Madrid: Florentino Perez will take charge for his fourth term as president of Real Madrid from next week, after the club confirmed on Sunday that no one had come forward to challenge him to an election. Last year, the 66-year-old construction magnate won the backing of members for statute changes that make it harder for outsiders to seize control of the world's richest soccer club by income. A potential presidential...
08:05 PM, Jun 02, 2013
London: The Premier League apologised to Chelsea on Sunday after inadvertently publishing a pre-prepared story announcing Jose Mourinho's return to the club. The story, later removed, appeared on the official Premier League website www.premierleague.com with Monday's date and the headline, "Portuguese coach is back at Stamford Bridge after signing a xx-year contract." "Jose Mourinho returns for second stint as Chelsea manager. Portuguese signs x-year-deal," the website added in key points...
06:12 PM, Jun 02, 2013
Rio de Janeiro: England midfielder Frank Lampard said that new Barcelona signing Neymar has the potential to be as good as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Speaking on Saturday, on the eve of England's friendly against Brazil in the official reopening of the Maracana Stadium, Lampard praised the 21-year-old striker, as reported. "I played against Neymar at Wembley in February and I've also seen some videos of him on Youtube....
02:23 PM, Jun 02, 2013
Madrid: Champions Barcelona matched La Liga's record tally of 100 points in a season and achieved a club-best total of 115 goals after sweeping aside Malaga 4-1 at the Nou Camp in their final game on Saturday. In his first campaign Barca coach Tito Vilanova equalled Real Madrid's points haul set under Jose Mourinho and beat predecessor Pep Guardiola's club record of 114 goals in a season, both set last...
11:48 AM, Jun 02, 2013
Madrid: Argentina striker Gonzalo Higuain says he's leaving Real Madrid after seven seasons to join a club where he is truly "wanted". Higuain has been linked to Juventus. He made his announcement on Saturday after scoring his 121st and final goal for Madrid in their 4-2 win over Osasuna on the last day of the Spanish league. "I feel like my time here has ended, I want a change of...
08:57 AM, Jun 02, 2013
Madrid: Real Madrid beat Osasuna 4-2 on Saturday in Jose Mourinho's last game before his expected return to the Premier League. After the Santiago Bernabeu fans greeted Mourinho with a mix of applause and jeers, Gonzalo Higuain opened in the 35th minute before Michael Essien headed in Madrid's second goal three minutes later. Osasuna rallied to draw level with goals from Roberto Torres and Alvaro Cejudo in the 52nd and...
10:41 PM, Jun 01, 2013
Rio de Janeiro: Brazil's new star Neymar, who has just signed a five-year deal with Barcelona, has also inked an image-rights contract with a group being headed by David Beckham's publicist. In a statement, Simon Oliveira, managing director of Doyen Global, called Neymar "a special talent" with "incredible charisma and a desire to work hard to maximize his potential." Financial terms were not disclosed. Doyen said it had a "significant...
11:31 PM, May 31, 2013
Madrid: Real Madrid coach Jose Mourinho has left goalkeeper Iker Casillas and forward Cristiano Ronaldo off his squad for his final game with the Spanish club. Mourinho dropped Casillas even with starting goalkeeper Diego Lopez unavailable for health reasons. Mourinho has yet to start Casillas since he returned from a broken hand in early April. Adan Garrido will likely start in Lopez's place. Ronaldo has apparently not recovered from a...
10:58 PM, May 31, 2013
Barcelona: Victor Valdes again says he will leave Barcelona when his contract is up at the end of the 2013-14 season, without giving any hints of his future plans. Valdes says his decision originally made public in January was not a ploy to improve his salary, adding that being Barcelona's goalkeeper "psychologically wears you down." The 31-year-old Spain international has said that he would like to play outside Spain and...
09:29 PM, May 31, 2013
Madrid: Real Madrid president Florentino Perez on Thursday insisted that his club had not made an offer for Paris Saint Germain (PSG) coach Carlo Ancelotti to replace Jose Mourinho. Speaking almost two weeks after announcing that Mourinho would not continue at Real Madrid, Perez gave the second of a round of interviews on Spanish radio, this time talking to the Cadena Cope, where he was asked about the next Madrid...
