After a lacklustre window transfer window, at least some of the weekend matches provided some drama. Here is what stuck with us: JUMP TO: City losing Pep in their step? | Sunnier signs at Spurs | Yep, Liverpool are good | West Ham woes | Lampard’s tough GK choice | Pearson effect gone? | Praising McNeil United’s transfer
Clubs
Ansu Fati was on the mark with two goals as Barcelona looked better than they have to date under Quique Setien. BARCELONA — Teenager Ansu Fati scored twice in two first-half minutes as Barcelona beat Levante 2-1 on Sunday to move back within three points of leaders Real Madrid. Ansu opened the scoring at Camp
BURNLEY, England — To build a great football team, or even just a decent one, you need some luck. And if the amount of luck eventually correlates to the quality of your team, then you could say that Arsenal, going by their 0-0 draw against Burnley on Sunday, will be the best team in the
Craig Burley and Shaka Hislop react to Kylian Mbappe’s scrap with Thomas Tuchel after being subbed off. Neymar‘s birthday party in a Paris club on Sunday has been called a “distraction” by Paris Saint-Germain coach Thomas Tuchel. The event will take place in Paris nightclub Yoyo just two days ahead of a Ligue 1 trip to
Steve Nicol thinks Jadon Sancho should stay with Dortmund to boost his stock in the second half of the season. Craig Burley reacts to Erling Haaland scoring two goals off the bench after netting a hat trick on debut. The FC crew analyse Erling Haaland’s standing with his new club in Germany after a hat
11:52 AM ET Karim Benzema scored his first La Liga goal of 2020 in the win against Atletico Madrid. PIERRE-PHILIPPE MARCOU/AFP via Getty Images Karim Benzema scored the only goal as Real Madrid moved six points clear of Barcelona at the top of La Liga thanks to a 1-0 win against rivals Atletico Madrid. Zidane had
“Cholo, don’t go! Cholo, stay!” they sang as the Madrid derby reached the 90th minute. These weren’t Atletico fans, though. There were only a handful of them inside the Bernabeu anyway. These were Real Madrid supporters bellowing an ironic chant that started behind the goal at the south end and had soon spread everywhere, reverberating
2:23 PM ET Manchester United new-man Bruno Fernandes was in action as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side struggled to a goalless draw against Wolves at Old Trafford on Saturday. Fernandes, who arrived from Sporting CP on Thursday in a deal that could be worth €80 million, started in the 0-0 draw and had a quiet game,
Craig Burley and Shaka Hislop question Man City’s killer instinct after a 1-0 loss to Manchester United. Gab Marcotti sees the upside to signing Steven Bergwijn, but says the hole left by Harry Kane’s absence remains. Manchester United win 1-0 but it’s their rivals Manchester City that progress. Watch the Carabao Cup on ESPN+. Irrelevance
Jurgen Klopp says there is no chance Liverpool sign anyone during transfer deadline day. Leicester manager Brendan Rodgers lauds Liverpool’s “incredible consistency” in the race for the title. Liverpool’s relentless pursuit of a maiden Premier League title continued with a somewhat flattering 4-0 win over Southampton at Anfield. Following a poor first half which saw
11:30 AM ET Robert Lewandowski led the way as Bayern Munich beat Mainz. Photo by Torsten Silz/picture alliance via Getty Images Bayern Munich fired in three goals in the opening 26 minutes to ease past hosts Mainz 3-1 on Saturday and go two points clear at the top of the Bundesliga with their sixth straight league
9:23 AM ET Chelsea’s Antonio Rudiger celebrates scoring his side’s first goal. Getty A rare double from defender Antonio Rudiger earned Chelsea a point in an entertaining 2-2 draw with third-placed Leicester City at the King Power Stadium on Saturday. Willy Caballero was called into action in the first half to make a smart save to
If you’re looking for a soundtrack to go with Barcelona’s search for a striker, maybe the Benny Hill theme is your best bet. In the final, quiet moments before last week’s 2-0 defeat at Valencia, Quique Setién was sitting on the bench watching his players warm up. He was watching a player that most people
The winter transfer window is closed — but now it’s time to look ahead to the summer! Here are the new rumours floating around following the Jan. 31 deadline day: – Transfer grades: Man United get a ‘D’ for Ighalo– Miller: The good, the bad, and … Man United– O’Hanlon: How Liverpool dominate transfer ‘value’
2:52 PM ET Ligue 1 leaders Paris Saint-Germain progressed to the French Cup quarterfinals with a comfortable 2-0 win at third tier Pau on Wednesday. Goals from Leandro Paredes and Pablo Sarabia either side of halftime were enough to earn the champions victory over their hosts, who caused a big upset in the previous round
Ale Moreno says there’s a lot of work to be done before the United States can be called a soccer powerhouse. Gregg Berhalter explains his approach to recruiting dual nationals as Uly Llanez trains with the USMNT. Alejandro Bedoya opens up to ESPN about the state of the USMNT and whether there has been progress
Steve Nicol thinks Jadon Sancho should stay with Dortmund to boost his stock in the second half of the season. Craig Burley reacts to Erling Haaland scoring two goals off the bench after netting a hat trick on debut. Borussia Dortmund have signed Emre Can on loan from Juventus with the deal set to be made
Real Madrid beat Zaragoza 4-0 in the Copa del Rey round of 16. Watch Copa del Rey on ESPN+. Raphael Varane, Lucas Vazquez, Vinicius Junior and Karim Benzema were all on the scoresheet as Real Madrid won 4-0 at Real Zaragoza on Wednesday to progress to the Copa del Rey quarterfinals. Varane had the ball
It’s crunch time as the January transfer window nears its final hours. Find out when it closes across Europe, view the latest transfers as they happen and keep up to date with the newest gossip below. Jump to: What do the big clubs need? | Paper Talk - Sources: Chelsea eye Mertens as Giroud exit stalls- Sources: Cavani to
The winter transfer window is closing but ahead of a big weekend in the Premier League, here’s what to watch for: JUMP TO: Is Sterling slipping? | Blues, Foxes worthy of Europe? | Man to watch | Game you should watch | Team that needs luck | Stats of weekend | One thing that will happen | Predictions THE WEEKEND’S BIG QUESTIONS Will Jose Mourinho play