London (AFP) – Chelsea captain John Terry believes his former manager Jose Mourinho will lead Manchester United back to the top. Mourinho was appointed United manager earlier this week after Dutchman Louis van Gaal was sacked two days after leading the Red Devils to an FA Cup victory. And Terry, who won the Premier League […]

Ta’ Qali (Malta) (AFP) – Southampton striker Graziano Pelle hit a second-half winner as an injury-depleted Italy beat Scotland 1-0 in a disjointed Euro 2016 friendly in Malta on Sunday. With his midfield decimated through injuries to Claudio Marchisio and Marco Verratti, and Thiago Motta and Riccardo Montolivo resting due to calf problems, Italy coach […]

Berlin (AFP) – An inexperienced Germany team suffered a self-confidence sapping 3-1 defeat to Slovakia in Sunday's storm-affected friendly ahead of Euro 2016 as the world champions looked out of sorts. Slovakia, who will make their European championships debut in Group B alongside Wales, England and Russia next month, deserved their win in Augsburg as […]

Nuevo Laredo (Mexico) (AFP) – Mexican footballer Alan Pulido, a striker on Greece's Olympiakos team, was kidnapped Sunday in his home state of Tamaulipas, law enforcement officials here said. Family members told authorities that Pulido was snatched at around dawn in his birth city of Ciudad Victoria. Officials told AFP that an intensive search for […]

Nantes (France) (AFP) – France head coach Dider Deschamps confirmed on Sunday that he will not add Mamadou Sakho to his Euro-2016 squad, even if the centre-back is allowed to return to action after serving a provisional drugs ban. Sakho has been a key player for Euro hosts France at the heart of their defence […]

Madrid (AFP) – Celta Vigo forward Nolito strengthened his case for inclusion in Spain coach Vicente del Bosque's squad for Euro 2016 with his first two international goals in a 3-1 friendly win over Bosnia and Herzegovina in Saint Gallen, Switzerland, on Sunday. Del Bosque named an experimental side with no players from Champions League finalists Real […]

When Claude Makelele was sold to Chelsea from Real Madrid, there was backlash. How could the Real Madrid president not understand the defensive midfielder’s worth? Teammates spoke about the influence and importance of the player, but it was lost on the suit wearing, non-playing personnel. Makelele went on to have five successful seasons in the […]

Berlin (AFP) – Real Madrid have held talks with Poland's star striker Robert Lewandowski, his agent has confirmed, while Bayern Munich insist they will pay whatever it takes to keep him. "Real Madrid approached us a few weeks ago, we have listened to everything and informed Bayern that we have held talks," Lewandowski's agent Cezary […]

Arsenal are seemingly taking more of a proactive approach to this summer’s transfer window than they did during 2015. While goalkeeper Petr Cech was the only first team player to be signed last summer, the Gunners have already added £30 million central midfielder Granit Xhaka, and it’s not even June yet. The addition of Xhaka […]

Berlin (AFP) – English champions Leicester City are set to strengthen their squad for next season by signing World Cup winner goalkeeper Ron-Robert Zieler from relegated Hanover 96, the German club announced on Sunday. The 27-year-old 'keeper is set to travel to England on Monday to complete the medical with his transfer to cost a […]

Madrid (AFP) – The big-game experience of a side littered with galacticos helped ensure an 11th European title for Real Madrid, Spanish press reported Sunday. Real beat city rivals Atletico 5-3 on penalties after Saturday's final in Milan finished 1-1 after extra-time. Real "shone in the first quarter of an hour, but then lost its […]

Stockholm (AFP) – Star striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic will sit out Sweden's friendly against Slovenia in order to rest a sore calf, coach Erik Hamren said Sunday. "We'll save it until the Wales match" on June 5, Hamren told Swedish news agency TT ahead of Monday's match against Slovenia in Malmo. "It's the calf he's had […]

Paris (AFP) – The omission of Karim Benzema and Hatem Ben Arfa from the France squad for next month's European Championships is a missed opportunity to unite the country in the face of extremism and division, according to ex-international Eric Cantona. Cantona stirred up a hornet's nest last week when he claimed that France coach […]

Frankfurt (AFP) – A leading member of the right-wing populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party sparked outrage Sunday after making racist remarks about national football team defender Jerome Boateng. AfD's deputy chief Alexander Gauland told the Sunday newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung that Germans would not like to have Boateng, who has a Ghanaian father and […]

Madrid (AFP) – Thousands of Real Madrid fans chanted and waved supporter scarves under a rain of confetti on Sunday in the Spanish capital as the team returned home after an historic 11th European Cup win. An open top bus emblazoned with the word "Campeones" (Champions) carried the team, who showed off the trophy to […]