Football

The Qatar Football Association (QFA) has announced that Amir Cup 2021 final, which was set to play on Friday, May 14 at Jassim bin Hamad Stadium in Al Sadd sports club between Al-Sadd Club and Al Rayyan Club is postponed QFA said that, “the new date for the final will be announced later after full coordination with all the relevant authorities, especially the Ministry of Public Health.” This decision of postponing the final is followed after the announcement of gradual lifting of limitations

LONDON: Chelsea slipped up in their push for a Champions League spot when they lost 1-0 at home to Arsenal in the Premier League on Wednesday (May 12) with Emile Smith Rowe's first-half goal settling the London derby after a defensive mix-up by the hosts. The visitors capitalised on a wayward back pass by Chelsea's Jorginho to goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga who scrambled back to palm it off the line. The ball fell to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang who cut it back for Smith Rowe to

MADRID: Atletico Madrid held their nerve to beat Real Sociedad 2-1 on Wednesday (May 12) and move within touching distance of winning La Liga. Yannick Carrasco and Angel Correa made a dominant first half count for Atletico, who retreated in the second and were left hanging on after Igor Zubeldia blasted in for La Real with seven minutes left. When the final whistle blew, Diego Simeone jogged up the tunnel at the Wanda Metropolitano, punching the air as he went, fully aware how

DOHA: Qatari side Al-Sadd announced on Wednesday (May 12) former Spain midfielder Xavi has signed a contract extension to keep him as their coach until 2023. Xavi, 41, has been linked with a move back to Barcelona to replace Ronald Koeman but the 2010 World Cup winner denied the reports in the Spanish press. "This is incorrect. I have a two-season contract with Al-Sadd, and I respect this contract, and I also respect the official negotiation methods between all parties," he said in

LONDON: Manchester City were crowned Premier League champions for the third time in four seasons after Manchester United crashed to a 2-1 defeat against Leicester on Tuesday (May 11). Pep Guardiola's side are 10 points clear of second placed United and have wrapped up the title with three games to spare. In the midst of a gruelling run of three games in five days, United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer effectively handed the title to arch rivals City by picking a weakened team with

As Canada continues to wrestle with the coronavirus pandemic, the country's national soccer team will play two more of its home World Cup qualifying matches south of the border in June. Canada will face Aruba in Bradenton, Fla., on June 5, and will take on Suriname in suburban Chicago on June 8, Canada Soccer confirmed Monday. The games are Canada's last two of four matches in CONCACAF Group B. A March 26 Canadian home match against Bermuda was held in Orlando, Fla., which

Manchester United's Uruguayan striker Edinson Cavani has signed a one-year contract extension at the Old Trafford outfit having hit a purple patch in recent matches, the Premier League club said on Monday. Free agent Cavani arrived at United on a one-year contract in October with an option of another 12 months but was undecided about his future after a difficult start to life at the club after a social media faux pas resulted in a three-game ban. The former Paris St Germain forward's

LONDON: The Premier League has welcomed the British government's announcement on the easing of lockdown restrictions amid the COVID-19 pandemic and Chief Executive Richard Masters said on Monday it is their priority to have full stadiums next season. The government said in February that under the third stage of its four-stage "roadmap", stadiums would - if all conditions are met - from May 17 be allowed to hold up to 50 per cent of their capacity, or 4,000 people, whichever is lower. A

Talking Points from the Premier League weekend: HAVE CHELSEA GAINED A PSYCHOLOGICAL EDGE Chelsea's 2-1 victory over Manchester City made sure City's title celebrations remained on hold but perhaps more importantly sent out a message to Pep Guardiola's side for the Champions League final and next season's title race. Surprisingly, Guardiola made wholesale changes to his side when victory would have sealed a third title in five seasons. When Sergio Aguero fluffed a Panenka-style penalty to give City a 2-0 lead, it sparked

PARIS: Paris St Germain's Ligue 1 title hopes took a major knock on Sunday (May 9) when the defending champions were held to a 1-1 draw at Stade Rennes, leaving Lille holding a three-point advantage at the top with two games remaining. Neymar opened the scoring with a penalty on the stroke of halftime but Serhou Guirassy equalised in the 70th minute to leave PSG, who finished with 10 men after Presnel Kimpembe was sent off in the 87th minute, on 76 points.

