San Juan (Argentina) (AFP) – Lionel Messi was taken to hospital after suffering an injury scare on Friday as Argentina defeated Honduras 1-0 in their only warm-up game before next month's Copa America Centenario in the United States. A first-half goal from in-form Napoli striker Gonzalo Higuain settled a low-key encounter in San Juan, with […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester United will be expecting to make it third time lucky in their attempt to replace Alex Ferguson with the appointment of Jose Mourinho as the club's new manager. Ferguson's retirement in 2013 was always going to leave an enormous void to fill at Old Trafford after the legendary Scot […]

Sunderland (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Roy Hodgson insisted Marcus Rashford's dream debut for England came as no surprise after the Manchester United sensation staked his claim for a Euro 2016 place with a record-breaking strike in a 2-1 win over Australia. England manager Hodgson had claimed the world would be watching to see if Rashford […]

Berlin (AFP) – World champions Germany are set to blood a crop of rising stars in Sunday's friendly at home to Slovakia as head coach Joachim Loew fine-tunes his Euro 2016 squad. Loew purposefully chose Slovakia, who will make their debut at a European championships in France, as they are expected to play in a […]

Two friendlies down, one to go for the US Men's National Team before the Copa America kicks off. With a pair of lackluster wins under its belt, the US looks like it might finally be moving in a positive direction going into the Copa America. To keep that momentum, the US needs to play better […]

Dublin (AFP) – Ireland maintained their Euro 2016 momentum with a 1-1 draw against the Netherlands at Lansdowne Road in Dublin on Saturday night. Martin O'Neill's side were ahead at half time thanks to Shane Long's 16th international goal, and looked set for victory only for substitute Luuk de Jong to head home a late […]

Sunderland (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Marcus Rashford made a bold claim for a place at Euro 2016 as the Manchester United sensation took just 135 seconds to became the youngest player to score on his England debut in Friday's 2-1 win against Australia. Rashford's meteoric rise hit new heights when the teenage striker opened the […]

Milan (AFP) – Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane said he expects Cristiano Ronaldo to "transcend" the Champions League final on Saturday and lead them to victory over Atletico Madrid. Real striker Ronaldo gave fans a scare when he limped out of training on Tuesday. But not only is the Portuguese superstar fully fit and in […]

Lausanne (AFP) – Belgium star Eden Hazard insisted on Friday he is back on top form after a frustrating season for Chelsea in the Premier League. Hazard will captain Belgium at Euro 2016, which starts in two weeks, as Manchester City centre-back Vincent Kompany misses the tournament due to a groin injury. But after a […]

Madrid (AFP) – Espanyol escaped relegation from La Liga this season but have decided against prolonging the contract of Constantin Galca, the interim coach that saved them, the Spanish club said on Friday. Galca took over from Sergio Gonzalez last December with the club mired in a relegation struggle, and eventually lifted them to a […]

Prague (AFP) – Arsenal goalkeeper Petr Cech set a new record for Czech caps on Friday in a Euro 2016 friendly against Malta in Austria. The 34-year-old former Chelsea stopper won his 119th cap, surpassing the previous mark of 118 he shared with former Manchester United winger Karel Poborsky, who retired in 2006. Cech earned […]

Los Angeles (AFP) – Former world footballer of the year Kaka has been added to the Brazilian roster for next month's Copa America Centenario as an injury replacement for Bayern Munich midfielder Douglas Costa. Brazil coach Dunga made the move for the 34-year-old striker of Orlando City after Costa was forced off the squad due […]

World Soccer Talk is proud to announce the launch of the EuroCopa Soccer Podcast, a one-of-a-kind daily digital audio download that will analyze, preview and review all of the teams and games from both the Copa America Centenario and Euro 2016 tournaments. Since 2010, World Soccer Talk has produced a daily podcast for major soccer […]

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Manchester United fans welcomed Jose Mourinho's appointment as the club's new manager on Friday but said the pressure was now on to deliver quick results for a team whose recent form has been lacklustre. "I think the new manager will bring a bit more flair into United," said Peter Davy, […]

Paris (AFP) – France coach Didier Deschamps will sue Eric Cantona for slander after the Manchester United legend accused his former international and club teammate of racial discrimination in his choice of players for Euro 2016, his lawyer said on Friday. Cantona told British daily The Guardian on Thursday that Deschamps had snubbed Karim Benzema […]