Inter Milan president Massimo Moratti has expressed his happiness with the transfer of playmaker Wesley Sneijder to Galatasaray.

The Netherlands international agreed terms with the Istanbul giants on Sunday for a fee of 7.5 million euros.

Sneijder had been frozen out of the Inter first team after refusing to take a significant pay cut, effectively forcing him out the door at San Siro.

Yes (I am happy), without a doubt. Galatasaray did everything properly, their president, their vice-president, he was quoted as saying on the club s official website.

They re very good people. I think the player is happy too, otherwise he wouldn t have gone there.

Moratti went on to say the potential signing of Corinthians midfielder Paulinho depends on his price…

Michy Batshuayi is in great pain with an injury sustained in the derby defeat to Schalke, Borussia Dortmund coach Peter Stoger has confirmed.

Batshuayi was carried off on a stretcher towards the end of Dortmund s 2-0 loss to Ruhr rivals Schalke in the Bundesliga on Sunday.

The Belgium striker who has hit seven league goals since joining on loan from Chelsea in January covered his face with his hands as he left the field.

And Stoger, while unwilling to offer a diagnosis for Batshuayi s apparent ankle injury, accepted it could be a serious blow for the forward, who was seen leaving the stadium on crutches and was reportedly taken to hospital.

He is in great pain, Stoger said.  It looked like he could be out for a long time. I hope it s not that bad.

…

Arsene Wenger concedes it will be strange to face-off against Alexis Sanchez on Sunday when the Chile international steps out for Manchester United at home to Arsenal.

Alexis made the switch from north London to Old Trafford in January, in a deal that saw Henrikh Mkhitaryan move the other way, and is set to tackle his former team-mates for the first time this weekend.

Wenger brought Sanchez to Emirates Stadium from Barcelona in 2014 but Arsenal were unable to agree to a new contract with the 29-year-old, forcing the Gunners into a mid-season sale amid anger from fans.

Sanchez was amongst those who paid tribute to Wenger following the announcement he will leave Arsenal this summer, bringing an end to a historic 22-year spell with the club, and the French boss feel…

Barcelona saw their long winning run against Rayo Vallecano end on Wednesday as they lost 1-0 at Estadio de Vallecas.

In need of a positive result after their 2-1 Clasico defeat, Ronald Koeman s men instead suffered a fifth loss of the season in all competitions courtesy of Radamel Falcao s first-half goal.

Barca went into this latest contest on a run of 13 consecutive LaLiga wins over Rayo in which they had averaged 4.3 goals per game, yet they paid the price for Memphis Depay s missed penalty midway through the second half.

Marc-Andre ter Stegen made a desperate early save to keep out Oscar Trejo s ambitious long-range chip, but it began to look like Barca would keep up that formidable scoring record, Depay going close and Sergio Aguero seeing vague penalty app…

Romelu Lukaku scored twice as Inter kept the pressure up on Serie A leaders Milan with a confident 4-0 home victory over Benevento on Saturday.

Antonio Conte s side took the lead through a Riccardo Improta own goal in the seventh minute and were never really troubled at San Siro.

Lautaro Martinez ended a run of four Serie A games without a goal with a fine finish for Inter s second as he took his tally against newly promoted teams to eight in 14 appearances.

Lukaku then wrapped up the points for Inter when he scored twice with clinical finishes after smart assists from Martinez and Alexis Sanchez.

A dominant display from the Nerazzurri!

— Inter (@Inter_en)

Inter showed their attacking intent straight from kick-off during a first half in…

Emile Smith Rowe has praised the spirit in Arsenal s squad to recover from a slow start to the season and climb into fifth place heading into the November international break.

The Gunners kicked off the 2021-22 campaign with three league defeats in a row without scoring for the first time in their history.

Since losing 5-0 at Manchester City on August 28, however, Arsenal have gone eight without defeat in the top flight – their best run since another eight-game spell that ended in March 2020.

Mikel Arteta s men are also unbeaten in 10 games in all competitions thanks to Sunday s 1-0 win over Watford at Emirates Stadium.

Smith Rowe, who scored the only goal of the game against Watford with a second-half strike after Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang had an earl…

Granit Xhaka admits it is a huge blow for Arsenal to lose Gabriel Jesus to injury but is confident the Gunners can compete in his absence, offering his support to likely replacement Eddie Nketiah.

Jesus suffered a knee injury in Brazil s World Cup loss to Cameroon, ruling him out of the remainder of the tournament and leading to surgery – with the expectation he will face two to three months out.

It hands Mikel Arteta a huge blow ahead of the Gunners resumption of their Premier League title push on Boxing Day, with the former Manchester City forward quickly establishing himself as an integral member of the squad.

While Jesus faces an extended period out, Xhaka believes it is a small injury for him to cope with and vowed to support his teammate in his recovery.<…

Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain travel to Bordeaux targeting top spot with manager Laurent Blanc set to face his former club.

The French capital club go into Friday s game on a 15-match unbeaten league run, having not tasted defeat since their 1-0 loss at Reims on March 2.

PSG could move to the summit of Ligue 1 with a win and should be confident having won two of the last three encounters against Francis Gillot s side, their latest triumph coming in the Trophee des Champions in August.

Blanc s men came from behind to win 2-1 on that occasion, late goals from Hervin Ongenda and Alex securing victory after Henri Saivet had put Bordeaux in front.

However, it is record signing Edinson Cavani that has provided PSG with the impetus to kick-start their league c…

Niko Kovac has been appointed acting manager of the Croatia national team, after Igor Stimac was sacked.

The 42-year-old has been handed the reins on a temporary basis, with Stimac counting the cost of Tuesday s 2-0 FIFA World Cup qualifying defeat away to Scotland.

Stimac offered his resignation in the immediate aftermath of the clash at Hampden Park, with Kovac appointed on the suggestion of Croatia Football Federation president Davor Suker.

Tuesday s disappointing loss to Scotland in the Group A fixture compounded a miserable week for Croatia, who also lost their crucial home encounter with Belgium on Friday and will have to settle for a play-off in order to reach Brazil 2014.

A first-half brace from Romelu Lukaku gave Marc Wilmots side a commanding lead, and …

Emmanuel Adebayor believes Manchester City will prove surprisingly strong opponents for Real Madrid in their Champions League semi-final.

City are in the last four of Europe s premier club competition for the first time, while Madrid are looking to win the trophy for the 11th time in their history.

Adebayor joined the Spanish side on a six-month loan from City in 2011, and he feels the two teams are evenly matched.

Madrid travel to the Etihad Stadium for the first leg on Tuesday, and the Togo international backed the Premier League side to give a strong performance on home soil.

It s going to be a difficult tie for Madrid. I played for City and I know how hard it can be for opponents to play in their stadium, Adebayor told AS.

I can guarantee th…