reached the final twice in 1993 and 2001 and will be expected to progress from the group stage at the 100th anniversary tournament having been drawn alongside Uruguay, Venezuela and Jamaica in Group C.
And, ahead of Saturday s warm-up with 2011 runners-up Paraguay at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, captain Marquez believes Juan Carlos Osorio s side have their best possible chance of winning the competition for the firs…
Joachim Low believes there must be big changes in Germany after the nation s shock group-stage exit at the World Cup.
The defending champions stunningly finished bottom of Group F after suffering a 2-0 loss to South Korea on Wednesday.
Head coach Low, whose future remains unclear despite signing a new deal until 2022 before the World Cup, said action was needed after Germany s first opening-round exit at the tournament since 1938.
We ve had this situation – when the team was knocked out of the European Championship in 2004 after the group stage, he said.
After that, there were a lot of changes. Over 14 years we got better and better, we were the most consistent team in the world for the last 10 years and we were world champions.
But now, wi…
New Bayern Munich boss Jupp Heynckes insists he has not lost touch with football during four years away from coaching.
The 72-year-old has been appointed as head coach until the end of the season following the sacking of Carlo Ancelotti last Thursday.
Heynckes has been away from the dugout since leaving Bayern at the end of the 2012-13 season, during which he steered the club to their first treble of Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal and Champions League wins.
But the former Real Madrid boss says he has kept up with developments in the European game and is fully prepared for what lies ahead between now and next May.
I ve watched the most recent developments, be they in the top foreign leagues with Real Madrid, Barcelona, Juventus or the Premier League. I ve also bee…
Thibaut Courtois has won the Golden Glove award for the best goalkeeper at the 2018 World Cup.
Belgium goalkeeper Courtois was influential in his side s run to the semi-finals as his country achieved their best finish in the tournament, coming third.
The Chelsea man kept clean sheets against Panama and England twice, while also impressing in a win over Brazil, to edge out finalists Hugo Lloris and Danijel Subasic.
After it was confirmed he had won the award following the final, Courtois posted on Twitter: One of the biggest individual honors you can get as a goalkeeper! So proud of this!
One of the biggest individual honors you can get as a goalkeeper! So proud of this! #1
— Thibaut Courtois (@thibautcourtois)
The prize is given to …
Sevilla have confirmed the imminent arrival of Wissam Ben Yedder from Toulouse for a fee believed to be in the region of €9 million.
The Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan side have already strengthened their attack with Luciano Vietto from Atletico Madrid, with Kevin Gameiro moving in the opposite direction, and they are now set to add Ben Yedder to their ranks.
The 25-year-old will sign a five-year contract with Sevilla upon completion of his medical.
Ben Yedder, nuevo delantero del a falta de pasar las pruebas médicas
— Sevilla Fútbol Club (@SevillaFC)
Ben Yedder joined Toulouse from Alfortville in 2010 and has since developed into an important first-team member at the Ligue 1 side.
He scored 17 goals in 35 Ligue 1 appearances l…
Raheem Sterling will continue to be an influential figure for England despite the fallout from his spat with international team-mate Joe Gomez, says Three Lions left-back Ben Chilwell.
Sterling has been dropped for Thursday s Euro 2020 qualifier against Montenegro after an altercation with Gomez at England s St George s Park training base on Monday.
Manchester City forward Sterling and Liverpool defender Gomez clashed on the field during the Reds 3-1 win over the reigning Premier League champions at Anfield on Sunday and the 24-year-old conceded his emotions got the better of me in a social media post relating to the incident.
Gomez and Sterling both trained with England on Tuesday, the latter remaining with Southgate s squad for Sunday s trip to Kosovo.
Chelsea continued their 100 per cent record in the Premier League under Maurizio Sarri with a 2-0 win over Bournemouth on Saturday.
Second-half strikes from substitute Pedro and Eden Hazard settled a tight contest at Stamford Bridge and made it four victories from four games in 2018-19.
Bournemouth had defended stoutly throughout and could easily have scored themselves before Pedro s shot deflected into the net 18 minutes from time.
Chelsea assumed early control with close to 85 per cent of the possession in the first 20 minutes, but a half-chance for Alvaro Morata that was blocked by Asmir Begovic was the best they could muster.
Bournemouth should have gone ahead half an hour in when Callum Wilson sent the ball over the bar after being picked out in spa…
Cristiano Ronaldo has not signalled that he wants to leave Juventus and will soon join up with his team-mates for pre-season training, according to football director Federico Cherubini.
Portugal international Ronaldo is into the final year of the four-year contract signed when joining from Real Madrid in a €112million (£99.2m) deal.
The 36-year-old has been tipped to leave Turin ahead of the new campaign, with former clubs Manchester United and Real Madrid among those to have been linked, along with Paris Saint-Germain.
Speculation over Ronaldo s future comes amid a period of change at Juve, with Massimiliano Allegri returning as head coach and Cherubini replacing Fabio Paratici, while Maurizio Arrivabene has been named CEO.
However, speaking at a news…
Ronaldo expressed hope that his 10-year-old son Cristiano Jr could follow in his footsteps and become a professional footballer.
But fitness fanatic Ronaldo joked that the youngster might have to adjust his diet to make it at the highest level.
I m hard with him sometimes because he drinks Coca-Cola and Fanta sometimes. I fight with him when he eats chips and fries and everything I don t like it, Ronaldo said.
Even my small kids, when they eat chocolate they always look at me and we have to be strong.
But he has potential. He s a big boy, he s fast and he dribbles well. But this takes a lot of dedication, a lot of hard work.
I won t push for him to be a football player. If you ask me if I want, yes I want but he s going to be whatever he w…