SOFIA (AFP) - Italy kept their World Cup qualifying campaign on track with a 2-0 Group C win over Bulgaria who fell to their second consecutive defeat on Sunday (March 28). Andrea Belotti got the first goal from the penalty spot just before the break with Manuel Locatelli sealing the win with his first 'Azzurri' goal with eight minutes to go. Roberto Mancini's side had won their opener 2-0 against Northern Ireland in Parma on Thursday with Bulgaria losing 3-1 at home against Switzerland. The four-time world champions missed out on the finals in 2018, but under Mancini extended their unbeaten run to 24 games, after their perfect Euro 2020 qualifying campaign. Italy were without defender Giorgio Chiellini with forwards Domenico Berardi and Francesco Caputo also ruled out. Torino captain Belotti started up front alongside Juventus forward Federico Chiesa. Despite Italy dominating early against the 1994 World Cup semi-finalists, the visitors were pegged back by the Bulgarians. Yasen Petrov's home side provided tougher opposition than the one that conceded three goals in the first quarter of an hour against the Swiss. Chiesa and Belotti were both unable to connect with crosses from Leonardo Spinazzola and Alessandro Florenzi to finish off. But the breakthrough came when Belotti went down under a Daniel Dimov challenge as he ran to connect with Lorenzo Insigne's through ball. Belotti made no mistake for his 11th goal in 32 international appearances. More on this topic Related Story Football: Dembele scores, Mbappe misses penalty as France beat Kazakhstan Related Story Football: Mitrovic sets record as Serbia earn 2-2 draw with Portugal The Torino forward missed a chance for a second midway through the second half with a lob hitting the post and sending the rebound over. Locatelli came on for Stefano Sensi after 68 minutes, with Ciro Immobile replacing Belotti and Federico Bernardeschi in for Chiesa for the final quarter of an hour. Insigne teed up Locatelli to curl in the second with eight minutes to go with Immobile missing chances to add to his tally late in the game. Italy claimed their first win in Bulgaria on their seventh attempt. More on this topic Related Story Football: Kane leads England to 2-0 win in Albania Related Story Football: Spain scrape win over Georgia with late Olmo strike Mancini extended his unbeaten run with Italy to 24 consecutive games, just behind former World Cup winning coaches Marcello Lippi (25) and Vittorio Pozzo (30). Italy next play against Lithuania in Vilnius on Wednesday. Bulgaria, who have not qualified for the World Cup since 1998, travel to Northern Ireland.
PRAGUE (AFP) - Romelu Lukaku’s second-half equaliser handed Belgium a 1-1 draw against the Czech Republic in a Group E World Cup qualifier in Prague on Saturday (March 27). The game played behind closed doors because of Covid-19 restrictions keeps the hosts top on goal differences. The Inter Milan striker scored on 61 minutes after fooling sweeper Ondrej Celustka with a mazy run and beating goalkeeper Tomas Vaclik to take his record international tally to 59 goals in 91 caps. Slavia Prague midfielder Lukas Provod sent the home side 1-0 ahead on 50 minutes with a clinical low right-footer from outside the box that slid into the bottom left corner of Thibaut Courtois’s goal. Belgium, the world number one ranked side, started in high spirits but Lukaku fired over the crossbar and Dries Mertens saw his low shot parried away by Vaclik. The hosts got close on 16 minutes when lone striker Michael Krmencik sprinted into the box and hit Courtois’s left post with a low effort. Belgium kept trying as the rain stopped, but they failed to beat Vaclik who did well to clear Leander Dendoncker’s blast before stopping Timothy Castagne’s header from close range. The Czechs dominated possession in most of the second half and came close again six minutes from time when Jan Boril hit the crossbar. On the other side, Kevin de Bruyne hit the post on a counter-attack in the 70th minute. Just before the final whistle, Czech midfielder Tomas Soucek saw his header headed out of the goal off the goalline by Toby Alderweireld. Both teams were without several Germany-based players including Dortmund midfielders Thomas Meunier and Thorgan Hazard and Czech captain Vladimir Darida of Hertha Berlin. They skipped the game on concerns they may have to go into quarantine after returning from the Czech Republic deemed as a top-risk country by Germany. Belgium started the qualifying campaign with a 3-1 win over Wales on Wednesday, while the Czechs prevailed 6-2 over Estonia. Belgium are now due to host Belarus on Tuesday while the Czech Republic will play in Wales on the same day, both teams having the Germany-based players back for the ties. More on this topic Related Story Football: Mitrovic sets record as Serbia earn 2-2 draw with Portugal
