Category: Football

Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) came from behind and then survived a late scare against 10-man Monaco, drawing 2-2 in the second leg of their Champions League knockout phase play-off tie on Wednesday to reach the last 16 with a 5-4 aggregate victory.

The defending European champions recovered from two behind to win 3-2 in the principality in last week’s first leg, a game in which Monaco had a man sent off early in the second half.

The scenario this time was similar, with French international Maghnes Akliouche giving Monaco a deserved interval lead on the night to level the scores overall.

However, the visitors had Mamadou Coulibaly sent off on 58 minutes, and that proved the catalyst for PSG to make it 1-1 through Marquinhos before Khvicha Kvaratskhelia seemed to have clinched the aggregate triumph.

Jordan Teze did make it 2-2 in stoppage time, and Wout Faes then missed a great chance, but PSG held on to progress to the next round.

Luis Enrique’s team will now find out on Friday their potential opponents all the way to the final in Budapest, with Barcelona and Chelsea their possible rivals in the last 16.

Paris beat Barcelona 2-1 away during the league phase in October and have faced the Catalans in five knockout ties since 2013. They played Chelsea in the final of the Club World Cup last year, losing 3-0, their only blip in a remarkable campaign.

While PSG’s dream of retaining the title remains alive, Monaco go out in the play-offs for the second season running.

PSG were widely expected to get the better of their domestic rivals — Monaco are currently eighth in Ligue 1, 20 points behind the leaders, although they did beat the Parisians in November.

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The principality side had not won a Champions League knockout tie since their run to the semi-finals in 2017 with a side featuring a teenage Kylian Mbappe.

Having been 2-0 up inside 18 minutes last week, Monaco really should have scored within 10 minutes here, but Coulibaly blazed over from an Akliouche cutback. They then came close again when a Folarin Balogun chip was tipped over by Matfei Safonov.

Bradley Barcola struck the bar for PSG, who were missing the injured Ousmane Dembele, but Monaco had been the better team and took a deserved lead just before half-time.

Caio Henrique’s ball into the middle from the left found Coulibaly, and he laid it off for Akliouche to slot in.

The tie was now all square, but it swung back in the way of the defending champions when Coulibaly was sent off just before the hour, leaving his team a man short, like in the first leg when Aleksandr Golovin saw red.

Having been booked just a few minutes earlier for fouling Nuno Mendes, this time he was late into a challenge on Achraf Hakimi and a second yellow was produced by the Romanian referee.

PSG scored from the resulting free-kick, which was played short to Doue on the right and his low ball was turned in from close range by Marquinhos.

The momentum was now with PSG, and they went ahead on the night on 66 minutes as Hakimi’s powerful strike was only parried by goalkeeper Philipp Koehn, allowing Kvaratskhelia to convert the loose ball.

Monaco still came within a whisker of forcing extra time, substitute Teze turned in a deflected Simon Adingra centre in stoppage time to make it 2-2, and Faes very nearly scored another.

READ: Galatasaray hold off Juventus to make Champions League last 16

Galatasaray scraped through to the last 16 of the Champions League despite throwing away a three-goal aggregate lead at 10-man Juventus on Wednesday, with two extra-time goals limiting the Turkish outfit to a 3-2 defeat.

Victor Osimhen and Baris Yilmaz scored the goals which allowed Galatasaray to win a thrilling tie 7-5 on aggregate and set up a clash with either Liverpool or Tottenham Hotspur in the next round.

Galatasaray’s previous appearance in the last 16 of Europe’s elite club competition was in 2014, and they were fortunate to make it through on Wednesday, even with Juve having to play most of the night with 10 men.

Juve were leading on the night through Manuel Locatelli’s 37th-minute penalty when Lloyd Kelly was harshly shown a straight red card shortly after half-time for landing from a jump with his studs on Yilmaz’s Achilles heel.

Kelly could hardly believe his eyes when he was initially shown a second yellow card.

But he was livid after a check on the pitchside monitor led referee Joao Pinheiro to revoke that decision, only to show him a straight red card for serious foul play.

The English defender was filmed loudly proclaiming the decision “a disgrace” while Juve coach Luciano Spalletti looked on, dumbstruck from the sidelines.

“It was pretty absurd. He gets the ball, and then what’s he supposed to do? Us defenders are penalised too often in today’s football,” said distraught centre-back Federico Gatti.

“Leaving that aside, it was a brilliant reaction… It’s disappointing that we were just tired when we got to extra time.

“It’s disappointing because these are the best matches to play — the Champions League is the best competition.”

