Barcelona, Spain | AFP | Clinching La Liga before their Champions League semi-final with Liverpool would give Barcelona a “very powerful” boost, coach Ernesto Valverde said on Friday. The runaway Spanish league leaders are nine points clear with four games to play. They will seal the title if Atletico Madrid lose …
Read More »Five things we learned in European football this weekend
Paris, France | AFP | Barcelona, Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain all moved closer to retaining their domestic titles this weekend, but there were plenty of other talking points in Europe. AFP Sport takes a look back at the action as Borussia Dortmund and Ajax claimed big victories, and a famous old …
Read More »Five things we learned in European football this weekend
Paris, France | AFP | Barcelona, Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain all extended their respective league leads in Spain, Italy and France, while Bayern Munich warmed up for their Champions League clash at Liverpool with a narrow win. As Kylian Mbappe continued his remarkable goalscoring form and Mauro Icardi watched Inter Milan from the stands, AFP …
Read More »Neymar’s father denies any contact with Barca over return
Paris, France | AFP | Neymar’s father reiterated on Sunday that there has been no attempt to contact Barcelona over a possible return to Spain for the world’s most expensive player. Neymar joined Paris Saint-Germain for a world record fee of 222 million euros ($251 million) in August 2017 but has repeatedly been linked with …
Read More »Real Madrid draw Barcelona in Copa del Rey semis
Madrid, Spain | AFP | Real Madrid will face defending champions Barcelona in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey. The draw made on Friday means there will be back-to-back Clasicos, with the second leg due to take place in the last week of February, before Madrid host Barca in La Liga on March 2. …
Read More »Real Madrid take top spot from Man Utd in ‘money league’
London, United Kingdom | AFP | Real Madrid have knocked Manchester United off the top of Deloitte’s Football Money League, but the Premier League still flexed its financial muscle, with all of England’s ‘Big Six’ featuring in the top 10 for the first time. The Deloitte list ranked clubs on how …
Read More »Dembele double helps Barca defeat Levante but threat of disqualification looms
Barcelona, Spain | AFP | Barcelona overturned a first leg defeat to beat Levante in the Copa del Rey on Thursday but could yet be thrown out of the competition after being accused of fielding an ineligible player. Barca won 3-0 at the Camp Nou, with Lionel Messi setting up …
Read More »Real Madrid, Atletico close in on Barcelona
Madrid, Spain | AFP | Karim Benzema shot Real Madrid to within two points of La Liga leaders Barcelona with the winner in a scrappy 1-0 win over Rayo Vallecano, while countryman Antoine Griezmann fired a brace in a 3-2 win over Real Valladolid to take Atletico Madrid level with …
Read More »Griezmann shoots Atletico level with Barcelona
Madrid, Spain | AFP | Antoine Griezmann dragged Atletico Madrid level with Barcelona at the top of La Liga as he scored twice and created another in a 3-2 win at Valladolid. The victory left Diego Simeone’s side second in La Liga but they joined Barca, who travel to Levante …
Read More »Valverde says Barca want to ‘help’ difficult Dembele
Barcelona, Spain | AFP | Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde said on Monday that the club wants to “help” French winger Ousmane Dembele realise his potential, after the youngster’s latest disciplinary transgression. The 21-year-old arrived two hours late for practice on Sunday and had to train alone and is now facing …
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