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Kenya international Michael Olunga has revealed why he has enjoyed a good scoring run for Kashiwa Reysol in the  J1 League.

The former Gor Mahia striker took his tally of goals to 10 from nine matches after he scored yet again as Resyol secured a 1-1 draw against former champions Yokohama F. Marinos on Saturday.

Olunga took advantage of a defensive blunder to make a solo run and fire home a powerful shot to give Resyol the lead in the 62nd minute, but they could not maintain their advantage, as Yokohama drew level in the 78th minute when Ado Oneiwu scored from close range to deny Reysol a fifth straight win in the top-flight.

The towering striker has now explained why he has been in prolific form in front of the goal in the past five matches, which made him the first player in the history of the league to reach the 10-goal mark in every division of the Meiji Yasuda J. League.

“It is basically hard work because each and every game is a difficult game and the defenders in each and every team are now marking together,” Olunga told reporters after the draw against Marinos.

“You have to be on top of your game, you have to be ready to finish off the chances your team creates, so it is not an easy task, as a striker your main target is to position yourself well and make sure you are clinical in front goal, nothing else.

“You know [Marinos] played better, they had better ball possession but as strikers, you have to wait for your moment to come, be patient and when your moment arrives, be clinical, and thus the goals will come.”

On how he scored the goal against Marinos, Olunga said: “It was a clearance from the backline and I was upfront alone and you know the defender, tried to give a back pass to the goalkeeper, and I did not give up and then he made a defensive error and I took the ball, it was one on one situation with the defender then I beat him to the ball and beat the ball with my right foot and then it was a goal.”

On Marino ending their four-match winning run with the draw, Olunga said: “It was a positive point because [Marino] were the champions last year, and whenever you go to play against champion at their own backyard, and in front of their supporters it is always going to be difficult.

“As I said before, they had the better part of ball possession but as a team, we played solid, we defended very well, each and every player played well, and at the end of the day we took home a draw, it is a positive result, we take the one point away and each and every game we just play to work hard.”

The former Thika United and Tusker centre-forward failed to score in the first three matches since the J1 League restarted on July 4 but his recent fine form now sees him top the scorers’ chart with 10 goals.

The towering Olunga, who scored his first J1 League hat-trick against Vegalta Sendai on July 26, has established himself as one of the clear favourites for the Golden Boot at this stage.

He was the runner-up in the second division when he managed 27 goals in a successful campaign which pushed Kashiwa Reysol back to the top tier.

Olunga’s next match will be a J. League Cup against Oita Trinita on Wednesday before they resume league action against Cerezo Osaka on Saturday.

Former India international footballer Laishram Manitombi Singh passed away, aged 40, on Sunday.

He was born on June 10, 1981 in Achanbegei, a suburb of Imphal. The defender started his career Army Boys and also played Services for two seasons at the beginning of his career. He later donned the jerseys of Air India, Salgaocar FC and Kolkata giants Mohun Bagan.

Along with his friend Tomba Singh, Manitombi was a household name amongst the Green and Maroon loyalists between 2003-2005. He won several accolades during that period with the Kolkata club.

Singh represented the Indian national team and was part of the Indian squad at the Busan Asian Games in 2002. He was also a member of India U23 side which under the tutelage of Stephen Constantine had won the historic LG Cup in 2002. India had defeated Vietnam in their own backyard to win their first ever International tournament since 1971 (not counting SAFF Cup).

He had been playing in the Manipur State League since 2012, first for NEROCA FC, whom he helped win the maiden League title in 2014. He then joined Manipur State League defending champions, Anouba Imagi Mangal (AIM), in the 2015-16 season.

Post retirement, he joined former Manipur State League champions AIM as their head coach.

Kai Havertz has no "COVID discount" and Chelsea must meet Bayer Leverkusen's valuation or miss out on a deal, Rudi Voller has warned.

Germany international Havertz is reportedly keen on a switch to the Blues, who have long been linked with a move for the 21-year-old.

Havertz is said to be in favour of a move to Stamford Bridge but the two clubs still seemingly have work to do to strike a deal.

Leverkusen are claimed to want £90 million ($115m) for Havertz, with Chelsea thought to be interested in a structured deal that starts at around £70m.

But sporting director Voller said simply any club wanting to buy Havertz must pay the asking price otherwise he will stay at the BayArena for another year.

Asked if Leverkusen have agreed to sell Havertz, Voller told La Gazzetta dello Sport : "No, but with his talent, it means he's on the list of all the best clubs.

"We know of the interest of a couple of clubs, especially Chelsea, but for us, the situation is quite simple: he has a two-year contract, if anyone wants him on our terms, fine, otherwise he stays here another year and we are happy.

