Category: Football

Belgium captain Kevin De Bruyne’s future with the national side has been thrown into doubt after he slammed his teammates as “not good enough” after a 2-0 Nations League defeat to France.

The 33-year-old Manchester City midfielder vented his frustration at the players and coach Domenico Tedesco’s tactics after Monday’s loss in Lyon.

De Bruyne complained a lot was not right with the Red Devils — third in the 2018 World Cup — who sank after a promising first 20 minutes.

“There were six of us at the back. Even in the second half when we were trailing it was like that,” he told Flemish television VTM.

“It’s our way of playing that is in question. There are players who did not fulfil their role, full stop.

“If you are not good enough, you still have to give everything, which some people aren’t doing. I can accept that we are no longer at the level of 2018 but things are unacceptable.”

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Kevin De Bruyne was also filmed on the sidelines saying several times to technical director Franky Vercauteren “Ik stop” (“I stop”) with the national team.

Belgian media reported that De Bruyne also made comments in the locker room that were hurtful to his teammates.

But Tedesco insisted he did not believe that the 107-times capped player was set to exit.

“Kevin is a winner, it’s normal for him to be disappointed. But I don’t fear his departure,” said Tedesco.

Belgium are third in Nations League A Group 2, level on three points with France, with Italy leading with six points.

On Tuesday, visiting a children’s hospital in Brussels, Kevin De Bruyne said he had “slept little” but it was “neither the place nor the time to talk about football”.

READ: Australia held by Indonesia in FIFA World Cup Qualifiers

Toothless Australia failed to score for the second FIFA World Cup Qualifiers match in succession as they were held 0-0 by a gutsy Indonesia in Jakarta on Tuesday.

The Socceroos dominated in front of almost 80,000 fans at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta, but Indonesia remain above them in Group C as they seek to qualify for the World Cup for only the second time.

It was Indonesia’s second draw after a 1-1 in Saudi Arabia last week, but Australia were shocked 1-0 at home by Bahrain in their FIFA World Cup Qualifiers opener.

The Socceroos head coach Graham Arnold made five changes to his line-up with highly rated Bayern Munich teenager Nestory Irankunda given a chance to shine from the start.

Kusini Yengi was suspended after his red card against Bahrain while central defender Alessandro Circati was again employed as a makeshift right-back.

Australia were by far the better side, forcing a succession of corners with big centre-back Harry Souttar creating havoc in the Indonesia defence.

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The 18-year-old Irankunda was at the heart of all Australia’s best attacking play.

In the 34th minute, he came within a whisker of putting his side ahead when his right-foot thunderbolt rattled the post from 25 yards before rebounding off the back of the diving goalkeeper and away to safety.

The second half followed the same pattern as the first, with Australia on top but failing to find any cutting edge in front of goal.

“Extremely disappointed, because how many chances do we create? How many chances do we get?” said Arnold.

“The boys put in the effort, and they all admitted their performance wasn’t good enough in the first game.

“There’s eight games to go. It’s not like it’s a disaster, but I’ve got to go home and do a lot of thinking.”

READ: Palestine impress in FIFA World Cup Qualifiers against South Korea

Portugal’s star forward, Cristiano Ronaldo, has recently made the bold statement that winning the European Championship title is just as prestigious as clinching the FIFA World Cup.

Ronaldo made history on Thursday by becoming the first player to score 900 goals during the UEFA Nations League game against Croatia.

The 39-year-old striker put behind him a disappointing Euro 2024 in which he failed to score as he turned in a Nuno Mendes cross in the 34th minute at the Estadio da Luz to reach the landmark.

Following the game, the Portuguese star mentioned that he is considering the possibility of participating in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, although he emphasized that it is not currently a top priority for him.

Ronaldo further stated that he has won two trophies for Portugal, including Euros 2016, which he thinks is equal to winning a World Cup.

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“Portugal winning Euros is equivalent to winning a World Cup,” Ronaldo said.

“I’ve already won two trophies for Portugal that I really wanted. I’m not motivated by that. I’m motivated by enjoying football and the records come naturally.”

For the unversed, prior to Ronaldo, French striker Kylian Mbappe also made a similar statement, claiming that the European Championship is more difficult than the World Cup, a tournament.

“The Euros are complicated. For me, it is more complicated than a World Cup,” Mbappe said in June.

“Even if there is more pressure at the World Cup. All the teams know each other, we play against each other all the time. Tactically, it is a very similar football.”

READ: Barmy Army ‘frustrated’ over England-Pakistan Test series uncertainty

Cristiano Ronaldo scored the 900th goal of his remarkable career on Thursday as Portugal beat Croatia 2-1 in Lisbon in their first game of the UEFA Nations League.

