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Brighton secured a place in the knockout stages of the Europa League after Joao Pedro’s second-half penalty earned an unconvincing 1-0 victory away to 10-man AEK Athens. In-form forward Pedro converted his fifth goal of the competition in the 55th minute to guarantee the Seagulls a top-two finish in Group B. Albion were second best before the VAR-awarded spot-kick and fortunate not to fall behind in the closing stages of the first half when AEK forward Steven Zuber struck a post. The lively hosts were forced to play the final 25 minutes a man down following Mijat Gacinovic’s dismissal for a second yellow card. Roberto De Zerbi’s men will vie for first place in the pool – and automatic qualification for the last 16 – when Marseille visit the Amex Stadium in the final round of fixtures in two weeks’ time. Brighton’s maiden European campaign was launched with an underwhelming 3-2 defeat to the Greek champions in September. Yet the Premier League club arrived at the AEK Arena in control of their own destiny thanks to a battling comeback draw in Marseille and back-to-back wins over Ajax. Head coach De Zerbi made four changes from Saturday’s 3-2 success at Nottingham Forest, including recalling match-winner Pedro, and saw his injury-hit side start in the ascendancy. Evan Ferguson was twice blocked as he threatened inside two minutes, while AEK defender Domagoj Vida came close to a calamitous own goal with a firm back pass which had goalkeeper Cican Stankovic scampering across his line. But the disjointed Seagulls faded from the encouraging start and were in regular danger of falling behind. AEK forward Zuber forced Albion keeper Bart Verbruggen to turn over a powerful drive before heading narrowly wide from the resultant corner. Brighton were then lucky not to concede just before the break amid relentless home pressure. Switzerland international Zuber worked space inside the 18-yard box with quick feet before seeing his angled drive deflect off Lewis Dunk and rattle the left post, with Gacinovic unable to head home the rebound. Verbruggen was forced to save from Gacinovic after the restart before Brighton snatched the lead against the run of play during a pivotal spell in the contest. Swiss referee Sandro Scharer initially waved play on when Pedro went to ground under pressure from AEK captain Damian Szymanski before pointing to the spot after viewing a replay of the incident on the pitch-side monitor. Brazilian forward Pedro duly dispatched his sixth penalty of the season – and third against AEK – by sending Stankovic the wrong way from 12 yards to back up his weekend brace at Forest as a substitute. Brighton had barely threatened before the opener and their cause was further strengthened just 10 minutes later when Serbia midfielder Gacinovic over-ran the ball and raked his studs into Joel Veltman to receive a second booking. Seagulls striker Ferguson threatened to double the lead before being repelled as he tried to round Stankovic having been sent clear. AEK midfielder Orbelin Pineda then flashed wide as the home side pushed for a leveller but Brighton, despite an uninspiring display, held on relatively comfortably to ensure their European adventure continues. Read More Liverpool, Brighton and West Ham all reach the Europa League knockout stages Kevin Sinfield vows to keep raising funds to combat MND ahead of new challenge Andre Onana – Do the numbers back up the criticism? Is AEK Athens vs Brighton on TV? Kick off time and how to watch Europa League fixture Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink wants aspiring black managers to get ‘a fair chance’ Forest investigating allegations of homophobic abuse by fans at Brighton game

