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Manchester City continued their stuttering start to the Premier League season with a 1-1 draw at West Ham. 

The Hammers last beat City in September 2015 but Michail Antonio's magnificent overhead kick gave them an 18th-minute lead. 

City produced more of the ponderous play that saw them drop points against Leicester City and Leeds United until Phil Foden came off the bench to inspire their most convincing passage of the match. 

Foden struck a 51st-minute equaliser but, as they did in the first period, Pep Guardiola's side tailed off and even the appearance of a fit-again Kevin De Bruyne from the bench could not inspire a victory. 

City have eight points from five games and are 11th, below West Ham on goal difference.

Raheem Sterling drove at West Ham's defence amid a bright start from City, with Sergio Aguero's resulting shot deflected behind by Vladimir Coufal. 

Ilkay Gundogan was prominent early on, driving wide left footed before picking out Ruben Dias with a raking pass that the centre-back could not finish. 

But the opening goal came against the run of play - and spectacularly so - as Antonio outmuscled Dias to find a sensational finish from Coufal's cross, with Tomas Soucek's suspected handball in the build-up cleared by VAR. 

City were thoroughly lacklustre from the point they fell behind until half-time, although Foden's introduction in place of Aguero - potentially another addition to Guardiola's hefty injury list - changed the complexion of the contest. 

The England youngster injected some much-needed tempo into the visitors' play, not least when Joao Cancelo tore down the West Ham right and crossed for Foden to slot home a fine finish. 

West Ham also lost their centre-forward, Antonio limping out of the action just after the equaliser. His replacement Andriy Yarmolenko sent a dipping long-range effort just over in the 68th minute. 

De Bruyne thudded a free-kick into Lukasz Fabianski's chest 10 minutes and the point were shared when the West Ham goalkeeper thwarted Sterling in a one-on-one situation. 
 

What does it mean? City still off the pace 

Back-to-back wins over Arsenal and Porto have not ironed out the kinks that are preventing City from hitting their stride. In fact, much of this performance showed the slack vulnerabilities that have stained the past 18 months at the Etihad Stadium.

West Ham's goal should arguably have been disallowed, but the failure of the three City players in Soucek's immediate vicinity to play to the whistle was unforgivably careless. 

"Foden plus 10 more" 

When Bernardo Silva was in prime form during City's 2018-19 treble-winning campaign, Guardiola quipped his selection was a case of "Bernardo plus 10 more". There is evidence he should give Foden a similar status within his current crop. The 20-year-old has been involved in six goals in his past 10 appearances in all competitions, with four goals and two assists, while City have never lost in a match where he has found the net. They are a different team with Foden on the field. 

Dias left Ruben his ego 

Record signing Dias has made an impressively assured start to his City career. However, his penchant for no-nonsense defending was found wanting when Antonio bullied him for the opener. The Portugal international only won six of his 11 duels contested. 

Key Opta facts

- City have won just eight points from their five Premier League games this season – their lowest total at this stage of the season since 2014-15 (8).
- Guardiola has never lost against West Ham in his managerial career (P10 W9 D1 L0) – only Athletic Bilbao (14) and Burnley (11) he has faced more often without losing.
- The Hammers have lost just two of their last 10 Premier League games (W4 D4 L2), going unbeaten in each of the last four (W2 D2).
- David Moyes registered his first point against City in the Premier League since March 2013, when his Everton team recorded a 2-0 victory.
- Since the restart in June, only Harry Kane (12) has scored more Premier League goals than the in-form Antonio (11).

What's next 

City will look to make it two wins from two in the Champions League when they travel to Marseille in midweek, while West Ham have another tall task at Liverpool next weekend. Guardiola's side are next in Premier League action at Sheffield United. 

Bayern Munich have been hit with an injury scare over Alphonso Davies after the Canada star was forced off in the opening minutes of their Bundesliga clash with Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday.

Davies appeared to roll his right ankle while running without the ball, and without being tackled by an opposition player.

The 19-year-old left-back was replaced by Lucas Hernandez in the third minute, and was helped from the pitch by two members of Bayern's backroom staff.

Bayern boss Hansi Flick now faces a nervous wait to determine the severity of the injury.

