Madrid (AFP) – Santiago Solari dodged seven questions about Gareth Bale on Tuesday as the Welshman's celebration snub continues to dominate the build-up to Real Madrid's Copa del Rey Clasico against Barcelona. Madrid face Barca in the second leg of the cup semi-final on Wednesday, and then again in La Liga four days later, with […]

London (AFP) – Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino humbly chastised himself for unacceptable behaviour towards referee Mike Dean and accepted the misconduct charge levelled at him by the Football Association (FA) on Tuesday. The 46-year-old Argentinian said having watched replays of his heated exchange with Dean following the 2-1 defeat by Burnley on Saturday — […]

London (AFP) – Brendan Rodgers took a signficant step closer to a return to managing in the Premier League as Celtic "very reluctantly" granted him permission to talk to Leicester City. The 46-year-old Northern Irishman — who has not coached a Premier League team since being sacked by Liverpool in October 2015 — is in […]

Berlin (AFP) – Hoffenheim coach Julian Nagelsmann admits having had mixed emotions as his side were held to a 1-1 Bundesliga draw at his future employers RB Leipzig. After three years at Hoffenheim, Nagelsmann, will take charge of Bundesliga rivals Leipzig next season. The 31-year-old shot to fame when he was voted Germany's coach of […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Alexis Sanchez and Romelu Lukaku must both take their opportunity to impress as an injury crisis cuts through Manchester United's squad, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says. Both players have struggled for form for much of the season, with Sanchez having started just one Premier League match in 2019, and Lukaku having […]

London (AFP) – England women's team coach Phil Neville is to implement the values he learnt from Eric Harrison, the former Manchester United youth team boss and mentor to the much-vaunted Class of '92 whose funeral takes place later Tuesday. Neville, who along with brother Gary, David Beckham, Welsh wizard Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes […]

Luxembourg (AFP) – An EU court delivered a legal win for Barcelona, Real Madrid and two other top Spanish clubs Tuesday, cancelling a 2016 ruling by Brussels that had penalised them over tax breaks. The General Court of the European Union, the bloc's second highest tribunal, said the European Commission had "erred in its assessment […]

London (AFP) – Brendan Rodgers took a signficant step closer to a return to managing in the Premier League as Celtic "very reluctantly" granted him permission to talk to Leicester City. The 46-year-old Northern Irishman — who has not coached a Premier League team since being sacked by Liverpool in October 2015 — is in […]

Barcelona (AFP) – Clement Lenglet describes it as the fixture that "freezes time" and believes this week's Clasico double-header could still define the seasons of both his own Barcelona, and Real Madrid. The two clubs will meet twice in four days at the Santiago Bernabeu, on Wednesday in the second leg of their Copa del […]

London (AFP) – Jose Mourinho wants his next club to be one where "internal empathy" exists and not "internal conflict" he told the Daily Telegraph on Tuesday. The 56-year-old Portuguese — sacked by Manchester United on December 18 after a series of bust-ups with senior players and poor results — said the club where he […]

London (AFP) – Women's football has cemented its place as a leading global sport, former England international full-back Claire Rafferty told AFP. The 30-year-old — a member of the England side that heartbreakingly lost to Japan through a stoppage-time own goal in the 2015 World Cup semi-finals — is proud that "the struggle" she and […]

London (AFP) – Chelsea goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga has been fined a week's wages by the club after defying manager Maurizio Sarri and refusing to be substituted during the League Cup final on Sunday. "Although there was a misunderstanding, on reflection, I made a big mistake with how I handled the situation," Kepa said in a statement […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester City bagged the first silverware of the season by winning the League Cup final against Chelsea but manager Pep Guardiola will be cautious about the midweek league encounter with his predecessor Manuel Pellegrini. Mid-table West Ham are the visitors to the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday as City return to […]

London (AFP) – All eyes will be on the Chelsea team sheet at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday as the fall-out from Maurizio Sarri's astonishing row with Kepa Arrizabalaga threatens to cause further damage in a crucial London derby against Tottenham Hotspur. Chelsea boss Sarri was furious when Blues goalkeeper Kepa refused to be substituted after […]

London (AFP) – The plane carrying footballer Emiliano Sala that crashed in the Channel last month did not have a commercial licence, British investigators said Monday. But the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) said the journey would have been allowed as a "private" flight in which costs are shared between pilot and passenger. "The basis […]