TURIN (AFP) - European champions Portugal got their 2022 World Cup qualifying campaign off to a winning start thanks to an Azerbaijan own-goal in a tight 1-0 Group A victory in Turin on Wednesday (March 24). Azeri captain Maksim Medvedev turned the ball into his own net on 36 minutes, but that was all Portugal could muster against their 108th-ranked opponents. Cristiano Ronaldo failed to score at his club side's Juventus Stadium - with the game on neutral ground due to coronavirus travel restrictions - remaining seven goals short of Iranian Ali Daei's all-time international scoring record of 109 goals. Fernando Santos's side struggled due to poor finishing, a dogged Azeri defence and a series of fine saves from visiting goalkeeper Shakhrudin Magomedaliyev. The Portuguese were camped in front of their rivals' goal early, with an Andre Silva header flying over the bar in the 12th minute. The Azeri keeper kept out a Ronaldo header on 23 minutes, with Manchester City's Joao Cancelo rifling just wide from a tight angle before the half-hour mark. The breakthrough came from a goalmouth scramble, with Magomedaliyev punching the ball out, hitting Medvedev and bouncing into the back of his own net. Ronaldo sent an overhead kick attempt before the break over and missed further chances to score his 103rd Portugal goal in the second half. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner set up Bruno Fernandes with 15 minutes to go, but the Manchester United midfielder's shot was tipped over the bar by Magomedaliyev, who saved a Ronaldo free-kick at full stretch with five minutes to go. Portugal, who reached the World Cup semi-finals in 1966 and 2006, next travel to Serbia on Saturday and Luxembourg three days later. More on this topic Related Story Football: Lacklustre France held by Ukraine in opening World Cup qualifier Related Story Football: Belgium gain revenge on Wales to make winning start to World Cup qualifying
PARIS (REUTERS) - France kicked off their World Cup qualifying campaign in unconvincing fashion as they were held to a 1-1 home draw by Ukraine on Wednesday (March 24). Antoine Griezmann put the world champions in front in the first half with a brilliant strike, only for defender Presnel Kimpembe to hand the visitors a point with an own goal after the break. The result left Didier Deschamps’s side and Ukraine level with Finland and Bosnia in Group D after they drew 2-2 in the other game. Les Bleus next face Kazakhstan and Bosnia away, on Sunday and Wednesday. France dominated possession and they went ahead on 19 minutes as Griezmann whipped a delightful shot into the far top corner from the edge of the box. It put Griezmann up to joint fourth with David Trezeguet in the list of France’s all-time top scorers with 34 goals. Thierry Henry is top with 51. Giroud went close to doubling the advantage, but his header from Benjamin Pavard’s cross went just over the crossbar in the 32nd minute. Ukraine, however, hit back when Sergiy Sydorchuk’s harmless attempt was deflected into his own net by Kimpembe 12 minutes into the second half. Deschamps made two substitutions, sending Paul Pogba and Ousmane Dembele in for Giroud and Kingsley Coman. Pogba brought steel to the midfield but Andriy Shevchenko’s side were happy to sit back and wait. Kylian Mbappe, who produced a forgettable performance on the left flank of the attack, was replaced by Anthony Martial, who failed to make any impact. Griezmann had a chance to give France a last-gap win, but his curled attempt was tipped away by Heorhiy Bushchan eight minutes from time. Kimpembe had an opportunity to make up for his own goal in the last minute but headed the ball straight into Bushchan’s arms. More on this topic Related Story Football: Portugal struggle to narrow World Cup qualifying win over Azerbaijan Related Story Football: Belgium gain revenge on Wales to make winning start to World Cup qualifying
MUNICH, GERMANY (AFP) - Holders Bayern Munich cruised into the Champions League quarter-finals as a 2-1 win over Lazio in Wednesday's (March 17) last-16 second leg sealed a 6-2 aggregate victory. Robert Lewandowski converted a penalty before a deft chip from his second-half replacement Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting doubled the advantage on the night. Lazio grabbed a consolation when Marco Parolo was left unmarked to head in a late free-kick from close range. Their passage into the last eight sees Bayern better Barcelona's tally of 18 Champions League quarter-final appearances since the competition was rebranded from the European Cup. Snow fell during the game at the Allianz Arena, but Bayern made light work of