Hummels outlines commitment to Dortmund

Belgium have been confirmed as the top team in international football by FIFA while Chile are into the top five of the governing body s world rankings for the first time.

Marc Wilmots men earned top spot in the rankings with a 3-1 win over Israel in their final Euro 2016 qualifier last month, overtaking Germany and previous number one Argentina who are now third.

FIFA have also promoted Chile to fifth as the South American nation s rise continues.

The Copa America winners have not lost since a friendly defeat to Brazil back in March, and gained revenge over Dunga s men before beating Peru in the opening round of CONMEBOL qualifiers for the 2018 World Cup.

England are up one place to ninth, overtaking Wales as the top British side after Chris Coleman s sid…

Ange Postecoglou will not tell Tottenham supporters how to feel about the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict but hopes his team can provide a sense of escapism when they host Fulham on Monday night.

The fixture will be Spurs’ first at home since tensions escalated in the Middle East, with hundreds of Palestinian civilians killed in a massive blast at a Gaza City hospital on Tuesday.

A statement was issued by Tottenham earlier this month in response to the initial war breaking out between Israel and Hamas, but some supporters were critical of the club for failing to show support for victims from the Jewish community, which has a long-standing affiliation with the Premier League outfit.

The Club and our footballing family is shocked and saddened by the escalating cris…

Manchester City have less big personalities than before but more flow and adaptability under Pep Guardiola, according to club captain Vincent Kompany.

City won their first Premier League title with Roberto Mancini at the helm in 2011-12, the likes of Kolo Toure, Nigel de Jong, Carlos Tevez and Mario Balotelli all playing a part in that landmark triumph before moving on from the Etihad Stadium. 

Sergio Aguero, David Silva and Yaya Toure are among the survivors to remain in Guardiola s squad, which Kompany feels is the more balanced of the two.

The team in the first league title win was all about big personalities, character and tough guys in the team, he said.

It was game-deciding people.

This team is more about there being a flow to it there i…

Marcel Desailly said under-fire head coach Vincenzo Montella is not entirely to blame for AC Milan s struggles, pointing to the club s owners as he called for patience at San Siro.

Montella is in a precarious position, with Milan unable to live up to the hype following a busy and expensive transfer window – seventh in Serie A and 13 points adrift of leaders Napoli.

Not even the high-profile arrivals of Leonardo Bonucci, Lucas Biglia, Andre Silva, Andrea Conti, Hakan Calhanoglu, Ricardo Rodriguez, Mateo Musacchio, Franck Kessie, Fabio Borini and Nikola Kalinic have been able to restore Milan s fortunes early in the season.

Montella was reportedly spared his job following Sunday s 2-0 win at Sassuolo but the axe is set to fall on the 43-year-old if Milan – with…

Southampton are the Premier League success story that Norwich City boss Alex Neil is keen to emulate as the two sides prepare to clash on Sunday at St Mary s Stadium.

From League One to the UEFA Europa League in little over four years, Southampton have enjoyed a dramatic and rapid change in fortunes under the stewardship of Nigel Adkins, Mauricio Pochettino and current boss Ronald Koeman. 

Norwich have followed the same upward trajectory  the Norfolk club competed in the third tier in 2009-10  and survival and steady growth is the target for Neil, the youngest manager in the top flight. 

I think they are a great example of a club that have come from the Championship to the Premier League and established themselves, said the Scot. 

The fact they ve…

A Living Legend

From the very first moment Manchester City announced the £38 million worth deal for then the Atletico Madrid flamboyant striker Sergio Aguero in 2011 it was clear that the Argentine international would not take too long to become the fan favourite at the Etihad.

The total of 34 Premier League games and 23 goals in his debut season in the English top flight came as clear confirmation of such a claim but it was only one of those goals that helped him set foot on the pedestal as one of Manchester City’s biggest player ever in his very first season with the club.

With Manchester United already getting the result they needed to secure the Premier League title at Sunderland, Manchester City – on the back of a five-match winning run – came agonizingly c…

Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher hopes repeat offender Marouane Fellaini never makes another Premier League appearance. 

Fellaini was handed a three-match ban after an altercation with Leicester City defender Robert Huth, who also suffered the same punishment, keeping both players out for the rest of the 2015-16 league campaign.

Television replays showed Huth appearing to pull Fellaini s hair before the Belgium international struck him with an elbow in Manchester United s 1-1 draw with Leicester last Sunday. 

Carragher believes Fellaini deserved a much greater punishment, with the midfielder eligible for selection in United s FA Cup final clash against Crystal Palace.

How did they get the same bans? One man deliberately swings an elbow, knowin…

West Ham United remain keen on signing James Tarkowski, according to . The Hammers wanted to bring the Burnley defender to Turf Moor in the summer transfer window, but no move materialised. However, according to the new report, manager David Moyes is still keen on the England international centre-back.

Tarkowski has been at Burnley since 2016 and is valued at £40 million by the Premier League club. The Clarets are an established club in the top flight of English football and the defender is a regular in manager Sean Dyche’s side. There is no need for Burnley to sell the defender, especially in the middle of the season.

According to , Tarkowski played 38 Premier League matches for Burnley last season, while in 2018-19 he played 35 times in the league and made 31 appea…

Jose Mourinho will not have to wait for long to renew his rivalry with Pep Guardiola when Manchester United take on Manchester City at Old Trafford on September 10.

United and City meet in what will be the fourth Premier League game in charge for both managers, who famously clashed when they managed Real Madrid and Barcelona respectively in La Liga.

Mourinho and Guardiola have done battle a total of 16 times as managers, with the Catalan winning seven, six matches ending in draws and three wins for The Special One .

The most recent meeting came in August 2013 when Guardiola s Bayern Munich defeated Chelsea on penalties after a dramatic 2-2 draw in the UEFA Super Cup final in Prague.

The second Manchester derby at the Etihad Stadium is due to take place on…

Eight years on from a painful night in Vienna where they inadvertently started it all, Italy clinically and mercilessly snuffed out the last embers of one of the greatest sides in the history of international football at the Stade de France.

Spain prevailed via a quarter-final penalty shootout at Euro 2008 a first competitive triumph in 88 years over a nation who understandably filled them with dread. Fernando Torres scored the winner in the final against Germany but proclaimed beating Italy as the moment Spain took a second European title into their possession.

They added a third by thumping the Azzurri 4-0 in Kiev in 2012, with a World Cup in between thrown in for good measure. But this last-16 encounter in Saint-Denis was one both teams entered with scars.

For…