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Fans following World Cup swing between cautiously and wildly optimistic about chances Colombia does not really do quiet: the need for music, talk and laughter is too deeply ingrained in the national soul. But on Thursday morning its second city, Medellín, fell silent as if the soundtrack had been switched off. It flipped back on at 10.33am, as throaty roars, shrieks, squeals and cries of “Gol! Gol! Gol!” burst out in unison on every street in the city. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2MARx2O

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England manager has never been allowed to forget his semi-final miss against Germany and is adamant his players will not suffer the same fate at the 2018 World Cup It was inevitable that, at some point, the conversation with Gareth Southgate would turn to the most harrowing ordeal of his professional life and the reasons why the England manager, after two decades of living with the consequences, is so determined to make sure his team will not fall into the same trap. Southgate was thinking back to that night against Germany in the semi-final of Euro 96, with the game drawn 1-1, and the traumatic events that led to John Major, the prime minister, offering him a sympathetic hug outside Wembley. The night Southgate was asked by Terry Venables, just moments before the penalty shootout started, if he would take one and it hit him, in his own words, like “a bolt from the blue”. The night he assured Bryan Robson that, yes, he had taken a penalty before. “Bryan didn’t ask for details,” South...

• Tottenham players in regular contact on WhatsApp • Sánchez: ‘If I play against him, I’ll try to stop him’ The Tottenham Hotspur player WhatsApp group has taken a global twist. The club have 12 on World Cup duty, representing six nations and, whenever one of them or their teams do well, the messages and encouragement follow. The tone of some of the exchanges may be different in the coming days or perhaps radio silence will descend out of necessity. Davinson Sánchez is the lone Spur in the Colombia squad and he has begun to prepare for Tuesday’s last-16 match with England . Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2N9XcOF

• ‘He has been banging goals in since leaving Premier League’ • Colombia striker reignited his career in Ligue 1 with Monaco Gary Cahill believes England will face a far more deadly Radamel Falcao when they play Colombia on Tuesday than the player who failed to make an impact in the Premier League. From Cristiano Ronaldo in Germany in 2006, to Mario Balotelli and Luis Suárez in Brazil four years ago, England are painfully aware of the damage that can be inflicted by Premier League alumni on the big stage. Whether it is a keener awareness of the opposition or some deeper motivation to prove a point to those who doubted them, each has contributed significantly to England’s exit from the World Cup in tournaments past. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2IErA05

• ‘They tore us apart in group,’ admits Poland goalkeeper • Midfield particularly strong with Rodríguez and Quintero Lukasz Fabianski has warned England that Colombia are formidable opponents and capable of tearing teams apart if they get control of the game. Reflecting on the way in which Poland were comprehensively outclassed and outplayed by Colombia during their 3-0 defeat in Kazan , Fabianski described José Pekerman’s side as “the team to avoid at this stage” and highlighted the quality of their midfield in particular. England face Colombia in Moscow on Tuesday after losing their final group game against Belgium on Thursday to finish second, with that 1-0 defeat putting Gareth Southgate’s side in the easier half of the draw in the eyes of some. Yet Fabianski, who made his first appearance at the World Cup finals in Poland’s 1-0 win over Japan , believes that England have made life a lot harder for themselves in another respect. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardi...

• England manager happy with decisions for Belgium game • Southgate says Harry Kane was ‘brilliant’ about sitting it out Gareth Southgate has conceded his honeymoon period as England manager is over and admitted the decision to rest so many players for the team’s final World Cup group game has left him open to criticism should the knockout tie with Colombia be lost. The England players had accepted Southgate’s plan to make eight changes for the game against Belgium in Kaliningrad, where they were beaten 1-0, with the manager making a point of taking his captain, Harry Kane, to one side to explain his reasoning. The defeat has actually dropped England into a potentially more favourable side of the draw but, with momentum checked, Colombia represent awkward opponents in Tuesday’s last-16 tie in Moscow. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2Kz922Y

A Day of the Dead-themed parade in Moscow was called off after communist lawmakers objected Mexican soccer fans have called off a Day of the Dead-themed parade in Moscow’s Red Square after communist lawmakers objected to the event being held so close to Lenin’s tomb. A carnival atmosphere has taken over parts of the capital as thousands of fans pack to watch the soccer World Cup. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2ySAuaw

