The Hague (AFP) – Netherlands coach Ronald Koeman on Friday said that he "was lucky" after suffering a heart problem just a few weeks after his appointment with a cardiologist was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. The 57-year-old underwent a "cardiac catheterisation" procedure at a hospital in Amsterdam in early May after feeling unwell […]

London (AFP) – British Police want at least six Premier League matches and any Liverpool title clincher to be played at neutral venues when the season resumes in a bid to avoid supporters gathering outside stadiums. Premier League chiefs have set June 17 as the date for the top flight to restart following the coronavirus […]

Brussels (AFP) – Vincent Kompany has turned down an offer from Manchester City to become Pep Guardiola's assistant coach, according to various Belgian media reports on Friday. The former City captain is under contract as player-manager of Anderlecht until 2022, having left the Etihad Stadium last year following a trophy-laden 11-year spell in England. Kompany, […]

London (AFP) – The FA Cup final is set to take place on August 1 after the English Football Association announced provisional dates to finish the competition on Friday. After the Premier League revealed they plan to resume the season on June 17, the FA Cup has now returned to an English fixture list thrown […]

Berlin (AFP) – They have spent more seasons in the Bundesliga than any other club but now Werder Bremen have just seven games left to avoid a humiliating relegation that would see them follow the same path to the second division taken by fallen German giants Hamburg and Stuttgart in recent years. Florian Kohfeldt's embattled […]

Istanbul (AFP) – Fifteen years after the "Miracle of Istanbul" that cemented Steven Gerrard's status as a Liverpool legend, the Turkish metropolis was supposed to host its second Champions League final on Saturday. But that was before the coronavirus pandemic wreaked worldwide havoc. On March 23, UEFA suspended Champions League matches until further notice as […]

Paris (AFP) – When Patrick Kluivert scored the winner for Ajax in the 1995 Champions League final, it might have been the start of another period of domination in Europe for the fabled Dutch side. Instead it was a victory which in many ways marked the end of an era for the club who had […]

London (AFP) – Fitness coach and mentor Wayne Richardson has had his hands full dealing with footballers' mental health issues in a period of unprecedented uncertainty during the coronavirus lockdown. Richardson and his staff have spoken to about 150 players, from professionals all the way down to the grassroots during football's hiatus. Players have reported […]

London (AFP) – Premier League football is set to return on June 17 after a three-month coronavirus-enforced absence. Nothing realistically will stop Liverpool from being crowned English champions for the first time in 30 years. But there are a whole host of other issues to sort out, including relegation and next year's European places, with […]

Rome (AFP) – Italy's Serie A was given the green light on Thursday to resume on June 20 after a three-month absence as one of the countries hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic begins to ease restrictions. Sports Minister Vincenzo Spadafora said that the government's Technical and Scientific Committee (CTS) had agreed to the health protocol […]

Paris (AFP) – Football fans in England and Italy received the news they had been waiting for on Thursday after the Premier League and Serie A got restart dates for their suspended seasons. England's top flight gave itself a provisional date of June 17 less than an hour before Italy's Sport Minister announced that the […]

Rome (AFP) – Italy's Serie A can resume on June 20 after a three-month absence in a country hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, sports Minister Vincenzo Spadafora said on Thursday. "The Technical and Scientific Committee gave its agreement on the protocol and the federation assured me that it had a Plan B and a […]

London (AFP) – Premier League clubs on Thursday agreed to restart the 2019/20 season on June 17, provided that all safety requirements are in place to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Aston Villa v Sheffield United and Manchester City v Arsenal — both rearranged games — will take place on that date, the English top-flight […]

London (AFP) – The Premier League season is set to restart on June 17, three months after it was suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic, it was widely reported on Thursday. No matches have been played in the English top-flight since Leicester's 4-0 win over Aston Villa on March 9, with Liverpool just two wins […]

Rome (AFP) – Serie A will learn the fate of the Italian season on Thursday, with a government decision due on whether football can resume after a three-month absence in a country hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. Sports Minister Vincenzo Spadafora will hold a video conference at 6:30pm local time (1630 GMT), with representatives […]