London (AFP) – Harry Kane tormented Arsenal again as the Tottenham striker's clinical finish sealed a 1-0 win in the north London derby at Wembley on Saturday. Kane's header early in the second half gave Tottenham the victory their enterprising display deserved as Mauricio Pochettino's side climbed to third in the Premier League. It was […]

Madrid (AFP) – Ousmane Dembele is in line to make his latest comeback for Barcelona when the leaders of La Liga take on Getafe at the Camp Nou on Sunday. The young France forward has endured a campaign ravaged by injury since his 105 million-euro ($124 million) move from Borussia Dortmund in August, a fee […]

Lausanne (AFP) – The Court of Arbitration for Sport has partially upheld former FIFA vice-president Chung Mong-Joon's appeal over his five-year ban from football, reducing his suspension to 15 months. South Korean billionaire Chung, a scion of the Hyundai family, was banned in 2015 by FIFA's ethics committee for contravening lobbying rules during South Korea's […]

London (AFP) – Manchester City have written to the body in charge of professional referees to raise their concerns over a series of dangerous challenges suffered by their players, according to widespread reports on Saturday. The BBC reported the Premier League leaders have cited nine challenges they feel have not been sufficiently punished by referees […]

London (AFP) – Celtic and Manchester United on Saturday led tributes to their former midfielder Liam Miller following the Irishman's death at just 36 after a battle with pancreatic cancer. News of Miller's condition emerged in November and he had been receiving treatment in the United States, where he ended his playing career with Wilmington […]

Lyon (AFP) – On paper Isabelle Dias is Lyon's official translator but over her 18-year tenure at the Ligue 1 outfit her role has spread way beyond her multi-lingual skills — she helps recruits from all over the world to settle in. French administration can be bewildering even for highly-paid sportsmen, but Dias' role consists […]

Southampton (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Virgil Van Dijk insists criticism of his start to life as the world's most expensive defender will not affect his preparations for a frosty reception on his return to Southampton with Liverpool on Sunday. The Dutch international moved to Anfield for £75 million (85m euros, $104m) in January, but has […]

Shanghai (AFP) – Paul Gascoigne described life in China in 2003 as "like being locked in a cave", but foreign stars in the country today earn among the biggest wages in football and live more like kings than Neanderthals. The most talented English midfielder of his generation, Gascoigne was one of the first big-name footballers […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Zlatan Ibrahimovic is nearing a return to fitness as Manchester United seek to strengthen their grip on second place in the Premier League when they visit Newcastle on Sunday. The former Paris Saint-Germain striker has struggled to get back to his best since suffering cruciate knee ligament damage during a […]

Berlin (AFP) – Liverpool-bound Naby Keita helped RB Leipzig beat Augsburg 2-0 in Friday's Bundesliga clash when he scored a stinging second-half winner with a free-kick. Runaway leaders Bayern Munich remain 15 points clear as they await Schalke 04 on Saturday whilst Bayer Leverkusen can climb level with Leipzig on 38 if they beat Hertha […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola dismissed former Manchester United captain Gary Neville’s fleeting coaching career and sarcastically labelled him a “prestigious pundit” in response to criticism from the Sky Sports analyst. Neville labelled Guardiola's decision to name only six substitutes for last weekend’s 1-1 Premier League draw at Burnley due […]

Florence (Italy) (AFP) – Federico Bernardeschi and Gonzalo Higuain scored as Juventus went top of Serie A on Friday in a 2-0 win at Fiorentina overshadowed by a video assistant referee (VAR) fiasco. A decision to award a penalty to Fiorentina after 21 minutes when Juventus's Giorgio Chiellini's arm blocked a Marco Benassi cross was […]

Paris (AFP) – A last-minute finger-tip save deprived Florian Thauvin a double and Marseille the three points as Saint-Etienne fought for a 2-2 Ligue 1 draw on Friday with a goalkeeping gaff from the visitors the key moment in the match. The result means Paris Saint Germain are ten points clear ahead of their trip […]

Milan (AFP) – AC Milan coach Gennaro Gattuso revealed his delight Friday at discovering how Turkish forward Hakan Calhanoglu has become "such a complete player" after a difficult start to life in Italy. The 24-year-old Turkey international joined Milan from Bayer Leverkusen last summer for a reported 22 million euros but failed to flourish under […]

London (AFP) – Riyad Mahrez hit back at accusations he had gone AWOL since being denied a move to Manchester City after returning to training with Leicester, paving the way for a possible return for Saturday's visit to City. Mahrez, 26, has missed two Premier League matches and had not trained with the team since […]