Paris (AFP) – Paris Saint-Germain coach Unai Emery insisted Friday he still believed in the Qatari owners' blueprint for the club but refused to speculate whether he would be part of their plans. In his first press conference since PSG's limp exit from the Champions League at the hands of Real Madrid, Emery faced a […]

Barcelona (AFP) – Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde has dismissed reports suggesting Neymar could leave Paris Saint-Germain and return to the Catalan giant as "fantasy". In the same week that PSG crashed out of the Champions League, and only seven months after he joined the club for a world record 222million euros ($264 million), Neymar´s future has […]

Dortmund (Germany) (AFP) – Germany attacker Marco Reus, who had been attracting interest from Premier League clubs, has extended his contract with Borussia Dortmund until 2023, the Bundesliga club announced on Friday. The winger's old contract was due to expire in 2019 and the delay in prolonging it had reportedly drawn the attention of Tottenham […]

London (AFP) – England's Football Association on Friday fined Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola £20,000 ($27,700) for wearing a yellow ribbon in support of jailed Catalan independence leaders. The City boss has also been warned as to his future conduct by the governing body after accepting a charge of "wearing a political message". Guardiola, born […]

London (AFP) – England's Football Association on Friday fined Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola £20,000 ($27,700) for wearing a yellow ribbon in support of jailed Catalan independence leaders. The City boss has also been warned as to his future conduct by the governing body after accepting a charge of "wearing a political message". Guardiola has […]

Munich (Germany) (AFP) – Bayern Munich manager Jupp Heynckes caused a stir on Friday when hinting that he may not after all quit the German giants at the end of the season. "I never said that I'd be stopping on June 30," the 72-year-old said. The wily and highly respected coach who has transformed Bayern's […]

London (AFP) – Chelsea manager Antonio Conte said Friday that midfielder N'Golo Kante has trained all week and is showing no ill-effects after passing out briefly in the dressing room last week. The French midfielder missed Sunday's match against Premier League leaders Manchester City after the incident, which shocked teammates. "N'Golo is fine," Conte said at […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Pep Guardiola has told his Manchester City players to use their Champions League defeat by Basel as a wake-up call to ensure standards do not slip with two more trophies still up for grabs. City, with the League Cup already in the bag, are virtually certain to win the Premier […]

Madrid (AFP) – Zinedine Zidane insists he has no problem with Gareth Bale despite dropping the forward for Real Madrid's win over Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday. Zidane also labelled praise given to him for the victory at Parc des Princes as "bullshit" because the Frenchman said criticism will soon return if his team's form dips. […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Jose Mourinho has hit out again at media pundits — including Gary Neville — for their criticism of Manchester United and star players such as Paul Pogba and Alexis Sanchez. And the United manager suggested that their own failures in management make them unqualified to offer such views. Neville has […]

London (AFP) – Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp says Saturday's Premier League clash against Manchester United is "the biggest game I can imagine", with the bitter rivals locked in a battle for second place. Klopp's team, in third, are just two points behind Jose Mourinho's side but 18 adrift of runaway leaders Manchester City, meaning the […]

Paris (AFP) – The Paris police made clear on Friday how unhappy they were with the Paris Saint-Germain management after "pyrotechnic devices" twice interrupted the Champions League game against Real Madrid at the Parc des Princes. The Prefecture of Police (PP) said on Friday they had banned seven fans arrested in possession of flares from the […]

Madrid (AFP) – Neymar already regrets moving to Paris Saint-Germain and is seeking a shock return to Barcelona, according to reports in the Spanish media on Friday. In the same week that PSG crashed out of the Champions League, and only seven months after he joined the club for a world record 222million euros ($264 […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – The bitter rivalry between Manchester United and Liverpool is now played out on a global stage but the origins of the divide are deeply rooted in the battle for supremacy in England's northwest. United and Liverpool, who both play in red, have a combined tally of 38 English league titles […]

Moscow (AFP) – Three top Russian clubs blamed the protracted winter break on defeats in the Europa League on Thursday. CSKA Moscow, Zenit St Petersburg and Lokomotiv Moscow all said the three-month recess had hampered their preparations for the last 16 first leg ties. "We've played only four matches after the winter break," Zenit's former […]