Como head coach Cesc Fabregas did not hold back in his criticism of striker Alvaro Morata, who was sent off at the end of Como’s surprise 2-1 defeat at home against relegation-threatened Fiorentina on Saturday afternoon: ‘Those who can’t live with it should play another sport’. 

Goals from Nicolo Fagioli and Moise Kean gave Fiorentina, who had been in the relegation zone before kick-off, enough to hold onto at the Stadio Sinigaglia, despite a second-half own goal from Fabiano Parisi. 

You can see how the action unfolded on the Football Italia Liveblog.

Fabregas reacts to Como 1-2 Fiorentina

Fabregas cut a frustrated figure during his post-match interview with DAZN, criticising his players for their lack of awareness, and Morata for his lack of self-control in the final minutes, which led to his sending off. 

“I’m annoyed that I wasn’t able to help the boys understand the importance of the game. I showed them my experience as a footballer during the week, maybe too much, but it wasn’t enough. We’re a young team,” Fabregas said after full-time. 

“It wasn’t a football match in the second half. Leaving that aside, the game has to be won with the right motivation and energy. I feel bad as a coach, because I wasn’t able to convey this to my players today. Maybe it was in our heads. We made a mistake in our attitude, we have to show more desire and be better in attack if we want to play our game. 

“I didn’t like the first half very much, the second half, I repeat, wasn’t a game of football.” 

Fabregas believes that Como’s congested fixture schedule is a benefit after a game like today’s. 

“In 72 hours, we’ll play in San Siro and then against Torino, and this is a good thing to look forward to after this game,” he said. 

Fabregas did not hold back when asked to comment on Morata’s late sending off. The Spaniard was shown two yellow cards in quick succession for tussles with Rolando Mandragora and then with Marin Pongracic. 

“Provocation is part of football, those who can’t live with that should play another sport,” Fabregas said. 

“I expect much more from an experienced player like him. We can’t make excuses, though, and we can’t allow for what other people do on the pitch to affect us.”

Paolo Vanoli says that it is ‘not easy for a team like Fiorentina to go from fighting for a European place to fighting for survival, but has expressed his pride at his players after picking up a big 2-1 victory away against Como in Serie A on Saturday afternoon. 

The 2025-26 season has been one to forget for Fiorentina, who have found themselves in the bottom four for the vast majority of the campaign. 

The Viola managed to lift themselves out of the bottom three on  Saturday afternoon thanks to a 2-1 victory away against Como, who had beaten them 3-1 in Tuscany in the Coppa Italia at the end of January. Nicolo Fagioli and Moise Kean were enough for Vanoli’s side to hold onto, despite a second-half own goal from Fabiano Parisi. 

You can see how the action unfolded on the Football Italia Liveblog.

Vanoli reacts to Como 1-2 Fiorentina victory

“I congratulate the guys, we played a great game with a lot of sacrifice and showed that with organisation and intensity, we can beat teams like Como,” Vanoli said in his post-match interview with DAZN.

“We have to keep our feet on the ground, keep our heads down and think about the next one, first in the Conference League and then in the league.” 

Vanoli was asked what he makes of goalscorer Fagioli and the form that he has been on as of late. 

“He has great qualities, he defends well, we are working hard and he is improving a lot, the numbers say so. He made me a bit angry in the first 15 minutes, then he recovered. He has goals in him, he has to arrive with more determination and malice.” 

And on the team in general, Vanoli added: “Since I arrived, I’ve tried to get this message of how to achieve safety across. It’s been a difficult transition, it’s not easy for a team like Fiorentina to go from a goal like fighting for European place to fighting for survival. 

“We have to have courage and everything I have done, I’ve done to try and find new solutions, because this is a team with lots of quality.” 

Delegates from Milan have been in Liverpool to visit and study Everton’s new Hill Dickinson stadium as part of their fact-finding mission for the new stadium in San Siro. 

Milan visit Everton to take inspiration from new stadium

As of November, Milan and Inter have officially acquired the San Siro site, including the iconic Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, which had previously been owned by the city council. Acquiring the stadium was a fundamental step in the journey to building a new ground on the same site. 

According to various reports in Italy, the Milan clubs intend to demolish the vast majority of their stadium in its current form in order to make way for a new, state-of-the-art venue capable of hosting matches at EURO 2032. 

The new stadium is expected to be built nearby, but not in place of the current Stadio Meazza, which means that the construction of the new ground could begin in 2027, and the demolition of the current stadium in 2031. 

According to reports from La Gazzetta dello Sport, a delegation of five representatives from AC Milan have recently been in Liverpool to study Everton’s new Hill Dickinson stadium, which was officially opened in 2025. 

The 52,769-capacity stadium hosted its first Premier League match on the opening day of the 2025-26 Premier League season, replacing the historic Goodison Park, which had been in operation for 133 years. 

Everton is not the only stop on Milan’s fact-finding mission, though. La Gazzetta dello Sport reports that there will be visits to other clubs across Europe over the coming months. 

It is understood that the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and Borussia Dortmund’s Signal Iduna Park are also among Milan’s inspirations.

Luciano Spalletti is expected to reshuffle his tactics ahead of the Derby d’Italia against Inter on Saturday afternoon as Juventus will have to do without key midfielder Khephren Thuram against the Nerazzurri. Here’s who could replace the Frenchman in San Siro. 

Juventus released their squad list for the derby against Inter on Saturday morning, confirming that Thuram as well as Dusan Vlahovic and Arkadiusz Milik are unavailable to play. 

Thuram has featured in 23 of Juventus’s 24 league matches so far this season, has started in 20 of them and has provided one goal and two assists from those Serie A outings. That goal came in the reverse fixture against Inter at the Allianz Stadium during the first half of the season. 

Who could start for Juventus against Inter in the absence of Thuram?

With no Thuram available on Saturday evening, it is expected that Spalletti will slightly reshuffle his tactics. 

Spalletti originally deployed a 3-4-2-1 shape during his first weeks in charge of the Bianconeri, before switching to a 4-2-3-1. He reverted to the 3-4-2-1 shape for the 2-2 draw against Lazio last time out, but is likely to swap back to a four-man defence against Inter. 

According to reports from some outlets on Saturday afternoon, Spalletti is likely to deploy a midfield trio of Manuel Locatelli, Weston McKennie and Fabio Miretti. That would see Francisco Conceicao, Kenan Yildiz and Jonathan David as the starting attackers. 

Other outlets, however, suggest that Spalletti could stick with a back three, and that Teun Koopmeiners could be brought in to partner Locatelli in the midfield of a 3-4-2-1. Lloyd Kelly would come back into the team on the left side of the back three if this were to be the case.

Gian Piero Gasperini has given his pre-match assessment ahead of Roma’s upcoming Serie A clash against reigning champions Napoli, has provided an update on Paulo Dybala and Matias Soule, and has explained that he doesn’t agree with Antonio Conte about the congested fixture schedule: ‘I always prefer to play in cup competitions’. 

Roma currently find themselves in fifth place in the Serie A table, level on points (46) with Juventus in fourth. They will face Napoli at the Stadio Maradona on Sunday in what many have described as a ‘six pointer’ given that the Partenopei sit just three points above the Giallorossi before kick-off. 

