Barcelona (AFP) – Spanish champions Barcelona face further sanctions from UEFA after thousands of separatist Catalan flags were flown at their Champions League opener against Celtic on Tuesday. The Champions League anthem was drowned out by a chorus of boos and chants in favour of Catalan independence, whilst a large banner read: "Welcome to Catalonia." […]

Turin (Italy) (AFP) – Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri has warned their Champions League ambitions will count for nothing on Wednesday if the Turin giants don't successfully defend their impressive home record in Europe against Sevilla. Juventus have been tipped for success in this season's competition after notably adding Gonzalo Higuain, Miralem Pjanic and Dani Alves […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – The Champions League group game between Manchester City and Borussia Moenchengladbach on Tuesday was postponed due to heavy rain at City's Etihad Stadium. "Tonight's #UCL match between #mcfc and @borussia_en has been postponed due to adverse weather conditions," City said in a statement on their Twitter feed. It had rained […]

Barcelona (AFP) – Barcelona boss Luis Enrique named star trio Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar together in his starting line-up for the first time in four months for Celtic's visit to the Camp Nou on Tuesday. Neymar missed Barca's start to the campaign due to his duties in winning Olympic gold with Brazil, whilst […]

Turin (Italy) (AFP) – Sevilla coach Jorge Sampaoli wants "desire and passion" from his players as the Europa League champions look to kickstart their Champions League campaign by ending Juventus' impressive home record in Europe Wednesday. "We have to go out and play with a lot of desire and passion because we're facing a team […]

Moscow (AFP) – Oleg Kononov has resigned after three years as head coach of Russian Premier League outfit Krasnodar, the club said on Tuesday. "FC Krasnodar expresses its special gratitude and appreciation to Kononov for his work with the club," said a statement on the club's official website, failing to give a reason for his […]

London (AFP) – Mauricio Pochettino insists Tottenham won't be allowed to use their temporary move to Wembley as an excuse for failure in their Champions League opener against Monaco on Wednesday. Pochettino's side return to the Champions League for the first time in five years in unfamiliar surroundings after deciding to stage their European matches […]

London (AFP) – Chelsea captain John Terry will be sidelined for 10 days after suffering an ankle ligament injury against Swansea on Sunday. Terry strained ligaments in his left ankle during the 2-2 Premier League draw and left the Liberty Stadium on crutches. The 35-year-old will miss Chelsea's Premier League clash against Liverpool at Stamford […]

Madrid (AFP) – Cristiano Ronaldo says facing Sporting Lisbon is a privilege, but in his quest to reach 100 Champions League goals he won't go easy on the club that formed him. Ronaldo is just seven goals shy of a Champions League century having top-scored in the competition for the past four seasons as Madrid […]

Barcelona (AFP) – Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers labelled Barcelona's Luis Suarez as the best striker in the world ahead of the Scottish champions' daunting task of stopping Suarez, Lionel Messi and Neymar in their Champions League opener on Tuesday. Rodgers worked with Suarez for two years at Liverpool as the Uruguayan's 31 goals nearly carried […]

Caen (France) (AFP) – A French court handed former Caen coach Franck Dumas a three-year jail sentence for tax fraud on Tuesday, but the former Monaco, Marseille and Newcastle player was neither present in court nor represented by a lawyer. The court heard Dumas described by tax inspectors as a high roller who made large […]

London (AFP) – Tottenham midfielder Eric Dier signed a new five-year contract with the Premier League club on Tuesday. Dier has established himself as a key figure in Mauricio Pochettino's side since joining from Sporting Lisbon two years ago and also become a regular in the England team. Following a season of playing in defence, […]

Paris (AFP) – AFP Sports looks ahead to Wednesday's Champions League action as Real Madrid begin their defence of the trophy and Leicester City make their debut in the competition (all kick-offs 1945 GMT): Group E At Leverkusen, Germany Bayer Leverkusen (GER) v CSKA Moscow (RUS) Third in the Bundesliga last season, Leverkusen go into […]

London (AFP) – Harry Kane is confident Tottenham's England stars will ensure Wembley becomes a successful second home in their Champions League opener against Monaco on Wednesday. Mauricio Pochettino's side return to the Champions League for the first time in five years in unfamiliar surroundings after deciding to stage their European matches at Wembley rather […]

Madrid (AFP) – Ahead of the start of their 2016-17 Champions League campaign against Sporting Lisbon on Wednesday, AFP Sports takes a look at five reasons defending champions Real Madrid can conquer Europe for the 12th time: – It is "their" competition Understandably given Madrid are by a distance the most successful team in the […]