Diego Simeone hopes Antoine Griezmann will stay with Atletico Madrid on a long-term basis after the France international helped Los Colchoneros make a positive start in LaLiga.

Griezmann came off the bench to score Atletico's third goal in a dominant opening-day win at Getafe on Monday, with Joao Felix recording three assists and Alvaro Morata scoring twice in a 3-0 triumph.

The 2018 World Cup winner is 12 months into a two-year loan spell in the Spanish capital, having endured a largely unhappy period with Barcelona between 2019 and 2021.

Reports suggest Atletico have an obligation to buy Griezmann should he hit a minimum number of appearances in LaLiga this season, and Simeone is keen to keep the 31-year-old.

"We talked about it in the Getafe post-game. I have spoken a lot about him, he is very complete, he knows what we want," Simeone said.

"Last year he already played some games in that role. We see him as adaptable because he has vision of the game, technique, he allows us to play with a more offensive player elsewhere. 

"I hope he continues with us, I appreciate him and I love him. 

"Hopefully he can continue in the line that he had in pre-season and in this Getafe game."

Only Joao Felix (13), Angel Correa (13) and the since-departed Luis Suarez (10) bettered Griezmann's tally of eight goals in all competitions for Atletico last season, despite the France forward making just 27 starts.

Meanwhile, Griezmann will be looking to build on his opening-day goal against a favoured opponent when Atletico host Villarreal on Sunday, having scored four goals in his last four outings against the Yellow Submarine in LaLiga.

It was Griezmann's fellow attacker Joao Felix who stole the headlines last time out, however, becoming the first player to provide three assists on LaLiga's first matchday since Jordi Cruyff did so against Las Palmas in 2000.

But Simeone was unwilling to get carried away with his praise for either him or in-form strike partner Morata, adding: "We are starting LaLiga. It is early to make such a deep reflection. 

"They are in a good moment, they had a great pre-season, they are both excited. They have maturity. Let's hope they continue like this."

Sam Bennett claimed his first Grand Tour stage win in two years as he held off a mass sprint to take victory on Saturday at the Vuelta a Espana.

In the second of three stages held in the Netherlands, the Irishman justified his selection for BORA-Hansgrohe by refinding his form in Utrecht.

Bennett has endured a difficult season, having been left out of the Tour de France for a second straight year, but capitalised on the lead-out qualities of team-mates Ryan Mullen and Danny van Poppel.

"Danny brought me up with speed, then he was kind of ready for me to jump, but I waited a second, and I didn't know if I'd let my speed drop too much, and I was nervous I wouldn't get on top of the speed again," Bennett said.

"Danny didn't deliver me; he launched me. It was down to the boys today.

"It's nice. I knew I'd do it again, it was just a matter of getting the right legs. What I'm really happy about is continuing my pattern of winning at least one stage in every Grand Tour I've done since 2018."

Mads Pederson came in second, having been unable to sustain an early attack, with Tim Merlier finishing third.

Jumbo-Visma dominate the general classification standings, with Mike Teunissen, who crossed in fourth place, taking the leader's jersey from team-mate Robert Gesink.

Three-time reigning champion Primoz Roglic shares that lead.

More Vuelta joy for Bennett 

Bennett has now won nine stages in GTs, with four of those coming at La Vuelta. That makes the race his favourite of the big three, with the 31-year-old having won three at the Giro d'Italia and two at the Tour de France.

STAGE RESULT 

1. Sam Bennett (BORA-Hansgrohe) 3:49:34
2. Mads Pederson (Trek-Segafredo) same time
3. Tim Merlier (Alpecin-Deceuninck) same time
4. Mike Teunissen (Jumbo-Visma) same time
5. Pascal Ackermann (UAE Team Emirates) same time

CLASSIFICATION STANDINGS 

General Classification

1. Mike Teunissen (Jumbo-Visma) 4:14:14
2. Edoardo Affini (Jumbo-Visma) same time
3. Sam Oomen (Jumbo-Visma) same time

Points Classification

1. Sam Bennett (BORA-Hansgrohe) 50
2. Mads Pederson (Trek-Segafredo) 50
3. Pascal Ackermann (UAE Team Emirates) 26

King of the Mountains

1. Julius van den Berg (EF Education-EasyPost) 2
2. Thibault Guernalec (Arkea-Samsic) 1

Christian Eriksen feels victory over Liverpool on Monday would represent a "stepping stone" for Manchester United following their poor start to the season.

United host Liverpool at Old Trafford seeking their first points of the season after following up a 2-1 home defeat against Brighton and Hove Albion with a 4-0 loss at Brentford.