Ronaldo, 39, put behind him a disappointing Euro 2024 in which he failed to score as he turned in a Nuno Mendes cross in the 34th minute at the Estadio da Luz to reach the landmark.

He appeared emotional as he celebrated the goal, his 131st in a Portugal shirt. Half of his goals were scored for Real Madrid, with the remainder spread across his spells at Sporting Lisbon, Manchester United and current club Al-Nassr.

Diogo Dalot’s goal had put Portugal in front early on before Ronaldo netted, with a Dalot own-goal reducing the deficit before the break.

The teams are in Group A1 of the latest edition of the Nations League along with Poland and Scotland.

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Portugal next host Scotland, who lost 3-2 to Poland, in Lisbon on Sunday.

Poland had been 2-0 up as Sebastian Szymanski gave them an early lead and captain Robert Lewandowski added a penalty just before the break.

However, Billy Gilmour pulled one back for League A newcomers Scotland moments after the restart, and Scott McTominay equalised before Roma’s Zalewski sneaked his spot-kick under Angus Gunn deep into stoppage time.

Elsewhere, there were wins for Slovakia and Northern Ireland in League C, while Sweden — now being coached by Jon Dahl Tomasson — beat Azerbaijan 3-1 away in Baku with Newcastle United’s Alexander Isak netting twice.

History was made in League D as San Marino, the world’s worst team according to the FIFA rankings, beat Liechtenstein 1-0 to claim their first ever competitive win.

READ: Barmy Army ‘frustrated’ over England-Pakistan Test series uncertainty

Palestine gave South Korea a major scare in an entertaining 0-0 away draw on Thursday as they attempt to reach the FIFA World Cup for the first time.

Making their debut in the third stage of Asian qualifying and 96 in FIFA’s rankings to South Korea’s 23, Palestine refused to be overawed for much of an open contest in Seoul.

Palestine play their home matches abroad, usually in the Middle East, because of the war in Gaza.

The local league has been suspended and many of the players are without a club.

Despite those obstacles, they thought they had taken the lead in the 22nd minute at the 66,000-capacity Seoul World Cup Stadium, only for the goal to be correctly ruled out for offside.

The hosts, under their fourth coach this year with Hong Myung-bo, looked shaky at the back and were struggling to get their talisman and skipper Son Heung-min into the game.

Their best chance of an even first half fell to Lee Kang-in, but Palestinian goalkeeper Rami Hamadeh just about kept out the Paris Saint-Germain player’s well-struck close-range effort.

The Palestinians appeared to tire in the second half and were restricted to rare but dangerous breakaways.

Lee was again guilty of missing a glorious chance when he shot wildly, then was denied with a 74th-minute free-kick that Hamadeh tipped over the bar.

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Oday Dabbagh then went close for the visitors on the break, before Spurs star Son rattled the outside of the Palestine post in the dying minutes.

Palestine could have won it themselves late on, only for goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo to save the hosts from an embarrassing defeat.

There were boos from the home fans at the end and the coach Hong said: “I’m sorry we couldn’t win this first match.

“The players did their best.”

Under their Tunisian coach Makram Daboub the Palestinian team have reached new heights this year.

At this year’s Asian Cup, they won a game for the first time in the history of the competition, defeating Hong Kong 3-0.

That put them into the knockout rounds of the tournament, another first, before going down 2-1 to hosts and eventual champions Qatar.

The squad trained in Malaysia for the South Korea game and will return there to prepare for their next qualifier, against Jordan in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday, in what is nominally a home match.

Palestine reached this stage of FIFA World Cup Qualifiers for the first time by coming second behind Australia in their group, winning two, losing two and drawing two of their six matches.

READ: Vinicius Jr hopes Spain lose 2030 World Cup hosting rights

Brazilian footballer Vinicius Jr, who represents Real Madrid in the Spanish league La Liga, has expressed his desire for Spain to be ripped off the hosting rights for the FIFA Men’s World Cup 2030 if the country does not evolve from racism.

Vinicius has faced racism abuses on numerous occasions during his time at Madrid with the latest coming in March this year during his side’s La Liga clash against Valencia.

The Brazilian forward was subjected to racist chanting from the crowd at the Mestalla stadium and was sent off in the final minutes of the game following an altercation with Valencia player Hugo Duro.

“The championship that once belonged to Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Cristiano and Messi today belongs to racists,” Vinicius Jr wrote on Instagram.

Meanwhile, in his recent interview with CNN, Vinicius emphasized the need for a shift in Spain towards racism.