Unai Emery urged Aston Villa to finish the job after they booked their spot in the Europa Conference League knockout stages. The manager wants to seal top spot in Group E following Thursday’s 2-1 win over Legia Warsaw. Alex Moreno’s winner – on his first appearance since May following a hamstring injury – earned victory after Moussa Diaby’s opener was cancelled out by Ernest Muci in the first half. Victory came after Legia fans clashed with police before the game – injuring three officers – which saw the supporters barred from Villa Park. Villa moved above Legia at the top of the group and need a point in Mostar, the final group game, next month to guarantee their last 16 spot. Emery said: “I’m really happy because we started this competition losing in Warsaw. We wanted to show how we have improved after that match and we played well. “We were professional, feeling good, feeling strong and we want to finish first. It’s not complete yet but we are close to it. “This competition is very important, it’s a trophy and trying to get minutes for some players. Alex Moreno has come back, Jacob Ramsey, Jhon Duran got 90 minutes and as a team we had to get performances with every player.” Diaby struck after four minutes when he was sent scampering down the right by Youri Tielemans before cutting inside and finding the corner. Jhon Duran went close to adding a second before Legia cashed in on a terrible error by Boubacar Kamara after 20 minutes. The midfielder received the ball from Robin Olsen on the edge of the box but passed straight to Muci, who found the top corner. Encouraged, Legia settled and went close three minutes into the second half when Gil Dias’ header hit the bar. But it sparked Villa back into life and, after Kacper Tobiasz denied Diaby, Moreno netted a 59th-minute winner when he volleyed in Douglas Luiz’s free kick. Legia, who beat Villa 3-2 in the opening game in September, are three points behind and are now facing a last 32 tie against a side dropping down from the Europa League in February. Boss Kosta Runjaic said: “It’s the expected result but we faced it in a pretty good way. Villa have a lot of power at home and are unbeaten since February. “The first half was equal, we tried to play with courage and scored a fantastic goal. Villa played a good game but we could have defended their free-kick better and in the end it was a deserved win for Villa. “Now we have one game left, we will be well-prepared.” Read More You’ve got to dream big: Lewis Dunk eyes Europa League glory with Brighton David Moyes urges West Ham to finish the job and top Group A Five bad weeks do not define a team – England’s Ben Duckett Daniel Levy ‘proud’ as report reveals Tottenham’s investment in local community Wales call on Chris Coleman in bid to boost Women’s Nations League hopes The key talking points ahead of England’s Women’s Nations League double-header

Liverpool cruised into the Europa League knock-out stages with a match to spare as a 4-0 victory over LASK confirmed their place as group winners. Early goals from Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo were enhanced by a second-half Mohamed Salah penalty – his 199th goal for the club – and an added-time strike by Gakpo as Toulouse’s draw with Union Saint-Gilloise means a dreaded round-of-32 play-off was avoided. That mere fact alone will have delighted manager Jurgen Klopp, whose pre-match press conference had been littered with references to the intense December period ahead, but a club-record 12 points in the group stage shows how dominant the tournament favourites have been. The Reds’ 100 percent home record was extended to 10 games and a third successive Anfield clean sheet for the first time since October 2022 means they have only conceded four times in front of their own fans while scoring 30. In reality, that record was never in danger as the Austrians are the weakest side in the group and that frailty was exposed twice inside three minutes early on by a home side registering nine changes, with only Salah and left-back Kostas Tsimikas retained from the weekend draw at Manchester City. A move which started on the left ended up on the right from where Joe Gomez crossed for Diaz to stoop and power home a twisting header. The second goal came from the same flank as Salah, teed up by Diaz, picked out Gakpo at the far post for the simplest of close-range volleyed finishes. Tsimikas smashed a fierce drive against the crossbar and the overwhelming confidence of the hosts was exemplified by Gomez, who has never scored in eight years at the club, drilling a 25-yard shot just wide. Much of the half appeared to revolve in getting Salah to his double century as the team tried to pick him out at every opportunity, whether he be menacingly poised on the shoulder of the last defender or inside the penalty area. Two chances went begging when his angled shot turned into more of a cross but still evaded Gakpo before he fired tamely at the goalkeeper. Six minutes into the second half Salah finally found the net but he owed it all to Gakpo. The Netherlands international’s short through-ball to Diaz missed his intended target but the Dutchman was alert enough to chase his own pass and somehow get there before goalkeeper Tobias Lawal, who brought him down. Lawal showed a similar lack of reaction in watching Salah tuck the penalty into the corner of the net without even attempting a dive. That was enough to put the result beyond doubt but the feeling was there were more goals to be had as Gakpo hit the base of a post from outside the area, although the Dutchman eventually got a deserved second in added time. The arrival of Darwin Nunez, and to a lesser extent Trent Alexander-Arnold and Curtis Jones, livened up proceedings, with the former putting in one of his now typical all-action hit-and-miss performances. It erred more towards the latter as, after Harvey Elliott’s deflected shot was repelled by the goalkeeper’s legs as he dived the other way, the Uruguay international had one effort diverted wide and then shot straight at Lawal from eight yards. Marin Ljubcic blazed over the visitors’ best chance with only Caoimhin Kelleher to beat and the Liverpool goalkeeper, set for his longest run in the side due to Alisson Becker being sidelined for a fortnight with a hamstring injury, did not have anything to do until the last 20 minutes. When he was called upon he was not flustered, coming out to smother Ibrahim Mustapha, repelling Moses Usor’s shot and producing a reaction stop from LASK’s top scorer Robert Zulj, but even Sunday’s shot-shy visitors Fulham – scorers of only 13 goals in as many games – will provide a sterner test. Read More Alex Moreno stars as Aston Villa progress in Europa Conference League You’ve got to dream big: Lewis Dunk eyes Europa League glory with Brighton David Moyes urges West Ham to finish the job and top Group A Tomas Soucek snatches late winner for West Ham in Serbia Joao Pedro penalty sends Brighton through to Europa League knockout stages Five bad weeks do not define a team – England’s Ben Duckett

