Montevideo (AFP) – Brazil will put their perfect start to the South American 2022 World Cup qualifying campaign on the line on Tuesday when they travel to Uruguay without Neymar and with worries over their form. Tite's side laboured to a 1-0 win over a limited Venezuela on Friday thanks to a second-half strike from […]

Johannesburg (AFP) – Manchester City winger Riyad Mahrez scored as title-holders Algeria drew 2-2 in Zimbabwe Monday and became the third country to book a place at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations. Cameroon qualify automatically as hosts and Senegal secured a spot Sunday by winning in Guinea-Bissau thanks to a Sadio Mane goal. […]

Berlin (AFP) – Dortmund, Leipzig and Hertha Berlin look set to defy a call for 10 days of self-isolation for their Norwegian players, including Dortmund's Erling Haaland, after a member of the national squad tested positive for Covid-19. Adhering to the request from the Norwegian football federation would prevent Haaland from playing for Dortmund on Saturday, […]

Dublin (AFP) – Ireland's Matt Doherty and James McClean are set to miss the Republic's final Nations League fixture at home to Bulgaria on Wednesday after testing positive for the coronavirus. The duo started Sunday's 1-0 defeat by Wales in Cardiff but have now been isolated from the rest of the group, which flew back […]

London (AFP) – Hollywood star Ryan Reynolds' proposed takeover of lowly Welsh football team Wrexham has been approved by the club's supporters trust. Wrexham play in the fifth-tier of English football — far removed from the glamour and worldwide reach of the elite Premier League. But that did not stop Deadpool star Reynolds and fellow […]

Seoul (AFP) – Son Heung-min's South Korea on Monday said they were all set to play Qatar in Austria this week despite finding a new coronavirus case among their contingent, bringing the total to eight. Tottenham Hotspur striker Son and the rest of the squad had already been confined to their Vienna hotel rooms, when […]

London (AFP) – England manager Gareth Southgate has insisted a 'dead' Nations League match against Iceland remains a valuable exercise ahead of next year's European Championships despite the concerns of clubs over possible injuries to players. Both teams will kick-off at Wembley on Wednesday unable to go any further in this year's tournament, with England's […]

Warri (Nigeria) (AFP) – Former Nigeria midfielder Christian Obodo, who spent over a decade in Serie A, including spells with Fiorentina and Udinese, said Monday that he had escaped from suspected kidnappers in the country's oil-rich Delta state. Obodo was driving around the southern city of Warri on Sunday when he said two armed men […]

Oslo (AFP) – Norway will be without Erling Braut Haaland and Martin Odegaard for Wednesday's Nations League finale in Austria as the squad was ordered to quarantine after a team-mate tested positive for Covid-19. UEFA cancelled Norway's match in Romania at the weekend after Norwegian authorities banned the squad from travelling to Bucharest following a positive […]

Lausanne (AFP) – Australian swimmer Shayna Jack, a member of the world record-breaking 4x100m freestyle relay team, on Monday had her doping ban reduced to two years by the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Jack was banned by Swimming Australia for four years after testing positive for the muscle growth agent ligandrol in an out-of-competition […]

London (AFP) – Jack Grealish's promising performance for England was a rare bright spot as Gareth Southgate's side's slumped to a 2-0 defeat by Belgium in Sunday's Nations League clash which ended their chances of progressing to the knockout stage. The 25-year-old midfielder's display showed a wider audience why his Aston Villa boss Dean Smith […]

London (AFP) – Arsenal reinforced their commitment to tackling climate change by becoming the first Premier League club to sign up to the UN Sports for Climate Action Framework on Monday. Arsenal join among others the International Olympic Committee, FIFA and English football's governing body the Football Association in signing up to the initiative. It […]

Seoul (AFP) – Tottenham Hotspur striker Son Heung-min has been confined to his room when not training after six of his South Korea team-mates tested positive for Covid-19 on international duty in Austria, officials said Monday. Although Son, 28, tested negative, he and the rest of the squad have been told to stay in their hotel rooms […]

Berlin (AFP) – Bayern Munich's Manuel Neuer can make history Tuesday by clocking up a record 96th appearance in goal for Germany in a Nations League game against Spain. Neuer equalled Sepp Maier's record of 95 appearances for a Germany goalkeeper, set in 1979, in Saturday's 3-1 win over Ukraine in Leipzig. He can claim […]

Leuven (Belgium) (AFP) – Gareth Southgate insisted England have not gone backwards after a 2-0 defeat to Belgium on Sunday ensured they cannot reach the Nations League finals next year. First-half goals from Youri Tielemans and Dries Mertens for the world's number one ranked side in Leuven kept Belgium on top of Group A2, five […]