“Until 2030, there is a lot of room for improvement, so I hope that Spain can evolve and understand how serious it is to insult someone because of the colour of their skin,” the 24-year-old striker said.

“If by 2030 things don’t improve, I think we have to move the location because if a player doesn’t feel comfortable and safe playing in a country where they can suffer racism, it’s a bit difficult.”

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Vinicius Jr’s remarks regarding Spain caused an uproar in the country while his Real Madrid teammate Dani Carvajal was among the notable figures to debunk his allegations and stressed that Spain should not be deprived of hosting the FIFA World Cup 2030.

“Spain is in no way a racist country,” Carvajal told a news conference on Wednesday, adding Spain “does not deserve to be deprived of the World Cup”.

“I know what Vinicius has to put up with but La Liga is improving and protocols are being drawn up so that these people can no longer take part in sporting events,” the defender said.

Spain national team coach Luis de la Fuente backed Carvajal’s remarks.

“There are always undesirables but Spain is not racist, it is an example of coexistence and integration,” he said.

READ: Lionel Messi missing from Ballon d’Or nominees

Lionel Messi will not win another Ballon d’Or this year after being left out of the nominees revealed by organisers on Wednesday, as stars of Spain’s Euro 2024-winning team and Real Madrid’s Champions League victors feature heavily.

Messi claimed the eighth Ballon d’Or of his glittering career last year. Now aged 37, he is not among the 30 contenders this time despite winning another title with Argentina at the Copa America in July.

The former Barcelona superstar, now playing club football in MLS for Inter Miami, was also missing from the nominees in 2022 when Karim Benzema took the honours.

However, he returned to win last year after leading Argentina to glory at the World Cup in Qatar.

The most prestigious individual award in football is voted for by a jury of journalists from each of the top 100 countries in FIFA’s world ranking.

Brazil forward Vinicius Junior is among the favourites and is one of six members of the Madrid team that won La Liga and the Champions League last season to be nominated.

Jude Bellingham, Dani Carvajal, Toni Kroos, Antonio Ruediger and Fede Valverde are the others, while Kylian Mbappe — who left Paris Saint-Germain for Real over the close season — features too.

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Carvajal is among the contenders from the victorious Spain team alongside Alejandro Grimaldo, Dani Olmo, Rodri, Nico Williams and Lamine Yamal.

Manchester City’s Norwegian star Erling Haaland and England and Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane are on the list as well, but there is no place for five-time winner Cristiano Ronaldo, now 39.

Xabi Alonso, who won the Bundesliga in an unbeaten season with Bayer Leverkusen, is among the favourites for best coach.

His rivals include Real Madrid’s Carlo Ancelotti and Spain’s Luis de la Fuente.

Meanwhile, Aitana Bonmati of Barcelona and Spain will hope to retain the women’s Ballon d’Or.

Former winners Ada Hegerberg and Alexia Putellas are also nominated, along with five members of the United States’ Olympic gold medal-winning team in Sophia Smith, Mallory Swanson, Trinity Rodman, Lindsey Horan and goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher.

The Ballon d’Or ceremony is due to take place in Paris on October 28.

READ: Nida Dar congratulates India two months after T20 World Cup triumph

Uruguay icon Luis Suarez announced his retirement from international football on Monday, confirming that he will hang up his boots following Friday’s 2026 World Cup qualifier against Paraguay in Montevideo.

“Friday will be my last match for my country,” an emotional Suarez, 37, told a press conference.

“It was not an easy decision to make, but I do it with the peace of mind that I will give my maximum until the very last game of my (Uruguay) career.”

The former Barcelona and Liverpool striker is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of his generation and will retire from international football as Uruguay’s top scorer with 69 goals from 142 appearances.

Suarez, who was infamously kicked out of the 2014 World Cup after being handed a four-month ban for biting Italy’s Giorgio Chiellini, made his debut for Uruguay in 2007.

The Inter Miami forward helped Uruguay capture the 2011 Copa America, where he was named player of the tournament, and would eventually represent the South American country in nine major tournaments.

Suarez said Monday that inspiring Uruguay to that Copa crown had been the high point of his career.

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“I wouldn’t trade the Copa America title for anything,” he said. “It was the best moment of my career. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”

A dynamic, skilful attacker with a lethal eye for goal, Suarez was also never far from controversy.

As well as the biting incident that ended his involvement in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, he was also one of the villains of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, when his cynical handball on the goal-line denied Ghana what would have been a late winner in the quarter-finals.