It is the first time since the inaugural Premier League campaign in 1992-93 that United have started a season with successive losses, placing them bottom of the embryonic table. 

Erik ten Hag's task does not get any easier as United have won just one of their past 12 league meetings with Liverpool and are winless in eight since a 2-1 victory in March 2018.

However, Denmark international Eriksen believes a home clash with United's fierce rivals can potentially kickstart their campaign.

"If you get a result in a big game, you get the confidence to go on to the next one, and that's definitely going to help you," he told United Review.
 
"First we need to do better than we did in the last home game [against Brighton]. So we need to get the fans going. 

"We need to start well, get going into the game and play well in general. The fans expect a good game and so do we. But it's definitely a good stepping stone to win the derbies."

Liverpool are themselves seeking a first league victory of the campaign following surprise draws with Fulham and Crystal Palace in their opening two games.

Monday's match will therefore mark the first time both of these sides have been winless heading into this fixture in Premier League history.

That will make for a feisty encounter at Old Trafford, where Eriksen is relishing his first taste of this famous clash.

"I think you feel the vibe going up to the game," he said. "You build up to it. You get a feeling of 'Monday will be Liverpool – how are we going to play against them?'

"Then you build up slowly, to really be on a good note and be in a good place mentally to play the game. 
 
"Of course, you don't know what's going to come to you from the fans, before the game or in the game.

"But when you're locked into the game, you don't really recognise the feeling around you. You're just really locked in and focused on the game."

Saint-Etienne suffered a club-record loss and became just the second Ligue 2 team to have three players sent off in a single match as they were thrashed 6-0 by Le Havre.

One of France's historically nost successful clubs, Saint-Etienne were relegated from Ligue 1 last season, with their misery compounded by a points deduction.

They had opened their season with two draws and one defeat, but were humbled on Saturday.

Saint-Etienne had three players sent off, with two of those dismissals coming in the first half. Anthony Briancon picked up two bookings in the space of four minutes, and Mathieu Cafaro received his marching orders soon after.

It was the first time Saint-Etienne had received two red cards in the first half of a league match in the 21st century, and they then matched a Ligue 2 record set by Valenciennes in 2019 when goalkeeper Etienne Green saw red in the 66th minute.

Le Havre were 3-0 up by that stage, and capitalised on their numerical advantage to inflict a true thrashing, as Saint-Etienne lost by six goals in a home game for the first time in their history.

Chelsea have banned a supporter from Stamford Bridge after carrying out an investigation into the alleged racist abuse aimed at Tottenham's Son Heung-min.

The incident occurred in the second half of last Sunday's 2-2 draw between the rival London teams, as hosts Chelsea were twice pegged back and denied victory.

Footage emerged on social media on Wednesday appearing to show Son being targeted with a racist gesture from the Stamford Bridge stands as he went over to take a corner in front of home fans.

That was followed on Thursday by Chelsea condemining "idiots like this that attach themselves to this club as so-called 'fans'", saying such an incident brought shame on the Blues.

Chelsea pledged to take "the strongest action" as they worked to identify the fan in question, and on Saturday the Premier League club revealed they had found a culprit.

The club said: "Following our statement this week on racist abuse at the Tottenham game last Sunday, Chelsea Football Club can confirm that it has identified and banned a season ticket holder indefinitely."

Antonio Conte suggested Harry Kane would gladly swap his goalscoring accolades for a major trophy after he broke the Premier League's one-club goals record in a hard-fought win over Wolves.

Kane nodded home from close range to earn Tottenham a 1-0 victory over Bruno Lage's men on Saturday, with his 185th Premier League goal for Spurs moving him clear of Sergio Aguero's tally of 184 strikes in the competition for Manchester City.

The 29-year-old's second-half winner also represented his 250th goal for the club in all competitions, as well as Tottenham's 1,000th Premier League goal on home soil.

But for all his goalscoring prowess, Kane is yet to lift a major trophy, finishing as an EFL Cup and Champions League runner-up with his club and failing to lead England to glory in the Euro 2020 final last year.

While Conte was full of praise for Kane when speaking to BT Sport after the win, he emphasised the striker's desire to play his part in a collective triumph.

"It is a great achievement, a great personal achievement, but I know that Harry would like to exchange this achievement with a trophy," Conte said.

"I know this, he is working for this and we are working for this, to try to improve the team and bring the club on another level, not only to have big personal achievements.

"At the same time, you know very well my consideration about Harry, we are talking about a world-class striker.

"But what makes me happy is not only with the ball – that we have in our team a top scorer, a top player – but we have a player totally involved with the other team-mates and [who] works a lot for the team. 

