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Cristian Toro has hailed Toni Payne following her impressive display for Sevilla in Thursday's 1-1 draw with Real Madrid in a Spanish Primera Iberdrola encounter at Estadio Jesus Navas.

Las Rojiblancas had gone two matches without defeat in the Spanish women's top flight, following a 3-1 win at Eibar last Sunday.

To maintain their unbeaten form, Payne was drafted into the starting line-up and featured for 80-minutes on her 18th start of the campaign.

During her spell in Thursday's encounter, the Nigerian-American winger provided huge influence for her Seville-based outfit as they claimed a vital point at home, off high-flying Real Madrid.

After Lucia cancelled out Lorena Navarro opener to share the spoils, the manager was thrilled to see the 25-year-old forward make such a stunning impact defensively in the cagey duel with Real.

"I am happy with the team's disposition and the collective work," said after the game.

"We know that the team that comes to our field has to suffer to win us or to get something and today we gave the form that we want as a team, competitive, supportive, of efforts.

"It is a point that counts little by some situation we had, but it has a lot of merits also knowing the rival that it was. 

"Work by Toni [Payne] and Carla [Armengol] helped a lot in defence were very important, therefore also the changes in order to have fresh people.

"I'm happy because I can't ask the team for more as it has been showing many positive things during the season.

"It is to congratulate them and continue in this line of wanting to improve results and also collectively."

The draw means Sevilla are eighth on the log with 28 points from 20 matches and will face Valencia in their next league match on March 7. 

Having earned her maiden Nigeria call-up, the former US youth international will hope to make her debut for the African champions against Uzbekistan at the Turkish Women's Cup on February 20.

Bayer Leverkusen defender Jeremie Frimpong has ruled out the possibility of playing for England at senior level, revealing his heart lies with Ghana or the Netherlands.

Born in the Netherlands to Ghanaian parents, Frimpong moved to England at seven years old, joining Manchester City's academy set-up two years later.

He, thus, qualifies to represent any of the three nations at senior international level. At youth stage, he has played for the country of his birth at U19 and U20 level.

"I can represent England, but that is not even an option for me. I am not English. But I have not yet chosen between Ghana and the Netherlands," Frimpong told Algemeen Dagblad.

"I do not know what gives me the last push. I can only say that it is It's not an easy decision. My family sets me free. They say, 'We support you, regardless of your choice'.

"It's up to me. It would be a great honour to be invited."

After several years at City, Frimpong left the club for Scottish outfit Celtic in 2019, owing to a lack of first-team opportunities at Etihad Stadium.

The move turned out to be a brilliant switch as he would not take long to grab a regular spot at Celtic and went on to hog headlines with a string of fine performances.

"I felt ready for the first team [at City] and thought: I'm going to pull out all the stops in preparation to stand out. Then we played against Celtic. The club immediately contacted City," the 20-year-old explained.

"I was by no means always the best. It doesn't happen to me. I have to work very hard every day. My technique, for example, still deserves attention."

After a year-and-a-half in Scotland, Frimpong moved to German side Leverkusen last month, signing a four-and-a-half-year contract.

"A top competition. That's where I wanted to go. Every team has great players. I want to test myself here against the best," the full-back said of the Bundesliga and his move to Leverkusen.

Frimpong made his Leverkusen debut in a 2-1 defeat to Rot-Weiss Essen in the German Cup earlier this month, a few days before making his Bundesliga bow in 5-2 victory over Stuttgart. 

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer admits he is following the progress of Erling Haaland and has not ruled out making a move for the Borussia Dortmund star.

Haaland has developed into one of the most prolific strikers in world football, scoring 38 goals in just 40 appearances for Dortmund since joining from Red Bull Salzburg a little over a year ago.

The likes of Liverpool, Real Madrid and Barcelona have all been linked with the Leeds-born Norway international, but it seems Manchester United have more than a passing interest as well.

What did Solskjaer say about Haaland?

Solskjaer knows all about Haaland’s talents, having managed his compatriot when he was a teenager at Norwegian club Molde.

When asked whether that previous relationship could help smooth the path to Old Trafford, Solskjaer told Norwegian outlet VG: "Erling will have a fantastic career. I’m following Erling. I've always said that.

"Was it 18 months we had together or something? Almost two years, maybe. A wonderful time. He will definitely have a great career for both Norway and his club.

"He is doing incredibly well for Dortmund, so we'll see where he ends up. As a Norwegian and someone who has worked with him, it is of course fun that he does so well.

"We will do what we can to become a better team, then he will do what he can to become a better player. Where does he end up? I do not want to say anything other than that, that I wish him all the best. Which choice he makes may be up to him.”

Could Man Utd make a bid for Haaland?

Borussia Dortmund are enduring a difficult season in Bundesliga and sacked coach Lucien Favre following a 5-1 defeat to newly-promoted Stuttgart in December.

