Looking for Soccer News?

Bloemfontein Celtic produced a solid performance in their 1-0 win over SuperSport United in the MTN8 semi-final second-leg match at Dr Molemela Stadium on Saturday afternoon. 

Victor Letsoalo scored the only goal of the match a few minutes after the restart and Phunya Sele Sele will now take part in their second final in 2020 after finishing as runners-up in the Nedbank Cup two months ago. 

Siwelele were coming off a 1-0 defeat to Orlando Pirates in a PSL match on Wednesday, but they had grabbed an away goal in their first-leg clash against SuperSport which ended in a 1-1 draw.

Coach John Maduka recalled the experienced trio of Lucky Baloyi, Ndumiso Mabena and Victor Letsoalo to the starting line-up after they were rested against Pirates as Celtic looked to reach the MTN8 final for the second time.

Meanwhile, Matsatsantsa had secured a morale-boosting 1-0 victory over Stellenbosch FC in a PSL match in midweek after they failed to make the most of home ground advantage against Celtic. 

Maduka's counterpart, Kaitabo Tembo, also made several changes as forwards Thamsanqa Gabuza and Grant Lungu made their return to the starting line-up as the defending MTN8 champions looked to advance to the final.

SuperSport threatened first when the ball fell kindly for Jamie Webber in the box, but somehow the South Africa under-23 international placed his effort wide of the target.

Celtic then took control of the match and they should have been awarded a penalty when Mzwanele Mahashe was bluntly fouled by Bradley Grobler in the box, but the match referee brushed off the appeals.

The hosts continued to push forward in search of the opening goal and they came close to scoring when Letsoalo was afforded space down the left-hand side and his curling effort narrowly missed the target.

Grobler and Gabuza cut frustrated figures upfront as there was no supply for the SuperSport centre forwards due to the fact that Celtic were dominating the midfield battle with Baloyi pulling the strings.

The score was 0-0 at the interval following an evenly matched first-half.

The deadlock was finally broken five minutes into second-half after some quick thinking by Given Mashikinya after the hosts were awarded a free-kick in their own half.

The former Cape Town City midfielder quickly played the free-kick upfront for Letsoalo, who outpaced Siyabonga Nhlapo, before firing past onrushing SuperSport goalkeeper Ronwen Williams to make it 1-0 to Celtic.

Tembo reacted by making a triple substitution as he introduced attackers Iqraam Rayners, Evans Rusike and Kudakwashe Mahachi as the three-time MTN8 champions looked to restore parity.

The momentum was with Matsatsantsa in the closing stages of the match with Gabuza's headed effort being saved by Celtic keeper Jackson Mabokgwane, who also gathered Rayners' scuffed shot.

SuperSport launched late attacks in the closing stages of the match, but they were frustrated by some resolute defending by the hosts and ultimately, Celtic emerged 1-0 winners.

Celtic will now take on either Kaizer Chiefs or Orlando Pirates in the final after winning their semi-final tie 2-1 on aggregate, while the defending champions SuperSport were eliminated from the tournament.  

Quique Setien was looking to “shift responsibility for an awful end of season” in his claims that Lionel Messi boasts too much power at Barcelona, claims Rivaldo, with said accusations being refuted by a Camp Nou legend.

A coach unceremoniously dumped from a prominent post in Catalunya has been discussing his experiences with the Liga giants.

Setien has claimed that mercurial Argentine forward Messi was “difficult to manage”, given how important he is to the collective cause at Barca.

Rivaldo believes better managers would have found a way around any such issues, with a man who flopped badly after being handed the most prestigious of reins considered to be looking for excuses.

The Blaugrana icon told Betfair: “Setien has complained in an interview about Lionel Messi controlling the locker room and having too much say in the club's decisions.

“I have my doubts that Setien's claims are true. But if they were, he should have told the board that he wasn't happy with the situation.

“A manager should always communicate when something is unpleasant for him. Setien shouldn't be trying to shift the responsibility for an awful end of season.”

It remains to be seen how long Messi - who was named on the bench for a meeting with Real Betis on Saturday - will be sticking around at Barcelona, with the six-time Ballon d’Or winner still seeing a move mooted on the back of his efforts to leave over the summer.

