Mauricio Pochettino has confirmed Lionel Messi and Neymar will not play against Clermont, while reaffirming that Kylian Mbappe is perfectly happy at Paris Saint-Germain.

Messi, who made his PSG debut at Reims before the international break, and Neymar both played as late as Thursday in respective World Cup qualifiers for Argentina and Brazil.

While Neymar scored and provided an assist in Brazil s 2-0 win over Peru, Messi netted a hat-trick against Bolivia, surpassing Pele as the all-time leading goalscorer for a South American nation in the process. Argentina subsequently celebrated their recent Copa America triumph with fans finally allowed back into the stadium in Buenos Aires.

Angel Di Maria and Leandro Paredes also featured for Argentina and Pochettino sai…

Leeds United have opened talks with midfielder Kalvin Phillips over a new contract, according to . It has been reported that the Premier League club are keen on securing the long-term future of 25-year-old England international midfielder.

Premier League club Leeds want to reward Phillips for his good performances and also want to fend off interest from other clubs. The West Yorkshire club are hopeful of thrashing out a new deal before the end of the year.

Phillips has been superb for Leeds over the years and played a big role in the club winning promotion from the Championship. The midfielder then helped Marcelo Bielsa’s side finish ninth in the Premier League table last season and also played a key role in England reach the final of Euro 2020 final this summer.

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Antonio Conte expressed his disappointment with UEFA and the Premier League as Tottenham await the verdict on their postponed Rennes clash.

Tottenham were due to meet Rennes in the Europa Conference League last Thursday, but the clash was called off after eight Spurs players and five members of staff returned positive COVID-19 tests.

Conte s side have since had their top-flight meeting with Brighton and Hove Albion postponed after the outbreak, while UEFA is expected to make a decision by the end of the week on the outcome of the game against Rennes.

European football s governing body indicated a new date for the game could not be agreed upon by the two clubs, after COVID-19 cases in the Spurs camp caused a call-off of the fixture.

It remains to be seen…

Prediction: Brazil to win 3-0

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Cameroon and Brazil will lock horns with each other in Group G of the 2022 World Cup finals in Qatar this week. The match between the African giants and the South American powerhouse will be held at the Lusail Iconic Stadium in Lusail and is scheduled to kick off at 7pm UK time on Friday.

Cameroon

Cameroon are third in Group G at the moment and could still end up in the Round of 16 at the 2022 Qatar World Cup. The African nation have picked up just a point from two matches, but they are only two points behind second-placed Switzerland. Cameroon will progress to the knockout rounds only if they are able to beat Brazil, and Switzerland do not win. A draw between Serbia and Switzerland – or a Serbian…

Olympique Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas says the club have rejected a loan offer from Juventus for striker Lisandro Lopez.

Serie A champions Juve are in the market for attacking reinforcements and appear to have made the 29-year-old one of their targets, though Aulas has said it will take a considerable bid to alter his stance.

The Juventus loan offer has not been taken up by Lyon, he declared to Eurosport.Fr.

Only if an adequate proposal is made to meet Lisandro s valuation will we consider, otherwise Lisandro is part of the club s DNA, and is not on the market.

Juve s search for a world-class striker has also seen Didier Drogba and Fernando Llorente linked with moves to Turin.

Lisandro joined Lyon in 2009 after a successful four-year spel…

Newcastle managing director Derek Llambias has promised the club will support Alan Pardew in the transfer market in the off-season.

Newcastle were in danger of being dragged into a relegation fight earlier this season, but have turned things around since the January arrivals of, among others, Moussa Sissoko and Mathieu Debuchy.

And, despite the significant investment seen earlier this year, Llambias has revealed that chief scout Graham Carr is already identifying new targets.

There is still money available. There are several positions we are looking at, he told reporters.

Next year, we will have the TV money. There is a budget to spend. But our transfer policy remains the same no trophy buys. Basically, we will continue our model as it is. It works, so …

Newly appointed Argentina coach Jorge Sampaoli described Lionel Messi as very excited as he prepares to build around the Barcelona star.

Sampaoli was finally unveiled as head coach on Thursday, signing a deal through to the 2022 World Cup.

His first test is far more pressing, with Argentina sitting fifth – the play-off spot – in qualifying for Russia 2018.

Sampaoli has the benefit of having arguably the world s best player at his disposal and the former Chile and Sevilla coach said Messi was ready to shine.

I had to face Messi. We want the world s best player to feel happy being here, he told a news conference.

The important thing is that Messi has compatible players. I spoke to him and he is very excited.

Jorge Sampaoli será prese…

Perth Glory have signed striker Adam Taggart from Fulham, although he will not be able to play this season due to FIFA rules.

The 22-year-old returns to his home-town club, where he made his senior debut in 2011, following an unsuccessful 18-month stint at Fulham in the Championship.

Under FIFA rules, Taggart will not be eligible to play for Perth for the remainder of this campaign because he has already played for two clubs in one season Fulham and Dundee United, where he was on loan earlier this term.

But the Socceroos forward can be registered with up to three clubs in the same timeframe and has signed a contract until the end of 2017-18.

Taggart won the A-League Golden Boot in 2013-14 while he was at Newcastle Jets and was also named the A-League s Yo…

Prediction: West Ham United to win 1-0

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Crystal Palace and West Ham United will face each other in the Premier League this week. The London derby will kick off at 6pm UK time on Tuesday and promises to be an exciting game of football.

Crystal Palace

Crystal Palace will head into the match against West Ham on the back of a 4-0 defeat to Manchester City away from home at the Etihad Stadium in the Premier League. That followed a goalless draw with Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium and a 1-0 defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers in the FA Cup.

Roy Hodgson’s side are 13th in the Premier League table at the moment with 23 points from 19 matches. The Eagles are 11 points above the bottom three and are unlikely to get dragged into a…

Egypt head coach Hector Cuper is not sure what the future holds as he refused to confirm whether he will remain in charge after the World Cup.

Cuper s Egypt will meet Saudi Arabia in Monday s Group A dead rubber, with both nations having already been eliminated from the showpiece tournament. 

There had been high hopes for Egypt until back-to-back defeats to Uruguay and Russia ended their chances of progressing amid fitness concerns over star forward Mohamed Salah.

Ahead of Egypt s final fixture, Cuper was asked about his future and the Argentine tactician – who has been at the helm since 2015 – told reporters on Sunday: I would never go through life excluding anything.

It will depend on a number of factors. There are certain decisions to make to mak…