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AC Milan and Inter were forced to settle for a point in what was a dramatic derby at San Siro last night between two teams who fought until the end.

As MilanNews writes, Milan can feel disappointed that they were unable to see out the five minutes of added time to claim a third straight win against their neighbours, yet Inter also hit the post three times and can feel a bit unlucky.

What happened after the game? Sergio Conceicao revealed everything in his press conference: “Honestly, if they ask me if the draw is fair, I say yes, but I saw two important signs: when I arrived in the dressing room, I saw my players very disappointed and sad, while there was great joy among the Inter players.”

It must be a sign for the Rossoneri that with a certain mentality, you can get a result against anyone. In particular, Fikayo Tomori was truly very disappointed by the final result; the Englishman, after choosing to stay at Milan and having played a great game in the derby, expected to celebrate everything with a victory.
He only came close, as did his team-mates. The one to console Tomori and give heart to the entire dressing room was the latest arrival, Kyle Walker, who gave a solid performance in his debut at San Siro.

Credit must be given for the character displayed by the Rossoneri throughout the 90 minutes, in stark contrast to the listless performance seen just a few days ago in Zagreb, showing this team is capable of going from one extreme to the other in terms of spirit.

Tijjani Reijnders also underlined this: “We fought as a team tonight: that’s the spirit we should have in every match. In Croatia we weren’t like that. We need to have this fighting mentality always, because then the quality comes by itself.”

FC Barcelona continued on their winning ways in La Liga with their last victory over Alaves, after having thrashed Valencia 7-1 in their previous league match.

Robert Lewandowski was once again the difference maker for the Catalans, as he scored the only goal in this game to give them a much-needed win, that gets them within 4 points of reaching Real Madrid, the current league leaders.
In addition to aiding his team in this crucial aspect, this goal further solidified the Pole’s reputation as one of Europe’s top strikers. According to Mundo Deportivo, this strike took his season tally to 30 goals—the highest in the top five European leagues.
The 36-year-old Barcelona star has already scored 18 goals in La Liga, 9 in the Champions League, 2 in the Copa del Rey, and 1 in the Spanish Super Cup.
With his 30 goals, Lewandowski is above the likes of the Bayern Munich forward Harry Kane (26 goals) and Liverpool star Mohamed Salah (25 goals). Similarly, the Manchester City forward Erling Haaland also currently has 25 goals to his name.

Behind these players is the Real Madrid superstar Kylian Mbappe, with his 21 goals this season. Omar Marmoush, who recently completed his transfer from Eintracht Frankfurt to Manchester City has 20 goals, while Alexander Isak (Newcastle United), Mateu Retegui (Atalanta), and Ousmane Dembele (Paris Saint Germain) all have 19 goals to their names this season.
The only striker in Europe whose goal tally is higher than that of the Barcelona superstar is Sporting CP’s Viktor Gyökeres, who has scored 34 goals. However, he is currently playing in the Portuguese Superliga, which is not one of the top five European leagues, which include the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga, and Ligue 1.
Thus, Lewandowski is once again proving himself to be one of the deadliest strikers in Europe this season. His performances are likely to land him a new contract soon, as Barcelona might not wait for him to reach the figure of playing 55% of games to add another year to his stay at the Blaugrana club.

MADRID (AP) – When the former president of Spain’s Football Federation kissed a player from the national team who had just won the 2023 Women’s World Cup, it sparked widespread outrage in Spain about sexism in sports and beyond.

On Monday, women’s World Cup winner Jenni Hermoso testified at the trial of Luis Rubiales that she did not consent to the kiss and that she felt coerced to publicly exonerate him after the incident.
“I felt disrespected,” Hermoso said. “I think it was a moment that stained one of the happiest days of my life.”

The 47-year-old Rubiales, who sat nearby at Madrid’s High Court, is accused of sexual assault and of trying to coerce Hermoso, alongside others, to publicly support him.
Rubiales has denied the charges, but was forced to resign and was banned by FIFA for three years. He had said he was the victim of a “witch hunt” by “false feminists” and that the kiss was consensual.
Prosecutors, Hermoso and Spain´s players´ association want a prison sentence of two-and-a-half years for Rubiales, a payment of 50,000 euros ($51,800) for damages and for him to be banned from working as a sports official.

