Rome (AFP) – Jose Mourinho said he was "calm" ahead of his first competitive game as Roma coach, insisting that taking charge of a team for the 996th time in his career poses little anxiety. "It's true that this will be my first official match with this club, but it will be my 996th match […]

Rome (AFP) – Italy's Euro 2020 winner Manuel Locatelli has joined Juventus on a two-year loan deal from Sassuolo, the Serie A giants announced on Wednesday. Midfielder Locatelli scored twice in five games as the Azzurri lifted the European Championship trophy in July. Juve will have to sign Locatelli permanently in 2023 for 37.5 million […]

London (AFP) – Arsenal are on the verge of a permanent deal for Real Madrid midfielder Martin Odegaard, according to reports on Wednesday. Odegaard joined Arsenal on loan for the second half of last season after failing to break into the Real Madrid team. The 22-year-old scored just two goals in 20 appearances for the […]

Berlin (AFP) – Bundesliga history is set to be made Friday as two Americans face off as head coaches for the first time in Germany's top flight when Jesse Marsch's RB Leipzig host Pellegrino Matarazzo's VfB Stuttgart. "I hope it's a big deal in America," Leipzig coach Marsch said Wednesday. "It was unimaginable a few […]

London (AFP) – Romelu Lukaku is in line to make his second Chelsea debut against Arsenal on Sunday after the club record signing revealed he has been given the number nine shirt. Belgium striker Lukaku rejoined Chelsea in a £98 million ($135 million) move from Inter Milan last week. The 28-year-old missed Chelsea's win over […]

London (AFP) – Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane was left out of the squad that travelled to Portugal on Wednesday for a Europa Conference League play-off amid continuing speculation over the England captain's future. Manchester City are keen to sign Kane and were reported to have tabled a bid of £100 million ($139 million) in […]

Rome (AFP) – Italy's Euro 2020 winner Manuel Locatelli arrived in Turin on Wednesday before his move Sassuolo to Juventus, the club reported. Midfielder Locatelli, 23, scored twice in five games as the Azzurri lifted the European Championship in July and underwent a medical at Juve, who posted images on club's social media platforms. According […]

Dortmund (Germany) (AFP) – Julian Nagelsmann joked that he wants to hoard titles like a 'hamster' after winning his first trophy at Bayern Munich with his debut victory as head coach of the Bundesliga giants. Bayern swept aside league rivals Borussia Dortmund 3-1 on Tuesday to win the German Super Cup with Robert Lewandowski scoring […]

London (AFP) – Wolverhampton Wanderers striker Raul Jimenez says it never crossed his mind his career was over despite fracturing his skull in a horrific clash of heads with Arsenal's David Luiz nine months ago. The 30-year-old Mexican international completed a remarkable recovery in playing the whole of Wolves's 1-0 defeat by Leicester in their […]

London (AFP) – Fulham remained top of the early English Championship table after a 2-1 win at London rivals Millwall on Tuesday. On a good night for travelling teams in the second tier — five of the seven matches were won by the visiting club — Fulham, newly relegated from the Premier League — enjoyed […]

Yaounde (AFP) – Algeria will face the Ivory Coast, the only team they failed to defeat in winning the last Africa Cup of Nations, when Cameroon host the 2021 edition between January 9 and February 6 2022. The teams drew 1-1 after extra time in the quarter-finals and the Desert Foxes advanced by winning a […]

Paris (AFP) – Close-season signing Pedrinho's goal gave Shakhtar Donetsk a 1-0 lead over Monaco on Tuesday in their Champions League play-off round ahead of next week's second leg in Ukraine. The Brazilian playmaker joined Shakhtar from Benfica last month and scored the winner with a sublime first-half finish in the principality. The 23-year-old Pedrinho, […]

Berlin (AFP) – Robert Lewandowski netted twice as Bayern Munich retained the German Super Cup with a 3-1 win at Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday in a high-tempo encounter. Lewandowski put Bayern ahead with a bullet header at Signal Iduna Park before Thomas Mueller doubled the visitors' lead to make it 2-0 just after the break. […]

Buenos Aires (AFP) – Argentine giants Boca Juniors sacked title-winning coach Miguel Angel Russo just six games into the new season after a disastrous start to the campaign, the club confirmed on Tuesday. The champions won none of their opening half a dozen games and picked up just four points, leaving them 24th in the […]

Yaounde (AFP) – Algeria will face the Ivory Coast, the only team they failed to defeat in winning the last Africa Cup of Nations, when Cameroon host the 2021 edition between January 9 and February 6 2022. The teams drew 1-1 after extra time in the quarter-finals and the Desert Foxes advanced by winning a […]