The Guardian

Alex Freeman has impressed from right-back while Eli Just is catching the eye with his body swerves and goal threat It is not difficult to see why this old head on young shoulders is destined for a big career. In a Morocco team conditioned to play first-time passes, he sets the tone with his instant decisions. Bouaddi is in essence the deepest of the midfield three and he not only plays quickly b…

With the group stage hurtling towards its end we look at who needs what to make the knockout phase Teams level on points are separated, in order, by head-to-head points; head-to-head goal difference; head-to-head goals scored; overall goal difference; overall goals scored; disciplinary points; Fifa ranking. Continue reading...

For years the United States sought a single soccer identity. Instead, its best team emerged from a patchwork of backgrounds, cultures and development paths In 1993, the United States Soccer Federation handed a contract to Rinus Michels. But the Dutch godfather of Total Football, operationalized through his on-field avatar Johan Cruyff, was not hired to coach the national team, or to coach anybody…

Max Rushden is joined by Barry Glendenning , Lars Sivertsen , Mark Langdon and Jacob Steinberg as England fail to break down Ghana Continue reading...

⚽ All the latest news on a day packed with six matches ⚽ Player guide | Bracketology | Golden Boot | Mail Daniel This “I’m back” situation, though; it’ll take more than bagging a brace against Uzbekistan for that to be so. Roberto Martínez has options, too. He could play a wide player up front – Pedro Neto has done it for Chelsea – or Goncalo Ramos, who’s a striker. Continue reading...

Plus: is Dick Advocaat unique among coaches, long waits between World Cups and Dave Beasant revisionism Mail us with your all of your questions and answers “Sweden’s Yasin Ayari has a Tunisian father and chose not to celebrate his first goal against Tunisia (he couldn’t resist celebrating when he scored later, though). Declan Rice did something similar after scoring against the Republic of Irelan…

As anybody who’s ever encountered Mexican traffic jams will know, there are times when it feels you’ll never get through the impasse. Colombia must have felt the same about the DR Congo goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi, who made an outrageous string of saves that looked like they might earn his side an unlikely point. The Le Havre keeper was finally beaten – but only by a deflection that gave Colombia the…

When it was all done, and Ante Budimir had rescued Croatia’s World Cup campaign with the lone goal in a tight match against Panama, 25 Croatians donned black T-shirts over their match kits and warm-up tops. “Infinite Legacy,” read the T-shirts, printed with the number 200 and an image of Luka Modric. He was the 26th man, but he had quickly taken his off after his teammates had flung him in the ai…

BYU freshman tops draft after scoring spree Wizards land first No 1 pick since Wall Dybantsa joins rebuilding Washington AJ Dybantsa is on his way to Washington and ready to start working as soon as he gets there. That’s not until Wednesday. Tuesday was a night for the NBA‘s No 1 draft pick to party. Continue reading...

Sign up now! Sign up now! Sign up now? Sign up now! In 10 of the past 12 World Cups, six goals has been the standard to bag yourself the Golden Boot. Usually a goal per game will suffice. In fact, on two occasions (in 2006 and 2010) a mere five strikes has been enough. Yet a quick glance at the current 2026 Geopolitics World Cup Golden Boot standings after most teams have played two games sees Li…

41-year-old heavily criticised after DR Congo draw ‘It felt like I’d already retired from football,’ he adds Cristiano Ronaldo savoured the end of a “difficult, dark week” after scoring twice in Portugal’s 5-0 rout of Uzbekistan and becoming the first player to find the net in six World Cups. Ronaldo and Portugal had come under heavy criticism after a flat draw against Democratic Republic of the …

Inverted wingers were unable to adjust their game, even when they kept running down the same dead end street After the high: the comedown. You could probably have seen this coming. If only that rush after half-time in Dallas , where England surged with such alluring creative energy, hadn’t been quite so much of a buzz. It turns out, however, that this is still an England tournament team. Nothing …

Australia 199-7; Pakistan 86 (13.4 overs) | Australia win by 113 runs Ellyse Perry top scores with 71 as Australia effectively reach semis Australia have not yet technically qualified for the semi-finals of the Women’s T20 World Cup, but after Pakistan became the latest opponents crushed underfoot their net run rate is so superior they are effectively there with a game to spare. The only concern …