Victor Piturca left his position as Romania coach on Thursday to take charge of Saudi Arabian side Al Ittihad.

Romania have made an encouraging start to their Euro 2016 qualifying campaign, t
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aking seven points from three matches to sit second behind surprise package Northern Ireland in Group F.

However, a 2-0 victory in Finland on Tuesday has proven to be the final game of Piturca s third spell in charge of the national side.

The 58-year-old was reappointed in June 2011, having guided Romania to the European Championship finals in 2000 and 2008, but will now continue his career in Saudi Arabia.

The Romanian Football Federation (FRF) announced that Piturca s contract had been cancelled by mutual agreement on Thursday, with his backroom staff al…

Winning Margin is a type of single sports betting market that focuses on the final goal difference. It has a lot of similarities to due to the many possible outcomes and wagering options. Like Correct Score, though, it’s notoriously hard to get right – even more so if you want to be consistent. As a relatively high-risk bet, though, it can contain surprising for the perceptive punter.

In this Winning Margin betting guide, we’ll take a close look at this often-overlooked market and consider if it’s worth your time.

What Is a Winning Margin Bet

A Winning Margin bet is a type of wager that attempts to predict the exact difference in goals between the winning team and the losing team. ‘Exact’ is the keyword here because the possible options can be anywhere fr…

Atletico Madrid president Enrique Cerezo has jokingly dismissed Manchester United as a small team amid reports linking the Premier League giants with a move for his club s star forward Antoine Griezmann.

The 25-year-old France international is under contract at the Vicente Calderon but has been tipped to follow compatriot Paul Pogba to Old Trafford in a mega-money switch.

Griezmann has 15 goals in 31 appearances for Atleti this season and the Madrid club s pending player registration ban places a greater importance on him staying.

Atletico were beaten by rivals Real Madrid in the 2014 and 2016 Champions League finals, while three-time winners United missed out on qualification for Europe s top competition last term and face a well-matched scrap to seal a top-four…

Brazil are back on top of the world after reaching number one spot in the FIFA rankings for the first time in seven years.

The Selecao have won eight straight competitive matches since Tite took over from Dunga as head coach following the country s group-stage exit at last year s Copa America.

And Brazil s fine form has seen them return to the top of the world rankings for the first time since they lost top spot to Spain after the 2010 World Cup.

Brazil, who are the only team to have sealed qualification for next year s World Cup in Russia, replace Argentina at the top of the pile, with wins over Uruguay and Paraguay in the last international break helping their cause.

Barcelona star Neymar has scored six goals in 10 qualifying matches, while Manchester C…

Lionel Messi looks stressed but will step up in Argentina s crunch World Cup clash against Nigeria, according to Pablo Zabaleta.

Argentina must defeat Nigeria, who they lost to 4-2 in Russia last November, and hope Croatia can do them a favour against Iceland to keep their hopes of advancing from Group D alive.

Messi had a penalty saved as Jorge Sampaoli s men were held by Iceland in their first outing, while the Barcelona star was a peripheral figure in the 3-0 humbling at the hands of Croatia.

Zabaleta thinks Messi is unfairly given a hard time by the Argentine public and backed him to come to the fore in St Petersburg on Tuesday.

I think it is getting harder for Leo to play for Argentina. He turned 31 on Sunday so he is getting older and sometimes, me…

​Former Barcelona president Joan Laporta would consider running for another term in charge of the Catalan giants.

Laporta spent seven years at the helm at Camp Nou from 2003 and Barca went on to win four La Liga titles, the Copa del Rey and the UEFA Champions League twice.

The 52-year-old installed Pep Guardiola as head coach during his tenure, leading to one of the most successful periods in the club s history, winning six trophies in the calendar year of 2009.

Laporta was succeeded by Sandro Rosell a year later and subsequently Josep Maria Bartomeu, but he has not ruled out running for the top job once again.

I don t rule it out and the support moves me, he told Esport3. Each day that passes motivates me more.

I am not thinking about it, I …

Danny Rose said Tottenham must sign stars and not players you have to Google to find out who they are as the in-demand left-back highlighted the quality in depth of Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea.

Tottenham kick-off their Premier League season at newly-promoted Newcastle United on Sunday, having not made a signing during the transfer window so far.

While City, United and defending champions Chelsea have invested heavily, Mauricio Pochettino s Tottenham – who finished runners-up last term – are yet to add to their squad following the departure of star right-back Kyle Walker.

And England international Rose – a reported target for United and Chelsea – urged Tottenham to spend or risk being left behind in the Premier League.

I am not …

Steven Davis scored the winner to give Northern Ireland their first friendly victory since March 2008, beating Latvia 1-0 at Windsor Park on Friday.

In front of a celebratory crowd, captain Davis beat Latvia goalkeeper Andris Vanins at the second attempt early in the second half to notch his third international goal of 2015 and settle the match.

Northern Ireland, preparing for their first major tournament appearance since 1986 after topping Euro 2016 qualifying Group F, were testing a new 3-5-2 formation with Jamie Ward partnering Kyle Lafferty up front.

Lafferty was substituted shortly after the break after hurting his ribs but he had the best chance of the first half when he shot wide with Ward in a good position.

A raft of substitutions took the sting …

Neil Lennon is considering his future as Hibernian manager over what he described as racism after he appeared to be hit by a coin during the Edinburgh derby.

Former Northern Ireland international Lennon was struck towards the end of Wednesday s Scottish Premier League game between Hibs and leaders Hearts at Tynecastle.

Police arrested five people over incidents at the match, with both assistant referees also seemingly hit by missiles, while Hearts manager Craig Levein said his goalkeeper Zdenek Zlamal was hit by a supporter.

I thought about walking away when I was manager of Celtic, Lennon said at a news conference on Friday.

Again, with all the furore and the empty vessels talking after Wednesday people spouting opinions and totally getting the wrong…

Leonardo Bonucci s decision to leave six-time reigning Serie A champions Juventus for rivals AC Milan was not due to a falling out with head coach Massimiliano Allegri, according to his wife.

Bonucci sensationally quit Juve in the off-season, the Italy international centre-back joining Milan in a €42million deal.

The 30-year-old s departure from Turin, shortly after Juve lost to Real Madrid in the Champions League final, sparked speculation of a row with Allegri, however those claims were dismissed by Bonucci s wife Martina Maccari.

His decision wasn t due to an argument with Max Allegri, Maccari told Rai Radio 1.

In a professional setting, I think balance between all parties is fundamental. Leonardo chose to leave because of the vicissitudes within …