Liverpool have signed 22-year-old midfielder Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen in a blockbuster transfer worth an initial £100 million, with £16m in potential add-ons. While the British transfer record remains the £106.3m that Chelsea paid Benfica up front to sign Enzo Fernández in 2023, Wirtz will become only the fifth player to move to (or within) the Premier League for over £100m. Though Wirtz’s fee is a long way shy…
PHILADELPHIA — Chelsea striker Nicolas Jackson apologised to his teammates and the club’s fans after picking up his second red card in four matches as the Blues lost 3-1 to Flamengo at the Club World Cup. Pedro Neto gave Maresca’s side a 13th-minute lead in Philadelphia but six second-half minutes changed the game as Bruno Henrique equalised before Danilo put the Brazilian side in front. Jackson, on moments earlier as…
Even Bayer Leverkusen boss Xabi Alonso couldn’t believe it. After watching Florian Wirtz dance through a crowd of SC Freiburg defenders in October 2023 to give his side a precious lead on their way to the Bundesliga title, the former Spain international simply raised his eyebrows on the touchline. It was a quiet acknowledgment of Wirtz’s brilliance, and Alonso’s sentiments were echoed after the match by Freiburg coach Christian Streich,…
Tottenham Hotspur were fined £75,000 ($100,710) by the Football Association on Thursday for crowd misconduct after the club’s supporters were heard making anti-gay chants during their Premier League match at Manchester United in September. The club condemned the incident at the time and said they were working with local police and stadium security to identify their supporters who participated in “abhorrent homophobic chanting” at Old Trafford. Spurs were charged in…
The videos keep rolling across your social feeds: Boca Juniors fans on the beach in Miami, while Palmeiras fans light up Times Square. You’ll hear it in the stands and see it in the scenes, too: River Plate fans belting out songs in Seattle and Flamengo supporters roaring during the individual player introductions. The FIFA Club World Cup may be a global tournament, but in the United States, it feels…
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola described Rico Lewis’ 88th-minute red card in Wednesday’s 2-0 win over Wydad AC as an “unnecessary” decision by the referee. City opened their Club World Cup campaign in Philadelphia with a comfortable victory courtesy of first-half goals from Phil Foden and Jérémy Doku. However, the game ended on a sour note as City defender Lewis was dismissed for a tackle on Samuel Obeng, initially winning…
Mykhailo Mudryk is facing a potential ban of up to four years after the Football Association charged the Chelsea winger with a doping offence. The 24-year-old was provisionally suspended in December having tested positive for a performance-enhancing substance named meldonium. The Blues were awaiting the results of a ‘B’ sample test to support or contradict the initial ‘A’ results and the FA announced on Wednesday that the Ukrainian winger now…
LaLiga president Javier Tebas has doubled down on his criticism of FIFA’s expanded Club World Cup, saying it’s his objective to “eliminate” the competition from the football calendar. Tebas said last week the tournament is “completely absurd” and went one step further on Tuesday after watching 25 minutes of Chelsea’s 2-0 win over LAFC, which he compared to a friendly. “By eliminating it,” Tebas said at an event at the…
Chelsea have initiated contact with Lyon’s Malick Fofana, while Arsenal are one of the clubs interested in signing former Manchester City defender Aymeric Laporte. Join us for the latest transfer news, rumors, and gossip from around the globe. Transfers homepage | Done deals | Men’s summer window grades – Sources: Man United hold talks with Frankfurt’s Ekitike – Delap challenged to earn No. 9 after Chelsea move – Reijnders: Pressure…
Four people have been sentenced to between 14 and 22 months in prison for hate crimes and threats committed against Vinícius Júnior before a Copa del Rey tie between Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid in January 2023. The charges relate to the hanging of a doll wearing Real Madrid forward Vinícius’s shirt from a bridge in the city alongside a banner reading “Madrid hates Real.” Following a complaint made by…