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That decision looked to have killed Juve’s chances of mounting a comeback, but Gatti pulled another goal back with 20 minutes remaining and 12 minutes later, after Kenan Yildiz hit the post from close range, Weston McKennie headed the hosts level in the tie.

Edon Zhegrova had his head in his hands in the sixth minute of extra time when he slapped well wide a glorious chance to complete the comeback, and Osimhen punished Juve by stroking home his best chance of the game.

Yilmaz ended Juve’s hopes of taking the tie to penalties with a goal which flattered Galatasaray, who splashed the cash last summer, including 75 million euros to take Osimhen from Juve’s Serie A rivals Napoli.

Gala’s vice-president, Abdullah Kavukcu, has been bullish in the last few days, saying that the club would sign Inter Milan midfielder and Turkey captain Hakan Calhanoglu.

But their performance on Wednesday was marked more by cynicism than quality, with Gala’s players doing their best to waste time and buy fouls in the style of Italian teams of old.

Juve, meanwhile, were applauded off by their supporters after a display which will boost them in their bid to qualify for next season’s edition of the Champions League.

The Turin giants are fifth in Serie A, four points behind fourth-placed Roma before their trip to face the capital club on Sunday.

READ: Vinicius hits winner as Real Madrid eliminate Benfica after racism row

Vinicius Junior scored the winner on the night as Real Madrid beat Benfica 2-1 in the Champions League on Wednesday, progressing 3-1 on aggregate to the last 16.

It was the Brazilian forward’s superb goal which separated the teams in a first leg marred by an incident of alleged racial abuse aimed at him by Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni, who denies it.

Jose Mourinho’s side were still alive in the play-off round tie and took the lead early on at the Santiago Bernabeu through Rafa Silva, although Madrid’s Aurelien Tchouameni swiftly levelled.

Benfica gave the record 15-time champions a rough ride, but fittingly, Vinicius, who never hides from the spotlight, scored on 80 minutes to effectively end the contest.

“That is our Vinicius,” Tchouameni proudly told Movistar after the Brazilian’s winner. “To be honest, we didn’t start the game very well, but we kept our confidence.”

It was Portuguese coach Mourinho’s first time back at the Santiago Bernabeu since he coached Real Madrid from 2010 to 2013, but he could not lead his team from the dugout because of a suspension.

After a week dominated by the fallout from the first leg, Vinicius lined up for Real Madrid alongside Gonzalo Garcia, who stepped in for the injured French superstar Kylian Mbappe.

“(Vini) had a great game,” Real Madrid coach Alvaro Arbeloa told Movistar. “Unbalancing them, scoring, creating a lot of danger every time he took them on.”

Benfica were without banned midfielder Prestianni, after an appeal against his provisional one-game sanction was turned down earlier on Wednesday, with UEFA still investigating the incident.

Madrid hung a large banner reading “no to racism” at one end, with the game played under the shadow of what happened last week in Lisbon.

There were boos for Vinicius from the visiting Benfica fans, and he prodded wide in the early stages, appealing in vain for a penalty as Nicolas Otamendi collided with him after he got his shot away.

Benfica took a deserved lead in the 14th minute as Madrid defender Raul Asencio clumsily turned the ball towards his own goal.

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Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois kept the ball out, but Silva was on hand to bundle home from close range.

Stung into action, Madrid pulled level two minutes later through Tchouameni. The French midfielder finished with aplomb from the edge of the box from rampaging team-mate Federico Valverde’s cross.

Madrid thought they had gone ahead on the night when Arda Guler stabbed home a loose ball after Garcia’s shot was blocked, but the Spanish striker had edged offside, and it was disallowed after a VAR review.

Courtois made a fine save from Richard Rios before the break, as Benfica turned up the pressure.

Silva hit the bar with a deflected effort before the hour mark as Mourinho’s side at times pinned back the hosts.

Madrid were dealt a setback as Asencio was forced off on a stretcher after colliding with Eduardo Camavinga.

“It’s his neck, but it doesn’t seem like it will be that bad,” said Arbeloa, who confirmed the defender was being taken to the hospital for tests.

It had to be Vinicius who settled the tie, though, and Valverde played him scuttling through on goal, with the Brazilian calmly rolling a low shot past goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin.

Vinicius produced another celebratory dance by the corner flag, as he had done in the first leg in the run-up to the flashpoint with Prestianni, and to the chagrin of Mourinho.

“I’m happy that Vini’s dancing, still dancing, because it means he’s scoring goals,” said Courtois.

This time, the 25-year-old just had thousands of jubilant fans jumping up and down before him, and his goal confirmed Madrid’s passage to the last 16.

