Afogados · Goalkeeper · #0 · Brazil · 34 yrs
“History is about to be made,” the understandably giddy stadium announcer said in the seconds before kick-off and while this was not the perfect start, Canada will not forget Cyle Larin’s equaliser against Bosnia and Herzegovina in a hurry. Trailing to Jovo Lukic’s first international goal, the Southampton striker Larin stepped off the bench and pulled the co-hosts level with his first touch, lashing in 121 seconds after his entrance. A draw in their Group B opener already trumps their last World Cup outing, when they finished pointless in Qatar.Jesse Marsch’s side always looked capable of scoring, though Juventus’s Jonathan David missed a golden opportunity in the first half and a preposterous Sead Kolasinac block that saw the ball cannon on to the crossbar prevented Richie Laryea finding the net in the second. Bosnia, though, were always playing with fire, holding dear Lukic’s first-half header on his first competitive start for his country. It was a goal that tested the foundations of the south stand, where 7,000 temporary seats were erected to increase the stadium’s capacity, many of them occupied by Bosnia’s most ardent supporters. Continue reading...
Germany arrive at the upcoming World Cup carrying a mixture of intrigue, doubt, and cautious optimism. After suffering the humiliation of back-to-back group-stage eliminations in the previous two tournaments, Die Mannschaft now step onto the global stage with something to prove. Under the guidance of Julian Nagelsmann, this is a team undergoing transition—one that blends […] The post Can Germany Go All the Way? Assessing Their World Cup Chances Under Nagelsmann appeared first on SoccerNews.
Max Rushden is joined by Barry Glendenning, Jonathan Wilson, Paul Watson and Sid Lowe to preview Groups E-H.Subscribe to The Guardian Football Weekly ► https://www.youtube.com/@FootballWeeklyPodcast?sub_confirmation=1On the podcast today; the second of our World Cup previews. We begin at Group E. A group that features Germany, Ecuador, Ivory Coast and Curaçao. It also features a 40-year-old goalkeeper and a 78-year-old manager. The panel debate whether Germany’s recent poor performances at major tournaments qualifies them as dark horses and what we can expect from debutants Curaçao.In Group F, are the Netherlands very good actually or will there be a time-honoured implosion? Can Japan maintain their dark horse status without Kaoru Mitoma? Tunisia and Graham Potter’s Sweden also feature.Group G looks straightforward for Belgium as they take on Egypt, Iran and New Zealand. And then finally to Group D, as Sid Lowe joins to discuss Spain. They line up against Uruguay, Cape Verde and Saudi Arabia. Are Spain the favourites?Chapters:00:00 - Coming up...01:22 Group E and group F26:25 Group G37:56 Sid Lowe joins to discuss Group H50:38 Quick fire roundGuardian Football Weekly podcast:Apple ► https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/football-weekly/id188674007Spotify ► https://open.spotify.com/show/6w8qWe0kjgHEHSWDSDGoLW?si=231c666f7f5a4453Follow Guardian Football Weekly:Instagram ► https://www.instagram.com/guardian_footballweekly/TikTok ► https://www.tiktok.com/@guardian_footballweekly#footballweekly #football #sport #fifa #worldcup #worldcup2026 #worldcuppreview Continue reading...
From high-altitude training to made to measure kits, teams have resorted to all manner of things to adapt to conditions at the tournament• Predict the winner | Daily podcast | Download our appThe heat and the altitude worried everybody. The 1970 World Cup in Mexico would not be a normal one. So the Bulgarian authorities sent their squad south of Sofia to get used to playing several thousand feet above sea level. Which seemed a great idea until somebody noticed that the temperature in the Pirin mountains was not in the mid-20s as it is in Mexico but somewhere near freezing. How then could they replicate the effect of playing in intense heat? By restricting water intake so that the players got used to performing while dehydrated.The plan was not a great success. Bulgaria lost their first two World Cup games in 1970 and had already been eliminated by the time they drew with Morocco. It’s safe to assume that preparations for this World Cup will be rather more sophisticated than they were 56 years ago. Most countries back then seemed to take the view that training at altitude was the logical way to prepare for games in Mexico City, Monterrey and Guadalajara. Israel went to Ethiopia and Colorado. Uruguay played in Quito and Bogotá. Mexico held a five‑month training camp that featured 13 friendly internationals in four months before two games against Dundee United. Continue reading...
