football

Agencies Premier League side Aston Villa have agreed a deal to bring in former Liverpool playmaker Philippe Coutinho on loan from Barcelona until the end of the current season. The deal, which is subject to a medical and a work permit being granted, includes an option to buy the 29-year-old for £33m at the end of the season, BBC reported. According to Reuters, the 29-year-old previously spent six years in the Premier League playing for Liverpool, where he made over 200 appearances and scored 54 goals. Coutinho joined Barcelona in a £142m move from Liverpool in January 2018. However, the Brazil international has not had the expected impact and Barca are keen to lighten their wage bill. The playmaker, who has scored 26 goals in 106 appearances for the Catalans, has 18 months...

By a Staff Reporter Kathmandu - Sankata Club and Satdobato Youth Club shared the spoils with a 1-1 draw during their Qatar Airways Martyrs Memorial A Division League match held at the Dasharath Stadium on Friday. First-half goals from both sides in the competitive match turned out to be the final score of the match. Sushil Rai of Satdobato and Jaya Gurung of Sankata were on target for their respective clubs. Sankata got an early scare as Sudeep Gurung’s shot from outside the penalty box was punched away by goalkeeper Raja Babu Thapa in the fourth minute. Sankata missed a chance to take the lead in the 11th minute as Abhishek Baral managed to save a shot from Fode Fofana by the skin of his teeth. Baral once again saved a free kick of Niraj Basnet in the 19th minute to deny San...

By a Staff Reporter Kathmandu - The All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) has denied permission to its former president Ganesh Thapa from expressing his personal views during the executive committee meeting of ANFA while his 10-year ban remains in force. ANFA General Secretary Indraman Tuladhar ruled out any possibility of fulfilling Thapa’s demand. “I don’t know why he wrote such letter,” said Tuladhar referring to Thapa’s letter received on Tuesday requesting  ANFA to allow him  express his views during an executive committee meeting of ANFA. “There is no possibility of allowing a person banned for  10 years from all football-related activities to express his views in an official meeting. The statutes of FIFA and ANFA do not allow it to happen. This is not a ...

Subas Humagain The romantic mood of Martyrs Memorial A Division League received a jolt on Tuesday with a sensational letter. After the completion of the seventh round of league matches and selection of team to represent Nepal in the AFC Cup, the clubs were busy as usual preparing for the next round. However, a letter posted by former president of All Nepal Football Association Ganesh Thapa on his social media, which was also circulated to media persons concurrently, drew all the attention.   Former president Thapa posted a letter on social media which he had registered with ANFA requesting its current president to allow him express his views during the upcoming executive meeting of ANFA scheduled for January 6. He also sent emails to media persons confirming that he has reque...

By a Staff Reporter Kathmandu - Himalayan Sherpa Club eked out a victory over Satdobato Youth Club to climb to the fifth position in the ongoing Qatar Airways Martyrs Memorial A Division League on Monday. Captain Bishwas Shrestha scored the lone goal in the match as Himalayan Sherpa edged past Satdobato 1-0 during their match held at the Dasharath Stadium. Shrestha scored from the spot in the 44th minute to ensure victory for his club in otherwise a drab and lacklusture game. Referee Prajwal Chhetri had awarded penalty to Himalayan Sherpa after Peter Segun fouled Tridev Gurung inside the box in the 42nd minute. Captain Shrestha did not miss the chance to secure all three points for his team. The first half was a dull affair while both teams played a competitive game in the...

By a Staff Reporter Kathmandu - Football coach Abdullah Al Mutairi has announced a 34-member preliminary squad for Nepal’s friendly match against Mauritius. Five players have made a comeback in the national team announced on Monday. Defender Devendra Tamang, midfielder Subash Gurung and forward Bimal Gharti Magar have been included in the preliminary squad. Tamang and Gharti Magar had been excluded from the national team for a long time due to injury layoff. Midfielder Arik Bista has also not played for the national team ever since he was injured ahead of the SAFF Championship. Darshan Gurung, who has already played for the national team, has been included in the preliminary squad once again. The last time Bimal Gharti Magar played for the national team was in July 2019 in a ...

By a Staff Reporter Kathmandu - Machhindra Football Club are all set to represent Nepal in the AFC Asia Cup Qualifiers after defeating Nepal Police Club 1-0 in their must-win match during the Qatar Airways Martyrs Memorial A Division League on Sunday. Normally, it is the league champions that play the AFC Asia Cup. However, the ongoing league is not likely to complete by the time AFC Asia Cup Qualifiers begins. Therefore, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has agreed to the proposal of All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) to allow the league leaders holding AFC license to participate in the qualifiers after the end of the seventh round. Machhindra are one of the four clubs that have acquired AFC license and are eligible to feature in the AFC Asia Cup. Machhindra were und...

Argentine football great Lionel Messi has tested positive for Covid-19, his club PSG confirmed on Sunday. According to the French club, Messi is one of four PSG players to test positive for Covid-19. The Argentine forward and team-mates Juan Bernat, Nathan Bitumazala and Sergio Rico were confirmed to have Covid a day before PSG's French Cup tie against fourth-tier side Vannes, BBC reported. The four players have been isolated, according to media reports. PSG boss Mauricio Pochettino added that Messi is currently in Argentina where he spent the winter break and would not travel until testing negative. During a pre-match news conference on Sunday, Pochettino said he could not say exactly when Messi would return. PSG's first league match of 2022 after the winter break is agai...

By a Staff Reporter Kathmandu - A brace from Messouke Olumou helped New Road Team (NRT) register a thrilling 3-2 win over Friends Clun during their Qatar Airways Martyrs Memorial A Division League football match held at the Dasharath Stadium on Friday. Stefan Samir was also on target for NRT as they beat bottom side Friends Club during an entertaining match. Jamol Anthony Francois and Nathaniel Jude Gracia scored for Friends Club but that was not enough to prevent a defeat. Samir scored in the fourth minute to give NRT the lead. Mesuke doubled the lead in the 20th minute in a solo effort. Nathaniel Jude Gracia hit the woodwork from 25 yards five minutes later that denied Friends Club to cut the deficit. Friends Club had to wait until the 80th minute for Francois to ...

By a Staff Reporter Kathmandu - Tribhuvan Army Football Club were held to a 1-1 draw by departmental rivals APF as Army failed to protect their lead in the Qatar Airways Martyrs Memorial A Division League match at Dasharath Stadium on Friday. George Prince Karki had scored a goal to give Army the lead. However, Bikki Tamang scored an equalizer for APF. Army’s goalkeeper Bikesh Kuthu denied APF from taking the lead in the second minute when he easily stopped a free kick from Navin Lama. On the other half, George Prince Karki’s shot from outside the penalty box was foiled by APF goalkeeper Yuya Kuriyama in the fifth minute. Kuriyama also punched away a shot from outside the box by Army captain Bharat Khawas in the ninth minute. Army were close to taking the lead in the  20th mi...