Favre's assistant Edin Terzic has been appointed as interim replacement until the end of the season but he faces a real challenge to lift the side back into the Champions League places, with the club currently sixth in the table.

Failure to qualify for the Champions League could force the club to cash-in on some of their key assets, including Haaland.

The Norway international has a contract through 2024, but it has been reported that a €75 million (£67m/$92m) release clause was included in that deal which is due to become active in the summer of 2022.

That could spark a scramble for his services among some of Europe’s biggest sides - with United set to be among them.

Further reading

Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson has urged his side to prove they can win games without Wilfried Zaha.  

The Selhurst Park outfit have struggled to secure positive results whenever the Ivory Coast international is not playing and in their last Premier League outing, they lost to Leeds United.

Zaha last featured for the Eagles in their victory over Newcastle United on February 2 due to a muscle injury problem he suffered.

Hodgson revealed the 28-year-old forward is not yet fit and will not be involved in their clash against Burnley on Saturday.

The English tactician has called on his side to prove they have all it takes to win matches without the influential Ivory Coast international.

“It's only one week into his muscle injury. So we’re anticipating it will take more time than that for him to recover,” Hodgson said in a press conference.

“The same applies to [James] McArthur and [James] McCarthy, the same applies to [James] Tomkins and Jeffrey Schlupp.

“Statistics can prove that we win fewer games when he’s not playing. As a result, he deserves all the plaudits he’s rightly received during his time at the club, for helping us get the results we get.

“If you are a player who is not playing every week, and you’re watching Wilf get all the plaudits, and then when he doesn’t play and you do, the results don’t go the way you want them to go, you have to read: ‘they can’t win without Wilfried Zaha.’

“It’s up to those players who are on the receiving end of those comments and criticisms to get out there and prove that…we aren’t totally dependent on him. The only way that’s going to happen is if we start winning games when he’s not there.

“It's a very simple mindset. We have a squad of 25 players, and only 11 can play. If you’re one of the 14 that are not playing, your mindset should be simple: I want to play, I want to prove that I’m a very good Premier League player too.

“It's a mindset that all the players through the years have wanted, and it's: ‘let me show you what I can do.’”

Zaha has played 20 games across all competitions for Crystal Palace this season, scoring nine goals and providing two assists.

Returning Zesco United goalkeeper Ian Otieno has urged his teammates to ensure they beat Buildcon FC on Saturday in order to maintain consistency in the Super League.

Describing his second yellow card against Lusaka Dynamos as "unnecessary", Otieno said his return is crucial for the team ahead of the next game against Buidlcon, who defeated Nkana in their previous match.

“I am very happy to make a return to the team after I received an unnecessary second yellow card. Referees are human and are prone to make mistakes," Otieno told the club's website.

"What’s crucial is that I am back in the team and I am pretty sure the entire technical bench is happy with this development.”

The Kenya international will be returning from suspension and is expected to be fielded against Buildcon, a side he said they must beat because they want to stay in the title race.

"You can’t take away the fact that they are playing well. However, we are also playing very well, and we will need all the guns available to carry the day on Saturday," he added.

"It is crucial to winning this match because we are in the title race as such consistency is needed in terms of winning games.”

Zesco United, sixth, have been lukewarm but the former AFC Leopards goalkeeper has urged the fans to remain patient.

"Fans need to be patient because this league is very tight. If you look at the first five teams; the first one is ahead of us with a point or two," he concluded.

"I understand that they are disappointed because we lost to Young Green Eagles, but this is football, anyone can lose and anyone can win. We are doing everything possible to win the league."

Otieno's coach Numba Mumba is confident they can get the victory against the Premier League rivals.

"We are targeting an outright victory against Buildcon especially that we dropped points at Eagles. Our plan is to ensure that we unsettle them for the onset and get the necessary goals," the Zambian coach told the club's website too.

"The morale in camp is very high. We had a good discussion with our players after the Eagles defeat. We have psyched them to put the recent defeat behind them and to ensure that we respond by beating Buildcon.

“They are playing some good football and have had a good run of form since the league started. However, it is crucial for us to get maximum points so that we could move up the ladder."

Buildcon and Timu ya Ziko have 25 points each but the latter has played one fewer game.

The contrast at the top of the Premier League table after gameweek nine compared to current outlook going into this weekend’s games couldn’t be more stark.

Tottenham Hotspur had just defeated pre-season title favourites Manchester City 2-0, a game many claimed had Jose Mourinho’s imprint written all over it. The Lilywhites defended for large portions of the game, were dangerous on the counter and took their chances in each half to score twice.

Spurs didn’t have possession, but the Portuguese manager didn’t care. He’d masterminded another win over his nemesis and sat joint-top of the PL standings at the time along with Liverpool on 20 points.

A frustrated Pep Guardiola was left bemoaning the London side’s approach and his side’s limitations. It was understandable, too, as they sat in 13th spot with 12 points, eight adrift of Mourinho’s side albeit with a game in hand.

