Soccer

Goal Updated at 1:21 a.m. ET Updated at 1:21 a.m. ET Al Nassr plot £40 million move for Ahmed Musa Saudi Arabia club Al Nassr are ready to splash a whopping £40 million to sign Nigeria's World Cup star Ahmed Musa from Leicester City, Leicester Mercury claims. Following his impressive performances at the World Cup, the 25-year-old has attracted interests from several European teams this summer including Galatasaray, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Huddersfield Town. Musa joined Leicester City from CSKA Moscow for £16 million in January 2016 but has been restricted to regular first-team action in Claude Puel's team. Jeremie Boga nears Chelsea exit Chelsea have agreed to sell Cote d'Ivoire midfielder Jeremie Boga to Serie A club Sassuolo for £3.5 million, Goal understands. The 21-year-old is now set to agree personal terms with the Italian side after spending last season … [Read more...] about African All Stars Transfer News & Rumours: Al Nassr plot £40 million move for Ahmed Musa

By Victor Mather The New York Times Mon., July 16, 2018 France won the World Cup, but that is far from the whole story. So many players and teams came out of the tournament on towering highs or devastating lows. Here are some of the winners and losers of the 2018 World Cup. Winners Croatia: It’s odd to call a team that just lost the biggest game in its history a winner, but Croatia did everything but lift the Cup in a month to remember. A six-match run, with wins over Nigeria, Argentina, Iceland, Denmark, host Russia and England, was one of the most impressive World Cup stretches by any nation, much less one with only 4 million people. Luka Modric won the MVP award, but if one Croatia player came out with the biggest boost to his stock it was midfielder Ivan Perisic, despite his disputed handball in the final. A fine player for Inter Milan, he may now be in for a big money move to Manchester United, which has wanted him for some time. Belgium: Everyone … [Read more...] about Croatia one of the big World Cup winners, even in losing

Croatia didn’t win the 2018 World Cup. You wouldn’t know that by looking at the throngs of proud fans in Zagreb who waited to welcome their national team back home. Thousands of supporters lined the streets of Zagreb and packed Ban Jelenic square to show their appreciation for the greatest team to ever don Croatia’s checkerboard red and white. Fervent fans lit flares and chanted “Champions! Champions!” just one day after the team’s remarkable World Cup run ended with a 4-2 defeat to France in the final. Sunday’s loss capped the greatest Cup run in the nation’s brief history, and it didn’t go unappreciated in the Croatian capital. Fans waved flags and banners as they turned the city streets into a screaming sea of red, white, and blue: An estimated crowd of more than 200,000 — more than five percent of the nation’s total population — sang and chanted their way through the celebration, which saw the national team … [Read more...] about Croatia got a heroes welcome back home in Zagreb after their historic World Cup run

When thinking about Luka Modric, who won the World Cup Golden Ball after leading Croatia to a spot in the final, it’s hard to focus in on any one thing he does particularly well. Modric does everything well. Well, he does everything well outside of winning headers — he’s listed at 5’8, which is probably generous. But other than that, there’s nothing Modric does poorly on a soccer field. He’s quick, even at age 33. He can run all day. (He had run 40 miles in the tournament before the final.) He’s an underrated tackler. He can play under pressure, using his agility and quickness to get that yard of space he needs to make a pass, and he can do that over and over again, no matter who’s defending him. But what’s always stuck out to me about Modric is his decision-making on a field. For Real Madrid, for Croatia, Modric has always stuck out to me as someone who always makes the right decision. The smart play. And then, once or twice a … [Read more...] about Luka Modric was the artist that Croatia needed

Kylian Mbappe was a superstar before he arrived at the World Cup in Russia — now he’s a megastar. The France forward is on the verge of the biggest payday of his career after leading his nation to a World Cup victory, now he’s already looking at giving back. French newspaper L’Equipe reported Monday that Mbappe had already informed the charity Premiers de Cordée back in April that he planned to donate his paycheck to the organization. Now he’s announcing that not only will his paycheck go to the charity, but also his bonus, which all players earned as a result of making it to the knockout rounds of the tournament. It’s Mbappe’s view that playing for the national team is an honor that does not need compensation, so he would rather see the money go to humanitarian efforts. Premiers de Cordée brings sports to hospitalized children and runs disability awareness campaigns in French schools and businesses. Mbappe’s gift is estimated … [Read more...] about Kylian Mbappe is donating all of his World Cup winnings to charity

