Milan make Messias loan permanent

Chelsea have confirmed defender Branislav Ivanovic has signed a one-year contract extension.

The Serbia international, whose previous deal was due to expire at the end of the season, has not enjoyed his best season at Stamford Bridge and regularly came in for criticism for his displays under previous manager Jose Mourinho.

Nevertheless, interim boss Guus Hiddink has opted to prolong the 31-year-old s stay until June 2017.

Ivanovic told the club s official website, www.chelseafc.com: I am very happy to stay with Chelsea for another season. After eight years here this is my home and there is no other place I would rather play football.

I have enjoyed so much success since moving to the club and I am determined to help the team achieve more in the last mo…

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers questioned whether someone was “making tricks” over their festive fixtures after his club’s trip to Dundee was moved to Boxing Day.

Rodgers and Motherwell have both expressed frustration on behalf of supporters after two cinch Premiership games were moved to accommodate live television coverage.

Motherwell’s Fir Park clash with Rangers has been moved from the Saturday afternoon of December 23 to a noon kick-off on Christmas Eve.

Celtic’s game at Dens Park will now take place at 3pm on Boxing Day instead of with the rest of the December 27 evening fixture card.

Fixture amendment for Sky Sports Coverage

Our home match against Celtic originally scheduled for Wednesday 27th December at 7:45pm has been selected …

Despite injury concerns, Lionel Scaloni is adamant that Lionel Messi is fit to play in their Copa America semi-final against Canada.

The Argentina captain sustained a hamstring injury in their second group game against Chile, forcing him out of the following match against Peru.

However, Messi returned for their quarter-final meeting with Ecuador, notably missing the first spot-kick in the penalty shootout, which they won thanks to two Emiliano Martinez saves.

After Messi admitted he trained with fear ahead of his return from injury against La Tricolor, Scaloni has brushed off any worries about his star man s fitness.

99% of the time, [Messi] is fit to play, Scaloni said. It s never happened to me that he s not fit to play.

Every time he s come o…

Opening up the New Year with what we hope will be a stacked Premier League schedule, Saturday promises some noteworthy meetings from up and down the country. On that note, for those of you looking to stick on a weekend flutter, we have found a handful of helpful tips that are worth keeping an eye out for.

Saturday January 1st

BST 15:00 Watford vs Tottenham 

Starting with Saturday s guests, while Tottenham might have been left hugely frustrated to have only played out a 1-1 draw against Southampton earlier in the week, Spurs appear to be really enjoying life under Antonio Conte. Knowing that they deserved to have left St. Mary s with maximum points, the Lilywhites are yet to taste a single domestic defeat since the one-time Chelsea boss took charge. With their…

Competition: Serie A

Market: Torino to beat Bologna

Odds:

Serie A is back for yet more enthralling footballing action this weekend as every team in Italy s top league resumes battle once again. The top of the table is incredibly tight, and it is the same in the middle and at the bottom of the league, with an incredibly interesting season-long narrative emerging. With all of this in mind, Torino host Bologna on Saturday.

Torino have been in good form this season as they look to put as much ground between themselves and the relegation zone as possible. After 19 games they have five wins, 10 draws and four defeats, while they have scored 25 goals and conceded 27 times. This has helped the side collect 25 points, meaning they are 10 clear of the rel…

PSV have confirmed highly rated midfielder Ibrahim Sangare has agreed a new five-year deal, amid rumours of Premier League interest.

Sangare joined PSV from Toulouse in 2020 and has established himself as a key player for the Eredivisie side.

The 24-year-old, who started all six of PSV s Champions League games last season and played 29 times in the Dutch top flight, had been mooted as a potential target for Manchester United earlier in the transfer window, though reports over the weekend suggested West Ham were considering a move after missing out on Amadou Onana, who is set to join Everton.

Yet any approach from the Hammers now seems unlikely, with Sangare having signed a new contract to keep him at PSV until 2027.

— PSV (@PSV)

Sangar…

With Newcastle really splashing their new-found cash throughout January and bringing in the likes of Kieran Trippier, and Dan Burn, it was no surprise that last month s window was the second most expensive in Premier League history.

On a day that was highlighted by switch to Spanish giants Barcelona, many across Europe were also surprised to see Aaron Ramsey turn up at Ibrox on a shock loan deal from Juventus.

With the likes of and West Ham fans having to watch on frustrated from home, we have taken a look at a handful of Deadline Day deals that might have flown under the radar.

Bryan Gil Tottenham to Valencia

While Dele Alli s Deadline Day move to Everton might have stolen most of the headlines in north London, the fading England international was not the o…

Barcelona forward Ousmane Dembele is facing another spell on the sidelines after injuring his hamstring.

The France international was sent on as a half-time substitute in Saturday s shock 2-1 LaLiga loss to Cadiz.

He completed the match but it has now been revealed he suffered an elongation in the hamstring of his right leg.

Barca confirmed the news on their official website on Sunday but did not provide a specific timeline for his return.

Dembele has been plagued by injuries since joining Barca from Borussia Dortmund in August 2017 for an initial €105million.

The 23-year-old has started four league games this term already one more than he managed in the whole of 2019-20.

MEDICAL COMMUNIQUE | Dembélé
Tests carried out have shown that …

Best Odds: 3/4

Bookmaker:

Two sides who will be desperate to claim a first-leg advantage on Tuesday night when they open their semi-final adventure, Cagliari will welcome Parma to the Unipol Domus.

Cagliari

Starting with the hosts, while Cagliari might have suffered Serie B play-off heartbreak last season, the Islanders are desperate to go one step further this time around. Eventually punching their semi-final ticket after securing a 2-1 victory at home against Venezia, Claudio Ranieri’s men have only continued on a real purple patch over the past month. Despite signing off April with a brief wobble, the former Leicester icon should find the mood in his camp heading into Tuesday’s first-leg showdown. Winning each of their last five straight meetings against…

Market: Osasuna win

Odds: 4/5 @

Two sides who find themselves battling it out at opposite ends of the La Liga table, Osasuna will host Getafe on Sunday lunchtime.

Starting with the hosts, last seen putting in another gritty display as they picked up a 1-0 victory away at Almeria, Osasuna have only continued to gain a string of plaudits from across La Liga this season. With their sights set on clinching back-to-back top-half finishes this year, Los Rojillos open this weekend s fixtures battling it out in the top-four chase. Opening the 2022/23 campaign with a shock 2-1 victory at home against Sevilla on August 12th, Jagoba Arrasate s men have collected 12 points from their first five top-flight showdowns. With attacking talisman Chimy Avila already racking up thr…