In the short term at least, Davies' injury did not seem to disrupt Bayern's momentum as Robert Lewandowski opened the scoring inside 10 minutes.

However, with important games in the weeks to come, the German champions would be loath to lose one of last season's stand-out players.

After the weekend's action, Bayern return to the defence of their Champions League crown with a group-stage fixture away to Lokomotiv Moscow on Tuesday.

Bayern also play Koln and Red Bull Salzburg before a Klassiker trip to face Borussia Dortmund on November 7.

Davies had played in all of Bayern's games this season apart from the Bundesliga opener against Schalke.

He will be hoping to build on a superb breakthrough campaign in 2019-20. Davies announced himself to the world as he became a key component of Flick's treble-winning side, contributing three goals and 10 assists in all competitions from left-back.

The youngster has already emerged as a poster boy for football in Canada and, while Flick has admitted his form has dropped slightly in the new campaign, Davies knows he has his coach's full support.

“He is a good mentor and he talks to his players, especially his young players,” Davies has told the Bundesliga's official channel.

“He wants everybody to thrive at this club and him being the manager is good for everyone at this club. He is a down-to-earth guy and he was a player once, so he knows what we go through and how hard it is to play this game, especially with the schedule we have right now.

“We are playing every three days and it is not easy. It is truly a blessing that he is there for all the players.”

Rhian Brewster only took 10 seconds to convince a Chelsea scout that the Blues had to sign him at the age of seven, according to his former coach.

Now 20, the England youth star is looking to make an impact in the Premier League this season with Sheffield United – starting with a return to former club Liverpool on Saturday.

Brewster was first spotted as a youngster by Chelsea scout Martin Tyler, playing for Shield Academy in Barkingside, in north-east London.

His former coach Daniel Seymour told the Sun about the 10 seconds of magic which earned the young Brewster the chance to sign for Chelsea.

He said: “I remember Rhian’s first match, I asked him to stand in in midfield. He was clueless and had no idea what I was asking.

“He stood on the edge of the area in this seven-a-side game, looking like he didn’t know what was going on.

“All of a sudden, the kick-off happened and the ball went to him and I thought, ‘What’s he going to do?’

“And the first thing Rhian did in the first ten seconds was take the ball past every single player, walk it in, pick the ball up and put it on the spot again.

“Martin came over and stood next to me and asked where he was from. It was at that exact moment, he decided Rhian had to be a Chelsea player.”

Brewster excelled when sent out on loan to the Championship last season, scoring 11 goals in 22 games for Swansea.

However, he eventually joined Sheffield United in a club-record £23.5 million ($30m) deal this summer, hoping to find regular first-team football in the top flight.

Brewster made a similar step as a teenager, opting to leave Chelsea for Liverpool as he felt his development would be better served at Anfield.

“What happened with Chelsea was Rhian got more frustrated around the developmental chances,” Seymour said.

“He felt like, ‘Is there going to be a pathway for me at Chelsea?’ He felt that wasn’t the case. His mum and dad explained the impact of moving and the massive changes.

“When Liverpool came in, I think there were loads of reasons he wanted to join. Not just around the club, the history, but his dad’s a lifelong fan.”

Arsene Wenger has explained that the reason he made no mention of long-time rival Jose Mourinho in his autobiography is because the Tottenham manager is still working, citing the same reason for omitting Liverpool's Jurgen Klopp and Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola.

Wenger, who is currently employed by FIFA as their chief of global football development, has spent many years locked in a war of words with Mourinho, with the latter most notably referring to his opposite number as a 'specialist in failure'.

Following the release of Wenger's book, 'My Life In Red And White', Mourinho continued the barbs when asked why he thought he was not included, claiming that his dominant win record over the Frenchman was likely the cause.

“You are not going to do a chapter about 12 or 14 matches and never win one so why should he speak about me in his book?” he told the press. “A book is a thing to make you happy, to make you proud so I understand perfectly the situation.”

Wenger responded by saying that he feels like he is “in kindergarten” with Mourinho, but has now revealed that the Portuguese was left out purely out of respect for the fact that he is still currently active in the game.