"It won't be easy, but for an artist like him there is no COVID discount."

In Voller's opinion, Havertz is on course to be better than some illustrious Leverkusen alumni.

"For me, he's the best I've seen at Leverkusen, and I've been here for a lifetime. We had Emerson, [Michael] Ballack, Ze Roberto, [Toni] Kroos, but he's on top," Voller added.

Former Germany star Voller said Havertz reminds him of Ballack and Mesut Ozil, adding: "He takes the best bits from both of them."

Voller also has no doubt Havertz will continue to represent Leverkusen for the completion of their Europa League campaign, with a quarter-final tie against Inter next up.

Timo Werner opted not to play for RB Leipzig in the remainder of the Champions League after agreeing to join Chelsea, but Havertz did feature for Leverkusen in the second leg of their last-16 tie against Rangers and Voller is sure he will do so as long as the team are in the competition.

"Of course he will play [in the Europa League quarter-final], also because he wants to," Voller said. "I am a bit old-fashioned: for me a season is over when it all ends.

"Nobody leaves first. Now, with COVID-19, there have been transfers before the end of the season, but not from us."

Robert Lewandowski shut out thoughts surrounding individual records and fixed his focus on firing Bayern Munich past Barcelona in the Champions League quarter-finals after notching another brace in Saturday's triumph over Chelsea.

The Poland international improved his season goal tally to 53 in all competitions as he scored twice and assisted another two in a 4-1 victory at the Allianz Arena that saw Bayern advance from the last 16 as 7-1 aggregate winners.

Lewandowski now has 13 goals in seven Champions League appearances this term, four behind the record Cristiano Ronaldo set for a single season in 2013-14.

But the prolific 31-year-old striker insisted he is more interested in helping his side progress from next Friday's single-leg quarter-final in Lisbon, where Barca await following their 4-2 aggregate win over Napoli.

"It's not a target for me," Lewandowski told Sky Germany when asked about Ronaldo's record. "We have another knockout game to come and have to play really well as a team.

"The most important thing is to play well and reach the next round. We have to show as a team we are better [than Barcelona] in order to reach the semi-finals.

"Barcelona are always dangerous and play great football. We have to be at it from the first minute and show our quality. The better team will play in the next round."

Lewandowski played a direct part in every goal for Bayern in their 7-1 aggregate victory over Chelsea, having also scored one and set up a couple for Serge Gnabry in February's first leg at Stamford Bridge.

Head coach Hansi Flick was keen to praise his whole side and not just in-form Lewandowski, who has netted more times in 2019-20 than any other player in Europe's top five leagues.

"He scored twice, so it goes without saying what he can do," the Bayern boss said. "This is what makes us stand out as a team.

"I was very satisfied with the 90 minutes from everyone. We wanted to win the game and pick up from where we left off. 

"Chelsea have an exciting team and an incredible amount of speed. It would have been our fault if we let them into the game, but the first 30 minutes from us were great."

The only sour note for Bayern was the sight of Jerome Boateng hobbling off with an apparent knee injury in the second half, but Flick was hopeful the centre-back would be fit for next week's huge showdown with Barca.

"I don't think it is so bad for Jerome," he said. "That's the information I got from the medical staff. [Benjamin] Pavard is also trying everything to be ready.

"We will prepare for that game like any other. We want to show our strengths again and must be 100 per cent focused, not just on Lionel Messi but every player."

Slovan Bratislava began the new season on a winning note after decimating hosts FC Nitra 5-0 at Stadion pod Zoborom, with Nigeria’s Rabiu Ibrahim finding the net.

Having won the 2019-20 Slovak Super Liga title, the Sky Blues came into Saturday’s game aspiring to commence their title defence on a winning note.

Zan Medved put the visitors ahead after twelve minutes. Poor communication between goalkeeper David Sipos and defender Oliver Podhorin saw the Slovenian slot inside an open net.

It was the turn of Ibrahim to double his side’s lead after 37 minutes – jabbing home a cross from Moroccan winger Moha who raced into Nitra’s backline. Five minutes later, Daniel Magda deflected the Nigerian’s shot into his own net.

On the stroke of halftime, David Strelec made it four for Jan Kozak jr’s men by tapping home Medved’s pass after capitalising on the hosts’ shaky defending.

Medved completed his brace in the 49th minute to help Slovan Bratislava race to a five-goal lead that put the game beyond Nitra.

Although the hosts had their own fair share of scoring opportunities, they were halted by impressive goalkeeper Michal Sulla who made a couple of beautiful saves.

After an impressive shift, Ibrahim was replaced by Nono in the 73rd minute while his compatriot Ezekiel Henty was not listed for the clash.