Serge Aurier was a beneficiary of his manager’s approach in that game and produced arguably his best performance in a Spurs shirt to date on that day.

The much-maligned right-back didn’t score or assist in that triumph at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium but he was probably the best outfield player for the hosts in the victory many imagined announced their candidacy in the race for their first league success.

While many observers focused on the Ivory Coast defensive performance on the day, he was equally important to the Lilywhites in possession. He played a staggering seven progressive passes (only Harry Kane with eight completed more) and ranked second in the side for forward-thinking ball carries.

Defensively, he was vital to the team’s rare pressing, made more tackles and interceptions combined and made more recoveries (seven) than all but two of his teammates—Moussa Sissoko and Pierre Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, both of whom had eight.

It was that showing that made the defender Mourinho’s trusted choice at right-back over Matt Doherty and the Ivory Coast defender rewarded his manager’s faith with debatably more glowing showings in games at Chelsea and vs Arsenal.

The Lilywhites kept clean sheets in all three games, remained top of the standings after gameweek 11 and sat six points ahead of Guardiola’s troops.

Fast forward to the present and Mourinho’s team are not only out of the title picture but a staggering 14 points adrift of City, who sit top of the log after an impeccable 10-game winning run in the league. They’ve conceded only twice in that spell and one was a Mohamed Salah penalty in last week’s 4-1 demolition of Liverpool and a Callum Hudson-Odoi consolation in stoppage time when they played Chelsea off the park in January.

Tottenham, meanwhile, have looked a shadow of those performances in the autumn, losing five of their 11 games since beating Arsenal 2-0 in the North London Derby. One of those losses even saw Aurier reportedly leave the ground early after his half-time substitution against Liverpool, a match the Lilywhites eventually lost 3-1.

Mistakes have crept into Mourinho’s backline lately and the Ivory Coast wide defender has unsurprisingly received a portion of the blame. The recent malaise can’t be attributed to the West African alone, however, as he wasn’t even in action in the rip-roaring League Cup exit in midweek.

Spurs were beaten 5-4 by Everton at Goodison Park, with the two-time Champions League winner lamenting a deluge of errors post-match.

“I enjoyed it - and I didn't enjoy it. I enjoyed the way we played with the ball,” Mourinho told BT Sport. “We created, we had great movement, we scored goals, created chances.

"Showed great character to fight against incredible mistakes, but attacking football only wins matches when you don't make more mistakes than you create. We scored four goals and it was not enough.

“It hurts everyone. The feeling is we played really well with the ball, we were brave, we were the best team at 1-0 and in five minutes it was mistake, mistake, mistake, goal, goal, goal.

“We fought back again but had more mistakes. It was the mouse and the cat. The mouse was our mistakes and the cat was us trying to compensate for that.”

There’s a sense that defensive disaster has given the former Chelsea boss the justification he needs to go ultra-defensive at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday, although that was always going to happen anyway.

Still, the growth of the Cityzens since that encounter in late November as well as Tottenham’s apparent struggles against cohesive units suggests Guardiola will get one over his rival after losing the last two meetings by an aggregate score of 4-0.

How Aurier fits into Mourinho’s scheme in Manchester remains to be seen, but the defender certainly his work cut out for him as he seeks a repeat performance against the rampaging champions-elect.

The Uzbekistan Football Association has named their 22-woman squad for the 2021 Turkish Women's Cup to kick off in Alanya on Wednesday.

Uzbekistan are participating in the invitational tournament in the build-up to the qualifying matches of the 2022 Asian Women's Cup.

Coach Bakhrom Norsafarov will be aiming to steer his side to success in Group A which hosts Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea at the international women’s competition which features seven teams.

Although five places below 37th ranked Nigeria, the White Wolves will hope to surpass a fourth-place finish on a second appearance at the fifth edition of the tournament, to be held from February 15 to 24.

During their first campaign in 2019, Uzbekistan finished fourth with six points from three matches behind Northern Ireland, Romania and champions France B.

The 22-player squad comprises of two goalkeepers, eight defenders, eight midfielders plus four forwards, and all of them are currently in camp for preparations in Tashkent, where they have been since February 8.

Following the completion of their training camp, the Federation confirmed in a statement that Norsafarov's side will depart the central Asian country to Turkey on Monday, February 15.

Uzbekistan will commence their campaign against Equatorial Guinea on February 17 in Alanya before taking on Nigeria three days after the withdrawal of Zambia earlier on Tuesday.

