Antoine Griezmann salvaged a point for Barcelona as their struggles in LaLiga continued with a disappointing 1-1 draw against 10-man Deportivo Alaves on Saturday.
Visitors Barca, who had lost their prior two league matches, fell behind in the first half after a goalkeeping blunder by Neto allowed Luis Rioja to open the scoring.
Alaves had Jota sent off for a second bookable offence just after the hour mark, however, and the Blaugrana quickly equalised with a fine finish from France striker Griezmann.
But Ronald Koeman s side could not forge a decisive second despite late pressure, instead seeing their winless LaLiga run extended to four matches as they languish down in 12th.
FULL TIME
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona)
Barca had begun …
A double from from Romelu Lukaku secured a 2-0 FA Cup fifth-round win for Manchester United against Huddersfield Town on Saturday, despite another controversial moment involving VAR.
The Belgium international struck early in each half to secure a quarter-final spot for Jose Mourinho s side and end their run of back-to-back away defeats.
Victory came despite Juan Mata seeing a first-half strike disallowed after a VAR referral, with the contentious decision prompting more debate about the merits of video technology.
United, who were without the ill Paul Pogba or goalkeeper David de Gea, took the lead three minutes in when Mata s pass was finished in style by Lukaku.
Huddersfield, winners in the home Premier League game against United in October, were largel…
Christian Eriksen has tested positive for Covid-19 ahead of his long-awaited return to the Danish national team next week.
The 30-year-old, who suffered a cardiac arrest during Denmark s Euro 2020 clash with Finland last June, has impressed since joining Brentford on a free transfer in January.
He registered an assist during the Bees 2-0 win over Burnley this month with what was his first goal involvement since his return to football.
Eriksen s strong club form led him to receive a call-up for his country s upcoming friendly matches, but the positive test will delay the midfielder s journey to meet up with the squad.
Although, Denmark boss Kasper Hjulmand hopes the Brentford man will still be available to feature in clashes against the Netherlands �…
Neymar s ongoing legal action against Barcelona has not harmed his relationship with club president Josep Maria Bartomeu, according to the player s father.
Ex-Barca star Neymar initiated a lawsuit against his former employers soon after joining Paris Saint-Germain in 2017.
The dispute over a €26million unpaid loyalty bonus remains before the courts but, on Thursday, Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo claimed the 27-year-old had filed a new €3.5m claim.
Neymar Sr addressed the matter in a radio interview and said it was nothing new as he expressed confidence a settlement would be reached.
It s a thing from the past, when Neymar left Barcelona, he told COPE. We always want to reach an agreement, it is better for everyone. Barcelona are not worried abou…
Southampton struck twice in 14 second-half minutes to secure a 2-1 home win over Everton and pull further away from relegation danger on Saturday.
James Ward-Prowse s second goal in as many Premier League matches and a bizarre Lucas Digne own goal lifted Ralph Hasenhuttl s men three points clear of the drop zone.
The Saints, 2-1 winners at Leicester City last weekend, were on top from start to finish at St Mary s in a confident response to their midweek FA Cup exit at the hands of Derby County.
The fit-again Danny Ings was a menace throughout the first half and Everton – who grabbed a late consolation through Gylfi Sigurdsson – never came to grips with the home side s intensity, slumping to their fifth league loss in seven.
2 James Ward-Prowse has sco…
Borussia Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp was forced to deny claims he was set to leave the Bundesliga club.
After a 2-2 draw at home to Wolfsburg on Wednesday, Klopp was quoted as saying he would miss the Dortmund fans when he leaves leading to strong murmurs he was set to end his stint at Signal-Iduna-Park, which began in 2008.
Klopp clarified his comments, ahead of their trip to bottom-placed Werder Bremen who could dump Dortmund into the automatic relegation spots with a victory on Saturday.
I thought I ve made it quite clear. I ve said anytime . And I probably said it a few times already. But nothing is the same in a situation like this, said Klopp, on the timing of his departure.
I don t know if I startled so many people with this sentence. No it s not…
New VAR guidelines introduced in the wake of the controversy involving Liverpool will be in use in the Premier League this weekend.
Miscommunication between VAR Darren England and referee Simon Hooper led to a Luis Diaz goal for Liverpool being wrongly disallowed for offside at Tottenham last Saturday.
Audio of the incident was released on Tuesday, with referees’ body Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) saying it would develop a new VAR communication protocol in an effort to avoid similar mistakes being made in future.
Referees body PGMOL have released the full audio from the VAR hub relating to the Luis Diaz goal that was incorrectly disallowed in Spurs v Liverpool
— Premier League Communications (@PLComms)
The PA ne…
Hugo Ekitike appears to be nearing a move to Newcastle United after Reims president Jean-Pierre Caillot confirmed the club had received a very concrete offer from an English club.
Ekitike was one of the breakout stars of the 2021-22 season across Europe s top five leagues.
The 19-year-old scored 10 goals and assisted three more in Ligue 1, contributing a goal involvement every 98 minutes on average.
Attempting only 31 shots, Ekitike s conversion rate of 32.3 per cent was the second-best among players with 20 or more attempts across Europe, far outperforming his expected goals total of 7.0.
This sensational form has attracted attention from a host of clubs, with Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund both linked.
But big-spending Newcastle have …
Colchester United have appointed academy boss Tony Humes as first-team manager following the departure of Joe Dunne.
The League One club parted company with Dunne on Monday after just short of two years at the helm, with Colchester sitting second-bottom of League One.
Humes was announced as his successor within a matter of hours and will be in charge for Saturday s trip to Walsall.
The 48-year-old moved to Colchester as head of youth in 2009.
United, who are in their seventh consecutive season in the third tier, have lost five matches in a row in all competitions.
…
Market: Sporting Gijon win
Odds: 11/10 @
Two sides who have their sights set on securing a Segunda play-off spot this season, Sporting Gijon will welcome Zaragoza to the Estadio El Molinon on Saturday evening.
Starting with the hosts, while Sporting Gijon might have spent large spells of last season scrapping it out in a relegation scrap, Miguel Angel Ramirez’s side have come roaring back this time around. Making a string of improvements since opening up the 2023/24 campaign, some in Rojiblancos’ camp could be smelling the chance to spring a shock promotion charge. Although the Asturias-based outfit might have been last seen slumping to an action-packed 3-2 defeat at the hands of Racing Santander, Gijon should still find the mood in their camp at a continued…