Cesc Fabregas has hit back on social media after being accused of swapping Arsenal to become a benchwarmer at Barcelona.

The midfielder, now at Monaco, left Barca for the Gunners as a 16-year-old and quickly established himself as a key first-team player in the Premier League.

The Spain star was even named as club captain at the age of just 21 but chose to return to his boyhood club two years later after winning only one FA Cup during his time in north London.

Fabregas found consistency difficult back at Barca, though, as he competed for midfield spots occupied by Sergio Busquets, Andres Iniesta and Xavi under head coach Pep Guardiola.

It was put to him by a Twitter user that he traded the Arsenal captaincy to sit on the bench at Barcelona , but the play…

Cristiano Ronaldo insists he wants to stay at Real Madrid amid speculation over his future with the Spanish and European champions.

Ronaldo inspired Madrid to glory at home and abroad last season, with the 32-year-old s efforts also leading to him scooping a host of individual awards, including a coveted fifth Ballon d Or to bring him level with Barcelona rival Lionel Messi.

The Portugal icon picked up a less-celebrated gong – Best Player of the Year from Chinese football app Dongqiudi – this week, amid rapidly changed fortunes for Madrid.

Zinedine Zidane s men are 19 points shy of leaders Barca as they languish fourth in LaLiga and face a tough last-16 Champions League tie against Paris Saint-Germain after finishing second in their group to Tottenham.

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Roberto Firmino scored with his first touch and Xherdan Shaqiri netted in stoppage time to ensure Liverpool kept up the pace with Premier League leaders Manchester City by winning 3-1 at Burnley.

The hosts had already seen an Ashley Barnes volley ruled out for offside when Jack Cork gave the Clarets the lead, this time the flag staying down.

Barnes challenged Alisson in the box and the goalkeeper spilled the ball for Cork to tap in, but James Milner found the bottom corner with a fine strike from 25 yards to quickly equalise.

Jurgen Klopp then sent for substitutes Mohamed Salah and Firmino and it changed the game, with the latter scoring the winner less than three minutes after his introduction, staying onside to finish a set-piece struggling Burnley defended b…

Inter have submitted an offer to Tottenham for Denmark midfielder Christian Eriksen, according to the Italian club s sporting director Piero Ausilio.

Eriksen has entered the final six months of his contract at Spurs and been the subject of frequent transfer speculation, with Inter long seen as one of the favourites to land him.

Inter have not been particularly discreet with regards to their interest, as CEO Giuseppe Marotta was spotted with Eriksen s agent, while Ausilio previously suggested he was confident of getting a deal done.

Such tactics have not done down well with Jose Mourinho, who accused his former club of showing a lack of respect – though Inter insisted they have done nothing wrong, reminding Spurs they are fully entitled to open discussions with …

Two of the Premier League s form sides face off on Saturday, as Liverpool welcome Leicester City, along with their former manager Brendan Rodgers, to Anfield.

Jurgen Klopp s side may have narrowly missed out to Manchester City in the title race last season, but already hold a five-point advantage over the defending champions after seven games.

The Reds have won all of their league outings so far, though you expect they will have to be better than they were against Sheffield United last time out if they are to defeat a Leicester side that is going from strength to strength under Rodgers.

Leicester – tipped before the season started as genuine top-six contenders following a strong end to 2018-19 – have won four of their last five matches, with their only defeat…

Sassuolo have completed the signing of Jeremie Boga from Chelsea for an undisclosed fee.

The 21-year-old moves to Serie A after making just one senior appearance for Chelsea since joining the club s academy in 2009.

The midfielder impressed during loan spells with Rennes and Granada but his only outing for his parent club came in the shock 3-2 defeat to Burnley on the opening day of the Premier League last season.

He then joined Championship club Birmingham City, scoring twice in 31 appearances in England s second tier.

Sassuolo, who finished 11th in Serie A in 2017-18, will reportedly pay a fee in the region of €4million for the Ivory Coast international.

Getting ready for the season ahead
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On se prépare pour la saison prochaine  

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Pep Guardiola has made no secret of his love of golf and basketball, so it was perhaps no surprise he made comparisons to all-time greats from both sports when asked about his desire to win the Champions League.

Guardiola will face former club Bayern Munich when his Manchester City side host the Bundesliga champions in the quarter-finals of the Champions League on Tuesday.

Since losing in the last 16 in his first season in charge in 2016-17, City have reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League for six successive seasons.

Yet the trophy continues to elude them, City going closest in the 2021 final when they lost 1-0 to a Chelsea team led by Thomas Tuchel, who was last month appointed by Bayern.

Asked in his pre-match press conference how much he wa…

Pedro Chirivella is set to join Nantes when his contract with Liverpool expires at the end of the month, both clubs have confirmed.

The Spanish midfielder arrived to Merseyside from Valencia s youth setup back in 2013, when he was 16 years old. Having gone through the ranks, he only managed to make 11 first-team appearances for the club, playing mostly for their U-23 side. He has now obviously reached the stage of his career where he needs to be playing regular first-team football, and after loan spells with Go Ahead Eagles, Willem II and Extremadura, it s time for the 23-year-old to move on permanently.

There was some talk about this spring about a possible extension, but manager Jurgen Klopp was always unlikely to promise him any game-time with the reigning Champions …

An emotional Dani Parejo was lost for words after Valencia defeated Barcelona to win the Copa del Rey final on Saturday.

Kevin Gameiro and Rodrigo Moreno put Marcelino s side ahead at the Benito Villamarin and, although Lionel Messi halved the deficit, Valencia held firm to claim a 2-1 victory and lift the trophy.

It is the first piece of silverware for the club since they last won the Copa back in 2008 and brought a remarkable season to a special end in Seville.

Having been 10 points off the top four in LaLiga at the halfway stage of the season, and with pressure mounting on head coach Marcelino, Valencia enjoyed a stirring second half of 2018-19, claiming a top-four finish and reaching the Europa League semi-finals before their triumph over Barca.

Parej…

According to , Lazio are interested in signing Manchester United attacking midfielder Juan Mata in the summer transfer window. Valencia are also interested in securing the services of the Spaniard on a free transfer, but Italian club Lazio are willing to hand the 33-year-old a new deal.

Mata has been on the books of United since 2014 and has been superb for the Red Devils over the years. The Spain international has helped United win the FA Cup, the EFL Cup and the UEFA Europa League.

However, the Spaniard has lost his place in the United starting lineup this season. According to , the 33-year-old has made four starts and three substitute appearances in the Premier League and made three substitute appearances in the Europa League for the Red Devils this campaign.

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