FULL SQUAD: 

Goalkeepers: Laylo Tilovova [Sevinch], Maftuna Zhonimkulova [Sevinch]

Defenders: Dilrabo Asadova [Bunyodkor], Ugiloy Ilasheva [AGMK], Maftuna Shoyimova [Sevinch], Kamila Zaripova [AGMK], Yulduz Khamdamova [Pakhtakor], Zukhra Abdurakhimova [Navbahor], Laylo Shodieva [Sevinch], Yulduz Nabieva [Metallurgist]

Midfielders: Nozima Kamoltoeva [Metallurgist], Nelufar Dadazhanova [Navbahor], Lianna Narbekova [Sogdiana], Umida Zoirova [Bunyodkor], Malika Burkhonova [Sevinch], Dildora Nozimova [Bunyodkor], Ezoza Sharipova [Sogdiana], Madina Vohidova [Pakhtakor]

Forwards: Dildora Ergasheva [Locomotive], Lyudmila Karachik [Bunyodkor], Diyora Khabibullaeva [Sogdiana], Nilufar Kudratova [Sevinch]

The high-profile Premier League showdown of the weekend—as Manchester City take on Tottenham Hotspur—is one of the big items on the agenda in this week’s African Football HQ podcast.

Ed Dove and Malek Shafei look ahead to this fixture, and assess the likely African involvement in the bout, as Serge Aurier may well go toe to toe with Algeria’s Riyad Mahrez.

The debate about whether Mahrez can truly be considered world class is again back on the agenda this week, with the Algeria playmaker failing to impress on a consistent basis since netting a hat-trick against Burnley in 2020.

While this City team are at the top of their game—they have broken the all-time English record for consecutive wins—Mahrez has only been a peripheral figure, making limited decisive contributions as Pep Guardiola’s side romp to the title.

Aurier remains a doubt for this one, although—remarkably—Spurs fans may well be keen for him to get back into the team after their defensive horror show against Everton in midweek.

Usually convincing at the back, Tottenham shipped five as they were dumped out of the FA Cup, with Matt Doherty struggling at right-back.

While Aurier has a reputation for being hideously error-prone, he has improved this season, and supporters will be hoping he can return in time for the meeting with City.

However, even if he does return, it remains to be seen whether Spurs can hold Guardiola’s boys at bay as they look to overturn their miserable form.

Also on the podcast, we look back on Morocco’s African Nations Championship campaign—inviting special guest Benjamin Hajji (@MaghribFoot) onto the show to talk through how the Atlas Lions masterminded yet another run to the title.

He also assesses Achraf Hakimi’s form for Internazionale as they compete for the Serie A, and Sevilla’s Youssef En-Nesyri, who’s hot on the heels of Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi in the race for the La Liga Golden Boot.

Also on the agenda, we look ahead to Fulham vs Everton—previewing an all-Nigerian meeting between Ademola Lookman and Alex Iwobi—and examine Al-Ahly’s campaign at the Club World Cup.

Western Stima chairman Laban Jobita has confirmed the release of 14 players from the Football Kenya Federation Premier League side.

Experienced goalkeeper Samuel  'Abawa' Odhiambo, Marvin Ayoro, Devans Shakil, Sharif Khaemba, Spencer Obura, Austin Wahongo, Darryl Odhiambo, Wycliffe Aguero, Hamid Ali, Ezekiel Wadanda, Vincent Oluoch, Abdirahman Mango and Mark Ochieng are the released players.

Confirming the development, Jobita said the move was informed by the need to trim the playing unit to one more manageable.

"That [release of players] is normal in football because you cannot keep a number that you cannot manage," the chair told Goal on Friday.

"I used to have a number of 30 players and I felt I should have a size that I can manage. I am intending to have about 20 and because I have released 14, it means I have 16 remaining with us so far.

"The main target is to have either 20 or 23 and definitely I am going to sign some new ones to fill those gaps."

Western Stima have been struggling since the season began and recently found themselves dealing with match-fixing allegations.

Jobita had also stated the current players were unable to save their season, stressing the need for new ones.

"We must bring in new players in the short transfer window," Jobita said earlier.

"I am afraid the players we have cannot get us out of our current position. So we have to get players who will help us move upwards on the table before it is too late.

"I am waiting for the report from the technical bench and then we implement it as soon as possible.

"We want to perform well in the remaining matches of the season and we must have players who will help us achieve the same." 

In a bid to change the tide of poor performance, the Powermen recently appointed former Sony Sugar and Thika United head coach Abdalla Juma in place of Paul Ogai.

Western Stima, 17th with just seven points, will play Kakamega Homeboyz in their next FKF Premier League encounter on Saturday, February 20 after the 2-2 draw against Ulinzi Stars last time out.

Football is full of stories about near-misses and fantasies concerning players who might have been signed by certain clubs.

Blackburn Rovers famously missed out on Zinedine Zidane in the 1990s, opting to sign Tim Sherwood instead, while Barcelona and Arsenal were potential destinations for Cristiano Ronaldo.

One enduring account about an almost-signing is that of Lionel Messi nearly joining Scottish outfit Rangers in the early 2000s.

So what is the story? Did it really happen? Goal takes a look at the truth behind the tale.