07:45 PM, May 30, 2013
Madrid: Spanish club Rayo Vallecano say they have reached a deal with coach Paco Jemez to stay on for another season. Jemez has far surpassed expectations in his first season at Rayo and guided the small club to the brink of a Europa League berth despite the departure of several players last year, including Swansea forward Michu. The contract for the 43-year-old former player was set to run out after...
07:34 PM, May 30, 2013
Valladolid: Miroslav Djukic will step down as coach of Spanish club Valladolid at the end of the season. The Serb says he is leaving to seek "another challenge" after helping the team earn promotion last season and avoid any relegation scares in its return this season. Djukic, who had one year left on his contract, says "I am not sure where I am heading." His last game with Valladolid will...
07:17 PM, May 30, 2013
Madrid: Real Madrid has agreed with Emirates for the airlines to be its sponsor for the next five seasons. Madrid club president Florentino Perez announced on Thursday that "Fly Emirates" will appear on the players' shirts starting next season. The club didn't release the financial details of the agreement. The deal is the latest move by Emirates to spread its reach globally. It already sponsors football teams Arsenal and Paris...
05:52 PM, May 30, 2013
Madrid: Eric Abidal will be leaving Barcelona after six trophy-laden seasons and having fought back from both a liver tumor and a liver transplant to play again. Abidal, who will turn 34 in July, said Thursday he would have liked to continue playing for the Spanish club. "Football for me is a passion since I was a child," Abidal said. "I don't see myself quitting now. I have made all...
05:15 PM, May 30, 2013
Montevideo: Liverpool striker Luis Suarez says he's tired of his treatment by the British media and is ready to listen to offers outside the Premier League - especially from Real Madrid. The Uruguay forward, who has been linked with Madrid in Spanish media reports, told a Montevideo radio station Wednesday that Liverpool's fans are fine, but he would consider moving to another club. "Liverpool has treated me very well and...
08:35 AM, May 30, 2013
Rio de Janeiro: Barcelona-bound Brazil forward Neymar has been feeling nervous ahead of his blockbuster transfer to the Spanish champions once he has finished playing in the Confederations Cup in June. The 21-year-old, who is leaving Santos, juggled a ball briefly under a spotlight in a darkened warehouse by the port of Rio de Janeiro on Tuesday and then talked about his future after a long, fitful courtship with several...
09:14 AM, May 29, 2013
Madrid: Real Madrid President Florentino Perez envisages a future with Zinedine Zidane as coach, but for the moment he wants the former France great to play a bigger role in steering the club through the post-Jose Mourinho era. While the 66-year-old construction magnate's current four-year term is up next month, Perez is unlikely to face an election challenge and is looking to the popular former Real and France midfielder to...
03:08 PM, May 28, 2013
Brasilia: Brazil striker Neymar bid farewell to Santos in the club's 0-0 draw against Flamengo here. After the match Sunday, the man who will carry the hopes of a football obsessed nation at the 2014 World Cup on home soil spoke to reporters about his 50 million euro move to Barcelona in July, reports Xinhua. "It gives me great satisfaction to have played for Santos. The fans have offered me...
01:15 PM, May 27, 2013
Barcelona: With Lionel Messi injured and Brazil striker Neymar yet to arrive, Barcelona still had little trouble beating 10-man Espanyol to leave the Spanish league champions only one victory away from equaling the Spanish league's record point haul. Forward Alexis Sanchez scored in the 14th minute after a passing combination with David Villa. After the visitors had squandered several opportunities substitute, Pedro Rodriguez sealed the win four minutes from time...
09:43 AM, May 27, 2013
Madrid: Barcelona's victory over bitter rivals Real Madrid in the race to sign Brazil forward Neymar will increase the pressure on Real president Florentino Perez to come up with a similarly high-profile acquisition. The 21-year-old Neymar, seen as one of the brightest prospects in soccer, announced on Saturday he had picked Barca over Real and would be leaving Santos to sign a five-year deal with the Catalan club. As well...
02:52 PM, May 26, 2013