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French superstar Kylian Mbappe may have to put his season on hold because of a knee problem, with his main goals fast coming into view — a first major trophy with Real Madrid, and a second World Cup triumph.

Little more than 100 days from the start of the 2026 World Cup, the France captain seems to be paying the price for efforts he has made to carry his team this season.

According to several sources contacted by AFP, Mbappe, hampered by damage to the outer ligament of his left knee since late 2025, had to withdraw from Madrid’s squad to face Benfica in the Champions League play-off round on Wednesday because he felt “pain that was too persistent” in training.

Mbappe is expected to rest for at least 10 days so he can recover from the issue which has troubled him over the past couple of months.

His absence for one of the most important matches of the season, confirmed by Madrid on Wednesday, is a concern for Los Blancos, who lost at Osasuna in La Liga on Saturday to allow Barcelona back in front in the title race.

Beyond a personal quest for glory, having finished his first season at Madrid without a major trophy, the intense pressure and demand for results at the Santiago Bernabeu have contributed to Mbappe playing through the pain in recent weeks.

“It’s important to highlight the immense effort Kylian is making and the fact that he’s trying to help us out on the patch,” said Madrid coach Alvaro Arbeloa on Tuesday.

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Mbappe flew to Saudi Arabia in January to appear in the Spanish Super Cup final against Barcelona as a substitute, having missed the semi-final because of knee pain, but his team fell to defeat.

It is hard to imagine where the Spanish giants would be without their No 10’s supreme finishing ability, as Mbappe has netted 38 goals in 33 matches this season across all competitions.

At least winger Vinicius Junior has finally hit top form after a slow start to the season and could pick up some of the slack, along with promising young striker Gonzalo Garcia, who Madrid fans are keen to see more of.

Mbappe is the top scorer in both La Liga and the Champions League, even in a dysfunctional Madrid side that sacked coach Xabi Alonso in January.

If they are knocked out by Jose Mourinho’s Benfica on Wednesday, a result that would trigger a fresh crisis, Madrid might be tempted to push their striker to play to salvage their season.

Should they progress, then Mbappe will be eyeing the round of 16 clash against Manchester City or Sporting Lisbon, with the first leg set for March 10 or 11.

The next international break (March 23-30), when France face Brazil and Colombia in the United States, would come at the perfect time to give him another breather — but could trigger a new club-versus-country conflict.

France are counting on their captain, a source close to the national team told AFP, adding that Mbappe is in “regular contact” with coach Didier Deschamps.

Deschamps is due to announce his squad list for the USA trip on March 19, with the tour including promotional events with American sportswear company Nike, who outfit both the French national team and Mbappe.

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Newcastle United completed their stroll into the Champions League last 16 with a 3-2 win over Qarabag on Tuesday to progress 9-3 on aggregate over the Azeri champions.

The Magpies will make up a six-strong contingent of English sides in the last 16 alongside Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester City and Tottenham.

A tie that involved an over 5,000-mile (8,000-kilometre) round trip for both sides was killed off inside 45 minutes last week as Newcastle led 5-0 at half-time on their way to a 6-1 rout.

That allowed Eddie Howe to heavily rotate his side, with four-goal hero from the first leg, Anthony Gordon, among those left on the bench.

But he was still disappointed with how Newcastle handled the second half after another fast start as they added to their lead twice inside the opening six minutes of the match.

Sandro Tonali fired in the rebound after Dan Burn’s shot was saved, before Joelinton stroked in Harvey Barnes’ cross.

“I think if you look at the score over the two legs, it’s been fantastic from the players, even though today feels like a bit of a hollow win for us,” said Howe.

“I thought at 2-0 we probably came off the pedal. We didn’t intend to do that, but it was sort of the natural reaction.

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“In the second half, the game became end-to-end, which, for us, was a real shame. For one, we expended too much energy, and it meant we didn’t put pressure on their goal.”

Qarabag had taken the scalps of Benfica and Eintracht Frankfurt in the league phase to make the play-off round, and at least salvaged some pride with two goals in the second period.

Camilo Duran outpaced Burn to pull a goal back before the Newcastle defender was penalised for handball inside the box.

Aaron Ramsdale saved Marko Jankovic’s penalty, but Elvin Jafarguliyev netted the rebound.

In between the visitors’ two goals, Sven Botman powered in a header from a corner.

That took the tally of goals conceded by Qarabag in the Champions League to 30 — a single-season record in the competition.

A much tougher test lies ahead of Newcastle next month when they will take on either Barcelona or Chelsea in the last 16.

