Prediction: Marseille vs Atletico Madrid

Manchester City started the defence of their Premier League title with a resounding 5-0 win over West Ham.

Raheem Sterling was in sparkling form, plundering a hat-trick, with Gabriel Jesus and Sergio Aguero also on target in a game that suggests the rest of the league will have their work cut out stopping Pep Guardiola s side marching to a third consecutive title.

Liverpool, who pushed City so close last season, also picked up where they left off, scoring four first-half goals to defeat promoted Norwich City 4-1 at Anfield.

Marcus Rashford scored twice as Manchester United thumped Chelsea 4-0 at Old Trafford, while Harry Kane was at his ruthless best as Tottenham came from behind to see off Aston Villa 3-1.

STERLING TREBLE SETS CITY ON THEIR …

Following almost two years away at Roma, revered sporting director Monchi makes his return to Sevilla on Monday having previously played an inspirational role in transforming the club.

After retiring as Sevilla goalkeeper in 1999, the next year he was hired as the club s new sporting director following relegation to the second tier.

Little did the Sevilla hierarchy at the time know what Monchi s work would go on to achieve, as they swiftly won promotion back to LaLiga and embarked on the most successful period in the club s history.

During Monchi s 17 years in charge, Sevilla won the second division, five Europa League/UEFA Cup titles, the Spanish Supercopa, UEFA Super Cup and two Copa del Rey crowns.

Key to Sevilla s success was Monchi s knack of signing…

Andy Robertson bemoaned Liverpool s capitulation in their 3-1 loss at Leicester City and acknowledged his side cannot let their alarming slide continue any longer.

The reigning Premier League champions conceded three times in the space of seven minutes late on in Saturday s clash at the King Power Stadium after Mohamed Salah had opened the scoring.

James Maddison equalised for Leicester with a free-kick and Jamie Vardy profited from Alisson s latest howler to put Leicester in front before Harvey Barnes added a third.

Liverpool s third Premier League loss in a row – the first time that has happened since November 2014 under Brendan Rodgers – leaves them hanging on to fourth place.

And left-back Robertson, who started all three of those defeats, adm…

Big news for all Napoli fans Dries Mertens is staying! The Belgian forward has been one of those players whose future was unknown since the start of the year, as he entered the final six months of his contract. That left the space open for other clubs to swoop in and try to lure Mertens with big salary and a signing-on bonus to make a move, since those clubs would not have to pay transfer fee to Partenopei.

But Napoli have managed to do what they wanted and now Napoli has agreed to sign a new three-year extension with them. This means the 33-year-old will be staying at San Paolo for at least another few years, whilst Chelsea and Inter will have to look elswhere. Those two clubs were the most interested, with Inter also rumoured to have offered Mertens a three-year deal worth 19…

Market: Both teams to score

Odds: 8/11 @

In what looks set to be a fiery FA Cup showdown on Saturday afternoon, Newcastle will travel to bitter local rivals Sunderland.

Starting with the hosts, while Sunderland might have suffered play-off heartbreak last season, Sunderland have their sights firmly set on securing another top-six ticket. Opening 2023 with an eye-catching performance at the Stadium of Light as they secured a 2-0 victory against Preston, new boss Michael Beale has seen his squad muster seven points from their previous three Championship appearances. Desperate to claim what would be a famous scalp on Saturday afternoon, the Black Cats will also be excited by their continued success on home soil. On a run that is highlighted by a 1-0 win against pro…

Former Juventus sporting director Fabio Paratici said the Serie A champions have never been close to re-signing Manchester United star Paul Pogba.

Pogba is entering the final year of his United contract and the France international s future remains uncertain amid links with Juventus, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain.

The 28-year-old, who left United for Juve in 2012 before returning to Old Trafford in 2016, has long been linked with the Bianconeri but Paratici played down the speculation.

Paul Pogba back to Juventus? I think it is very difficult, Paratici, who is now managing director of football at Tottenham, told Sky Sport.

There has never been a moment in which we have been close to taking him back.

Pogba was a standout performer at Euro …

Cagliari have hired Eusebio Di Francesco as their new coach after opting to cut short the stay of Walter Zenga.

Former Italy goalkeeper Zenga had been appointed during the coronavirus-enforced suspension, replacing Rolando Maran on a deal until June 30, 2021.

Speaking ahead of Saturday s 3-0 defeat at Milan in the club s final match of the season, Zenga seemed optimistic about his chances of continuing at the helm next term.

But club president Tommaso Giulini was clearly of a differing opinion, with Cagliari confirming on Sunday that Zenga s stay had been terminated despite guiding them to safety.

Di Francesco arrives in his place, signing a two-year deal as he returns to work following an ill-fated spell at Sampdoria last year.

He presided over …

Midfielder Marwan Attia insists Egypt can cope with the “great loss” of Mohamed Salah as they gear up for their Africa Cup of Nations last-16 clash with DR Congo in San Pedro.

Salah is back at Liverpool for treatment on the hamstring injury he picked up in the second group game, with the hope he might be able to rejoin the national team should they reach the latter stages of the tournament.

Egypt squeezed into the knockout round following three successive 2-2 draws and will next face a DR Congo side who are also unbeaten but yet to record a victory.

Get the latest updates from Marwan Attia in the press conference

— Egypt National Team (@EgyptNT_EN)

Attia said at a press conference: “The absence of a Mohamed Salah is a great loss for the …

Ronald Koeman says his decision to name Lionel Messi on the bench for Barcelona s LaLiga clash with Real Betis was down to the forward carrying a knock.

Messi was absent from Barca s starting line-up for the first time during Koeman s 10-game reign yet still managed to have a major say in his side s 5-2 victory at Camp Nou.

The Argentina international had failed to assist a goal or score from open play in six league matches before Saturday s victory.

It was the first time he had been benched for a league game since September 2019, but Koeman insists he was left out purely for fitness reasons.

We talked yesterday, Koeman said to Movistar Plus. Leo came out of the game against Dynamo Kiev with some discomfort and was not in a position to play from the sta…

Kevin De Bruyne s missed penalty proved costly for Manchester City as they played out an engrossing 1-1 draw with Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium. 

Mohamed Salah did convert a 13th-minute spot-kick as the reigning Premier League champions struck the first blow in the heavyweight top-flight tussle, putting them on course to sit top of the table during November s international break. 

City, however, weathered the early storm amid the Manchester downpours before countering impressively through Gabriel Jesus, his sixth goal in his past seven league outings. 

They could have scored again before half-time had the usually reliable De Bruyne not failed to convert from 12 yards out, the Belgian missing the target completely after another penalty wa…