Premier League

Premier League clubs have already spent close to £1bn in a sensational transfer window which was turned up a notch when Manchester United agreed a shock deal to re-sign Cristiano Ronaldo before deadline day. The Portugal forward looked set to join rivals Manchester City, but a dramatic turn of events last Friday saw Ronaldo persuaded to return to Old Trafford, 12 years after leaving for Real Madrid. He now just has to put pen to paper to complete his return. He has until

Leeds United are closing in on a club record £30m deal to sign Manchester United winger Daniel James. Leeds coach Marcelo Bielsa has been keeping a close eye on James ever since the Welshman's move to Elland Road from Swansea collapsed in January 2019. James subsequently joined United that summer and has scored nine goals in 74 appearances for the Red Devils. Leeds were thinking about making a move during the last summer window but brought in Brazilian Raphinha instead. However, with James

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's hat-trick helped Arsenal to a welcome first win of the season as they beat a young West Bromwich Albion side to reach the Carabao Cup third round. Aubameyang marked his first start of the season with two first-half tap-ins and a curling finish after the break. He also acrobatically set up Nicolas Pepe for the third, with Bukayo Saka slotting in the Gunners' fourth. Alexandre Lacazette came off the bench to fire in his side's sixth. The win could have been

The Premier League says its clubs have "reluctantly but unanimously" decided not to release players for matches in red-list countries during September's international break. Under current UK government rules, players would be forced to miss several games because of the 10-day isolation period required on return to the UK. The Premier League said "extensive talks" had taken place with the Football Association and government "to find a solution" but that "no exemption had been granted". It added that it "strongly supported" the move made

Michail Antonio became West Ham's outright top scorer in the Premier League in a dominant victory for the Hammers over 10-man Leicester City at London Stadium. Antonio celebrated by lifting a cardboard cut-out of himself after scoring his 48th top-flight goal to break Paolo di Canio's club record. The 31-year-old added a second four minutes later to wrap up an impressive win for David Moyes' side. It is only the second time the Hammers have won their opening two fixtures of a Premier

It was a move seven years in the making and 10 years since he last wore the shirt, but Chelsea proudly declared on their website earlier this month that Romelu Lukaku had "come home". His second debut, against Arsenal on Sunday, turned into a dream afternoon as Lukaku opened the scoring in an "unplayable" performance which the player himself described as "dominant". His strike was his first goal for the club, having failed to hit the net in his three years and previous 15 appearances

On 19 August 1989, a 37-year-old man walked on to the Old Trafford pitch before the first game of the new league campaign. Arsenal were the opposition, and the stands were packed; the official attendance was 47,245 - about 10,000 higher than the previous season's average. In full Manchester United training kit, Michael Knighton juggled the ball skillfully before firing it into an empty goal. He stood in front of the Stretford End, arms out, taking in the adulation. A few weeks before,

Wolves striker Raul Jimenez says he "feels like a player again" after making his Premier League return nine months after fracturing his skull. The 30-year-old played the full 90 minutes in Wolves' opening-day defeat to Leicester. It was the first competitive match he has been involved in since he sustained the traumatic injury against Arsenal. "I always thought that after my recovery I would be back to do what I love to do," said Jimenez. "I never thought about finishing my career. There was a

Newcastle United's arbitration proceedings against the Premier League over last year's aborted takeover attempt have been adjourned until early 2022 due to "issues with the disclosure of evidence", the Premier League club said on Monday (Jul 19). The proposed 305 million pound (US$417.06 million) takeover by a consortium which included Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund PIF, PCP Capital Partners and the Reuben Brothers collapsed in July when the group announced they were ending their interest. Newcastle owner Mike Ashley had initiated legal proceedings

BERLIN: The late arrival of a quartet of Premier League stars is set to give Germany a timely boost as head coach Joachim Loew looks to fix his misfiring side in their final preparations for Euro 2020. The Chelsea trio of Champions League winners Timo Werner, Kai Havertz and Antonio Ruediger, as well as Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan, had all joined the squad by Thursday. They were given extra time off after Saturday's European final. Their arrival boosts the Loew's side, who

