This month's League Cup final between Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur will be allowed to host 8,000 spectators as part of pilot events to pave the way for the return of large crowds to stadiums, the British government said on Sunday.
The final will be held at London's Wembley Stadium on April 25. It was due to be played on Feb. 28 but was pushed back in the hope that a later date would allow fans to attend.
SEVILLE, Spain — Real Sociedad beat local rivals Athletic Bilbao 1-0 in the rescheduled 2020 Copa del Rey final on Saturday to get their hands on a major trophy for the first time since 1987.
Captain Mikel Oyarzabal netted the winner by sending keeper Unai Simon the wrong way from the penalty spot in the 63rd minute after strike partner Portu was felled in the area by Athletic defender Inigo Martinez.
Gareth Southgate made the surprising decision to keep Liverpool fullback Trent Alexander-Arnold off his England squad for March’s World Cup qualifiers. The 22-year-old, who was named to the PFA Team of the Year the last two seasons, wasn’t deemed good enough for the Three Lions, perhaps a victim of his club’s poor run of form.
PARIS — Lille leapfrogged Paris St Germain to grab the lead in Ligue 1 on Saturday after Jonathan David found the back of the net in a 1-0 win over the French champions, who had Neymar sent off in the last minute.
Canada striker David scored in the first half to put the northerners on 66 points with seven games remaining, three ahead of PSG who were lacklustre throughout the showdown.
Neymar was sent off when he picked up a second yellow card for shoving Tiago Djalo, who reacted with a foul-mouthed rant and was also shown a red card.
Wolverhampton Wanderers manager Nuno Espirito Santo said Mexican striker Raúl Jiménez cannot be considered for this year's Tokyo Olympics unless he first returns to action for the Premier League club.
Jiménez is recovering from surgery on a fractured skull suffered after a clash of heads with Arsenal defender David Luiz during a match in November.
LONDON — Relegation-threatened West Bromwich Albion secured a stunning 5-2 win over 10-man Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday to hand Thomas Tuchel his first loss as the London club's manager.
West Brom, second-bottom of the table, moved seven points from the safety zone while Chelsea stayed fourth but could be overtaken by West Ham United and Tottenham Hotspur this weekend.
Chelsea were looking to record an eighth consecutive clean sheet but Thiago Silva's sending-off for a second yellow card after a reckless challenge opened the floodgates as West Brom ran riot.
Año 1966. Todos nos acordamos de la comiquita “Harry Mc Cool” y su célebre frase "¿Qué dice Harry? ¿Qué dice?"
Burnley strikers, some of the most obsitinent players in the Premier League, are known for scoring headers, deflections, scruffy goals from corner kicks and, more recently, chesting home an errant pass from an Arsenal midfielder.
All ugly goals, all in and around the six-yard area, but nonetheless, goals that count. You don't expect miracles from the Burnley strikeforce, but you know what you are going to get.
While there were no headlining matchups, the latest cycle of international qualifying across the globe provided us with some unexpected upsets — if you know where to look.
North Macedonia over Germany and Luxembourg beating the Republic of Ireland were tabbed as the biggest surprises of the international break, but there plenty more stunning results from across Europe and beyond.
These were the best of the bunch:
DUISBURG, Germany — North Macedonia scored an 85th-minute winner through Eljif Elmas to stun hosts Germany 2-1 in their World Cup Group J qualifier on Wednesday as the Balkan country celebrated their greatest international victory.
Elmas slotted in after the four-times world champions had controlled the game but struggled to create chances against the disciplined North Macedonians, ranked 65th in the world.
GERMANY LOSE TO NORTH MACEDONIA