London (AFP) – Fuelled by the angst of narrowly failing to win their first English title since 1990, Jurgen Klopp says Liverpool's Champions League triumph is already ancient history as they prepare to lock horns with Manchester City. AFP Sport looks at how Liverpool are shaping up ahead of the title race, which starts with […]

Marseille (AFP) – Marseille have signed Argentina forward Dario Benedetto from Boca Juniors on a four-year deal, the Ligue 1 outfit announced on Monday. Benedetto, 29, who has made five international appearances since his debut in 2017, has reportedly cost the French club 16 million euros ($17.9 million). He scored 39 goals in 63 matches […]

London (AFP) – Manchester United made Harry Maguire the world's most expensive defender on Monday as they bought the England centre-back from Leicester for a reported fee of £80 million ($97 million). AFP Sport looks at the top five most costly defenders of all time: Harry Maguire, £80 million, Leicester to Manchester United (August 2019) […]

London (AFP) – Harry Maguire became the most expensive defender in the world when he signed for Manchester United from Leicester City for a reported £80 million ($97 million) on Monday. AFP Sport picks out three facts few people know about the 26-year-old England central defender: Head for figures Jamie Vardy may joke about the […]

London (AFP) – Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson says manager Jurgen Klopp's judgement in the transfer market should not be questioned despite a lack of heavyweight signings in the transfer window. The Reds have added just teenagers Sepp Van Den Berg and Harvey Elliott to a squad that won the Champions League and finished second to […]

London (AFP) – Manchester United signed Harry Maguire from Leicester on Monday for a reported £80 million fee that makes the England centre-back the world's most expensive defender. United have secured Maguire on a six-year contract with an option for a further 12-month extension. The £75 million Liverpool paid for Virgil van Dijk in 2018 […]

London (AFP) – Harry Maguire became the world's most expensive defender on Monday when Manchester United signed him for a reported fee of £80 million ($97 million). "Manchester United is delighted to confirm the signing of Harry Maguire from Leicester City," the club said in a statement on its website. "Harry signs on a six-year […]

Barcelona (AFP) – Barcelona captain Leo Messi is out of action less than two weeks ahead of the opening of La Liga season after injuring his right calf in training on Monday. The Argentina star has already been ruled out of the team's trip to Florida for a one-off friendly against Napoli in Miami on […]

Shanghai (AFP) – Brazilian striker Elkeson is set to be called up to Marcello Lippi's squad for China's World Cup qualifiers, reports said Monday, in what would be a landmark moment for football in the country. The widely expected move would make the 30-year-old the first player without Chinese ancestry to represent his adopted country, […]

London (AFP) – Manchester City won the Community Shield with a 5-4 penalty shoot-out win over Liverpool after a 1-1 draw at Wembley on Sunday. Here, AFP Sport looks at three things we learned from the annual curtain-raiser to the English top-flight season: Narrow margins When Kyle Walker leapt acrobatically into the air to hook […]

London (AFP) – Fuelled by the pain of last season's Champions League final defeat against Liverpool, Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino has vowed to take his team to the next level. AFP Sport takes a look at the north London club as they bid to win a major trophy for the first time since 2008. What […]

London (AFP) – Chelsea manager Frank Lampard faces a daunting task on his return to Stamford Bridge as the club's midfield great tries to keep his team competitive despite a host of issues on and off the pitch. AFP Sport looks at the west London side ahead of Lampard's debut season on the Blues bench: […]

Johannesburg (AFP) – Lebogang Manyama ended a 26-month South African Premiership goal drought by scoring twice as Kaizer Chiefs began the new season with a 3-2 win at Highlands Park Sunday. The former South Africa midfielder opened the scoring after five minutes in front of a capacity 10,000 crowd at Makhulong Stadium 45 kilometres (28 […]

Barcelona (AFP) – Luis Suarez's late volley saw Barcelona to a 2-1 win in the Joan Gamper Trophy friendly in front of a bumper crowd at the Camp Nou, as Antoine Griezmann made his home debut following his big money move from Atletico Madrid. Suarez flashed home Sergi Roberto's lofted pass in the 89th minute […]

London (AFP) – Inter Milan boss Antonio Conte hopes to finalise a deal for Manchester United forward Romelu Lukaku in the coming days. The Italian club have been chasing Lukaku during the transfer window and have reportedly returned with a fresh bid of around £65 million ($79 million) as they try and get the deal […]