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Napoli Club, Fans Pay Tribute to Maradona on 4th Anniversary of his Death

(FILES) Gimnasia y Esgrima team coach Argentinian former football star Diego Armando Maradona gestures during an Argentina First Division Superliga football match against Godoy Cruz at Malvinas Argentinas stadium in Mendoza, Argentina, on October 05, 2019. (Photo by Andres Larrovere / AFP)
(FILES) Gimnasia y Esgrima team coach Argentinian former football star Diego Armando Maradona gestures during an Argentina First Division Superliga football match against Godoy Cruz at Malvinas Argentinas stadium in Mendoza, Argentina, on October 05, 2019. (Photo by Andres Larrovere / AFP)
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Napoli Club, Fans Pay Tribute to Maradona on 4th Anniversary of his Death

(FILES) Gimnasia y Esgrima team coach Argentinian former football star Diego Armando Maradona gestures during an Argentina First Division Superliga football match against Godoy Cruz at Malvinas Argentinas stadium in Mendoza, Argentina, on October 05, 2019. (Photo by Andres Larrovere / AFP)
(FILES) Gimnasia y Esgrima team coach Argentinian former football star Diego Armando Maradona gestures during an Argentina First Division Superliga football match against Godoy Cruz at Malvinas Argentinas stadium in Mendoza, Argentina, on October 05, 2019. (Photo by Andres Larrovere / AFP)

Napoli fans and club officials paid tribute to Diego Maradona on the fourth anniversary of his death, flocking to murals of the Argentina great around the city on Monday.
Napoli coach Antonio Conte, captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo and president Aurelio De Laurentiis laid flowers at two of the murals, while fans gathered below the huge mural of Maradona in the Quartieri Spagnoli that acts as an unofficial museum to Maradona, The Associated Press reported.
Fans chanted Maradona’s name and lit smoke in the blue color of the shirt Maradona wore both with Napoli and Argentina.
Maradona died at 60 on Nov. 25, 2020 of a heart attack, two weeks after being released from a hospital in Buenos Aires following brain surgery.
He led Napoli to its first two Serie A titles in 1987 and 1990 and the club's stadium was renamed Stadio Diego Armando Maradona upon his death.
Napoli won its third Italian league title in 2023 and again leads Serie A this season.

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Iraq Coach Arnold Undecided on Future Beyond World Cup

Football - FIFA World Cup - Inter-Confederation Playoffs - Final - Iraq v Bolivia - Estadio Monterrey, Monterrey, Mexico - March 31, 2026 Iraq coach Graham Arnold before the match. (Reuters)
Football - FIFA World Cup - Inter-Confederation Playoffs - Final - Iraq v Bolivia - Estadio Monterrey, Monterrey, Mexico - March 31, 2026 Iraq coach Graham Arnold before the match. (Reuters)
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Iraq Coach Arnold Undecided on Future Beyond World Cup

Football - FIFA World Cup - Inter-Confederation Playoffs - Final - Iraq v Bolivia - Estadio Monterrey, Monterrey, Mexico - March 31, 2026 Iraq coach Graham Arnold before the match. (Reuters)
Football - FIFA World Cup - Inter-Confederation Playoffs - Final - Iraq v Bolivia - Estadio Monterrey, Monterrey, Mexico - March 31, 2026 Iraq coach Graham Arnold before the match. (Reuters)

Iraq coach Graham Arnold said ‌his future beyond the World Cup remains undecided as his contract ends after the tournament and no formal talks have yet taken place, though retirement is not on his mind.

The 62-year-old Australian, who took charge of Iraq in May of last year, said he was keeping his options open and wanted to focus fully on the World Cup, where the team will make its first appearance in 40 years.

"The book is ‌open. My ‌contract finishes straight after the World ‌Cup. ⁠There has been ⁠talk about them wanting me to stay on, but I haven't had anything formal yet," Arnold told AAP.

"I really don't want anything formal yet. I want to go to the World Cup and enjoy it and after that I've got to make a decision whether ⁠to stay on or move on."

Arnold, ‌who guided his native Australia ‌to the round of 16 at the 2022 World Cup ‌in Qatar, said the prospect of leading teams ‌that have struggled to reach major tournaments continues to motivate him.

"There's some nations that I look at and I think to myself, they haven't qualified for a long time, I'd ‌like to do it again," he said.