When asked if at any point Rubiales had asked Hermoso if he could kiss her, the Spain forward said no.
“I didn’t hear or understand anything,” Hermoso said. “The next thing he did was to grab me by the ears and kiss me on the mouth.”
Rubiales could face a fine or a prison sentence of one to four years if found guilty, according to court officials.
The trial is expected to last at least 10 days. Among the nearly 20 witnesses expected to testify are Spain´s men´s national team coach Luis de la Fuente and some of Hermoso´s teammates on the women’s team, including former world player of the year Alexia Putellas.
Rubiales is required to attend only the first and the last day, according to the court.
Also on trial are Spain’s former women´s national team coach Jorge Vilda, former sports director of Spain´s men´s team Albert Luque, and the federation´s former head of marketing, Rubén Rivera. They are accused of allegedly pressuring Hermoso to defend Rubiales publicly in a statement after the incident, which she refused to do.
Hermoso said that after the incident and ensuing controversy, her life had been put on standby.

“I have not been able to really live freely,” she told the court.

As if facing Real Madrid to save your Champions League campaign isn’t enough, Manchester City also face a nightmare Premier League run in what is looking to be a February from hell.

It will be a gruelling month for Pep Guardiola’s men who kickstart their tough run of games with an away trip against Arsenal before playing the European champions in the European Cup play-off round.

The two teams have met twelve times, with five draws, four wins for Man City and three for Real.
What is even more surprising is that they have met in the knockout stages in four successive seasons.
Last term their quarter-final encounter went to penalties after an aggregate score of 4-4.

Carlo Ancelotti’s side won the shootout 4-3 after Bernardo Silva and Mateo Kovacic had their shots saved by Andriy Lunin.

During the 2022/23 season they met in the semi-finals and, after a close 1-1 first leg, Guardiola’s side destroyed Real at the Etihad 4-0.

They then went on to lift their first ever Champions League as part of their treble-winning season.
Guardiola described a match with Real Madrid as a ‘derby’ during Friday’s pre-match press conference – his ties to Barcelona no doubt adding a little extra spice.

Speaking on the difficult schedule the City boss said: “We started [this run of games] in Paris, then afterwards Chelsea

“So we are already there in terms of difficult games. The schedule is what it is.
“It always happens in the Premier League, always they put the toughest [fixtures] – always they are so kind with the calendar. Many years it happens that way.”

After their European Tuesday clash they will face Newcastle United at home in an attempt to contain an on-fire Alexander Isak.
The Swede has 17 goals in the league this season, one shy of Erling Haaland.
It’s a clash of high importance as Man City sit fourth in the table, only one place above Newcastle due to goal difference.
In September when the two sides met at St James’ Park it ended in a point a piece.

Man City will then travel to Spain for the second leg with the star studded Madrid.
However, it can be argued that Real won’t be Man City’s toughest test in February.

Liverpool, who lead the Premier League table and finished top of the Champions League first stage, awaits

The month will conclude with an encounter with Tottenham, a seemingly easy fixture considering their current form.
But Spurs have been a bogey team for Guardiola, as shown by their 4-0 win against Man City in November.

If you thought the new format for the tournament was needlessly long and convoluted, wait until you hear about the Champions League knockout stage draw.

Actually, make that draws. Because despite many elements of the draw being pre-determined by the final table of the league phase, Uefa will be conducting three separate draws to finalise the fixtures from the knockout play-off round right through to the final.
And are they doing these three draws in one sitting to avoid needless faff later on? Of course not. Never let it be said that European football’s governing body doesn’t like stringing things out.

Champions League knockout playoff round draw

The Champions League knockout playoff round draw is taking place this week, on Friday 31 January at 11am UK time.
As you might expect, this will determine which seeded teams will play which unseeded teams in a two-legged tie for a spot in the last 16.
The seeded teams are those who finished between ninth and 16th in the league phase table and include giants Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, AC Milan and Paris Saint-Germain.

The unseeded sides are those who came 17th to 24th, and include Juventus, Celtic and Manchester City.
Final league position has already narrowed each team’s opposition down to two possibilities, so ninth (Atalanta) and 10th (Dortmund) know they will meet 23rd (Sporting Lisbon) or 24th (Club Brugge).
The Champions League knockout playoff round draw is to finalise the ties, which are scheduled to take place on 11/12 and 18/19 February.

