Amsterdam (AFP) – Jan Vertonghen will be back for Tottenham Hotspur when they face Ajax in the return leg of their Champions League semi-final on Wednesday, coach Mauricio Pochettino confirmed. The Belgian defender came off in the first half of last week's 1-0 defeat in the first leg after suffering a nasty head knock, and […]

London (AFP) – Manchester City's Pep Guardiola and Liverpool's Jurgen Klopp are on the four-man shortlist for the Premier League Manager of the Season award. Guardiola and Klopp are locked in a battle for the Premier League title that will be settled in the final matches of the season on Sunday. They will also slug […]

Madrid (AFP) – European clubs demanded on Tuesday that UEFA "properly include" them in any plans to change the Champions League, which could include guaranteeing qualification for elite teams. La Liga president Javier Tebas, who was among more than 300 representatives that attended a meeting in Madrid, also said "legal possibilities have been studied" in […]

Los Angeles (AFP) – FC Cincinnati fired head coach Alan Koch on Tuesday following a disappointing start to the club's debut season in Major League Soccer. The expansion side, who have taken just eight points from 11 games this year, said assistant Yoann Damet would act as interim head coach as the search for a […]

Beijing (AFP) – Two-time winners Jeonbuk Motors downed runaway Chinese league-leaders Beijing Guoan 1-0 to ease into the AFC Champions League knockouts on Tuesday, joining Ulsan Hyundai in the last 16. Kim Shin-wook's early header was enough to settle an entertaining clash at Beijing's Workers Stadium as Group G pacesetters Jeonbuk went through with a […]

Amsterdam (AFP) – Ajax are hopeful David Neres will be fit for their Champions League semi-final second leg against Tottenham Hotspur, with coach Erik ten Hag admitting there was "a small question mark" surrounding the fitness of the talented Brazilian winger. "There is perhaps a small problem with David, but he will train and we […]

Berlin (AFP) – Franck Ribery said Tuesday he will return to Bayern Munich once his playing career is over, as he prepares to end 12 years at the club at the end of this season. Ribery, 36, confirmed last weekend that he would not extend his current contract beyond 2019 at Bayern, ending a record-breaking […]

Madrid (AFP) – Atletico Madrid captain Diego Godin announced on Tuesday that he will leave the club at the end of the season. Godin has been one of the best central defenders in the world under Atletico coach Diego Simeone, who attended an emotional press conference at the Wanda Metropolitano, along with several players and […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Aymeric Laporte hailed the influence of Vincent Kompany after Manchester City's inspirational captain struck a stunning winner in the critical Premier League clash with Leicester. The long-serving defender once again proved the man for the big occasion as he netted with a ferocious long-range strike 20 minutes from time to […]

Berlin (AFP) – RB Leipzig coach Ralf Rangnick has hinted that star striker Timo Werner may yet stay at the club for another year before joining Bayern Munich on a free transfer. Werner, 23, has scored 19 goals this season as Leipzig have secured a top four spot and reached the German Cup final. His […]

Liverpool (AFP) – Liverpool must turn to unlikely heroes to overturn a 3-0 Champions League semi-final, first leg deficit against Barcelona on Tuesday, according to defender Trent Alexander-Arnold after Mohamed Salah was ruled out with concussion. Roberto Firmino will also be absent against the Spanish champions at Anfield, leaving Jurgen Klopp without two of his […]

Chuncheon (South Korea) (AFP) – The South Korean star leading Tottenham Hotspur's charge for a place in the Champions League final had a unique football upbringing. But that was only one component of his success, his brother told AFP. Striker Son Heung-min, 26, has been instrumental in Spurs' run to the semi-finals of Europe's top […]

Amsterdam (AFP) – There are few clubs with a history to match that of Ajax, but they are in the process of writing a new chapter in Amsterdam with Erik ten Hag taking them to within sight of a first treble since the days of Johan Cruyff. On Sunday, Ten Hag's spellbinding team secured the […]

London (AFP) – Mauricio Pochettino has challenged Tottenham to seize their unexpected chance to make history as they try to overturn a 1-0 deficit against Ajax in the Champions League semi-final second leg on Wednesday. Pochettino is convinced Tottenham can still reach the club's maiden Champions League final despite losing the first leg in north […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany said he had lived up to a vow to "one-day" score a long-range goal after his wonder strike secured a 1-0 win at home to Leicester that left the champions in charge of the destiny of the Premier League title with a match to play. […]