In an FA Cup final that felt like a signpost for where two clubs at the transitional beginnings of new eras might be heading, the contributions of those who might not follow the journey through weighed heavily.

Chelsea were ravenous in their pressing and insatiable in the midfield battles early on, laying a platform for Mason Mount and Christian Pulisic to sparkle. An eventual 2-1 defeat seemed improbable right then.

Both wide forwards were involved when Pulisic nimbly opened the scoring – the subtle shift of the ball with his left foot to make a dinked right-footed finish possible underlining the USA star s technical prowess.

Olivier Giroud was naturally on the spot against his former club, playing an inevitably shrewd hand. A rush of goals for the experienced…

Switzerland booked their spot in the last 16 of the World Cup courtesy of a 2-2 draw with Costa Rica in Nizhny Novgorod on Wednesday.

Brazil s win over Serbia in the night s other Group E game means that Vladimir Petkovic s side finish second in the pool and will take on Sweden in St Petersburg on Tuesday.

Switzerland – whose last-gasp win over Serbia in their second game set them up for progression to the knockout stages – were second best for large periods against their already eliminated opponents, but did take the lead just after the half-hour mark.

Blerim Dzemaili took advantage of generous marking to power home from close range before Kendall Waston pulled Costa Rica level shortly after the interval. 

Substitute Josip Drmic thought he had secur…

You remember Guiseppe Rossi? The American-born Italian has had some career. But he has been without a club for over a year and it looks like he might be persuaded to make a return to football.

He could be going to Italy s Serie B and join one of the three clubs interested in him. According to Tuttosport, Empoli, Frosinone and Cremonese are all interested in giving him a shot at a comeback. The 32-year-old s last club was Genoa, with whom his contract was not extended.

But that was all the way back in summer of last year, when his contract expired after the end of the 2017-18 season! Now the Italian could join one of the three teams, which considering his age, would not be as shocking as if he was older.

Rossi played for numerous clubs in his career, including th…

Thierry Henry picked up a point in his first Champions League game in charge of Monaco with a 1-1 draw at Club Brugge – but was grateful to Lois Openda for missing a late sitter for the hosts in the Group A clash.

Moussa Sylla scuffed in with his right foot to put the Ligue 1 strugglers ahead in the 31st minute on Wednesday, only for Wesley s header to level matters as Brugge ended an eight-match losing streak in the competition.

Henry s managerial debut with Monaco on Saturday had been eventful to say the least, as he witnessed goalkeeper Seydou Sy make a shocking error and Samuel Grandsir receive a red card in a 2-1 loss at Strasbourg.

Radamel Falcao sustained an injury at the weekend, leaving the new man in charge without one of his more seasoned European…

Everton have made a bid for Norwich City central defender Ben Godfrey, according to . It has been reported that the Toffees have offered £26 million as transfer fee to sign the 22-year-old centre-back, but the Canaries have turned it down.

Premier League club Everton have offered an initial transfer fee of £20 million plus a further £6 million in add-ons. The Toffees who have won all three of their league games so far this campaign are looking for a new centre-back and have turned towards Godfrey as they feel that Chelsea are unlikely to send Fikayo Tomori out on loan this season.

Godfrey has been on the books of Norwich since 2016 and is one of the most important players for the Canaries. During the 2019-20 campaign, the 22-year-old centre-back played 30 matches in …

Under-fire Stoke City boss Mark Hughes is targeting a finish in the top half of the Premier League, despite his side languishing in the relegation zone.

Hughes has found his position under increasing scrutiny since Monday s dispiriting 1-0 defeat against Newcastle United at the bet365 Stadium, where large numbers of fans reacted angrily towards their manager at the final whistle.

Stoke have won two and lost seven of their past 10 top-flight matches and travel to Manchester United in their next Premier League game.

An FA Cup trip to League Two Coventry City is next on the agenda for Hughes, who is being kept going by memories of his first season in charge at Stoke in 2013-14 and urged supporters to remain calm.

 Mark Hughes has just arrived. We ll get un…

Dominic Calvert-Lewin took a swipe at the Everton boo boys after marking his return from injury with a goal in the 3-1 win at Brentford.

The England striker was jeered by some fans after he went off with a fractured cheekbone during the 4-0 defeat at Aston Villa at the start of the season.

But he showed the Toffees what they have been missing by climbing off the bench to wrap up their first win of the season.

DOMMMMMMM!!

— Everton (@Everton)

“Football is a funny old game,” Calvert-Lewin told Sky Sports.

“When I came off against Aston Villa my own fans booed me off. Today they cheered me. I’ll relish this and take the rest with a pinch of salt.”

James Tarkowski had headed the Toffees back into the lead against his old …

Joao Felix scored twice as Atletico Madrid beat Real Betis 3-1 at Estadio Benito Villamarin to climb above their opponents into fourth place in LaLiga.

Barcelona s 2-1 win over Elche earlier on Sunday had knocked Betis down to fourth, and Atleti were out of the Champions League qualification berths entirely.

That increased the pressure on Diego Simeone s men to pick up a third win in a row, and they went in front inside two minutes thanks to Joao Felix s tap-in.

Betis substitute Cristian Tello equalised from the final kick of the first half, but Joao Felix netted another just after the hour mark and Thomas Lemar sealed the win for Atleti late on.

5 Joao Félix has scored 2+ goals in a single game for for the fifth time (4 in 1 in ). The last time he di…

Manchester City are facing the prospect of a few weeks without Sergio Aguero, according to Pep Guardiola, who must reconfigure his attack for key matches in the talismanic Argentine s absence.

A thigh injury sustained in City s 2-1 win over Chelsea on Saturday is set to deprive Guardiola of the man who has scored nine goals in 12 Premier League appearances this season as the champions take on Newcastle United, Burnley and local rivals Manchester United.

Aguero s injury thrusts Gabriel Jesus into the spotlight, giving the 22-year-old Brazil international an opportunity to build on his record of four league starts and three goals this term.

That City have a player of Jesus quality in reserve speaks volumes about the strength of Guardiola s squad, but with Liverpool…

that Arsenal and Liverpool are both ready to make a move for Iker Casillas, after the goalkeeper spoke of his desire to move to another country.

The 33 year old Spain international has spent has spent his entire career so far at the Bernabeu, racking up almost seven hundred appearances in all competitions and winning five league titles and three Champions Leagues amongst a host of other honours.

He also captained his country to success in both Euro 2008 and 2012, and the World Cup in 2010 and is in line to win his one hundred and fifty-eight cap in Thursday’s Euro 2016 qualifier in Slovakia.

Despite being dropped for La Liga games for the majority of last season and for the second half of the 2012/13 campaign, he has played in all but of their seven match…