Hanoi (AFP) – Vietnam and Indonesia drew 2-2 after extra time at the second leg of the Suzuki Cup semi-finals Wednesday, ensuring the Garuda a spot in the final after a hard-fought battle against the Golden Stars. Indonesia's top striker Stefano Lilipaly drew first blood in the 54th minute after a first half that saw […]

Madrid (AFP) – Spanish prosecutors have brought tax fraud charges against three former Real Madrid players, Xabi Alonso, Ricardo Carvalho and Angel di Maria and opened investigations into two other players, a prosecution source confirmed on Wednesday. None of the cases are related to the "Football Leaks" scandal, which has accused a host of Madrid […]

Milan (AFP) – The sale of Italian giants AC Milan has been pushed back three months to March after a request by the Chinese consortium which is taking over the seven-time European champions. Milan owner Silvio Berlusconi and Sino-Europe Sports (SES) had agreed a date of December 13 for the conclusion of a deal that […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola expressed admiration for Patrick Roberts after the loanee scored against his parent club for Celtic in a 1-1 Champions League draw. City signed Roberts, 19, from Fulham in 2015 for a reported fee of 12 million pounds ($15.2 million, 14.2 million euros), but he played […]

Leipzig (Germany) (AFP) – Neither Lionel Messi nor Cristiano Ronaldo would be considered fresh enough at youthful Bundesliga leaders RB Leipzig, says sports director Ralf Rangnick. Founded in 2009, Leipzig are bankrolled by energy drinks giants Red Bull and are currently top of the Bundesliga after four promotions in seven years. Impressively, they have done […]

Paris (AFP) – Jose Mourinho's Manchester United face Zorya Luhansk on Thursday knowing that a draw in the frigid Ukraine will propel them into the knockout stages of the Europa League. The Premier League side however will want to go through in style with victory, even if Europe's second-tier competition does not feature at the […]

Madrid (AFP) – Real Madrid launched a staunch defence of star forward Cristiano Ronaldo on Tuesday, demanding respect for the three-time World Player of the Year amid allegations he hid millions of euros earned from image rights in tax havens. "In light of the information published in recent days and the certificate released by the […]

Basel (Switzerland) (AFP) – Lucas Perez made the most of a rare start by scoring a hat-trick in Tuesday's 4-1 rout of Basel that sent Arsenal through to the Champions League last 16 as group winners. The Spaniard missed over a month with an ankle injury following his move from Deportivo la Coruna in August […]

Munich (Germany) (AFP) – A Robert Lewandowski free-kick sealed Bayern Munich's 1-0 win over Atletico Madrid on Tuesday in the Champions League with both teams already through to the knock-out stage. Despite the result at Munich's bitterly cold Allianz Arena, Atletico go into the draw for the last 16 as Group D winners with Bayern […]

Barcelona (AFP) – Arda Turan grabbed a hat-trick and Lionel Messi scores his 10th Champions League goal of the season as a much-changed Barcelona still cruised past Borussia Moenchengladbach 4-0 on Tuesday. Barca had already booked their place in the last 16 as Group C winners, but were looking for a morale boosting win after three […]

New York (AFP) – The fate of the New York Cosmos is hanging in the balance as the club seeks assurances about the future of the crisis-plagued North American Soccer League, sources confirmed to AFP on Tuesday. A club source with knowledge of the situation denied a report that the Cosmos had ceased operations and […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester City striker Kelechi Iheanacho made a successful start to his spell as Sergio Aguero's stand-in by earning his team a 1-1 Champions League draw with Celtic on Tuesday. Aguero's four-game ban for getting sent off in Saturday's 3-1 loss to Chelsea means Iheanacho can look forward to a run […]

Turin (Italy) (AFP) – Argentine striker Paulo Dybala is set to make his long-awaited return for Juventus when the Italians host Dinamo Zagreb on Wednesday looking to secure top spot in Champions League Group H. With Gonzalo Higuain only recently returning from a muscle problem and attacking midfielder Mark Pjaca still sidelined, Dybala's absence has […]

New York (AFP) – Former Spain striker David Villa was named as Major League Soccer's Most Valuable Player on Tuesday in recognition of a prolific season which helped transform New York City FC's fortunes. The Spanish World Cup winner's goals helped take New York, who finished 17th in their inaugural season, to the club's first […]

Turin (Italy) (AFP) – Dinamo Zagreb striker Mario Situm described meeting Juventus as a "dream date", even if the Croatians risk another heavy defeat by the Italian champions on Wednesday. Giants in Croatia Dinamo are playing for pride in Europe, having lost all five games and failing to even score a single goal. The Serie […]