Sports

Paris St Germain manager Luis Enrique is hopeful a solution can be found to the club’s ongoing contract dispute with forward Kylian Mbappe.

The France captain’s future is facing uncertainty following links with a move to Real Madrid and reports earlier this week that he has been frozen out of first-team training.

A decision not to sell Mbappe this summer could result in PSG losing him for nothing next year but when asked about his future, Enrique stressed that the club is “bigger” than anyone else.

“It is something that has already happened in the past and there was a positive solution before I was here,” the PSG boss told a press conference.

“I hope and wish that, just like in the past, the same thing will happen again and that the club and…

Felipe Melo s father has hit out at Juventus for not negotiating a price with Galatasaray to allow his son a permanent return to Turkey.

The midfielder failed to settle at Juve in 2009 after joining for a reported fee of 18.5 million euros, but enjoyed a successful spell on loan with the eventual Turkish champions last season, playing 36 matches and scoring 12 goals.

Melo s father has grown increasingly frustrated with the situation and is upset at Juventus for not lowering their demands, which he believes are hampering the chances of a deal being struck.

My son has signed with Galatasaray. The problem is between the two clubs, he said in a report.

They need to come to an agreement.

Gala are keen to sign the player permanently but Juventus ar…

Newcastle manager Alan Pardew has backed his Norwich City counterpart Chris Hughton to bring success to Carrow Road.

The former Tottenham assistant manager Hughton took over at the Magpies following the club s relegation to the Championship at the end of the 2008-09 season, guiding them to an immediate return to the Premier League and impressive victories over Arsenal and a 5-1 thumping of rivals Sunderland.

However, Hughton was surprisingly sacked from Newcastle in December despite holding a mid-table position and Pardew, an initially unpopular replacement, believes the man he succeeded will replicate that form at Norwich.

Hughton will be managing the away side at St James Park for the first time, when they travel to Newcastle for their Premier League clash on …

Outgoing FIFA president Sepp Blatter has defended the alleged disloyal payment made to Michel Platini that has resulted in the pair s suspension from the organisation.

Blatter paid Platini a reported two million Swiss francs in 2011 for work that the Frenchman claims he carried out for FIFA between 1999 and 2002.

The transaction is the subject of a criminal investigation by the Swiss attorney general.

Last week, both men were provisionally suspended for 90 days by FIFA s Ethics Committee and Blatter protested his innocence in an interview with Swiss broadcaster RROTV, his first public appearance since being sanctioned.

It was a contract I had with Michel Platini, a gentleman s agreement that was followed through on, said the 79-year-old, who is due to st…

Southampton manager Ronald Koeman expects a true derby atmosphere when AFC Bournemouth visit St Mary s Stadium on Sunday.

Eddie Howe s side make the short trip across the south coast looking for only their third Premier League win, while the home side have themselves only managed three victories from their first 10 games.

The two sides last met in March 2011, when Southampton won 3-1 in a crucial League One promotion clash, and they have never faced off in a competitive game outside the third tier of English football.

While the rivalry lacks the edge that Saints share with Portsmouth, Koeman believes his players will consider the clash a special one as they aim to close the gap to the top six.

In my opinion it s a derby – but maybe not the biggest one,…

Burnley have completed the signing of Ashley Westwood from Aston Villa in a deal estimated to be worth £5million.

The 26-year-old midfielder returns to the Premier League after signing a contract at Turf Moor that runs until 2020 with an option for an extra year.

Westwood made 161 appearances for Aston Villa, 124 of which came in the top flight, after joining from Crewe Alexandra in 2012.

I m delighted to be here. It s happened fast but I ve been made to feel very welcome and I can t wait to get going, Westwood told the club s official website.

It feels like a proper football club and homely and that s what I like. I like to be appreciated and I think I will definitely get that here. 

Welcome Ashley

— Burnley FC (@BurnleyOfficial)…

Robert Lewandowski expects Arsenal to get few chances away to Bayern Munich in the first leg of their Champions League round-of-16 tie on Wednesday, if the hosts play their natural game.

Arsene Wenger s men have a poor recent record in knockout fixtures against Bayern, bowing out of Europe s elite club competition at the hands of the Allianz Arena team at the same stage in 2012-13 and 2013-14. 

The reigning Bundesliga champions have yet to hit top form in 2017, but Lewandowski is optimistic about his side s chances of eliminating the Gunners.

We need to concentrate on ourselves. If we play our game then Arsenal probably won t get many chances, the Poland international told the club s official website.

But we must play well from back to front. Arsenal h…

If you have not heard the name of Gabigol at some point during 2019, then you are not paying enough attention to football. Or maybe you’re just living under a rock, completely unaware of your surroundings. Either way, every football fan should at the very least know who he is by now.

Currently playing for Flamengo, Gabriel Barbosa Almeida – his full name – has been one of the best players in both the Brazilian Serie A and the 2019 Copa Libertadores, scoring goals for fun and looking like a dominant attacker who is ready to takeover Europe. The numbers speak for themselves and do not merit any sort of analysis. He has 19 goals in the Serie A, seven more in the Copa Libertadores, and two in the Brazilian Cup. He also added seven in 12 Campeonato Carioca appearances.