Antoine Griezmann is another facing questions of his future, with the France international failing to make the desired impact in Catalunya, but Rivaldo believes the World Cup winner should stick around.

He added: “Antoine Griezmann is still struggling to get things going at Barcelona, but I don't think going out on loan is the right option for him. Barcelona need all parts of their squad and he is one of the best players.

“We've seen good things from Griezmann against Juventus and Alaves this season, so his poor performance against Dynamo Kiev shouldn't detract from that. As players, we all have bad days.

“He needs to build more confidence and start proving his real value as no one doubts his ability.”

Cedric Bakambu registered his 14th goal of the season to help Beijing Guoan secure a 2-1 victory over Shanghai SIPG FC in the first leg of their Chinese Super Lig Championship third-place playoff game on Saturday.

The 29-year-old centre-forward continued with his consistent goalscoring performances for the Imperial Guards at Suzhou Sports Center.

Bakambu was handed his 17th league start and made the most of the opportunity, scoring to help Bruno Genesio’s men return to winning ways after losing against Guangzhou Evergrande.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo international opened the scoring for the Beijing-based club in the 27th minute after he was set up by Gang Wang.

The strike from the former Villarreal forward ensured the Imperial Guards went into the half-break with a 1-0 lead.

After the restart, Beijing Guoan continued to push for more goals and came close to doubling their lead on a number of times.

Their unrelenting effort eventually paid off when Zhongguo Chi scored the second for Beijing Guoan with a fine strike.

Moments before the full-time Quanbo Guo turned the ball into his own net to deny the Imperial Guards an opportunity to keep a clean sheet, although they managed to hold on to their lead and secure victory in the encounter.

Bakambu featured for 75 minutes, made 28 touches on the ball and had a 86% successful pass rate besides his goal before he was replaced by Ziming Wang.

The forward has not only scored 14 goals in the current campaign, but he has also provided five assists in 19 league appearances.

Bakambu will hope to continue his spectacular performances when Beijing Guoan play Shanghai SIPG FC in the second leg of the playoff.  

The attacker will be expected to replicate his spackling showings for the Democratic Republic of the Congo in their Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Angola on November 14 and 17.

Bruno Fernandes scored twice and Edinson Cavani opened his Manchester United account in a 3-1 win at Everton that will ease the pressure on manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

After back-to-back losses to Arsenal and Istanbul Basaksehir, Saturday's Premier League clash at Goodison Park was viewed by some as a must-win match for Solskjaer amid increasing speculation over his future.

Things looked worrying for the Red Devils boss when Bernard put Carlo Ancelotti's side ahead, but Fernandes scored twice before half-time and Cavani struck at the death to deliver three valuable points.

Anthony Martial, back from a three-game domestic suspension, dragged a shot wide from a promising position as United sought a positive start.

The visitors were behind 19 minutes in, though, as Bernard squeezed an effort into the bottom-left corner through Aaron Wan-Bissaka's legs after Dominic Calvert-Lewin had helped on Jordan Pickford's long kick.

Fernandes equalised in the previous meeting at this ground and he drew United level again, powering a header beyond Pickford after running into the box to meet Luke Shaw's delivery.

The Portugal international then put his side ahead, his cross at the end of a 20-pass sequence going in off the right-hand post after Marcus Rashford had tried to glance it in.

United captain Harry Maguire wanted a penalty when Pickford and Michael Keane clashed with him after the Everton goalkeeper had dropped the ball, but neither the officials on the pitch nor those using VAR agreed.

Rashford smashed another strike at Pickford as United failed to find a third goal on the break, although they kept the home side at bay despite the Toffees controlling possession in the second half.

As Everton poured forward in injury time, Maguire's interception sent Fernandes away on the break, and he waited before teeing up Cavani to sweep home.

What does it mean? Solskjaer keeps wolves from the door

Defeat here was highly unlikely to spell an immediate end to Solskjaer's time in charge, but this was an important result to quieten some of the recent mounting criticism.

