Category: Football

The Spanish football federation banned Real Zaragoza goalkeeper Esteban Andrada for 13 matches on Wednesday after he punched a Huesca player in the face.

The federation’s disciplinary committee said in a statement both the Argentina international and his club would also be fined, after he was first sent off and then “attacked” Huesca’s Jorge Pulido in the second tier derby clash last Sunday.

Andrada was issued a 12-match ban for the punch itself, while his initial red card carries an automatic one-match ban, ruling him out for the rest of the season dealing a blow to Zaragoza’s hopes in their battle to avoid relegation.

The 35-year-old, on loan from Mexican side Monterrey, shoved over Pulido and was shown a second yellow card for the incident.

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Andrada then became enraged, running to hit Pulido and sparking a brawl on the pitch in stoppage time.

“The truth is I’m very, very sorry for what happened,” said Andrada afterwards.

“It’s not a good image for the club, for the fans, and especially not for a professional like myself. So, I’m very sorry.”

Huesca goalkeeper Dani Jimenez and Zaragoza’s Dani Tasende were also sent off in the aftermath of the brawl, with hosts Huesca holding on for a 1-0 win. Jimenez was banned for four matches and Tasende two.

“We witnessed scenes unbecoming of this sport and which should never have occurred,” said Zaragoza in a statement on Sunday.

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Chelsea captain and former England international Millie Bright announced her retirement from football with immediate effect on Wednesday.

Signed from Doncaster Belles, the 32-year-old defender began her Chelsea career in 2015 and made 314 appearances for the Blues.

Bright, who will take on a new role as a Chelsea ambassador, lifted 20 trophies and ended her career as the Women’s Super League club’s longest-serving player.

“Representing Chelsea over the last 12 years has been everything to me, but I’m now ready to say goodbye to playing football,” she said. “I’ve given all I can, and I never wanted to fight for any other badge.”

“It is now time, and I’m ready to go into a new era. I’m always going to be Chelsea, but just in a different way.”

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Millie Bright, who has not played since February because of an ankle injury, won 88 caps for England.

She won the European Championship on home soil in 2022 before skippering the Lionesses to the World Cup final the following year, in the absence of injured captain Leah Williamson.

“Everyone at Chelsea is so proud of Millie’s contribution to the club and the women’s game during its unprecedented period of growth,” Chelsea said in a statement.

“We look forward to continuing to work with her as she moves into her roles off the pitch with the club.”

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Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Ousmane Dembele scored twice each as Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) beat Bayern Munich 5-4 in an epic first leg of their Champions League semi-final on Tuesday, an extraordinary encounter that was the highest-scoring match ever at this stage of the competition.

The first half alone was crazy, with Harry Kane giving Bayern the lead from a penalty, only for Kvaratskhelia to equalise before Joao Neves headed the hosts in front at an enthralled Parc des Princes.

Michael Olise made it 2-2, but a Dembele penalty in first-half stoppage time had the reigning champions back ahead at the interval.

Kvaratskhelia, surely the standout player in this season’s Champions League, and Dembele both then scored again to have hosts PSG seemingly out of sight, only for Dayot Upamecano to pull one back before Luis Diaz made it 5-4.

An unforgettable game, perhaps better even than last season’s semi-final between Inter Milan and Barcelona, leaves the tie between the continent’s two best teams of the moment wonderfully poised for next Wednesday’s return at the Allianz Arena, with a place in the final in Budapest on May 30 on the line.

“I’m sure everyone who loves football really enjoyed watching that. It was a real pleasure to play in that game, the kind of game we dream of playing as kids,” PSG captain Marquinhos told broadcaster Canal Plus.

His team will be returning to Munich, scene of their 5-0 win over Inter in last year’s final, with the advantage, but Bayern will be confident they can overturn the narrow deficit at home.

“We fought, and we clawed, and we’re back in the tie,” Kane told Amazon Prime. “I thought there was amazing defending even though there were nine goals.”

The French champions are seeking to become just the second side in the modern Champions League era to retain the trophy, while Bayern Munich are hoping to reach the final for the first time since 2020, when they defeated PSG to lift the trophy for the sixth time.

Vincent Kompany’s team arrived in Paris having scored 167 goals this season, led by the remarkable Kane and his 53 goals in 45 appearances.

This tie had a lot to live up to, after Bayern’s spectacular win over Real Madrid in the quarter-finals, but it was an instant classic as both teams showcased their devastating firepower.

Bayern Munich went ahead in the 17th minute as Willian Pacho chopped down Diaz, and Kane converted the resulting penalty for his 54th of the campaign.

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The visitors won 2-1 here in November in the league phase thanks to a Diaz double, and they were the better team early on this time.

But their front-foot approach made them vulnerable to the counter-attack, and PSG’s leveller came just after the midway point in the first half.

