LONDON: Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta on Friday called for more clarity from the Premier League after a glut of coronavirus postponements, saying it was vital to maintain the fairness of the competition. Only five games of the previously scheduled 10 are due to take place on Saturday and Sunday, taking the total number of postponed … Read more
LONDON: London will host the first edition of a new intercontinental final between the champions of Europe and South America when Italy face Argentina on June 1, UEFA said on Wednesday. Wembley is understood to be the preferred venue for the match known as the Finalissima. Read More: Barcelona’s Aguero poised to retire with heart … Read more
MADRID: Real Madrid midfielder Luka Modric and defender Marcel have tested positive for Covid-19, the Spanish league leaders announced on Wednesday. “Real Madrid informs that our players Marcelo and Luka Modric have tested positive for Covid-19,” the club said in a statement. Spanish media reported that tests on the rest of the team were all … Read more
LONDON: A temporary ban on owner-related sponsorship deals for Premier League clubs in the wake of a Saudi-backed takeover of Newcastle has been lifted. The block on such transactions was backed by 18 top-flight clubs in October with only Newcastle opposing and Manchester City abstaining. Abu Dhabi-owned City’s rise to be the dominant force in … Read more
Barcelona forward Sergio Aguero will make an announcement on his future on Wednesday following cardiac and respiratory difficulties suffered while playing in La Liga in October. Aguero will be accompanied at a press conference Wednesday by club president Joan Laporta, where local media say he will announce his retirement. The 33-year-old joined Barca from Manchester … Read more
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been stripped of the Arsenal captaincy following a breach of discipline, the club confirmed on Tuesday. The 32-year-old forward was left out for Saturday’s 3-0 win over Southampton and will also not feature for West Ham’s visit to the Emirates on Wednesday. “Following his latest disciplinary breach last week, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will … Read more
Empoli dealt a blow to Napoli’s hopes of a first Serie A crown since the days of Diego Maradona after a stunning 1-0 win which gives Inter Milan a chance to take firm control of the title race. Patrick Cutrone’s bizarre winner with 20 minutes remaining in Naples fired promoted Empoli seventh in Italy’s top … Read more
Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea remain separated by just two points at the top of the Premier League after all three relied on penalties to win this weekend. Manchester United also needed a spot-kick and a man-of-the-match performance from goalkeeper David de Gea to see off lowly Norwich before becoming the latest English club to … Read more
Leicester left Newcastle still rooted in the Premier League relegation zone with a 4-0 thrashing of the Magpies on Sunday, while West Ham’s Champions League ambitions were dented by a 0-0 draw at Burnley. Despite being hit by a coronavirus outbreak that left Brendan Rodgers without seven players, the Foxes gave Eddie Howe another reminder … Read more
Atalanta closed in on Serie A leaders AC Milan after coming from behind to win 2-1 at Verona on Sunday and move to within two points of top spot. Gian Piero Gasperini’s side sit third in Italy’s top flight thanks to goals in either half from Aleksey Miranchuk and Teun Koopmeiners which ensured they took … Read more
Kaba Diawara, who had spells for Arsenal and West Ham, will coach Guinea at the Africa Cup of Nations next year, the country’s federation said Sunday. The 45-year-old French-born former Guinea international took over temporarily after French coach Didier Six was sacked when Guinea failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup. Sega Diallo, the … Read more
Alfredo Morelos and Joe Aribo fired Rangers to a 2-0 win at Hearts on Sunday as the Scottish Premiership leaders extended their strong start under new boss Giovanni van Bronckhorst. Van Bronckhorst has won four successive league games since replacing Steven Gerrard after his predecessor’s move to Aston Villa. Morelos and Aribo scored in the … Read more
PORTLAND: New York City boss Ronny Deila says his team are ready to rip up the form book once more when they take on the Portland Timbers in Oregon on Saturday looking to claim the club’s first Major League Soccer crown. After an Eastern Conference playoff run which included away victories over the top-seeded New … Read more
England Under-21 international Angel Gomes scored his first Champions League goal Wednesday as Lille cruised to a 3-1 win away to Wolfsburg to reach the last 16 for only the second time in their history. Gomes, 21, struck 12 minutes from time to seal a comfortable win for the reigning French champions and dump toothless … Read more
