Lorenzo Insigne pledged to return to Napoli after scoring on his final home appearance for the club, having agreed to join Toronto FC at the end of his contract next month.
The 30-year-old scored from the penalty spot as Napoli secured a top-three finish in Serie A with a 3-0 win over Genoa on Sunday, taking his tally to 122 goals in all competitions for the club he joined as a 15-year-old in 2006.
That goal made Insigne the second-highest goalscorer in Napoli s history in his own right, moving him clear of Marek Hamsik s tally of 121. Only team-mate Dries Mertens, with 148, has scored more goals for the club.
Insigne has scored nine penalties in Serie A this season, more than any other player in the top-five European leagues, and has hit double figures for both…
Watching the likes of Tottenham, West Ham and Wolves all pick up their own victories over the weekend, all eyes were firmly on Arsenal as they made the trip to Selhurst Park on Monday night.
However, missing out on a chance to break back into the top-four, Mikel Arteta s side were hit with a woeful 3-0 drumming against a Crystal Palace side who have continued to shine under a former Arsenal icon.
With Patrick Vieira guiding the Eagles into the top-half, Palace certainly laid down their own marker on home soil as goals from Jean-Philippe Mateta, Jordan Ayew and Wilfried Zaha wrapped up a largely routine victory in south London.
On a night that the Gunners will be eager to forget, we have taken a look at the main talking points following Arsenal s 3-0 drumming at …
Genoa have appointed Andrea Mandorlini after sacking Ivan Juric in the wake of a 5-0 thrashing at the hands of Serie A s bottom team Pescara.
The Rossoblu have not won since beating Fiorentina 1-0 on December 15, losing seven and drawing two of their subsequent nine league games, as well as bowing out of the Coppa Italia.
That poor run of form has seen them slip to 16th in the table. While they remain 11 points clear of the relegation zone, a disastrous performance away to Pescara a team whose only previous victory this season was awarded to them on a technicality sealed the fate of former Genoa player Juric, who had replaced Gian Piero Gasperini in June last year.
Genoa Cricket and Football Club announces that it has entrusted the technical management of the f…
Alan Irvine will be hoping to keep West Brom clear of the Premier League relegation battle next season
Since West Brom narrowly avoided relegation last season there has been a sense that the Baggies could be in for another season of Premier League struggle next season.
The appointment of Alan Irvine as Pepe Mel’s replacement in the managerial hot seat has not helped.
Boss
The Scot’s managerial experience is unproven in the top-flight, having only managed Preston and Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship.
At Preston it was acknowledged that he had done a very decent job and the fans were unhappy with his dismissal in December 2009, after he had led North End to the play-offs, only to be beaten by Sheffield United in the semi-finals.
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Bayern Munich have confirmed the resignation of club doctor Hans-Wilhelm Muller-Wohlfahrt following their 3-1 UEFA Champions League defeat to Porto.
Muller-Wohlfahrt revealed on Thursday that he had stepped down from his position, citing a break in the bond of trust after feeling his medical team were blamed for injury-ravaged Bayern s quarter-final first-leg reverse at Estadio do Dragao.
And a statement on Bayern s official website read: FC Bayern Munich notes with regret the decision of chief medical officer Dr Hans-Wilhelm Muller-Wohlfahrt [72] to resign his medical duties at the club.
Dr Muller-Wohlfahrt in particular, but also his team, have performed first-class work for the club and its players over the years. Our sincere thanks are due for this.
…
West Ham have appointed Mario Husillos as their new director of football.
The 59-year-old has agreed to join the Premier League club on a three-year deal to reunite with manager Manuel Pellegrini, having worked with the Chilean at Malaga.
I am very excited. West Ham United is a club with huge ambition. The challenge to help deliver that ambition is what really attracted me to the role, Husillos told the club s website.
I know the manager well and know he wants to deliver an exciting brand of attacking football. It will be my job to supply him with the tools to do just that.
Malaga famously reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League in the 2012-13 season under Pellegrini, with Husillos having overseen an expensive refit of the squad bankrolled …
Angel Lafita scored against his former club as Getafe recorded a 2-1 La Liga triumph over Deportivo La Coruna.
The visitors recorded their second away win on the bounce and it was Lafita s strike that proved crucial versus the side he represented between 2007 and 2009.
Fredy Hinestroza s excellent run and cross left Lafita with a simple finish to put Getafe 2-0 up early in the second half, with Depor goalkeeper Fabricio s own goal having broken the deadlock 10 minutes before the break.
Helder Postiga reduced the deficit in the 80th minute with a cool finish from inside the box, but there was no way back for Victor Fernandez s men.
Getafe climb into the top half, while Depor remain uncomfortably close to the bottom three.
Fabricio s moment of misfo…
Roma are targeting a solution to their Nicolo Zaniolo crisis before Tuesday s transfer deadline after the winger was not very happy about the prospect of joining Bournemouth.
The Italy international was strongly linked with Tottenham earlier this month; however, Antonio Conte subsequently signed Arnaut Danjuma on loan from Villarreal as a solution to his wide attacking midfield needs.
Bournemouth subsequently emerged as frontrunners, with the team third from bottom of the Premier League seeing Zaniolo as a player who could help them to safety in their first campaign back in the top flight.
Reports suggested Roma and Bournemouth had reached an agreement on a deal worth an initial £26.3million (€30m), but it appears Zaniolo is not sold on the idea of joining the…
Mats Hummels Borussia Dortmund future does not depend on the UEFA Champions League, but he wants the team to stop wasting their potential.
Captain Mats Hummels has urged Bundesliga strugglers Borussia Dortmund to stop wasting their potential.
Dortmund have provided the most consistent challenge to the domestic dominance of Bayern Munich in recent seasons.
However, Jurgen Klopp s men have failed to reach their usually lofty standards in the 2014-15 term and they headed into the mid-season break languishing in the relegation zone.
Centre-back Hummels believes that Dortmund were scarcely outplayed in the first half of the campaign and their problems were mental.
The Germany international is now desperate for the side to start living up to their bil…
Bayern Munich coach Pep Guardiola has claimed his side s Champions League defeat against Barcelona in 2014-15 was one of his finest moments in charge of the Allianz Arena outfit.
The Bavarians took on their coach s former team in the semi-finals last term, with Barcelona eventually progressing to the final 5-3 on aggregate, despite a 3-2 defeat in Munich.
Guardiola was not too bothered by Bayern s failure to win the Champions League, though, as he was proud of his side s performance regardless of the eventual outcome and feels European success is a matter of time.
One of the best moments of my career as Bayern coach was the semi-final defeat against Barcelona, Guardiola said at a news conference.
The fans were all applauding us. They are not stupid. The…