Former Brazil, Atletico Madrid and Inter defender Joao Miranda has announced his retirement from football at the age of 38.

Miranda won LaLiga, the Copa del Rey, Supercopa de Espana, Europa League and European Super Cup with Atletico, as well as reaching the Champions League final.

After four seasons with the Spanish side, Miranda moved to Inter in June 2015 and spent four years at San Siro without winning any major honours.

The centre-back then spent a short period with Jiangsu Suning prior to returning to Brazil with former side Sao Paulo, where he concluded his playing career.

He won 58 caps for Brazil at international level and was a member of their Confederations Cup and Copa America-winning squads in 2009 and 2019 respectively.

Miranada, who…

Carlo Ancelotti was pleased with Real Madrid s commanding 2-0 win against Chelsea but stressed they must be ready to fight and sacrifice in the second leg at Stamford Bridge.

Madrid look set to advance to the Champions League semi-finals for the third consecutive season after they breezed past Frank Lampard s out-of-form side at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Goals from Karim Benzema and Marco Asensio either side of a red card for Ben Chilwell rounded out a dominant performance from the reigning champions, who will travel to London for the return match next week.

The defeat leaves Chelsea without a goal in four games in all competitions, but Ancelotti remained steadfast that Los Blancos would need to work hard to finish the job in the second leg.

I know footbal…

Atlanta United interim head coach Rob Valentino is hoping to get off to a positive start when they welcome Houston Dynamo to the Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Atlanta announced on June 3 that they had parted ways with Gonzalo Pineda, with Valentino stepping into his shoes with the Five Stripes sitting 13th in the Eastern Conference.

They have won just one of their last 11 matches in the MLS – beating Inter Miami 3-1 – but defeat to Charlotte FC last time out spelt the end for Pineda.

I want to get back to that enjoyment, Valentino said. How we can find that every day, on and off the field and shared success.

When you look at teams and organizations, it is not one person s fault, it is shared in terms of where we are. There is that responsibility and accoun…

Best odds: 16/25

Bookmaker:

Looking to secure a record seventh consecutive victory over their city rivals, Serie A champions Inter Milan face a struggling AC Milan at San Siro on Sunday.

This season s first Milan derby arrives with speculation swirling about a potential coaching change for the Rossoneri, who suffered defeat in their Champions League opener. In contrast, Inter have started their title defense strongly and impressed in their recent performance against Manchester City.

Inter Milan

Inter Milan s dominance in the Derby della Madonnina has been so pronounced that fans have nearly forgotten what a defeat to their fiercest rivals feels like. They have won six consecutive derbies across three competitions, boasting a staggering aggregate score o…

Best Odds: 8/11

Bookmaker:

Desperate to claim a crucial World Cup qualifying boost in the early hours of Friday, Brazil will travel Santiago when they meet Chile.

Chile

Starting with the hosts, last seen signing off September’s international break with another nightmare performance as they slumped to an infamous 2-1 loss at home against Bolivia, Chile find themselves at the heart of what has become a real crisis. Enduring a public Copa America struggle over the summer as they failed to find a route to the knockout stage, Ricardo Gareca’s men have continued to break a string of unwanted records. Marking their return to World Cup qualifying action last month with a routine 3-0 drumming at the hands of Argentina, Chile have failed to muster a single win from a…

Juan Pablo Aravena

A freelance writer and sports analyst with almost five years of experience in the industry before joining SoccerNews, Juan Pablo Aravena is based in Chile and currently contributes to several publications and websites including SoccerNews, 12up, and Sports From The Basement, while also working as a fantasy beat writer for RotoWire, as a database editor for EA Sports, and as a football analyst for SmartOdds and InsideFutbol. His areas of focus are Serie A, Bundesliga, Premier League, LaLiga, and Ligue 1, but he has also written about MLS and South American football in the past.

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Once a headache for the local organising committee, the 10 South African stadiums for the 2010 World Cup are now pride and joy as they are set to be ready on time for the football extravaganza.

Stadium construction faced many challenges, including strikes in July when more than 70,000 workers asked for salary hikes, countrywide blackouts in January 2008 that crippled the economy, budget deficits and sometimes unpredictable weather.

It has been a roller-coaster ride. Sometimes we were happy and most times saddened by the criticism and the pessimism but we always knew we would be ready on time, local organising committee spokesman Rich Mkhondo told AFP.

Mkhondo said five new and five renovated stadiums were now more than 95 percent complete and the final touches …

Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson has said he is honoured to have written his name in football history after being awarded the Yachine Trophy at the 2019 Ballon d Or ceremony in Paris.

The Brazil international capped a memorable year for club and country by becoming the first person to win the accolade, given to the best keeper in the world over the past 12 months.

He won the Champions League with Liverpool in June and the Copa America with Brazil the following month, while also claiming the Golden Glove in the Premier League last season with 21 clean sheets.

Having seen off competition from Barcelona s Marc-Andre ter Stegen and Ederson of Manchester City to come out on top, Alisson was quick to thank his team-mates for their help.

It was a year to remember fo…

The Transfer Deadline Day is finally upon us. Some teams were able to strengthen their squads yesterday and some were not. For the latter, there is only one more day to add players before the January transfer window opens. Let s take a took at the latest rumours and speculation.

Manchester City

In a shock move, Manchester City are reportedly set to sign former Manchester United and Bayern Munich midfielder Owen Hargreaves. Hargreaves reportedly had a medical on Tuesday. This is a rather peculiar signing, especially because City are already loaded with a good number of midfield players. But then again, Hargreaves may just be an upgrade from Gareth Barry. Is he not?

Stoke City

According to Sky Sports, Stoke City have agreed to terms…

The Tennessee Titans are 8-4 on the season and sit atop the AFC South. But the Titans sure don’t look like a first-place team at the moment. They are battered, are having trouble scoring, and have lost two in a row.

So, you could certainly say the Titans are in desperate need of a “get-right” game — Jacksonville Jaguars come on down! If there is a team that is more of a mess right now than the Titans, it’s the Jags.

But which shaky team will cover the 8.5-point spread? Find out in our free NFL picks and predictions for Jaguars vs. Titans on Sunday, December 12.

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