Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler has been speaking to the media before Sunday's Premier League game against Coventry City at the Coventry Building Society Arena (14:00 BST). Hurzeler added that he expects Karou Mitoma to return from his long-term problem "more after the international break".
Former Chelsea and Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino (Picture: Sky Sports) Mauricio Pochettino believes Mikel Arteta is the best coach in the Premier League as he named his title favourites for this season. Arteta has transformed Arsenal’s fortunes since he was appointed as Unai Emery’s replacement in December 2019. The Spaniard led the Gunners to three successive runners-up finishes in the league before finally getting over the line last season to win the club’s first title in 22 years. The defending champions strengthened in several areas over the summer and have made a perfect start to the new season, with five straight wins in all competitions. Sign up for In The Mixer, Metro's football newsletter Get exclusive analysis and previews of the biggest games every Friday. Sign up now for free. And Pochettino, who previously managed Tottenham and Chelsea, believes that Arteta’s prowess makes Arsenal the ‘team to beat’ this season. ‘Arsenal are the most consistent team and for me Mikel [Arteta] is the best coach in the Premier League today,’ he told Sky Sports. ‘Knowing what he needs to do, it’s going to be tough to beat them.’ Pochettino was full of praise for Mikel Arteta (Picture: Getty) One of Pochettino’s former teams, Chelsea, have also made a positive start to the season under new boss Xabi Alonso. The Blues suffered their first competitive loss under Alonso last weekend against Arsenal, but bounced back in midweek with an entertaining 6-3 win over Leeds United in the Carabao Cup. Mikel Arteta’s side have made a good start to their title defence (Picture: Getty) And Pochettino is confident that Chelsea’s change in transfer approach this summer can make them league title contenders alongside Arsenal this season. ‘Chelsea are buying players like Rogers, Joao Pedro, Pedro Neto in the past, players in this way that you can expect to fight and be a contender for the Premier League,’ he added. ‘Of course they are disappointed after the defeat against Arsenal, but I think we need to give time to Xabi’s first season after three games in the Premier League.’ Pochettino was also not shy about his desire to one day return to the Premier League, insisting: ‘I have the ambition. My dream now is to be in the USA for four years, but after that, why not? ‘We are still young, and I think coming back is always my goal; to win the Premier League, to be in the Premier League and to build a project with the possibility of winning. ‘I love the football here. I think to have the chance again is one of my wishes and I hope that happens.’ For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Comment now Comments Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google Add as preferred source
Chelsea drew their Women's Super League opener against Aston Villa, but Opta's supercomputer is backing them to beat Manchester United. The post Women’s Super League predictions: Chelsea backed to beat Man Utd appeared first on SoccerNews.
Lionel Scaloni's contract renewal with Argentina is reportedly complicated by lingering doubts, unpaid bonuses and disputes over the quality of upcoming friendly opponents. Lionel Scaloni’s future at the helm of Argentina has become a subject of growing uncertainty just months after guiding the team to the 2026 World Cup final. With Lionel Messi having already confirmed his retirement from the national team, the prospect of starting a new cycle without the sport’s biggest star appears to be weighing heavily on the World Cup-winning coach as his contract nears its expiration at the end of the year. According to ESPN journalist Gustavo Yarroch, a renewal reportedly agreed upon verbally through 2030 has yet to be formalized, and the negotiation has grown complicated in recent days despite an optimistic outlook from AFA officials just a week earlier. Yarroch cautioned that no final decision has been made, but described the current climate as tense. Compounding matters further, longtime assistant Walter Samuel is reportedly set to leave the coaching staff to pursue his own path as a head coach, which would force any renewal to also address a reshuffling of Scaloni‘s inner circle. Scaloni himself hinted at his own doubts in the aftermath of the World Cup final loss to Spain, telling reporters he needed time to think things over. “I feel the need to think, because I no longer know if something this big can be done again. To continue, you need a lot of things, above all resetting yourself and rebuilding a group like this one, which is hard to put together again,” he said, adding that he would honor his 2026 commitments before deciding on what comes next. Lionel Messi and Lionel Scaloni during the 2022 World Cup. (Getty Images) The three reasons behind the uncertainty Yarroch broke down three central factors clouding the renewal. The first concerns Scaloni’s own doubts about whether, after eight years in the job, he still has the energy and motivation to rebuild the team from scratch, a rebuild that becomes even more daunting with Messi no longer part of the equation. The second involves money, as the AFA reportedly owes players and staff a significant amount in unpaid bonuses, a sticking point that has generated frustration given the federation is currently earning more revenue than ever before. The third reason centers on the organization of Argentina‘s friendlies. Scaloni has long pushed for tougher opposition, a frustration reflected in this year’s own preparation schedule: a mooted friendly against France for the March window fell through after the finalissima against Spain was scrapped, and the AFA instead lined up matches against Guatemala, Venezuela, Mauritania and Angola, before closing out the send-off with a 5-0 win over Zambia and further tests against Honduras and Iceland in June. That pattern appears set to continue, with Burkina Faso, Benin and Bolivia reportedly among the likely rivals for the next international window. Compounding the issue, the federation has reportedly missed its own self-imposed deadlines to officially confirm those matches, adding to Scaloni’s frustration even as the AFA continues to push for him to sign a new deal.
Coventry boss Frank Lampard has been speaking to the media before Sunday's Premier League game against Brighton at CBS Arena (kick-off 14:00 BST). Josh Eccles, Kaine Kesler and Luke Woolfenden are expected back in training by the international break next month, while late addition Yann Gboho, has been "training and adapting" to the squad for the past week. Loanee Stephen Mfuni was ineligible to face parent club Manchester City at the weekend, but Lampard says the versatile defender is fitting in "very well on and off the pitch" and is ready to play.
Aston Villa won their Champions League opener, and they will be hoping to get on the board in the Premier League against Nottingham Forest. The post Emery hopes Champions League win will give Aston Villa confidence appeared first on SoccerNews.
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