Benito Villamarin to host Copa del Rey Final
The Copa del Rey Final this season will be held at Estadio Benito Villamarin - the home of Real Betis - it has been confirmed by the Spanish FA.
It will be the first time the Final has been staged at the stadium and the 4th time it will have been held in the city of Seville.
In 1925, Sevilla's old Reina Victoria stadium hosted the Final while in 1999 and 2001, the newly-built La Cartuja stadium was the venue for the games.
Betis and Sevilla both remain in the competition at the quarter-finals stage, with Betis currently locked at 1-1 with Espanyol after the first leg and Sevilla holding a 2-0 lead over Barcelona.
The other two quarter-finals see Real Madrid hold a 4-2 advantage over Girona while Getafe lead Valencia 1-0.
This season's Final will be staged on 25 May.
Simeone signs new Atletico deal
Diego Simeone has signed a new contract at Atletico Madrid until 2022.
The Argentine, regularly linked with various Premier League clubs, has been in charge of Atletico since 2011.
Under Simeone, Atletico have become one of the dominant teams in both Spain and Europe, winning the Europa League twice and La Liga in 2014.
That league title was the first time Atletico had been crowned champions since 1996, and the only time in the last 14 years a team other than FC Barcelona or Real Madrid has finished top in Spain.
Simone also guided Atletico to their first Champions League finals, finishing runners-up to arch-rivals Real in both 2014 and 2016.
Atletico Madrid striker Antoine Griezmann is up to fifth place in the list of all time goal scorers for the club, overtaking club legend Fernando Torres.
French international Griezmann netted his 130th goal for Diego Simeone's side during the 1-0 win at Rayo Vallecano on Saturday, and he could finish the season even higher.
As it stands, 4th place Jose Eulogio Garate (136) and Paco Campos in third (146), could be overtaken before the end of the campaign if he can continue his positive form.
After committing his future to the club in the summer, Griezmann may have his eye on the top two in the coming seasons, with second place Adrian Escudero on 169, and Luiz Aragones leading the way with 172 goals.
He has scored 91 goals in La Liga, 21 in the Champions League, 6 in the Europa League and 12 in the Copa del Rey, during his time in the Spanish capital.
Costa sees season ended by 8-match ban
Atletico Madrid striker Diego Costa has seen his season brought to a close after being stung with an 8-match ban for insulting and grabbing referee Jesus Gil Manzano during a defeat to FC Barcelona.
The fiery frontman saw red just 28 minutes into the La Liga fixture at Camp Nou on 6 April.
Believing that he had been fouled, the Spain international launched into a furious tirade at the match officials.
He was shown a straight red card and had to be ushered from the field by Gerard Pique after initially refusing to walk.
The former Chelsea forward also grabbed hold of the referee's arm during an angry confrontation.
He has paid the price for those actions, with the Spanish Football Federation having met on Wednesday to discuss what punishment to hand out.
They have determined that Costa must sit out 8 La Liga fixtures.
He has been handed two 4-game bans - one for insulting a match official and another for holding Manzano's arm in an effort to prevent him from showing yellow cards to Diego Godin and Jose Gimenez.
As Atletico only have 7 more matches to take in this season, Costa's campaign has been brought to a premature conclusion.
The 30-year-old has also been fined over his actions in his most recent outing.
He has been ordered to pay €6,000 to the relevant authorities and Atletico €2,800.
The sorry episode brings the curtain down on what has been a testing season for Costa.
Across 21 appearances, he has managed just 5 goals, with only 2 of those coming in La Liga.
Questions have been asked of his future as a result, with Diego Simeone having often favoured Alvaro Morata since adding another Spain international striker to his books.
Costa, who returned to Atletico from Chelsea in 2017, will have no further opportunities in which to prove his worth this term.
He does have a contract through to 2021 at Wanda Metropolitano, but it remains to be seen whether he will see that out.
Oblak signs Atletico Madrid contract extension
Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Jan Oblak has signed a 4-year contract extension keeping him at the club until 2023.
The 26-year-old, who signed from Benfica in 2014, has played 203 times for Atletico, keeping 115 clean sheets.
The Slovenia international has been awarded the Zamora Trophy 3 times in Spain - an award presented to the goalkeeper with the best game-to-goals-conceded ratio in La Liga.
Oblak was an integral member of the Atletico side which finished runners-up in the 2015-2016 Champions League and won the 2017-2018 Europa League.
Benzema may miss rest of Madrid season
Karim Benzema could miss the remainder of Real Madrid's season with a hamstring injury.
The often-maligned French centre-forward has been in superb form for Madrid since Zinedine Zidane's return as head coach, scoring all of Los Blancos' past 8 goals.
Benzema completed 90 minutes in Thursday's 0-0 draw at Getafe - the first time in 6 matches he failed to find the net - but missed training on Saturday, with Madrid since confirming the 31-year-old has suffered a leg injury.
