The Guardian

⚽ All the latest as the quarter-finals conclude ⚽ Player guide | Bracketology | Golden Boot | Email us There were some handy cameos elsewhere though with Djed Spence making an impact at left back, Morgan Rogers adding much needed energy, and Dan Burn reminding everyone that even in the modern passing and possession era it’s perfectly fine to stick on a big fella when you’re defending a lead and e…

Did anyone think they would do it the easy way? Argentina were labouring towards penalties with eight minutes of extra time left against a dogged, supremely organised 10-man Switzerland. There was a high risk they would curse throwing away a game that felt like a cruise when Alexis Mac Allister headed them into an early lead. The game ground down to walking pace and they received an almighty jolt…

Up against Norway’s heart and skill and Florida’s heat, talisman got England through – but there is much to fix Jude against the sun. For much of this game there was a feeling of three separate entities struggling to assert their will in the heavy air of Miami Gardens. First, Norway, in their first World Cup quarter-final, who played with heart, skill and patience, and were by any Jude-free metri…

Tuchel’s half-time changes and Pickford’s skittishness lifted Norway, but backline finally rose to occasion England were back in Azteca mode in the end. Big Dan Burn was on to thump those headers away. Reece James and the magnificent Djed Spence were covering the flanks, Elliot Anderson was taking care of midfield on his own and the problem for Norway was that the hulking figure leading their att…

South Africa 42-28 Scotland Scots run in four tries to earn bonus point A breathless match, all the more so given the thin air of Pretoria, but the upshot is, for all Scotland’s wit and energy, South Africa march on with another full house of points. The visitors were brilliant in scoring their four tries, their pace and skill regularly making mugs of their hosts, but power remains the thing the …

Thomas Tuchel’s message was that it was time for England to thrive at the business end of the World Cup; the most exciting part. His players had to release the handbrake and go for it. They must not have any regrets against a Norway team that most of England expected them to beat. English arrogance? Or cold, hard realism? Happily for Tuchel, he had a player in Jude Bellingham who took him at his …

Plucky defeats decorated with patches of excellence will not cut it for Australia with a home World Cup now looming large The camera found Joe Schmidt shortly after France had completed a 22-point swing. Australia’s coach had seen a 21-12 half-time lead obliterated in 16 brutal minutes. Schmidt, one of rugby’s sharpest minds, looked short of answers. The trouble was that the questions confronting…

Noskova wins women’s singles after 6-2, 5-7, 6-3 victory ‘What really helped me … the trophies were there’ A jubilant Linda Noskova said seeing the Wimbledon trophy sitting by Centre Court helped her reset at a vital time as she clinched her first grand slam title with a dramatic 6-2, 5-7, 6-3 victory over her fellow Czech Karolina Muchova at Wimbledon. The 21-year-old led 6-2, 5-2 only to miss f…

Fullback scores hat-trick as New Zealand win 47-17 in Wellington New coach Dave ‌Rennie has ‌back-to-back wins in his first matches The gap between New Zealand’s ambition and execution widened as the All Blacks overcame a slow start to beat Italy 47-17 and remain unbeaten after two rounds of the Nations Championship. A dismal first-half performance was partly redeemed as Will Jordan scored three …

Current Lord’s Test will be her final appearance “I’m privileged to have gone on this journey’ Heather Knight will retire from international cricket at the end of this week’s Test match against India at Lord’s. Knight, who has made a record 320 appearances for England, has joined teammate Tammy Beaumont in calling time on her career at the end of what is the first women’s Test match at the home o…

Midfielder has risen from the bench to come up with the decisive goal in past two games – Spain’s first World Cup knockout victories since they won the tournament in 2010 “I look behind me and I see Mikel Merino and I think: ‘I’m calm as can be,’” Luis de la Fuente said when at last the heart rates had returned to normal. Everyone else’s heart rates, anyway. In those moments when time is running …

Replacement keeper Lammens made crucial error Garcia: ‘Only players who are 100% fit can play’ Rudi Garcia came under a barrage of fire for replacing his injured first-choice goalkeeper, Thibaut Courtois, in Belgium’s World Cup quarter-final defeat by Spain on Friday, adding to questions about the coach’s ⁠future. Courtois felt he could continue ⁠despite a twinge in ​his leg, but Garcia insisted …

With the head coach having released the handbrake, his side were far superior compared with four years ago in Qatar against the same opponents The scorelines may have been exactly the same, but the stylistic gulf in France’s two World Cup knockout performances against Morocco could not have been greater. In the space of just a single tournament cycle, Didier Deschamps has embraced a vastly differ…

Attendance and viewing figures at T20 World Cup hit an all-time high – and the sport’s appeal is pushing boundaries Women’s cricket is growing faster than the men’s game in many areas of the world, according to the International Cricket Council chief executive, Sanjog Gupta, who has defended his organisation’s reliance on the Indian market for driving expansion. The first women’s Test to be playe…

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