Southampton (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Southampton dumped FA Cup holders Arsenal out of the competition on Saturday, winning 1-0 courtesy of a Gabriel own goal to set up a fifth-round meeting with Wolves. The much-changed Gunners, who have won the competition a record 14 times, fell behind midway through the first half and could not […]

Shanghai (AFP) – Rafa Benitez abruptly left as coach of Chinese Super League side Dalian Pro on Saturday, saying it was for family reasons in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. The 60-year-old Spaniard, who took Liverpool to Champions League glory in 2005, had been in charge of Dalian since July 2019. "Unfortunately, like so […]

Doha (AFP) – The Club World Cup will be staged with strict measures to combat the spread of Covid-19, the Qatari organisers said Saturday less than two weeks before the tournament which will be closed to overseas fans. It is due to get underway on February 4 with spectator numbers capped at 30 percent of […]

London (AFP) – Paul Pogba is back in form for Manchester United at just the right time as the Premier League leaders prepare for Sunday's FA Cup showdown with bitter rivals Liverpool. Pogba has been a constant source of friction during his second spell with United and recent suggestions that he was keen to engineer […]

London (AFP) – Frank Lampard is relishing the prospect of leading Chelsea out of a poor run of Premier League form. The 42-year-old former England midfielder's future at Stamford Bridge has become a hot topic, with Chelsea having lost five of their last eight league matches. Lampard's emerging side are at home to Luton in […]

London (AFP) – Jurgen Klopp vowed not to "cry like a five-year-old" if Liverpool fail to deliver the players he wants in the January transfer window. Klopp's injury-hit side have slumped to fourth in the Premier League after five games without a win. The champions sit six points behind leaders Manchester United and lost at […]

Paris (AFP) – Kylian Mbappe says he is still "thinking about" whether to agree to a new contract at Paris Saint-Germain, with the France superstar's existing deal set to expire at the end of next season. "We are in discussions with the club to try to find a suitable project. I said I was thinking […]

Paris (AFP) – Neymar made his 100th appearance for Paris Saint-Germain on Friday and marked the occasion with a goal in a 4-0 rout of 10-man Montpellier that took Mauricio Pochettino's side clear at the top of Ligue 1. Kylian Mbappe scored twice and Mauro Icardi was also on target with PSG leading 1-0 before […]

Douala (AFP) – Togo overcame the absence of coronavirus-hit coach Jean-Paul Abalo to upset Uganda 2-1 Friday and boost hopes of reaching the African Nations Championship (CHAN) quarter-finals at the first attempt. A Paul Mbowa own-goal gave Togo an early second-half lead in Cameroon Atlantic city Douala only for Ugandan Saidi Kyeyune to equalise just […]

London (AFP) – Wolves scraped into the FA Cup fifth round as Vitinha's sublime strike sealed a hard-fought 1-0 win against non-league Chorley on Friday. Nuno Espirito Santo's side were fortunate to avoid an embarrassing upset after a lacklustre display at Victory Park. Vitinha's brilliant long-range drive put Wolves ahead early in the first half. […]

Berlin (AFP) – Defender Nico Elvedi netted twice as Moenchengladbach ended their six-year wait to beat Dortmund when their 4-2 home win on Friday lifted the Foals to fourth in the Bundesliga table. Two goals by Dortmund striker Erling Braut Haaland were bookended by Elvedi netting from set-pieces in the action-packed opening 32 minutes. […]

London (AFP) – Mick McCarthy has been appointed as the manager of Cardiff City, the English second-tier club announced Friday. The former Republic of Ireland, Sunderland and Wolves boss succeeds Neil Harris, who left on Thursday following six successive defeats. Experienced manager McCarthy, 61, was available to take the Cardiff job after parting company with […]

Miami (AFP) – David Beckham stressed on Friday that his close friendship with Phil Neville wasn't behind the former England women's coach's arrival as Inter Miami boss. Neville and Beckham played together for Manchester United and England with the pair remaining close having both risen through the ranks at Old Trafford along with the likes […]

London (AFP) – Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said on Friday he is unhappy a proposed European Super League could put the future of domestic leagues and cups in danger. A Times report said the 15 clubs mooted to be in the 20-team breakaway competition would be offered £310 million ($424 million) each to join […]

London (AFP) – Chelsea defender Fikayo Tomori joined AC Milan on loan for the rest of the season on Friday. Serie A leaders Milan are believed to have retained an option to buy Tomori for £25 million ($34 million) when the loan expires at the end of the current campaign. Thiago Silva's move to Chelsea […]