Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy has signed a new contract to keep him at the King Power Stadium until 2019.

The England international and leading scorer in the Premier League has displayed the best form of his career this term and helped Leicester into contention for the title.

Vardy s deal was due to expire in 2018 but, following reported interest from the likes of Real Madrid in recent months, the 29-year-old has signed fresh terms.

I m absolutely delighted to be fighting to achieve something special with this club, as part of this squad, said Vardy, who set a Premier League record of scoring in 11 consecutive matches in November.

I ve never known a spirit like it – from the owners, to the manager and his staff, the players and the fans. I w…

Aston Villa midfielder Gary Gardner has joined Brighton and Hove Albion on a loan deal until January.

The 22-year-old has risen through the ranks at Villa Park and made his first-team debut for the club against Chelsea in December 2011.

However, a series of knee injuries have curtailed his progress and he was sent out on loan to Championship side Sheffield Wednesday last season.

Gardner who penned a new two-year deal with Villa in June will now link up with Sami Hyypia s side in the second tier and could make his debut against Swindon Town in the League Cup later on Tuesday.

Gary is a quality midfielder who we have been aware of for some time. When we knew he was available, we wanted to bring him here as he will give us another quality option in the midd…

Kenny Tete is ready to put a frustrating season at Ajax behind him after joining Lyon on a five-year deal.

Netherlands international Tete featured in both legs as Ajax overcame Lyon in the semi-finals of the Europa League last term, although he was restricted to five starts in the Eredivisie as Joel Veltman made the right-back position his own.

But the 21-year-old ended the campaign back in the Netherlands national setup and is keen to make up for lost time with Lyon.

My last season at Ajax was not very positive, it was hard for me, Tete, who joined for a reported €3million fee, told a news conference.

But I ve always been positive. Those were the decisions of the coach.

Tete played alongside forward Bertrand Traore at Ajax last term and, af…

Borussia Dortmund sporting director Michael Zorc has insisted the Bundesliga side have no intention of selling Sokratis amid speculation linking him with a move to Atletico Madrid.

The 27-year-old has developed into a key figure at BVB since joining them from Werder Bremen in 2013 and his fine performances have not gone unnoticed elsewhere.

Recent reports have suggested Atletico are keen to lure him away from his current club, but Dortmund are adamant the centre-back is not going anywhere.

We are not even considering letting go of Sokratis, Zorc told Kicker.

Sokratis, who scored once in 40 appearances in all competitions for BVB in 2015-16, has a contract with Dortmund until June 2019.

They have already lost fellow centre-back Mats Hummels to Bay…

Barcelona head coach Ernesto Valverde is not sure whether he will continue at the LaLiga champions next season.

It had been believed that Valverde s contract was due to expire at the end of the current campaign, though Barca president Josep Maria Bartomeu revealed in October that the 54-year-old s deal does not expire until 2020.

However, Valverde and Barca have the option to terminate the contract a year early.

Asked about his future by Barca TV, Valverde – who was appointed in 2017 – responded: I do not know what I will do next season.

In this football, who knows? We all know how things are. I never think long or long term.

For us, two months are a very long term. If you win a game, everyone is happy and if you lose, everyone is watching y…

A-League leaders Perth Glory scored twice in the closing stages to draw 2-2 at Melbourne City and stretched their unbeaten run to 12 matches.

Jamie Maclaren had put Glory in trouble, scoring twice in the first half, but the away side rallied late on to prevent defeat at AAMI Park.

Maclaren opened the scoring in the 26th minute, meeting Scott Jamieson s sublime cross with a header that found the net.

He doubled his tally from the penalty spot nine minutes later, converting after Shane Lowry had been penalised for handball.

But that did not prove to be enough, as substitute Joel Chianese nodded in Jason Davidson s delivery in the 84th minute to give Glory some hope.

And they rescued a point in stoppage time – Diego Castro firing in from 20 yards t…

AS Roma are interested in signing Dani Ceballos from Real Madrid in the January transfer window, according to . Roma head coach Jose Mourinho is keen on bringing the former Arsenal loanee to the Stadio Olimpico to enhance his side’s chances of finishing in the Serie A top four this season.

Although Ceballos is Roma’s number one midfield target when the transfer window opens in January, the player is not sure about a move to the Serie A outfit. Instead the 25-year-old wants to move back to his former club Real Betis, even if that be on loan, if he is to leave Madrid in the middle of the season.

Ceballos has had injury problems this season and has yet to make a competitive appearance for Madrid. The Spain international midfielder spent the last two seasons on loan at …

Antonio Conte says Italy must be wary of force of nature Romelu Lukaku but is backing Roberto Mancini to mastermind a Euro 2020 victory over Belgium.

The Azzurri reached the quarter-finals by extending their unbeaten run to a national record 31 matches with a tense 2-1 victory over Austria after extra time at Wembley.

Belgium dethroned holders Portugal to set up a showdown with Italy in Munich on Friday, Thorgan Hazard scoring the only goal.

Mancini s side have won 12 consecutive matches, while the Red Devils have gone 13 without defeat ahead of a blockbuster battle in Bavaria.

Conte believes Italy must find a way to keep Lukaku quiet, with the striker having fired Conte s Inter side to Serie A glory with 24 goals last season and struck three tim…

Olympics chief Lord Sebastian Coe predicts next year s event will provide the ideal stage for future football superstars.

Lord Coe, the head of London 2012, believes that next year’s competition will be an important stepping stone for the next generation of top footballers to follow in the footsteps of Lionel Messi and Carlos Tevez.

While former England captain David Beckham is being tipped to lead the Great Britain team tilt at gold at London 2012 and Lille midfielder Joe Cole is keen to take part, young up-and-coming players from around the world will head to the United Kingdom, including Brazilian ace Neymar.

There may have been misgiving about the validity of football s place at the Olympics, but Lord Coe was adamant it will aid the development of rising s…

Adelaide United s Rini Coolen has been sacked as coach by the struggling club on Sunday, with Coolen replaced by former coach John Kosmina.

Adelaide are sitting in ninth on the table following an inconsistent start to the season that has seen them record just two wins, despite the club enjoying numerous home matches.

But last Friday night s 3-0 loss to last-placed Gold Coast was the final straw for Adelaide United management, with chairman Greg Griffin calling a hasty press conference early on Sunday afternoon to reveal the decision to replace Coolen with prodigal son Kosmina.

I ll be honest, it s pretty humbling the whole thing and probably emotional, Kosmina told FiveAA radio.

It s not often you get a second chance at things and I had my first chance…