Page 1509 - Sports
Spain coach Lopetegui fired after signing for Real Madrid
Spain head coach Julen Lopetegui was fired on Wednesday, two days before their first match in the 2018 FIFA World Cup after Real Madrid announced that he will take charge of the record European club football champions next season.
India need to play top-10 teams in Asia before Asian Cup: Chhetri
Talismanic national football team captain Sunil Chhetri feels India should play against top-10 ranked sides of the continent in the next few months if the country desires to do well in next year's Asian Cup. Chhetri said it would be difficult to play against the top-five countries -- Australia, Iran, Korea, Japan and Saudi Arabia -- which are playing in the World Cup starting tomorrow in Russia but they can for other teams which are above India. "I definitely feel so (play against top-10 ranked teams in Asia). It will be difficult to play against the top five as they are playing in the World Cup. But we need to play against teams better than us and that also away matches," Chhetri told PTI in an interaction. "At home we are doing better but in away matches, if I may say so, our record is poor," said Chhetri, who is a brand ambassador of online fantasy sports platform StarPick which today announced the launch of the football World Cup 2018 platform offering prizes worth Rs 20 ...
Spotlight on Rashid has helped others to prepare well: Simmons
There is a distinct advantage of having Rashid Khan in the team as Afghanistan coach Phil Simmons feels all the spotlight which the star spinner has garnered has allowed his lesser-known colleagues to prepare peacefully for the historic one-off Test against India. Asked if all this attention on Rashid has been of help, Simmons agreed. I think it has. But the good thing about Rashid is that he is so professional that he knows how to deal with it. That has allowed others to have time to work on their strategies. I think it's a good thing for the team, Simmons said on the eve of Afghanistan's debut Test match. On the team front, Simmons dropped a hint that beefy keeper-batsman Mohammed Shahzad may purely play as a batsman as they have a designated four-day keeper in Afsar Zazai. Asked if Shahzad with his level of fitness can keep wickets for 120 overs (considering India's batting depth) and then open the batting, Simmons said: He has been fit enough to keep for 50 overs (in ODIs) and ...
Captain Stanikzai banking on 4-day experience to challenge India in Afghanistan's debut Test
Set to make its historic Test debut against formidable India starting here tomorrow, Afghanistan is heavily banking on its experience of playing in four-day games to challenge the hosts, said the visiting team captain Asghar Stanikzai. Afghanistan has already proved its potential in limited-overs cricket, but history beckons the war-torn nation as for the first-time ever its players will take the field wearing white flannels and trousers. "All the three formats of the game, including T20s and ODIs are different from each other. But we have played four-day games as well and succeeded in the past. We would like to put to good use our four-day match experience in the historic Test match," Stanikzai told reporters on the eve of the game. The Afghan skipper said his players are not nervous but are well prepared for the challenge. Stanikzai said people back home expecting the team to do well after their recent success against Bangladesh in the T20 series in Dehradun. "We will also try to ...
Lopetegui sacked by Spain on eve of World Cup
Spain dramatically sacked coach Julen Lopetegui on Wednesday -- just two days before the team's opening game against Portugal at the World Cup. In a surprise announcement on Tuesday, Real Madrid named Lopetegui as their next manager to start work after the tournament in Russia, sparking outrage among the federation and Spanish fans at the timing of the announcement. At a severely delayed press conference at Spain's World Cup base in Krasnodar, Spanish football federation chief Luis Rubiales said he felt Lopetegui's decision to join Madrid so close to the start of the tournament "obliged" him to take drastic action. "I am here to say that we feel obliged to sack the national team manager," said Rubiales. Lopetegui had signed a contract extension until 2020 just last month and Rubiales is reportedly angry at only being informed of his decision to join Real minutes before the European champions made the announcement public. "I have spoken with the players and I can guarantee that the ...
Rashford in injury doubt ahead of England's opener vs Tunisia
Young striker Marcos Rashford has emerged as an injury doubt ahead of England's World Cup opening match against Tunisia on June 18 after coach Gareth Southgate said he had suffered a "slight knock" in a training session.
Indian men's, women's teams for Chess Olympiad finalised
The All India Chess Federation (AICF) has finalised the five member Indian mens and womens teams for Chess Olympiad 2018 to be held in Batumi in Georgia this September, said a senior official.
Infantino says FIFA was 'clinically dead' when he took over
FIFA President Gianni Infantino said Wednesday that world football's governing body was "clinically dead" when he took over following a corruption scandal that engulfed his predecessor Sepp Blatter. Two years later, it was "very much alive" and full of "joy", with a clear vision for its future, he said in his opening address to the FIFA Congress in Moscow on the eve of the opening match of the 2018 World Cup. Blatter is being investigated by Swiss prosecutors for alleged corruption during his 17-year reign at the head of FIFA. Elections that handed the World Cup to Russia in 2018 and Qatar in 2022 have since been the target of allegations of bribery and spelled the end for Blatter. Infantino has put FIFA on a sound financial footing and ushered in the introduction of innovations such as the Video Assistant Referee system to analyse controversial on-pitch incidents during matches. Russian President Vladimir Putin, who gave a short speech to the FIFA Congress, praised Blatter's ...
