Milan (AFP) – Radja Nainggolan's maiden Roma brace stole the spotlight as his team secured an Italian Cup quarter-final tie against second division Cesena with a 4-0 romp over Sampdoria on Thursday. Although Luis Muriel hit the post early on for Sampdoria, a sensational Leandro Paredes volley also hit the woodwork at the other end […]

Madrid (AFP) – Barcelona ended a decade-long drought without winning away to Real Sociedad on Thursday as Neymar's first-half penalty handed the Spanish champions a 1-0 Copa del Rey quarter-final, first leg lead. Atletico Madrid also took a huge step towards the semi-finals as goals from Antoine Griezmann, Angel Correa and Kevin Gameiro downed an […]

Franceville (Gabon) (AFP) – Senegal put a string of disastrous Africa Cup of Nations campaigns behind them Thursday by beating Zimbabwe 2-0 and becoming the first qualifiers for the 2017 quarter-finals. The Group B match was all but over as a contest after only 13 minutes in Gabonese city Franceville after Liverpool star Sadio Mane […]

Franceville (Gabon) (AFP) – Liverpool star Sadio Mane scored as Senegal defeated Zimbabwe 2-0 in Franceville Thursday to become the first qualifiers for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations quarter-finals. The Senegalese Teranga Lions burst out of the blocks in the southeastern Gabonese city to score twice within 13 minutes through Mane and Henri Saivet. […]

Madrid (AFP) – Atletico Madrid took a huge step towards the Copa del Rey semi-finals as goals from Antoine Griezmann, Angel Correa and Kevin Gameiro downed an under-strength Eibar 3-0 in their quarter-final, first leg on Thursday. In contrast to the Basque visitors, Atletico boss Diego Simeone named a strong, attack-minded side and was rewarded […]

Berlin (AFP) – Temperatures are forecast to plummet, but Carlo Ancelotti wants his Bayern Munich to turn up the heat at icy Freiburg on Friday when the Bundesliga resumes after the winter break. Temperatures are set to dip as low as minus nine degrees Celsius (15.8 Fahrenheit) for kick-off at Freiburg's Schwarzwald Stadium when the […]

Franceville (Gabon) (AFP) – Tunisia scored twice in the second half to beat Algeria 2-1 in Franceville Thursday and haul themselves back into contention for an Africa Cup of Nations quarter-finals place. An Aissa Mandi own-goal broke the deadlock and Naim Sliti converted a penalty as the Tunisians atoned for a 2-0 defeat by […]

Port-Gentil (Gabon) (AFP) – Ghana defender Abdul Rahman Baba has left the team's Africa Cup of Nations base in Port-Gentil and faces a potentially lengthy absence after suffering a serious-looking knee injury against Uganda on Tuesday. The 22-year-old left-back was forced off in the first half of the Black Stars' opening Group D game in […]

Sunday's live broadcast of the Premier League game between Manchester United and Liverpool on NBC and NBCSN generated impressive viewing numbers as one of the most-watched second halves of a Premier League game in US TV history. The combined viewing figure for the second half across both networks was 1.82 million, which eclipses the number […]

London (AFP) – Arsene Wenger fears the huge wages being offered by big-spending Chinese clubs could cause problems when the Premier League teams look to negotiate new contracts with their star players. Wenger is currently locked in talks with Arsenal duo Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez as the pair reportedly seek parity with the best-paid […]

London (AFP) – West Ham manager Slaven Bilic says Dimitri Payet will only get his wish to leave the Premier League club if Marseille meet his asking price for the unsettled France midfielder. Payet is trying to engineer a return to Marseille and has been training with West Ham's Under-23 squad this week after telling […]

London (AFP) – Brazilian starlet Gabriel Jesus has formally completed his move to Manchester City from Palmeiras, the Premier League club announced on Thursday. City agreed to sign Jesus on a five-year contract in August, but the 19-year-old was immediately loaned back to Palmeiras until the end of the Brazilian season in December. With City […]

Shanghai (AFP) – Argentine striker Carlos Tevez arrived Thursday to a rousing welcome from hundreds of fans in Shanghai, where he will join local side Shenhua in a deal that reportedly makes him the world's top-earning footballer. Tevez, 32, is the highest-profile foreign player lured to China's free-spending domestic leagues in a recent gold rush […]

Oyem (Gabon) (AFP) – French coaches Herve Renard and Claude le Roy loom large over the key Africa Cup of Nations Group C clash between Morocco and Togo in Oyem Friday. Renard, a Cup of Nations winner with Zambia in 2012 and the Ivory Coast in 2015, was hired by Morocco last year and given […]

Berlin (AFP) – Arjen Robben is demanding a show of strength when Bayern Munich resume their hunt for a fifth straight title at Freiburg on Friday as the Bundesliga resumes after its winter break. The German league is back after a four-week rest with Bayern three points clear of nearest rivals RB Leipzig, who briefly […]