Newcastle United were without club-record signing Alexander Isak and key man Bruno Guimaraes for Sunday s clash with Wolves.
Isak joined Newcastle in a £59million (€70m) deal from LaLiga side Real Sociedad on Friday.
However, the striker is not eligible to play for Eddie Howe s side against Wolves as he has not yet received a work permit, meaning he will have to wait for his Premier League debut.
Howe instead selected Chris Wood, who scored twice for Newcastle last season after signing from Burnley in January, to lead the line in the absence of Callum Wilson, who is out with a hamstring injury.
Newcastle are also without influential midfielder Guimaraes after the Brazil international sustained an injury in Wednesday s EFL Cup tie with Tranmere Rove…
Arturo Vidal insists he is calm and happy about his Barcelona future despite refusing to rule out a possible move to Inter in the transfer window.
The midfielder stated in October that he was not happy to be a back-up to Ernesto Valverde s first team and would have to assess his options if his role did not change.
Vidal reportedly stormed out of training after being told he would not be in the first XI for the Clasico on December 18, although he then marked only his fourth LaLiga start of the season against Deportivo Alaves on Saturday with a goal.
Inter are said to be interested in a January deal for the 32-year-old, who previously enjoyed huge success under Antonio Conte at Juventus, but he is not prepared to rush into any decision.
Speaking after leavi…
Frenkie de Jong insists he will not be changed by his big-money move to Barcelona.
Netherlands midfielder De Jong agreed to leave Ajax who he helped to the Champions League semi-finals last season for Barca in January for a €75million fee.
The transfer officially went through on July 1, and De Jong will be unveiled as a Barca player at a presentation on Friday.
But despite acknowledging it will take time to adjust to life in Spain, the 22-year-old was adamant his attitude and approach will not be altered by the switch.
It will be special to experience it, De Jong told Dutch publication AD ahead of his presentation at Camp Nou.
I ve seen players presentations from big clubs like Barcelona on television and now I will be a part of it myself…
Bayern Munich defender David Alaba hopes Mario Gotze will be warmly received on his Borussia Dortmund return in Sunday s DFL-Supercup showdown.
Germany playmaker Gotze moved back to Thomas Tuchel s side during the close season following a patchy three-year spell with the Bundesliga champions and the rivalry between the two clubs means it is unlikely any love will be lost when they meet at Signal Iduna Park.
Alaba believes Gotze turning out on Dortmund s home ground once more will make for a memorable occasion for his former team-mate.
And the Austria international hopes he will not receive a frosty reception from BVB fans, who were infuriated by his original decision to join Bayern, which the 24-year-old has since said was the wrong move.
It will be ver…
Andrea Pirlo claimed his players showed they possess the Juventus DNA to keep fighting until the end of games this season.
Juve were far from their best in a scrappy Serie A clash with Sassuolo on Sunday and with nine minutes remaining were drawing 1-1 after Gregoire Defrel cancelled out Danilo s opener.
But late goals from Aaron Ramsey and Cristiano Ronaldo sealed the win for the defending champions against a Sassuolo side who played the entire second half with 10 men.
Ramsey has been involved in three goals in his past five Serie A appearances (one goal, two assists) while Ronaldo s strike ensured he has reached at least 15 league goals in his past 15 seasons.
The win helped the Bianconeri notch three consecutive victories in Serie A for the first time …
Alphonso Davies is back for Bayern Munich, but Julian Nagelsmann has been hit by another injury blow ahead of his belated bow with Benjamin Pavard ruled out.
Nagelsmann will get his Bayern reign under way at Borussia Monchengladbach in the Bundesliga on Friday, having seen last week s DFB-Pokal opener against Bremer postponed due to coronavirus-related quarantine measures imposed on the lower-league side.
That time has allowed left-back Davies to recover, though, making a swift return from ankle ligament damage suffered on international duty with Canada last month.
Davies played only 23 league games last season but led all Bayern defenders in recoveries (201) and boosts a back line that will now miss Pavard due to a training-ground ankle setback of his own.
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Werder Bremen executive Klaus Filbry has played down speculation linking star striker Marko Arnautovic with a move to Ukrainian Premier League giants FC Dynamo Kiev, .
Arnautovic, 23, has bagged seven goals and nine assists in 25 appearances for club and country, Austria, this season.
The Austria international, who joined Bremen from Dutch Eredivisie side FC Twente Enschede in 2010, has fallen a bit out-of-favour with Bremen manager Thomas Schaaf in recent weeks, which has further fueled speculation linking the 23-year-old with a move to Dynamo Kiev.
However, Arnautovic whose current contract expires in June 2014 is still a very important player for the club, insists Bremen executive Klaus Filbry.
As things stand today we have no inte…
Philippe Senderos has signed a one-year extension to his contract with Fulham, the Premier League club have confirmed.
Philippe Senderos has signed a one-year extension to his contract with Fulham, the Premier League club have confirmed.
The Swiss central defender signed from Arsenal in 2010, with his new deal running until the middle of 2014.
Senderos said he is looking forward to being an integral part of the first team.
I m delighted to extend my stay with the club by a further year, Senderos told Fulham s official website.
I ve thoroughly enjoyed my time at Fulham so far and I love playing for this club.
I m relishing playing first-team football and I m confident that we can continue our recent good form and end the season strong…
Danny Simpson has become the latest member of Leicester City s Premier League title-winning squad to sign a contract extension, a new deal tying him to the club until 2019.
After joining Leicester from QPR in 2014, right-back Simpson has become a key part of the squad and has made 50 appearances in all competitions.
The 29-year-old s renewal follows fresh deals signed by integral members of the team from last season s sensational league triumph like Jamie Vardy, Riyad Mahrez, Kasper Schmeichel and Marc Alrbighton.
Simpson told LCFC TV: I m over the moon. I ve been here two years now and the club is going places, I ve said [that] all last season. The group that we ve got here is so close and the manager [Claudio Ranieri] since he s come has helped me so much and s…
Villarreal have signed Denis Suarez from Barcelona on a four-year deal after his two-year loan to Sevilla was brought to a premature end.
Suarez moves to El Madrigal after his time at Sevilla, which was agreed as part of the deal that took Ivan Rakitic to Camp Nou, was annulled.
Barca have an option to buy Suarez back at the end of the season and also after the 2016-17 campaign as well as first refusal on the 21-year-old should they choose not to exercise those rights.
The midfielder never made a senior appearance for Barca after joining from Manchester City in August 2013.
He made 46 appearances for Sevilla, scoring six goals.
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