Inter's Premier League new boys settling nerves before derby showdown

HOCH ZWEI / Italy Photo Press via www.imago-images

Antonio Conte's new Premier League recruits have been settling nerves at title-chasing Inter Milan who travel to Udinese on Sunday looking to end a three-match Serie A winless run before their derby clash against city rivals AC Milan.

Inter have brought in Christian Eriksen, Ashley Young and Victor Moses to keep the pressure on leaders Juventus as the Chinese-owned club target a first Scudetto since 2010.

The pace of the season had taken its toll, however, and Inter are on a run of three consecutive 1-1 league draws against Atalanta, Lecce and Cagliari.

Lautaro Martinez was given a two-match ban for his late sending off against the Sardinians, and will miss Sunday's game in Udine and the derby against AC Milan the following weekend.

Conte's side are three points behind eight-time reigning champions Juventus, who slipped up last weekend with a 2-1 defeat at Napoli.

But they have recruited Tottenham midfielder Eriksen, 27, Nigerian Moses, 29, on loan from Chelsea and defender Young from Manchester United.

The trio have already helped Inter reach the Italian Cup semi-final with a win over Fiorentina at the San Siro midweek.

"When this opportunity came up I took it right away," Young, 34, told Sky Sports Italia.

"Along with Eriksen and Moses we come from the Premier League and this is an opportunity to experience something different, both as a game and lifestyle.

"It's important for a player to face new challenges."

Former Chelsea boss Conte had already signed Romelu Lukaku from United last summer and also have Alexis Sanchez on loan from the club.

"He's a fantastic coach, he has won trophies, he has the ambition to win again and I also want to do it here," added Young.

Eighth-placed AC Milan host Hellas Verona, two points below in ninth, on the cusp of a Zlatan Ibrahimovic-inspired revival.

Milan have taken ten points in four games since Ibrhimovic's return to the club this month, and the Swede scored during the week to book a place in the Italian Cup semi-final.

Juventus missed the chance to open up a six-point lead at the top of the table with their shock defeat to coach Maurizio Sarri's struggling former club Napoli.

The Turin giants host 13th-placed Fiorentina, who held them to a goalless draw in Tuscany in September.

Lazio have a chance to close the gap as they are just five points behind Juventus and two adrift of Inter, before hosting struggling SPAL.

Lazio's 11-match winning streak ended in last weekend's derby draw to Roma, but Simone Inzaghi's side have a game in hand.

Roma travel to Sassuolo trying to hold the final Champions League berth ahead of Atalanta, one-point behind, in fifth after thumping Torino 7-0 last weekend.

The Bergamo side host Genoa with Torino travelling south to Lecce.

Napoli, in tenth, visit Sampdoria on Monday boosted after last weekend's win and with defenders Kalidou Koulibaly and Nikola Maksimovic and forward Dries Mertens back from injuries.

Cristiano Ronaldo can push his scoring streak to nine consecutive league games. The Portuguese superstar, who this week became the first Instagram user to have 200 million followers, has found the net 12 times in his last eight Serie A games.

57 - Atalanta's goals in 21 matches

31 - Points between Lazio and SPAL

12 - Napoli's points of the Champions League

3 - Inter's games without a win

3 - Juventus's lead on Inter

Solskjaer does not expect deadline-day arrivals at Man Utd

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Ole Gunnar Solskjaer does not expect Manchester United to do any deadline-day business but confirmed new signing Bruno Fernandes would be involved in Saturday's home game against Wolves.

The United boss has been open about his desire to bolster his squad with a striker after the injury to top-scorer Marcus Rashford and the summer exits of Alexis Sanchez and Romelu Lukaku.

Joshua King, who played for the club's reserves under Solskjaer, has been linked with a move and Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe did not rule out an exit, but the United boss is not expecting any arrivals.

"I don't think we'll do any more business, no," Solskjaer said at his pre-match press conference on Friday.

The Norwegian said he was happy with the forwards at his disposal at Old Trafford and that the arrival of Portugal midfielder Fernandes would give him options to tweak his tactics.

Solskjaer confirmed the 25-year-old would go straight into the squad against Wolves after he completed his move from Sporting Lisbon for an initial 55 million euros ($61 million, £46 million) on Thursday.

"We're just happy to finally get it over the line. We followed him for years and he has grown in that period," said the United boss.

"He is more mature, a great leader of his team and even with all the speculation that has been around him from every club in Europe linked with him, he stayed focused and played some fantastic football for Sporting Lisbon."

Solskjaer is expecting Fernandes to provide leadership in a squad that has been accused of lacking strong voices on the pitch.

"That is one of the boxes we had to tick," said the manager. "We want players who this means a lot to, and he's a winner, he hates losing.