The fact it came against a side unbeaten in three games against United, at a ground where they lost 4-0 in April last year in their worst display under the Norwegian, made this performance more impressive.

United are on 10 points from seven matches and three behind Everton, whose manager has now suffered three consecutive league defeats for the first time since November 2006, when he was at AC Milan.

Fernandes leads from the front

No player has managed as many goal involvements as Fernandes (15) in their first 10 away matches in the Premier League.

Beyond his double and assist here, he was an important presence in pressing the Everton midfield, winning three tackles – more than anyone else in red.

James kept quiet

James Rodriguez struggled to influence matters from the Everton right, creating no chances and attempting no shots before being replaced by Cenk Tosun.

What's next?

United host West Brom after the international break on November 21. On the same day, Everton travel to Fulham.

Zinedine Zidane believes Real Madrid star Sergio Ramos is the best defender "in history".

The 34-year-old scored his 100th goal for the Spanish champions in midweek when he headed past Samir Handanovic in the 3-2 win against Inter in the Champions League.

The Spain international's current contract expires at the end of the season, but reports in his homeland say the club are set to offer him a two-year extension.

Madrid coach Zidane continues to be impressed by the club captain's exploits and sees him as the best ever in his position.

"The best? He is one of them, of course," Zidane told reporters. "What he has done, what he is, what he has shown in Madrid. I think he is the best in history."

Madrid suffered a setback heading into Sunday's league encounter against Valencia, as winger Eden Hazard and midfielder Casemiro tested positive for Covid-19.

Zidane confirmed the pair are not showing any coronavirus symptoms and says they are dealing well with the situation.

"Well, they're okay I think. They're not happy with what's happened but they're okay and physically they don't have many symptoms, but we know it's tough," he added.

"I left them a message and I'll speak to them later. This can happen and we have to accept that.

"You know what [Hazard] is like as a player. He's a strong player. It's a tough moment with injuries and everything but he's in good spirits, which is important. He has to wait a week now.

"We have to adapt to the situation. We know it could be worse. It happened to [Eder] Militao the other day, to Eden and Casemiro today.

"We have to accept it and keep going forward, because the strength is in the team unit. There are worse things that are happening, people are worse off elsewhere, but it's disconcerting that the training session today has been completely different the day before a game.

"It's disconcerting because you don't know what's going to happen, in what moment you're going to have positives or not and that's what's happened with these two players.

"They are responsible people but unfortunately it's happened. It could be worse. There are people in much worse situations who are really, really suffering outside of football.

"But in the world of football I'm a manager and I prefer to have them available for tomorrow obviously."

Everton’s meeting with Manchester United sparked yet more VAR controversy, with both sides surviving penalty scares as Jordan Pickford and Harry Maguire pushed their luck.

The Toffees took the lead at Goodison Park on Saturday through Bernard and appeared set to pile more pressure on Red Devils boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

Bruno Fernandes was, however, to turn the tie on its head before half-time.

The Portuguese playmaker bagged a brace on Merseyside, further underlining his value to the collective cause at Old Trafford.

The goals dried up after the interval, but there was no shortage of talking points.

Technology remains a source of lively debate in English football, and the latest round of fixtures has delivered more talking points.

Two of those arrived in the second-half at Goodison, with a couple of big penalty shouts falling on deaf ears.

The first saw Everton goalkeeper Pickford fall back under the spotlight.

During a Merseyside derby date in October, the England international clattered into Virgil van Dijk.

The Liverpool defender was left nursing knee ligament damage, but the Toffees shot-stopper faced no action at the time or retrospectively.

He got away with another reckless challenge against United.

The ball squirmed out of his grasp when trying to collect a high, floated cross into the box, with his handling letting him down once again.

As he tried to make amends for his error, Pickford raised a boot into the midriff of Maguire.

The ball ended up looping onto the top of the net and play continued, with VAR taking no further action.

Those at Stockley Park were called into action again shortly afterwards as Maguire slid into a tackle on Lucas Digne.

The Red Devils skipper got a toe to the ball, but also got plenty of his man.

Digne was sent up in the air and left crumpled on the turf, but again the match officials were unmoved.

