London (AFP) – Arsenal manager Unai Emery warned Tottenham on Friday that his side are ready to take their "big opportunity" to finish above them by winning Saturday's north London derby. Emery's team are in better form than third-placed Tottenham and can close the gap on their hated neighbours to just one point if they […]

London (AFP) – Marco Silva has dismissed Jurgen Klopp's claim that the Merseyside derby is a "World Cup final" for Everton by recalling Liverpool's wild victory celebrations in their last meeting. Everton boss Silva was infuriated by Klopp's inflammatory jibe about Sunday's showdown at Goodison Park and quick to point out that Klopp must also […]

Liverpool (AFP) – Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp says Roberto Firmino may return from an ankle injury to face Everton on Sunday in a vital clash for the Premier League leaders. Everton, in ninth place, have not beaten Liverpool since 2010 but would dearly love to spoil their neighbours' bid to end a 29-year wait to […]

Madrid (AFP) – Santiago Solari has insisted Gareth Bale is still a key player for Real Madrid, despite leaving him out of the team that started against Barcelona in Wednesday's 3-0 Copa del Rey semi-final defeat. Bale has been a substitute in seven of Madrid's last nine games and his place in the side on […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Gabriel Jesus has returned to boost Manchester City's quadruple bid, offering much-needed relief for the club's record goal-scorer Sergio Aguero. Aguero has been in prolific form for Pep Guardiola's side, scoring 12 goals since the turn of the year as City fight to retain the Premier League title. But Jesus's […]

London (AFP) – Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri has refused to confirm whether Kepa Arrizabalaga will return to the team at Fulham on Sunday after the controversial keeper was cast into exile following his Wembley mutiny. Sarri is yet to decide whether to recall Kepa for Sunday's London derby after dropping him for Wednesday's win over […]

Breuillet (France) (AFP) – A training ground in the suburbs south of Paris, between a field and a railway line, is a long, long way from Madagascar. Yet this is where Nicolas Dupuis, the coach of the Indian Ocean island state's national football team, spends much of his time. When the Frenchman is not leading […]

Leicester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – New Leicester City manager Brendan Rodgers said his head ruled his heart when he decided to leave Celtic behind to return to the Premier League. Rodgers shocked supporters of the Scottish champions on Tuesday by departing after winning all seven domestic trophies on offer during his near three-season reign in […]

Shanghai (AFP) – Marouane Fellaini said that he did not move from Manchester United to China "for a holiday" after scoring the winner on his debut for Shandong Luneng on Friday. The 31-year-old midfielder was not always popular at Old Trafford because United fans felt his awkward style was not in keeping with the Premier […]

Berlin (AFP) – Germany will host Argentina in Dortmund on October 9 in a repeat of the 2014 World Cup final, the German Football Association (DFB) announced Friday. "It was the express wish of the coaching staff to play a friendly against an outstanding team and develop the squad further," explained DFB president Reinhard Grindel. […]

Berlin (AFP) – RB Leipzig coach Ralf Rangnick admits the sudden departure of Jochen Schneider to be head of sports at Bundesliga rivals Schalke caught him by surprise. Schneider quit Leipzig to move to Gelsenkirchen-based Schalke on Tuesday after predecessor Christian Heidel resigned when last Saturday's 3-0 drubbing by Mainz left the Royal Blues with […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is confident that Manchester United will be able to retain the services of David de Gea, the man he rates as the best goalkeeper in the world. But the future of captain Antonio Valencia is less clear with the club apparently poised not to trigger a contract […]

Moscow (AFP) – The Russian Premier League returns from its three month winter hibernation this weekend with leaders Zenit St Peterburg resuming their push for a fifth title at Ural Yekaterinburg. Zenit top the table with 34 points from 17 matches, just one point clear of Krasnodar, while CSKA Moscow sit third, three points further […]

Asuncion (AFP) – CONMEBOL, the South American football confederation, on Thursday rejected a US proposal for a new intercontinental tournament next year, noting that it would overlap with next year's Copa America and did not have FIFA's approval. Carlos Cordeiro, the head of the US Soccer Federation, had written to the 10 federations that make […]

Sydney (AFP) – Six months ago Australian international Hayley Raso broke her back in the US National Women's Soccer League and faced the prospect of never playing football again. But she had a dream to be at this year's women's World Cup in France and with the aid of medical staff, a wheelchair and a […]