London: Queens Park Rangers midfielder Joey Barton was charged by the English FA on Monday with two acts of alleged violent conduct during Sunday's Premier League match against Manchester City, and could be facing a 10-match ban at the start of next season. The controversial player was sent off for elbowing Carlos Tevez and then kicked Sergio Aguero and tried to head-butt Vincent Kompany before being escorted off the pitch....
12:08 AM, May 15, 2012
Malaga: Ruud van Nistelrooy has announced his decision to hang up his boots this summer after opting not to renew his contract with Malaga. The former Netherlands international had an expiring deal with the Andalusian side, and will not ink a new contract as he feels the time has come to end his active career. "Yesterday I played the last match of my professional career. The time has come to...
05:23 PM, May 14, 2012
Madrid: Villarreal, often touted as a model for smaller clubs to aspire to, were left preparing for life in the second division on Monday after they were relegated following a dramatic finale to the La Liga season. The team known as 'Yellow Submarine' because of their canary coloured strip, started the campaign in the Champions League after finishing fourth last year, but went in to Sunday's decider in 16th place...
04:17 PM, May 14, 2012
As Pep Guardiola prepares for his final two games in charge of Barcelona, irrespective of the result, he can look back in satisfaction at having overseen one of the most successful periods ever in the history of the club. Since taking over as the Barcelona manager in 2008, Guardiola has won 13 trophies in all " three La Liga titles, two Champions League trophies, one Copa del Rey, three Spanish...
10:00 AM, May 11, 2012
Birmingham: Blackpool thwarted a late rally by Birmingham City in a Championship play-off on Wednesday, drawing 2-2 to clinch a 3-2 aggregate victory and set up a high-stakes final with West Ham United next week. Goals either side of half-time by Steven Dobbie and Matt Phillips put the visitors 2-0 up in the semi-final second leg, but Birmingham refused to be beaten on the night and fought back through Nikola...
11:40 AM, May 10, 2012
Manchester: Yaya Toure has admitted that "it would be great" if he could move back to Barcelona and finish his playing career at Camp Nou. The Ivorian midfielder featured for the Catalan side for three years and was sold to Manchester City for around 30 million in the summer of 2010. Toure has been a popular figure at the Etihad Stadium and his double at Newcastle United on Sunday left...
11:29 AM, May 10, 2012
Manchester: Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini insists his side still have work to do if they are to be crowned Premier League champions for the first time since 1968. The Blues host QPR on Sunday knowing a win will almost definitely be enough to see them lift the Premier League trophy, due to their eight-goal goal difference superiority over rivals Manchester United. The clubs are level on points, with only...
03:29 PM, May 09, 2012
Bucharest, Romania: Atletico Madrid striker Falcao is assured of a title before the all-Spanish Europa League final against Athletic Bilbao in Bucharest on Wednesday. Falcao shares the competition's scoring lead with 10 goals and is the Europa League's top striker for the second straight season, something no player has achieved before. Having scored 17 times in leading FC Porto to the title last season, the Colombian can win his second...
11:25 AM, May 09, 2012
Madrid: Kaka has insisted that he is eager to stay at Real Madrid beyond the current season as he wants to respect his contract. The Brazil international is continually being linked with a move away from the Santiago Bernabeu in the summer transfer window after failing to nail down a regular first-team role with Real. However, Kaka is determined to fight for his place at Madrid, and wants to stay...
09:08 AM, May 09, 2012
Turin: Juventus director Beppe Marotta has described Robin van Persie as one of the most complete players around, but refused to disclose whether the newly-crowned champions of Italy will launch a bid to sign the Arsenal striker this summer. Van Persie has just a year left on his current contract with the Gunners and has been linked with a number of Europe's top clubs in recent months, including Juventus. Marotta...