All contentious incidents are now checked, especially those which could result in a spot-kick, but VAR determined that no foul had been committed.

Solskjaer and Carlo Ancelotti were left ruing those big calls as an eventful contest played its way towards a finish, with Everton finding themselves stuck in a rut and United still searching for much-needed consistency.

Orlando Pirates stand-in coach Fadlu Davids has demanded consistency from forward Zakhele Lepasa ahead of Sunday’s MTN8 semi-final, second leg against Kaizer Chiefs at FNB Stadium.

Lepasa was one of the stars of the reverse leg when he opened the scoring in the 3-0 thumping of Chiefs, with Vincent Pule and Thembinkosi Lorch contributing the other goals.

After joining Pirates from TS Galaxy at the beginning of last season, Lepasa is getting more game time this term.

He has featured in all Pirates matches so far and is expected to start again on Sunday after making the first XI in the midweek 1-0 win over Bloemfontein Celtic.

This season's form comes after he struggled for playing minutes last term where managed just five league appearances for the Soweto giants and Davids has warned the player against dropping in intensity.

“Lepasa is a player with huge potential but he has to keep his feet on the ground,” Davids told Pirates TV.

“One good performance in a derby game. In professional football it is one thing to have a good game in the derby but it’s another thing to be consistent in your performance. And we urge Lepasa to keep his feet on the ground and work hard.

“It is our goal to help him fulfil that potential but it calls for him to be calm, to be clear-structured in his thinking and try to perform in every match not only like a derby, but like it’s your last match.”

With chief striker Frank Mhango out injured, goal expectations on Lepasa, as well as other attackers Kabelo Dlamini, Lorch and Pule, are huge.

While Pirates would be out to defend what looks like a healthy 3-0 lead against Chiefs, Davids says they are still in pre-season mode and would not want to overwork players.

“No we are not thinking about the final as yet. It’s like any other match,” said Davids.

“Every match as a coach you want to win, you want to do your best, you want to prepare the team as much as you can with all details. Not to overload players but give them the right information at the right time and it’s not different to this.

“We have to prepare them from the thinking side, not to be complacent but go into the match with a right amount of attention in the game. Not to relax or be too nervous. That’s what we prepare for to ultimately get the result.

“We are playing so many matches within week five of our pre-season if you want to be realistic. Normally we have six weeks of pre-season and we are in week five now. Already we are being asked to play three games a week.

“It’s understandable, we knew it but we wanted to keep some consistency and get some fluidity in the team especially with the new players coming in.”

Former Arsenal forward Lukas Podolski has criticised the club and coach Mikel Arteta for their treatment of out-of-favour midfielder Mesut Ozil.

Ozil, 32, has not made a senior appearance for Arsenal since March and has been left out of the squad for the Premier League and Europa League this season.

The midfielder made headlines for his refusal to accept a pay cut during the coronavirus crisis before publicly offering to pay the wages of the club's mascot after he was reportedly made redundant.

Mikel Arteta said at the end of October that he "tried to give him as many opportunities" to Ozil to win back his place in the squad, but Podolski says his former team-mate has been treated unfairly. 

"I don't know the background, but I generally think with a player who is now in his sixth or seventh year with the club, to kick him completely out of the squad... that’s absolutely not okay," he told Bild .

"You don’t do something like that, and I don’t know if something happened in the background or not but even if he’s done something, you don’t do it.

"He's shown his class on the pitch, he's never been negative towards his colleagues or the club. It's sad because everyone's losing in this situation. It should not end this way. Arsenal as a club have not looked positive in this situation over the last months."

Ozil's situation has been a big talking point in the media, with the Germany international the subject of severe criticism from many ex-Arsenal players  and pundits over the past 12 months.

But former Arsenal captain Laurent Koscielny voiced his support, describing him as "a very good person".

"As a player, he is in my opinion a phenomenon. He can find passes that no one sees, he’s a maestro," he told L'Equipe. "He can rock a game with incredible passes.

"We’re both part of the ‘Arsene Wenger Generation’. The coach loved him as a player. It was more complicated with Unai Emery and Mikel Arteta."

