Category: Football

Two Spanish Women’s World Cup winners, Aitana Bonmati and Olga Carmona, and Chelsea’s Australian striker Sam Kerr were on Friday named on the three-player shortlist for UEFA’s women’s Player of the Year award.

Bonmati, who plays for European champions Barcelona, captained Spain at the World Cup and was named player of the tournament. Carmona, of Real Madrid, scored the only goal in the final against England.

Kerr, a semi-finalist with host country Australia, was Chelsea’s top scorer as they won the English Super League and lost to Barcelona in the Champions League semi-final.

The trio were chosen in a vote by coaches of clubs who played in last season’s Champions League group stages, coaches of the 55 UEFA-affiliated countries and a panel of European journalists.

England and Manchester United goalkeeper Mary Earps just missed out as the fourth-highest vote-getter.

The winner will be announced on August 31 in Monaco at the draw for the men’s Champions League group stage.

Spain and Barcelona striker Alexia Putellas has won the past two years.

The three finalists for the coaching award are Barcelona’s Jonatan Giraldez and the two World Cup final coaches, Jorge Vilda of Spain, and Dutchwoman Sarina Wiegman who led England.

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Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp dismissed suggestions on Friday that Mohamed Salah could become the latest star name to depart European football for Saudi Arabia.

According to reports, Al-Ittihad are trying to lure the Egyptian to the Gulf state with a huge salary offer that would rival the deals that enticed Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar to the Gulf kingdom.

Salah signed a three-year contract extension at Anfield just over 12 months ago and his agent has previously poured cold water on speculation of a move.

“If we considered leaving LFC this year, we wouldn’t have renewed the contract last summer. Mohamed [Salah] remains committed to LFC,” Ramy Abbas posted on X, formerly Twitter, earlier this month.

Liverpool’s plans for the transfer window have already been thrown into chaos by the loss of midfielders Fabinho and Jordan Henderson to Saudi clubs and Klopp said the club would not consider any offers for Salah.

“Talk about media stories,” Klopp said at his pre-match press conference ahead of Sunday’s trip to Newcastle. “Nothing to talk about from my point of view — Mo Salah is a Liverpool player.

“He is an essential player, was and will be. There is nothing there. If there was, the answer would be no.”

Japan captain Wataru Endo could make his first start for the Reds at St. James’ Park after the defensive midfielder appeared as a substitute in last weekend’s 3-1 win over Bournemouth.

Liverpool’s failure to beat Chelsea to the signature of Moises Caicedo or Romeo Lavia before turning to Endo has attracted criticism of their business in the transfer window and Klopp recognised he may need more reinforcements in the final week of the window — or luck with injuries — to get by in the coming months.

“We have to be lucky with injuries, I have no doubt of the quality of the boys we have,” added Klopp.

“In this moment we are covered, but it is not dreamland where you can be prepared with every situation, we have had to learn this is in the past.

“We have to try our best for next week. A squad where we can react on pretty much everything, is it possible?’. We will see.”

READ: Pakistan thump England to register fourth consecutive victory in World Blind Games

After the high-octane excitement of their successful Leagues Cup campaign and the thrill of their comeback victory in the US Open Cup semi-final, Inter Miami and Lionel Messi get down to the main job at hand on Saturday.

The Major League Soccer regular season returns in full with Miami, who travel to the New York Red Bulls, faced with the tough task of climbing from bottom place in the Eastern Conference and into the playoff positions.

Prior to the break for Leagues Cup — and Messi’s arrival along with Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba — Miami were winless in 11 games in MLS with the worst record in the entire league.

In most leagues in the world, a team in that position would be focused purely on avoiding relegation from the top flight.

But MLS has no relegation and instead has a playoff system which could yet offer a way for the new-look Miami, under Argentine coach Gerardo ‘Tata’ Martino, to compete for the title — MLS Cup.

The top nine finishers in each conference earn a spot in the playoffs with the top seven going into the first round, best of three series of games.

The eighth and ninth placed teams play each other in a single elimination ‘wild card’ match to get into the first round.

Miami are currently 14 points behind ninth place with 12 games left and so have little room for error in the remainder of the season.

But the form they have shown since the arrival of Messi and his two former Barcelona team-mates, unbeaten in eight games, albeit winning three of their knockout ties via penalties, suggests such a playoff push is not out of the question.

It will be a long slog to turn Inter’s MLS season around and adding to the difficulty of the task, Martino admitted after Wednesday’s shoot-out win over Cincinnati in the US Open Cup, that his star man was amongst those feeling the pace of their recent exertions.