Roma are coming in off the back of a 2-0 victory over Cagliari last time out in Serie A, while the Partenopei are looking to bounce back after being knocked out of the Coppa Italia by Como on penalties earlier this week. 

Gasperini on Napoli vs. Roma, Dybala, Soule and fixture schedule

Gasperini began his pre-match press conference with an update on two of his key attackers: “We’ll see with Soule and Dybala today. Soule’s had a more difficult week while Dybala has trained but isn’t 100%,” he said. 

Gasperini was asked about Roma’s recent ‘struggles’ in matches against direct rivals in the league. 

“It’s more than a step in mentality, they need to take a technical step as well. When something repeats over time, there’s obviously still a difference, which has lessened with our performances over the first half of the season. 

“Recently, we’ve had another excellent performance against Milan, at least we didn’t lose there.

“Compared to the beginning of the season, we’ve undoubtedly grown, even if we’re in the middle of an emergency of injuries, like other teams. It’s a problem that bothers us, we’re convinced that we’re competitive when everyone is available. We will have to find another answer to these questions against Napoli.” 

Gasperini was also asked if he thinks that Roma’s Champions League qualification depends on victories in matches like tomorrow’s against Napoli, or the one against Juventus coming up on March 1. 

He replied: “They’re important games, they’re direct clashes and they weigh heavily compared to other games, but matches are always worth three points. The Champions League ‘quota’ doesn’t change year to year. If you lose two and win all the others, nothing changes. But they are still important games in terms of our ability to overcome certain teams and feel superior.” 

Reporters suggested that Roma look and feel like a completely different team compared to the last time they faced Napoli in Serie A. 

Gasperini said: “We’ve always thought about our journey. There have been different periods this season as well. Inter has grown a lot, other teams like Juventus and Milan have as well. Napoli have had great periods, now they’re in a bit of difficulty because of injuries, like us. 

“The fact is that after 24 games, we’re up there with all the others. There are also Como and Atalanta who are climbing strongly. 

“That’s how it is in the league. As far as I’m concerned, results are won point by point. You never achieve your goals days in advance. We have to fight until the very end.” 

Gasperini was asked if he is relieved that Roma qualified directly for the Europa League round of 16, and therefore avoid an extra two matches in the play-off rounds. 

He said: “I’m not concerned by this. When we were playing every three days in October and November, the treatment room was empty and the squad was fine. Now we’ve got a lot of problems in attack. Before, we had them all in defence. That is annoying. 

“I don’t think it’s connected to the number of games. When we played a lot, we were all fine. It’s random. It’s difficult to explain three or four injuries happening in the same department, especially some very specific injuries that we have right now. 

“The only one who had a muscular strain is Kone, but both he and Hermoso, who’s had a sensational blow to his foot, should return next week.” 

Could January signing Bryan Zaragoza be primed to make his full Roma debut at the weekend? 

“He’s definitely settling in better as time goes by. He’s been here for 16 days and he’s improving in terms of his condition and knowledge. He still needs a bit of time to break in, but he will do that by playing and training.” 

Gasperini was also asked if he agrees with Napoli head coach Antonio Conte about the congested fixture schedule. 

He said: “I don’t want to make any controversies. I respect everyone’s opinions. From my experience, I can tell you that playing in the cup has helped me. There is of course a risk of injuries. The vast majority of injuries occur in matches and almost never in training, so that is a risk. 

“Personally, however, it has helped me, especially playing abroad. The players are confronted with other ways of playing and I would always prefer to play in cup competitions, the Champions League even more so.” 

Legendary former Inter and Italy goalkeeper Walter Zenga has recommended three Italian goalkeepers the Nerazzurri should turn to after Yann Sommer leaves the club, which could potentially be at the end of the current season. 

Sommer has spent the last two-and-a-half seasons in San Siro. In that time, he has won a Serie A title, is on his way to a second and also appeared in a Champions League final in 2024-25. 

The Switzerland international is now 37 years of age and is into the final year of his contract, which is currently set to expire on June 30, 2026. 

Zenga: Who should replace Sommer in goal for Inter?

Heading into the Derby d’Italia between Inter and Juventus in Serie A on Saturday evening, Zenga gave an in-depth interview to La Gazzetta dello Sport, addressing a number of topics including Inter’s future options between the sticks. 

Zenga believes that Sommer has been an excellent servant for the Nerazzurri since 2023, despite criticism of some of his more recent performances in 2025-26. 

“Yann is a performance player, a guarantee. He has experience and quality to spare,” Zenga told La Gazzetta dello Sport. He believes that Sommer’s “self-control” is his best quality: “Nothing scares him.” 

And when asked who he thinks should replace Sommer once he leaves Inter, likely at the end of the season, Zenga said: “An Italian goalkeeper. (Guglielmo) Vicario and (Marco) Carnesecchi would be on the front row, and then (Elia) Caprile.”

Reports suggest that Atalanta star Charles De Ketelaere will be sidelined for around four to five weeks after undergoing surgery on his knee earlier this week. 

Atalanta have recently confirmed that De Ketelaere has had a procedure carried out to repair damaged meniscus cartilage in his knee. 

The Belgium international was originally included in the starting line-up for Atalanta’s eventual 2-1 victory over Cremonese in Serie A on Monday evening, but felt something in his knee during the warm-up and was forced to drop out of Rafaelle Palladino’s side at the last minute. He was replaced by Lazar Samardzic. 

Now expected to miss around a month of action, Atalanta are likely to be without De Ketelaere for a tough run of fixtures, beginning with Lazio in Serie A on Saturday, a Champions League play-off double against Borussia Dortmund over the next two weeks, and further league matches against Napoli, Sassuolo, Udinese and potentially Inter as well. 

What Atalanta said about De Ketelaere operation 

“Atalanta BC announces that Charles De Ketelaere has undergone arthroscopy of his right knee for selective internal meniscectomy,” read a statement on the club website. 

“The surgery, performed by Professor Ezio Adriani at the Agostino Gemelli University Hospital Foundation IRCCS in Rome, was perfectly successful.

“The player will immediately begin the rehabilitation program.”

Gennaro Gattuso and his coaching staff have been busy speaking and meeting with a long list of players ahead of the World Cup play-offs in March, and according to recent reports from La Gazzetta dello Sport, there are currently around 50 players on the Italy national team radar. Here is a look at all of them. 

Italy have not yet secured their spot at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America and must go through the play-offs if they are to avoid missing out on the final tournament for the third cycle in a row. 

The Azzurri will play against Northern Ireland in Bergamo on March 26 in the World Cup play-off semi-final, and should they win that game, they will progress to a one-legged play-off final away against either Wales or Bosnia and Herzegovina a few days later: A one-off knock-out match for a spot at the World Cup. 

Gattuso and his staff had sought to bring the national team squad together once more before the World Cup play-offs in March, given that they have not got together since the end of the November international break. 

This has not been possible, however, largely due to a congested fixture schedule at club level. 

Instead, Gattuso and his staff have arranged a series of meetings and dinners with groups of Italy players and national team hopefuls over the last few months in an attempt to keep the squad somewhat together. 

Here is the long list of players Gattuso has supposedly spoken to ahead of the World Cup play-offs. 

Which Italy players has Gattuso spoken to ahead of World Cup play-offs? 

