Ajax goalkeeper Andre Onana says he has been overlooked by top clubs because he is black.

The 23-year-old is currently in his fourth season with the Eredivisie giants, and has established himself as Cameroon’s No.1 in the past two years.

Onana joined the Barcelona academy in 2010 having come through Samuel Eto’o’s Foundation in his native Cameroon, before linking up with Ajax in 2015.

He enjoyed a breakout season in 2016/17 when he played 46 times as he helped Ajax reach the Europa League final, where they lost 2-0 to Manchester United in Stockholm.

And he says that it was after that season when he was first approached by one of Europe’s elite clubs, only to be told that the colour of his skin could hinder his chances of a transfer.

Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool have extended their lead at the top of the English Premier League to 13 points with a game in hand, after outclassing their second-placed hosts Leicester City 4-0 on Boxing Day.

Liverpool dominated the first half, and went ahead in the 31st minute, when Brazilian Roberto Firmino nodded home a cross at the back post.

Leicester kept the score-line respectable only until the 71st minute, as James Milner set in motion a 3-goal blitz from the penalty spot after a handball in the area.

Firmino then bagged his second of the night, after firing into the top corner, to finish off a beautiful team effort in the 74th minute.

Trent Alexander-Arnold, who had helped set-up all of his side’s first 3 goals, rounded off the rout by drilling home the 4th from outside the box.

Liverpool now have 52 points from 18 matches, while Leicester are on 39 from 19.

PSG striker Edinson Cavani is poised to move to Atletico Madrid in a transfer deal which could be inked in the coming days, the Marca sports daily reported Monday.

Rumours of a possible move from Paris Saint-Germain have been on the cards for months, but may be imminent, given the Uruguayan forward’s frustration at being left on the bench, the Spanish paper said.

“The transfer could take place in the coming days. In principle, the agreement would be for two-and-a-half seasons, although it is still up for discussion,” it said of Cavani, whose contract with PSG is up in June.

But securing PSG’s agreement for an immediate transfer of their best-ever goal scorer, which would likely happen during the winter transfer window that opens on January 1, would doubtless be subject to much negotiation.

French radio station RMCsport also said Cavani had inked a deal with the Madrid club, and that PSG were “open to the idea of letting Cavani go this winter”.

Although Cavani is currently not a regular PSG starter, the Parisians are likely to need him from February when they enter the decisive phase for Ligue 1, the Champions League and domestic Cup action, Marca said.

Source: AFP

Mikel Arteta has been given the job of reviving the fortunes of Arsenal after he was appointed head coach of the English Premier League side on Friday.

The 37-year-old Spaniard, who played more than 100 games for the Gunners between 2011-16, signed a three-and-a-half year contract and ends a three-year stay as Pep Guardiola’s assistant at Manchester City.

Arteta, who will be officially presented to the press later on Friday at 1700 GMT, replaces compatriot Unai Emery, who was sacked last month.

The former midfielder, who will sit in the stands for Saturday’s match against another of his former clubs Everton, faces a massive challenge, with Arsenal having won just once in 12 matches — beating West Ham under interim manager Freddie Ljungberg.

“This is a huge honour. Arsenal is one of the biggest clubs in the world,” Arteta said in a statement.

“We need to be competing for the top trophies in the game and that’s been made very clear to me in my discussions with Stan and Josh Kroenke (owner and club director, respectively) and the senior people from the club.

“We all know there is a lot of work to be done to achieve that but I am confident we’ll do it.

“I’m realistic enough to know it won’t happen overnight but the current squad has plenty of talent and there is a great pipeline of young players coming through from the academy.”

Head of football Raul Sanllehi said the club had interviewed other candidates before opting to pursue Arteta.

“We met several top-class candidates and Mikel stood out to every single one of us as the perfect person for us,” he said in a club statement.

“Mikel understands Arsenal Football Club and what it means to our fans around the world. We look forward to him getting down to work and bringing the best out of our squad as we work to get our season back on track.”

Source: AFP

Carlo Ancelotti has reached “an agreement in principle” to become the next Everton manager, Sky Sports News reported Monday.