Also, Central African Republic’s Quentin Ngakoutou was not dressed for action.

Thanks to this win, Bratislava lead the league table with three points plus a superior goal difference. They welcome Zemplin Michalovce to the Tehelne pole on Tuesday, while Nitra chase their first win versus last season’s runners-up Zilina.

After a failed expedition at Genk, the Nigeria international joined the Slovaks in 2017 in a deal worth €1 million.

The pint-sized midfielder played a key role in helping Yemi Tella's Golden Eaglets win the 2017 U17 Fifa World Cup staged in South Korea. His only goal of the championship came in the opening game where Nigeria silenced France 2-1 inside Gwangyang Football Stadium.

On the professional scene, he has gone ahead to represent Sporting Lisbon, Real Massama, PSV, Celtic, Kilmarnock and Trencin.

Cristiano Ronaldo spoke of the importance of "critical thinking" in the wake of Juventus' Champions League exit and the sacking of Maurizio Sarri.

Ronaldo scored twice on Friday to give Juve a 2-1 win over Lyon in Turin, but it was not enough to prevent them going out at the last-16 stage on away goals after a 2-2 aggregate draw.

On Saturday, the Bianconeri announced they had sacked head coach Sarri barely a year after he was appointed following his departure from Chelsea.

Sarri guided Juve to a ninth Serie A title in a row, but defeat to Napoli in the Coppa Italia final and a failure to instill his playing style on the squad had led to doubts about his suitability to the job.

Andrea Pirlo, who was only appointed coach of the Juventus under-23 team last month, has since been appointed to take charge at the Allianz Stadium.

Ronaldo urged everyone at Juve to use the short off-season for "critical thinking" so that they can return to satisfy fans' expectations.

While he did not mention Sarri or Pirlo specifically, the Portugal star made it clear the club now need to get things right.

"The 2019-20 season is over for us, much later than usual but yet sooner than we expected," Ronaldo wrote on Instagram.

"Now it's time for reflection, time to analyse the ups and downs because critical thinking is the only way to improve.

"A huge club such as Juventus must always think like the best in the world, work like the best in the world, so that we can call ourselves one of the best and biggest clubs in the world.

"Winning the Serie A once again in such a difficult year is something that we are very proud of. Personally, scoring 37 goals for Juventus and 11 for the Portuguese national team is something that makes me face the future with renewed ambition and desire to keep doing better and better each year.

"But the fans demand more from us. They expect more from us. And we have to deliver, we must live up to the highest expectations.

"May this short vacation break allow us all to make the best decisions for the future and come back stronger and more committed than ever. See you soon!"

Thomas Muller is hopeful Robert Lewandowski can state his case as the best all-round attacker right now when Bayern Munich face off against Barcelona in the Champions League quarter-finals. 

Lewandowski had a hand in all four of Bayern's goals on Saturday as they beat Chelsea 4-1 in the second leg of their last-16 tie to book a place in the final eight. 

The Bundesliga champions will now face Barcelona in the quarter-finals after they claimed a 3-1 victory over Napoli - with Lionel Messi once again proving key as he scored a sublime goal. 

Both Messi and Lewandowski have enjoyed stellar seasons in front of goal with the duo winning their respective league's Golden Boot. 

While Messi is renowned for both creating and scoring goals, Lewandowski also showcased his all-round ability against Chelsea as he contributed two assists, while finding the back of the net twice himself. 

Muller was asked after the match on Saturday which player he believed was the better all-round attacker right now and seemed to back Lewandowski to provide the answer in their next match. 

"We'll see that on Friday. Lewy will have to answer this question," Muller told reporters.

"Messi also played very well today. But it's up to Lewy and us to answer this question in Lewy's favour on Friday."

Asked about Barcelona, Muller added: "Barca may not have won the Spanish championship and they have certainly revealed some problems, but anything can happen in these knockout games. Any run can end there if you have a bad day."

Bayern manager Hansi Flick praised Lewandowski's role in his side's win over Chelsea as he admitted the Blues were a side he was worried about playing. 

"We would not mind if he continued like this. He showed again today how important he is for us," Flick said.

"He not only scored two goals, but also assisted two goals. We are very happy that we have him in our team.

"I was a little more tense than usual. I had a lot of respect for Chelsea because the team is very speedy. Chelsea have a very exciting team with many young, talented players and I am excited to see how the next few years will look.

"I was very happy with the way we came back after the short break. We were very dominant in the first 30 minutes, that was really good. In the second half we got the game back on track and earned this win."

Robert Lewandowski maintained his impressive scoring streak as Bayern Munich beat Chelsea 4-1 at the Allianz Arena to seal a 7-1 aggregate victory in their Champions League last-16 tie.

