Nanjing (China) (AFP) – Record Manchester City signing Rodri made his debut and Raheem Sterling scored twice as the Premier League champions came from behind to beat West Ham United 4-1 on Wednesday in China. West Ham took the lead with a Mark Noble penalty before City levelled through David Silva, then Lukas Nmecha scored […]

Brussels (AFP) – Former Belgium national team manager Robert Waseige died on Wednesday at the age of 79, Belgian television reported on Wednesday. The first Walloon coach in the history of the Red Devils had been hospitalised for a week with heart failure and kidney problems, French language RTBF TV reported. "Belgian football has lost […]

Perth (Australia) (AFP) – Paul Pogba shined as an under-pressure Manchester United stepped up their pre-season campaign with a 4-0 thrashing of old rivals Leeds on Wednesday. United had faced criticism after an unconvincing 2-0 victory over a depleted Perth Glory on the weekend. In a much-needed tonic, the Red Devils clinically dismantled Leeds, who […]

Nanjing (China) (AFP) – The scale of the task facing new head coach Steve Bruce was brutally laid bare as Newcastle United were thrashed 4-0 by Premier League rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers in China on Wednesday. Former Manchester United defender Bruce, whose appointment was confirmed just hours before kick-off, will jet over to take charge of […]

Madrid (AFP) – A Spanish court said on Wednesday it had opened a tax probe into Doyen Sports, whose football funding schemes and third-party player ownership activities were exposed by Football Leaks. The court said the firm, founded in 2011 in Malta and since closed down, is suspected of fraud worth at least five million […]

London (AFP) – West Ham smashed their transfer record on Wednesday as the Premier League club signed French striker Sebastien Haller from Eintracht Frankfurt. Haller agreed a five-year contract with the Hammers for a reported £45 million (50 millions euros), in a deal that surpasses the £42 million they paid to sign Felipe Anderson from Lazio […]

Kuala Lumpur (AFP) – North and South Korea will face off in politically-charged World Cup qualifiers after being drawn in the same group Wednesday, while arch-rivals Iran and Iraq will also meet. Heavyweights Iran, Japan, South Korea, Australia and Saudi Arabia — who all played in the 2018 World Cup in Russia — were drawn in […]

Cairo (AFP) – After a Champions League title with Liverpool, Sadio Mane is out to conquer a second continent in as many months as Senegal attempt to capture a first Africa Cup of Nations title against Algeria in Friday's final in Cairo. A calf injury ruined Mane's 2015 Cup of Nations, while his missed penalty […]

London (AFP) – Fleetwood manager Joey Barton was charged with actual bodily harm on Wednesday following an alleged incident during a third tier match at Barnsley in April. Former Manchester City and Marseille midfielder Barton has "emphatically denied" accusations that he confronted Barnsley manager Daniel Stendel in the Oakwell tunnel. In a statement, South Yorkshire […]

London (AFP) – Newcastle risked stoking the anger of their frustrated fans by hiring former Sunderland boss Steve Bruce as their head coach on Wednesday. Bruce has agreed a three-year contract with the Premier League club, but his appointment to succeed Rafael Benitez wasn't met with universal approval by Newcastle supporters. "Newcastle United can now […]

Warsaw (AFP) – Polish Olympic hammer champion Anita Wlodarczyk will not defend her world title later this year after undergoing knee surgery and will target the 2020 Tokyo Games, the athlete and her coach indicated on Tuesday. Wlodarczyk, 33, the hammer world record holder has dominated her event, winning gold at the last two Olympics […]

Paris (AFP) – The Cameroon Football Federation sacked coach Clarence Seedorf and assistant Patrick Kluivert on Tuesday, the pair paying the price for the defending champions' last 16 exit at the Africa Cup of Nations. Cameroon crashed out 3-2 to Nigeria last Saturday, an exit the federation described as "premature" in its statement. Former Dutch […]

London (AFP) – Arsenal director Josh Kroenke admits criticism from furious fans has been "hard to take", but he insists the club's owners will stick to their guns. Arsenal supporters' organisations, fanzines and blogs published a statement hitting out at Stan Kroenke's "passive ownership" on Monday in response to their team's latest frustrating campaign. The […]

Glasgow (AFP) – Celtic manager Neil Lennon has warned Arsenal that the Scottish champions won't let Kieran Tierney leave on the cheap after rejecting a second bid for the defender. Lennon is believed to rate Tierney at £25 million ($31 million) but Arsenal's latest bid is reported to have fallen short of that price tag. […]

Paris (AFP) – Paris Saint-Germain have signed France under-21 international defender Abdou Diallo from Borussia Dortmund on a five-year deal, the French champions announced on Tuesday. German magazine Kicker reported PSG had paid 32 million euros ($35.9 million) plus a further two million euros in bonuses for the 23-year-old centre-back. Diallo, who would have played […]