Saudi Arabia declares national holiday to celebrate stunning Argentina upset

Hoffenheim have confirmed that they have signed Franco Zuculini from Racing Club Avellaneda in Argentina for 4.7million euros.

Last season s surprise Bundesliga leaders going into the winter break have moved quickly to sign the 18-year-old, beating off competition from Werder Bremen in the process.

The small German club have made it their philosophy to scour the globe for the world s hottest young talent and giving them a platform to perform.

The midfielder has established himself in the Racing Club first team this term after only making his debut in April 2008.

The youngster s rise did not stop there after Argentina manager Diego Maradona handed him his first international cap against Panama a month ago.

Zuculini is yet to sign his contract alth…

Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has claimed Cristiano Ronaldo is happy to stay at the club.

Ronaldo was widely reported to be pushing for an exit from Old Trafford due to his desire to play in the Champions League but offers were seemingly not forthcoming.

With the transfer window closing on Thursday, Ronaldo is set to remain at the club until at least January, barring any last-minute offers, but Ten Hag is adamant the 37-year-old is not disappointed by that outcome.

We are on the same page. [He is happy to stay] otherwise he wouldn t be here, Ten Hag told reporters.

From the start we said we planned with him, we are happy with him, he s happy to be here, and we want to make the season a success together.

Pressed on how Ronaldo – who…

Real Madrid s German coach Bernd Schuster has asked the Spanish champions sporting director Pedja Mijatovic to recruit more new talent, sports daily Marca reported Tuesday.

Pedja, I think we should make an effort when it comes to transfers, he told Mijatovic before Real Madrid lost 3-2 against Valencia in the first leg of the Spanish Supercup on Sunday, the newspaper said.

Schuster is especially keen to sign new strikers at a time when Spanish media report the club s Argentine forward Javier Saviola could be on his way to English Premiership side Newcastle, it added.

Dutch international midfielder Rafael van der Vaart, who signed with Real for five years, has been the club s only new signing for the upcoming season.

Real signed Argentine defender Eze…

Leicester City winger Riyad Mahrez has signed a contract extension committing him to the club until June 2019.

Mahrez wasted little time in becoming a popular figure at the King Power Stadium following his move from Le Havre midway through the 2013-14 season.

The Algeria international, who represented his country at last year s World Cup, made 30 Premier League appearances last term, scoring four goals.

News of his fresh deal was initially released by Leicester via Twitter on Wednesday, during a question and answer session with new manager Claudio Ranieri.

Ranieri wrote: I d like to start by saying I m delighted to tell you all that @Mahrez22 has signed a new contract with #lcfc until 2019.

Mahrez will make his 50th league appearance for Leicest…

The 2019-20 season in France will officially begin this Saturday, when PSG and Rennes collide in a new edition of the Trophée Des Champions. The reigning Ligue 1 champions enter this game as the clear-cut favourites, but they can t take this game for granted since Rennes are ahead of a historical chance to win a trophy they haven t won in the past. This match will be held at Shenzhen Universiade Sports Centre in Shenzhen, China, and will kick-off at 12:30 hrs (BST).

It s hard to imagine PSG as an underdog given the strength of their squad, so it shouldn t be surprising to see them as favourites entering the first competitive match of the 2019-20 French season. Thomas Tuchel s men enjoyed a stellar campaign last term since they lost only five out of 38 Ligue 1 fixtures in 2019-2…

Tunisia have sacked coach Umberto Coelho after their failure to qualify for the 2010 World Cup, the Tunisian Football Federation (FTF) announced on Monday.

Faouzi Benzarti was named as Coelho s replacement with the 59-year-old Tunisian taking charge of the country s African Nations Cup campaign in January.

Benzarti is currently coach of Tunis club Esperance and he will combine both club and national duties until his contract with Esperance runs out next June.

Coelho took over from Roger Lemerre, the Frenchman who was himself sacked for lack of results, in 2008. His sacking comes after Tunisia s 1-0 loss to Mozambique eight days ago which shut the World Cup door for the north African country.

Tunisia are in Group D in the January 10-31 African Nations Cup…

The United States, fresh off a runner-up showing in the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, will take an expanded roster into their first game of the CONCACAF Gold Cup on Saturday.

The US opens defence of the Gold Cup title begins with a game against Granada on Saturday at Qwest Field.

They will also face Honduras on July 8 and Haiti on July 11 in Washington, D.C. and Foxborough, Massachusetts.

Head coach Bob Bradley named his 23-man roster June 25 but that has since been expanded to 30 players.

The roster include a mix of Confederations Cup team members and players from North America s Major League Soccer.

Brian Ching and Michael Parkhurst are included this year and were also on the team that won the 2007 Gold Cup title.

The American are tryin…

Brighton and Hove Albion continue to strengthen for the new Premier League season with the addition of Yves Bissouma from Lille for an undisclosed fee.

The Mali international has signed a five-year deal at Amex Stadium after impressing in his first two full seasons in Ligue 1.

He made 28 appearances in all competitions last term and scored three goals as Lille narrowly avoided relegation.

Seagulls boss Chris Hughton, who guided the club to 15th on their return to the top-flight, spoke excitedly of the midfielder s potential.

We have been keen to strengthen the squad in the central midfield positions, and this will add to our options in this area, Hughton said.

I am very much looking forward to working with him.

He is someone with goo…

Bayern Munich will look to their fit-again French midfielder Franck Ribery on Saturday as the German giants hunt a ninth straight league win against Borussia Dortmund that could see them move top.

The 26-year-old star playmaker has been sidelined with a knee injury and has not started a Bundesliga game for more than four months.

But after scoring once and lasting 73 minutes in Wednesday s 6-2 drubbing of second-division side Furth in the German Cup, coach Louis van Gaal said he was looking to Ribery to shine against fifth-placed Dortmund.

We should not forget that Franck has only played two 90-minute games in recent months. We need him against Dortmund and Fiorentina, said van Gaal, referring to Bayern s Champions League last 16 clash against the Italian outfit…

Mario Balotelli says continued snubs from Italy coach Giampiero Ventura will only make him strive for even better performances with Nice.

Balotelli has scored seven goals in nine games for Nice, since leaving Liverpool for the south of France on transfer deadline day.

His impressive form has helped Lucien Favre s side to the top of Ligue 1, ahead of powerhouses Paris Saint-Germain and Monaco.

However, Balotelli remains without an international cap since the 2014 World Cup, with Ventura partnering Serie A s top-scoring Italians, Andrea Belotti and Ciro Immobile, in attack against Liechtenstein.

Simone Zaza and Lorenzo Insigne, without a goal between them for West Ham and Napoli this term, were the back-up strikers in Ventura s most recent squad, but Balote…