Tag: Manchester City

Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jobe Bellingham is gradually making his mark after a slow start ahead of his return to England to face Manchester City on Wednesday.

Jobe joined Dortmund in the summer, aged 19, for a reported fee of 30.5 million euros ($35 million) from Sunderland, among the most expensive transfers in Dortmund’s history.

Jobe followed in the footsteps of his brother Jude, who moved to the Westfalenstadion five years earlier, aged 17.

Jude became one of the most sought-after players at Dortmund and is now a true superstar after moving to Real Madrid in 2023.

While Jobe has returned to England to play for the under-21s side he captains, Wednesday’s match will be his first on English soil for his new club.

Like City, Dortmund sit in the top eight, having won two and drawn one of their three Champions League games so far.

The younger Bellingham understood a move to Dortmund would provoke comparisons with Jude, but felt the club offered the best place for him to develop.

Like he did at Sunderland, the younger Bellingham has ‘Jobe’ on his jersey rather than his last name, due to his famous brother.

On arriving in Dortmund, Jobe admitted that pre-season comparisons with his older brother were on his mind.

“It’s something you do think about. You have these anxieties, especially me, as I’m only young,” he told reporters, adding, “I’m not perfect. I do think about these things.”

With Jude’s exploits in black and yellow fresh in the mind, Jobe took longer than many expected to find his feet in Germany.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

A decent Club World Cup showing, Jobe started three games, scoring a goal and assisting another before missing a showdown with his brother due to a yellow card suspension, was followed by a more difficult time when the season started.

Jobe was hooked at half-time in his opening Bundesliga game. Jobe’s father and agent Mark confronted Dortmund sporting director Sebastian Kehl in the player tunnel after the match.

The incident forced Dortmund to publicly reiterate “the active area is and remains reserved for players, coaches and management, not families and advisors.”

Jobe started his next league match but was then benched, only picking up minutes in the dying stages of matches and failing to record any goals or assists during his brief cameos.

In mid-October at Bayern Munich, Jobe made a high-profile error, failing to clear the ball off the goal line, allowing Michael Olise to score what would eventually be the winner.

The setback seemed to spark the midfielder, however. Three days later, Jobe started in the Champions League at Copenhagen, laying on two assists in a 4-2 win.

On Tuesday, Jobe helped create Dortmund’s equaliser in a German Cup clash at Eintracht Frankfurt, which his side won on penalties.

And last Friday, the 20-year-old put his body on the line late to block a potential equaliser in the dying stages of a hard-fought 1-0 win at Augsburg.

A Dortmund source told German tabloid Bild on Monday that Jobe was in line to start against City.

While the noise had grown louder around Jobe, perhaps also from inside the Bellingham family itself, Dortmund feel his development is not lagging, but actually ahead of schedule.

READ: Trent should be remembered for ‘great’ Liverpool moments, says Slot

Erling Haaland said Manchester City must show more energy to end their miserable run on the road in the Champions League after twice blowing the lead in a 2-2 draw at Monaco.

Haaland scored both the visitors’ goals at the Stade Louis II to take his tally for the season to 17 in just 10 appearances for club and country.

Monaco rallied to level through a wonder strike by Jordan Teze, and Eric Dier’s late penalty secured a point for the Ligue 1 side.

“I’m pissed off, I think everyone should be,” Haaland told the BBC. “It’s not good enough.”

City have failed to win away from home in Europe for a year, although a point did at least snap a run of four consecutive Champions League defeats on the road.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

Pep Guardiola’s men were dumped out before the last-16 stage last season for the first time since the 2012/13 campaign.

City scraped into the play-off round despite winning just three of their eight league phase games before a 6-3 humbling by Real Madrid over two legs.

Haaland was frustrated by his side’s approach as they tried to protect their slender lead in the second half in Monaco rather than seeking to kill the game off.

“Of course I don’t feel good, we didn’t win,” he added.

“We do something unnecessarily in the second half and we don’t think we played good enough. We don’t deserve to win.

“We need more energy. We need to get at them more as we did in the first half and dominated much more.”

City sit eighth in the Champions League table with four points from their opening two games.

Guardiola’s men face a tough run in Europe before the end of 2025 with trips to Villarreal and Real Madrid, while German teams Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund visit the Etihad.

