Managers

BILBAO - Barcelona coach Ronald Koeman has admitted opposition sides are being bolder against his side now that they can no longer count on Lionel Messi, after the Catalans were held 1-1 away to Athletic Bilbao in LaLiga on Saturday.

A thumping late strike from Memphis Depay cancelled out Iñigo Martínez's header to earn Barça a point but Koeman admitted his team were still keenly feeling the absence of their all-time top scorer and former captain, two weeks after he left Barça for Paris St Germain following 21 years at the club.

Everton midfielder James Rodriguez faces an uncertain future at the Premier League club, with manager Rafa Benitez saying on Friday that the Colombian international was part of his plans until Aug. 31 when the transer window closes.

Rodriguez missed Everton's opening 3-1 home win over Southampton last weekend as he was isolating due to COVID-19 regulations, with Benitez stating that he hoped to find the "best solution" for the team and the player.

British media have linked the 30-year-old with a switch to Italian side AC Milan.

ROME - José Mourinho was never going to walk into a new job quietly, with all eyes on the new AS Roma coach on the eve of the Serie A campaign after a close season full of fireworks.

The final enduring image of Mourinho's first and trophy-laden spell in Italy, was of distraught Inter Milan defender Marco Materazzi being consoled by the Portuguese after hearing of his coach's decision to leave for Real Madrid.

Cristiano Ronaldo has been linked with a host of clubs this summer but he seems set to stay put at Juventus, tasked with an even more important role in revitalizing the Italian giants.

Be it a return to boyhood club Sporting Lisbon, a move Ronaldo's own mother suggested was a possibility, or another shot at the English Premier League with Manchester United, the 36-year-old has been subject to much transfer talk.

Chelsea's returning striker Romelu Lukaku is in line to make his second debut for the club in Sunday's London derby against Arsenal, manager Thomas Tuchel said.

Lukaku was not involved in Chelsea's 3-0 win over Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Saturday as he was observing coronavirus protocols after travelling from Italy to re-join the club from Inter Milan.

The 28-year-old returned to Chelsea in a reported 97.5 million pounds ($135 million) move seven years on from his departure after helping the Serie A side to their first league title in 11 years last season.

PARIS — The arrival of Lionel Messi at Paris Saint-Germain has created a positive mood at the Ligue 1 club but he is unlikely to play any part in Saturday's home game against Strasbourg, coach Mauricio Pochettino said.

Speaking at Friday's news conference ahead of the league fixture after Messi joined PSG from Barcelona earlier this week, Pochettino added his first task was to make sure a star-studded outfit began to look the sum of its parts.

Jesse Marsch is the best American coach in European football right now. After two wildly successful campaigns with Red Bull Salzburg, the Wisconsin native moved up to the big time with RB Leipzig in the Bundesliga. Ahead of his first season leading Leipzig, Marsch is already being compared to another wildly successful American coach in Europe, albeit a fictional one, Ted Lasso.