Thirst for renewal is strong and new players could help bridge the gap to PSG but there are no guaranteesThe greatest lie ever told about penalty shootouts is that they are a lottery. This is a recognisable and trainable footballing skill, a test not just of ball-striking and placement but research, psychology, mettle under pressure. Eberechi Eze puts the ball wide, Gabriel Magalhães sends it in the direction of the Danube: this is failure on the most brutal and unforgiving terms. But it is failure nonetheless.The second greatest lie ever told about penalties is that fortune plays no part. Any encounter decided by 10 kicks of a football will evidently be at the disproportionate mercy of random factors: the divot, the bad contact, the goalkeeper’s guesswork (and to all the preparation that goes into the process, it remains partly guesswork). That this sport – already a sport of low scores, narrow differentials and infinite variables – chooses to decide its biggest prizes on these smallest of morsels is one of its cruellest traits. Continue reading...
Is the French Open Novak Djokovic's time to finally win a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam? "It could be, but only if the unthinkable happens to world No 1 Jannik Sinner," claims Sky Sports' lead commentator Jonathan Overend.
The crowd that gathered late into the night to celebrate on the streets reflected an idea of London where all are welcomeThe mounds of detritus pile up outside Finsbury Park station, like an offering to a vengeful deity. A deity gone rogue for the evening, demanding tribute specifically in the form of empty food cartons and abandoned Lime bikes. A deity that has finally decided to break the habit of 22 years.They approach via the familiar sidestreets, Gillespie Road, Benwell Road, Hornsey Road, the little shortcut past The Plimsoll pub. The night is cool and calm and still, the air rumbling with adoration and freedom, the sensation of chains being broken. As they reach the stadium, perfect strangers grip each other by the shoulders, bound by shared memory, shared trauma, a shared hymnbook. What do you think of shit? Tottenham! Thank you. That’s all right! A firework is let off, and then another. People are FaceTiming their relatives. People are getting selfies with Ian Wright. The crowd is hundreds, and then thousands, a lawless melee that in classic Arteta-ball tradition features plenty of jostling but no free-kicks awarded. Meanwhile, in the digital wilds beyond, the celebration police have laid down their truncheons and riot shields. Continue reading...
Selecting a creaking talent underlines the political demands even the most successful coach in Champions League history cannot escapeWhen Neymar was 18, he made his debut for Brazil as part of the rejuvenation of the national squad after the disappointment of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. At the time, Lionel Messi was 23, obviously a star, and Brazil had to have their equivalent. Neymar has been trying to escape the Argentinian’s shadow ever since.Even the news that Carlo Ancelotti has included Neymar in his squad for the forthcoming World Cup feels like a desperate attempt to create the sort of narrative Messi enjoyed at the last finals: a last dance long after the body had begun to fade. Messi then was 35; Neymar now is 34. But there are not many other similarities between the cases. Continue reading...
Departing Manchester City manager has left huge imprint but equally stands alone in his willingness to adaptWhen Pep Guardiola arrived in English football in the summer of 2016, there was a degree of scepticism. The quality of the football produced by his Barcelona had been extraordinary – and it’s perhaps difficult now, 18 years on, to remember the impact that side had when they first emerged, how incomprehensible the focus on passing and the manipulation of space seemed.But his Bayern Munich had not won the Champions League and it was reasonable enough to ask whether that very precise, technically accomplished style would be as effective amid the hurly-burly of an English winter as it had been in Spain and Germany. Continue reading...
Cyle Larin was a former lock starter for Canada alongside Jonathan David up front, but lost his place under head coach Jesse Marsch, who questioned the 31-year-old’s motivation. But his late-season revival has also likely re-earned him his former starting role with Canada.