“Both Leo and many other players are reaching an important physical limit and from today we will evaluate how we approach the next three matches,” he said.

“The fatigue is overcome with all the enthusiasm … I hope the team in the future could play better, but it’s very difficult to do that when you almost can’t rest,” he added.

It would not be a shock then, for one or more of Messi, Busquets and Alba, to start on the bench at Red Bull Arena on Saturday with Martino retaining the option to throw them on in the second half.

The Red Bulls are in 11th place in the East, 11 points ahead of Miami, and have their own hopes of clambering into the post-season.

Saturday’s games see Eastern Conference leaders Cincinnati host 2021 champions New York City, while in the West, top-placed St.Louis City, enjoying a dream first season in the league, are at Orlando City.

Defending champions Los Angeles FC travel to North Carolina to face Charlotte FC.

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Saudi Pro League superstar Neymar will get his first taste of Asian Champions League football after last season’s runners-up Al-Hilal were drawn against Iran’s Nassaji Mazandaran FC, Mumbai City FC of India and Uzbekistan’s Navbahor in the group stage on Thursday.

Al-Nassr’s Cristiano Ronaldo and Al-Ittihad’s Karim Benzema will also debut in the group stage of Asia’s premier club football competition, where they will seek to power their clubs to victory against sides from central to east Asia.

With billions of dollars in oil wealth, Saudi Arabia has been on a buying spree of sports assets as part of plans to diversify its economy and attract tourism and investment.

Neymar’s Al-Hilal leads the AFC Champions League for most title wins, with four to its name.

With the flamboyant Brazilian playmaker Neymar in their ranks for the 2023-24 season, Al-Hilal hope to win the title for a record fifth time.

Al-Nassr, semi-finalists in the 2020 and 2021 editions, will play Iran’s Persepolis FC, Al-Duhail SC of Qatar and Tajikistan’s FC Istiklol.

Saudi Pro League champions Al-Ittihad will have their sights set on a first Asian Champions League title since winning back-to-back titles in 2004 and 2005 after securing the services of French stars Benzema and N’Golo Kante.

They will take on Iran’s Sepahan SC, Air Force Club of Iraq and Uzbekistan’s AGMK FC.

Defending champions Urawa Red Diamonds of Japan, bidding for the title from the competition’s eastern division, will face China’s Wuhan Three Towns FC, Pohang Steelers of South Korea and Vietnam’s Hanoi FC.

After the draw at the Asian Football Confederation headquarters in Kuala Lumpur, secretary-general Windsor John said all of the qualified teams faced tough ties across the competition.

“No easy matches,” he told AFP, adding that “a video assistant referee (VAR) system will be introduced from the group stage”.

The group stage will run from September 18 to December 13, with the knockout stage to kick off on February 12.

The two-leg final will be played on  May 11 and 18, 2024.

Group A: Pakhtakor (UZB), Al-Fayha FC (KSA), Ahal FC (TKM), Al-Ain FC (UAE)

Group B: Al Sadd SC (QAT), FC Nasaf (UZB), Al-Faisaly (JOR), Sharjah FC (UAE)

Group C: Al-Ittihad (KSA), Sepahan SC (IRN), Air Force Club (IRQ), AGMK FC (UZB)

Group D: Al-Hilal SFC (KSA), Nassaji Mazandaran FC (IRN), Mumbai City FC (IND), Navbahor (UZB)

Group E: Persepolis FC (IRN), Al-Duhail SC (QAT), FC Istiklol (TJK), Al Nassr (KSA)

Group F: Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors FC (KOR), Bangkok United (THA), Lion City Sailors (SGP), Kitchee SC (HKG)

Group G: Yokohama F. Marinos (JPN), Shandong Taishan FC (CHN), Kaya FC-Iloilo (PHI), Incheon United FC (KOR)

Group H: Buriram United (THA), Ventforet Kofu (JPN), Melbourne City FC (AUS), Zhejiang FC (CHN)

Group I: Ulsan Hyundai FC (KOR), Kawasaki Frontale (JPN), Johor Darul Ta’zim (MAS), BG Pathum United (THA)

Group J: Wuhan Three Towns FC (CHN), Pohang Steelers (KOR),Hanoi FC (VIE), Urawa Red Diamonds (JPN)

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Lionel Messi inspired Inter Miami to come back from 2-0 down to beat Cincinnati on penalties after their thrilling US Open Cup semi-final ended 3-3 after extra-time in Ohio.

