Mexico City (AFP) – French forward Andre-Pierre Gignac had gone two months without a goal for his Mexican club Tigres of Monterrey when he got an assist from an unlikely source: A hypnotist. Gignac met Chile-born John Milton in November after one of his shows, in which he collectively hypnotizes an audience. The 30-year-old striker […]

Sunderland (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Chelsea are six points clear at the top of the Premier League following their 1-0 victory at Sunderland, but Antonio Conte is determined to silence premature title talk. Conte is cautious about the future because although Chelsea may have a significant advantage over the other title contenders, their unconvincing performance […]

London (AFP) – Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino hailed his change of system after his side beat Hull City 3-0 to remain unbeaten on home soil in the Premier League this term. Two goals from Danish playmaker Christian Eriksen and one for Victor Wanyama at White Hart Lane on Wednesday ensured Spurs bounced back from […]

Middlesbrough (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Jurgen Klopp has offered Liverpool goalkeeper Loris Karius no guarantee of a recall after dropping the error-prone German for his side's 3-0 win against Middlesbrough. Reds boss Klopp admitted it was a difficult telling the 23-year-old that he had been benched in favour of Belgium international Simon Mignolet for the comprehensive victory at […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester City have been dealt a blow after German midfielder Ilkay Gundogan sustained a knee injury that manager Pep Guardiola fears will sideline him for "several months". The Germany international had to be substituted in the 44th minute of City's 2-0 Premier League win over Watford at the Etihad Stadium […]

London (AFP) – Jose Mourinho believes Zlatan Ibrahimovic's performance in Manchester United's victory over Crystal Palace once again confirmed the striker did not move to the Premier League to wind down his career. Ibrahimovic, 35, moved to Old Trafford as a free agent before the start of this season and his late winning goal took […]

London (AFP) – Christian Eriksen scored two and made one as Tottenham got back on track with a 3-0 Premier League victory over struggling Hull on Wednesday. Eriksen netted from close range either side of half-time before Victor Wanyama converted after the Danish midfielder's free kick had come back off the bar. That made it […]

London (AFP) – Zlatan Ibrahimovic's late strike gave Manchester United a 2-1 win at Crystal Palace after Jose Mourinho's side once again appeared in danger of squandering three points on Wednesday. Mourinho had been left frustrated by United's recent run that had brought three draws in their previous four league games. And when referee Craig […]

Paris (AFP) – Defending champions Paris Saint-Germain eased into the French League Cup quarter-finals on Wednesday with a 3-1 win over Lille while Monaco routed Rennes 7-0. However, Ligue 1 leaders Nice were knocked out, going down 3-2 to Bordeaux in their last-16 tie. At the Parc des Princes, PSG ended a three-match winless run […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Pablo Zabaleta's first goal in two years helped earn Manchester City an important but nervous 2-0 win over Watford on Wednesday as Pep Guardiola's team returned to winning ways. Victory marked City's first Premier League success on their own turf since beating Bournemouth on September 17, but was only assured […]

Sunderland (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Cesc Fabregas struck as Antonio Conte's Chelsea edged a battling Sunderland team 1-0 on Wednesday to establish a six-point advantage at the top of the Premier League. While they controlled much of the match, Chelsea struggled to create clear-cut chances and required two superb saves from goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois to […]

Middlesbrough (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Adam Lallana scored twice and Divock Origi found the net for the fifth consecutive game as Liverpool climbed to second in the Premier League thanks to a comfortable 3-0 victory at Middlesbrough. Jurgen Klopp's controversial decision to drop goalkeeper Loris Karius proved to be fully justified with Simon Mignolet keeping a clean […]

London (AFP) – Cesc Fabregas's goal earned Chelsea a 1-0 victory at Sunderland on Wednesday — their 10th in succession — as Antonio Conte's side surged six points clear at the Premier League summit. Fabregas, who came in for Nemanja Matic, curled in from Willian's 40th-minute cut-back to establish Chelsea's longest winning run within the […]

London (AFP) – Mark Noble boosted West Ham's bid to avoid relegation from the Premier League as the midfielder sealed a 1-0 win over Burnley at the London Stadium on Wednesday. Slaven Bilic's side had been dragged into the fight for survival after a miserable run of six games without a win. But Noble's strike […]

London (AFP) – Chelsea legend Gianfranco Zola is back in management after being hired as the new boss of Championship club Birmingham on Wednesday. Zola has been appointed at St Andrew's just 24 hours after the second-tier team's new Asian owners sacked previous manager Gary Rowett. The 50-year-old, widely regarded as one of Chelsea's all-time […]