Madrid (AFP) – Zinedine Zidane and Ernesto Valverde might have been fearing for their jobs if they had lost a Clasico back in October but its postponement means that on Wednesday they can face each other feeling more secure. Stalling in the autumn, Real Madrid and Barcelona have rolled through the gears in the lead-up […]

London (AFP) – Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has a fresh Paul Pogba headache, revealing illness has delayed the midfielder's return from injury ahead of Wednesday's League Cup quarterfinal against giant-killers Colchester. The France World Cup winner has been sidelined for most of the season with an ankle injury, playing just six times for […]

Madrid (AFP) – Zinedine Zidane has said he is not worried about Wednesday's Clasico between Real Madrid and Barcelona being overshadowed by Catalan independence protests. The fixture was originally scheduled for October 26 but had to be postponed and there are renewed fears of unrest at Camp Nou, where Madrid and Barca will be playing […]

Doha (AFP) – Qatar's large Egyptian community is clamouring to welcome their country's "icon" Mohamed Salah when he comes to the Gulf this week as Liverpool kick off their Club World Cup campaign. But a regional diplomatic crisis has frustrated travel plans for fans based in Egypt and complicated the desire of expats in Doha […]

London (AFP) – Everton insisted Monday they had yet to make a contract offer to a potential new manager after a report that Carlo Ancelotti had agreed "in principle" to take over at Goodison Park. Sky Sports reported talks between the English Premier League club and the veteran Italian boss had "progressed well". But a […]

London (AFP) – Wilfried Zaha's equaliser lifted Crystal Palace up in ninth in the Premier League table as they shared the points in a 1-1 draw at home to Brighton on Monday. Neal Maupay fired the visitors into a 54th-minute lead but Palace star Zaha drew the Eagles level against the Seagulls with a fine […]

London (AFP) – Manchester City will not stand in Mikel Arteta's way if he wants to become the new manager of Arsenal, several British media outlets reported Monday. Reports added that while Premier League champions City were unhappy at a lack of a formal approach for Arteta, currently an assistant to manager Pep Guardiola, they […]

London (AFP) – Carlo Ancelotti has reached "an agreement in principle" to become the next Everton manager, Sky Sports News reported Monday. Ancelotti arrived in Merseyside earlier Monday, with Sky saying talks between the English Premier League club and the veteran Italian boss had "progressed well". The 60-year-old could be confirmed as the Goodison Park […]

Doha (AFP) – Liverpool are in Doha preparing for their Club World Cup semi-final against Mexico's Monterrey, but before that game Jurgen Klopp will spy on their potential final opponents while making sure he tunes in to watch the Anfield club's second string in League Cup action on Tuesday. The runaway Premier League leaders are […]

Kiev (AFP) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday extended his support to Ukrainian international Roman Zozulya after the Albacete striker was called a "Nazi" by fans of Spanish club Rayo Vallecano. Sunday's Segunda Division game at Rayo was suspended at half-time after home supporters chanted "puto Nazi" ("fucking Nazi") at Zozulya. Rayo are based […]

Paris (AFP) – Saint-Etienne have been provisionally ordered to play their Ligue 1 matches behind closed doors after supporters set off a barrage of fireworks in Sunday's thumping by Paris Saint-Germain, the French football league (LFP) announced on Monday. In a statement, the LFP said that they were banning fans from Saint-Etienne games pending further […]

Paris (AFP) – Hatem Ben Arfa's demand for millions of euros of compensation from Paris Saint-Germain has been dismissed by an industrial tribunal in the French capital AFP learned from both parties on Monday. Contacted by AFP, PSG's lawyer Marie-Helene Cohen-Guilleminet said all of Ben Arfa's "requests have been thrown out". Ben Arfa's legal representative […]

London (AFP) – Harry Maguire believes Manchester United are lucky to have "special talent" Mason Greenwood after the teenager scored his seventh goal of the season to rescue a point against Everton. With the club celebrating reaching 4,000 consecutive matches featuring a youth product in their squad, the exciting 18-year-old came off the bench to […]

London (AFP) – Jan Vertonghen believes Tottenham's last-gasp victory at Wolves proves they have bought into Jose Mourinho's "fighting mentality" as they closed to within three points of fourth-placed Chelsea. Spurs' chances of a fourth successive finish in the Champions League qualification places looked a lost cause when the Portuguese took charge last month with […]

Madrid (AFP) – Spain will deploy a large-scale security operation involving 3,000 personnel at the Clasico on Wednesday, when the likes of Lionel Messi and Sergio Ramos look set to share the limelight with Catalan separatist protests. Tension in Spain's north-east region boiled over in October when demonstrations and riots caused the original La Liga […]