Carlo Ancelotti has said Real Madrid are considering allowing players to take short breaks during the season with concerns about the congested fixture schedule. 

Ancelotti, who led Los Blancos to a record sixth Super Cup triumph against Atalanta on Wednesday, now turns his attention to the new LaLiga season. 

Madrid travel to the Visit Mallorca Estadi to face Mallorca in their opening league encounter as they begin their title defence with Kylian Mbappe in their ranks. 

However, Ancelotti revealed that the club are considering extended breaks away from action during the season due to the pressures of domestic and club football.

"The players need rest, they need holidays and we are thinking about giving individual holidays to the players during the season," Ancelotti said.

"We are thinking about giving in-season breaks, give a week off for a player so he can go and stay with his family, especially international players, who have very little rest because they usually don't get even a day's holiday in international breaks.

"We are assessing it with the medical staff and the physical preparation."

Following their La Liga and Champions League double last season, Ancelotti faces the possibility of winning seven titles during the 2024-25 campaign. 

Los Blancos will compete in LaLiga, the Champions League, Copa del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup in Saudi Arabia, plus the FIFA Intercontinental Cup and the new Club World Cup in the United States. 

Madrid have strengthened with the arrivals of Mbappe and Endrick, but Ancelotti believes the club need to make sacrifices to preserve the health and fitness of their players.

The Italian said he and his staff are already looking ahead to the 2025-26 season, with the 2026 World Cup putting extra demands on international players. 

"At the moment we still don't even know the date (of the Club World Cup), same with the Intercontinental. We are bidding for seven titles but we still don't know when or how," Ancelotti said.

"The 2025-26 season might start earlier because of the World Cup, so we have to plan accordingly starting this season.

"For example, when Vinicius Jr comes back after playing with Brazil, instead of playing in LaLiga, he rests for three or four days, he goes on holiday and then he comes back.

"That's the only way. Normally those players train, even if they don't play. But we're going to take that away, let them do what they want on those days. That's what we're going to do."

Paris Saint-Germain have confirmed the arrival of Rennes midfielder Desire Doue for a reported €50m transfer fee. 

Doue, who won silver at the Paris Olympics with France, has signed a five-year contract with the 12-time Ligue 1 champions. 

The 19-year-old made 43 appearances in all competitions for Julien Stephan's side last season, scoring four goals and adding six assists. 

Doue will provide the Parisians with another attacking threat from midfield, with the 31 chances he created last year a total only bettered by Benjamin Bourigeaud (69) in the Rennes squad. 

He also completed the most dribbles (64) for the French side, while also outperforming his expected goals (xG) total by 1.62 in Ligue 1. 

The teenager becomes PSG's fourth arrival at the Parc des Princes in the transfer window after the signings of Joao Neves, William Pacho and Matvey Safonov. 

“I'm delighted to be joining Paris Saint-Germain. I'm really excited, and also happy and proud," Doue told the PSG website.

"It's a dream come true. I can't wait to discover the Parc des Princes in a PSG jersey and to play in front of these fans. 

Ben Chilwell has been told it would be best to leave Chelsea by head coach Enzo Maresca ahead of their Premier League opener against Manchester City on Sunday. 

Chilwell, who has made 106 appearances for the Blues since his reported £45m move from Leicester in 2020, has struggled with injuries in recent years. 

The 27-year-old featured 21 times in all competitions last season, missing 26 games with a hamstring injury which was then followed by a knee issue. 

His subsequent misfortune with injuries has seen him drop down the pecking order at Stamford Bridge, with Marc Cucurella impressing with Spain at Euro 2024. 

Chilwell played 64 minutes in Chelsea's six pre-season games, failing to feature in their final three fixtures before the new campaign against Real Madrid, Manchester City and Inter. 

“Chilly [Chilwell] is with us but he has not been training for the last few days because he has been ill,” Maresca said.

“The reason he did not play versus Inter was because, with Chilly it is quite clear, even though I love the way he is, the problem is, he is struggling a bit to find the right position.

