Let’s begin closer to home with Raheem…
Team related
Sky Sports: City on track for Champions League success says Sterling
Raheem Sterling believes Manchester City are on the right path to Champions League glory.
The Premier League winners have fallen short in Europe in recent years but continued their winning start in this year’s competition by beating Dinamo Zagreb 2-0 on Tuesday.
City now top Group C with six points from two games and, with back-to-back games against Atalanta to come, will be expected to continue making steady progress towards the knockout stages.
It is there the real challenges will come and, although Sterling accepts it could get tough, he feels they will have a chance.
The England forward, who scored City’s first goal against the Croatians, said: “We know the teams we have in Europe, they are top opponents. It will never be easy to win it.
“We need to keep going. The most important thing is trying to qualify from this group. If we keep doing that, year in year out, the better chance we will have to win it.
Pep Guardiola wants Sterling to be even more clinical in front of goal despite the City forward scoring nine goals already this season
“We just need to progress to the group stages and think about it later. We just need to keep focus.
“There are more games coming up and we know they are going to be difficult. So we just need to keep going. We go to the weekend now and we need to focus on that.”
Transfer gossip
Pep Guardiola has asked Man City to sign young Real Madrid midfielder Martin Odegaard, according to reports.
Odegaard first burst onto the scene nearly five years ago when Madrid won a transfer race against many top European clubs to sign him at just 16-years of age from Stromsgodset.
The Norwegian was touted as one of the most highly rated prospects in world football but understandably struggled under the spotlight when first arriving in Spain.
Now, however, after spending two years on loan in the Netherlands with Heerenveen and Vitesse where he was able to develop away from the pressure, Odegaard is shining on a two-year loan spell at Real Sociedad.
He has scored and assisted twice in seven games and put in some sparkling displays to help the Basque side climb to 5th in the table, which has reportedly attracted Guardiola and City’s interest.
Opposition news
Birmingham Mail: Wolves suffer flight hiccup
Wolverhampton Wanderers suffered a mini setback as their flight to Istanbul was delayed on Wednesday afternoon.
Nuno Espirito Santo and his squad didn’t touch down in Turkey until around 9pm local time - with a minor hiccup at Birmingham Airport meaning their journey was delayed by an hour.
The squad then travelled to the team hotel, which is located near to Besiktas’ Vodafone Park, and ate while Nuno met with the press.
“We lost our slot,” he said upon arrival. “There are things that you cannot control.”
Nuno decided to travel to Istanbul this afternoon after putting on a training session for his players at Compton Park this morning. As a result, Wolves won’t train at Vodafone Park before facing Besiktas tomorrow evening, as is usually customary in UEFA competition.
Awards
Canada Soccer: Beckie wins monthly prize
Janine Beckie and Jonathan David have been named Canada Soccer’s Players of the Month for September 2019.
The two Canadian forwards excelled for their clubs during the month, each scoring in European club competition with Manchester City and KAA Gent, respectively. David also scored a highlight-reel goal on home soil in a Canada victory over Cuba at BMO Field.
Beckie scored four goals in two UEFA Women’s Champions League matches as Manchester City advanced to the Round of 16. Beckie scored at both home and away, notably becoming just the second Canadian to score a hat trick in UEFA Women’s Champions League action on 25 September (a 4:0 victory over FF Lugano).
In league action Beckie helped City start the season at the top of the table with three wins in September. Her play earned her a call-up to the Women’s National Team for the upcoming away international match against Japan on 6 October.
