Latest Football News

• Andorra 0-2 Russia: Pogrebnyak at the double

  Striker Pavel Pogrebnyak scored twice for Russia as they opened their Euro 2012 qualifying campaign with a 2-0 win over Andorra.

• Ankle blow sidelines France striker Benzema

  Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema has been ruled out of France's Euro 2012 qualifier against Belarus on Friday night with an ankle injury.

• Arbeloa: Spain comfortable with pressure

  Spain defender Alvaro Arbeloa believes he and his team-mates are comfortable with the pressure of playing as reigning world and European champions and is confident that Vicente del Bosque's side are capable of winning even more silverware.

• Argentina planning England match next year - agent

  BUENOS AIRES, Sept 2 (Reuters) - Big soccer rivals Argentina and England could play a friendly on Feb. 9, 2011, the man charged with organising the South American team's international calendar said on Thursday.

• Argentine midfielder Solari set to join Penarol

  MONTEVIDEO, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Former Real Madrid and Inter Milan midfielder Santiago Solari is poised to leave Mexico's Atlante for Penarol, the Uruguayan champions said on Wednesday.

• Armenia 0-1 Ireland: Fahey nets first goal

  Keith Fahey's first senior international goal got the Republic of Ireland's Euro 2012 qualifying campaign off to a winning start in a tight encounter in Armenia.

• Arsenal star Arshavin: I've lost my sparkle

  Arsenal star Andrei Arshavin says he has been frustrated over the past 18 months by his inability to score the kind of sublime goals that saw him become Russian football's biggest star.

• Beckham hoping to return to MLS action next week

  CARSON, California, Sept 2 (Reuters) - David Beckham hopes to make his return to action in LA Galaxy's match against Columbus Crew on Sept. 11, the midfielder said on Thursday.

• Benin confirm Nobilo as coach just in time for qualifier

  COTONOU, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Frenchman Jean-Marc Nobilo was confirmed by the Benin football federation as their new coach only five days before they begin their African Nations Cup qualifying campaign on Sunday.

• Birmingham boss McLeish reveals Zamora interest

  Birmingham boss Alex McLeish has revealed he made an enquiry about Fulham striker Bobby Zamora before the end of the transfer window.

• Bradley to stay on as U.S. coach for 2014 World Cup

  CHICAGO, Aug 30 (Reuters) - Bob Bradley has agreed to stay on as United States coach for another four years to include the 2014 World Cup, U.S. Soccer said on Monday.

• Brian McBride announces his retirement

  Former Fulham and United States forward Brian McBride will retire at the end of the 2010 season.

• Capello boosted by Rooney

  England coach Fabio Capello is encouraged by Wayne Rooney's return to form ahead of Friday's clash with Bulgaria.

• Capello reveals Scholes U-turn

  Fabio Capello says Paul Scholes changed his mind about playing for England at the World Cup.

• Carra disappointed in Masch

  Jamie Carragher believes Javier Mascherano 'let himself down badly' by not playing against Man City.

• Carra: Jagielka and co can cover

  Jamie Carragher believes England have plenty of quality defenders and says Everton centre-back Phil Jagielka is a "great player".

• Carragher urges Kopites to lay off Owen

  Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher has pleaded with fans attending his testimonial not to direct abuse towards former team-mate Michael Owen, who will be playing in the charity match on Saturday.

• Celtic crash out of Europe

  A hat-trick from Ricky van Wolfswinkel helped Utrecht turn their Europa League tie with Celtic on its head.

• Chile's Ponce moves to Racing Santander on loan

  SANTIAGO, Aug 31 (Reuters) - Chile World Cup defender Waldo Ponce has joined Racing Santander on loan, the Spanish club's president Francisco Pernia said on Tuesday.

• Chinese officials deserve Iran snub - soccer chief

  BEIJING, Sept 2 (Reuters) - Iran's demand for a neutral referee for their friendly against China this week is disrespectful but local match officials only have themselves to blame, according to China's soccer chief Wei Di.

• Chinese player Feng's sight saved after bus incident

  BEIJING, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Shenyang Dongjin defender Feng Shaoshun will not lose the sight in his left eye which was cut by glass after opposing fans stoned the team bus, the Chinese Football Association (CFA) said on Wednesday.

• City ease into group stage

  Man City are through to the Europa League group stage after a 2-0 home win against FC Timisoara.

