Football

Champions Juventus endured their first Serie A loss of the season. After seeing Juan Cuadrado sent off after 18 minutes, they crashed 3-0 at home to modest Fiorentina. Fiorentina had failed to win any of their previous six league matches. But won it by a fair margin. They were also aided by some disastrous defending by the hosts. With Leonardo Bonucci enduring an off-day in particular.In the third minute before Alex Sandro put through his own goal. Dusan Vlahovic shocked the Turin side by giving the visitors the lead. Vlahovic wasted another chance after Bonucci lost the ball. Juve's problems mounted when Cuadrado caught Gaetano Castrovilli's shin with a dangerous studs-up tackle. The referee showed a yellow card but changed it to red after viewing the incident on the pitchside ...

The wretched season of Arsenal continued as they slumped to a 4-1 home loss against holders Manchester City in the League Cup quarter-finals on Tuesday. After three minutes, City went ahead through Brazilian striker Gabriel Jesus. He nodded home a fine cross from Oleksandr Zinchenko. After an excellent cross from Brazilian Gabriel Martinelli, Arsenal drew level in the 31st minute. A fine diving header from Alexandre Lacazette was not enough as City took charge after the break. An error by Icelandic Arsenal goalkeeper Runar Alex Runarsson gave the visitors a 2-1 lead in the 54th minute. He let his weapons free-kick a relatively harmless Riyad Mahrez. Phil Foden latched onto a ball in the Fernandinho box and raising it over the advancing Runarsson. And made it 3-1. Aymeric Laporte...

Tottenham Hotspur lost points after conceding a penalty and an own goal to Leicester City in a 2-0 loss. Jamie Leicester's lead was extended by a Toby Alderweireld own goal early in the second. Serge Aurier barged into Wesley Fofana and pulled him down three minutes into the first-half stoppage time. Leicester was awarded a penalty. To take the spot kick, Vardy stepped up and turned it down the centre. Leicester seemed to have scored their second goal two minutes into the second half. James Maddison slotted the ball home only to be ruled out by VAR. He was just an inch offside when the ball was played through. Twelve minutes later, when Marc Albrighton crossed a ball into the box that Vardy headed. But Vardy's header ran from Alderweireld's knee to the back of the net for Spurs....

United hammered Leeds United 6-2 at Old Trafford on Sunday in their first Premier League meeting since 2004. Scott McTominay scored two times inside the first three minutes. Bruno Fernandes and Victor Lindelof then added the third and fourth. Dan James scored the fifth and Bruno Fernandes converted a penalty won by martial to make it 6. At the end of the first half, Liam Cooper managed to pull one back for Leeds. And a moment of individual genius from Stuart Dallas won them a second. In the 2nd minute, Fernandes crossed the ball into McTominay in a box whose shot went straight into the bottom right corner. With Martial picking up his run into the box perfectly, he added another less than a minute later. In the 19th minute for Leeds, Patrick Bamford put the ball in the net. But r...

Defending champions Juventus cruised to a 4-0 victory at Parma on Saturday. Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice, bringing his Serie A tally for the season to 12 in just nine games. Dejan Kulusevski and Alvaro Morata were also on target in the emphatic win. When a breakaway ended with the ball being played to Kucka at the far post, Parma had the first real chance, but Buffon stopped his effort. However, Juve quickly took charge. Kulusevski was given too much room in the penalty area. And in the 23rd minute steered the ball in from Alex Sandro's pass. Three minutes later, Ronaldo added the second with a towering header and Juve were on their way. Just before half-time, Leonardo Bonucci missed a third from close range. But it did not matter as Ronaldo scored three minutes after the b...

With an emphatic 7-0 victory over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Saturday, Liverpool raced six points clear at the top of the Premier League table going into Christmas. Takumi Minamino, Sadio Mane and Jordan Henderson scoring braces, both Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah scored braces. With his first Premier League goal after just three minutes, Minamino opened the scoring. Trent Alexander-Arnold crossed a ball into Mane, which he squared but Minamino scored emphatically. Crystal Palace had plenty of opportunities. But none of them could convert and were made to pay for 35 minutes. A loose ball found its way to Mane, who hit it in the lower left corner. Andy Robertson and Firmino paired up with the Brazil international for Liverpool's third, beginning the transfer high up t...

As Barcelona lost more points with a 2-2 draw against Valencia, Lionel Messi equaled Pele's all-time record of 643 one-club goals. Valencia took the lead through Mouctar Diakhaby's header in the half-an-hour mark, but Messi pulled Barca level deep into the stoppage time of the first half. The referee pointed to the spot in the 45th minute after a push on Antoine Griezmann in the box. The foul gave Valencia captain Jose Gaya a red card and Barcelona to go 1 up in the game. After consultation with the VAR, however, he downgraded the card to a yellow one. Messi stepped up but saw the goalkeeper Jaume Domenech save his penalty. Valencia struggled to clear and Messi was on hand from close range to head home his historic target. Prior to a short and memorable spell with the New Yor...

After just four months of becoming their head coach, Watford sacked Vladimir Ivic. The Championship club announced the departure of Ivic just hours after the 2-0 loss at Huddersfield on Saturday. The fourth defeat of the league season by Watford proved Ivic's undoing, with the ninth manager of the Hertfordshire club in five years the latest to depart after a short stay. After 20 matches, in their bid for an immediate Premier League return, Watford sit fifth in the Championship table. Ivic led Maccabi Tel Aviv to back-to-back league titles in Israel before joining Watford. In2017, he also won the Greek Cup with Paok. With Watford supporters, however, his overly defensive tactics were controversial, and the style of play of the team was not easy on the eye. Huddersfield's loss ...

German outfit RB Leipzig have signed Dominik Szoboszlai from RB Salzburg, who was the hot topic of this winter’s transfer window. The Hungarian international Salzburg contributed to a double last season. With 12 goals and 18 assists in 40 games and caused a sensation in the Champions League. He was linked to Arsenal, Milan, and Hertha Berlin for the last few months but he chose Leipzig and signed for 20 million Euros. Erling Haaland and Dominik Szoboszlai partnered in the first half of last season at RB Salzburg in the attack. But after the Norwegian left for Borussia Dortmund, he has been typically pulling the strings from the center or left midfielder. Szoboszlai joins his old companion, Hee-Chan Hwang, who had already transferred from Austria to Germany in the summer. Leip...

Robert Lewandoski overtook Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo for FIFA's The Best Male player of 2020. Voting was conducted by a global jury of captains and coaches from the national team, plus selected journalists. Lewandowski scored 52 points, with Ronaldo in second, 38 Messi in third, 35.4 'It’s an incredible feeling,' said Bayern talisman Lewandowski, who at age 32 made the shortlist for the first time. Lewandowski joined Luka Modric, the Croatia and Real Madrid midfielder who won in 2018, as the only players in the past 13 years to deny both Messi and Ronaldo the victory. Lucy Bronze was voted the best women’s player to give England its first individual victory. A Champions League winner with Lyon, she has since joined Manchester City. Bronze got 52 points from the women...