Stefano Sensi s second international goal rescued Italy a Nations League draw as their 11-game winning streak came to an end in a 1-1 stalemate with Bosnia-Herzegovina.
The Azzurri arrived in Florence looking to extend their record-breaking run of consecutive victories to 12 but found themselves up against a resolute defence and undone by the visitors veteran Serie A striker Edin Dzeko, who scored from close range after 57 minutes.
Italy boss Roberto Mancini opted to leave last season s European Golden Boot winner Ciro Immobile out of his starting line-up and watched as his forwards squandered the few chances that came their way.
But Sensi applied a cool finish to Lorenzo Insigne s cross after the talented attacker teed him up in the 67th minute to avoid a shock …
Phil Foden says England have not seen the best of him yet, while outlining his intentions to reach the levels of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe.
The 22-year-old heads to the World Cup in Qatar on the back of a fine campaign so far with Manchester City, scoring seven goals and contributing three assists in 14 appearances across all competitions.
Foden is looking to transfer that form to the international stage, where he feels he is yet to perform at his highest level, and refuted suggestions he is comparable to Messi and Neymar – though he aspires to be in the future.
The people you ve just mentioned there are way above me at the moment, but I like to think I could be there one day, he said.
It s all about taking small steps in the right direction. I just wa…
FA Cup replays have been abolished as part of a new agreement between the Football Association and the Premier League on the competition’s format and funding.
Here the PA news agency looks at the issue in closer detail.
What has happened?
The FA and The have reached an agreement to strengthen the format and increase support for grassroots football.
Swipe for details
— Emirates FA Cup (@EmiratesFACup)
The FA has agreed to scrap all replays from the first round proper onwards. Replays had already been phased out from the fifth-round stage but will now be ditched completely. The format change will see all fifth-round ties, which have been played in midweek for the last five seasons, revert to weekends while ties in the fourth round, fifth ro…
Keylor Navas will be fit to face Spain in Wednesday s World Cup Group E opener, says Costa Rica assistant manager Ronald Gomez.
Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Navas has not featured for Christophe Galtier s side in Ligue 1 this season, acting as deputy to Italy s Gianluigi Donnarumma.
A lower-back issue for Navas raised fears the 35-year-old would not recover in time for Qatar, before Costa Rica s sole World Cup warm-up game scheduled for Thursday against Iran was cancelled.
The former Real Madrid keeper will still be capable of featuring against Spain, though, according to Luis Fernando Suarez s assistant Gomez.
We already know all about Keylor Navas, we won t doubt him now as we know his capacity, Gomez said on Saturday.
He has had some pain …
The Football Association has confirmed it will investigate the crowd disturbances that occurred during West Ham s Premier League match at home to Watford on Saturday.
The Hammers gave up a 2-0 lead to lose 4-2 in their second home league match at London Stadium, the converted venue for the Olympic Games in 2012.
The capitulation by Slaven Bilic s team sparked trouble among sections of the West Ham support.
Journalists and supporters present at the match questioned the readiness of stewards at the stadium to react to problems in the stands.
And the FA has since informed Omnisport it will be liaising with the club and the relevant authorities over the matter.
The club has threatened to enforce life bans on offending supporters found guilty of co…
Leroy Sane is to have surgery on a damaged anterior cruciate ligament, Manchester City have confirmed.
The winger was forced off after just 13 minutes of the Community Shield clash with Liverpool last Sunday following a challenge with Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Tests have since revealed he has ligament damage in his right knee, although City have not specified the extent of the injury.
He has undergone testing throughout the week, with a specialist doctor travelling to Manchester for further examinations to understand the extent of the injury, City said in a statement on Thursday.
Leroy will have surgery in the coming week. Manchester City will provide Leroy with all the support and guidance he needs, and everyone connected with the club wishes him a quick and full recovery.
…
Borussia Dortmund boss Thomas Tuchel says Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang publicly discussing his future is unhelpful.
Aubameyang has regularly discussed his dream of moving to Real Madrid and said he is contemplating an end-of-season move in an interview with RMC this week.
Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain have also been linked with a move for the Gabon international, who has scored 20 goals in all competitions this season.
But Tuchel wants the 27-year-old to talk less about his future and concentrate on helping Dortmund achieve their objectives in the second half of the season.
Such statements don t really help, Tuchel said of Aubameyang ahead of Saturday s crucial home Bundesliga match against second-placed RB Leipzig.
There are moments when…
Pep Guardiola does not view himself as a deal maker with regards to any transfer ambitions Manchester City might have towards Lionel Messi.
Messi sought to end a career-long association with Barca in the aftermath of their humiliating 8-2 Champions League quarter-final loss to Bayern Munich, with City then widely viewed as the frontrunners for his signature.
However, Barcelona disputed Messi s assertion that a clause in his contract allowing him to leave for free at the end of the 2019-20 campaign remained valid, and the Argentina superstar stayed at Camp Nou.
Speaking to La Sexta at the end of last month, Messi pledged not to decide his future until the end of this season, while also outlining his dream of living in the United States.
This makes a dea…
France captain Hugo Lloris has backed his team-mates to fill the gap left by injured striker Kylian Mbappe in Saturday s Euro 2020 qualifier against Albania.
Paris Saint-Germain forward Mbappe suffered a hamstring injury in the club’s 4-0 win over Toulouse at the end of August which has ruled him out for a month.
France coach Didier Deschamp is set to put his faith in attacking duo Olivier Giroud and Antoine Griezmann for the Group H encounter but also has uncapped Lille forward Jonathan Ikone at his disposal.
Tottenham goalkeeper Lloris believes whoever comes in will be able to deliver for Les Bleus.
When Kylian is there we can rely on his individual quality, his speed, in the right of the pitch or in front, Lloris said.
We can rely on the ex…
Belgium achieved a rather difficult, controversial even, victory over Canada in their World Cup opener.
There has been speculation about Manchester City playmaker Kevin De Bruyne retiring from international duty after the tournament in Qatar, but the 32-year-old obviously believes he still has plenty to offer his country.
I try to help my team, handle my team the best that I can do.
Kevin De Bruyne believes he still has so much to offer to his international team
— Football Daily (@footballdaily)
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