the wintry conditions. They extended their unbeaten run in the Champions League to 19 games over two years. With his side trailing 4-1 from the first leg, Lazio coach Simone Inzaghi opted to rest top-scorer Ciro Immobile, with the 1.94m-tall Vedat Muriqi starting up front. Bayern had captain and Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer sidelined by a cold as understudy Alexander Nuebel made only his third start of the season. Bayern were awarded a penalty on 31 minutes when Muriqi brought Leon Goretzka down in the area. After a VAR review, Lewandowski banged in the resulting spot-kick. It was the Poland star's 39th goal in all competitions this season and fifth in the Champions League. Lewandowski hit the post with Lazio goalkeeper Pepe Reina beaten on 67 minutes. It was one of his last involvements as he and Thomas Mueller made way for Choupo-Moting and 18-year-old Jamal Musiala. Less than two minutes later, David Alaba slid a pass through for Choupo-Moting to sprint onto and flick a shot over Reina. Bayern were guilty of sloppy defending eight minutes from the final whistle when Andreas Pereira's free-kick was headed home by Muriqi's replacement Parolo. Serge Gnabry fired wide late on as Bayern kept Lazio under pressure.
LIVERPOOL (AFP) - Ole Gunnar Solskjaer rued a missed opportunity for Manchester United to lay down a marker in the Premier League title race as two late saves from Alisson Becker salvaged a 0-0 draw for Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday (Jan 17). United remain three points clear of the champions at the top of the table, but failed to take advantage of a depleted Liverpool defence. Few other visiting sides have come closer to ending Liverpool's now 68-game unbeaten run in the Premier League at Anfield as Alisson proved his worth to deny Bruno Fernandes and Paul Pogba in the final 15 minutes. "It was an opportunity missed with the chances we had but then again, we were playing a very good side." Solskjaer said. "I think we grew in the game and toward the end, it was there for us to win. We created two massive chances and it was two brilliant saves by the 'keeper." Solskjaer's disappointment, though, is a sign of how far United have come in the year since they last suffered an away defeat in domestic football on their last trip to Anfield. A massive 33 points divided the sides last season as Liverpool ended a 30-year wait to win the title. United are now looking to end their own drought as for the first time since former manager Alex Ferguson retired eight years ago, they have forced themselves into contention on the back of a 12-game unbeaten run. Liverpool were again without any fit senior centre-backs, forcing Jurgen Klopp into partnering midfielders Fabinho and Jordan Henderson in defence. Yet, despite the loss of the talismanic Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip to injury, it is scoring goals, not conceding them, that has been the root of the Reds' struggles in recent weeks. Klopp's men have failed to score in three consecutive league games for the first time since 2005 and are now winless in their last four in the Premier League. "What we miss is the goal," said Klopp. "For all the things said before the game, they are flying and we are struggling, I think my boys played a really good game." Thiago pulls the strings Klopp recalled Xherdan Shaqiri to add a creative spark, while Thiago Alcantara made his Anfield debut, four months on from his arrival from Bayern Munich after a long injury layoff. Thiago pulled the strings as United struggled to gain a foothold in the opening half hour. However, Liverpool failed to make their dominance count as Roberto Firmino slashed their best chance well wide from Sadio Mane's layoff. A turnaround in United's fortunes dates back a year to Fernandes signing shortly after the sides last met. The Portuguese international midfielder quickly established himself as the Red Devils' talisman and again provided his side's biggest threat. His free kick that curled inches wide was as close as either side came to breaking the deadlock before the break and he then had the visitors' first shot on target 25 minutes from time that Alisson comfortably collected. However, as the game became stretched late on, United began to pick Liverpool off on the counter-attack. Fernandes had his best chance to win the game 15 minutes from time, but Alisson was equal to his low shot from Luke Shaw's cutback. Moments later, Liverpool's goalkeeper made an even better save to turn Pogba's fiercely struck shot behind and prevent United opening up a sizeable gap over their rivals. "We can't deny Man United for 90 minutes with the quality they have," added Klopp. "They had two big chances and Ali made two big saves."