“It's why in the book I only speak about [former Man Utd boss Sir Alex] Ferguson – because we are not in the job anymore,” the 71-year-old said in an interview with the Daily Mail. “Ferguson was a bad loser, just like me.

“I didn't want to talk about managers like Mourinho, Jurgen Klopp or Pep Guardiola, who are still in a job.”

Wenger generally cuts a calming figure but admits that his heated battles with the likes of Mourinho left him with regrets regarding his behaviour during his time as a representative of the Gunners.

“I think I managed 1,235 games for Arsenal,” he said. “And I controlled myself for 1,225. The other 10, well...

“But every time I regretted it because I hadn't behaved as I should and I felt responsibility towards the club for that.

“Sometimes I thought I was provoked or resented the behaviour of someone else. Some games I went in with an aggressive level above what it should be, so it didn't take much to go overboard.”

Wenger added that he remains open to returning to management should the right role become available and could not resist one final mischievous jibe at his old foe.

“I will return [to England] one day,” he smiled. “Apparently Tottenham have a fantastic new stadium – I've been invited by [Spurs chairman] Daniel Levy.”

Phil Foden admits Manchester City are disappointed to have seen more points slip through their grasp in a 1-1 draw at West Ham, with Pep Guardiola’s side needing to work on their finishing.

Things could have been worse for the Blues were it not for the half-time introduction of an England international.

Foden cancelled out Michail Antonio’s spectacular opener within six minutes of stepping off the bench.

City had plenty of chances to find a second after that strike, with 14 shots fired in by the visitors across 90 minutes at the London Stadium.

Guardiola’s side also saw almost 70 per cent of the ball, but that dominance could not be converted into a welcome win and it is a case of going back to the drawing board for Foden and Co.

The 20-year-old midfielder told BT Sport afterwards: “We came out second half playing a lot quicker and more aggressive. I think we need to work on finishing our chances and we should be OK.

“We started slow in the first-half and weren't passing quick enough. We didn't have a good tempo but the manager spoke well at half-time and we played much better second half.

“I enjoy scoring goals and I want to continue this form. It's nice to be playing as much as possible. I love this club and I love playing for them.”

Foden added on a third outing of City’s 2020-21 Premier League campaign that has seen them drop points: “It was a frustrating game. We had enough chances to win it but we’re disappointed we couldn’t get the second goal.

“We knew they were in good form going into the game, which is something the manager touched on beforehand. Their goalkeeper kept them in it, but we were just unlucky today.

“It’s been a strange year. A lot of games are coming quickly so maybe some players are feeling it. Everyone has the ability to make an impact.

“We would like to get the points today, I think we played very well and controlled most of the game.

“Very disappointed to not win the game but we will get over it tomorrow and improve on things for the next game.”

Stalemate in east London has left City 11th in the English top-flight table, with a Champions League trip to Marseille next on their agenda.

Mohammedan Sporting have announced Jose Carlos Rodriguez Hevia as their head coach for the 2020-21 I-League on Saturday.

The 48-year-old previously held the post of technical director of coaching and youth development at Shillong Lajong FC until August this year.

Having started his coaching career in Spain with clubs such as UD San Claudio, CD Manuel Rubio and A.D.Gigantes, Jose's first expedition in India was as technical director of the Arsenal Soccer Schools based in Pune back in 2014. During this stint, he was also associated with the FC Pune City (now Hyderabad FC) support staff.

Jose joined Minerva Punjab in 2017, from where the UEFA Pro Licence holder provided his expertise in the football development program in Bhopal as part of the joint venture between Madhya Bharat Sports Club and Celtic Soccer Academy before excelling in the Meghalyan football circuit - winning the Meghalaya State League and Shillong Premier League with Lajong in 2019.

Mohammedan qualified for the I-League after a long wait of seven years wherein assistant Syed Ramon saw the Kolkata-based outfit pull off an unbeaten run in the final round of the qualifiers. The club had sacked head coach Yan Law after just two matches.

As reported by Goal, the new season of the I-League is likely to start on January 7 and will not have the likes of Mohun Bagan and East Bengal who have now joined the Indian Super League (ISL).

Ansu Fati has cemented himself in El Clasico history by becoming the youngest player to score in the Barcelona vs Real Madrid derby in the 21st century at just 17 years and 359 days old.

