Lionel Messi is returning to the Argentina national team, having initially announced his retirement following defeat in the Copa America final.

The Barcelona star, 29, called time on his international career after Argentina lost on penalties to Chile in June, having been beaten by the same opposition in a shoot-out in the 2015 final – a setback which came one year on from their loss to Germany in the 2014 World Cup final.

Edgardo Bauza has since replaced Gerardo Martino as head coach and, following talks with the new boss, Messi has elected to make himself available for forthcoming World Cup qualifiers against Uruguay and Venezuela, meaning he has not missed a senior international.

The return of Messi, whose 55 goals in 113 appearances across 11 years mean he i…

Carlo Ancelotti is not worried by the goal droughts of Bayern Munich front men Robert Lewandowski and Thomas Muller.

Lewandowski struck 30 times in the Bundesliga last season, but, after making a fine start to this campaign, is without a goal in five league matches.

Muller, meanwhile, scorer of 20 league goals in 2015-16, is yet to get off the mark this term.

However, with Bayern again top of the table, Ancelotti insisted he is unconcerned by individual goal tallies, and is more interested in how the forwards link up with their team-mates.

For me, it is not important whether they score a goal, but whether they play well with the team, he told a news conference ahead of Bayern s trip to Augsburg.

The team has to score goals, which player scores t…

Luciano Spalletti confirmed Victor Osimhen will start Tuesday s Champions League clash with Milan after the fit-again Napoli star was denied by the woodwork on his return against Hellas Verona.

Osimhen was sidelined for around three weeks after sustaining a groin injury while on international duty with Nigeria last month, returning to Napoli s bench for Saturday s frustrating goalless draw.

Striker Osimhen was introduced for the final 20 minutes and went closest to breaking the deadlock, crashing a fierce volley against the crossbar as the Serie A leaders were held.

Despite failing to add to his league-high tally of 21 goals this season, no Napoli player bettered his five touches in the Verona area throughout the course of the game.

Spalletti hopes Osimh…

Manchester United legend Gary Neville declared Manchester City are far too close for comfort to matching their rivals famous treble.

Alex Ferguson s side made history in the 1998-99 season by winning the FA Cup, Premier League and Champions League, a feat not achieved by any other English side.

However, City remain in the hunt on all three fronts this season and, while manager Pep Guardiola has played down talk of a potential treble, the fight is on.

City hold a 3-0 advantage over Bayern Munich ahead of Wednesday s second leg of their Champions League quarter-final, and face second-tier Sheffield United in the FA Cup semi-finals at Wembley on Saturday.

In the Premier League, City sit four points behind Arsenal with a game in hand and take on Mikel Arteta …

Marco Caligiuri has backed former colleague and joint Bundesliga top scorer Nicolai Muller to win back his place in Germany s national team.

Caligiuri, now of Eintracht Braunschweig, played with Muller at both Greuther Furth and Mainz, with the 25-year-old having struck five times for the latter already this season.

Muller heads the Bundesliga scoring charts, level with Stuttgart s Vedad Ibisevic, but missed out on a call-up to the Germany squad for this week s FIFA World Cup qualifiers, despite making Joachim Low s side for their close-season trip to the United States.

The Braunschweig midfielder does not believe it will be long until Muller is back in contention under Low.

If he keeps playing the way he is, it’s only a matter of time before he gets called …

Nemanja Vidic has no intention of resting on his laurels as Manchester United continue their bid for a trophy cleansweep at Derby County in the FA Cup fifth round on Sunday.

Sir Alex Ferguson s team have already won the Club World Cup this season and are still in the hunt for the other four competitions they entered.

United are two points clear at the top of the Premier League, face Tottenham in the League Cup final on March 1 and are through to the Champions League last 16, where they take on Inter Milan later this month.

A victory against Nigel Clough s Championship outfit this weekend would ease United in the last eight of the FA Cup as well.

The strain of competing for so many different trophies may prove too much to handle in the end, with the FA Cu…

Eric Dier has signed a new five-year deal at Tottenham Hotspur, .

The twenty-two year old moved to White Hart Lane from Sporting CP in the summer of 2014, and has since racked up ninety appearances in all competitions, scoring six goals.

Having spent the first season playing mainly as a defender he was used as a defensive midfielder last season and played an integral part as the North London club achieved their highest placed finish since the inception of the Premier League.

Internationally, he has been capped twelve times for England with one of his two goals for his country coming at Euro 2016 as the Three Lions drew with Russia in their opening game of the tournament.

Dier is in line to make his Champions League debut as Mauricio Pochettino’s si…

Chelsea boss Antonio Conte has ruled John Terry out of Saturday s Premier League clash with Arsenal at Emirates Stadium.

The veteran centre-back was forced to miss last Friday s 2-1 defeat to Liverpool after picking up an ankle injury in the 2-2 draw with Swansea City.

Terry returned to training this week, but Conte says he will not be ready for the game against Arsene Wenger s men.

John didn t recover. He s working, but he didn t recover for the game against Arsenal, he said.

I don t know [when he ll be back]. In this case, it depends on what the player feels.

Chelsea s strong start to the season has been undermined by defensive frailties in recent games, with Conte s side conceding twice in each of their last three fixtures in all competition…

Josef Martinez broke an MLS record by scoring in a 10th consecutive game for Atlanta United on Sunday.

The Venezuelan forward headed in a Julian Gressel cross for the opening goal – and MLS record – in the 42nd minute against New York City at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Martinez continuing his hot streak meant he surpassed the previous best mark he briefly shared with Portland Timbers star Diego Valeri.

The 26-year-old has netted 14 times during his run, which started in May, to close in on Los Angeles FC star Carlos Vela atop the MLS goalscoring charts.

 goals in 10 consecutive games for !

— Major League Soccer (@MLS)

Vela has struck 22 times for the Western Conference leaders, while Martinez is up to 19 goals.

Former Torino…

Steven Taylor has officially completed his move to Wellington Phoenix. The 32-year-old spent more than twenty years of his life on the books at Newcastle United before eventually departing in 2016, and since then, he s been bouncing around a series of clubs such as Ipswich Town and Peterborough United. Now, however, it s time for him to start a new chapter as he approaches what will likely be the final few years of his playing career.

Taylor was an imposing defender who always seemed to be on the verge of breaking through to that next level, but for one reason or another could never quite manage it. He played for England throughout the youth system but was never able to earn a call-up to the official senior team, although his impact on the game and Newcastle United will likely …