A brilliantly entertaining group stage produced 116 goals and a plethora of stories – this already feels like a tournament with is own distinctive character And breathe. After 48 matches, 116 goals and a thrillingly varied swag-bag of drama, big-name angst and rolling VAR-palaver, Russia 2018 has now reached its midpoint. These things invariably alter from week to week, the tone and texture of a tournament defined by a few key games. But as the World Cup takes a breath, hitches its shorts up and contemplates a final punt through the laces at the knockout stage, it already feels like a tournament with its own distinctive character. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2KzHxGO

There are tickets available for France v Argentina and, more importantly, Colombia v England on Tuesday in Moscow Tickets for six of the eight round of 16 games are still available to varying degrees on the Fifa late availability website. There is still high availability for France v Argentina in Kazan on Saturday, which might be useful for those fans already in Russia. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2KgHzqV

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• ‘We’d like to neutralise him but know he can make difference’ • France need Antoine Griezmann to spark against Argentina If a manager’s demeanour in front of the cameras is an indication of the state of his team then France risk staring into the void. The auditorium inside the Kazan Arena is cavernous but after 20 minutes in the presence of Didier Deschamps it seemed to have been sucked dry of air. Nobody present came away feeling remotely illuminated as to how his team may galvanise themselves to overcome Argentina on Saturday, although they did, at least, depart reassured Deschamps knew the identity of their bete noire. “Messi is Messi,” pronounced Deschamps, an observation he repeated later on for good measure. “We’d like to mark and neutralise him but we know very well he can make the difference with very little. We have to take that into account.” Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2Kx1Urb

• Chairman of referees says action taken after early incidents • Total of 14 decisions overturned thanks to video in group stage Pierluigi Collina has confirmed Fifa cracked down on holding by defenders at set pieces after a series of early incidents at Russia 2018. Speaking to reporters at a briefing on video assistant referees in Moscow on Friday, the chairman of the referees’ committee was asked why England’s Harry Kane and Serbia’s Aleksandar Mitrovic were not given penalties for being held during games against Tunisia and Switzerland, respectively. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2lLdC3w

• Belgium goalkeeper has slipped down Anfield pecking order • Mignolet: ‘After the World Cup I will look at everything’ Simon Mignolet will hold talks with Liverpool on the conclusion of Belgium’s World Cup campaign as he seeks to ascertain whether there will be first-team opportunities for him next season. The goalkeeper, who had begun last season as Jürgen Klopp’s first-choice, made his most recent Premier League appearance on New Year’s Day and has played only once for his club, in the fourth round FA Cup defeat to West Bromwich Albion, since having fallen behind Loris Karius in the pecking order. The latter is due back for pre-season training on Monday with Klopp to assess his fellow German’s state of mind after his errors in the Champions League final defeat by Real Madrid. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2yR73WE

Country is putting on its best face to welcome the world, in a case study in effective soft power Vladimir Putin wore a broad smile when the US national security adviser, John Bolton, gave him an extra special compliment on Wednesday. “We are most appreciative of your courtesy and graciousness here and I look forward to learning how you handled the World Cup so successfully, among other things,” Bolton told Putin during a meeting at the Kremlin. A top US official at the Kremlin complimenting Putin’s World Cup as they arranged a summit with Donald Trump . Was this real life or just the Russian president’s fantasy? Could it have gone any better? Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2KswZwa

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Football does not value to the skill the forward showed against Iran but the World Cup should be an outlet for the unbound There was a moment on Monday night in Kazan, as Ricardo Quaresma veered in off the right wing towards the Iran goal , shifting the angle of his body with a dinky little half-step, when you knew exactly what he was about to do. José Mourinho must have had an inkling, watching from his shark-tank penthouse high above the Moscow skyline. “Quaresma will have to learn, otherwise he won’t play,” Mourinho had told reporters 10 years ago when Quaresma was one of his players at Internazionale. “I am sure he’ll change and become more tactically disciplined. Right now he likes kicking the ball with the outside of his foot.” Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2MAcjzT

The midfielder is the epitome of the bronca , the spirit of defiance that so often propels Argentina, and a voice of reason in a chaotic campaign Javier Mascherano has spent much of the past week looking beat up. He had a black eye as he gave a deeply necessary press conference last Saturday that helped stabilise Argentina, and finished Tuesday’s game against Nigeria with blood pouring from a cut eye and a scratched cheek. While his performance then had little to do with stability, his presence was still deeply necessary. If Mascherano was Argentina’s unacknowledged captain at the last World Cup , it has felt at times here that he has been their unacknowledged coach. At times in St Petersburg there was something almost painful in watching Mascherano, at 34, look so off the pace. Every time a Nigerian ran at him, it seemed, he went past him. Again and again he gave the ball away. And yet at the same time, he was magnificent, constantly urging Argentina forward, organising and cajoling...

