Paris (AFP) – Cristiano Ronaldo has opted to leave Spanish giants Real Madrid for Italian champions Juventus for the next — and possibly final — chapter of one of the greatest careers the game has seen. The shock move by the 33-year-old superstar comes shortly after losing what is likely his last chance to collect […]

Repino (Russia) (AFP) – Dele Alli's long road from muddy lower-league pitches to a World Cup semi-final typifies the journey taken by a surprising number of Gareth Southgate's England squad. As the clock ticks down to the match against Croatia in Moscow on Wednesday, Tottenham midfielder Alli has spoken of his journey and the "privilege" […]

Shaftesbury (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Mike Angell is on a 300-mile (480-kilometre) round trip in his company van, racing to deliver outsized quantities of booze to social clubs and restaurants in time for England's date with World Cup destiny. Football has been coming home to swell the bottom line for pubs, shops and even one […]

Moscow (AFP) – England manager Gareth Southgate is hoping his young team can continue "breaking down barriers" when they play Croatia in the semi-finals of the World Cup in Moscow on Wednesday. "We came here to enjoy our football, all the way through we have been one of the youngest teams in the tournament, the […]

London (AFP) – Arsenal have acquired a "very bright talent" in their latest signing Uruguayan midfielder Lucas Torreira said the Premier League side's manager Unai Emery on Tuesday. The 22-year-old — who is Emery's fourth signing since he was appointed Arsene Wenger's successor in late May — cost a reported £27million ($35.8million, 30.5million euros) to […]

London (AFP) – English Premier League side Manchester United have invited the Wild Boars football team, like the Chilean miners rescued in 2010, to visit Old Trafford following their dramatic rescue on Tuesday. The final five members of the young football team — four youngsters and their 25-year-old coach — were rescued from a flooded […]

Kiev (AFP) – Ukraine's football federation said Tuesday it had offered a job to former Croatia international Ognjen Vukojevic and offered to pay his fine over a pro-Ukraine clip he posted during the World Cup. The Croatian football association removed him as an assistant in its delegation at the tournament in Russia and FIFA fined […]

Moscow (AFP) – Raheem Sterling found himself at the centre of controversy in the run-up to the World Cup and is still searching for his best form in Russia but coach Gareth Southgate insists he is a "fundamental" part of the England set-up. Sterling has started four of England's five games on their run to […]

Moscow (AFP) – England are dreaming of a first World Cup final since 1966 but first they must come through Wednesday's semi-final at the Luzhniki Stadium against Croatia in what looks like their toughest test yet in Russia. Excitement has reached fever-pitch levels back in England, with Gareth Southgate's young team making it to the […]

London (AFP) – Bobby Robson — the last manager to take England to the World Cup semi-finals — would be urging Gareth Southgate's team on with "every fibre of his being" says his widow Elsie. Robson, who died of cancer in 2009, saw his dream of emulating the 1966 World Cup-winning team end with a […]

London (AFP) – England manager Gareth Southgate's waistcoats have become such a hit at the World Cup that the Museum of London has announced plans to acquire one for its fashion collection. Marks and Spencer, official tailors to the England team, declared last Saturday #NationalWaistcoatDay in honour of Southgate and his team. The Sun newspaper […]

Saint Petersburg (AFP) – Youth faces experience when England's young guns and Croatia's old guard face off in Wednesday's World Cup semi-final in Moscow, with the prize of a return trip to the Luzhniki Stadium for the final. England have not reached the last four for 28 years and have only once before reached the […]

Repino (Russia) (AFP) – For Steve McClaren, England's World Cup semi-final against Croatia brings back painful memories. It was after a match between the two teams more than a decade ago that he was labelled the "Wally with the Brolly". In the pouring rain of a November night at Wembley, England slipped to a 3-2 […]

London (AFP) – England's 1966 World Cup-winning goalkeeper Gordon Banks says he hopes if Gareth Southgate's team lift the trophy, the Football Association will look after the players better than they did his generation. The 80-year-old told the Daily Telegraph newspaper he and his teammates have never felt they received proper recognition after beating West […]

Tokyo (AFP) – Former Spain World Cup winner Fernando Torres has signed for Japan's Sagan Tosu, the J-League club said on Tuesday. The former Liverpool, Chelsea and Spain striker left Atletico Madrid this summer after returning to his boyhood club in 2015. Details of the move were not disclosed but the 34-year-old Torres has reportedly […]