Athens (AFP) – Quick-fire goals by Javi Martinez and Robert Lewandowski on Tuesday moved Bayern Munich top of their Champions League group with a 2-0 win at AEK Athens, as they made it back-to-back victories after a difficult start to the season. Dogged defending by the reigning Greek champions left Bayern facing a frustrating draw […]

Johannesburg (AFP) – Anice Badri scored his seventh CAF Champions League goal this season to give Esperance of Tunisia a 4-2 victory over Primeiro Agosto of Angola on Tuesday and a place in the final. With 85 minutes played in the semi-final second leg, the Tunisians were leading 3-2 in Rades but trailing on away […]

Los Angeles (AFP) – Atlanta United coach Gerardo "Tata" Martino is to leave the club at the end of the season, officials confirmed Tuesday amid speculation linking the former Argentina coach to a return to international football. Atlanta, who have comfortably reached Major League Soccer's post-season, confirmed Martino's departure after "amicable" talks over a contract […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester United's arrival at Old Trafford was held up by severe traffic for the second consecutive Champions League game, forcing manager Jose Mourinho to arrive at the stadium on foot. United were fined a total of 15,000 euros ($17,200) by UEFA and Mourinho handed a warning by European football's governing […]

Paris (AFP) – Carlo Ancelotti had a dig at his old club Bayern Munich as he prepared to lead Napoli into their vital Champions League clash with Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday. The Italian is returning to the Parc des Princes for the first time since his Bayern side were comprehensively beaten 3-0 by PSG in […]

Paris (AFP) – Paris Saint-Germain captain Thiago Silva has confirmed that he will miss his team's Champions League home clash with Napoli on Wednesday. "Unfortunately I will not be on the field. These are things that happen in our profession. But I have confidence in my team," Silva wrote on his Instagram account. The 34-year-old […]

Monaco (AFP) – La Liga president Javier Tebas on Tuesday claimed that resistance to the controversial plans to hold a Spanish top-flight game in the United States is "cultural". The match between Girona and Barcelona on January 26 is scheduled to be played at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, despite strong opposition and fears that […]

Barcelona (AFP) – Ernesto Valverde has challenged Barcelona to miss the injured Lionel Messi while they are winning without him. Barca face Inter Milan on Wednesday without their star striker, who is expected to be out for three weeks after fracturing his arm against Sevilla on Saturday. Messi's absence comes at a bad time, given […]

Rome (AFP) – A group of Italian businessmen has wrested control from Chinese investors Desports to acquire a majority share in Serie A club Parma, it was announced Tuesday. Unsatisfied after Desports' failure to deliver on promises made last year when they took over the crisis-hit side, 'Nuovo Inizio' (New Beginning) — a consortium of […]

Monaco (AFP) – Former Liverpool manager Gerard Houllier has praised Jurgen Klopp for his work at the Anfield club but told AFP he feels Paris Saint-Germain are the favourites to win the Champions League this season. Houllier has a close affinity to both clubs, who are in the same group in this season's Champions League, […]

Dortmund (Germany) (AFP) – Goal machine Paco Alcacer says playing against Atletico Madrid feels like 'toothache' — and he hopes to extract maximum revenge for past suffering when Borussia Dortmund meet them in Wednesday's Champions League clash. The 26-year-old, on loan from Barcelona, has needed just 109 minutes to score seven Bundesliga goals this season […]

Johannesburg (AFP) – Enyimba of Nigeria must succeed where five other clubs have failed if they hope to shock hosts Raja Casablanca of Morocco on Wednesday and reach the CAF Confederation Cup final. Raja goalkeeper Anas Zniti has gone 461 minutes in the African equivalent of the UEFA Europa League without conceding a goal […]

Seoul (AFP) – South Korean footballers were left dumbfounded at an international tournament in Indonesia when organisers played the North's anthem instead. Ahead of an AFC under-19 Championship qualifier against Jordan at the Patriot Candrabhaga Stadium in Bekasi, the South's team lined up with their hands on their hearts. But instead of Seoul's hymn-like anthem […]

Belgrade (AFP) – Red Star Belgrade, embroiled in a Champions League match-fixing scandal, have erected a wall of silence around the Rajko Mitic Stadium ahead of their clash with Liverpool on Wednesday. The trip to Anfield should have been a celebration for the team, 27 years after they won the European Cup, the first and […]

Bruges (Belgium) (AFP) – One newspaper headline described Thierry Henry as "cursed" in the wake of his managerial bow with Monaco, and the France great will be desperate to put that behind him in Wednesday's Champions League encounter with Club Brugge. Henry's long-awaited first game as a coach in his own right ended in a […]