Manchester United were held 1-1 by Young Boys on Wednesday as interim boss Ralf Rangnick blooded a host of youngsters in the Champions League. With United already assured of top spot in Group F, Rangnick rested all of his key players, making 11 changes from the side that beat Crystal Palace in the first game … Read more
Real Madrid made it into the Women’s Champions League quarter-finals on Wednesday but Chelsea still have work to do after last season’s finalists were held to a goalless draw by Juventus. The stalemate in London left Group A in a state of uncertainty ahead of next week’s closing round. Chelsea are on 11 points with … Read more
Atalanta’s Champions League showdown with Villarreal has been postponed until Thursday evening due to heavy snowfall in Bergamo, the Italian club confirmed on Wednesday. “Atalanta-Villarreal will be played tomorrow, Thursday 9 (December), at 19 CET (1800 GMT),” the Serie A outfit said in a statement. Villarreal also confirmed the new kick-off time, although there was … Read more
Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez vowed to return the Spanish giants to the pinnacle of European football after they crashed out of the Champions League on Wednesday with a 3-0 defeat at Bayern Munich. Five-time European champions Barca were eliminated in the group stages for the first time in 21 years. They had reached the last … Read more
European football’s governing body UEFA has confirmed that Tottenham’s Europa Conference League game with Rennes on Thursday is off after a coronavirus outbreak in the Spurs camp. Tottenham announced on Wednesday that the Group G fixture would not take place after 13 players and members of staff tested positive for Covid-19 at the Premier League … Read more
Besiktas on Thursday parted ways with coach Sergen Yalcin after a dreadful run of form both domestically and in the Champions League in which they failed to register a point. The Istanbul side won their 21st Turkish title last season and had high hopes for a campaign played out in front of fans for the … Read more
Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta has urged his teammates to show an immediate response after falling off the top of the Premier League and finishing a disappointing second in their Champions League group. The European champions twice surrendered the lead in Russia on Wednesday to draw 3-3 with Zenit Saint Petersburg and end their Group H … Read more
Bayern Munich said Thursday that star midfielder Joshua Kimmich would not return to action until January as he recovers from lung damage caused by Covid-19. Kimmich, who is unvaccinated, tested positive for coronavirus last month. “I’m happy my self-isolation caused by the coronavirus has ended,” said Kimmich, expected to be one of Germany’s leading players … Read more
Domenico Tedesco has been tasked with reviving RB Leipzig’s season after being named full-time head coach on Thursday on a two-year contract. The 36-year-old Italy-born coach fills the vacancy left when American Jesse Marsch was sacked by the Bundesliga club on Sunday after just four months in charge. Tedesco, who has dual Italian and German … Read more
AC Milan will turn their attention to cementing top spot in Italy this weekend after the gulf between the Serie A leaders and Europe’s best was exposed. Milan have been revitalised over the last two years under coach Stefano Pioli but crashed out of the Champions League after being comfortably beaten by a second-string Liverpool … Read more
Brazilian football legend Pele has been hospitalized for treatment of a previously identified colon tumor, his doctors said Wednesday, the latest health problem for the 81-year-old icon. The three-time world champion was admitted to Albert Einstein Hospital in Sao Paulo “for follow-up treatment of the colon tumor identified in September this year,” his medical team … Read more
Tottenham manager Antonio Conte said on Wednesday that eight players and five members of staff had tested positive for coronavirus and he expected more confirmed cases. Spurs are due to play a crucial Europa Conference League game against Rennes on Thursday and UEFA has said the match is due to take place as scheduled. It … Read more
Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic has signed a new contract taking him up to 2024 the Croatian Football Federation (HNS) said Wednesday. The 55-year-old has enjoyed an impressive spell with the national side since taking over in 2017. He has guided Croatia to the 2018 World Cup final — where they lost to France — to … Read more
Real Madrid will go through as group winners to the Champions League last 16 after Toni Kroos and Marco Asensio each scored in a 2-0 win over Inter Milan on Tuesday. A comfortable victory at the Santiago Bernabeu, aided by Nicolo Barella’s red card in the 64th minute when Inter were one goal down, sends … Read more
