Prediction: Crystal Palace vs Sheffield United

Javi Gracia described his sacking by Watford as unexpected and abrupt  but insisted he has not fallen out with the club s owners after he was replaced by Quique Sanchez Flores.

Watford terminated Gracia s contract on Saturday after the Hornets claimed just one point from their first four games of the Premier League season.

The decision to bring the curtain down on Gracia s 20-month spell in charge came as a surprise to the Spanish manager, who reflected on having delivered a mid-table top-flight finish and a run to the FA Cup final in 2018-19.

In a statement, he said: After the unexpected announcement about the termination of my contract after only four matches, I want to express my surprise after completing the best season in Watford s history.

announ…

Lionel Messi insists he has no issue with Cristiano Ronaldo and would accept a dinner invitation from his long-time awards rival.

The pair crossed paths at a recent ceremony to crown the UEFA Men s Player of the Year for 2018-19, which Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk won.

Barcelona captain Messi and Juventus star Ronaldo finished second and third respectively, but the event gave the former Real Madrid forward the chance to publicly reflect on their battle in Spain and the time they have spent at the pinnacle of the game.

Ronaldo floated the prospect of a private dinner in future, an idea welcomed by his fellow five-time Ballon d Or winner.

Yes, I don t have any problem with that, Messi told SPORT.

I ve always said that I don t have any issue …

(GSM) Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk have completed the transfer of highly-rated Brazilian youngster Douglas Costa from Gremio for a reported fee of €12 million.

Costa had been linked with a move to Europe for some time, with Manchester United and Milan showing interest in the talented 19-year-old.

This transfer was in everybody s interest. Douglas asked us to sell him and we needed the money to satisfy our creditors, said Gremio president Duda Kroeff during a press conference.

Shakhtar have reportedly acquired 80% of the player s transfer rights and Gremio will receive 15% of the transfer fee in the event of his transfer from Shakhtar in the future.

Costa was a part of the Brazil U-20 squad that won the South American Youth Championship in 2009.

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Hapoel Tel Aviv have completed the signing of Dutch midfielder Daniel De Ridder on loan from Premier League club Wigan Athletic. The 25 year old did not feature in a single game for the Latics in the 2009-10 season and has opted for a switch in order to get regular football.

De Ridder, who speaks fluent Hebrew, has initially joined the Israeli giants on a six month loan deal with a view to making his stay permanent at the end of the season.

De Ridder, like many young Dutch stars of his time, started his career with Ajax Amsterdam and had a two year spell with Spanish club Celta Vigo before moving north to England with Birmingham City in 2007. A year later, he left Birmingham  to join Wigan Athletic on a free transfer.

De Ridder s current deal with Wigan expires…

Sunderland will be without Jan Kirchhoff for another three months after he underwent knee surgery.

The midfielder suffered an injury in his side s 1-0 defeat to Chelsea on December 14 and missed last Saturday s 1-0 win over Watford.

Manager David Moyes has now confirmed Kirchhoff will be missing for up to 12 weeks, a major blow in Sunderland s battle against Premier League relegation.

Jan had an operation during the week to repair his lateral meniscus, Moyes said ahead of the Boxing Day away match against Manchester United.

At the moment we think it will be close to 12 weeks.

We have got a few back in training – Javi [Manquillo] is doing a bit and Steven Pienaar is around as well, as is Billy Jones who is doing a bit.

We are going to…

Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone believes the club s on-field success comes down to feeling as more than just a team, but also a part of a family.

Since taking over four years ago Simeone has transformed the club into one of the biggest in Europe. 

Atletico won the 2013-14 La Liga season and also finished runners-up in the Champions League in the same campaign. 

Simeone hailed the atmosphere within the club and believes the players and staff feel like they are part of a family. 

Nobody s bigger than the club. I feel very loved and respected , he told El Pais.

The hardest thing in life is reinventing yourself and staying at the top of your game, whilst the hardest thing in football is finding that club you want to stay at. 

[Dieg…

Atletico Madrid defender Stefan Savic will have to serve a four-game ban from UEFA club fixtures as punishment for his dismissal for violent conduct against Chelsea.

Savic was shown a straight red card after an incident involving Chelsea s Antonio Rudiger in the second leg of the Champions League last-16 tie at Stamford Bridge on March 17.

The Montenegro international has been disciplined by UEFA for assaulting another player , as well as directing abusive language at a match official .

Diego Simeone also received a warning over a late kick-off to the fixture, while the club itself received a €10,000 fine. Atleti were also ordered to pay a further €14,000 for improper conduct of the team .

Atletico lost 2-0 on English soil – Hakim Ziyech and Emers…

Aston Villa are interested in appointing former Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain boss Unai Emery as their new manager, according to . Steven Gerrard is the manager of Villa at the moment, but the Premier League club’s chiefs are considering their options.

The report has claimed that although Gerrard’s position at Villa is not under immediate threat, the club’s US owners, Naseef Sawiris and Wes Edens, are open to sacking the Liverpool legend if results do not improve significantly before the 2022 World Cup finals in Qatar start in mid-November. Villa are 14th in the Premier League table at the moment with seven points from seven matches, just a point above the relegation zone.

Emery is in charge of Spanish club Villarreal at the moment. The former Sevilla boss is re…

France have been drawn to face Ukraine in the European qualification play-offs for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

In the other two-legged matches, Portugal will take on Sweden, Greece play Romania and Iceland face a meeting with Croatia.

France narrowly missed out on being seeded for the draw, which took place on Monday at FIFA headquarters in Zurich, as a result of their world ranking.

The 1998 champions qualified for the 2010 tournament through the play-offs, winning in controversial circumstances as Thierry Henry handled the ball in the build-up to the winning goal against the Republic of Ireland, while Ukraine have only reached the finals on one previous occasion.

Portugal will be taking part in the play-offs for a major tournament for the third consecutive time, h…

Talisman Wayne Rooney s goal drought stretched on as England crashed out of the World Cup at the hands of old rivals Germany on Sunday.

Drawing a blank in the match in Bloemfontein means the Manchester United star, after a stellar season for his club, has still never found the net at a World Cup.

He came to South Africa billed as one of the world s top players along with the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo but has now failed to net in eight matches at finals including against minnows Algeria and Slovenia.

England goalkeeper David James said Germany should take credit for nullifying Rooney.

You have to give credit to the opposition. The teams know how good he is and they did all then can to stop him from playing, said James.

He wasn …