Glasgow (AFP) – New Celtic boss Neil Lennon has played down comparisons with Brendan Rodgers after taking over from his fellow Northern Irishman at the helm of the Scottish Premiership leaders. The former Hoops captain and manager is back in charge of the Parkhead club for the rest of the season following Rodgers' sudden departure […]

Madrid (AFP) – Gareth Bale is free to play in both El Clasicos against Barcelona this week after the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) decided on Wednesday not to punish the Real Madrid forward for his celebration against Atletico Madrid. After scoring in Real's 3-1 victory earlier this month, Bale threw one arm under the other […]

Berlin (AFP) – Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund hope top-scorer and playmaker Marco Reus will return from a four-week injury lay-off at Augsburg on Friday in their final fixture before hosting Tottenham Hotspur. Dortmund play Spurs at home next Tuesday needing to overturn a 3-0 defeat from the first-leg at Wembley to have any chance of […]

Shanghai (AFP) – A proud football club near China's border with North Korea has folded days before the new season because of $36 million in unpaid taxes, angering its diehard fans and leaving players stranded. The demise of second-tier Yanbian Funde, former national champions, underlines the precarious nature of Chinese football and the harsh financial […]

Hanoi (AFP) – An escalating series of successes has got Vietnam dreaming of a maiden appearance at the World Cup — and it's an ambition that suddenly doesn't seem all that far-fetched. Nationwide street parties broke out last year when Vietnam reached the final of the Asia U23 Championships and won the Southeast Asian title, […]

Paris (AFP) – Paris Saint-Germain continued their bid for a fifth straight French Cup title as Angel Di Maria scored twice in a comfortable 3-0 quarter-final win over Dijon at the Parc des Princes on Tuesday. Di Maria's eighth-minute lob put the holders ahead, before adding his second before the half-hour mark, with Thomas Meunier […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Ole Gunnar Solskjaer believes the privilege of playing for Manchester United should be about the "survival of the fittest" as he deals with a mounting injury crisis. Solskjaer had to make three first-half substitutions during Sunday's 0-0 draw with Liverpool as Ander Herrera, Juan Mata and Jesse Lingard all hobbled […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Pep Guardiola has apologised if the early announcement of his arrival at Manchester City in 2016 destabilised his predecessor Manuel Pellegrini's attempt to win the quadruple. Pellegrini will bring his West Ham side to Manchester on Wednesday, making his first visit to the Etihad for a match since City sacked […]

London (AFP) – New Leicester manager Brendan Rodgers watched on from the stands as the Foxes beat Brighton 2-1, while Newcastle pulled further clear of the relegation battle by defeating Burnley 2-0 on Tuesday. Rodgers was confirmed as Claude Puel's successor just before kick-off at the King Power after dramatically leaving Celtic despite being on […]

Berlin (AFP) – Struggling Schalke 04 confirmed confirmed on Tuesday Jochen Schneider, signed from Bundesliga rivals RB Leipzig, as their new sports director following Christian Heidel's resignation. Having lost 3-2 at home to Manchester City in last week's Champions League last 16, first-leg Schalke moved quickly to replace Heidel with the return leg in England […]

London (AFP) – Leicester City appointed Brendan Rodgers as the Foxes' new manager on a three-year deal on Tuesday as Neil Lennon returned to Celtic until the end of the season as Rodgers's successor. Former Liverpool manager Rodgers won seven domestic trophies in nearly three seasons in charge of the Glasgow giants and leaves the […]

Paris (AFP) – Real Madrid centre-back Sergio Ramos was charged by UEFA on Tuesday for "receiving a yellow card on purpose" during their Champions League last-16 tie with Ajax. The Spaniard was booked for a tackle on Kasper Dolberg in Real's 2-1 first-leg victory in Amsterdam on February 13, two minutes after Marco Asensio scored […]

Madrid (AFP) – Gareth Bale dominated the build-up to the first of two Clasicos in four days but Santiago Solari and Ernesto Valverde each tried to instil calm ahead of an extraordinary week for Real Madrid and Barcelona. The two rivals take a 1-1 draw into the second leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final […]

Berlin (AFP) – Bundesliga strugglers Schalke 04 are hunting for a new sports director, following Christian Heidel's resignation, with their Champions League return leg at Manchester City looming. Having lost 3-2 at home to City in last week's last 16, first-leg in Gelsenkirchen, Schalke want to replace Heidel before the return in Manchester on March […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has warned his players not to use injuries and fatigue as an excuse as the English champions chase a historic quadruple of trophies this season. City secured the first of a potential four-trophy haul by beating Chelsea on penalties on Sunday in the League Cup […]