European Super Football

Crystal Palace 1 - 0 Ipswich Town Ismaila Sarr’s late strike proved the difference as Crystal Palace edged past Ipswich Town in a scrappy contest at Selhurst Park, making it four wins in a row for the Eagles. Author - Peter Grainger  Stadium - Selhurst Park This was Palace’s first game without key striker Jean-Philippe Mateta, who was sidelined after suffering a nasty head injury in last weekend’s FA Cup victory over Millwall . The Frenchman required 25 stitches following a collision with goalkeeper Liam Roberts. Without their focal point up front, Palace struggled for fluidity in attack, but Sarr stepped up in the 82nd minute, weaving his way into the box before lifting a clever finish over Alex Palmer to seal the points. The game was short on quality at times, though Palace started brightly. Just two minutes in, Adam Wharton played a superb through-ball to Eddie Nketiah, but the striker could only fire straight at Palmer. Click here for more Crystal Palace news and stories Ip...

Sunderland 1 - 2 Sheffield Wednesday Sunderland reignited automatic promotion chances with a crucial win at Sheffield Wednesday, thanks to a brace from Eliezer Mayenda. Author - Peter Grainger Stadium - Hillsborough After back-to-back defeats against Leeds United and Hull City, the Black Cats desperately needed three points. They took the lead in controversial fashion during the first half, as Mayenda appeared to control the ball with his arm before slotting home. Wednesday hit back early in the second half through Callum Paterson’s header, but 19-year-old Spanish forward Mayenda, starting in place of top scorer Wilson Isidor, nodded in the winner to secure a vital victory. Sunderland remain fourth in the Championship, five points behind second-placed Sheffield United, though they have played a game more. For Sheffield Wednesday, it was a third consecutive defeat, leaving them 13th in the table, six points adrift of the play-off spots. Their hopes of breaking into the top six are n...

Do Newcastle United need a new goalkeeper? It has been reported that Newcastle United are pursuing a deal to sign Burnley goalkeeper James Trafford, amid concerns about the long-term future of current first choice keepn Nick Pope. Author - Peter Grainger Trafford's best moments for Burnley? Some media outlets have reported that a deal will be a simple one for Newcastle to pull off if Scott Parker’s Burnley side fail to earn promotion back to the Premier League.  Trafford has been identified as the Magpies’ top target to replace their current goalkeeper. This is despite a few apparent concerns about his command of the penalty area.  It is believed that Newcastle scouts have been impressed with what they have seen this season and believe he has developed well since leaving Manchester City for his current side. Premier League Match Report | Newcastle 4 - Forest Find more Newcastle news and stories here Amid speculation about the future of Pope at St James’ Park, he could be o...

Crystal Palace v Aston Villa preview Crystal Palace and Aston Villa will both be looking to make it successive Premier League victories when they meet at Selhurst Park on Tuesday evening. Author - Peter Grainger Palace, currently 13th in the table, head into the game on the back of a 2-0 win over Fulham on Saturday, while Villa, sitting in eighth, edged past Chelsea 2-1 later that day. The Eagles are six points adrift of 10th-placed Fulham, having finished in that position last season. A lack of goals has hampered their progress this term, but there is still plenty of time to turn things around. Oliver Glasner’s side claimed victory at Craven Cottage thanks to a first-half own goal from Joachim Andersen, before Daniel Muñoz secured the points in the 66th minute. That result means Palace have won three of their last four games in all competitions, although all of those victories have come away from home. At Selhurst Park, they have struggled, losing their last two league matches aga...

Newcastle United 4 - 3 Nottingham Forest Alexander Isak netted his 50th Premier League goal as Newcastle United produced a blistering first-half display to overcome Nottingham Forest at St James’ Park. Author - Peter Grainger Stadium - St. James' Park Forest took an early lead when Callum Hudson-Odoi capitalised on a defensive slip, but Newcastle responded in devastating fashion, scoring four times in an electrifying 11-minute spell to take a commanding 4-1 lead into the break. Teenager Lewis Miley and Jacob Murphy struck in quick succession to turn the game on its head, before Isak bagged a rapid-fire brace to pile more misery on the visitors. His second – his 19th of the season – saw him reach the 50-goal milestone in just 76 Premier League appearances, a feat achieved quicker by only six players in the competition’s history. Forest did show some fight after the break, with Nikola Milenkovic pouncing on a defensive lapse to pull one back. Then, in the 90th minute, substitute...