"For this reason, I am really pleased to have him and to be his coach."

Tottenham's win means they have remained unbeaten through their first three matches of the Premier League season, just as they did under Nuno Espirito Santo last term. This is the first time Spurs have done so in consecutive campaigns since 2004-05 and 2005-06.

And Conte believes Tottenham's run of positive results – all against teams who won the corresponding fixtures last season – is a reflection of their development in recent months. 

"The performance at the end was good, because I had to consider everything, first of all the importance of the opponent," he said.

"Wolverhampton I think in the last week signed important players like [Goncalo] Guedes, like [Matheus] Nunes. I think when you see their starting XI today, you have to be a bit scared. 

"I think it's a really good team. In the first half we struggled a bit, but in the second half I think we deserved to win, we created many chances to score. The first half was good to stay calm, to stay focused, to suffer together. 

"Don't forget, last season with these three teams we played this season, we lost. Against Southampton, against Chelsea and against Wolverhampton, with me [as coach]. 

"Now we've got seven points, I think that is a good sign. The team is continuing to improve."

Harry Kane declared "I always love scoring" after netting his landmark 250th goal for Tottenham in Saturday's 1-0 victory over Wolves.

The England captain headed in from an Ivan Perisic flick-on in the 64th minute to settle the Premier League clash at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

As well as hitting the 250-goal mark in all competitions, Kane's goal was his 185th for Spurs in the Premier League, seeing him surpass Manchester City great Sergio Aguero to become the top-scoring player in the division for a single club.

Having only recently turned 29, Kane will be aiming to beat Alan Shearer's record of 260 Premier League goals, with Andy Cole (187) and Wayne Rooney (208) the only others ranked above him.

Speaking to BT Sport, Kane said: "It's been a fantastic nine or 10 years in the Premier League.

"Hopefully there are many more years to go. I always love scoring. The most important thing is winning games and we've started the season doing that.

"I've got to give credit to the boys – they dug deep and got a clean sheet today."

Kane's goal was also the 1,000th scored by Tottenham at home in the Premier League, seeing them join Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool in that elite group.

The striker's headed winner came from one of 11 attempts by Tottenham, compared to 20 from Wolves, who edged the first half but failed to truly test Hugo Lloris.

"Credit to Wolves, they made it difficult," Kane said. "In the second half we came out with real intensity from the off.

"We created chances and pressed better and got the goal we deserved. We didn't create too many chances after that, but neither did they."

Tottenham have started the season unbeaten in their first three Premier League games – the first time they have done so in consecutive campaigns since 2004-05 and 2005-06.

Antonio Conte's side recovered from going behind to beat Southampton 4-1 in their opener before twice battling back to draw 2-2 with Chelsea.

While Spurs were able to keep out a still-winless Wolves on Saturday, Kane accepts they need to perform with greater purpose at the beginning of games.

"We need to start games better – it was the same against Chelsea," he said. "We need to improve, but the sign of a good team is winning when you don't play your best."

Stefano Pioli has rejected suggestions Milan are favourites to retain the Serie A title this season, claiming the Rossoneri will struggle to match last campaign's tally of 86 points in a "very competitive" league.

Milan ended an 11-year wait for the Scudetto when they edged out rivals Inter at the end of a fierce title race in May, and began the new campaign with a thrilling 4-2 victory over Udinese last week.

But several sides, including Inter, Juventus, Napoli and Roma – all of whom also started the season with a victory – have been tipped to challenge Milan for their crown, and Pioli expects a difficult fight.

"We have to be an interchangeable team," Pioli said ahead of Sunday's trip to Atalanta.

"It will be such a balanced championship that it will be difficult to score last year's points. Difficulties will come for everyone, even with teams that you don't expect.

"There are seven or eight strong teams, a very balanced and competitive league. One game at a time we must continue on our path and work to become more and more competitive.

"We are strong, here we all have to feel important, but nobody is indispensable. What is indispensable is the mentality and the work. 

"The winner will be whoever is the most consistent in results and performances. You have to play with intensity and quality. 

"Head-to-head matches are important and last year we won precisely because we scored so many points with the big teams."

Milan started both of their previous full Serie A seasons under Pioli with consecutive victories, beating Bologna and Crotone to begin the 2020-21 campaign before overcoming Sampdoria and Cagliari last term, and will be looking to maintain that record in Bergamo on Sunday.

Meanwhile, since clinching the title, Milan have acquired Belgian attackers Charles de Ketelaere and Divock Origi, and Pioli has refused to rule out further activity before the closure of the transfer window.

