Van Dijk has indeed returned to his best form in a Liverpool shirt this season, featuring 25 times in all competitions. The 32-year-old assumed the role of Reds captain last summer following the departure of Jordan Henderson. His impressive form has propelled the club to the top of the Premier League table, with Liverpool currently holding a five-point lead over Manchester City and Arsenal. A...Full Story »

Mohamed Salah's injury recovery appears to be going well, with the Liverpool star stepping back onto the grass after leaving Egypt's camp at AFCON. WHAT HAPPENED?The Reds talisman faced heavy criticism from his home nation after leaving the Africa Cup of Nations to continue his rehabilitation in Merseyside. In his absence, Egypt only made it to the round of 16 before falling to a shock penalt...Full Story »

Jose Mourinho is reportedly open to a return to Manchester United for a second spell as coach as he feels he has "unfinished business" at the club. WHAT HAPPENED?The Portuguese manager has made it his mission to have another shot at guiding the Old Trafford club to glory, The Daily Mail reports. He hopes to work with United's new co-owners Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS, who are taking charge of...Full Story »

Cristiano Ronaldo showed off his impressive physique ahead of his Al-Nassr side facing Lionel Messi's Inter Miami in the Riyadh Season Cup. WHAT HAPPENED?Ronaldo is preparing for the resumption of the Saudi Pro League season, which returns in mid-February, and is clearly in great shape. Before then, Al-Nassr take on Miami in a friendly match on Thursday, before taking on Saudi rivals Al-Hilal...Full Story »

Inter Miami found the goals that had been missing, but Lionel Messi and co. didn't get the win as their defense fell apart in a 4-3 loss to Al-Hilal. TELL ME MOREAl-Hilal were the dominant force of the first half, scoring three goals across the 45 including two in quick succession. Premier League veteran Aleksandar Mitrovic scored the opening goal, giving the Saudi Arabian side the lead just...Full Story »

Ryan Mendes converted a late penalty as Cape Verde beat Mauritania 1-0 in Abidjan to seal their place in the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations.Cape Verde captain Mendes struck the decisive spot kick in the 88th minute and the Blue Sharks will now face either Morocco or South Africa in the quarter-finals.Cape Verde, one of the surprise teams of the tournament after finishing unbeaten at...Full Story »

Mohamed Bayo scored a last-gasp winner to send Guinea into the last eight of the Africa Cup of Nations with a 1-0 win over 10-man Equatorial Guinea.A poor-quality game looked destined for extra time in Abidjan when Bayo headed home from Ibrahim Diakite’s cross with just 22 seconds remaining in the last of eight minutes of stoppage time.The majority of that time had come from a lengthy VAR ...Full Story »

Manchester United survived a huge FA Cup fright to win 4-2 at Newport after the Welsh minnows levelled having been two goals down.Bruno Fernandes and Kobbie Mainoo – with his first United goal – struck inside the opening 13 minutes and safe passage into the fifth round seemed inevitable.But Newport shook Rodney Parade to its rafters as Bryn Morris and Will Evans levelled and made lig...Full Story »

Watford and Southampton face a replay for a place in the FA Cup fifth round following a 1-1 draw at Vicarage Road.Saints substitute Stuart Armstrong struck late to force a replay after Matheus Martins’ early free-kick looked being just enough to take the Hornets through, with Liverpool awaiting in the next round.Both sides made substantial changes to their most recent Championship starting...Full Story »

Crowd trouble marred Wolves’ FA Cup victory over fierce Black Country rivals West Brom at The Hawthorns on Sunday.The game was suspended for over half an hour after problems erupted soon after Matheus Cunha had fired the visitors into a 2-0 lead with 12 minutes remaining.West Brom’s Kyle Bartley went into the crowd to take out his children amid the ugly scenes, which occurred in the ...Full Story »

Newcastle showed signs of being back to their best as they knocked Fulham out of the FA Cup with a 2-0 win at Craven Cottage.Sean Longstaff scored in the first half before Dan Burn dealt the final blow to Marco Silva’s men in the fourth-round tie.Newcastle, who last played on January 13 and are without a league win in four, looked fresh as they inflicted more cup misery on Fulham, ending t...Full Story »

Enzo Maresca conceded Leicester rode their luck en route to booking their place in the fifth round of the FA Cup with a 3-0 win against Birmingham.Birmingham spurned a number of first-half chances before Foxes striker Jamie Vardy opened the scoring after 47 minutes with his first goal in over two months from Marc Albrighton’s cross.Yunus Akgun smashed his first Leicester goal into the top-...Full Story »

Leeds boss Daniel Farke admitted his side does things “the hard way” after being held to a 1-1 draw by Plymouth at Elland Road in the FA Cup.Jaidon Anthony’s brilliant solo effort gave Leeds a half-time lead, but they failed to cash in on long spells of dominance and face a fourth-round replay at Home Park after Adam Randell’s equaliser.Farke, whose side are challenging f...Full Story »

Angola beat Namibia 3-0 to reach the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations after both sides finished with 10 men in Bouake.The Black Antelopes, who won Group D, looked to have made the worst possible start when goalkeeper Neblu was shown a red card for handball outside the area in the 17th minute.Angola, though, took the lead in the 38th minute through Gelson Dala.⌚️ FULL-TIME...Full Story »

Falkirk took any lingering frustration from their shock Scottish Gas Scottish Cup exit out on Alloa, running riot in the second half to secure a 5-0 victory.The cinch League One leaders lost to Bonnyrigg Rose last weekend in a major upset but went ahead on Saturday afternoon through Callumn Morrison’s 25th-minute goal.Calvin Miller doubled the lead in the 50th minute while Liam Henderson a...Full Story »

Jamie Vardy’s eighth goal of the season helped much-changed Leicester into the FA Cup fifth round with a 3-0 win against Birmingham.Vardy broke the deadlock with a header from Marc Albrighton’s superb cross after 47 minutes before Yunus Akgun’s thunderbolt on 72 minutes sealed Leicester’s place in the fifth round.Foxes midfielder Dennis Praet added a third goal with a coo...Full Story »

Adam Randell’s second-half equaliser earned Plymouth an FA Cup fourth-round replay after they held Leeds to a 1-1 draw at Elland Road.The Plymouth midfielder converted a rare chance for his side in the 73rd minute after Jaidon Anthony’s superb solo effort had put Leeds in front at half-time.Leeds extended their unbeaten home record to 17 games in all competitions, but saw their five-...Full Story »

George Elokobi toasted the magic of the FA Cup after a 2-1 win at Ipswich, but insisted he always believed Maidstone could produce one of the great upsets in the competition’s history.National League South side Stones were playing their seventh FA Cup tie this season after entering in the second qualifying round and, despite facing 38 shots at Portman Road, they stunned the Sky Bet Champio...Full Story »

Maidstone produced one of the great FA Cup upsets after Sam Corne downed Ipswich with a 66th-minute winner.Corne had been the hero in round three against Stevenage and further etched his name into Stones folklore with a fine second-half finish to send George Elokobi’s National League South side into the fifth round of the competition.Stones were indebted to goalkeeper Lucas Covolan, who ma...Full Story »

Mauricio Pochettino praised Emiliano Martinez after the Aston Villa goalkeeper produced a string of saves to deny his Chelsea side in their goalless FA Cup fourth-round meeting at Stamford Bridge.Villa are five places and 12 points ahead of Chelsea in the Premier League table but there was little to separate them here, although the hosts will reflect on chances missed in the first half by Noni M...Full Story »