Meanwhile, Ozil's agent criticised the Arsenal boss for his handling of the situation, telling ESPN: "Arsenal fans deserve an honest explanation, not [Arteta] saying: 'I failed Ozil'. You didn't fail Ozil: you failed to be fair, honest and transparent and treat someone with respect who has a contract and was loyal all the time.

"Every single person outside knows he hasn't treated him fairly. He didn't give him a chance to show himself this season."

The Ghana Women's Premier League (GWPL) has announced that the 2020/21 league winners will walk away with a whopping GHC50,000 (8,500 dollars) in prize money and 40 gold medals.

Ghana Football Association (GFA) president, Kurt Okraku on Friday, confirmed the new prize money during a meeting held in Accra as part of the build-up to the new women's league season.

According to Okraku, the league runners-up will pocket GHC 30,000 along with 40 silver medals and the team finishing third will secure a cool GHC 15,000 and 40 bronze medals.

The president further disclosed that 16 teams competing in the top-flights will be afforded a shopping voucher worth GHC2,000 from the GFA's partners, Melcom Ghana. 

The GFA supremo also announced that the coaches of the two teams to finish the season on top in each of the women's league zones will be going to a coaching program outside the country. 

The Ghanaian women's top-flight is yet to produce champions since Ampem Darkoa ladies defeated Lady Strikers 1-0 to emerge the winners of the 2017-18 season due to a match-fixing scandal.

Following a resumption in January, the 2019-20 women's league season was called off after 10 weeks of fixtures due to the global health crisis arising from the coronavirus outbreak.

The GFA, however, had disclosed in September that the 2020-21 GWPL start date has been scheduled for January 2. 

A seven-member board set up for the women's league, is headed by Hilary Boateng, along with Rosalind Amoh, Nana Aba Anamoah, Cleopatria Nsia and Jerry Dugbatey among the members.

Ajax centre-forward Lassina Traore has been announced as the winner of the Eredivisie Player of the Month award for October.  

The 19-year-old attacker delivered eye-catching performances in the month under review for the Sons of the Gods.

The forward played a key role as Erik ten Hag’s men secured three consecutive wins against Heerenveen, VVV Venlo and Fortuna Sittard.

Traore was involved in eight goals against VVV, bagging five goals and three assists to help his side clinch a record 13-0 victory in the encounter.  

The Burkina Faso international, thus, became one of the top three youngest players with five goals in a single Eredivisie game.  

Traore’s performances contributed to his side’s current top spot on the league table after gathering 18 points from seven games.

He has now been rewarded for the scintillating displays, scooping the best player of the month in the division.  

The forward has found the back of the net seven times and provided five assists in 12 appearances across all competitions in the current campaign.

The young attacker played for Rahimo in Burkina Faso and Ajax Cape Town in South Africa before moving to Europe to continue his development, joining Ajax in 2017.

Two years after his arrival at Johan Cruyff Arena, the forward was promoted to the first team and made his debut against Utrecht in the Eredivisie.

Traore has since featured in more than 20 appearances across all competitions for the first team of the Sons of the Gods.

The centre-forward will hope to play a part when Ajax take on Utrecht in their next league game on Sunday.

Thereafter, he will be expected to help Burkina Faso in their Africa Cup of Nations qualifying games against Malawi on November 12 and 16.

Arsenal winger Willian is confident his side can win the Premier League within the next two seasons.

It has been 16 years since the Gunners last lifted the English top-flight crown and they currently sit ninth in the table after seven games this term - four points behind leaders Southampton and Liverpool.

Willian, who joined the north London side on a free transfer from Chelsea in the summer transfer window, believes head coach Mikel Arteta has a strong squad at his disposal and expects them to mount a serious challenge for silverware.

"Arsenal have a great coach and a great chance to fight for titles," he told the Daily Mail . 

"We can win the league. Maybe not this time but next time. I'm motivated to have more success."

After losing to Manchester City and Leicester in the league, Arsenal bounced back last Sunday with a 1-0 win against Manchester United at Old Trafford.

"That was a great victory at United and important for me to be part of as I know I have to impose my quality on the team," Willian said. "That victory was a big step.

