Holders Chelsea set out on the first steps towards a defence of their FA Cup crown with a home tie against Championship side Watford, finalists in 1984, in the third round draw made on Sunday.
West Ham will host London rivals Arsenal, who last lifted the trophy in 2005 and have not picked up any silverware since, in one of three all Premier League fixtures.
The other two top-flight affairs see Aston Villa host Blackburn and Hull travel to Wigan.
Everton, the side Chelsea beat under then interim coach Guus Hiddink in last season s final, welcome League One side Carlisle to Goodison Park.
The Toffees Merseyside rivals, seven-time winners Liverpool, were drawn against second-tier Reading.
Non-league Kettering could be set for a dream trip to Old Tra…
Rayo Vallecano defender Jose Casado could join the increasing Spanish contingent in the English Premier League, .
The full-back has caught the eye of several Premier League clubs with his displays in Spanish La Liga and it appears he will be making a switch to England in the summer.
Casado s contract with los Franjirrojos is due to expire at the end of the current campaign, which certainly makes him a bargain signing.
The 26-year-old came through the youth ranks at Sevilla, but never quite managed to prove his worth at Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan.
After impressing on loan spells at Huelva and Xerez, Casado earned a move to Rayo Vallecano, where he has made a name for himself.
Since joining the club in the summer of 2010, the full-back has made a total …
Chelsea interim boss Rafael Benitez is reportedly closing in on a deal to succeed Walter Mazzarri as Napoli manager.
The Naples club s president Aurelio De Laurentiis had been quoted as saying that the 53-year-old s capture was complete on Friday.
However, he has since told Sky Sport Italia: I closed the deal for the new coach, but I can not announce it officially until I get a release from the other company (with) which (he) is under contract until June 30.
Benitez s last permanent managerial role also came in Italy, but the Spaniard was sacked after just six months in charge of Inter in 2010.
The former Liverpool boss was appointed by Chelsea on an interim basis in November 2012 and led the London club to success in the UEFA Europa League as well as a third-placed finish in …
Napoli have confirmed the signing of Leonardo Pavoletti from fellow Serie A side Genoa for a reported transfer fee of €13million.
The 28-year-old has been training with Maurizio Sarri s team ahead of the completion of his switch from Ivan Juric s side.
Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis took to Twitter earlier on Tuesday to suggest that the deal was done, writing welcome Leonardo , and the club have since announced the conclusion of the deal.
Napoli confirm the signing of Leonardo Pavoletti, they said in a statement. The striker, who was playing with Genoa, has signed a contract and he has chosen number 32.
Pavoletti posted a lengthy goodbye message to Genoa fans through his Facebook and Instagram channels.
I say goodbye to Genoa after tw…
As for the visitors, while the mood in Chelsea s camp would have been at a high following Frank Lampard s arrival over the summer, the Blues have struggled at the start of the new season. Along with suffering penalties defeat against Liverpool in the Super Cup last week, the former England midfielder also saw his side manage to scrape a 1-1 draw against Leicester over the weekend, a match they were largely outplayed in during the second half. Desperate to secure a top-four return with his youthful squad, Lampard will have some growing concerns over his sides continued defensive issues. Saturday s guests have failed to record a single clean sheet in any of their last eight appearances. Still looking for their first victory since Lampard made his return, Chelsea will know that they must a…
Hamburg s new star signing Ruud van Nistelrooy needs more time to get fit before making his Bundesliga debut, his coach Bruno Labbadia said on Wednesday.
Having spent most of the season on the bench at Real Madrid before signing for Hamburg 10 days ago, the 33-year-old Dutch hot-shot striker is only 60 percent fit, according to Labbadia.
And it looks as though the striker will sit out Hamburg s Bundesliga game at Cologne on Sunday and needs plenty of fitness work after knee surgery in November 2008 and having played just 127 minutes of football for Real this season.
We would never put someone under a pressure of time to say when they will be fit, Labbadia told SID, a subsidiary of AFP, with his side fifth in the German league table.
Ruud is still worki…
Two bosses at opposite ends of the Premier League spectrum have come under-fire in the last few weeks and months.
Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez and Hull City s Phil Brown. This week has even saw rumours circulating that Hull City boss Phil Brown was actually sacked.
Those rumours were erroneous but the Orange one must be truly relieved to have lasted another week. The Tigers are certainly not purring at the moment and are struggling second from bottom in the Premier League.
Second season syndrome
Hull are suffering from that famous second season syndrome. They started so well last season but their second half of the season was awful and that poor form has continued into this season. A bad run is a hard thing to halt and at this current moment in time Hull …
England midfielder Eric Dier does not regret turning down the chance to represent Portugal, insisting he always wanted to play for the country of his birth.
Dier came through the ranks at Portuguese giants Sporting CP having arrived at the age of seven, before returning to England in 2014, joining Premier League outfit Tottenham.
The 22-year-old has since gone on to earn 14 England caps after making his debut last year, while Portugal triumphed at Euro 2016.
Dier, however, is happy to be representing England, who accounted for arch-rivals Scotland 3-0 in World Cup qualifying on Friday.
If England can t win anything then I want Portugal to win. I was very happy for them, but never once did I think I should be playing for Portugal, he said.
Once w…
Arsenal steal a late point at Old Trafford / Image via skysports.com
Clashes between Manchester United and Arsenal are traditionally packed with controversy, but apart from being just another feisty affair the Saturday s encounter ended up being a lacklustre game.
Home crowd will be feeling undone after their team failed to hold on to the lead until the end of the game at Old Trafford and here are the five things we learned from today s highly anticipated match:
United Will Be Disappointed With the Result
Jose Mourinho s men spent almost the entire game in the driving seat, dominating the proceedings and were fully deserving of three points this afternoon.
The total of 12 goal attempts, five of which went on target serve as a good indicator of United …
Jurgen Klopp hinted that Liverpool will be without Roberto Firmino, Alisson and Fabinho for the trip to Leeds United on Sunday.
Firmino misses out through a hamstring injury sustained against Chelsea but the availability of Alisson and Fabinho remains in doubt after Brazil called on FIFA to suspend the players from playing this weekend.
Brazil requested the governing body to take action after the Premier League clubs agreed to not let their players travel to South America, amid quarantining fears on their return subsequently causing them to miss fixtures.
When asked for an update on the situation, Klopp told reporters at Friday s pre-match news conference: I know Bobby [Firmino] will not be available because of injury. About the rest, no.
It’s a rea…