Neymar will not play or travel with the Brazil team to Philadelphia for their World Cup Group C match against Haiti, the Brazil federation confirmed on Thursday. “He will remain in New Jersey to optimize the final phase of his recovery process, making use of the excellent facilities at The Ridge hotel and the Columbia Park training center ,” the CBF said of the Red Bull New York facility in…
Joe Hart has praised Harry Kane for his stuttering run-up which saw Croatia goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic come off his line early in England’s 4-2 win over Croatia. Livakovic saved Kane’s initial effort, but referee Clement Turpin ordered the kick to be retaken after VAR concluded that the Croatian had moved too soon. Kane dispatched the retake to open the scoring and went on to add another goal with a header…
France and Arsenal legend Thierry Henry has criticised Cristiano Ronaldo‘s performance for Portugal against Congo DR in the World Cup. Ronaldo failed to score in Portugal’s disappointing 1-1 draw on Wednesday in Houston. On the FOX Sports panel, Henry specifically called out a moment during the 1-1 draw in which Ronaldo got in the way of teammate Bruno Fernandes, took a shot and fired wide of the post. “One thing…
ARLINGTON, Texas — England coach Thomas Tuchel was upset that photographers blocked him from seeing his team during the playing of the national anthem before a victory over Croatia in his World Cup debut. “I’m begging FIFA to change the position of the photographers, because I could not see my team [during] the national anthem, and I was waiting for this moment,” Tuchel said after England beat Croatia 4-2 on…
United States head coach Mauricio Pochettino was left in awe of Lionel Messi after the player’s stunning performance against Algeria and said he believes Argentina are the team to beat at this World Cup. Messi scored all three goals as Argentina began their title defence with a 3-0 win on Tuesday. “He’s from a different planet,” Pochettino said of the Argentina captain to Cadena Cope. “Any comparison or metaphor we…
Gary Lineker has called Harry Kane “the greatest English striker we’ve ever had” after the England captain equalled his World Cup goals record. Kane scored twice in England’s 4-2 win over Croatia on Wednesday, tying Lineker on 10 goals at World Cups. He gave England an early lead with a penalty, which was retaken after encroachment from Croatia’s Josko Gvardiol as the first one was saved, before levelling the match…
Ibrahima Konaté has completed his move to Real Madrid from Liverpool. The defender was out of contract at Anfield and has opted for a switch to the LaLiga giants on a four-year contract. Konaté played for Liverpool for five years, winning the league last season under Arne Slot, before a far more difficult campaign this year. He will find fellow Frenchmen Kylian Mbappé, Aurélien Tchouaméni, Eduardo Camavinga and Ferland Mendy…
Cristiano Ronaldo defended Portugal‘s performance against Congo DR in their World Cup opener but is already looking ahead to the next game. Portugal dominated possession but had just one shot on target in Wednesday’s 1-1 draw in Houston. “Nothing was lacking,” Ronaldo, 41, told reporters after the game. “That’s football. Portugal could have won, but they could also have lost.” Ronaldo, who joined Argentina captain Lionel Messi as the only…
England midfielder Jude Bellingham believes playing with a “chip on my shoulder” will bring the best out of him at the World Cup. Bellingham scored the vital third goal as Thomas Tuchel’s side opened their campaign with an impressive 4-2 win over Croatia in the Group L clash in Dallas. There were questions surrounding Bellingham’s inclusion in Tuchel’s squad for the tournament in North America after missing the September and…
Zlatko Dalic bemoaned Croatia’s failure to get to grips with England’s set-pieces after some “disastrous” defending in Wednesday’s 4-2 World Cup defeat. Group L began with a bang in Texas as Martin Baturina brilliantly cancelled out Harry Kane’s retaken spot-kick after Luka Modric had brought down Noni Madueke when defending an early set-piece. Petar Musa scored an equaliser of his own after Croatia inexplicably left England’s captain free to head…