Did Lionel Messi nearly sign for Rangers?

No, Messi did not nearly sign for Rangers. Sorry to shatter the myth.

However, it is true that there was strong interest from the Scottish club around 2003-04, just before the Argentine broke into the Barcelona first team.

Tentative enquiries were made from the Rangers about the possibility of taking Messi on loan to Glasgow, but they were rejected out of hand.

The rejection of the interest from Scotland is perhaps no surprise considering that Messi was already on the fringes of the Barca team and eventually made his senior competitive debut at 17 in October 2004.

What actually happened?

So if Rangers did not nearly sign Messi, what really happened?

Alex McLeish was manager of the Ibrox club when enquiries about Messi were made and it was his son Jon who alerted him to the precocious Argentine after seeing him on Football Manager.

Jon, who actually went on to become a football agent, had noticed a 13-year-old Messi on the game and told McLeish - who was then managing Hibernian - about it.

Though Messi's burgeoning reputation was certainly no secret in football circles, the tip evidently stayed with the Scottish coach as he asked about the Barca youth product a number of years later, only to be told "no chance" by the Catalan club.

“My son Jon was into Championship Manager," McLeish explained on Graham Hunter's The Big Interview podcast in 2017.

“He was constantly giving me names in South America. They come out of the sky and say ‘Lionel Messi is going to be the best player in the world’.

“He was 13 or 14 at the time. You dismiss it but Rangers were downsizing and we were looking for some quality in midfield.

“Barry Ferguson had gone down to Blackburn so we lost a guy who would have taken the ball in any stadium anywhere in the world. We needed players of that ilk again.

“Jan Wouters phoned Henk ten Cate, who was the assistant of Frank Rijkaard, the ex-Dutch international.

“Jan phoned him and said: ‘Messi?’ We were told no chance."

Rangers had links with Barcelona, having previously done business with the club to sign Ronald de Boer in 2000 and Mikel Arteta in 2002, so it was not wholly unusual for such enquiries to be made.

Added to that, the fact that McLeish's assistant Jan Wouters was friendly with Barcelona assistant head coach Henk ten Cate helped.

McLeish went into greater detail about the attempts to sign Messi in Hunter's 2012 book Barca, explaining that Barcelona were worried that the Scottish game may have been too rough for the Argentine.

“Ten Cate and Jan Wouters had chats about us taking Messi on loan, but the guidance from Henk was that he was probably too young and possibly too slight to get benefit from Scottish football," McLeish said. 

Letting the diminutive forward cut his teeth in British football was seen as a risk because of the perception that "tough tackling" and a more physical game held sway in the United Kingdom.

While the prospect of signing Messi was a complete non-runner, Rangers and McLeish were subsequently tipped off by Ten Cate about a young Andres Iniesta, who was also still only a teenager at the time.

However, that didn't happen either, not helped by the fact that Iniesta was turning heads at Camp Nou. Influential figures such as Txiki Begiristain and Joan Laporta were also keen to promote La Masia products to the first team.

“[Ten Cate] said ‘we’ve got a young kid, Iniesta, he’s a phenomenal player’, only 18 or 19," McCleish explained in 2017.

"We said ‘can he come to Scotland?’

"They said ‘yep I’ll try and make hay at Barcelona and get him over to you. He needs to get some action’.

"By the Monday Iniesta was called into the team and he played a stormer.

"Ten Cate came back and Jan asked him ‘what about the wee man? Are we getting him?’”

"Ten Cate sighed and said we had no chance.”

Wakiso Giants picked up their first win of the ongoing Ugandan Premier League season after a 1-0 win over Mbarara City on Friday at Kakyeka Stadium.

Kipson Atuheire, who was making his debut for the Purple Sharks, scored the only goal of the encounter to ensure coach Douglas Bamwenyana registered a first win since taking charge of the club.

In a contest that both sides looked equally matched, Mbarara City's Bashir Mutanda shot over the bar the first clear chance after he beat Edward Sabulo in the 30th minute.

Vianne Ssekajugo and Joshua Lubwama, both of Wakiso Giants, saw their chances go wide as well. As the second half began, Solomon Okwalinga was unable to give Mbarara City an opener as his effort went wide from a clever position.

Uganda international Ssekajugo would have opened the score in the 55th minute as his effort was ruled out for offside. Two minutes after Ssekajugo was flagged down, the Purple Sharks took the lead as Atuheire - who received a good cross from Owen Kasule - opened his goal account.

Jude Ssemugabi wasted a chance to make the score 1-1 when his penalty hit the crossbar. The penalty miss helped Wakiso Giants move up to the eighth position after picking up draws in the previous five games.

Meanwhile, Police FC defeated Kyeume FC 3-1 to go top of the Premier League table.

Johnson Odong, Muwadda Mawejje and Brain Mulili scored the goals for the winners - who are now on top with 13 points - while Baker Buyala netted for Kyetume.

