When we look back at football in 2020/21 over the years to come, there will be no classics, no games to remember — because without fans, matches just don't have the same impact.
Of course, these changes were necessary to prevent the spread of the deadly COVID-19 virus, and, if current trends hold, it seems that fans will soon be allowed back in stadiums again.
For months now it has seemed as though it was only a matter of time. In what is perhaps the least surprising development in the soccer world, Celtic manager Neil Lennon has resigned with the club's bid for a 10th consecutive Scottish title in tatters.
Lennon departs with Celtic 18 points behind archrival Rangers, which is just seven points away from clinching its first league championship since 2010-11. Any appearance of a title race has been more or less over since November. Assistant manager John Kennedy will replace Lennon on an interim basis.
Thursday’s Europa League Round of 32 first leg between Lille and Ajax featured a heavy dose of CONCACAF as the USMNT’s Timothy Weah and Canada’s Jonathan David started for the French side while Mexico’s Edson Álvarez went the full 90 for the Dutch team in their dramatic 2-1 win at Stade Pierre Mauroy.
BUDAPEST - Gareth Bale scored one goal and created another as Tottenham Hotspur enjoyed a 4-1 win in the first leg of their Europa League last-32 clash with Austrian side Wolfsberg on Thursday.
The Welshman, whose starts have mainly been limited to the Europa League since returning to Spurs on loan from Real Madrid in October, set up Son Heung-min for his side's opener.
Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur had Europa League last-32 games moved to different venues on Friday after COVID-19 regulations made travelling to and from their opponents' countries impossible to manage.
Both legs of Arsenal's tie against Benfica have been moved to neutral venues due to travel restrictions in the United Kingdom with respect to arrivals from Portugal.
The first leg, which was due to be played at the Estadio Da Luz on Feb. 18, has been moved to Rome while the second leg will be played in Athens at Olympiakos Piraeus' ground a week later.
AMSTERDAM — Ajax Amsterdam will try everything possible to have record signing Sebastien Haller available for the Europa League knockout rounds after failing to register the Ivory Coast international, coach Erik ten Hag said on Thursday.
But he conceded an administrative error will likely cost the club a vital player in their bid to win the trophy, blaming a computer glitch for leaving the 26-year-old French-born striker off the additions to the squad for the rest of the competition.
For a memorable few months in 2008, Russia was the talk of the soccer world.
Zenit St. Petersburg captured the Europa League title, defeating Rangers in the final after dismantling Bayern Munich 5-1 on aggregate in the semis.
Just a month later, the national team also achieved unprecedented success, reaching the semifinals of Euro 2008 before bowing out to eventual champion Spain.
Fenerbahçe will sign German midfielder Mesut Özil from Arsenal for three and a half years for an undisclosed fee, Turkey's private Demirören news agency and other Turkish media reported on Wednesday.
While there was no immediate comment on the reports from Fenerbahçe, broadcaster A Spor said Özil and the club had agreed on the transfer in principle and that the 32-year-old would join the former Turkish champions later in January.
With the Premier League season nearly half over, this current lull in matches is the perfect time to look back at the campaign so far.
We've all been following the matches and have a general idea about where each team sits in the league table, so the next logical step is to dive deeper into the analytical side of the Premier League and examine the expected goals league table.
As the year draws to a close, Steven Gerrard's Rangers side is well-placed to end its 10-year run without a Premier League championship.
The Gers sit in first place with a 16-point lead over second-placed Celtic, although the Parkhead side has three games in hand. Rangers' rear guard has deservedly earned plaudits this season, having kept a remarkable 17 clean sheets in 21 games and conceded just five goals.