NORTHERN IRELAND vs. SWITZERLAND
Northern Ireland is within reach of its first World Cup in 32 years after hitting its target of second place in a group won by defending champion Germany. Switzerland, ranked No. 4 in August, finds itself in a tense playoff despite nine straight wins to start qualifying. On Monday, Switzerland coach Vladimir Petkovic was still looking back to the 2-0 loss at Portugal last month, saying he had imagined playing a “nice friendly” game this week. He acknowledged his team was too passive against Portugal, and challenged players he did not identify to take more responsibility now. The Swiss need to forget about that match before the first leg Thursday at Windsor Park, where only Germany has beaten Northern Ireland in a competitive match in the past four years. Switzerland has a nine-game winning streak at home in tournament qualifiers, and hosts the return on Sunday in Basel.
Fixtures
Today: Northern Ireland vs. Switzerland
Sunday: Switzerland vs. Northern Ireland
CROATIA vs. GREECE
Greece is bidding to reach a major tournament again after an embarrassing qualification campaign for the 2016 European Championship. Crucially, it will be without defender Kostas Manolas, who is banned from the first leg. He is out because FIFA suspended him for trying to manipulate his disciplinary record by deliberately earning a yellow card against Cyprus on Oct. 7. The decision compounded problems for coach Michael Skibbe, who is missing midfielder Petros Mantalos and striker Tasos Donis because of injury. Croatia is set to miss defensive midfielder Milan Badelj for both matches against Greece. The Croatians and the Greeks were in the playoffs for the 2014 tournament
in Brazil. Croatia eliminated Iceland 2-0
on aggregate, while Greece beat Romania 4-2
on aggregate.
Fixtures
Today: Croatia vs. Greece
Sunday: Greece vs. Croatia
SWEDEN vs. ITALY
Four-time champion Italy has participated in every World Cup since failing to qualify for the 1958 tournament, which coincidentally was held in Sweden. But Italy has showed poor form recently, ever since a 3-0 loss to Spain in September. After that match, Italy edged Israel 1-0, drew 1-1 with Macedonia and beat Albania 1-0. While Sweden didn’t qualify for the last two World Cups, it impressed in qualifying with a win over France and finished ahead of the Netherlands. “We are winners just by being here,” Sweden coach Janne Andersson said. Sweden went unbeaten at home in qualifying at Friends Arena and striker Marcus Berg scored eight times in nine matches.
Fixtures
Tomorrow: Sweden vs. Italy
Monday: Italy vs. Sweden
DENMARK vs. IRELAND
Being in the playoffs for a major tournament is nothing new for Ireland. This will be the team’s ninth time, and they have lost five of them — including against France ahead of the 2010 World Cup when Thierry Henry clearly handled the ball in the buildup to the crucial goal. Ireland has effectively already won one playoff — by beating Wales 1-0 in its final qualifier — and will most likely rely on the counterattacking tactics that worked so well in Cardiff. While there are no real stars in the Ireland team, Denmark has a standout in Christian Eriksen — one of European soccer’s best playmakers over the past few years at Tottenham. He scored eight times from midfield in qualifying. The Danes’ 4-0 win over Poland in group play highlights their potential and they are also higher in the FIFA rankings, at No. 19 compared with Ireland’s No. 26. The managers — Martin O’Neill and Age Hareide — are former teammates at English club Norwich.
Fixtures
Saturday: Denmark vs. Republic of Ireland
Tuesday: Republic of Ireland vs. Denmark
AUSTRALIA vs. HONDURAS
This is the scenario Australia aimed to avoid when it switched from Oceania to the Asian Football Confederation after the 2006 World Cup: A last-ditch intercontinental playoff in the Americas for a spot at soccer’s marquee event. Australian players traveled from three continents to assemble in Honduras this week to prepare for Friday’s first leg. It was a similar scenario when the Australians played Uruguay for a place at the 2006 tournament. Uruguay won 1-0 in Montevideo, and Australia leveled it up with a 1-0 win in Sydney before advancing 4-2 on penalties. It ended a long drought for the Socceroos, who had failed to advance from the last playoff stage in 1986 (against Scotland), in 1994 (against Argentina), in 1998 (against Iran), and in 2002 (against Uruguay). Tim Cahill, the only player still active from that playoff series in 2005 and now Australia’s all-time leading scorer, is in doubt because of an ankle injury.
Fixtures
Tomorrow: Honduras vs. Australia
Wednesday: Australia vs. Honduras
NEW ZEALAND vs. PERU
New Zealand will return to the scene of one of its greatest triumphs when it hosts Peru on Saturday.
In 2009, New Zealand beat Bahrain 1-0 in front of a crowd of 35,000 at the Wellington Regional Stadium to qualify for the World Cup for the second time. It had previously qualified in 1982, the same year in which Peru made its last World Cup appearance. The return leg will be in Peru on Wednesday. Rory Fallon, who scored New Zealand’s winning goal in that match eight years ago, has been recalled to the All Whites after a one-year absence. He is currently playing for Dorchester in the seventh tier of English soccer. That win over Bahrain briefly put soccer center-stage in a rugby-mad country and Saturday’s match will likely do so again. The match is a sellout. Peru, ranked No. 10, starts as the overwhelming favorite against 122nd-ranked New Zealand but has a significant setback, with striker Paolo Guerrero ruled out after failing a doping test. Guerrero scored six goals in qualifying.