“This morning we had 22 players training and if you ask all of them they will say they want to play against City on Sunday. But that is impossible.

"When you train every day and do not get any minutes it is not good for them or for me.

“I need to make a decision and probably it is better to leave and go and get minutes. The transfer window is open so we’ll see what happens.”

Chelsea kickstart their campaign against reigning champions City on Sunday in what will be Maresca's first competitive game in charge of the club. 

The Blues have continued to add during the transfer window, with Wolves' Pedro Neto the latest of nine new arrivals at Stamford Bridge. 

Maresca now has over 40 players in his squad despite the loan departure of Lesley Ugochukwu and the permanent sale of Diego Moreira earlier this week. 

“We spent 20 days in America with 28 or 29 players, so it was quite good to manage the squad,” Maresca added.

“Now we have guys who are not part of the squad and are training apart.

“At the moment, it is not difficult, but if I start to think I have 43 players, it’s not good.”

Nottingham Forest welcomed their seventh addition of the transfer window with the arrival of Paraguay international Ramon Sosa from Talleres. 

Sosa, who grabbed a goal and an assist at this year's Copa America for Los Guaranies, has signed a five-year deal at the City Ground for a reported £11m transfer fee. 

The 24-year-old scored six goals and added seven assists in all competitions for Talleres last season. 

Sosa began his career in his native country where he won the Copa Paraguay with Olimpia in 2021 before moving to Argentinian side Gimnasia. 

He contributed 13 goal contributions (six goals and seven assists) in his debut season with the club, which led to a move to Talleres. 

Sosa registered 17 goals and 13 assists in 56 appearances for the Albiazul, impressing at the Copa America despite playing only 133 minutes of football at the tournament. 

"Ramon has been coveted by many clubs but was so clear in his desire to join Nottingham Forest," said Ross Wilson, Forest's chief football officer.

"We could all feel his energy, emotion, pride and excitement to be here from the first minute he arrived.

"He can't wait to get started and we are delighted that he is here with us."

The signing follows Forest's recent deals to bring in Jota Silva, Elliot Anderson, Nikola Milenkovic, Eric da Silva Moreira, and Carlos Miguel.

Lesley Ugochukwu has completed a season-long loan move to Southampton from Chelsea.

Ugochukwu, who made 15 appearances in all competitions for the Blues last season, was not registered in time for the Saints' Premier League opener against Newcastle. 

The 20-year-old arrived at Stamford Bridge last year in a reported £23.2m deal from Rennes but missed 20 Premier League games as he struggled with a hamstring issue.

He was welcomed to St. Mary's on the same day Cameron Archer sealed a £15m permanent switch from Aston Villa, with the pair adding to Russell Martin's ranks. 

The duo join 12 new faces on the South Coast, with the likes of Taylor Harwood-Bellis, Flynn Downes, Ben Brereton Diaz and Ronnie Edwards all signing in the window. 

“It was a very easy decision, Ugochukwu said. "They just came back to Premier League.

"When I heard Southampton, when I spoke to the gaffer as well, I said, 'I have to come here.'

“I’m just here to work hard and give everything for the fans and for myself as well.”

Head coach Russell Martin added: “Lesley is a brilliant athlete who has all the ingredients to be a really top player in the future, and we want to help him achieve that.

"He combines his size and power with real composure in possession.

“He’s another young player we’ve brought in who has sampled the Premier League already, which is important, and someone we feel can help us in the midfield area with the physicality that he brings to the game.”

Luis Enrique believes Goncalo Ramos' injury is "serious" after the forward limped off early on in Paris Saint-Germain's opening day win over Le Harve. 

Ramos, who scored 11 goals for PSG last season, was forced to withdraw from the action at the Stade Oceane in the 20th minute following a late tackle from behind. 

The Portugal international provided the assist for Lee Kang-In's strike inside three minutes, with only Angel Di Maria starting a game, delivering an assist and being subbed off earlier than Ramos in a Ligue 1 fixture. 