Alex Moreno fired Aston Villa into the Europa Conference League knockout stages after a 2-1 win over Legia Warsaw. The defender’s first goal, on his first appearance of the season following a hamstring injury, sent Unai Emery’s side top of Group E. Moussa Diaby opened the scoring before Ernest Muci seized on Boubacar Kamara’s defensive gaffe to level. Victory came after Legia fans clashed with police pre-match, launching missiles and injuring three officers to ensure there were no visiting supporters inside Villa Park. Around 2,000 fans had gathered, despite Legia having a restricted allocation of 1,000 following supporters’ behaviour in Alkmaar, and were barred from entering the stadium, sparking a row between the clubs with both issuing statements criticising each other. There was no love lost between the clubs, yet it was a fairly forgettable game. Four years ago this week Villa boss Unai Emery was sacked by Arsenal after overseeing their longest winless run since 1992. He lasted just 18 months after replacing Arsene Wenger at the Emirates but recovered to win the Europa League with Villarreal, the fourth time he had lifted the trophy. Having taken Villa back into Europe for the first time in 13 years, they reached the knockout stage of the newest competition with a game to spare, although need a point in Mostar in two weeks to book top spot. Legia beat them 3-2 in Warsaw in the opening game in September, opening the scoring after just three minutes, but this time it took the hosts 60 seconds longer to take the lead. Youri Tielemans sent Diaby clear down the right and with the freedom to cut inside, with Artur Jedrzejczyk rapidly backpedalling, he curled into the bottom corner. Emery’s side went for the kill and Jhon Duran’s pace saw him tear past Steve Kapuadi and Jedrzejczyk, only to be denied by Kacper Tobiasz before Clement Lenglet nodded the resulting corner wide. The hosts were in control – with no Legia fans in the stadium – but Villa Park was silenced after 20 minutes. It was all of the hosts’ own making when Robin Olsen, handed a rare start, found Kamara on the edge of the area only for the midfielder to play a blind pass straight to Muci. The Albania international, who scored twice against Villa in September, still had plenty to do but kept his cool to lift a fine effort over the stranded Olsen from the edge of the box. With it, Villa lost their mojo and Legia flourished although it took until three minutes after the break for them to go close to adding a second. Pawel Wszolek crossed and Gil Dias stooped to send a looping header onto the top of the bar with Olsen beaten. The escape roused Villa and Tobiasz thwarted Diaby before Moreno grabbed the winner after 59 minutes. The left back, making his first appearance since May, latched onto Douglas Luiz’s free-kick to hook in from close range. From then, Villa saw the game out and could have even had a third with three minutes left when Leon Bailey hit the bar after lobbing Tobiasz. Read More You’ve got to dream big: Lewis Dunk eyes Europa League glory with Brighton David Moyes urges West Ham to finish the job and top Group A Tomas Soucek snatches late winner for West Ham in Serbia Joao Pedro penalty sends Brighton through to Europa League knockout stages Five bad weeks do not define a team – England’s Ben Duckett Daniel Levy ‘proud’ as report reveals Tottenham’s investment in local community

In week 6, Tyreek Hill took Kevin Fitzgibbons' phone and did a backflip in the endzone. Fitzgibbons is now receiving the penalty for it.

