Blog (Page 156)

[ad_1] Tuesday’s World Cup semi final will see Argentina face Croatia for a spot in Qatar’s final, but attention first turns to who the official in the middle will be. La Albiceleste’s quarter-final success over the Netherlands was littered with moments of poor sportsmanship and squabbling, with a now iconic picture of their players celebrating right in front of the Dutch going viral. Putting emotion to one side, Lionel Messi and Argentina are bidding to reach a first final since 2014 and to win the competition for the first time since 1986. However, to do so they must beat 2018’s defeated finalists Croatia, who handedRead More →

[ad_1] Giovanni Reyna was nearly sent home from the United States’ 2022 World Cup campaign due to a lack of effort in training and pre-tournament friendlies, according to multiple reports. Reyna didn’t start any of the USMNT’s four matches in Qatar, playing just seven minutes against England in the group stages before coming off the bench for the entire second half of the 3-1 round-of-16 defeat to the Netherlands. The 20-year-old’s lack of involvement prompted anger and confusion among supporters given his talent and potential to influence the outcome of the USMNT’s campaign. Following the 1-1 draw to Wales in the opening match, head coachRead More →

[ad_1] The final weekend of WSL action in 2022 took place on Sunday, with eight of the top flight’s 12 teams in action after two matches fell foul to the weather. The spoils were shared in the Manchester derby at the Etihad, Arsenal and West Ham both picked up three points, and Chelsea survived a second half fight back to see off a spirited Reading. But which players impressed? Here’s 90min’s WSL team of the week for gameweek 9. Batlle impressed for Manchester United / James Gill – Danehouse/GettyImages GK: Mackenzie Arnold (West Ham) – Was kept busy by Tottenham in the first half, doingRead More →

[ad_1] Neymar has publicly shared his messages to a number of his Brazil teammates after the World Cup favourites were knocked out at the quarter-final stage. The PSG star had scored a 105th minute goal to give the Brazilians an extra time lead against Croatia on Friday, but a late goal from Bruno Petkovic ensured the game would go to a penalty shootout. Brazil would then lose said penalty shootout after misses from Rodrygo and Marquinhos. Following the World Cup exit, Neymar has taken to Instagram to share the messages he sent to both Marquinhos and Rodrygo in order to console both. Here’s the exchangeRead More →

[ad_1] Antoine Griezmann issued a spurring team talk at half-time of France’s 2-1 win over England in the FIFA World Cup quarter-finals. The French star was in imperious form on Saturday evening, being the chief creator of the bulk of Les Bleus’ notable opportunities from his new attacking midfield role. Griezmann would create the winning goal – scored by Olivier Giroud – with a fantastic cross from the left flank in the second half, but before that he also provided some motivation for his teammates in the dressing room too. Harry Symeou hosts Andy Headspeath, Quentin Gesp and Jack Gallagher to look back on theRead More →

[ad_1] Tottenham and France captain Hugo Lloris has sympathised with club teammate Harry Kane after his crucial penalty miss in England’s World Cup exit. Kane scored one penalty in the defeat to Les Bleus on Saturday evening but missed a second, firing well over the crossbar while the Three Lions were one goal down in the dying embers of the game. Lloris was in goal for France as per and put in a brilliant performance, making key saves to deny Kane as well as Jude Bellingham. Speaking after the game to the press, Lloris took the time to praise Kane for taking on the responsibilityRead More →

[ad_1] Duvan Vergara confirmed he will try to be eligible for Rayados de Monterrey in the 2023 Liga MX Clausura, returning to training after a year-long spell on the sidelines.  The Colombian forward tore his ACL in January 2022, forcing him to sit out the 2022 Clausura and Apertura campaigns. He underwent surgery and rehabilitation throughout the year, and will now join the team for preseason training.  “We are going little by little. As I told the coach, I have trained very little, but I feel very good, with a lot of strength. I have to gain that confidence that I need, the coach isRead More →

[ad_1] Cristiano Ronaldo has spoken out after Portugal’s elimination from the World Cup, expressing his disappointment but insisting his commitment to his country has never wavered. Ronaldo scored in Portugal’s opening game against Ghana, but was unceremoniously dropped to the bench by head coach Fernando Santos in response to his reaction to being substituted against South Korea. While the 37-year-old came off the bench in the quarter-final against Morocco, he was unable to make an impact as Portugal lost 1-0 to see their World Cup dreams dashed. Ronaldo was seen walking down the tunnel at full-time in floods of tears and did not speak toRead More →

[ad_1] Liverpool were outclassed by Lyon as the French side cruised to a comfortable 3-1 victory in the Dubai Super Cup. Jurgen Klopp named a strong first XI for the mid-season friendly, with virtually every first-team player not on international duty featuring in the side. The Reds asserted their dominance almost instantly, capitalising on a defensive error and allowing Mohamed Salah to tee up Fabio Carvalho to finish into an empty net. Liverpool’s stars looked slightly rusty, as was to be expected having gone a month without playing a match, but the quality was still there to see in the first half as they lookedRead More →

[ad_1] Marcus Rashford has promised England fans that the Three Lions will ‘come again’ following their exit from the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The Three Lions were one of the favourites going into tournament this winter having ammassed a huge wealth of talent in recent years. Despite largely dominating their quater-final clash with France, ultimately England would fall to the reigning champions on Saturday losing 2-1 thanks to a second half winner from Olivier Giroud despite winning two penalties – with Harry Kane scoring one and missing the other. One of England’s star players throughout the campaign in Qatar was Rashford, who baggedRead More →