Former Ghanaian FA president banned for life from football

A devastating hat-trick from Kevin Gameiro gave Atletico Madrid a 4-1 victory away to Sporting Gijon on Saturday that keeps their top-four hopes firmly in their hands.

The striker came off the bench to score three times in five minutes in the closing stages to secure maximum points for Diego Simeone s side and inflict a damaging defeat on the struggling hosts at El Molinon.

Diego Simeone had warned before the match that Sporting s committed approach under Rubi could pose some problems, and the hosts certainly enjoyed the better of a scrappy first half, with loan signing Lacina Traore missing the best of the initial chances.

Yannick Carrasco broke the deadlock just seconds after the restart but Sporting hit back almost immediately to level and only a strong reacti…

Juventus defender Gianluca Frabotta has joined Lecce on loan for the 2022-23 season.

The Italy Under-21 international moved to Turin from Bologna in 2019, initially featuring for the Under-23 side before making 16 appearances for Juve in the 2020-21 Serie A campaign.

With Alex Sandro, Juan Cuadrado, Danilo and Mattia De Sciglio to choose from at full-back, Frabotta was sent on loan to Hellas Verona for the 2021-22 season.

The 22-year-old made just two appearances for Verona, totalling only 18 minutes in Serie A, before returning to Juve.

Frabotta will again play his football away from the Allianz Stadium next season, signing on loan for newly promoted side Lecce on Monday.

The Juve loanee will hope to help Lecce, who start their Serie A campaign …

James Milner shouldered the blame for Liverpool failing to beat Southampton after Fraser Forster saved his second-half penalty to preserve a 0-0 draw at Anfield.

Milner stepped up having scored seven spot-kicks from seven this season, but failed with a Premier League penalty for the first time since November 2009, after Jack Stephens was penalised for handball in the 64th minute.

The result edged Liverpool up to third, a point ahead of Manchester City, but Pep Guardiola s side have played a game fewer and Manchester United entered their match at Arsenal on Sunday knowing a perfect return from their remaining top-flight fixtures would see them also finish above Jurgen Klopp s men.

We probably did enough to win the game. The penalty is my fault, Milner told Sky S…

Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone believes new signing Julian Alvarez shares the club s DNA and will be an immediate hit in LaLiga.

Atletico completed a deal worth up to €95million (£81.5m) for Alvarez earlier this week, bringing an end to his trophy-laden two-year spell with Manchester City.

The Argentina international, who scored 19 goals across all competitions in his final campaign with City, could make his Atleti debut on Monday, when they begin their LaLiga campaign with a trip to Villarreal.

Despite Alvarez not having much time to train with his team-mates, Simeone believes he has adapted quickly and could make a flying start to his time at the Civitas Metropolitano.

Julian is a player we are all looking forward to seeing and who will help us…

Women’s Aid believes clubs who allow footballers to continue playing after allegations of domestic abuse against them send out a message that the claims are not being taken seriously.

Manchester United winger Antony was dropped by Brazil following accusations of physical aggression on a number of occasions since January towards his former girlfriend Gabriela Cavallin.

The 23-year-old, who has made 31 appearances since Cavallin made a complaint to Greater Manchester Police (GMP) in January, has denied the claims. United have not commented.

“Domestic abuse is prevalent in our society and all employers, including football clubs, need clear policies and procedures about what to do when allegations are made against an employee,” said Women’s Aid in a statement…

Jovic made another 47 appearances – scoring 13 goals – before he was snapped up by Portuguese giants Benfica for a fee in the region of €7million in 2016.

But Jovic only played four senior games for Benfica, including a two-minute cameo against Bayern Munich in the 2015-16 Champions League quarter-finals, as he was then shipped to Eintracht Frankfurt on a two-year loan deal in 2017.

I was surprised he didn t play there because Portugal normally like these type of players, Ninkovic said. He is good on the ball, very good finisher and very quick. He looks very strong and maybe looks heavy, but he is very quick if you look at his goal against Inter [in the Europa League round of 16]. He is strong and quick. I was surprised that he didn t play there.

Jovic ha…

Crystal Palace signed off from an impressive Premier League campaign in a buoyant mood with a 2-0 win over West Brom on Sunday. 

Wilfried Zaha and Patrick van Aanholt netted inside the final 20 minutes to add further gloss to Roy Hodgson s remarkable revival act at Selhurst Park.

The veteran Englishman took over from the sacked Frank de Boer with the Eagles in a perilous position but will feel a keen sense of redemption after leading his boyhood club to a highly-creditable finishing place of 11th.

Though Darren Moore s five-match unbeaten run came to an end at the final hurdle, the West Brom caretaker can take similar satisfaction from a brief, encouraging stint that has seen him collect more points than both Tony Pulis and Alan Pardew in a largely miserable se…

With the likes of Bayer Leverkusen looking to maintain their spot at the top of the Bundesliga table on Sunday afternoon, we have another heavyweight schedule from across Europe’s elite.

Including a host of eye-catching affairs from the likes of Spain, Italy and Germany, we have found a pair of showdowns that are worth keeping an eye out for.

14:30 Bayer Leverkusen vs Koln

Only continuing on what has been a stellar run of form since opening up the 2023/24 campaign, Bayer Leverkusen are certainly riding a major wave of momentum. Gaining a string of plaudits from across the continent, it is no secret that Xabi Alonso’s high-flying squad have their sights set on mounting a genuine Champions League charge this season.

Last seen earlier in the week maki…

Pep Guardiola still has the hunger to improve Manchester City and believes he will ultimately be judged by whether he can deliver the Champions League trophy to the Etihad Stadium.

City hammered Watford 6-0 in a record-equalling FA Cup final victory on Saturday, wrapping up the third major trophy of their season following on from their Premier League and EFL Cup triumphs.

The Champions League remains out of City s grasp for now, with Guardiola s side having lost to Tottenham who will meet Liverpool in an all-Premier League final on June 1 on away goals in the quarter-finals.

And Guardiola, who also failed to win the Champions League with Bayern Munich and last lifted the trophy with Barcelona in 2011, conceded that ultimately his side s performance in Europe s el…

An improved Argentina cruised to a 2-0 win over Qatar to revive their stuttering Copa America campaign and progress to the quarter-finals along with Group B winners Colombia.

On a night when defeat would have seen them bomb out of the competition, the Albiceleste were rarely troubled at Gremio Arena, where Lautaro Martinez fired them into an early lead after a Bassam Al Rawi error gifted him the simplest of chances.

It was not a vintage Argentina performance by any stretch of the imagination, but after defeat to Colombia and a draw with Paraguay in their opening matches, coach Lionel Scaloni will have been relieved to see his side dominate for large spells to set up a meeting with Venezuela. 

Sergio Aguero and Lionel Messi both had numerous opportunities t…