Johannesburg (AFP) – Famed Kaizer Chiefs narrowly avoided joining the casualty list Sunday in a shock-riddled South African FA Cup round of 32. The Soweto club, who have won more trophies than any rivals in the republic, needed an own-goal and an incorrect refereeing decision to pip third-tier Tornado 1-0 near East London. Attempting to […]

London (AFP) – Chelsea's Callum Hudson-Odoi was giving little away after scoring for the Blues just hours after press reports said the teenage winger had handed in a transfer request. The 18-year-old struck in between two goals from Willian as holders Chelsea beat second-tier Sheffield Wednesday 3-0 in the fourth round of the FA Cup […]

Milan (AFP) – Torino defender Armando Izzo turned goal scorer as Inter Milan missed the chance to close the gap on second-placed Napoli in Serie A with a 1-0 defeat in Turin while Roma also proved wasteful, blowing a three-goal advantage to draw 3-3 with Atalanta on Sunday. Izzo headed in the only goal to […]

Paris (AFP) – Lyon strengthened their grip on a Champions League position in Ligue 1 after defender Jason Denayer's goal handed them a 1-0 win at Amiens on Sunday. The Belgian headed home from a Memphis Depay cross early in the second half at the Stade de la Licorne as Lyon won in Amiens for […]

Milan (AFP) – Croatian World Cup runner-up Ivan Perisic has handed in a transfer request to Inter Milan, the Italian club's director Giuseppe Marotta confirmed on Sunday. "Perisic has asked to leave but there is no offer for him. We will see in the coming days," Inter director Marotta told Sky Sports Italia. "Many players […]

London (AFP) – Tottenham Hotspur suffered their second defeat in English knockout football to a London rival in a matter of days as they lost 2-0 to Crystal Palace in the fourth round of the FA Cup on Sunday. Connor Wickham gave the unfancied Eagles, 29 points adrift of Spurs in the Premier League, a ninth-minute […]

London (AFP) – New signing Gonzalo Higuain will make his Chelsea debut on Sunday after being named in Maurizio Sarri's starting XI for the FA Cup fourth-round tie against Sheffield Wednesday. The Argentinian striker was signed on loan until the end of the season from Juventus on Wednesday. The 31-year-old former Real Madrid and Napoli […]

Girona (Spain) (AFP) – Lionel Messi scored a sublime goal to make up for the missed trip to Miami as Barcelona beat Girona 2-0 on Sunday to go five points clear again at the top of La Liga. This was the fixture intended to be played in the United States but any advantage Girona maintained […]

London (AFP) – Bakary Sako has returned to Crystal Palace on a short-term deal until the end of the season, the English Premier League club announced Sunday. Sako made 50 appearances for Palace from 2015-2018, but left at the end of last season when his contract expired and signed a one-year deal with second-tier club […]

Munich (Germany) (AFP) – Robert Lewandowski rectified a rare penalty miss by scoring as Bayern Munich stayed six points behind Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga title race after Sunday's 4-1 home win over Stuttgart. Dortmund opened a nine-point gap by mauling second-from-bottom Hanover 5-1 on Saturday, but defending champions Bayern trimmed the lead back to […]

Milan (AFP) – Colombian forward Duvan Zapata continued his goal-scoring streak to snatch a point for Atalanta as Roma blew a three-goal advantage to draw 3-3 on Sunday. Zapata missed a penalty but less than a minute later made up for his blunder with the third goal in Bergamo. It ended Roma's three-match league winning […]

Al-Ain (United Arab Emirates) (AFP) – Japan's conservative tactics have won games if not admirers at the Asian Cup, but coach Hajime Moriyasu said on Sunday the Blue Samurai will stick to their blueprint in the semi-finals against attack-minded Iran. A succession of one-goal wins — including a victory over Saudi Arabia in which Japan […]

London (AFP) – Millwall have said they will ban for life any supporters found guilty of racist chanting during a win over Everton Saturday as the Football Association launched their own inquiry into a video published online. English second-tier club Millwall knocked Premier League side Everton out of the FA Cup with a dramatic 3-2 […]

Al-Ain (United Arab Emirates) (AFP) – A series of blaring loudspeaker announcements repeatedly silenced Iran coach Carlos Queiroz on Sunday — just as he was urging his team to express themselves in their Asian Cup semi-final against Japan. "Shut up!" The 65-year-old Portuguese said to giggles after the fifth interruption, before he was finally able […]

Berlin (AFP) – Struggling Hanover 96 sacked head coach Andre Breitenreiter on Sunday in the wake of their 5-1 mauling at Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund. The away defeat left Hanover eight games without a win in Germany's top flight and only goal difference keeps them off the bottom of the table, despite conceding five goals […]