London (AFP) – Chelsea have agreed terms to re-sign Brazil defender David Luiz from Paris Saint-Germain, the two clubs announced on Wednesday. Luiz was sold by Premier League Chelsea to French side PSG for a world record fee for a defender when he joined the French club for £50 million ($65 million, 58 million euros) […]

London (AFP) – Chelsea completed their surprise swoop for Fiorentina's former Bolton left-back Marcos Alonso for a reported £23 million ($30 million, 27 million euros) on Wednesday. Alonso agreed a five-year contract with the Premier League club as Chelsea manager Antonio Conte turned to the Spaniard after missing out on several other defensive targets. The […]

Sunderland (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Gabonese international midfield dynamo Didier Ndong signed for Premier League side Sunderland from French outfit Lorient on Wednesday for a club record fee of £13.6 million (16 million euros, $17.8m). The 22-year-old — capped 18 times since making his debut in 2012 — signed a five-year contract with the 'Black […]

London (AFP) – Manchester City allowed Joe Hart, Samir Nasri and Wilfried Bony to leave on season-long loan deals on Wednesday as the transfer deadline approached across Europe. England goalkeeper Hart completed his move to Italian side Torino, French midfielder Nasri joined Europa League champions Sevilla and Bony pitched up at City's Premier League rivals […]

London (AFP) – Frozen out by new manager Pep Guardiola at Manchester City, England goalkeeper Joe Hart completed a season-long loan move to Italian side Torino on Wednesday. AFP Sport recalls five British players who went to Italy seeking fame and fortune. John Charles (Juventus, Roma) Nicknamed 'Il Gigante Buono' ('The Gentle Giant'), Wales international […]

Madrid (AFP) – French midfielder Samir Nasri has joined La Liga side Sevilla from Manchester City on a season-long loan deal, both sides confirmed on Wednesday. Nasri scored 27 goals and won two Premier League titles in five years in Manchester, but after an injury-plagued 2015/16 season, new City boss Pep Guardiola had criticised his […]

Madrid (AFP) – Real Madrid president Florentino Perez insists the European champions' squad is "impossible to improve" after an uncharacteristically quiet transfer window. Perez, known for splashing hundreds of millions of euros in previous years on the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and James Rodriguez, has limited his spending to just a 30-million-euro ($33.5 […]

London (AFP) – Joe Hart completed his loan switch to Torino on Wednesday and several international stars were reportedly poised for moves as the clock ticked down towards Europe's transfer deadlines. Spending by English Premier League clubs has broken through the one billion pounds (1.17 billion euros, $1.3 billion) barrier in one window for the […]

Paris (AFP) – French midfielder Moussa Sissoko, a standout at Euro 2016, left a national team training camp on Wednesday to finalise a last-minute transfer from Newcastle United, the French Football Federation said. Just hours from the closure of the transfer window, Sissoko was given permission to quit the French international squad preparing for a […]

London (AFP) – Out-of-favour Manchester City goalkeeper Joe Hart has joined Italian club Torino on a season-long loan, the Premier League side announced on Wednesday. "Joe Hart has joined @TorinoFC_1906 on a season-long loan — good luck in Italy, Joe," City wrote on their official Twitter page. England international Hart, 29, had been City's first-choice […]

Paris (AFP) – International stars Mario Balotelli, Moussa Sissoko and Jack Wilshere were all reportedly poised for moves on Wednesday as the clock ticked down towards the European transfer deadline. Spending by English Premier League clubs has broken through the one billion pounds (1.17 billion euros, $1.3 billion) barrier in one window for the first […]

Nice (France) (AFP) – Liverpool's outcast Italian striker Mario Balotelli was to have a medical at French side Nice on Wednesday amid transfer deadline day talks between the clubs, l'Equipe newspaper reported. The 26-year-old could be sold or loaned to Nice, the report said. Once one of the biggest hopes in Europe, Balotelli has not […]

Seoul (AFP) – Ambitious China are out to prove that reaching the third round of 2018 World Cup qualifying was no fluke when they take on bogey side South Korea on Thursday. China scraped through thanks to their shock 2-0 win over Qatar and the Philippines' almighty 3-2 upset of North Korea on the last […]

Montevideo (AFP) – Injury-hit Argentina resume their bid for a berth at the 2018 World Cup on Thursday as Brazil head into the latest round of South American qualifiers hoping to build on their Olympic gold medal triumph. In the five months since the last batch of games in South America's marathon qualifying campaign, both […]

Milan (AFP) – Chelsea jokes aside, Giampiero Ventura is hoping to pick up where Antonio Conte left off when he leads a new-look Italy for the first time in a friendly against beaten Euro 2016 finalists France on Thursday. "I want to take Antonio's project forward," Ventura told media Monday, a week before making his […]