FC Cincinnati head coach Pat Noonan praised Lucho Acosta's growth away from soccer after he was awarded MLS MVP.

Captain Lewis Dunk says Brighton are dreaming of Europa League glory after securing a spot in the knockout stages on a historic day for the club. Albion guaranteed a top-two finish in Group B with a game to spare thanks to an unconvincing 1-0 victory away to 10-man AEK Athens. Joao Pedro’s 55th-minute penalty proved the difference against the Greek champions as the Seagulls set aside a disjointed display to progress ahead of a final-round fixture at home to Marseille on December 14. Defender Dunk is determined to finish in first place in the pool in order to advance directly to the last 16 and avoid a knockout round play-off against a team falling out of the Champions League. “The next game, we’ve got to win, we’ve got to top the group,” he told Brighton’s website. “I think that’s massive, you miss a round out. “That’s our next aim in this competition but who knows how far we can go? “We want to win it and you’ve got to dream big to achieve it. We’re going to set our sights on reaching the final and winning it.” Brighton, who are enjoying their maiden European adventure, were second best in the first half at AEK Arena and fortunate not to fall behind when Steven Zuber’s shot deflected off Dunk and struck a post. The contest turned during a pivotal 10-minute second-half spell in which Pedro converted a VAR-awarded penalty after being fouled by AEK captain Damian Szymanski and Mijat Gacinovic was dismissed for a second booking. Following back-to-back successes over four-time European champions Ajax, Albion jubilantly celebrated another famous win with the travelling fans. England international Dunk, who made his senior debut when the Seagulls were a League One side, acknowledged the visitors were forced to dig deep. It's a historic day for the football club. Lewis Dunk “It’s massive,” the 32-year-old said of the result. “I think you can see in the celebration at the end what it means. “It’s a historic day for the football club. “We came into this tournament to qualify out of the group and we’ve done that tonight. “It wasn’t the prettiest of our performances but sometimes you’ve got to win like that and it’s all credit to us.” Pedro’s successful spot-kick was his fifth goal in the competition and backed up his match-winning brace as a substitute in Saturday’s 3-2 Premier League victory at Nottingham Forest. Dunk, whose right shoulder was taped up at full-time, was sent off at the City Ground and will miss Sunday’s trip to Chelsea due to suspension. “(I’m) just nursing a few injuries but you just get on with them,” he replied when asked about the strapping. “Frustrating not to be out there (at Stamford Bridge), it’s my fault and I’ve got to deal with that myself.” Read More David Moyes urges West Ham to finish the job and top Group A Tomas Soucek snatches late winner for West Ham in Serbia Joao Pedro penalty sends Brighton through to Europa League knockout stages Five bad weeks do not define a team – England’s Ben Duckett Daniel Levy ‘proud’ as report reveals Tottenham’s investment in local community Wales call on Chris Coleman in bid to boost Women’s Nations League hopes

Faherty Brand, a family-owned clothing brand and retailer, is exploring strategic options including the sale of a minority

David Moyes wants West Ham to finish the job off and top their Europa League group. Tomas Soucek struck late on yet again as the Hammers secured their passage into the knock-out stages with a 1-0 win against Backa Topola in Serbia. Now they need to avoid defeat to Freiburg at the London Stadium in a fortnight to ensure they top Group A and avoid a two-legged play-off in February. “We’re thrilled at West Ham that we’re going to play in Europe after Christmas time for the third season,” Hammers boss Moyes said at his post-match press conference. “Even playing Freiburg in the last game to win the group is hugely important. But I’d have taken this at the start of the season, if you’d said we’ll finish second I’d have taken that. “Freiburg are a good side and we are going to have to play well.” Czech midfielder Soucek, who struck with an 89th-minute volley to settle a poor match, has now scored in his last five matches for club and country. Soucek also hit the late goal which secured a 2-1 win at Burnley in the Premier League on Saturday. “Tomas is in great form, not only for us but for his country as well,” added Moyes. “Let’s continue. His first season he got 10 goals for us and it’s seven now so he has a chance to reach that figure again. “We made a few changes, some with illness, we were always going to try some other players tonight to give them game time.” “We scored two late goals on Saturday to beat Burnley and as a manager sometimes it’s good to win game late.” Read More Tomas Soucek snatches late winner for West Ham in Serbia Joao Pedro penalty sends Brighton through to Europa League knockout stages Five bad weeks do not define a team – England’s Ben Duckett Daniel Levy ‘proud’ as report reveals Tottenham’s investment in local community Wales call on Chris Coleman in bid to boost Women’s Nations League hopes The key talking points ahead of England’s Women’s Nations League double-header

