London (AFP) – Raheem Sterling scored a hat-trick as Manchester City opened the defence of their Premier League title in style on Saturday before Tottenham recovered to beat Aston Villa, courtesy of two Harry Kane strikes. Pep Guardiola's City thumped West Ham 5-0 in the early kick-off but despite City's devastating display, the introduction of […]

Paris (AFP) – Andre Villas-Boas endured a miserable return to football on Saturday as his Marseille side slumped to a 2-0 home defeat by Reims in their Ligue 1 opener. The former Porto, Chelsea and Tottenham manager is back coaching for the first time since an acrimonious departure from Shanghai SIPG in 2017, but saw […]

London (AFP) – Pep Guardiola says VAR will only be worthwhile if decisions taken by the controversial system are always correct after Manchester City's 5-0 win at West Ham was interrupted by several replay reviews. Guardiola's side kicked off their Premier League title defence with a confident display as Raheem Sterling's hat-trick and goals from […]

London (AFP) – Raheem Sterling said it was a "joy" to score for Manchester City after his hat-trick in the Premier League champions's opening 5-0 demolition of West Ham on Saturday. Brazil forward Gabriel Jesus opened the scoring midway through the first half in London before Sterling took over, scoring three goals in the second […]

London (AFP) – Marcus Rashford welcomed on Saturday the extra responsibility he has been given at Manchester United, after becoming one of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's leaders at Old Trafford. Rashford, 21, faces his biggest season yet after the sale of Romelu Lukaku to Inter Milan confirmed his position as United's number one striker. "For me […]

London (AFP) – Manchester City made a flying start to their Premier League title defence as Raheem Sterling's hat-trick inspired a 5-0 demolition of West Ham on Saturday. Pep Guardiola's side are bidding to become just the second club in the Premier League era to win three successive titles. And after Liverpool laid down an […]

Saint-Germain-en-Laye (France) (AFP) – Paris Saint-Germain revealed on Saturday that Neymar transfer talks are "more advanced than before" after the Brazilian was dropped for the French champions' opening Ligue 1 match. Sporting director Leonardo confirmed to reporters that the Brazilian was near the exit door but that PSG were "not yet ready to give their […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer insists he does not perceive fans' frustration over the Red Devils business in the transfer window, but needs a fast start to the new Premier League season against Chelsea on Sunday to turn the tide of opinion at Old Trafford. Frank Lampard will take […]

Liverpool (AFP) – Liverpool could be without inspirational goalkeeper Alisson Becker for a number of weeks after the Brazilian suffered a calf injury in Friday's 4-1 thrashing of Norwich to kick-off the Premier League season in style. The European champions are aiming to end a 30-year wait to win the Premier League after missing […]

Liverpool (AFP) – Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker will miss Wednesday's UEFA Super Cup against Chelsea after pulling up with a calf injury as the European champions opened their Premier League campaign with a 4-1 win over Norwich on Friday. The Brazilian fell to the floor after kicking the ball clear from a routine goal kick […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Riyad Mahrez has been cleared to play for Manchester City in the champions' opening Premier League game at West Ham on Saturday after passing a drugs test with the UK Anti-Doping Agency. Mahrez was left out of City's squad for the Community Shield against Liverpool last Sunday as they awaited […]

Johannesburg (AFP) – Peter Shalulile, who played for Namibia at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, grabbed a stoppage-time equaliser for Highlands Park in a 1-1 South African Premiership draw at Maritzburg United Friday. The forward hammered a loose ball past Ghana goalkeeper Richard Ofori and into the corner of the net on 93 minutes […]

Berlin (AFP) – Borussia Dortmund captain Marco Reus said his team had "big plans" for the coming season after they secured a routine 2-0 win over third-division side KFC Uerdingen in the first round of the German Cup on Friday. Reus' second-half goal set Dortmund on their way to a comfortable cup victory on Friday, […]

Liverpool (AFP) – Liverpool taught newly-promoted Norwich a lesson on the opening night of the new Premier League season with a 4-1 win at Anfield on Friday to lay down an early marker in the title race. Norwich captain Grant Hanley's hapless own goal just seven minutes in set the tone for what could be […]

Monaco (AFP) – Lyon hammered Monaco 3-0 on Friday in the first game of the Ligue 1 season as former Brazil defender Sylvinho started his coaching reign in perfect style and Cesc Fabregas was shown a red card. Moussa Dembele and Memphis Depay scored either side of Fabregas' dismissal in the first half. Midfielder Lucas […]