Napoli boss Walter Mazzarri has warned his side not to rest on their laurels as they look to nail down a spot in the Champions League knockout stages, despite knowing they could lose their final group game and still progress.

The Italians are handily placed behind Group C winners Real Madrid, sitting three points and three goals clear of their Portuguese opponents Braga ahead of Tuesday’s clash in Naples.

Having also won the reverse fixture, the Serie A outfit know they can win, draw or even go down by a single goal in order to reach the last 16, but Mazzarri expects them to be on their game.

Since marking his return to the club a month ago with victory at Atalanta, he has overseen three successive defeats, with Real, Juventus and league leaders Inter Milan pre…

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Bayern Munich welcome Borussia Dortmund to the Allianz Arena on Saturday, in a game that could go a long was in answering the question of this season s Bundesliga champion.

Having played 27 games apiece, the two title contenders are pretty much neck and neck at the moment. Only two points separate them as Dortmund lead with seven matches to go.

Borussia started the season strongly and led for most of the way, but recent stumbles saw the Bavaians overtake them before giving the lead back last weekend with a disappointing 1-1 draw away to Freiburg.

Bayern Munich

It s certainly been a season of ups and downs for the reigning champions. Their start was extremely worrying. Spats were being reported between the players and h…

Jupp Heynckes appointment at Bayern Munich on a deal until the end of the season is the latest example of a coach returning to an old club.

Football s managerial merry-go-round sometimes sees the same faces jumping back on the same horse for a second spin, but is that always a wise decision?

The history of such moves is a chequered one and here we take a look at some of the lessons that even the 72-year-old Heynckes could learn from.

JOSE MOURINHO (CHELSEA 2004-2007 2013-2015)

The self-titled Special One needed to produce some extraordinary results to back up his big talk and he did just that at Stamford Bridge.

Fresh from a stunning Champions League success with Porto, the Portuguese led a Blues revolution in a first spell that y…

Morgan Gibbs-White spoilt Southampton’s Premier League homecoming as his first goal of the season earned Nottingham Forest a 1-0 win at St. Mary’s.

Forest’s attacking prowess was rewarded in the 70th minute as Gibbs-White was the quickest to react inside the penalty area to finish beyond Alex McCarthy.

It was the least the visitors deserved on the South Coast, having dominated proceedings from the first whistle, registering 12 shots on target without reward in the first half.

Russell Martin’s side rarely offered a threat in the final third, with Kyle Walker-Peters going closest early after the break.

Having let their lead slip against Bournemouth late last time out, Forest were able to hold on to move up to fourth in the early-season standings, wi…

According to a recent report from Leicester Mercury, Arsenal are interested in signing Leicester City midfielder Wilfred Ndidi. The Foxes star has been turning heads for the club throughout the course of the season as they continue to try and make a push for the Premier League title. In terms of the offer that would come in they are believed to be gearing up for a £40 million offer that could also include Granit Xhaka who would become a Leicester player in the process. 

The ‘go big or go home’ mentality seems to have been carried over from the Etihad by incoming manager Mikel Arteta, who has timed his move perfectly in order to have a full January transfer window in which to try and turn things around at the club. 

Arsenal have some issues in the middle of th…

According to a recent report from Sky Sports news, Bayern Munich have held preliminary talks with Wilfried Zaha’s representatives over the possibility of signing the popular Crystal Palace star. 

The Ivory Coast international has been linked with a series of clubs in the last few years and while it has been noted that it’s unlikely he’ll end up at Bayern, it’s definitely interesting to note that they’ve gone so far as to get his touch with his people. 

Bayern’s pursuit of a Premier League star seemed to be restricted to going after Leroy Sane based on recent evidence, but now, they appear to be expanding their horizons. 

Palace will do really well to keep hold of Zaha over the course of the next few months, although they should be breathing a si…

Former Manchester City defender Micah Richards has retired from football at the age of 31.

Richards has been unable to play since October 2016 due to a long-standing knee problem.

He has spent the past four seasons with Aston Villa but could only watch on as they secured promotion to the Premier League by beating Derby County in the play-off final at Wembley in May.

I m a footballer and I want to play football, but the knee would swell up to the point where I couldn t even train properly, he said via City s website. I would have liked to have given Aston Villa more on the pitch, but it just wasn t to be.

Richards made his City debut in 2005 and went on to win two Premier Leagues, the FA Cup and the EFL Cup before leaving for Fiorentina in 2014.

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On Thursday, Lampard posted a goodbye message on his official Instagram account, with the statement also shared by the League Managers Association (LMA).

Coming into Everton last year I knew we were in a tough moment and I will always be proud of the incredible work and support from everyone involved to keep the team in the Premier League last season, Lampard wrote.

Thanks to everybody that played their part as the whole club came together. I will never forget the incredible night against Palace that we shared.

I want to thank all Evertonians for the welcome that you gave to myself, my staff, and my family. It truly is a special club with a huge heart, and an incredible history.

I m disappointed that we couldn t achieve more together and wish all the …

Fernandinho will not be leaving Manchester City at the end of the season after the Brazilian secured a one-year contract extension.

The 34-year-old was seemingly set to depart in July, with his previous deal approaching its conclusion, but City have ensured he will be around for at least another season.

An intelligent combative midfielder, Fernandinho joined City from Shakhtar Donetsk in 2013 and has been a revelation, appearing in at least 29 Premier League matches in every campaign.

He has remained a key figure this term, playing 20 of the champions 24 top-flight games, filling in at centre-back for many of those due to City s defensive injury crisis.

And choosing to remain at the club for another season was a straightforward decision.

Another y…

According to a recent report from Sport, Barcelona sporting director Eric Abidal has claimed that the club were not at all interested in signing Bruno Fernandes. The new Manchester United midfielder had been previously linked with a move to several top clubs around European football, but at this stage, it seems as if the Red Devils may have been one of the only sides in the hunt after all. 

Barcelona as a club seem to be struggling a little bit as of late and with Abidal clashing with Lionel Messi, it certainly seems as if there’s some kind of division that needs to be resolved – and fast. 

Fernandes looked good during his first performance for Manchester United at the weekend when they took on Wolves, but whether or not he’ll be able to sustain that kind …