His withdrawal serves as a significant blow for Enrique, who is looking to replace the 27 league goals scored by Kylian Mbappe last season after his move to Real Madrid. 

"I’m not a doctor but I think it looks pretty serious. I don’t know how many weeks he will be out injured but it’s serious," Enrique said. 

Despite the convincing scoreline, the defending champions took advantage of a late collapse from their opponents, scoring three times in the final six minutes after Gautier Lloris had levelled the encounter three minutes into the second half. 

Ousmane Dembele, Bradley Barcola and Randal Kolo Muani struck late, with new signing Joao Neves becoming only the second player to deliver two assists for his debut with PSG in the same game in all competitions in the 21st century. 

But Enrique acknowledged that his side relaxed after Kang-In's opener, saying the encounter "wasn't easy at all" in Normandy. 

"It wasn't easy at all. Maybe we started too calmly. We scored a goal very quickly and that relaxed us a bit too much, and we suffered a bit," Enrique said.  

"I think in the second half we had more chances, more clear-cut chances and we were able to kill off the match. But it was difficult.

"We're clearly a team that's trying to play to its strengths. It's true that it was in the last part of the match that we performed best.

"We had some important players in the team and it's always difficult to play away from home. It's complicated and today we did it again."

Dominic Solanke is a “top pro” who is exactly what Tottenham expected when they paid big money to sign him from Bournemouth, so says Ange Postecoglou.

Spurs splurged a club-record fee – reportedly up to £65million – on Solanke, who scored 19 Premier League goals for the Cherries last season.

Solanke could be in line to make his Tottenham debut on Monday, when Spurs open their Premier League campaign away at newly promoted Leicester City.

And Postecoglou spoke highly of his new addition.

"Thankfully, it's what we expected,” said the Australian.

“He's a top pro and a good guy – he's settled into the dressing room really well.

“Football-wise you can see he has all the attributes we need. We've still got a couple of training sessions to go but he's doing well.”

While Postecoglou confirmed Spurs will have a full squad to choose from, bar the suspended Yves Bissouma, at the King Power Stadium, hosts Leicester are not as fortunate.

Steve Cooper, who is preparing for his first league match in charge of the Foxes, confirmed Patson Daka was set for a spell on the sidelines after suffering an injury against Lens in pre-season, with the striker set for a long spell out.

“Patson [Daka] obviously is not great news,” Cooper said. “He suffered quite a serious ankle injury last week in the game in Lens and he is going to be out for a good few months.

“He’s having an operation. That’s really unfortunate for him because he was looking good in pre-season.”

Jamie Vardy is also absent.

Cooper, whose last Premier League game was a 2-0 home defeat to Tottenham in December last year with Nottingham Forest, added: “Vards, similarly, he’s been injured since the second week of pre-season now, when we were on one of our pre-season camps.

"He’s closer to returning but it will be a little while, although he’s itching to get back. But it’s not great at that end of the pitch.

“He’s right at the latter stages of rehab now and just making sure he can fight past those final stages before he returns. With experience and age a little bit, he really understands his body and he knows what it takes.”

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Leicester City – Stephy Mavididi

Mavididi scored 12 league goals for Leicester in their push for promotion last term, a tally bettered only by Vardy (18). The winger created 72 chances, providing six assists. Only Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, who has since joined Chelsea, crafted more goalscoring opportunities (109) for the Foxes.

Tottenham – Son Heung-min

Son has been involved in 13 goals in 14 Premier League appearances against Leicester (nine goals, four assists), only having a hand in more against Southampton (15). Indeed, the South Korean has scored five and assisted once in his last three against the Foxes.

MATCH PREDICTION: TOTTENHAM WIN

Leicester have lost half of their Premier League games played on Mondays (21/42) – only in Friday games do the Foxes have a higher loss rate in the competition (61.5% – 8/13).

Tottenham’s last four Premier League wins of 2023-24 came against each of the sides to finish in the bottom four (Forest, Luton Town, Burnley, Sheffield United). They won all six of their league games against promoted sides last term, accounting for 30% of their overall victories (6/20).