Kyetume - who had not lost a game in the previous five games -  will remain seventh and on nine points.

Odong scored the first goal of the game in favour of the Cops in the 20th minute before Mawejje added the second 15 minutes later. Buyala scored Kyetume's goal two minutes before the half-time break.

Police had to wait until in the second half as Mulili struck in the 73rd minute. Feni Ali delivered the cross that Buyala needed to connect with and score to stretch the lead quite far from Kyetume's reach.

Earlier on, Sharif Saaka missed a clear opportunity that would have helped Kyetume get at least a point from a probable draw. Henry Katongole was alert enough to thwart the danger presented by two strikes from Buyala. 

There were also missed opportunities when Mustafa Mujuzi shot out from close range and when Deo Isejja hit the crossbar.

Police will welcome BUL FC - who condemned KCCA FC to a 2-1 defeat - on Tuesday while Vipers Sports Club will visit Kyetume.

Finally, Onduparaka FC and Busoga United shared points from a 1-1 draw in Arua.

Hyderabad FC head coach Manuel Marquez cut a satisfied figure after his team's 1-1 draw against East Bengal in an Indian Super League (ISL) clash at the Tilak Maidan Stadium in Goa on Friday. 

Hyderabad, right in the middle of the race for play-offs, were desperate for a win and had to wait till injury time to salvage a draw. 

Marquez, however, said that the Nizams were not able to control the match in the first half and had some bad moments after conceding the slender lead to the Kolkata giants. 

"We are satisfied because we equalized the game at the last moment. But in the first-half, we are not able to decide the game. In the second half, we shot against the post. And in the counter-attack, they score. After they score. I think we had some bad moments, nervous. (But) we got one important point," Marquez said after the game.  

East Bengal are ninth in the table currently but Marquez believes that the Kolkata giants have one of the best squads in the league. He insisted that East Bengal deserve to have plenty more points on the table. 

"East Bengal at this moment have the best squad in the league. Maybe they have some problem. Maybe we are playing very good practically all the season. With all the respect to East Bengal, they started the season very late. In the (transfer) market, they changed a lot of Indian players. I remember they deserve to win against Mumbai. I think they deserve more points in the table. The problem is not for us though. We are doing very good in the season," Marquez said. 

Hyderabad are currently third on the table with 24 points from 17 games.

"Now we are towards the end of the competition. There are only three games. Of course, very difficult to win the games. Our schedule is very difficult. We play against FC Goa and ATK Mohun Bagan. Our fixtures are difficult in comparison to other teams. (But) we will continue fighting."

Subrata Paul, who was loaned from Hyderabad FC to East Bengal in the winter transfer window, did a fantastic job for East Bengal. Marquez believes that the veteran is a good custodian but his goalkeeper Laxmikant Kattimani is having his best season.   

"Subrata (Paul) is a great goalkeeper. I think these kind of players have to play. The performances of Kattimani and the performances of the centre backs are very good. For me its better that they go on loan. This is football. I don't know if Subrata today played good or bad. I think that this chances in the end. But I know Subrata is great goalkeeper but I'm happy with the four goalkeepers we have and Kattimani is playing his best season," he said. 

West Bromwich Albion manager Sam Allardyce has confirmed Ahmed Musa will not be joining his side.

The Nigeria international was heavily linked with the Baggies and did travel to England for a potential deal with the club.

The fleet-footed winger has been without a club since leaving Saudi Arabian side Al Nass by mutual agreement in October.

Musa had previously played in the Premier League with Leicester City but his inability to establish himself at the club led to his move to Saudi Arabia.

Musa has been making efforts to return to Europe after leaving Al Nass and will now look elsewhere to continue his career after Allardyce revealed West Brom’s financial state will not allow his side to hand the forward a contract.

“We’d already brought four players in, so it didn’t fall within our budget anymore,” Allardyce said, as per Birmingham Mail.

“More players would have had to have left to have funded that one. It’s a shame that Musa didn’t get in or come in earlier, obviously because of Covid he couldn’t make it.

“He may have been one of the four that we brought in, but because he was the fifth it couldn’t get done.”

Nigeria national team coach Gernot Rohr has urged the 28-year-old to make effort to secure a club before the Super Eagles 2022 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers in March.

"We are in touch with our captain, he is in the United Kingdom now,” Rohr told media after arriving in the country last weekend.

"It's not so easy to change during the season but he is free to sign where he wants and there's no obligation to respect the transfer window for him because he was free already.

"I am very hopeful that he can sign in the next few days, he wanted to come back to Europe and to play in England so it's not easy during the season but I'm hopeful that he can sign in the club, it's very important that everybody is playing in their clubs.

"It's a long time that he didn't play, I think since October, so he needs now to come back in the rhythm of the matches."

