Looking for Soccer News?

Lionel Messi returned to full Barcelona training on Monday following a minor injury scare, making an anticipated recovery ahead of La Liga's restart. Barcelona return to league action on Saturday after a three month hiatus as a result of the coronavirus outbreak, having returned to training at the beginning of May. The reigning Spanish champions kick off their La Liga resumption with a trip to Mallorca, but were without Messi for a handful group training sessions last week, triggering concerns...

It's clear to almost everyone with even a passing interest in both sports that basketball and football teams tend to operate in very different ways. For one thing, NBA franchises have a budget cap whereas football clubs (at least outside of MLS) don't. Meanwhile, football clubs cultivate youngsters in their own academies, a system alien to most professional American sports set-ups. But come this summer, football clubs may need to look at the operations of the big sporting franchises across the...

tion Relegation from League Two is unlikely to be scrapped when EFL clubs meet on Tuesday to vote on how best to conclude their seasons. League Two clubs have already voted to have their campaign ended prematurely as a result of the coronavirus outbreak, while those in League One are yet to reach an agreement due to objections from a selection of playoff-chasing sides. An EGM is being held on Tuesday to vote on proposals put forward by the EFL board, and separate proposals suggested by...

News Having learnt how to use the terms Bananenflanke and Gegenpressing, it's now time for you to start expanding your vocabulary to include the words Trequartistas and Contropiedes as football makes its triumphant return in Italy. Yes, after a three month break, calcio returns with a bang as Juventus host AC Milan in the second-leg of their Coppa Italia semi-final tie. The Bianconeri were fortunate to come away with a 1-1 draw at the San Siro in the first-leg back in February as a late...

Now there was a player, Denis Irwin. We always called him ‘eight out of ten Denis’. So Quick and nimble: quick-brained. Never let you down. Sir Alex Ferguson: My Autobiography When Denis Irwin was at fault for a goal scored by Dennis Bergkamp in a clash between Manchester United and Arsenal in the late 1990s, Alex Ferguson responded to questions about whether he was disappointed with his full-back by retorting that Irwin had never previously made a mistake. “I think we can forgive him one,”...

The box-to-box midfielder - arguably the most demanding role on a football pitch. Get it right and you look like a Swiss Army knife of footballing talent, powered by the legs and lungs of a marathon runner; get it wrong and you look like a headless chicken who is just desperate to touch the ball as much as possible. Over the years we’ve been treated to some truly scintillating midfielders who offer both defensive protection as well as attacking prowess, while seeming to effortlessly cover the...

Chelsea youngster Tino Anjorin has put pen to paper on a bumper five-year contract at Stamford Bridge. The new deal ties the 18-year-old down to the club until 2025, demonstrating Frank Lampard's continued determination to put faith in youth. The Chelsea boss has blooded youngsters Tammy Abraham, Mason Mount, Fikayo Tomori, Reece James and Billy Gilmour throughout the season, showing no reluctance to throw them in at the deep end. Anjorin is poised to follow in their footsteps, so just who is...

Lyon star Ada Hederberg has signed a groundbreaking 10-year deal endorsement deal with Nike, in a first for women's football. Hederberg is widely regarded as one of the finest players in the world, winning the inaugural Ballon d'Or Femin in 2018 and being named BBC Women's Footballer of the Year on two occasions. She has not represented her national team Norway since 2017 in protest over how they treat the women's side, forcing her to miss the 2019 Women's World Cup. Hederberg is one of the...

Liverpool centre back Dejan Lovren has opened up on the mood at Anfield during the period when it looked like the Premier League season could have been voided. The Reds were 25 points clear at the top of the table when the competition was postponed in March due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and needed only two wins to secure their first top flight title in 30 years. However, with the planned resumption of football moved from April to June, and Premier League clubs initially unable to agree on a...

Forget being excited to watch Premier League football again just for the 'quality' on display. That doesn't usually get the neutral through Burnley vs. Brighton, does it? No. It's all about the excitement of watching Ashley Barnes or Chris Wood, or whoever your budget striker is, scramble in a goal in the most disgusting way possible. That's six points and probably some bonus extras, thank you very much! So, with the Premier League set to return, here's what you need to know to make sure your...