This is the seventh time Tottenham are starting their Premier League campaign against a promoted side; they have won five of the previous six, losing the other 1-0 against Sunderland in 2007-08.

However, Leicester are unbeaten on the last nine occasions they have begun their league campaign with a home game (W6 D3).

Expect goals in this one. Of all Premier League fixtures to have been played at least 30 times, Leicester against Tottenham has the highest goals-per-game average (3.8 – 128 goals in 34 games). There have been 28 goals scored in the last five meetings between the sides alone (5.6 per game).

Spurs have only failed to score in one of their 17 Premier League away games against Leicester, a 3-0 loss at Filbert Street in September 1997.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Leicester City – 26.5%

Tottenham – 49.9%

Draw – 23.6%

Mark Robins has praised the "scintillating" football Coventry City played as they snatched a late 3-2 win over Oxford United in the Championship on Friday.

Haji Wright gave the Sky Blues the lead after 15 minutes, and Milan van Ewijk restored their lead after Ciaron Brown had pulled Oxford level.

Mark Harris then helped the U's come from behind a second time as he turned in from close range, but Wright had the final say, rounding the goalkeeper in the 96th minute to slot home the winner.

It was Coventry's first league win of the campaign, and a deserved one, as they dominated throughout, registering 26 shots on goal, 10 of which were on target. 

After a disappointing opening-day defeat to Stoke City, Robins was particularly impressed with how they took the fight to Oxford.

"It was a really tough game, Oxford play a really good brand of football," said Robins.

"We got on the front foot from the start of the game, and we followed through.

"We had some really good possession and created some great openings.

"Some of the football we played was scintillating."

Vincent Kompany was impressed with Bayern Munich's energy while Thomas Muller revelled in a "fun" victory over Ulm in the DFB-Pokal.

Kompany's first competitive match in charge of Bayern ended in a resounding 4-0 win on Friday.

Muller's first-half brace got the ball rolling for Bayern, with Kingsley Coman and Harry Kane coming off the bench to add some gloss to the scoreline as Ulm rarely showed a threat going the other way.

Bayern had 16 shots and accumulated 3.28 expected goals (xG) in a dominant performance that impressed their new coach.

"I'm happy. We started well and were 2-0 up early on," said Kompany, as reported by Bayern's website.

"I'm also very happy that we kept a clean sheet. Games like this aren't always easy.

"It wasn't always perfect, but we played with discipline, and 4-0 is good, now we're moving on. The important thing is that we show the right energy. That's the basis, it has to be there."

Muller's goals came inside the first 14 minutes. In his 708th competitive Bayern game, it is the earliest he has ever scored a double.

He said: "We wanted to implement a lot of what we have worked on in the last few weeks. It's fun, I feel good, I'm in good shape physically, I did my job, had a few good moves, I'm happy about that.

"If you look at how we work against the ball and the way we tackle, you can see a difference to what didn't do us so much good last year. I thought it was a good performance, even if there is still room for improvement with the ball."

Marco Silva thinks Fulham "did not get the points he thought they deserved" as they suffered a 1-0 defeat to Manchester United in their Premier League opener.

The Cottagers looked a threat on the counter-attack but lacked a clinical edge in the final third as they wasted chances to take the lead.

Bernd Leno kept them in the game by making big saves in both halves before United debutant Joshua Zirkzee proved the difference in the 87th minute from close range.

While Silva admitted there were positives to take from the performance, he was ultimately left frustrated by the missed chances that cost them.

"It is really tough for us to lose this game the way we lost," Silva told Sky Sports.

"We started really well. I think the first two dangerous moments were from ourselves. The first one we should have scored, a really dangerous attack from us.

"We had our chances. When you play against Manchester United...there were moments, and we had to punish them.

"We had so many moments, and we were punished at the end of the game. It was a crazy game, and we did not play our own game. It was an emotional game, we tried to rush many, many times.

"We did not get the points I thought we deserved."

