Former Chelsea and England winger Joe Cole played a major role in persuading Lille midfielder Eden Hazard to move to Stamford Bridge, the Belgian international said.
The new English season got off to a familiar start as two Sergio Aguero goals, including his 200th for the club, handed Manchester City a 2-0 win over Chelsea and claim the FA Community Shield for the fifth time at a sun-baked Wembley.
The 2022 Qatar World Cup has produced some very odd results, which is why it's been so much fun.
Eden Hazard has come under fire for some underwhelming performances and was benched by Jose Mourinho during Chelsea's woeful start to the campaign, but the Belgian says there is no problem with his manager and backed him to turn things around.
Belgium's Eden Hazard is making the strongest bid for that crown.
Belgium used a combination of daring, intelligence, resilience and not a little luck to oust World Cup favourites Brazil 2-1 in a memorable quarter-final tie on Friday that would have made a worthy final.
Chelsea's Spanish striker Diego Costa was named along with usual suspects Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in the 23- man FIFA Ballon D'Or short-list released on Tuesday.
Guardiola beat out Chelsea's Antonio Conte, Burnley's Sean Dyche, Liverpool's Juergen Klopp, Manchester United's Jose Mourinho and Arsenal's Arsene Wenger for the award.
Chelsea celebrated their title and captain John Terry's last game at Stamford Bridge with a 5-1 defeat of relegated Sunderland on Sunday , bringing their season's Premier League win tally to a record 30 games.
Tottenham Hotspur routed Bournemouth 5-0 as they leapfrogged City into second place in the league, six points behind leaders Liverpool who thrashed Newcastle United 4-0.
Eden Hazard underlined his claims to be voted Player of the Year with another match-winning display as Premier League leaders Chelsea stormed 10 points clear with a 1-0 victory over Manchester United on Saturday.
Belgium begin their campaign in St Petersburg against Russia on June 12
A near-record crowd of 105,826 saw Real Madrid score three first-half goals and hang on for a 3-2 win against Chelsea in a friendly at Michigan Stadium on Saturday. The attendance was less than 4,000 shy of the United States record attendance for a soccer match, set two years ago at the same stadium in Ann Arbor when 109,318 watched Real Madrid and Manchester United square off.
Ex-Chelsea coach cites past glories behind Jose Mourinho's survival.
Ronaldo's nomination comes after the 33-year-old last week denied rape allegations levelled against him by a woman who sued him in court in the United States.
Five-times European champions Liverpool suffered a 1-0 defeat at Lille after a late goal by forward Eden Hazard while Juventus beat underdogs Fulham 3-1 in Europa League last 16 first leg matches on Thursday.
'It's not like that. It's more complicated. With Bale it's always about one side against the other. But I've never had a problem with Gareth.'
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho should have apologised to former team doctor Eva Carneiro for his criticism of her, Football Association chairman Greg Dyke has said.
The Wolfsburg winger reckons he didn't enjoy Jose Mourinho's trust during his stay at Stamford Bridge
Images from La Liga matches played on Sunday
A second-string Netherlands beat Wales 2-1 away after a dramatic late finale in the Nations League at Cardiff on Wednesday
Hazard's dribbling and movement, on and off the ball, constantly posed questions for the Liverpool defence and the winger, who was so central to Chelsea's title triumph last year, certainly looks back up to full speed.
Real Madrid have endured a miserable season since Zinedine Zidane left in May, first sacking Julen Lopetegui and then Santiago Solari.
Olympique Lyon failed to capitalise on a Lisandro Lopez hat-trick and missed a chance to narrow the gap with Ligue 1 leaders Girondins Bordeaux when they slumped to a dramatic 4-3 defeat at Lille on Sunday.
Chelsea a 1-0 win over Manchester United in a compelling Premier League clash on Sunday
Manchester City reached the Champions League quarter-finals after beating Real Madrid 2-1 (4-2 on aggregate) at the Etihad Stadium on Friday, with scorers Raheem Sterling and Gabriel Jesus taking advantage of errors by defender Raphael Varane.
Diego Costa scored four goals as Real Madrid were embarrassed 7-3 by rivals Atletico Madrid in the final match of their United States tour, in New Jersey, on Friday
'I want to say I was convinced even before (the defeat by Chelsea in February's FA) Cup match that controlling the two players that play behind Diego (Costa) and controlling the full-backs, because they go really deep with two wide men, would create lots of problems and I repeat the same'
Chelsea winger Eden Hazard still hopes he can one day fulfil his dream of playing for Real Madrid.
Barcelona legend Xavi believes nobody will ever be able to replace his former teammate Lionel Messi with respect to his abilities and achievements. Comparing the Argentine with Cristiano Ronaldo, Xavi said that Messi was way above the Portugal's Euro 2016 winner. The 36-year old said, "There will be many good players in the future but no one would come close to Messi's level, when he eventually decides to call it quits."
Argentine referee Nestor Pitana will take charge of Thursday's opening World Cup match between hosts Russia and Saudi Arabia in Moscow, FIFA said on Tuesday.
Chelsea regained their six-point lead over Manchester City at the top of the Premier League table and took a step closer to the title thanks to a hard-fought 3-2 victory at Hull City on Sunday.
Belgium hammered the final nail into Egypt's halting World Cup warm-up campaign with an assured 3-0 win in Brussels on Wednesday that settled some nerves among the fancied hosts.
Real, who have not won the title since 2017, lead the table on 74 points, four ahead of Barca with five games left and have a superior head-to-head record over the Catalans which would give them the trophy if both teams finished the season level on points.
A late goal by substitute Charlie Austin gave relegation-threatened Southampton a thrilling 3-2 victory over Arsenal on Sunday in new Austrian manager Ralph Hasenhuettl's first home game.
For however much or little it counts, Belgium have history on their side in not having lost to the Irish for 50 years, which includes beating them by a single goal in the playoffs to win a place at the 1998 World Cup in France.
Real Madrid President Florentino Perez has vowed that his club will make a splash in this summer's transfer market.
Real also have an outstanding defence, conceding only 25 times last year, and are well covered in every position.
The champion coach to stay and improve Chelsea next season
Chelsea and Manchester City tightened their stranglehold on the Premier League title race on Saturday, recording victories over struggling clubs to stretch further clear of their increasingly forlorn pursuers.
