France

MADRID - Barcelona forward Antoine Griezmann has been spared having to remember three different dates to mark the birthdays of each of his three children — as they were all born on April 8.

When the French World Cup winner confirmed on social media that his wife Erika Choperena had given birth to a baby daughter on Thursday, remarkably it was on the same date as their elder children, Mia (born in 2016) and Amaro (born in 2019).

Kylian Mbappé and Neymar put on a master-class in producing the unexpected on Wednesday, earning PSG three vital away goals at the Allianz Arena in a 3-2 win over world champion Bayern Munich in their Champions League quarterfinal first leg. With those two at their best and Robert Lewandowski out injured, PSG takes Bayern’s crown as the most decisive team on the planet in the final third. 

PARIS — Lille leapfrogged Paris St Germain to grab the lead in Ligue 1 on Saturday after Jonathan David found the back of the net in a 1-0 win over the French champions, who had Neymar sent off in the last minute.

Canada striker David scored in the first half to put the northerners on 66 points with seven games remaining, three ahead of PSG who were lacklustre throughout the showdown.

Neymar was sent off when he picked up a second yellow card for shoving Tiago Djalo, who reacted with a foul-mouthed rant and was also shown a red card.

After over two years away from the France national team, Ousmane Dembélé is back in the side and back on the scoresheet in France's 2-0 win over Kazakhstan on Sunday. 

Before this week's World Cup qualifier against Ukraine, the 23-year-old's last appearance for Les Bleus had come in November 2018. A series of injuries and the form of other attackers had seen Didier Deschamps either unable or unwilling to select the Barcelona forward. Since his last appearance in a UEFA Nations League game against the Netherlands, Dembélé has missed more than 50 games through injury. 

Former France international Thierry Henry said on Friday he will be disabling his social media accounts to protest against the platforms for not taking action over anonymous account holders who are guilty of racism and bullying online.

Former Arsenal and Barcelona striker henry, who has 15 million followers across Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, said the platforms needed to tackle these issues with the same effort they put into taking down material that infringes copyright.

A relegation six-pointer in Ligue 1 produced a serious Puskás Award candidate on Sunday as Lorient’s Armand Laurienté struck a 40-yard free kick that both salvaged a draw for his side and kept them out of the relegation zone at the expense of Nantes.

Randal Kolo Muani had given Nantes an early lead, and it looked as though they’d secure the three points which would push them up to 17th while dropping Lorient into 18th (the relegation playoff place). 

Holder Bayern Munich will face the team it beat in last year's Champions League final in this season's quarterfinals after being paired with Paris Saint-Germain in Friday's draw.

In the other standout tie of the last eight 13-time champions Real Madrid faces six-time winner Liverpool in a repeat of the 2018 final won by the Spanish club.

Runaway Premier League leader Manchester City, seeking its first Champions League title, will play Borussia Dortmund, with the winner to face Bayern or PSG in the semifinals.

PSG and Brazil star Neymar will become the first athlete to be part of the popular video game Fortnite, Epic Games announced.

As part of the launch of the sixth season of the "Primal" game, players will be able to fight as Neymar as they compete to win it all in Battle Royale.

https://t.co/JFX4mjHj6l

— Neymar Jr (@neymarjr) March 13, 2021

Paris Saint-Germain will increase security at the homes of members of its squad after Sunday's robbery at the home of Argentine winger Ángel Di María and that of the father of Brazilian defender Marquinhos.

The case of Di María, whose home was already raided in 2015 when he was playing for Manchester United, occurred while the attacker was playing against Nantes. Warned by sporting director Leonardo, the footballer left the field and the Parc des Princes.