ST. PETERSBURG: Les Bleus beat Uruguay 2-0 in their quarterfinal to set up the last-four clash against neighbors Belgium, who beat Brazil 2-1 in their quarterfinal.
They go in as slight favorites but with so many of the players familiar to each other there is very little the two sides do not know about each other.
For Giroud that means one thing: It is going to be a tense battle, which will seem like a derby match.
“We don’t want to have them taking the mickey out of us. There is a big rivalry between France and Belgium, it’s like a derby match,” the France striker said.
And the presence of French World Cup winner Thierry Henry on the Belgian coaching staff as one of Roberto Martinez’s assistants adds extra spice to the occasion.
“It will be bizarre to have him up against us,” Giroud said.
“He is a living legend of French football. He has given so much to the France team and we have got a lot of respect for what he has done. But we’re not thinking about it too much, we’re going to be focused on the pitch and our game.”
“Of course I would prefer it if he were with us and he were giving me his advice, but we mustn’t be jealous.”
The slick Belgium side, which boasts the talents of Kevin De Bruyne, Eden Hazard and Romelu Lukaku, are the only team to have won all their matches in Russia and are the top scorers, with 14 goals.
Confidence is sky-high after they beat Brazil in the quarterfinals but they will come up against formidable opponents in France as they try to reach their first World Cup final.
“The players have been working together extraordinarily well for many years, and they deserve to be exactly where they are today,” Martinez said.
“I feel that the most important aspect we worked on was the notion of being a team. Individual skills and talent are important, but in these tournaments, it’s absolutely necessary to play as a team.
“It’s a trip into the unknown. We’ve never been in such a situation, and that’s why we need our team spirit more than ever against France. We need to be the best version of ourselves.”
Kylian Mbappe was lethal in France’s 4-3 second-round win over Argentina, using his pace to devastating effect, but Martinez said his side would not make the mistake of focusing solely on one player.
“Both (teams) have the right mix of youth and experience and also lots of individual talent,” he said.
“We will need to anticipate (Mbappe) and be well-positioned. We need to defend spaces more than the player himself. We are not going to forget the others since France have a complete attacking pattern.
“These players need to play without fear to keep all options open. Like a voyage to the moon: We need to face it full of illusions.”
Olivier Giroud tells France teammates to prepare for World Cup ‘derby match’ against Belgium
Olivier Giroud tells France teammates to prepare for World Cup ‘derby match’ against Belgium
Gulf Cup final rescheduled, competition organizers announce
- Committee did not give reason for change of date
- First semifinal sees Saudi Arabia face Oman
KUWAIT CITY: The final match of the 26th Arabian Gulf Cup will now be played on Saturday, Jan. 4, the Competitions Committee of the Gulf Football Federation announced on Sunday.
Originally scheduled for Jan. 3, the championship match will now take place a day later at the Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium in Kuwait City.
Khaled Al-Muqrin, head of the committee, said that the decision to reschedule the final had been reached during a committee meeting on Sunday and followed consultations with Gulf football federations, all of which unanimously approved the change.
The committee did not give a reason for the change of date.
While the final has been moved, the semifinal matches will proceed as planned.
The first semifinal sees Saudi Arabia face Oman on Tuesday afternoon. Later that evening, Bahrain will take on hosts Kuwait.
The Green Falcons reached the last four after a convincing 3-1 win over Group B rivals Iraq on Saturday and will hope to reach their fifth final since 2009 and secure a first Gulf Cup title since 2004.
Manchester City stop the rot with victory at Leicester
- Savinho and Erling Haaland struck either side of half-time
- City ended a run of eight away games without a win
LEICESTER: Manchester City provided Pep Guardiola some relief with a 2-0 victory at Leicester to secure just a second win in 14 games for the crisis-hit English champions on Sunday.
Savinho and Erling Haaland struck either side of half-time as City ended a run of eight away games without a win.
The performance was still far from the standards that Guardiola’s side have set in winning an unprecedented four consecutive English top-flight titles.
But the effusive celebrations of Haaland’s header 16 minutes from time showed that three points was all that mattered for the visitors to at least temporarily halt their remarkable slump.
Victory lifts City up to fifth but they are still 11 points behind leaders Liverpool, who have two games in hand.
