Diego Simeone refused to discuss Atletico Madrid s chances of winning La Liga following their 2-0 victory at Granada on Saturday.

With table-topping Barcelona held to a 1-1 draw away at Valencia, the Argentine coach s side moved to within two points of the summit.

However, the 45-year-old insisted Atletico are holding only a short-term view of proceedings at the top of the table and would not be drawn into suggesting they have a shot at finishing first ahead of Barcelona and Real Madrid, as they memorably did in 2013-14.

We understand the championship in special way, Simeone said.

We think the best look to the future is regarding the present. That s our aim. We will not change our mind-set as it is essential for us.

Diego Godin opened the scori…

Thomas Tuchel is relaxed over Antonio Rudiger s future amid reports the defender could leave Chelsea as a free agent at the end of the season.

Rudiger s contract expires next June and the centre-back has been linked with the likes of Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich.

The Germany international has thrived under compatriot Tuchel, with standout performances including a commanding display in the Champions League final victory over Manchester City in May.

Blues head coach Tuchel is hopeful Rudiger will remain at Stamford Bridge, but knows there are no guarantees he will stay with the European champions.

He said in a press conference ahead of Sunday s London derby at Tottenham: I hope they find solutions but it s not only between coaches a…

Paul Lambert conceded a draw was a fair result after his Aston Villa side played out a drab goalless stalemate at Hull City on Saturday.

In a game of few chances at the KC Stadium, both teams consolidated their promising mid-table starts to the Premier League season.

Victory on the back of their memorable 3-2 comeback over Manchester City would have meant three consecutive league wins for Villa for the first time since April 2010.

Gabriel Agbonlahor, back in the side following an ankle injury, spurned arguably Villa s only clear opening seven minutes after half-time.

I don t think either side did enough to win the game, said Lambert. It wasn t a great game for people to watch. But we have been involved in some big matches this year and this is a hard place to com…

Newcastle are closing in on their second signing of the transfer window after agreeing a fee with Swansea for midfielder Jonjo Shelvey.

Shelvey, 23, has been an important figure for the Swans since joining from Liverpool in July 2013 but has failed to hold down a regular place in Alan Curtis first-choice XI in recent weeks, having previously fallen from favour under Garry Monk prior to the manager s sacking in December.

He started Sunday s 3-2 FA Cup defeat at Oxford United but was involved in a verbal altercation with a supporter after the final whistle.

Omnisport understands Shelvey will have a medical on Tyneside on Tuesday afternoon after Newcastle agreed to pay a fee believed to be in the region of £12million.

Shelvey has made over 80 appearances fo…

When a team wins a league title, the standard procedure is to stick the trophy in the club s museum – but Ajax have taken a slightly different approach this time around.

Ajax claimed their record-extending 35th Eredivisie trophy on May 2 with an emphatic 4-0 win over Emmen, a victory that meant bitter rivals PSV could no longer catch them.

Thousands of Ajax fans defied local coronavirus restrictions to celebrate the success, with police opting against stepping in to avoid violence.

The team and CEO Edwin van der Sar led celebrations on a balcony at the Johan Cruijff ArenA as they showed off the trophy to the baying crowd, with Ajax later insisting this was not pre-planned and was a spontaneous gesture .

While local politicians criticised Ajax s celebr…

Treble-chasing Manchester City could be close to full strength as they take on arch-rivals Manchester United in the FA Cup final on Saturday.

The champions have had fitness concerns in the build-up to the Wembley showpiece.

Jack Grealish, Kevin De Bruyne, Ruben Dias and Manuel Akanji all missed last weekend’s final Premier League game of the season at Brentford for a variety of reasons.

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Training for the quartet was also curtailed as City opted not to take risks ahead of what is a momentous period in the club’s history with the Champions League final to follow next week.

Manager Pep Guardiola says the whole squad is now looking fit and …

Germany midfielder Mesut Ozil insists he will feel no split loyalties when his team take on Turkey in Friday s key Euro 2012 qualifier in Group A.

The 21-year-old is German born and bred of Turkish parents, but opted to play for the country of his birth, first wearing the Germany shirt in February 2009.

Some outstanding performances at the World Cup earned him a multi-million euros transfer to Real Madrid and Ozil says he will have no problem playing against the country of his ancestors on Friday.

This is obviously a very special game. I am looking forward to playing against my friends, said Ozil, a former Schalke 04 team-mate of Turkey midfielder Hamit Altintop.

Our goal is to take another step closer to the European Championships.

Around 30,…

Luke Shaw admits Jose Mourinho was right to say he could have been working harder at Manchester United.

United boss Mourinho heavily criticised the defender earlier this month, questioning his effort in training, commitment, focus and ambition which he deemed a long way behind his Old Trafford team-mates.

That came after Shaw, widely believed to have cost £30 million when signed from Southampton in 2014, had started only once in the Premier League since October.

Shaw, who was in the first XI for Sunday s 3-0 victory at Sunderland, concedes Mourinho had a point about his work rate but has vowed to prove the manager wrong over his desire to fight for a United future.

I had a really good chat with him [after the criticism] and I totally agree with him I …

Bundesliga table-toppers Borussia Dortmund have held a meeting with the 20-year-old Corinthians talent Pedro Victor Delmino da Silva, otherwise known as Pedrinho.

Dortmund continue to invest in youth and appear willing to add another youngster to their ranks this winter after bringing in the likes of Achraf Hakimi (19) Felix Passlack (20), Dzenis Burnic (20) this summer or most prominently former Manchester City starlet Jadon Sancho (18) in the summer of 2017.

With their investments in young prospects paying dividends this season, Borussia Dortmund officials have organized a meeting with one of the biggest talents in Brazil, who could be on his way to Germany in January.

have shared a photo of Borussia Dortmund officials having a chat with Pedrinho in Sao Paulo…

Former Newcastle manager Kevin Keegan blasted the sacking of Chris Hughton as St James Park boss on Friday and warned long-suffering Geordie fans that the club was heading nowhere.

Keegan, who ended his second spell in charge of the north-east club in September 2008 citing interference from the board in playing matters, said that as long as Mike Ashley remains the owner, the club will continue to tread water.

Chris Hughton s shock departure has once again demonstrated that Newcastle United need some stability, but you will never get stability when you have Mike Ashley and (managing director) Derek Llambias running the club, Keegan told ESPN.

Ashley has made no secret that he wants to sell Newcastle, and the best day will come when someone buys it from him and …