Football Mag

Juventus have been left sweating on the fitness of star man Cristiano Ronaldo, with the Portuguese set to undergo tests on an ankle injury. The former Real Madrid man picked up a knock to his left ankle during the Bianconeri's 1-0 win over Bologna on Sunday. But concerns have grown since then, with Ronaldo unable to participate in full training with the rest of the Juve squad on Wednesday, and will now be further examined by the Serie A champions' medical team. Fellow forward Douglas Costa also trained separately on Wednesday, with a club statement reading: "Both Douglas Costa and Cristiano Ronaldo trained seperately from the group. "For CR7, check-ups have been scheduled for today and tomorrow following a knock to his left ankle during the game against Bologna." The injury could not come at a worse time for Massimiliano Allegri's side as they enter a crucial period in their season.

Real Madrid midfielder Isco has been left out of Santiago Solari's Copa del Reysemi-final squad to face Barcelona on Wednesday. Isco returned to full training at the start of the week after recovering from a back injury, but he will play no part in the crucial showdown with Barca this evening. Solari has opted to leave the Spaniard out of the second-leg clash, with Madrid looking to build on a positive 1-1 draw at the Camp Nou in the first leg on February 6. The Blancos boss has used Isco sparingly during his short reign at the helm, amid reports of a fractious relationship between the pair . Isco has yet to start a single league game under Solari, with speculation swirling that the 26-year-old will leave the club at the end of the season. Madrid have won eight of their last 10 matches across all competitions, but a 2-1 home defeat to Girona last week stalled their recent progress. As a consequence of that result, they slipped nine points behind Barca in the Liga title race, b...

Manchester City are keeping tabs on Eintracht Frankfurt forward Luka Jovic, as per reports. The 21-year-old is the Bundesliga's top scorer this season and has also attracted interest from Barcelona and Chelsea, with the Catalans understood to be at the front of the queue for his signature. The striker is on a two-year loan from Benfica and Frankfurt are hopeful they can trigger a clause to sign him outright for €6 million (£5.3m/$6.8m) this summer, before selling him on for €60m (£52m/$68m). Barcelona, for their part, hope to sign him for €40m (£34.3m) and that kind of price would appeal to City, who have prioritised other areas for reinforcement in the upcoming transfer window. The Premier League champions will move for a holding midfielder and a left-back, but sources have reported that they have been monitoring Jovic closely in recent months.

Speaking ahead of a Premier League clash with Tottenham, the Belgian winger has offered his support for his boss amid reports of dressing room unrest. Eden Hazard insists that the Chelsea players are all behind under-fire manager Maurizio Sarri, three days on from his dramatic stand-off with Kepa Arrizabalaga in the Carabao Cup final. The Blues were beaten on penalties by Manchester City at Wembley on Sunday, having held their rivals to a goalless draw after normal and extra time. Despite a resilient performance with plenty of positives for Sarri to draw on, Kepa's refusal to leave the pitch as a substitute for Willy Caballero overshadowed the team's exploits. Hazard, who produced a star turn as a false nine against City and has been a talismanic figure for Chelsea throughout the 2018-19 campaign, says that the squad are still united under Sarri despite their poor run of results. "We are all together," Hazard told Chelsea's official website. "We are al...

Nantes have made a complaint to FIFA after Cardiff City failed to pay the first instalment of Emiliano Sala's £15 million ($20m) transfer fee. The Premier League side signed Sala for a club-record fee in January, but the plane carrying the striker went missing over the English channel as he travelled from Nantes to Cardiff to join up with his new team-mates. The player's death was later confirmed after a body was recovered from the plane wreckage, with Sala's funeral having since taken place in Argentina on February 16. Cardiff delayed their initial payment for the Argentine striker as chairman Mehmet Dalman said there were "anomalies" in the deal that need to be investigated beforehand, prompting Nantes to threaten legal action. The French club then granted an extension on the first deadline, but Cardiff have held off paying. A statement from FIFA confirmed that Nantes have now taken the case to a higher authority.

