Golden Soccer 360

Unai Emery suggested Mesut Ozil did not deserve a place in Arsenal's squad as he sat out Saturday's Premier League defeat at West Ham. The Gunners' highest-paid player has returned to full training over the last week following a knee problem, but was left out of Emery's travelling party completely as Declan Rice's first senior goal sealed a 1-0 victory for West Ham at the London Stadium. Ozil has missed a number of games this season, with differing reasons given for his absence. A 2-1 win at Bournemouth in November was the only time Emery conceded the former Germany international was left out for tactical reasons. The Arsenal head coach stuck with the side which beat Fulham in their last Premier League outing, but the visitors were poor as they failed to find the back of the net in a league game for the first time since the opening weekend of the campaign. But when pushed over why he opted to leave Ozil at home for the short trip to east London, Emery cla...

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says Manchester United will not use "naive, gung-ho" tactics against Tottenham despite the desire to play attacking football. United have won all five games since Solskjaer replaced Jose Mourinho in December, scoring 16 goals in the process. Solskjaer faces arguably his toughest test to date on Sunday when his side travel to face Tottenham, live on  Sky Sports Premier League , and the United boss says he will have to adopt a more cautious approach at Wembley. "When you play against a good team you have got to defend. You have to earn the right to win a game of football," Solskjaer told  Soccer AM. "We're not going to go gung-ho and be naïve but Manchester United is about attacking football. "We've got to go there and attack the game, we have to win to stand a chance of passing them in the league. We go there to take three points. "Walking out at Wembley with a Manchester United shirt on,...

Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde refused to be drawn on the prospect of trying to sign out-of-sorts Chelsea striker Alvaro Morata following the departure of Munir El Haddadi. Morata was a club-record £70m signing from Real Madrid in 2017, but the 26-year-old has suffered from a loss of form this season and has only managed five Premier League goals this term. Chelsea head coach Maurizio Sarri fuelled speculation Morata could be set to depart Stamford Bridge when he told reporters on Friday: "If Morata will go to another club we will need a replacement." Valverde was coy on Barcelona's reported interest in the Spain international when he was asked directly about Morata ahead of Sunday's visit of Eibar. "I can only say the same thing," Valverde said. "That he's a great player, that he's at another team and that we respect that a lot." With Luis Suarez as the club's only recognised striker, Barcelona are in the market for rein...

Chris Hughton felt Liverpool had the rub of the green as they beat Brighton 1-0 at the Amex Stadium. Mohamed Salah scored the winning goal from the penalty spot after he was fouled by Pascal Gross. Although Hughton had no complaints about the awarding of the penalty, he did think that other decisions went in Liverpool's favour. "There's no intent and referees have a hard job, but sometimes you feel things go your way and sometimes you feel some of the decisions don't go your way. "I felt today it was one of those days. No malice or anything towards the referee but I thought the bulk of decisions favoured Liverpool today." Brighton did not have a shot on target in the game but they also managed to restrict Liverpool to only a couple of clear chances. "On the balance of play I thought we deserved something," said Hughton. "They are such a good side and the opportunities they had were when we were trying to get back into the g...

Arsenal's squad is in desperate need of reinforcements as it is not good enough to finish anywhere near the top four, says Jamie Redknapp. Declan Rice's first West Ham goal earned the Hammers a 1-0 victory at the London Stadium on Saturday, as the Gunners slipped to back-to-back away defeats for the first time this season. The defeat came just days after Unai Emery revealed Arsenal would only be active in the loan market in January, a revelation Redknapp believes shows the Gunners are not matching the ambition of other top Premier League clubs. "You can play whatever system you want but I'm not sure this Arsenal squad is good enough to get anywhere near the top four right now," Redknapp told  Sky Sports. "I feel sorry for the fans. The manager said they are only going to get loans in, but other clubs at the top are always trying to progress. Arsenal is a huge club and the fans deserve better. "With the players he's got, Emery is going ...

Harry Kane has urged Tottenham to "bring it home" this season as they look to end their 11-year wait for a major trophy. Spurs have not lifted silverware since winning the League Cup in 2008. However, they are still in four competitions this season and, ahead of a  Sky Live  clash with Manchester United on Sunday, are six points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool. Having gone close in the league over the last few seasons, Kane hopes Spurs can maintain their challenge this time around. "I've said all along that the aim of a professional footballer is to win team trophies," Kane told  Sky Sports . "There will be no better feeling than to win something with these guys, we've all worked so hard over the last three or four years to turn Spurs into a team that contends each and every year. "We're in a good stage, we're in a semi-final [Carabao Cup] with a 1-0 lead, we're in the FA Cup and Champions League...