TURIN, Italy: Juventus started the season looking to win a 10th straight Serie A title but instead find themselves in danger of missing out on a Champions League spot after a 3-0 home defeat by top-four rivals AC Milan on Sunday left them fifth with three games left. Goals from Brahim Diaz, Ante Rebic and Fikayo Tomori secured the win and sent Milan up to third on 72 points from 35 matches, leaving Juve a point behind fourth-placed Napoli and needing teams to

LONDON: West Bromwich Albion were relegated from the Premier League on Sunday after a 3-1 loss at Arsenal sent them straight back down to the Championship after one season in the top flight. The defeat left the Baggies in 19th place with 26 points, 10 points behind fourth-bottom Burnley with only three games left to play. It is the first time manager Sam Allardyce has suffered relegation from the Premier League during his 17 campaigns. West Brom started brightly but struggled to move

BIRMINGHAM: Manchester United recovered to beat Aston Villa 3-1 away in the Premier League on Sunday (May 9) as Bruno Fernandes, Mason Greenwood and Edinson Cavani scored in the second half to put on hold the title celebrations of champions-elect Manchester City. The result left United second on 70 points from 34 games, 10 behind City who have played a game more and missed a chance to secure the title on Saturday after they suffered a 2-1 home defeat by Chelsea. It also

Chelsea forced Manchester City to put their Premier League title party on hold on Saturday, winning 2-1 to boost their own chances of a top-four finish in a dress rehearsal for the Champions League final. Raheem Sterling gave the home side the lead just before half-time at an empty Etihad Stadium but Hakim Ziyech levelled and Marcos Alonso bundled in the winner in the dying seconds. City could be crowned champions before they play again. Second-placed Manchester United face three matches before Guardiola's men are next in

Bayern Munich celebrated being crowned champions of Germany for the ninth straight season in style as Robert Lewandowski's hat-trick helped them thrash Borussia Monchengladbach. The title had been confirmed hours earlier after nearest challengers RB Leipzig lost to Borussia Dortmund. A Lewandowski double plus Thomas Muller and Kingsley Coman strikes gave Bayern a 4-0 half-time lead. Lewandowski's third came from a penalty before Leroy Sane added a sixth. Bayern finished with 10 men when 18-year-old substitute Tanguy Nianzou was shown a straight red

Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says it is "not my problem" if he distorts the battle for Champions League places by fielding under-strength teams next week. Solskjaer's side will play three times in five days after their Premier League encounter with Liverpool was rearranged for Thursday, 13 May. They face Aston Villa on Sunday before hosting Leicester on Tuesday. Solskjaer says it is "impossible" to pick his strongest squad in every game. United will face Liverpool - who, in seventh place, are seven points

Chelsea and Manchester City fans should not travel to Turkey for the Champions League final, the UK government has said after adding the country to England's travel red list. The final is due to take place in Istanbul on 29 May. Transport secretary Grant Shapps said Covid-19 red list countries "should not be visited except in the most extreme circumstances". He added that the government was open to hosting the game in the UK. Uefa had hoped to give both clubs a minimum

Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus have defended their plans for a European Super League in the face of what they call "threats" from Uefa. They are the only clubs from the initial 12 yet to withdraw from the proposed ESL, and face disciplinary action from Europe's governing body. The nine other clubs involved, including six Premier League sides, have been given a financial punishment. "The founding clubs have suffered," a Real, Barca and Juve statement said. The three clubs say they have faced "unacceptable

ROME: Manchester United advanced to the Europa League final 8-5 on aggregate on Thursday despite losing 3-2 to Roma at the Stadio Olimpico. The Premier League side will play Villarreal in the final on May 26 in Gdansk. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side had taken a 6-2 first-leg lead to Rome, and Edinson Cavani's goals in the 39th and 68th minutes ensured their place in the final. Roma had gone ahead on the night midway through the second half with goals from Edin Dzeko

BARCELONA: After staging a stunning revival to rein in leaders Atletico Madrid, Barcelona can finally go top of La Liga when they host Diego Simeone's side on a mouthwatering weekend as the four teams in the title race come face to face. Atletico lead the standings with 76 points after 34 games heading into Saturday's crunch game away to Barca, who are third on 74. An Atletico slip up will only play into the hands of champions Real Madrid, however, who are second