MANCHESTER (AFP) - Manchester City moved up to second in the Premier League and within two points of leaders Manchester United as John Stones scored twice in a 4-0 win over Crystal Palace. City can go top if they win their game in hand over their local rivals and took full advantage of dropped points for both their biggest title challengers after United and Liverpool played out a disappointing 0-0 draw earlier on Sunday (Jan 17). Ilkay Gundogan and Raheem Sterling also produced stunning finishes as Pep Guardiola's men recorded an eighth straight win. Despite not hitting the heights of back-to-back league titles under Guardiola between 2017 and 2019, City are now unbeaten in 15 games to move into pole position. A 12th clean sheet in that 15-game run again set the platform as City's forwards have struggled to match their free-scoring form of old. Stones's partnership with Ruben Dias has been key to most of those shutouts and the England defender , after waiting five seasons for his first Premier League goal since joining City, got two in the one game. Kevin De Bruyne registered his 100th City assist with the outside of his right foot for Stones to nod home from close range to open the scoring on 26 minutes. Palace had taken four points from their last two trips to the Etihad, but without the injured Wilfried Zaha offered barely any attacking threat as the Eagles remain 13th in the table. With Gabriel Jesus and Sterling short on goals and Sergio Aguero absent after coming into close contact with a positive coronavirus case, Gundogan's goalscoring form of late has been a major factor in City's revival. The German midfielder curled home his fourth goal in seven games into the top corner 11 minutes into the second-half to end any doubt over the outcome. Stones then swept home his second of the night on the rebound after Vicente Guaita saved from Dias's initial powerful header. Guardiola could then afford the luxury of handing De Bruyne and Gundogan a rare rest for the final 20 minutes ahead of Aston Villa's visit on Wednesday. Sterling blazed a penalty over the bar late on in Wednesday's 1-0 win over Brighton when handed the responsibility by De Bruyne. With the Belgian off the field, Sterling got another chance from a set-piece outside the box and this time curled a brilliant free-kick into the top corner two minutes from time to round off a perfect day for City.
