Courtois backs Atletico to challenge

World anti-doping chief John Fahey on Wednesday accused FIFA and UEFA of ignoring reality, after they rejected rules that ease out-of-competition drugs testing of individual footballers.

One of the key principles of efficient doping control is the surprise effect and the possibility to test an athlete without advance notice on a 365 day basis, the World Anti Doping Agency President said in a statement.

Alleging, as FIFA and UEFA do, that testing should only take place at training grounds and not during holiday periods, ignores the reality of doping in sport.

Experience has demonstrated that athletes who cheat seize every opportunity to do so and dope when they believe they won?t be tested, he added.

Since the beginning of January, the world anti-dopin…

Rangers and Celtic clash for the final time this season with both sides title hopes in the balance in a powderkeg fixture.

Old Firm encounters are usually seen as determining the destination of the title, but with just one point separating the pair at the top of the Scottish Premier League this Saturday s clash at Ibrox takes on added importance.

The Hoops, with a one-point advantage going into the game, know a draw could be enough to see them over the finishing line in the race for their fourth league championship in a row.

With just four games left a repeat of the 1-0 win the last time Celtic visited the home of their arch-rivals would all but clinch the title.

However, the Hoops have not fared well on their travels in 2009 with just two wins on the ro…

Italy national team manager Cesare Prandelli has revealed A.S. Roma forward Francesco Totti could return to the Azzurri for next year s World Cup in Brazil.

Totti, 37, has started the 2013/14 Serie A campaign on scintillating form for the Giallorossi, who are currently top-of-the-table, having won all seven of their league fixtures.

The 37-year-old talisman, who has spent his entire club career at the Stadio Olimpico, scored nine international goals for Italy in 58 caps between 1998 and 2006 before hanging up his boots following the Azzurri s World Cup triumph in 2006.

“Players with great talent like Francesco [Totti], like Parma’s Antonio Cassano, are always under observation,” said Prandelli.

We ll evaluate Totti a month before the …

Portland Timbers have thrashed Chivas USA 5-0 in California to win the MLS Western Conference championship.

In their final game before the MLS playoffs, Portland scored three times in the first half to effectively end the contest by the break, while Ryan Johnson and Will Johnson scored within five minutes of each other in the second stanza to wrap up the rout.

The victory took the Timbers a point ahead of Real Salt Lake at the top of the Western Conference standings with 57 points, while third-placed Los Angeles Galaxy (52 points) cannot overhaul Portland as they have only one game left in the regular season.

The Western Conference championship is Portland s first major title since they joined the MLS in 2011, while they will also compete in the playoffs for the first …

Market: Belgium win

Odds: 

Belgium and England meet for the second time at this World Cup as they compete for third place in Russia. The Red Devils were beaten by France 1-0 before Croatia bettered the Three Lions 2-1 after extra time to set up the Saturday showdown.

For Roberto Martinez s side, although they may have come up with a 1-0 loss to France on Tuesday, The Red Devils dominated large sections of the game and many believe the better team lost. While their Golden Generation may not have managed to reach the final two, their loss to Les Bleus was Belgium s first defeat of any kind since a friendly loss against Spain in September 2016. After beating England 1-0 in the final matchup of Group G, the former Wigan boss will be confident of doing the double on…

Best odds: 7/10

Bookmaker:

Relegation battlers Sheffield United are set to welcome champions Liverpool to Bramall Lane on Sunday evening as the two teams take each other on in the 26th round of the 2020-21 season in the Premier League.

Sheffield United

The Blades were a very pleasant surprise last season. Having earned promotion from the Championship, they played some very interesting football and produced some great results, eventually finishing in ninth place, just five points off a place in the Europa League.

This time around, however, things are very different. It took Chris Wilder s team 18 matches to earn their first win of the campaign, when they managed to beat Newcastle at home on January 12th. They had only two points prior to that win over th…

Hero or villain?

What a big night of World Cup football we have ahead of us. There are still many issues to be settled and many qualifying places for South Africa 2010 up for grabs. It is the last set of games and only a few are meaningless.

Europe

In Europe, Denmark, Germany, Spain, England, Serbia, Italy and Holland have already qualified and Russia, Bosnia, France, Republic of Ireland and Norway are guaranteed a spot in the play-offs.

Remarkably there are still twelve teams in with a chance of taking the two remaining automatic places and the three remaining play-off spots. Sweden, Portugal, Hungary, Switzerland, Greece, Israel, Slovakia, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Northern Ireland, Ukraine and Croatia still have something to play for today.

Sout…

S.S.C. Napoli are on the verge of agreeing a €5 million deal with Santos FC for Brazil international goalkeeper Rafael Cabral Barbosa, .

Rafael, 23, has been linked with a number of European clubs, including the likes of A.S. Roma, FC Barcelona and Tottenham Hotspur, since making his international debut in a friendly against the United States on 30 May 2012.

Since breaking into the first-team in 2010, the Brazil international has made 189 appearances in all competitions for Peixe.

The negotiation for the sale of my client to Napoli is going really well. Talks should be closed soon,  Rafael s agent Paulo Alfonso told Lancenet.

Rafael is looking forward to going to Napoli. A meeting with Rafael Benitez has been decisive.

The 23-ye…

Barcelona coach Luis Enrique has hailed the evolution of Lionel Messi as a process that has resulted in the total footballer .

The 29-year-old has scored 28 times in all competitions this season and has provided 14 goals in his last 12 appearances.

Luis Enrique believes the Argentina international s development in recent seasons has seen him become more of a goalscoring playmaker than a central attacker, a flexibility that underlines the unique ability he possesses.

Messi s footballing evolution is beyond a doubt, he said on Wednesday. We ve seen years of him as a goalscorer and his evolution is that of a total footballer. 

He has the ability of doing anything in attack and defence. He s the prototype of a player capable of playing with one or two touc…

Nigel Clough has turned down a switch to Nottingham Forest in order to remain manager of Burton Albion.

Clough made his professional debut at the City Ground, while his father Brian led Forest to the First Division title in 1977-78 before claiming back-to-back European Cups in the following two seasons.

An agreement between Clough, who returned for a second spell at the Pirelli Stadium in 2015, and Burton meant he would be granted permission to discuss terms with Forest should they make an approach.

Forest are on the hunt for a new manager after dismissing Philippe Montanier this month, but Clough has turned them down, amid wild uncertainty at the club as owner Fawaz Al-Hasawi faces a backlash over failed attempts to sell the club.

Clough said: Having sta…