ES Setif 1 USM Alger 2: African champions beaten

Prospective naming-rights partners will have to move quickly. The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is fast becoming the House of the Rising Son.

Having claimed a moment of history by opening Spurs account here against Crystal Palace last week, the effervescent Son Heung-min stepped up to hand Mauricio Pochettino s side a slender Champions League quarter-final advantage on a night of raucous passion in north London.

The opening seconds set the tone for how much of the first half would unfold for Manchester City, who were entitled to feel they had weathered the storm before falling to a quadruple compromising 1-0 defeat.

Nicolas Otamendi blundered an attempted hoof into Harry Kane and the ball looped towards the visiting penalty area, a guttural roar cutting through the c…

Mohamed Elneny has teased Arsenal team-mate Alexis Sanchez over Chile s failure to qualify for the World Cup, as rumours circulate of a dressing-room row involving the unsettled forward.

Reports have emerged suggesting members of the Arsenal team criticised Sanchez s attitude following a 1-0 Premier League win at Burnley last month, allegedly prompting an angry response from the former Barcelona star.

Some players appeared reluctant to join the 29-year-old to celebrate his goals in a 3-2 victory at Crystal Palace on Thursday.

A proposed transfer for Sanchez to Manchester City fell through in August and he continues to be linked with a move away from the Emirates Stadium.

Elneny, though, seems unconcerned by the uncertainty surrounding the attacker, ju…

Former England striker Michael Owen has defended John Stones in the wake of recent criticism and believes the Everton centre-back is good enough to play for Barcelona.

The 22-year-old is widely regarded as one of England s most promising defenders and was heavily linked with a big-money move to Chelsea ahead of the 2015-16 campaign.

A transfer never materialised, though, and Stones eventually endured a disappointing season with Everton.

The defender received his fair share of criticism following his underwhelming performances, but Owen has little doubt he has a bright future ahead of him.

He s probably the only player in the England squad who could walk into Barcelona s team at the moment. He s absolutely brilliant. Get behind him, believe in him, Owen t…

Jurgen Klopp feels Liverpool are reaping the rewards of showing patience with Naby Keita.

Much was expected of the Guinea midfielder following move from RB Leipzig for a reported £52.75million ahead of the 2018-19 season.

Keita struggled to hit the ground running in the Premier League and initially found himself in and out of the Reds starting XI.

However, the 24-year-old has started to show what he is capable of in recent games for the title hopefuls and took just 15 seconds to open the scoring in Friday s 5-0 hammering of relegated Huddersfield Town.

That was his third goal in five outings in all competitions and Liverpool boss Klopp says Keita just needed time to show his true qualities.

People expect if you pay money for a player that you co…

​Roberto Carlos has confirmed that he has left his post as coach of Turkish Super Lig club Sivasspor.

The former Real Madrid and Brazil defender took charge in June 2013 and led the club to fifth place in the Turkish top flight last season.

However, Carlos has been unable to replicate that success this campaign and makes his departure with Sivasspor sitting second bottom in the league following Saturday s 2-0 home defeat to Istanbul Basaksehir.

Revealing the news on his Instagram profile, Carlos said: Thank you very much for all this affection and requests to stay, but it is best for the club that I leave.

I leave my heart with all of you. Thank you very, very, very much Sivas and Sivasspor.

Carlos had previously enjoyed a spell as an assist…

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has signed a new long-term contract with the club.

Rodgers led Liverpool to the brink of their first top-flight title in 24 years earlier this month, with the Merseyside outfit eventually finishing second just two points adrift of champions Manchester City.

A season that saw Liverpool amass 84 points and 101 goals from their 38 Premier League games far exceeded expectations, and they will compete in the UEFA Champions League for the first time in five years next season.

Rodgers who took over from Kenny Dalglish in June 2012 has subsequently been rewarded by the club s hierarchy, and the Northern Irishman is thrilled to be staying at Anfield.

I am both humbled and privileged to be offered the chance to extend my stay at this great…

Erik ten Hag is happy for Bruno Fernandes to keep playing with emotion, although he acknowledges there is a balance to strike for the Manchester United midfielder.

Fernandes scored in United s 4-1 win against Real Betis on Thursday having been the subject of intense scrutiny since Sunday s 7-0 loss at Liverpool.

The United vice-captain, who wore the armband at Anfield, was criticised for his role in a defeat in which Ten Hag s side appeared to lack leadership.

A confrontation with Trent Alexander-Arnold, followed by a push on an official, perhaps saw Fernandes fortunate not to be sent off.

Both Ten Hag and Marcus Rashford defended Fernandes ahead of the Betis game, however, and the manager was encouraged by his subsequent performance, even if there is sti…

Graham Potter believes Chelsea s impressive week is indicative of the development of his team following their 3-1 win at Leicester City.

Prior to last Saturday s win over Leeds United, Chelsea had claimed just two wins from 12 games.

But that victory was followed by a 2-0 win over Borussia Dortmund that sent them into the Champions League quarter-finals and a strong seven days was capped in style at the King Power Stadium.

Ben Chilwell, Kai Havertz and Mateo Kovacic were all on target for the Blues, with Enzo Fernandez and Mykhailo Mudryk each performing well as several of the host of new additions Chelsea brought in during the January transfer window provided compelling evidence they are settling into the team.

Chelsea remain 11 points behind fourth-plac…

Antoine Griezmann has called on Atletico Madrid to deliver a perfect performance in the Champions League final.

Diego Simeone s side edged past Bayern Munich on away goals after a 2-2 aggregate draw in the last four and will meet their city rivals in the final at San Siro for the second time in three seasons.

Griezmann, who joined from Real Sociedad after Atletico were beaten 4-1 by Madrid in Lisbon in 2014, is desperate for his side to deliver this year in order to cap what he believes has been an impressive campaign.

Collectively, we ve had a great year. The team has played as well as possible and we really should be happy with the season we ve had, Griezmann told the club s official website after being named the fans player of the year.

The goal was…

Antoine Griezmann wants to pledge his future to Atletico Madrid, believing the Champions League finalists can prove they are the best side in Europe.

Diego Simeone s men will attempt to become crowned kings of the continent for the first time in next Saturday s Milan showdown with city rivals Real Madrid, which is a repeat of the 2014 final.

France forward Griezmann is a key weapon in their armoury, with seven of his 32 goals this season having come in the Champions League.

Such fine form has seen him attract interest from elsewhere, but Griezmann is keen to finalise a new deal at the Vicente Calderon before Euro 2016 kicks off next month.

The 25-year-old told AS: I said Atletico was among the five best teams in Europe and the truth is that now we re a…