It is profoundly beautiful to see so much diversity in the victorious French national team. The players are close-knit and their joy with and celebration of each other is infectious. They emanate love and unbridled happiness. This Black, White, Arabic, Christian and Muslim team, of players who are mostly immigrants, children of immigrants or descendants of immigrants. Seeing them jumping around and hugging after coming together to achieve a shared dream is an image that can act as an ideal for what our greater world should be. Especially in a time when the world is increasingly hostile to the identities of those players. France’s victory has been so moving that people have inevitably begun to use it as a plea for respect and compassion for immigrants. France have become an argument against bigotry: What France is showing us isn’t anything new, though. There has always been power in bringing different perspectives together. It is not just a good tactic to get the best … [Read more...] about France’s diversity was their biggest strength, but it’s naive to think this team will change anything

France won the World Cup without ever truly playing the type of soccer that their quality suggested they could. In the final, Croatia dominated for a large part of the match. Even after Antoine Griezmann’s penalty, France played like the smaller side of the two. Yet a victory is a victory, and France are the World champions for the second time in their history. Regardless of this French team not living up to the expectations suggested by the individual quality of their players, they won because this team, as disappointing as it seems, fits well together. One of the best examples of how France worked on the field was one of their preferred method of attack: The very ordinary and straightforward long ball to Olivier Giroud. It was not the most aesthetic option, but it was crucial for the French team. Giroud wasn’t the best available striker for France. He’s not the most mobile individual and he often has misses that are so aggravating that it seems like he’s … [Read more...] about France won the World Cup by mastering the concept of teamwork

So you’ve watched the World Cup, enjoyed it, and want to start watching your favorite players from the competition year round. Maybe you even want to pick a European club team to support. If this is you, we can help. Here’s some of the best players from this World Cup and a bit more about where they play their club soccer year-round. Paul Pogba, France — Manchester United This comes with a caveat — Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has not figured out how to get the best out of Pogba yet. He just hasn’t looked as good for United as he has for France. That could change at any time, because Pogba is a good player and Mourinho is a good coach, but just a heads up. Also on Manchester United: Romelu Lukaku of Belgium, Jesse Lingard of England, and David De Gea of Spain, among other bit part players from this World Cup that you might recognize. SB Nation blog: The Busby BabeOfficial team accounts: Twitter, Facebook, InstagramMost games are on: NBC Luka … [Read more...] about How to follow your favorite World Cup stars during the club season

France beat Croatia 4-2 to win the World Cup final, and while that game is fresh in our memory, we wanted to look back at the entire tournament to see just how France got here. Here are the 9 moments that defined this team’s run to history. 1. Late Pogba goal to sneak by Australia It seems a lifetime ago, but it’s worth remembering just how ordinary France looked in their opening game against Australia. Didier Deschamps had built this France team to absorb pressure and counter, but Australia weren’t particularly interested in applying pressure. So we had a bit of a stalemate. After 80 minutes, the game was tied 1-1, and I for one was asking: Are France even that good? That stalemate was finally broken by Paul Pogba finishing off a team goal in the 80th minute, and allowing the nation of France to exhale. 2. The miserable Denmark game, when they made clear they didn’t give a shit France vs. Denmark was one of the few properly shit games of the tournament, where … [Read more...] about The 9 moments that defined France’s run to a World Cup title

What’s the best solution for a middling Premier League season? Destroy a tiny town! While the world’s brightest stars were in Russia closing out the World Cup, Everton was in the middle of Austria — in a town with just 2,700 people — absolutely demolishing the local side. Oddly, this has become a bit of a thing for the town of Irdning. According to the town’s brief Wikipedia page, Irdning’s remote location has made it a mainstay for international teams to come and practice, away from the eyes of the international media. Real Madrid has traveled to Irdning in the past, as have AS Roma — and perhaps most notable the English national team ahead of the 2010 World Cup. The only three fun facts I could learn about Irdning: Nobody knows the town’s origins because the documents were lost. One of the local attractions is the incredibly-named “Castle Gumpenstein.” The official tourism motto of Irdning is short, and to the point. … [Read more...] about Everton destroyed a tiny Austrian town 22-0 in a friendly game