World Cup fever builds as fans, teams pour into Russia
World Cup fever is finally taking hold in Russia, where wild enthusiasm in provincial centres such as chilly Kazan is filtering through to Moscow ahead of Thursday's opening match in the capital. While curious locals have clamoured to see the likes of Lionel Messi and Neymar, it has proved a slow build-up to the June 14-July 15 showpiece, which is being held in Russia for the first time. The tournament opener featuring Russia and Saudi Arabia at the imposing 80,000-capacity Luzhniki stadium has so far failed to capture the imagination of Muscovites, although they have warmly welcomed foreign fans. Groups of South American supporters with drums and whistles took to the streets around Red Square this week, posing for pictures with shoppers. In response, a small knot of local fans gathered, waving flags and good-naturedly chanting "Russia, Russia". But it has been outside the capital where enthusiasm for the beautiful game has really taken hold. Australia were pleasantly surprised Monday
Messi mania takes over as Albiceleste's fans descend on Moscow
Wearing the revered blue and white striped jersey with Messi and 10 scrawled on its back, boisterous Argentine fans are filling the streets, squares and alleys in a faraway land of 'friends'. This, four years after invading the house of their fiercest rivals on the eve of the Albiceleste's biggest game in over two decades, at the Maracana in Rio de Janierio. This time around the distance, nor the multiple connecting flights, seemed to matter as the Argentines, yearning for a significant title triumph since 1993, descended on the Russian capital ahead of the 2018 FIFA World Cup. The Lionel Messi mania gripped parts of the city as his team started training on the outskirts of Moscow. The last time Argentina won a tournament of note was way back in 1993, when it lifted the Copa America title beating Mexico in the final. Too little for a country from where Diego Maradona came, from where Lionel Messi comes. Though they won the gold medal at the 2008 Olympic Games, it was not an ...
Mohamed Salah shrugs off injury to join Egypt training
Mohamed Salah gave Egypt's World Cup hopes a huge boost Wednesday when he joined a squad training session at their Grozny base. The Pharaohs' superstar has been sidelined since suffering a shoulder injury in Liverpool's Champions League final loss to Real Madrid on May 26. However, an AFP reporter saw the forward take part in his first training session since the injury, going through a range of warm-up exercises with his teammates. Team director Ihab Lahita was cagey about Salah's progress, saying there was no guarantee he would play in Egypt's Group A opener against Uruguay on Friday. "There's a good degree of progress but no definitive decision on whether he takes part, as we are following his case day by day," he told reporters. Salah arrived in Russia with serious doubts about his participation due to the shoulder injury, which occurred when Sergio Ramos wrestled him to the ground in the final. But such has been his form for Liverpool, with 44 goals in all competitions this ...
Putin: Russia ready for FIFA World Cup
Russian President Vladimir Putin made a surprising visit to the ongoing 68th FIFA Congress here on Wednesday, giving a short speech and extending warm welcome to friends coming from all over the world.
ISL: FC Pune City retain skipper Marcelinho
Indian Super League (ISL) club FC Pune City on Wednesday announced they are retaining their skipper Marcelinho for the 2018-19 season.
Messi will do a Tendulkar, says Kolkata's Argentina Fan Club
Far away from Buenos Aires, tucked in a busy pocket of South Kolkata, the Argentina Football Fan Club members are now busy reciting their common prayers: "Let Lionel Messi do a Sachin Tendulkar".
ISL 2018-19: FC Pune City retain Brazil's Marcelinho
FC Pune City on Wednesday retained their skipper Marcelinho for the 2018-19 season of the Indian Super League (ISL).One of the top scorers for the club, Brazilian footballer Marcelinho led the team from the front to a historic first semi-finals appearance.Speaking on the bringing back the Brazilian winger, FC Pune City CEO Gaurav Modwel said, "You can't let go the best you have. In Marcelinho, we not only have an impressive footballer but also a great team player and leader par excellence. His performance created a lasting impression on both the club and the fans alike and we are confident he will continue from where he left last season."During his last outing with FC Pune City, he scored eight goals in 17 appearances including a stunning hat-trick against NorthEast United FC.Besides he also made seven assists with his energetic runs showing his tendency to feed the ball well across the team.With Emiliano Alfaro announced last week to join FC Pune City, Marcelinho would look to ...
Indian chess body respects Soumya's decision over headscarf
The All India Chess Federation (AICF) respects Indian Women Grandmaster (WGM) Soumya Swaminathans decision to opt out of the forthcoming Asian Nations Cup Chess Championship 2018 to be held in Iran as she does not want to be forced to wear a headscarf, said a top official.
Colombian team arrives in Russia for World Cup
Colombia's national football team arrived in this southwestern Russian city ahead of the start of the upcoming 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Mexicans ask Holy Child of Miracles for luck in FIFA World Cup
Fans of the Mexican national FOOTBALL team can send up their prayers for the team's good fortune in the 2018 World Cup Russia with Santo Nino de los Milagros (The Holy Child of Miracles), also known as the Santo Nino footballer, housed in San Gabriel Arcangel Church.
Lewandowski leads Poland 4-0 over Lithuania
Robert Lewandowski scored two goals to lead World Cup-bound Poland over Lithuania 4-0 in the hosts' final friendly before the global tourney.
World Cup: Iran's Ezatolahi to miss campaign opener due to FIFA ban
Iran's national football team on Wednesday were preparing for their opening FIFA World Cup game without star defensive midfielder Saeid Ezatolahi, who is serving a two-game ban.