Coaching

Ukraine have included 45-year-old retired goalkeeper Oleksandr Shovkovskiy in the squad for Wednesday's friendly against France after three other keepers tested positive for COVID-19, the country's football federation (UAF) said.

Shovkovskiy, who retired in 2016 and has made 92 appearances for Ukraine, is currently assistant to head coach Andriy Shevchenko.

New Netherlands manager Frank de Boer will have a tough job over the next fortnight trying to convince the doubters he is the right man to lead the national team after Ronald Koeman.

De Boer, 50, took over last month from Koeman, who left to join Barcelona, and will make his debut on Wednesday when the Dutch host Mexico in a friendly followed by two Nations League games away to Bosnia on Sunday and Italy three days later.

It was one of football's most successful midfield partnerships: on the one hand, the snarling, combative Gennaro Gattuso, and on the other, the thoughtful, elegant, unflappable Andrea Pirlo.

The pair formed the backbone of a memorable AC Milan team for more than a decade and helped Italy win the 2006 World Cup.

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SALONIKA, Greece — Danish side Midtjylland qualified for the Champions League group stage for the first time in stunning fashion on Wednesday after scoring three goals in the last seven minutes to beat more fancied Slavia Prague 4-1 on aggregate in their playoff tie.

They were joined by Russians Krasnodar, who ground down PAOK Salonika 2-1 in the return leg in Greece after beating them by the same score last week, while Salzburg eased to a 3-1 win over Maccabi Tel Aviv for a 5-2 overall victory.

Schalke 04 have sacked head coach David Wagner following their poor start to the season, the German Bundesliga club said in a statement on Sunday.

Schalke were thrashed 8-0 by champions Bayern Munich in their first game last weekend and suffered a 3-1 defeat by Werder Bremen on Saturday.