While Zidane remained vague as to the extent of the injury, Goal understands the problem is not a severe one, but Real will not risk exacerbating the injury with little to play for in the coming weeks. Therefore, the Real number 9 may not feature again for Los Blancos this season.
Benzema has enjoyed another superb campaign at the Bernabeu and has netted 30 goals in 51 appearances in all competitions.
The Frenchman's setback will come as a blow to the former Olympique Lyon man, who needed just 3 more strikes to achieve his best ever scoring season for Real Madrid.
It has been a thoroughly miserable year for Madrid, who are set to finish a season without any silverware for the first time since 2009-2010 campaign.
Madrid currently lie third in La Liga, 6 points behind second place Atletico Madrid, yet have all but secured their place in the Champions League for next year.
Juanfran decides to leave Atletico
Experienced Atletico Madrid full-back Juanfran Torres has decided to leave the club this summer when his contract expires, say Marca.
The 34-year-old, who began his career at Real Madrid, has amassed over 300 appearances for Los Rojiblancos since a January 2011 move from Osasuna.
Juanfran has still maintained his level of performance over recent years despite his age, and has been selected at right-back across 29 matches this campaign.
During his stint with Atleti the defender has won a variety of trophies including a league title, 2 Europa League titles, 2 European Super Cups, a Copa del Rey and a Spanish Supercopa, alongside participating in 2 Champions League finals.
He is the latest defender to leave the club this summer, after Bayern Munchen signed Lucas Hernandez in an €80 million deal and Diego Godin decided to leave - reportedly to join Inter.
Juanfran is said to have a new one-year offer on the table from Atleti but he did not want to take it up.
Setien leaves Real Betis after 2 years
Quique Setien is to leave Real Betis after 2 years as head coach at the Benito Villamarin Stadium.
The 60-year-old Spaniard's departure was confirmed shortly after he led them to a 2-0 win at Santiago Bernabeu on the final day of the La Liga season.
Setien returned Betis to Europe for the first time in 5 seasons, leading them to the last 32 of the Europa League this campaign.
As well as securing 3 points at Real Madrid, Setien guided Betis to a 4-3 win over FC Barcelona at Camp Nou in November.
Betis end the season 10th in La Liga, 3 points off the Europa League qualification places.
Kroos signs new Real Madrid contract
Toni Kroos has signed a contract extension with Real Madrid until 2023.
The Germany international had been linked with a move away from Santiago Bernabeu this summer, with reports in Spain suggesting he would be allowed to leave to make way for Manchester United's Paul Pogba.
However, it appears the 29-year-old will not be culled by head coach Zinedine Zidane as the Frenchman looks to rebuild Real after they finished the season third in La Liga, 19 points adrift of Barcelona - the biggest recorded gap between the two.
Kroos joined Real from Bayern Munchen in 2014 and has won 11 trophies during his 5 years at the club.
Over the past season, Kroos made 43 appearances for Real, scoring once.
La Liga - Team of the Season
Oblak (Atletico)
Pena (Eibar) - Pique (Barca) - Maripan (Alaves) - Valdes (Eibar)
Messi (Barca) - Parejo (Valencia) - Hernandez (Atletico) - Dembele (Barca)
Suarez (Barca) - Aspas (Celta Vigo)
Gameiro vs Barcelona (0-1)
https://streamable.com/i1cpb
Moreno vs Barcelona (0-2)
https://streamable.com/b055t
Messi vs Valencia (1-2)
https://streamable.com/3ksr9
Guedes miss vs Barcelona
https://streamable.com/5y85j
Guedes miss vs Barcelona
https://streamable.com/hnkre
Calleja signs 2-year Villarreal deal
Villarreal have agreed a 2-year contract extension for coach Javi Calleja - who they sacked earlier in the season.
Calleja was dismissed by the club on 10 December but returned to the club exactly 50 days later following an underwhelming stint by his successor Luis Garcia.
Upon his return to Estadio de la Ceramica, Calleja won 10 of his 23 matches at the helm and he reportedly had the full backing of president Fernando Roig.
It was heavily reported that the Yellow Submarine were considering other options following the end of the season, with Quique Setien linked following his dismissal from Real Betis.
During his playing days, Calleja played in the first team of Villarreal across a 7-year stint, including helping the club reach the semi-finals of the Champions League in 2006.
Across his 88 matches in charge of the Yellow Submarine, Calleja has won 35 matches, drawn 24 and lost 29.
The 41-year-old guided Villarreal to safety this campaign but the club's ambitions next season will likely to be targeting a European spot.
Sevilla appoint Lopetegui
FC Sevilla have confirmed the appointment of former Real Madrid coach Julen Lopetegui as their new head coach on a 3-year deal.
