Liverpool to face Sparta Prague in Europa League last 16

Liverpool to face Sparta Prague in Europa League last 16
Sparta Prague’s Indrit Tuci celebrates scoring their second goal with Jan Kuchta during their Europa League — Play-Off — Second Leg match against Galatasaray ar epet ARENA, Prague, on Feb. 22, 2024. (Reuters)
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Updated 23 February 2024
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Liverpool to face Sparta Prague in Europa League last 16

Liverpool to face Sparta Prague in Europa League last 16
  • Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool will be strong favourites to reach the quarter-finals
  • Leverkusen, led by Xabi Alonso, are unbeaten in 32 matches in all competitions this season, and will again face Qarabag

NYON, Switzerland: Three-time winners Liverpool were drawn to face Sparta Prague in the Europa League last 16 on Friday, while unbeaten Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen will take on Azeris Qarabag.
Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool will be strong favourites to reach the quarter-finals as they bid for a quadruple in the German's final season before stepping down as manager.
The first leg will be played in the Czech capital on March 7, with Anfield hosting the return game a week later.
Leverkusen, led by Xabi Alonso, are unbeaten in 32 matches in all competitions this season, and will again face Qarabag, having already seen off the Azeri champions twice in the group stage.
Also renewing acquaintances will be last year's Europa Conference League winners West Ham and Freiburg, after David Moyes' side's brace of victories against the Bundesliga club in Group A.
"It's kind of stupid that you can come back against your group opponents in the round of 16," said Freiburg captain Christian Guenter.
"You could already tell that some of us were upset."
Seven-time European champions AC Milan continue their bid to win a maiden Europa League title against Slavia Prague after their knock-out round play-off win over Rennes.
Scottish Premiership leaders Rangers, losing finalists in 2022, take on Portuguese Primeira Liga pace-setters Benfica, still chasing a first European trophy since 1962.
Premier League club Brighton continue their first ever European adventure at last season's runners-up Roma.
First legs to be played on March 7, second legs to be played on March 14.

Full last-16 draw
Sparta Prague (CZE) v Liverpool (ENG)
Marseille (FRA) v Villarreal (ESP)
Roma (ITA) v Brighton (ENG)
Benfica (POR) v Rangers (SCO)
Freiburg (GER) v West Ham (ENG)
Sporting Lisbon (POR) v Atalanta (ITA)
AC Milan (ITA) v Slavia Prague (CZE)
Qarabag (AZE) v Bayer Leverkusen (GER)


EA Team of the Year celebrates top football players 

EA Team of the Year celebrates top football players 
Updated 12 January 2025
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EA Team of the Year celebrates top football players 

EA Team of the Year celebrates top football players 

RIYADH: To celebrate the best football players of the year, EA Sports has launched Team of the Year, allowing fans to create and vote for their dream team.

Saudi Arabia’s football talent is Salem Al-Dawsari, midfielder for Al-Hilal, who has earned his place as one of TOTY’s nominees, showcasing the region’s growing impact in the world of football.

Portuguese soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo, who is currently playing for Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League, has also been nominated for TOTY.

Following the Italian and Spanish Super Cup matches, which were held in Riyadh and Jeddah, this year’s TOTY card lineup includes players from Italian teams AC Milan, Inter Milan, Atalanta, and Juventus, and Spanish teams Real Madrid and FC Barcelona.

TOTY has cards for each position — goalkeepers, defenders, midfielders, and attackers — allowing fans to create the ultimate fantasy men’s or women’s football team.

The EA FC 25 TOTY vote will be closed on Jan. 12, 2025. 

For more information on Team of the Year, visit www.ea.com/games/ea-sports-fc/fc-25/toty 


Penalty king Kane sends Bayern past Gladbach

Penalty king Kane sends Bayern past Gladbach
Updated 11 January 2025
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Penalty king Kane sends Bayern past Gladbach

Penalty king Kane sends Bayern past Gladbach
  • Musiala’s replacement, veteran Thomas Mueller, had an early chance midway through the first half but blasted at Gladbach goalkeeper Moritz Nicolas from point-blank range
  • Kane has now converted 26 successive penalties for club and country since his miss against France in the quarter-finals of the 2022 World Cup

