The South American nation performed better than ever in World Cup qualifying, with strength in depth that make them difficult to play against Last September, in the sweltering night heat of Guayaquil, Ecuador finished off their Conmebol World Cup qualifiers with a 1-0 victory over table-leaders and defending champions Argentina. Enner Valencia, the 35-year-old journeyman and the nation’s all-time scorer, sealed the win with a penalty in his 100th appearance. The Estadio Monumental roared with ecstasy and emotion. Both sides had already sealed qualification for 2026 and the visitors were playing without Lionel Messi, who had also said goodbye to qualifiers after his final game in Buenos Aires a few days prior. But none of these narratives mattered to Ecuadorian fans. They were acknowledging a magnificent campaign as La Tricolor ended second in the table, their best-ever finish since Conmebol qualifiers moved to a single table. And this despite starting the campaign with a three-point penalty due to the use of documents with false information to register Byron Castillo in the previous cycle. Continue reading...

Both players on target in 4-1 win for La Liga leaders Nkunku strikes as Milan sink Lecce in Coppa Italia Real Madrid maintained their flawless start to the Spanish league season with a swashbuckling 4-1 victory at Levante on Tuesday. Vinícius Júnior orchestrated the visitors’ first-half display before Kylian Mbappe’s second-half double, including a penalty, sealed a comprehensive win. The Brazil winger found form in Valencia, striking a brilliant opener in the 28th minute with the outside of his boot. Vinícius turned provider 11 minutes later, threading the ball through to the new arrival Franco Mastantuono, who doubled Madrid’s advantage from close range. Continue reading...

Sunday’s match to be played at Johan Cruyff Stadium Club’s last game at old Camp Nou was in May 2023 Barcelona have announced that their opening home game of the season against Valencia will not be played at the Camp Nou – five days before it was due to take place. The club had been given permission to play their first three fixtures away from home in order to complete the first phase of construction work at their stadium and that was followed by the international break, but they were still unable to fulfil the requirements needed to get the permits in time, leaving a public deadline unmet for the third time. Continue reading...

Colombian prospect Éder Smic Valencia, 16, died in a car accident on Sunday in Cauca, just days before he was to join the New York Red Bulls II for a trial, the MLS club confirmed on Tuesday.

Arsenal have completed the signing of Valencia defender Cristhian Mosquera, the Premier League club has announced.

Deal for Sporting striker includes €10m in add-ons Arsenal poised to confirm Cristhian Mosquera signing Arsenal have finally reached agreement with Sporting for the transfer of Viktor Gyökeres in a deal worth up to €73.5m (£63.7m), having resolved the problematic issue of the €10m of add-ons to end a tortuous saga and Mikel Arteta’s hunt for a No 9. The London club, , who are poised to confirm the signing of the centre-half Cristhian Mosquera from Valencia for an initial €15m, made the official breakthrough late on Tuesday, sending an updated offer to their Portuguese counterparts to satisfy them over the structure of the bonuses. Sporting have wanted the add-ons to be achievable, based on appearances, goals and assists by Gyökeres plus Champions League qualification, whereas Arsenal had wanted to include some more difficult ones. Continue reading...

Plus: Isaac Price’s strange goalscoring record, strange trophies and who remembers Rodrigo Defendi? Mail us with your questions and answers “Paris FC’s promotion means that Paris will have its first Ligue 1 derby since 1978-79. Is there any European city that has had a longer gap between top-flight derbies?” queries Steve Whittaker from Frankfurt (which hasn’t had a top-flight derby in the Bundesliga era). We’ve touched on this before, many years ago, when we found a 44-year gap between the meeting of Hertha Berlin and FC Union and a 48-year wait for FSV v Eintracht in Steve’s home city. However both derbies reconvened in the second tier and don’t count here. So it is well worth us having a drill down into some top-flight derby deserts. The 46-year wait for Paris bragging rights to be earned is indeed a long one, particularly for a capital city. Valencia had no derby between Valencia and Levante in La Liga between 10 January 1965 and 8 January 2005 (40 years). Berlin had no Bundesliga derby between 1977 (Hertha Berlin v Tennis Borussia Berlin) until 2019 (Hertha Berlin v Union Berlin – 42 years). There were Berlin derbies in the old East German league, but teams from West Berlin would not have been able to participate in those. Cologne has no league derby since 1974 (FC Köln v Fortuna Köln) but those two did meet in the 1982 DFB Pokal Cup, but that doesn’t count. So the gap is active at 51 years. Finally, Naples has never had a Serie A derby at all. To get close to one, you need to venture back to the pre-Serie A days of 1921 when the Italian Championship involved a series of mini-leagues leading to a final round-robin. In the last round before it entered the final phase in 1921, three teams from Naples played each other in a mini league – Bagnolese, Internazionale Napoli, and Naples Foot-Ball Club. Bagnolese have since dissolved, and the other two merged in 1926 to form what is now Napoli. So that could be 105 years and counting. Continue reading...

Cristhian Mosquera is on his way to Singapore to join Arsenal's preseason tour after the club finalised terms with Valencia, sources have told ESPN.

Arsenal target Cristhian Mosquera has appeared to confirm his Valencia departure, claiming he is leaving "home" to begin a "new era."

Valencia midfielder Javi Guerra is the subject of interest from Manchester United. Transfer Talk has the latest news, gossip and rumors.

Valencia has offered Cristhian Mosquera a new contract in an attempt to prevent him from leaving for Arsenal, sources have told ESPN.

Valencia have secured financing totaling €322 million ($377m) for the development of the Nou Mestalla stadium.

Arsenal are in talks to sign Valencia centre-back Cristhian Mosquera, sources have told ESPN.

Brentford, West Ham and Leeds keen on goalkeeper Assistant Heitinga could become Ajax head coach Liverpool have received inquiries from Brentford, West Ham and Leeds regarding the goalkeeper Caoimhín Kelleher and allowed John Heitinga to open talks with Ajax about becoming their new head coach. Kelleher will be allowed to leave this summer in his search for regular first-team football providing Liverpool’s valuation is met. The Premier League champions want more than £20m for the Republic of Ireland international, who has impressed when deputising for Alisson and remains under contract until 2026. With Giorgi Mamardashvili arriving from Valencia this summer, Kelleher’s first-team opportunities are likely to reduce further next season should he remain at Liverpool. Continue reading...