English Clubs

LONDON — Dele Alli and Gareth Bale staked their claims for places in Tottenham Hotspur's first team with superbly-taken goals in a 4-0 victory over Austrian club Wolfsberg in the Europa League last 32 second leg on Wednesday.

Alli has fallen down the pecking order under manager Jose Mourinho, not starting a Premier League game since the opening day of the season, but was clearly in the mood to impress.

The midfielder produced a sensational overhead kick in the 10th minute to give his side the lead on the night, after they won the first leg 4-1 in Budapest.

Marcelo Bielsa's continuity in the Leeds United bench is on hold, after the Argentine coach himself addressed the issue with some caution.

"The first thing I want to point out is that it seems to be the chairman who is offering me an extension and I am delaying it; it could be interpreted as the club having more desire for me to stay than me and that is not the case," the 'Loco' pointed out at a press conference.

LONDON — Already in a league of their own when it comes to sustainability in sport, innovative English soccer club Forest Green Rovers will trial a kit made from coffee bean waste on Saturday.

Rovers, owned by 'green energy' entrepreneur Dale Vince, will road test the prototype in their League Two clash against against Colchester United.

The club in leafy Gloucestershire has used a strip made from bamboo for two years, but the brains at kit partner PlayerLayer believe they have found a better alternative.

He’s a big beefcake who peaked late, so Olivier Giroud was never going to be given the credit he deserves. But the World Cup winner has scored and created enough golazos that what he did on Tuesday was not at all surprising. 

LONDON - West Ham United claimed fourth spot in the Premier League as goals early in each half by Michail Antonio and Jesse Lingard earned them a nervy 2-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.

Their seventh win in their last nine league games moved West Ham two points above Chelsea in their mounting challenge for a Champions League spot while Tottenham have slumped to ninth.

LIVERPOOL, England — Everton enjoyed their first Premier League win at Liverpool since 1999 with a 2-0 victory at Anfield condemning Juergen Klopp's fading champions to a fourth straight home defeat.

The win moved seventh-placed Everton, who had not won in 20 attempts in the league against their Merseyside rivals, level with Liverpool on 40 points.

While the victory boosts Everton's hopes of making a push for a top four Champions League place, it continues the stunning collapse in form for last season's champions.

BUDAPEST - Gareth Bale scored one goal and created another as Tottenham Hotspur enjoyed a 4-1 win in the first leg of their Europa League last-32 clash with Austrian side Wolfsberg on Thursday.

The Welshman, whose starts have mainly been limited to the Europa League since returning to Spurs on loan from Real Madrid in October, set up Son Heung-min for his side's opener.

Wolverhampton Wanderers striker Raúl Jiménez has returned to training after his recovery from an operation on his fractured skull but his return to the team will not be rushed, manager Nuno Espírito Santo said on Thursday.

Jiménez was taken to hospital after a clash of heads with Arsenal defender David Luiz during a match in November and the club were initially not optimistic about the Mexican's return to action this season.