Jose Mourinho has taken a swipe at Gareth Bale after saying an Instagram post by the forward is “totally wrong” and that there was a “contradiction between the post and reality.”

Bale posted an image of himself in training on Tuesday with the caption “good session today”, which appears to suggest he was fit and available for selection.

However, after leaving the Wales international out of the squad for Wednesday’s trip to Everton, Mourinho said Bale had asked not to be involved and requested a scan on an injury with the Spurs boss doubling down on those assertions when speaking to reporters on Friday.

What did Mourinho say about Bale?

When asked about Bale’s potential availability for the weekend trip to Manchester City and for further clarification on the reasons behind his absence at Goodison Park, Mourinho said: “We have a training session on [Friday] afternoon to see if he feels ready or not.

“I hope the press conference is about the game and not about individuals, but I have to admit his post created the need to be addressed because there was a contradiction between the post and reality.

"Since the beginning of the season, in relation to everything I try to be very private and keep everything in doors, but I felt that I need to address the situation.

"Probably the post was not even his responsibility, I don't know, but the post was showing that training session great, so 'I'm ready' and it was totally wrong.

"So when I was questioned I had to say the reality of the things which I repeat for the last time and I hope there are no more questions about it because the situation was exactly the way I told: he was not feeling good, he asked for a scan, he had the scan, the scan didn't show an injury but his feelings were still there.

"Coaches, sports science and medical people can never go against feelings because the players feelings are more important than all of us, so he was not ready for the game and it was as simple as that. If he's ready for tomorrow's he's selected for tomorrow.”

How many games has Bale played this season?

Hopes were high among Tottenham fans when Bale made an emotional return to north London from Real Madrid in September, but things have not quite gone to plan so far.

The 31-year-old has struggled for regular action, his cause not helped by a number of niggling injuries.

He has made just 15 appearances in all competitions, scoring four goals, and hasn't featured since the 1-0 defeat at Brighton on January 31.

Kane fit for Man City trip

There was some good news for Tottenham, with Mourinho reporting that Harry Kane showed no ill-effects after his substitute appearance against Everton on Wednesday.

The England captain was introduced after 53 minutes in what was just his second game back from an ankle injury, but ended up playing for well over an hour because the FA Cup tie went to extra time.

"Of course he played 60 minutes or so, which he didn't want and I didn't want as it was a game that pushed us in that direction, but no negative feelings after the game," Mourinho said of Kane. "Just the normal stiffness. I believe he can start."

Further reading

The 2022 World Cup is set to take place in Qatar, and it will be the first time the tournament is held in the months of November and December instead of traditional summer in order to accommodate with the milder temperatures of the Gulf nation.

You might have noticed that Qatar have been included in several World Cup qualifiers - even though that, as the host nation, they earned automatic qualification.

So why are Qatar still playing qualifiers? Goal takes a look.

Qatar have only been included as a team in the 2022 World Cup qualification stages as a guest side, using the fixtures as a chance to warm-up for the tournament.

Qatar, as World Cup hosts, earned the right to automatic qualification for the tournament once they were awarded their bid.

They follow in the footsteps of the France team that decided to partake in the 2016 European Championship qualifiers that they served as the host nation for.

Qatar will use their qualifying games as friendly fixtures, with their results and performances during these rounds ultimately not affecting their participation in the tournament proper.

Qatar have been named as Group A's "shadow" team, one of the groups of five teams in UEFA's qualification process.

They have been placed in Group A alongside the likes of Portugal, Serbia, Azerbaijan, Luxembourg and Republic of Ireland.

The World Cup hosts will not host their home fixtures in their own stadiums, but will instead be played at neutral grounds in Europe to ensure minimal travel for their opponents.

Their World Cup 2022 games are officially categorised as 'friendly' matches.

Qatar are, additionally, also participating in the Asian World Cup qualifiers, but only because that route also acts as qualifiers for the 2023 Asian Cup. The country have also been asked to play in the 2021 Copa America and Concacaf Gold Cup, also as a guest team, which they did in 2019.

The 2022 World Cup will take place from November 21, 2022 to December 18, 2022.

It is still uncertain whether or not fans will be able to attend the 2022 tournament due to the Covid-19 crisis, but FIFA president Gianni Infantino stated his confidence that stadiums will be packed for the competition.

"At the World Cup 2022 in Qatar we will have full stadiums," Infantino told reporters in early 2021 when quizzed about the prospect.

"Covid-19 will be defeated by then and we will all have learned to live with it."

The FIFA chief added, pointedly: "If, in two years time, we are not there yet, we will have a bigger problem than the World Cup."

Ronald Koeman has chided Gerard Pique for his comments over alleged pro-Real Madrid biases among the country's match officials after it was confirmed that the defender was under investigation.

The veteran centre-back's claims are to be examined by the Royal Spanish Football Federation to ascertain whether he broke the organisation's rules on honouring impartial respect for referees.

