Новости за 11.11.2017

Morocco have qualified for a first World Cup since 1998 after beating their closest Group C challengers Ivory Coast 2-0 away from home on Saturday, and Tunisia joined them in securing passage as they drew 0-0 with Libya. The Atlas Lions went into the match in Abidjan just needing a draw to consolidate their place as pacesetters in the final group match, but they went one better in what was an assured display. Nabil Dirar gave the visitors the lead 25 minutes in, cutting in from the right and seeing his left-footed cross go all the way in... Читать дальше...

Granit Xhaka has told Northern Ireland to "leave it" and move on after a controversial penalty helped Switzerland claim a 1-0 win in Belfast in the first leg of their World Cup qualifying play-off. Corry Evans was adjudged to have handled the ball when closing down a Xherdan Shaqiri volley in the 58th minute of Thursday's match, referee Ovidiu Hategan pointing to the spot despite replays showing the ball had struck the Blackburn man on the back. Ricardo Rodriguez took full advantage to give the... Читать дальше...

Ederson has all the "ingredients" to become the best goalkeeper in the world, according to fellow Brazilian Julio Cesar. The Manchester City goalkeeper has impressed in the Premier League this season, keeping six clean sheets in 11 games to help Pep Guardiola's side roar eight points clear at the summit. The 24-year-old's club form led to an international debut for Brazil last month, as he started the 3-0 win over Chile at the end of the CONMEBOL World Cup qualification campaign. While Alisson... Читать дальше...

Lionel Messi will miss Argentina's friendly against Nigeria on Tuesday and instead return to Barcelona. Captain Messi played the full 90 minutes of Argentina's 1-0 victory over Russia on Saturday, playing a role in Sergio Aguero's late winner in Moscow. However, the 30-year-old will not travel to Krasnodar with the rest of Jorge Sampaoli's squad, with the team's official Twitter account announcing he would return to Spain. It was stated that Messi's departure from the Argentina camp is not related to injury. Читать дальше...

Keylor Navas has proved he deserves to be Real Madrid's first-choice goalkeeper, according to Costa Rican Football Federation (FEDEFUT) president Rodolfo Villalobos. Despite establishing himself as Madrid's number one following the departure of club icon Iker Casillas, Navas continues to see the club linked with a replacement – most notably David De Gea and Gianluigi Donnarumma. The 30-year-old was a key player as Zinedine Zidane's side won back-to-back Champions League titles and dethroned Barcelona in LaLiga last season. Читать дальше...

Antoine Griezmann will be back to his best when Atletico Madrid take on Real Madrid this month and win further titles with the club, says a confident Enrique Cerezo. It has been a difficult start to 2016-17 for Griezmann, who has scored just three goals in 13 appearances in all competitions for Atletico - his last strike for his club came in the 2-1 Champions League defeat to Chelsea on September 27. His slumps comes after heavy interest from Manchester United in the close-season, which he eventually... Читать дальше...

Colombia midfielder Edwin Cardona has denied allegations of racism and apologised for his controversial gesture in Friday's friendly loss against South Korea. The incident occurred in the second half of Colombia's 2-1 defeat in Suwon when a confrontation flared up following a clash involving James Rodriguez and Kim Jin-su. Substitute Cardona made a gesture with his eyes at Korea players as officials tried to calm the situation, with Ki Sung-yueng calling the behaviour "absolutely unacceptable" after the match. Читать дальше...

Newcastle Jets came from behind to beat Adelaide United 2-1 and go top of the A-League, while Melbourne Victory and Brisbane Roar remain winless. The Jets moved a point clear of defending champions Sydney FC thanks to goals from Benjamin Kantarovski and Andrew Nabbout, but could be displaced by Melbourne City if they beat Western Sydney Wanderers on Sunday. Nikola Mileusnic gave Adelaide the lead in the 24th minute, latching onto Ryan Kitto's excellent ball in behind for his first league goal since January. Читать дальше...

