Huntelaar leaves Ajax to join Schalke survival push: ´I want to play my part!´

Diego Simeone has nothing but praise for Neymar ahead of Atletico Madrid s trip to Barcelona on Wednesday.

The 24-year-old received criticism for his lifestyle during the close-season, with some suggesting he was not committed enough to Brazil when he was seen partying during the Copa America.

Neymar responded on the pitch by guiding his country to Olympic gold in August, only to come under fire again last week for showboating during Barcelona s 5-1 win over Leganes.

Simeone has no issue with the forward, however, and said at a news conference: Neymar is a player I really like. He is extraordinary.

The Atleti coach added: He has a certain style of play that is his own. Every player has his own style and I like his style.

He has been criticised…

BATE coach Aleksandr Yermakovich was delighted to see his team make amends in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday.

The Belarusian champions were trounced 6-0 at Porto on matchday one, but they recovered to kick-start their European campaign with a 2-1 win over Athletic Bilbao in Group H.

Playing in front of their passionate fans at the Borisov Arena, BATE controlled the first half and deservedly took a two-goal lead before the break courtesy of Denis Polyakov and Aleksandr Karnitski.

Aritz Aduriz pulled a goal back for the Spanish visitors on the stroke of half-time but BATE were not to be denied their first Champions League win since October 2012.

We have only positive emotions. We are very happy with today s victory as we needed it very much, said Yer…

A disappointed Germany coach Joachim Low lamented his team s carelessness after a shock 2-0 loss to Poland on Saturday.

The world champions fell to second-half goals from Arkadiusz Milik and Sebastian Mila to suffer their first defeat in 19 competitive matches, stretching back to Euro 2012.

It was also the first time Germany had lost to Poland since the unification and their first time they tasted defeat in a qualifying match since October 2007.

Low lamented his team s wastefulness during the Euro 2016 qualifying clash, but is eager to move on.

Obviously, we re disappointed. To be honest, I can t blame my team for much, maybe only that we were too careless with our chances, he said.

The way we played was fine; we created a lot of opportunities t…

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pos has revealed the Portuguese side are on the verge of signing Manchester United forward Bebe on loan.

The 22-year-old has yet to make an appearance for Sir Alex Ferguson s side this season after spending last term on loan at Turkish club Besiktas where he suffered a cruciate ligament injury.

Bebe has struggled to cement a place at United following his 7.4-million pound switch in August 2010 and is now on the verge of heading back to his homeland in order to get more playing time.

He (Bebe) is one of the players who should be just hours away from joining, but there are still some details left to address, Campos told Bola Branca.

His signing could be announced very shortly.

…

Bayern Munich will discuss terms with Wolfsburg over the sale of midfielder Luiz Gustavo, according to CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge.

The 26-year-old, who joined the Bundesliga champions from Hoffenheim in 2011, is likely to face stiff competition for his place next season under Pep Guardiola.

As well as new signings Thiago Alcantara and Mario Goetze, the Brazilian will also see the likes of Javi Martinez and Bastian Schweinsteiger vying for a central midfield berth.

The player himself admitted recently he would consider leaving the Allianz Arena for regular first-team football and Rummenigge has now confirmed the club would also entertain the idea of a sale.

If Wolfsburg agrees personal terms with Gustavo, we will then negotiate, he told Kicker.

If Luiz leav…

Leonid Kuchuk has returned to Kuban Krasnodar after being appointed as the Russian club s coach for the second time.

Kuchuk was reappointed on Monday as a replacement for Viktor Goncharenko, who parted company with the club last Thursday.

The 55-year-old Belarusian was previously in charge at Kuban for the second half of the 2012-13 campaign, guiding them to fifth place in the top flight and UEFA Europa League qualification.

Following that successful spell, Kuchuk switched to Lokomotiv Moscow but was removed from his post in September with the capital club languishing in ninth in the table after finishing third last term.

Along with the poor performances on the field, a breakdown in relationship between Kuchuk and his players was one of the reason for his…

Exasperated Wolves captain Conor Coady declared VAR is not working after his side were on the wrong end of two decisions in a 1-0 Premier League defeat to Liverpool at Anfield.

Sadio Mane s decisive goal in the first half was ultimately awarded following a VAR review, with referee Anthony Taylor having initially penalised Adam Lallana for handball in the build-up.

However, Wolves, who had a goal of their own disallowed for offside shortly after Mane s strike, were adamant Virgil van Dijk had got away with a handball of his own before lofting a pass forward to Lallana.

Decisions are killing us, it s constantly against us, Coady, who also felt Wolves were hard done by in their 3-2 win over Manchester City on Friday, told Sky Sports.  It s ridiculous. People ta…

Perth Glory will end 2019 in third place in the A-League after a 3-0 victory away to Central Coast Mariners on Tuesday.

Diego Castro was the inspiration, scoring once and assisting another, as Tony Popovic s side coped better with the difficult conditions to claim a fourth win in a row.

The Mariners hit the post inside the first minute through Daniel De Silva, but chances were scarce in a first half affected by strong winds and concerns over air quality as a result of the New South Wales bush fires.

Castro broke the deadlock in first-half injury time, though, rifling a half-volley through a crowded box and into the bottom-left corner from 18 yards out.

Perth struck again three minutes after the restart when Joel Chianese headed in James Meredith s cross,…

AS Roma president Rosella Sensi hit out at referee Roberto Rosetti after her team were beaten 2-1 at AC Milan, in no small part thanks to a controversial penalty.

The visitors to the San Siro led 1-0 after a swashbuckling first-half performance but that all changed when Rosetti awarded Milan a penalty after Alessandro Nesta tumbled in the box.

Television replays showed Nicolas Burdisso won the ball, even though he did challenge Nesta from behind and the former Italy centre-back s subsequent fall was clearly exaggerated, if even completely unnecessary.

Roma s players were fuming about the penalty, dispatched by Ronaldinho, and after Pato s winner Sensi s mood was even darker.

While Rosetti is an excellent international referee, he makes too many mistakes…

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta concedes it is still too early to determine if William Saliba will be able to feature again this season.

The France centre-back has been absent for all of Arsenal s past four matches after sustaining a back injury in the first half of the Europa League last-16 second-leg draw with Sporting CP last month, which resulted in the Gunners elimination on penalties.

There had been hope Saliba s recovery was advanced when seen on an exercise bike at training earlier this week, but it would appear such optimism was misjudged.

Saliba will definitely not face Southampton at Emirates Stadium on Friday, and now it would seem there is a chance he does not play again this season for the Premier League leaders.

And with their lead over Manche…