Spain end 2012 on top of FIFA rankings

Andres Iniesta has been named Vissel Kobe s new captain as the J1 League club look to get back on track following a poor start to the season.

The former Barcelona midfielder replaces ex-Arsenal forward Lukas Podolski in the role, with the German having stepped down last week amid reports of turmoil behind the scenes.

Kobe are 11th in the table after eight fixtures and have lost their past three games in a row, winning just one of their previous five.

Iniesta, 34, joined the club last year having previously spent his entire career with Barca.

He was captain of the Blaugrana in his final three seasons with the club and wore the armband in the 2015 Champions League final when Barca beat Juventus 3-1 in Berlin to complete a treble.

New Captain/Primer …

Manchester United s poor start to the season continued as they crashed out of the EFL Cup with a penalty shoot-out defeat at home to Derby County.

Paul Pogba watched on from the stands but again found himself as the centre of attention after manager Jose Mourinho confirmed reports which emerged earlier on Tuesday – that the France midfielder had been stripped of United s vice captaincy.

Mourinho insisted there was no problem between the duo but his latest move has been widely viewed as a powerplay to reassert his authority over an ailing squad.

Increasingly, it appears something has to give, but in whom should the Old Trafford hierarchy invest their hopes of future success? The World Cup-winning record signing or the serial trophy winner charged with restoring…

Cristiano Ronaldo has been named in Real Madrid s squad for the UEFA Super Cup against the forward s former club Manchester United in Skopje.

The Champions League winners take on the Europa League holders on Tuesday with the first continental silverware of the campaign up for grabs.

Madrid have included Ronaldo, who only returned to first-team training on Saturday after a dramatic off-season that saw reports emerge that he wanted to leave the club, in their 24-man squad for the game against former head coach Jose Mourinho.

New signings Theo Hernandez and Dani Ceballos are also included, along with Ronaldo s BBC attacking team-mates Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale.

— Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadrid)

Ronaldo s arrival ahead of the new se…

Tottenham Hotspur are interested in signing Wilfried Singo from Torino, according to . It has been reported that newly-appointed Tottenham head coach Antonio Conte is a big fan of Singo, and that the North London club could make a move for the Ivory Coast international defender soon.

Singo has been at Torino since 2018 and has broken into the first team of the Italian club. The 20-year-old has scored one goal and provided two assists in 11 Serie A appearances so far this season. During the 2020-21 campaign, the defender made 20 starts and eight substitute appearances in the league for Torino, scoring one goal and providing two assists in the process.

Tottenham are defensively not doing great. Cristian Romero joined Spurs in the summer transfer window, and Singo moving t…

Achraf Hakimi says Antonio Conte’s extraordinary passion  was one of the motivating factors behind his decision to join Inter. 

The 21-year-old joined the Serie A side in July for a reported €40million from Spanish champions Real Madrid, signing a five-year contract. 

The Spain-born Morocco international spent the past two seasons on loan at Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund, particularly impressing last term when deployed as a right-sided wing-back ahead of a three-man defence.

On top of an impressive haul of five goals, Hakimi also had 10 assists in the Bundesliga last season – the best of any defender.

Conte guided Inter to a second-place finish in his maiden campaign and Hakimi is licking his lips at the prospect at playing under the 51-year-…

Richarlison spared Everton further misery following their Merseyside derby defeat as they were held to a 1-1 Premier League draw by Newcastle United at Goodison Park.

Jordan Pickford s late howler gifted Liverpool all three points on Sunday and he had to pick the ball out of his net again in the 19th minute on Wednesday as Salomon Rondon scored his third goal in four games.

The hosts did all of the pressing thereafter and, after seeing a spate of chances go begging, restored parity through Richarlison s close-range 38th-minute strike.

Yet Everton failed to kick on from there and Newcastle, who have been in the headlines amid talk owner Mike Ashley is close to selling the club, held firm for a highly creditable point.

FULL-TIME: Everton 1 Newcastle United …

West Bromwich Albion are interested in signing Islam Slimani from Premier League rivals Leicester City in the summer transfer window, according to . It has been reported that the Baggies want to secure the services of the 32-year-old striker on a season-long loan deal and have already made an inquiry.

The Baggies are playing in the Premier League this season after winning automatic promotion from the Championship at the end of the 2019-20 campaign, and manager Slaven Bilic is looking for a new striker. West Brom have picked up just one point from their three league games so far this season, and are rated at 8/13 by to get relegated.

Slimani has been on the books of Leicester since 2016, but he has been out on loan in recent years. The 32-year-old Algeria international …

Burnley

As for Burnley, the Clarets have arguably turned themselves into the Premier League s surprise package. Their 1-0 home win against Stoke in midweek saw Sean Dyche s side briefly break into the top four for the first time. Although Burnley may have dropped back down to an incredibly impressive sixth, Dyche s team are still level on points with both Liverpool and Tottenham and also sit above Arsenal in the table.

Winning six of their previous eight Premier League appearances, the Clarets have already managed to pick up as many victories as they had in their last 26 fixtures. Although last season Burnley were almost dragged into a relegation battle, a key part of Burnley s dramatic turnaround has been their performances away from Turf Moor. Only managing to pick up a singl…

Gary Lineker is certain England will win a major tournament soon, but does not want to wait any longer than their Euro 2024 final against Spain on Sunday.

England face Spain in Berlin with a chance to end an excruciating 58-year wait for an international honour, something Lineker failed to halt during his own playing career.

Lineker scored 48 goals in 80 appearances for the Three Lions, becoming the first English player to win the Golden Boot at a World Cup in 1986.

The former striker suffered his fair share of heartache on the international stage, with Diego Maradona s Hand of God goal knocking England out of that World Cup.

Lineker and England would reach the semi-finals four years later at Italia 90, but would fall to defeat to West Germany in a pen…

Raheem Sterling says he was pleased to see Liverpool win the Champions League but insists Manchester City s priority remains the Premier League.

England international Sterling left Liverpool in acrimonious circumstances in 2015.

The Anfield club have finished behind City in each of the subsequent four seasons but beat Tottenham 2-0 in Madrid last month to secure their sixth European crown.

I was really happy for them, happy for some of the players I know to lift the Champions League, Sterling told the Manchester Evening News.

The 24-year-old, who has flourished under manager Pep Guardiola, added: The Champions League is massive for us as a club but our most important thing is winning the Premier League.

For me, what we did last season – ever…