Goalkeepers: Gianluigi Donnarumma (Manchester City), Guglielmo Vicario (Tottenham), Marco Carnesecchi (Atalanta), Elia Caprile (Cagliari), Alex Meret (Napoli). 

Defenders: Alessandro Bastoni (Inter), Riccardo Calafiori (Arsenal), Gianluca Mancini (Roma), Giovanni Di Lorenzo (Napoli), Alessandro Buongiorno (Napoli), Matteo Gabbia (Milan), Giorgio Scalvini (Atalanta), Federico Gatti (Juventus), Diego Coppola (Brighton/Paris FC), Giovanni Leoni (Liverpool), Honest Ahanor (Atalanta). 

Wing-backs: Andrea Cambiaso (Juventus), Marco Palestra (Atalanta/Cagliari), Federico Dimarco (Inter), Destiny Udogie (Tottenham), Leonardo Spinazzola (Napoli). 

Midfielders: Nicolo Barella (Inter), Sandro Tonali (Newcastle), Manuel Locatelli (Juventus), Davide Frattesi (Inter), Marco Verratti (Al Duhail), Nicolo Rovella (Lazio), Samuele Ricci (Milan), Niccolo Pisilli (Roma), Fabio Miretti (Juventus), Lorenzo Pellegrini (Roma), Giovanni Fabbian (Bologna/Fiorentina), Nicolo Fagioli (Fiorentina), Cesare Casadei (Torino). 

Trequartistas/Wingers: Matteo Politano (Napoli), Mattia Zaccagni (Lazio), Antonio Vergara (Napoli), Federico Chiesa (Liverpool), Daniel Maldini (Atalanta/Lazio), Nicolo Cambiaghi (Bologna), Riccardo Orsolini (Bologna), Nicolo Zaniolo (Udinese). 

Strikers: Moise Kean (Fiorentina), Mateo Retegui (Al-Qadsiah), Pio Esposito (Inter), Gianluca Scamacca (Atalanta), Giacomo Raspadori (Atalanta), Wilfried Gnonto (Leeds).

Juventus’s Dusan Vlahovic is currently the only Serie A player to feature in the list of the 20 highest paid footballers in Europe’s top five leagues according to the latest information. 

Juventus’s Vlahovic is Serie A’s highest paid player

According to the latest information from transfermarkt.it, Vlahovic is currently the seventh-highest paid player across Europe’s top five leagues in terms of gross salary.

Juventus currently pay the Serbian €22.2m per year in gross salary. It is widely believed that the 26-year-old takes home a net salary of around €12m per year after tax and deductions. This equates to a weekly take home of just over €230,000 per week (net).

Only six players in Europe are currently paid higher than Vlahovic is in the final year of his Juventus contract. They are Manchester City’s Erling Haaland, Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappe, Bayern Munich’s Harry Kane, Real Madrdi’s Vinicius Jr., Liverpool’s Mohames Salah and Real Madrid’s David Alaba. 

Vlahovic currently earns more than the likes of Virgil van Dijk, Robert Lewandowski, Jude Bellingham, Ousmane Dembele and Bruno Fernandes. 

The next highest-paid player currently competing in Serie A is Inter’s Lautaro Martinez. With a reported gross salary of €16.67m per year at Inter, El Toro ranks as the 25th-best paid player in Europe’s top five leagues as things stand. 

Top 20 best paid players in Europe by gross salary 

1. Erling Haaland (Manchester City) – €31.495m per year
2. Kylian Mbappe (Real Madrid)  – €31.250m per year
3. Harry Kane (Bayern Munich) – €25.000m per year 
4. Vinicius Jr. (Real Madrid) – €25.000m per year 
5. Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) – €23.996m per year 
6. David Alaba (Real Madrid) – €22.500m per year 
7. Dusan Vlahovic (Juventus) – €22.220m per year
8. Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich) – €21.000m per year 
9. Casemiro (Manchester United) – €20.997m per year 
10. Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool) – €20.997m per year 
11. Robert Lewandowski (Barcelona) – €20.830m per year 
12. Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid) – €20.830m per year 
13. Jan Oblak (Atletico Madrid) – €20.830m per year 
14. Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich) – €20.000m per year 
15. Frenkie De Jong (Barcelona) – €19.000m per year 
16. Serge Gnabry (Bayern Munich) – €18.870m per year 
17. Ousmane Dembele (PSG) – €18.180m per year 
18. Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United) – €17.997m per year 
19. Bernardo Silva (Manchester City) – €17.997m per year 
20. Omar Marmoush (Manchester City) – €17.697m per year 

Reports in Italy suggest that Francesco Totti is creeping ever closer to a return to his beloved Roma in a backroom role, but how much will it cost the Giallorossi to add their legendary former captain to their staff? 

According to reports from various outlets over the last week, Roma are discussing the potential return of club legend, Totti. Senior Giallorossi advisor Claudio Ranieri has recently confirmed that there have been talks: “I know the Friedkins are thinking about it, I hope Francesco can truly be useful to Roma as well, because he really is part of Roma,” he said. 

Totti is Roma’s all-time leading appearance maker with 785 outings across all competitions, and is also the club’s all-time leading goalscorer with 307. 

Totti spent 25 years in Roma’s first team and had initially moved into a backroom role after hanging up his boots in 2017. He would later resign in 2019 citing disagreements with former co-owner and chair James Pallotta. Totti claimed that he was regularly left out of the club’s decision making. 

Totti insisted that he would only return to Roma under a different ownership, which is now the case with the Fridkins at the helm. 

Totti was recently seen at the Stadio Olimpico for the first time in several years, and it has been reported that this was at the invitation of Ryan Friedkin. 

How much will Totti earn to return to Roma? 

If Totti’s return to Roma does materialise, it is believed that he will earn an annual salary in the region of €1m according to reports from Calcio e Finanza. 

What is more important for Totti, however, is the exact role that he will take on if he does return to the Stadio Olimpico. 

There have been suggestions that he could be appointed as a technical director, a hands-on role assisting sporting director Ricky Massara. In that position, Totti would be involved in transfer decisions and negotiations as well as having a close relationship with the first-team coaches and playing staff. 

However, reports on Thursday claim that Totti is prepared to take on more of a consultancy, advisory or ambassadorial position, as long as it leads to a ‘decision-making role’ in the relatively near future. 

Juventus are preparing for one of their biggest games of the season against Inter in the Derby d’Italia on Saturday evening, but Bianconeri head coach Luciano Spalletti has decided against giving a customary pre-match press conference ahead of the Serie A crunch match. 

Why will Spalletti not speak to the media before Inter vs. Juventus?

Spalletti will not address the media before the Inter vs. Juventus match in San Siro, and will instead send captain Manuel Locatelli to give the pre-match assessment at around 14.00 GMT (15.00 CET) on Friday afternoon. 

According to TMW, this is because Spalletti will have to give a mandatory pre-match press conference on Monday ahead of Juve’s Champions League play-off round tie against Galatasaray anyway. 

To ‘avoid’ having the head coach speaking to the media twice within three days, Juventus have decided to send one of their senior players to do the Serie A press conference instead. 

Thursday’s reports claim that this practice is likely to continue until the end of the season. TMW expects that the Old Lady will send a different player to speak to the media before Juventus’s following Serie A match against Como on February 21.

