The sculptor behind the controversial Cristiano Ronaldo statue has defended his work and insisted the Real Madrid forward is happy with the final product.

• Eamonn Tiernan

Central Coast Mariners are willing to move their games from Canberra Stadium next season.

• Dominic Bossi

FIFA intervention at the governance of Australian football looms as a possibility after the FFA fails to meet a deadline for restructuring its congress.

• Michael Lynch

A honeymoon trip to Australia by Parisian couple Sophie and Marc Genreau in the 1990s is paying dividends for Melbourne City – and if young midfielder Denis Genreau achieves his footballing dreams, it might be Australia's gain and France's loss.

• Michael Lynch

When you are hot you're hot - and at the moment, Melbourne Victory midfielder James Troisi is scalding.

• Vince Rugari

Ange Postecoglou has called for the abolition of the A-League salary cap, saying it is affecting the development of young Australian players by forcing them to move overseas too early.

• Dominic Bossi

Rhyan Grant and Danny Vukovic will be rushed straight back into the Sydney FC lineup for their match against Melbourne City on Saturday night after returning to training on Wednesday following international duty.

Madeira renamed its airport in honour of football star Cristiano Ronaldo on Wednesday - although it is a new statue of the four-times world player of the year that is likely to grab the headlines.

Ange Postecoglou has ended a trying but ultimately triumphant week by challenging Socceroos fans to match his ambitions for the World Cup.

• Michael Cockerill

Back on track. Just. A win is a win, and boy didn't the Socceroos need this one.

Argentina, weakened by the last-minute suspension of Lionel Messi, suffered a fourth defeat in their World Cup qualifying campaign as a spirited Bolivia won 2-0 in La Paz on Tuesday.

• Michael Lynch

Results rolling in from Jeddah and Saitama overnight hammered home how vital it had been for Australia to beat the United Arab Emirates on home soil on Tuesday evening,

• Brian Homewood

Argentina forward Lionel Messi has been banned from their next four competitive internationals, starting with Tuesday's World Cup qualifier in Bolivia, for swearing at a match official, FIFA said on Tuesday.

• Dominic Bossi

Socceroos coach Ange Postecoglou believes he wouldn't be scrutinised over his tactics if he was a foreign coach after putting Australia's hopes of reaching a fourth consecutive World Cup on track with an uninspiring win over the UAE.

• Dominic Bossi

United Arab Emirates coach Mahdi Ali announced his resignation immediately after losing to the Socceroos in Sydney

• Live
• Michael Lynch

Join us for live coverage as the Socceroos host the UAE in a vital World Cup qualifier in Sydney.

• Jacob Bogage

Female athletes, in particular female soccer players, suffer concussions at a "significantly higher" rate than their male counterparts.

• Roy Masters

Given the problems rugby union faces in contracting the number of teams in the SANZAAR competition and the ambitions of the football dreamers for an increase in the A-League, we're entitled to ask: haven't they heard of the Super League war?

• Dominic Bossi

Ange Postecoglou has gone from unemployable to unwavering, and there's no chance he'll back down from his ultra-attacking style of play despite the looming risk of Australia not reaching the 2018 World Cup.

• Emma Kemp

Sydney FC may have fallen marginally short of replicating Arsenal's Invincibles run. Yet captain Alex Brosque senses a rare opportunity that, if seized, could see his newly crowned premiers revered within A-League circles in much the same way.

• Dominic Bossi

Australia has never had any shortages of good quality goalkeepers, but rarely has the national team had all its best shot-stoppers fit, in form and playing regularly at their clubs.

• Michael Lynch

Premier's Plate secured, now Sydney FC have the chance to prove themselves one of the greatest teams in A-League history.

• Mark Gleeson

AMSTERDAM: Netherlands coach Danny Blind was sacked on Sunday, less than 24 hours after a 2-0 defeat away to Bulgaria left the team floundering in fourth place in World Cup qualifying Group A.

• Martyn Herman

England striker Jermain Defoe made a scoring return to the international stage and substitute Jamie Vardy added a second goal as the hosts laboured to a 2-0 victory over Lithuania in World Cup qualifying.

• Karolos Grohmann

Andre Schuerrle scored twice and set up another goal as world champions Germany cruised to a comfortable 4-1 victory over Azerbaijan on Sunday to stay on track for a spot in next year's World Cup in Russia.

• Michael Lynch

Coach won't be happy with the scoreline but will take plenty of positives from performance of his undermanned squad.

• Tristan Lavalette

Sydney FC have celebrated winning the A-League Premiers' Plate in style with a decisive 3-0 victory over Perth Glory at nib Stadium on Sunday.

• Michael Cockerill

Ange Postecoglou likes living on the edge. No, let me re-phrase that. He loves it. So he's got what he wished for. A loss to United Arab Emirates in Sydney, and the prospect of the Socceroos missing out on the World Cup is better than real. The pressure pot is boiling. Let's see if anyone gets burned.

• Dominic Bossi

Tim Cahill will definitely play against UAE in Tuesday night's vital World Cup Qualifier, but Socceroos coach Ange Postecoglou is yet to decide whether the star forward will start or come off the bench.