Lopetegui, 52-year-old, has been out of management since being sacked by Real Madrid in October 2018 after just 14 games in charge at Santiago Bernabeu.
His appointment by Madrid came on the eve of the 2018 World Cup in Russia, where he was set to manage the Spanish national side.
The Spanish FA took the decision to dismiss Lopetegui 2 days before Spain's opening game against Portugal, because his agreement to join Real Madrid was made without their knowledge.
Betis confirm Ferrer appointment
Real Betis have confirmed the appointment of Joan Francesc Ferrer as their new coach after Espanyol announced his departure on Thursday.
The former Levante and Sporting Gijon coach has been appointed on a 3-year contract at Los Verdiblancos, it has been confirmed.
Espanyol - who had been linked to former Betis coach Quique Setien and Pablo Machin, formerly of Sevilla - are set to appoint B team coach David Gallego as Ferrer's successor.
Betis are said to have paid Espanyol €900,000 (the coach's release clause) to complete the operation and will improve his wage, with the club's said to have been negotiating this figure in recent weeks.
It is said that Espanyol had been irritated by the coach's attitude during the negotiation process and he reportedly demanding his compensation for guiding the club into Europe before his departure.
Ferrer led Huesca to promotion from the second tier for the first time in the club's history in 2018 but subsequently moved to the RCDE Stadium.
The success continued for the 49-year-old last season as he returned the catalan club to European football for the first time in over a decade.
Espanyol went unbeaten through their last 9 matches of the season, including winning each of their last 3, to clinch 7th place and a return to the Europa League.
Betis had been on the lookout for a new coach after dismissing Setien at the end of the season - the club's form nosedived after Christmas and they ended the campaign in 10th.
Espanyol owner Chen Yansheng was said to be extremely keen to retain coach Ferrer but he was unable to prevent his departure when his release clause was triggered.
Ceballos confirms Madrid exit
Real Madrid's Dani Ceballos has confirmed that he will be leaving the club this summer.
Zinedine Zidane has embarked on a big-money transfer spending spree so far this summer, and he is expected to oversee departures from Santiago Bernabeu ahead of the 2019-2020 campaign to finance these moves.
Former Real Betis midfielder Ceballos has been widely reported to be one of those players set for an exit and has indicated that will be the case.
Ceballos is currently away on international duty with the Spanish U21 side at the European Championships, and he confirmed that a decision will be made after the tournament.
"When I return I will make a decision."
"If I do leave, I want to play for a side where I feel important."
"I want to show that I can play in any team in Europe."
"I am a young player that wants to succeed, and I cannot have another year of not playing."
Cazorla signs new Villarreal deal
Villarreal veteran Santi Cazorla re-signed with the La Liga club, it was confirmed on Thursday.
Spain international midfielder Cazorla, 34-year-old, renewed for the 2019-2020 season after impressing last term following his return to the Yellow Submarine.
The club announced the news on Thursday at a season ticket campaign presentation in the newly opened Plaza Pascual Font de Mora.
After re-joining Villarreal - where he left for Malaga in 2011 - from Arsenal, Cazorla scored 7 goals and tallied 11 assists in 46 matches across all competitions.
In total, Cazorla has played 288 games for the club throughout his stints and in that time he has scored 41 goals and provided 46 assists.
The midfielder's best days, though, may have been with Arsenal as the Spanish midfielder was a club favourite throughout his time with the Gunners.
Cazorla won 2 FA Cups and 2 Community Shields during his stay at the Emirates Stadium, also earning Arsenal's Player of the Season following a 2012-2013 campaign that saw the midfielder provide 12 goals in 49 total appearances.
The Spaniard made a total of 180 appearances for the Gunners, scoring 29 goals under Arsene Wenger.
Cazorla, whose final 3 years at Arsenal were wrecked by serious physical problems, was rewarded with a return to the Spain squad for the first time since 2015.
He was handed a call-up by Luis Enrique for last week's 4-1 rout of Faroe Islands in EURO 2020 qualifying.
The 34-year-old midfielder has earned by Spain 79 times and was a member of Spain's EURO 2008 and 2012 championship squads.
He's also participated in 2 Confederations Cup, in 2009 and 2013, and was a member of Spain's 2014 World Cup squad.
Asensio suffered ACL rupture against Arsenal
Real Madrid have confirmed Marco Asensio suffered a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament in their International Champions Cup clash with Arsenal.
The 23-year-old was taken to hospital for a checkup after being stretchered off the field during the pre-season clash in Maryland on Wednesday.
Asensio's foot seemed to get caught in the turf as he tussled for possession with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang around the 60-minute mark before he fell to the ground clutching his knee in agony.
Madrid have now confirmed the full extent of the damage, with an ACL injury set to sideline the Spain international for a number of months.
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