London (AFP) – Premier League newcomers Brighton and Hove Albion are on the verge of signing Colombia winger Jose Izquierdo from Belgian side Club Brugge, Seagulls manager Chris Hughton said Thursday. Brighton broke their transfer record by signing Dutch midfielder Davy Propper for a reported fee of around £6 million ($7.8 million, 6.6 million euros) […]

Berlin (AFP) – Borussia Dortmund's wonderkid Ousmane Dembele failed to show up for training Thursday, coach Peter Bosz said, fuelling speculation that the French youngster is poised to join Barcelona as Neymar's replacement. "He didn't come to practice today. We don't know why. We tried to reach him but we were unable to," Bosz told […]

Istanbul (AFP) – Turkish authorities on Thursday ordered arrests and stricter security measures at key football matches after last weekend's Super Cup was marred by a pitch invasion and ugly fighting between rival fans. Konyaspor defeated Besiktas 2-1 on Sunday to win the Super Cup, the annual curtain raiser to the season that brings together […]

London (AFP) – Tottenham Hotspur defender Danny Rose risked angering the London club's supporters by revealing Thursday he wanted to "play up north" before his career was finished. Meanwhile he also appeared to question Spurs' transfer policy, saying he hoped a couple of "well-known players" would be joining the club soon. Rose, born in the […]

Buenos Aires (AFP) – An Argentine family landed home late Wednesday after the wealthy owner of French football club PSG paid for their flights following weeks stranded in Qatar, according to people involved. Valeria Marsili, 42, and her three daughters had their flights canceled without reimbursement on June 5 after Qatar's neighbours imposed a blockade […]

Los Angeles (AFP) – Mexico striker Carlos Vela has signed for Major League Soccer expansion side Los Angeles FC and will join from Real Sociedad in January next year, it was confirmed Wednesday. LAFC, who will make their MLS debut in 2018, said in a statement that Vela's arrival would generate excitement around the club […]

Shanghai (AFP) – Gus Poyet apologised and hinted he could quit after Shanghai Shenhua lost 3-0 at home in the Chinese Super League to leave the Uruguayan's future as coach hanging in the balance. Shenhua finished fourth in the league last year and invested heavily this season, bringing Carlos Tevez to China on a contract […]

London (AFP) – Arsene Wenger brokered a fragile truce with Arsenal's dissenting fans by winning the FA Cup, but has little margin for error ahead of Friday's Premier League opener against Leicester City. Last season was by far the most difficult of Wenger's 21-year tenure as manager, with Arsenal's on-pitch travails exposing him to furious […]

Mexico City (AFP) – Mexico and former FC Barcelona star Rafael Marquez is dubbed "The Boss" for his leadership of the national football team — but now the United States has branded him a drug criminal. No other Mexican player has won more titles and he is widely considered second only to Hugo Sanchez as […]

London (AFP) – Liverpool have rejected a second bid from Barcelona for influential Brazilian playmaker Philippe Coutinho worth 100 million euros (£90.3 million), British media claimed Wednesday. Barcelona are desperate to land the 25-year-old to replace fellow Brazilian Neymar who was sold for a world record 222 million euros to Paris Saint Germain last week. […]

Paris (AFP) – Marseille boss Rudi Garcia admitted Wednesday that Olivier Giroud would be the perfect goal scorer for the French club but believes the Arsenal striker has his sights on a bigger challenge. "I think that he doesn't want to come to Marseille," Garcia tells sports daily L'Equipe in an interview to be published […]

Washington (AFP) – The US Treasury on Wednesday accused Rafael Marquez, captain of Mexico's national football team and a former FC Barcelona player, of being a "front person" for a major drug trafficking organization. Marquez was one of 22 people and 43 entities the US Treasury placed on a sanctions list in relation to a […]

Rome (AFP) – Brazilian defender Dalbert Henrique has earned a transfer record 29 million euros for French club Nice after signing a five-year deal with Serie A club Inter Milan on Wednesday. "It's a transfer record for Nice," Nice director general Julien Fournier told AFP. The 23-year-old left-back joined Nice in July 2016 from Portuguese […]

Rome (AFP) – Italy coach Giampiero Ventura has signed a new two-year contract to lead the Azzurri to the 2020 European Championship, the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) announced Wednesday. The 69-year-old former Torino boss took over on a two-year deal after Antonio Conte left to join Chelsea in June last year. But his record of […]

Warrington (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Five men charged over the Hillsborough football stadium disaster, in which 96 Liverpool fans died, appeared in court for the first time on Wednesday, 28 years on from the tragedy. The five, who include three former police officers, appeared at Warrington Magistrates' Court in northwest England. The defendants walked past […]