Saturday's showpiece lived up to its billing in the early stages, with Federico Valverde opening the scoring after latching onto Karim Benzema's through-ball with only five minutes on the clock.

It took Fati a mere three minutes to restore partity at Camp Nou, however, finding himself on the end of a fine cut-back from Jordi Alba to level things at 1-1.

In doing so, the youngster reserved his place in Clasico folklore as the youngest ever to find the net in the historical fixture this century in La Liga.

Fati's feat is the second time this year that the record has been broken, with Vinicius Jr having done so in March at 19 years and 233 days old.

The previous best was held by none other than Barcelona icon Lionel Messi, who burst out of the blocks in his first Barca vs Madrid grudge match as he bagged all three goals in a thrilling 3-3 draw.

Fati's seemingly endless talent has been evident for some time now despite his tender years, with some pundits going so far as to name him the natural successor to club captain Messi.

Indeed, the winger found himself making headlines in this season's Champions League as he became the first ever player under the age of 18 to score more than once in the European competition. 

More to follow...

Pep Guardiola is still waiting on an update regarding the injury picked up by Sergio Aguero against West Ham, with the Manchester City boss more concerned at seeing two points dropped in a 1-1 draw.

The Blues have taken just eight points from the 15 on offer through the opening five games of their 2020-21 campaign.

That return has them sat 11th in the table, while they now face the prospect of being without their all-time leading goalscorer for the foreseeable future after seeing Aguero forced off against the Hammers.

Asked about his Argentine frontman on the back of a frustrating afternoon against the Hammers, Guardiola told BT Sport: “Injury. No, I don't know [what it is].

“It looks like a muscular injury.”

City are far from being the only title hopefuls to have suffered an inconsistent start to their domestic campaign this season, but Guardiola admits that his side have work to do after finding a winning formula elusive once again in the East End.

He said, after seeing half-time substitute Phil Foden cancel out a spectacular opener from Michail Antonio: “We started really good, we concede a goal the first time they arrive. They defend so deep and we had the chance at the end to score the goal. Now we move forward.

“I think we didn't play bad except for the last 10 minutes of the first half. They have many players arriving in the box, we had periods of that but we had the chances to score and we didn't.

“We started really well. We suffered in the last 10 or 15 minutes of the first half. In the second half we were better and scored early. We had the chances we needed to win the game, but unfortunately we couldn’t score.

“We created enough. Their defenders were defending so deep so it’s difficult to find spaces, but we had the chances.

“I’m not a guy who can predict the future. We’ve already dropped seven points, which is a lot. But we’ve struggled a lot for many reasons. We have to take things game by game and see what happens.”

Miralem Pjanic has hit out at Maurizio Sarri, saying the former Juventus coach didn’t trust his players and questioned their professionalism.

Sarri lasted only one season in Turin and, while he won Juve a ninth consecutive Serie A title, he was sacked after being knocked out of the Champions League by Lyon.

Pjanic eventually followed him out of the club, and could make his Clasico debut for new club Barcelona on Saturday – but his experience with Sarri still rankles.

“What I still regret now is that Sarri did not trust the players, which concerned me,” Pjanic told Tuttosport.

“It is a shame when you evaluate people wrong; every player in that dressing room always gave and will always give their best for the club and for the team.

“You might not get along with one or two players, but this would never affect their commitment because every player wants to win. They are incredible professionals who want to pursue their goal.

“Well, if the coach questions this, then that spark which the president talks about doesn’t happen. Nobody doubts Sarri’s qualities as a coach, but there was that problem.

“In the end, though, we took home another Scudetto which is never something to be taken for granted.”

In moving from Juve to Barca, Pjanic became one of a select few footballers to have played alongside both Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

“Incredible,” he said of the pair. “In the truest sense of the word, because in a few years, when they have retired, we will realise what goals they have reached, what level their football has been at, what kind of unattainable champions they are.”

Over the summer, Juventus were also interested in a move for Pjanic’s international team-mate, Edin Dzeko, but the deal eventually fell through as they moved for Alvaro Morata instead.

“It would have been a pleasure to see a Bosnian at Juve after me,” Pjanic said.