QPR 4 - 0 Derby County Derby County endured a humbling return to the Championship relegation zone after a crushing defeat at QPR in John Eustace’s first game back in charge. Author - Peter Grainger Stadium - Loftus Road A stunning strike from Ilias Chair set the tone before Koki Saito’s second goal of the season gave the hosts full control by half-time. Chair then doubled his tally from close range, and Ronnie Edwards marked his loan spell from Southampton with a debut goal, heading in QPR’s fourth. Jerry Yates thought he had grabbed a late consolation, only for his effort to be ruled out for offside, as Marti Cifuentes’ side emphatically ended a run of two successive defeats. Eustace’s nightmare start  The new managee barely had time to settle back into the dugout following his move from Blackburn Rovers, confirmed just a day earlier, before witnessing his side’s frailties exposed. After a quiet opening spell, Derby fell behind to a spectacular long-range effort from Chair...

Club Brugge 2 - 1 Atalanta  Gustaf Nilsson won and converted a controversial late penalty as Club Brugge edged past Atalanta in the first leg of their Champions League knockout play-off. Author - Peter Grainger Stadium - Jan Breydelstadion The Belgian champions started brightly and got their reward when teenage winger Chemsdine Talbi pounced on a loose pass before setting up Ferran Jutgla, who fired a right-footed shot into the top left corner after 15 minutes. Atalanta hit back just before half-time, with Croatia international Mario Pasalic nodding in Davide Zappacosta’s cross from the left. However, deep into stoppage time, Swedish defender Isak Hien was penalised for holding off his fellow countryman Nilsson with his arm. After a VAR check, Turkish referee Halil Umut Meler upheld his decision to award the penalty. A fascinating encounter in Belgium. eurosuperfootball.blogspot.com youtu.be/ciZwuAcTHgA?... [image or embed] — European Super Football ( @superfootball.bsky.soc...

Is this a good temporary signing for Graham Potter's side? West Ham have secured the loan signing of Brighton striker Evan Ferguson for the remainder of the season. Author - Peter Grainger Check out some of his best moments for Brighton. The 20-year-old Republic of Ireland forward will be reunited with Graham Potter, the manager who handed him his senior debut at Brighton back in 2021. Ferguson has struggled for game time this season, making just 15 appearances—11 of which have come from the bench. He has also spent recent weeks sidelined with an ankle injury but made his return on Saturday, coming on in the 73rd minute during Brighton’s humiliating 7-0 defeat at Nottingham Forest. His only goal this season—and his first since November 2023—came in a 2-2 draw with Wolves back in October. Click here for the latest transfer news from European Super Football West Ham are in need of attacking reinforcements, with Jarrod Bowen, Niclas Füllkrug, and Michail Antonio all currently side...

Sporting 1 - 1 Bologna Sporting CP scraped through to the Champions League knockout stages with a 1-1 draw at home against Bologna, who had already been eliminated. Author - Peter Grainger The Portuguese league leaders had endured a tough run in Europe, losing three consecutive matches after winning three of their first four. All three defeats came following the departure of manager Rúben Amorim to Manchester United. Bologna nearly took an early lead when Sam Beukema’s header struck the bar from a corner. However, they didn’t have to wait long, as Tommaso Pobega turned in Beukema’s flicked header to put the Italian side in front. Click here to discover more Champions League news and stories from European Super Football . Sporting pressed for an equaliser in the second half and eventually found one when Conrad Harder slotted home João Simões’ cut-back from close range. With results elsewhere going in their favour, a draw was enough to see Sporting through to the play-off round, wher...

Benfica 4 - 5 Barcelona Barcelona overcame two separate two-goal deficits to secure a breathtaking victory over Benfica. Author - Peter Grainger The match at Estádio da Luz started disastrously for the visitors as Greek forward Vangelis Pavlidis netted a stunning 30-minute hat-trick. The first came from a well-placed cross by full-back Álvaro Carreras, while two further goals were gifted by errors from Barcelona's Polish goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny. Robert Lewandowski, however, kept Barca in contention with a first-half penalty after Alejandro Balde was fouled. Barcelona fought back after the break, with Raphinha and Lewandowski scoring either side of an unfortunate Ronald Araújo own goal to leave the score at 4-3. But the drama was far from over. Eric García equalised with a late header, and just when it seemed the game would end in a draw, Raphinha capitalised on a rapid counter-attack in the 96th minute. The Brazilian slotted past Anatoliy Trubin, leaving the home fans stun...

