Diego Costa has admitted that he had a massage with horse placenta and electroshocks as he attempted to be fit for the Champions League final in 2014.

Despite enjoying a strong campaign, Dimitar Berbatov narrowly missed out on the final squad, with Ferguson opting for Wayne Rooney, Javier Hernandez and Michael Owen instead.

UEFA are facing up to the prospect of another huge Champions League headache after the Ligue 1 season was cancelled and all sporting events were banned in France until at least September.

PSG chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi said in a statement that while they respect the actions of the French government, they fully intend to feature in Europe's premier club competition.

As Premier League officials scramble to resume the season amid the coronavirus crisis, the fate of the 2020-21 campaign appears ever more uncertain.

Kevin De Bruyne remains confident that Manchester City will overturn their two-year Champions League ban but says if they don't he will have to consider his future and 'make a final decision' .

The Champions League came to an abrupt halt in the middle of March following the outbreak of the coronavirus and now UEFA are desperate to get the show back on the road.

Following Ferguson's retirement, United have endured a long slump away from England and Europe's elite but would that still have been the case if Ferguson's bold plans had come to light.

Stoke boss Nathan Jones admitted his much-changed side were 'nowhere good enough' after they crashed out of the Carabao Cup to League Two Crawley.

Sportsmail has put together an utterly comprehensive, infallible and objective guide to the top 10 Premier League goals between 2010 and the start of 2020.

Watford boss Quique Sanchez Flores will ensure Danny Welbeck is fully fit and firing before handing him a regular first-team spot.

The youngster returned to training in September following his brave battle against the disease and featured for the club's U23 side the following month in a 4-1 win over Swansea.

The 2010s have seen an unprecedented turnover of managers in England's top flight. In total, 103 different men have been in charge of Premier League clubs in the last 10 years, holding 153 posts between them.

COMMENT BY IAN HERBERT: The genuine acts of sacrifice are the ones there is little song and dance about. There have been acts of kindness from others across the game.

Washington Post Newspaper Guild members defended Felicia Sonmez, saying the reporter needs protection for tweeting about rape allegations once made against Kobe Bryant.

The draw for the inaugural UEFA Nations League takes place in Lausanne on Wednesday morning as the 55 European nations participating discover who they will play. Follow it all live here.

STEPHEN MCGOWAN AT HAMPDEN PARK: With seven goals in eight games already this season, Steven Naismith is sleeping soundly these nights.

Sportsmail provide you with the information on how to watch UEFA Nations League clashes for England, home nations and the rest including channel, times and dates for October.

Sportsmail provide you with the information on how to watch Nations League clashes for November including specific channel, times and dates for England and the rest.

The group phase of the inaugural UEFA Nations League has now concluded, with all the promotion, relegation and play-off issues resolved. So what happens next? Sportsmail explains all

Ian Holloway held final talks with Grimsby Town earlier this week before agreeing a contract on Tuesday morning. Holloway's last managerial job was with QPR in 2018.

When Liverpool were last English champions 30 years ago, JOHN BARNES was their brightest star and 13-year-old DANNY MURPHY idolised him from The Kop.

Sunderland drew 1-1 with Oxford as Lynden Gooch's penalty saved a point, while Portsmouth finished with 10 men as they lose 1-0 to Shrewsbury at New Meadow.

JACK GAUGHAN AT TURF MOOR: Sean Dyche's cup ignominy continued as Sunderland became the latest unfancied side to inflict embarrassment on Burnley.

Thousands of travelling fans had vented their displeasure after the crisis-hit hosts grabbed a 50th-minute lead through defender Jack Hobbs. McGeady scored a stoppage-time penalty.

CRAIG HOPE AT BRAMALL LANE: Jack Ross must be wishing Sunderland could play away at Premier League opposition every week, not that this felt like a shock result.

ON THE ROAD: At what point did Sunderland go from being a big club that accidentally found themselves in League One, to becoming a genuine lower league outfit?

Some caretakers managers have proved successful and gained the job permanently. Others have proved disastrous. Sportsmail take a look at some of the best and some of the worst.

IAN LADYMAN: David Moyes was a very good football manager when he was at Preston and Everton. Since then, it has been harder to say. Manchester United was too big for him.

Sheffield United's latest win leaves them just two points off a Champions League spot, but how do they compare to other Premier League sides to have taken the top flight by storm following promotion.

MARTIN KEOWN: I've said it before and I'll say it again: Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez could be the best defensive partnership in Premier League history. They will want to secure the silverware.

Penalties always creates a bit of drama and this was no exception, with Jordan Pickford and Eric Dier once again emerging as the heroes. n this occasion Pickford even scored England's fifth penalty.

The Wales international links up with former international colleague Carl Robinson, who was appointed Jets head coach earlier this month, until the end of the season.

England have dodged the proverbial 'group of death' at the next UEFA Nations League tournament after drawing Iceland, Denmark and Belgium in the group stages.

Real Madrid star Gareth Bale has attempted to recreate his iconic Champions League final goal in his living room to raise money for the NHS during the coronavirus pandemic. 

Baseball's London Series has become the latest victim of the coronavirus pandemic after Major League Baseball cancelled this summer's event at West Ham's London Stadium.

While the programme sellers and stewards are taking 20 per cent wage cuts and being bailed out by the government, top stars are still earning hundreds of thousands a week.

DCMS Committee Chair Julian Knight is calling for a windfall tax to be imposed on Premier League clubs that refuse to cut the salaries of highly-paid star players.

Karren Brady has said that Premier League clubs have to slash the wages of their stars amid the coronavirus crisis, as the West Ham chief slammed the PFA for imploring players not to accept a cut.

Arsenal invincible Robert Pires ended up in the Midlands and Rio Ferdinand learned his craft on the south coast with Bournemouth. But who has been forgotten at each Premier League side?

EXCLUSIVE BY MATT HUGHES: Premier League managers are siding with clubs in the battle over wages, with the majority ready to accept a temporary cut.

The issue of Premier League stars taking a wage cut amid the coronavirus crisis is coming to the boil with players and club executives at loggerheads after weekend talks.

Liverpool's position became indefensible before they reversed their decision but that is of little comfort to clubs in the Premier League's lower reaches.

The majority of clubs are still far from shaking hands on deferral deals as talks between executives and their players continued on Thursday night after Saints players agreed a 10 per cent wage deferral.

MATT HUGHES - AHEAD OF THE GAME: Sky Sports' owners Comcast have begun negotiations over extending NBC's contract to show Premier League matches in the United States.

An ongoing stand-off between players, the PFA and the Premier League has seen an agreement still to be reached and captains were said to have gone 'ballistic' by the league's public statement.

David Moyes fears a lot of Premier League players will get injured if they are rushed back from coronavirus lockdown in a bid to complete the current season.

The Premier League is coming under mounting pressure to finish the season by June 30. But with the lockdown unlikely to end anytime soon, a way of concluding the campaign has to be found.

Just as at the last Premier League meeting two weeks ago, the chief issues remain a resumption date for the season and potential wage cuts or deferrals for players.

The issue of finishing the Premier League season by June 30 to avoid contract and sponsorship disputes was not raised when top-flight clubs met on Friday.