London (AFP) – Chelsea cemented their grip on fourth place in the Premier League as Kai Havertz finally delivered an influential display in their vital 2-0 win against top-four rivals Everton on Monday. Havertz has endured a disappointing first season following his £70 million ($96 million) move from Bayer Leverkusen last year. But the Germany […]

Lille (France) (AFP) – Ligue 1 leaders Lille on Monday criticised the racist abuse suffered by their players during their French Cup win at Gazelec Ajaccio. Portugal midfielder Renato Sanches said on Instagram he had received "racist comments" during Sunday's 3-1 victory in Corsica, held behind closed doors due to coronavirus restrictions. "If Lille are […]

Dortmund (Germany) (AFP) – Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Braut Haaland will be available for Tuesday's Champions League last 16, second leg at home to Sevilla, coach Edin Terzic said on the eve of the game. Haaland, 20, who has scored 29 goals in 28 games this season, had been a doubt after leaving the pitch […]

Turin (Italy) (AFP) – Andrea Pirlo brushed aside talk his Juventus future would be in the balance in Tuesday's second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie with Porto, with the Italians trailing 2-1 heading into the must-win clash in Turin. Pirlo's predecessors Maurizio Sarri and Massimiliano Allegri both paid the price for the club's […]

Paris (AFP) – A match official in the December Champions League game between Paris Saint-Germain and Istanbul Basaksehir that was suspended after allegations of racism has been banned for the rest of the season for "inappropriate behaviour", UEFA announced on Monday. Sebastian Coltescu, from Romania, was banned from carrying out "any referee's function until the […]

Lausanne (AFP) – The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Monday announced that former African football boss Ahmad Ahmad's five-year ban imposed by FIFA has been reduced to two years, just days before the CAF presidential elections. The decision ends any hopes the Malagasy had of running for another term as the Confederation of […]

Madrid (AFP) – Real Madrid thwarted Atletico in the derby, Bayern Munich triumphed in the 'Klassiker' and AC Milan kept up the pressure on Inter in Serie A. Meanwhile Joan Laporta is back at Barcelona. AFP Sport rounds up some of the main talking points from across the continent: – Benzema denies Atletico – Atletico […]

Paris (AFP) – Gabon international Mario Lemina outmuscled two-time African Footballer of the Year Mohamed Salah to score and give lowly Fulham a shock 1-0 Premier League victory at struggling champions Liverpool. The Egyptian hesitated when the ball ran loose inside the Reds' box and Lemina pushed forward to net with a hard, low shot […]

London (AFP) – Steven Gerrard has his sights set on more silverware with Rangers after leading the club to their first Scottish league title for 10 years. The former Liverpool and England midfielder celebrated his first managerial trophy on Sunday after Celtic's goalless draw at Dundee United ended their chances of retaining the Premiership. Gerrard's […]

Nicosia (AFP) – A self-confessed lover of "sport and money", millionaire Saudi Prince Abdullah bin Mosaad is about to become the owner of humble French second division club Chateauroux. Already the owner of Premier League strugglers Sheffield United, Beerschot in Belgium, India's Kerala United and Al Hilal United in the UAE, the 56-year-old will soon […]

Sao Paulo (AFP) – Die-hard football fans are convinced their singing, screaming, and cheers can lift their team to victory — and they may be right, at least in South America, where home clubs are winning less with stadiums emptied by the pandemic. AFP analyzed clubs' results across three first-division seasons in three of the […]

Berlin (AFP) – Borussia Dortmund do not expect "crazy things to happen" this summer despite a host of Europe's biggest clubs reported to be queueing up to try and sign striker Erling Braut Haaland. The Norwegian became the first player to reach 10 Champions League goals in just seven games for a single club when […]

Milan (AFP) – Weston McKennie is a symbol of a new generation coming through at Juventus along with Dejan Kulusevski, Federico Chiesa and Matthijs De Ligt. The 22-year-old Texan became the first player from the United States to play for the Turin giants when he arrived from Bundesliga club Schalke last summer on loan. Coach […]

Madrid (AFP) – Joan Laporta returned as Barcelona president on Sunday after winning the club's elections by a landslide, with his central pledge to try to persuade Lionel Messi to stay. Laporta was last president at Barca between 2003 and 2010, which included overseeing the hugely successful appointment of Pep Guardiola as coach and the […]

Paris (AFP) – Marseille were dumped out of the French Cup by fourth-division outfit Canet-en-Roussillon on Sunday, stumbling to an embarrassing 2-1 loss in their final game before Jorge Sampaoli takes over as coach, while Lille eased into the last 16. A difficult season for Marseille took another turn for the worse, despite stand-in coach […]