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's amazing stats since his arrival at Arsenal reveal his huge influence. Paul Harrison explains... In the storm that surrounded Arsenal during 2018, the club's £60m record signing Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was a quiet calm. His signing, on Deadline Day in last year's January window, came with Arsenal eight points adrift of fourth-placed Chelsea and may have seemed last-ditch as Arsene Wenger looked to fill the void left by the departing trio Olivier Giroud, Theo Walcott and Alexis Sanchez. It has proved an overwhelming success. Ever since Aubameyang's arrival, his impact since arriving in north London cannot be underestimated, even if at times it may feel slightly unsung. Since scoring 37 minutes into his Arsenal debut, the Gabonese striker has scored 24 goals in 34 Premier League appearances - in the same period only Mohamed Salah (26) has scored more goals. Further afield, in Europe's top five Leagues, the only other players...

Heung-Min Son hopes victory over Manchester United will soften the blow of having his season at Tottenham interrupted for the second time by international duty. The in-form Spurs forward is part of the South Korea squad for the 2019 Asia Cup in the United Arab Emirates. Son's involvement could see him miss as many as five games for Tottenham in all competitions, should South Korea reach the final. The call-up comes just five months after Son led South Korea to a gold medal in the Asian Games, a result which earned the squad an exemption from compulsory military service. Son has delayed joining up with his international team-mates in the UAE in order to feature against United at Wembley on Sunday, live on  Sky Sports Premier League. The untimely disruption his departure will have on both his and Tottenham's season has saddened the forward, but Son believes helping to inflict the first defeat of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's tenure will be a fitting parting gift. ...

Borussia Dortmund and England winger Jadon Sancho has given advice to Callum Hudson-Odoi over a potential move from Chelsea to Bayern Munich. Sancho, 18, has been a revelation in the Bundesliga, scoring six goals and assisting seven for Dortmund, following his surprise move from Manchester City in 2017. Arsenal loanee Reiss Nelson, who grew up with Sancho, has since flourished at German club Hoffenheim. Sancho believes Hudson-Odoi can be "the next one" off England's current production line of talent, and revealed he has had talks with the Chelsea 18-year-old about life in Germany, amid a £35m bid from Bayern Munich. "Me and Callum are close friends," said Sancho, speaking from Dortmund's winter training camp in Marbella. "We've played with each other at England. "He's the next one I would say. He's very good, very talented, fast and good dribbling skills. "I have told him the Bundesliga is a nice league. I just told ...

Samir Nasri feared his career was over during an 18-month ban from football, but he is now out to make the most of his second chance with West Ham. The former Arsenal and Manchester City midfielder served an 18-month ban after receiving an intravenous treatment at a Los Angeles clinic in December 2016 in breach of World Anti-Doping Agency rules. That suspension finished at the end of December with West Ham signing the two-time Premier League winner on an initial deal until the end of the season. Nasri, who could make his return to Premier League action when the Hammers face Arsenal on Saturday, live on  Sky Sports Premier League , is still upset with the ban he received but is eager to make up for lost time. "I'm still disappointed about it because I didn't take any substance," the Frenhcman told  Sky Sports . "It was just the dosage of the vitamin that was too much. I could do it in two days but I did it in just one day and so I have regrets ab...

Les Ferdinand has revealed he wanted to "stay at Newcastle for the rest his career" and regrets joining boyhood club Tottenham. Ferdinand signed for Kevin Keegan's Newcastle in the summer of 1995, and enjoyed a stellar first campaign in the north east as Newcastle just missed out on a first Premier League title, a season that culminated in Ferdinand being crowned PFA Player of the Year. Keegan's departure at the end of the following season changed things for Ferdinand, though, with Kenny Dalglish looking to change things at the club, and Ferdinand represented an opportunity for the club to raise funds for further transfers. Tottenham, the club Ferdinand supported as a boy, came in for the striker, and soon enough Ferdinand was on his way back to London. Looking back, Ferdinand, speaking on the  Sky Sports News' Transfer Talk  podcast, admitted that even though it was his boyhood club he would be moving to, he would have rather stayed put. "I di...

Cristiano Ronaldo is being asked by police in the US to provide a DNA sample in an ongoing investigation of a woman's allegation that he raped her in his Las Vegas hotel penthouse in 2009, the footballer's lawyer has said. Peter S Christiansen downplayed the development, denied the rape allegation and provided no additional details. He did not immediately confirm a  Wall Street Journal  report citing an unnamed law enforcement source saying that Las Vegas police obtained a warrant that was sent to Italy to obtain a DNA sample from the 33-year-old Ronaldo, who plays for Juventus. "Mr Ronaldo has always maintained, as he does today, that what occurred in Las Vegas in 2009 was consensual in nature, so it is not surprising that DNA would be present, nor that the police would make this very standard request as part of their investigation," Mr Christiansen said. Las Vegas police declined to comment, said Officer Laura Meltzer, a department spokeswoman. The poli...