READ: Atletico thrash La Liga leaders Real Madrid in gripping derby

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola said Erling Haaland can become the all-time top goalscorer of the Champions League after reaching 50 in record time in the 2-0 win over 10-man Napoli.

Haaland reached his half-century in Europe’s elite competition in just 49 appearances before Jeremy Doku ensured Guardiola’s men got their quest for Champions League glory off to a winning start.

“The numbers speak for themselves and how fortunate we are to have him,” said Guardiola.

Haaland moved to 12th in the all-time scoring Champions League scoring charts and is barely over a third of the way to Cristiano Ronaldo’s record 141 goals.

But Guardiola believes the 25-year-old has time on his side to reach that milestone.

“Along with the two monsters of the past 15 to 20 years, Ronaldo and (Lionel) Messi, Erling is there. In terms of goals, he is unbelievable,” added Guardiola.

“In that rhythm, he can break the record. If he can play 10 to 12 more years and maintain this progression, absolutely.”

There was no fairytale return to the Etihad for Kevin De Bruyne as his night was cut short after just 26 minutes as a result of Giovanni Di Lorenzo’s early dismissal.

De Bruyne was welcomed back like a hero just months after departing as one of City’s greatest players in the club’s history.

The Belgian’s name rang around the Etihad before kick-off, while a series of banners paid homage to the man who contributed nearly 300 goals or assists in 422 matches during his time in Manchester.

However, Antonio Conte showed no room for sentiment as he sacrificed the 34-year-old to bolster his defence with the introduction of Mathías Olivera.

“I was very sorry I had to make that substitution. I also knew by taking him off, we were going to miss some of the things he could give us,” said Conte.

“But I don’t really see that I had any other option. He understood why I had to make that decision.”

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

The game-changing moment came when Di Lorenzo made a desperate lunge to prevent Haaland from running clear on goal and wiped out the Norwegian on 21 minutes.

Referee Felix Zwayer initially thought the defender had got a touch on the ball but was instructed by VAR to review and correct his error.

Napoli held firm until half-time thanks to some spectacular goalkeeping from Vanja Milinkovic-Savic.

The Serbian, who had a brief spell early in his career at Manchester United, produced excellent saves to deny Rodri, Nico O’Riley, and Josko Gvardiol.

Even when Milinkovic-Savic appeared beaten in first-half stoppage time, Matteo Politano got back on the line to block Tijjani Reijnders’ goalbound effort.

There was only one outcome once the Napoli rearguard was eventually breached 11 minutes into the second half.

Phil Foden’s flick found Haaland, who looped a header over Milinkovic-Savic for his 12th goal in seven games for club and country this season.

Doku then delivered the knockout blow with a brilliant individual run past three Napoli defenders before slotting coolly under the onrushing goalkeeper.

Ahead of a trip to title rivals Arsenal on Sunday, Guardiola could afford the luxury of resting Haaland and Rodri during the closing stages, which resembled a training exercise as City stroked the ball around at will.

Conte conceded the Italian champions were happy just to limit the damage in what is likely to be their toughest trip of the league phase.

“We didn’t want to come out of this humiliated, because it could have happened,” added Conte.

“They could have pulled our pants down and lost 5-0 or 6-0, and we avoided that thanks to our attitude.”

READ: Marcus Rashford bags brace to help Barcelona defeat Newcastle

Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim said on Friday that goalkeeper Altay Bayindir will keep his place for this weekend’s derby at Manchester City despite the arrival of Senne Lammens.

Goalkeeping woes have been at the heart of another sluggish start to the season for the Red Devils.

Bayindir has played all three Premier League games so far but was criticised for his part in goals scored by Arsenal and Burnley at Old Trafford.

Andre Onana started United’s embarrassing League Cup exit to fourth-tier Grimsby but has since been shipped out on loan to Turkish club Trabzonspor.

Lammens, 23, joined from Royal Antwerp for a reported initial fee of £18 million ($24 million) on September 1.

Amorim said the Belgian would compete to be his number one but is wary of throwing him in at the deep end against City at the Etihad.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

“We are really pleased. He’s a goalkeeper with a lot of potential. We are in the moment that we have to look at the present but also with the focus on the future. So it’s a little bit of both,” said Amorim on Lammens.