Inter Miami, who won the Leagues Cup on penalties against Nashville on Saturday, are now one win away from their second trophy since Messi joined the club last month.

The US Open Cup is American soccer’s oldest and most important knockout competition, dating back more than a century to 1914 and is similar to England’s FA Cup or Spain’s Copa del Rey.

Miami will host the Houston Dynamo in the final on September 27 after the Texan side beat Real Salt Lake 3-1 after extra time.

A month ago Cincinnati, who are top of Major League Soccer’s standings while Miami are bottom, would have been clear favourites. But the Florida team are now a very different side to the one which was winless in their 11 league games before the arrival of the Argentine.

In the intense heat, with temperatures over 100 degrees fahrenheit (38 Celsius) at kick-off, Inter Miami’s unbeaten run since the signing of Messi and Spanish pair Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba looked to be coming to an end.

Inter trailed 2-0 with 22 minutes remaining before the Argentine delivered two perfect assists to striker Leonardo Campana to take the game into extra-time.

Messi’s compatriot Luciano Acosta had put Cincinnati ahead in the 18th minute and American striker Brandon Vazquez doubled the home side’s lead with a fine strike from the edge of the box in the 53rd minute.

In the 68th minute, Messi whipped in a free-kick from the left which was headed home by Campana to breathe some life into what had been a tired display from Gerardo Martino’s side.

Cincinnati thought that they had made it 3-1 but Yuga Kubo’s effort was ruled out for handball.

In the seventh minute of stoppage time Messi, from deep on the left, swung in a ball to Campana at the back post and again the Ecuadoran forward found the net to force extra-time.

Miami went ahead in the first period with Benjamin Cremaschi sliding an excellent pass into the path of Josef Martinez and the Venezuelan made no mistake with a precise finish.

But Cincinnati bounced back in the second period with Japanese winger Kubo firing a right-foot shot into the far corner past the diving Drake Callender.

The teams were at 4-4 in the shoot-out when Callender saved Nick Hagglund’s penalty for Cincinnati and Cremaschi converted the next to book Miami’s place in the final.

The 18-year-old Miami-born Cremaschi, whose parents are Argentine, was congratulated by Messi after his match-winning spot kick.

“I’m living a huge dream,” he told CBS Sports, “Sometimes I sit down and really think about the position that I’m in and it’s incredible, I never believed I was going to be in the spot I am in now,” he said.

There was a more sober view from Martino, whose team must now begin their 12 game attempt to climb from last in the Eastern Conference to the playoff positions.

Martino suggested he may be forced to rest some of his players, including Messi, after an intense eight-game spell.

“Both Leo and many other players are reaching an important physical limit and from today we will evaluate how we approach the next three matches,” he said.

“The fatigue is overcome with all the enthusiasm … I hope the team in the future could play better, but it’s very difficult to do that when you almost can’t rest”

Houston took the lead on the stroke of half-time through Mexican international Hector Herrera but Salt Lake levelled with a Julio Anderson goal in the 64th.

Panamanian midfielder Adalberto Carrasquilla fired in a fine solo goal in extra-time before Luis Caicedo wrapped up the win at the death.

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Pakistan Football Federation (PFF) on Wednesday, announced a 23-member squad for the SAFF U-16 Championship 2023 to be held in Bhutan next month.

The Green Shirts will kick off their campaign against home side Bhutan on September 1 at the Changlimithang Stadium in Thimphu. While, in their second game, they will face Maldives at the same venue on September 3.

Pakistan Squad for SAFF Under-16 Championship

Defenders: Abdul Rahman, Mohammad Hasnain Saleem, Najeem Khan, Sameer Ahmed, Obaidullah Khan, Majid Ali, Syed Mohammad Abis Raza, and Umar Javed.

Midfielders: Abdul Samad, Mohammad Faraz, Farhad, Haroon Rashid, Hikmatullah, Khabib Khan, M. Shahab Ahmed and Muhammad Khan.

Forwards: Abdul Ghani, Hasnain Wali Raza, Subhan Karim and Syed Kabir Ali Shah

Goalkeepers: Adil Ali Khan, Balach Khan and Ghulam Abbas.

The 2023 SAFF U-16 Championship is the 8th edition of the tournament and will be played from September 1 to September 10 in Thimphu, Bhutan.

India are the current champions as well as the most successful team in the tournament’s history, having won the tournament in 2022, 2019, 2017 and 2013.

Meanwhile, Pakistan have won the inaugural edition of SAFF U-16 championship in 2011.

