Bitesize Prediction: Nantong Zhiyun vs Dalian Pro – 12/07/23

Mario Balotelli s agent says the striker will likely end his career in Italy but he remains committed to Manchester City for now.

Balotelli s future in England is currently the subject of much speculation, with City boss Roberto Mancini admitting that the Premier League outfit will probably try to sell the striker in the summer after his dismissal against Arsenal.

The Italy international s representative has now flown to Manchester for talks with Mancini but he insists that the purpose of his visit is not to thrash out a transfer which would see the player return home.

Balotelli will end his career in Italy, but at the moment it s better for him to stay at Manchester City, agent Mino Raiola told Sky Sport Italia.

Manchester City don t want to sell him.…

Russia s Dutch coach Guus Hiddink admitted Spain had been the better side and deserved to be in the Euro 2008 final after his side s 3-0 defeat here on Thursday.

After a more cautious first-half Spain shook off the shackles in the second period and tore Russia apart with their crisp passing game.

And Hiddink, whose side had stunned Holland in the quarter-finals due to their physical condition, said that his team simply could not keep chasing shadows as Spain pinged the ball around.

We lost against a very good Spain team, said Hiddink, who saw his hopes of a major final dashed again having taken Holland and South Korea to the 1998 and 2002 World Cup semi-finals respectively.

We were more or less on the same level for an hour but we couldn t keep it up…

Mikel Arteta has praised Arsenal s American ownership and believes Stan Kroenke has changed the perception of the fans.

The Gunners owner has faced a wealth of criticism during his spell at the helm, with thousands of fans protesting last season as they pushed for the Kroenke family to sell up amid interest from Spotify owner Daniel Ek.

Kroenke remained adamant he would not sell though, despite the frustrations of the fans being the latest in a history of anger that also included the ill-fated European Super League plans and a compulsory purchase of shares that saw many supporters lose part-ownership of the club.

Now though, head coach Arteta feels that Kroenke and son Josh have changed the attitude of the supporters after showing their backing – spending more …

Guus Hiddink, christened the wizard by grateful Russian media, said Tuesday there was no magic to his giant-killing exploits as a coach in big international tournaments.

There s no recipe, there s no secret, there s no magic, he told journalists during a visit to South Korea, the team he took to the 2002 World Cup semi-finals against all the odds.

What we emphasised was to expose (ourselves), as a team, as players, to play fully committed and fully hard, the 62-year-old said of his latest team Russia, which he led to the Euro 2008 semi-finals last month.

The country had not advanced to the knockout stage of a major competition in 20 years.

The Dutchman a hero in South Korea also took Australia to the second round of the World Cup two years ago.

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Freddie Ljungberg believes Arsenal just need to dig out a win for confidence after their poor run continued with a defeat to Brighton and Hove Albion.

Arsenal s winless run extended to nine games – their worst stretch since going 10 matches without a victory in 1977 – after suffering a 2-1 Premier League loss at the Emirates Stadium on Thursday.

But interim head coach Ljungberg feels one win could help turn Arsenal s season around, admitting his players looked scared during the first half against Brighton.

That s the tough part. They looked very short on confidence, in the first half they were scared to get the ball, scared to move and were just standing still, he told a news conference.

We need to talk about that but they need to, have to dig out …

Maurizio Sarri played down complaints from Gary Cahill following the departing defender s outburst ahead of Chelsea s final home Premier League game of the season.

In an interview with The Telegraph, published on the day of the Blues 3-0 win against Watford, Cahill accused the Italian of showing him a lack of respect.

Cahill had played just 21 minutes of top-flight football in 2018-19 prior to being brought off the bench against Watford for the final stages of the match.

And Sarri insists it was always part of his plan to give the centre-back a chance to say farewell to the club s supporters ahead of his impending exit.

A lot of love for !

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC)

I don t know the situation, I m sorry. It s not important for me, he …

Jason Davidson says he will leave nothing to chance in his bid to start for Australia against Chile at the FIFA World Cup.

But another key player in Mark Bresciano is battling to regain full fitness.

Based in the Dutch Eredivisie with Heracles, Davidson is the only dedicated left-back in Ange Postecoglou s 27-man squad and seemingly guaranteed to line-up at fullback when Australia kick-off against Chile on June 13.

But the 22-year-old does not necessarily see it that way, and will continue to give everything he has on the training field and in warm-up matches to ensure he remains at the head of the queue.

You re only as good as your last game, he told reporters after the Socceroos first training session in Brazil on Friday.

So I m just working hard to make …

Hull City forward Yannick Sagbo has admitted that he would like to return to French Ligue 1 in the January transfer window.

The 26-year-old has fallen out of favour at KC Stadium and only featured in two Premier League games this season.

As a result, the Tigers are prepared to offload him at the earliest opportunity and it would appear as though a return to France is on the cards.

Bordeaux have turned their attention towards Sagbo after missing out on Yaya Sanogo and les Girondins are clearly the favourites for his signature.

“Bordeaux could please me,” the forward . “I know Ligue 1 well and I am very favourable towards a return especially given that I have a daughter who is in Paris.”

Sagbo came through the youth ranks at Stade Louis II …

Pep Guardiola sees Bernardo Silva s future at Manchester City but accepts that could all change if the player sets his heart on a move to Barcelona.

The LaLiga giants are thought to be keen on City s Portuguese midfield star and could be preparing a bid to take him to Camp Nou.

Silva has spent five fruitful years with City, winning four Premier League titles in that time, and at the age of 27 can be reasonably considered to be still in his prime years.

Guardiola is aware of the Barca speculation but says he sees Silva as being settled, pointing to his fiancee and his dog as reasons for him to be happy with his life.

But after selling Oleksandr Zinchenko, Raheem Sterling and Gabriel Jesus during the off-season, it is clear that City are a club willing to…

Sydney FC remain on course for a third straight A-League Championship after beating Adelaide United 2-1 at Netstrata Jubilee Stadium in Saturday s semi-final.

Adelaide produced an upset by beating Brisbane Roar in the Elimination Finals but could not replicate that performance in their semi-final with Sydney.

Adam Le Fondre was on target when the sides met in the regular season last month and converted from the penalty spot to put the hosts ahead in Saturday s clash.

Brazilian striker Bobo added a second before half-time and the Sky Blues held on, despite Le Fondre s penalty miss and Juande s stunning strike to set up a nervy finish.

. FT: And breathe

WE RE THROUGH TO OUR THIRD STRAIGHT GRAND FINAL!!!

— Sydney FC (@SydneyFC)

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