"I have seen it myself but he uses that anger in a good way, to play better and help his teammates.

"He was a fantastic captain for Sporting Lisbon and he was a leader and he is going to come here and be a great leader."

Some fans are planning to walk out in the 68th minute of Saturday's match at Old Trafford in protest at how the club is being run by the Glazer family and executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward.

The atmosphere at Old Trafford has turned toxic in recent weeks, with supporters voicing their anger at the club hierarchy and police this week launched an investigation into an attack on the home of Woodward.

"For me, the fans have been backing us and I am sure they'll back the team again," said Solskjaer. "They're important for us and this is an important game for us."

Arsenal sign Southampton defender Cedric Soares on loan

Graham Wilson

Arsenal announced the signing of Portugal defender Cedric Soares on loan from Southampton until the end of the season on Friday.

The 28-year-old will be out of contract in June, having made more than 100 appearances for the Saints since joining them from Sporting Lisbon in 2015.

Right-back Soares, who had a loan spell at Inter Milan last season, is currently recovering from a knee problem, so his debut for the Gunners could be delayed until after the winter break.

Arsenal technical director Edu said on the club website: "Cedric is a defender with good experience of the Premier League, and of course at international level.

"He is another strong addition to our defensive unit who will provide our squad with quality."

Southampton had brought in Kyle Walker-Peters on loan from Tottenham as cover.

"The club would like to thank Cedric for all his efforts during his time with the club and wish him luck for the rest of the campaign," a Southampton statement read.

Zidane not considering Bale exit on transfer deadline day

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Zinedine Zidane has said he is "not contemplating" Gareth Bale leaving Real Madrid on Friday before the end of the January transfer window.

Bale came close to joining Chinese Super League side Jiangsu Suning last summer and English newspaper the Times reported on Friday the Welshman was in talks to rejoin his former club Tottenham.

But a source at Spurs has told AFP they are not in negotiations to sign Bale this month. Another source close to the player insisted earlier this week that "nothing has changed" and he would not be leaving Real Madrid in January.

Asked about the possibility of Bale being sold on Friday, Zidane said in a press conference: "Gareth is with us, I'm counting on him. I do not contemplate this possibility."

Bale was left out of the squad to face Real Zaragoza in the Copa del Rey on Wednesday, having completed only one full training session following an ankle injury.

Zidane would not say if he would return for the city derby against Atletico Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday.

"I'm not going to tell you who is going to play," Zidane said. "The players all have to be prepared."

There was also a positive update regarding the fitness of Eden Hazard, who has recovered from his foot injury and could feature against Atletico.

"We'll see but he has been training with us all week," Zidane said. "He could be included tomorrow but we will never take any risks."

Hazard has not played since fracturing his foot against Paris Saint-Germain on November 26.

Real Madrid face Atletico on the back of a 20-game unbeaten run. They sit top of La Liga, three points clear of Barcelona.

Klopp plays down record-breaking Reds as title looms near

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Jurgen Klopp steadfastly refuses to allow Liverpool's long-awaited Premier League title celebrations to start, but the opening month of 2020 has underlined the Reds' mastery over their rivals.

Reds boss Klopp could see his side move an astonishing 22 points clear of their closest rivals and defending champions Manchester City on the opening weekend of February, should they beat Southampton and Pep Guardiola's team lose at Tottenham 24 hours later.

But the German played down the mounting tally of statistical landmarks after his side became the quickest ever to rack up 70 points in a season following their comfortable 2-0 win at West Ham on Wednesday.

"I'm not too much concerned about records," he said following Wednesday's 2-0 win at West Ham.

"We had a (points) record at Dortmund (in 2011-12) and Bayern beat it the next season. I don't want to be boring. We just don't feel like that."

At the corresponding stage last season, after 24 games, Klopp enjoyed a five-point advantage over Guardiola although February and early March saw his side held to costly draws by West Ham, Manchester United and Everton as they were overhauled by City.

Since that goalless draw with their local rivals Liverpool have dropped just two points in the league, at Manchester United in October.

Southampton visit Anfield on Saturday seeking to become the first club since Leicester, just over a year previously, to take a point from Anfield.

The almost inevitable crowning of Liverpool as England's best is being eagerly awaited by the club's supporters given it's been 30 years since their side were champions of England.

Victory against the Saints would mark a 20th consecutive home league win for the Reds, matching City's run between 2011 and 2012, and leave them six home wins short of becoming the first club in Premier League history to record a perfect home record.

February could also see Liverpool set a new mark for most consecutive Premier League victories -- currently the 18 set by City in 2017.

Liverpool are also within sight of matching one of the game's most impressive statistical feats; the 49 unbeaten league games amassed by Arsenal's 'Invincibles' of 2003/04.