“I know they were very close, I was in contact with him. I explained to him what Juventus was like, where the club was going. I don't know exactly what happened, it is not my concern.”

One out of two. 

As Malaysia anticipated two Malaysian professional footballers to get their European bow in the early hours of Saturday morning, only one of those wishes were fulfilled.

Safawi Rasid was not part of the Portimonense squad that lost 1-0 to Tondela as the spotlight fell on 18-year-old Luqman Hakim who got his very first minutes of Belgium top flight football.

Kortrijk were already trailing 3-0 at home to Anderlecht currently under the guidance of former Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany when Yves Vanderhaeghe called upon the club's number nine to get ready for duty.

Luqman was introduced with 15 minutes of normal time left to play and Vanderhaeghe asked the youngster to operate wide right.

The instructions for the Malaysian Under-23 international were to keep it simple as Luqman got into good positions and did not take more than a few touches before releasing the ball to a teammate.

He was part of the move that earned Kortrijk a spot kick which Ilombe Mboyo converted in the 87th minute and showed plenty of enthusiasm in his pressing.

There could yet be more opportunities for Luqman in the future with Vanderhaeghe seemingly rather impressed with what the youngster have shown in training and well and in friendly matches before

"Luqman is really making progress and also scored the winning goal with the reserves at Beerschot. He shows really beautiful things in training, especially in the finish. 

"He is very focused and has a lot of speed. When he can make his debut depends on who is fit. Maybe he can do that tonight. He's not ready to play 90 minutes yet. 

"He is also small in stature, but if we need someone to counterattack , he can certainly take care of it," said Vanderhaeghe before the match.

The defeat left Kortrijk in 8th spot and will travel to Zulte Waregem in the next match that will be played on November 3.

Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson says Virgil van Dijk has “radiated positivity” at the club since suffering his potentially season-ending injury against Everton last week.

Jurgen Klopp’s side are looking to regroup without their star defender and started positively in midweek, with Fabinho stepping into defence and impressing in the 1-0 win away at Ajax.

Henderson accepts Liverpool face a challenge without the Dutchman, but insists his side won’t keep feeling sorry for themselves about it.

“He’s the best defender in the world. Of course he is,” Henderson wrote in Liverpool’s matchday programme.

“I think I’d go further and say he’s in the running for the best player in the world, regardless of position.

“But it’s his presence and personality that will leave a hole on matchdays and in the training sessions. As important as the fans think he is, to us as team-mates it’s even more so.

“It was typical of Virgil that after digesting the news, one of the first messages he sent to us – all of us – was upbeat and inspirational. The exact content will of course remain private, but there wasn’t one word in there feeling sorry for himself. It was all about looking ahead and making sure he comes back better and stronger.

“Likewise, when he came to Melwood on Tuesday he just radiated positivity. That’s the big man. And it’s on us to take his lead and only think about the positive impact we can all have from this moment on.”

Henderson also believes Liverpool are well-stocked when it comes to stand-ins for Van Dijk during his absence.

“I look at the players we have who can play that position and I wouldn’t swap them for anyone else. Joe Gomez, Joel Matip and Fabinho are international-quality players who have produced for us as a team time and time again.

“Nat Phillips is nearly back to full fitness and has the making to be a very good centre-half. Rhys Williams has impressed me so much with his attitude and his mentality. Billy Koumetio and Sepp van den Berg likewise. All learning in the best environment there is.

“Are any of them Virgil van Dijk? No... but they don’t need to be. They just need to be themselves and give everything they have for this club, be it in training or when called upon in games. And the rest of us have to be there to help.”

Al Ahly coach Pitso Mosimane insists his players are yet to reach the competitive level he desires despite reaching the Caf Champions League final following a 5-1 aggregate victory over Wydad Casablanca.

The Cairo giants dismissed Wydad 3-1 in the semi-final, second leg encounter at Cairo International Stadium on Friday courtesy of goals from Marwan Mohsen, Yasser Ibrahim and Hussein El Shahat.

Zouhair El-Moutaraji struck back for Wydad’s consolation goal.

Friday's result was a follow up to a 2-0 away victory in Casablanca six days earlier, but Mosimane is still to be pleased with the manner in which his players executed themselves, saying they “still have a lot of work to do.”