Fixtures
Saturday: New Zealand vs. Peru
Thursday: Peru vs. New Zealand
AFRICA
Africa’s last three World Cup places will be decided on the final group games in qualifying, when Ivory Coast could miss out and Congo could qualify for the first time since 1974. Two of the five groups are settled, with Nigeria and Egypt already through. Tunisia and Congo will tussle for a place from Group A. Tunisia has a three-point advantage, so Congo needs to beat Guinea and hope Tunisia loses at home to Libya. If that happens, the World Cup place will go to the team with the best goal difference. Morocco and Ivory Coast face a straight shootout in Group C when Morocco travels to Abidjan. Ivory Coast must win to sneak through to the World Cup and deny former coach Herve Renard, now with Morocco. Senegal can seal its place on Friday in a contentious qualifier against South Africa, a game ordered by FIFA to be played again because of match-fixing by the referee. Senegal lost the initial game but if it wins on its second chance, it’ll be through to the World Cup. That will lead to serious discontent from the other teams. Burkina Faso, hoping to go to the World Cup for the first time, has already appealed against FIFA’s decision.
Fixtures
Tomorrow: South Africa vs. Senegal
Saturday: Congo vs. Guinea, Tunisia vs. Libya, Ivory Coast vs. Morocco
— AFP
The race to join Saudi Arabia at the FIFA World Cup hots up this week
The race to join Saudi Arabia at the FIFA World Cup hots up this week
Fluminense stun Al-Hilal to reach Club World Cup semifinal
Brazil’s Fluminense continued their fairy-tale run at the Club World Cup with a 2-1 victory over Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hilal on Friday in Orlando, Florida, to book their place in the semifinals.
The tournament underdogs struck first through Matheus Martinelli in the opening half before Al-Hilal hit back after the break when Marcus Leonardo found the net.
But Fluminense refused to be denied and regained their lead in the 70th minute through Hercules to secure a memorable win over Al-Hilal in the first meeting between the two clubs.
The Brazilian side, who entered the tournament as one of the biggest long shots, will now face the winners of Friday’s other quarter-final clash between Palmeiras and Chelsea.
“A Beautiful Gift“: Swiss women pioneers celebrate the game’s transformation
- The mascot of the tournament, a Saint Bernard puppy, bears her name, Maddli, in recognition of her role in advancing women’s football in Switzerland
- There are now 40,000 registered women players and 134 female referees in Switzerland, according to the Swiss FA
SION, Switzerland: On the terrace of a restaurant in the Swiss city of Sion sits a group of pioneers of women’s football in Switzerland who have seen the beautiful game change beyond recognition.
For 72-year-old Madeleine Boll, seeing the city in the French-speaking part of Switzerland hosting three games in the Women’s European Championship, which is being staged across the country, is a proud moment.
The mascot of the tournament, a Saint Bernard puppy, bears her name, Maddli, in recognition of her role in advancing women’s football in Switzerland.
At 12 years old in 1965, Boll became the first woman in Switzerland to obtain a license to play football, with FC Sion’s boys’ youth team. But just months later it was taken away from her after the club said it had made an error.
“I was the happiest little girl. But the day they took away my license, I was the unhappiest because I didn’t understand why I was forbidden to play,” Boll told Reuters.
However, it marked the first in a series of landmark moments that enabled women’s inclusion in Swiss football.
By 1970 the first Swiss Women’s Football League was created, with Boll’s father, Jean Boll, its president. Madeleine later played for FC Sion, one of the earliest women’s football clubs in Switzerland.
“It’s a beautiful gift because it’s here that the beginnings of Swiss women’s football took root,” she said.
KEY MOMENT
A lot has changed since Boll and her generation played. There are now 40,000 registered women players and 134 female referees in Switzerland, according to the Swiss FA.
“It was different. We didn’t have jerseys, we didn’t have means to travel ... We had to make people understand that we are capable of playing,” said 72-year-old Rosemarie Siggen, from Sion who started playing football toward the end of the 1960s.
For Siggen and Boll, who were joined by four other footballing pioneers in the women’s game in Sion, this year’s tournament is a key moment to make strides in supporting women’s football.
“The Euros will be a catalyst,” Boll told Reuters, pointing to it as an opportunity for greater investment in the women’s game.
The Swiss hosts are hoping the legacy of the tournament — being played across eight cities over the next month — will bolster female football in the country as Euro 2022 did for champions England. It is aiming to double the number of female players by 2027, according to the Swiss FA.
“It’s a bit difficult for these young girls. They need help. I think there should be stronger support, a real investment ... we want to see them progress because they can bring many beautiful things,” said Siggen.
Boll hopes that the Switzerland side, who lost their first match of the tournament 2-1 to Norway, can continue to make strides with more financial support.
