Stefano Pioli believes Milan are capable of going beyond the 85-point mark in Serie A and insists that is the target as a title battle with Napoli looms.

There are other teams who could also be a factor, but Napoli are the side who have made a flying start, and defending champions Milan were their closest challengers heading into this weekend.

The Rossoneri head coach says it is not essential that his team head the table when the World Cup break comes around next month, but he is wary of letting Napoli build any sort of substantial lead.

Luciano Spalletti s team have already beaten Milan this season, which remains the only league defeat suffered by Pioli s men through 11 rounds of games.

On Sunday, Milan head to Torino, and they only managed a goalless dr…

Santos have dropped immediate plans to retire the number 10 shirt that Pele wore during his career with the Brazilian club.

The club s members were divided on the issue, and the emergence of an old video in which Pele said he was against the idea has seemingly seen the proposal scrapped for now.

In a 2017 YouTube interview, Pele reportedly said: It s better, perhaps, to leave the number 10 because then people will never forget it.

Santos president Andres Rueda said soon after Pele s death that retiring the 10 shirt would be an excellent tribute , revealing it would be put to the club s council for consideration, with the number to be dropped in the meantime pending a final decision.

Multiple reports in Brazil said Pele s daughters had requested the numbe…

Tottenham crashed to defeat in their Champions League encounter with Sporting CP as a stunning late show condemned them to a 2-0 defeat in Lisbon.

Spurs had produced a largely uninspiring performance at Estadio Jose Alvalade on Tuesday and appeared happy to settle for a share of the spoils.

But there was a twist in the tale in the closing stages when Paulinho turned home a corner at the near post in the 90th minute.

Sporting then made sure of the points in the third and final minute of injury time as Arthur Gomes doubled their tally with a superb individual effort on his debut.

Former Tottenham youth product Marcus Edwards was the primary threat in the first half and almost set up the opening goal at the end of a quick break, finding Pote only for the win…

Arsenal are interested in signing Eberechi Eze from London and Premier League rivals Crystal Palace in the summer transfer window, according to . The report has claimed that the Gunners have already taken a major step in their quest to bring Eze to the Emirates Stadium.

Football Transfers has reported that Arsenal contacted the agents of Eze earlier this month to gauge his interest in a potential move to the Emirates Stadium. The England international, who can play as an attacking midfielder or as a winger, is hesitant to leave Palace for a club that would not assure him of a regular place in the starting lineup.

Eze is one of the best English wingers in the Premier League and has done well for Palace over the years. The England international joined the Eagles from Quee…

Liverpool’s youngsters have had a significant week in the spotlight, helping beat Chelsea in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday before setting up an FA Cup quarter-final trip to Manchester United after victory over Southampton.

Three of them – Bobby Clark, Jayden Danns and Lewis Koumas – are following in their former professional footballer fathers’ footsteps.

Here, the PA news agency looks at the fresh faces who have taken their opportunity to shine at Anfield.

Bobby Clark

Given a handful of opportunities in recent weeks, the 19-year-old is an attacking midfielder. The son of former Newcastle midfielder Lee Clark, he joined the club from the Magpies in 2021 and signed a long-term contract last December.

Jayden Danns

An 18-year-old forward, son of …

Chris Armas says his Colorado Rapids players deserve to enjoy their meteoric rise up the MLS standings, and he is confident they will not get carried away ahead of their trip to FC Cincinnati.

Colorado sit fourth in the Western Conference with 15 points from nine games, winning three of their last four after an inconsistent start to the year.

They benefitted from two own goals as they beat FC Dallas 2-1 last time out, and Armas has no issue with his players enjoying their place in the standings, particularly given they finished rock bottom of the West in 2023.

I see the boys looking at the TV where we have the standings posted, and they see that we re climbing, so it s all good stuff, Armas said.

From day one the message that I preached is that everythi…

John Mousinho was gutted his Portsmouth side were unable to see out the final stages as they played out a thrilling 3-3 draw with Leeds United in their first game back in the Championship.

Pompey, back in the second tier after a 12-year exile, took a 92nd-minute lead in Saturday s contest at Elland Road through a Callum Lang penalty, only for Brenden Aaronson to strike two minutes later.

The newly promoted side had earlier recovered from a Pascal Struijk penalty to take a 2-1 lead into half-time through goals from Elias Sorensen and Lang, before Willy Gnonto levelled early in the second half.

A point away at one of the promotion favourites can still be considered a hugely encouraging result, but the dramatic conclusion to the contest left Mousinho with bitterswee…

Wolfsburg attacking midfielder Julian Draxler is in danger of missing Euro 2016 after sustaining a muscle tear to his left thigh in the 3-0 Champions League defeat to Real Madrid on Tuesday.

The 22-year-old, who joined Wolfsburg from Schalke in August, impressed in the first leg of the quarter-final tie, but limped off at the half-hour mark in the return at the Santiago Bernabeu, which saw Madrid progress to the last four courtesy of a 3-2 aggregate win.

Draxler underwent further examination on his injury on Thursday and Wolfsburg have now announced he faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines.

I am disappointed and it s a real shame that I can t help the team right now in looking to achieve our goals for the season, Draxler said.

I will now do everything …

Cristiano Ronaldo has vowed to lead Portugal in a drive for more silverware after their Nations League triumph.

The Juventus forward was the leading scorer at the Nations League Finals thanks to his semi-final hat-trick against Switzerland.

He then helped his country defeat Netherlands 1-0 in Sunday s title match, when Goncalo Guedes netted the only goal.

And 34-year-old Ronaldo intends to remain available to Portugal for as long as the team continue to make progress, with the Euro 2020 trophy next in the captain s sights as they look to defend the title they won in France three years ago.

He said:  The national team will continue, with or without Cristiano. I think the team has great potential. There are young players, players who over the years will …

VAR is now at a “crisis point”, according to pundit and former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher.

Liverpool had a Luis Diaz goal incorrectly ruled out for offside during Saturday’s Premier League defeat at Tottenham due to miscommunication between VAR Darren England and on-field referee Simon Hooper.

The match was goalless at the time of the incident, with the Reds – who were eventually reduced to nine men – going on to lose 2-1 to an own goal from Joel Matip deep into stoppage time.

I do feel like this is a crisis point for VAR gives his honest opinion on the controversial decision to disallow Luis Díaz s goal against Tottenham

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL)

Liverpool issued a statement on Sunday night saying they wo…