"The squad is good with great, young talent but they also need experienced players who have won things. It is not easy or quick to change a mentality but we are on the way."

He continued: "Clubs wanting to fight for titles can't drop points like that [against Leicester] when they are dominant. We need to win those games but we are on the way. I know we are. The next week we beat United. That tells you a lot."

The 32-year-old Brazil international has faith in coach Arteta and expects the former Arsenal midfielder to become a top manager.

"It's because of his ideas. The way he sees football is different. The structure, the way he talks, his advice. It's unique. He will be one of the best I think," he said.

"He just wants me to be the same player I was at Chelsea. Take the ball and go one on one. Dribble, take shots. But with his ideas and instructions I can get better."

Former Sofapaka FC striker Ronald Okoth has advised Football Kenya Federation (FKF) Premier League newbies to make their signings wisely.

Despite winning the first leg 2-1, Kisumu All-Stars could not protect their advantage as they lost 2-1 in the return fixture and thus the tie ended at 3-3 after the two-legged affair, prompting the match referee to order for penalties in which Vihiga triumphed 5-3.  

The promoted side have until Friday, November 13 to strengthen their team ahead of the forthcoming campaign.

"[Vihiga United] should definitely do their signings wisely," Okoth told Goal on Saturday.

"It is important to maintain the chore or backbone of the team, take players they will not be used on loan to different teams, and sign a few experienced and quality players.

"They should also make sure their inexperienced young players also get to gain the much-needed experience by getting regular playing time.

"Then it is also important to have a club philosophy that identifies them as Vihiga and stick to it."

Vihiga United are making a return to the top-tier for the second time following an unsuccessful 2018/19 campaign. What should they do to safeguard their status and avoid heartbreaking relegation?

"I think they have learned from their previous mistakes and are coming back, a much more different side than that one that was relegated," Okoth continued.

"Counting on their experience, trusted soldiers, and approaching every game at a time will help them amass maximum points they need in order to secure their status in the league.

"Once beaten twice shy, I am certainly sure they learned from their previous mistakes and are coming back ready to fight in every game. Celebration time is overtime for them to get to work." 

The promotion of Vihiga completed the set-up of the FKF Premier League which will have 18 teams and is now penciled in to kick off on November 20.  

Nairobi City Stars and Bidco United were the first to be promoted after finishing the abandoned 2019/20 National Super League (NSL) season in the first and second positions respectively. 

They took the positions of Chemelil Sugar and Sony Sugar who were relegated.

Real Madrid have confirmed that Eden Hazard and Casemiro have tested positive for coronavirus.

The Spanish champions tested their players for Covid-19 ahead of the Liga match against Valencia on Sunday.

Hazard, who has featured in just three games in 2020-21 after missing the first weeks of the campaign with an injury, will face another spell on the sidelines after receiving a positive coronavirus test result.

The Belgian winger and Brazil international Casemiro, who has not missed a match in all competitions this term, trained with their team-mates on Friday in preparation for the trip to the Mestalla.

However, the pair returned positive tests and will now be unavailable, with Madrid confirmed that all other players had tested negative.

A statement from the club read: "Real Madrid CF announces that our players Casemiro and Hazard have given positive results in the Covid-19 tests carried out on Friday morning.

"All the other players and the coaching staff of the first team, as well as all club employees who work directly with them, gave negative results in that same test carried out yesterday. 

"Likewise, it is confirmed again that all, except for Casemiro and Hazard, have given negative results in the antigen tests carried out this morning."

Earlier this week, Los Blancos defender Eder Militao was found to have tested positive for Covid-19 and missed the Champions League win against Inter on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, last week three members of the club's Castilla side also returned positive coronavirus tests, with one further test returning an inconclusive result.

The weekend encounter against Los Che is Madrid's last before the international break.

Zinedine Zidane's side will be without right-backs Dani Carvajal and Alvaro Odriozola as well as centre-back Nacho due to injury. 

Lucas Vazquez is expected to keep his place at right-back as a result, while Vinicius Junior, who replaced Hazard in the second half against Inter, could be called in to start on the left wing.