However, the 56-year-old insists the Rossoneri will only move for the right target, as he revealed Simon Kjaer is closing in on a return after suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury last year.

"As for the market, we have the will - if the situation were right - to improve certain situations," he added.

"But the squad is strong, Kjaer is approaching 100 per cent. I repeat, if we find something to improve well [we may be active], otherwise we are already competitive like this."

Wesley Fofana was left out of the Leicester City squad for Saturday's game against Southampton amid ongoing transfer interest from Chelsea.

The Blues have reportedly seen several advances for the Frenchman rebuffed, with Leicester boss Brendan Rodgers insistent the club do not want to sell the defender.

Speaking in Friday's press conference, Rodgers reiterated the club's stance has not changed and Fofana is not for sale.

"The idea is that he is very much a Leicester player. He's not for sale. Unless anything changes, I would expect him to be here," Rodgers said.

The 21-year-old Fofana is reportedly keen to secure a move to Stamford Bridge though. With that distraction a factor, he was not included for the visit of Saints on Saturday.

Fofana played in both of Leicester's previous games this season, where the Foxes drew with Brentford on the opening weekend before enduring a 4-2 defeat at the hands of Arsenal.

Youri Tielemans, who has entered the final year of his contract with Leicester and has been linked with a transfer to Arsenal, dropped to the bench against Southampton.

Leicester faced a youthful Southampton, with the Saints starting XI showing an average of 23 years and 238 days – the youngest named in a Premier League game since Manchester United's line-up against Crystal Palace in May 2017 (22y 284d).

Harry Kane set another Premier League record and maintained Tottenham's positive start to the campaign by heading his side to a 1-0 win over Wolves on Saturday.

Spurs beat Southampton in their opener and battled to a 2-2 draw at Chelsea last weekend, but they struggled to get going in a quiet first half against a still-winless Wolves.

Antonio Conte's men stepped things up in the second half and were rewarded after 64 minutes when Kane met full debutant Ivan Perisic's flick-on and nodded in from close range.

That was Kane's 250th goal for Spurs and his 185th in the Premier League – the most of any player for a single club – and was enough to secure all three points for the hosts.

Wolves had 12 shots in a first half the visitors edged, but the closest they went to a breakthrough was a glancing Ruben Neves header and a deflected shot from new signing Matheus Nunes.

Neither of those efforts tested Hugo Lloris, however, whereas Tottenham's only attempt of the first half saw Jose Sa brilliantly tip over Kane's looping header.

Conte elected against making any half-time changes but Tottenham improved considerably in the second half, with Kane thumping another header against the frame of the goal.

Son Heung-min was next to hit the post, doing so from closer range with a shot on the turn, though Tottenham did not have to wait much longer for their opener.

Perisic guided Son's corner into the path of Kane and the England striker could not miss from a few yards out as he brought up his landmark goal, with that proving enough.

Harry Kane swept past Sergio Aguero on Saturday to establish a Premier League record for the most goals with a single club in the competition.

The England captain has tormented top-flight defences as the leader of Tottenham's attack, and he took his Premier League tally to 185 goals by scoring for Spurs against Wolves.

It shuffled him one ahead of Manchester City great Aguero, and two clear of Wayne Rooney, who struck 183 times for Manchester United.

Kane began the season level with Rooney and one behind Aguero, before moving level with the latter by netting in the dramatic 2-2 draw at Chelsea.

Spurs' opener against Wolves was also their 1,000th in the Premier League - the fifth team to reach that tally after Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea.

The 29-year-old Kane still has a long way to go to become the Premier League's all-time record scorer, given Alan Shearer ended his career with 260 goals in the competition, netting 148 for Newcastle United and 112 in his time at Blackburn Rovers.

Tottenham are not the only team Kane has played for in the English elite league, given he featured three times for Norwich City during a loan spell in the 2012-13 season.

He could not find the back of the net for the Canaries but has been a consistent marksman for Tottenham over the past eight seasons, hitting at least 17 goals in each Premier League campaign.

Kane managed 29 goals in 29 games in 2016-17 and 30 in 35 appearances during the following campaign, arguably his peak years.

Although he has only reached the 20-goal mark once in the last four seasons, Kane has remained integral to Tottenham's plans, with the club resisting strong interest from Manchester City last year to keep him in north London. 

Leicester City have been his favourite opponents in goalscoring terms, with Kane scoring 17 times in 14 Premier League outings against the Foxes, while he has managed 13 against both Everton and Spurs' fierce rivals Arsenal.

Kane has also reached double figures against Southampton and West Ham, hitting 11 against both sides.