The brilliant Kvaratskhelia broke clear of Josip Stanisic down the left before cutting inside and firing into the far corner.

A classic Kvaratskhelia goal was followed by Neves heading in Dembele’s corner on 33 minutes.

The action was only just getting started, however, as French international Olise drove towards the PSG box before smashing in for 2-2.

PSG then won a penalty at the end of the first half when a Dembele cross struck the arm of Alphonso Davies, the Canadian making his first start in the Champions League this season after injury.

It was given by the Swiss referee after a VAR check, and Dembele beat Manuel Neuer to make it 3-2 at half-time, a lead which PSG added to after the restart, leaving Bayern stunned.

Achraf Hakimi’s assist was swept in by Kvaratskhelia for 4-2 on 56 minutes, the Georgian getting his seventh goal in seven games in the knockout phase.

Bayern were not able to reset before Dembele surprised Neuer with a shot in off the near post to make it 5-2 with his second of the night.

But Bayern were not done, as Upamecano headed in Joshua Kimmich’s free-kick to take Kompany’s side to 170 for their season tally.

Diaz, who was sent off in the November meeting, then dribbled past Marquinhos before slotting in for the night’s final goal, making it 5-4.

Kompany, watching from the stands due to suspension, would have been delighted with his team’s response, even if they were relieved to see Senny Mayulu’s late strike for PSG come back off Neuer’s crossbar.

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Manchester United moved within touching distance of qualifying for the Champions League as Casemiro and Benjamin Sesko sealed a 2-1 win against Brentford on Monday.

Casemiro put United ahead in the early stages at Old Trafford, and Sesko doubled their lead before the interval. Mathias Jensen’s late strike couldn’t stop United from cementing their grip on third place in the Premier League.

They are 11 points clear of sixth-placed Brighton, with the top five guaranteed to reach next season’s Champions League.

Michael Carrick’s side need just two points from their last four matches to ensure their return to Europe’s elite club competition for the first time since 2023-24.

On Sunday, United host bitter rivals Liverpool, who sit three points behind them in fourth, in a clash that will go a long way to deciding who finishes third.

Interim boss Carrick, who replaced the sacked Ruben Amorim in January, is still waiting to discover if he will land the United job permanently.

The former Manchester United midfielder has made a strong case by steadying the ship after Amorim’s turbulent reign.

Leading United into the Champions League would be another persuasive argument as co-owner Jim Ratcliffe considers his options.

A 1-0 win at Chelsea in their previous match had reinvigorated United’s top-five charge after a home defeat against Leeds and a draw at Bournemouth.

Brentford last won at Old Trafford in 1937, and they paid the price for a slow start on their latest fruitless visit.

Kobbie Mainoo scythed through the Brentford defence with a superb run in the second minute, but Amad Diallo wasted the chance with a close-range shot that was cleared off the line by Sepp van den Berg.

Harry Maguire was inches away from marking his return from suspension with a goal when the United defender’s towering header was clawed off the line by Brentford keeper Caoimhin Kelleher.

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United’s pressure was rewarded in the 11th minute as Casemiro finished off a well-worked corner routine.

Bruno Fernandes whipped the set-piece to Maguire, and his looping header evaded a gaggle of Brentford defenders at the far post as Casemiro rose highest to head home from an acute angle.

Casemiro’s fourth goal in his last six games underlined the enduring value of the veteran Brazil midfielder, who is set to leave when his contract expires at the end of this season.

He celebrated by kissing the badge on his shirt as United fans implored him to stay by chanting “one more year”.

Michael Kayode nearly silenced the love-in with a header that Manchester United keeper Senne Lammens pushed away at full stretch.

Igor Thiago’s muscular power was a thorn in United’s side, but the Brazilian couldn’t finish, scuffing one chance under pressure from Diogo Dalot before Kelleher saved his close-range drive.

Ayden Heaven’s last-ditch attempt to deny Thiago almost ended in an own goal, but Lammens spared the United teenager’s blushes with a fine save.

United took advantage of those misses to double their advantage in the 43rd minute.

Diallo’s determination to win a tackle deep inside his own half started the move before Fernandes drove towards the Brentford area, slipping a pass to Sesko, who lashed home from 10 yards.

Fernandes has 19 assists this season as he chases the Premier League record of 20 in a single campaign set by Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne.

United were less dominant in the second half, and Jensen whipped an eye-catching curler past Lammens from 20 yards in the 87th minute to set up a tense finale.

Carrick’s men wobbled but just about held firm as Mikkel Damsgaard’s header was clutched by Lammens in stoppage-time.

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Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk is certain Mohamed Salah will get the send-off his glittering career deserves, even if injury prevents the Egyptian from playing again for the Reds.

Salah, who will leave Anfield after nine years at the end of the season, was forced off with a suspected hamstring injury in Saturday’s 3-1 win over Crystal Palace.

