Month: October 2024

Open Extended Reactions UEFA has confirmed that Madrid or Baku will stage the 2027 Champions League final after the capital cities of Spain and Azerbaijan stepped in to replace Milan as host of the showpiece fixture. Having stripped Milan of the hosting rights last month due to the Italian city’s failure to deliver assurances that
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Sam Marsden, Barcelona correspondentOct 22, 2024, 03:23 PM ET Open Extended Reactions Bayern Munich coach Vincent Kompany says it is exceptional that Barcelona have potentially found a Lionel Messi replacement in Lamine Yamal so soon after the Argentine left the club. Messi, now at Inter Miami, left Barça in 2021, with Yamal, a left-footed attacker
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ESPN News Services Oct 22, 2024, 06:34 PM ET Open Extended Reactions Three straight wins, no goals conceded and top of the league on maximum points. Aston Villa‘s first ever appearance in the Champions League couldn’t be going any better. Villa’s 2-0 home win over Bologna on Tuesday maintained the 100% start to the English
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Alex Kirkland, ESPN FCOct 22, 2024, 06:46 PM ET Open Extended Reactions Carlo Ancelotti praised Vinícius Júnior‘s “extraordinary character” and “energy” after the Ballon d’Or contender scored a second-half hat trick in Real Madrid‘s 5-2 Champions League comeback win over Borussia Dortmund. Madrid trailed 0-2 at halftime at Santiago Bernabeu — after Donyell Malen and
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Open Extended Reactions Mikel Arteta fears Riccardo Calafiori could join Arsenal’s mounting injury list but vowed the Gunners “will be flying” against Liverpool on Sunday. Calafiori limped out of Tuesday’s 1-0 Champions League win over Shakhtar Donetsk at Emirates Stadium 18 minutes from the end after falling awkwardly on his right leg. The Italian defender,
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Real Madrid fought back from two goals down as Vinícius Júnior grabbed a hat trick in a thrilling 5-2 win over visitors Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League on Tuesday. In a rematch of last-season’s final, Dortmund lit up the game with a two-goal blitz around the half-hour mark from Donyell Malen and Jamie Gittens
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Oct 22, 2024, 01:41 PM ET Open Extended Reactions Christian Pulisic continued his sensational start to the season on Tuesday, scoring directly from a corner in AC Milan‘s UEFA Champions League match against Belgium’s Club Brugge. The United States star opened the scoring in the 34th minute at the San Siro, sending in an in-swinging
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Sam Marsden Moises Llorens Oct 22, 2024, 09:37 AM ET Open Extended Reactions Barcelona forward Raphinha has said he was hurt by some of the speculation surrounding the club’s interest in signing Nico Williams in the summer, labelling it disrespectful and in bad taste. Barça’s pursuit of the Athletic Club and Spain winger raised questions
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Graham Hunter, Spain writerOct 22, 2024, 09:42 AM ET Close Graham Hunter is a Barcelona-based freelance writer for ESPN.com who specializes in La Liga and the Spanish national team. Open Extended Reactions The rarified atmosphere around Barcelona which encompasses their often myopic, hysterical media, their downtrodden and traumatised fans, plus a directorate which has spent
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Adriana Garcia Oct 22, 2024, 05:58 AM ET Open Extended Reactions Former Manchester United forward Diego Forlán is set to make his ATP Challenger tennis debut in the doubles competition at the Uruguay Open next month. The former Uruguay international will play alongside Argentinian Federico Coria, ranked 101 in the ATP singles. Editor’s Picks 2
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Oct 22, 2024, 05:32 AM ET Open Extended Reactions Roma legend Francesco Totti has claimed that Serie A teams are still calling him to see if he would return to professional football, adding that he thinks it would take two to three months of training to return to playing fitness. Totti, 48, retired from football
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Adriana Garcia Oct 21, 2024, 05:37 AM ET Open Extended Reactions Fenerbahce coach Jose Mourinho expressed frustration at local journalists on Sunday after his side lost ground on Super Lig leaders Galatasaray, claiming that he is “always” being asked about players that don’t play. Fenerbahce were held to a 2-2 draw with Samsunspor in a
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Oct 21, 2024, 04:05 AM ET Open Extended Reactions FIFA signed the four-year deal with Saudi Aramco in April. Harold Cunningham/Getty Images A group of over 100 professional women’s footballers on Monday sent an open letter to FIFA urging the world governing body to end its partnership with oil and gas conglomerate Saudi Aramco. In April,
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Associated Press Oct 21, 2024, 09:18 PM ET Open Extended Reactions The expansion San Diego FC will make its debut against the LA Galaxy in Carson during Major League Soccer‘s opening weekend Feb. 22-23, the league announced Monday. The exact date, as well as the rest of the MLS schedule, will be announced in December.
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