Barcelona

BARCELONA: Ronald Koeman will remain as Barcelona coach next season after the club agreed to honour his contract, president Joan Laporta said on Thursday (Jun 3). Koeman, who was appointed on a two-year deal last August by Laporta's predecessor Josep Maria Bartomeu, led Barca to victory in the Copa del Rey in his first season in charge. But the Catalans suffered an embarrassing 5-2 aggregate defeat to Paris St Germain in the last 16 of the Champions League and finished a disappointing third

BARCELONA: Barcelona on Tuesday (Jun 1) confirmed that Manchester City defender Eric Garcia would join them on Jul 1 when his contract with the Premier League champions expires. Garcia will return to his boyhood club on a deal until the end of the 2025-26 campaign after three years at City and follows striker Sergio Aguero in making the switch from Manchester to the Camp Nou. Barca said they had included a €400 million (US$489.52 million) buyout clause in the 20-year-old Garcia's contract. The

UEFA has opened disciplinary proceedings against Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus over their attempts to launch a breakaway Super League, European soccer's governing body said on Tuesday. The clubs are the only three of the original 12 to have not distanced themselves from the project following an outpouring of criticism. "Following an investigation conducted by UEFA Ethics and Disciplinary Inspectors in connection with the so-called 'Super League' project, disciplinary proceedings have been opened against Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus FC for a potential

LONDON: Sergio Aguero is close to agreeing a move to Barcelona that would unite him with fellow Argentine superstar Lionel Messi, according to Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola. City's record goalscorer, who has spent a decade at the Etihad, scored a quickfire double in the champions' 5-0 win over Everton in his final Premier League appearance for the club on Sunday. The goals took his Premier League tally to 184 - the most by any player for a single club. The 32-year-old forward

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

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

BARCELONA: Spain's La Liga is investigating whether a party organised by Barcelona players at their captain Lionel Messi's home broke COVID-19 protocol. "We're looking into it," La Liga sources told AFP on Tuesday (May 4). Monday's meal brought together Barca players, some accompanied by their partners, at the Argentinian star's house, despite social distancing rules in the Catalonian capital outlawing groups of more than six to meet in private. The party may constitute "a possible breach of COVID-19 protocols", the source suggested. The

VALENCIA, Spain: Lionel Messi led Barcelona to a quick-fire comeback to win 3-2 at Valencia on Sunday and keep the pressure on La Liga title rivals Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid. Barca fell behind in the 50th minute when Valencia defender Gabriel Paulista headed into an empty net from a corner after keeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen had stumbled to the ground in his attempt to come for the ball. The Catalans, who had blown the chance to go top of the league with

BARCELONA: Lionel Messi scored twice as Barcelona crushed Getafe 5-2 on Thursday (Apr 22) to stay in the hunt for the La Liga title. Messi gave Barca an early lead with the help of a pin-point pass from Sergio Busquets but Getafe pulled level with an own goal by Clement Lenglet. The visitors then conceded a calamitous own goal when Sofian Chakla's backpass deceived keeper David Soria and trickled over the line. Messi extended Barca's lead before halftime, hitting the post then following

Spanish top seed Rafael Nadal survived a scare before fighting back to beat Belarusian qualifier Ilya Ivashka in the second round of the Barcelona Open. Nadal, who has not lost on clay to an opponent ranked outside the world's top 100 since 2004, won 3-6 6-2 6-4 against 111th-ranked Ivashka. British number one Dan Evans was unable to continue his excellent form on clay, losing to France's Corentin Moutet in a spiky second-round match. Evans, seeded 16th, lost 6-4 5-7 6-3. The pair

MADRID: Barcelona boss Ronald Koeman has reiterated that he is not worried about his future ahead of Saturday's (Apr 17) Copa del Rey final meeting with Athletic Bilbao. The Copa represents a chance for Barca to end a trophyless run which dates back to the 2018-19 season. After finishing last season without silverware, their hopes of Champions League glory were ended by PSG at the last-16 stage, while their defeat in last weekend's El Clasico means they are third-placed in La Liga heading

