Solskjaer speculation puts Pochettino back in frame to takeover at Man Utd
October 6 – The transfer window may have slammed shut but the biggest deal of all could involve a possible new manager at Manchester United.
Liverpool hattrick as Shaqiri joins Mane and Alcantro after testing positive
October 6 – As a second spike of Covid-19 threatens to sweep through Europe, Xherdan Shaqiri has become the third Liverpool player to test positive in the space of a week.
Fan fears allayed as Maradona returns negative test
October 6 – Diego Maradona has tested negative for Covid-19 amid fears he had contracted the virus after hugging a colleague.
FIFA on African manoeuvres in bid to get their man Drogba up front in FIF elections
By Paul Nicholson
October 5 – FIFA’s involvement in Africa’s football politics and the election of its officials has again caused resentment on the continent with the world governing body this time stepping into the Côte d’Ivoire presidential election furore surrounding Didier Drogba.
Mayhem and madness as Liverpool and Man Utd thrashed by Villa and Spurs
By Andrew Warshaw
October 5 – It was, as one national newspaper put it, the day football went crazy. What a shame there were no fans to see it live.
Conmebol revamps Copa Sudamericana adding teams and a group stage
October 5 – The Copa Sudamericana will feature a group-stage format for the 2021 season, Conmebol has announced.
AFC rebrands championships under ‘Asian Cup’ banner from 2021
October 5 – The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has renamed its age group competitions to become AFC Asian Cups from 2021. The Asian Cup naming convention will also be rolled out across the confederations Futsal and Beach Soccer competitions.
Iran’s Persepolis beat Saudi’s Al Nassr on penalties to reach Asian Champions League final
October 5 – Persepolis became the first team to reach the final of this season’s Asian Champions League after defeating Al Nassr from Saudi Arabia on penalties in the last four.
Coronavirus: Stay-at-home Napoli set to forfeit Juventus match
October 5 – One of the biggest games in European domestic league football was plunged into chaos on Sunday when visitors Napoli failed to turn up for their Serie A showdown with Juventus after their squad was placed in isolation following positive coronavirus tests.
£10m bail-out gets National League up and running
October 5 – English football’s National League – immediately below the four main divisions – returned at the weekend thanks to a £10 million rescue package from the government which allowed the delayed season to finally kick off behind closed doors.
Valencia look to AR app to build insight and closer connection to fans
October 5 – LaLiga’s Valencia have taken a deeper step into the digital world with a two-year partnership agreement with Canadian augmented reality specialists ImagineAR.
UEFA relaxes attendance rules to allow 30% capacities, local authorities permitting
October 2 – Building on the success of the recent Super Cup, UEFA have made the landmark decision to allow limited numbers of spectators back into all its international and club fixtures.
Stadium naming rights are football’s largest unexploited money opportunity, finds report
By Paul Nicholson
October 2 – Clubs looking for financial relief for their coronavirus hit income streams should look harder at the revenue that can be generated from selling the naming rights to their stadia, according to a new report from the KPMG Football Benchmark team.
AC Milan go through in Europa League after 24-penalty shoot-out
October 2 – AC Milan, the fallen giants of European football, needed a nerve-wracking 24-penalty shootout against unheralded Portugal side Rio Ave on Thursday to squeeze into the Europa League group stage.
UCL draw pits Messi vs Ronaldo. Bayern and Liverpool get easier group paths
October 2 – European champions Bayern Munich were handed a kind draw in the Champions League with Atletico Madrid, Salzburg and Lokomotiv Moscow, but all eyes will be on the clash between Messi’s FC Barcelona and Juventus’ Cristiano Ronaldo.