Carlos Carvalhal claimed luck is part of the game after Swansea City came from behind to beat Watford 2-1 away from home in his first match in charge.
The Portuguese coach was sacked by Sheffield Wednesday last week but quickly found himself back in work, the Swans appointing him to succeed Paul Clement at the Liberty Stadium.
Taking over from caretaker player-manager Leon Britton, Carvalhal had an instant impact at Vicarage Road, where Jordan Ayew and Luciano Narsingh scored in the final four minutes on Saturday to snatch all three points.
A difficult game, Carvalhal was quoted as saying by BBC Sport. Watford have a good team.
We deserved a win, luck is part of the game – they were lucky when we put the ball on the bar.
We had some parts …
Former Barcelona sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta has defended the decision to sign full-back Douglas.
The 25-year-old was signed from Sao Paulo in 2014 for a fee in the region of €6million, but the Brazilian has made only eight senior appearances in two years at Camp Nou.
Zubizarreta was sacked in January last year after after receiving criticism for some of Barca s decisions in the transfer market, but the former goalkeeper insists signing Douglas was not a mistake.
We didn t sign him with the idea that he would be a starter. I m surprised at the noise that s been created around him, he told ARA.
We believed he had the level for Barca and, for the investment it represented and given the figures in football, it was worth it.
It can t be…
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has branded the Premier League s hectic fixture schedule a disaster for players but one they must adapt to.
City finished 2017 with three games in eight days, the final clash against Crystal Palace on Sunday bringing their winning streak to a halt at 18 matches.
The league leaders were far from their fluent best in the 0-0 draw at Selhurst Park, and Guardiola is not surprised given the congestion of their schedule.
And there will be no let-up for Guardiola s men with the visit of Watford on Tuesday before cup clashes with Burnley and Bristol City to complete six games in 18 days over Christmas and new year.
It is something that the Spaniard is not a fan of, but he refused to complain, suggesting it was a case of getting…
Croatia head coach Niko Kovac has confirmed defender Ivan Strinic will play no part in the World Cup due to a hamstring problem.
The 26-year-old Dnipro defender was a regular during Croatia s qualifying campaign but has been ruled out of the finals after collecting an injury towards the end of the season.
Strinic was called up by Kovac with the hope he would recover in time to travel to Brazil.
However, the national coach revealed on Thursday that Strinic had not progressed enough to be considered.
Additional medical exams showed that Strinic has ruptured his hamstring muscle, said Kovac. I feel sorry for him but he will not travel with us to the preparation camp in Austria and therefore will not be among the candidates for the World Cup.
Unfortunately, we …