Ancelotti arrived in Merseyside earlier Monday, with Sky saying talks between the English Premier League club and the veteran Italian boss had “progressed well”.

The 60-year-old could be confirmed as the Goodison Park boss in succession to the sacked Marco Silva before Everton’s League Cup quarter-final against Leicester on Wednesday.

Ancelotti was himself dismissed as manager of Napoli last week despite taking the Italian club into the last 16 of the Champions League after they had slipped to seventh in the Serie A table.

If he is appointed, it would mean Ancelotti was returning for a second spell in English football after a two-year stint at Chelsea from 2009-11 that yielded a Premier League and FA Cup ‘double’ for the London club in his first season in charge.

Meanwhile former Everton striker Duncan Ferguson is set to continue as caretaker manager for Wednesday’s match at home to Leicester.

The Scot took over after Silva was sacked on December 5 and promptly oversaw a morale-boosting 3-1 win over Chelsea before guiding Everton to a 1-1 draw away to Manchester United on Sunday.

Ferguson, however, has distanced himself from taking the job on a full-time basis.

“Duncan Ferguson is to remain in caretaker charge of Everton for Wednesday night’s Carabao (League) Cup quarter-final against Leicester, the club can confirm,” said an Everton statement issued Monday.

Source: AFP

Thirteen-times winners Real Madrid were drawn against English champions Manchester City while title-holders Liverpool must face Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid in the Champions League round of 16 following Monday’s draw.

Real Madrid ended up in pot two after finishing second in their group behind Paris St Germain and City were the unlucky team to be paired with them when their name was pulled out at UEFA headquarters.

City, who will be at home in the second leg, have yet to beat the Spanish side with two draws and two defeats in their previous four meetings.

However, their manager Pep Guardiola has a much more encouraging record with nine wins, four draws and four defeats in 17 meetings as coach of Barcelona and then Bayern Munich.

“It’s a difficult one,” said Manchester City’s director of football Txiki Begiristain. “Real Madrid are the best. We want to be the best so we have to try and beat them. It’s always a pleasure to play against Real Madrid. We know them very well. They know our manager.”

Liverpool and Atletico Madrid’s previous meetings have produced one win for each team and two draws with both teams scoring four goals.

PSG to play Dortmund

Only Europe’s biggest five leagues—England, France, Germany, Italy and Spain—were represented in the draw and 11 of the 16 teams also reached the knockout stages last season.

Both England and Spain managed to get all four of their teams into knockout stages. Elsewhere, Serie A champions Juventus will face French side Olympique Lyonnais and PSG will play Borussia Dortmund.

Barcelona were pitted against an unpredictable Napoli, the first time the two sides have ever met.

Napoli fired coach Carlo Ancelotti immediately after beating Genk to make sure of their place in the last 16 and replaced him with Gennaro Gattuso, who has never coached in the Champions League before.

“A great team, a great challenge, two fascinating races. We will face them without fear,” he said.

Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham Hotspur side, who reached the final last season, will play RB Leipzig, who are in the knockout stages for the first time, while Chelsea were drawn against Bayern Munich.

Despite their erratic domestic form, Bayern were the only team to complete the group stage with a 100% record.

Serie A side Atalanta, who reached the last 16 on their first participation in the Champions League despite losing their first three group matches, were drawn against Valencia.

(REUTERS)

Jurgen Klopp has agreed a contract extension with Liverpool until 2024, the Premier League leaders announced on Friday.

Klopp, who moved to Anfield in 2015, guided Liverpool to Champions League glory in June and they are currently eight points clear at the top of the Premier League.

“For me personally this is a statement of intent, one which is built on my knowledge of what we as a partnership have achieved so far and what is still there for us to achieve,” the 52-year-old Klopp said in a statement on Liverpool’s official website.

“When I see the development of the club and the collaborative work that continues to take place, I feel my contribution can only grow.”

During his first campaign at Anfield, Liverpool reached the finals of both the League Cup and Europa League but lost both.