Gareth Bale will not receive any sort of ban for his celebration in Real Madrid's recent victory over Atletico Madrid. Bale was introduced in the second half of the match and scored quickly upon entering the fray. He scored Real's third and final goal in the 3-1 win over the club's crosstown rivals, and the finish was his 100th for the club. However, it was a finish that ended in controversy as Bale was reported to authorities for “a gesture of possible obscene and derogatory meaning” as a result of the ensuing celebration. However, the incident was not reported by the referee in his match report and the Spanish federation have opted to not punish the Welsh winger for the celebration at all. It's not the only celebration row Bale has found himself in recent weeks, having also earned criticism for pushing away Lucas Vazquez after scoring from the spot in this past weekend's win over Levante.

Six weeks after playing his last minutes for Manchester United, Fred is set to be handed another chance by manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer on Wednesday against Crystal Palace. With the Red Devils plagued by injuries, Solskjaer hinted Fred's exile could be about to come to an end with the midfielder making just seven Premier League starts so far this season. The Brazilian joined United over the summer from Shakhtar Donetsk with Solskjaer confident he can impress once he fully adapts to his new environment. "You have to look at the time it needs to settle," Solskjaer said. "You look at Juan [Sebastian Veron] - he is one of the best players that I played with - and it took him time to settle. And I am sure that when given the chance and a run in the team Fred will grab the opportunity. "Fred will get his chances, maybe tomorrow."

The Football Association is set to investigate the deal that took Jadon Sancho to Manchester City from Watford in 2015 over an alleged payment made to the player's agent. German publication Der Spiegel claims to have seen documents from whistleblowers Football Leaks that show City paid Emeka Obasi £200,000 as part of the scouting contract to find players in South and Central America. Der Spiegel alleged this payment was actually in relation to Sancho's move from Watford as a 14-year-old, with the process arranged to circumvent FIFA rules that prevent agent fees being made in transfers involving minors. It has also claimed to have seen an e-mail sent to Sancho's father outlining what salary and bonuses he would receive once he turned professional. According to the report, a club lawyer later intervened stressing the letter was not an offer. In a statement to Omnisport, an FA spokesperson said on Tuesday: "We can confirm that the FA will be investigating the a...

Ramos Charged by UEFA for Deliberate Booking Sergio Ramos has been charged by UEFA for deliberately earning a yellow card in Real Madrid's Champions League last-16 first-leg win at Ajax. The Spain international was booked in the 89th minute of his side’s 2-1 victory in Amsterdam, which means he is suspended for the second leg at Santiago Bernabeu on March 5. Ramos suggested in an interview after the match that he had been booked intentionally so as to avoid the risk of a suspension in the quarter-finals, although he later backtracked on those comments. However, UEFA has opted to charge the Madrid captain with receiving a yellow card on purpose, with their Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body to hear the case on Thursday. Last week, Valencia midfielder Geoffrey Kondogbia was given a two-match ban by UEFA for being booked deliberately in the Europa League meeting with Celtic. The midfielder was given a yellow card in the 82nd minute of his side’s 2-0 win in Glasgow for...

Real Madrid's players - including Gareth Bale - are "standing united" as they prepare for two Clasicos against Barcelona in four days, says boss Santiago Solari. Real host Barca in the Copa del Rey semi-final second leg on Wednesday, having drawn the first game 1-1, and then again in La Liga on Saturday. Bale refused to celebrate when he scored in Sunday's 2-1 win at Levante. "Some things that stay in the dressing room remain private," said Solari. "I understand everyone wants to find a focus and you put the focus where it seems important. "But our focus is only on what we think is important. It is on the game, to win on Wednesday, to be united. Where others focus is up to them."

Angel Di Maria capped a superb performance with two goals as Coupe de France holders Paris Saint-Germain beat Dijon 3-0 in Tuesday's quarter-finals. Di Maria has stepped into the breach since Neymar's metatarsal injury with five goals, the latest two helping seal PSG's progression to the last four with ease. A sumptuous lob put Thomas Tuchel's side ahead, before he pounced on a loose ball to double their advantage before the break. Their intensity dropped in the second half but Thomas Meunier added a late third to keep PSG's treble hopes alive.