Football (Soccer) – Page 104 – Worldwide Sports News

February 8, 2025

Miron Muslic: ‘We became refugees overnight. It was just devastating’

New Plymouth Argyle manager on fleeing from genocide in Bosnia when he was nine and the ‘fantasy’ of managing against Liverpool in the FA Cup

As the waves crash against the harbour walls of West Hoe Pier, a Grade II-listed structure beneath Plymouth’s Grand Parade, Miron Muslic’s mind turns to the sights and sounds of spring 1992 in Bihac, Bosnia. He was a typical nine-year-old boy, happiest having a kickabout or watching He-Man, still on a high from getting a BMX for his birthday months earlier. “We became refugees overnight,” he says. “We faced a genocide in the heart of Europe. You fear for your life, you’re scared. It was just devastating. We had to grab everything we could put in a bag and move 700km [435 miles]. I don’t think I was really aware of what was going on. How could I be?”

Muslic, his younger sister, Marinela, and their parents, Camil and Mersada, fled to Austria via Hungary, eventually arriving in the scenic Pertisau am Achensee after a few days on the road via various modes of transport. “And from there, Austria became our second home,” he says.

February 7, 2025

Van Nistelrooy incensed as Leicester exit to Maguire’s ‘offside time’ goal

Manchester United progress in FA Cup after controversy
‘It is half a metre, it is clear. The team don’t deserve this’

A furious Ruud van Nistelrooy said Leicester were not defeated “in Fergie time” but “in offside time” after Harry Maguire’s 93rd-minute winner for Manchester United was ruled legal and eliminated his side from the FA Cup. With no video assistant referee in the competition until the next round, Maguire’s winner was not chalked off despite the assistant referee being perfectly in line to see he had infringed.

“We are not defeated in Fergie time, we are defeated in offside time,” said Van Nistelrooy, referring to the extra minutes opponents claimed were allocated to United when needed under Sir Alex Ferguson, the Dutchman’s manager at Old Trafford. “It is a hard one to take because the game was decided on a mistake, that is clear. It is not a matter of VAR, where you have to look at millimetres. It is half a metre, it is clear. The team didn’t deserve to lose the game in this way. They fought, played well, and dominated the game for a long bit.”

February 7, 2025

European roundup: Harry Kane scores twice as Bayern make it seven in a row

Bayern go nine points clear at top of Bundesliga with win
Kolo Muani seals late Juventus victory against Como

Bayern Munich eased past Werder Bremen 3-0 on Friday with two goals from Harry Kane for their seventh league win in succession, to move nine points clear at the top of the Bundesliga.

The Bavarians, who face Celtic in their Champions League playoff first leg next week for a spot in the round of 16, had their best chance of the first half through Kane but his stoppage-time header narrowly missed the target.

February 7, 2025

Moyes injects positivity as Everton enjoy a ‘bit of freedom’ from pressure

Manager has overseen three wins in a row and wants to go deep in FA Cup in final Goodison Park season

Everton played their first FA Cup tie at Goodison Park 132 years ago and on Saturday could play their last. What a miserable, defeatist outlook that is, although it is typical of the mindset David Moyes has tried to break since walking back through the door four weeks ago.

“Oh I’d love to get to the Cup final, I really would,” the Everton manager said on Friday. “We need to start bringing some good news back around Everton if we can and getting to the next round would be a good news story.”

February 7, 2025

Harry Maguire is the hero as Manchester United squeeze past Leicester in FA Cup

Harry Maguire: from up for sale two summers ago to redemption completed via a 93rd-minute nodded winner. If the defender was clearly offside when meeting Bruno Fernandes’s spiralling free-kick from the left he certainly did not care as here was his own tale of FA Cup romance.

Before the rush of Maguire’s intervention, Joshua Zirkzee’s 67th-minute equaliser appeared the lifeline United needed to keep a shaky FA Cup defence alive.

February 7, 2025February 7, 2025

Manchester United 2-1 Leicester: FA Cup fourth round – as it happened

A contentious last-gasp header from Harry Maguire secured the hosts’ passage to the fifth round

Ruud also talked about Jeremy Monga, the 15-year-old he has on the bench. “He went up to the Under-18s, did well, went up to the Under-21s and did well there too.” They grow up so fast.

The game is on ITV in Britain and Ruud van Nistelrooy is chatting to the pundits. Asked if it feels odd to be at Old Trafford as the visiting manager, he reveals that he went into the home dressing-room by mistake. When he reached the away one, he didn’t much like it. “It’s tiny! And not comfortable. So they got that right.”

February 7, 2025

Jermaine Jenas says he is ‘coming back a better person’ before TalkSport return

Jenas was dismissed from BBC roles in August
Former player returning to TalkSport this weekend

Jermaine Jenas insists he has taken responsibility for the conduct that led to his dismissal from the BBC as he prepares to return to broadcasting.

The former Tottenham and England midfielder was dismissed from his roles on Match Of The Day and The One Show in August after messages he sent to two women came to light. Jenas apologised for his actions and is set to return to the public eye as part of TalkSport’s coverage of the FA Cup fourth-round tie between Aston Villa and Spurs on Sunday. It is understood that has caused concern among some members of staff at the radio station who are refusing to work with Jenas.