Sign up now! Sign up now! Sign up now? Sign up now ! Thanks to some prescient scheduling by Fifa, the World Cup is on a break on Friday, allowing fun-lovers across the planet to pause for solemn reflection after the worst day of the tournament. In every country where football is played, and also in Canada, people are coming together in earnest huddles to brainstorm ways of ensuring that no one ever again has to witness the sort of travesty inflicted by the Japanese bureaucrats sent out against Poland or the kickabout between Belgium’s reserves and a gaggle of English backpackers. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2KzYH6T

The World Cup is the biggest show on Earth but not all of the greatest players have shown up yet By Martin Laurence for WhoScored , part of the Sport Network The World Cup group stages are over, three quarters of the games have been played and half of the teams are on their way home. Plenty of big names are leaving the tournament having failed to live up to expectations and a few more have been given a second chance to impress after their underwhelming displays. We look at XI who will not look back fondly on the first 48 games of the tournament. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2KkBmu7

Croatia have impressed the most, the fairplay rule isn’t fair and Africa hits a modern low at the tournament Gareth Southgate’s team is now in the “easier” half of the draw and everyone with an England shirt on can plot a route to the last four or, if you’re feeling really optimistic and totally blind to the country’s record on the big stage, the final itself. ‘Well played lads’ screamed the headline on the front page of The Sun, after an understrength England side lost 1-0 against Belgium to avoid a quarter-final with Brazil. This is the same nation that has won two knockout matches at major tournaments – against Denmark and Ecuador – since Stuart Pearce tucked away that penalty against Spain at Euro 1996. Colombia, for the record, were quarter-finalists four years ago and they’ve won six of their last eight World Cup games. Be careful what you wish for. Stuart James Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2KxazXx

David Duckenfield, who was in charge at 1989 Hillsborough match when 96 people died, will face trial as will four other men The prosecution for manslaughter of David Duckenfield, the former South Yorkshire police chief superintendent who was in command of the FA Cup semi final at Hillsborough in 1989 when 96 people were killed, is to continue to trial, a judge has ruled. Criminal charges against four other men for criminal offences in relation to the disaster and its aftermath will also proceed to trial, after the judge, Sir Peter Openshaw, rejected the defendants’ applications for them to be dismissed. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2N9B32N

Our cartoonist looks back at the World Cup group stage View all of David’s cartoons here Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2yQ7wIE

• Russian club want around £27m for attacking midfielder • Futures of Willian and Pedro in doubt at Stamford Bridge Chelsea are in talks with CSKA Moscow with a view to making the much coveted attacking midfielder, Aleksandr Golovin, their first signing of the summer. Golovin has impressed as Russia have progressed into a meeting with Spain in the l ast 16 at the World Cup , with two assists in the group stage, with Chelsea having now moved to follow up their long-standing interest in the 22-year-old. Juventus had been close to securing the player earlier in the summer, with Arsenal having also been linked with this signature, but Chelsea are now favourites to tie up a deal once his participation at the summer tournament has concluded. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2lDTaS2

By RORY SMITH from NYT Sports https://ift.tt/2tNtOFa

The former England captain will find himself at a faded North American superpower. But they hope he will be the face of their climb back to the top Wayne Rooney made his first visit to Washington DC earlier this month. Had he picked up a newspaper he’d have been faced with images of sporting celebration in the city. The Washington Capitals’ victorious run to the Stanley Cup final captivated his new hometown , not always the most obvious of sporting hotbeds. ESPN analyst Michael Wilbon once called Washington a “minor league sports town,” but over 100,000 fans attended the Caps’ victory parade on 12 June. DC United, the team Rooney has signed a three-and-a-half-year contract with , haven’t registered in this way for a long time, if ever. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2yVEC9O

