San Francisco (AFP) – Karim Benzema and Eden Hazard were on target as Spanish giants Real Madrid were held to a 2-2 draw by Mexican side Club America in their pre-season friendly on Tuesday. Former Real Madrid player Alvaro Fidalgo's 82nd-minute penalty denied Real victory in a game played on a makeshift surface at Oracle […]

Los Angeles (AFP) – Ousmane Dembele and Moise Kean scored two goals apiece as Barcelona and Juventus fought to an entertaining 2-2 draw in their US pre-season friendly in Dallas on Tuesday. French winger Dembele fired Barcelona ahead after 34 minutes at the Cotton Bowl, wriggling past Juventus players Juan Cuadrado and Sandro before beating […]

Osaka (Japan) (AFP) – Lionel Messi and Neymar combined to devastating effect as Paris Saint-Germain thrashed Gamba Osaka 6-2 on Monday to finish their pre-season Japan tour with three wins out of three. The star forwards both played the opening 70 minutes in Osaka and Neymar scored a first-half penalty before setting up a goal […]

Leipzig (Germany) (AFP) – Jurgen Klopp said "Pandora's box" opened as new Liverpool signing Darwin Nunez scored four goals in a 5-0 friendly thrashing of RB Leipzig on Thursday. The Reds brought striker Nunez to Anfield from Benfica last month for a transfer fee which could rise to a club-record 100 million euros (£85 million, […]

Washington (AFP) – New signings Sadio Mane and Matthijs De Ligt scored debut goals as Bayern Munich thumped Major League Soccer's D.C United 6-2 in a friendly on Wednesday. Senegalese international Mane, who joined Bayern from Liverpool last month in a transfer worth a reported $42 million, opened his account for the Bundesliga champions from […]

Houston (AFP) – Kevin De Bruyne's double strike was enough to help Manchester City see off Club America 2-1 in Houston on Wednesday as Pep Guardiola made Erling Haaland wait for his debut. The Belgian international's superbly taken brace settled a feisty clash at NRG Stadium but City's new $61 million striker could only look […]

Washington (AFP) – New signings Sadio Mane and Matthijs De Ligt scored debut goals as Bayern Munich thumped Major League Soccer's D.C United 6-2 in a friendly on Wednesday. Senegalese international Mane, who joined Bayern last month in a transfer worth a reported $42 million after a six-year stint with English giants Liverpool, opened his […]

Tokyo (AFP) – Lionel Messi scored but Paris Saint-Germain were made to work hard for a 2-1 win over Kawasaki Frontale on Wednesday in the first match of their pre-season Japanese tour. Star forwards Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe all started in new PSG manager Christophe Galtier's first game in charge of his full squad […]

Miami (AFP) – Raphinha marked his Barcelona debut with a goal and two assists as the Spanish giants kicked off their four match US tour with a comprehensive thrashing of David Beckham's Inter Miami on Tuesday. The Brazilian, signed from Premier League Leeds United earlier this month for around $60 million, capped a promising first […]

Los Angeles (AFP) – Barcelona and Real Madrid will play the fourth Clasico ever held outside of Spain on Saturday as powerhouse European football clubs return to the United States aiming to fan the flames of US fandom. The match at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, home of the NFL's Las Vegas Raiders, highlights the […]

Melbourne (AFP) – Anthony Martial scored his third goal in three games as a slick Manchester United beat Crystal Palace 3-1 in Melbourne to ensure new coach Erik ten Hag's unbeaten streak remained intact Tuesday. In front of 76,500 fans at Melbourne Cricket Ground, French forward Martial struck in the first half while Marcus Rashford […]

Melbourne (AFP) – Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford got on the scoresheet as Manchester United rallied from a goal down to beat Melbourne Victory 4-1 Friday and hand manager Erik ten Hag his second win since taking over. It followed their 4-0 thumping of Liverpool in Bangkok on Tuesday when Jadon Sancho, Fred, Martial and […]

Bangkok (AFP) – After the rains came the red wave, as tens of thousands of jersey-wearing fans surged into Bangkok's Rajamangala Stadium to witness Manchester United and Liverpool's pre-season clash on Tuesday night. The renovated stadium — boasting a newly laid pitch that was hastily covered to protect it during a downpour ahead of the […]