“Altay is going to continue because it’s a different league, it’s a different country, different trainings, different ball, so we’ll try to maintain that (consistency of selection) and they will fight for the position.”

Victory at the Etihad last season was one of Amorim’s few Premier League success stories last season.

Despite taking just four points from their opening three games, there have been small signs of improvement in United’s Premier League performances, either side of the Grimsby debacle.

And Amorim believes his side are better than when they beat their cross-city rivals in December, a month after he took over.

“I think we are a better team. I think if you see any aspect, if you see the data, we are a different team,” he said.

“We are ready to play the game, but we have to show it on Sunday.”

Matheus Cunha, Mason Mount, and Diogo Dalot have been ruled out of Sunday’s clash due to injury.

READ: Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana joins Trabzonspor on loan

German midfielder Ilkay Gundogan on Tuesday signed for Galatasaray from Manchester City on a free transfer, both teams announced.

The 34-year-old has agreed a deal until the end of the 2026-27 season with the Turkish champions.

“Manchester City will always hold a special place in my heart,” said Gundogan, who played 358 games in two spells at City, scoring 65 goals.

“We have enjoyed so much success in our time together and there have been so many unforgettable moments, not least being captain for the Treble-winning season.

“To win the Premier League and FA Cup trophies meant so much to me, but to then be afforded the opportunity of lifting the Champions League trophy for this club for the first time, especially in Istanbul, will live with me forever.

“I have no doubts Manchester City will enjoy much more success in the future and I will certainly be watching on from afar as I continue my career in Turkey, a country that means ever such a lot to me.”

Gundogan, who was born in Germany to Turkish parents, was Pep Guardiola’s first signing for City in 2016 and spent seven years there before joining Barcelona on a free transfer in 2023.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

He rejoined City in August 2024 and made 33 appearances in the Premier League last season as Guardiola’s side finished third.

Gundogan won the Premier League five times at City as well as the Champions League in 2022-23.

He previously played for Bochum, Nuremberg, and Borussia Dortmund. He won the Bundesliga title in 2012 with Dortmund.

“Ilkay Gundogan is a name synonymous with success at Manchester City,” said City director of football Hugo Viana. “We will never forget his legacy here.”

Galatasaray, who have qualified for the Champions League, said no transfer fee will be paid.

“A contract has been signed with the player, valid until the end of the 2026/27 season,” Galatasaray said in a statement.

The 82-time-capped former Germany international and captain will play alongside former German national teammate Leroy Sane in Turkey.

READ: Novak Djokovic sets up US Open semi-final against Carlos Alcaraz

Manchester City confirmed the signing of Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma from Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday after selling the long-serving Ederson to Fenerbahce.

Donnarumma, 26, has penned a five-year deal at the Etihad for a reported fee of £26 million ($35 million).

Donnarumma, who will wear the 99 shirt, was an integral part of the PSG team that won the Champions League last season and was in goal for Italy when they won Euro 2020.

But his omission from PSG’s Super Cup squad made it clear he was surplus to requirements in Paris after the club signed Lucas Chevalier from Lille.

“To have signed for Manchester City is such a special and proud moment for me,” said Donnarumma, whose signing was announced a day after the summer transfer window closed.

“I am joining a squad packed with world-class talent and a team led by one of the greatest managers in the history of football, Pep Guardiola. This is a club every player in world football would love to join.”

Donnarumma, who stands 1.96 metres (six feet, five inches) tall, started his career at AC Milan, where he made his debut as a 16-year-old, before signing for PSG in 2021.

He has made 412 club appearances and won 74 international caps.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

City’s director of football Hugo Viana said Donnarumma’s arrival was a huge boost for the club, who have started the season poorly.

“Gianluigi’s pedigree, quality, and record speak for themselves, and we are all absolutely thrilled he has joined us here at City,” he said.

“He has accumulated a wealth of top-level experience and knows what is required to achieve success on a sustained level.”

City called the departing Ederson, signed by Fenerbahce for a reported fee of about £12 million, “one of the most successful players in the club’s history”.

With his superb distribution, the Brazilian goalkeeper was instrumental to Guardiola’s possession-based philosophy, but there were growing doubts last season about his shot-stopping.

“You helped us make history,” City posted on social media on Tuesday, with pictures of Ederson celebrating trophies, including the Champions League in 2023.