Champions League last 16 draw

Despite pathways already being mapped out to a large degree, the Champions League last 16 draw isn’t taking place until Friday 21 February, after the knockout playoff round.
Then, the eight clubs who won their playoff ties will be pitted against the top eight teams from the league phase table, who include Liverpool, Arsenal and Aston Villa.
Again, seeding is a factor in who clubs can get drawn against. For instance, we already know that Liverpool will play either Monaco, Brest, PSG or Benfica.

Uefa has also already laid out the possible path to the final for all clubs, so for example Liverpool could get Aston Villa but not Arsenal in the quarter-finals.
Which makes it all the more perplexing that teams will have to wait another three weeks for the second draw, but there you are.
And that’s not all: there is a third and final draw, straight after the last 16 draw, to set in stone who will have home advantage in the quarter-finals and semi-finals.

Who can English teams get in the Champions League draws?

Liverpool: last 16 – Monaco, Brest, PSG or Benfica

Arsenal: last 16 – Feyenoord, Juventus, AC Milan or PSV EindhovenAston Villa: last 16 – Atalanta, Borussia Dortmund, Sporting Lisbon or Club Brugge

Manchester City: playoff – Real Madrid or Bayern Munich; last 16 – Atletico Madrid or Bayer Leverkusen

While Bafana Bafana’s group will have a distinct Southern African feel, they will come up against the giants of African football Egypt and their Liverpool superstar Mohamed Salah at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) in Morocco.

Bafana, who entered the draw in Pot 2, were also drawn with neighbours Zimbabwe and Angola in Monday evening’s draw in Rabat. They will certainly fancy their chances against their SADC partners, before going up against the Egyptians for the right to possibly top the group.

It’s not an impossible task, as Bafana beat hosts Egypt in Egypt 1-0 in the 2019 Afcon quarter-finals thanks to a goal by Thembinkosi Lorch. Later that year, Bafana also beat Egypt in Egypt in a 2021 Afcon qualifier when Lyle Foster scored the game’s only goal.

Coach Hugo Broos’ Bafana finished the 2023 Afcon in the Ivory Coast third place after beating DR Congo 6-5 on penalties after the match ended goalless. The victory over DR Congo also ensured that South Africa earned the bronze medal for the first time since 2000.

Bafana went through their 2025 qualifying campaign unbeaten, topping their group with 14 points from six matches, scoring 16 goals and conceding just five. This will give them a lot of confidence heading into the tournament, which will be played between from December 21, 2025 to January 18, 2026.

The first league phase of the revamped Champions League is over and now a new-look draw is upon us.
Liverpool topped the table having won their first seven matches, with Arsenal third and Aston Villa eighth despite wobbling in the later games after a stunning start.
Then there’s Manchester City, who were heading out with 30 minutes left of their final match against Club Bruges, before Joel Ordonez turned Josko Gvardiol’s low cross into his own net.

City will join Celtic in the knockout play-off, where the teams ranked from ninth to 24th in the league phase will compete for eight spots in the last 16, which the top eight have automatically qualified for.

How the Champions League draw works

Sixteen clubs will be go into the hat for the Champions League knockout play-off draw, which takes place at 11am GMT on Friday 31 January.
But this is not a standard draw – teams have been paired together based on their final position in the league phase table.

There are eight seeded teams – those which finished ninth to 16th in the table – and eight unseeded – those from 17th to 24th.
This means the teams which finished ninth or 10th in the table will face the teams which finished 23rd and 24th, a system which meets in the middle with the 15th and 16th teams playing 17th and 18th.
In terms of the draw, the unseeded team will be chosen first, allocating one club from each pair on either side of the bracket.
The same will then occur for the seeded teams, who will play the return leg of the tie at home.
After the knockout play-off round, there will be another draw on 21 February which will confirm each club’s path from the last 16 to the final.

Who Man City and Celtic could face next

Celtic and Man City finished 21st and 22nd in the league phase table respectively, which means they are paired together.
Their corresponding pair is Real Madrid and Bayern Munich, themselves 11th and 12th.

If either City or Celtic make it past two of Europe’s leading clubs, they will then face either Bayer Leverkusen or Atletico Madrid in the last 16, which will be decided in February’s draw.