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Today’s fluff is waiting for Saturday to come According to our back-of-a-fag-packet calculations, Liverpool haven’t signed a totally dependable goalkeeper since enticing Ray Clemence from Scunthorpe in 1967. That record is likely to be maintained for a little longer, because Chelsea are going to beat them to the signature of the Roma and Brazil stopper Alisson . Long-time suitors Real Madrid won’t be too happy about that news either. Liverpool will console themselves by landing midfielder Marco Asensio in a big-money deal. And Manchester United want Toni Kroos ! It’s not a good day for Real Madrid, this, is it. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2N9XHs8

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Prime minister commits PR gaffe after top handed to her by Belgian counterpart They say sports and politics make uneasy bedfellows, and Theresa May will no doubt agree. At the start of a summit of EU leaders in Brussels, the British prime minister was ambushed by her Belgian counterpart, Charles Michel, who presented her with a Belgium football team top ahead of the England v Belgium World Cup game. May held up the strip, before realising that doing so might be a PR gaffe, and appeared to attempt to hide it away. Unfortunately her fellow leaders pointed to the TV monitors showing her reaction live to a packed hall of reporters. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2IAA48r

Former Germany captain Lothar Matthäus has suggested that a 'lack of passion' and poor squad selection could be the reason for the team's earliest exit from the World Cup in 80 years Löw cannot survive Germany’s World Cup humiliation Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2KtjP2a

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Why did Jimbo Fisher leave a program he proved he could win at for one that has long tried—and failed—to reach college football's pinnacle? The answer is about money, but probably not in the way you expect.

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A second-half header from Yerry Mina put Colombia through to the knockout stages of Russia 2018 and sent Senegal home on account of having received more yellow cards than Japan. Defeat left Aliou Cissé’s side level on points and goal difference with Japan but the latter’s lower bookings tally meant they go through in second place from Group G. Colombia had been second best throughout the first half as they struggled to regain the heights of their emphatic win over Poland but improved after the break and got the breakthrough when Mina met a corner from the right with a thumping header at the near post. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2KvbMyk

Japan are into the World Cup knockout stages despite their 0-1 defeat to Poland after Colombia’s victory over Senegal in Samara meant they finished second in Group H on the same goal difference as the African country but with a better disciplinary record by two yellow cards Related: Colombia advance at World Cup as Senegal go out on yellow cards Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2Kw9xLc

Marcus Hooker is the brother of Colts safety Malik Hooker.

Club reaches agreement with Everton for permanent transfer Rooney says US move ‘fulfills another career ambition for me’ Wayne Rooney’s dream return to boyhood club Everton is over after one season following the 32-year-old’s move to Major League Soccer side DC United. England’s record goalscorer rejoined the Toffees after 13 years at Manchester United, where he is also the all-time leading scorer, last summer but has left just 12 months later for a new challenge in the United States. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2yT72Bi

• Player wanted subsequent suspension to pass before derby • Halsey: ‘He asked if I could show a yellow. And I did actually’ Mark Halsey says he was approached by a player during an English top-flight game in 2011 asking to be booked. The former Premier League referee, who retired at the end of the 2012-13 season, told CNN Sport about the incident . Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2MsXJtM

Argentina star Lionel Messi surprised a reporter by revealing he wore the lucky charm he gave him after his team's draw against Iceland . Messi 's superb  goal against Nigeria helped the team progress to the last 16 – and the forward wore the ribbon, which belonged to the reporter's mother, around his ankle ‘I knew God was with us’: Messi hails Argentina’s salvation Marcel Desailly : Messi’s in a mess and doesn’t seem to fit with Argentina Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2KgjY9T

• Greece defender set to complete move to north London • Papastathopoulos set to become Unai Emery’s third signing Arsenal are close to signing Sokratis Papastathopoulos from Borussia Dortmund after agreeing a fee of €20m (£17.6m) for the Greece defender. The 30-year-old, who has won 79 caps for his country, was identified as one of new Arsenal manager Unai Emery’s prime transfer targets after the Spaniard took over from Arsène Wenger. Negotiations with Dortmund have been ongoing for several weeks, with Papastathopoulos now expected to complete his move to the Emirates. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2IAe79z