• Colombian club looks to hit back at striking players

  BOGOTA, Aug 31 (Reuters) - Colombian former South American champions Once Caldas could punish or sack players who have gone on strike over owed salaries, a club official said on Tuesday.

• Colombian club's players end strike over unpaid salaries

  BOGOTA, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Players of Colombia's Once Caldas ended a strike and returned to training on Wednesday after reaching agreement with the club over stalled salary payments.

• Corinthians centenary celebrations marked by tragedy

  RIO DE JANEIRO, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Celebrations to mark Brazilian soccer giants Corinthians 100th birthday on Wednesday were grimly overshadowed when a 21-year-old woman was run over by the club's official bus as it left the party.

• Croatian Rubcic named as Bangladesh coach

  DHAKA, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Croatian Robert Rubcic has been named as the new coach of the Bangladesh soccer team, with his first assignment to be the Asian Games in November.

• Donadoni in for Villa job

  Skysports.com understands former Italy coach Roberto Donadoni has applied for the Aston Villa manager's job.

• Essien chasing top form for Chelsea

  Chelsea midfielder Michael Essien has told Ghana coach Milovan Rajevac not to consider him for a while as he bids to rediscover his best form.

• Essien puts international career with Ghana on hold

  JOHANNESBURG, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Chelsea midfielder Michael Essien has stood down from international football for the foreseeable future, telling Ghana he wants to return to form at club level, coach Milovan Rajevac said.

• Euro 2012: Russia, Serbia open with victories

  Russia, Serbia and Turkey enjoyed comfortable starts to their Euro 2012 qualfying campaigns on Friday night, beating some of international football's weaker sides on their travels.

• Euro dream over for United

  Dundee United's European adventure came to an end after a 1-1 second-leg draw against AEK Athens.

• Europa League draw

  Manchester City face Italian giants Juventus, while Liverpool tackle Napoli in the Europa League group stage.

• Europa League round-up A-F

  Sporting Lisbon battled from two goals down to win their tie against Brondby 3-2 on aggregate.

• Europa League round-up G-L

  Besiktas look like they could be one of the teams to beat in this year's Europa League as they cantered through to the group stage.

• Europa League round-up M-U

  PSV survived their scare against Russians Sibir to comfortably book a Europa League group stage place.

• Europa woe for Well

  Motherwell saw their Europa League dreams dashed on Thursday as they slipped to a 1-0 defeat against Odense.

• Exit leaves Lennon feeling low

  Neil Lennon admits seeing Celtic slip out of the Europa League on Thursday was difficult to stomach.

• Fabio - I can handle pressure

  England coach Fabio Capello insists he has experienced worse situations during his career.

• Fabio Capello reveals Scholes' England U-Turn

  Fabio Capello has claimed Paul Scholes performed a World Cup U-turn on the eve of his squad announcement.

• Fahey solves ROI's frustration

  Keith Fahey's first competitive international goal earned Republic of Ireland a 1-0 win in Armenia.

• Faroe Islands 0-3 Serbia: Zigic rounds off easy win

  Faroe Islands 0-3 Serbia: Zigic rounds off easy win

• Fifa back diving bans

  Fifa are prepared to give individual associations the power to hand out punishments for diving.

• FIFA panel hails Rooney finals display

  Despite coming under fierce criticism for failing to set the World Cup alight, Wayne Rooney has received a commendation from FIFA for his performances in South Africa, and was named as one of England's three best players at the tournament.

• Former U.S and Fulham striker McBride to retire

  CHICAGO, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Former United States World Cup striker Brian McBride will retire at the end of the current Major League Soccer season, his club Chicago Fire said Friday.

• Fortune feels Baggies can dodge drop

  West Brom are in a much better position to avoid relegation than they were two years ago, according to striker Marc-Antoine Fortune.

• France players told to sing anthem

  New France coach Laurent Blanc has given his squad the words of the national anthem - to make sure they can sing along to La Marseillaise as they line up to face Belarus in Paris on Friday.

• Friendlies: China beaten convincingly by Iran

  Goals in each half from Andranik and Mohammad Gholami helped Iran beat China 2-0 in a friendly at Zhengzhou Hanghai Stadium.

• Gerrard eyes Europa task

  Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard is looking forward to the challenge his side face in the Europa League.

