Milan (AFP) – Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone will "sooner or later" become coach of Serie A giants Inter Milan, his sister and agent claimed on Sunday. "I think it's only a matter of time. He loves the club, the atmosphere and living in Milan. Inter is a side he would really love to coach," […]

London (AFP) – Mo Farah delivered a dominant performance to claim a record fifth victory in the Great North Run on Sunday in the latest step in his bid to win a major marathon. The British runner led from the front to cross the line in 59min 26sec, just four seconds short of the personal […]

London (AFP) – Gareth Southgate pledged to stick to his principles after Spain delivered an uncomfortable reality check at Wembley but admitted he was unsure whether England had time to become genuine Euro 2020 challengers. England were surprise World Cup semi-finalists in July, riding a wave of euphoria back home, but their 2-1 Nations League […]

London (AFP) – England defender Harry Maguire has signed a new five-year contract with Leicester, the club announced on Sunday. The 25-year-old joined Leicester from Hull in 2017 and played every minute of their Premier League campaign last season before helping England reach the World Cup semi-finals. Maguire, reportedly the subject of interest from Manchester […]

Madrid (AFP) – "This is the new Spain", hailed the country's top sports daily Marca, after Luis Enrique's new dawn began with an affirming 2-1 win over England at Wembley on Saturday. Spain dropped to ninth in the FIFA rankings, three places below England, after their World Cup defeat to Russia but there was little […]

London (AFP) – Kieran Trippier says there is no reason for alarm after England slipped to their third consecutive defeat in their Nations League opener against Spain. Saturday's match at Wembley was Gareth Southgate's side's first fixture since they reached the World Cup semi-finals in Russia. But England failed to take advantage of the feelgood […]

Sydney (AFP) – Sprint legend Usain Bolt's football training has been put on hold after he flew out of Australia for a "previously planned commitment", his A-League club has said. The Jamaican superstar is pursuing his long-held dream of playing professional football and arrived in Gosford, 75 kilometres (47 miles) north of Sydney, last month […]

London (AFP) – Spain rained on England's World Cup parade by coming from behind to win 2-1 at Wembley and give new coach Luis Enrique a winning start to the Nations League. England were looking to seize on the momentum of reaching the World Cup semi-finals for the first time in 28 years and went […]

Culiacán (Mexico) (AFP) – Diego Maradona arrived to a hero's welcome in Mexico on Saturday as the new technical director of second division Dorados landed in the relative footballing outpost of Culiacan. "Welcome Golden God! Thank you God, thank you Maradona!" read one of the placards held by fans greeting him at the Culiacan airport. […]

London (AFP) – Harry Kane raged at Dutch referee Danny Makkelie for ruling out a late equaliser as Spain punctured England's post World Cup euphoria by winning 2-1 at Wembley to hand coach Luis Enrique a winning start in the Nations League. In their first game since reaching the semi-finals in Russia, England were denied […]

Glasgow (AFP) – Scotland face Albania in their first Nations League match on Monday with long-suffering fans hoping they can take the first step on the road to ending a 20-year absence from major tournaments. The new competition is designed to replace international friendlies with more competitive matches and also provides a second route to […]

London (AFP) – Luke Shaw insisted he is "doing fine" after being stretchered off with a nasty-looking head injury on his first England start for three years in a 2-1 defeat to Spain on Saturday. "Thank you for all the love and support I am doing fine and am in the best hands," the Manchester […]

London (AFP) – England captain Harry Kane complained Dutch referee Danny Makkelie wasn't strong enough to allow Danny Welbeck's goal deep into stoppage time as the Three Lions lost 2-1 to Spain on Saturday. In their first game since reaching the semi-finals at the World Cup, England were denied a point to begin their Nations […]

Johannesburg (AFP) – Liverpool ace Mohamed Salah scored twice and missed two penalties as Egypt made a dream debut under Mexican coach Javier Aguirre by crushing Niger 6-0 Saturday in Africa Cup of Nations qualifying. Salah had clashed with Egyptian football officials ahead of the matchday 2 qualifier in Alexandria for the 2019 finals over […]

London (AFP) – England failed to build on the momentum of reaching the World Cup semi-finals to begin their Nations League campaign as Spain came from behind to win 2-1 at Wembley in Luis Enrique's first game in charge. Gareth Southgate couldn't have asked for a better start in England's first game since returning from […]