The first edition of the SAFF U-16 championship took place in Nepal in August 2011. The competition was launched under the leadership of SAFF President Kazi Salahuddin who was elected in 2009.

READ: Al Nassr come from behind to snatch Asian Champions League spot

Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr qualified for the Asian Champions League group stage after they secured an injury-time victory against Shabab Al Ahli in Riyadh on Tuesday.

The Saudi Pro League side came from behind to triumph 4-2 in the play-off at Mrsool Park, with Brazilian Anderson Talisca scoring twice and Croatia international Marcelo Brozovic rounding off the win.

Al Nassr had been two minutes from exiting the tournament.

The result means Al Nassr, runners-up domestically last season, move into the group phase, which begins next month.

Cristiano Ronaldo, a five-time UEFA Champions League winner, was making his debut in Asian football’s top club competition after signing for the Riyadh club last December.

Al Nassr opened the scoring in 11 minutes when Taslica headed home a Brozovic corner. However, Yahya Al Ghassani levelled for UAE champions Shabab Al Ahli seven minutes later, the winger slotting the ball into the Nassr net after the Dubai side countered.

Cristiano Ronaldo, 38, left the pitch at half-time clearly frustrated and could be seen arguing with the referee. The Portuguese star, the Nassr captain, believed he should have had two penalties in the first half.

Then, one minute after half-time, Al Ghassani raced clear of the Al Nassr defence to flick the ball over Nawaf Al Aqidi and put Shabab Al Ahli in front.

However, Al Nassr equalised with two minutes of normal time remaining, when full-back Sultan Al Ghannam’s header was diverted into his own goal by Walid Abbas.

Al Nassr’s comeback was complete five minutes into the allotted seven minutes of injury time, with Talisca nodding home from close range.

Moments later, as Shabab Al Ahli chased the equaliser, Ronaldo teed up Brozovic to drill his shot into the net and make safe the game.

Elsewhere in the west zone, UAE side Sharjah qualified for the tournament proper with a 3-1 victory away to Iran’s Tractor FC, while Uzbekistan’s Navbahor Namangan defeated Al Wakrah of Qatar 1-0 after extra time.

In Tuesday’s other play-off, Uzbek side AGMK Olmaliq defeated Qatar’s Al Arabi 1-0.

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Alaves registered their first win in the ongoing La Liga season as they defeated Sevilla 4-3 in a hard-fought battle, while, Rayo Vallecano jumped to second position after thumping Granada 2-0.

Alaves, returned to La Liga this season, after earning a promotion in the play-off stage of Segunda División (second division). However, they started this season with a loss at the hands of Cadiz.

They started the game on high with a seventh-minute goal by Luis Rioja, however, Abdelkabir Abqar’s own goal in the 15th minute levelled the score.

Sevilla’s Erik Lamela scored a goal on his own in the 40th minute to give his side the lead, however, their lead was short-lived as Alaves equalized three minutes later with a goal by Rubén Duarte to close the first half at 2-2.

Click to watch La Liga 2023-24 Live on ARY ZAP

Alaves had a flying start to the second half as Kike García stunned the home crowd with two goals in five minutes to give his side the decisive 4-2 lead which remained intact until Sevilla’s Rafa Mir scored a goal in the final minutes of extra time to close the game at 4-3.

In another game of La Liga, Rayo Vallecano crushed home side Granada 2-0 to sink them to the bottom of the table with two losses, while they are comfortably sitting in the second position with two clean sheets in two games.

Both teams defended enough to not allow the opponent to score until Rayo’s Álvaro García gave the first goal in the 74th minute to give visitors an upper hand.

They extended their lead to 2-0 four minutes later with the match-winning goal by Pathé Ciss before the home side was reduced to 10 men as Antonio Puertas was shown the red card in the 85th minute.

Meanwhile, Atletico Madrid were held by Real Betis in a goalless stalemate.

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Pedri and Ferran Torres scored late goals to help defending champions Barcelona register their first victory in the 2023-24 La Liga season, as they edged Cadiz 2-0 on Sunday.

After a controversial drawn game against Getafe in their season-opener, Barcelona stepped into Montjuic -Barcelona’s new home as Camp Nou undergoes renovation-, looking for their first win in the ongoing season of La Liga, without their star winger Raphinha and coach Xavi.

Barcelona coach Xavi was banned for two games after being handed a red card for his touchline behaviour against Getafe, while Raphinha also received a red card for elbowing an opponent in the first half.

Cadiz, on the other hand, entered the match with the momentum gained from their 1-0 win over Alaves in their season-opener. However, they also missed their midfielder Gonzalo Escalante, who received a red card in the previous game.

