London (AFP) – Painful memories of their humiliating Euro 2016 elimination by Iceland contributed to "nervous tension" during England's opening World Cup qualifying win in Slovakia, according to new manager Sam Allardyce. England needed a 95th-minute goal by Liverpool midfielder Adam Lallana to secure a 1-0 victory over 10-man Slovakia in Trnava on Sunday in […]

Zagreb (AFP) – Croatia captain and Real Madrid midfield star Luka Modric regretted being held 1-1 by Turkey in their opening World Cup qualifier at an empty Zagreb stadium on Monday. "We were much better as a team and we created much more chances ... No one is to blame but ourselves," Modric told state-run […]

Miami (AFP) – United States coach Jurgen Klinsmann has called for patience as the clamour for rising star Christian Pulisic to be given a starting berth reaches fever pitch. Borussia Dortmund teenager Pulisic produced a sparkling two-goal cameo last Friday as the USA demolished St. Vincent and the Grenadines 6-0 in Kingstown. The result left […]

Madrid (AFP) – Newly-appointed Spain coach Julien Lopetegui enjoyed a perfect competitive debut as Diego Costa, David Silva and Alvaro Morata all hit doubles in an 8-0 drubbing of Liechtenstein in Leon on Monday. Costa scored his first Spain goal since 2014 after just 10 minutes, but despite complete domination of the game the hosts […]

Sao Paulo (AFP) – A resurgent Brazil buoyed by the sparkling form of teenager Gabriel Jesus face Colombia on Tuesday as the latest instalment of an increasingly bitter rivalry takes centre stage in South America's 2018 World Cup qualifying race. Brazil head into Tuesday's game in the heart of the Amazon brimming with confidence after […]

Barring a disaster of biblical scale, the US Men's National Team has a spot in the final round of World Cup Qualifying all locked up. However, there is still a mathematical possibility of missing out, so Jurgen Klinsmann would be wise not to take anything for granted when the US plays its final semi-final round […]

Barcelona (AFP) – Lionel Messi's availability for Barcelona's Champions League opener with Celtic next week remains in doubt after tests confirmed the five-time World Player of the Year is suffering from a groin injury. Messi returned to Spain after aggravating the injury as he scored the winner against Uruguay last Thursday in his first match […]

Here are the ten things we learned from Week 26 of the 2016 MLS season. 1. Shakeup in San Jose This column mused last week on the future of Dominic Kinnear as San Jose’s 2016 season continued to spiral, and on Monday, the Earthquakes made a major move. Kinnear was granted a reprieve. The club […]

Seoul (AFP) – Son Heung-Min is skipping South Korea's 2018 World Cup qualifier against Syria on Tuesday to return to England and get his Tottenham Hotspur career on track. The 24-year-old forward moved from Bayer Leverkusen in August 2015 for a reported fee of around £22 million ($29 million), making him the most expensive Asian […]

Beijing (AFP) – China are hoping to reproduce the form that gave South Korea palpitations last week as they take on heavyweights Iran in another big World Cup qualifying test on Tuesday. China fought back from 3-0 down to make it 3-2 with 14 minutes left in Seoul, ensuring a tense finale to a game […]

Trnava (Slovakia) (AFP) – Sam Allardyce vowed to defer to captain Wayne Rooney over his positioning after starting life as England manager with a last-gasp 1-0 win over Slovakia in World Cup qualifying. Adam Lallana snatched a 95th-minute winner against 10-man Slovakia in Trnava on Sunday to prevent Allardyce from becoming the first England manager […]

Johannesburg (AFP) – Burkina Faso, Democratic Republic of Congo, Togo, Tunisia and Uganda on Sunday filled the final five 2017 Africa Cup of Nations places that were up for grabs. They will join Algeria, Cameroon, Egypt, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Mali, Morocco, Senegal, Zimbabwe, all of whom qualified before the final round, and hosts Gabon […]

Oslo (AFP) – Bayern Munich team-mates Thomas Mueller and Joshua Kimmich fired title-holders Germany to a commanding 3-0 win away to Norway in their opening 2018 World Cup qualifier on Sunday. Mueller struck in the 16th minute at the Ullevaal Stadion in Oslo before Kimmich netted Germany's second goal on the stroke of half-time. Mueller […]

Prague (AFP) – Northern Ireland opened their World Cup 2018 qualifying campaign with a goalless draw against Group C rivals the Czech Republic in Prague on Sunday. Playing their first competitive game since their 1-0 defeat to Wales in the last-16 phase of Euro 2016, Northern Ireland relied on solid defence and breakaways throughout the […]

Next Saturday, FOX Sports will televise the first Scottish Premiership Old Firm derby in four years between Celtic and Rangers. The match, which will be shown live on FOX Sports 1, Sling Blue and FOX Soccer 2GO, is scheduled to kick off Saturday, September 10 at 7am ET, live from Celtic Park in Glasgow, Scotland. […]