Liverpool are awaiting the results of a scan to determine the extent of the problem, but with just four games of the campaign remaining, the 33-year-old may not feature again this season.

“If you get injured at this stage of the season, especially in the situation he is in, there are only two more home games left for him. It’s a combination of feelings that go through your mind,” said Van Dijk.

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“He will get the send-off regardless. I don’t think that is the thing at this point; we shouldn’t think too far ahead.

“Knowing Mo, he is a quick healer and with the right people around him, let’s see.”

Mohamed Salah has scored 257 goals in 440 appearances since his arrival in 2017, behind only Ian Rush and Roger Hunt in Liverpool’s list of leading goalscorers.

The winger has been integral to the club’s rise back to the top of English and European football, winning the Champions League and two Premier League titles among a clutch of trophies.

Salah also scooped the players’ player of the year award a record three times and was the Premier League’s top scorer on four occasions.

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Real Madrid striker Kylian Mbappe is a doubt for the El Clasico on May 10, against arch-rivals Barcelona, after his club confirmed Monday he has sustained a thigh injury.

“He has been diagnosed with an injury to the semitendinosus muscle in his left leg,” said Los Blancos in a statement, after the France captain went off hurt during Madrid’s 1-1 draw against Real Betis in La Liga last Friday.

Madrid, second in the Spanish top flight by 11 points from leaders Barcelona, face Espanyol on Sunday before taking on the Catalan giants the following weekend.

Real Madrid initially indicated Mbappe had suffered a muscular overload, but further tests showed their top goalscorer was injured.

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If Madrid drop points against Espanyol without him and Barcelona defeat Osasuna on Saturday, Hansi Flick’s side will be crowned champions for a second successive season.

Kylian Mbappe has been troubled by injury this season, generating concern in France with the World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico starting on June 11.

The 27-year-old, a world champion in 2018, was dogged by a knee issue which lasted for two months, the longest absence of his career, and admitted it caused him “frustration, anger and anxiety”.

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Tottenham Hotspur confirmed on Monday that “heartbroken” Xavi Simons had ruptured an anterior cruciate ligament, forcing him out of the club’s relegation scrap and the FIFA World Cup 2026.

The 23-year-old Dutch midfielder clutched his right knee and was stretchered off in distress in the second half of Tottenham’s crucial 1-0 win at already relegated Wolves on Saturday.

In an emotional post on social media late Sunday, Simons said his season was over.

“They say life can be cruel and today it feels that way,” Simons, who has played 34 times for his country, wrote on Instagram.

“My season has come to an abrupt end and I’m just trying to process it. Honestly, I’m heartbroken. None of it makes sense.

“All I’ve wanted to do is fight for my team and now the ability to do that has been snatched away from me, along with the World Cup. Representing my country this summer, just gone.”

 

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Spurs issued a statement saying Simons had ruptured the ACL in his right knee.

“Xavi will undergo surgery in the coming weeks and, following that, will then begin his rehabilitation with our medical team,” the club said.

“Everyone at Tottenham Hotspur sends Xavi our love and support — we will be with him every step of the way.”

Simons’ injury is a major blow to new Spurs boss Roberto De Zerbi, whose side are two points from Premier League safety with four matches remaining.

He would also have played a key role for the Netherlands at the World Cup in North America, starting on June 11.

READ: Zaragoza goalkeeper faces ban for punch which sparked brawl

Real Zaragoza goalkeeper Esteban Andrada faces a long ban for punching a Huesca player in the face, having already been sent off in a match in Spain’s second tier on Sunday.

The Argentina international, 35, pushed over Jorge Pulido and was dismissed for the incident, and then became enraged, running to hit Pulido and sparking a brawl on the pitch in stoppage time of the derby clash.

Huesca goalkeeper Dani Jimenez and Zaragoza’s Dani Tasende were also sent off in the aftermath, with hosts Huesca holding on for a 1-0 win.

Andrada, on loan from Mexican side Monterrey, could be banned for up to 12 matches for the punch, as well as the obligatory one-match sanction for his red card.

“We witnessed scenes unbecoming of this sport and which should never have occurred,” said Zaragoza in a statement.

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“The club strongly condemns what happened in that moment, which has unacceptably tarnished a football match of special importance for our region, something that is unacceptable.

“Regarding our player Esteban Andrada, the club will analyse the events that occurred and take the appropriate disciplinary measures.”

Both Zaragoza and Huesca are in the relegation zone and fighting demotion to Spain’s third tier.

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Sevilla moved closer to relegation from La Liga by losing 2-1 at Osasuna on Sunday, while Elche picked up three vital points with a 2-1 win at Real Oviedo.

Villarreal continued their strong season with a 2-1 victory over Celta Vigo to tighten their grip on third place.

