When Everton manager Roberto Martinez described John Stones as “more than a footballer” in the aftermath of his team’s 3-1 win over Chelsea, the majority of the soccer stratosphere would have thought he was being typically over exuberant. But anyone who trained an eye on defender’s situation throughout the past few weeks, from an Everton […]

The continuing battle being waged publicly over the value of Division 1 sanctioning within the US Soccer pyramid has the making of the start of another “soccer war,” which the sport in North America can scarcely afford. While many fans of the game in the United States and Canada simply watch foreign leagues on their […]

Speaking after Chelsea defeated Maccabi Tel-Aviv 4-0 in the Champions League on Wednesday night, Blues defender Gary Cahill said that Chelsea has already used a lot of its lifelines this season ahead of the game against Arsenal this weekend. In an exclusive interview with Garry Hayes, Cahill said: "We should be confident from what we […]

Doha (AFP) – Qatar has begun construction at the site where the 2022 World Cup final will be played, tournament officials said on Wednesday. Preparatory work, including the stationing of site offices and five kilometers of hoarding, have gone up at the site in Lusail, north of the capital, Doha. As well as the final, […]

Marseille (AFP) – Lyon and France playmaker Mathieu Valbuena has gone to court to claim 568,000 euros ($640,000; £414,000) in compensation from his old club Marseille following a dispute with his former agent. Valbuena, 30, believes the money, which he paid to his former agent, Christophe Hutteau, in May as compensation for breaking their contract […]

Milan (AFP) – Juventus star Paul Pogba has poked fun at big-spending Manchester City after the English giants' 2-1 Champions League defeat to the Italians on Tuesday. Pogba, formerly of City's local rivals Manchester United, posted a message on his Facebook page which said: "Qatar City 1-2 Juventus. Great win. Thank you for your support." […]

Rome (AFP) – An Alessandro Florenzi wonder goal earned Roma a share of the spoils as Barcelona's Lionel Messi celebrated his 100th Champions League appearance without a goal in a 1-1 draw at the Stadio Olimpico on Wednesday. Roma, dominated throughout by the defending champions, looked to be on their way to a sound defeat […]

Piraeus (Greece) (AFP) – A Thomas Mueller brace and a Mario Goetze snap shot lifted Bayern Munich to a 3-0 win over Olympiacos in their Champions League Group F opener on Wednesday as tensions boiled over on the terraces. Mueller's first was a long range fluke in the 52nd minute and a nervy Bayern had […]

Diego Costa scored his first Champions League goal for Chelsea as the beleaguered Barclays Premier League champions claimed a much-needed victory by thrashing Maccabi Tel Aviv at Stamford Bridge. Willian, Oscar, with a penalty, Costa – on as a substitute after being omitted as one of six changes following the loss at Everton – and […]

Berlin (AFP) – Germany captain Bastian Schweinsteiger regrets the nature of his hasty exit from Bayern Munich and would still like the chance to say a proper farewell to the Bavarian giants. Schweinsteiger signed a three-year deal with Manchester United in July to turn his back on Bayern after 14 years and a host of […]

Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany insists the calf injury that forced him to leave the field against Juventus is no cause for concern. Kompany was replaced by summer signing Nicolas Otamendi after 75 minutes of City's Champions League opener, with the game finely balanced at 1-1. Alvaro Morata scored the winner for Juve just six […]

Two days into this season's Champions League, and we may already have our goal of the tournament, with the crowd at Rome's Stadio Olimpico left in momentary raptures after a 50-yard shot from Roma fullback Alessandro Florenzi went off Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen's post and in, completing one of the more remarkable long distance […]

Arsene Wenger is confident Jack Wilshere will be back in action at Christmas and challenged his Arsenal side to show they mean business in the Champions League by starting the group campaign with victory at Dinamo Zagreb. Midfielder Wilshere, 23, needs surgery to properly correct a hairline fracture in his left fibula, which will see […]

Let’s talk about that looming Oct. 10 date, the one of such super-duper importance in our part of the soccer world. And then let’s hack away at some conventional wisdom that needs taming – a false narrative has spilled out, and it needs cleaning up. The match is United States versus Mexico inside Pasadena’s historic […]

Madrid (AFP) – Real Madrid coach Rafael Benitez fears Welsh star Gareth Bale could be set for a significant spell on the sidelines due to a calf muscle injury. Bale was forced off after just half an hour of Madrid's 4-0 win over Shakhtar to open the Spanish giants' Champions League campaign on Tuesday. Karim […]