“If we want to have a good Swiss team ... it will be important that girls become professional because it is difficult ... to achieve results while having a job or being a student,” Boll said.
UEFA, the governing body for European soccer, announced a record 600,000 tickets have been sold for the tournament. Basel will host the final on July 27 at St. Jakob-Park, the largest football stadium in Switzerland.
Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah ‘truly lost for words’ after Diogo Jota death
- ‘Teammates come and go but not like this,’ Salah wrote on X
- Jota and brother Andre Silva died when Lamborghini they were in veered off a road and burst into flames
BEIRUT: Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah paid tribute to his teammate Diogo Jota on Friday, after the Portuguese international died in a car crash on Thursday in northern Spain.
“I am truly lost for words. Until yesterday, I never thought there would be something that would frighten me of going back to Liverpool after the break,” Salah said on social media platform X.
Jota perished alongside his brother, Andre Silva, when the Lamborghini they were in veered off a road and burst into flames, Spanish police said Thursday.
Having been teammates since Jota joined the Premier League champions in 2020, Salah wrote on X: “Teammates come and go but not like this. It’s going to be extremely difficult to accept that Diogo won’t be there when we go back.
“My thoughts are with his wife, his children, and of course his parents who suddenly lost their children. Those close to Diogo and his brother Andre need all the support they can get. They will never be forgotten.”
Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said he was “heartbroken” to learn about Jota’s death.
Klopp, who is Red Bull’s head of global soccer, had persuaded the Liverpool board to pay $62 million for Jota after he impressed at Wolverhampton Wanderers.
“This is a moment where I struggle! There must be a bigger purpose! But I can’t see it! I’m heartbroken to hear about the passing of Diogo and his brother Andre. Diogo was not only a fantastic player, but also a great friend, a loving and caring husband and father!” Klopp posted on Instagram.
The Spanish Guardia Civil said 28-year-old Jota and 25-year-old Silva were found dead near the northwestern city of Zamora. Jota’s death comes just weeks after he married his long-time partner, Rute Cardoso, while on vacation from a long season where he helped Liverpool win the Premier League title.
Upon getting married, Cardoso wrote in a social media post, “Yes to forever.” He leaves behind three children, the youngest born last year.
Russian foreign minister praises Al-Hilal’s ‘well-deserved’ win over Man City
- Sergey Lavrov hails victory in meeting with Saudi FM Prince Faisal bin Farhan
- SPL team will play Fluminense in quarterfinal of Club World Cup on Friday
BEIRUT: Russia’s foreign minister on Friday congratulated Saudi Arabia and Al-Hilal following the team’s defeat of Manchester City in their FIFA Club World Cup round of 16 match earlier in the week.
“It was a remarkable and dramatic match and well-deserved victory,” Sergey Lavrov said during a meeting with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan in Moscow.
“I would like to conclude with congratulations to your football team Al-Hilal on a 4-3 win against Manchester City at the Club World Cup,” he said.
The meeting was part of the prince’s official visit aimed at strengthening relations between the two countries.
Lavrov’s comments caused a buzz on social media. One Russian user said on X: “Saudi Al-Hilal shines even in the corridors of power in Moscow!”
Several major news outlets also reported on Lavrov’s comments.
Sports editor Essa Aljokm wrote on X: “Al-Hilal on the political table … A team that translated the support of the leadership and the state, may God protect them, into the giant Saudi sports project. This time, it’s Lavrov, the Russian Foreign Minister.”
Al-Hilal made history on Monday night when they beat the English Premier League giants in Orlando. The Saudi Pro League team will now play Fluminense in the quarterfinal of the Club World Cup on Friday.
The Brazilian side beat Inter Milan 2-0 earlier on Monday.
Wimbledon pays tribute to Jota after Liverpool star’s death
- Cabral was allowed to put the ribbon on his shirt sleeve for the second-round tie
- “I know what he’s been through, what he conquered through his career and through his life,” he said
LONDON: Wimbledon paid tribute to Diogo Jota after the Liverpool star’s death as Portugal’s Francisco Cabral wore a black ribbon during his doubles match on Friday.
Cabral was allowed to put the ribbon on his shirt sleeve for the second-round tie after the All England Club relaxed its strict all-white dress code to allow tributes to the Portugal forward.
Jota, 28, and his brother Andre Silva died in a car crash in northern Spain while traveling to catch a ferry to England ahead of the start of pre-season training.
The accident came just days after Jota’s wedding to Rute Cardoso, with whom he had three children.
Cabral said he was driving to Wimbledon when he heard the news and praised Jota as “an idol, such an icon, such a good person.”
“I know what he’s been through, what he conquered through his career and through his life. So he’s just very inspiring for me,” he said after losing with Austrian partner Lucas Miedler against Czech duo Petr Nouza and Patrik Rikl.
“I just wish all the best for his family. I know they have good people around them so I hope they can get through it.”
British doubles player Neal Skupski, a passionate Liverpool fan, had also brought a black armband for his match on Thursday but opted not to wear it.
He suggested he may wear one later in the tournament, saying: “Maybe in the next couple of days.”
