The Guardian

Defending champions will pose a threat with Messi’s genius but their lack of width and energy in the midfield offers encouragement for Thomas Tuchel Switzerland knew how to deal with Lionel Messi. They congested the centre of the pitch and made it impossible for him to find angles for threaded passes or rapier finishes. One of Messi’s trademark moves, when the tempo has slowed, is to go through t…

Sign up now! Sign up now! Sign up now? Sign up now! So, here we are. After a century of matches, and for the first time in history, the World Cup has entered its sixth week. But is it about to get longer? Gianni Infantino didn’t even get through the first of an agonising two-day rest period before dropping the hint that Fifa would be “examining and discussing” the potential for the 2030 tournamen…

India 285 & 341-7dec; England 170 & 186 all out Ecclestone hits milestone half-century on final morning India have defeated England by 270 runs in the one-off Test at Lord’s, a famous victory which will go some way to making up for their failure to reach the semi-finals of the World Cup this month. England batted for long enough on the fourth morning to allow Sophie Ecclestone to reach a mileston…

After being ensconced at SW19 since the start of the tournament, our photographer Tom Jenkins has picked out some of his favourite photos from the thousands he has taken during this year’s Wimbledon Championships The tournament saw Linda Noskova fend off a fightback by Karolina Muchova fightback to win her first grand slam title, and Jannik Sinner defeat Alexander Zverev to retain his Wimbledon t…

The Spain captain on his team’s chances in the World Cup semi-final, analysing every game so far and how to get the best out of Lamine Yamal “I’m not that bad,” Rodri Hernández says. It’s the morning after the World Cup’s 100th game and in a conference room at the Cotton Bowl where old posters line the walls and Spain are about to start their penultimate training session before the 101st, their c…

Negotiations break down over proposed revenue share Women’s game faces significant cuts to operations The creation of a joint commercial venture between the tours of the men’s Association of Tennis Professionals and the Women’s Tennis Association has been put on hold indefinitely as the women’s game faces the prospect of making significant cuts to its operational budget. Negotiations over a merge…

Midfielder thought to have £35m release clause Move comes as deal for Éderson from Atalanta stalls Manchester United are closing in on the signing of Youri Tielemans from Aston Villa after their move for the Atalanta midfielder Éderson stalled. Jason Wilcox, United’s director of football, is in advanced talks with Villa regarding a financial package for Tielemans. The 29-year-old, who was part of…

Prime-minister-in-waiting has been a key figure in overhauls behind the scenes of the game, as well helping to create the Hillsborough Independent Panel Picking up the country when it is in a slump of self-doubt is perhaps within Andy Burnham’s reach. And football, close to Burnham’s heart, may provide the template. There have been several occasions in the past 20 years when English football has …

Latest news as final week of World Cup gets under way Power rankings | Sign up to Football Daily | Email us Email! “While not a fan of Fifa’s blatant attempts to change the World Cup solely to make more money,” writes Ryan, “I’m actually not against the idea of going to 64 teams. The quality difference between no 48 and no 64 in the world rankings is not that large on paper, so I don’t see that i…

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…

Sinner wins fifth grand slam title at age of 24 Championships expected to be hottest on record Over the past 25 years, Wimbledon has deliberately slowed down its grass courts to blunt the power of the game’s most venomous hitters. But the era of boom-boom tennis returned with a vengeance on Sunday as Jannik Sinner defended his men’s title. It was a final short of subtlety but oozing muscular powe…

South Korean finishes two shots clear of Min Woo Lee McIlroy closes with 64 for tied seventh before the Open Tom Kim produced a bogey-free final round to win at the Scottish Open on Sunday. The 24-year-old South Korean became a Rolex Series winner for the first time and picked up a victory for the first time in 1,001 days. Kim was in fine form at the Renaissance Club with an impressive final roun…

German briefly threatened before falling well short against world No 1 whose only weakness appears to be the weather Shortly before 7pm, a full 162 minutes into this match, Alexander Zverev got his first break point on the Jannik Sinner serve. With the score still one set apiece and tied like a knot, this felt like a kind of hinge point. A humongous chance in a match preciously short on them. Sin…

We assess the teams who played in the last eight as the business end of the tournament approaches Didier Deschamps has seen it all before and certainly does not fear even the lowest of blocks. It is clear everyone is afraid of Les Bleus, which is understandable, and they are using it to their advantage. It is admirable how teams keep France quiet for lengthy periods but the game is too long to co…