Of all the Premier League teams he has faced, Kane has only failed to grab a goal in the competition against Brentford, missing out in his two games against the Bees to date.

Lisandro Martinez can recover from a tricky start to life at Manchester United, former Red Devils striker Louis Saha has told Stats Perform.

Argentina international Martinez, a £56.7million signing from Ajax (€66.8m), was hauled off at half-time with United 4-0 down to Brentford last weekend.

That came on the back of an equally disappointing display in the 2-1 loss to Brighton and Hove Albion on the opening weekend.

Speaking after that match, Brighton midfielder Adam Lallana revealed the Seagulls deliberately targeted new signing Martinez with aerial balls into the box.

Much has been made of Martinez's size, which is officially given as 5' 7" by the Premier League, and Saha accepts that is something the defender will have to deal with.

"Size does matter," Saha said. "You know it changes perception of you. That will pose challenges from time to time, but he does have other qualities.

"I remember Gabriel Heinze wasn't the biggest but he managed to get to every header and was a threat in both boxes, so it's more about how you adapt.

"The Eredivisie is different in style. Yes, teams like to play on the floor in this league [the Premier League], but there is a bit more aerial competition when you play direct teams.

"Brentford and Brighton both identified there was maybe a possibility to do something in that area. He was taken off [at Brentford] but that could have been any defender.

"There's more to it than thinking 'oh yes, if he has been five centimetres bigger he would have won the challenge'. That's unfair, but it is something he'll have to address quickly. 

"He needs to learn to anticipate the situation and communicate better. All this may change in a few weeks, though of course it's a big challenge and something he must face."

United have started their campaign with back-to-back losses for the first time since 1992-93, which was also the most recent occasion they found themselves bottom of the table.

Erik ten Hag is the first United manager since John Chapman in 1921 to lose his first two matches, meanwhile, in what has been a chastening start for the Dutchman.

Saha, who won four trophies in five seasons at Old Trafford, believes it is down to the players to turn things around heading into Monday's huge showdown with Liverpool.

"It's a shocking start," Saha said. "We were all kind of confident that things were looking better because of the pre-season games. But that has completely changed. 

"The first half against Brentford it was just shocking. You can blame individuals, but the overall performances of the side is really bad and they need to address it. 

"It's not only down to attitude, it's also the approach. It's more about getting the right tools in place for you to approach the game correctly. 

"Technically, you have a manager who is going to determine the tactics and the positions, but the aggression you put into the games is down to the players. 

"This is where we tend to see that they have the ability to stay in their comfort zone. You have to consider that every 50-50 is an opportunity to establish yourself. 

"You are not at a club that should be accepting less running, less sprinting, less winning balls. It's just about winning."

Manchester United great Peter Schmeichel is "surprised" by the club's pursuit of Casemiro, expressing doubt as to whether the midfielder can adapt to life in the Premier League.

Erik ten Hag's side are widely reported to be closing in on the capture of the Brazilian from Real Madrid for an initial fee of around £60million (€70.6m), with his weekly wage said to be £350,000.

Such a significant outlay on the 30-year-old, who is set to pen a four-year deal at Old Trafford, has raised eyebrows given the fact he is entering the twilight years of his career.

Schmeichel has further concerns though, as he is not convinced that Casemiro will be able to fit into the role that United are recruiting him for, highlighting the differences to his current position at Madrid.

"I'm surprised, I have to be honest, because Casemiro hasn't been mentioned at all throughout the transfer window, at no point was that name mentioned," he told the BBC's Football Focus.

"I think he's been absolutely fantastic at Real Madrid, I've been impressed with how well he's played. He had an injury, came back and really tightened up the back.

"But what he did at Real Madrid was to sit in front of the back four, just to give them protection, then when they had the ball he took part in play but they had Toni Kroos and Luka Modric to give the ball to, then he just stopped.

"If you're a number six for Manchester United, you are supposed to also drive and take part in the game."

"Ten Hag says he wants to be in possession of the game, to be in control of the game, put pressure on the ball all the time, and that's a big difference from LaLiga. Even playing in the Champions League to playing every week in the Premier League.

"So I'm surprised that this player is now being mentioned at that amount of money with those wages at that age, when we don't know if he can do the job.

"I'm not sure. Maybe sign somebody who we know can play in the Premier League, just for now, then maybe next year or the next transfer window you go and sign the players like Casemiro, exciting players to watch.

"For me, it's an open question, I don't know."

United, who have lost their opening two Premier League matches, have spent much of the transfer window chasing Frenkie de Jong from Madrid's rivals Barcelona.