Juventus reportedly have a price tag in mind when it comes to a potential sale of centre-back Federico Gatti, who has attracted interest from Milan, Napoli and some clubs in the Premier League so far this season. 

Both Milan and Napoli have expressed an interest in signing Gatti from Juventus this season. The Partenopei reportedly made an enquiry over the summer, while the Rossoneri sounded out the situation during the January transfer window. 

According to Thursday’s reports from Calciomercato.com, there was even a phone call between Massimiliano Allegri and Gatti, who have worked together previously in Turin, to discuss the situation. 

How much do Juventus want for Gatti?

However, the Rossoneri management were not unanimous over a decision to sign Gatti, and so the situation was left alone in the final days of the January window. 

For now, Gatti is focused on working his way back into Luciano Spalletti’s starting XI, and will also be aiming for a spot in the Italy national team squad for the upcoming World Cup play-offs in March. Should Italy qualify, Gatti will also want to push for a spot in the final World Cup squad. 

For now, a move away from Juventus is impossible until the summer transfer window, but Thursday’s reports claim that it would take an offer in the region of €25m to convince Juventus into selling. 

Juventus paid a fee of €7.5m plus uo to €2.5m in bonuses to sign Gatti from Frosinone in 2022. 

Massimiliano Allegri has shared his thoughts ahead of Milan’s upcoming Serie A clash against Pisa and has given an update on the fitness status of some of his key players, including Rafael Leao, Christian Pulisic, Alexis Saelemaekers and Santiago Gimenez. 

The Rossoneri are currently on 50 points after 23 matches of the 2025-26 Serie A season. They sit in second place in the table, eight points shy but with a game in hand over the league leaders, Inter. Allegri’s side are unbeaten across their last 22 league matches. 

The Rossoneri are also fresh off an encouraging 3-0 victory away against Bologna last time out in Serie A, which came in the absence of Pulisic and Saelemaekers, out of the squad through injury, and Leo, who remained an unused substitute. 

Allegri on Pisa vs. Milan, Leao, Pulisic and refereeing controversy

“At the moment, Pisa are fighting to stay in Serie A, they’re a physical team and create a lot at home. They’ve lost, but have kept games alive, we will have to be very careful and have to be ready for everything,” Allegri said at the beginning of his pre-match press conference on Thursday.  

“Tomorrow’s is one of four games that will lead us into the derby, it will be very important all round. We only got two points against Pisa, Cremonese and Parma during the first half of the season.” 

Allegri went on to give injury and fitness updates on some of his key Rossoneri players, beginning with Christian Pulisic, who is only expected to be available off the substitutes bench this weekend. 

“Pulisic will be available. He trained with the team for the first time yesterday but he only has 15-20 minutes in his legs. Leao is doing much better, Gimenez even better still. He will be available in around a month. 

“Saelemaekers is still out, but he’s also doing much better, we’ll see if he’s available for Como.” 

Allegri was also asked whether Rafael Leao could potentially return to the starting line-up against Pisa. He replied: “I have to see in the final training session today and will then decide on the formation, because we also have three close games afterwards. The most important match is still tomorrow’s, though.” 

And on Christopher Nkunuku, who has responded to a slow start in Serie A with five goals in his last six league outings, Allegri said: “I wouldn’t talk about a ‘rebirth’, but about adaptation. He’s a sensitive guy with extraordinary technique. I jokingly told him once: ‘Things go better when you laugh a little more’. Fortunately, he’s doing well. 

“I’m also happy for Loftus-Cheek and Fofana. Being able to rely on all the players is important at the moment, those who start from the first minute and those who take over. Together, we have a clear goal to achieve, to get to the Champions League.” 

Allegri has said in practically every one of his pre-match press conferences this season that the team’s goal is to earn Champions League qualification. He was asked once again on Thursday whether he has any thoughts about a potential Scudetto fight with Inter. 

“Today, we’re in a good position in the table, but it’s not enough,” he replied. “You don’t even get to the Conference League with 50 points. The closer we get to the Champions League mark, the better we’ll be doing in the standings. That’s why these games before the derby are so important.” 

And on Milan’s season so far, Allegri said: “We’ve had a good season so far. We started by trying to get back into the Champions League, and at the moment we’re in the top four. That’s the goal. 

“We could have done better in the Coppa Italia, which is our big regret. We have to stay focussed on our goal, aware that Inter, as we’ve known from the beginning, are a very strong team. Napoli are also strong, Juve are coming back up. It won’t be easy to finish in the top four.”

And on the recent refereeing controversies in Serie A, Allegri added: “There were discussions about referees 50 years ago as well. Now we have VAR, which helps a lot. It’s an important tool, they’re working to improve it further. 

“The most important thing about VAR is objectivity. They have to improve that 100% where possible. Everything else is subjective and so there will always be controversy. If you get something given in your favour, you shut up. If something goes against you, you get wound up. It can only improve with objectivity, not subjectivity.”

Journalist Federica Zille has come to the defence of Bianconeri head coach Luciano Spalletti, who kissed her live on TV while trying to make his point during a post-match interview after Juventus’s recent 2-2 draw against Lazio in Serie A. 

Why did Spalletti kiss a reporter after Juventus 2-2 Lazio? 

During the 2-2 draw between Juventus and Lazio, Teun Koopmeiners saw his opening goal ruled out by VAR due to Khephren Thuram standing in an offside position. There was also, however, an apparent foul on Juve’s Juan Cabal by Biancocelesti defender Mario Gila in the build-up, which refereeing analyst Luca Marelli argued should have been a penalty. 

This led Spalletti to debate the technicalities of contact in the penalty area during his post-match interview after full-time. 

“The referee can interpret it the way he wants, because the defender is imprudent when going into that sliding tackle, so he takes a risk. I am not here to say if it is a penalty or not. He could’ve run back onto the ball, but I would take a wider view,” Spalletti said.

“Everyone now goes to protest about the rules, but there is always an interpretation. The pressure of a step on foot, handball that nobody sees in the stadium but they zoom in with the camera, it is all open to interpretation. You cannot generalise that every contact is a penalty.”

Spalletti then turned back to an incident in a previous game against Atalanta when a penalty was awarded for handball that even Ederson, who had made the cross, hadn’t noticed.

“I never talked about referees when decisions went against me or in favour. In the game against Atalanta the VAR called the referee to view the handball a minute and a half later, when nobody including Raffaele Palladino who was right next to me on the touchline, had any idea what this was even for.

“The rules are too rigid right now, it is the rigidity that I find to be the problem. If nobody even realises it hit a hand, who is damaged by that? The analysts keep saying ‘there was contact,’ but that doesn’t mean anything, does it? May I kiss you, here, this is contact,” said Spalletti when giving the female interviewer, Zille, a peck on the cheek.

Luciano Spalletti ha stupito tutti quando dopo la partita Juve-Lazio ha dato un bacio a sorpresa alla giornalista di Dazn Federica Zille. Il tecnico bianconero voleva mettere a tema l’entità dei contatti in occasione dei rigori. Ha chiesto alla sua intervistatrice se poteva… pic.twitter.com/nTjFhdyWZE

— La Stampa (@LaStampa) February 9, 2026

“It’s about context, contact is not the same thing as impact. There will always be difficulty if there are rules where every touch of the hand is a penalty, every step on foot is a penalty. This is what VAR is for, you can evaluate the context in its totality.

