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Manuel Neuer is ready to face an aggressive Bayer Leverkusen side as Bayern Munich look to end a disappointing run of results at the BayArena on Saturday.

A 2-1 Bundesliga victory in March 2013 was the champions only win in their last eight away games against Leverkusen in all competitions.

Bayern s preparations for the clash have been overshadowed by off-the-field news, with confirmation that Pep Guardiola will join Manchester City next season and media allegations concerning the behaviour of Arturo Vidal which prompted the Chile international to threaten legal action stealing the headlines, along with claims of a dressing-room mole unsettling the squad.

Neuer, however, is looking forward to playing under the floodlights in Leverkusen and is confident his side a…

Hatem Ben Arfa is not thinking about returning to the France squad following a series of impressive showings for Nice.

The 28-year-old signed for the Cote d Azur club in January 2015 after having his contract with Newcastle United terminated, but was ineligible to play until this season.

Ben Arfa has not featured for France since their 2-0 defeat to Sweden in Euro 2012, and, despite an upturn in form which sees him level with Marseille s Michy Batshuayi at the top of the Ligue 1 scoring charts, he is not thinking about an international recall.

Honestly, I don t think about it. My priority is to have fun with my team, Ben Arfa told Nice s official website.

If France need me then Didier Deschamps will call me. It s not in my head.

Ben Arfa…

Portugal made sure of a place in the Nations League Finals as they scraped a fortuitous 0-0 draw away to a dominant Italy on Saturday.

Fernando Santos side were outplayed throughout at San Siro, but the hosts wasted some presentable openings and were unable to make the most of their superiority, allowing Portugal to claim the point they needed to top League A Group 3.

Italy looked infinitely better than their visitors in the first half, with Marco Verratti and Jorginho in complete control, but the lead eluded them as Ciro Immobile spurned a couple of excellent opportunities.

While the pattern of the match remained much the same after the interval, the chances dried up for Italy and ultimately Portugal managed to cling on to the draw they needed, rendering their …

Liverpool winger Lazar Markovic has emerged as a transfer target for West Ham United, the has learned.

The Serbian international is currently playing on loan at Hull City, but is not expected to return to Anfield at the end of season. Markovic joined Reds from Benfica in 2014 for a hefty fee of £21.25 million, but never quite managed to repay the investment.

Markovic has been farmed out to Fenerbahce, Sporting Lisbon and Hull City respectively and he looks set to be offloaded by Liverpool as Jurgen Klopp appears not to be counting on the 23-year-old.

West Ham could offer Markovic a valuable lifeline as the Serbian hopes to remain in the Premier League once his loan spell with relegation-threatened Tigers ends.

The Hammers are reportedly willing to spla…

Burnley are interested in signing Albert Sambi Lokonga from Arsenal in the summer transfer window, according to in Belgium. The report has claimed that Burnley manager Vincent Kompany wants to bring the midfielder to Turf Moor for next season and beyond.

Manchester City legend Vincent Kompany led Burnley to automatic promotion from the Championship to the Premier League for next season. The Clarets played wonderful football and were by far the best team in the second their of English football.

Lokonga spent the second half of this season on on loan at Crystal Palace from Arsenal. The Belgium international midfielder moved to the Eagles on loan in the January transfer window. The 23-year-old made six starts and three substitute appearances in the Premier League for Pala…

Christophe Galtier angrily articulated his frustration about the latest Kylian Mbappe transfer speculation as the Paris Saint-Germain boss questioned why his point of view is never believed.

In his first season with PSG, Galtier has had to cope with reports and rumours of unrest within his squad, and this week saw newspaper claims from Spain that Mbappe is once again thinking about a future away from Paris.

That seemed improbable when the France striker signed a new contract in May, having been urged to do so by no less an authority than France s president, Emmanuel Macron.

The 23-year-old turned his back on a possible free transfer to Real Madrid, but he has at times appeared unhappy this season, and now there are suggestions he would welcome a move away from PS…

Shakhtar Donetsk joined Arsenal in qualifying for the last 16 of the Champions League from Group H after both sides posted victories on Wednesday.

Despite leading the English Premier League heading into the fixture, Arsenal were somewhat sluggish and were nearly held to an embarrassing home draw before two strikes in the last 20 minutes to Theo Walcott and Samir Nasri wrapped up victory.

In a game Arsenal were expected to win easily, they received a gift on 30 minutes when a penalty was awarded to the Londoners.

Robin van Persie wearing the captain s armband- scored his first goal since May with the resultant spot-kick, firing into the right-hand corner and giving Andriy Pyatov little chance in goal.

But just after half-time, Arsenal were stunned as Braz…

The fact they are thousands of miles from home will not dim the rivalry as Brazil and Argentina, seven World Cup wins between them, go up against each other in a friendly test in Doha.

After both nations flattered to deceive at the World Cup Argentina thrashed by Germany in the quarter-finals and Brazil coming up short against Holland it falls to respective coaches Mano Menezes and Sergio Batista to usher in a new era of success after replacing Dunga and Diego Maradona.

They get an early opportunity to establish their credentials in one of international football s most mouth-watering fixtures with Wednesday s meeting having the added bonus of being far from fanatical home crowds.

Both men have six months to work on their squads before they target glory in July s…

Alexis Sanchez has developed into a special all-round forward while at Arsenal, according to boss Arsene Wenger.

Chile star Sanchez netted his 26th goal in all competitions this season in the 4-1 rout of Stoke City on Saturday, while his exquisite pass for Mesut Ozil to score established him as the only player to have double figures in the Premier League for goals and assists this term.

The 27-year-old s future beyond the end of the campaign remains in doubt, even though Wenger remains confident he will sign an extension to a deal that expires in 2018.

Sanchez has been linked with a move to Manchester City, among other clubs, and his manager believes one of the hottest properties in Europe is a more complete player than when he moved to Emirates Stadium from Barc…

Keisuke Honda has confirmed he is to leave AC Milan at the end of the season, having scored against Bologna on Sunday.

Milan sealed a sixth-place finish and a spot in next season s Europa League with a 3-0 home Serie A victory, the Japan international netting their second after coming off the substitutes bench.

But Honda has only made seven league appearances this season, starting once, and will move on after the last match of the club s season against Cagliari on May 28.

My dearest Milan supporters, thank you, he said in a message on Twitter.

It has been a challenging three and a half years but because of that I have been able to grow as a person.

I will be leaving Milan after this season, but I look forward to seeing you again soon. 

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