Liverpool are back in Europa League action as they host Austrian side LASK an Anfield this evening hoping to get back to winning ways after a shock defeat to Toulouse in their last European outing. The Reds are top of Group E with nine points from their four matches and have a two-point buffer over the French side in second. Jurgen Klopp will have his sights set on topping the table and moving straight into the round of 16. Victory tonight would secure Liverpool’s place in that stage if Toulouse also lose to Union Saint-Gilloise but that is not a guarantee. First the need to get past LASK who are currently third in the Austrian Bundesliga. They will come to Anfield with some confidence having beaten Union Saint-Gilloise 3-0 last time out but that was their first win of the Europa League this season. Can they cause a shock on Merseyside tonight? Follow all the action as Liverpool host LASK plus get the latest odds and tips right here:

The Southeastern Conference championship game will remain at Mercedes-Benz Stadium through at least 2031

Tomas Soucek struck late on yet again as West Ham secured their passage into the knock-out stages of the Europa League despite a Serbian snooze-fest against Backa Topola. The Czech midfielder has now scored in his last five matches for club and country after an 89th-minute volley earned a scratchy 1-0 win. Now they need to finish the job against Freiburg at the London Stadium in a fortnight to ensure they top the group and avoid a two-legged play-off in February. Around 320 hardy West Ham fans made the 2,000-mile journey out to the Balkans, including a 100-mile trek up the motorway from Belgrade to the TSC Arena. Many of them had got their wish, in the absence of injured forwards Jarrod Bowen and Michail Antonio, of a first start of the season for 19-year-old FA Youth Cup-winning striker Divin Mubama. But the youngster barely got a sniff of the ball as West Ham struggled to rouse themselves in the sleepy Serbian town. The hosts came into the encounter on the back of a 4-0 win over Super League leaders Partizan at the weekend, and they made a confident start with Uros Milovanovic forcing an early save from Lukasz Fabianski. Then an error from Aaron Cresswell, handed a rare start in one of seven changes from the side which snatched a late win at Burnley thanks to Soucek’s goal, gifted Aleksandar Cirkovic a shooting opportunity with Fabianski saving again. West Ham registered their first shot on target after half an hour, a tame effort from Said Benrahma on his 150th West Ham appearance which was easily dealt with by Veljko Ilic. But it was a mind-numbing first half neatly summed up by former player Joe Cole, on TNT Sports, as “dross” and “appalling”. Boss David Moyes turned to Danny Ings and the lesser-spotted Maxwel Cornet just after the hour, replacing Benrahma and Mubama, in a bid to inject some life into his unconvincing side. And as the game ticked into stoppage tie Cornet crossed from the left and Soucek hammered in a volley to win it. West Ham have enjoyed a thrilling run in Europe over the past three seasons, including their historic Europa Conference League final triumph in Prague. Although this was not one which will live long in the memory it was an 18th win in 20 matches in Europe, job done for Moyes and his side. Read More Joao Pedro penalty sends Brighton through to Europa League knockout stages Five bad weeks do not define a team – England’s Ben Duckett Daniel Levy ‘proud’ as report reveals Tottenham’s investment in local community Wales call on Chris Coleman in bid to boost Women’s Nations League hopes The key talking points ahead of England’s Women’s Nations League double-header Kevin Sinfield vows to keep raising funds to combat MND ahead of new challenge