London (AFP) – Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud has warned Maurizio Sarri he must be given a more important role next season if the Blues boss wants him to stay at Stamford Bridge. Giroud has been largely consigned to a bit-part role with Chelsea this term and the France World Cup winner is considering his future […]

Naples (Italy) (AFP) – Arsenal coach Unai Emery warned his side are braced for a backlash from Carlo Ancelotti's Napoli, the last Italian team left in Europe this season, who are two goals down going into their Europa League quarter-final, second leg tie in Naples on Thursday. "Ancelotti is a three-times Champions League winner, they […]

Porto (Portugal) (AFP) – Divock Origi comes into the Liverpool attack in place of Roberto Firmino for the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final against FC Porto in Portugal on Wednesday. The Belgian forward has not featured in Jurgen Klopp's starting line-up since the 0-0 draw against Everton in the Merseyside derby in the […]

Paris (AFP) – Paris Saint-Germain supporters paid tribute to the Notre Dame cathedral ahead of their Ligue 1 fixture at Nantes on Wednesday with a banner saying "PSG is our club, Paris is our Lady". The spire and the roof of the 850-year-old landmark in the French capital collapsed after a dramatic fire on Monday. […]

Nantes (France) (AFP) – Kylian Mbappe has been dropped by Paris Saint-Germain coach Thomas Tuchel for the Ligue 1 leaders' title decider at Nantes on Wednesday following the star striker's scathing comments at the weekend. PSG need to win to seal the championship after passing up a second chance to round up the title in […]

Tirana (AFP) – Italian Edoardo Reja was appointed Wednesday as the new coach of the Albanian national team, replacing Christian Panucci who was sacked after they lost their opening Euro 2020 qualifier. Albania, who reached their first major tournament at Euro 2016, started their qualifying campaign with a 2-0 home loss to Turkey before beating […]

Berlin (AFP) – Barcelona and Real Madrid target Luka Jovic has signed a permanent contract at Eintracht Frankfurt, ending his two-year loan from Benfica, the Bundesliga club confirmed on Wednesday. Serbian talent Jovic, 21, who has fired his way onto the radar of Europe's top clubs with 25 goals so far this season, had been […]

London (AFP) – Manchester United have condemned racist abuse of their defender Ashley Young on social media in the aftermath of their Champions League elimination at Barcelona. Young was targeted on Twitter following United's 3-0 quarter-final second-leg defeat on Tuesday. The foul abuse of Young brought swift condemnation from United, who said in a statement: […]

Berlin (AFP) – Eintracht Frankfurt are banking on their Portuguese striker Goncalo Paciencia to help them upset the odds against Benfica in their Europa League quarter-final second leg on Thursday. Frankfurt's European hopes are hanging by a thread after they suffered a 4-2 defeat in Lisbon last week, and coach Adi Huetter said on Wednesday that […]

Nairobi (AFP) – Police in Kenya have been left red-faced after thieves stole guns and ammunition from an unattended checkpost as the officers on duty watched UEFA Champions League matches down the road. Three rifles and nearly two dozen rounds were pinched from the checkpost Tuesday evening in Nandi, in Kenya's west, while the officers […]

Madrid (AFP) – Atletico Madrid striker Diego Costa is the latest star to fall foul of the Spanish authorities for possible non-payment of taxes on image rights, a Spanish newspaper reported on Wednesday. "The tax administration accuses the Atletico striker of fraud totalling 1.1 million euros related to taxes related to his image rights in […]

Berlin (AFP) – Bayern Munich will offer veteran striker Claudio Pizarro a role as club ambassador once the evergreen 40-year-old Peruvian finally ends his playing career, club CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said Wednesday. In his lengthy career in Germany, Pizarro has made 327 appearances for Bayern as well as 296 for current club Werder Bremen. A […]

Turin (Italy) (AFP) – Even Cristiano Ronaldo was not enough for Juventus to end their 23-year wait for the European title as they crashed out in the Champions League quarter-finals for a second consecutive year. Juventus splashed out 100 million euros ($117 million) on the five-time Champions League winner last summer and the Portuguese star […]

London (AFP) – The head of Manchester United's academy Nicky Butt has been bailed by police after being arrested on suspicion of assaulting a woman. Butt, a former United midfielder, was held following reports on Tuesday that the woman had been assaulted at an address in Hale, Greater Manchester. The 44-year-old was later released pending […]

Barcelona (AFP) – Lionel Messi lit up Camp Nou and devastated Manchester United before firing a warning to Barcelona that they cannot start slowly again. Barca were superior to United in all departments for the best part of 80 minutes on Tuesday, a 3-0 win perhaps even flattering for their opponents, who were two down […]