A confident Romelu Lukaku said he was "born for this" after a pair of goals in Belgium's draw with Mexico moved him level with the country's all-time leading goalscorers. Manchester United striker Lukaku scored twice as Roberto Martinez's side were held 3-3 in Friday's friendly, his second salvaging the draw after Hirving Lozano's four-minute double put Mexico ahead. The 24-year-old is now level with Paul Van Himst and Bernard Voorhoof on 30 goals for Belgium and can set a new benchmark by converting against Japan on Tuesday. Читать дальше...

A chance encounter with Alex Ferguson after Jens Lehmann's red card in the 2006 Champions League final against Barcelona left the then Arsenal goalkeeper feeling like "Lucifer himself". Lehmann was dismissed just 18 minutes into the showpiece at Stade de France after racing off his line and taking out Samuel Eto'o just outside the penalty area. Despite their numerical disadvantage, Arsenal took a 1-0 lead into half-time through Sol Campbell's header, but Barca scored twice in the final 15 minutes... Читать дальше...

The 2018 World Cup inter-confederation play-off is evenly poised after New Zealand held Peru to a goalless draw in Saturday's first leg. With a ticket to next year's showpiece tournament in Russia up for grabs, neither side could break the deadlock at a sun-bathed Westpac Stadium in Wellington. Desperate to end their 36-year wait for a World Cup berth, South American visitors Peru largely controlled proceedings but they were unable to make their superiority count despite a scrambling goal-line save from All Whites goalkeeper Stefan Marinovic... Читать дальше...

Barcelona left-back Jordi Alba said Isco is one of the best players in the world, but he does not enjoy watching his Real Madrid rival playing at such a high level. Isco has flourished under Zinedine Zidane, cementing himself in the starting XI at Spanish and European champions Madrid with four goals and three assists in LaLiga. The 25-year-old has outdone four-time Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo this season and Alba painfully heaped praise on his Spain team-mate prior to Saturday's international friendly against Costa Rica. Читать дальше...

Isco admitted Real Madrid team-mate Gareth Bale is having a hard time after the injury-ravaged Welsh star suffered a groin strain. Bale's injury woes worsened on Friday following news that he is facing up to a month on the sidelines after another setback. The 28-year-old, who has been restricted to just nine appearances in all competitions this season, was in line to return ahead of next week's LaLiga derby against Atletico Madrid until confirmation of a strained adductor muscle in his left leg. Читать дальше...

Socceroos head coach Ange Postecoglou hit out at Honduras for disrespectful comments made before Australia's goalless draw in the first leg of their World Cup inter-confederation play-off. Australia produced a dominant display but the visitors were unable to make the breakthrough against CONCACAF's Honduras in San Pedro Sula on Friday. The Socceroos' impressive performance came after local newspaper La Prensa used the headline "Eight million against 11 kangaroos", while Postecoglou's men were also labelled a simple team. Читать дальше...

Joachim Low said Germany's performance was "absolutely fine" after the world champions were held to a goalless draw by England. In-form Germany forward Leroy Sane starred as neither side managed to make the breakthrough in Friday's international friendly at Wembley. Both sides fielded experimental line-ups in an entertaining affair as Ilkay Gundogan made his first appearance in a year and Manchester City's Sane led the way for Germany, hitting the woodwork in the opening half, while Timo Werner... Читать дальше...

Leonardo Bonucci criticised referee Cuneyt Cakir for not sending off Sweden's Ola Toivonen for an aerial challenge that left the Italy defender with a broken nose. The AC Milan centre-back was caught by an elbow inside the opening minute of Sweden's 1-0 win over the Azzurri in the first leg of their World Cup play-off. Turkish official Cakir did not even book Toivonen for his involvement in the clash, while Bonucci managed to play the full game despite his injury. “He broke my nose after 30 seconds and should’ve been sent off. Читать дальше...

Marcus Berg accused Italy's players of trying to get him sent off as Sweden prevailed 1-0 in an ill-tempered World Cup play-off encounter in Stockholm. Al Ain's Berg was booked for dissent in the aftermath of strike partner Ola Toivonen catching Leonardo Bonucci with an elbow in the game's first attack. Bonucci claimed afterwards the incident left him with a broken nose and that Toivonen should have been sent off, while Berg was involved in altercations with Giorgio Chiellini and Daniele De Rossi... Читать дальше...