LONDON (AFP) – Manchester United moved level on points with Liverpool at the top of the Premier League on Friday (Jan 1) as Bruno Fernandes’ penalty saw off Aston Villa 2-1 in an entertaining clash at Old Trafford. Anthony Martial’s header five minutes before the break was just reward for a bright start by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men, but they were pegged back by Bertrand Traore’s equaliser just before the hour mark. Just three minutes later, though, United’s talisman Fernandes won the game from the spot after Paul Pogba had been upended inside the area. Another season just contending for a top-four finish looked in store for United after winning just two of their opening six league games. But as all the other contenders have stumbled in recent weeks, the Red Devils have now taken 26 from a possible 30 points to mount an unexpected title challenge. Solskjaer’s side needed a 93rd minute winner to beat Wolves on Tuesday, but were far faster out the blocks this time round. Martial forced Emiliano Martinez into an excellent save high to his left inside 10 minutes before Fred, Pogba and Fernandes fired efforts just off target. The breakthrough came five minutes before the break and owed much to Pogba’s ingenuity with the Frenchman finally starting to find form despite the speculation over his future. Pogba and Marcus Rashford combined to send Aaron Wan-Bissaka free down the right and his cross was headed home by Martial at the near post. Villa were on a five-game unbeaten run themselves to earn a place in the top six and showed why with their start to the second-half as United were forced back. Jack Grealish was again at the heart of all the visitors’ best work going forward and it was from his cross that Ollie Watkins’s header produced a fine reflex save from David De Gea. From Grealish’s next dangerous delivery, Villa deservedly equalised as this time Traore took a touch and slotted low past De Gea. However, Dean Smith’s men quickly undid their good work as a soft challenge from Douglas Luiz on Pogba was deemed enough for a penalty by referee Michael Oliver. Fernandes’ near-perfect penalty record continued as he slotted the spot-kick just out of the reach of Martinez for his 15th goal of the season. Pogba should have rounded off a promising performance by sealing the points when he side-footed just wide when unmarked inside the area before more Martinez heroics denied Fernandes a double as he turned the Portuguese’s fierce effort onto the crossbar. And United needed a big save from their own goalkeeper in stoppage time to hang on as De Gea sprang to his right to turn Matty Cash’s long-range effort behind. Everton lack ‘quality’ Earlier, Everton missed the chance to close to within a point of the top two as they were beaten 1-0 at home by West Ham. The Toffees failed to exert themselves on a West Ham side playing their third game in six days and were punished when Tomas Soucek slotted home the winner four minutes from time. “It was not a good game,” said Everton boss Carlo Ancelotti. “We didn’t have opportunities and we didn’t concede opportunities, they had a lucky deflection and we lost the game. We could play with more intensity and more quality up front.” More on this topic Related Story Football: Tomas Soucek strikes late winner for West Ham at Everton Related Story Football: Five Man City players to miss Chelsea trip due to Covid-19, says Guardiola David Moyes’ men had the toughest festive fixture schedule in the Premier League in terms of rest and he said there has been a change in mindset with the Hammers this season to battle through adversity. “The players have played three games in six games, they are amazing,” said Moyes, who won for the first time as a visiting manager at Goodison Park, where he made his name in 11 years in charge of Everton. “I don’t think there was any difference in the fitness levels so great credit to the players, there has been a big change in the mentality here at West Ham.” Victory took West Ham to within three points of third, although they remain in 10th in a tight Premier League table. More on this topic Related Story Football: Fulham boss Scott Parker unsure if Burnley match will go ahead due to Covid-19 Related Story Football: Fulham game postponement due to Covid-19 was 'unprofessional', says Spurs' Mourinho
MADRID (AFP) - Lionel Messi saved Barcelona from another embarrassing result by scoring the decisive goal in a 1-0 win over lowly Levante, while Real Sociedad returned to the top of La Liga on Sunday (Dec 13). Messi struck with 14 minutes remaining of a lacklustre display from Barca at the Camp Nou which will do little to ease fan fears following their midweek 3-0 hammering at the hands of Juventus in the Champions League. Ronald Koeman's side are still way off the pace in the title race, nine points behind Sociedad, who reclaimed first place despite only drawing 1-1 with Eibar. Barcelona do, however, have two games in hand on the Basque outfit. Atletico are level on 26 points with Sociedad and also have two games in hand while Real Madrid are now just three points behind the leaders having played one less after beating their local rivals 2-0 on Saturday. Villarreal are four points off the lead in fourth after drawing 1-1 at Real Betis, who are one point behind Barca in ninth. "The team are working well, they gave the maximum," said Koeman. "We still lack a little confidence in ourselves, in our game, but we had a lot of chances, and I have nothing to say about the attitude of the players in this match." Barca managed to force several saves from Aitor Fernandez, with the Levante goalkeeper doing particularly well to push away a stinging shot from Martin Braithwaite in the 16th minute and Antoine Griezmann's header five minutes later. However, the best chance of the opening period fell to Jorge de Frutos in the 12th minute, the Spaniard somehow shooting straight at Marc-Andre ter Stegen after the ball broke kindly for him right in front of goal. Messi saves the day Barca continued to dominate possession in the second half but if anything, looked less threatening, with Fernandez being called into action largely for shots that were hit straight at him. However, with Levante looking more comfortable than a side of their level should at the Camp Nou, Messi saved his team with a clinical finish off the post after collecting Frenkie de Jong's pass. It was hardly the sort of display to honour Sergio Busquets' 593rd appearance for the club, which takes him level at fourth of all time for matches played for Barca alongside Carles Puyol. However, the three points are a boost ahead of the visit of Sociedad on Wednesday, which is then followed up by another home clash with Valencia on Saturday. Earlier, Ander Barrenetxea gave Real Sociedad the lead in San Sebastian with a thumping strike in the 20th minute, but Sergi Enrich turned home with 25 minutes remaining to send his team 10th on 15 points. Sociedad would have had a bigger gap between them and Atletico had Igor Zubeldia's 80th-minute tap-in not been ruled out by VAR for an extremely tight offside. Sunday's draw was Sociedad's sixth in as many games in all competitions, and came after another 1-1 draw at Napoli on Thursday, which saw them squeeze into the last 32 of the Europa League. Granada won 1-0 at Elche in Sunday's other match, a win that keeps them one point ahead of Barcelona.