If found guilty, the Blaugrana veteran could face a significant ban, handing a further blow to Koeman's team as they continue to face struggles in both domestic and European competition.

What's been said

Earlier this month, Pique generated headlines when he suggested that the majority of match officials in La Liga harbour a subconscious bias towards Madrid-based clubs as they hail from the region.

"The other day a former referee said that 85 per cent of the referees are from Madrid,” Pique said in an interview with  Post United .

“How are they not going to whistle in favour of Madrid? Even unconsciously, how are they not going to give more for one side than the other?

“I respect the professionalism of the referees and I know they try to do their best job, but when a moment of doubt comes..."

Koeman's frustrated response

With the news that the RFEF have opened an investigation into the centre-back now, Koeman indirectly admonished the former Manchester United man in his pre-match press conference ahead of Barca's top-flight clash with Alaves.

"It's my problem if they sanction because of these statements," the ex-Netherlands supremo stated , before adding, "but he has enough experience to say what he wants.

"But you have to take care because, [even] with little [pushback], they can make you a problem. If you have to criticize, do so with respect so they can't do anything to you."

Koeman meanwhile refused to be drawn on matters concerning next week's Champions League last-16 encounter with Paris Saint-Germain, stressing that every match is vital in his eyes.

"Tomorrow's game is more important than PSG [right now]," he added. "We're going game by game and it's important to win before Tuesday's game."

Further Reading

Southampton defender Mohammed Salisu has set his sights on following up on his debut with more game time for the club.

After a rather long wait for his maiden outing for the Saints, the centre-back made his bow in a 2-0 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers in the FA Cup fifth round on Thursday.

He lasted for the duration of game at Molineux.

"It's a perfect night, I'm really happy to be back with the team. The team really did well and worked hard, I'm very happy," Salisu told his club's official website.

"I'm very excited for a clean sheet, it's very important.

"It was a great boost really, we are going to give our all on Sunday.

"I think we need to focus on the next round, fight hard together and I think we'll go further.

"When we are on the pitch, we are all the same and we have to give our all.

"I'm looking forward to playing more matches and give my best to the team."

Salisu joined Southampton after breaking through in La Liga with Real Valladolid last season.

In his first term of professional football, he made 31 league appearances involving 30 starts for Valladolid, scoring his only goal in a 2-0 triumph over Eibar in October.

"Yeah, it was a very long wait for a debut. It is not so easy but he stepped up immediately and played a very good game," Southampton boss Ralph Hasenhuttl said after Thursday's games.

"He is definitely a player who can help us and this is why we signed him.

"It took a long time. We said it was a long-term project and we have waited very long now. Hopefully, there are more positives to come.

"No [he was not nervous], he has the quality and was convinced about what he is doing. He was not nervous. He knew what we were doing and felt comfortable. The more we work with him the easier it will be.

"He is quick, he is strong, he has a good body so he is a player for the future."

Salisu joined Southampton on a four-year deal in August last year. His debut was delayed by injury and match fitness concerns. 

Atletico Madrid star Luis Suarez has said his team-mates are one of the main reasons for his stunning form this season.

Suarez left Barcelona at the end of the 2019-20 campaign but has shown this season that he still has plenty left in the tank at age 34. 

The Uruguayan has scored 16 Liga goals in 17 games, proving Barca made a major error in letting him go and leading Atletico to the top of the table in Spain. His form led to him earning a fans' award for the month of January.

What has Suarez said? 

"It's always nice to be valued," Suarez told Atletico's Twitter account of the award. "The fact that the fans acknowledge my work and my efforts to help the team makes me happy and proud. It means I'm doing a good job.

"It's a small reward after so many years of hard work. You work hard every day to improve. Although I'm 34, I'm still as ambitious as ever, trying to help the team stay on top. That way we can reach the end of the season in the position we want. 

"I think strikers don't score, aren't happy and don't perform if their team-mates don't do a great job behind them. 

"Strikers are used to scoring goals. You try to help the team. Sometimes you score many goals and other times you don't for a few games. We're doing well at the moment. The main thing for us is to keep earning three points in every match."

Koeman wishes Suarez hadn't joined Atletico 

Ronald Koeman decided last summer when he was appointed Barcelona head coach that Suarez was no longer needed at Camp Nou.

Koeman defended his decision to jettison Suarez in an interview with The Athletic last week, but did admit he would have preferred he joined a team outside La Liga. 

"It would have been better that Luis Suarez signed for Juventus instead of Atletico Madrid because he’s still in the Spanish league," Koeman said.

Suarez was linked with a move to the Serie A champions before a deal to take him to Italy ultimately fell through.

Suarez breaks another record

Suarez has been in stunning form for Atletico and broke yet another record on Monday when he scored a pair of goals against Celta Vigo. 

The striker's brace meant he is the first player to score 16 goals in his first 17 games for a team in the Spanish top flight in the 21st century.

Further reading