They lost 3-1 to Real Madrid in the 2018 Champions League final but regrouped and became European champions for a sixth time after a 2-0 win against Tottenham in Madrid this year.

Liverpool lost just one match in the Premier League last season, racking up 97 points — the best in the club’s history — but missed out on the title by a solitary point to Manchester City.

So far this season, Klopp has overseen Liverpool’s surge to the top of the Premier League, where they currently sit eight points clear after 15 wins from their opening 16 matches.

They have not won the English top-flight title since 1990.

Source; AFP

Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu said on Thursday the Clasico against Real Madrid next week will not be postponed again, amid renewed fears of unrest around the fixture.

Protestors from the Catalan separatist movement, Democratic Tsunami, have called for a “massive” protest outside Camp Nou, where Barcelona are due to play against Real Madrid in La Liga on December 18.

Spain’s most prestigious fixture was originally scheduled for October 26 but had to be postponed following a wave of pro-independence demonstrations in the city.

“I can say that the Clasico will be played, it will not be postponed again,” Bartomeu said at a Christmas press event in Barcelona.

“It is everyone’s responsibility to ensure it goes ahead. We know that we live in a complicated period in Catalonia but that can be compatible with sport.

“Our stadium is a place for free expression, it always has been, and that is why we want to send out a message of normality and calm.

“The club is preparing for the Clasico with complete normality and we tell our fans to come with their family and friends.

“Together we have to deliver a Clasico that is a celebration of sport and of people. We want peace and calm.”

Democratic Tsunami have urged protestors to gather at four points around Camp Nou from 4:00 pm (1500 GMT), four hours before kick-off.

“In an exceptional situation, we should act in an exceptional way,” said a statement from the group on Tuesday.

The rally is the latest in a series of demonstrations that began two months ago when Spain’s top court jailed nine Catalan separatist leaders over their role in a failed 2017 bid for independence.

Source: AFP

Liverpool’s relentless march to a first English title since 1990 gathered pace with a comfortable win at Bournemouth, while Manchester City’s defence of the trophy was hit by a painful defeat against rivals Manchester United.

Fuelled by Jamie Vardy’s blistering form, Leicester have emerged as the closest challengers to Liverpool.

AFP Sport looks at three things we learned from the Premier League weekend:

Solskjaer’s big week

Seven days ago Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was fielding questions over whether he is the man to return Manchester United to their former glories after a 2-2 home draw with Aston Villa left the Red Devils in ninth and with just four wins from their opening 14 Premier League games.

A week on and Solskjaer has secured the two biggest victories of his time in charge since a famous 3-1 win at Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League in March helped turn his caretaker spell in charge into a full-time position.

United have beaten Tottenham on Jose Mourinho’s return to Old Trafford and now Manchester City 2-1 to climb up to fifth and within five points of the top four. On both occasions the scoreline arguably flattered the losing side with Solskjaer’s vision slowly coming to fruition.

Marcus Rashford has already matched his previous season’s best for goals with 13, Fred has enjoyed two of his best games since a £50 million move from Shakhtar Donetsk 18 months ago, Aaron Wan-Bissaka was outstanding in nullifying the threat of Raheem Sterling and Harry Maguire marshalled his defence resolutely under a late City bombardment.

There is still much to do for Solskjaer to convince the doubters, not least catching Chelsea in fourth to secure a return to the Champions League next season, but this was undoubtedly his best week as permanent United boss.

Klopp relishes Liverpool shutout

Jurgen Klopp admitted Liverpool’s first clean sheet in 14 games was the talk of the dressing room after the leaders’ 3-0 win at Bournemouth.

Klopp’s side made it 33 league games unbeaten as they maintained an eight-point lead over second-placed Leicester.

Goals from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Naby Keita and Mohamed Salah earned the victory, but it was Liverpool’s first shutout since September 28 that pleased Klopp the most.

“I forgot actually how it feels, to be honest. It’s great, we should have that more often,” Klopp said.

“For the boys, that was the most used word in the dressing room when I came in, ‘clean sheet, clean sheet, clean sheet’.

