Ghana s hopes of reaching a fourth straight World Cup seems fading away after being held at home to a 1-1 draw by Congo on Friday.

Egypt produced another lackluster display yet to lose top spot in their World Cup qualifying group following a surprise 1-0 defeat at Uganda, giving a lifeline to Ghana who have a chance to revive their hopes of reaching next year s Russia finals. Emmanuel Okwi, Uganda s liveliest performer, sent the home fans to raptures when he eluded tame challenges from a couple of Egypt defenders to fire a low shot into the bottom corner from inside the area six minutes after the break.

Tottenham Hotspur completed the signing of Ivory Coast right back Serge Aurier from French club Paris St Germain, the Premier League side said on Thursday. The deal for the 24-year-old, reported to be around 25 million euros ($30 million), had been in doubt because a criminal conviction had delayed Aurier s work permit application.

The Egyptian national team headed to Alexandria s Borg El-Arab stadium on Tuesday afternoon to begin their trip to Uganda s Kampala, ahead of the much-anticipated 2018 African World Cup qualifier. The two nations will face-off Thursday at the Mandela National Stadium, five days before the second-leg in Alexandria. The Pharaohs team showed up in full for their final training session on Tuesday morning, with 29 players taking part.

Arsenal have turned down a notional offer of 50 million pounds ($64.6 million) for Chilean forward Alexis Sanchez from Premier League rivals Manchester City, the London club said on Tuesday. English newspapers had linked Sanchez with a move to Pep Guardiola s side in exchange for England forward Raheem Sterling.

German prosecutors have charged a man accused of bombing Borussia Dortmund s team bus in April with attempted murder. Dortmund prosecutors said they filed the indictment at the city s state court Tuesday. The 28-year-old suspect, who has been identified only as Sergej W. in line with German privacy laws, is charged with 28 counts of attempted murder, two counts of bodily harm and setting off an explosion.

Italy coach Giampiero Ventura believes that the transfer market should close before the start of the season, he said on Monday. Ventura said that uncertainty over the situation of a number of players had made it difficult for him to pick the squad for Saturday s World Cup qualifying showdown away to Spain, their most important match since Euro 2016.

Change happens in the blink of an eye at Real Madrid and time may be running out for Gareth Bale. The Welsh forward netted the team s first goal of the league season against Deportivo La Coruna as the European champions put in a commanding performance to win 3-0 on the opening weekend. Seven days later, however, Bale was whistled off by fans at the Santiago Bernabeu after Zinedine Zidane substituted Madrid s record signing against Valencia with the scores level at 1-1 as they chased a winner in the final 15 minutes.

Barcelona sporting director Robert Fernandez hinted on Monday that he is negotiating with Liverpool over Philippe Coutinho and hoped to complete a deal before the transfer window closes. After signing Ousmane Dembele from Borussia Dortmund for a fee which could rise to 147 million euros ($176 million), Fernandez announced his intention to bring two more players to the Nou Camp.

Egypt and Algeria failed to qualify for the 2018 African Nations Championship (CHAN) finals in Kenya after suffering aggregate defeats to Morocco and Libya respectively.

Ahmed Hegazi’s error brought West Bromwich Albion’s perfect start to the Premier League season to an end on Sunday as Tony Pulis’s men were held 1-1 by Stoke City.

FIFA said Tursday it was investigating Brazilian superstar Neymar s complaint over an unpaid loyalty bonus from Barcelona in the increasingly bitter feud with his former club since his move to Paris Saint-Germain. A FIFA spokesman said the complaint was "pending and being investigated" and he could not comment any further. Barcelona are refusing to pay a 26-million-euro ($30.6 million) bonus to Neymar for signing a five-year contract renewal last year.

Egypt s Mohamed Salah was on target as Liverpool convincingly defeated Hoffenheim 4-2 at Anfield on Wednesday to reach the Champions League group phase for only the second time since 2010. Germany midfielder Emre Can found the net twice in the opening 21 minutes, either side of Salah s first Anfield goal following his move from Roma, before substitute Mark Uth replied for the visitors. Hoffenheim old boy Roberto Firmino netted a fourth goal in the second half and Sandro Wagner s late header proved anecdotal as Jurgen Klopp s men completed a 6-3 aggregate victory.

Former England captain Wayne Rooney announced his retirement from international football on Wednesday, ending a 14-year career in which he became the country s top goalscorer with 53 goals. Rooney earned his first cap against Australia in 2003 at the age of 17 years and 111 days to become the youngest player, at the time, to represent the national side. The 31-year-old also leaves as England s most-capped outfield player with 119 appearances. "Having already thought long and hard, I told (England manager) Gareth (Southgate) that I had now decided to retire for good from international football," Rooney said in a statement on his website (www.officialwaynerooney.com).

The Ministry of Youth and Sports intends to implement, 16 projects at an investment cost of EGP 380m during the current fiscal year (FY). Daily News Egypt met with Adel Radwan, the head of the Central Department of Sports Investment at the Ministry of Youth and Sports, as well as Mohamed Hamdy, general manager of investment, finance, and asset management at the same ministry to discuss the sports investment plan this year. What is the size of the financial allocations for the Ministry of Youth and Sports during the current fiscal year. How will that be spent? Radwan: The allocations of the Ministry of Youth and Sports amounted to EGP 400m in the state budget for the current FY. This includes EGP 380m to implement 16 projects under the Central Administration of Sports Investment, as well as EGP 20m to develop some youth centres.

Barcelona are suing Neymar for 8.5 million euros for alleged breach of contract and demanding he return the loyalty bonus paid after he renewed his deal in October, less than a year before he signed for Paris St. Germain, the club said Tuesday. The Catalans are asking for an additional 10 percent payment due to a delay in their demands being met, after presenting the Brazilian striker with them on Aug. 11.

Wayne Rooney scored his 200th Premier League goal in Everton s 1-1 draw at Manchester City on Monday and gave another display which showed his career is far from over. Rooney s 35th minute goal looked to have earned Everton a surprise victory at the Etihad Stadium before substitute Raheem Sterling volleyed in an 82nd minute equalizer. Although he did not end as the match-winning hero, Rooney was able to savor the moment he became just the second player to reach 200 Premier League goals.

Manchester United midfielder Nemanja Matic is enjoying the positive dressing room atmosphere at his new club and believes that such team spirit will help the club cope with pressure over a long season. United have won each of their first two Premier League games 4-0 and are top of the table on goal difference. Their dominance against West Ham United and Swansea City earned praise and fuelled fans hopes of a first league title since 2013. .

Liverpool must rotate their squad this season if they are to sustain their challenge in both the Premier League and the Champions League, manager Juergen Klopp has said. Klopp made five changes to the starting lineup for Saturday s 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace, a game sandwiched in between two legs of their Champions League playoff against Hoffenheim.

Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino refused to blame the club s Wembley hoodoo for their 2-1 Premier League defeat to Chelsea on Sunday. Spurs had hoped to mark a new era at their temporary home by turning it into the sort of fortress they had constructed at White Hart Lane, where they last lost a league game in May 2015.

In an almost full stadium, hundreds of passionate fans gathered supportingly screaming the names of their favourite players, while these players families silently stood praying for their win. Only a few meters down them, fighters played for winning the title of Egypt s second Muay Thai championship. While stress dominated the scene, and second heavily passed witnessing serious injuries of some fighters, almighty cheering voices raised every few minutes to announce getting one of the players to finals.