Amsterdam (AFP) – Cristiano Ronaldo marked his return from injury with a precious away goal as Juventus drew 1-1 with an excellent Ajax in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final in Amsterdam on Wednesday. Ronaldo subdued the 50,000 home fans in the Johan Cruyff Arena when he headed Juventus in front on the […]

Johannesburg (AFP) – Orlando Pirates defeated lowly Black Leopards 2-0 to give themselves a three-point lead at the top of the South African Premiership on Wednesday. Luvuyo Memela scored a 23rd-minute free-kick at Orlando Stadium in Soweto and Thembinkosi Lorch put the outcome beyond doubt with a headed goal 10 minutes from time that […]

The Hague (AFP) – Tens of Juventus supporters have been arrested in possession of dangerous objects ahead of their Champions League quarter-final first leg tie against Ajax in Amsterdam, Dutch police said on Wednesday. Two separate groups were stopped by officials, the first in a metro station and the next in the Johan Cruyff Arena. […]

Sao Paulo (AFP) – Pele will have an operation to remove a 'ureteral stone,' his doctors said Wednesday, a day after the football great returned to Brazil following treatment in a Paris hospital for an infection. The 78-year-old was admitted to the Albert Einstein hospital in Sao Paulo for more tests after arriving in Brazil […]

Amsterdam (AFP) – Cristiano Ronaldo returns to the Juventus starting line-up for Wednesday's Champions League quarter-final, first leg against Ajax in Amsterdam. The Italian club's coach Massimiliano Allegri had confirmed on Tuesday that Ronaldo would be back for the game at the Johan Cruyff Arena after recovering from a thigh injury suffered playing for Portugal […]

Mexico City (AFP) – Diego Maradona wished his fellow living legend Pele a speedy recovery Wednesday, posting a picture on Instagram of the two football greats in 1979. "This picture is 40 years old today. It was taken in Rio de Janeiro, when we met each other in person. How young we were.... I wish […]

Paris (AFP) – The French Football League (LFP) fired a broadside on Wednesday at plans to revamp the Champions League, saying proposed changes would weaken national championships. The league's board said in a statement it was "deeply concerned" that club finances and playing standards would suffer if plans backed by European football's governing body UEFA […]

Milan (AFP) – Vincenzo Montella has returned for a second stint as coach of mid-table Serie A side Fiorentina, the Italian club announced on Wednesday. Montella previously coached the Tuscany outfit from 2012 to 2015, leading them to three consecutive fourth-place finishes and the Europa League semi-finals. Stefano Pioli resigned as coach on Tuesday as […]

London (AFP) – Arsenal forward Alexandre Lacazette has stressed the importance of securing a positive result in the home leg of their Europa League quarter-final against Napoli on Thursday because of the club's poor away form. The Gunners have won just five Premier League games on their travels all season, losing 1-0 at Everton last […]

Berlin (AFP) – The disgraced former president of the German Football Association Reinhard Grindel said Wednesday he had stepped down from his roles at the European and world football governing bodies UEFA and FIFA. Eight days after resigning as head of the DFB over a scandal involving a luxury watch Grindel has now given up […]

Berlin (AFP) – Germany technical director Oliver Bierhoff has admitted he made mistakes in the scandal surrounding Mesut Ozil's international retirement last summer. "Things panned out badly and I am very sorry about that," said Bierhoff in an interview published on Wednesday on the website of the German weekly newspaper Die Zeit. Ozil retired from […]

Paris (AFP) – Paris Saint-Germain striker Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting apologised Wednesday for his botched goal miss that effectively prevented the club winning the French league title in record-equalling time. Choupo-Moting gave PSG an early lead with his third Ligue 1 goal against Strasbourg on Sunday, but later in the first half somehow succeeded in turning […]

Hong Kong (AFP) – Fabio Cannavaro put his troubles with China's national team to one side as he led Guangzhou Evergrande to a crushing 4-0 win over Melbourne Victory in the AFC Champions League on Wednesday. The Italian great has come under heavy fire for a lacklustre start as China coach, but it was a […]

Liverpool (AFP) – Virgil van Dijk says Liverpool can win a Premier League and Champions League double after they took charge of their European quarter-final against Porto. Naby Keita and Roberto Firmino struck inside the first 26 minutes at Anfield on Tuesday to give Jurgen Klopp's men a 2-0 victory. Unlike their last-16 clash just […]

Berlin (AFP) – Red Bull Salzburg coach Marco Rose has announced that he will leave the club at the end of the season to take over German Bundesliga side Borussia Moenchengladbach. The German coach confirmed that he would sign a three-year contract at Gladbach, who announced the imminent departure of current coach Dieter Hecking last […]