“Obviously everybody was desperate for that and now we have it, so let’s have it more often.”

Leicester happy to stay in the shadows

With Jamie Vardy on the kind of hot streak he last managed when Leicester won their fairytale title in 2016, Brendan Rodgers’ side have become the last hope of a competitive race to be crowned kings of English football.

Liverpool have left Manchester City trailing in their wake, but Leicester remain in the hunt after Vardy’s double inspired a 4-1 rout of Aston Villa.

Vardy, the Premier League’s leading scorer with 16 goals this term, has netted in eight successive games, recalling his 11-match scoring streak from 2015-16.

The Foxes have reeled off a club record eight consecutive top-flight victories, but Rodgers has no intention of talking up his team’s title chances.

“I don’t think anyone expects us to be near the top. We respect that, we get on with our work and keep developing as a team,” Rodgers said.

“It’s just natural, Man City and Liverpool are both incredible teams. We know we are looking to improve and close the gap. We have finished ninth in the last two seasons but today we looked like a top team.”

Source: AFP

Manchester United landed another body blow to Manchester City’s hopes of retaining the Premier League title with a 2-1 derby win at the Etihad that leaves the champions 14 points adrift of runaway leaders Liverpool.

Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial scored the goals for the visitors, who should have made the margin of victory even greater with a host of first half chances.

Nicolas Otamendi pulled a goal back to give City hope five minutes from time, but that was too little, too late for Pep Guardiola’s men, who suffered a fourth league defeat in 16 games.

United remain eight points adrift of their neighbours, but move up to fifth and within five points of fourth-placed Chelsea to haul themselves back into contention for a return to the Champions League next season.

City’s priority may also now be limited to securing a top-four finish with the gap to Liverpool growing by the week and a makeshift defence that has now failed to keep a clean sheet in nine games.

In the midst of another testing season for United, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men have often saved their best for the toughest opposition having beaten Tottenham, Leicester and Chelsea and been the only side yet to take Premier League points off Liverpool.

City were powerless to stop the visitors pace on the break in the opening quarter in which United should have scored more than twice.

Ederson made a hat-trick of big saves to deny Daniel James, Jesse Lingard and Martial before United were awarded a penalty when Rashford was chopped down by Bernardo Silva inside the area.

Referee Anthony Taylor amazingly did not point to the spot in the first instance, but was quickly corrected by a VAR review.

Rashford stepped up to continue his fine form with a 13th goal in 14 games for club and country.

The 22-year-old’s 13 for United this season also matches his career-high for a single campaign and he should have had a couple more in the minutes after opening the scoring.

Firstly, Rashford curled an effort wide with just Ederson to beat form a fine pass by Martial before he fired another effort off the bar.

A United second was a matter of time as they continued to cut City open at will on the counter-attack and it duly arrived as James and Martial skipped around a host of half-hearted challenges before the Frenchman caught Ederson out at his near post.

City restored some semblance of order in the closing stages of the first half and should have been given a route back into the game by Gabriel Jesus when he headed Kevin de Bruyne’s inch-perfect cross wide.

The home side were also furious when Fred was not penalised for handball as he blocked Kyle Walker’s cross inside his own area with VAR this time backing Taylor’s decision not to give a spot-kick.

City applied the pressure after half-time but seemed devoid of ideas bar De Bruyne.

The Belgian’s driven effort was deflected over by a brilliant last-ditch challenge from Victor Lindelof before Rodrigo’s effort from De Bruyne’s layoff was tipped over by David de Gea.

Otamendi gave City life five minutes from time when he rose highest to meet Riyad Mahrez’s corner.

United were suddenly rocking and De Gea had to make a brilliant save moments later to deny Mahrez an equaliser.

But they held out to round off a huge week for Solskjaer.

The Norwegian was facing questions over his future just six days ago after a 2-2 draw with Aston Villa left United with just four wins from their opening 14 league games.

However, victories over Jose Mourinho on his return to Old Trafford with Tottenham on Wednesday and now the side who have left United second best in their own city in recent times, massively relieves the pressure on Solskjaer.

Source: AFP