Diego Simeone says Atletico Madrid have no choice but to manage their players minutes with the new Champions League format dialling up the intensity of their schedule.

Atleti have made a positive start to the season, registering three wins and two draws from their first five matches in LaLiga to match Real Madrid s pace and sit four points adrift of leaders Barcelona.

They also made a winning start to their Champions League campaign in midweek, fighting back to beat RB Leipzig 2-1 with a last-gasp winner from Jose Maria Gimenez.

With eight European league-phase games to play this term, Atleti face an incredibly busy schedule, with no free midweek slots until December, excluding international breaks.

After going to Rayo Vallecano on Sunday, Los Colchoneros…

Arne Slot says Trent Alexander-Arnold has always been a good defender but backed him to get better if he can improve on his concentration.

The right-back has said he welcomes Slot s criticism, claiming he wants the Dutchman s help to become the defender that no one wants to come up against in Europe .

Alexander-Arnold more often draws plaudits for his attacking play, and in Liverpool s latest win, he reached 100 goal involvements (19 goals, 81 assists), setting up Luis Diaz s second in their 3-0 win over Bournemouth.

Slot acknowledged how important Alexander-Arnold s impact going forward is, and that he is more than happy to help his defensive side.

Yeah, it s difficult for me to judge how it has been in years before we are talking here about a player th…

David de Gea s future at Manchester United has been the topic of conversation for months.

The situation has become muddied in recent weeks during the Spaniard s period of paternity leave but De Gea is back in England and playing second fiddle to Dean Henderson.

De Gea has been at Old Trafford since 2011 but United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has started Henderson for seven games in a row.

TOP STORY – DE GEA TO EXIT UNITED

De Gea s representatives are already sounding out potential buyers and he is set to leave Manchester United this off-season, according to the Daily Mail.

The 30-year-old is contracted with the Red Devils although no transfer fee has been mentioned yet.

The report claims Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain an…

Manchester United lost further ground at the top of the Premier League table as they drew 0-0 at Chelsea on Sunday, Thomas Tuchel s men benefiting from a contentious call relating to a potential penalty against them.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer s side came into the weekend 10 points adrift of pacesetters Manchester City, but this draw coupled with the leaders 2-1 win at West Ham on Saturday saw the gap increase to 12 as Pep Guardiola closes in on another Premier League title.

While a win for United at Stamford Bridge would not have changed a great deal, they will likely feel hard done by, as Callum Hudson-Odoi escaped unpunished when handling the ball in his own area during the first period.

Both sides had their chances after the interval but neither managed to apply t…

Real Madrid and Liverpool will contest a repeat of last season s Champions League final during the round of 16 following Monday s draw.

Madrid reached the knockout stages as Group F winners, an outcome they will have been hoping would secure them a favourable tie.

But by being paired with Liverpool, Carlo Ancelotti s men were given arguably the hardest draw possible in what will be a repeat of the 2021-22 and 2017-18 finals.

There will also be a replay of the 2019-20 showpiece between Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain.

Die Roten prevented PSG from winning their first continental crown that year, with revenge on the cards for the Parisians early next year.

Chelsea, winners most recently in 2021, will go up against the youthful Borussia Dortmund…

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Meeting for a friendly showdown late on Saturday night, the USA will welcome Colombia to Maryland.

Starting with the hosts, crowned Nations League champions back on March 25th as they secured a 2-0 victory against Mexico, the USA will be relishing a return to the international stage this weekend. However, crashing out of the World Cup Round of 16 stage out in Qatar 18 months ago as they fell to a 3-1 loss at the hands of Holland, Gregg Berhalter’s men have been seeking some recent stability. Winning just a pair of their previous six appearances across all competitions within 90 minutes, the former Columbus Crew boss appears to have a real job on his hands during this month’s international break. In fact, the USA have failed to win …

Anwar El Ghazi is set to play for Mainz again after the German club said he has “distanced” himself from a social media post about the Israel-Hamas conflict.

The former Aston Villa forward was suspended on October 17 by the Bundesliga club, who called the now-deleted Instagram post “intolerable”.

It was widely reported that El Ghazi would have his contract terminated, but Mainz have confirmed that the 28-year-old Dutchman will be staying.

+++Statement des 1. FSV Mainz 05 zu Anwar El Ghazi+++

— 1. FSV Mainz 05 (@1FSVMainz05)

A club statement read: “Anwar El Ghazi is warned by 1. FSV Mainz 05 for publishing a post on social media two weeks ago.

“After the publication, the club immediately released its player from training and …

Joe Gomez has switched his Liverpool squad number ahead of the 2022-23 season and has promised to replace any shirts bought with his previous number on.

The defender – who has found game time at his preferred centre-back position harder to come by in recent seasons due to injury and the form of Virgil van Dijk, Joel Matip and Ibrahima Konate – has worn number 12 since joining Liverpool from Charlton Athletic in 2015.

However, the 25-year-old England international has taken the number two shirt ahead of the new campaign, which for Liverpool starts on Saturday when they face Premier League champions Manchester City in the Community Shield.

Traditionally a right-back s number in English football, the switch perhaps suggests Gomez will have to settle for playin…

John Herdman says Toronto FC need to make big changes amid a five-match winless streak, promising to banish their old ways ahead of Saturday s visit to the New York Red Bulls.

Wednesday s 2-1 defeat to Nashville SC was the third time in five games that Toronto have dropped a match due to goals in the 90th minute or later.

They have slipped to seventh in the Eastern Conference, seven points behind the Red Bulls and only four clear of the Philadelphia Union, who are outside the playoff spots.

Reflecting on Toronto s latest disappointing result, Herdman said: I was proud of about 60 minutes but that last 30 again, it just feels like old TFC is back.

We just wobble, we look unsure, we look timid. We look like we can score. But when we look like we can scor…

Aston Villa have completed the signing of Ian Maatsen from Premier League rivals Chelsea, the clubs confirmed on Friday.

Maatsen is preparing for the Netherlands last-16 clash with Romania at Euro 2024 but will return to a new home at Villa Park for the upcoming 2024-25 season.

The versatile full-back has reportedly signed a six-year contract with Villa after putting pen to paper on a move believed to be worth up to £37.5million.

Maatsen becomes Unai Emery s second signing of the transfer window after Villa brought in Lewis Dobbin from Everton earlier this month.

Aston Villa is delighted to announce the signing of Ian Maatsen from Chelsea.

— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial)

The 22-year-old spent the second half of last season on loan at Bor…