Another Saturday of European football has come and gone. If you merely checked the box scores, you’d think there were few surprises as the weekend’s action got underway, but those full-time figures only tell half the story. Manchester United won, although you wouldn’t know it if you walked out of Old Trafford in the 92nd minute, and so did Chelsea, they themselves coming from behind, too. Borussia Dortmund also overturned…
Erik ten Hag hit out at his Manchester United players after the dramatic 2-1 win over Brentford telling his squad, “if you can’t handle the pressure, don’t play here.” United needed two stoppage-time goals from substitute Scott McTominay to avoid a third successive defeat at Old Trafford. – Dawson: McTominay rescues United but questions mount for Ten Hag – Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.) Afterward, Ten Hag said…
Chelsea spent an unprecedented £1 billion across the last three transfer windows, but it hasn’t really worked so far. The club have won two of their seven games, drawing two and losing three under new manager Mauricio Pochettino and sit 11th in the Premier League table — already 10 points adrift of leaders Manchester City. While they have amassed a group of some of the most-talented young players in the…
Two Legia Warsaw players have been released after being detained for almost 24 hours in the Netherlands following a European game, the Polish club said Friday. The players, Josué of Portugal and Radovan Pankov of Serbia, were taken off the team bus and detained Thursday after allegedly injuring a steward following a Europa Conference League match at AZ Alkmaar, which also saw scuffles between visiting supporters and police. Legia Warsaw…
Carlo Ancelotti has criticised media coverage of Vinícius Júnior’s testimony at the trial of three men accused of racially abusing him, saying some are “trying to change the subject” by focusing on the player. The Real Madrid forward gave evidence to a court in Valencia on Thursday via videolink after the incident at Valencia’s Mestalla stadium on May 21. – Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.) Valencia CF issued…
William Saliba has revealed the pain he felt in watching Arsenal miss out on the Premier League title last season from the sidelines. Arsenal held an eight-point lead at the beginning of April, shortly after Saliba suffered a back injury in their Europa League round-of-16 clash against Sporting Lisbon which ruled him out for the rest of the campaign. – Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.) – Olley: City…
A day after Morocco and Spain were nominated as joint hosts of the 2030 World Cup — along with Portugal — there were signs of friction, with both countries laying claim to being the venue for the final. Spain’s Sports Minister Miquel Iceta on Thursday on Onda Cero radio said that although “you can’t count your chickens before they hatch,” he expected the final to be held in Spain. –…
Getafe have removed the name of Alfonso Perez from their stadium over sexist comments made by the former Real Madrid and Barcelona player about women’s football. The ground, owned by the city council but leased to the club, has been known as the “Coliseum Alfonso Perez” since its construction in 1998 in honour of the Getafe-born player, but will now be known as the Coliseum. The local government demanded the…
For the first time as Manchester United manager, Erik ten Hag is under pressure. At Old Trafford on Tuesday night, Turkish champions Galatasaray inflicted a sixth defeat of the season and United’s second in four days at home. United’s record after 10 games of the 2023-24 season is now worse than under Jose Mourinho and under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in the seasons they were sacked. Neither Mourinho nor Solskjaer could…
The 2030 men’s soccer World Cup is set to feature games in six countries on three continents in a unique format that will allow the tournament to celebrate its 100th anniversary in Uruguay. FIFA reached an agreement Wednesday between soccer’s continental leaders to accept a bid spearheaded by co-hosts Spain, Portugal and Morocco as the only candidate for the hosting rights. The agreement also includes staging games in South American…