Sports

Cristiano Ronaldo says it was the right time to seek a new challenge after Manchester United announced he was to leave Old Trafford with immediate effect.

Ronaldo caused a storm last week in an exclusive interview with Piers Morgan, in which he said he felt betrayed by senior figures at the club and spoke of having no respect for manager Erik ten Hag.

United responded by saying they had initiated appropriate steps following the interview, and on Tuesday revealed the club and Ronaldo had gone separate ways by mutual agreement .

Following the news, Ronaldo released a statement of his own, saying: Following conversations with Manchester United we have mutually agreed to end our contract early.

I love Manchester United and I love the fans, that will never ev…

Leeds United owner Andrea Radrizzani has defended a club tweet that appeared to mock former England international Karen Carney.

Speaking during Amazon Prime s coverage of Leeds impressive 5-0 win at West Brom on Tuesday, Carney suggested Leeds benefitted from the coronavirus-induced Championship shutdown in March on their way to claiming the title and a place in the Premier League.

Carney said: [Leeds] outrun everyone and credit to them. My only concern would be: Would they blow up at the end of the season?

We saw that in the last couple of seasons and I actually think they got promoted because of Covid in terms of it gave them a bit of respite. I don t know whether they would have gone up if they didn t have that break.

Leeds official Twitter account …

Hwang Hee-chan ended his four-month goal drought to help inspire Wolves to a 2-1 victory over relegation-threatened Luton Town at Molineux on Saturday.

Hwang opened the scoring late in the first half at the end of a lightning counterattack, his strike deflecting off Teden Mengi and nestling in the bottom corner.

A clever set-piece routine allowed Wolves to double their lead after 50 minutes as Toti Gomes nodded in from Mario Lemina s cross, though Luton set up a grandstand finish when Carlton Morris fired home.

However, they failed to find an equaliser in the final 10 minutes plus stoppage time and stay 18th, one point adrift of Nottingham Forest in 17th. Wolves, meanwhile, move into the top half with 46 points.

Luton started brightly and Ross Barkley ca…

West Brom centre-back Jonas Olsson is yet to settle a new contract with the club, according to his manager Steve Clarke.

Olsson s current deal expires next summer, and his club are keen to tie him to a new deal after the decision to not cash in on him during the last transfer window.

The club are still talking to Jonas, Clarke said. The chairman (Jeremy Pearce) and Dan Ashworth (sporting and technical director) are in negotiations.

With almost 150 appearances to his name since signing for West Brom from NEC Nijmegen in 2008, Olsson has formed a decent partnership with Gareth McAuley in the early stage of the campaign, and Clarke is hoping the defensive duo can remain intact.

Jonas respects the fact we are keeping him for the last year of his contrac…

Lyon are through to their 11th Women s Champions League final after sealing a 5-3 aggregate victory over compatriots Paris Saint-Germain.

The record eight-time winners scored three times in the final 10 minutes of last week s first leg to take a narrow 3-2 lead into the return fixture at Parc des Princes.

However, they were quicker out of the blocks in the second leg, with just three minutes on the clock when Selma Bacha drilled home from range for her first Champions League strike in five-and-a-half years.

Tabitha Chawinga responded before the break to reduce PSG s aggregate deficit to a single goal, but Melchie Dumornay put the tie beyond doubt nine minutes from time, as Sonia Bompastor s side set up a final showdown with Barcelona on May 25.

FINALISTS<…

Gareth Bale insisted any political statement from Wales would take place outside of the game as manager Rob Page suggested Germany lost focus during the OneLove armband saga.

Wales and Germany were two of the teams set to support the OneLove campaign, which promotes inclusion and sends a message against discrimination of any kind .

But FIFA threatened sporting sanctions – expected to be yellow cards – if their captains wore armbands carrying the logo, prompting those involved to back down.

Germany responded with a unique protest, covering their mouths for a pre-match team photo against Japan in reference to FIFA denying us a voice .

However, Germany then lost to Japan in a result that puts them at risk of elimination already.

Die Mannschaft co…

AC Milan edged Zenit St Petersburg 3-2 in an enthralling Champions League encounter in Russia on Wednesday.

Massimiliano Allegri s men made a great start and were up 2-0 in the space of three first-half minutes through Urby Emanuelson and Stephan El Shaarawy.

However, Hulk dragged Zenit back into the game with a fine strike just before the break before then setting up Roman Shirokov for the equaliser early in the second half.

Milan were not done, though, and they snatched a precious win courtesy of an unfortunate own goal by Tomas Hubocan that condemned Zenit to a first home defeat in UEFA competition since September 2008.

The visitors needed some luck to break the deadlock 13 minutes into the Group C clash, with Vyacheslav Malafeev unable to change di…

Porte Alegre-native and Tigres UANL forward Rafael Sobis is bracing himself for a hostile reception when he returns to boyhood club Internacional.

Internacional welcome big-spending Mexicans Tigres to the Estadio Jose Pinheiro Borda for Wednesday s Copa Libertadores semi-final first leg in the Brazilian city of Porto Alegre.

Tigres trip to South America marks a return for Brazilian Sobis, who emerged from Inter s youth ranks in 2004 and spent two-and-a-half years at the club before moving to Real Betis.

The 30-year-old later returned to Inter on loan from Al-Jazira in 2010-11.

Sobis, who scored a goal and assisted another as Tigres overcame Emelec 2-1 on aggregate in the quarters in May, is not expecting to be cheered by the home crowd.

The first…

Liverpool defender Daniel Agger could face a long time out of action, according to Reds manager Brendan Rodgers.

Agger was injured in a clash with team-mate Glen Johnson and stretchered off after the right-back subsequently conceded a penalty that Robin van Persie converted to seal Manchester United s 2-1 victory over Liverpool.

After the game Rodgers revealed that the Liverpool physios suspected that the 27-year-old had suffered damage to the knee and did not sound hopeful about his prospects of a quick return to action.

Daniel Agger we ll need to wait and see, he told reporters.

It didn t look so good with his knee, and some of the medics were saying he may have a problem with his medial ligament, but we ll to assess that over the next 24 hours and …

Newcastle face the prospect of three successive league defeats in a season for the first time in four years when they visit Southampton.

Alan Pardew s side have lost to West Ham and Swansea in recent weeks as they struggle to reach the lofty heights of 2011/12.

The last time a Newcastle side lost more than two games in a row in an English Premier League season, they lost four against the likes of Hull City and Blackburn in 2008.

And they are set to do battle with promoted Southampton for the first time since club legend Alan Shearer netted his 400th career goal in Newcastle s 2-1 victory at St James Park in 2005.

Despite their recent form, Newcastle are unbeaten in the last eight games against Southampton in all competitions.

Demba Ba has led the…