By Abdelaziz Abuhamar
January 18 – With the Group Stage of the UAE Asian Cup 2019, statistics having come to an end, statistics show that players wearing shirt number 19 are topping the goal scoring list so far in the continental competition.
January 18 – Jose Mourinho has broken his silence since being sacked by Manchester United last month after the club’s worst start in decades, saying he will return as a top-flight manager and that his legacy will be defined by his trophies.
January 18 – Barcelona could be thrown out of the Copa del Rey for fielding suspended defender Chumi Brandariz (pictured) in their last-16 first leg defeat after opponents Levante said they would lodge a complaint with the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF).
January 18 – Europe’s 710 top-division clubs earned a record €20.11 billion in revenues between them in the 2017 financial year although almost half of that amount was accrued by just 30 of them, according to UEFA’s annual Club Licensing Benchmarking report.
January 18 – A Ghanaian undercover journalist has been shot dead following an exposé about a massive corruption scandal in African football.
By Abdelaziz Abuhamar
January 18 – Two goals from Almoez Ali, the young Qatari striker who is rapidly becoming the star of this tournament, made many personal, national and continental records as well as setting a number of new Qatar records.
January 17 – AS Monaco’s Russian president Dmitry Rybolovlev has committed to the long term future of the club with a spend of €55 million on key infrastructure projects, the centerpiece of which will be Center for Sporting Excellence at La Turbie FC.
January 18 – Germany’s FC Köln has bought into esports team SK Gaming alongside sponsor Mercedes-Benz. No value was given for the investment.
By Paul Nicholson and Samindra Kunti
January 17 – Ali Almoez delivered another powerful goal scoring performance inspiring Qatar to a resounding 2-0 win over a solidly organised but rarely threatening Saudi Arabia. Qatar top Group E unbeaten and now face Iraq in the last 16.
January 17 – On a day of heartbreak, tears and joy at the Asian Cup Oman and Vietnam booked spots among Asia’s last 16 as Lebanon, Palestine, Turkmenistan and North Korea crashed out and waved goodbye to the tournament.
January 17 – The Saudi Arabian FA was giving tickets away in hotels in Abu Dhabi prior to the kick off the top of the table group clash between them and Qatar tonight.
January 17 – Following weeks of protests over gender discrimination, thousands of women attended Wednesday night’s controversial Italian Supercup final between Juventus and AC Milan in Saudi Arabia – but all of them were reportedly chaperoned by men or accompanied by male children.
January 16 – Attempts to arrest Nigerian FA chief Amaju Pinnick, a strong ally of FIFA president Gianni Infantino, and four other NFF board members on allegations of corruption have been suspended according to local reports.
January 17 – In what is becoming something of an embarrassment for the richest league in world football, a second high-profile media executive has turned down the chance to become the new head of the English Premier League.
January 17 – The preventive detention of Sandro Rosell, the former Barcelona strongman who is accused of money laundering related to television rights and sponsorship of the Brazilian national football team, is the longest in Spanish judicial history for an alleged economic crime according to local reports.