Stoke-on-Trent, United Kingdom | AFP | Arsene Wenger blasted Arsenal’s defenders for their sloppy display as Stoke stunned the Gunners with a 1-0 victory on Saturday. Wenger’s side crashed to their first Premier League defeat of the season thanks to Jese Rodriguez’s 47th minute strike at the bet365 Stadium. Jese was …
Read More »Video referee landmark as Bayern claim opening win
Berlin, Germany | AFP | Robert Lewandowski converted a second-half penalty, awarded by a video assistant referee intervention, as champions Bayern Munich opened the 2017/18 Bundesliga season with a 3-1 win over Bayer Leverkusen on Friday. The video assistant referee is being trialled in the Bundesliga this season and came into …
Read More »Spurs pay club record fee for Sanchez!
London, United Kingdom | AFP |Colombian international defender Davinson Sanchez became Tottenham Hotspur’s first signing of the close season on Friday when they paid a reported club record £42million (46m euros, $54m) to Dutch side Ajax. The 21-year-old, who was a pivotal member of the side that reached the Europa …
Read More »Ronaldo nominated for FIFA player award
Paris, France | AFP |Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo leads the nominees unveiled on Thursday for the Best FIFA Men’s Player 2017 award. The 32-year-old Portuguese captain is favourite to retain the title he won last year after success in both the Champions League and La Liga. Among the 24 …
Read More »Arsenal in search of Sanchez tonic at Stoke
Stoke-on-Trent, United Kingdom | AFP | Arsenal head to Stoke City this weekend aiming to register a second victory of the season and divert attention away from continuing questions about the future of Alexis Sanchez. Arsene Wenger’s side kicked off the Premier League campaign in exciting, if not entirely convincing, fashion …
Read More »Mbappe was dropped to ‘protect’ him – Monaco coach
Monaco, Principality of Monaco | AFP | Monaco coach Leonardo Jardim has claimed that star striker Kylian Mbappe was left on the bench last weekend “to protect him” rather than as a punishment. The 18-year-old sensation reportedly wants away from the French champions, with Paris Saint-Germain his favoured destination but Real …
Read More »German female ref ready to whistle in Bundesliga
Berlin, Germany | AFP | Germany’s Bibiana Steinhaus insists she is no feminist trailblazer as she prepares to become the first female ref in Europe’s top leagues having already tamed Bayern Munich’s stars. The 38-year-old is on the official list of Bundesliga referees for the 2017/18 season, which starts Friday, meaning …
Read More »Barca lack firepower without Neymar – Busquets
Barcelona, Spain | AFP | Barcelona midfielder Sergio Busquets reiterated his call for the club’s board to strengthen in the transfer market on Tuesday, but warned replacing the departed Neymar will be almost impossible. The Brazilian’s absence was noticeable as Barca fell to a 3-1 Spanish Super Cup, first leg defeat …
Read More »Five infamous sulks
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Diego Costa’s stand-off with English Premier League champions Chelsea is just the latest in a long line of disputes between players and their employers. Here AFP Sport picks out five such infamous examples: French World Cup squad’s ‘Busman’s holiday’ Probably the most spectacular and humiliating …
Read More »Barcelona begin spending spree with Paulinho
Barcelona, Spain | AFP | Barcelona made Brazilian international midfielder Paulinho their first signing since banking a world record fee for Neymar on Monday after agreeing a 40 million-euro ($47 million) fee with Chinese club Guangzhou Evergrande. “Barcelona and Guangzhou Evergrande have reached an agreement for the transfer of the player …
Read More »