West Ham United 0 - 2 Crystal Palace Jean-Philippe Mateta's double secured a vital away win for Crystal Palace against West Ham in the Premier League. Author - Peter Grainger Mateta opened the scoring after latching onto a superb through ball from Eberechi Eze, calmly slotting it low past Hammers goalkeeper Łukasz Fabiański into the bottom corner. Late drama unfolded with two minutes to go when Mateta played a neat pass to Eddie Nketiah, who was clattered by Fabiański in the box. Mateta stepped up for the resulting penalty, and although Fabiański got a touch, the ball squirmed under him to seal the victory for Palace. The match saw more frustration for West Ham, who were reduced to 10 men in the 80th minute. Konstantinos Mavropanos was shown a second yellow card after tangling with Mateta and catching him in the face with a high boot. The win moves Palace up to 12th in the table, while West Ham slip to 14th, sitting just a point behind their opponents. Premier League: 2024/2025 s...

Bournemouth 5 - 1 West Bromwich Albion Bournemouth delivered a dazzling comeback to beat managerless West Brom 5-1 and secure their place in the FA Cup fourth round, with Dango Ouattara netting twice. Author - Peter Grainger The Baggies, under caretaker boss Chris Brunt, struck first when Caleb Taylor reacted quickest to head in a rebound after Grady Diangana's shot crashed off the bar. However, Bournemouth's Premier League class soon showed. Justin Kluivert equalised, pouncing on a parried save from David Brooks' effort to slot home from close range. Kluivert then turned provider, threading a clever reverse pass to Ouattara, who fired past the keeper from a tight angle to make it 2-1. Ouattara added a second before the break, finishing off a swift counter-attack after being played through by Brooks. The goals kept coming in the second half, with Brooks setting up substitute Antoine Semenyo to smash in Bournemouth’s fourth shortly after his introduction. There was still...

Sheffield United 1 - 1 West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion secured their first point since Carlos Corberán's departure on Christmas Eve, courtesy of Karlan Grant’s late first-half equaliser against Sheffield United at Bramall Lane. Author - Peter Grainger Sheffield United initially took the lead through homegrown talent Andre Brooks, who netted a beautifully crafted first goal for the club. Despite the draw, the injury-hit Blades returned to the top of the Championship, at least temporarily, ahead of Leeds United’s late kick-off at Derby. However, just as in their 2-2 stalemate at The Hawthorns three weeks earlier, Sheffield United’s hopes of victory were dashed by another deflected goal involving Tom Fellows. For the managerless Baggies, the result capped off a mixed 2024. They end the year in eighth place, 13 points adrift of the top spot, having led the league back in mid-September. This was their 12th draw in 24 league games, following a four-match streak of two win...

Bournemouth 0 - 0 Crystal Palace Bournemouth extended their unbeaten Premier League run to six games but were left frustrated with a goalless draw at home to Crystal Palace. Author - Peter Grainger Buoyed by a stunning 3-0 victory over Manchester United in their previous outing , the Cherries looked to build on their push for European football. They created the better chances but struggled to find a clinical edge in front of goal. Andoni Iraola's side came close to breaking the deadlock in the first half when Antoine Semenyo hooked a shot towards goal from a corner, only for Ismaila Sarr to clear off the line. Moments later, Sarr thought he had put Palace ahead after a solo run and finish, but the offside flag denied the visitors. The game was open and fast-paced, with both teams pressing high and attacking in numbers. Bournemouth had the lion’s share of opportunities and looked more likely to score, but their efforts couldn’t prevent a Boxing Day stalemate. Despite 18 atte...

December 2007: Chelsea 4 - 4 Aston Villa Seventeen years ago, Gareth Barry's late penalty rescued a dramatic draw for Aston Villa in what was a truly remarkable match. Author - Peter Grainger What happened in the match? The tone for a dramatic match was set from the outset as Chelsea made a sloppy start and early mistakes by full-backs Ashley Cole and Paulo Ferreira saw Ashley Young and Gabriel Agbonlahor drag efforts narrowly wide. Shaun Maloney eventually fired Villa into the lead with a volley before Petr Cech’s blunder gifted him a second. However, Zat Knight’s red card swung the momentum, allowing Andriy Shevchenko to convert a penalty. Shevchenko then powered in an equaliser, and Alex smashed Chelsea into the lead. But Villa fought back, with Martin Laursen levelling the score before Ricardo Carvalho was sent off for a reckless challenge. Michael Ballack’s superb free-kick looked to have sealed the win for Chelsea, but Gareth Barry kept his cool to make it 4-4 after Ashl...