Barcelona dominated the game from the first whistle and had a chance in the 28th minute when 16-year-old Lamine Yamal’s attempt was denied by a brilliant save by the Cadiz goalkeeper. The first half ended in a stalemate.

Barcelona made several attempts in the second half but to no avail, until Pedri finally gave the home side a much-needed lead at the 81-minute mark. Ferran Torres then replaced Lamine Yamal in the 85^th minute and scored in the extra time to close the match at 2-0.

In another La Liga fixture, Girona defeated Getafe 3-0 to jump to the third position in the points table with a superior goal difference.

Girona started the game strongly with a goal in the 12^th minute as Yangel Herrera scored off a header to give the advantage to the home side.

The first half closed at 1-0, however, Girona riding high on the momentum gained in the first half, came stronger in the second half.

Girona forward, Cristhian Stuani showed his brilliance and scored a brace in ten minutes to give Girona a decisive 3-0 lead, which remained intact until the final whistle.

Girona will now face Sevilla on August 27, while defending champions Barcelona will face Villarreal on the same day.

READ: India’s squad for Asia Cup 2023 unveiled

Spain won the Women’s World Cup for the first time in their history with skipper Olga Carmona sweeping in the only goal for a deserved 1-0 victory over England in Sunday’s final.  

In front of a crowd of nearly 76,000 at Stadium Australia in Sydney, Spain were the more accomplished side and had more chances, including missing a second-half penalty.

Spain’s triumph is vindication for Jorge Vilda and the Spanish football federation, who stuck with the coach even after 15 players last year said they no longer wanted to represent their country under him.

England coach Sarina Wiegman, who has now suffered back-to-back defeats in the final, and her European champions can have few complaints.

Spain are the fifth team to lift the World Cup since the tournament began in 1991, joining outgoing champions the United States, Germany, Norway and Japan.

In front of Spain’s Queen Letizia, defender Carmona scored what turned out to be the winner, rampaging from left-back to thrash the ball in low and hard on 29 minutes.

Wiegman had resisted the temptation to recall Chelsea attacker Lauren James after her two-match ban and kept faith with the team that beat co-hosts Australia 3-1 in the semi-finals.

Playing in their blue second kit, England had the first sniff of a chance in the fifth minute but Lauren Hemp shot weakly at goalkeeper Cata Coll.

There was little to choose between them in the opening exchanges before both teams had golden opportunities on the quarter-hour mark.

First, Manchester City forward Hemp struck the bar with a curler that had Coll well beaten.

Spain went up the other end and should have scored but Salma Paralluelo — in for Alexia Putellas — missed the ball in the six-yard box.

Then Alba Redondo hit a first-time strike straight at goalkeeper Mary Earps with the England goal gaping.

Hemp then had another tame effort saved, before the game was momentarily held up in the 24th minute when a spectator darted onto the pitch before being wrestled away by security.

Five minutes later Spain, who had never won a knockout game at the Women’s World Cup until this tournament and had lost 4-0 to Japan in the group phase, were ahead.

Mariona Caldentey slid in an inch-perfect pass for Carmona, who came flying unmarked down the left before lashing the ball into the bottom corner.

Vilda, who recalled three of the 15 mutineers for the World Cup, did not even raise a smile on the sidelines.

England looked uncharacteristically rattled and the 19-year-old Barcelona attacker Paralluelo, who was a constant threat, shaved the post with the last kick of the half.

Wiegman, who suffered agony in the final four years ago when her Netherlands team lost 2-0 to the United States, made a double change at the break.

James and Chloe Kelly replaced Rachel Daly and Alessia Russo as Wiegman switched from a back-five to a flat back-four.

But it was Spain who nearly doubled their lead almost straight after half-time in the Women’s World Cup final, Caldentey dinking inside and forcing Earps to turn the ball around the post.

Hemp was booked for clipping Laia Codina as England’s frustration mounted.

Midfield schemer Aitana Bonmati, who has been one of the players of the tournament and was one of the three refuseniks recalled by Vilda, fired narrowly over Earps’s bar.

With 20 minutes left, Spain were awarded a penalty when VAR was called into action and, after a long review, Keira Walsh was judged to have handled the ball in the box.

Jennifer Hermoso stepped up but her penalty was weak and Earps saved comfortably to keep England just about alive.

Officials indicated 13 minutes of injury time at the end, but if anything, it was Spain who looked the more likely to score as England’s dreams of a first World Cup melted away.

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