LONDON (REUTERS) - Phil Foden scored twice as England eased to a routine 4-0 win over 10-man Iceland on Wednesday (Nov 18) as both sides wrapped up their Uefa Nations League campaigns in Group A2 with only pride to play for. England took control when West Ham United's Declan Rice glanced in a header from a free kick on 20 minutes and the lead was doubled four minutes later when Chelsea midfielder Mason Mount pounced on a bouncing ball in the box to finish calmly. The second half started badly for Iceland when Birkir Mar Saevarsson, who was playing his 95th game for his country, was sent off for a second yellow card. Manchester City's 20-year-old midfielder Foden made it 3-0 with 10 minutes to go with his first goal for England and added a long-range effort to make it 4-0. England had already failed to qualify for the Nations League finals after a 2-0 loss on Sunday to one of the tournament's favourites Belgium, while Iceland had already been relegated to League B. England are still haunted by their defeat to Iceland in the 2016 European Championship, but dominated possession and chances throughout on Wednesday without really going through the gears. Rice's opening goal come from a free kick for a foul on the edge of the box, while Mount allowed the ball to run across his body inside a packed box before slotting a cool finish in the corner. The game failed to fire in the second half even after the red card on 54 minutes, but eventually picked up pace after a flurry of substitutions. One of the replacements, Borussia Dortmund's Jadon Sancho, combined with Arsenal's Bukayo Saka to feed Foden's debut goal and his second was matched either side by a barrage of shots that were either blocked or fizzed wide. Iceland, whose manager Erik Hamren was already stepping down following Wednesday's game, had a couple of chances on the break in the first half but missed probably their best opportunity after the second-half sending off when captain Kari Arnason headed just wide.
LEUVEN (REUTERS) - Early goals by Youri Tielemans and Dries Mertens earned Belgium a comfortable 2-0 victory over England as they strengthened their grip on top spot in Nations League Group A2 in Leuven on Sunday (Nov 15). England needed a win to put themselves back in the frame for a place in the Nations League finals, but Gareth Southgate's side found themselves chasing the game after Tielemans put the hosts in front after 10 minutes. Harry Kane had an effort cleared off the line soon after but it got even worse for England when Mertens curled home a delightful free kick after 23 minutes. Belgium held on with few real alarms against an unimaginative England side and must now avoid defeat on Wednesday against Denmark, who beat Iceland 2-1, to finish top of the group. A second successive defeat for England, after a home loss to Denmark, left them in third place in the group with one match to come at home to Iceland next week.
