Kobe (Japan) (AFP) – Real Madrid starlet Takefusa Kubo scored his first international goal as Japan thrashed Ghana 4-1 on Friday to step up their World Cup preparations. The 21-year-old Kubo, who spent last season on loan at Mallorca, turned home Kaoru Mitoma's cross midway through the second half to open his account for Japan […]

Kobe (Japan) (AFP) – Chile coach Eduardo Berizzo says reports that they are set to replace Ecuador at the World Cup have "absolutely no impact" on his players despite a 2-0 defeat Friday to Qatar-bound Tunisia. Reports this week said Ecuador are set to be kicked out of the November-December showpiece for fielding an ineligible […]

Jerusalem (AFP) – Israeli citizens will be allowed to travel to Qatar to watch football's 2022 World Cup, despite the absence of diplomatic relations between the two countries, the government said. World football's governing body "FIFA has confirmed that Israeli citizens will be able to enter Qatar during the World Cup and watch games, just […]

Vancouver (AFP) – Alphonso Davies celebrated his return to international duty with two goals Thursday as World Cup-bound Canada thrashed Curacao 4-0 in the CONCACAF Nations League. The 21-year-old Bayern Munich star missed Canada's last six matches after developing symptoms of myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart, after Covid-19. Sidelined since December, he had returned […]

Johannesburg (AFP) – Egypt sorely missed injured captain Mohamed Salah as they slumped to a shock 2-0 defeat by Ethiopia on Thursday in 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifying. A strain ruled out the prolific Liverpool scorer after he defied his club last Sunday and played in a victory over Guinea despite not […]

Geneva (AFP) – Spain registered the first win of their Nations League campaign on Thursday as Pablo Sarabia's early goal was enough for a 1-0 victory over Switzerland. Sarabia capitalised on a Swiss error at the back to give Luis Enrique's side the lead in Geneva and that was enough for the visitors in a […]

Lisbon (AFP) – Portugal scored twice in five minutes to beat the Czech Republic on Thursday and open up a two-point lead at the top of Group A2 in the Nations League. Joao Cancelo and Goncalo Guedes were on target in the 33rd and 38th minutes in Lisbon as Portugal continued their strong start in […]

Bellinzona (Switzerland) (AFP) – Sepp Blatter struck a "gentleman's agreement" with Michel Platini to pay him a million Swiss francs ($1.02 million) a year as an adviser, the former world football chief told their trial on Thursday. The French football legend had jokingly asked Blatter for a million, without specifying the currency, and the then-FIFA […]

Algiers (AFP) – An Algerian court sentenced Algerian football star and ex-Porto striker Rabah Madjer to six months in jail on Thursday for making "false declarations", local media reported. Madjer, who owned two newspapers, was found to have continued to bank cheques from a public advertising agency for a year after the papers were closed. […]

Madrid (AFP) – Gennaro Gattuso has been confirmed as the new coach of Valencia, the La Liga side announced on Thursday. The 44-year-old, who last managed Napoli, will replace Jose Bordalas who was sacked by the club last week. Gattuso has also managed AC Milan, where he played as a combative midfielder for 13 years, […]

Paris (AFP) – The head of Paris police acknowledged on Thursday the "failure" of security operations for the Champions League final last month and apologised for tear-gassing supporters as they tried to enter the stadium. The football showpiece hosted by Paris on May 28 was marred by scenes of mayhem as Liverpool fans struggled to […]

London (AFP) – Everton owner Farhad Moshiri has apologised to fans after the Premier League club only narrowly avoided relegation in the penultimate game of the season. A dramatic 3-2 victory against Crystal Palace extended Everton's top-flight stay to 69 years. But that uplifting end to the season for Frank Lampard's team could not obscure […]

London (AFP) – Gareth Southgate insists England's established stars deserve his loyalty because they would "die for each other" on the pitch. Southgate's side have gone two games without a win in the Nations League after rescuing a 1-1 draw in Germany in their Nations League group clash on Tuesday. Harry Kane's late penalty cancelled […]

Paris (AFP) – Belgium tore Poland apart to win their Nations League match 6-1 in Brussels on Wednesday. Belgium lost their opening game to neighbours Netherlands but responded with an increasingly dominant performance and finished the game with five goals in just over 30 minutes. "It brings extra emotion when you lose against your rivals […]

Dublin (AFP) – Viktor Tsygankov lifted Ukraine's spirits after their painful failure to qualify for the World Cup as the midfielder clinched a 1-0 Nations League victory over the Republic of Ireland on Wednesday. Tsygankov struck with a fine free-kick early in the second at Dublin's Aviva Stadium. Ukraine held on to that slender lead […]