Berlin (AFP) – Relegation-threatened Arminia Bielefeld have fired head coach Uwe Neuhaus and his assistant and are now poised to name a successor, the Bundesliga club said on Monday. Neuhaus led the club to promotion last season but Bielefeld's sporting director Samir Arabi said the decision was made to boost their survival chances. The club […]

Paris (AFP) – FIFA have asked three candidates to back South Africa's Patrice Motsepe in the up-coming Confederation of African Football (CAF) presidential election, a source close to one of the candidates told AFP. The previous incumbent Ahmad Ahmad was banned for breaches of FIFA's ethical code, but has had the ban suspended by the […]

London (AFP) – Pep Guardiola says Manchester City have no time to soak up the plaudits during their record-breaking run as the Premier League leaders chase an unprecedented quadruple. City have set a record for an English top-flight team after reeling off 20 successive victories in all competitions. It is the third-best winning streak among […]

London (AFP) – Brendan Rodgers has challenged Leicester to defy the odds as a mounting injury crisis threatens to wreck their bid to finish in the Premier League's top four. Rodgers' side lost star midfielder Harvey Barnes to a left knee injury during Sunday's damaging 3-1 home defeat against Arsenal. Barnes, who is going under […]

Barcelona (AFP) – Barcelona confirmed on Monday police raided the club's offices as part of an investigation into the hiring of a company to improve the image of former president Josep Maria Bartomeu. Several arrests were made, a Catalan regional police spokesman told AFP, just six days ahead of the club's new presidential elections on […]

Rome (AFP) – Serie A's bottom side Crotone have sacked coach Giovanni Stroppa, the Calabrian club announced on Monday. Sunday's 2-0 defeat against Cagliari was their sixth in succession and leaves them eight points behind Torino who are one place outside the relegation zone. Crotone have won just three matches from 24 in Serie A […]

Paris (AFP) – Atletico Madrid stopped the rot, while Lionel Messi again enjoyed himself playing against Sevilla and it has been another turbulent few days at Schalke and in Marseille, two of Europe's crisis clubs. AFP Sport rounds up some of the main talking points from across the continent: – Atletico dig themselves out of […]

London (AFP) – Thomas Tuchel has urged Tammy Abraham to fight for his Chelsea place after leaving the England striker out of Sunday's squad to face Manchester United. New boss Tuchel revealed Abraham, 23, was omitted solely on selection grounds, with the Blues grinding out a goalless draw against the Red Devils at Stamford Bridge. […]

Paris (AFP) – Ivory Coast winger Nicolas Pepe delivered one of the best performances of his difficult spell with Arsenal as he scored in a 3-1 Premier League victory over Leicester City at the weekend. He has struggled to make an impact since signing from Lille for £72 million in 2019, but Arsenal manager Mikel […]

Barcelona (AFP) – Police raided the offices of FC Barcelona on Monday, carrying out several arrests just six days ahead of the club's presidential elections, a Catalan regional police spokesman told AFP. Spain's Cadena Ser radio said one of those arrested was former club president Josep Maria Bartomeu, who resigned in October, along with CEO […]

London (AFP) – Struggling Championship side Sheffield Wednesday on Monday announced the appointment of Darren Moore as their third permanent manager this season. The 46-year-old, who had been in charge of League One Doncaster Rovers since 2019, succeeds Tony Pulis following his dismissal in December. Neil Thompson has been in interim charge. Pulis lasted only […]

Rennes (France) (AFP) – Julien Stephan, who guided Rennes to Champions League qualification for the first time in their history, has resigned following a poor run of results, the Ligue 1 club announced Monday. "This morning, Stade Rennais FC acknowledged the resignation of coach Julien Stephan. The club thanks Julien for these nine years with […]

London (AFP) – Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder says his side's hopes of staying in the Premier League are all but over after their 21st league defeat of the season, at home to Liverpool. The 53-year-old Englishman guided the Blades to an impressive ninth-place finish in their first season back in the top flight in […]

Shanghai (AFP) – The "shocking" collapse of champions Jiangsu FC is a watershed for Chinese football that should prompt a rethink from top to bottom, state media said. Jiangsu, who are owned by the conglomerate Suning — which also owns Italy's Inter Milan — said Sunday they will "cease operations", three months after winning the […]

Shanghai (AFP) – The "shocking" collapse of champions Jiangsu FC is a watershed for Chinese football that should prompt a rethink from top to bottom, state media said. Jiangsu, who are owned by the conglomerate Suning — which also owns Italy's Inter Milan — said Sunday they will "cease operations", just over three months after […]