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Sign up now! Sign up now! Sign up now? Sign up now ! The Fiver is a pacifist. By that, we mean when that discoloured buffoon starts World War III, we’ll come up with any excuse possible to ensure we’re nowhere near the line of fire. If it means eating flavoured fatbergs until we’re the size of a house, so be it. What we won’t do is proudly demonstrate our integrity, patriotism and masculinity by marching intrepidly towards certain death. That, in football terms, is what England are apparently aiming to do when they play Belgium Reserves on Thursday night. We thought we’d seen everything with England at the World Cup, but it’s definitely a first to go into a match game fearing a victory . Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2yPS1jN

The national team’s shock exit must force a chance of manager – and serious soul searching about the state of the Bundesliga The most amazing thing about Germany’s World Cup exit at the group stage is that the sun still rose this morning. You wouldn’t have thought so yesterday evening. Anyone who was walking the streets of Berlin kept staring into the empty faces of people trodding zombie-like to the next tube station and felt like an extra in some post-apocalyptic drama. One can understand why those fans were shell-shocked. If you count the Confederations Cup as a big tournament, Germany had reached eight semi-finals at major events in a row since 2005. Quite apart from the fact that nobody has ever achieved anything remotely like this before – not even one of the many fine Brazilian teams in history, not even the Germans themselves previously – it lulled the country into a sense of security that turned out to be very false indeed. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian...

Children’s author Tom Palmer has teamed up with the National Literacy Trust to write a story that captures reluctant readers By Richard Foster , author of The Agony and the Ecstasy Amid the avalanche of words written for football fans during the World Cup, perhaps the most unusual and original will be those created by children’s author Tom Palmer. Unlike the reporters and pundits who are documenting events in Russia, Palmer has a very particular mission. Throughout the tournament he is posting daily entries of a story called Defenders: Russia , a tale that mixes fact and fiction and is aimed at a group of young people who are classed as “reluctant readers”. “There is often a strong correlation between reluctant readers and those interested in sporting events like the World Cup,” Palmer says. “The idea is to draw in readers who might otherwise think that all stories are set 300 years ago and in places they have never been to and will never go to either.” Continue reading... from F...

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Everyone seems to know the score. They’ve seen it all before. But can they remember the details for this quiz? What was the score in England’s first match at a World Cup? England 0-1 USA, 1930 England 3-3 Uruguay, 1934 England 6-4 Italy, 1938 England 2-0 Chile, 1950 Who was the last player born in England to win the World Cup? Manuel Almunia Louis Saha Lewis Holtby Simone Perrotta Gary Lineker is England's top scorer at World Cups with 10 goals. Which two players are joint second with five goals each? Bobby Charlton and David Beckham Geoff Hurst and Harry Kane Tom Finney and Roger Hunt Alan Shearer and Michael Owen England made it to the semi-finals at Italia 90. Which team beat them in the third-fourth play-off? Argentina Italy Spain West Germany England have lost three penalty shootouts at World Cups. How many have they won? None One Two Three Which of these players has not missed a penalty for England in a shootout at the World Cup? Stuart Pearce Chri...

• Serbian has contract cancelled by new president • Mihajlovic had been given three-year contract Sporting have sacked coach Sinisa Mihajlovic just nine days after he was hired by the Portuguese club. The 49-year-old Serbian was appointed on a three-year contract just days before president Bruno de Carvalho was voted out in a bid to save the club after nine players quit in protest of an attack by group of supporters in May. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2lGGOZy

Today’s whispers had a close shave The transfer carousel never stops turning – except for a few minutes yesterday when the whole footballing world paused to laugh at Germany – and it’s about to pick up speed. Because now that Serbia have joined Jogi Löw’s decrepit outfit on the plane out of Russia, the future of Sergej Milinkovic-Savic could be resolved. Related: Transfer window 2018 – every summer deal from Europe's top five leagues Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2tyeHjg

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Seven months after his gruesome ankle injury, Nick Fitzgerald is eager to get back to full speed in a system new coach Joe Moorhead believes will let him thrive.

