Yaoundé (AFP) – Arsenal striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has been allowed to leave the Gabon squad at the Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon and return to his club to continue his recovery from Covid-19, his national team coach said on Monday. Midfielder Mario Lemina of French side Nice has also been sent back to his […]

London (AFP) – Pep Guardiola has praised the way his Manchester City players have dealt with adversity on and off the pitch after they strengthened their grip on the Premier League title race. City, who beat Chelsea 1-0 on Saturday, are 11 points clear of second-placed Liverpool after 12 straight league wins and closing in […]

Kuala Lumpur (AFP) – Defending champions Al Hilal were Monday drawn against Tajikistan's Istiklol, which scored a shock victory against the Saudi giants last year, for the start of their Asian Champions League campaign. The Saudi side are aiming for a fifth continental title, after triumphing in Asia's premier club competition last year with victory […]

Tokyo (AFP) – Japan's richest football club Vissel Kobe want to build a bronze statue of World Cup-winning star player Andres Iniesta — and are launching a crowdfunding project to pay for it. Former Barcelona maestro Iniesta joined Kobe in 2018 in a deal worth a reported $30 million a year, and signed a two-year […]

Douala (AFP) – Equatorial Guinea inflicted a first defeat in 36 games on Algeria on Sunday to leave the reigning champions in serious danger of a group-stage exit from the Africa Cup of Nations after an astonishing goalkeeping blunder cost the Ivory Coast victory against Sierra Leone. Esteban Obiang, one of a host of Equatorial […]

Milan (AFP) – Atalanta gave Inter Milan's Serie A title rivals a boost on Sunday with a goalless draw which ends the champions' eight-match winning run and gives AC Milan the chance to claim top spot. A keenly-fought contest in Bergamo finished with a blank scoresheet despite each side creating a handful of golden scoring […]

Yaoundé (AFP) – Manchester City winger Riyad Mahrez must lift struggling Algeria to victory over bogey team Ivory Coast this week or the Africa Cup of Nations holders will make a sensational exit after the first round. Algeria are bottom of Group E and in deep trouble after a stunning 1-0 matchday 2 loss on […]

Douala (AFP) – Reigning champions Algeria are in danger of an early exit from the Africa Cup of Nations after a shock 1-0 defeat at the hands of outsiders Equatorial Guinea in Douala on Sunday. Esteban Obiang's 70th-minute goal gave Equatorial Guinea the victory and brought Algeria's 35-game unbeaten record crashing to an end. The […]

Riyadh (AFP) – Real Madrid won the Spanish Super Cup by beating Athletic Bilbao 2-0 on Sunday as Luka Modric and a Karim Benzema penalty secured a comfortable victory in Saudi Arabia. Modric's curling finish towards the end of the first half and Benzema's strike early in the second sealed the win for Madrid, who […]

London (AFP) – Rafael Benitez was sacked as Everton manager on Sunday after just 200 days in charge of the struggling Premier League club with former player Wayne Rooney tipped as favourite to take over. Benitez was an unpopular appointment in June last year after his long spell with Everton's Merseyside rivals Liverpool. The Spaniard […]

Milan (AFP) – Sergio Oliveira was decisive on his Roma debut after scoring the penalty which gave his new team a 1-0 win over struggling Cagliari on Sunday, before leaders Inter Milan face a tough test at Atalanta. Oliveira, who was signed on loan from Porto on Wednesday, stroked home a 33rd minute spot-kick at […]

Douala (AFP) – Alhaji Kamara bundled the ball into the net following an astonishing goalkeeping blunder in injury time to give Sierra Leone a shock 2-2 draw with the Ivory Coast at the Africa Cup of Nations in Douala on Sunday. Badra Ali Sangare went to catch a ball headed back to him by a […]

Limbe (Cameroon) (AFP) – Former Premier League forward Wahbi Khazri scored twice as Tunisia recovered from a controversial loss to Mali by hammering Mauritania 4-0 in Limbe on Sunday in the Africa Cup of Nations. The matchday 2 result threw Group F wide open with Gambia and Mali on four points, after a 1-1 draw […]

Madrid (AFP) – Real Betis and Sevilla resumed their suspended Copa del Rey match in the 39th minute and behind closed doors on Sunday as Sergio Canales sealed a 2-1 victory to send Betis into the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey. The game was stopped on Saturday night with the score 1-1, after Sevilla’s […]

Paris (AFP) – Rennes ended a run of three successive Ligue 1 defeats by crushing 10-man Bordeaux 6-0 on Sunday to plunge Vladimir Petkovic's struggling side into the relegation zone. Bordeaux have won just three times in 21 league games under Petkovic, who left his job as Switzerland boss after leading the country to the […]