Bayern took a 3-0 lead into Saturday's second leg after a thumping win in February's reverse fixture and completed the job in style to set up a quarter-final with Barcelona in Lisbon on Friday.

Lewandowski opened the scoring from the penalty spot and rounded things off late on with his 53rd goal of the season after setting up Ivan Perisic and substitute Corentin Tolisso.

Tammy Abraham had pulled one back for Chelsea but treble-chasing Bayern - who lost Jerome Boateng to an apparent knee injury - became the first side ever to put seven past the Blues in a two-legged European tie.

Lionel Messi was in fine form as Barcelona progressed to the Champions League quarter-finals, with a 3-1 second-leg defeat of Napoli sealing a 4-2 aggregate victory.

An action-packed first half at Camp Nou saw Barca take a three-goal lead, before Lorenzo Insigne pulled one back from the spot in stoppage time.

Clement Lenglet's ninth-minute header broke the deadlock, with Messi netting an exquisite second prior to winning a penalty which Luis Suarez converted.

Insigne's spot-kick gave Napoli hope, but Barca had enough to book their place in the last eight, where Bayern Munich await.

Dries Mertens clipped the woodwork inside two minutes but Barca swiftly took control – Lenglet heading home unmarked from Ivan Rakitic's inswinging corner, with the goal standing after a VAR check for a possible foul on Diego Demme.

Further punishment followed when Messi bundled his way through a crowd of defenders and, despite an untimely slip, he curled a wonderful finish beyond David Ospina.

It appeared Barca had gone 3-0 up by the half-hour mark, only for Messi to have a second goal ruled out for handball, yet Barca had their third when Suarez scored from the spot after Kalidou Koulibaly clumsily kicked Messi.

Napoli were handed a lifeline two minutes later, however, with the referee harshly deeming Rakitic to have fouled Mertens – Insigne converting the resulting penalty.

Insigne could have doubled his tally early in the second half, but failed to test Marc-Andre ter Stegen with a close-range header.

Arkadiusz Milik looked to have made an instant impact after his introduction from the bench late on, only for his header to be disallowed for offside as Barca secured their place in Portugal with minimum fuss.

What does it mean? Barca still have hope

It has been a dismal season on the domestic front for Barca, but their hopes of a sixth Champions League title remain intact.

However, an imperious Bayern side will present an altogether different challenge than Gennaro Gattuso's side after their 7-1 aggregate victory over Chelsea, and the Blaugrana will have to display a quality which has often been lacking this term in order to progress further.

Messi turns on the magic to lift Setien 

It has not been easy for Quique Setien since he was appointed in January, and the Barca boss could well have been under severe pressure had his side gone out on Saturday.

However, Messi turned on the style to quieten the doubters – at least for now.

Koulibaly found wanting

Raphael Varane made two calamitous mistakes for Real Madrid against Manchester City on Friday, and another of Europe's finest defenders struggled this time out.

Koulibaly seemed to go down easily in the build up to Barca's opener when Demme was pushed into him, while Messi got the better of him to win the penalty from which Suarez made it 3-0.

What's next?

Bayern are Barca's opponents in the last eight, with the game to take place in Lisbon on Friday. Napoli, meanwhile, will turn their attention to next season.

Sekou Koita scored off the bench as reigning Austrian Bundesliga champions Salzburg claimed a comeback 4-1 friendly win over OGC Nice on Saturday with Amine Gouiri netting the only goal for the French side.

The Bulls started off their pre-season with a 2-2 draw against Slovenian side NK Bravo on August 3 with German-Nigerian teenage striker Karim Adeyemi finding the back of the net in the game.

They started on the backfoot here with Gouiri giving Nice the lead in just the seventh minute of play, remaining 1-0 going into half-time. It was his third goal in two games having netted twice in a 6-0 demolition of Slovakian outfit Dunajska Streda the last time out.

Salzburg then came to life in the second-half, Koita starting the goal glut in the 49th minute followed by Zlatko Junuzovic and a brace from Mergim Berisha.

Koita was part of the Salzburg team that lifted a 14th Bundesliga title last season. The Malian forward was limited to just 16 league appearances due to injury but still managed to score eight goals and provide three assists, the highlight coming in a 4-1 victory over Austria Vienna in which he was involved in all four goals (two goals, two assists).

He also scored three times in four Austrian Cup outings which Salzburg also won to cement a domestic double.

Other Africans to play for Salzburg in Saturday’s friendly included Cameroon midfielder Mohamed Camara and the Zambian duo of Enock Mwepu and Patson Daka. The latter finished as the club’s top scorer with 24 goals in 31 league appearances and 27 overall, taking over the goalscoring mantle from teenage sensation Erling Haaland who transferred to Borussia Dortmund in January.