Fulham managed 10 shots in the match, though only tested Andre Onana twice, with Kenny Tete forcing a good save out of the goalkeeper with one of those in the first half.

Andreas Pereira also squandered two opportunities on the break with loose passes, and Silva is keen to fine-tune certain aspects of their performance.

"Of course, when you have two against one you should at least finalise the action and put your teammates in the right action," he added. "But it was not just that one, we had other really good moments and should have scored.

"We have to keep the emotional control in these types of games. We know they are strong and want to play this type of game. It's always their strength when the game is broken and the space is there. We should have kept the balance and emotional control.

"But it was a good answer from the team overall. It was a tough summer when you lose five players - four of them starting players. But I knew the players were good enough to play in this way."

Joshua Zirkzee is not feeling any pressure as he looks to make his mark at Manchester United.

Having come on from the bench to make his United debut, Zirkzee scored in the 87th minute to seal a 1-0 win over Fulham on Friday in the first Premier League match of the 2024-25 season.

Zirkzee joined United from Serie A club Bologna in July, and with Rasmus Hojlund injured, swiftly made an impact at Old Trafford.

And the former Bayern Munich attacker knows it is about as good a start as he could have asked for.

Speaking to BBC Sport, he said: "It's the perfect one, no? In front of the Stretford End. And a win as well, it couldn't be any better.

"It's been very good [since I arrived]. The group have been amazing, I feel very comfortable and at home here. I'm having a very good time.

"Of course it's a big club, but we just work hard every day and focus on what we want to achieve, and that's being the best we can be. At the moment I don't really feel any pressure.

"I look forward to working with everyone here. That includes all the staff. Everyone has been great.

"Of course having Ruud van Nistlerooy in the staff as a striker, you have to be grateful for that. Everyone has been great, it's a pleasure to be here."

Following Zirkzee's winner this evening, 22 players have now scored in their first Premier League appearance for United, with only Chelsea (27) and Aston Villa (26) having more debutant scorers in the competition's history. 

Zirkzee, meanwhile, is the 15th Dutch player to score on his Premier League debut, and the fourth to do so while at United, after Van Nistelrooy, Alexander Buttner and Donny van de Beek.

His goal came from his only attempt on target.

"It was very important to get the first goal as a striker," said manager Erik ten Hag.

"For him it is very pleasing because strikers have to score. That is the first ability you have to show when you come as a striker to a new club."

Joshua Zirkzee scored a late winner on his Manchester United debut as the Red Devils claimed a 1-0 victory over Fulham in the first Premier League match of 2024-25.

After recording their lowest-ever Premier League finish last season, United looked set to be frustrated at Old Trafford on Friday until their new striker diverted a deft finish past Fulham goalkeeper Bernd Leno in the 87th minute.

Introduced midway through the second half by Erik ten Hag, Zirkzee applied the crucial touch to fellow substitute Alejandro Garnacho’s teasing centre to settle the contest.

Bruno Fernandes had earlier squandered United’s best chances, with Leno in excellent form for the visitors, making two saves from the Portuguese playmaker in swift succession.

Leno denied Mason Mount at the start of the second half, though Fulham were left to rue some missed openings at the other end when Zirkzee charged into the area to nudge home.

Alejandro Garnacho fluffed his lines when teed up by Marcus Rashford deep in second-half stoppage time, but the miss did not prove costly as United secured a winning start to the new campaign.

Data Debrief: Dutch delight

Zirkzee became the 15th Dutch player to score on his Premier League debut, with four of those doing so for United (also Ruud van Nistelrooy, Alexander Buttner and Donny van de Beek).

His goal ensured United have more wins (22) and more points (70) from their opening games of Premier League campaigns than any other side. The Red Devils are featuring in their 100th season in top-flight football, making them the fifth different team to reach the milestone after Everton, Aston Villa, Liverpool and Arsenal.

French champions Paris Saint-Germain won 4-1 at Le Havre on Friday, capitalising on a late collapse by the hosts to get their Ligue 1 season off to an excellent start.