“If we stick to the rules, then that is definitely a penalty, because Gila goes into a sliding tackle and takes responsibility for that gesture when he doesn’t get the ball.”

Zille defends Spalletti after TV kiss: ‘Exaggerated’

Zille, who was on duty with DAZN for the Juventus-Lazio match, has since come out to defend Spalletti, following some accusations of improper behaviour during his post-match interview. 

Speaking to FantacalcioTV (via corriere.it), Zille said: “There was no kind of malice in Spalletti’s gesture. He wanted to exemplify what he was saying, that there is a difference between contact and impact. 

“I know Spalletti. Many say ‘he wouldn’t have done that had it been a man’. No, he probably would have touched or nudged a man to say that it was just contact and not a foul.

“I wouldn’t like for people to talk about malice or a lack of respect in this situation, for me as a woman, as a journalist or as a professional. 

“I’ve read comments which have mentioned the word ‘harassment’. I’ve found that to be really exaggerated, perhaps even incorrect because harassment is a serious topic. And as a woman, I feel strongly about this issue, but that’s all the more reason to have clarity of mind and give the right balance to this sort of thing.” 

Premier League side AFC Bournemouth have officially announced the signing of Alex Jimenez on a permanent transfer from Milan. 

The Spaniard has spent the 2025-26 season on loan at Bournemouth in a deal that included an option to buy, which eventually became an obligation to buy. Having triggered the obligation to buy, Jimenez has now put pen to paper on a contract that runs until 2031 on the English south coast. 

It is believed that Bournemouth triggered their option to buy clause by starting or playing Jimenez for at least 45 minutes in 50% of their matches this season. 

As things stand after 24 rounds of Premier League fixtures, Jimenez has played for 45 minutes or more in 19 league matches (50% of Bournemouth’s 38 scheduled games). He also played for 49 minutes in Bournemouth’s only FA Cup appearance of the season. Bournemouth were eliminated from the EFL Cup before Jimenez signed in August, and are not involved in any European competition this season. 

Milan already received a fee of €2m for Jimenez’s season-long loan deal to Bournemouth, and the obligation to buy clause was set at €19.5m plus up to €5.5m in bonuses. 

Milan will not be entitled to the entire cut of that fee, though, as Jimenez’s former club, Real Madrid are owed a 50% sell-on fee. 

That means that Milan will see €9.75m from Jimenez’s permanent transfer to Bournemouth, not including bonuses and not including the €2m loan fee they have already received. 

What Bournemouth said after signing Jimenez from Milan 

“AFC Bournemouth can confirm that Alex Jiménez has completed a permanent move to the club, having met the appearance threshold required to activate the transfer clause following an initial loan,” a statement on the club website read. 

“The 20-year-old, who joined the Cherries ahead of the current season, has now featured in more than half of the club’s competitive fixtures, triggering the terms that secure his future until 2031 on the south coast.

“Arriving from AC Milan having come through the prestigious academy at Real Madrid, Jiménez has made a strong impression during his time at the Vitality Stadium, becoming a regular presence and gaining recognition weekly.

“The full-back won the club’s Player of the Month award for December, while also winning Sky Sports’ Man of the Match accolade in the 1-1 draw with Brighton just last month.

“Having made 22 appearances in all competitions, with his maiden Premier League goal coming against Liverpool, Jiménez has made quite the impression in red and black.”

The Corriere dello Sport newspaper claims that only three Juventus players would make it into Cristian Chivu’s starting XI at Inter, but who would make your combined team heading into Saturday’s Derby d’Italia in San Siro? 

The Derby d’Italia between Inter and Juventus is just around the corner, scheduled for 19.45 GMT on Saturday evening in Serie A. 

The Nerazzurri top the table after 24 matches of the 2025-26 season and are currently eight points clear of their closest competitors, Milan. Chivu’s side are currently 12 points ahead of Juventus ahead of Saturday’s derby. 

Inter have won five games in a row in Serie A and are unbeaten across their last 12 league fixtures, with their most recent defeat coming against Milan in the Derby della Madonnina on November 23. 

Juventus have picked up seven points from their last three matches in the Italian top flight. The Bianconeri have six wins, two draws and two losses to their name from their last 10 outings in the league. 

With a hotly-anticipated derby fast approaching, debates have started to arise over which players would make it into a combined starting XI made up of Inter and Juventus players. 

Corriere dello Sport writes on Thursday’s front page that only three Juventus players would make it into Inter’s strongest XI: Centre-back Gleison Bremer, midfielder Khephren Thuram and attacker Kenan Yildiz. 

Thursday’s article suggests that Bremer would slot into a back three alongside Inter’s Manuel Akanji and Alessandro Bastoni. Pierre Kalulu, Lloyd Kelly, Federico Gatti, Yann Bisseck, Stefan De Vrij and Francesco Acerbi are the main alternative options. 

Corriere dello Sport claims that Inter wins the battle of the wing-backs, and that both Denzel Dumfries and Federico Dimarco would start over the likes of Andrea Cambiaso, Juan Cabal or Emil Holm. 

There is room for debate in midfield. Corriere dello Sport picked a trio of Nicolo Barella, Hakan Calhanoglu and Khephren Thuram, but left out the likes of Manuel Locatelli, Weston McKennie, Teun Koopmeiners Piotr Zielinski, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Petar Sucic. 

There is also strength in depth in the attacking options: It has been suggested that Lautaro Martinez and Kenan Yildiz are the strongest attackers that Inter and Juventus have to offer, but that means that Marcus Thuram, Pio Esposito, Dusan Vlahovic, Jonathan David and Francisco Conceicao missing out as well. 

Combined Inter and Juventus XI 

Sommer; Akanji, Bremer, Bastoni; Dumfries, Barella, Calhanoglu, K.Thuram, Dimarco; L.Martinez, Yildiz.

Let us know who you think would start in a combined Inter and Juventus XI in the comments below.

Lazio booked their spot in the Coppa Italia semi-finals thanks to a victory on penalties against Bologna on Wednesday evening, which means that the final four is now complete for the 2025-26 season. Here is everything you need to know about the upcoming semi-finals. 

Who will Inter, Lazio, Atalanta and Como face in the Coppa Italia semi-finals? 

Lazio’s victory on Wednesday evening means that they will go on to face Atalanta over two legs of the Coppa Italia semi-final. 

That leaves Inter and Como facing each other in the other semi-final. 

The Biancocelesti qualified thanks to a 5-2 penalty shootout victory over reigning Coppa Italia champions Bologna at the Dall’Ara on Wednesday night. The game had finished 1-1 after 90 minutes with goals from Santiago Castro and Tijjani Noslin. 

Atalanta booked their spot in the semi-finals thanks to a responding 3-0 victory at home against Juventus last weekend: Gianluca Scamacca, Kamaldeen Sulemana and Mario Pasalic came up with the goals on that occasion. 

Inter also booked their spot in the final four last weekend thanks to a 2-1 victory against Torino in San Siro with a heavily-rotated starting XI. Ange-Yoan Bonny and Andy Diouf’s goals were enough to see off a second-half consolation goal from Sandro Kulenovic. 

Como also required penalties to see off Napoli in their quarter-final earlier this week. Goals from Martin Baturina and Antonio Vergara saw the game end level at 1-1 before a 7-6 victory in favour of Cesc Fabregas’s side in the resulting shoot-out. 