Klopp's current 41-game unbeaten run began after defeat against City 12 months back, and Liverpool could reach the 49-game mark against Guardiola's side on April 4.

Should they continue in their current imperious form, Liverpool are also destined to set a bigger winning margin than even that amassed by the 2017/18 City team.

City won that league title by 19 points, their 100 points leaving them with an 18-point cushion over second-placed Manchester United.

At the current rate of point collection being shown by City and Liverpool, the Merseysiders would end the season 30 points clear of their rivals with a final tally of 111 points.

It would comfortably set a new record for the highest points tally in Premier League history, currently the 100 which City set in 2018.

Such has been their phenomenal effort over the opening 24 games of the campaign that Liverpool now need to win 10 of their remaining 14 fixtures to match that magical 100-point mark.

Relentless Real Madrid a reminder of what might have been for Atletico

Denis Doyle, getty

Real Madrid were supposedly in a mess last summer and Atletico Madrid about to challenge for the title but each have defied expectations ahead of their meeting at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday.

With Real marching to the top of La Liga and Atletico languishing in fifth, the city derby this weekend is less a contest of rivals and more a moderately awkward assignment for the now title favourites.

A local derby can have a rhythm of its own, as shown by Espanyol in 20th holding Barcelona in first to a 2-2 draw earlier this month.

But Atletico will need a similar reversal of form, after four games without a win, in which they have lost to Eibar, drawn at home to Leganes - now themselves last in La Liga - and been knocked out of the Copa del Rey by Cultural Leonesa of Segunda B.

And as Atleti have floundered, Real have flourished, extending an unbeaten run to 20 matches, during which they have conceded only nine goals and scored 45.

In term of competitions, Real have won the Spanish Super Cup, pulled three points clear at the top of La Liga and eased into the cup quarter-finals, all without the injured Eden Hazard.

"We are top of the table again after being there a long time ago," said captain Sergio Ramos. "We have to keep going."

When Zinedine Zidane returned as coach almost a year ago, many questioned not only the timing but the wisdom of retaking charge of an ageing squad, seemingly on an unerring trajectory of decline.

Sceptics were initially proven right as results and performances failed to improve and when a disjointed transfer window fed into a 7-3 pre-season defeat to Atletico, the talk was less about winning trophies and more about Zidane losing his job.

Yet Zidane weathered the storm, his management by calm and charm recovering the players and restoring the steel that made Real Madrid such a fierce opponent when they were last crowned Spanish champions in 2017.

"Defensively what we are doing we are doing very well, it is our strength," Zidane said last weekend.

Their transformation began at the back, where Atletico once owned the reputation for the most stubborn rearguard in Europe but in recent months even that defining characteristic has left them.

In some ways, that was part of the plan, a new era centred instead on Joao Felix, where solidity in defence would give way a little to freedom of expression in attack.

Yet Felix, bought for 126 million euros, has only shown glimpses of his talent, a series of muted displays suggesting the 20-year-old was not ready to carry the weight of change on his shoulders.

"Every player has a different personality, every player needs a different amount of time," coach Diego Simeone said, when asked about Felix earlier this month.

With Felix now injured, and not expected to recover from a hamstring tear for around a month, Atletico's options are reduced, even if the youngster's four goals in 24 appearances means the team will hardly miss his scoring record.

Instead, Simeone, who largely retains the support of the fans, must find both a replacement and a spark to jolt his side back into life.

Ten points looks too wide a gap to close in the league but Atletico will need some momentum to have any chance of upsetting Liverpool next month in the Champions League last 16.

A shock victory over Real Madrid, whom they have not beaten in La Liga in four years, might be just what is needed, for Barcelona too, who now trail Real by three points after their loss last weekend away at Valencia.

Quique Setien received a welcome boost as Barca thrashed Leganes 5-0 on Thursday in the Copa del Rey and league games at home to Levante, whom they face on Saturday, Getafe and Eibar should now offer a chance to rebuild.

Sevilla, in third, are also at home to Alaves on Sunday, looking to recover themselves after losing to Segunda's Mirandes in the cup on Thursday. Getafe, in fourth, play away at Athletic Bilbao.

Untiring veteran Hilton ready for Neymar clash and determined to keep going

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Most footballers his age have long since hung up their boots, perhaps moved into management or punditry. But Vitorino Hilton, who turns 43 later this year, is still going strong.

Almost exactly 16 years after he first arrived in France, the Brazilian centre-back is set to lead out Montpellier on Saturday as they take on the Paris Saint-Germain of Neymar.

They may be compatriots, but the difference between the world's most expensive player and Hilton is so great they might as well come from separate planets.

Neymar missed PSG's midweek game in the French Cup, taking time off to as plan his 28th birthday celebrations, reportedly set for a 800-capacity Parisian nightclub on Sunday, with guests asked to dress all in white.