READ: Bodo/Glimt sink Inter Milan to continue Champions League fairy tale

Bodo/Glimt completed the greatest achievement in the Norwegian minnows’ history on Tuesday by winning 2-1 at Inter Milan and reaching the last 16 of the Champions League, 5-2 on aggregate.

Leading 3-1 from last week’s first leg in the Arctic Circle, goals in the second half from former AC Milan forward Jens Petter Hauge and Hakon Evjen stunned the San Siro and set up a tie with either Manchester City or Sporting of Portugal in the next round.

“For us it’s been unbelievable, we knew it would be very hard against Inter, who are a very strong team and played in the final last season,” said Hauge.

“I have faith in this project, and we’re showing it in the Champions League.”

More than 3,000 fans travelled to Milan to watch their team continue a remarkable debut season in Europe’s elite club competition, a huge number for a club from a city with a population of around 50,000.

There were 20,000 more people at the San Siro than live in Bodo on Tuesday night, and the vast majority left disappointed after Inter, who scored late through Alessandro Bastoni, failed to mount the comeback coach Cristian Chivu believed could happen.

Inter’s elimination was another blow for Italian football on the European stage, with all four Serie A clubs likely to be out of the Champions League come Thursday.

Juventus and Atalanta trail Galatasaray and Borussia Dortmund, respectively, with few giving either much of a chance of getting through ahead of their matches on Wednesday.

“The hardest thing to do today was to open the scoring, and we weren’t able to do it. You can only congratulate them, they beat us twice, so they deserved to go through,” said Inter midfielder Nicolo Barella.

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“Of course, we’re disappointed, we want to fight on every front, and we tried our best, but they were better than us.”

But it was a historic night for Bodo/Glimt, who have been crowned Norwegian champions in four of the last six seasons and will be a tough test for whoever they face next month.

Inter were, as expected, on the front foot from the off, and Pio Esposito headed over a great chance in the third minute from a Federico Dimarco cross.

Dimarco had a fizzing inswinger tipped over the bar by Nikita Haikin while Marcus Thuram watched on as his powerful long-range effort was deflected just over the bar.

But as the match wore on, a pattern emerged of Inter bluntly attacking down the flanks and putting in crosses that were comfortably dealt with by Bodo/Glimt’s defenders.

Hauge pounced in the 58th minute following a confused passage of play in which Inter defender Manuel Akanji, who had only moments before returned to the pitch following treatment for a cut eyebrow, gifted the ball to Ole Didrik Blomberg on the edge of the box.

Blomberg failed to score one-on-one with Yann Sommer, but Hauge was on hand to tuck in the rebound for his sixth goal in the Champions League to send the away fans delirious.

Akanji hit the post 10 minutes later, but Evjen made absolutely sure of Bodo/Glimt’s passage in the 72nd minute when he expertly lashed home Hauge’s searching pass into the box.

Bastoni forced the ball over the line shortly afterwards, but it mattered little for Inter, who are left with trying to secure the Serie A title, which looks likely due to a 10-point lead over local rivals Milan.

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France World Cup-winning attacker Antoine Griezmann is holding talks with Major League Soccer (MLS) club Orlando City, a source close to the discussions told AFP on Monday.

Griezmann currently plays for Atletico Madrid, where he is the Spanish club’s all-time leading scorer, and also netted 44 goals in an illustrious career for his international side.

The 34-year-old’s potential move stateside has been rumoured for years, with the player known to be an admirer of other American leagues such as the NBA and NFL.

A source close to the player confirmed to AFP on Tuesday that “talks had taken place” between the two parties, but “nothing has yet has been agreed.”

Griezmann’s transfer would be a further boost to the rapidly growing US soccer league.

Orlando owns Griezmann’s “discovery rights,” an MLS mechanism giving one team the priority to negotiate a player’s transfer — the source said, confirming a report by The Athletic.

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Though Griezmann is no longer a guaranteed starter for Atletico Madrid, he has already scored 12 goals in 35 appearances this season.

The 2018 World Cup winner has scored 210 goals in total for the La Liga club, interrupted by a hiatus at Barcelona from 2019-2022, and extended his contract in Madrid last year until June 2027.

He retired from the French national side in 2024, having made 137 appearances.

The MLS season began on Saturday, and its transfer window is open until late March, before re-opening mid-season during the summer.

Orlando City failed to qualify for the last MLS playoffs, but has a history of big-name signings, with former players including Ballon d’Or winner Kaka.

