Bitesize Prediction: Darmstadt vs Bayer Leverkusen – 03/02/24

Daley Blind has made a shock move to Bayern Munich after being released by Ajax.

The Netherlands defender had been heavily linked with Royal Antwerp, but he jumped at the chance to join Bundesliga leaders Bayern.

Blind has committed to a six-month contract, with the 32-year-old adding the Bavarian giants to his illustrious list of clubs, having also had a four-year stint at Manchester United that ended in 2018.

We re delighted that Daley is joining our team. Daley is a versatile defender, capable of playing on the left or in the centre. He has great international experience and leadership qualities. I m sure he ll help us, sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic said.

Blind travelled to Germany on Thursday before undergoing a medical with Bayern. He has an …

Spain coach Robert Moreno expects Real Madrid and La Roja captain Sergio Ramos to play until he is 40.

Ramos, 33, has already enjoyed remarkable consistency and longevity at the top, having made his LaLiga debut with Sevilla as a 17-year-old.

He moved to Madrid in 2005 and has established himself as a club great, winning every competition possible since, while he has also been instrumented at international level.

Ramos was a key part of the Spain squads that emerged victorious at the Euros in 2008 and 2012, as well as the 2010 World Cup.

While Gerard Pique – his partner at the back for many years with Spain – has called time on his international career, Ramos could keep going for another seven years, according to Moreno.

 Robert Moreno: Ramos…

Manager Graham Alexander hailed ‘devastating’ Tyreik Wright after his double boosted in-form Bradford’s play-off charge with a 3-0 win at Accrington.

The Bantams opened the scoring after 12 minutes when Andy Cook flicked the ball on for Plymouth loan striker Wright, who fired past Radek Vitek.

It was two after 23 minutes when a Lewis Richards long throw left Wright one-on-one with Vitek and he slotted into the far corner.

Number three came after 38 minutes when the prolific Cook fired home his 16th goal of the season.

The win moved the Bantams to within five points of seventh place with two games in hand.

It is Wright’s second spell at Bradford, following a loan stint in 2022-23, and these were his first goals since returning in January.

Two of the three clubs with the richest owners in the world are keeping an eye on the situation with Inter Milan s Alessandro Bastoni, according to Tuttosport. The talks between the defender and his current club over a new contract don t appear to be going very well, and he will enter the final 12 months of his current deal at the end of the season.

The 23-year-old is a left-footed ball-playing centre-back, standing 6 3 tall, good in the air and packing plenty of pace obviously a player of the sort much appreciated in the modern game. His best football likely still to come, despite the fact that he s won the Serie A title already, along with the Italian Cup and the Super Cup, and he was a part of the Italy squad which were crowned the kings of the continent at Euro 2020.

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Ole Gunnar Solskjaer insisted Paul Pogba was doing everything possible to get fit for Manchester United amid ongoing speculation over his future.

Pogba has not played since September and appears likely to remain on the sidelines when United face Watford at Vicarage Road on Sunday.

The midfielder battled an ankle injury before a poorly timed illness, diagnosed upon his return from brother Florentin s wedding in France, further delayed his comeback.

Solskjaer recently said the rumoured Real Madrid target would not be sold in January and remains confident about his commitment to the club.

All I can say is that Paul is working as hard as he can to get back and you will see him smile again as soon as he s back on the pitch, Solskjaer told reporters.

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Bayern Munich are optimistic they will reach an agreement over a contract extension for David Alaba and that he will ultimately stay with the club for the rest of his career, according to chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge.

Alaba, 28, joined Bayern s academy in 2008 and has since gone on to enjoy a glorious association with Die Roten s senior side, winning a total of nine Bundesliga titles.

Ever since his breakthrough campaign in 2011-12, when he made 30 league appearances, Alaba has rarely struggled to hold down a place in the side.

The recently concluded 2019-20 campaign posed an entirely different challenge, as a defensive injury crisis led to the Austria star featuring as a centre-back.

He took to the task with aplomb, allowing teenage sensation Alphonso…

Andreas Christensen hopes he will soon be able to announce his next club after leaving Chelsea, as the Dane fuelled speculation he will join Barcelona by hailing the Blaugrana as one of Europe s biggest clubs.

Chelsea announced Christensen s departure last week, with the defender having been strongly linked with Barca.

Christensen joined Chelsea from Brondby in 2012 and after a spell on loan with Borussia Monchengladbach, went on to make 161 appearances for the Blues, winning the Europa League, Champions League, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup during his time at Stamford Bridge.

Having played the full 90 minutes during Denmark s 2-0 Nations League win over Austria on Monday, the 26-year-old hopes to announce his next destination shortly, having made his d…

Manchester City impressively overcame the absence of key first-team players due to coronavirus as they eased to a 3-1 victory over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. 

Pep Guardiola s side had their game at Everton postponed earlier this week due to a COVID-19 outbreak at the club, one that left them without six squad members for their first match of 2021. 

But City, who handed a league debut to goalkeeper Zack Steffen, were three up inside 34 minutes thanks to strikes from Ilkay Gundogan, Phil Foden and star of the show Kevin De Bruyne.

Callum Hudson-Odoi scored a late consolation for Chelsea but that was the only disappointment for the visitors, who made it three league wins in a row to move up to fifth in the table, within four points of top spot with a game…

It was a Premier League weekend in which the Premier League seemed to take a back seat, with Sunday s emergence of a European Super League blowing everything else out of the water.

However, Monday s sacking of Jose Mourinho did at least serve to remind us that, yes, Tottenham did play on Friday and were typically flaky, letting a lead slip again even if they did get a leveller to tie with Everton.

Against the same Super League backdrop, Arsenal added more fuel to the burning question of why they re involved in it at all, given they required a 97th-minute equaliser to draw with Fulham, who now look doomed to relegation with Sheffield United.

And a week on from emulating Cristiano Ronaldo, Mason Greenwood levelled a record held by Wayne Rooney.

Using Opta d…

Douglas Costa looks to have played his last match for Juventus – or Bayern Munich for that matter – after agreeing a year-long loan move to Gremio.

The winger is contracted to Juventus through to the end of the 2021-22 sesson but he will spend that time back in his native Brazil, with the club at which he began his career.

Costa, 30, started this season at Juventus but joined another of his former teams, Bayern Munich, on a temporary basis in October and spent the rest of the campaign until now with the Bundesliga giants.

An injury-hit campaign meant Costa was not expected to extend that stay at Bayern, and his loan to the German giants was formally terminated on Friday.

Now the former Brazil international is heading back home, after 11 and a half yea…