London (AFP) – Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger says he was never tempted to join Manchester United, after it emerged the Old Trafford club approached him about succeeding Alex Ferguson in 2002. Former United chairman Martin Edwards revealed in his new autobiography that the club sounded out Wenger after Ferguson announced he would retire at the […]

London (AFP) – Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish has urged everyone at the club to "stick together" despite a dismal start to the Premier League season and increasing speculation about the future of manager Frank de Boer. De Boer has overseen four defeats in as many games without scoring a single goal since taking over […]

Madrid (AFP) – La Liga president Javier Tebas confirmed on Monday that the first El Clasico of the season between Real Madrid and Barcelona will be played on December 23 at 1:00 pm (1200GMT). The clash was expected to take place on December 20 as part of a full midweek round of fixtures before Spain's […]

London (AFP) – Manchester City playmaker Kevin De Bruyne says beating the club's biggest rivals will be key to challenging for the Premier League title after Pep Guardiola's side swept Liverpool aside in impressive style. City failed to sustain a title challenge last season and their record against the other teams that finished in the […]

London (AFP) – Manchester United's Ander Herrera says team success is his top priority despite the frustrations of a lack of game time this season for the Premier League leaders. The club's reigning player of the year, who made his first league start of the season in Saturday's 2-2 draw against Stoke, has struggled for […]

Shanghai (AFP) – Luiz Felipe Scolari's Guangzhou Evergrande must perform an AFC Champions League miracle on Tuesday if they are to overhaul a 4-0 deficit in their quarter-final home clash with Shanghai SIPG. Evergrande are streaking away from their domestic rivals in the Chinese Super League (CSL) but were embarrassed in Shanghai three weeks ago […]

Shanghai (AFP) – Uli Stielike has been tasked with saving Tianjin Teda from relegation out of the Chinese Super League (CSL), three months after the German was axed as coach of South Korea. Underlining the challenge facing the 62-year-old, Tianjin lost 3-1 at second-placed Shanghai SIPG on Saturday and sit one place off the bottom […]

Madrid (AFP) – Neymar and Kylian Mbappe headline free-spending Paris Saint-Germain's quest to knock Real Madrid off their perch as the Champions League group stages begin on Tuesday under the shadow of infighting at the top of the European game. La Liga president Javier Tebas has lambasted PSG's 222 million euro ($267 million) capture of […]

Barcelona (AFP) – A 5-0 derby win, an assist for 105 million euro ($126 million) purchase Ousmane Dembele on his debut and a four-point La Liga lead over Real Madrid ought to have brought some semblance of relief to Barcelona's beleaguered board. Yet, no sooner had the celebrations died down from Luis Suarez's finish from […]

Sydney (AFP) – Australia's women footballers took a step towards professionalism Monday with pay rises and better employment conditions agreed as the nation works to build on the success of the Matildas national team. Until now, many players in the domestic W-League were considered amateur and received only reimbursement of expenses. But under a new […]

London (AFP) – Frustrated by his past failures in the Champions League, Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has set his sights on a mission of redemption as he returns to the competition after a four-year absence. Conte still bears the scars from a snowy night in Istanbul in 2013 when Juventus suffered a shock defeat against […]

Paris (AFP) – Paris Saint-Germain kick off their latest bid for Champions League glory at Celtic on Tuesday bolstered by the big-money signings of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe. The French giants will be hoping that their lavish close-season spending can help finally achieve their Qatari owners' dream of lifting the European Cup. PSG responded to […]

Baku (AFP) – Qarabag face a Champions League baptism of fire on Tuesday when they visit English Premier League title-holders Chelsea to make history for Azerbaijan. The club founded in the middle of the last century are the first team to appear at this lofty level from the energy-rich Caucasian country. "It was our team's […]

Rome (AFP) – A whole new challenge awaits former AS Roma legend Francesco Totti as the Serie A club return to the Champions League group stage on Tuesday against Atletico Madrid. The 40-year-old former player will swap his Roma shirt for a suit as he assumes the mantle of a director of the Serie A […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – He has twice stunned Old Trafford into silence on Champions League nights, but as Manchester United make their competition return, Jose Mourinho's obligation is to make the old stadium roar. In 2004 his Porto side sensationally eliminated United in the Champions League last 16 and in 2013 he returned with […]