Milan (AFP) – Mario Balotelli made his first start for Brescia but the promoted northeners still fell to a 2-1 defeat which put champions Juventus top of Serie A on Tuesday. Former Manchester City and Inter Milan striker Balotelli has returned to Italy to play for his hometown club, but his debut had been delayed […]

London (AFP) – Tottenham's disappointing start to the season hit a new low as they suffered an embarrassing League Cup third-round defeat on penalties at fourth-tier Colchester on Tuesday. Mauricio Pochettino's side were held to a 0-0 draw in normal time before losing 4-3 on penalties against opponents currently 10th in League Two. Christian Eriksen's […]

Paris (AFP) – Russia midfielder Aleksandr Golovin scored twice and set up a third goal as Monaco moved out of the Ligue 1 relegation zone with a 3-1 win over Patrick Vieira's Nice on Tuesday. Golovin's double came either side of Patrick Burner's equaliser before he fed Wissam Ben Yedder to claim Leonardo Jardim's first […]

Madrid (AFP) – Lionel Messi endured yet more injury frustration on Tuesday after going off at half-time against Villarreal but Barcelona gave their coach Ernesto Valverde some much-needed relief with a comfortable 2-1 victory. Messi received treatment in the first half for what looked like a problem with his left thigh and was then unable […]

Madrid (AFP) – Lionel Messi was forced off injured at half-time on Tuesday after making his first start of the season for Barcelona against Villarreal. Barca's captain has only just recovered from a niggling calf problem, which he sustained at the start of August, and his latest issue appeared to be with his left thigh. […]

Paris (AFP) – Andre Villas-Boas' Marseille missed out on the chance to move second in the Ligue 1 table on Tuesday, as they struggled to a 0-0 draw at winless Dijon. The Portuguese coach was without influential midfielder Dimitri Payet and centre-back Boubacar Kamara due to suspensions from red cards received in last weekend's tie […]

Ljubljana (AFP) – The 2021 UEFA Champions League final will be played in Saint Petersburg, European football's governing body announced on Tuesday. The venues for the next three finals were revealed at UEFA's Executive Committee meeting in the Slovenian capital Ljubljana, with Munich being awarded the 2022 showpiece and the 2023 final being given to […]

Madrid (AFP) – Zinedine Zidane claims he has not even thought about the criticism aimed at him in recent weeks as Real Madrid look to build on Sunday's morale-boosting win away at Sevilla. Madrid eased the growing pressure on their coach with a determined performance at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan after they had been beaten […]

London (AFP) – Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer expects Paul Pogba to make his return from injury against third-tier Rochdale in the League Cup on Wednesday. The French international midfielder has been sidelined for three weeks by an ankle injury, but Solskjaer is confident he will definitely be fit for Arsenal's visit in the […]

London (AFP) – Manchester United announced record revenues of £627 million ($780 million) on Tuesday as the club's executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward moved to reassure fans his priority remains on the pitch. United have won just two of their last 11 Premier League games stretching back to last season, which saw them miss out on […]

London (AFP) – Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has revealed that the emotional high of his side's Champions League triumph inspired him to join the Common Goal charity. Klopp will join a host of star names from the world of football, including Manchester United's Juan Mata and FIFA women's player of the year Megan Rapinoe, by […]

Milan (AFP) – Lionel Messi won the FIFA Men's Player of the Year award as beaten rival Cristiano Ronaldo stayed away from the star-studded ceremony in Milan's iconic La Scala Opera House on Monday. Barcelona striker Messi's victory was a surprise as he edged out Virgil Van Dijk, who won the UEFA player's award last […]

Milan (AFP) – FIFA president Gianni Infantino on Monday made a plea to "kick racism out" of Italian football, during the FIFA Best Football Awards ceremony in Milan. "Tonight is a night to celebrate, but we should reflect a little bit," the Swiss-Italian football chief told a star-studded gathering at Milan's iconic La Scala Opera […]

Milan (AFP) – Lionel Messi won the FIFA Men's Player of the Year award on Monday with Megan Rapinoe bagging the women's prize to cap a historic year for the United States' World Cup icon. Barcelona striker Messi's victory in Milan was a surprise as he edged out Virgil Van Dijk, who won the UEFA […]

Milan (AFP) – Cristiano Ronaldo will miss Mario Balotelli's debut game for Brescia with the Juventus star ruled out of Tuesday's match with a slight adductor injury. "Mario will be there Tuesday," confirmed coach Eugenio Corini of the Italian striker whose debut was delayed by a four-game suspension for former club Marseille. But Ronaldo may […]