PSG opened the scoring after three minutes when Goncalo Ramos found Lee Kang-in inside the box and he sent a left-foot shot into the net.

The visitors' joy was short-lived, however, as Ramos was hurt in a challenge and the Portuguese international had to be replaced by Randal Kolo Muani, who rattled the crossbar shortly after entering the fray. 

The hosts, who had a goal chalked off in the first half for offside, shocked PSG after the break as Gautier Lloris in the 48th minute, before Josue Casimir's goal was disallowed following a VAR decision for handball in the build-up.

Lee was then inches away from a second as he struck the woodwork, but five minutes before the end, the Le Havre defence went missing as three PSG substitutes ran riot.

Ousmane Dembele headed home in the 85th minute before Bradley Barcola added a third as he cut inside from the right less than two minutes later.

Kolo Muani then completed the rout from the penalty spot after he was brought down by Lloris' late tackle in the box

Data Debrief: PSG leave it late

While it was three late goals that wrapped up the three points, Lee actually scored the earliest first goal of a Ligue 1 season (after two minutes and four seconds) since the one scored by Mamadou Niang for Marseille in August 2009 against Grenoble (1:42).

PSG are the first team to score at least three goals from the 85th minute in the same Ligue 1 game since Monaco in November 2016 against Nancy (also three).

Luis Enrique's side are now unbeaten in their last 25 Ligue 1 away games (winning 20, drawing five), extending the longest such run in their history.

Thomas Muller's first-half brace ensured Vincent Kompany got off to a winning start at Bayern Munich as they beat Ulm 4-0 in the DFB-Pokal first round.

Kingsley Coman and Harry Kane came off the bench to add some gloss to the scoreline as Ulm rarely showed a threat against a dominant Bayern side.

The hosts did almost cause an early shock though, as Maurice Krattenmacher was left unmarked at the far post, but he could not adjust quickly enough and turned his first-time shot wide.

Joshua Kimmich then unlocked Ulm's defence with a throughball into Stanisic, who did brilliantly while off-balance to set up Muller for his first of the game.

And just two minutes later, the forward had his second – Christian Ortag was drawn to Serge Gnabry's run, leaving Muller to tap it into the empty net.

The hosts showed some fight in the second half, with Dennis Chessa forcing Manuel Neuer into a low save before Bayern finally got their third in the 79th minute, as Michael Olise's trickery set Coman up for a close-range finish. 

Kane had a goal ruled out for a foul on the goalkeeper, but he was not to be denied as he headed in a fourth with the final touch of the game. 

Data Debrief: Muller at the double

Muller is off the mark for the season, and he wasted no time in doing it. He scored his earliest brace for Bayern (14 minutes) in his 708th competitive match for the club.

It was a clinical performance from the 34-year-old, who scored with both of his shots on target as he registered an expected goals of 1.42, and only Jamal Musiala (eight) had more touches in the opposition box than him (seven).

Bournemouth have confirmed the signing of Evanilson from Porto for a club-record fee.

The forward has joined in a deal worth up to £40.2million.

He joined Porto in 2020 and went on to make 154 appearances in all competitions, netting 60 goals and registering 21 assists.

His 13 league goals last season were the most of any Porto player, while he also had the second-most shots of anyone on the team in the Primeira Liga (76).

"We are delighted to bring someone with an immense pedigree to AFC Bournemouth," chief executive Neill Blake said.

"Evanilson is a hugely sought-after striker and for us to bring him to the club in a record-breaking deal shows our ambition and intent.

"Having scored 25 goals last season, including goals in the Champions League, we feel that his experience and ability, despite only being 24, will help us to match our ambitions moving forward."

Bournemouth had also shown interest in Arsenal's Eddie Nketiah, but have chosen the Brazilian to replace Dominic Solanke, who was sold for a club-record fee of £65million to Tottenham.

Evanilson is the seventh Bournemouth signing so far, with Andoni Iraola's side set to kick off their Premier League campaign against Nottingham Forest on Saturday.