• Gerrard pays Carra tribute

  Steven Gerrard has hailed team-mate Jamie Carragher as a 'Liverpool great' ahead of his testomonial

• Gerrard puts faith in Fabio

  Captain Steve Gerrard has leapt to the defence of coach Fabio Capello ahead of England's opening Euro 2012 qualifiers.

• Goodnight Vienna for Villa

  Aston Villa's misery continued as they were dumped out of the Europa League after defeat to Rapid Vienna.

• Gordon refuses to rush recuperation

  Sunderland stopper Craig Gordon is desperate to play again but not about to risk further damage to his broken arm by rushing his recuperation.

• Holloway sweating over Baptiste injury

  Blackpool are sweating over the fitness of defender Alex Baptiste after he picked up an injury on their training trip to Latvia.

• Joint Iberian World Cup bid earns FIFA praise

  LISBON, Sept 2 (Reuters) - FIFA ended a four-day visit to inspect Spain and Portugal's 2018 or 2022 World Cup bid by praising the countries' capacity to co-ordinate effectively in hosting a joint event.

• Juve leave out Buffon

  Juventus have omitted Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon from their 25-man squad for the Europa League.

• Juve warned over Balotelli

  Juventus have been warned they face tough sanctions if their fans target Mario Balotelli with racist abuse.

• Kazakhstan 0-3 Turkey: Altintop stunner for Turks

  Turkey made a confident start in Group A when defeating Kazakhstan 3-0 in Almaty, with Hamit Altintop scoring a stunning volley from a corner.

• Lamps - Blues aren't past it

  Frank Lampard has rubbished any suggestions that Chelsea's squad are over the hill.

• MacDonald admits major blow

  Kevin MacDonald admitted that the Aston Villa's exit to Rapid Vienna may now not get him a permanent job.

• Magath backs striker Raul to shine for Schalke

  Schalke manager Felix Magath believes it will only be a matter of time before Raul demonstrates his renowned goalscoring prowess in the Bundesliga.

• Man City and Real Madrid wanted Borriello - agent

  Roma's new €10 million signing Marco Borriello rejected an approach from Manchester City and also had an option to join Real Madrid, according to the player's agent.

• Mancini relishing Euro tilt

  Man City boss Roberto Mancini is relishing a tilt at Europa League glory after reaching the group stage.

• Martinez backs Di Santo for success

  Wigan manager Roberto Martinez is confident he can do what Carlo Ancelotti failed to and get the best out of Franco Di Santo at the DW Stadium.

• MATCHDAY LIVE: Latest updates and chat

  MatchDay LIVE - September 3

• Mexico mulls cutting foreigners from domestic league

  MEXICO CITY, Aug 31 (Reuters) - Mexico, whose younger players impressed at the World Cup, are looking to cut the number of foreigners in the domestic league to increase international opportunities for the country's juniors.

• Mexico's Franco announces international retirement

  MEXICO CITY, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Argentine-born striker Guillermo Franco, without a club since leaving West Ham United in May, has quit international soccer.

• Midfielder Hasebe limps out of Japan friendlies

  TOKYO, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Japan midfielder Makoto Hasebe will miss Saturday's friendly against Paraguay because of a calf strain.

• Milan boss Allegri happy with Berlusconi 'presents'

  AC Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri has thanked club owner Silvio Berlusconi for bankrolling a spending spree just before the transfer window closed, after the Rossoneri snapped up Robinho and Zlatan ibrahimovic to bolster their attacking otions.

• Montenegro 1-0 Wales: Toshack rues Vucinic goal

  Mirko Vucinic enhanced his growing reputation by firing Wales to defeat in their opening Euro 2012 qualifier in Montenegro.

• New Japan coach promises 'Zac-attack' as chief samurai

  TOKYO, Aug 31 (Reuters) - Japan's new coach Alberto Zaccheroni swept into Tokyo on Tuesday, asking to be called "Zac" and promising a lasting legacy from his reign.

• Neymar inspires Santos to fourth straight win in Brazil

  RIO DE JANEIRO, Sept 2 (Reuters) - Brazil prodigy Neymar volleyed a fine goal from the edge of the box after 52 seconds to inspire Santos to a 2-1 win over Avai that put them third in the Brazilian championship on Thursday.