Madrid are second in the Spanish top-flight after seven matches and one point behind leaders Real Sociedad, who have played one more game.

Valencia, meanwhile, are 13th in the table having taken just one point from their last four games in the league.

Molde striker Leke James has described Arsenal centre-back David Luiz as ‘an intelligent player’ after he gave him a tough time in Thursday’s Europa League outing at the Emirates Stadium.

James was introduced as a 74th-minute substitute for Erling Moe's side in their 4-1 defeat to the Gunners.

He struggled to make an impact in the encounter, however, despite his confrontation with Luiz, he revealed they made up at the end of the encounter with a conversation.

“I didn't get too much engagement, but David Luiz was difficult to beat for the few minutes I played, he's an intelligent and very experienced defender,” James told Goal.

“I had a conversation with Luiz at the end of the game. He likes me and my style of play, and he gave me some words of encouragement.”

Martin Ellingsen gave the visitors an early lead at the Emirates Stadium with his long-range strike in the 22nd minute but Arsenal equalised on the stroke of half-time after Kristoffer Haugen turned the ball into the back of his own net.

Arsenal turned the game around after the restart with Sheriff Sinyan scoring another own goal in the 62nd minute while Nicolas Pepe's 69th-minute strike and Joe Willock's goal in the 88th minute completed the rout.

Thursday’s result was Molde's first loss in the competition after victories against Rapid Wien and Dundalk, and James believes they have learnt their lessons after making 'a lot of mistakes'.

“When we scored the first goal, we were hopeful that we could do more but one of my centre-backs got injured so he couldn't continue the match, it's part of it and one or two mistakes,” he continued.

“It was a good experience for me, playing against one of the best teams in the world. We made a lot of mistakes which we need to correct but there are some positives we took away from the game. Arsenal are more experienced than us but at the end, it was a good game against a strong team.”

The Nigerian forward has been in fine form in the Eliteserien this term with nine goals in 16 games as Molde aim to retain the top-flight title they clinched last season.

When asked about his lack of goals in the Europa League, the 28-year-old who is yet to start a game in the competition, said; “The selection process could be a part of it, but I can't give that as an excuse. As far as I get some minutes in the game, I try to do my best.

“My target is to score as many goals as possible to help the team because that's what strikers are known for. I always want to do better in every season by beating my previous records. I also want to play in the biggest stage of football.”

Molde were on course to play in the Champions League this season but they lost to Hungarian club Ferencvaros on away goals in the play-off round (the last stage in the qualifiers).

“It was very painful and I had to forget it because we were very close to the group stage,” James said.

The Kaduna-born star is focused on maintaining his impressive form in the Norwegian top-flight when second-placed Molde host Kristiansund for their league fixture on Sunday.

Simba SC official Haji Manara has claimed they will easily carry the day in the Mainland Premier League derby if they use their scoring chances against Young Africans (Yanga SC) on Saturday.

The two Tanzanian giants will face off for the first Kariakoo Derby this season with Yanga sitting ahead of Simba in the 18-team league table.

And ahead of the clash, Manara has now said they have a better squad than that of their opponents and has further explained that they will carry the day if they use their chances created.

“We all know the difficulties of playing in a derby, and we know our rivals will come to spoil our style of play by applying bad tactics and using force, but all said and done, we will play our usual passing game and you know how many chances we can create in a single match,” Manara wrote on his social media pages.

“We will not underrate our opponents, we will just play our game, and one thing that I know, if we use our chances, then we will win the game very early, it will be a done game if we use our chances well.

“At the end of the day, the winner will be the team which prepared well, and we have done enough preparations and also the team with a good squad, and you know very well Simba have the best squad in Tanzania, so we will win the derby, without fear.”

With reports emerging that Simba will miss key players – Clatous Chama and Chris Mugalu - for the derby, Manura has assured their fans that they will still have a good squad to do the job.

“Our team is unshakable, we have a good squad, we don’t need to fear because two or three players are missing, the coach knows his job well, we want Simba fans to come in large numbers and support the team.