When will the Coppa Italia semi-finals take place? 

The exact times and dates of the Coppa Italia are still to be confirmed. 

The semi-final slots are currently set to take place during the midweek slots between March 3 and March 5, and between April 21 and April 23.

The 2026 Coppa Italia final is currently scheduled for May 13, 2026.

The draw for the 2026-27 UEFA Nations League league phase will take place on Thursday evening. Here is a look at the 12 potential opponents that Italy could come up against this coming campaign. 

The Nations League draw is scheduled to get underway at 17.00 GMT (18.00 CET) in Brussels. Italy will be competing in Nations League A in 2026-27, the highest level of the competition. 

16 teams will compete in League A and they will be divided into four groups of four teams. Each team will play home and away against each of the other three nations in their group.

The teams that finish in the top two of these groups will progress to the Nations League quarter-finals, and the winners of those ties will progress to the final tournament next June (2027). 

The teams that finish bottom of their groups will be relegated to League B for the next Nations League campaign.

Who could Italy face in the Nations League league phase?

Italy are among the second seeds (Pot 2) in League A, along with the Netherlands, Denmark and Croatia. Gennaro Gattuso’s side will be drawn against one team each from Pot 1, Pot 3 and Pot 4. 

Portugal, Spain, France and Germany, the semi-finalists from the 2024-25 edition of the Nations League, are in Pot 1. 

England, Norway, Belgium and Serbia are the sides in Pot 3. 

Wales, Czechia, Greece and Türkiye are the sides in Pot 4. 

2026-27 Nations League draw: Pots in full 

League A 

Pot 1: Portugal, Spain, France, Germany

Pot 2: Netherlands, Italy, Denmark, Croatia

Pot 3: England, Norway, Serbia, Belgium

Pot 4: Wales, Czechia, Greece, Türkiye 

League B

Pot 1: Scotland, Hungary, Poland, Israel

Pot 2: Switzerland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Austria, Ukraine

Pot 3: Slovenia, Georgia, Republic of Ireland, Romania

Pot 4: Sweden, North Macedonia, Northern Ireland, Kosovo

League C 

Pot 1: Iceland, Albania, Montenegro, Kazakhstan

Pot 2: Finland, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Armenia

Pot 3: Belarus, Faroe Islands, Cyprus, Estonia

Pot 4: Moldova, San Marino, Luxembourg or Malta, Latvia or Gibraltar

League D 

Pot 1: Azerbaijan, Lithuania, Luxembourg or Malta, Latvia or Gibraltar

Pot 2: Liechtenstein, Andorra

The draw for the league phase of the 2026-27 UEFA Nations League will take place later this evening: Here is everything you need to know about the draw, how it works, the teams competing and the sides that Italy could come up against. 

When is the 2026-27 Nations League draw?

The UEFA Nations League league phase draw will take place at 17.00 GMT (18.00 CET) on Thursday, February 12. The draw will be conducted from Brussels. 

Which league will Italy be in?

Italy are one of 16 nations competing in League A in 2026-27, the highest level in the competition. 

The nations competing in League A in 2026-27 are as follows: Portugal, Spain, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Denmark, Croatia, Serbia, Belgium, England, Norway, Wales, Czechia, Greece, Türkiye.

How does the draw work?

During Thursday’s draw, the 16 nations competing in League A, which includes Italy, will be seeded into four pots containing four teams each. (There will be separate draws for League B, League C and League D). 

These pots are based on rankings from the previous (2024-25) edition of the Nations League. 

The 16 teams in League A will be drawn into four groups of four, containing one team each from Pot 1, Pot 2, Pot 3 and Pot 4. This will decide the fixture list for the 2026-27 Nations League league phase. 

Italy finished the last edition of the Nations League in second place of League A’s Group B, which means that they will be one of the four teams in Pot 2 in the 2026-27 Nations League draw. 

Italy will be in Pot 2 along with the Netherlands, Denmark and Croatia. These sides will avoid playing against each other in the Nations League league phase. 

Which teams could Italy face?

Italy will face one team each from the following: 

Pot 1: Portugal, Spain, France, or Germany

Pot 3: England, Norway, Belgium, or Serbia

Pot 4: Wales, Czechia, Greece, or Türkiye

How does the Nations League league phase work?

In Nations Leagues A, B and C, each team will play six matches during the league phase: At home and away against each of the other three teams in their group. 

In League A, the teams that finish the groups in first and second place will progress to the quarter-finals. The winners of those ties will then go on to compete in the final tournament. 

In Leagues B, C and D, teams that finish top of their group will be promoted for the following Nations League campaign, and teams that finish bottom in Leagues A, B and C will be relegated to a lower division. 

When do the 2026-27 Nations League matches take place?

As for the games themselves, there will be league phase matches played during the next September, October and November international breaks, a set of quarter-finals in March 2027 and a final tournament in June 2027.  

Matchday 1: September 24 – September 26, 2026

Matchday 2: September 27 – September 29, 2026

Matchday 3: September 30 – October 3, 2026

Matchday 4: October 4 – October 6, 2026

Matchday 5: November 12 – November 14, 2026

Matchday 6: November 15 – November 17, 2026

League A quarter-finals: March 25 – March 30, 2027

Final tournament: June 9 – June 13, 2027

When do Italy play next? 

Before the 2026-27 Nations League campaign gets underway in September, there is the small matter of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. 

Italy have not yet secured their spot at the final tournament in North America, and must qualify through the league phase if they are to avoid missing out on a third consecutive World Cup. 

That means that Italy will next be in action against Northern Ireland in a World Cup play-off semi-final in Bergamo on March 26, 2026. 

Should Italy win against Northern Ireland, they will then progress to face either Wales or Bosnia and Herzegovina away from home in a World Cup play-off final on March 31: A one-match decider for a spot at the final tournament.

La Gazzetta dello Sport 

The Fantastic 4 

Two golds in the luge: Italian pairs triumph

Voetter-Oberhofer (women’s doubles) and Rieder-Kainzwalder (men’s). History made on the pistes of Cortina. A dream games: Third in the medals table with 13 podiums

Ariana (and noe only) for the record 

From skis to skates, we can make it even more today 

Fofana, Lollobrigida, Goggia, Sighel: Here come the stars again 

Lazio in semi-finals on penalties, Bologna fall from their throne 

Coppa Italia: Sarri gets Atalanta 

Chivu advises Inter: Don’t lose your head

Juve in San Siro on Saturday

Corriere dello Sport 

Juve, 3 for Inter 

Chivu dominantes in 8 positions. Only Bremer, Yildiz and Thuram would also be starters under Cris

Derby confrontations 

12 points difference in the table and a clear gap in quality, but Spalletti is looking to turn the tide on Saturday 

Referee chosen: La Penna 

Sliding into gold 

Another fantastic day at the Olympics. Two historic gold medals for Italy in the luge

Voetter and Oberhofer dominate the women’s doubles, Rieder and Kainzwald surprise everyone in the men’s competition. Italy now in third place in the medals table with 13 

Sarri, celebrating on penalties 

Coppa Italia: Lazio in the semi-finals, Bologna eliminated 

Decisive errors from Ferguson and Orsolini: Finishes 5-2 (1-1 after 90’ after goals from Castro and Noslin). The Biancocelesti will take on Palladino’s Atalanta. Brutal injury for Pedro: tests in hospital 

Napoli, McTomina pushes for Roma 

The Champions League race 

Conte in the lead: 14 games to secure qualification 

Nations League: Italy risk Norway 

Draw at 17.00 

The Azzurri in the second tier. England also to be avoided 

Tuttosport 

Spectacular golds! 