• No surprises for Trapattoni

  Giovanni Trapattoni was not surprised that Republic of Ireland struggled before winning 1-0 in Armenia.

• Police search for Cabanas shooter in Colombia

  BOGOTA, Sept 2 (Reuters) - Colombian police are searching for a Mexican fugitive wanted for the shooting in January of Paraguay soccer player Salvador Cabanas, a senior officer said on Thursday.

• Pulis issues rallying call to Potters

  Tony Pulis has told his Stoke players their work ethic will be key as they bid to bounce back from a bad start to the Premier League season.

• Pulis rallies Potters

  Tony Pulis has called on his players to get back to basics as they look to get over their poor start to the season.

• Reds roar back to go through

  Liverpool booked their place in the group stages of the Europa League after beating Trabzonspor.

• Riise chasing American dream

  John Arne Riise has revealed that he intends to head to the MLS once he severs ties with Roma.

• Roberts to give his all for Rovers

  Blackburn striker Jason Roberts has promised to do "everything I can for the team" after failing to secure a move during the transfer window.

• Roma star Riise reveals his American dream

  John Arne Riise has revealed his desire to end his career in MLS, once he has left Roma.

• Scholes reveals retirement thoughts

  Paul Scholes has revealed he was considering retirement at Christmas last season after a poor run of form for Manchester United.

• Scholes surprised to play on

  Paul Scholes has admitted that at Christmas last year he thought he would have retired by now.

• Scholes: I thought last season would be the end

  Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes has revealed that he felt certain he would retire at the end of last season, after struggling for form during a poor first half of the 2009-10 campaign.

• Sky Sports Friday live!

  Follow all of Friday's action, including live text commentaries on the Euro 2012 qualifiers, with skysports.com's Score Centre.

• Spurs star Van der Vaart reveals Atletico interest

  New Tottenham signing Rafael van der Vaart has revealed that only Atletico Madrid made an offer for him - with Bayern Munich failing to table a "concrete" bid.

• Stoilov: Blame England woes on gruelling season

  Bulgaria coach Stanimir Stoilov believes England will always struggle to shine in major tournaments because of the gruelling nature of the English domestic season.

• Sturridge repays Pearce faith

  Daniel Sturridge's goal earned Stuart Pearce's England U21 side a 1-0 win over Portugal in Barcelos.

• Sudan avoids international ban as FIFA accepts vote

  KHARTOUM, Aug 31 (Reuters) - Sudan has avoided being banned from international soccer after the country's Football Association re-ran its elections without government interference, FIFA said on Tuesday.

• Torres close to full fitness

  Liverpool expect star striker Fernando Torres to be back to his peak fitness next month.

• Trabzonspor v Liverpool preview

  Liverpool take on Trabzonspor in their second leg Europa League tie without seven first-team players.

• Trotters keen to get rid of Riga

  Mustapha Riga looks set to be the next player to quit Bolton, but the club have so far failed to agree a severance package with the forward.

• U.S back Bradley but tight-lipped over alternatives

  MIAMI, Aug 31 (Reuters) - United States Soccer Federation president Sunil Gulati refused on Tuesday to confirm whether he had talked to any other coaches before signing up incumbent Bob Bradley to four more years in the role.

• Uefa announces vuvuzela ban

  Uefa has decided to ban vuvuzelas from all European competition following their use at the World Cup.

• United greats inspire Carra

  Jamie Carragher hopes to finish his career with Liverpool - and is inspired by Man United's old guard.

• Vienna swoop for Vennegoor

  Rapid Vienna have confirmed the signing of Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink on a free transfer.

• Villa interview Houllier

  Former Liverpool boss Gerard Houllier has emerged as a leading candidate to replace Martin O'Neill as Aston Villa manager after being interviewed by the club's owner Randy Lerner.

• Vucinic slays Dragons

  Wales' opening Euro 2012 qualifier saw them leave Montenegro empty-handed as they suffered a 1-0 defeat.

• Zaccheroni joins Japan's 2022 bid team

  TOKYO, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Japan have wasted little time putting new coach Alberto Zaccheroni to work by making him an ambassador for the country's 2022 World Cup bid.

• Zaccheroni to become new Japan coach

  TOKYO, Aug 30 (Reuters) - Former AC Milan and Juventus manager Alberto Zaccheroni has been named as the new coach of Japan, the country's governing body announced on Monday.

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