Luis Suarez was sent off for that offence and Ghana subsequently missed the ensuing penalty, allowing Uruguay to sneak into the semi-finals after a penalty shoot-out.

Controversy also dogged Suarez throughout his club career, notably in 2011 when he was handed an eight-game ban by authorities in England for allegedly racially abusing Manchester United’s France star Patrice Evra.

Suarez would later help Uruguay qualify for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, and also featured in this summer’s Copa America where he was used largely as a substitute by coach Marcelo Bielsa. He scored his 69th international goal in a third place play-off victory over Canada.

READ: Cristiano Ronaldo re-addresses his retirement plans

Star Portuguese footballer Cristiano Ronaldo once again commented on his retirement plans from professional football, stating it won’t be a difficult decision to make.

“When the time comes, I’ll move on. It won’t be a difficult decision to make,” Ronaldo said ahead of Portugal’s Nations League clash with Croatia in Lisbon.

“If I feel like I’m no longer contributing anything, I’ll be the first to leave,” he added, citing the example of his former team-mate Pepe, “who left through the front door” after announcing his retirement from the game last August at the age of 41.

Despite the criticism, Cristiano Ronaldo revealed that he “never considered leaving the national team”.

“People’s expectations of the national team were too high,” said Ronaldo, adding that the bad times in a footballer’s life “allow you to evolve”.

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Last week in an interview with a Portuguese channel NOW, Cristiano Ronaldo revealed that his retirement decision from the national football team would be spontaneous and he would not share it with anyone.

“When I leave the national team, I won’t tell anyone in advance and it will be a very spontaneous decision on my part, but also a very well thought-out one,” said Ronaldo.

“Right now what I want is to be able to help the national team in their upcoming matches. We have the Nations League ahead of us and I would really like to play.”

“At the moment, I’m not thinking about being a coach of the first team or any team. It doesn’t even cross my mind, I’ve never thought about it. I don’t see my future going through that. I see myself doing other things outside of football, but only God knows what the future holds.”

Cristiano Ronaldo further revealed that he is not considering leaving Al-Nassr despite his contract with the club expiring at the end of the ongoing season.

“I don’t know if I will retire soon, in two or three years… but probably I will retire here at Al Nassr,” said Ronaldo.

READ: Turkish Olympic shooter Yusuf Dikec aims to trademark viral stance

Kylian Mbappe answered his critics in style as he opened his La Liga account with two goals to give Real Madrid a 2-0 win over Real Betis at the Santiago Bernabeu on Sunday which sends them second in the table.

Since scoring in the UEFA Super Cup against Atalanta, new signing Mbappe had failed to find the back of the net in Madrid’s opening three games in La Liga, prompting criticism in the Spanish press.

Kylian Mbappe was made to wait for his goals as he squandered a series of chances, finally finding the back of the net in the 67th minute, sweeping the ball past the Betis goalkeeper with his left foot after a well-timed back-heel from Fede Valverde.

Eight minutes later the France captain added a second from the penalty spot and was cheered off the field when he was replaced by Luka Modric in the 84th minute.

The smile on Mbappe’s face was in contrast to the concern that had been shown since scoring his first goal and winning his first trophy in Warsaw on August 14.

On Saturday, coach Carlo Ancelotti hit back at the criticism, insisting that his star recruit was settling in well.

“It’s true that he hasn’t scored but he’s playing very well and has been very dangerous every time. I don’t think he has any problems adapting,” said Ancelotti, pointing instead to his team’s lack of balance.

Madrid’s 2-0 win takes them second in the table with eight points, four behind early leaders Barcelona who eviscerated Real Valladolid 7-0 on Saturday to make it four wins from four in La Liga under new coach Hansi Flick.

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Atletico Madrid are third after a late victory in Bilbao on Saturday while Villarreal are fourth, both of them also on eight points.

Girona are fifth after picking up their second win of the season in Seville.

Ivan Martin put Girona ahead in the 41st minute with Abel Ruiz wrapping up a 2-0 win over Sevilla with a penalty in the 73rd minute.

Goals from Carlos Vicente and Luka Romero gave Alaves a 2-0 win over Las Palmas while Osasuna are in seventh after an exciting 3-2 win at home against Celta Vigo.

Ante Budimir teed up Flavien Boyomo to put the home side ahead after 21 minutes but the lead was short-lived as Borja Iglesias levelled for Celta.

A Carlos Dominguez own goal just before the break put Osasuna back in front with Abel Bretones adding a third just after the hour.

Celta were reduced to 10 men when Alfonso Gonzalez was sent off four minutes from time but an own goal from Moi Gomez was a small consolation in the last minute.

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