February 7, 2025February 7, 2025

‘Not in my head space’: Postecoglou rules out worrying about Spurs axe

Tottenham manager fights on after Anfield mauling
‘It’s irrelevant to me what other people’s opinions are’

Ange Postecoglou has insisted he is not thinking about the possibility of being sacked if Tottenham are knocked out of the FA Cup by Aston Villa on Sunday and has backed his players to recover from their 4-0 thrashing at Liverpool.

A weary Spurs squad returned to London in the early hours of Friday with criticism ringing in their ears after surrendering their 1-0 advantage from the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final. They did not manage a shot on target at Anfield, prompting the Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp to describe their performance as “abject”.

February 7, 2025

FA Cup fourth round: 10 things to look out for this weekend

Marcus Rashford could make his Aston Villa debut as Birmingham aim to bring Newcastle back to earth

For spice, consider how this tie is the sides’ third meeting this term. Manchester United won the first two with an aggregate of 8-2, Ruud van Nistelrooy was interim manager for each, then Ruben Amorim made the Dutchman unemployed when taking over as the head coach in mid-autumn. Now returning to Old Trafford as Leicester’s No 1, Van Nistelrooy can expect a warm welcome due to his former status as a star United striker. But if he engineers a knockout of the holders, Van Nistelrooy will be recast, temporarily, as the villain of the faithful. Jamie Jackson

Manchester United v Leicester, Friday 8pm (all times GMT)

Leyton Orient v Manchester City, Saturday 12.15pm

Coventry v Ipswich, Saturday 3pm

Everton v Bournemouth, Saturday 3pm

February 6, 2025

European football: Fiorentina dent Inter title hopes, Barça rout Valencia in cup

Inter beaten 3-0 and miss chance to go top of Serie A
Ferran Torres hit hat-trick in 5-0 Copa del Rey victory

Internazionale missed their chance to go top of Serie A , the defending champions suffering a 3-0 defeat at Fiorentina as Moise Kean scored twice for the hosts. The defeat left Inter in second place on 51 points, three behind the leaders, Napoli, and Fiorentina moved up to fourth on 42 points, above Lazio on goal difference.

The original match on 1 December was suspended when Fiorentina’s Edoardo Bove collapsed on the pitch and was taken to hospital, and the game restarted at 0-0 in the 17th minute with a Fiorentina throw-in.

February 6, 2025

Chelsea fans accuse Boehly of ‘breach of trust’ over his ticket resale website

Co-owner and chairman is a director of Vivid Seats
Premier League lists as ‘unauthorised ticket website’

Chelsea supporters have accused Todd Boehly of a “breach of trust” and a potential conflict of interest over his co-ownership of a website selling tickets to the club’s games and other Premier League matches to foreign tourists.

Boehly is a director and investor in Vivid Seats, an American site that allows users outside the United Kingdom to buy and sell tickets to concerts and sporting events, often at huge mark-ups. British fans cannot use the site or others like it because it is illegal to resell football tickets in this way in the UK. The Premier League lists Vivid Seats as an “unauthorised ticket website”.

February 5, 2025

Leeds streak further ahead at summit as Piroe and Bogle wrongfoot Coventry

First-half strikes from Joël Piroe and Jayden Bogle helped Leeds stretch their advantage at the top of Championship to five points with a comfortable 2-0 victory over Coventry.

The visitors were a class above Frank Lampard’s side, who came into the game on the back of four successive league wins. Coventry could only blame themselves for being two goals down at the break. Piroe’s expertly taken finish made Ellis Simms pay for a mistake before Bogle was handed a gift by the goalkeeper Oliver Dovin.

February 4, 2025

Federal jury dismisses NASL’s antitrust case against MLS, US Soccer

Now-defunct league alleged anticompetitive policies
Suit initially sought $500m in damages

A federal court jury sided with the US Soccer Federation and Major League Soccer on Monday in an antitrust lawsuit brought against the organizations by a now defunct league that sued after it did not have its second-tier status renewed.

After the verdict was announced, Judge Hector Gonzalez in Brooklyn dismissed the case brought in 2017 by the North American Soccer League (NASL), which disbanded months after the federation’s decision not to renew the status.

February 4, 2025

Sporticast 420: MLS Valuations Breakdown

On the latest Sporticast episode, hosts Scott Soshnick and Jacob Feldman are joined by Sportico’s Kurt Badenhausen to discuss Sportico’s recently published MLS valuations. The average team is now worth $72 million, up 6% from 2024, but there is a growing divide between MLS’ top franchises and the rest of the pack. Badenhausen explains what …

February 4, 2025February 4, 2025

Transfer window verdict: how every Premier League club fared

Only one of the top six made a notable signing – and they spent £172m – in a frustrating window for several managers

All the deals from Europe’s top five leagues

Mikel Arteta’s hopes of strengthening his squad never materialised, no doubt to his frustration and that of every Arsenal supporter, despite the surprise bid for Ollie Watkins and interest in Bayern Munich’s Mathys Tel. The feelgood factor generated by the famous thrashing of Manchester City will not last long if a lack of attacking options means they cannot sustain their challenge in the Premier League. Arteta, who would not allow Kieran Tierney or Jorginho to leave with their contracts expiring in the summer, will be hoping that some winter sunshine in Dubai next week can give his players extra spark when they return. Ed Aarons