“We had an overall good performance but we played better in the first leg than in Egypt,” Mosimane said after the game as per Al Ahram.

“We haven't reached the performance I want from the players, even concerning our passing game. We still have a lot of work to do, we will turn Wydad's page and start preparing for the final.”

Having completed the double over Wydad, this marks a turnaround in fortunes for Mosimane who struggled to beat Wydad with his former club Mamelodi Sundowns in recent years.

Passing the semi-final hurdle saw Al Ahly reaching their third Champions League final in four years after losing to Wydad in 2017 and then to Tunisian giants Esperance in 2018.

The eight-time African champions last won the Champions League in 2013 after beating Orlando Pirates.

“Ahly have reached the final several times over the past seven years but they weren't lucky. I hope this time God will help us,” said Mosimane.

The former Downs coach is just four weeks into the Al Ahly job and is seeking a second Champions League title while the Egyptian giants are bidding for a ninth elite continental crown.

Mosimane is yet to taste defeat while at the helm of the reigning Egyptian Premier League champions.

Al Ahly now await the result between Zamalek and Raja Casablanca in another semi-final encounter.

The match has been postponed by Caf after eight Raja players tested positive for the coronavirus. Zamalek lead 1-0 from the first leg played away in Morocco.

Sofapaka FC defender Mike Kibwage has revealed opponents will have a tough time playing against his side once the 2020/21 Kenyan Premier League (KPL) season starts. 

The Nairobi-based charges have been strengthening the team ahead of the forthcoming campaign and the former KCB defender is among the new players on board. The 22-year-old has also explained why John Baraza is rated as one of the best upcoming coaches in the country.

"[Baraza] is very good at his job and he is always free with players," Kibwage told Goal on Saturday.

"He knows how to relate with all players and since I moved in, I find it easy to settle in his environment. He is so understanding, concerned, and very wise.

"[Baraza] is also tactical; if you have not understood something, he will come and explain to you until it sinks in. On a good day, his tactics will cause problems to opponents meaning Sofapaka will cause problems to teams."

The youngster will also be working with former Kakamega Homeboyz coach Mike Mururi who is working under Baraza.

"I am happy to get a chance to work with Mururi again," Kibwage, who also played for AFC Leopards, revealed.

"While at Mukumu High School, I had a chance to work with him, at the time I was with Kakamega Homeboyz's U20 team.

"I like him because he dwells more on defending and since I am a defender, his training sessions are a blessing to me since I learn every day."

Apart from Kibwage, the 2009 league winners have signed seven more players in the current transfer window - Lawrence Juma from Gor Mahia, veteran striker Paul Kiongera, former APR Rwanda captain Isaac Mitima, Nigerian Michael Karamor, Michael Bodo, Roy Okal, and Kevin Omondi.  

Club president Elly Kalekwa revealed they are not yet done bringing in players.

"We have done most of the business in the current transfer window and we are almost there," Kalekwa told Goal on Saturday.

"But we are in the market for one more player; a defensive midfielder to help balance our team. Once we manage to get him, we will be done.

"Of course we have identified our target and we are negotiating, hoping to bring him on board. But if it does not happen, I think we can still do with what we have."

Ugandan Premier League champions Vipers SC have confirmed the St. Mary’s Stadium is ready to host and offer classic services during international matches.

The Ugandan national team is expected to face South Sudan at the Kitende facility for the Group B match of the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifier in mid-November.

“St. Mary’s Kitende Stadium is poised to offer nothing short of top-class service and amenities when it hosts two continental fixtures later this year,” Vipers statement read.

Caf has approved St. Mary’s to host international matches and the Afcon qualifier is set to be the first high-level engagement there. Caf inspectors Emmanuel Newton Dasoberi and Daniel Owofen Amokachi gave the green light for St Mary’s to host those games early in the year. Since then, Vipers have gone on to make major improvements to the facility.

Uganda, who took a week-long training camp trip in Dubai during the international break, will host the northern neighbours for the third match of the group.

They are leading with four points after an away goalless draw against Burkina Faso and a 2-0 win over Malawi at home.

