Weekend Review: Arsenal, Newcastle on track for glory in 2023

8:55 PM ET It’s 2023 and club football is back with a bang! Newcastle United and Arsenal have underlined their Premier League title credentials with a series of impressive performances, while in LaLiga one of the Qatar World Cup‘s most infamous characters was back in the spotlight again. ESPN correspondents Julien Laurens, James Tyler, Mark … Read more

Lens hand PSG first league loss, stay in title race

Lens players celebrate after scoring a goal against PSG in Ligue 1. Getty Images 5:01 PM ET Lens beat Ligue 1 leaders Paris Saint-Germain 3-1 on Sunday to give the champions their first league loss of the season, narrowing the gap at the top between the two teams. PSG were without Neymar, who was suspended … Read more

PSG receive wake-up call in defeat to Lens, Parisians with work to do ahead of Lionel Messi’s return

Getty Images Paris Saint-Germain’s difficult return to domestic action continued with a 3-1 defeat away at RC Lens on Sunday. After a dramatic late 2-1 win over RC Strasbourg Alsace last Wednesday, Ligue 1’s second-placed side gave Christophe Galtier’s men an overdue wake-up call. With no Neymar at Stade Bollaert Delelis through suspension, Kylian Mbappe … Read more

Koulibaly limited as Chelsea’s aging defense exploited

1:52 PM ET Chelsea started 2023 with a disappointing 1-1 draw against Nottingham Forest at the City Ground on Sunday. Raheem Sterling opened the scoring in the 16th minute, after a ball contested by Willy Boly and Kai Havertz came back off the woodwork and fell to the feet of the England international to tap … Read more

Conte: ‘Crazy’ to expect another Spurs ‘miracle’

play Michallik: It’s getting ugly for Conte at Spurs (1:20)Janusz Michallik sees Tottenham’s top four hopes slipping away after defeat to Aston Villa. (1:20) 4:36 PM ET Tottenham Hotspur manager Antonio Conte claims last year’s top-four finish in the Premier League was “a miracle” and said pre-season expectations of a title bid were ludicrous. Speaking … Read more

Chelsea held by Forest, lose ground on top four

1:28 PM ET Chelsea lost further ground in their battle to make the Premier League top four as they were held to a 1-1 draw by a stubborn Nottingham Forest side. Raheem Sterling put Chelsea ahead at Forest’s City Ground in the 16th minute, before Serge Aurier drew the teams level with an acrobatic finish … Read more

Tottenham dealt blow to top-four hopes by Villa

10:56 AM ET Tottenham Hotspur suffered a blow to their top-four ambitions as they started 2023 with a 2-0 defeat to Aston Villa at home. Hugo Lloris‘ mistake in the build-up to Emiliano Buendia‘s opening goal in the 50th minute set the tone for Tottenham as they conceded first for the 10th game in a … Read more

Iranian police detain footballers in raid at party

11:13 AM ET There has been mass unrest in Iran following the death in custody of Mahsa Amini in September. Christian Charisius/picture alliance via Getty Images Iranian police briefly detained several unidentified top-tier football players in a raid on a party on New Year’s Eve where alcohol was served in violation of an Islamic ban, … Read more