The goalkeeper was delighted to make his debut as the Clarets drew 0-0 with Istanbul Basaksehir in their Europa League qualifier Joe Hart “loved” making his Burnley debut as the Clarets held on to a goalless draw in the first leg of their Europa League qualifier against Istanbul Basaksehir. Hart joined Burnley from Premier League champions Manchester City on a two-year deal on Tuesday and was thrust straight into first-team action when Sean Dyche’s side travelled to Turkey on Thursday following injuries to Tom Heaton, Nick Pope and Anders Lindegaard. The 31-year-old took his chance to impress, helping Burnley to a clean sheet which sets them in good stead ahead…

The midfielder has struggled to find a place in Sarri’s first team, but a wonderful hat-trick against BATE has heightened calls to give him more games Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri admits he is happy to have a “problem” like Ruben Loftus-Cheek after the England man laid down a claim for regular first-team football with a brilliant Europa League hat-trick.  Loftus-Cheek, 22, has been a bit-part player so far under the Italian, with Thursday’s start just his fourth appearance of the season.  But he took full advantage of his opportunity, smashing a memorable hat-trick as BATE Borisov were put to the sword in a 3-1 victory for the Blues .  Article…

The Nigerian looks reinvigorated under new head coach Unai Emery and will hope to build on his good form this season Alex Iwobi knows all about pressure. He signed his first professional contract at the age of 18, was nominated among the top 50 youngsters in world football two years later while he made his international debut for Nigeria in 2015. His path to the top is still continuing and after a couple of underwhelming seasons which can be put down to a mixture of inconsistency and instability, the 22-year-old appears to be finally flourishing under new head coach Unai Emery. Former Gunners boss Arsene Wenger set Iwobi a target…

The Blues have already secured first place in their Europa League group but will want to maintain their excellent European form when they face Vidi Chelsea travel to Hungary to face Vidi in their final Europa League group stage game having already secured a spot in the knockout rounds as Group L winners. Maurizio Sarri will be eager to maintain Chelsea’s undefeated record in Europe this season so far, however, despite the low stakes of the game. A handful of key Blues players have not travelled to Hungary with the likes of Eden Hazard and Kepa rested, thus giving a chance for fringe players and youngsters to have a run-out…

The England midfielder has emerged as a symbol of the Blues’ failure to bring through academy products into their first team, but all is not lost yet Six successive FA Youth Cups, back-to-back UEFA Youth League titles and a quadruple at Under-18 level – Chelsea’s academy cannot be matched in the current youth football landscape. And yet Ruben Loftus-Cheek has been hoisted as a symbol of everything wrong with the path to the first team at Stamford Bridge. An occasional starter for England during their run to the semi-finals of the World Cup, many expected this to be the campaign that Loftus-Cheek finally broke down the door and became a…

The midfielder is out of contract in the summer, but he is focused on trying to play again before the end of the season Arsenal midfielder Santi Cazorla does not know what his future will be as his contract at Emirates Stadium draws to a close. The midfielder has not made a first-team appearance since October 2016 due to an ongoing ankle problem which has required eight surgeries over the past few years. The Spaniard then contracted gangrene on the affected areas and there were fears he would never walk again or may even have to have his foot amputated. Article continues below Editors' Picks Juve on alert: Exiled Icardi may…

The intensity and aggression of Diego Costa was crucial as Atletico Madrid overcame Arsenal, head coach Diego Simeone has explained. Diego Simeone says Diego Costa returned to Atletico Madrid to exert a decisive impact on big matches, and hailed the importance of the striker’s “rage” in helping the team reach the Europa League final at the expense of Arsenal. Costa, who re-joined Atleti from Chelsea this season, scored the only goal of a 1-0 victory in the second leg of the semi-final at the Wanda Metropolitano on Thursday, the result setting up a decider against Marseille in Lyon on May 16. The Brazil-born Spain international helped Chelsea to win the…

The Blues will be looking to secure the top spot in their Europa League group when they welcome Hungarian side Vidi to Stamford Bridge Maurizio Sarri’s side are favourites to win their second Europa League group game in a row against Vidi at Stamford Bridge on Thursday. The Blues opened their Europa League account with a 1-0 win at PAOK two weeks ago, and will be looking to claim the top spot of their group after falling behind to BATE Borisov on goal difference – which they could rectify against the Hungarians. Vidi head into the fixture as underdogs after falling to a 2-0 loss at home to BATE Borisov…

The Hoops boss concedes his side will have to improve considerably if they are to progress beyond the play-of stage of Europa League qualifying Brendan Rodgers rued defensive lapses as Celtic were forced to settle for a 1-1 draw away at Suduva in their Europa League play-off first leg on Thursday. Having dropped out of the Champions League at the hands of AEK Athens, Celtic have a chance to keep their European campaign alive in the Europa League but Rodgers was not happy with their display in Lithuania. An early goal from Olivier Ntcham should have put Celtic in control but the Scottish Premiership champions switched off to allow Ovidijus…

The Serbian defender insists he is focused on his duties at Zenit, but stopped short of dismissing rumours connecting him to the Spanish champions Zenit Saint Petersburg full-back Branislav Ivanovic has refused to rule out a move away from Russia next year, with Barcelona interested in his services. Goal understands the Catalan giants are lining up a January bid for the 34-year-old, as the long-term fitness of Samuel Umtiti remains in doubt following knee surgery. Barca are hopeful of agreeing on a short-term deal for Ivanovic before they pursue Ajax centre-back Matthijs De Ligt next summer, as Ernesto Valverde looks to bolster his defensive options. Article continues below Editors' Picks Juve on…