“This great news [Caf approval] comes in a time when the stadium has just undergone upgrades following the expansion of its VIP wing where more seats were added in June 2020, among other things to give it a whole new different look,” the club added.

The South Sudan encounter will be the second match for the Cecafa record champions at St. Mary’s as the first one was the African Nations Championship (Chan) 2018 qualifier between Uganda and the Amavubi of Rwanda.

“The facilities; from the turf, dressing rooms, parking and routes to the stadium are all set and we are excited to welcome everyone at our home,” St. Mary’s Kitende Stadium manager Edward Junior Mulindwa said.

“We have been working and improving on many things in the past few months and we can confirm most of it is done as we prepare for the coming season as well.”

Mandela National Stadium in Namboole and the StarTimes Stadium in Lugogo have always hosted Uganda international matches but the Kitende stadium will now provide a better alternative.

Vipers will also host the Champions League rivals at their own home. They have done this before when they played Platinum Stars of South Africa, El Merriekh of Sudan, Algeria’s CS Constantine and Tunisia’s CS Sfaxien.

Former Real Madrid midfielder Mutiu Adepoju believes the Blancos and Barcelona stand an equal chance in El Clasico on Saturday.

Zinedine Zidane’s side go to Camp Nou on the back of two straight losses – a 3-2 defeat to Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League and a 1-0 loss to newly-promoted Cadiz in their last La Liga outing.

Barcelona, on the other hand, suffered a 1-0 loss against Getafe in a league game last Saturday but they recovered with a 5-1 win over Ferencvaros in their first Champions League match this season.

Ahead of Saturday’s encounter at Camp Nou, Adepoju predicts a tough outing which would be decided regardless of their previous results.

“El Clasico is another game entirely and the form of both teams doesn't matter,” Adepoju told Goal . “It is unfortunate that Real Madrid lost their last two games but El Clasico is always a keenly contested match.

“Although Barcelona won their Champions League match during the week, they lost their last league game too so it does not matter. It does not matter who is in winning form.”

Zidane is reportedly under-fire at Real Madrid after back-to-back defeats, but Adepoju who spent three years at the Santiago Bernabeu, thinks a win on Saturday might ease the pressure at the helm.

“He shouldn't be [under pressure] but looking at the way things are at the moment with the kind of board at Real Madrid, even at Barcelona if you lose games consecutively, there would be questions and there might be pressure,” he continued.

“It could be that Zidane's job will be under pressure with this game.

“Every game is a new opportunity, and this kind of game is one that can revive the team. If they win it, it will down the tension and make people believe in them. Definitely, if they win, the pressure will be reduced.”

Real Madrid are third in the La Liga table with 10 points after five matches while Barcelona are 10th with seven points with four games.

Simba SC midfielder Clatous Chama has assured the club’s fans they will bounce back in a historic way after losing their first Mainland Premier League match.

The Wekundu wa Msimbazi suffered a shock 1-0 defeat against Tanzania Prisons on Thursday, to drop to third position on the log, eight points behind table-toppers Azam FC.

Chama, who was voted the best player and midfielder of the year in the 2019-20 campaign, has now taken to his social media pages to assure fans they will bounce back.

“The comeback will be historical,” Chama wrote on his social media pages. “We are Simba.”

While the defeat against Prisons was painful, the club also suffered a blow after defender Shomari Kapombe joined the growing list of injured players at the club.

Kapombe was stretchered off during their match against Tanzania Prisons as Simba went on to lose their first match of the season 1-0 and also relinquish second position to rivals Yanga on the 18-team table.

Goal can now reveal Kapombe has joined the list of injured players at the Wekundu wa Msimbazi, others being striker and captain John Bocco, Meddie Kagere, Chris Mugali, and Gerson Fraga.

Simba coach Sven Vandenbroeck has maintained a brave face, insisting losing the match was not a big issue but all he wants to see is how his players will respond to the defeat.

“We have to accept and move on and I have already asked my players to shift focus to the next league match,” Vandenbroeck is quoted by the club’s official website.

“In football, we have three results, you either win, lose or draw and it has happened that we lost our match, and it means we start preparations there and then for the next match and that is what I have told the boys, they should not cry over spilt milk, they should dust themselves up and focus.”