Defeat leaves Leicester still rooted in the bottom three.
Guardiola made just one change from the 1-1 Boxing Day draw against Everton as Kevin De Bruyne replaced his Belgian international colleague Jeremy Doku.
De Bruyne’s fitness struggles have played a part in City’s slump and he immediately showed what Guardiola’s men have been missing for most of the season.
Rico Lewis picked out De Bruyne, who cushioned a cross into the path of Haaland but his low effort was well saved by Leicester’s stand-in goalkeeper Jakub Stolarczyk.
Leicester have now lost their last four games after a bright start to Ruud van Nistelrooy’s reign.
The Foxes were left to rue not taking their chances to inflict more misery on a City side still showing a clear lack of confidence.
Any time the home side crossed into City territory in the first half they appeared a major threat.
Jamie Vardy would surely have won a penalty had he not strayed offside before being brought down by Stefan Ortega, while James Justin’s header hit the post after a goalmouth scramble.
City, though, got the crucial opening goal on 21 minutes.
Stolarczyk should have done better than to parry Phil Foden’s long-range effort into the path of Savinho, who swept the rebound into the roof of the net for his first City goal.
Chances continued to come and go for Leicester early in the second half.
Justin should have levelled but his mishit finish from close range allowed Manuel Akanji to clear off the line.
Vardy then had the biggest chance to level when he prodded over Stephy Mavididi’s brilliant in-swinging cross.
However, they were hit by a City sucker punch to end the defending champions’ miserable run on the road.
Savinho was the creator this time as his cross perfectly picked out Haaland, who powered home his 19th of the season ending his four-game goal drought.
ICC nominates Pakistan’s Babar Azam for T20I Cricketer of the Year award
- Azam played 24 matches and collectively scored 738 runs at an average 33.54 run in last 12 months
- Others nominated for award include Sikandar Raza, Australian Travis Head and India’s Arshdeep Singh
ISLAMABAD: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has nominated Pakistan’s star batter Babar Azam for its Twenty20 International (T20I) Cricketer of the Year award, saying no other Pakistan batter scored as many T20I runs as Azam in the last 12 months.
Other players nominated in the category include Sikandar Raza from Zimbabwe, Australian Travis Head and India’s Arshdeep Singh, according to the ICC.
Azam played 24 matches and collectively scored 738 runs at an average 33.54 run. His highest score was 75 against Ireland.
“With six fifties and close to a hundred boundaries, Babar was Pakistan’s mainstay and the year saw an improvement in his strike rate, with the batter clocking 133.21 runs every 100 deliveries,” the ICC said on its website.
“Still only 30, Babar is primed to break Rohit Sharma’s record as the highest run-getter in T20I cricket soon, sitting just eight behind the Indian’s mark of 4231 runs.”
The winners of the awards are likely to be announced in late January, 2025.
Pakistani Saim Ayub has also been nominated in the category of Emerging Cricketer of the Year along with Sri Lankan Kamindu Mendis, Shamar Joseph of West Indies and England’s Gus Atkinson.
Ayub scored 515 runs from nine one-day internationals (ODIs), averaging at 64.37.
“In Ayub, Pakistan found a new flamboyant southpaw at the top of their batting order. While Ayub was a consistent feature across all three formats, many of his best performances in 2024 came in ODIs,” the ICC said.
“As Pakistan won multiple away series in Australia, Zimbabwe and South Africa to prime themselves for the ICC Champions Trophy defense, Ayub went big as an opener.”
In South Africa, the left-hander sizzled with two tons from the three games and finished as the Player of the Series in a 3-0 clean sweep — South Africa’s first at home. Ayub was also impressive in a low-scoring affair in Australia that saw Pakistan edge past the hosts to clinch their first ODI series triumph Down Under in 22 years.
The 22-year-old also provided Pakistan a handy option with the ball, claiming five wickets and boasting an economy rate of 4.63.
South Africa seal place in World Test Championship final with a tense 2-wicket win against Pakistan
- Needing 148 runs to win, South Africa crashed to 99 for eight owing to superb bowling by Mohammad Abbas
- But Kagiso Rabada went on the attack, hitting 31 not out, before Marco Jansen hit the winning 16 runs
CENTURION: South Africa tailenders Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen hung in against relentless fast bowler Mohammad Abbas for a tense two-wicket win in the first test on Sunday and sealed the Proteas’ place in next year’s World Test Championship final.