For the other British clubs, Liverpool are paired with Barcelona, and will play one of Monaco, Brest, Paris Saint-Germain or Benfica.
Arsenal are alongside Inter Milan, and face a last-16 tie against either Feyenoord, Juventus, AC Milan or PSV Eindhoven.
And for Aston Villa, either them or fellow surprise package Lille will need to overcome Sporting, Bruges, Atalanta or Borussia Dortmund for a place in the quarter-finals.

The 2025 Africa Cup of Nations group phase draw was made in Rabat on Monday, setting the stage for the coveted football competition when it kicks off in Morocco on December 21. Hosts Morocco will open the tournament against the Comoros while other groups will see Egypt face South Africa and reigning champions Ivory Coast take on Cameroon.

South Africa will face Mohamed Salah-captained Egypt while Ademola Lookman-inspired Nigeria must tackle Tunisia after the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations group stage draw was made in Rabat on Monday.
Hosts Morocco face giantkillers Comoros in the opening match of the 24-team tournament on December 21 while title-holders Ivory Coast will come up against five-time winners Cameroon.
Sudan, a country ravaged by civil war, drew Algeria, and the clash of Senegal and the Democratic Republic of Congo is set to be another group-stage highlight.
Prolific scorer Salah has won multiple honours with Liverpool, but victory in the AFCON has eluded him. He came closest by finishing a runner-up in 2017 and 2022.

Apart from South Africa, the record seven-time champions will take on two other countries from the south of the continent, Angola and Zimbabwe, in Group B.
Nigeria, runners-up to the Ivory Coast last year, are blessed with outstanding forwards, including African Footballer of the Year Lookman and his predecessor Victor Osimhen.
Tunisia, making a record 17th consecutive AFCON appearance, and east African contenders Uganda and Tanzania complete Group C.
Amad Diallo, scorer of a recent hat-trick for Manchester United against Southampton, is a likely starter for Ivory Coast, who will also meet Gabon and Mozambique in Group F.

With home advantage and Europe-based stars like Paris Saint-Germain defender Achraf Hakimi, Morocco will be hoping to become the fourth AFCON hosts this century to lift the trophy.
In the previous 13 editions from 2000, only Tunisia in 2004, Egypt two years later and the Ivory Coast in 2024 have triumphed at home.
And all three triumphs were hard earned with Tunisia edging Morocco 2-1, Egypt pipping the Ivory Coast in a penalty shootout and the Ivorians coming from behind to beat Nigeria 2-1 last year.

Ivory Coast are the only country to have been crowned champions twice in the past eight editions of a competition first staged in 1957 and won by Egypt in Khartoum.
The other champions were Egypt, for a record seventh time in 2010, Zambia, Nigeria, Cameroon, Algeria and Senegal.
CAF president Patrick Motsepe from South Africa told reporters he believes the first AFCON to span two years will also be the most successful.
“I am extremely excited about the AFCON in Morocco — it is going to be the most successful yet. Ivory Coast raised the bar last year and now we must reach even greater heights.

Originally slated for mid-2025, the tournament had to be delayed because to avoid clashing with the maiden edition of the revamped FIFA Club World Cup in the United States.
“The new dates will not affect the tournament. Africa boasts many exceptionally talented footballers and all of them will be in Morocco,” added Motsepe.
Hosting the AFCON is viewed as a crucial part of the Moroccan build-up toward the 2030 World Cup, which the kingdom will co-host with Spain and Portugal.
To mark the 100th anniversary of the first World Cup in 1930 in Uruguay, that country, Argentina and Paraguay will host one match each before the tournament moves to Europe and Africa.

With the world’s biggest sporting event taking place in 500 days, there will be several milestones in 2025

Monday marks a key milestone for FIFA and North America, as the highly-anticipated 2026 World Cup is exactly 500 days away – with the event set to kick off at Estadio Azteca on June 11, 2026.

Next year’s World Cup will be hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada, and will be the first 48-team edition in the tournament’s 95-year history. According to FIFA, more than 5 million fans are expected to attend 104 matches, with an anticipated TV and streaming audience of 6 billion.

With the tournament drawing closer, FIFA will be kicking off events in 2025 at the 16 host cities of the tournament, ranging from promotional events to host city poster unveilings in each location.

The 16 North American host cities include: Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Guadalajara, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Mexico City, Miami, Monterrey, New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, Toronto, and Vancouver.

