Sports

Thomas Tuchel accepted responsibility for Bayern Munich s DFB-Pokal quarter-final exit, after they suffered a late 2-1 loss against Freiburg.

The Bundesliga leaders looked set for extra-time at Allianz Arena, after Dayot Upamecano s header was cancelled out by Nicolas Hofler.

But Jamal Muisala s penalty concession deep into second-half stoppage time allowed Lucas Holer to seal a last-gasp victory for the visitors from the spot.

In only his second game in charge since replacing Julian Nagelsmann, Tuchel acknowledged he had to shoulder the blame for their defeat.

I am not really angry, he said. We conceded two goals with two shots. I can’t remember another chance from Freiburg.

The last pass, [and the] precision obviously, are all an issue. But …

Napoli coach Luciano Spalletti is hopeful Victor Osimhen will be fit to face Milan in the Champions League quarter-finals, but the striker has no chance of playing at Lecce on Friday.

Osimhen sustained a thigh injury while representing Nigeria during last month s international break, causing him to miss last Sunday s Serie A meeting with Milan.

His absence was felt as Milan thrashed the champions-elect 4-0, but Napoli are positive regarding his prospects of featuring in the first leg of their European tie against the Rossoneri.

Before Wednesday s trip to San Siro, Napoli will look to get their title charge back on track at Lecce, where Spalletti will not have Osimhen available.

Asked about Osimhen s chances of facing Lecce, Spalletti said: Tomorrow there …

Harry Kane has failed to turn up for pre-season training with Tottenham Hotspur, according to Sky Sports reporters present at the gates of the Tottenham Training Ground at Hotspur Way on Monday morning. The striker was due back from his holiday which followed his exploits with England at the Euros, but he simply didn t show up when he was supposed to. Spurs have so far refused to make any comments on the issue.

BREAKING

Harry Kane has not shown up for Tottenham training this morning

He was due to return to Hotspur Way this morning following a short holiday

— Football Daily (@footballdaily)

Kane s future has been a subject of much guesswork in the last couple of months, with Manchester City reportedly seriously interested in signin…

Ilkay Gundogan suggests it is quite normal for Timo Werner and Kai Havertz to be struggling at Chelsea after moving to the Premier League amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Werner and Havertz were high-profile recruits from the Bundesliga prior to the 2020-21 season as Chelsea looked to turn a team that scraped Champions League football into genuine title contenders.

Other signings, such as Edouard Mendy, Thiago Silva and Ben Chilwell, have quickly had an impact, but the Germany internationals have found life a little more difficult.

Werner did not score in his first three Blues appearances in all competitions but then netted eight times in nine games, before enduring an 11-match goalless run that takes him up to Sunday s meeting with Manchester City.

The for…

Lionel Messi marked his return to the Barcelona starting line-up with a hat-trick as a 4-0 win over 10-man Manchester City preserved a perfect start to this season s Champions League campaign for Luis Enrique s men.

Messi came off the bench following a groin injury to score in the 4-0 weekend win over Deportivo La Coruna and he netted a 17th-minute opener at Camp Nou on Wednesday.

City boss Pep Guardiola was back at the ground with which he will for ever be inextricably linked and his team posed plenty of questions either side of Barcelona going in front, until a mindless red card for Claudio Bravo resulted in the game racing away from them.

In the 53rd minute, the former Barcelona goalkeeper – whose arrival at Guardiola s behest prompted Joe Hart s Tor…

Eddie Howe has claimed rival Premier League clubs have raised their asking prices as they didn t want to be seen to be helping Newcastle United.

Newcastle were bought last October in a controversial takeover funded in large part by Saudi Arabia s Public Investment Fund.

The team, who were facing relegation, have improved drastically since then, helped by Howe s appointment as head coach and the investment of more than £200million in the transfer market.

However, Newcastle s attempts to do further business were hampered by the  narrative around their wealth, Howe suggested on Friday, the day after a window in which they spent big money on Sven Botman and Alexander Isak closed.

That was definitely something we felt in the market, he said ahead of Saturd…

Gary Neville says only a full sale of Manchester United can satisfy supporters.

United announced in November that their much-maligned owners, the Glazer family, were exploring options including a potential sale of the club.

Jim Ratcliffe and Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani are among those to go public with their offers for United, though Finnish entrepreneur Thomas Zilliacus described the sale process as a farce when announcing he would not participate in a third round of bidding this week.

Some United supporters have expressed concerns that the Glazers – who have been widely criticised since taking control via a leveraged buyout in 2005 – may yet remain at Old Trafford.

On Saturday, Sky News reported that American private equity firm Carlyle was eng…

Reading have made a £1m bid for Sunderland midfielder David Vaughan, .

The former Blackpool man is the set to be the latest player to leave the Stadium of Light as manager Paolo Di Canio continues to rebuild his squad.

No fewer than twelve players have been moved on by the Italian so far this summer, with ten players moving in the opposite direction.

The 30 year old moved to the North East club following Blackpool’s relegation in 2011, and has made fifty-five appearances for the Black Cats, though he was left out of the match-day squad that lost 1-0 to Fulham on Saturday afternoon.

There has also been interest from Premier League newcomers Hull City and Crystal Palace, but ambitious Reading can more than match their wage offers.

The Roy…

Arsenal forward Park Chu-Young looks set to return to French Ligue 1, .

The Korean striker is back at the Emirates after his loan spell at Celta Vigo came to an end, but chances are he will be offloaded by the time the transfer window closes.

A return to France appears on the cards as Saint Etienne, Lorient and Rennes are all believed to be keen on the 28-year-old attacker.

Park has played his best football in France s top flight, scoring 25 goals in 91 league appearances for Monaco before joining Arsenal in the summer of 2011.

The South Korea international utterly failed to prove his worth at the Emirates, making just one substitute appearance in the Premier League.

He has, however, kept his starting berth in the national team and went on to sco…

Leicester City manager Claudio Ranieri concedes he must do something to help kick-start Riyad Mahrez s season as player and club continue to struggle in their Premier League title defence.

PFA Player of the Year as Leicester stunned the world by winning the Premier League last term, Mahrez has struggled to replicate that form, with the defending champions languishing in 14th position.

Mahrez scored a first-half penalty on Saturday but it was another frustrating outing as Leicester crashed to their sixth defeat of the season, beaten 2-1 at Watford.

And Ranieri is weighing up whether to drop the Algeria international on the shortlist for this year s Ballon d Or in a bid to help him rediscover his form.

Of course we have to do something, have to study somet…