Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta was “very disappointed” that his dream of retaining the FA Cup was ended with a fourth-round exit at Southampton.The Gunners have lifted the trophy a record 14 times but were deservedly beaten on the south coast as a Gabriel Magalhaes own goal saw Saints advance with a 1-0 victory.Arteta made seven changes to his side and was without captain Pierre-Emeric...Full Story »

An investigation has found that Diego Maradona's doctor, Leopoldo Luque, forged the former footballer's signature in key medical documents. The news comes as more and more details emerge of the World Cup winner's death of a heart attack in November. An Argentine court found that Luque had forged Maradona's signature to gain access to the patient's medical records. "The three sheets were fou...Full Story »

Chelsea boss Frank Lampard took aim at the media in Friday's pre-match presser. Speaking ahead of this weekend's FA Cup fourth-round clash with Luton, Lampard was asked how vital Petr Cech's presence is around a squad who look short of confidence. Before insisting Cech is "vital", the coach took exception to the question and some of the press coverage in recent weeks. "To be fair, I think t...Full Story »

David Bettoni has long been Zinedine Zidane's right-hand man, yet he will now be catapulted into the position of Real Madrid's stand-in head coach whilst the Frenchman recovers from COVID-19. Zidane tested positive on Friday morning and will now have to undergo a period of isolation and Bettoni will have to take charge of the team. The friendship between the two goes back a long way, right b...Full Story »

Daniel Johnson and Tom Barkhuizen are pushing to return to the Preston starting line-up for their Championship clash with Reading on Sunday.Boss Alex Neil dropped the pair to the bench for the midweek win at Birmingham and will be tempted to keep changes to a minimum.Billy Bodin is back in training for the first time since his knee operation but the game against the Royals is expected to come to...Full Story »

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has hailed Edinson Cavani as a centre forward other players can learn from, after he set Manchester United on their way to a 2-1 win over Fulham. Cavani capitalised on a mistake from Fulham goalkeeper Alphonse Areola to cancel out Ademola Lookman's sixth-minute strike. That goal ensured the Uruguayan became the first United player to score their first four club goals awa...Full Story »

Real Madrid's board are sticking with coach Zinedine Zidane. Marca says there is a sense of calm and reflection at Real Madrid this Thursday, even after the painful Copa del Rey loss to Alcoyano on Wednesday night, where the team fell to a 2-1 extra time defeat against 10 men. The reigning LaLiga Santander champions may have lost their way in recent weeks, but those in charge at Los Blancos ...Full Story »

Portsmouth manager Kenny Jackett has some selection dilemmas ahead of Saturday’s crunch clash with Sky Bet League One leaders Hull.A 4-0 win over AFC Wimbledon on Tuesday kept up the pressure on the Tigers prior to this weekend’s fixture.Winger Ronan Curtis made his first appearance of the season from the bench following a bout of coronavirus and assisted fellow substitute Ben Close ...Full Story »

Neil Harris admitted his Cardiff future is out of his hands after a 1-0 loss to QPR made it six straight defeats for the Welsh side.Harris guided the Bluebirds to last season’s Championship play-offs but his team have been awful so far this term and are 15th following their latest reversal.Chris Willock’s first QPR goal won it for Mark Warburton’s visitors.“The outside no...Full Story »

Chris Willock’s first QPR goal secured a 1-0 win for his team and made it six straight defeats for Cardiff with Bluebirds manager Neil Harris now a man under serious pressure.Cardiff reached last season’s Championship play-offs but they are underachieving badly this term and look devoid of confidence and any real attacking threat.Harris put all his attacking players on the pitch in s...Full Story »

Nottingham Forest’s seven-match unbeaten run was brought to a grinding halt as their former striker Britt Assombalonga helped Middlesbrough to a 2-1 win at the City Ground.Middlesbrough spent £15m to sign the striker from Forest in the summer of 2017 and the forward came up with the goods as he put the visitors ahead with a calm finish early on.George Saville added the second five mi...Full Story »

Barca president proposes early electionsInterim Barcelona president Carlos Tusquets will suggest the club's elections be moved forward to the end of February, reports Sport. Tusquets is set to unveil his plan to candidates Joan Laporta, Víctor Font and Toni Freixa in a meeting scheduled for Wednesday afternoon. Alaba holding out for Barcelona callDefender will not make early decision o...Full Story »

Crewe boss Dave Artell may have sold Perry Ng to Cardiff on Tuesday but he could later pay tribute to two remaining members of his backline for their roles in an enthralling victory against Bristol Rovers.Olly Lancashire’s diving header clinched a hard-fought 3-2 success for the Railwaymen, moving them up to seventh, after Rovers had hit back after the interval to cancel out the home side&...Full Story »

Cambridge head coach Mark Bonner hailed his side’s second-half display after a 2-1 win at Southend put them top of the League Two table.The U’s fought back from a goal behind to pick up all three points and Bonner was delighted by the improvements made after the break.“The second half was better but it needed to be,” said Bonner, who spent six years coaching within the Sh...Full Story »

Exeter manager Matt Taylor urged his team to rediscover their composure in front of goal following a goalless League Two draw at 10-man Harrogate.The Grecians’ freescoring start to the season has stuttered in recent weeks with just one goal in their last three outings and – even though defender Warren Burrell was sent off for the hosts after 73 minutes – the visitors only manag...Full Story »

Portsmouth assistant manager Joe Gallen was full of praise for his side’s solidity after keeping a sixth successive League One clean sheet with a 4-0 drubbing of AFC Wimbledon at Fratton Park.First-half strikes from John Marquis, Ryan Williams and Sean Raggett put the home side firmly in control.And a late fourth from substitute Ben Close was the icing on the cake to leave Pompey one point...Full Story »

Wayne Rooney was keen to shift the praise towards his players after landing his first win as permanent Derby boss.Krystian Bielik’s tidy finish in the first half was enough to see off promotion-chasing Bournemouth 1-0 at Pride Park.The Rams were good value for the win and it was a victory which lifted them out of the bottom three.A delighted Rooney reflected on the maiden success, saying: ...Full Story »

Reading manager Veljko Paunovic praised his side for inflicting “payback” on Coventry after their comfortable 3-0 Championship victory at Madejski Stadium.It was Coventry who ended Reading’s unbeaten eight-match start to the season, with a 3-2 win at St Andrew’s, back in October.Lucas Joao gave Reading an early lead with his 17th goal of the season, with Andy Rinomhota an...Full Story »

Sammie Szmodics was the goal-scoring hero as Peterborough produced a stunning second-half comeback to claim a 2-1 success against promotion rivals Charlton.The in-form frontman bagged a brace for the second successive match to fire Darren Ferguson’s men to a vital victory.Former Posh player Conor Washington put Charlton in command when tucking away a 14th-minute penalty to bag his seventh ...Full Story »

Reading strengthened their Championship promotion push with a comfortable 3-0 victory over 10-man Coventry.The Royals moved to within three points of the top two after stretching their unbeaten run to four matches.Veljko Paunovic’s side went ahead in the 16th minute when top scorer Lucas Joao slotted home his 17th goal of the season from close range.Andy Rinomhota made it 2-0 straight afte...Full Story »