Liverpool CEO Ayre announces exit

Liverpool have confirmed that CEO Ian Ayre will be leaving the club at the end of his contract in May 2017.

The 52-year-old joined the club as commercial director in 2007 and took the chief executive role in 2011 following Fenway Sports Group s takeover at Anfield.

In a statement released by Liverpool, owner John W. Henry, chairman Tom Werner and president Mike Gordon said: Ian advised us of his intention to step down as CEO a few months ago.  

We asked him on several occasions to take some time to reconsider his decision, but have been unable to convince him to remain as CEO beyond May 2017. We will at some point in the near future begin identifying and recruiting a worthy successor to continue to build on the outstanding foundations which have been laid by I…

Ljungberg rejoins Arsenal as Under-23 coach

Arsenal have announced that former player Freddie Ljungberg will be returning to the club as the new head coach of the Under-23 team in July. 

During the 2016-17 season, Ljungberg coached Arsenal s Under-15s side before leaving to join Wolfsburg in February 2017 to become Andries Jonker s assistant. 

Now he returns to the club where he made more than 200 appearances to coach the reigning Premier League 2 champions.

He will work under new Academy director Per Mertesacker and is excited to be heading back to the club with a new challenge.

The former Sweden international said: I m delighted to be returning to the club. Arsenal has always been a special place for me and I m really excited about this opportunity to work with our Under-23 team.

FIFA response expected after Bild reveal Qatar World Cup report ´leak´

The 2022 World Cup in Qatar has fallen under fresh scrutiny after German newspaper Bild obtained what it said was a leaked copy of Michael Garcia s investigation into the controversial bidding process.

Omnisport understands FIFA will make an official comment later on Tuesday after Bild published the first of a series of revelations based, it claims, on the findings of the independent report.

Garcia, a former New York attorney, was appointed by FIFA in 2012 to investigate allegations of corruption surrounding the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups in Russia and Qatar.

His report was submitted to the world governing body in September 2014, with FIFA releasing a summary two months later that cleared Russia and Qatar of wrongdoing. However, Garcia claim…

Cagliari president says ´closing curvas isn´t the answer´ to racism as Verratti joins fight

Cagliari president Tommaso Giulini said closing curvas isn t the answer to ending racism in Serie A after Inter star Romelu Lukaku was subjected to monkey chants last week.

Racism reared its ugly head again in Italy, where Lukaku was racially abused during Inter s 2-1 win away to Cagliari at Sardegna Arena on Sunday.

The incident, which came as Lukaku stepped up to convert a second-half penalty, sparked widespread condemnation of Cagliari – whose fans were also previously involved in racist chants directed at Pescara s Sulley Muntari (2017), Juventus midfielder Blaise Matuidi (2018) and former Juve forward Moise Kean (2019).

Inter s Curva Nord supporters claimed alleged abuse of striker Lukaku from Cagliari fans was not racist but a form of respect .

We…

From drug-testing lab to gastro pub: Sochi happy not to forget dark past

It was home to what the McLaren report details as one of the most elaborate doping ploys in sport history.

Just a stone s throw from Fisht Stadium in Sochi, the infamous building housed Russia s state-sponsored anti-doping laboratory for the 2014 Winter Olympic Games.

At the centre of the controversy,  Room 124 – a storage space converted into a lab – where urine samples were passed through a hole in the wall and swapped with clean bottles, claims that came to light from Grigory Rodchenkov, the former director of Russia s anti-doping laboratory, in the New York Times back in May 2016.

The hole in the wall was concealed by a small faux-wood cabinet during the day as an institutional conspiracy, albeit one denied by Russian officials to this day, remained…

Flick is the right coach for us – Neuer backs Bayern boss after Salihamidzic dispute

Manuel Neuer backed Hansi Flick as the right coach for Bayern Munich, amid reports of a row with sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic.

A difficult week for Bayern ended in frustrating circumstances on Saturday, as Marcus Ingvartsen s late goal snatched a 1-1 draw for Union Berlin at the Allianz Arena.

Jamal Musiala s moment of quality seemed set to have proved decisive for Bayern, who are now just five points clear of RB Leipzig in the Bundesliga.

With the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final against Paris Saint-Germain coming up, Flick made a glut of changes for the Union clash, while both Musiala and Kingsley Coman sustained injuries.

According to reports, Flick s relationship with sporting director Salihamidzic has all but broken down,…

Higuain hints MLS a possibility if he leaves Juventus

Gonzalo Higuain has hinted Major League Soccer could be his next destination if he is not in the plans of new Juventus coach Andrea Pirlo.

Higuain, 32, has been with Juve since 2016 when he moved from rivals Napoli and, although he enjoyed a fine first season in Turin with 32 goals across all competitions, he was less impressive the following year.

With Cristiano Ronaldo then arriving at Juve in 2018, Higuain was deemed surplus to requirements and spent the season on disappointing loan spells with Milan and then Chelsea.

Higuain was given another shot at Juve following the arrival of his former Napoli boss Maurizio Sarri last year, despite him failing to impress under the Italian with Chelsea.

But a rather meagre goals tally of 11 in 43 matches does not b…

Napoli keeping tabs on Fulham’s Tosin Adarabioyo

Napoli are interested in signing Tosin Adarabioyo from Fulham in the summer of 2022, according to , as relayed by . The report in the Italian news outlet has claimed that Italian club Napoli are keeping a close eye on Adarabioyo with a view to making a move at the end of the season.

Adarabioyo has been on the books of Fulham since the summer of 2020 when he joined after leaving Manchester City. The 24-year-old central defender has scored two goals in 20 Championship matches for the Cottagers so far this season, scoring two goals in the process. The defender played 33 times in the Premier League last season.

Napoli are third in the Serie A table at the moment with 43 points from 21 matches, six points behind leaders and defending Italian champions Inter Milan, who have p…

BREAKING NEWS: Clasico postponed as RFEF tells Barcelona, Real Madrid to decide new date

The first Clasico of the season between Barcelona and Real Madrid, originally scheduled for October 26, has been postponed amid political unrest in Catalonia, the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) has confirmed.

Violent scenes broke out in Barcelona after nine Catalan political leaders received long prison sentences for their roles in the region s 2017 referendum and subsequent unilateral declaration of independence.

A rally in Barcelona has been called by pro-independence politicians for October 26, the day Barca were due to host bitter rivals Madrid.

Tuchel positive over Kante and Mendy fitness ahead of Champions League final

Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel is positive over the fitness of N Golo Kante and Edouard Mendy ahead of the Champions League final.

Midfielder Kante sat out the 2-1 loss to Aston Villa on Sunday as the Blues scraped a top-four finish in the Premier League on the final day thanks to Tottenham s win over Leicester City.

Goalkeeper Mendy was substituted at Villa Park with a rib injury, making him a doubt for the showdown with Manchester City in Porto on Saturday.

However, Tuchel does not appear overly concerned by either injury and is prepared to give them time to recover before he makes a decision on their involvement.

The situation has not changed with N Golo in the sense we are still waiting, but it is looking good that he will return to training on Wednesday…