Milan (AFP) – AC Milan coach Gennaro Gattuso conceded his side will have to lick their wounds and come out fighting after losing the Italian Super Cup trophy to an all-conquering Juventus who turn their focus back to their next target — an eighth consecutive Serie A title — after the three-week winter break in […]

Johannesburg (AFP) – Kaizer Chiefs must overcome a 3-1 first-leg deficit this weekend to become the third South African club in four seasons to eliminate Zambian outfit Zesco United from a CAF competition. Mamelodi Sundowns achieved the feat in 2016 and SuperSport United the following season, and Chiefs' German coach Ernst Middendorp believes the Soweto […]

London (AFP) – Chelsea and Arsenal clash in the Premier League this weekend, with both managers looking nervously over their shoulders at a charging Manchester United as Tottenham adjust to life without the injured Harry Kane. Arsenal have lost three of their past six Premier League matches to fall six points behind Chelsea in the […]

Liverpool (AFP) – An untimely series of injuries to defenders has left Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp short-handed at the back as he tries to keep the Premier League leaders on track for a first title in 29 years at home to Crystal Palace on Saturday. Right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold joined a growing injury list with a […]

Barcelona (AFP) – Barcelona overturned a first leg defeat to beat Levante in the Copa del Rey on Thursday but could yet be thrown out of the competition after being accused of fielding an ineligible player. Barca won 3-0 at the Camp Nou, with Lionel Messi setting up two Ousmane Dembele goals and then scoring […]

Milan (AFP) – AC Milan coach Gennaro Gattuso was on Thursday handed a one-game touchline ban for angrily confronting the referee after his side's Italian Super Cup final defeat to Juventus in Saudi Arabia midweek. Gattuso, 41, angrily confronted officials for not awarding a penalty for a foul by Juventus's German midfielder Emre Can on […]

London (AFP) – NBA Commissioner Adam Silver insisted he takes the issue of player safety "very seriously" following New York Knicks star Enes Kanter's decision to miss his team's game in London amid fears he would be killed for his political views. Turkey-born Kanter was due to play for the Knicks against the Washington Wizards […]

Madrid (AFP) – Barcelona face being thrown out of the Copa del Rey after Levante's president confirmed they will complain the Catalan club fielded an ineligible player in the first leg of their last 16 tie. Levante won the opening match 2-1 last week and believe Barca defender Juan Brandariz "Chumi" played illegally as he […]

Al-Ain (United Arab Emirates) (AFP) – Tsukasa Shiotani's sizzling winner kept Japan on top of their Asian Cup group on Thursday, while Oman scrambled into the knockouts in a pulsating finish to the tournament's first stage. In Abu Dhabi, Almoez Ali took his tally to seven goals in just three games as Qatar beat political […]

Marrakech (Morocco) (AFP) – FIFA president Gianni Infantino said on Thursday that world football's governing body is discussing the feasibility of expanding the 2022 World Cup in Qatar to 48 teams. The World Cup finals have been played with a 32-side format since 1998, and the addition of 16 extra countries has long been planned […]

Berlin (AFP) – The first woman to coach a men's team in one of Germany's top five leagues is tackling sexism by sarcastically suggesting her selections are based on penis lengths. Former Germany women's Under-20 midfielder Imke Wuebbenhorst was last month appointed head coach of the men's team at BV Cloppenburg, who currently sit bottom […]

London (AFP) – Scotland captain Andy Robertson became the latest Liverpool player to sign a new long-term contract on Thursday, with the left-back agreeing a deal until 2024. Signed from Hull City in July 2017, Robertson has become a fundamental part of the Liverpool side that reached last season's Champions League final and currently sits […]

London (AFP) – Jose Mourinho has pledged to return to football at a "top level" a month on from being sacked by Manchester United. "I want to coach," Mourinho told BeIN SPORTS. "I am too young, I am in football for a long, long time, but I will be 56 in a couple of weeks […]

Abu Dhabi (AFP) – Qatar overcame a hostile atmosphere to beat Saudi Arabia 2-0 and clinch top spot in their Asian Cup group after a contest bristling with political animosity on Thursday. Almoez Ali bagged a double in Abu Dhabi, where the Qatari national anthem was drowned out by boos from a pro-Saudi crowd and […]

Al-Ain (United Arab Emirates) (AFP) – Tsukasa Shiotani thumped home a sizzling second-half winner as Japan changed 10 players but still beat Uzbekistan 2-1 to finish top of Group F at the Asian Cup on Thursday. The unfamiliar line-up briefly trailed after Eldor Shomurodov's opener, but Newcastle United forward Yoshinori Muto's header and Shiotani's thunderbolt […]