JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia — In the historic centre of Jeddah, in the old heart of the city, there’s a football pitch. It isn’t much: an uneven, artificial turf surface and two undersized goals. There are floodlights, and white lines painted on the ground, but no seats for spectators. It’s surrounded by crumbling walls, half-abandoned buildings, and a few palm trees. This is football, like it has always been, everywhere. But…
Manchester City are on the verge of signing striker Omar Marmoush from Eintracht Frankfurt, while Paris Saint-Germain look set to sign Khvicha Kvaratskhelia imminently. Join us for the latest transfer news, rumours and gossip from around the globe. Transfers homepage | Done deals | Men’s January grades | Women’s January grades – Guardiola: Walker has asked to leave Man City – Pedri denies Spain boycott over Olmo fiasco – Kvaratskhelia…
Barcelona midfielder Pedri has denied that the club’s players considered boycotting the Spain national team over the row surrounding Dani Olmo’s registration. Olmo — and fellow Barça player Pau Víctor — were granted a temporary reprieve this week, while Spain’s sports ministry the CSD considers Barcelona’s appeal against the decision of LaLiga and the Spanish football federation to refuse their registration for the second half of the season. Both players…
Federico Valverde said he “won’t give any lessons” to Kylian Mbappé on how to beat Barcelona’s offside trap ahead of Real Madrid’s Clásico Supercopa final on Sunday (stream LIVE on ESPN+). Mbappé struggled to cope with Hansi Flick’s high defensive line when the two teams last met in October, being caught offside a career-high eight times as Barça ran out convincing 4-0 winners at the Santiago Bernabéu. Speaking in a…
Real Madrid star Vinícius Júnior is considering buying a football club in Portugal’s second division, a source has told ESPN. The Brazil international — currently in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, for the Spanish Supercopa — is thinking about diversifying his business interests with an eye to his future career plans after retiring as a player. Vinícius started for Madrid in their 3-0 Supercopa semifinal victory over Mallorca on Thursday, a result…
Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski said the team still need to improve their mentality to win the big trophies this season as they prepare for Sunday’s Supercopa final against Real Madrid (watch LIVE on ESPN+). Barça thumped Madrid 4-0 earlier in the season in LaLiga as they won 11 of their opening 12 games, but they have won just one of their following seven in the league, dropping to third in…
It’s FA Cup third round weekend, one of the biggest occasions in the English football calendar, when lower-league minnows get the chance to take on some of the biggest teams in the world in true David vs. Goliath encounters. While 14-time FA Cup winners Arsenal take on holders and 13-time winners Manchester United in the heavyweight clash of the round at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday, Liverpool, Manchester City and…
Former Mexico coach Miguel Herrera was announced as the new manager of the Costa Rica men’s national team on Tuesday. The 56-year-old will return to the international stage with the Ticos for the first time since coaching Mexico from 2013-15. “Following an exhaustive selection process that concluded with a final shortlist, the FCRF [Costa Rican Football Federation] Executive Committee, together with the new sports director Ignacio Hierro, made the decision…
The Football Reporters, Mark Ogden, James Olley and Rob Dawson, discuss the latest news regarding Marcus Rashford’s situation at Manchester United and wonder how closely it compares with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s final days at Arsenal. Aubameyang left the Emirates Stadium in 2022 in what was a major call for boss Mikel Arteta. Could Ruben Amorim make a similar decision about Rashford at Old Trafford? The trio discuss the United striker’s future,…