Julen Lopetegui feels coaches should be given more international breaks to develop their teams ahead of the World Cup, as Spain prepare for friendlies against Costa Rica and Russia. The 2010 winners eased to qualification for Russia 2018 by topping a group that included Italy after winning nine of their last 10 matches, but Lopetegui is frustrated by the international calendar. Spain will not get together again until March, when a prestigious friendly against world champions Germany has been scheduled to be played in Dusseldorf. Читать дальше...

Italy head coach Gian Piero Ventura felt his team's 1-0 World Cup play-off loss to Sweden was "an incorrect result". The Azzurri face missing out on World Cup qualification for the first time in 60 years – a situation they must now remedy in Monday's return leg at San Siro. Ventura reverted to the 3-5-2 formation employed by predecessor Antonio Conte for the match at Friends Arena but they lacked creativity in the face of a robust Sweden side, who claimed victory through substitute Jakob Johansson's deflected strike in the 61st minute. Читать дальше...

England manager Gareth Southgate singled out Ruben Loftus-Cheek for praise after the midfielder's impressive debut in Friday's 0-0 draw with Germany at Wembley. Loftus-Cheek, who is on loan at Crystal Palace from Chelsea, never looked out of place at the heart of England's midfield and was given the man of the match award for an eye-catching performance. Southgate conceded that it took a while for the 21-year-old to adjust to the international stage, but once he found his feet he comfortably went... Читать дальше...

Former United States goalkeeper Hope Solo has accused Sepp Blatter of sexually assaulting her at the Ballon d'Or awards ceremony in January 2013, a claim the ex-FIFA president's spokesman has described as "ridiculous".  In an interview with Portuguese newspaper Expresso, Solo said she "had Sepp Blatter grab my ass" before going on stage with the Swiss to present the FIFA Women's Player of the Year award for 2012 to USA team-mate Abby Wambach. Blatter has denied the accusation, with his spokesman telling The Guardian... Читать дальше...

Artur Boruc bowed out on the international stage as World Cup qualifiers Poland and Uruguay fought out a lacklustre 0-0 draw in Warsaw on Friday. Despite combining to produce 24 shots between them, the key absences of star strikers Robert Lewandowski and Luis Suarez – both rested to nurse niggling injuries – saw the nations draw a blank. The visitors, who qualified for next year's World Cup behind Brazil in the CONMEBOL section, controlled possession for long periods of the game but struggled to create many clear-cut opportunities. Читать дальше...

England held world champions Germany at Wembley as two experimental sides played out a 0-0 draw in their first friendly since sealing World Cup qualification. The Three Lions had been expected to feel the absence of key men Dele Alli, Raheem Sterling and Harry Kane, among others, while Joachim Low's visitors were similarly missing stars Manuel Neuer, Leon Goretzka and Thomas Muller. But there was no lack of quality on display in a match that was more entertaining than the scoreline suggested, as... Читать дальше...

Antoine Griezmann proved his worth to France with a scintillating individual display as his volley, combined with Olivier Giroud's second-half strike, helped Didier Deschamps' side claim a 2-0 friendly win over Wales on Friday. Having cruised through their World Cup qualification campaign, the hosts were in fine form at Stade de France, with Griezmann at the heart of a vibrant first-half performance in Les Bleus' first meeting with Wales since 1982. Following a lively opening, in which Kylian Mbappe struck the woodwork... Читать дальше...

Phil Jones has added to Manchester United's injury concerns after the defender was forced off during the first half of England's friendly against Germany on Friday. The 25-year-old, who started the game at Wembley with his left thigh heavily strapped, lasted just 25 minutes before he was replaced by debutant Joe Gomez. His final involvement in the game was a telling one, however, as he produced a clearing header on his own line to keep out a goal-bound effort from Leroy Sane. Still, the sight... Читать дальше...