Demel ends Ivory Coast career

​Emir Spahic will stay at Bayer Leverkusen until June 2016 after signing a one-year extension with the Bundesliga club.

The Bosnia-Herzegovina defender arrived at the BayArena in 2013 and made 27 appearances in the league last season as Leverkusen finished fourth.

Spahic has featured in nine of Leverkusen s 10 Bundesliga games in 2014-15 and his form alongside Omer Toprak in central defence has earned him a new deal with the club.

The 34-year-old, who was signed from Anzhi, is delighted to have agreed an extension and hopes to help develop the club s younger players in the coming years.

I m part of a great team here in Leverkusen, he said. We ve got an ambitious side that can still develop, and I believe there is plenty we can still achieve together.

Barcelona coach Luis Enrique tentatively branded Luis Suarez an honorary Catalan after the striker s vital brace in the 2-1 Champions League win against Atletico Madrid.

The holders fell behind to a Fernando Torres strike in the all-La Liga quarter-final first leg at Camp Nou, but the goalscorer then saw red after picking up two bookings in quick succession to hand Barcelona the initiative.

Suarez might also have been sent off for kicking out at Juanfran but escaped censure and went on to score twice inside 12 second-half minutes to turn the tie around ahead of next week s return clash at the Vicente Calderon.

The Uruguay international has 45 goals in as many club matches this season and Luis Enrique would be happy for the proud South American to have secondary e…

Arsenal midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is frustrated at his lack of goals so far this season.

The England international has failed to score an English Premier League goal so far this term – with his solitary campaign goal coming against Coventry City in the League Cup.

Oxlade-Chamberlain notched four goals during his breakthrough 2011/12 season and is eager to better that return this campaign, but admits the whole squad finding more consistency is more important.

For me, I want to be getting more goals and more assists so I am always beating myself up when I don t, like against Reading, he told the London Evening Standard.

But as long as the boys are winning, that is the main thing. For me, I will keep trying to do the right things on and off th…

Cristian Brocchi acknowledged some players were disappointed with Sinisa Mihajlovic s departure from AC Milan and knows it will take time to make his mark on the squad.

Following last weekend s 2-1 defeat at home to Serie A leaders Juventus, Mihajlovic was sacked on Tuesday and Brocchi appointed as his replacement until the end of the season.

The 40-year-old admitted several members of the squad were upset to see the Serbian leave, but he has taken heart from the overall attitude shown in training since.

A change in coach has an impact on the squad and it was only to be expected that some of the players were left disappointed by the decision in the first few days, said Brocchi.

I was also close to Mihajlovic because we had a fantastic relationship. I t…

Al-Hilal of Sudan snatched a 3-2 win over Enyimba of Nigeria this weekend in a dramatic start to the group phase of the 2008 African Champions League.

Nigeria-born substitute Ifeanyi Onigbo headed the winner one minute from full-time after a blunder by goalkeeper Sani Ualiru in a Group B clash that attracted a sell-out 40,000 crowd.

Reduced to 10 men when defender Okey Odita was sent off on 62 minutes having been cautioned twice, Enyimba thought they had dodged defeat when leading scorer Stephen Worgu scored with five minutes left.

Worgu created the opening goal for Cletus Itodo after 34 minutes, Hilal captain Haitham Mustafa levelled from a 41st-minute penalty and Nigerian Yusuf Mohamed edged the home side ahead 50 seconds into the second half.

The …

Tottenham Hotspur are set to announce the signing of England midfielder David Bentley from Premier League rivals Blackburn Rovers after calling a press conference for Thursday.

Bentley was due to complete a medical late Wednesday before completing a move estimated at 17 million pounds (34 million dollars).

Tottenham s arch-rivals Arsenal, the club where Bentley made is name, are set to receive a cut of the deal as part of the agreement which saw the now 23-year-old move to Rovers in 2006 after a loan spell.

Should he pass the medical, Bentley is set to join his new team-mates in the Netherlands where Spurs are playing in a pre-season tournament in Rotterdam this weekend.

Tottenham manager Juande Ramos is also reported to be interested in signing Russ…

Paul Pogba will leave Manchester United ahead of the 2019-20 campaign, according to his former team-mate Patrice Evra.

The France international has endured a largely difficult campaign at Old Trafford, initially thriving under Jose Mourinho s successor Ole Gunnar Solskjaer before his form tailed off dramatically towards the end of the season.

He was also involved in a verbal spat with a handful of United fans following their 2-0 home loss to relegated Cardiff City on Sunday.

Despite the criticism, Pogba ended 2018-19 with 13 Premier League goals and a further nine assists – more than any of his United team-mates managed – and earned a place in the PFA Team of the Year.

Evra – who played with Pogba at United, Juventus and in the French national …

Massimiliano Allegri will consider offers from other clubs after July 15 as he looks ahead to life after Juventus but will not rule out the possibility of taking a break from football.

Juve announced on Friday that the 51-year-old, who led the club to five consecutive Serie A titles during his five years in Turin, would be leaving after the 2018-19 season concludes next weekend.

Allegri had been linked with Manchester United prior to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer securing the full-time manager s job, while Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea are also said to be interested.

But the Livorno-born coach indicated he needs some time to weigh up his options.

I don t know what will happen in future, Allegri told a news conference. I need a little rest, too.<…

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger believes Andre Villas-Boas deserved a second chance in the English Premier League.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger believes Andre Villas-Boas deserved a second chance in the English Premier League.

The Portuguese joined Chelsea at the beginning of the 2011/12 season with increasing esteem after guiding his Porto side to a league, cup and Europa League treble the previous campaign.

His reign at Stamford Bridge lasted until that February when he was sacked following a defeat at West Bromwich Albion.

But, after a couple of months out, he took over from Harry Redknapp at Tottenham and now has them firmly in the race for a top-three finish.

Speaking ahead of Sunday s north London derby, Wenger told Arsenal s website: He …

Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea has been handed a senior Spain call-up by coach Vicente del Bosque.

The 22-year-old could make his debut for his national side when Spain host Finland in a World Cup qualifier in Gijon before travelling to France four days later.

Despite criticism of the Manchester United defence this season, the young goalkeeper has impressed at times this season, particularly against Real Madrid in the Champions League, and appears to have caught the eye of his national team coach.

De Gea was handed his first call-up when he made the preliminary squad for Spain s successful Euro 2012 campaign but missed out on a place in the final squad.

The former Atletico youth product has represented Spain from Under-15 level up to Under-21 w…