Author: James Brooks

A significant bloc of Celtic supporters clubs has publicly declared opposition to the potential appointment of Robbie Keane as the club’s next manager. The groups have cited Keane’s previous role as Maccabi Tel Aviv head coach as the central reason for their objections to his appointment. Recent reports indicate that Keane, 45, has already held talks with Celtic’s principal shareholder Dermot Desmond over the vacant managerial position. A statement from a group calling itself Celtic Fans for the Liberation of Palestine warned that the appointment “would be deeply divisive among the support.” The North Curve Celtic account on X subsequently…

Manchester United chief executive Omar Berrada has insisted the club will not overpay in the transfer market as they plan their summer recruitment drive. The warning comes as United continue to deal with the financial fallout from expensive signings such as Casemiro, Antony, Jadon Sancho, and Donny van de Beek in previous windows. United believe their data-driven approach to transfers last summer was close to perfect, moving swiftly to sign Matheus Cunha from Wolves and Bryan Mbeumo from Brentford early in the window. The club then added striker Benjamin Sesko and goalkeeper Senne Lammens before the window closed, completing what…

England defender Lucy Bronze believes the Women’s Super League continues to grow in stature, giving it the power to attract the continent’s top players. Bronze’s comments come as several high-profile Spanish players have been linked with moves to the WSL ahead of the summer transfer window. BBC Sport reported that Mapi Leon, who left Barcelona last month after nine years at the club, has a verbal agreement in place to join London City Lionesses. Two-time Ballon d’Or winner Alexia Putellas is also departing Barcelona after 14 years, with London City Lionesses understood to be in pursuit of her signature. Those…

Scotland’s relationship with World Cup heartbreak is one of football’s most enduring and painful stories, stretching back over seventy years. Their failure to progress beyond the group stage has taken many forms, from poor management to cruel luck and catastrophic psychological collapse on the biggest stage. Along the way, several unlikely figures have emerged to shatter Scottish hopes, men few in Scotland had ever heard of before they became immortalised for all the wrong reasons. Carlos Borges was the first of those bogeymen, a dynamic winger and prolific goalscorer who had been playing senior football in Uruguay from the age…

Manchester City are considering taking legal action after a candidate in Real Madrid’s presidential election made a public promise to sign striker Erling Haaland. Enrique Riquelme, a renewable energy magnate challenging current president Florentino Perez, unveiled a Real Madrid shirt bearing Haaland’s name during a television appearance on Wednesday. Riquelme made the bold claim live on air, stating: “He has a release clause and would like to join Real Madrid.” The comments immediately sparked a furious response from those closest to the Norwegian striker, with a joint denial issued swiftly by Haaland’s father and agent. Manchester City then moved to…

Wales’ preparations for their crucial Women’s World Cup qualifier have been thrown into disarray after their squad flight was forced to divert to Italy due to severe weather conditions. Rhian Wilkinson’s squad departed Cardiff at 16:30 BST on Wednesday, with an expected arrival in Montenegro roughly three hours into the journey. Electrical storms over Podgorica made landing in the Montenegrin capital impossible, forcing the aircraft to seek an alternative destination further west. The plane eventually touched down in Brindisi, the southern Italian port city, leaving the Welsh squad stranded far from their intended destination. Wales spent more than three hours…

AC Milan have joined the battle to sign Crysencio Summerville from West Ham, with the Italian giants competing against Tottenham and Aston Villa for the 24-year-old Dutch winger. The Serie A club’s interest signals a potential continental move for Summerville, who has established himself as one of the most coveted wide players in the Premier League this season. Real Madrid are widely expected to trigger the £17.3m release clause that would secure Inter Milan and Netherlands right-back Denzel Dumfries, with the 30-year-old bound for the Bernabeu. Newcastle United have made their move for the highly-rated Nigerian teenager Zadok Yohanna, submitting…

Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konate has spoken publicly about battling depression during his final season at the club following a series of devastating personal losses. Portugal forward Diogo Jota and his brother Andre Silva tragically died in a car crash last July, while Konate’s father Hamady passed away in January after a long illness. The 27-year-old France international’s form was visibly affected throughout his final campaign at Anfield as he endured an extraordinarily difficult personal period. Speaking to France Inter radio, Konate was candid about his mental health struggles, insisting there should be no shame in admitting to depression in football.…

Former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy believes the club are better placed heading into next season following Andoni Iraola’s impending appointment as head coach. Liverpool parted ways with Arne Slot on Saturday before moving quickly to secure his replacement, reaching a verbal agreement with the Spaniard by Tuesday. Iraola arrives at Anfield after leading Bournemouth to sixth in the Premier League, securing European football for the first time in the club’s history. However, reservations remain among some supporters and pundits about Iraola’s lack of experience at a major club and in European competition. Murphy, a Match of the Day pundit and…

Southampton manager Tonda Eckert apologised to fans in a video broadcast on Tuesday, again insisting that spying on opposition training sessions is common practice in Germany. “When I worked in Italy for four years, every starting line-up we chose was out in the media before games, and the reason is our training sessions – especially the ones before games – have always been observed by media and opponent teams,” the 33-year-old said. Eckert also referenced Pep Guardiola’s time at Bayern Munich, claiming it had “been common practice in Germany to observe training sessions, knowing that other teams would do the…