Europa League: Wirtz and Andrich goals put Leverkusen on the brink, Marseille hold Atalanta

Market: Braga win

Odds: 4/6 @

Looking to claim a first-leg advantage when they open their Taca de Portugal semi-final adventure on Wednesday night, Barga will make the trip to Nacional.

Starting with the hosts, while Nacional might have continued on a famous Taco de Portugal run this season, Felipe Candido finds his side in the midst of an extended rut. Last seen over the weekend putting in a nightmare display on home soil as they were hit with a routine 3-0 drumming at the hands of Oliveirense, the Alvinegros will be more than aware that they face a huge challenge when Braga arrive at the Estadio do Madeira on Wednesday night. Only show a host of recent issues on either side of the international break, the second-tier outfit have now lost each of their last thr…

Hugo Lloris is confident Adrien Rabiot will prove crucial to France s World Cup defence following his impressive display against Australia, while Didier Deschamps wants even more from Ousmane Dembele.

Injuries to Paul Pogba and N Golo Kante opened the door for Rabiot to assume a central role in Qatar, and he did not let Les Bleus down in their 4-1 win over the Socceroos.

The Juventus midfielder grabbed the game by the scruff of the neck before the break, cancelling out Craig Goodwin s earlier strike by scoring the equaliser before assisting the first of Olivier Giroud s two goals.

Rabiot subsequently became the first France player to both score and assist a goal on his World Cup debut since Christophe Dugarry against South Africa in 1998.

Lloris said: A l…

Jan Vertonghen appeared to take a swipe at team-mates Kevin De Bruyne and Eden Hazard following Belgium s shock World Cup defeat by Morocco.

With this tournament regarded as the last shot at glory for the Red Devils golden generation, Roberto Martinez s side were well short of their best as late goals by Romain Saiss and Zakaria Aboukhlal snatched a 2-0 victory for the Atlas Lions.

Prior to the Group F showdown, De Bruyne and Hazard claimed an ageing Belgium were better equipped to win the World Cup four years ago, when they were narrowly beaten 1-0 by France in the semi-finals.

We are too old. I think our chance [to win] was in 2018, the Manchester City midfielder said. We have a good team, but it is getting older.

We lost key players. We have good new…

Verdict: Chelsea win and under 3.5 goals

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Chelsea have been handed a major Premier League top four boost ahead of a pivotal Monday night clash against Burnley at Stamford Bridge.

Chelsea

Starting with the hosts, although they may have gone about it the hard way last week, Chelsea s 4-3 win over Slavia Prague saw the Blues book their spot in the semi-final of this year s Europa League. With their sights firmly set on securing a return to the top four, the mood in Maurizio Sarri s camp will be on a high following Tottenham, Manchester United and Arsenal all slipping up over the weekend. Sat just one point adrift of the Champions League positions and with the chance to climb as high as third on Monday night, a huge part of Chelsea …

Manchester United are interested in signing Michael Olise from Crystal Palace, according to the .

Olise has been on terrific form lately. Having overcome a hamstring issue which kept him out of action for the first 11 rounds of the Premier League campaign, the 22-year-old winger now has five goals and one assist in nine league appearances for Palace this season. His brace against Brentford on December 30th was particularly important, either side of a goal from Eberechi Eze as the Eagles came back from a goal down to win 1-3 at the Brentford Community Stadium.

United have been struggling greatly upfront, with wingers proving a particularly problematic part of the squad this term. Jadon Sancho remains frozen out and very likely to leave in January, while Antony still hasn…

Lifelong Livingston fan Dave Black has been appointed the club’s new chief executive after John Ward moved up to become chairman.

Ward has been chief executive since 2016 and replaces Robert Wilson, who announced his retirement last week.

Black has been the club’s business development manager since 2020 and also head of commercial and media operations but has a long-standing affiliation with the club.

Ward said: “I took on the role of CEO when the club had back-to-back promotions as the board felt we needed to put a formal structure around the business side of things.

“It was always an unpaid, voluntary role for me and my business interests outside the club have meant that I am travelling most weeks and rarely based at the club itself.

“…

As the FA Cup replays get underway on Tuesday night, there are plenty of intriguing midweek fixtures that can tide us all over.

Ahead of a Tuesday schedule that offers a string of heavyweight affairs from across the continent, we have taken an in-depth look at a couple of noteworthy betting markets that are worth keeping an eye out for.

19:00 Getafe vs Sevilla

While Getafe might have spent the majority of last season at the heart of a La Liga relegation scrap, Tuesday’s hosts have certainly made a string of improvements this time around. Battling it out in the top half of the table, the Blues will be dreaming of the chance to mount a genuine Copa del Rey charge in 2024.

Extending on their adventure last week as they snatched a 1-0 victory away at Esp…

Bournemouth are on the verge of signing Justin Kluivert from AS Roma in the summer transfer window, according to Fabrizio Romano. The Italian journalist has reported on that Premier League club Bournemouth will pay Serie A outfit Roma an initial transfer fee of £9.5 million to secure the services of the 24-year-old winger.

Romano has added that Kluivert is on the verge of agreeing personal terms with Bournemouth and will sign a new contract with the Cherries until June 2028. It appears that it is only a matter of time before the 24-year-old Netherlands international winger officially becomes a Bournemouth player.

Kluivert spent last season on loan at Spanish club Valencia from Roma. The winger made 15 starts and 11 substitute appearances in La Liga for Los Che, scorin…

While England might have stormed their way to a 3-1 victory away at British rivals Scotland on Tuesday night, it is no secret that Gareth Southgate has once again seen his position come under increasing scrutiny this month.

With the Three Lions eventually forced to settle for a 1-1 draw against Ukraine last weekend as they dropped their first European Championship qualifying points, Southgate’s squad selection has been a major talking point over the past fortnight.

Controversially electing to call up the likes of Jordan Henderson, Harry Maguire and Kalvin Phillips for this month’s international break, Southgate and his often pragmatic approach haven’t endeared him to some sections of the England fanbase.

With the Three Lions’ current superstar crop now b…

Market: Both teams to score

Odds: 10/11 @

Two sides who find themselves battling it out at the top of the Ligue 1 table, Brest will welcome Nice to the Stade Francis-Le Ble on Sunday afternoon.

Starting with the hosts, while Brest might have spent the majority of last season at the heart of a Ligue 1 relegation scrap, the Pirates have continued on a real domestic flurry this time around. Last seen mounting a dramatic late comeback away at defending champions PSG as they snatched a 2-2 stalemate, Eric Roy’s side have cemented their spot as one of Europe’s ultimate surprise packages this year. Riding what has been a famous wave of momentum, the one-time Nice boss will be desperate to get one over on his former employers and make another statement. Opening this…