There are portraits that precede greatness, snapshots of youthful genius. The boy with the indie-band bangs celebrating on Ronaldinho’s back, the bleach-blonde teen with blaugrana braces leaving a trail of Inter defenders in his wake. Almost exactly 20 years separated Lionel Messi’s first goal for Barcelona and Lamine Yamal’s sensational Champions League semi-final strike on

Trent Alexander-Arnold has confirmed he is leaving Liverpool — all that remains is for his move to Real Madrid to be rubber-stamped. But what will he be walking into at the Bernabeu? The general outlook at the club is looking a lot less positive than when the idea of joining Madrid on a free transfer

Former Arsenal striker Nicolas Pepe could be heading back to the Premier League this summer as Villarreal look to offload him. The Ivory Coast international joined the Yellow Submarine on a free transfer last summer following his departure from Turkish side Trabzonspor. Pepe famously broke the Arsenal transfer record following his £72m move to the

Valencia are on the verge of tying up a deal for a member of the midfield ranks at La Liga rivals Leganés. That’s according to Mundo Deportivo, who point towards Ivan Neyou as the player in question. Valencia, it is understood, have long kicked into gear a search for reinforcements in the middle of the

The top stories and transfer rumours from Tuesday’s newspapers… THE SUN Carlo Ancelotti and Real Madrid have reached a verbal agreement over his exit, according to reports. Image: Carlo Ancelotti looks on during last month’s game between Real Madrid and Valencia Former Argentine World Cup winner, Luis Galvan, has died – two weeks after the

Speaking to kicker as his 80th birthday approaches, former Borussia Mönchengladbach striker and Bayern Munich head coach Jupp Heynckes has given his thoughts on modern football. Heynckes was last in a footballing role in 2018 when he took charge of Bayern one last time before retiring. Since retiring, the former striker has led a quiet life. On

Emma Raducanu is “optimistic and positive” ahead of an Italian Open campaign she says presents a “fresh start” under new direction. The 22-year-old returns to the clay looking to bounce back from her second-round exit at the Madrid Open. The former US Open champion faces a first-round match against an unknown qualifier in Rome, with

Jannik Sinner says he was left lost and confused after being handed a three-month doping ban. The three-time Grand Slam champion agreed a settlement with the World Anti-Doping Agency in February after authorities accepted the anabolic agent clostebol had entered his system via massages from his physiotherapist. “At the start I was a bit confused

Alpine are considering dropping Jack Doohan from the next Formula 1 race in Imola, with Franco Colapinto in line for a return to the grid. Doohan came into the 2025 F1 season under pressure after Alpine surprisingly signed Colapinto as their reserve driver. The 22-year-old rookie, who is yet to score points this season, lashed

Jamie Carragher says Trent Alexander-Arnold’s ‘one of our own’ status among Liverpool fans has “diminished” after his decision to leave the club, and he has sacrificed that love from the fans by choosing Real Madrid. Alexander-Arnold announced he will be leaving the Reds on a free transfer at the end of the season, with a

Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur believes his team “did a good job” despite Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc venting their frustration during the Miami Grand Prix. Hamilton asked to go past team-mate Leclerc during the middle of the race as he attempted to catch Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli for sixth but was not let through straight away.

Holstein Kiel forward Shuto Machino scored for the third successive German Bundesliga match before going off injured Sunday as the relegation-threatened club grabbed a vital 3-1 win at Augsburg. The 25-year-old Japan international took his tally to 11 league goals when he opened the scoring at WWK Arena with a 25th-minute penalty. He left the

George Russell has kept his third-placed finish in the Miami Grand Prix after a post-race protest lodged by Red Bull against the Mercedes driver was rejected. Russell finished one place ahead of Max Verstappen in the final podium berth on Sunday but Red Bull launched a protest against the Mercedes driver to the stewards afterwards,

Lewis Hamilton has revealed he told Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur not to “be so sensitive” following a radio dispute between driver and team during the Miami Grand Prix. Hamilton became frustrated during Sunday’s race when he closed on team-mate Charles Leclerc with superior pace but was not immediately let through to attempt to chase down

May 4 (Reuters) – AC Milan manager Sergio Conceicao urged his players stay focussed and not give up hopes of securing a Champions League place next season even though they are currently nine points adrift of fourth-placed Juventus. With Juventus occupying the last Champions League spot having played a game more, the season is hanging

Scottie Scheffler matched the record for the fewest amount of strokes ever at a PGA Tour event as he stormed to an eight-shot victory at The CJ Cup Byron Nelson in Texas. The world No 1 carded a final-day 63 to finish on -31 for the tournament and eight clear of South Africa’s Erik van

Oscar Piastri extended his world championship lead with a dominant Miami Grand Prix victory as Lando Norris recovered from first-lap drama to seal a McLaren one-two. Piastri drove a faultless race from fourth on the grid to claim his third successive victory, passing pole-sitter Max Verstappen after a thrilling early battle before cruising clear. Norris

Jack Draper was denied a second Masters 1000 title in as many months and first ATP trophy on clay after losing in three sets to two-time French Open finalist Casper Ruud at the Madrid Open. Ruud triumphed 7-5 3-6 6-4 in a gruelling match that lasted nearly two and a half hours to secure his

Did Liverpool show where they need to strengthen? Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player FREE TO WATCH: Highlights from Chelsea’s match against Liverpool in the Premier League The 3-1 defeat at Chelsea will do little to trouble Liverpool as they celebrated their deserved title. But if anyone was questioning what Arne

Cole Palmer issued a response to social media “idiots and trolls” for the criticism he has received over recent months after ending his goal drought against Liverpool. The Chelsea midfielder, who enjoyed such a stunning first season at Stamford Bridge in 2023/24, had managed only two goal contributions in his previous 12 games coming into