Berlin (AFP) – Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund are set to sign Argentine defender Leonardo Balerdi in the current transfer window after reportedly agreeing a fee of 16 million euros ($18.45m). Germany's top-selling daily Bild reports that Dortmund's chief scout and a lawyer are in Argentina to finalise details with the 19-year-old Boca Juniors defender, who […]

Dubai (AFP) – Defending champions Australia dominated Palestine 3-0 on Friday as they recovered from their shock opening defeat at the Asian Cup and moved within sight of the last 16. Goals from Hibernian striker Jamie Maclaren, Awer Mabil and substitute Apostolos Giannou put the much-improved Socceroos second in Group B with one game to […]

Milan (AFP) – Cristiano Ronaldo prepares to make his Coppa Italia debut as Juventus open their quest for a fifth consecutive trophy on Saturday with a last 16 clash against Bologna as Italian football returns to the pitch after a chaotic start to the year. Ronaldo will be looking to pick up where he left […]

London (AFP) – Maurizio Sarri must solve Chelsea's striker crisis as his spluttering side bid to get back on track against Newcastle on Saturday. Sarri's fourth-placed team are clinging onto a three-point lead over fifth placed Arsenal in the Premier League, leaving them with no margin for error in the race to qualify for next […]

Berlin (AFP) – Bayern Munich said Friday they will appeal the two-match Champions League suspension handed to Thomas Mueller which means the Germany international will miss both legs of their last-16 tie against Liverpool. European football's governing body UEFA handed Mueller a two-match ban on Friday following his sending-off in the 3-3 draw away to […]

Madrid (AFP) – There might have been two clubs toasting Athletic Bilbao signing Ibai Gomez from Alaves on Thursday — Athletic for one, but also Real Madrid. Few would expect the team that has won the Champions League three times in a row to be buoyed by a star player leaving Alaves, whose stadium holds […]

London (AFP) – Manchester City star Raheem Sterling sent a letter to a 13-year-old goalkeeper after hearing he had been racially abused advising him to "stand tall and be proud of who you are". Sterling himself was the subject of alleged racist abuse from Chelsea fans in a Premier League match in December. He wrote […]

Sao Paulo (AFP) – Walter Casagrande was the only Brazilian to come out a winner from the World Cup in Russia six months ago having conquered a four-decade drugs and booze addiction he likened to "death row". While the Selecao crashed out at the quarter-final stage, beaten 2-1 by Belgium, the 55-year-old commentator and former […]

Doha (AFP) – Born in an African refugee camp, a Canadian international at 16 and now a Bayern Munich player aged just 18, Alphonso Davies' life already reads like a movie script. "It's like something out of a film," admits Bob Lenarduzzi, president of the Vancouver Whitecaps, referring to the talented teenager for whom Bayern […]

Brighton (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Criticism of Jurgen Klopp's decision to make nine changes in crashing out of the FA Cup to Wolves will be fleeting as long as Liverpool bounce back quickly in their quest to land a first league title for 29 years, starting at Brighton on Saturday. Klopp rested Alisson Becker, Andrew […]

London (AFP) – Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's perfect start as Manchester United's caretaker manager faces its stiffest test when the Norwegian goes head-to-head with reportedly United's preferred target for the job on a full-time basis in Tottenham's Mauricio Pochettino. After a brief lull for FA Cup duties last weekend, Liverpool and Manchester City also renew their […]

Los Angeles (AFP) – Las Vegas police have asked soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo to submit a DNA sample as part of their investigation into accusations of rape made against the Juventus forward. Ronaldo's lawyer, Peter Christiansen, played down the significance of the warrant sent to authorities in Italy, telling AFP in a statement on Thursday […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – aul Pogba will be fit to return from injury for Manchester United’s Premier League match at Tottenham this weekend, interim manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said on Thursday. The France midfielder linked up late with his team-mates for a warm weather training camp in Dubai this week after being injured in […]

Abu Dhabi (AFP) – Hosts United Arab Emirates closed in on a place in the last 16 at the Asian Cup on Thursday as coach Bernd Stange paid the price for Syria's defeat to Jordan — becoming the second managerial casualty in just six days of competition. UAE survived a hairy start to beat India […]

Paris (AFP) – Jose Mourinho has secured his first job since being sacked as Manchester United coach after joining BeIN Sports as a pundit, the broadcaster announced on Thursday. 'The Special One' will be an analyst for Chelsea's Premier League trip to Arsenal on January 19 as well as Qatar and Saudi Arabia's Asian Cup […]