09:03 AM, May 09, 2012
Valencia: Argentina's Mauricio Pellegrino will replace Unai Emery as coach of Valencia after the former player agreed to a two-year deal with the Spanish club. Under Emery, Valencia clinched third place in the Spanish league for the third straight season, but the Basque coach, who took charge in 2008, was under pressure after the Spanish club lost to rivals Atletico Madrid for a place in the Europa League final. Pellegrino...
04:19 PM, May 08, 2012
Barcelona: Barcelona defender Carles Puyol will undergo knee surgery, the Spanish league club said on Tuesday, set to rule the Spain international out of next month's European Championships. Puyol on Saturday finished Barcelona's 4-0 victory over Espanyol with discomfort in his right knee, and subsequent medical tests led the 34-year-old to opt for arthroscopic surgery. Barcelona said the surgery will be performed on Saturday and Puyol will need six weeks...
04:09 PM, May 08, 2012
London: Frank Lampard and John Terry are desperate for Didier Drogba to stay at Chelsea this summer despite speculation linking him with a move away from Stamford Bridge. The Ivorian is in the final year of his contract with the Blues and has been linked with a transfer to China to link-up with former Chelsea strike partner Nicolas Anelka at Shanghai Shenhua. However, after a strong end to the season...
12:16 PM, May 08, 2012
Manchester: Patrice Evra has declared that, while Manchester United look likely to lose their Premier League crown to rivals Manchester City, talk of a demise and a lowering of standards is somewhat premature. United head into the final day of the season needing QPR to do them a favour at Eastlands, with their cross-city rivals odds-on favourites to lift the trophy on Sunday afternoon. The club currently trail Roberto Mancini's...
11:58 AM, May 08, 2012
Barcelona: Lionel Messi has underlined the impact Pep Guardiola has made on his career over the past four years, with the Barcelona forward speaking of his admiration for the outgoing coach by saying his respect for Guardiola is unconditional. The former midfielder will depart Camp Nou at the end of the season and was given a huge display of affection from the Barcelona players and supporters during Saturday's 4-0 win...
11:02 AM, May 08, 2012
London: Champions League finalists Chelsea will link up again with four former Stamford Bridge favourites when they face Paris St Germain on a pre-season tour of the United States in the first soccer game at new Yankee Stadium. PSG are managed by Carlo Ancelotti, who led Chelsea to the Premier League and FA Cup double in his first season in 2010, and among the Italian's backroom staff are former Blues...
10:54 AM, May 08, 2012
Dublin: Ireland coach Giovanni Trapattoni picked his 23-man squad for the European Championships on Monday, leaving out James McCarthy so the midfielder can stay home with his seriously ill father. The Scottish-born McCarthy was likely to be included in the squad for the June 8-July 1 tournament in Poland and Ukraine but asked to be withdrawn from contention. "I have made the very difficult decision to withdraw my name from...
10:42 AM, May 08, 2012
Milan: Zlatan Ibrahimovic has described AC Milan's season as one big failure, claiming that Massimiliano Allegri's men had gifted their Serie A title to Juventus. The Rossoneri saw their hopes of retaining the Scudetto end with a dramatic 4-2 loss to city rivals Inter Milan on Sunday, with Juventus having defeated Cagliari 2-0 to put four points between the two sides with just one round of the season remaining. A...
10:20 AM, May 08, 2012
Milan: Inter Milan president Massimo Moratti has announced that Andrea Stramaccioni will remain in charge of the Nerazzurri after this season and become the club's permanent coach. The 36-year-old was appointed as interim boss until the end of the season after the departure of Claudio Ranieri in March, and Inter have now made the decision to hold on to Stramaccioni beyond the 2011-12 campaign. "I will confirm Stramaccioni as the...
10:10 AM, May 08, 2012
London: West Ham United edged closer to a Premier League return with a 3-0 home win over Cardiff City on Monday, completing a 5-0 semi-final aggregate triumph to ease into the Championship play-off final. Kevin Nolan and Ricardo Vaz Te scored in the first half and a late Nicky Maynard strike sealed a crushing win for the east London club, who were relegated from the top flight a year ago....
08:35 AM, May 08, 2012