MADRID - Real Madrid found an unlikely ally in Barcelona coach Ronald Koeman, who hit out at Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp after he labelled Madrid’s Alfredo di Stefano stadium a training pitch. Klopp was unimpressed at having to play Tuesday’s Champions League quarter-final first leg at the Di Stefano, where his side lost 3-1. Madrid have played at the Di Stefano, which is situated in their training base, since last June with renovations taking place at their usual Santiago Bernabeu stadium. Barca travel

Barcelona move up to second, one point behind leaders Atletico Madrid, thanks to a sixth La Liga win in a row. Barca looked as if they were going to be frustrated but the turning point was Oscar Plano's straight red card for a dangerous foul on Dembele. Dembele volleyed home in the last minute from Ronald Araujo's flick-on. Both sides hit the woodwork in the first half - Kenan Kodro's header for Valladolid and Pedri's low drive for Barcelona being tipped on to

MADRID: So often over the years Barcelona and Real Madrid have fought it out between themselves for the Liga title, cruising to 95-plus points while everyone else battles to be the best of the rest. However, with 10 games to go this season, Atletico Madrid sit top of the table in what looks like a year when 85 points might be enough to secure the silverware. It is set to be the closest-run title race for some time, with just six points separating

LONDON: Barcelona advanced to the last four of the women's Champions League with a 4-2 aggregate victory over Manchester City after a 2-1 defeat in the second leg of their quarter-final at the City Academy Stadium on Wednesday. City came into the game with a 3-0 deficit after losing the away leg, played in Monza because of travel restrictions, but they began brightly and pulled back a goal when Janine Beckie prodded home in the 20th minute after Barca had failed to clear

Lionel Messi broke the club's appearance record on Sunday as the Argentine featured in his 768th game for the Catalan giants. Messi celebrated in style, working his now famous magic in Barcelona's 6-1 victory over Real Sociedad, as he superseded the landmark set by former teammate and club legend Xavi Hernandez, who appeared 767 times for the club. Barcelonaa's official Twitter account dubbed the Argentine an "otherworldly player" and called his record-breaking appearance figure a "stratospheric number." Messi's eighth assist of the season

Messi netted his league-leading 22nd and 23rd goals from inside the area in the 56th and 89th. Lionel Messi played his 768th match for Barcelona to surpass Xavi Hernández for the record number of club appearances. Messi and American defender Sergiño Dest scored two goals each as Barcelona easily beat Sociedad for its fifth consecutive league win — and ninth straight away from home. Griezmann opened the scoring in the 37th before Dest netted in the 43rd and 53rd minutes for his first

BARCELONA: Barcelona chief Joan Laporta gave Lionel Messi a hug and then pledged to do everything in his power to convince the club's all-time top scorer to stay after being officially sworn in as the club's new president on Wednesday (Mar 17). Laporta's pitch to Messi came two days after the Argentine equalled Xavi Hernandez as the club's highest appearance maker on 767 games, marking the occasion by scoring twice in a 4-1 rout of Huesca. "I'll do everything I can to make

For his 767th match, Messi was honored by Barcelona with a large image behind one of the goals showing him embracing Xavi as the players looked forward and pointed upward. The banner included the words "767 matches" and “touching the sky. Lionel Messi scored twice as he tied Xavi Hernández's record of most appearances for Barcelona on Monday, putting them within four points of the Spanish league lead after beating last-placed Huesca 4-1. For his 767th match, Messi was honored by Barcelona with

Barcelona boss Ronald Koeman says Lionel Messi can have no doubts over the "great future" the club has after they bowed out of the Champions League with a spirited performance at Paris St-Germain. Messi, 33, who has won the competition with Barcelona on four occasions, outlined his frustrations at the Nou Camp last summer and was heavily linked with a move to PSG prior to this last-16 tie. However, while the result saw Barca fail to reach the last eight of the competition