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Full #UEL draw for the 2016/17 group stage

48 clubs, 12 groups, one trophy. The EuropaLeague draw for the 2016/2017 group stage was unveiled today. Find out who your favourite team was pitted against.

The UEFA Europa League group stage 2016/17
Group A: Manchester United (ENG), Fenerbahçe (TUR), Feyenoord (NED), Zorya Luhansk (UKR).
Group B: Olympiacos (GRE), Apoel (CYP), Young Boys (SUI), Astana (KAZ). 
Group C: Anderlecht (BEL), St-Étienne (FRA), Mainz (GER), Gabala SC (AZE).
Group D: Zenit (RUS), AZ Alkmaar (NED), Maccabi Tel-Aviv (ISR), Dundalk (IRL).
Grupo E: Viktoria Plzen (CZE), AS Roma (ITA), Austria Wien (AUT), Astra Giurgiu (ROU).
Group F: Athletic Club (ESP), Genk (BEL), Rapid Wien (AUT), Sassuolo (ITA).
Group G: Ajax (NED), Standard Liège (BEL), Celta (ESP), Panathinaikos (GRE).
Group H: Shakhtar Donetsk (UKR), Braga (POR), Gent (BEL), Konyaspor (TUR). 
Group I: Schalke (GER), Salzburg (AUT), Krasnodar (RUS), Nice (FRA). 
Group J: Fiorentina (ITA), PAOK (GRE), Slovan Liberec (CZE), Qarabag FK (AZE).
Group K: Internazionale Milano (ITA), Sparta Praha (CZE), Southampton (ENG), Hapoel Beer-Sheva (ISR).
Group L: Villarreal CF (ESP), Steaua Bucuresti (ROU), Zürich (SUI), Osmanlispor (TUR).
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Thierry Henry named assistant manager of Belgium national team

Arsenal FC legend and sports pundit, Henry Thierry has been named the assistant manager of Belgium National team. He will be working alongside the team’s handler, Roberto Martinez. This shocking news is coming less than 2 months after the 39 year-old fell out with Arsene Wenger after the latter asked him to quit his role as a pundit on Sky Sports.

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Cristiano Ronaldo named 2016 UEFA Best Player in Europe

Real Madrid star, Cristiano Ronaldo has emerged UEFA Best Player in Europe award Ronaldo. The 32 year-old joins fierce rival, Lionel Messi as the second player to win the award twice.

“Of course, I feel happy because it was an unbelievable season,” Ronaldo said. “But it wouldn’t be fair if I didn’t mention these two amazing players [Bale and Griezmann]. Griezmann, I am sorry for your loss to Portugal in the final, but you are an amazing player. It was an unbelievable season.” He said after receiving the award.
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The official result of the UEFA Champions League Draw

The group stage draw for the 2016/2017 UEFA Champions League took place today, August 25 at 6pm CET, 5pm BST at the UEFA headquarters in Monaco. Above are the results. I think all English teams should have no excuse for not making it out of the Group stages. Group C is really bleeding. Group A and Group F feature some lethal names. What are your thoughts?

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Claudio Bravo completes Manchester City move

Barcelona FC skipper, Claudio Bravo has successfully completed his move to Manchester City. The Chile international who flew to England on Tuesday and had his medical on Wednesday was snapped up for £17million.
Speaking on his four-year deal, the 33 year-old who made 75 appearances for the Catalans said: ‘I’m very proud to be joining Manchester City. I know the club is building something very special and I hope I can be part of many successes in the coming years. 

‘I have followed City’s progress in recent years and obviously know some of my new team-mates from the Copa America.
‘It is not easy to leave a club like Barcelona where I had two fantastic years, but the opportunity to work with Pep Guardiola was too good to refuse.

‘Now I will challenge the other great goalkeepers the club has and together I hope we can win many trophies.’

Manchester City coach, Pep Guardiola described Claudio as : ‘a fantastic goalkeeper and an excellent addition to our squad. He has experience and great leadership qualities and is in the prime of his life. He is a goalkeeper I have admired for a number of years and I’m really happy he is now a City player.’
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Man United is my last club in Europe

 
Manchester United midfielder, Bastian Schweinsteiger
has pledged his allegiance to the club despite being unable to make a
first team appearance this season. The 32 year-old who left
Bayern Munich last year made 18 appearances for the Red Devils last season is ready to give his best whenever he is called upon.
“MUFC will be my last club
in Europe. I respect other clubs, but Manchester United was the only one which
could make me leave Bayern Munich. I will be ready, if the team needs me. This
is all I can say about the current situation. I want to thank the fans for the
amazing support over the recent weeks,” he wrote on Twitter.
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All you need to know about the 2016/2017 Champions League group stage draw

