London (AFP) – Just days after Arsenal were lurching towards another crisis, Arsene Wenger can suddenly look to a brighter future thanks to a revitalised attack spearheaded by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Henrikh Mkhitaryan. An error-strewn 3-1 defeat at struggling Swansea last Tuesday was the latest low-point of a troubled season for Arsenal. Coming just days […]

London (AFP) – Chelsea manager Antonio Conte said he will lose no sleep over the threat he could be sacked less than a year after winning the Premier League following a 4-1 thrashing at Watford on Monday. The champions have now conceded seven goals in their last two outings after also going down 3-0 at […]

London (AFP) – The pressure on Chelsea manager Antonio Conte intensified as his 10 men suffered a second consecutive humiliating defeat on Monday, going down 4-1 at Watford. Goals from Daryl Janmaat, Gerard Deulofeu and Roberto Pereyra in the final six minutes handed Watford a welcome first win in six games to move the Hornets […]

Rome (AFP) – Uruguay international Diego Laxalt scored two minutes into injury time to give Genoa a crucial 2-1 victory at Lazio on Monday and ease their relegation fears. Veteran Montenegro international Goran Pandev had given the visitors a second-half lead in Rome but Lazio struck back just four minutes later through Italy midfielder Marco […]

Paris (AFP) – France international midfielder Blaise Matuidi could miss next week's Champions League clash with Tottenham Hotspur due to a thigh strain, his club said on Monday. The former Paris-Saint Germain player was injured during Sunday's 7-0 thrashing of Sassuolo, leaving the field after just 26 minutes. He underwent tests that found a "slight" […]

Doha (AFP) – Referees from four countries boycotting Qatar attended a high-profile FIFA World Cup seminar in Doha on Monday, despite the ongoing Gulf political crisis. Representatives from Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt were at the opening of the referees' seminar, an almost week-long event which will help football's governing body decide […]

London (AFP) – Referee Jon Moss has admitted he was misguided to ask the fourth official if he had seen a crucial penalty decision in Sunday's Premier League clash between Liverpool and Tottenham. Moss gave Tottenham a late penalty at Anfield for a foul on Harry Kane by the home side's goalkeeper Lorius Karius. Kane […]

Madrid (AFP) – Former Dutch international midfielder Clarence Seedorf will coach Deportivo La Coruna until the end of the season, the La Liga club said on Monday. The former Ajax, Real Madrid and AC Milan star replaces Spaniard Cristobal Parralo, who was sacked on Sunday following a 5-0 defeat to Real Sociedad that left the […]

The Hague (AFP) – Former Everton manager Ronald Koeman is set to be presented as coach of the Netherlands, Dutch news reports said on Monday, as the football-mad country seeks to revive its flagging fortunes. "Ronald Koeman is the new national coach of (the) Dutch Eleven. The KNVB will present him at a press conference […]

Rome (AFP) – The Italian league announced on Monday that the domestic television rights for Serie A games for the period 2018 to 2021 have been sold to Spanish group MediaPro for 1.05 billion euros ($13 billion) a year. "The offer of 1,050,001,000 euros, is superior to the minimum requested in the invitation to tender," […]

Milan (AFP) – Napoli stayed top of Serie A with a 2-0 win over Benevento on Sunday, after champions Juventus — just one point behind — piled on the pressure with a seven-goal demolition of Sassuolo. Here are five things we learned from the 23rd round of Serie A matches: Higuain finally gets Juventus hat-trick […]

Paris (AFP) – Mohamed Salah was the star African performer in Europe at the weekend, netting twice to close within one goal of Harry Kane in the English Premier League leading scorer race. The Egypt sharpshooter and 2017 African Footballer of the Year twice gave Liverpool the lead in a dramatic 2-2 draw with Tottenham […]

Paris (AFP) – The French league (LFP) has reached a "major agreement" with two networks to broadcast Ligue 1 games in Sub-Saharan Africa, it announced Monday, a clear sign of the impact made by the arrival of Neymar. The deal means French-language network Canal+ and Kwese, in English and Portuguese, will show games in Ligue […]

Berlin (AFP) – Michy Batshuayi made a blistering start to life at Borussia Dortmund on Friday, firing the team back into the top four with two goals on his debut. The Belgian wasn't the only debutant to make an impact, as 20-year-old English forward Ademola Lookman grabbed a late winner in his first game for […]

London (AFP) – Kevin De Bruyne admits he is struggling physically as Pep Guardiola's Manchester City chase glory on four fronts, hampered by a series of injuries to big-name players. The midfielder has missed only three of City's 39 games in all competitions and says he was feeling tired during Saturday's 1-1 draw at Burnley. […]