London (AFP) – Liverpool survived an incredible Arsenal fightback as Roberto Firmino rescued a thrilling 3-3 draw in a strong contender for the Premier League's game of the season on Friday. Philippe Coutinho's first half opener and Mohamed Salah's strike after the interval appeared to have put Liverpool on course for an early Christmas present […]

New York (AFP) – Major League Soccer has doubled Red Bulls midfielder Sacha Kljestan's ban for a half-time incident in the MLS Cup playoffs last month to two games. MLS said on Friday that it had concluded a thorough internal investigation of the bust-up during a game between the Red Bulls and Toronto FC and […]

Madrid (AFP) – Sevilla sacked coach Eduardo Berizzo on Friday just a month after it was announced the Argentine is suffering from prostate cancer, the club said, citing poor results. "The Sevilla board... has taken the decision to sack the coach of the first team due to the bad form of the team," Sevilla said […]

New York (AFP) – A US jury convicted two South American ex-soccer bosses of corruption on Friday but will return after Christmas to deliberate on the fate of a third defendant in the FIFA trial in New York. The panel returned guilty verdicts against Jose Maria Marin, former head of Brazil's Football Confederation and Juan […]

London (AFP) – Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola on Friday called on Spain's central government to take heed after it was defeated by Catalan separatists in regional elections. The separatists won an overall majority on Thursday in a vote called by Spain's government after weeks of turmoil triggered by an independence referendum in October. Guardiola […]

Milan (AFP) – Iceland international Emil Hallfredsson has extended his contract with Serie A side Udinese until June 30, 2020, the Italian club announced on Friday. The 33-year-old centre-back — in his second season with the north-eastern outfit — made his 50th appearance for the club in the Italian Cup loss midweek against Napoli. "We're […]

London (AFP) – Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola said Friday he will wait to "see what happens" following reports he has been named in a Spanish police investigation into the Catalonia independence crisis. Catalan-born Guardiola has previously voiced his support for imprisoned Catalan politicians and for the past two months has worn a yellow ribbon […]

London (AFP) – Manchester City on Friday announced the signing of FIFA eSports player Marcus "ExpectSporting" Jorgensen, who will represent the club around the world on the PlayStation 4 (PS4) console. Jorgensen, 18, becomes the Premier League leaders' second eSports signing, following Xbox player Kieran "Kez" Brown, who joined the club in 2016. Marcus enjoyed […]

Milan (AFP) – Former England manager Fabio Capello on Friday ruled himself out as the Italian national team coach saying his focus was on his job in China. The Italian signed last June with Chinese Super League side Jiangsu Suning, a club which is owned by Suning Group and businessman Zhang Jindong, who also controls […]

London (AFP) – Ryan Giggs says he advised Manchester United to sign Gabriel Jesus and Kylian Mbappe before they became stars and believes the club are paying the price for an inconsistent transfer policy. The United legend joined the club's backroom staff when his stellar playing career ended in 2014, serving as Louis van Gaal's […]

Berlin (AFP) – Experienced German international striker Mario Gomez is to move to Stuttgart from Wolfsburg, rejoining the team he left eight years ago. Gomez, 32, came through the Stuttgart youth system and won the 2007 Bundesliga title with the club. "I am very happy to return home, to the place where it all began," […]

Madrid (AFP) – Cristiano Ronaldo returned to full training on Friday with his Real Madrid teammates to quash fears he could miss Saturday's huge El Clasico clash with Barcelona at Real's Santiago Bernabeu. The world player of the year received rough treatment as he scored the winner in the Club World Cup final over Brazilians […]

Istanbul (AFP) – Turkish football icon Fatih Terim will Friday return to Istanbul giants Galatasaray for a fourth stint, following the dismissal of Croatian coach Igor Tudor. "And just where we left off ... He is back #FatihTerim," the club announced on its official Twitter account. Dubbed "Emperor", 64-year-old Terim, the former Turkish national boss, […]

Paris (AFP) – Barcelona are making moves to bring Atletico Madrid star Antoine Griezmann to the Catalan capital while Manchester City are eyeing Alexis Sanchez as clubs around Europe prepare for the January transfer window. The winter window opens at one minute past midnight on January 1, but Barca are looking for a belated Christmas […]

Madrid (AFP) – Real Madrid realistically need to end Barcelona's 24-match unbeaten run to maintain hopes of retaining their La Liga title when Spanish football's two behemoths meet in El Clasico on Saturday (1200GMT). Barca lead fourth-placed Madrid by 11 points at the top of the table, albeit Real do have a game in hand. […]