Ederson, 32, also won six Premier League titles and two FA Cups and kept 122 clean sheets in 276 league appearances.

“I arrived in Manchester eight years ago full of hope, but I could not have predicted such a beautiful time together,” said the goalkeeper, who made 372 appearances in all competitions for the club.

“Playing for City has been the most special time of my life and I will always be a fan of this special club,” he added.

“I’m going with my wife and children, but I’m leaving a big family here.”

City also brought in Burnley goalkeeper James Trafford during the transfer window, but the Englishman has failed to convince so far.

The club have also confirmed the exit of Swiss defender Manuel Akanji to Inter Milan on a season-long loan.

READ: Liverpool seal £125m record deal for Newcastle’s Alexander Isak

Italian international goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma will undergo a medical and sign for Manchester City on transfer deadline day, his national coach Gennaro Gattuso said Monday.

Gattuso was speaking after reports that the Premier League side have agreed a 35-million-euro ($41 million) deal with Paris Saint-Germain for a player they consider surplus to requirements since the arrival of French ‘keeper Lucas Chevalier.

“Donnarumma has to sort out a few things, do his medical, and then sign his contract with Manchester City,” Gattuso said when asked to give an update on his squad for the upcoming 2026 World Cup qualifying matches.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

The 26-year-old Italian international played a leading role in helping PSG win the Champions League last season.

But PSG signed 23-year-old Chevalier from Lille during the close season and coach Luis Enrique has made clear the Frenchman will be his number one choice.

It was previously believed Donnarumma would not join City unless the club’s regular number one ‘keeper Ederson left, but the PA news agency reported that an agreement has now been reached for the Italian to move to City.

City brought in Burnley goalkeeper James Trafford in the close season and he has started each of their three Premier League matches so far, but the Englishman has failed to convince.

Those concerns were underlined as City lost 2-1 at Brighton on Sunday.

READ: Injury concerns for Australia as Pat Cummins faces fitness test ahead of Ashes

Goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma is set to join Manchester City on transfer deadline day, with reports suggesting the Premier League champions have agreed a €35 million ($41m) deal with French side Paris Saint-Germain (PSG).

The 26-year-old Italian international has been eyeing a new challenge since PSG deemed him surplus to requirements despite his pivotal role in last season’s Champions League triumph.

PSG’s summer signing of 23-year-old Lucas Chevalier from Lille confirmed coach Luis Enrique’s preference for the young Frenchman as his first-choice keeper.

Meanwhile, Ederson’s departure after eight trophy-laden years at the Etihad paved the way for Donnarumma’s arrival.

The Brazilian shot-stopper had initially attracted interest from Galatasaray, but their bid was rejected.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

Instead, Turkish rivals Fenerbahce stepped in, agreeing a deal worth around £12m to secure his signature.

With Ederson’s move sealed, Manchester City have shifted focus to finalising Donnarumma’s transfer.

According to Fabrizio Romano, the Italy international is scheduled for his medical on Monday afternoon before signing a long-term contract at the Etihad.

The move comes just days after Donnarumma bid farewell to PSG fans. Following their 1-0 Ligue 1 win over Angers, the keeper, omitted from the match-day squad, took to the Parc des Princes pitch to wave an emotional goodbye to the supporters.

Gianluigi Donnarumma was previously linked with Manchester United, but City have acted swiftly on deadline day to land the Italian, ensuring continuity between the posts as the new season unfolds.

READ: Rohit Sharma clears Bronco Test ahead of Australia ODIs: reports

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has opened up about his retirement plans, revealing that he intends to step away from managerial duties after leaving the club.

However, the 54-year-old, who signed a contract extension in November last year, which will now last until 2027, remarked that the decision could take up to 15 years.

His role came under scrutiny after Manchester City’s challenging season. For the first time since Guardiola took the position in 2016, the club finished without any trophies.
hyless

Meanwhile, Pep Guardiola has made similar statements in the past about his retirement.

“I don’t know. The truth is, I don’t know, but I don’t think I’m… I don’t know, because you can also have large work groups that help you with certain things,” he said.

“I know that after this spell with City I’m going to stop, that’s for sure, it’s decided, more than agreed,” he added.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

Pep Guardiola further mentioned the challenges he face on daily basis as Manchester City manager, noting that no other profession comes under so much scrutiny.

