Netherlands and Ajax legend Johan Neeskens has passed away at the age of 73, the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) has announced.
Neeskens played a key role in the Ajax and Netherlands teams credited with popularising total football in the 1970s, playing alongside Johan Cruyff for club and country.
Neeskens scored 17 goals in 49 appearances for his nation, helping them reach two World Cup finals in 1974 and 1978, only for West Germany and Argentina to beat them in those showpiece matches.
The midfielder scored the opening goal from the penalty spot in the first of those finals, only for goals from Paul Breitner and Gerd Muller to hand West Germany their second title.
He also helped Ajax win back-to-back Eredivisie crowns in 1971-72 and 1972-73, as w…
Former Bayern Munich captain Philipp Lahm has been named the German Footballer of the Year for 2017.
Lahm retired in May after winning eight Bundesliga titles, six DFB-Pokal crowns, one Champions League and the 2014 World Cup in an extraordinarily distinguished career.
The defender s roll of honour includes being added to Bayern s Hall of Fame, while he was voted Footballer of the Year after leading the club to another league title last season.
German sport journalists voted Lahm the clear winner of the award, with Real Madrid midfielder Toni Kroos in second and Borussia Dortmund s 31-goal Bundesliga top scorer Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang finishing third.
What a great evening! Truly an honor to receive the Personal Merit Award of the Bavarian Minister-…
CF Montreal head coach Laurent Courtois has urged his players to prioritise their mental approach when they travel to New England Revolution on Wednesday.
Montreal snapped a four-match winless streak in MLS at the weekend with a 2-1 win over Charlotte FC, but they have registered back-to-back victories in the league since March.
They sit 12th in the Eastern Conference but still have an outside chance of making the playoffs if they can string together a run of positive results.
Courtois did not get over-excited by the win over Charlotte and is already looking at how to improve to get another three points on the board.
I am happy, we are talking about things that are positive, but for me, there are always both [no matter the result], Courtois said.
UEFA has announced the away goals rule will no longer be used in any of the organisation s club competitions for the 2021-22 season.
The regulation was first introduced in 1965 to decide the outcome of a two-legged knockout tie in cases where the teams were level on aggregate.
However, statistical data has shown a reduction in the gap between home and away wins, according to data released by the governing body on Wednesday, as well as the average number of goals scored at home and on the road.
Following the recommendation of both its club competitions committee and women s football committee, UEFA has abolished the ruling for the upcoming campaign, with the change made ahead of the start of the qualifying phases.
The away goals rule has been an intr…
Patrik Schick s sensational long-range strike for the Czech Republic against Scotland has been voted Euro 2020 s Goal of the Tournament.
The Bayer Leverkusen forward scored twice in the 2-0 win at Hampden Park on matchday one in the group stage, the second of those goals from just inside the Scotland half.
The goal was measured at 49.7 yards, making it the furthest distance a goal has been scored at the European Championship since such data was first recorded in 1980.
Schick spotted opposition goalkeeper David Marshall off his line and left the back-pedalling Scotsman red faced to overtake Torsten Frings previous record of 38.6 yards for Germany against the Netherlands at Euro 2004.
Speaking after the match on June 14, Schick confirmed he had spotted Mars…
Reigning European and world champions Spain have finished 2012 at the summit of the FIFA rankings for the fifth time in succession.
Joachim Loew s Germany remain the second-placed team in the standings, with South American giants Argentina completing the podium.
Euro 2012 finalists Italy have climbed one place and now sit fourth, ahead of Colombia who were named Mover of the Year after reaching fifth position from 36th at the start of the year.
England are sixth, while Portugal (seventh, three down), Netherlands (eighth, one down), Russia (ninth) and Croatia (10th) complete the rest of the top 10.
Copa America holders Uruguay have to settle for 16th place after dropping five places, while 2014 World Cup hosts Brazil are only 18th.
Cote d Ivoire s…
The first full slate of NFL preseason games gets underway on Thursday night as the New York Giants head to Foxborough to take on the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium.
Thursday night will be new Giants boss Brian Daboll’s first game as a head coach, and he’ll look to oversee a rapid turnaround for a proud franchise that limped to a 4-13 record last season.
Find out who has the betting edge in our free NFL picks and predictions for the New York Giants and New England Patriots.
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The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will look to make it three wins in a row this Sunday, as they go to Georgia to take on the Atlanta Falcons.
The Bucs already handled the Falcons once this season, dismissing them with ease in Tampa in Week 2, and will hit the road as a double-digit NFL betting favorite.
Here are our NFL picks and predictions for Buccaneers vs. Falcons, with kickoff on December 5.
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Five weeks of football is more than enough for NFL bettors to start forming some solid opinions on teams — good or bad. It’s also an abundance of data to pump into the oddsmakers’ power ratings, meaning the NFL Week 6 odds will have a slim margin of error for bookmakers.
That means getting the best number for your wager is vital to surviving the mid-October slate. I size up the Week 6 opening point spreads and totals and tell you which ones to bet now and which ones to bet later.
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After dropping their banner night game to open the season, Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs have turned things around with two straight wins, including last week’s sterling performance that saw the two-time MVP go 24-for-33 for 272 yards and three touchdowns.
They’ll travel to New York to take on the Jets on Sunday Night Football, a team marred by the season-ending injury to Aaron Rodgers. The defense continues to play well, holding the Patriots to just 15 points last week and the Bills to just 16 points in Week 1.
Can Mahomes and the Chiefs’ offense scheme up a win against the Jets defense in our Sunday Night Football odds?
Keep reading our Chiefs vs. Jets picks for a full breakdown of Patrick Mahomes odds. Plus, make sure to check out …