Barcelona have renewed their efforts to sign Chelsea forward Willian, proposing a deal which would see Malcom move to Stamford Bridge, according to Sky sources. Barca tried to sign Willian last summer, making three bids for the Brazil international. The final offer worth more than £55m was rejected in July. Barcelona signed Malcom instead for £38m from Bordeaux, but the 21-year-old has seen first-team opportunities limited at the Nou Camp, with several more established names ahead of him in the pecking order. Willian is aged 30 and his Chelsea contract runs out in the summer of 2020, having signed for the club for £30m from Anzhi Makhachkala in 2013. via Sky Sports

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer admits he can understand why Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino has been installed as one of the favourites to become Manchester United's next permanent manager. The Norwegian was appointed as United's caretaker manager in December, following the sacking of Jose Mourinho, and has admitted he would love to keep the job beyond this summer. But Pochettino continues to be linked to the role and Solskjaer admits he can see why the Argentine is an attractive candidate. "He has done a very good job," Solskjaer said, ahead of United's game against Spurs at Wembley on Sunday. "That speculation is there for a reason because he has done well." Solskjaer is aiming to make the best start of any manager in United's history against Spurs this weekend by making it six wins from six games. But United will face their stiffest challenge yet under Solskjaer from Tottenham, who sit 10 points ahead of them in the Premier League table,...

Raheem Sterling wrote a letter to a young fan offering support and solidarity after he was racially abused. Manchester City supporter Ethan Ross received a letter from the England international after his grandmother got in touch with him, revealing his grandson had been having a "tough time". In the letter, Sterling said to "stand tall and be proud of you are" and attached a signed picture of himself. "Dear Ethan, I have recently been told from your loving Nanna Sue about the tough time you are having with racial abuse," wrote Sterling. "Remember to stand tall and be proud of who you are and don't let them take away your courage. You are strong and very brave, and your Nanna is also very proud of you. Keep being you kid. "Remember speaking up doesn't always make life easy, but easy never changed anything." This strapline was used by American sportswear company Nike, who made Sterling the face of a new advert in react...

Jose Mourinho is not interested in a return to Portugal for his next management role and is giving away very little about where he might end up. Mourinho was sacked by Manchester United just before Christmas and Benfica president Luis Filipe Vieira said "money would be no issue" when asked if he could tempt Mourinho back to the club. The 55-year-old had nine games in charge of Benfica in 2000 and also managed Uniao Leiria and Porto in his homeland before leaving for Chelsea in 2004. But, speaking to  Correio de Manha , Mourinho said Benfica would definitely not be his next destination and kept his counsel when asked where he might end up next. He said: "I have never been into the game of feeding news stories, but I have no intention of working in Portugal. "I don't really want to go there but the best way to respect a great club [Benfica] and a great president is to say that I was not approached. "It's a tremendous honour when you return ...

Everton are interested in Chelsea's Michy Batshuayi, but only if they can have him on a permanent deal, according to Sky sources. The Belgium international is set to return from his loan spell at Valencia this month after struggling to make an impact and Everton are keen to bring him in, if they can unload one of either Cenk Tosun or Oumar Niasse in January. Everton, who already have defender Kurt Zouma on loan from Stamford Bridge, cannot take Batshuayi on loan due to restrictions on the numbers of players one club can have from another. However, they are among those interested in a permanent transfer as Batshuayi looks for his next home, having spent most of his stint at Chelsea away at other clubs, including Borussia Dortmund. via Sky Sports

How did Tottenham sweep aside Manchester United in August? We check the stats ahead of the reverse fixture live on Sky Sports this weekend... Jose Mourinho suffered his biggest home defeat as a manager when his United side lost 3-0 to Tottenham earlier this season, one week after losing 3-2 to Brighton. The result offered a glimpse of what was to come, with both clubs experiencing consistently polarised form going into the festive schedule. United had collected their fewest haul of points during a Premier League season upon Mourinho's dismissal, while Spurs made their best start to a campaign during the modern era. But United have hit form since Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was appointed caretaker manager with five wins on the bounce in all competitions, scoring a remarkable 16 goals and conceding only three times. However, the Norwegian concedes Spurs will be his first "proper test" at the helm, having faced Cardiff, Huddersfield, Bournemouth, Newcastle and Readin...

Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey has agreed to join Juventus in the summer, according to Sky in Italy. Ramsey will leave Arsenal on a free transfer when his contract expires at the end of the season - and we reported last week that a move to Juventus was his preferred choice. Since January 1, he has been able to negotiate a pre-contract agreement with any club outside England, having been unable to agree a new deal with the Gunners. Sky in Italy report that the Juventus deal is expected to be finalised after their Italian Super Cup game against AC Milan next Wednesday. Wales international Ramsey joined Arsenal from Cardiff in 2008 and has scored 52 goals in his 252 Premier League games. A three-time FA Cup winner with the Gunners, Ramsey scored the winning goals in the finals against Hull (2014) and Chelsea (2017). He is now poised to join Cristiano Ronaldo at one of Europe's most powerful clubs - Juve are nine points clear at the top of Serie A as they chase an eight...