Madrid (AFP) – From 40 games without defeat to just one win in four, 2017 hasn't been kind to Zinedine Zidane's Real Madrid with the European champions' Copa del Rey elimination to Celta Vigo sparking doubts for the first time in the Frenchman's tenure. Zidane celebrated a near flawless first year in charge at the […]

London (AFP) – Southampton owner Katharina Liebherr has confirmed the Premier League club are interested in potential investment from a Chinese group. Lander Holding announced its intention to buy a stake in League Cup finalists Southampton to the Shenzhen stock exchange on Thursday. The news came less than 24 hours after Claude Puel's team reached […]

Milan (AFP) – Juventus are consulting lawyers to protect the club's "honour and integrity" after a newspaper report linked club officials to hardline ultra-fans with organised crime connections via a ticket touting scam. A report in Rome based daily Il Fatto Quotidiano newspaper on Thursday claimed Juventus president Andrea Agnelli had met with ultra leader […]

Hong Kong (AFP) – Beijing football club Guoan FC has been bought by a Chinese real estate developer, according to a statement on the Hong Kong stock exchange, with the club now valued at 754 million euros — more than AC Milan. Developer Sinobo Land bought 64 percent of the club from Chinese financial services […]

London (AFP) – Leicester manager Claudio Ranieri insists he has no problem with unhappy striker Leonardo Ulloa despite being branded a liar by one of the Argentine's agents. Ulloa handed in a transfer request last week but the Premier League champions have reportedly rejected a bid from Spanish club Alaves because Ranieri would prefer to […]

London (AFP) – Burnley midfielder Dean Marney has been ruled out for the rest of the season after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his knee for a second time. Marney suffered the injury while challenging Mesut Ozil in a 2-1 defeat at Arsenal in the Premier League last Sunday. The 32-year-old sustained the same […]

London (AFP) – Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino expects Erik Lamela to report to the club's training ground on Friday after completing his treatment for a hip problem at his former club Roma. Lamela hasn't played for Tottenham since October and reports suggested the forward might try to engineer a transfer back to Italy when he […]

London (AFP) – Arsene Wenger has defended Granit Xhaka after the Arsenal midfielder was spoken to by police over an allegation of racial abuse just days after being sent off for the second time this season. Xhaka will serve a four-match ban after being dismissed during Arsenal's 2-1 victory over Burnley last Sunday following a […]

Saturday's live broadcast of Manchester City against Tottenham Hotspur helped NBC Sports mark four consecutive weeks that a Premier League match has drawn more than 1 million viewers on the network. The 12:30-2:30pm ET broadcast on NBC posted 1.16 million viewers. This number ties the match between Hull City and Manchester United in the opening […]

London (AFP) – West Ham manager Slaven Bilic spent two days in hospital this week after a bad bout of flu, according to reports on Thursday. Bilic is believed to have checked himself into a London hospital on Sunday following West Ham's 3-1 win at Middlesbrough last Saturday. The 48-year-old Croatian was feeling unwell before […]

Berlin (AFP) – Neven Subotic confirmed Thursday he has joined Cologne on loan from Bundesliga rivals Dortmund until the end of the season, as he looks to regain form after injury. The 28-year-old has been with Dortmund since 2008 and was a key part of the side which won the 2011 and 2012 German league […]

Bayern Munich's game last Friday against Freiburg was the least-viewed Friday afternoon Bundesliga game on FOX Sports since September, 2016. The opening game of the second half of the 2016/17 Bundesliga season after the winter break was watched by an audience of just 54,000 people. The last time a Friday afternoon Bundesliga game got a […]

London (AFP) – Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has revealed he will accept a Football Association misconduct charge after being sent off in Sunday's explosive win over Burnley. Wenger was sent to the stands by referee Jon Moss after allegedly using abusive or insulting language towards fourth official Anthony Taylor after Burnley were given a stoppage-time […]

London (AFP) – A potential FA Cup banana skin awaits Pep Guardiola as he takes his inconsistent Manchester City team to Crystal Palace in the fourth round on Saturday. This month's results tell the tale of City's erratic form, with Guardiola's men cruising to a 5-0 win at West Ham United in the FA Cup […]

Madrid (AFP) – Real Madrid will recover their killer instinct in front of goal, coach Zinedine Zidane warned as his side's treble ambitions ended with elimination from the Copa del Rey at the hands of Celta Vigo on Wednesday. A 2-2 draw on the night at Balaidos saw Celta progress to the semi-finals 4-3 on […]