The defeat also came after Simba had picked up a 4-0 win against JKT Tanzania before the break. Their next two matches will be against Ruvu Shooting and Mwadui FC before facing Yanga in the Kariakoo Derby on November 7.

Simba will next face Ruvu Shooting on Monday.

Manuel Neuer kept a record-breaking 200th clean sheet for Bayern Munich against Atletico Madrid in midweek , and the former record holder has backed him to keep 100 more.

Bayern legend Sepp Maier recorded 199 shut-outs for the Bundesliga giants in 651 appearances between 1962 and 1980, but has seen Neuer overhaul his total in just 394 games.

Now 34, Neuer has recovered his best form after a difficult spell, and came third in the UEFA Player of the Year award for 2019-20 .

"I am sure that he can even go past 300 clean sheets. He can do that," Maier told Sport1 . "He will still perform outstandingly at the age of 39. I trust him to do that."

However, even the German goalkeeping icon admitted Neuer isn’t the only man to thank for Bayern’s defensive prowess.

"Neuer is not the only one to thank for keeping so many clean sheets,” Maier said. “The defence has a 50 per cent share in it.

“If they know that they have a good goalkeeper behind them, they automatically play better. If there's a liability in goal, that's bad for the defenders. But with Neuer they know he's world class, so the ball can go through to him.”

Neuer’s long-term future at the Allianz Arena seemed to be in doubt this year. In signing Alexander Nubel from Schalke , Bayern bought one of Germany’s most highly-rated young keepers.

Nubel made his debut in the DFB-Pokal win over fifth-tier FC Duren earlier this month, but Maier thinks the 24-year-old should have been sent straight back out on loan.

"The transfer made sense from Bayern's point of view. He's a great talent, but he should have been loaned out straight away because he has to play regularly.

"It would have been best to go back to Schalke. That would have been the best way to get match practice. Bayern already had a great number two in Sven Ulreich.

“I think Manuel wants to play every game - and that's right. He always plays well, so why should he sit out [cup games]?

“I can't sympathise with a goalkeeper only playing in the cup. I always wanted to play. You just have this ambition as a goalkeeper. It doesn't matter whether you're 21 or 39 years old. It was the same with Oliver Kahn.”

Kenya international Michael Olunga scored his 23rd goal of the J1 League current season in Kashiwa Reysol's 2-1 loss to Gamba Osaka on Saturday.

An own goal from Kim Seung-Gyu and then Ademilson Junior’s goal was enough for the hosts to grab the win while a goal by Olunga denied them a clean sheet.

After the first half ended in a 0-0 draw, Seung-Gyu’s unfortunate own goal in the 52nd minute broke the deadlock before second half entrant Junior scored the winning goal for Gamba Osaka in the 89th minute.

Olunga, the clear leader in the Golden Boot race, scored the only goal for Kashiwa Reysol in the 80th minute but a late concession denied them at least a point away from home.

He scored his 22nd goal of the season against Shonan Bellmare when they were defeated 3-2 on October 18.

Olunga has been in impressive goalscoring form in the J1 League after he found the back of the net with a brace to help Kashiwa Reysol down Vissel Kobe 4-3 on October 10.

It was the second straight time that the former Tusker and Thika United striker scored a league brace as he had achieved the same feat against Yokohama FC on October 1.

His form is expected to be key in Kenya’s Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) back-to-back qualification quest.

Harambee Stars head coach Jacob ‘Ghost’ Mulee said he is hopeful the former Thika United and Gor Mahia striker could be available for the Comoros November double-header.

He did not travel for the Zambia friendly which Kenya hosted and defeated Chipolopolo 1-0 at Nyayo Stadium on October 9.

“I am happy our top striker Michael [Olunga] called to congratulate me on my appointment. He’s promised to turn up for us against Comoros. It is an exciting moment for most of the players,” Mulee told Goal recently.

“It is a tricky situation now dealing with foreign-based players, I say tricky because some clubs will not want [or will not be comfortable] to release their players to honour national team duty owing to the Covid-19 restrictions.”

The Saturday win saw Gamba Osaka go third with 48 points while Olunga’s side is eighth with 37 points after 24 games.