Kick Off: AFCON 2025 Best XI announced; Barça beat Slavia Braha away

Welcome to All Football's Kick Off, we bring you all important news in the past 24 hours. Make sure you do not miss out.

Top Headlines

2025 Africa Cup of Nations Best XI: Mane leads the team, Salah omitted

On January 21, the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations Team was announced. Sadio Mane, the tournament's best player, leads the team, with Diaz, Lookman, Osimhen, and Hakimi among those selected. 

Slavia Praha 2-4 Barcelona: Fermín, Olmo & Lewy score to seal comeback win

Fermin Lopez scored twice as Barcelona beat Slavia Prague to boost their chances of moving straight into the last 16 of the Champions League.

Match Reports

Marseille 0-3 Liverpool: Szoboszlai's stunner sees Liverpool slot into top eight

Liverpool moved up to fourth in UCL table with a straightforward 3-0 victory over Olympique de Marseille, extending their unbeaten run to 13 games across all competitions.

Chelsea 1-0 Pafos FC: Caicedo scores winner as Enzo's goal is disallowed

Chelsea beat Champions League minnows Pafos to keep their hopes alive of finishing in the top eight - but it took 77 minutes to break down the Cypriot side through Moises Caicedo's diving header.

Galatasaray 1-1 Atletico: Early goals see points shared, Llorente nets own goal

Atletico Madrid squandered an opportunity to cement their position in the top eight of the Champions League after a 1-1 draw with Galatasaray.

Newcastle 3-0 PSV: Wissa, Gordon & Barnes score as hosts move into top 8

Newcastle United clinched a Champions League last 16 play-off spot following a comfortable win against PSV Eindhoven.

Juventus 2-0 Benfica: Hosts secure place into knockouts as Thuram & McKennie net

Juventus beat SL Benfica 2-0 at the Allianz Stadium to keep their hopes of qualifying automatically for the round of 16 of UCL alive.

Bayern 2-0 Union Saint-Gilloise: Kane brace seals a top-8 spot for Bavarians

Bayern Munich secured their place in the top eight of UCL league phase with a game to spare after a 2-0 win over Royale Union Saint-Gilloise, sending the Belgian side’s remote hopes of play-off qualification to the final matchday.

Atalanta 2-3 Athletic Club: Hosts misses the chance to seal a last-16 spot

Athletic Club staged a remarkable comeback to recover from a goal down and beat Atalanta 3-2 in UCL, with just a second win in 12 away games against Italian opposition reigniting their qualification hopes.

Damac 1-2 Al Nassr FC: Visitors rise back to second place as Ghareeb and CR7 net

Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 16th Saudi Pro League goal of the season as Al-Nassr defeated Damac 2-1 on Wednesday to make it back-to-back victories.

These Things Happen

Here we go! Romano: Rayan joins Bournemouth for €35 million

On 21 January, according to Romano, Rayan joins Bournemouth for €35 million.

Meet 9 POTMs of this UCL Round 7 Matchday 2! Who is YOUR PICK?

Another UCL Matchday is over and the competition just went fierce! Let's see who our 9 POTMs today are and how they peroformed!

L'Equipe: Each Senegalese player received €115,000 & 1,500 square meters of land

According to the latest report from L'Équipe, the President of Senegal has gifted each player on the Senegalese national team a bonus of €115,000 and 1,500 square meters of land.

Chelsea in fight with Man Utd and Liverpool for next-big-thing left back

The transfer window is open and here are today's developments from Daily Mail Sport's Simon Jones.

Daily Mail: Chelsea also puts an eye on Alvarez, may compete with PSG and Barca

According to the Daily Mail, Chelsea has recalled Fofana and plans to sell the forward, while also  monitoring Atlético Madrid striker Julián Álvarez, potentially taking action in the summer.

Man City's captains raised money to pay for tickets for fans traveling to Norway

According to the latest report from the Manchester Evening News, Manchester City's captains have pooled together nearly £10,000 to pay for the tickets for the traveling fans.

Vinicius's UCL goal tally equals Kaká's, placing him 2nd among Brazilian players

In Real Madrid's 6-1 victory over Monaco last night, Vinicius Junior scored a goal for the home team. With this goal, Vinicius equaled his Brazilian predecessor Kaká in Champions League goals, ranking joint-second among Brazilian players, only behind Neymar's 43 goals.

Carrick is in high demand after proving his quality with a derby victory

Carrick's impressive coaching ability has led to a flurry of offers following his side's derby win.

What injury does Pedri have? When will he return?

Pedri was not enjoying his night in Prague. The sub-zero temperatures and Moses’ tight marking were clearly affecting his game, leading to unforced losses of possession and missed duels. 

What They Say

Schmeichel: "I’m a bit disappointed with the way Ratcliffe running the club."

Manchester United legend goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel is "a bit disappointed" with Sir Jim Ratcliffe's stewardship at Old Trafford.

Gerrard tells Slot to stop moaning about Liverpool's flaws and 'find solutions'

Steven Gerrard has warned Arne Slot to stop moaning about Liverpool's fatal flaw in interviews and challenged him to find a solution.

Gareth Bale on Xabi Alonso’s mistake: “At RM you don’t need to be a coach...”

Xabi Alonso’s departure from the Real Madrid bench is still reverberating. 

Alan Shearer names team that will stop Arsenal winning the Champions League

Arsenal boast a 100 per cent record in this season's Champions League and Alan Shearer has predicted that they'll reach the final, only to be stopped by a familiar foe.

'I didn't want to leave Liverpool but manager had already bought my replacement'

Liverpool face Marseille in the Champions League on Wednesday, and one former Anfield favourite who starred for both clubs explained how he never wanted to leave Anfield

Kroos: If a player has never been booed at Bernabéu, he isn’t truly the top-tier

Toni Kroos addressed Real Madrid's recent ups and downs in his personal podcast, drawing on his own experiences during his time at the club to respond to the phenomenon of booing at the Bernabéu.

Fixtures of the Day

Saudi PL

Al-Qadisiya VS Al-Ittihad Club 2026/01/23 17:30UTC

Al Hilal VS Al Fayha 2026/01/23 17:30UTC

Europa League

Fenerbahçe VS Aston Villa 2026/01/23 17:45UTC

PAOK VS Real Betis 2026/01/23 17:45UTC

BSC Young Boys VS Olympique Lyonnais 2026/01/23 17:45UTC

Bologna VS Celtic FC 2026/01/23 17:45UTC

Roma VS Stuttgart 2026/01/23 20:00UTC

Sporting Braga VS Nottingham Forest 2026/01/23 20:00UTC

Celta de Vigo VS Lille 2026/01/23 20:00UTC

Glasgow Rangers VS Ludogorets 2026/01/23 20:00UTC

Nice VS DVV Go Ahead 2026/01/23 20:00UTC