BERLIN: A second-half penalty from Harry Kane gave Bayern Munich a 1-0 win at Borussia Moenchengladbach on Saturday, restoring their four-point lead at the top of the Bundesliga table.
Defending champions Bayer Leverkusen’s 3-2 win at Borussia Dortmund on Friday drew them within a point of league leaders Bayern, who went into Saturday’s clash without the ill Jamal Musiala.
Musiala’s replacement, veteran Thomas Mueller, had an early chance midway through the first half but blasted at Gladbach goalkeeper Moritz Nicolas from point-blank range.
Gladbach were toothless in attack but frustrated Bayern, who were unable to turn their dominance into clear goalscoring chances.
With just over 20 minutes remaining, Michael Olize was felled in the box by Gladbach’s Lukas Ullrich, bringing Kane to the spot.
The England captain, who had been largely anonymous for much of the night, sent the ball low to the right and into the net.
Kane has now converted 26 successive penalties for club and country since his miss against France in the quarter-finals of the 2022 World Cup.
“We had many, many good chances,” Bayern’s Joshua Kimmich told Sky Germany.
“But we made it a bit too exciting at the end as we could’ve decided things earlier.”
Bayern coach Vincent Kompany said: “We’re happy with the 1-0 even if we could’ve scored a goal or two more.”
A first-half goal from Omar Marmoush took Eintracht Frankfurt to a 1-0 win at St. Pauli amid growing speculation that the Egypt star is on the brink of a move to Manchester City.
Before the game, Frankfurt sporting director Markus Kroesche confirmed “a club had got in contact” about Marmoush, with Sky Germany saying the forward had already agreed personal terms with the English champions.
Marmoush was on target in the 32nd minute against his former club, calmly turning inside the box before firing a shot into the top corner.
The goal was Marmoush’s 14th in 16 Bundesliga games this season, one behind Kane. The 25-year-old also has eight league assists.
“We did plenty to keep a clean sheet today,” said Frankfurt captain Kevin Trapp as his team stayed in third place.
Elsewhere, Freiburg leapfrogged Borussia Dortmund into sixth with a 3-2 home win over Holstein Kiel highlighted by a stunning free-kick from captain Christian Guenter.
Kiel’s Nicolai Remberg unwittingly diverted an Eren Dinkci cross into his own net on 23 minutes, before Guenter sent an excellent dipping shot into the top corner from wide on the right-hand side.
Freiburg’s Vincenzo Grifo added a third although Kiel’s Phil Harres made the home side sweat with two goals in the final five minutes.
Union Berlin’s miserable week went from bad to worse, going down 2-0 with 10 men at Heidenheim just days after a German Football Association (DFB) sports court punished them for unruly behavior by their fans.
The DFB court decided Union’s 1-1 home draw with Bochum in December should be considered a 2-0 win for the away side after a home fan threw a lighter at the head of the visiting goalkeeper.
Union president Dirk Zingler slammed the decision pre-match as an “unfair scandal,” saying the court was trying to make a “political example” of the club who have appealed the punishment.
Bayern loanee Frans Kraetzig gave the hosts the lead on the counter after 17 minutes in his first Heidenheim game before Union’s Tom Rothe was red carded for a last-man foul.
Adrian Beck sealed the win with seven minutes remaining, giving his side a first win since September.
Mainz climbed past RB Leipzig into fourth with a 2-0 home with over lowly Bochum, with Germany forward Jonathan Burkardt scoring in each half.
A 29th-minute Mohamed Amoura goal took Wolfsburg to a 1-0 win at Hoffenheim.


Marmoush fires Frankfurt to victory amid Man City link

Marmoush fires Frankfurt to victory amid Man City link
Updated 11 January 2025
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Marmoush fires Frankfurt to victory amid Man City link

Marmoush fires Frankfurt to victory amid Man City link
  • Frankfurt sporting director Markus Kroesche confirmed “a club had got in contact” about Marmoush
  • Marmoush was on target in the 32nd minute against his former club, calmly turning inside the box before firing a shot into the top corner to give Frankfurt the lead

BERLIN: A first-half goal from Omar Marmoush took Eintracht Frankfurt to a 1-0 Bundesliga win at St. Pauli on Saturday amid growing speculation that the Egyptian star is on the brink of a move to Manchester City.
Before the game, Frankfurt sporting director Markus Kroesche confirmed “a club had got in contact” about Marmoush, with Sky Germany saying the forward had already agreed personal terms with the struggling English champions.
Marmoush was on target in the 32nd minute against his former club, calmly turning inside the box before firing a shot into the top corner to give Frankfurt the lead.
The goal was Marmoush’s 14th in 16 Bundesliga games this season, taking him level with Harry Kane at the top of the scoring charts. The 25-year-old also has eight league assists.
Victory kept Frankfurt in third place, six points behind leaders Bayern who visit Borussia Moenchengladbach later Saturday.


Elsewhere, Freiburg leapfrogged Borussia Dortmund into sixth with a 3-2 home win over Holstein Kiel highlighted by a stunning free-kick from captain Christian Guenter.
Kiel’s Nicolai Remberg unwittingly diverted an Eren Dinkci cross into his own net on 23 minutes, before Guenter sent an excellent dipping shot into the top corner from wide on the right-hand side.
Freiburg’s Vincenzo Grifo added a third although Kiel’s Phil Harres made the home side sweat with two goals in the final five minutes.
Union Berlin’s miserable week went from bad to worse, going down 2-0 with 10 men at Heidenheim just days after a German FA (DFB) sports court punished them for unruly behavior by their fans.
The DFB court decided Union’s 1-1 home draw with Bochum in December should be considered a 2-0 win for the away side after a home fan threw a lighter at the head of the visiting goalkeeper.
Union president Dirk Zingler slammed the decision pre-match as an “unfair scandal,” saying the court was trying to make a “political example” of the club who have appealed the decision.
Bayern Munich loanee Frans Kraetzig gave the hosts the lead on the counter after 17 minutes in his first Heidenheim game before Union’s Tom Rothe was red carded for a last-man foul.
Adrian Beck sealed the result with seven minutes remaining, giving his side a first win since September.
Mainz climbed past RB Leipzig into fourth with a 2-0 home with over lowly Bochum, with Germany forward Jonathan Burkardt scoring in each half.
A 29th-minute Mohamed Amoura goal took Wolfsburg to a 1-0 win at Hoffenheim.
Later Saturday, Bayern can restore their four-point lead at the top of the table from second-placed Bayer Leverkusen when they travel to Gladbach.


