London (AFP) – Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel believes captain Cesar Azpilicueta can be tied down to a contract extension despite the sanctions imposed on the European Champions. The Blues are operating under a special licence after owner Roman Abramovich was hit by UK government sanctions for his alleged links to Russian president Vladimir Putin. Under […]

Liverpool (AFP) – Liverpool's push for a historic quadruple has been given a boost by the return of Trent Alexander-Arnold after the influential right-back missed England's friendlies with a hamstring injury. It had been feared Alexander-Arnold's injury could keep him out of next weekend's crucial Premier League visit to Manchester City, as well as the […]

Berlin (AFP) – Erling Haaland is again an injury doubt for Dortmund before Saturday's game against RB Leipzig with the hosts needing a win to stay in the Bundesliga title race and a capacity crowd expected for the first time in two years. With seven games left, second-placed Dortmund need to end Leipzig's six match […]

Abuja (AFP) – The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) said national coach Augustine Eguavoen and his assistants have stepped down after the team failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. The NFF said in a statement late Thursday the coaching staff had resigned "with immediate effect". On Tuesday, Ghana pipped Nigeria on the […]

Paris (AFP) – FIFA on Friday faced calls to sanction Iran and even throw its team out of the 2022 World Cup finals over the Islamic republic's renewed failure to allow women to attend an international football match. Iranian news agencies this week confirmed that 2,000 women who had bought tickets for Tuesday's World Cup […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Bruno Fernandes extended his contract at Manchester United till 2026 on Friday in a deal expected to make the Portuguese midfielder one of the club's highest earners. Fernandes has been a key player for the Red Devils since joining from Sporting Lisbon in January 2020, scoring 49 goals and providing […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Ukraine under-21 international Andrii Kravchuk will train with Premier League champions Manchester City after travelling to Britain as a refugee. Kravchuk terminated his contract with Russian side Torpedo Moscow and fled to Manchester following Russia's invasion of his homeland. City have received permission from the Home Office and football authorities […]

London (AFP) – Liverpool and Manchester City resume their quest for historic trophy hauls on Saturday at the start of a season-defining month for both Premier League title contenders. City, chasing a treble, are one point clear at the top of the table but Liverpool, with an unprecedented quadruple in their sights, are the form […]

Doha (AFP) – The draw for this year's World Cup takes place in the shadow of Doha's skyscrapers on Friday, with the focus for the evening on the actual football after a build-up dominated by the many off-field issues surrounding the awarding of the tournament. It is the most controversial World Cup in history, with […]

Milan (AFP) – Inter Milan and Juventus face off on Sunday with their title hopes in the balance as Italy fully opens its doors to supporters for the first time in two years and fans focus on domestic concerns following the national team's World Cup flop. The so-called 'Derby of Italy' in Turin will be […]

Madrid (AFP) – Real Madrid's trip to Celta Vigo might once have been seen as a chance to rest and reset but the Clasico capitulation has raised the stakes ahead of next week's Champions League first leg against Chelsea. Madrid are nine points clear at the top of La Liga, which should still be more […]

Paris (AFP) – Former women's world footballer of the year Ada Hegerberg scored one of the goals that gave Lyon a 3-1 win over Juventus and a Champions League semi-final clash against French rivals Paris Saint-Germain on Thursday. Norwegian star Hegerberg opened the scoring on 33 minutes, tucking away a cross from the left by […]

Paris (AFP) – Former Arsenal player Jill Roord scored as Wolfsburg defeated the London side 2-0 on Thursday to set-up a Women's Champions League semi-final clash with holders Barcelona. Dutch international Roord, who spent two seasons with the English side before leaving for Germany in 2021, opened the scoring after just nine minutes after Arsenal […]

Doha (AFP) – Lingering divisions over FIFA's decision to hold the World Cup in Qatar overshadowed the annual congress of football's world governing body on Thursday, forcing its president Gianni Infantino to insist that the event had already brought change to the Arab state. Just 235 days from the start of the first World Cup […]

Doha (AFP) – FIFA's decision to hold the World Cup in Qatar took centre stage at the global body's annual congress on Thursday with president Gianni Infantino forced to defend progress made by the Gulf state on human rights. Infantino and Qatar's top organiser hit back after Norway's football federation head, Lise Klaveness, a rare […]