“We are the defending champions and we are also keen to defend the title again, so as the champion, you must make sure that you will win your matches, including the derby, so we don’t fear anyone, we have set our targets for the season and we must achieve them.”

Last season, the two giants met three times, with the first round ending in a 2-2 draw before Yanga turned on the screw to win the second round fixture 1-0. They again faced off in the semi-finals of the FA Cup where Simba won 4-1.

The Wekundu wa Msimbazi then went ahead to seal a season double – winning the Community Shield, the league, and the domestic cup – after beating Namungo FC 2-1 in the final played in Sumbawanga, Rukwa.

Twente defender Tyronne Ebuehi and Ajax forward Lassina Traore have been included in the Dutch Eredivisie Team of the Month for October.  

Ebuehi delivered outstanding performances for Ron Jans’ men in the month under review as he featured prominently in their games against FC Emmen, Willem II, FC Utrecht and PEC Zwolle.

Besides his solid defensive showings, the right-back also grabbed an assist in his side’s second win in October against the Bluefingers.

Ebuehi’s fine displays helped the club to their current sixth place on the league table after gathering 14 points from seven games.

Burkina Faso international and Ajax centre-forward Lassina Traore has also been named among the best players in the month under review.

The 19-year-old delivered sizzling performances for the Sons of the Gods, scoring five goals to help his club secure three wins in four games in October.

Ebuehi joined Ajax in the summer on a season-long loan from Benfica after overcoming a career-threatening injury.

The defender did not make a single league appearance for the Portuguese side before he signed for Twente with an option of making the deal permanent.

The right-back has now made eight appearances for the Reds across all competitions since his arrival at De Grolsch Veste.

Ebuehi will be expected to be on parade in their next league game against his former club ADO Den Haag on Saturday.

The right-back, who was one of the stand-out players for the Super Eagles at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, earned a recall to the national team for their friendlies against Algeria and Tunisia in October.

The defender has also been included in Gernot Rohr’s side that will take on Sierra Leone in an Africa Cup of Nations qualifying game on November 13 and 17.

Italy head coach Roberto Mancini has tested positive for Covid-19, the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) has revealed, while Roma striker Edin Dzeko has also contracted the virus.

Mancini underwent routine testing ahead of the Azzurri squad meeting up on Sunday for their upcoming triple-header of fixtures.

The FIGC said the 55-year-old is asymptomatic and is self-isolating at home.

A statement read: "As part of the periodic controls undertaken by the FIGC on the Italy coaching staff ahead of the coming break for UEFA competitions, head coach Roberto Mancini tested positive for Covid-19.

"He remains asymptomatic and, in compliance with the active guidelines, the Azzurri head coach went into self-isolation at his home in Rome. The FIGC notified local health authorities in good time.

"Mancini will be able to join the squad at Coverciano once he has completed the necessary procedures, as outlined by the Uefa Return to Play and FIGC protocols."

Italy host Estonia in a friendly on Wednesday before taking on Poland and Bosnia-Herzegovina in their final set of Nations League fixtures on November 15 and 18 respectively.

Although they have drawn three of their last five, Mancini's men are unbeaten in 19 matches since a 1-0 loss to Portugal in September 2018. The Azzurri are second in Group A1, one point below Poland and one above the Netherlands.

Meanwhile, Dzeko announced on Friday that he has also returned a positive coronavirus test, though he says he is showing no symptoms.

"Hello everyone, unfortunately I am positive for Covid-19 and as you know I will have to respect the quarantine period," the 34-year-old wrote in an Instagram post.

"I want to reassure everyone who knows me, fortunately I have no particular symptoms.

"For a few days I will be forced to stay away from my team-mates, but with my mind and heart I will stay with them, starting on Sunday."

Roma, who are eighth in Serie A with 11 points from six matches, have an away match against Genoa on Sunday in their last game before the international break.

The news regarding Dzeko and Mancini comes after numerous other players in Italy's top-flight have tested positive for coronavirus since the start of the 2020-21 campaign, including the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Paulo Dybala.

Genoa, meanwhile, recorded 22 positive cases from players and staff at the club back October, forcing their game against Torino to be temporarily postponed.