SOCCER FOOTBALL 24H

In light of UEFA footballing minnows Andorra, Gibraltar, Malta and San Marino all taking on much higher-ranked opponents Portugal, Belgium, England and Northern Ireland respectively this international break, that got Coral writers thinking. Goals galore are expected in each of those fixtures, so we find out some of the biggest scorelines in the history of World Cup and Euro qualifying from European nations. England 8-0 Turkey (1987) We start off with England and, although their 8-0 win is not the biggest scoreline on the list, it was against one of the most high profile – Turkey. Ahead of Euro 1988, the Three Lions battered the Turkish outfit, thanks to a hat-trick from Gary Lineker and a brace from John Barnes, while Bryan Robson, Peter Beardsley and Neil Webb also chipped in. Spain 8-0 Liechtenstein (2016) Most recently, Spain hammered tiny territory Liechtenstein 8-0 too this current World Cup 2018 qualifying campaign, thanks to braces from Diego Costa, David S...

Borussia Dortmund vs Real Madrid Live on BT Sport Dortmund 2.56 , Draw 3.80 , Real Madrid 2.86 Occasionally the Champions League group stage throws up a humdinger of clash, and this week we have two of the best and they both involve clubs from the Bundesliga and Madrid. Bayern Munich's clash with Atletico will be a fascinating repeat of last year's engrossing semi-final, while Real Madrid's trip to Borussia Dortmund simply promises to be a right ding-dong of a game as they have been over the years. These are two teams full of extremely talented players but led by completely different coaches. Madrid boast Zinedine Zidane , a coach who won everything as a player and then moved into elite coaching to immediate success. Zidane has a serene air to him and his sides don't have a particularly notable playing style, he just focuses on keeping his players happy and confident. Dortmund are managed by Thomas Tuchel , an intense coach (albeit less so than prede...

Ralf Rangnick @ 10/3 Much as last time, a German is second favourite, but Rangnick is a far more rounded and interesting candidate than Jurgen Klinsmann. Despite winning promotions with multiple clubs and reaching a Champions League semi-final at Schalke, his style rather than his success earned him a reputation, being credited with introducing the popular pressing style of the day to the Bundesliga and altering perceptions of the league. The demands for Glenn Hoddle show the value in which England fans hold possessing a discernible tactical ideology, and the RB Leipzig director certainly provides that. Laurent Blanc @ 33/1 The ease with which Blanc won at Paris St-Germain gets used as a knock on him, even though he fared better than feted predecessor Carlo Ancelotti and Unai Emery has so far shown that the job isn't as simple as his performance implied . He topped Ligue 1 and reached a Champions League semi-final in three years at Bordeaux, and finished first thr...

There was no more pressing matter this weekend than who would win the top two battle at White Hart Lane and the comprehensive manner in which Tottenham Hotspur dismantled Pep Guardiola's previously slick machine has inevitably resumed a conversation. It's a conversation that began last season as people began to wake up to the undeniable fact that Mauricio Pochettino had forged a young, hungry side who had bought wholesale into his mandate while being greater than the sum of their parts. That in itself is not an uncommon phenomenon but when the parts in question are a truly outstanding goalkeeper; a defender in Toby Alderweireld whose calm authority made him a shoo-on for the PFA Team of the Year ; the breath-taking emergence of Dier and Alli; and Harry Kane sweeping away fears of second season syndrome with another haul of goals then Spurs's title credentials soon went from being whispered on forums to openly discussed in pubs and television studios. The las...