Man City win 8-0 against Salford City in the FA Cup and Liverpool rout Accrington Stanley

Man City win 8-0 against Salford City in the FA Cup and Liverpool rout Accrington Stanley
Updated 11 January 2025
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Man City win 8-0 against Salford City in the FA Cup and Liverpool rout Accrington Stanley

Man City win 8-0 against Salford City in the FA Cup and Liverpool rout Accrington Stanley
  • Rising talent James McAtee struck a second-half hat trick, and City prospects Divin Mubama and Nico O’Reilly also scored
  • Liverpool, Chelsea, Brighton, Bournemouth and Leicester also booked their place in the next round with big wins

MANCHESTER: Manchester City routed fourth-division Salford City 8-0 in the third round of the FA Cup on Saturday.
Salford, which are co-owned by Manchester United icons David Beckham, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Gary and Phil Neville and Nicky Butt, were humbled by Pep Guardiola’s four-time defending Premier League champion at Etihad Stadium.
Rising talent James McAtee struck a second-half hat trick, and City prospects Divin Mubama and Nico O’Reilly also scored.
Liverpool, Chelsea, Brighton, Bournemouth and Leicester also booked their place in the next round with big wins.
Quad chasing
Liverpool’s bid to win an unprecedented quadruple was still on after a 4-0 victory over Accrington Stanley.
The Premier League and Champions League leader were also into the semifinals of the English League Cup.
Fourth-division Accrington were never expected to prevent Arne Slot’s team from advancing to the fourth round and Diogo Jota, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Jayden Danns and Federico Chiesa scored for Liverpool at Anfield.
Rio Ngumoha, aged 16, became Liverpool’s second youngest debutant.
Big wins
Chelsea won 5-0 against fourth-division Morecambe at Stamford Bridge. Tosin Adarabioyo and Joao Felix scored two goals each for the eight-time winner.
Leicester were fighting relegation but thrashed second-tier Queens Park Rangers 6-2 for only their second win under manager Ruud van Nistelrooy. The Dutch coach hadn’t won since his first game in charge at the start of December against West Ham.
James Justin scored twice and Jamie Vardy converted a second-half penalty.
Georginio Rutter scored twice in Brighton’s 4-0 win at Norwich. Norwich’s American striker Josh Sargent went on as a 79th-minute substitute after recovering from groin surgery that had sidelined him since Oct. 27.
Bournemouth’s Dango Ouattara struck a double in a 5-1 victory against West Brom.
Forest advances
Sitting third in the Premier League, Forest notched their seventh straight win by beating Luton 2-0. Ryan Yates and Ramon Sosa scored.
Wolverhampton advanced 2-1 at second-division Bristol City.
Plymouth shock
Plymouth are in danger of being relegated to the third division and last month parted ways with manager Wayne Rooney. But they turned giant-killer with a late winner against Brentford.
Morgan Whittaker’s 82nd-minute strike ended Plymouth’s 11-game winless run and secured a famous Cup upset.
Former Manchester United prospect Demetri Mitchell scored twice to help third-division Exeter beat second-division Oxford 3-1.


New Red Bull football boss Klopp in stands for Paris FC game

New Red Bull football boss Klopp in stands for Paris FC game
Updated 11 January 2025
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New Red Bull football boss Klopp in stands for Paris FC game

New Red Bull football boss Klopp in stands for Paris FC game
  • Klopp happily posed for selfies alongside Pierre Ferracci, the president of the Parisian club
  • The former solid Ligue 1 leaders, Paris FC have had a bad start to the year

PARIS: Jurgen Klopp, the new global head of football at Red Bull, a minority shareholder in French club Paris FC, on Saturday watched from the stands during a French Ligue 2 game against Amiens.
Former Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund manager Klopp has just started a new role with Red Bull which owns clubs RB Leipzig, Salzburg and New York Red Bulls.
Klopp happily posed for selfies alongside Pierre Ferracci, the president of the Parisian club which was sold to the family of France’s richest person Bernard Arnault and Red Bull two months ago.
The former solid Ligue 1 leaders, Paris FC have had a bad start to the year with consecutive defeats and are now third.
Klopp is due to speak for the first time since taking office on Tuesday at the Red Bull headquarters near Salzburg in Austria.
The 57-year-old won back-to-back Bundesliga titles with Dortmund before moving to Liverpool. At the Reds, Klopp won several major trophies, including the Champions League and Premier League.
Klopp’s appointment has however caused controversy, particularly in Germany where some fans are critical of the energy drink brand’s ownership of Leipzig, as well as multi-club models in general.