Silva heads to Bulgaria

Lois Openda scored a hat-trick in Lens 4-0 win at Clermont on Sunday in just four minutes and 30 seconds, the fastest in Ligue 1 since 1967.

The 23-year-old grabbed his first goal in the 30th minute at the Stade Gabriel Montpied after racing onto a lofted pass from the left from Angelo Fulgini before putting the ball through the legs of Clermont goalkeeper Mory Diaw.

In the 34th minute he took advantage of a defensive error from the hosts as he finished off a neat square pass from Adrien Thomasson, before completing his hat-trick just 66 seconds later when Mateusz Wieteska underhit a backpass, allowing Openda to round Diaw and finish.

The Belgian striker also managed to add an assist in the second half as he pulled the ball back from the right for substitute Alex…

Germany attacker Thomas Muller has made it clear he will no longer be taking penalties after missing from the spot in his side s Euro 2016 quarter-final win over Italy.

The reigning world champions needed penalties to see off Italy as things were level at 1-1 after 120 minutes, but Muller was one of three Germans who failed to find the net from 12 yards, Gianluigi Buffon saving his kick.

The versatile attacker also missed from the spot for Bayern Munich against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League semi-final second leg and he has consequently decided not to take any penalties for now.

I will not be taking any penalties for the next two weeks, Muller told Sport Bild.

I will work on my technique at penalties for a bit and I will be back stronger in …

Wolfsburg are preparing to drive a hard bargain over Andre Schurrle s desire to join Borussia Dortmund.

Schurrle moved to Volkswagen Arena from Chelsea in February 2015 and is under contract until June 2019.

The 25-year-old Germany international is hoping to be reunited with his former Mainz coach Thomas Tuchel, now in charge at Signal Iduna Park.

Wolfsburg s sporting director Klaus Allofs had previously indicated the Wolves are unwilling to allow a prized asset to leave.

And given Schurrle still has three seasons to run on his contract, Dortmund are unlikely to prise away the forward cheaply, despite the attacker s apparent determination to move.

Andre has told us that he can see himself at Dortmund, Allofs was quoted as saying by Wolfsburger Al…

Borussia Dortmund midfielder Nuri Sahin insists he did not fail during his spell away from the Bundesliga at Real Madrid.

The midfielder left Dortmund for Real in 2011, but failed to secure regular first-team action under Jose Mourinho.

He also endured an unsuccessful loan spell at Liverpool in the first half of this season before returning to Germany.

Of his time in Spain, Sahin said he has fond memories of working with Mourinho

It was an honour to work with Mourinho. He was always honest to me and treated me fairly. He always said everything to me in private, Sahin was quoted as saying by Sport Bild.

From the outside, people will perhaps say that I failed abroad. It was simply not meant to be, though, and I also played my part in it.

…

Kylian Mbappe suggests Karim Benzema would have to stop thinking about the Ballon d Or forever if he did not win the top individual award this year.

Benzema is the favourite among the 30 Ballon d Or nominees announced by France Football on Friday.

The announcement marked the end of an era, with last year s winner Lionel Messi absent from the shortlist for the first time since 2005.

Mbappe is at the forefront of the next generation of contenders, and he told France Football he would put himself on the 2022 podium alongside Benzema and Sadio Mane.

But the forward s France team-mate Benzema is clearly a deserving winner, having inspired Real Madrid to LaLiga and Champions League glory.

Indeed, Mbappe feels Benzema will never take home the Ballon d Or…

Bologna have announced the double capture of Roberto Soriano and Nicola Sansone from Villarreal on permanent deals.

Soriano and Sansone spent the second half of the 2018-19 campaign on loan with the Serie A side, making 17 and 15 league appearances respectively.

Bologna have taken up the option to sign Sansone after meeting the conditions in his loan agreement and Soriano has followed his fellow Italy international in moving to the Stadio Renato Dall Ara.

Soriano initially struggled in the first half of last season during a spell with Torino, but he played a direct part in four goals for Sinisa Mihajlovic s side after swapping clubs midway through the campaign.

And Sansone also made the most of his opportunities as he scored twice and set up a further fo…

Romelu Lukaku denied he bears a grudge towards former employers Chelsea after signing permanently with Everton.

Lukaku spent last season on loan at Everton from Chelsea but made the move permanent on Wednesday, signing a five-year contract, with the Merseyside club paying a £28million transfer fee.

The transfer brought Lukaku s connection to Chelsea to an end, with the 21-year-old striker having played just 10 Premier League matches over three seasons at Stamford Bridge, although he spent the majority of the past two campaigns on loan at West Brom and Everton.

But the Belgian rebuffed suggestions he felt hurt by his lack of opportunity to play at Chelsea, although he made it clear he feels more comfortable at Goodison Park.

I need to be at a place where…

Real Madrid have confirmed the re-signing of Spain striker Alvaro Morata from Juventus.

Morata had been widely expected to return to the Santiago Bernabeu in this transfer window, with Madrid exercising a buy-back clause in the deal which took the striker to Turin in 2014.

The 23-year-old s future is far from clear, however.

It is thought that Madrid could cash in on the striker when he returns from international duty at Euro 2016, with Premier League duo Chelsea and Arsenal heavily linked with big-money moves.

A brief Madrid statement suggested that he will return to the first team at Madrid, however.

It read: Real Madrid C. F. have informed Juventus FC of their decision to salvage the federative rights on the player Alvaro Morata, who will join …

Fabio Capello has warned England s Chelsea stars that they cannot afford to allow the turmoil at Stamford Bridge to distract them from Wednesday night s clash with Euro 2008 champions Spain.

John Terry, Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole were all with the England squad on Monday when Chelsea s decision to sack manager Luiz Felipe Scolari was announced.

The move has been swiftly followed by efforts to secure Guus Hiddink as Scolari s successor, leaving the Chelsea trio with a lot more on their minds than Wednesday s friendly in Sevilla s Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan stadium.

Terry revealed that head coach Capello had spoken to his players about the importance of maintaining their focus on a match he regards a crucial gauge of how far the squad has come under his leadership, …

Two FIFA agents and several current and former football players with Spanish clubs are under investigation as part of a probe into cocaine trafficking, Spanish media reported Wednesday.

The operation, carried out in Madrid and the Mediterranean port of Valencia, led to the seizure Wednesday of 600 kilos (1,320 pounds) of cocaine hidden in shipping containers, the online edition of sports daily AS said, citing sources close to the investigation.

The reports did not name which footballers were under investigation but AS said some were from first division side Atletico Madrid as well as from second division side Rayo Vallecano and Poli Ejido which is in the third division.

Spain, with its historical and linguistic ties to South America, is Europe s main entry point…