It's been a long wait, but the Premier League is coming back. And for Liverpool, this means the chance to get the title over the line on the pitch. It won't be the same as we remembered it - the famous Anfield atmosphere which so often provides a home advantage will be eradicated for at least the rest of the season due to the still-prominent COVID-19 crisis - but after three months without almost any form of football, we'll take what we can get. As we get set for the big kick-off, then, here...

When the 2019/20 season eventually comes to a close, so will Chris Brunt's 13-year stay at West Brom. The 35-year-old is an absolute Baggies stalwart, having joined the club way back in August 2007. Brunt became synonymous with West Brom. He was a classic, reliable, dependable member of 2010s Premier League football. It's hard to imagine what life will be like without him in a Baggies strip, and even more difficult to remember what life was like before. It was a simpler time. No one had heard...

Manchester United are said to to be the previously unnamed club who bid €100m (£89m) for Barcelona wonderkid Ansu Fati, an offer that has since been turned down. Last week, it was reported that, amid Barça's desperation to raise cash ahead of the summer transfer window, the club received a big-money offer for Fati. However, while several players are expected to depart Camp Nou in an attempt to balance the books, Fati is not expected to be one of them. SPORT now claim that United were the main...

The battle for Premier League survival resumes on 17 June, with Brighton & Hove Albion among a number of sides currently looking over their shoulder. After a pretty ordinary run of form - before the enforced coronavirus break - the Seagulls had dropped to 15th place on 29 points, loitering above the relegation zone by just two points. Graham Potter's side have plenty of work to do if they want to continue building on the successful foundations laid by previous manager Chris Hughton, but...

As the return of the Bundesliga has shown, broadcasters – and a number of the viewing public – aren't especially comfortable with the spectacle of empty grounds soundtracked to the grunting and thudding of 22 men on the pitch. A number of solutions have been suggested and trialed, with some German clubs putting 'cardboard' fans in their stands, adorned with shirts and pictures of some season ticket holders, while some leagues are preparing screens upon which fans can have live images of...

Before the Premier League season was suspended, Sheffield United were flying high. The Blades had shattered pre-season expectations and were in the midst of a race for European football, despite many touting them for relegation. With the Premier League returning this month, the impact of the break and the lack of fans will be sure to affect Chris Wilder's men and play a huge part in how the rest of their season pans out. The Blades last played over three months ago in a 1-0 victory over...

Napoli's tale of incredible highs, incredible lows and an incredible recent resurgence is quite incredible. The journey has sucked in players from far and wide, from the streets of Naples and all across the world. Some of Europe's most talented players have become adopted-Neapolitans, but what if we could fuse them all together? Let's have a look at Napoli's perfect footballer if you could join the DNA of all the very best who donned the shirt. Brain - Diego Maradona Diego Maradona during his...

ning When Virgil van Dijk first walked in the doors at Melwood in January 2018, he had to have been excited at the possibilities. The Reds, then, had scored more goals than anyone in the Premier League outside of Manchester City. However, they were leaky at the back and in desperate need of direction. They'd previously lost 5-0 to the champions elect and 4-1 to Tottenham, while they'd just drawn 3-3 with Arsenal despite leading 2-0 with 40 minutes to play. Van Dijk's presence alone helped turn...

lose FIFA are expected to announce in the coming days that the 2020 summer transfer window will be allowed to open up to four weeks before the end of a national league’s campaign. As things stand, the Premier League, La Liga and Serie A are all expected to resume their respective seasons this month. All three will cram the remaining fixtures into around six weeks to ensure they can be wrapped up by the end of July. The Premier League season will restart on 17 June But with the final few rounds...

Manchester City are facing a critical week in their history as the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) begins to hear their appeal against a two-ban from all UEFA competition, imposed as a punishment for breaching Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations. As things stand, City will be banned from the Champions League in each of the next two years in which they qualify. The club has spared no expense fighting the UEFA verdict, which they still see as grossly unfair and unjust, and will be praying...