Baptista staying put

Chelsea s mid-winter mini-crisis could be aggravated by the loss of Didier Drogba after the talismanic striker injured his back in training on Tuesday.

Manager Carlo Ancelotti revealed that Drogba is doubtful for Wednesday s Premier League match with bottom club Portsmouth, in which Chelsea will be looking for their first win in five matches in all competitions.

Ancelotti claimed to be unconcerned about Chelsea s recent run of three defeats and a draw.

But he admitted that his work on the training ground had focused on defending set-pieces in the wake of a 3-3 draw with Everton on Saturday that again underlined his side s vulnerability in that area.

We have trained and worked on the set-pieces, said Ancelotti. We have conceded some goals in these situat…

David Beckham believes his long-time team-mate Ryan Giggs would be a popular future choice as Manchester United manager.

Beckham and Giggs both enjoyed highly decorated playing careers at Old Trafford under Alex Ferguson, who has talked up the former Wales international s potential managerial qualities over recent weeks.

In a BBC documentary that will be shown on Sunday, Ferguson said that Giggs would have succeeded him as United boss had he retired at 35 instead of extending an incredible playing career until beyond his 40th birthday.

Giggs is currently assistant to Louis van Gaal at United and Beckham has backed his friend to step up and take the top job in time.

I d like to see that, I think we d all like to see that as Manchester United fans, he told…

Paul Pogba, Kylian Mbappe, Antoine Griezmann and Raphael Varane should all be in the running for the Ballon d Or, says France s World Cup winning coach Didier Deschamps.

Deschamps followed up his 1998 success as a player by leading Les Bleus to glory at Russia 2018, his side beating Croatia 4-2 in a thrilling final in Moscow.

Mbappe claimed the tournament s best young player award following that success, the Paris Saint-Germain teenager having scored four World Cup goals, including a peach in Sunday s final.

Atletico Madrid s Europa League final hero Griezmann matched that tally while Pogba and Varane a Champions League winner with Real Madrid produced commanding performances throughout the knockout rounds.

Deschamps insisted a France star should be in c…

Youssoufa Moukoko became the youngest ever scorer in a Bundesliga Revierderby as his powerful header gave Borussia Dortmund a 1-0 win against Schalke.

At just 17 years and 301 days, it was the prodigious teenager who was the match-winner on Saturday at Signal Iduna Park, taking Dortmund top of the league.

His decisive intervention came in the 79th minute, to ensure the Black and Yellow s dominant efforts were not in vain against their stubborn visitors.

Coupled with Bayern Munich s surprise loss to Augsburg, the result sent Edin Terzic s men to the summit, albeit with fellow early high-flyers Union Berlin and Freiburg still to play this weekend.

4 have won each of their last four games against FC Schalke 04 it is the longest winning streak in this fixtu…

Pep Guardiola has dismissed suggestions from Spanish media that Erling Haaland is unhappy at Manchester City.

There have been claims that the prolific Norwegian striker dislikes the city – and its weather – so much that he wants to leave the club.

Perhaps inevitably, the reports suggest Real Madrid are monitoring the situation but Guardiola is not taking the rumours seriously.

“You have to ask the media from Madrid if he is unhappy,” said the City manager. “Maybe they have more info than we have.

“We don’t have that feeling that he’s unhappy. He was because he could not play – he was two months out injured – but maybe the media from Spain, especially Madrid, have more information than us.”

Haaland returned to action after 10 …

West Ham United are considering a move for Obafemi Martins as they aim to add firepower to their goal-shy attack, .

The Nigerian striker is currently plying his trade in MLS with Seattle Sounders, where he is currently on loan from La Liga side Levante.

Martins spent three years in the Premier League with Newcastle United, where he scored twenty-eight goals in eighty-eight appearances before moving to Wolfsburg, and then to Russia with Rubin Kazan.

A brief return to the Premier League came in 2011, when he made four league appearances for Birmingham City, before returning to Rubin.

He signed for Levante last summer, where he scored seven goals in twenty-one league outings before being sent to America in March.

He is the latest forward to b…

Eight-time CAF Champions League winners Al Ahly have been eliminated at the second round for the second year in succession, losing on penalties to Moghreb Tetouan.

The Egyptian outfit, who hold the record for most titles in the tournament s history, went into Saturday s second leg trailing 1-0 from the away fixture, courtesy of Mouhcine Iajour s stoppage time goal in Morocco.

However, Abdallah Said pulled Al Ahly level in the tie with a low strike to the bottom left-hand corner shortly before half-time, giving his side hope of a place in the group stage.

That goal eventually forced the tie to penalties, but Al Ahly were unable to get the better of their opponents in the shootout, losing 4-3.

The scenario is all too familiar for the club s fans, having d…

Everton defender Yerry Mina has been fined £10,000 and served with a warning but avoided a ban after appearing in an advert for a betting company in his native Colombia.

Mina breached the Football Association s strict betting rules by taking part in a campaign for the company Betjuego, and he accepted a misconduct charge.

The Everton FC defender breached FA rule E8(3) by participating in an advertisement for betting activity which he is prohibited from engaging in, said the English national governing body.

The rule in question states: An individual participant, when acting in a personal capacity, shall not be permitted to advertise or promote any betting activity that the participant is prohibited from engaging in.

Players in England are strictly for…

Milan have confirmed that no first-team player or member of the technical staff has tested positive for COVID-19.

There had been some confusion over the prospect of more cases of coronavirus at the Serie A club following comments from president Paolo Scaroni, who referred to some infected players on the mend .

The remark led to some concern about unknown cases at the club, with technical director Paolo Maldini and his son Daniel having returned the only confirmed positive tests in March.

However, in a statement issued on Saturday, the club said: AC Milan confirms that, based on all medical tests carried out to date on first-team players and technical staff, there have not been any positive cases of COVID-19.

Players will continue their individual trainin…

Former-England boss Steve McClaren could be set to lead little FC Twente to their first ever Dutch league title as FC Twente.

A victory over midtable NAC Breda next Sunday would secure the title for the provincial club.

Successful

Steve McClaren has done a superb job in Enschede. Last season was his first in charge and they finished as runners-up in the Eredivisie.

This season’s rise to the top of the pile has been amazing considering the size of the club compared to the giants of Ajax, PSV Eindhoven and Feyenoord.

McClaren has always been a decent coach. He did a good job at Middlesbrough and as a result got the England job. Unfortunately for McClaren it was too much too soon for him. He didn’t have enough experience to handle the very deman…