Jansen (16 not out) overshadowed Abbas’ brilliant figures of 6-54 with a square driven boundary against the fast bowler as South Africa reached 150-8 just after lunch on Day 4 and escaped with a close win in the two-match series.
Abbas, making a comeback after more than three years in the test wilderness, had knocked back South Africa’s tricky chase of 148 runs in a marathon 13-over spell before lunch on Day 4 as the home team limped to 99-8, losing four wickets for three runs.
However, Rabada changed gears in an unbroken 51-run stand with Jansen and made an unbeaten 31 off 26 balls with five fours to seal a memorable victory and denied Pakistan its first test win in South Africa in almost 18 years.
South Africa had started this WTC cycle with a loss against New Zealand, but since then the Proteas drew 1-1 in India and then went on to beat West Indies, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to stay on top of the table.
India, Australia and Sri Lanka are the other teams still in contention for next June’s WTC final against South Africa at Lord’s.
Captain Temba Bavuma (40) and Aiden Markram (37) had thwarted Abbas for an hour after South Africa resumed at a wobbly 27-3, still needing 121 for victory.
Bavuma’s controversial dismissal punctuated a South Africa collapse in the latter half of first session with Abbas grabbing three off his six balls in a sensational home team collapse.
Bavuma, who made 40, surprisingly didn’t request a television review when replays suggested that Abbas’ ball had brushed the batter’s pocket and didn’t make contact with the inside edge of the bat but the South African skipper walked back to the dressing room.
Abbas bowled an unchanged marathon spell of 13 overs, but had to wait as Markram and Bavuma saw off eight overs from the fast bowlers.
Resuming at 27-3, Bavuma and Markram showed plenty of patience against Abbas’ probing line and length before the fast bowler finally got the breakthrough after the first drinks break.
Abbas was rewarded for his brilliant seam bowling when he beat the outside edge of Markram’s bat and knocked back the off stump.
Bavuma survived a couple of close chances when he successfully overturned an on-field lbw decision against him early in the day and Naseem Shah couldn’t hold onto a sharp catch at fine leg as he overstepped the boundary cushion while grabbing the ball over his head.
South Africa had controlled the game at 96-4 before Bavuma’s dismissal saw Abbas finding the outside edges of David Bedingham (14) and Corbin Bosch’s (0) bat off successive deliveries and in between Kyle Verreynne dragged Naseem Shah’s delivery back onto his stumps.
Abbas found the outside edge of Rabada’s bat in his first over after lunch that fell just short of wicketkeeper Rizwan before both tailenders took the team home.
ICC shortlists Pakistani batter Saim Ayub for Emerging Cricketer of the Year award
- Saim Ayub scored two centuries in recently concluded ODI series against South Africa
- He has been nominated alongside Kamindu Mendis, Shamar Joseph and Gus Atkinson
ISLAMABAD: The International Cricket Council (ICC) this week shortlisted Pakistan’s new batting sensation Saim Ayub for the Men’s Emerging Cricketer of the Year award for his match-winning performances against South Africa and Zimbabwe this month.
Ayub has played six Test matches for Pakistan, scoring 323 runs at an average of 26.91 and scored three half-centuries. He has played nine ODIs, scoring 515 runs at an average of 64.37 with three centuries and a fifty already under his belt.
The aggressive opening batter’s two centuries against South Africa in the recently concluded ODI series has earned him critical acclaim and comparisons with former Pakistan batting legend Saeed Anwar.
“With nine categories in total, cricket fans around the world have the opportunity to cast their votes and help decide the winners of the ICC Awards 2024,” the ICC wrote on Saturday.
Ayub has been nominated for the award with Sri Lanka’s Kamindu Mendis, West Indies’ bowler Shamar Joseph and England’s Gus Atkinson.
Pakistan are currently playing the first of their two-Test match series against South Africa in Centurion. The hosts have handed the Proteas a 148-run target, as South Africa struggle at 27/3 to chase the target.
