Gareth Southgate will consider returning to the three-man defence England used at the World Cup in the wake of Friday s loss to the Czech Republic.

Frailties were exposed in a 2-1 defeat that prevented the Three Lions from booking their place at Euro 2020 as Michael Keane in particular struggled behind a midfield pairing of Declan Rice and Jordan Henderson.

The poor showing in Prague has forced manager Southgate to rethink his move away from the formation that served him well in Russia.

Harry Maguire, John Stones and Kyle Walker, now dropped from the squad, formed a reliable back three en route to the semi-finals.

It s certainly something we ve considered and I don t think we can dismiss, Southgate said.

I think we are in a difficult situation …

Pep Guardiola believes Tottenham are Premier League title contenders, but the Manchester City manager feels this may be the most open title race since his arrival in England.

City suffered a 2-0 loss to Tottenham on Saturday, a result which sees them sit 11th in the table, eight points behind leaders Spurs but having played one less game.

With just 10 goals scored through eight league games, that is City s worst return since managing just six after the same number of matches in 2006-07.

Guardiola said Jose Mourinho s Spurs deserved to be considered title threats as he rued his side s lack of goals.

They are top of the league. So obviously they are more contenders than anyone else right now, he told a news conference.

Of course, there are a lot o…

Inter midfielder Nicolo Barella has suffered a thigh injury and will miss at least the next two games for the Italian champions.

The 27-year-old Italy international, who has made 175 league appearances for Inter, has a strain in the rectus femoris of his right thigh, the club said in a statement.

His condition will be reassessed next week, the club added when announcing his injury on Tuesday.

Inter, sixth in the Serie A standings with eight points from five matches, visit Udinese on Saturday, before hosting Red Star Belgrade in the Champions League next Tuesday.

Simone Inzaghi s side will be desperate to recover Barella for their clash with surprise league leaders Torino on October 5.

Barella impressed as the Nerazzurri began their Champions Lea…

It was hardly the sort of entrance that said I m here to save the day . Luka Modric was still putting his headband on as he rather leisurely entered the Old Trafford pitch just a few moments after Nani s controversial sending off in the Champions League last-16 second leg between Manchester United and Real Madrid.

Los Blancos were down 2-1 on aggregate after a Sergio Ramos own goal had put United in the driving seat a short while earlier, but with the hosts a man light, Jose Mourinho sent Modric on as Madrid looked to suffocate Alex Ferguson s men.

Alongside Xabi Alonso, Modric was swiftly into the thick of it as Madrid tried to pull United this way and that, and he soon took matters into his own hands with Kaka, Mesut Ozil, Gonzalo Higuain and Cristiano Ronaldo unable…

Liverpool securing a top-four finish in the Premier League would now be a surprise given their dramatic dip this season, according to former Reds midfielder Jamie Redknapp. 

Injury issues have badly hampered Liverpool s title defence, with captain Jordan Henderson the latest to go down. 

The England international is expected to be out until April after undergoing surgery on the groin injury sustained in the derby defeat to Everton. 

Liverpool are sixth in the Premier League table with 13 matches to go, with a realistic prospect of them dropping further if Everton and Aston Villa below them win their games in hand. 

They have lost six of their last nine Premier League games, as many as they had in their previous 100 in the competition. <…

The latest Liverpool revival starts here. Those mighty Reds have pulled level on points with Fulham.

Still, you have to start somewhere, and Tottenham are usually ripe for the picking when Liverpool are in town, with Eric Dier this time taking it upon himself to roll out the red carpet and wave Mohamed Salah into the spotlight.

It s nine goals in eight games now for Salah, none of them penalties, and if Liverpool collectively are still far short of where Jurgen Klopp would want them, then at least the manager need not worry about his star forward.

A 2-1 win at Tottenham came as little surprise in many regards, since it means the north London side remain winless in their last 10 Premier League games against Liverpool, drawing three of those and losing seven.

…

Paulo Fonseca has left Lille to be replaced by Bruno Genesio, ahead of his expected appointment as Milan head coach.

Fonseca joined Lille in 2022, having previously enjoyed spells with Porto, Braga, Shakhtar Donetsk and Roma.

He led them to a fifth-place Ligue 1 finish in 2022-23 then improved on that achievement by taking them into the top four last term, ensuring Champions League qualification.

However, he had been expected to leave the Stade Pierre-Mauroy and return to Serie A, with Milan reportedly hoping to appoint him as Stefano Pioli s successor.

That move appears closer after Lille announced the departure of their Portuguese coach on Wednesday, immediately naming former Lyon and Rennes boss Bruno Genesio as his replacement.

Le LOSC et son …

Thomas Frank admitted his five-year anniversary celebration meal will taste a lot better after Brentford’s 3-0 Premier League win over 10-man Burnley.

The Bees had not won at home all season but goals from Yoane Wissa, Bryan Mbeumo and Saman Ghoddos left Frank toasting half a decade in charge in style.

“It was very good performance, a completely well-deserved win,” said Frank.

“The first half was maybe our best performance this season. We should have probably been 3-0 up – that’s the only negative.

“That’s us at home, having attack after attack, high intensity. A very strong performance. In the second half, Burnley got a little bit into the game but 2-0 killed them off.”

Frank, who took charge of the Bees in October 2018, added: …

Jurgen Klopp said it is essential Roberto Firmino stays at Liverpool amid reports he could join Juventus.

Juve are said to have targeted the Brazil international as they look to rebuild under Massimiliano Allegri, with Paulo Dybala having left on a free transfer to Roma.

Firmino has become a fans favourite at Anfield after joining the Reds from Hoffenheim in 2015, but the 30-year-old is in the final year of his contract.

Liverpool manager Klopp dismissed talk that Firmino could be on the move ahead of the Community Shield showdown with Manchester City on Saturday.

Bobby is crucial for us, Klopp said during a press conference on Thursday.  Bobby is [the] heart and soul of this team.

The way we played in the last few years was only poss…

Wales have sacked manager Rob Page following the country s failure to qualify for Euro 2024.

The 49-year-old was initially given the job on an interim basis in November 2020, taking over from Ryan Giggs, before being appointed permanently in September 2022.

Page took charge of 45 games for the national team, winning 15 of those matches.

He oversaw the team at two major tournaments, reaching the round of 16 at Euro 2020, and led Wales to the World Cup for the first time in 64 years, though they exited in the group stage after earning only one point.

Wales were agonisingly short of qualifying for a third consecutive European Championships, losing on penalties to Poland in their play-off final in March.

Despite being backed by the Football Associatio…