England and Spain to close out 2016 with friendly

Former Scotland defender Gordon McQueen has died aged 70 after his battle with dementia.

McQueen, whose 16-year playing career during the 1970s and 80s included spells at St Mirren, Leeds and Manchester United, was diagnosed with vascular dementia in early 2021.

A statement issued on behalf of the McQueen family said: “It is with the heaviest of hearts we announce the passing of our beloved husband, father and grandfather.

is saddened to learn of the passing of former defender Gordon McQueen at the age of 70, following a battle with dementia

— Leeds United (@LUFC)

“We hope that as well as creating many great football memories for club and his country, he will be remembered for the love, laughter and bravery that characterised his career an…

Japan head coach Hajime Moriyasu has extended his contract with the national side following a successful performance at the World Cup in Qatar.

The Samurai Blue were one of the tournament s surprise packages, beating Germany and Spain in the group stages to top Group E, before suffering a penalty shoot-out defeat to Croatia in the last 16.

After impressing in Qatar, Japanese Football Association president Kozo Tajima announced Moriyasu had extended his contract to run until after the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

Japan have featured in every World Cup tournament since 1998, including as co-hosts alongside South Korea four years later, but have never entered consecutive tournaments under the same head coach – a record Moriyasu will look…

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Desperate to claim a much-needed boost in the early hours of Thursday, Los Angeles will welcome St. Louis to the BMO Stadium in midweek.

Los Angeles FC

Starting with the hosts, putting in another downbeat display last weekend as they eventually had to settle for a sluggish 1-1 draw against San Jose, it is no secret that Los Angeles are in the midst of an MLS nightmare., Opening July with a routine 2-0 defeat away at Dallas, Steve Cherundolo’s men have now collected just a single point from any of their previous four MLS appearances. With that extended crisis underlined by a 2-1 loss against bitter local rivals LA Galaxy earlier in the month, the California-based outfit have come under a huge amount of scrutiny on either side of Jun…

The Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) and the Technical Committee of Referees (CTA) have distanced themselves from former LaLiga referee Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira in the wake of allegations involving Barcelona.

LaLiga giants Barca are alleged to have paid €1.4million to a company part-owned by Negreira between 2016 and 2018.

Negreira, who was the vice president of the CTA, held his role with the RFEF from 1994 to 2018. It is alleged Barca wanted to ensure that there would be complete neutrality in refereeing decisions affecting the club.

Barca responded with a statement on Wednesday saying they had hired the services of an external consultant that supplied the club s technical secretaries with reports in video format of youth players from other clubs …

Aston Villa are the favourites for Champions League football next year despite a disappointing turn in their form, says David James.

With Tottenham having lost heavily at Fulham on Saturday, Villa had the chance to move five points clear of Ange Postecoglou s team and consolidate their place in the top four when they faced West Ham on Sunday.

However, they ultimately had to settle for a point at London Stadium, thanks to Nicolo Zaniolo s equaliser, though West Ham had a late winner disallowed by VAR.

It left Villa, who have been unable to maintain the level of performances they showed at the end of 2023, still in control of their destiny, sitting three points above Tottenham, in fifth, albeit Spurs have a game in hand.

With five teams potentially set for …

Paris Maghoma rescued a point but a 2-2 Sky Bet League One draw with Shrewsbury dented Bolton’s hopes of automatic promotion.

The third tier’s lowest scorers twice shocked their hosts by taking the lead.

But facing a first home defeat to their visitors for 34 years, Bolton salvaged a draw when Maghoma fired home his ninth goal of the campaign after 71 minutes.

However, Ian Evatt’s side still trail second-placed Derby by three points, with both teams having two further games to play.

Shrewsbury survived an early scare when Mal Benning deflected a Cameron Jerome effort against his own post.

Shrews goalkeeper Marko Marosi – in excellent form throughout – twice denied Aaron Collins before Tom Bloxham’s surging run and excellent delivery se…

Fred does not believe Manchester United were even at their best in December s remarkable 6-2 thrashing of Leeds United as he fired a warning ahead of a rematch of what he calls an English football Clasico .

United and Leeds were once party to one of the fiercest rivalries in British football, but it took a backseat to the Red Devils other major matches after the Yorkshire club were relegated from the Premier League in 2004.

The December meeting at Old Trafford was their first in the league for over 16 years, but for Leeds it swiftly turned into a nightmare as Scott McTominay became the first player in Premier League history to score twice in the first three minutes of a match.

That was just the tip of the iceberg, however, as Leeds went on to concede four goals …

Real Madrid midfielder Eduardo Camavinga is set for a lengthy injury layoff after damaging a knee ligament while on international duty with France.

The 21-year-old damaged his knee during a training session this week as Les Bleus prepared for Friday’s Euro 2024 qualifier against Gibraltar and returned to Madrid to undergo medical checks.

A statement from Real read: “After tests carried out on Eduardo Camavinga by Real Madrid’s medical team, he has been diagnosed with a rupture of the external lateral ligament in his right knee. We are awaiting further developments.”

Camavinga medical report.

— Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadriden)

Camavinga, who can also play at left-back, recently signed a new contract with LaLiga giants Real that runs unti…

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers will focus on finding answers from within during a crucial run of games after fans turned on the board during a 2-0 defeat by Hearts.

The home support did not take their first domestic defeat at Celtic Park since January 2021 well with cries of “sack the board” ringing out across Celtic Park after supporters in the main stand vented their frustration towards directors.

Celtic did not really look like mounting a comeback after Lawrence Shankland’s header and Stephen Kingsley’s free-kick put Hearts two ahead inside half an hour.

Only one of the club’s eight summer signings featured in the game and skipper Callum McGregor later stressed that Celtic need to sign quality players in January.

The likes of Josip Juranovic,…

Daniel Levy has revealed for the first time he would be “open” to selling his stake in Tottenham if it was right for the club.

Levy has been Spurs chairman since 2001 and runs affairs for majority shareholder ENIC, which owns 86.58 per cent of the club while the other 13.42 per cent of shares are held by around 30,000 individuals.

The first half of 2023 proved tumultuous for Tottenham and as a result Levy faced several calls from supporters to leave his position, but the mood in N17 has been transformed following the June appointment of head coach Ange Postecoglou.

Positivity is growing on the pitch but unrest off it remains bubbling under the surface with fans protesting before last month’s win over Manchester United due to the club’s decision to increas…