The Liverpool defender is used to hearing about the history boys of 1998 but is confident Croatia’s current generation can go one better and reach the World Cup final Dejan Lovren had a message for Slaven Bilic and Igor Stimac – the twin defensive pillars of Croatia’s fabled 1998 team – and it was surely designed to make them smile. “They have a record of reaching the World Cup semi-finals and I want to beat that and I also want to beat them,” the Liverpool centre-half said. “I want people to remember my name in the future, not theirs.” Lovren has played under the management of Bilic and Stimac for Croatia and he knows how to push their buttons. Perhaps it takes one maverick central defender to know another two. It was put to Lovren that Bilic and Stimac were a little crazy. “Yeah but you need to be crazy in our country,” he replied. “Nobody is normal. I’m not normal.” Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2IxSd6P

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This, then, is how the world ends, not with a bang but with a whimper. There are certain events so apocalyptic that it feels they cannot just happen. They should be signalled beneath thunderous skies as owls catch falcons and horses turn and eat themselves. At the very least, there should be a sense of fury, of thwarted effort, of energies exhausted. And yet Germany went out of the World Cup in the first round for the first time in 80 years with barely a flicker of resistance. There was no Sturm. There was no Drang. They had come to this World Cup not merely as defending champions but as winners of the last summer’s Confederations Cup – with what was effectively a second string. The overhaul of their academy system was the envy of the world, talent production on an industrial scale. And yet, called upon to score a goal against a disappointing South Korea side that had already lost to Sweden and Mexico, that had lost in qualifying to Qatar and China, they struggled to create a chance. ...

Sweden have qualified for the last 16 of the World Cup after defeating Mexico 3-0 in Ekaterinburg to finish top in Group F. Mexico have also qualified after Germany were surprisingly beaten by South Korea. A goal early in the second half from Ludwig Augustinsson and a second from the penalty spot from the captain Andreas Granqvist put Sweden in charge, and an own goal from Edson Álvarez ensured Sweden made up for their last-gasp defeat to Germany. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2yPScLS

Nabil Fékir and Steven N’Zonzi may be shoehorned into the team for the Argentina match but France need some clear direction if they are to impress at this World Cup By Adam White for Get French Football News France and Denmark emphatically ended a streak of 36 matches without a goalless draw at Russia 2018. Their 90-minute standoff in Moscow took both sides through to the last-16 but it represented something of a nadir for this World Cup, with France somehow managing to double down on their slow, turgid opening to the tournament. The game also posed further selection questions for Didier Deschamps as he attempts to wrestle some form from his supremely talented yet cripplingly uninspired squad. Most notably: what should he do with Nabil Fékir, the only player who posed a consistent threat against Denmark. With France already assured of a place in the last-16, Deschamps made some changes for the Denmark game. Steve Mandanda replaced the rested Hugo Lloris in goal; Djibril Sidibé and ...

His performance in the stands watching Argentina v Nigeria was a sad reminder of his struggles but we have to accept his extremes and that he is neither good or bad – but both Halfway through the match between Argentina and Nigeria it looked as if something had begun to take hold as the image of Diego Maradona seemingly asleep in his VIP box appeared on TV screens all over the world. In reality his appearance had raised questions from the moment he entered the stadium. Memes of his demoniac look, arms crossed across his chest, had gone viral, as did the gif of him dancing with a woman in the crowd. Related: Diego Maradona receives medical treatment after Argentina victory Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2N4dh8G

Jorge Sampaoli’s men are through to the last 16 thanks to a late winner against Nigeria. More importantly, their key player seems to be getting back to his best Former national team coach Gerardo “Tata” Martino said it best this week: Argentinians can’t live without conflict. The team is a microcosm of that culture. So, a day after the country went on a general strike, Argentinians looked to Messi and Co to vent their feelings. And when Argentina scored the winner against Nigeria to put them through to the last 16 of the World Cup, those feelings even spilled through to cable news reports on the economy: Cuando estas hablando del dóYGOOOOOOOOOOLLL Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2tyA30a

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Sign up now! Sign up now! Sign up now? Sign up now ! While everyone else in England was getting very excited watching Germany lose to Sweden on Saturday night, The Fiver was busy resisting the urge to shout “ACHTUNG! FOR YOU, JÉRÔME, ZE ETHICS WORLD CUP IS OVER!” at the television. We’ll leave that kind of coarse jingoism to $exually Repressed Morris Dancing Fiver, who really should have known better than to tempt fate by riffing on Germany’s misery. Let’s face it, it was never going to last. Make the Schadenfreud-ometer™ rattle as much as you like, but we’ve all seen this play before. Spoiler alert: it ends with John Stones, England’s Golden Boot-in-waiting, scuffing a sad penalty straight at Manuel Neuer and sending Germany into the semi-finals at the expense of Gareth Southgate’s darts whizzes. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2Ko7U5D

By CHRISTINA CARON from NYT Sports https://ift.tt/2N5jot9