UEFA has apologised for a technical error over Euro 2020 tickets that has left fans reasonable amounts out of pocket. A new batch of tickets for this summer’s tournament was made available on Wednesday for fans unsuccessful in the initial ballots. Fans who thought they had secured tickets then also bought flights and accommodation – but received an email hours later from European football’s governing body to say the transactions had been cancelled.
Christian Eriksen scored his first Inter Milan goal as the Italians won at Ludogorets Razgrad in the Europa League last 32. The former Spurs midfielder slotted home from the edge of the area after Romelu Lukaku’s lay-off with about 20 minutes remaining. The Dane also hit the bar with a drive from 25 yards before Lukaku sealed the win with a penalty in added time.
Barcelona have completed the controversial emergency signing of Danish striker Martin Braithwaite from Leganes for 18m euros. La Liga gave Barcelona permission to make a signing outside the transfer window after Ousmane Dembele was ruled out for six months with an injury. La Liga rules allow clubs to apply to make new signings if a player is ruled out for more than five months. Braithwaite’s contract will run until the end of June 2024.
Roger Federer will miss his fourth French Open in the last five years after having knee surgery on Wednesday. The 20-time Grand Slam champion had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee – which had been “bothering him for a little while” – in Switzerland. Federer, who won his only Roland Garros title in 2009, said doctors were “very confident of a full recovery”.
Unified heavyweight boxing champion, Anthony Joshua, was given a hero’s welcome in his home town Sagamu on Wednesday after paying homage to the town’s traditional rulers. Joshua is making his first appearance in the country since reclaiming his WBA, IBF, WBO, and IBO titles from Mexico’s Andy Ruiz at the Diriyah Arena in Saudi Arabia with a convincing 12th round win. Hundreds of fans surrounded the boxer during his visit to the Alafin Elepe palace and the seat of the Alafin Akarigbo of Remo Land.
Veteran Togo striker Emmanuel Adebayor says the main reasons he decided to join Paraguayan side Olimpia Asuncion were the influence of ex-Manchester City team-mate Roque Santa Cruz and the club president’s six-year-old son. The 35-year-old former Arsenal striker, who quit Turkish club Kayserispor in December, signed a deal until the end of the year as giants Olimpia hunt for domestic and South America’s Copa Libertadores silverware.
Liverpool are set to let Adam Lallana leave in the summer when the England midfielder’s contract runs out. There are no talks taking place between the European champions and the 31-year-old over a new deal and he will be available on a free transfer. Lallana, who has been linked with Leicester City, moved to Anfield for £25m in 2014. He was signed from Southampton by then-Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers, who is now in charge of the Foxes.
Borussia Dortmund have signed Emre Can on a four-year deal after activating an option to make the midfielder’s loan from Juventus permanent. Can has made just three appearances since joining the Bundesliga side on January 31, but the Germany international has made a sufficient impression in that time to persuade Dortmund to take up their £21m option to sign him.
Tottenham’s Heung-Min Son is expected to miss the rest of the season after suffering a broken arm at Aston Villa on Sunday. Son will require surgery on the injury, which happened in a first-minute challenge with Villa’s Ezri Konsa, despite going on to complete the match and scoring twice – including a stoppage-time winner in the 3-2 victory. Tottenham’s statement confirming Son’s injury stated he was expected to miss “a number of weeks”, but Jose Mourinho suggested that was optimistic.
American Ryan Newman is in a serious but not life threatening condition in hospital after crashing on the last lap of the Daytona 500 in Florida. The 42-year-old was leading when his car was tapped from behind and it spun into the wall before flipping and being struck by another car. US president Donald Trump gave the starting command on Sunday but the race was postponed until Monday due to rain. “Praying for Ryan Newman, a great and brave NASCAR driver,” Trump tweeted. The Daytona 500 is the biggest race of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) season.
Teenager Reinier Jesus said he was fulfilling “a childhood dream” as he cried during his unveiling as a Real Madrid player. The 18-year-old Brazilian attacking midfielder joined the La Liga club from Flamengo for £26m in January. Reinier, who only made his senior debut on 31 July last year, was unveiled at the Bernabeu by Real Madrid president Florentino Perez on Tuesday. “I want to be a part of the history of this great club,” Reinier said. “Today is a very happy day for me as I get to fulfil a childhood dream.”
Justin Fashanu is to be posthumously inducted into the National Football Museum’s Hall of Fame later this week. Fashanu will be recognised at a ceremony on Wednesday at the museum in central Manchester. The award celebrates those who have made an outstanding contribution to the sport and comes 22 years after the former Norwich City and Nottingham Forest striker took his own life.
Faf du Plessis has stepped down as South Africa Test and Twenty20 captain, saying it is in the teams’ “best interests”. The 35-year-old batsman captained the Proteas in 112 matches across all formats since 2012, scoring 5,101 runs – including 11 centuries – as skipper. Quinton de Kock replaced Du Plessis as one-day captain in January.
Porto forward Moussa Marega walked off midway through his side’s win at Vitoria Guimaraes, saying he was subjected to racist abuse from fans. Marega, 28, started to walk towards the dugouts in the 69th minute, nine minutes after scoring what would prove the winner in Porto’s 2-1 victory. He pointed his thumbs down and also raised his middle fingers to the crowd. Team-mates and opposition players tried to persuade him to stay on, but he was eventually substituted.
Everton have confirmed they are to end their shirt sponsorship agreement with Kenyan betting firm SportPesa at the end of the season. Everton, who had signed a five-year deal with the gaming brand in 2017, said the decision was made after a review of the Premier League club’s commercial strategy in line with their future growth plans. “This has been a difficult decision but one that allows us to best deliver on our commercial plan and to grasp the new opportunities now open to us,” a club spokesperson said.
Pep Guardiola has told friends he intends to stay at Manchester City despite the club’s two-year ban from the Champions League. Unless City overturn the ban imposed by UEFA on Friday, they will not compete in European football until 2022 after this season. Guardiola’s contract is due to expire in 2021. He is expected to speak about the subject for the first time on Wednesday.
The Stephen Keshi Stadium in Asaba, southern Nigeria will host next month’s 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Sierra Leone. There have been suitability talks and concerns raised by some players about whether the venue will meet the Confederation of African Football (CAF) requirements to be able to hold competitive fixtures. But the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has confirmed that the Group L fixture, set for 27 March, will take place at the ground named after the country’s most successful coach, Stephen Keshi.
The NBA All-Star MVP Award has been permanently renamed after LA Lakers legend Kobe Bryant. Bryant, an 18-time All-Star, died with his daughter Gianna and seven others in a helicopter crash last month, aged 41. NBA commissioner Adam Silver said Bryant’s death was “unspeakable” and the league was keen to “honour” him.
History was made in Morocco on Friday when the Video Assistant Referee technology (VAR) was used in a top-flight league game for the first time in Africa. VAR had already made its debut in the Moroccan Cup semi-finals and final, but on Friday it featured in IRT Tangier’s 2-1 win over FUS Rabat in the league. The use of VAR was set to start at the beginning of the league season but was delayed in order to give the Morocco football federation time to train referees and obtain the video refereeing licenses.
American lightweight Ryan Garcia needed just 80 seconds to knock out Nicaragua’s Francisco Fonseca as he secured a brutal win in California. Unbeaten Garcia, 21, caught Fonseca with a left hook to the head to send him to the canvas and secure his first-round victory in Anaheim. “I was planning for it to go longer,” Garcia told DAZN after the fight. Garcia says he is now targeting fights against Jorge Linares, Luke Campbell, Gervonta Davis and Devin Haney.
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