Ivica Olic will almost certainly depart Bayern Munich in the close season after enduring a troubled 2011-12 campaign.

The 32-year-old has been no more than a squad player this season, with just two goals to his name to date.

His current predicament has forced the forward into making the likely decision of quitting the German giants when the transfer window reopens in a few months.

It is most likely that I will leave Bayern in the summer, as the club have not yet spoken to me, Olic told Goal.com in an exclusive interview.

I would have preferred that they already addressed the issue. I have a family, my children go to school. I cannot wait until May to plan my future. Right now, it looks more likely that I ll go.

Olic then explained that his two…

Newcastle boss Eddie Howe has warned Newcastle they would have to start again if they sold star striker Alexander Isak this summer.

The 24-year-old Sweden international, the Magpies’ £63million record signing, has been linked with both Arsenal and Tottenham in recent weeks amid the perception that the Saudi-backed club may have to trade to comply with profit and sustainability rules.

Isak enhanced his blossoming reputation further with a superb double in a 4-0 Premier League victory over Champions League-chasing Spurs at St James’ Park on Saturday to take his tally for an injury-interrupted season to 21.

What a player.

— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC)

Asked about the need to retain his services, head coach Howe said: “We are trying to buil…

Antonio Candreva looks increasingly likely to leave Lazio after the Italy international s agent revealed his client was ready for a new challenge .

Napoli and Inter have both reportedly failed to complete deals for Candreva in recent weeks, although the 29-year-old winger is seemingly undeterred in his desire to leave Stadio Olimpico, where he had an initially difficult relationship with fans following his 2012 move from Udinese.

He joined the Biancocelesti and even got insults from some fans,  Federico Pastorello is quoted as telling Tele Radio Stereo.

He won them all over, but now Antonio has realised it s time for a new challenge. Fans shouldn t be upset or angry, it s part of the logic that brings clubs and players together, and then clubs take decision…

Brazil striker Marta became the Women s World Cup s all-time leading goalscorer as the South American side defeated South Korea 2-0 in Montreal.

Marta notched her 15th World Cup goal when she converted a 53rd-minute penalty, moving a goal clear of former Germany striker Birgit Prinz, while her team-mate Formiga became the oldest player to score at FIFA s premier women s event when she slotted Brazil s opener in the first half.

Abby Wambach (13 goals) could challenge Marta throughout the course of the tournament as she remains a key player for United States.

Formiga surpassed ex-Canada striker Charmaine Hooper, while the 37-year-old Brazilian also joined Japan captain Homare Sawa as the only two players to play in six World Cups.

Brazil have never won the …

Diego Costa has been given an eight-match ban following the Atletico Madrid striker s red card against Barcelona last weekend.

Costa was dismissed in the first half of his side s 2-0 loss to Barcelona on Saturday for dissent, having confronted referee Jesus Gil Manzano.

The Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) confirmed on Thursday that Costa s punishment was an eight-match suspension – four for foul-mouthed comments made towards the referee and a further four for grabbing the official s arm. The club have 10 working days to appeal the decision.

Atletico, who trail LaLiga leaders Barca by 11 points following their defeat at Camp Nou, have only seven games left to play this season, so the Spain international will be unavailable for the remainder of the camp…

James Milner believes Liverpool must learn how to do the boring parts of football better after his side threw away a two-goal lead in a 3-3 draw against Arsenal.

Goals from Philippe Coutinho and Mohamed Salah either side of half-time at the Emirates Stadium seemed to have put Liverpool on track for a comfortable Premier League victory.

But, out of nowhere, Arsenal manufactured a spectacular comeback, with goals from Alexis Sanchez, Granit Xhaka and Mesut Ozil turning the game on its head before Roberto Firmino ensured the Reds escaped with a point.

It was a thrilling encounter, the game of the season in the Premier League to date, but two dropped points left Milner an early substitute after Jordan Henderson hurt his hamstring bemoaning his team s lack of defensiv…

8th May 2012

The all-Spanish Europa League final at National Arena in Bucharest should be an exciting affair and there is every chance we will see one of the most entertaining finals in the history of the competition. Neither of the two evenly matched sides are expected to discard their attractive attacking style of play, meaning that a real spectacle is in store for the fans in Romania.

Atletico Madrid are set to contest their second Europa League final in three years, and los Colchoneros will be hoping for another trophy after beating Fulham in the final of the 2009/2010 season. Interesting thing is that none of the players who celebrated the big success three years ago are expected to start against Athletic, with only Alvaro Dominguez, Paulo Assuncao and Eduardo Salv…

Fernando Morientes has hailed Spain s substitutes as he believes they give the team an edge compared to their opponents.

The former Real Madrid striker said the fringe players can make just as big an impact as the regular starters in the team, citing the Euro 2008 and 2010 World Cup finals as an example.

He added such depth was missing in the past for Spain, including during his own time in the national team between 1998 and 2007 when he collected 47 caps and scored 27 goals.

The difference nowadays is that the substitutes have the same potential as the first 11, Morientes told L Equipe.

They played the Euro 2008 final without David Villa, their top-scorer, and they still won.

They played the 2010 World Cup final with Fernando Torres, Jesus …

Nikola Kalinic will travel to Italy and sign a contract with Serie A outfit Fiorentina, Dnipro have confirmed.

Kalinic s agent, Tomislav Erceg, this week revealed the Croatia international striker s intention to leave the Ukrainian city of Dnipropetrovsk for Florence.

And the 27-year-old is now free to link up with Paolo Sousa s men after four years at Dnipro.

Croatian striker Nikola Kalinic has said his goodbyes to the team, coaching staff and management of FC Dnipro, the club announced via their official website on Wednesday.

Instead of travelling to Odessa for the fifth match of the Premier League campaign against Shakhtar [Donetsk], he will instead travel to Italy to sign a contract with Florence-based club Fiorentina.

Kalinic, who opened t…

The LA Galaxy are reportedly launching a move to bring Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard to Major League Soccer, .

Lampard has one year left on his current contract, and the Blues would surely love to get his £130,000-a-week deal off their books as they continue to pursue Luka Modric and Joao Moutinho.

The 34-year-old England international may be in the twilight of his career, but he still has the ability and quality to boss the game, especially in the United States.

Let s be perfectly honest, the talent level in Major League Soccer is nowhere near that of the English Premier League.

With that said, Lampard tallied 19 goals and 10 assists in 57 appearances for club and country last season.

Will the former West Ham United standout be reu…