For Nice, goalscorer Gouiri is a new signing from Lyon in a deal worth €7 million. The 20-year old Franco-Algerian started his career at youth level with Les Gones before moving into the first team in 2017. He however made just 15 appearances across the board.

Patrick Vieira’s men have played seven pre-season games since the beginning of July, but have only won twice, drawing once and losing four times.

They finished last season in fifth and will begin the new Ligue 1 campaign with an away tie against Amiens on August 23.

Former Kayserispor coach Robert Prosinecki believes Ghana international Bernard Mensah will make a good signing for Turkish giants Galatasaray.

The midfielder has been heavily linked to The Yellow-Reds for a summer move owing to a fine showing last season.

The 25-year-old made 25 appearances in the Super Lig, scoring five goals and providing eight assists.

“He is a very smart and qualified football player. There are many teams that want him," Prosinecki, who has left Kayserispor following their poor league performances last season, said, as reported by Turkish portal Skor. 

"Mensah can give the best show of himself at Galatasaray in Turkey and that could be helpful, I think."

Galatasaray rivals Fenerbahce and Besiktas are also reportedly interested in the Ghanaian.

“I have been thinking about the whole season for days," Mensah said, as reported by Fanatik, on Friday.

"We have come to the end of a long marathon and I am very sorry for the results we got. Although we stay in the league, I apologize to all the people of Kayseri on my behalf.

"I also read the transfer news about me on social media. None of them yet reflect the truth.

"My priority is, of course, the interests of Kayserispor. I am happy living with my family in Turkey."

Mensah joined Kayserispor on a permanent contract from Atletico Madrid last summer following an initial loan deal. In his first term with the Anatolian Star, he scored three times and set up one goal in 24 league outings.

Before joining Kayserispor, he spent the 2017-18 season on loan at Kasimpasa where he played 30 league matches in which he scored five times and assisted five other goals.

Mensah caught the eye of Atletico after impressing for Vitoria Guimaraes in the Portuguese top-flight. After signing for Diego Simeone's outfit, he was immediately sent out on loan to Spanish La Liga club Getafe.

Upon his return to Los Rojiblancos, the attacker failed to convince Simeone for a place in his team set-up and was, thus, sent out on loan again, this time back to former club Guimaraes for the 2016-17 campaign.

He was on the books of Ghanaian side Feyenoord Academy before leaving for Portugal.

A full senior international, Mensah made his Ghana debut in a friendly fixture against Togo in 2015, scoring in the game. 

The gulf in quality between Bayern Munich and Chelsea was painfully exposed over two legs for the Londoners, who went down to their biggest-ever aggregate defeat in European football thanks to Saturday's heavy defeat. 

Frank Lampard's side travelled to the Allianz Arena in search of a minor miracle. 

Chelsea had been thrashed 3-0 at Stamford Bridge in the Champions League last-16 first leg, meaning they needed to beat the Bundesliga outfit by at least that margin to keep their faint hopes alive in the competition. 

Their task was made even more difficult by a spate of injuries, with Christian Pulisic, Cesar Azpilicueta, Pedro and Willian all unavailable for Saturday's visit; meaning the final result raised few eyebrows as Bayern showed their dominance. 

Robert Lewandowski opened the scoring from the penalty spot nine minutes in and added a second towards the end, while Ivan Perisic and Corentin Tolisso also hit the net in a 4-1 victory for the hosts. 

Tammy Abraham scored Chelsea's only goal of the game and indeed the tie, as the west Londoners ultimately went down 7-1 on aggregate over the two legs. 

Never before had the Blues conceded seven in a single European tie, marking an unwanted piece of history for Lampard in his debut season on the bench at Stamford Bridge.

It is also the side's biggest-ever European aggregate defeat, surpassing a 4-1 loss at the hands of Barcelona in 2018. 

Lewandowski's second goal was additionally the 16th conceded by Chelsea in this season's Champions League, another new low for the club, who have struggled defensively throughout Lampard's debut campaign.

The Blues shipped 79 goals in all competitions in the 2019-20 season, an average of 1.44 per game. It is their worst average since the 1990-91 campaign, when they conceded 1.64 goals per game.

Meanwhile, Lewandowski is having a season to remember in 2019-20, bringing his Champions League tally up to 13 with Saturday's double after smashing 34 goals in just 31 games to spearhead Bayern's latest successful Bundesliga defence. 

But he is far more than just a goalscorer: Lewandowski was involved in all seven of his side's goals against Chelsea, scoring three and assisting a further four. 

Bayern move on to face Barcelona in the quarter-finals, after the Catalans saw off Napoli's challenge to win 3-1 at Camp Nou on Saturday, and 4-2 on aggregate.