BELFAST (REUTERS) - Michal Duris struck an extra-time winner as Slovakia profited from the few chances they had to stun Northern Ireland and 1,060 raucous home fans with a 2-1 victory in their Euro 2020 qualification playoff at Windsor Park on Thursday (Nov 12). Slovakia led after 17 minutes as George Saville’s wayward header in midfield proved a perfect through ball for Juraj Kucka, who provided a cool finish. It looked as though that would be the winner until the Irish claimed a dramatic late equaliser when defender Milan Skriniar, who was the visitors’ best player, turned the ball into his own net three minutes from the end of normal time. But Duris beat home goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell at his near post with a low drive to seal back-to-back European Championship qualifications for Slovakia and a place in Group E at the tournament next year along with Spain, Sweden and Poland. Slovakia were gifted their opener on 17 minutes when Saville attempted a header back to Jonny Evans, but it eluded the centre back and set Kucka bearing down on goal. The home side were improved at the start of the second half as they worked a few promising openings, with Conor Washington firing straight at Marek Rodak in the Slovakia goal when a yard either side would have brought an equaliser. It seemed as though Northern Ireland were destined for defeat, though, as despite their frenetic possession in the closing stages of the 90 minutes, openings remained at a premium. But they were level two minutes from fulltime as Paddy McNair’s scintillating run down the right ended with a low cross into the six-yard box, and when Skriniar flung out a boot, he could only direct the ball into his own net. Gavin Whyte struck the post as the home side finished the stronger, but when the ball ricocheted kindly for Duris off the back of the unlucky Evans in the 110th minute, he rifled in a low shot that eluded Peacock-Farrell.
LONDON (REUTERS) - England beat Ireland for the first time since 1985 as goals by Harry Maguire, Jadon Sancho and Dominic Calvert-Lewin secured a 3-0 win in a friendly at an empty Wembley Stadium on Thursday (Nov 12). Maguire, wearing the captain's armband, headed his side in front after 18 minutes and Sancho's fine finish put the hosts in cruise control before halftime. England created numerous chances but Calvert-Lewin's penalty was the only addition to the score as the hosts impressed ahead of Nations League clashes against Belgium and Iceland. It was quite a turnaround for Maguire who was sent off in England's last game, a 1-0 Nations League defeat by Denmark. England's performance was also a welcome distraction after a difficult week in which Liverpool defender Joe Gomez suffered a serious knee injury in training with the national team and FA chairman Greg Clarke resigned after making inappropriate comments at a parliamentary committee meeting. Remarkably, England's last six completed matches against Ireland had ended in draws with the game in Dublin in 1995 abandoned because of crowd trouble. But the latest meeting proved far less eventful and completely one-sided as Southgate's young team impressed. "We used the ball very well, created a lot of chances. We could have been more comfortable if we had taken some of those chances but overall very pleased," Southgate said. An added bonus was a debut for 17-year-old Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham who came on in the second half to become the third youngest player to represent England, behind Theo Walcott and Wayne Rooney. Keeper Dean Henderson also earned his first cap after replacing Nick Pope at halftime. Ireland, who were drafted in to replace New Zealand as England's opponents, enjoyed a decent opening 10 minutes but after that were outclassed. Aston Villa's in-form playmaker Jack Grealish was given a start by Southgate and he produced a fine display. With Harry Kane among the substitutes, Maguire was handed the armband and the Manchester United defender enjoyed a quiet night in defence while showing his threat at the other end. His header from a Harry Winks cross sent England on their way and Grealish combined with Sancho for the latter to jink past Jeff Hendrick and fire low past Darren Randolph. After 56 minutes Arsenal's Bukayo Saka was brought down in the box and Calvert-Lewin sent his spot-kick high into the net.
LISBON (REUTERS) - Pedro Neto and Paulinho both scored on their Portugal debuts as the European champions unsurprisingly routed Andorra 7-0 in a friendly on Wednesday (Nov 11), while Cristiano Ronaldo was also on target. Neto, 20, rifled in the opening goal after eight minutes while Paulinho, making his debut at the age of 28, got in front of his marker to score the second just before the half hour. Renato Sanches added the third in the 56th minute and Braga forward Paulinho headed in his second from Mario Rui's cross five minutes later. Emili Garcia turned the ball into his own net before Ronaldo, who was rested for the first half, headed his 102nd international goal with five minutes left and Joao Felix completed the rout. Ronaldo's goal left the 35-year-old only seven short of former Iran forward Ali Daei's alltime record of 109 international goals.