During the summer of 2024, FIFA tapped aerial film crews to capture those cities and will be featured in upcoming promos for the tournament. Announcements and promotional events in each city will happen throughout the year.
Qualifying for the expanded tournament is underway across various confederations, with European teams starting on March 21, 2025.

FIFA is hosting another star-studded tournament in 2025, with the Club World Cup kicking off in June in the United States. Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Manchester City and Inter Miami are among the 32 teams playing in the event.

Belgian footballer Radja Nainggolan has been arrested as part of an investigation into cocaine trafficking.
The 36-year-old was one of several suspects apprehended by Belgian police on Monday morning, after a series of raids were carried out across the country.
“The investigation concerns alleged facts of importation of cocaine from South America to Europe, via the port of Antwerp, and its redistribution in Belgium,” the Brussels prosecutor’s office said in a statement.
No further information has been released to the public.

The arrest comes just six days after Nainggolan came out of retirement to sign for Lokeren in the Belgian second division.
He scored on his debut, giving his side a point in their 1-1 home draw to K. Lierse.
Born in Antwerp, the midfielder spent most of his career in Italy, playing for both Roma and Inter Milan.
Between 2009 and 2018, he made 30 appearances for the Belgium national team.

Women’s soccer has its first million-dollar move. Here’s the record fee history

United States defender Naomi Girma has become women’s soccer’s first million-dollar player.
The 24-year-old Girma completed her move from San Diego Wave to Chelsea for a reported 900,000 pounds ($1.1 million) on Sunday.

Here’s a look at how the record transfer fee (in USD) in the women’s game has increased over the course of the century:

2002: Milene Domingues

The Brazilian midfielder moved from Fiammamonza in Italy to Rayo Vallecano in Spain for $310,000.

2020: Pernille Harder

The Denmark forward left German side Wolfsburg to join Chelsea in England for $355,000 (300,000 euros).

2022: Keira Walsh

The England midfielder moved from Manchester City in England to Barcelona in Spain for $513,000 (400,000 pounds).

2024 (January): Mayra Ramirez

The Colombia forward left Levante in Spain to join Chelsea in a deal worth $542,000 (500,000 euros).

2024 (February): Rachael Kundananji

The Zambia striker moved from Madrid CFF in Spain to Bay FC in the United States for $788,000.

Premier League issue fresh Michael Oliver statement as investigation launched

The Premier League have issued a statement “strongly condemning” abuse aimed at referee Michael Oliver after his decision to send off Myles Lewis-Skelly during Arsenal’s 1-0 win at Wolves, with the PGMOL and police opening an investigation.
Lewis-Skelly was dismissed after catching Wolves star Matt Doherty during a counter-attack, with the decision appearing harsh and leading to outcry from Arsenal fans on social media.

Officials later confirmed he was sent off due to “serious foul play”, with ex-referee Mike Dean claiming the 18-year-old had caught Doherty with his studs down the back of his leg.

Oliver has been sent threats and abuse since the incident and the Premier League have come out with a statement to condemn any abuse.

“The Premier League strongly condemns the threats and abuse directed at Michael Oliver,” it said. “No official should be subject to any form of abuse. We will continue to support Michael, PGMOL and all investigations.”
The PGMOL also sent out a message deploring the abuse suffered by Oliver as they confirmed police were looking into the reports. Their own statement read: “We are appalled by the threats and abuse directed at Michael Oliver following the Wolverhampton Wanderers v Arsenal fixture.

“No official should be subject to any form of abuse, let alone the abhorrent attacks aimed at Michael and his family over the past 24 hours.

“The police are aware, and a number of investigations have commenced. We are supporting Michael, and all those affected, and are determined to tackle this unacceptable behaviour. Sadly, this is not the first time a match official has been forced to deal with threats in recent times. We will continue to support all investigations.”

Arsenal players were seething after Oliver’s decision at Molineux as they surrounded the official – and even though they ended up winning the game, Mikel Arteta said he was “absolutely fuming”.
“It is that clear that I leave it to you guys,” Arteta told Sky Sports. “I am absolutely fuming but I leave it with you. Because it is that obvious. I don’t think my words are going to help.”

When asked about a potential appeal, he said: “That’s for the club to decide what the best decision is. I think it’s that obvious, maybe we don’t even need to. [Lewis-Skelly] is really happy now that the team won and we found a way to win it.”