Ernestina Abambila made her debut as Medyk Konin were forced to a 1-1 draw by Katowice in their first Polish Ekstraliga game of the season on Saturday.

The 21-year-old Ghanaian midfielder joined the Polish outfit from Spanish Primera Iberdrola side Sporting Huelva after seeing out her short-term contract with the Huelva based team.

Abambila arrived at Sporting for the remainder of the 2019-20 season from Swedish side Assi in January, made six appearances in all events before the league cancellation due to Covid-19.

Upon her arrival in Poland, she has immediately given a starting role after her good showing in few pre-season warm-up games, including a 2-2 draw against Czech Republic giants Slavia Prague.

Abambile formed a three-woman midfield along with Nikol Kaletka and Gabriela Grzywińska and put up a fine display in her central role.

Klaudia Fabova scored the opening goal of the match for Medyk after benefitting from a fine build-up after just eight minutes in the encounter.

However, Xofia Buszewska netted the equaliser 10 minutes later to ensure the visitors forced a stalemate at Stadion Miejski.

The Black Queens midfielder featured for the duration of the game, but could not help Medyk Konin to a winning start.

The result leaves Medyk in fourth position on the log with a point from the opening match. They will aim to earn their first win of the campaign against Alice Ogebe's Sportis Bydgoszcz on August 14. 

Mamelodi Sundowns coach Pitso Mosimane has praised his two super-subs in the form of Keletso Makgalwa and Lyle Lakay who spearheaded his team to victory over Bidvest Wits in the Nedbank Cup semi-final on Saturday evening.

The Brazilians boss explained the reasoning behind taking off Themba Zwane and Sibusiso Vilakazi, saying they have to stress about the upcoming Premier Soccer League (PSL) clash against Orlando Pirates on Tuesday night.

On the other hand, his counterpart Gavin Hunt refused to blame goalkeeper Brighton Mhlongo who was singled out for their loss by many on social media for conceding the last goal of the encounter.

“He [Lakay] helped us there and Keletso also, you know the two super-subs. We could not stay on with the big-name players, Themba Zwane and [Sibusiso] Vilakazi,” Mosimane told the media.

“You know we needed the super-subs and it’s a lesson to everybody to say, you need the depth to continue on this thing.

“So, we are saving them for the game on Tuesday and I told the guys if they think this is stress, the serious stress is coming on Tuesday but at least we are in the final. That’s what is important for us, the team fought, and yeah it’s a good spirit.

“But you can see we are not the same, we don’t have the flow, we don’t play as good as we always play but it’s a cup match and it’s football under Covid-19.

“After not playing football for four months and we score three goals - I think that’s the positive side of it.”

Speaking after the match, the experienced Clever Boys manager said they are now turning their focus to the league clash against the PSL log leaders, Kaizer Chiefs, on Wednesday night at FNB Stadium.

“That’s our life and story at the moment, it’s our lives at Bidvest Wits at the moment. So, yeah we’ll pick ourselves up, try and go again on Wednesday,” added the four-time PSL winner.

“Look, I can’t get involved in that debate [on whether Mhlongo is to blame for the third goal or not], those are bad mistakes, in the two last goals in my point of view…the first goal as well.

“You know you really have to question some of the decisions but that’s football and that the way our life at Bidvest Wits is at the moment, you know and I feel for the players.

“As I said they don’t deserve it but we lost to a better team. We had them, we wanted them, but we didn’t take advantage of the situation.

“You can’t concede goals like that, certainly all three of them. But I’m not going to finger any blame here.”

Turning to the league assignments, Masandawana are looking to secure a win and narrow the gap between them and Amakhosi to one point and also avenge the defeat they suffered to the Buccaneers in the first round.

Moreover, the sixth-placed Clever Boys are also looking to bounce back to winning ways and derail coach Ernst Middendorp’s PSL title ambitions.

Sheffield Wednesday defender Moses Odubajo has responded to fans’ complaints after his debut season with the Owls, by calling for more constructive criticisms.

 A fan called Odubajo out for giving away 'many penalties' during the 2019-20 Championship season,  a tweet which forced to the 27-year-old defender to demand for constructive comments as Sheffield Wednesday aim for success next campaign.

"Of course not. I’ll hold my hands up like I always have and own my mistakes but to be reminded of them every game when we’re trying to push forward as players and a team. Again, it’s not constructive but counter productive from fans who apparently want to see their team succeed," he said.

In another lengthy response, the ex-Brentford and Hull City right-back who played 22 league matches last season, urged fans to support Garry Monk's side ahead of the commencement of the 2020-21 season.