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

BIRMINGHAM: Liverpool and Chelsea grabbed the final two Champions League places but Leicester City fell short of a top-four finish for the second successive season on a nerve-jangling final day of the Premier League season on Sunday. Liverpool avoided any drama as they beat Crystal Palace 2-0 to finish in third spot - a silver lining to a difficult season in which their attempted defence of the title crumbled. Chelsea lost 2-1 at Aston Villa - a result that could have been curtains

LONDON: Spotify CEO and founder Daniel Ek said on Saturday (May 15) an offer to buy Premier League Arsenal had been rejected by owner Stan Kroenke's family. Ek took to Twitter to issue a statement correcting "inaccurate reports" that he had not made a bid. "This week an offer was made to both Josh Kroenke and their bankers that included fan ownership, representation at the board and a golden share for the supporters," the Swede said. "They replied that they don't need the

Manchester United's Uruguayan striker Edinson Cavani has signed a one-year contract extension at the Old Trafford outfit having hit a purple patch in recent matches, the Premier League club said on Monday. Free agent Cavani arrived at United on a one-year contract in October with an option of another 12 months but was undecided about his future after a difficult start to life at the club after a social media faux pas resulted in a three-game ban. The former Paris St Germain forward's

LONDON: The Premier League has welcomed the British government's announcement on the easing of lockdown restrictions amid the COVID-19 pandemic and Chief Executive Richard Masters said on Monday it is their priority to have full stadiums next season. The government said in February that under the third stage of its four-stage "roadmap", stadiums would - if all conditions are met - from May 17 be allowed to hold up to 50 per cent of their capacity, or 4,000 people, whichever is lower. A

Talking Points from the Premier League weekend: HAVE CHELSEA GAINED A PSYCHOLOGICAL EDGE Chelsea's 2-1 victory over Manchester City made sure City's title celebrations remained on hold but perhaps more importantly sent out a message to Pep Guardiola's side for the Champions League final and next season's title race. Surprisingly, Guardiola made wholesale changes to his side when victory would have sealed a third title in five seasons. When Sergio Aguero fluffed a Panenka-style penalty to give City a 2-0 lead, it sparked

LONDON: West Bromwich Albion were relegated from the Premier League on Sunday after a 3-1 loss at Arsenal sent them straight back down to the Championship after one season in the top flight. The defeat left the Baggies in 19th place with 26 points, 10 points behind fourth-bottom Burnley with only three games left to play. It is the first time manager Sam Allardyce has suffered relegation from the Premier League during his 17 campaigns. West Brom started brightly but struggled to move

BIRMINGHAM: Manchester United recovered to beat Aston Villa 3-1 away in the Premier League on Sunday (May 9) as Bruno Fernandes, Mason Greenwood and Edinson Cavani scored in the second half to put on hold the title celebrations of champions-elect Manchester City. The result left United second on 70 points from 34 games, 10 behind City who have played a game more and missed a chance to secure the title on Saturday after they suffered a 2-1 home defeat by Chelsea. It also

LONDON: England's chances of winning the Euro 2020 tournament this year have been boosted by the success of the Premier League clubs in the Champions League and Europa League, says Harry Kane. Chelsea will face Manchester City in this month's Champions League final in Istanbul when several young members of England's squad, such as Mason Mount, Reece James, Phil Foden and John Stones, will be involved. Kane, England's captain, believes that can only help when the delayed European Championship starts in June. "We

LONDON: Villarreal will face Manchester United in the Europa League final after the Spanish side held out for a 0-0 draw at Arsenal on Thursday (May 6) to prevent a clean sweep of European finalists for Premier League sides. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang twice hit the post for Arsenal, but a 2-1 aggregate defeat means the Gunners will miss out on Champions League football for the fifth consecutive season. Edinson Cavani scored twice for United, who progressed 8-5 on aggregate despite a 3-2 defeat away