READ: Morocco football captain Romain Saiss announces retirement

Veteran Morocco captain Romain Saiss announced on Tuesday his retirement from international football, bringing to a close what he called “the most beautiful chapter of my life”.

Saiss’s decision comes after repeated injuries, including in the last Africa Cup of Nations, where he only played 18 minutes in the opening match against Comoros before he was substituted due to an issue with his left thigh.

The 35-year-old former Angers and Wolverhampton Wanderers centre-back said on social media the decision followed “careful reflection” and was made with “immense emotion”.

“Wearing the colours of Morocco and becoming their captain will remain the greatest honour of my career,” he wrote.

“Every time I wore it, I felt the weight of responsibility, but above all an indescribable pride.”

His brief AFCON return in December had followed an 18-month absence, also due to injury, having skippered the side to the 2022 World Cup semi-final.

Saiss’s retirement comes just three months ahead of this year’s World Cup, in which Morocco are set to face Brazil, Scotland and Haiti.

“I will now be your number one supporter,” he said.

“I am leaving the national team, but I will forever remain a Lion.”

Saiss will still play for Qatar Stars League club Al Sadd.

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Veteran Morocco captain Romain Saiss announced on Tuesday his retirement from international football, bringing to a close what he called “the most beautiful chapter of my life”.

Saiss’s decision comes after repeated injuries, including in the last Africa Cup of Nations, where he only played 18 minutes in the opening match against Comoros before he was substituted due to an issue with his left thigh.

The 35-year-old former Angers and Wolverhampton Wanderers centre-back said on social media the decision followed “careful reflection” and was made with “immense emotion”.

“Wearing the colours of Morocco and becoming their captain will remain the greatest honour of my career,” he wrote.

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“Every time I wore it, I felt the weight of responsibility, but above all an indescribable pride.”

His brief AFCON return in December had followed an 18-month absence, also due to injury, having skippered the side to the 2022 World Cup semi-final.

Saiss’s retirement comes just three months ahead of this year’s World Cup, in which Morocco are set to face Brazil, Scotland and Haiti.

“I will now be your number one supporter,” he said. “I am leaving the national team, but I will forever remain a Lion.”

Saiss will still play for Qatar Stars League club Al Sadd.

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Barcelona cruised to a 3-0 victory over Levante at Camp Nou to reclaim pole position in La Liga on Sunday.

After Real Madrid fell to a 2-1 defeat at Osasuna on Saturday, Hansi Flick’s side moved a point clear of their bitter rivals with a comfortable victory at Camp Nou against the team in 19th.

Marc Bernal and Frenkie de Jong gave Barca a commanding first-half lead, and Fermin Lopez wrapped up the win with a sensational drive late on.

Barcelona were glad to get back to winning ways after a 4-0 thrashing by Atletico Madrid in the Copa del Rey semi-final first leg last week and then a 2-1 defeat by Girona on Monday in La Liga.

“It was a really bad moment for us, but in the end today we gave a good response,” Flick told reporters. “It’s important now to be on top of the table, but in the end, there’s a long way to go.”

Despite Flick’s calls for improvement in defence, Barca were as open as ever, although Levante’s poor finishing meant they could not capitalise.

Bernal sent Barcelona ahead after good work by Joao Cancelo, who impressed on a rare start after his arrival on loan in January, and Eric Garcia.

It was Bernal’s second goal since returning from a long-term knee injury, which kept the 18-year-old out of action for over a year.

“I thought of my father (in my celebration) and my physio — he told me I would score, and he has helped me a lot in this process,” Bernal told Movistar.

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Veteran Polish forward Robert Lewandowski could have doubled Barca’s advantage but fired into the ground and over the bar when well placed.

Cancelo hit the post with a cross aimed at Lewandowski, before the Portuguese defender carved out the second for De Jong with a similar ball in from the left.

De Jong delivered the finishing touch to give Barca a two-goal lead at the break.

“Joao today showed his strength, his positive things, he gave us a lot of moments, great chances, for me it was a really good game from him, and this is what I want to see,” said Flick.

Garcia should have expanded Barcelona’s advantage early in the second half but nodded wide from Jules Kounde’s tempting cross.

Eventually, substitute Lopez got a spectacular third, rattling home a long-range effort in off the post.

The midfielder might have added a fourth late on, but Levante goalkeeper Mathew Ryan denied him with an excellent reflex save, after first thwarting Raphinha.

Flick was able to bring back midfielder Pedri as a substitute after a month out with a hamstring injury, with the Spaniard likely to be key in the testing weeks ahead.

Defeat leaves Levante seven points from safety.

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