The Anglo-Nigerian also called for respect between the club, players and the fans.

“Just to clarify, for people in my mentions  - yes, fans pay to watch us play. Yes, fans deserve more and we will work as a team and as individuals to improve. Yes, players get paid to play. Yes, fans are entitled to their opinions,” Odubajo tweeted.

“But that’s not my point. My point is that for a dialogue to happen between fans, staff, players & the club generally, it has to be respectful on both sides for us to get anywhere.

“Football is full of opinions but we have a tough season ahead of us and it’s important to consider which opinions are helpful in our journey next season. We have to enter this season united - with the fans behind us. Divided, we will always fall.”

Sheffied Wednesday ended the 2019-20 Championship season in the 16th place and they will hoping to surpass the mark when the new campaign begins on September 12.

Frank Lampard vowed that his Chelsea charges would return to the Champions League better and with more experience after seeing their 2019-20 campaign ended in emphatic fashion by Bayern Munich on Saturday. 

The odds were stacked against the Blues going into the last-16 second leg, with Bayern 3-0 up on aggregate. 

Chelsea were also missing a host of key players through injury, and paid the price in a one-sided clash at the Allianz Arena. 

Robert Lewandowski hit twice while Ivan Perisic and Corentin Tolisso also found the net as the Bundesliga champions ran out 4-1 winners, with Tammy Abraham scoring the Blues' consolation. 

Bayern advanced to the quarter-finals with a 7-1 aggregate advantage, inflicting Chelsea's biggest-ever defeat over two legs in European competition. 

Lampard nevertheless refused to criticise his depleted charges, and insisted that they would come back a stronger team for the 2020-21 edition. 

"It's a good exercise for us to go up against Bayern and their Champions League experience, with a lot of our players having debut seasons," the Blues manager stated to  BT Sport  as his first season at the helm at Stamford Bridge officially came to a close. 

"I can see where I want us to go and I know we'll be back.

"They performed all right. Difficult to say after a 4-1 defeat, not happy but when you concede two early we did get back into the game after that.

"When you match our Champions League appearances to theirs, I saw lots of good things in the team and also some of the bad we have seen this season. We had individual errors that gave them goals and at this level that will finish you off.

"It is a work in progress. It is not the norm for Chelsea. We lost the best player in the league pretty much in Eden Hazard. People would not normally commend coming fourth for Chelsea. We want more but the feeling is we have achieved something with the group we have. Now is the time to think where we can improve."

Chelsea goalkeeper Willy Caballero commended Bayern as worthy victors, while also committing his future to the Blues for the coming season. 

"A few things wrong, we arrived here with a difficult score from the first game. But we conceded the penalty and it was a little bit difficult," the Argentine told BT Sport .

"We showed good character to play the game and then they showed more quality in our box so they deserve to be in the next round.

"We did a proper tournament in the Premier League - we are in the Champions League [next season] which is good for the team, there's nothing to regret today.

"I have a contract for one more year. I'm really happy to play in this shirt and I would like to keep playing. I became the first choice and we will see what happens in the future, I will work hard to have this opportunity again."

Captain Samuel Bastien was the hero as Standard Liege recorded a 1-0 win over Cercle Brugge in Saturday’s Belgian topflight opener.

The 23-year-old’s second-half strike proved the difference between both teams in the keenly contested encounter at Stade Maurice Dufrasne.

Having missed out of a place in Europe owing to the cancellation of the Belgian 2019-20 season owing to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Reds entered the new term with the ambition of making an appreciable impact.

Against Paul Clement’s men, they put up a solid display, albeit, the first half ended 0-0.

In the second half, they stepped up their game and deservedly went ahead in the 55th minute courtesy of Bastien strike after firing past goalkeeper Warleson thanks to an assist from Maxime Lestienne.

That goal proved to be the decider as no more goal was scored despite several attacking moves by both teams.

Just like Bastien, Cameroon's Collins Fai was on parade from start to finish while Morocco's Selim Amallah was replaced by Duje Cop in the game's 87th minute. Burkina Faso forward Abdoul Tapsoba was brought in for Lestienne with 12 minutes left to play.

Amallah's compatriot Mehdi Carcela and DR Congo's William Balikwisha were unused substitutes by manager Philippe Montanier.

For the visitors, Kenya international Johanna Omolo saw every minute of action while Republic of Congo’s Guy Mbenza came out for Thibo Somers in the 83rd minute. Mali’s Aldom Deuro was an unused substitute.

Liege are guests of Waasland-Beveren on August 17 while Cercle Brugge will be gunning for their first win of the season when they welcome Royal Antwerp to Bruges' Jan Breydel Stadium on August 16.

Bastien went on social media to revel in his team’s victory and strike on social media.