Madness in the luge: Triumphs in the men’s and women’s doubles. Celebrations with Mattarella in Cortina

Also dreaming with Goggia, Brignone, Fontana and Lollobrigida 

First the pairing of Voetter-Oberhofer, then Rieder and Kainzwaldner with a memorable comeback: It’s an historic double achievement. Tonight we try again in the mixed relay. Italy flying with four goals and now up to third place in the medals table: The President applauds

The venom of Lucio 

Inter-Juve on Saturday 

Spalletti, two seasons in Nerazzurro and an end full of tension and insults 

Left alone to deal with the Icardi case, brought the team to the Champions League, then Conte was called in in his place. Time has softened the anger, but the will for revenge remains. Interview with Felipe Melo, former Inter player now at Galatasaray: ‘I support the Nerazzurri, but looking forward to the Bianconeri in the Champions League draw. I’ve made peace with Chiellini

Toro: Juric divides the fans 

Hushes of a possible return for the Croatian ignite and divide the Granata fanbase. The background: Cairo has already thought about him for post-Vanoli

Lazio on penalties, semi-final with Atalanta. Bye Bologna 

Coppa Italia: Errors from Ferguson and Orsolini 

Conte, insults to the referee: A referral? AdL reflects 

247 million spent, but Napoli flop 

Roberto De Zerbi has left his position as head coach of Olympique de Marseille, but this is not expected to change the transfer agreement between the Ligue 1 side and Juventus for USA international Timothy Weah. 

Will Marseille still sign Weah from Juventus after De Zerbi sacking?

Inter and Juventus both have players out on loan at Marseille this season: The Nerazzurri sent Benjamin Pavard to the Stade Velodrom at the end of the window, at the same time that they brought in Manuel Akanji from Manchester City, while Weah had joined from Juventus a few weeks earlier. 

The deal for Pavard was made up of a season-long loan deal for €2.5m and an option to buy for an additional €15m, however, recent reports in France and Italy claim that the Frenchman is increasingly likely to return to Inter at the end of the season. 

This is not the case for Weah, however, whose loan deal to Marseille includes a potential obligation to buy. According to Calciomercato.com, Marseille will trigger that obligation to buy once they secure mathematical safety in Ligue 1 this season. 

Marseille are currently in fourth place in the Ligue 1 table, 25 points clear of the relegation zone with 13 games of the season left to play. 

It is a case of when, rather than if Marseille trigger their obligation to buy. Once that happens, Juventus will be entitled to a fee of €15.4m plus up to €4.1m in add-ons. The Bianconeri have already received €1m for Weah’s season-long loan deal.

Gian Piero Gasperini is expected to have Paulo Dybala back at his disposal when Roma take on Napoli in Serie A over the weekend, and there is also positive news regarding January signing Robinio Vaz according to Wednesday’s reports. 

Dybala and Robinio Vaz fighting to be fit for Napoli vs. Roma

Dybala has missed Roma’s last two Serie A matches due to a knee issue, but returned to training on Wednesday and is now expected to compete for a spot in the team to take on Napoli at the Stadio Maradona on Sunday evening, potentially as a starter. 

Robinio Vaz was also partially involved in Wednesday’s training session at Trigoria. The 18-year-old joined the Giallorossi in a €25m deal during the January transfer window, but has spent the last week nursing a soleus injury after picking up an injury three substitute appearances into his Roma career. 

According to Corriere dello Sport, Matias Soule and Mario Hermoso trained on personalised programmes on Wednesday. The former has been struggling with a bit of discomfort around his pubis, while the Spaniard has been dealing with a minor impact injury to his foot. 

Manu Kone, Stephan El Shaarawy, Evan Ferguson and Artem Dovbyk continued to work individually on Wednesday.

Juventus are close to triggering the obligation to buy clause in the contract of forward Lois Openda, but reports on Wednesday claim that the Bianconeri are already considering plans for the Belgian’s exit in the summer. 

Terms of the Juventus-Openda obligation to buy revealed

Openda joined Juventus towards the end of the summer transfer window, joining on loan for a fee of €3.3m plus up to €800,000 in bonuses in a deal that also includes an obligation to buy if certain ‘sporting conditions’ are met. 

According to reports from Calciomercato.com, Juventus will be obliged to make Openda’s move permanent in the event that they finish the Serie A season in 10th place or above.

Though there are still 14 games of the 2025-26 campaign left to play, the feeling is that Juventus, currently in fourth on 46 points, are not at any immediate risk of finishing in 11th or lower. They already have a 17-point buffer between themselves and the bottom half of the Serie A table. 

In the event that Juventus do finish in 10th or above, they will be obliged to pay a fee of €40.6m plus bonuses of up to €1.7m to sign Openda on a permanent basis. 

However, according to reports from Calciomercato, Juventus will look to sell Openda during the next summer transfer window. The Belgian is on two goals from 31 appearances across all competitions this campaign, and there are concerns that his profile does not fit Luciano Spalletti’s current set-up. 

He is not considered an out-and-out centre-forward, and doesn’t quite fit into one of the supporting roles in attack typically occupied by Kenan Yildiz, Fabio Miretti, Weston McKennie or Francisco Conceicao. 

As per Calciomercato, Juventus might have looked into the possibility of moving Openda on during the January transfer window, but this was impossible given that he had already played for two different clubs in Juventus and RB Leipzig in 2025-26, and would have therefore been ineligible to play for another team this season. 

Selling Openda this summer while avoiding a capital loss remains a difficult task, however. 

If the Old Lady were to sell Openda this summer and avoid a capital loss, they would need to find a buyer willing to match the €40.6m obligation to buy fee. Moving forwards, a fee in the region of €30m would be required to avoid a capital loss in the summer of 2027, and €20m in the summer of 2028. 

As per Calciomercato, it is unlikely that another team steps forwards with a €40m offer this coming summer. A slightly more feasible scenario is that Openda puts in a slightly more convincing season in 2026-27, leading to a €30m move away from the club in the summer of 2027. 

Wednesday’s reports confirm that Denzel Dumfries has finally returned to training with Inter, just a few days out from the highly-anticipated Derby d’Italia against rivals Juventus. 

Dumfries back in Inter training ahead of Juventus clash

According to reports from La Gazzetta dello Sport, Dumfries was partially involved in Inter’s training session on Wednesday, just a few days shy of the Juventus match, which kicks off at 19.45 GMT on Saturday evening. 

The Dutchman has not featured for the Nerazzurri since coming off midway through a 2-0 Serie A victory over Lazio on November 9. He suffered an injury to his ankle, which required surgery to amend. 

Dumfries has missed the last 13 Serie A matches, plus four in the Champions League, two in the Coppa Italia and one in the Supercoppa Italiana while recovering from his ankle injury. 

It remains to be seen whether he will be called up to Cristian Chivu’s squad for the Juventus match. Given the extent of his lay-off, he is not currently expected to start. 