Hilton, meanwhile, captained a Montpellier side that was dumped out of the Cup in the last 16, losing on penalties to fourth-tier minnows Belfort.

Hilton has played almost every minute in the league for his club this season and shows no signs of slowing up. He wants to sign a new contract when his existing deal expires in the summer.

"I have played almost every match so far. I feel great. I want to continue for another year. We will see at the end of the season," he said on Thursday.

A title winner with Marseille in 2010 and with Montpellier in 2012, Hilton is part of a side sitting fourth in Ligue 1 and hoping to qualify for Europe.

Montpellier have won their last three league games, but it does not come tougher than a visit to Paris. Thomas Tuchel's side are unbeaten in their last 18 games and sit 10 points clear at the top of the table.

And there is Neymar, whose brace in last weekend's win at Lille gave him 47 goals in 50 Ligue 1 appearances.

"He is unpredictable with, and without, the ball. You don't know what he's going to do," said Hilton.

"Playing against Paris is unpredictable too, but we have a good team and there are reasons for us to be hopeful. If we do all we need to do together I think we can get at least a draw."

Can the former Arsenal, Barcelona and Chelsea man still deliver at the highest level, or is he past it? While the Spanish star's quality on the ball remains undimmed, does he really have the physical attributes required by a midfielder in Ligue 1?

Ex-Monaco coach Leonardo Jardim was not convinced, but new boss Robert Moreno -- who originates from Catalunya like Fabregas -- has started his compatriot in all three Ligue 1 games since taking over.

However, the midweek signings of promising young midfielders Aurelien Tchouameni and Youssouf Fofana, from Bordeaux and Strasbourg, show that the principality club know changes are required.

It will be interesting to see if Fabregas, 32, starts on Saturday as 13th-placed Monaco go to Nimes.

43 - The number of years since Marseille won a league game away to Bordeaux. OM have failed to win in 34 attempts in this fixture since a 2-1 success in October 1977, 18 days after Vitorino Hilton was born.

12 - The number of consecutive defeats losses by Toulouse, with 10 of them coming in the league. They are rock bottom.

11 - It is 11 years since Rennes had so many points (37) at this stage of the season. They are third going into Friday's derby against Nantes. Will they go on to qualify for the Champions League for the first time?

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Hertha Berlin vs Schalke Prediction & Match Preview

Rennes vs Nantes Prediction & Match Preview

Cardiff vs Reading Prediction & Match Preview

Cardiff City vs Reading FC
England – Championship
Date: Friday, 31 January 2020
Kick-off at 19:45 UK / 20:45 CET
Venue: Cardiff City Stadium (Cardiff).

Cardiff have been resilient in their clashes on home soil. With Reading winless in their last two outings, count on the hosts to salvage at least a point on Friday.

Cardiff vs Reading Head to head (h2h)

• Their last clash ended in a 1-1 draw.
• Half of their past six meetings have featured fewer than 2.5 goals on the charts.
• Both teams have found the back of the net together in four of their previous eight fixtures.
• Only one of their last ten encounters have finished as a stalemate.
• Reading have registered the win five times in their past fifteen games. (W-5, D-6, L-4)

Cardiff vs Reading Prediction

Cardiff pulled off a stunning 2-1 win over second-placed West Brom last week to complete a six-match unbeaten run across various competitions. Despite being tipped as the underdogs in that latter matchup, the hosts also managed five shots on target as opposed to their foes who posted just two less.

As of now, the home team are sitting twelfth on the ladder, with a five-point advantage over their counterparts for the week.

On the other hand, Reading have been hit by a sharp decline in form. The guests are without a win in their last four Championship clashes on the trot, the most recent of which saw them at the losing end of a 1-0 scorecard to Bristol City.

It is also worth mentioning that the visiting cavalry have stumbled five times on the road this season. In sharp contrast, the hosts have admitted defeat just once at home, which is also fewer than other any side in the cluster.

Given that home advantage has been working its charm for Cardiff, Reading’s chances of coming away with the win are certainly looking bleak.

Be that as it may, the hosts have shared the spoils at home on five occasions so far. Taking into account that their last meeting with this foe here had also ended as a tie, a draw no bet is sizing up to be the safest punt this week.

Furthermore, Cardiff’s backline have been tough to breach, especially in front of the home crowd this term. Admirably, they have kept a clean sheet in half of their past six games here, conceding just four goals in the process too.

Considering that all of their previous three h2h encounters at this stadium have also been low scoring affairs, expect fewer than 2.5 goals on the scorecards by all means in this one as well.

Cardiff vs Reading Betting tips

• Draw no bet: Cardiff @ 1.60 (3/5)

• Under 2.5 goals @ 1.80 (4/5).

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