Western Sydney Wanderers confirmed the appointment of Australia assistant Josep Gombau as the club s new head coach.
Gombau takes the helm at the Wanderers as Tony Popovic s full-time replacement after the former Socceroo stunningly left the club in October, appointed coach of Super Lig side Karabukspor.
The Spaniard helped Adelaide United win the FFA Cup in 2014 and left the Reds in July 2015, before being named head coach of Australia s Under-23s and a Socceroos assistant.
Gombau takes charge of a Wanderers squad unbeaten through four A-League games, although three have been draws.
For me, this is an amazing opportunity at one of – if not the biggest – clubs in the Hyundai A-League, he said.
My first game as a coach in Australia was agains…
The Premier League is hotting up at both ends of the table, here we look at the key talking points ahead of the weekend s action.
Saturday
Tottenham v Arsenal
North London rivals Tottenham and Arsenal meet at White Hart Lane on Saturday as both continue their push for a UEFA Champions League berth come the end of the season. Tottenham are just two points behind their near neighbours, who have won their last three Premier League games in a row. An Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain equaliser back in September stretched Arsenal s unbeaten record over Tottenham to four an issue Mauricio Pochettino will be keen to address in his first home derby in the White Hart Lane hot seat.
Key stat: Tottenham are unbeaten in their last six Premier League home matches.
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Best Odds: 5/4
Bookmaker:
Looking to open this year s Premier League campaign with a real flurry at the King Power this weekend, Leicester will host Wolves on Saturday afternoon.
Leicester City
Starting with the hosts, while Leicester might have been left heartbroken to have thrown away a Champions League return at the final hurdle last season, The Foxes picked up what would have been a real morale boost last weekend. Making the trip to Wembley on Saturday evening, Brendan Rodgers side stunned many across England as they snatched a last-gasp 1-0 win against Manchester City as they lifted the Community Shield title in the capital. Adding another piece of silverware to their cabinet after claiming their first FA Cup against European champions Chelsea back in May,…
Tottenham Hotspur are keen to beat Manchester United and Arsenal in the race to sign Lyon forward Alexandre Lacazette, .
The 23 year old is in sublime form this season, with twenty-five goals in just thirty-one appearances in all competitions.
He has spent his whole career so far with the Ligue One outfit, for whom he made his debut in October 2010, though he now looks set for a move abroad with a number of clubs in England vying for his services.
Louis van Gaal and Arsene Wenger are both keen on the France international, though Mauricio Pochettino is keen to win the race for his signature as he looks to ease the pressure on Harry Kane.
The North London club could even look to move on Emmanuel Adebayor and Roberto Soldado in a bid to raise funds, wi…
Juventus set to sign Isla and Asamoah
Juventus are on the verge of completing a double swoop for Udinese stars Mauricio Isla and Kwadwo Asamoah, .
The Bianconeri traditionally do business with the Zebrette in every transfer window and this time is no different.
The Serie A champions opened negotiations to sign Mauricio Isla and Kwadwo Asamoah few weeks ago and Tuttosport claims the agreement was reached yesterday.
The transfer is expected to be announced later today, just like the final terms of the deal taking the two midfielders to Turin.
According to the agreement, Juventus will pay around €15 million for 50% of the rights for the two players, while they will have the option to purchase the remaining rights before the end of next season.
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A late goal from Andre Schurrle saw Borussia Dortmund clinch a 2-2 draw against Real Madrid in Tuesday s Champions League encounter and extend their unbeaten run against the LaLiga side at the Signal Iduna Park to six games.
Madrid appeared to be on their way to their first away win against Dortmund following Raphael Varane s second-half goal, but Schurrle levelled three minutes from time with a superb finish.
Dortmund were high on confidence after winning four games on the trot, including a 6-0 thrashing of Legia Warsaw in their Group F opener, whereas Madrid came off two consecutive domestic draws.
Although the Santiago Bernabeu side were on a 22-game unbeaten run in the Champions League group stages heading into the game, their last defeat did come against Do…
Football Federation Australia (FFA) may have signed the A-League s own death warrant, according to former Newcastle Jets owner Nathan Tinkler, who has threatened to sue after being stripped of his licence.
Tinkler slammed the FFA as selfish , immoral and unethical after they took control of the Jets on Wednesday, and argued the football governing body may target other club owners next.
The 39-year-old threatened to sue the FFA for revoking his A-League franchise licence.
The way it s going, they [the FFA] might have a few more of these licences in their lap in the next couple of months, Tinkler told the Daily Telegraph.
They might have just taken the first step to folding their own competition.
The FFA and the former mining magnate have been ci…
Watford have announced the appointment of former Malaga and Rubin Kazan coach Javi Gracia as Marco Silva s successor on an 18-month contract.
Silva s dismissal was confirmed on Sunday, after Saturday s 2-0 defeat to Leicester City left them with just one win from 11 Premier League outings.
But Watford s decision was based on Everton s pursuit of Silva in November, when the Merseyside club attempted to lure the Portuguese coach away from Vicarage Road.
Watford felt that situation caused a significant deterioration in the their fortunes, a claim supported by the fact that the club have lost seven of the 10 league matches since Sam Allardyce took the reins at Goodison Park.
They have wasted no time in appointing a successor, however, with 47-year-old Spaniar…
Alexis Sanchez continued his fine run of for form by scoring twice in Arsenal s hard-fought 3-1 over a resilient Bournemouth at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
With Premier League leaders Chelsea, Manchester City and Liverpool all winning on Saturday the onus was on the Gunners to respond on home turf.
Arsene Wenger s men did not have it all their own way, though, as Bournemouth devoid of Arsenal-loanee Jack Wilshere put in a good showing in north London.
It was a mistake of their own doing that saw Arsenal take the lead when Sanchez pounced on Steve Cook s error to break the deadlock, but Bournemouth s efforts were rewarded before half-time when Callum Wilson levelled from the penalty spot.
Arsenal produced a marked improvement after the break and affo…
Mauricio Pochettino warned the Tottenham players who wanted off-season moves to refocus or face being dropped.
Spurs endured a close season of uncertainty amid talk over several of their players, with Christian Eriksen, Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen among those spoken about as each entered the final year of their contract.
After all that talk, the Champions League runners-up made a slow start to the season, collecting just five points from their opening four Premier League matches.
Now, Pochettino – whose side host Crystal Palace on Saturday – wants to see his players concentrate, or be prepared to watch from the sidelines.
I think we are all agreed that Tottenham always have more rumours than other clubs, he told UK media.
In one mon…