Best odds: 8/13

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Barcelona will play host to Real Betis at the Camp Nou on Saturday evening within the 32nd round of the 2022/23 season in La Liga. The points waiting to be distributed according to the outcome would surely come in very handy to both sides, and a highly competitive contest is to be expected.

Barcelona

Having opened a significant gap between themselves and arch-rivals Real Madrid in the La Liga table, Barcelona are currently struggling to get across the finish line and kill the race off. They could ve obviously been far more comfortable by now in that aspect, but they failed to win three of their last four matches in the Spanish top flight, which speaks volumes about their current form.

The Blaugrana s last six matches in all co…

The death of former Manchester United youth coach Eric Harrison was confirmed on Thursday, prompting Alex Ferguson to pay tribute to his incredible contribution to the club s success.

Ferguson won 13 Premier League titles, five FA Cups and the Champions League twice during his 27-year stint at the helm.

But he owed at least some of that glory to the work of Harrison, who produced a group of young players who would go on to become iconic in the history of English domestic football the Class of 92.

Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, David Beckham, Nicky Butt, Gary Neville and Phil Neville all came through the system under Harrison and went on to become key components of Ferguson s dominant United side of the 1990s and 2000s.

The six racked up 2,329 league appearan…

Verdict: Half-Time/Full-Time Manchester City

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Runaway Premier League leaders Manchester United travel to St. Jakob Park on Tuesday night, looking to confirm their Champions League ambitions in a two-leg tie against Swiss giants Basel.

Basel

The Swiss outfit has had its fair share of Champions League duels with English rivals over the past couple of years. Having beaten Chelsea in 2013 and United in 2011, Basel were once again pitted against the Red Devils in this year’s group phase. The Switzerland behemoths maintained their tough nut moniker by beating Manchester United again at St. Jakob Park which is why Pep Guardiola and his Citizens will need to stay alert.

Despite their favourable record against Engli…

Everton captain Phil Jagielka is keen for the club to turn promise into silverware and end the club s 21-year wait for a trophy.

The club s last success came in the FA Cup in 1995, and despite underwhelming in the Premier League this season, Jagielka and his team-mates are through to the quarter-finals of the Cup, where they will face Chelsea, after beating Bournemouth 2-0 on Saturday.

But Jagielka has played in enough quarter and semi-finals in his time at the club to know that it is only the team that lifts the trophy that is remembered.

The quarter-finals are nice to have and it means you are doing well in cup competitions but nobody remembers who has been in quarter-finals and semi-finals, he said.

It’s all about getting to the final and giving yo…

Jese Rodriguez must clean up his image in order to become a success at Sporting CP, according to the club s former winger Simao.

After a disappointing three-year spell at Paris Saint-Germain, Jese joined Sporting on loan in a deadline-day deal with a purchase option included for the Portuguese club.

Simao, who began his career at Sporting and went on to become one of his country s finest players, compared Jese to Benfica s Moroccan attacking midfielder Adel Taarabt, who arrived in Portugal with his reputation at a low ebb in 2015.

Jese must change, Simao told AS.

Primer día

— JeseRodriguez10 (@JeseRodriguez10)

Taarabt, for example, had a second chance. He has to want to change. He will have another chance and he must wash his image.…

Inter head coach Luciano Spalletti remains bullish despite seeing his side stumble to a third successive game without a goal against Atalanta.

The Nerazzurri laboured to a limp goalless draw in Bergamo on Saturday, further damaging their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League for the first time since the 2011-12 season.

With Lazio and Roma playing each other on Sunday, the game gave Spalletti s men the chance to jump above both and into third spot.

But a draw left them level with their rivals on 60 points following a third game without a win.

Spalletti was in defiant mood afterwards, though, and is not concerned by his Inter s failure to break down a stubborn Atalanta outfit, with Ivan Perisic missing several excellent chances. 

I don …

Former Middlesbrough player and manager Gareth Southgate is confident they will succeed in the Premier League after winning promotion as Championship runners-up.

Boro s seven-year absence from the top flight was brought to an end on Saturday as they drew 1-1 at home with 10-man Brighton and Hove Albion to take second spot ahead of their visitors.

Southgate played for Boro between 2001 and 2006 before going to manage the Teesiders until 2009 when he was sacked with the club fourth in the second tier.

And he was quick to praise the job done by boss Aitor Karanka, telling BBC Radio 5 Live: It s fantastic closure for them. Aitor s done a fantastic job, they ve recruited really well and that s key – we ve seen that with [Premier League champions] Leicester.

Real Valladolid will compete in LaLiga next season after beating Numancia 4-1 on aggregate in the Segunda Division play-off final.

Following a 3-0 win at Numancia in the first leg, Sergio Gonzalez s side restricted their opponents chances at Estadio Jose Zorrilla while occasionally probing forward in search of goals to extend their lead.

With just three minutes left, Manu del Moral put the visitors ahead on the night but Jaime Mata hit back three minutes into stoppage time with his 35th league goal of the season to begin the celebrations for Valladolid.

Valladolid have been in Spanish football s second tier for four seasons since being relegated from LaLiga at the end of the 2013-14 campaign, and finished fifth in 2017-18 – one place above Numancia – as both …

Mauricio Pochettino has asked to be given time to turn Tottenham into a trophy-winning side ahead of their Europa League second leg against Gent.

The Argentinian has turned Spurs into a force to be reckoned with at the top end of the Premier League since leaving Southampton to take the reins at White Hart Lane, but Tottenham have not won a major honour since 2008 and trail Gent 1-0 at the halfway stage of their last-32 tie.

Pochettino, though, is confident that Spurs remain a work in progress and that he can deliver the silverware to match the club s undoubted potential. 

We cannot buy time, that is the most important thing for us, he told a pre-match news conference. It s too easy to say we want to win titles and move the club to the next level.

It ta…

Ange Postecoglou is excited to see Tottenham midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur close to his best again amid a growing injury crisis at the club.

Spurs host Aston Villa on Sunday with at least nine first-team players ruled out and Pape Sarr a doubt after he returned with a knock from international duty with Senegal.

A much-needed positive for the Australian is the return to fitness of Bentancur, who made his first competitive start in nine months in Uruguay’s 3-0 win over Bolivia on Tuesday after a serious knee injury.

A start for Lolo as Uruguay beat Bolivia 3-0 last night!

— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial)

With first-choice midfielders James Maddison (ankle) and Yves Bissouma (suspended) definitely absent for the visit of Villa, Bentancur cou…