Football

11:59 AM ET BRIGHTON, England — This was more like the old Manchester United under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and in many ways, that is precisely the problem. They needed a frankly ludicrous chain of events to secure a fortuitous 3-2 victory here at the Amex Stadium as Brighton hit the woodwork five times and conceded

6:10 AM ET Sam Marsden Moises Llorens Lionel Messi has launched another scathing attack against Barcelona‘s board, accusing them of disrespecting Luis Suarez and effectively kicking him out of the club. Suarez, 33, had said he wanted to stay at Barca this season, even if it meant taking on a backup role, but eventually agreed

2:31 PM ET Dabo Swinney could hardly believe what he was watching. The Clemson football coach knew his godson, a star in the FC Dallas academy, was a good athlete. He knew the kid had a strong leg. But when Tanner Tessmann started kicking at a Clemson camp in the summer of 2019, Swinney wasn’t

3:51 PM ET “What is it about you and Germany?” This is a question I get rather a lot. As a Scot whose broadcasting travels have taken me around the world since first picking up the microphone professionally in 1986, no country has had a hold on me quite like the land of bratwurst, BMWs,

3:04 AM ET Pep Guardiola is treading new ground as he leads Manchester City into the 2020-21 campaign. For the first time in his glittering managerial career, the City boss is embarking on a fifth season in charge of a club and within that, he’s also having to rebuild and launch a second cycle of

4:43 PM ET Liverpool and Arsenal will play each other twice in four days next week after being drawn to meet in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup. The Premier League champions eased past Lincoln City 7-2 in the third round on Thursday, while Aston Villa and Manchester City also won their ties to

7:22 AM ET Multiple Contributors A year ago, Lionel Messi set out his terms for staying at Barcelona. “I want to be at Barcelona for as long as possible. This is my home,” he told the Catalan newspaper Sport. “But I don’t want to have a long-term contract and to only be here because of

4:38 PM ET A Kai Havertz hat trick helped Chelsea cruise into the fourth round of the Carabao Cup with a comfortable 6-0 victory over Barnsley on Wednesday. Havertz, who signed with Chelsea from Bayer Leverkusen for a reported £62 million this summer, scored goals in the 28th, 55th and 65th minute to complete the

5:59 PM ET Sam Marsden Moises Llorens Atletico Madrid have strengthened their attack with the signing of Barcelona striker Luis Suarez on a two-year deal, the Catalan club confirmed. Suarez, 33, joins Atletico on a free transfer, although Barca could make up to €6 million on the move based on a number of performance-related variables.

10:35 AM ET Kepa Arrizabalaga is used to things happening fast. Aged 23, he had made 53 La Liga appearances when Chelsea made him the world’s most expensive goalkeeper in the summer of 2018. Athletic Bilbao finished a modest 16th place that season. Kepa had one international cap for Spain, earned in a 5-0 friendly

7:14 PM ET Rob DawsonCorrespondent At the start of a season that will be busier than any he has known before, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer got an early look at what he has in reserve in a 3-0 win vs. Luton Town in the Carabao Cup. If defeat to Crystal Palace on Saturday highlighted the shortcomings

3:49 PM ET From a neutral standpoint, it would be absolutely thrilling if Luis Suarez joined Atletico Madrid. From an Atleti point of view, it might — just might — be sufficient to give them the natural, instinctive goal threat they’ve been missing for years. From La Liga’s vista, retaining a world-class superstar and legendary

3:16 PM ET Jeff Carlisle Close U.S. soccer correspondent Jeff Carlisle covers MLS and the U.S. national team for ESPN FC. Austin Lindberg It’s “as you were” in the top five of this week’s edition of MLS Power Rankings, with Columbus winning for the third time in its past four contests to maintain its place

2:16 PM ET The Premier League had its first heavyweight battle as Liverpool handled Chelsea, league play began in the German Bundesliga and Italian Serie A, plus we got a good look at Real Madrid. It’s Monday, and Gab Marcotti reacts to the biggest moments in the sport of football from the past week. Jump

5:39 PM ET James Capps Manchester City began their quest for their third Premier League title in four years with a 3-1 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux on Monday. City asserted themselves from the off and their early dominance told after 20 minutes when Kevin de Bruyne tucked away a penalty after he was

7:01 AM ET Jose Mourinho and Gareth Bale had always seemed to be the football connection that was destined never to happen. Once at Real Madrid, and for two successive summers at Manchester United, Mourinho tried and failed to add the Wales winger to his squad. In so many ways, Bale was, and is, a

Sep 11, 2020 Jeremy WillisESPN.com EPA/Matt Dunham It seems Chelsea‘s delay in replacing goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga finally caught up to it against Liverpool at Stamford Bridge Sunday. With Liverpool already up a goal, and Chelsea down a man due to a red card issued against Andreas Christensen, Kepa took a chance with a bad pass

4:44 PM ET LONDON — It took Liverpool almost three months of pondering and prevarication before they suddenly snapped into action and completed the £20m signing of Thiago Alcantara from Bayern Munich last Thursday. Within five minutes of his debut against Chelsea on Sunday, you had to wonder why Liverpool spent so long making up