Luis Garcia Plaza’s Sevilla took the lead through Neal Maupay in the 69th minute, but Raul Garcia pulled the hosts level and Alejandro Catena struck in stoppage time to deal a blow to the Andalucians’ survival hopes.

The seven-time Europa League winners are 18th, a point behind Mallorca in 17th place, after the islanders lost at Alaves on Saturday.

“I have a knot in my throat,” said Sevilla defender Gabriel Suazo. “We have to keep moving forward, we have to keep fighting, there are five finals left, and whoever gets to play, if it’s me, I’m going to put my life on the line for this club.”

Elche moved up to 13th with their victory, three points above the drop zone, but are still looking nervously over their shoulders.

Only six points separate Athletic Bilbao, 10th, from Sevilla, with the remaining five rounds of fixtures offering plenty of intrigue as to who will ultimately drop out of the top flight.

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The only side cut badly adrift are Oviedo, who are seven points from safety with only 15 left to play for.

At the other end of the table, high-flying Villarreal defeated Celta to move five points clear of fourth-place Atletico Madrid.

Gerard Moreno’s early penalty sent the Yellow Submarine ahead, and Nicolas Pepe doubled their lead to give them a comfortable advantage at half-time.

Celta, seventh, still have hope of qualifying for European football next season and pulled one back through a Borja Iglesias spot-kick, retaken after encroachment when his first effort was saved.

Ferran Jutgla hit the post for the Galicians, but they could not find an equaliser, suffering a fifth consecutive defeat across all competitions.

Earlier, Alemao struck deep in stoppage time to secure Rayo Vallecano a thrilling 3-3 draw against Copa del Rey winners Real Sociedad.

On Saturday, leaders Barcelona took a big step towards defending their La Liga title with a 2-0 win at Getafe that allowed them to open up an 11-point lead on rivals Real Madrid.

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Borussia Dortmund cruised to a 4-0 home win over Freiburg in the Bundesliga on Sunday to lock in Champions League qualification for next season.

Maximilian Beier, Serhou Guirassy, Ramy Bensebaini and Fabio Silva all scored for Dortmund, who are 10 points clear of fifth-placed Hoffenheim with three games to play.

Dortmund drew 1-1 with Freiburg earlier in the season, but have now scored three goals or more against the Black Forest club in eight of their past nine meetings.

“We’ve made sure of the Champions League, so of course now we want to lock in second spot,” Beier told DAZN. “The sun is shining, we’ve qualified for the Champions League, it feels good.”

Freiburg sit in eighth place but are through to the Europa League semi-finals, where they face Braga.

Dortmund lead after just eight minutes as Bensebaini lofted a long pass over the midfield to an onrushing Beier, who collected the ball before guiding a shot across the face of the goal.

They added another six minutes later when Guirassy turned in a lovely dipping pass from Julian Brandt.

Bensebaini headed in a Julian Ryerson corner just after the half-hour mark. Ryerson now has 13 assists this season, nine of which have come from corners.

Freiburg’s hopes of kick-starting a comeback took a hit when Lukas Kuebler’s goal was chalked off by VAR for offside 10 minutes into the second half.

Silva added a late fourth for only his second Bundesliga goal.

Stuttgart were held to a 1-1 draw at home by Werder Bremen, denting their hopes of a return to the Champions League.

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Stuttgart’s top-four rivals, Leipzig, Hoffenheim and Bayer Leverkusen all won this weekend to up the pressure on the German Cup holders.

Bremen’s Jens Stage continued his rich run of form, putting the visitors ahead early before Ermedin Demirovic levelled four minutes after coming on in the second half.

Stuttgart sit in fourth place with three games remaining. They are level on points with Hoffenheim but ahead on goal difference, while Leverkusen are lurking two points behind.

Stuttgart still have to play Hoffenheim and Leverkusen, as well as Eintracht Frankfurt.

“In the end, that’s just not enough. In the fight for the Champions League, especially at home, we need to secure every three points available to ensure everything remains in our own hands,” Demirovic said to DAZN. “Even though we were exhausted, we had set our sights higher. This really hurts.”

Bremen’s first point this season against a side currently in the top five left them six points clear of St Pauli, who are in the relegation play-off spot.

Stuttgart’s exertions in Thursday’s extra-time German Cup semi-final victory over Freiburg were clear early as Stage and Senne Lynen glided through the hosts’ sluggish defence.

Dane Stage put Bremen in front after 18 minutes, hitting a low first-time shot into the bottom corner after a clever one-two with Yukinari Sugawara.

The goal was Stage’s 10th this season and his third in two games.

Bremen were the better side in the opening half but the hosts wrestled back control of the game after half-time.

Substitute Demirovic headed in a floating Bilal El Khannouss cross to cancel out Bremen’s advantage just after the hour mark.

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