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Quique Setién Remains Defiantly Hopeful Despite Barça’s Depleted Midfield

Barcelona coach Quique Setien says he is not worried that Saturday's Champions League last-16 second leg at home to Napoli could be his last game in charge of the team.

Setien, 61, saw his side surrender the Spanish title to Real Madrid last month, while the tie with Napoli is on a knife edge after the 1-1 draw in Italy back in February.

Man City Vs. Real Madrid Preview: Guardiola Commits To Attack Despite Recent Failures

Manchester City take a 2-1 lead into their Champions League last 16 match against Real Madrid at the Etihad Stadium on Friday but manager Pep Guardiola needs no reminders of how quickly games can turn in Europe's elite competition.

In last year's quarterfinals City went out on away goals to Tottenham Hotspur after looking in command when 4-2 up in the second leg. The previous year, City were blitzed by three Liverpool goals inside 19 first-half minutes as they fell to a 5-1 aggregate defeat.

Pulisic’s Hamstring Injury Is A Troubling Sign For Chelsea, Says Frank Lampard

Chelsea manager Frank Lampard says starting the new Premier League season on Sept. 12 is too early and his players run the risk of sustaining injuries given the short turnaround between campaigns.

Chelsea trail Bayern Munich 3-0 heading into the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Saturday and even if they fail to overcome the deficit Lampard's side will have little over a month to recover before the new season begins.

Ajax Braces For Another Hellish Transfer Window Of Turnover

Ajax will have to change their playing style after the sale of Hakim Ziyech to Chelsea and the possibility of up to six others leaving before the new season in the Netherlands starts, coach Erik ten Hag said as they began pre-season training.

Ziyech was one of the key figures when Ajax reached the Champions League semifinal last season and also dominated in the Dutch league, but success for the club has meant their players have been in high demand.

Wayne Rooney Predicts The Champions League Winner

Manchester City struggles to prevent the best teams from scoring against them and their central defenders could be targeted in Friday's Champions League clash against Spanish champions Real Madrid, former England skipper Wayne Rooney said.

Pep Guardiola's City leads Real after they won the away leg of their last-16 tie 2-1 in March, before Europe's elite club competition was suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Inter Milan And Antonio Conte Reach Crossroads After Manager’s Latest Tirade

When Inter Milan coach Antonio Conte faces the cameras after a match, it is a case of lighting the blue touch paper and standing well back.

In his first season at Inter, the 51-year-old former Juventus, Italy and Chelsea coach has railed against his own club's "poor planning" and an "insane" fixture list, and even blamed one poor performance on the opposition playing the wrong kind of football.

His latest outburst, however, after a 2-0 win at Atalanta on Saturday that clinched second place for Inter in Serie A, has led to all sorts of intrigue.

Guardiola Welcomes Leeds United And “Top Of The List” Marcelo Bielsa To EPL

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola never played under Marcelo Bielsa but credits the Leeds United coach as one of the most important influences on his own trophy-laden managerial career.

Experienced Argentine Bielsa will be managing in the Premier League for the first time next season, having steered Leeds back to the top flight after a 16-year absence. And Guardiola, for one, says England's Premier League will be all the better for it.

Mikel Arteta Hopes Wins Over 'Two Best Teams In Europe' Convince Aubameyang To Stay

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta says their 2-0 victory against Manchester City in the FA Cup semifinal on Saturday could convince striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to commit his future to the north London club.

Aubameyang, 31, scored in either half to fire Arsenal past holders City at an empty Wembley.

Aubameyang, the club's top scorer this season with 25 goals in all competitions, is out of contract at the end of next season and has not yet agreed to an extension.

Uncertain Over Transfer Funds, Mikel Arteta Faces “Massive Job” In Overhauling Arsenal

Manager Mikel Arteta says the task of rebuilding Arsenal is a "massive job" and that there is an "enormous" difference between his side and Premier League champion Liverpool.

Arsenal beat Liverpool 2-1 on Wednesday but the London side is still ninth and trails the champion by 40 points.

Pierluigi Collina Outlines Mission For Uniform Global Use Of VAR

FIFA wants VAR video reviews to be applied in the same way across all competitions, as they take over direct responsibility for the system.

Issues concerning VAR have been handled primarily by IFAB, the game's law-making body, during the system's two-year experimental phase and its introduction as part of the laws of the game. Soccer's global governing body FIFA, however, took over the role of supporting competition organizers with the implementation of VAR from July 1.

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