Paris (AFP) – Lyon clinched the final Champions League last-16 place as Nabil Fekir's second-half strike grabbed a 1-1 draw against Shakhtar Donetsk in a snowy Kiev on Wednesday, while Bayern Munich pipped Ajax to top spot in Group E. Bruno Genesio's Lyon needed to avoid defeat against Shakhtar to progress from Group F with […]

Valencia (Spain) (AFP) – Manchester United squandered the chance to win their Champions League group on Wednesday after a lacklustre display got what it deserved in a 2-1 defeat to Valencia. Already through to the last 16, Jose Mourinho made eight changes at the Mestalla, including a return for Paul Pogba, but United were largely […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester City survived a sloppy start to secure top spot in Champions League Group F by coming from behind to beat Hoffenheim 2-1 thanks to Leroy Sane's double on Wednesday. Andrej Kramaric's penalty put the Germans deservedly in front on 16 minutes as another much-changed City side struggled to get […]

London (AFP) – Chelsea and England midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek praised his international team-mate Raheem Sterling for being strong-willed enough to speak out publicly against the racist abuse he has received. Television cameras caught a Chelsea fan allegedly aiming racist abuse at Sterling during the Blues' 2-0 win over City at Stamford Bridge on Saturday. Chelsea […]

Madrid (AFP) – Real Madrid head coach Santiago Solari said that his team's efforts to rediscover their best form would not be a "path of roses", after the club's heaviest-ever European home defeat against CSKA Moscow on Tuesday. The Champions League holders crashed to a 3-0 loss to the Russians at the Santiago Bernabeu, although […]

Paris (AFP) – CSKA Moscow stunned a much-changed Real Madrid with a 3-0 victory at the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday, but still finished bottom of Champions League Group G as Viktoria Plzen beat Roma. The Russian side, who also downed Real 1-0 in the reverse fixture, had to better Plzen's result to finish third and […]

Al-Ain (United Arab Emirates) (AFP) – Home team Al Ain fought back from three goals down to draw 3-3 with Team Wellington before winning on penalties to reach the Club World Cup quarter-finals on Wednesday. The Emirati outfit fell 3-0 down inside 44 minutes as Mario Barcia, Aaron Clapham and Mario Ilich scored for Oceanian […]

London (AFP) – Tottenham Hotspurs' game against Manchester United in January will be played at Wembley, the Premier League club announced on Wednesday, as their long wait to move into their new stadium drags on. In a statement, Tottenham said that testing "is being conducted both during the day and night" on safety systems and […]

Madrid (AFP) – Portugal and Valencia forward Goncalo Guedes will have surgery on a groin injury on Friday and could be out of action for up to two months, the La Liga club announced on Wednesday. The 22-year-old, who joined Valencia from Paris Saint-Germain in the close-season after a successful campaign on loan at the […]

Paris (AFP) – Paris Saint-Germain will travel to take on Dijon in Ligue 1 this weekend, the league (LFP) said Wednesday, after several matches were postponed because police resources are required to deal with possible anti-government protests. The LFP had announced the postponement of the games between Nice and Saint-Etienne and Nantes and Montpellier earlier […]

London (AFP) – Liverpool defender Joel Matip will be out of action for up to six weeks after suffering a fractured collarbone. Matip was injured in the final minutes of Liverpool's 1-0 win against Napoli in the Champions League at Anfield on Tuesday. The 27-year-old landed awkwardly following an aerial challenge and is now set […]

London (AFP) – Former Arsenal and England captain Tony Adams has been named the new president of English rugby league's governing body, it announced on Wednesday. Despite his roots in football, Adams has close links with rugby league through his Sporting Chance charity. The 52-year-old will replace current Rugby Football League (RFL) president Andy Burnham, […]

Berlin (AFP) – Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund have insisted Chelsea-target Christian Pulisic will not be allowed to leave in the January transfer window. According to British media reports, Chelsea are interested in the 20-year-old US international, but Dortmund, who want 50 million euros ($56.8m) for the right winger, have blocked a possible departure next month. "We […]

London (AFP) – Australia midfielder Aaron Mooy will miss the Asian Cup after the Huddersfield star was ruled out until February with a knee injury, the club announced on Wednesday. Mooy suffered a tear to the medial collateral ligament in his right knee in the defeat at Arsenal on Saturday. "After consulting a specialist on […]

London (AFP) – Arsenal midfielder Ainsley Maitland-Niles claims he has endured similar racist abuse to Manchester City star Raheem Sterling. Sterling allegedly suffered racist taunts from a Chelsea fan during City's 2-0 defeat at Stamford Bridge on Saturday. The shocking incident has reignited the debate over how to tackle racism in football after the sport […]