"I've obviously had the experience throughout Asia, ⁠but I'm ⁠nowhere near ready to retire."

Iraq qualified for the World Cup by beating Bolivia 2-1 in Mexico in their inter-confederation playoff earlier this month.

Arnold said Iraq's qualification campaign had reinforced his belief that the team could trouble more-established sides on the global stage.

"We're going out there with nothing to lose and everything to gain, and with the chance to shock the world," he said.

"We'll be the underdog. We'll be fighters. If no one is giving us a chance, we can go there and achieve something special."

Sports

Liverpool Targets Famous Champions League Comeback Against PSG

13 April 2026, United Kingdom, Liverpool: Liverpool manager Arne Slot attends a press conference at Anfield, ahead of Tuesday's UEFA Champions League soccer match against Paris Saint Germain. Photo: Peter Byrne/PA Wire/dpa
13 April 2026, United Kingdom, Liverpool: Liverpool manager Arne Slot attends a press conference at Anfield, ahead of Tuesday's UEFA Champions League soccer match against Paris Saint Germain. Photo: Peter Byrne/PA Wire/dpa
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Liverpool Targets Famous Champions League Comeback Against PSG

13 April 2026, United Kingdom, Liverpool: Liverpool manager Arne Slot attends a press conference at Anfield, ahead of Tuesday's UEFA Champions League soccer match against Paris Saint Germain. Photo: Peter Byrne/PA Wire/dpa
13 April 2026, United Kingdom, Liverpool: Liverpool manager Arne Slot attends a press conference at Anfield, ahead of Tuesday's UEFA Champions League soccer match against Paris Saint Germain. Photo: Peter Byrne/PA Wire/dpa

Liverpool is aiming for another famous Champions League comeback against Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday.

The six-time European champion trails 2-0 after the first leg of the quarterfinal in Paris. But it is hoping for the type of Anfield night that saw it rout Barcelona 4-0 in the semifinals in 2019 to overturn a 3-0 first leg loss.

“There is a belief that we can do special things . . . but we need to be very, very, very special," coach Arne Slot said ahead of the match, according to The Associated Press. “We know we need an exceptional performance to go through to the next round.”

Defending champion PSG totally dominated the first leg last week and could have ran up a more commanding lead if it had taken its chances.

Coach Luis Enrique warned his team about the potential to slip up with the semifinals within touching distance.

“You need to be really careful, there could be pitfalls and it could be a trap,” he said.

“Everyone says, ‘You won (the first leg) easily and you were much better than (the) opposition.’ It might be the case but things can change so quickly in a football match.”

Barcelona must also overturn a 2-0 first leg loss against Atletico Madrid if it is to advance to the semifinals.

Sports

Asian Champions League to Expand from 24 to 32 Teams

Football - Asian Champions League - Final - Al Ahli v Kawasaki Frontale - King Abdullah Sports City, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia - May 3, 2025 The Asian Champions League trophy is display inside the stadium before the match. (Reuters)
Football - Asian Champions League - Final - Al Ahli v Kawasaki Frontale - King Abdullah Sports City, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia - May 3, 2025 The Asian Champions League trophy is display inside the stadium before the match. (Reuters)
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Asian Champions League to Expand from 24 to 32 Teams

Football - Asian Champions League - Final - Al Ahli v Kawasaki Frontale - King Abdullah Sports City, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia - May 3, 2025 The Asian Champions League trophy is display inside the stadium before the match. (Reuters)
Football - Asian Champions League - Final - Al Ahli v Kawasaki Frontale - King Abdullah Sports City, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia - May 3, 2025 The Asian Champions League trophy is display inside the stadium before the match. (Reuters)

The Asian Champions League is set to expand from 24 to 32 teams, the region's governing body for football said Tuesday, adding it will "promote inclusivity and excellence".

The move will take effect from next season once it is signed off by the Asian Football Confederation's executive committee, the AFC said, hailing it as a "landmark expansion".

The group phase of the continent's top club competition is split into two sections, East and West, before going into the knockout rounds.

The structure will remain broadly the same, but the two groups will from 2026-27 increase from 12 to 16 teams each.

The top six in each group will automatically progress to the last 16 while clubs in seventh to 10th will go through to a newly established knockout stage playoff.

The tournament has been branded the AFC Champions League Elite since 2024/25.

The last 16 and quarter-final matches in the 2025/26 campaign take place this week in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.