“I’ve spent four or five months this year in every away stadium with the crowd chanting, ‘You’ll be sacked in the morning. They’re going to fire you’,” Guardiola said.

“There’s no other profession, architect, teacher, doctor, journalist… where 60,000 people ask you to lose your job.

“When you win six Premier Leagues, there comes a time when you go down. It’s human nature … it’s a process that had to happen, it happens, it took longer to happen, and when it did, it went deeper than we could have imagined,” Pep Guardiola concluded.

For the unversed, the Spaniard is the most successful manager in the Club’s history, having won 18 trophies, including six Premier League titles and the Champions League.

READ: BCCI plans major overhaul following India-England Test series: reports

Saudi Arabian side Al Hilal sent English giants Manchester City crashing out of the Club World Cup on Monday, snatching a shock 4-3 victory in extra time in the biggest upset of the tournament so far.

The match finished 2-2 at full-time, but at the end of an eventful extra-time, Marcos Leonardo grabbed the winner and pulled off one of the greatest wins in Middle Eastern football history.

The Saudi club advances to the quarter-final, where they will face Brazilian club Fluminense, ensuring a non-European team will reach the last four.

City had taken the lead in the ninth minute in controversial fashion, Bernardo Silva finishing after Rayan Ait-Nouri’s cross.

Al Hilal players protested that Ait-Nouri had controlled with his arm in the build-up, but the goal stood.

City had plenty of opportunities to extend their lead before the break, but a combination of poor finishing and inspired goalkeeping from Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bounou kept the lead at a single goal.

Al Hilal offered several reminders of their threat on the break, but City had even more chances with Jeremy Doku volleying straight at Bounou, who moments later reacted superbly again to keep out a Bernardo effort.

The question as to whether Manchester City would live to regret not converting those chances was answered within a minute of the resumption.

Former City full-back Joao Cancelo’s low cross was parried out by Ederson, Malcolm pounced but saw his shot blocked by Ruben Dias, only for the ball to loop to Marcos Leonardo to head home the equaliser.

Six minutes later and the City’s high defensive line was exposed by a long ball from Cancelo, which Brazilian Malcolm raced on to, and he showed power and pace as he broke away before coolly slotting past Ederson.

The Saudi fans in the crowd went wild while Pep Guardiola responded immediately with a triple substitution, with midfielder Rodri and defenders Nathan Ake and Manuel Akanji introduced.

Follow us on our Official WhatsApp channel

That brought some much-needed stability to a shaky back line, but City needed improvement at the other end too, and it came, albeit in its scruffy circumstances.

The Al Hilal defence were unable to deal with a Bernardo corner, and Erling Haaland pounced to steer home the loose ball and make it 2-2.

City piled on the pressure as they looked for the winner, but yet again Bounou proved their nemesis as he denied Akanji and Ruben Dias and even when he was beaten by Haaland, substitute Ali Lajami produced a magnificent goal-line clearance.

Guardiola took off Haaland and introduced Egyptian forward Omar Marmoush as the game went into extra time.

But for all City’s depth, Al Hilal had a deep well of spirit to draw upon and just four minutes into the opening period, Al Hilal regained the lead when Kalidou Koulibaly rose superbly to meet a Ruben Neves corner with a brilliantly angled header.

City responded with a goal of real quality when Rayan Cherki’s brilliantly floated ball towards the back post was poked home masterfully by Phil Foden, at full stretch and from the tightest of angles.

But incredibly, Al Hilal responded again to restore their lead — Sergej Milinkovic-Savic’s header was saved by Ederso,n but Marcos Leonardo followed in to bundle the ball over the line.

As the celebrating Al Hilal fans poured out of the stadium, the Brazilian striker let his emotions pour out.

Manchester City skipper Bernardo Silva said his team had paid the price for being unable to deal with Al Hilal’s counter-attacking.

“We scored three and could’ve scored five, six. It was all about controlling when we lost the ball, controlling the transitions, don’t let them run, and they ran way too many times,” he said.

“With one, two passes, there was always a feeling of danger coming from them. When we allow teams to run like this, we always suffer a lot, and today was the case,” he said.

READ: Eighth seed Holger Rune crashes out of Wimbledon