Real Madrid 1 - 2 Chelsea Substitute Catarina Macario scored twice from the spot as Chelsea overturned a deficit to defeat Real Madrid and secure their place in the Women’s Champions League quarter-finals as Group B winners. Author - Peter Grainger Real Madrid appeared poised to claim top spot after Scotland forward Caroline Weir’s early strike, which deflected off Lucy Bronze , found its way past Hannah Hampton despite the goalkeeper getting a hand to it. Facing her first potential loss since taking charge of the Blues in the summer, Sonia Bompastor made a decisive half-time substitution, bringing on US international Catarina Macario for the ineffective Mayra Ramirez. Macario made an immediate impact. After seeing one effort ruled out for offside and narrowly missing the target with another, she earned and converted her first penalty in the 51st minute after being brought down by Olga Carmona. Carmona, who famously scored the winner in Spain’s 1-0 victory over England in the 2023...

Let's explore a couple more match reports from another dramatic weekend in English football's 2nd tier. QPR 3 - 0 Norwich City Author - Ajay  Teenager Rayan Kolli stole the spotlight with his first senior goals as Queens Park Rangers ended their long wait for a home victory, defeating Norwich City at Loftus Road. The Algeria Under-20 international, who made his debut against Norwich in last season's EFL Cup, was introduced early as a 13th-minute substitute for the injured Zan Celar. QPR took the lead when defender Jimmy Dunne punished some dismal defending, and Kolli made it 2-0 with a well-taken header deep into first-half stoppage time. EFL: 2024/2025 news and stories Norwich, struggling to make an impact in challenging conditions, offered little threat. Kolli then sealed the win in the second half, capitalising on more defensive uncertainty to score his second and Rangers’ third of the game. It was a Saturday to remember for Kolli and a much-needed boost for QP...

Mallorca 1 - 5 Barcelona Raphinha inspired Barcelona to a resounding win over Mallorca, ending their three-game winless streak in style. Author - Peter Grainger from GMCR Football You can watch the highlights of the match in the video below. The footage is from the FC Barcelona YouTube account. The Brazilian star scored twice in the second half, helping Hansi Flick’s side extend their lead at the top of La Liga to four points over Real Madrid. With the match finely poised at 1-1 at half-time, Raphinha broke the deadlock in the 56th minute, calmly converting a penalty after Lamine Yamal was fouled in the box. The teenage sensation then delivered a stunning assist 18 minutes later, using the outside of his foot to set up his captain, who slotted home his 11th league goal of the campaign. Barcelona sealed the emphatic victory with late goals from substitutes Frenkie de Jong and Pau Victor, who scored twice in quick succession to cap off a dominant second half. It was the perfect resp...

There has the potential to be some classic matches in the FA Cup 3rd round in 2025 Holders Manchester United face a tough test in their quest to retain the up as they have been drawn away to 14-time winners Arsenal. Author - Peter Grainger from GMCR Football Premier League leaders Liverpool have a home tie against League Two side Accrington Stanley. The famous EFL side will be dreaming about what could be one of the greatest upsets of all time. Speaking of potential upsets, Manchester City will host Salford City, the club part-owned by members of the 'Class of 92'. Co-owners Gary Neville, Phil Neville, Nicky Butt and Paul Scholes had some amazing and terrible moments against City. A win for Salford at the Etihad Stadium would potentially top any previous wins against the current Premier League champions.  Tamworth, one of just two non-league teams still in the competition, will welcome Tottenham to their home ground. They will still be celebrating their victory at Burton ...

Oxford United 2 - 6 Middlesbrough Middlesbrough smashed six goals in an away league match for the first time in 64 years, thrashing struggling Oxford United in a dominant display. Emmanuel Latte Lath stole the show with a hat-trick, supported by two goals from the outstanding Finn Azaz and a stunning strike from substitute Tommy Conway. The emphatic victory propelled Boro into the Championship play-off spots, securing their third consecutive win. Author - Peter Grainger from GMCR Football Greg Leigh and Dane Scarlett provided some consolation for Oxford, but the home side’s dismal form continues, with just one win in their last 11 games. The defeat sees them slip to 18th, perilously close to the relegation zone, while Middlesbrough surge into fifth place. The match began tentatively, with both sides cautious in the opening 10 minutes. Boro soon found their rhythm, though, as Azaz teed up Latte Lath for a quick counter-attack, only for United goalkeeper Jamie Cumming to produce a supe...