The draw for the group stage draw for
the 2016/2017 UEFA Champions League takes place on Thursday, August 25 at 6pm
CET, 5pm BST at the UEFA headquarters in Monaco.
The 32 teams will be put into four
pots, with one team from each pot going into each of the eight groups.
Pot 1 consists of the current title
holders (Real Madrid) and the winners of the top-seven ranked nations at the
end of the 2014/15 season.
Pots 2-4 are decided by each side’s
UEFA club coefficient at the end of last season.
Clubs from the same association cannot
be drawn against each other.
Russian and Ukrainian teams cannot
play each other.
Teams In The Pot.
Pot 1
Real Madrid, Barcelona,
Leicester City, Bayern Munich, Juventus, Benfica, Paris Saint-Germain, CSKA
Moscow
Pot 2
Atlético Madrid, Borussia Dortmund,
Arsenal, Sevilla, Napoli, Bayer Leverkusen
Pot 3
Dynamo Kyiv, Lyon, PSV Eindhoven,
Sporting
Pot 4
Beşiktaş
Pot to be confirmed
Basel and Tottenham will be in either Pot 2 or 3 depending
on results in the play-offs, while Club Brugge will be in Pot 3 or 4
Teams in qualifying play-offs
The following ties will be settled on
Tuesday 23 and Wednesday 24 August
Ludogorets Razgrad vs FC Viktoria
Plzen (2-0 agg)
Celtic vs Hapoel Beer-Sheva (5-2 agg)
FC Copenhagen vs Apoel Nicosia (1-0
agg)
Dundalk vs Legia Warsaw (0-2 agg)
Dinamo Zagreb vs FC Salzburg (1-1 agg)
Steaua Bucharest vs Manchester City
(0-5 agg)

FC Porto vs Roma (1-1 agg)
Ajax vs Rostov (1-1 agg)
Young Boys vs Borussia Monchengladbach
(1-3)
Villarreal vs Monaco (1-2)

Group
stage dates?

Matchday one: 13–14 September
Matchday two: 27–28 September
Matchday three: 18–19 October
Matchday four: 1–2 November
Matchday five: 22–23 November
Matchday six: 6–7 December
 Source
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Carlo Ancelotti appoints son as assistant coach

The Ancelottis

Bayern Munich coach, Carlo Ancelotti has joined the growing list of managers who have appointed their sons important roles in football. The former Chelsea handler has named his son, Davide Ancelotti as the club’s assistant coach.

The 27 year-old who worked as a fitness coach at Real Madrid during the
latter’s spell was an ex youth player at AC Milan but went on to study sports
science after failing to measure up at the Serie A club. He became promoted to
Assistant Coach after learning the German language for 8 months.
He explained his new role on the club’s official YouTube channel, ‘My
job at Bayern is to support the coaches both in training and in pre-match
preparations, as well as during games.
‘On the training pitch, I explain exercises or just
help out with the language. My father speaks German but doesn’t understand
everything yet. I can speak German well because I’ve been studying the language
for eight months. I like the language – it’s difficult but I find it very
interesting.
‘I’m looking forward to learning many things here
as a coach, but also as a person, like a new culture and a new language. The
atmosphere at Bayern is incredible. You can sense the tradition. Despite being
such a big club, it’s like a family and the atmosphere reflects that.
‘I felt that way at AC Milan too and it’s very
difficult to find something like that.’
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It is bursting at the seams for Asisat Oshoala

2016 has certainly been a good one for Arsenal Ladies forward, Asisat Oshoala.
Days after she was unveiled as ambassador of Nairabet, the Nigeria soccer sensation has penned a new deal with Capital Oil and Gas Nigeria.

She was unveiled in a brief ceremony at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Docklands, London, which also had Super Eagles star Kenneth Omeruo and her manager in attendance. the 2015 CAF African Women’s Player of the Year winner pledged to continue doing the nation and club proud.
The business magnate who also agreed to be a patron of Oshoala’s foundation announced that he will soon float a women’s football club.

Source

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Mario Balotelli rejected by Serie A outfit Sassuolo

The quest for Liverpool’s forgotten man, Mario Balotelli to find a new side is far from over as Serie A outfit, Sassuolo turn down the chance to sign him. The Italian striker who was once labelled as the paradigm of the modern footballer has been excluded from Liverpool coach, Jurgen Klopp’s plans and told he can leave the club this summer. 
Sassuolo chief executive Giovanni Carnevali told RaiSport’s Zona11pm show, ‘Mino Raiola (his agent) offered us Balotelli, but we refused.’
Turkish side Besiktas, Nantes as well as Everton are some of the clubs who have reportedly indicated interest in the out-of-favour player.
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