Barcelona (AFP) – Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu faces the club's members at an annual general meeting on Saturday fighting an increasingly difficult battle to balance the conflicting interests of fans in favour of Catalan independence and millions of supporters in the rest of Spain and around the world. A powerful symbol of Catalonia, Barca […]

London (AFP) – Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has dismissed suggestions from Watford striker Troy Deeney that his players can be bullied and show little stomach for a physical battle. Deeney made the remarks after Arsenal's 2-1 defeat at Vicarage Road last weekend, when his introduction as a substitute unsettled the Arsenal defence and turned the […]

New York (AFP) – Oakland Raiders running back Marshawn Lynch was handed a one-game suspension without pay on Friday after shoving an official during his team's victory over the Kansas City Chiefs, an NFL statement said. Lynch was ejected during Thursday's game, won 31-30 by the Raiders, during the second quarter following a melee involving […]

London (AFP) – After the drudgery of last weekend's goalless stalemate against Manchester United, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is relishing the prospect of Sunday's trip to Wembley to face Tottenham Hotspur. United produced a cautious performance at Anfield last Saturday, limiting Klopp's side to two clear goal-scoring opportunities. Liverpool took their frustrations out on Maribor […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Jose Mourinho says he is judged by a different set of standards from his rival managers in the Premier League because of his previous successes but insists that criticism does not upset him. The Manchester United manager was widely criticised for his approach in grinding out a goalless draw against […]

London (AFP) – West Ham manager Slaven Bilic appeared resigned to his fate on Friday following his side's woeful performance in a 3-0 home defeat by Brighton. Bilic, who just survived a tough period last season, said he assumed full responsibility for the hapless display which had home fans heading for the exits midway through […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola admits his high-flying side will suffer a blip at some point but is optimistic they will react better than they did last season. Guardiola’s team have been in imperious form so far this season and are unbeaten in all competitions. City top the Premier League […]

London (AFP) – A double from Glenn Murray gave Brighton manager Chris Hughton plenty to smile about in his 100th Premier League match as a manager as they eased to a 3-0 win over a dire West Ham on Friday. Murray's brace — taking his tally to five in seven meetings with the Hammers — […]

Barcelona (AFP) – Barcelona's Argentine legend Lionel Messi entered the highly-charged drive by Catalonia for independence on Friday when he posted a video on social media of his child singing in Catalan. The clip on Instagram shows Messi's two-year-old son Mateo singing a nursery rhyme in the regional language. Among the flood of comments triggered […]

London (AFP) – Watford manager Marco Silva has called for more of the self-belief his high-flying team showed in their win against Arsenal when they face "favourites" Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday. The Hornets climbed to fourth place — one spot ahead of defending champions Chelsea — in the Premier League after coming from […]

London (AFP) – Danny Rose has a long-term future at Spurs despite his previous comments that he would be open to a transfer, Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino said on Friday following the defender's return to action. Rose came off the bench against Real Madrid in the Champions League on Tuesday to make his first appearance […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola admitted Friday he does not know when Vincent Kompany will return, sparking fresh worries about the veteran defender's long-term fitness. City skipper Kompany has been absent since he injured his calf in August while on international duty with Belgium and has not featured for his […]

London (AFP) – Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp believes "world-class" Harry Kane poses a bigger threat to his side than Manchester United's Romelu Lukaku did last weekend. The Reds boss succeeded in dousing the threat from in-form United striker Lukaku in the goalless draw at Anfield although the job was made easier by Jose Mourinho's cagey […]

London (AFP) – Chelsea manager Antonio Conte on Friday dismissed rumours of discontent over his training methods following successive Premier League defeats for the defending champions. Conte said Chelsea's training loads are "70 percent less" than during last season's Premier League-winning campaign and the sheer quantity of matches renders the work that brought success last […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Jose Mourinho said on Friday that he expects Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic to be ready to return to action from his career-threatening knee ligament injury before the end of the year. The Manchester United manager has stubbornly refused to put a timeline on the absences of long-term injury victims Ibrahimovic […]