Chelsea have confirmed the departure of Patrick van Aanholt to Sunderland on a four-year deal.
The Netherlands international failed to break into the Chelsea first team with any regularity after signing in 2009, and was sent out for a number of loan spells at various clubs.
Included among those were Newcastle United, Leicester City and Wigan Athletic, while he 23-year-old spent the last two and a half years at Eredivisie outfit Vitesse.
Van Aanholt made 70 league appearances for Vitesse in that time, scoring five goals, and helped the club to sixth place in the Dutch top flight last season.
He made just four league appearances for Chelsea in his five years at Stamford Bridge, all as a substitute, and the defender will be looking to experience regular Prem…
They may have opened their AFC Champions League campaign with consecutive defeats but Gamba Osaka attacker Takashi Usami is still dreaming of leading the Japanese outfit to a second title.
Gamba sit bottom of Group F and are the only team in the group without a point and without a goal after two matchdays heading into Wednesday s showdown against leaders Buriram United of Thailand.
Buriram are two from two so far as they prepare to travel to Osaka Expo 70 Stadium in Suita, while Seongnam and Guangzhou R F have both collected three points to date.
However, Usami has not given up hope of helping Gamba add to their 2008 Champions League triumph.
I want to become Asian champions, the 22-year-old told FIFA.com.
We are an attack-minded side. Our stren…
Sporting Lisbon host Chelsea in the UEFA Champions League looking to maintain their superb home record in continental competition.
It will not be an easy assignment for the Premier League pacesetters, with Sporting defending a 16-game unbeaten run in European fixtures on home turf, while they have only lost once in their last nine games to English visitors.
Jose Mourinho returns to a club he served as assistant manager to Sir Bobby Robson in the early 1990s but there will be no warm welcome for the former Porto and Benfica manager who will look to get his side s campaign on track when the two teams meet on Tuesday.
The 2012 winners were in control of their opening Champions League encounter at home to Schalke, leading through Cesc Fabregas first for the club. Bu…
Daniele De Rossi has signed a new deal to keep him as Roma coach until 2027.
De Rossi, who spent 18 seasons at Roma as a player, took over the Giallorossi in January, following Jose Mourinho s departure.
The 40-year-old ultimately guided Roma to a sixth-place finish in Serie A as well as a Europa League semi-final, which they lost to Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen.
In a statement released on Tuesday, Roma said: Before the second leg of the Europa League quarter-finals, the owners – the Friedkin Group – had announced in a note their desire to continue with De Rossi.
Continua la simbiosi naturale con questa squadra, la sua squadra. La Roma
Daniele De Rossi firma il rinnovo di contratto fino al 2027
— AS Roma (@Official…
Zheng Zhi is confident about Guangzhou Evergrande s chances of reaching the AFC Champions League final.
Evergrande hold a 2-1 lead heading into Wednesday s semi-final return leg at Gamba Osaka.
The Chinese champions are 90 minutes away from a first final appearance since 2013, when they broke through for their maiden continental crown.
Evergrande captain Zheng is aware of the task ahead but the China international believes Luiz Felipe Scolari and Co. have what it takes to go all the way.
In the second leg in Osaka, of course we ll have to prepare a different set of tactics as they have an away goal, said Zheng.
The scoreline is neither bad nor good for us, obviously it s not like going there 1-0 or 2-0 up, but I do believe we have gained an adva…
Ange Postecoglou has talked up the professionalism of Tottenham midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg ahead of his anticipated first Premier League start of the season.
Hojbjerg is expected to be drafted into the Spurs line-up for the visit of Fulham on Monday due to Yves Bissouma’s one-match ban for his red card at Luton.
Denmark international Hojbjerg was heavily linked with a move away from Tottenham this summer and Fulham registered an interest in the 28-year-old on transfer deadline day, but no switch to the London club or Atletico Madrid materialised.
Richy Pierre
Hojbjerg was on target the last time we hosted Fulham!
— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial)
While Hojbjerg has only started once this season in the Carabao Cup, he has be…
FIFA has claimed that a payment of $5 million made to the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) following their controversial loss in the 2010 World Cup play-offs was a loan for the construction of a stadium.
FAI chief executive John Delaney revealed earlier on Thursday that world football s governing body had paid compensation to prevent legal action after a handball from Thierry Henry prevented Ireland from qualifying for the World Cup in South Africa.
France forward Henry clearly handled the ball twice in the build-up to William Gallas extra-time equaliser in the second leg of the qualifying play-off with Ireland in November 2009.
That goal sent France through 2-1 on aggregate, with Ireland s subsequent pleas for the game to be replayed falling on deaf ears.…
Manchester United need a big-name signing but cannot afford Cristiano Ronaldo, according to manager Louis van Gaal.
Ronaldo, 30, has been linked with a return to Old Trafford as reports of a rift with new Real Madrid manager Rafael Benitez persist.
Van Gaal would like to see United make a huge signing, having added the likes of Bastian Schweinsteiger, Memphis Depay, Morgan Schneiderlin and Matteo Darmian.
To compete with Europe s and the Premier League s best, Van Gaal said United needed a big name.
Chelsea have Eden Hazard, he can always make goals, he said.
Manchester City have [Sergio] Aguero, it s the same type. Barcelona have Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez. We, as Manchester United, have to compete with these clubs. So we have to look…
Alan Pardew and Slaven Bilic have lavished each other with praise ahead of what the former has described as an unexpected top-of-the-table Premier League clash between Crystal Palace and West Ham at Selhurst Park on Saturday.
Palace went into the international break in good form, sitting fourth in the league having claimed back-to-back wins over Watford and West Brom.
London rivals West Ham are likely to provide a stern test, with Bilic s men unbeaten in their last five Premier League games and looking comfortable in sixth.
Speaking ahead of the visit of his former club, Pardew said: What you really hope for [after the break] is that we can keep the focus of the group. It s a tricky situation.
It is a top-of-the-table encounter, which is good for two…
Bayern Munich midfielder Michael Cuisance has joined Venezia for a reported €4.5million fee.
Cuisance, 22, impressed in his debut season with Borussia Monchengladbach, in which he became their youngest player to start a Bundesliga match, before making the switch to Bayern in August 2019.
However, he failed to make his mark on the Bundesliga champions, playing just 333 minutes across 11 appearances in the top flight.
A loan spell at Marseille last season then offered the midfielder more regular game time as he managed 23 outings in Ligue 1, along with featuring six times in the Champions League.
Bayern head coach Julian Nagelsmann has now opted to allow Cuisance to move on as the former France youth international leaves for Venezia on a three-and-a-half-…