“First match and first victory. The Rouches family together from near and far. We continue,” he tweeted.

Born in Meux to Congolese parents, the 23-year-old midfielder is eligible to represent DR Congo at the senior level despite featuring for Belgium at the U19 and U21 levels. He joined the Belgian outfit from Serie A outfit Chievo Verona on August 26, 2016.

Kylian Mbappe's chances of playing for Paris Saint-Germain in their Champions League quarter-final against Atalanta are improving by the day after the attacker was spotted training on Saturday. 

While working out solo, Mbappe was seen with the ball at his feet and even took a few shots at goal as the 21-year-old suggested he could be fit for some action on Wednesday night. 

The Frenchman injured his right ankle late last month in the Coupe de France final against Saint-Etienne with early reports indicating he'd be out for at least three weeks, meaning he would miss the Atalanta game. 

Mbappe's recovery, however, appears to be defying early expectations and he was named in the PSG's travelling squad to face Atalanta. 

Thomas Tuchel previously hinted that Saturday would be a defining day for Mbappe and his hopes of playing in the Champions League clash next week. 

"The deadline is short, super short," the PSG boss told reporters. "We spoke with the doctor today and we decided to meet again on Saturday to see what phase he is in and if it is possible that he is on the bench against Atalanta. But I do not expect too much."

Atalanta are likely preparing for Mbappe to play some part in the clash with midfielder Remo Freuler recently declaring he's skeptical that the Frenchman wouldn't be involved. 

"I know Angel Di Maria is suspended but I will only believe in Mbappe and [Marco] Verratti's absence when I see the team on the pitch," Freuler told Eco di Bergamo. 

"It's a Champions League quarter-final, everyone wants to be there and they are doing everything possible to take part in it." 

PSG have had a tough run of injuries with Veratti injured in mid-week training, while both Layvin Kurzawa and Thilo Kehrer have been ruled out. 

Tuchel himself was also an unexpected addition to the club's injury list with the German coach spraining his ankle and a breaking a bone in his foot during a PSG training session on Thursday night.

Despite those injuries, Tuchel will still be in attendance for the Atalanta game but will likely be forced to stay seated as he watches his side attempt to keep their Champions League campaign going. 

Bayern Munich are serious contenders for Champions League glory, but Luis Suarez says Barcelona's quarter-final with them will be 50-50.

Barca overcame Napoli 3-1 at Camp Nou on Saturday to seal a 4-2 aggregate victory and set up a meeting at the Estadio da Luz on Friday with Bayern, who beat Chelsea 4-1 to make it 7-1 over the two legs .

It could have been a very different story in Catalonia had Dries Mertens' second-minute effort found the back of the net rather than the post.

However, Clement Lenglet headed Barca in front seven minutes later and Lionel Messi's excellent solo goal was followed by a penalty from Suarez.

Napoli pulled one back from the spot through Lorenzo Insigne in first-half stoppage time, but Barca held firm to book their place in the last eight in Lisbon.

With the remaining games to be contested as one-offs rather than two-legged affairs, Suarez sees nothing to separate Quique Setien's men and the Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal champions.

"Everyone has a chance in a single game, it's 50-50," Suarez told Movistar .

"Bayern are a great opponent, they are a contender for the title, like all of the eight in Lisbon, but it is 11 against 11 for 90 minutes.

"You have to play the games to see which team does thing better to advance to the semi-finals."

On the game against Napoli, he added: "It's what we wanted. For two weeks since La Liga ended we've been preparing for the match knowing the difficulty of an opponent who made things tough for us in the first leg," said Suarez in a TV interview.

"The important thing is that we qualified and now think about the next opponent.

"Napoli are a team that generate a lot of chances in the league. We knew they would get them. We had a scare early on but we scored first. A goal from them would have created uncertainty, but I think we managed the game well.

"The Napoli goal generated a bit of caution in us. We knew what we were going to come out to in the second half.

"We had to think about attacking. We knew were not going to have much space."

Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly has been dragged on social media after failing to help the Serie A club stop Lionel Messi and Barcelona in the second leg of their Uefa Champions League round of 16 fixture.

Barcelona won the encounter by 3-1, thanks to goals from Clement Lenglet, Messi and Luis Suarez, and they progressed to the quarter-final with a 4-2 aggregate score.

During the game, Koulibaly conceded a penalty towards the end of the first-half after kicking Messi's leg from behind, which resulted in the third goal that was scored by Suarez.

Generally, it was a torrid night for the African star who made just one successful tackle and three interceptions in Barcelona.

His performance against Messi, a five-time Ballon d'Or winner, has got fans talking and they think his reported €80 million asking price should be slashed.