Switzerland hope to continue their giant-killing tradition from the past four years when they take on France on Friday.

Ricardo Rodriguez and Stephan Lichtsteiner the starting full-backs in Switzerland s 2-1 victory over Ecuador on Sunday argued their team have the quality to hurt France in their second Group E fixture in Salvador.

Since Ottmar Hitzfeld led Switzerland to a 1-0 triumph over Spain in their opening game of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the Swiss have developed a reputation for reserving their top performances for when they face the very top teams.

While Switzerland have drawn 4-4 with Iceland at home, lost 2-0 to Wales and managed just a scoreless draw away to Malta in the past four years, they have also defeated Germany 5-3 and stunned Brazil 1-0.

Rodr…

French international defender Kurt Zouma has found it rather difficult to break into the first team at Stamford Bridge under the Italian manager Antonio Conte.

The 22-year-old centre-back made only three starts in the Premier League last season and played three FA Cup matches for his club. Zouma is widely expected to leave the Blues this summer and Sky Sports has learned that there are two sides that have been earmarked to grab the highly-rated defender.

Stoke City and West Bromwich Albion are willing to take Zouma on a year-long loan and the French international is due to have crunch talks with interested parties about a potential move on Wednesday.

Zouma is keen to leave in order to play regular minutes and increase his chances of making it into the French sq…

CSKA Moscow s Roman Eremenko s two-year doping ban has been upheld by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

Finland international Eremenko was banned last November after he tested positive for cocaine and its metabolites following a 2-2 Champions League draw against Bayer Leverkusen on September 14, in which he scored the equaliser.

And his appeal was rejected by CAS on Friday, meaning Eremenko will remain suspended until October 5 2018. He will be 31 when his ban expires.

A CAS statement read: The CAS Panel found that a two-year period of ineligibility was the appropriate sanction and since the UEFA AB decision did not specify the date of commencement of the suspension, found it proper to clarify the point and modify the UEFA AB decision accordingly, in or…

According to a report from Sky sources, Maxi Gomez’s switch over to West Ham United could well be complete in the next day or so. The Hammers are gearing up to meet the staggering €50 million release clause that has been slapped on his head, although it’s being said that there are still obstacles to get through prior to everything being finalised. Celta Vigo are currently struggling in La Liga which is always going to make it difficult to keep hold of him, as he’s quite clearly their star forward. The 22 year old joined the club from Defensor Sporting back in 2017, and also got received his first call up to the Uruguayan national team in the same year.

Celta Vigo want to keep him until the end of the season, with the current report suggesting that he could be loaned bac…

Maurizio Sarri conceded he misses the Premier League, but the former Chelsea boss also revealed he had to overcome conflicted relationships with his squad at Stamford Bridge.

The Italian spent the 2018-19 season with the Blues but left for Juventus after only a single campaign, which ended with their Europa League final victory over London rivals Arsenal.

Sarri s departure for Juventus was met with indifference by many Chelsea supporters and there was a sense that the ex-Napoli coach failed to truly win over both fans and players.

In one incident that hinted at Sarri s fight to earn respect, goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga refused to be substituted in the EFL Cup final against Manchester City and was dropped for a game after his act of defiance.

Recallin…

The Championship continues to head towards one of the most dramatic finishes in its history as the division’s three leading teams show no sign of slowing down.

With the Easter programme completed, Ipswich are a point clear of Leeds in the two automatic promotion spots, with third-placed Leicester a further point back.

The relentless form of the trio raises the prospect of all three finishing with more than 100 points and here, the PA news agency looks at how the race could play out.

Ipswich (First, played 40, points 87)

Run-in: Norwich (a), Watford (h), Middlesbrough (h), Hull (a), Coventry (a), Huddersfield (h).

Two months ago Ipswich looked like they might be wobbling but, under the most intense pressure, they have stood up to the test. Given …

Manchester United have agreed a loan deal that will see Tahith Chong join Birmingham City for the upcoming season, the 20-time English champions have . United are hoping that the temporary spell in the Championship will help the 21-year-old winger gain valuable first-team experience of the next 12 months.

Chong spent the first half of 2020-21 in the Bundesliga with Werder Bremen, and in the second half he helped Club Brugge win the Belgian First Division A, narrowly edging out Genk for the title. He will remain with his parent club now for the first part of the pre-season, and make his move to Birmingham later at an arranged date.

With 44 senior appearances under his belt for United, Werder and Brugge, Chong s experience is quite solid already given his age. He has even…

Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini believes AC Milan have the best team in Serie A, but has backed Juventus to win the Scudetto.

Juventus trail the reigning champions by two points, but have two games in hand and will go top of the table if they beat Parma on Wednesday.

And Mancini, who won three Serie A titles as coach of Inter, said Antonio Conte s side are capable o beating Milan in the race for the championship.

I believe that Milan have the best squad and have the most quality, Mancini told RMC.

However, I think that Juventus can win the Serie A title. They have shown so far that they can bring something extra. We will see what happens as there are still many games to be played.

Mancini, who coached Inter from 2004 until 2008, said h…

Porto striker Hulk admits he would not pass up a new challenge in his career as he seeks to follow in the footsteps of his hero Ronaldo.

The 25-year-old has become one of the most sought-after players in Europe after becoming an integral part of Porto s squad since joining the club from Japanese side Tokyo Verdy in 2008.

Chelsea, Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain have all been credited with an interest in Hulk, who has refused to rule out a future transfer.

Any player is always ready for a new challenge, Hulk told Goal.com.

Questioned about his favourite league, the nine-cap Brazilian could not choose between La Liga, the Bundesliga and the Premier League.

The atmosphere in these leagues is amazing and the fans really make the matches mor…

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