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Barcelona president Joan Laporta has revealed that he is "convinced" that Lionel Messi will sign a new contract with the club to stay after this season.Laporta was re-elected for a second term as club president last month after his predecessor Josep Maria Bartomeu was sacked after falling out with other members of the club's board over Messi's future.Messi was present when Laporta was inaugurated as club president again David Ramos / Getty ImagesThe Argentine forward, who is widely regarded as the club's greatest player…

Since Wembley Stadium reopened in 2007, it has seen some real crackerjack games.When the FA Cup steps up to the home of English football, the stakes are always high. It is either the semi-final or the final of the competition - a stage that has added an extra boost to some captivating meetings over the years.Let's take a trip down the memory bar to look at some of the best FA Cup bands the new Wembley has ever seen.A true story of two halves, Manchester United's victory over Everton in the 2016 semi-finals was a roller…

Arsenal advanced to the semi-finals of the UEFA Europa League after their 4-0 defeat of Slavia Prague on Thursday night - and began a deal with their former boss Unai Emery.Villarreal defeated Dinamo Zagreb 3-1 overall to book their place in the last four of the competition and their upcoming clash has added an extra spice to it given that Emery was fired just 18 months into his Gunners season.The two sides meet on April 29 in El Madrigal, with the second stage scheduled to take place a week later at the Emirates Stadium on…

You can rush over competitions like the Champions League all you want, but the FA Cup will always have a special place in the hearts of most football fans.Over the years, we have been treated to some absolutely incredible FA Cup bands and especially the semifinals have thrown up some classics.With teams just a victory away from securing their place at the show event in the world's oldest football competition, the drama and passion displayed is on a level you may have never seen before.So here's the 90 min ranking of the ten…

Early on Friday afternoon, it seemed as if Manchester United and Barcelona had been reinforced by the news that transfer target Andre Silva had a € 30 million release clause in their contract.The Portuguese international has been in fantastic form for Eintracht Frankfurt this season after agreeing to a permanent transfer last summer, scoring 24 goals and registering four assists in 28 matches in all competitions.He has even surpassed the coveted Erling Haaland in the Bundesliga this season and his form has once again…

Everything is heating up now.We have some exciting competitions for titles and European places across the continent, and there is also the little thing in the Champions League quarter-finals that we can also digest. Do not blink, otherwise you will miss something.You know the drill now. It's time for 90 minutes to rank the top players in Europe right now, and this week we're asking for some help from Oscar-nominated Minari to spice things up.Lewandowski is out of action | Alexander Hassenstein / Getty Images"Getting hurt…

Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero has been ruled out of the club's FA Cup semi-final with Chelsea by manager Pep Guardiola.The club's top scorer of all time is missing for much of the season with injuries and complications with COVID-19, but recently scored his first goal in over a year from the penalty spot against Fulham.He has only been involved for a total of 78 minutes since then and not at all since coming on as a replacement in a 2-0 win over Leicester earlier this month.As City prepare for a huge clash at…

Chelsea want to advance to a fourth FA Cup final in five years when they face Manchester City at Wembley in the semi-finals on Saturday.Thomas Tuchel's side reached the Champions League semi-final with a 2-1 victory over Porto in the middle of the week, but the 1-0 loss at night made it two defeats in three matches in all competitions after the humiliating 5-2 the defeat to West Brom two weeks ago.At this point, it was obvious that the players of Tuchel lowered the tempo and became more defensively oriented. But with Man…

Manchester United have played in 17 semi-finals of European competitions since they became the first English club to participate at the continental level more than 60 years ago.This season's semi-final in the Europa League against Roma is the club's 18th and Ole Gunnar Solskjær is determined to deliver a sixth European trophy.Ole Gunnar Solskjær has guided Man Utd to the club's 18th European semifinal | Jonathan Moscrop / Getty ImagesUnited first played in a semi-final at this level during their first ever season in the…

Fresh pictures of Chelsea's home kit for the 2021/22 season have been leaked and it ... looks really different.The West London side is known for its traditional blue kits that usually have a touch of white (and sometimes red or yellow), but Nike has taken it a step further with this new design.During the fifth year of its deal with the mega-sports brand, Chelsea will be wearing a very hectic home kit that includes zigzags, squares and some high-quality light yellow trim.? New photos - We expect the new Chelsea home jersey…