This is still a big boost for Chivu’s side, who were also able to welcome both Nicolo Barella and Hakan Calhanoglu back to training earlier this week. Calhanoglu had been out injured since January 11 and Barella since January 28. 

Recent reports claim that Barella is slightly more likely than Calhanoglu to return to the starting XI straight away for the Juventus match.

Juventus are expecting to have Francisco Conceicao at their disposal for Saturday’s Derby d’Italia against rivals Inter, but Weston McKennie has had to have five stitches in his leg on Wednesday according to the latest updates. 

Juventus team news heading into Inter clash

The Bianconeri are underway with their preparations for Saturday’s Serie A crunch match against rivals Inter, who sit eight points clear at the top of the league table ahead of kick-off. 

Juventus are coming in off the back of a 2-2 draw against Lazio last time out in the league. 

Conceicao was expected to come on at half-time during the Lazio game. He was out warming up during the interval, was seen receiving detailed instructions from the coaching staff, but then reported some discomfort in his knee before coming on. In the end, it was Edon Zhegrova who came on at the start of the second half instead of the Portugal international. 

According to the latest reports, Conceicao was able to train as usual with the rest of the Juventus first team on Wednesday, which means that he is currently expected to be part of the squad for the derby against Inter on Saturday. 

Wednesday’s reports confirm that McKennie was not involved in Juventus training on Wednesday. That is because he suffered a cut just above his ankle during the Lazio game over the weekend and had five stitches put in on Wednesday. 

However, according to Sky Sport Italia and Calciomercato, McKennie should be back in training on Thursday as long as he does not feel too much discomfort, which means that he should also be available for the Inter game over the weekend. 

Strikers Dusan Vlahovic and Arkadiusz Milik remain the only Juventus players expected to miss out through injury over the weekend. 

Roberto De Zerbi’s time with Olympique de Marseille has come to an end after just over 18 months, but what went wrong at the Stade Velodrome and what could the future hold for the former Brighton coach? 

Late on Tuesday evening, it was confirmed that Marseille and De Zerbi had parted company by mutual consent. De Zerbi leaves the club in fourth place in Ligue 1, 12 points off the table-topping Paris Saint-Germain. 

De Zerbi’s time at Marseille: Re-cap 

De Zerbi took over at Marseille in the summer of 2024, following a difficult 2023-24 campaign in which the team had finished in eighth place in Ligue 1. That eighth place finish meant that Marseille did not compete in any European competition during De Zerbi’s first season in charge. 

Among De Zerbi’s signings during his first summer in charge were Mason Greenwood, who finished as the division’s joint-top scorer, Adrien Rabiot, Amine Gouiri, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Manu Kone.

Those signings helped Marseille on their way to a second place finish in Serie A during De Zerbi’s first season in charge. They finished the 2024-25 campaign on 65 points, four points clear of their closest competitors, Monaco, but 19 points shy of the eventual champions, PSG.

Still, a second place finish was enough for Marseille to confirm their place in the Champions League for the 2025-26 campaign.

The Champions League campaign did not go to plan, though. Marseille beat Ajax, Newcastle and Union SG over the course of the league phase, but recorded defeats against Real Madrid, Sporting CP, Atalanta, Liverpool and Club Brugge, which meant that they finished the league phase in 25th place, being knocked out of the tournament on goal difference. 

Marseille’s Champions League exit was confirmed on January 28. De Zerbi followed that up with a 2-2 draw against Paris FC in Ligue 1, a victory over Rennes in the Coupe de France, but then a 5-0 hammering away against rivals PSG: De Zerbi’s final game in charge. 

That 5-0 defeat against PSG was Marseille’s worst ever loss against their archrivals. 

Despite an unceremonious end to his time in charge of Marseille, De Zerbi leaves the club with the best win percentage of any Marseille coach of the last 10 years (57%). He also has the third-highest points-per-game record of any Marseille coach from the last 10 years with 1.84. Only Jorge Sampaoli (1.87) and Igor Tudor (1.85) did better by that metric. 

In the end, De Zerbi lasted for 590 days at Marseille, taking charge of 69 matches over that period. The average under Marseille’s current ownership is 374 days and 49 matches. Only Rudi Garcia, who lasted for 142 games between 2016 and 2019 lasted longer than De Zerbi under the current Marseille regime.

Emil Holm has made no secret of the fact that he wants to stay on with Juventus beyond the 2025-26 season, and has shared his first impressions of Luciano Spalletti, Kenan Yildiz and the upcoming Derby d’Italia against Inter. 

Holm wants to stay at Juventus on permanent basis

Holm joined Juventus on the final day of the January transfer window, signing an initial loan deal that also includes an option to buy for €15m plus €3m in bonuses. The Bianconeri also sent Joao Mario to Bologna on loan on the same day. 

The 25-year-old has represented four different clubs in Serie A, along with Spezia, Atalanta and Bologna, but is hoping that he finds a permanent home in Turin. 

“All my teammates, the coach and the staff have helped me to feel part of the group. My goal is to be here beyond the summer,” the Sweden international told Sky Sport in an interview. “I want to help as much as I can and I want to give 100% to stay here.” 

Holm also revealed what was said in his first conversation with Bianconeri head coach Luciano Spalletti: “He told me that his wife is from La Spezia, so she watched a lot of games when I was there. We haven’t spoken much, but it’s gone well so far.” 

Holm also spoke about his best positions on the pitch: “As a full-back and as a wing-back,” he said. “I have to push a lot on the pitch and give my best. I want to learn something new every day and push as hard as I can.” 

And when asked for his initial thoughts after seeing starman Yildiz up close and personal, Holm added: “He’s really strong in my opinion. I played against him in training and you can immediately see that he has this impressive quality.” 

And looking forward to the Derby d’Italia against rivals Inter this weekend, he added: “If we win, we’ll make up a bit of ground in the standings. It’s a long season, though.
If we win it, it’s a great opportunity of course.”

Roberto De Zerbi is the early favourite to replace Thomas Frank as head coach of Tottenham Hotspur, just a few hours after his departure from Olympique de Marseille was confirmed. 

De Zerbi and Maresca among early options for Tottenham

Marseille confirmed in the early hours of Wednesday morning that they have parted company with De Zerbi after just over 18 months in charge. The Italian leaves the French outfit in fourth place in the Ligue 1 standings, 12 points off league leaders PSG after 21 matches. 

De Zerbi’s final match in charge came in a 5-0 hammering by PSG away from home after the weekend. 

Iti was also confirmed on Wednesday that Premier League side Tottenham have dismissed head coach Frank, who was appointed as the successor to Ange Postecoglu over the summer. He leaves Spurs in 16th place, just five points above the Premier League relegation zone. 

According to reports from the Evening Standard, De Zerbi is currently the odds-on favourite to replace Frank as head coach of Tottenham. Another Italian in Enzo Maresca has also been mentioned in early reports.

Former Tottenham head coach Mauricio Pochettino has also been mooted for a return to North London, but he is currently in charge of the United States men’s national team, and is not expected to leave before the 2026 World Cup this summer. 

Meanwhile, former Milan head coach Sergio Conceicao has been linked with a potential move to the Stade Velodrome to replace De Zerbi according to reports from Footmercato.