Aston Villa have announced that Christian Purslow is to step down from his role as chief executive after five years at the club.

Purslow joined Villa in September 2018, shortly after owners Wes Edens and Nassef Sawiris took over at Villa Park with the club in the Championship.

Villa are now established back in the Premier League and qualified for the Europa Conference League next season.

In a statement on the club’s website, Purslow said: “It has been a total privilege to lead Villa for the last five years.

“I am proud that I leave the club in a much better position on and off the pitch than when I arrived.

“We are re-established in the Premier League, we now have a very competitive professional women’s team, we have outstanding academie…

Lionel Messi surpassed Pele s one-club goals record as he helped Barcelona end their winless streak on the road in LaLiga with a convincing 3-0 victory over struggling Real Valladolid.

After drawing level with Pele s haul of 643 goals for Santos with a header in a 2-2 draw with Valencia on Saturday, Messi made it 644 in Barca colours across all competitions on Tuesday.

Having created Clement Lenglet s opener before playing a key part in Martin Braithwaite making it 2-0 before the interval, Messi swept home from Pedri s clever flick in the 65th minute.

It rounded off a fine performance from Ronald Koeman s side, who ended their winless run in LaLiga away games at the fifth time of asking.

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona)

Messi was inches…

The British overseas territory of St Helena will look to step out of the shadow of the Premier League that hangs over its football culture when they begin their Island Games campaign in Guernsey on Sunday.

The 4,300 inhabitants of the remote South Atlantic island, which lies 1,200 miles from its nearest mainland neighbour South Africa, are more likely to be interested in the results of Arsenal, Chelsea or Liverpool than those of their nascent ‘national team’.

But for the 17 players that have travelled just under 10,000 miles – via Johannesburg, Heathrow and Reading – across three days to fly their flag in the Channel Islands, it will be a chance to remind that there is more to football on the island than broadcasts of matches in England’s top flight.

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Nice must build on their 4-0 thrashing of Ligue 1 champions Lille, Christophe Galtier demanded after triumphing over his former club.

Galtier led Lille to the title last season, as Les Dogues edged out Paris Saint-Germain.

While PSG have added more remarkable talent to their already world class squad, with the arrivals of Sergio Ramos, Georginio Wijnaldum, Achraf Hakimi and Gianluigi Donnarumma topped off by the signing of Lionel Messi, Lille have had to contend with the loss of their coach, who left the club to join Nice in the off-season.

Galtier and Lille hardly parted on good terms internally, despite the 54-year-old delivering the club s first title in a decade.

There have also been rumblings of discontent at Nice, with tensions reportedly appeari…

Knowing that they were just 90 minutes away from booking their spot in a first European final, Leicester eventually fell to a heartbreaking 1-0 defeat away at the Stadio Olimpico on Thursday night.

Watching former Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham bag the crucial second-leg winner after just 11 minutes, Roma and Head Coach Jose Mourinho have the chance to write their own piece of European history later in the month.

With Dutch outfit Feyenoord claiming a nervy 3-2 aggregate victory against Marseille, the Giallorossi will be smelling a real chance to lift the inaugural Europa Conference League title out in Tirana on May 25th.

Only piling more pressure onto Brendan Rodgers shoulders, we have taken a look at the main talking points as Leicester saw their European adven…

Tottenham may only have the Premier League to focus on in the final months of the season, but that is motivation enough for coach Antonio Conte.

Spurs exited the FA Cup and the Champions League in quick succession at the start of March.

It means another season will pass without Tottenham winning silverware, but they still have plenty to play for, fourth in the Premier League and in the final Champions League qualification place heading into Saturday s game at lowly Southampton.

Just being in the Premier League is a challenge that means a great deal to Conte, he explained ahead of the Saints match.

I think that for sure to play the Premier League, to be a coach in the Premier League means you have to be ready to face a great competition, he said.

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Chelsea had to rely on a stoppage-time penalty from Jorginho to finally overcome Leeds United in a dramatic 3-2 victory in the Premier League on Saturday.

Goals from Mason Mount and two penalties from the Italian cancelled out Raphinha s opener and Joe Gelhardt s late strike in a topsy turvy affair at Stamford Bridge.

Having lost top spot in the Premier League last week after losing 3-2 at West Ham, before also losing first place in their Champions League group following a 3-3 draw at Zenit, another setback was the last thing Thomas Tuchel s men needed.

The Blues almost had that setback as they threw away a lead for the third time in a week when substitute Gelhardt struck in the 83rd minute, but a foolish challenge by Mateusz Klich on Antonio Rudiger gave Jor…

Football Association chairman Greg Dyke has indicated that Roy Hodgson will continue to manage England beyond the FIFA World Cup.

Questions over the head coach s future arose after England s tournament status was left hanging by a thread following Thursday s 2-1 loss to Uruguay.

With Hodgson s men having been defeated by the same scoreline against Italy on Saturday, England now need every remaining Group D result to go their way to have any hope of progressing.

Yet despite those disappointing results, Dyke has revealed Hodgson who said immediately after the Uruguay game he had no intention of resigning will remain at the helm until at least 2016.

He told Sky Sports News: We re supportive of Roy Hodgson, we ve asked him to stay as manager.

We were…

Newcastle United head coach Eddie Howe said the media should never write off Callum Wilson making a late run for England s World Cup squad.

Wilson scored twice in three Premier League appearances at the start of the season, only to suffer a thigh injury in a thrilling 3-3 draw with Manchester City on August 21.

The 30-year-old has been plagued by persistent injury issues since he joined Newcastle from Howe s former club Bournemouth in 2020, with the Magpies spending a club-record fee on Alexander Isak late in the transfer window to bolster their attacking options.

Wilson is nearing a return, but Newcastle s meeting with Bournemouth on Saturday is likely to come too soon, while the injury also dashed any chances of him making Gareth Southgate s final England squa…

Competition: Euro 2016 qualifier
Market: England to win against Slovenia
Odds:

England travel to face Slovenia in this afternoon’s Euro 2016 qualifier, with the in-form Three Lions looking to preserve their 100% record in the group. Roy Hodgson’s side have won all five games played so far, seeing past the likes Slovenia, in their reverse meeting, Switzerland, Lithuania, Estonia and San Marino, conceding just one goal for their troubles.

The visitors beat Slovenia 3-1 in their last meeting, and boast a considerably stronger side to get the job done today. England are six points clear at the summit of Group E, and could extend their lead to nine points with a win. It would see them in pole position to qualify for next year’s European Championships, so Sl…