BUDAPEST (AFP) - Another double strike by Alvaro Morata propelled Juventus to a 4-1 win against Hungarian minnows Ferencvaros as Cristiano Ronaldo returned from coronavirus for his first Champions League game this season. The Spaniard struck in each half, repeating his double haul against Dynamo Kiev in the Group G opener, with a late Paulo Dybala tap-in and an own-goal by Lasha Dvali easing Juventus past their hosts in Budapest. In heavy rain, Juventus opened their account on seven minutes when Leonardo Bonucci split the home defence to send Juan Cuadrado dashing down the right wing. The lively Colombian veteran fizzed a low cross across the goalmouth for the onrushing Morata to tap in from close range. Backed by over 20,000 home fans in the vast Puskas Arena Ferencvaros responded gamely to the opener but squandered several chances to equalise midway through the half. Norwegian dangerman Tokmac Nguen went closest when blasting wide while well-positioned. Approaching half-time Andrea Pirlo's side should have gone two-up but Morata, sent clear on goal, opted to lay off to Ronaldo, whose effort was blocked by the lunging Miha Blazic. The Portuguese captain tried hard throughout and could have extended the lead ten minutes after the break after seizing on a defensive slip but pulled his shot across goal. On the hour Ronaldo turned provider, his cross from the right dummied by substitute Weston McKennie to reach Morata who had space to curl a right-footer past the helpless Denes Dibusz. The Hungarian international's night got worse on 72 minutes when he fumbled a back-pass allowing Dybala to tap in and seal the Italian side's win. Ten minutes from the end the Argentinian pounced on another lapse at the back, pressuring the Georgian international Dvali to turn it into his own net. More on this topic Related Story Football: Leipzig come back to leave PSG in trouble in Champions League Related Story Football: Timo Werner penalties lead Chelsea to 3-0 Champions League win over Rennes Ivorian striker Franck Boli grabbed a consolation for the battling but inexperienced Hungarians just before the final whistle. Juventus, who topped their Champions League section in the last two seasons, now have six points behind group leaders Barcelona on nine points after three games. The next game for the Bianconeri is the return fixture against Ferencvaros in Turin on Nov 24.
BERGAMO, ITALY (AFP) - Diogo Jota scored a hat-trick as Liverpool crushed Atalanta 5-0 in their Champions League Group D clash in Bergamo on Tuesday (Nov 3). Portuguese forward Jota turned in the first for the Premier League leaders after quarter of an hour, adding a second on 33 minutes to put the visitors two-goals up at the break in a empty Gewiss stadium in northern Italy. Gian Piero Gasperini's home side needed to pull off a comeback from two goals down as they did to hold Ajax 2-2 a week ago. But Liverpool continued the punishment in the second half with Mohamed Saleh and Sadio Mane adding two more within four minutes, and Jota completing his hat-trick after 55 minutes. Jurgen Klopp's 2019 Champions League winners are top of Group D with their maximum nine points and are five clear of both Atalanta and Ajax, who won 2-1 at Danish champions Midtjylland. Jota continued his impressive form after moving to Anfield from Wolves in September. The 23-year-old threatened within two minutes as he started up front alongside Salah and Mane. Colombian duo Duvan Zapata and Luis Muriel led the Atalanta attack in front of captain Papu Gomez. But Gian Piero Gasperini's Atalanta lacked form with defender Hans Hateboer just getting the all clear before the game. Jota cut inside Hateboer straight away but Marco Sportiello got down low to smother the shot, the Atalanta goalkeeper then tipping over a Mane goal-bound effort. Muriel had a chance to open after quarter of an hour off a Gomez free-kick with former Roma keeper Alisson Becker struggling to control before stopping the ball. The breakthrough came a minute later with Trent Alexander-Arnold sending through for Jota to muscle out Jose Luis Palomino and beat Sportiello. Jota then again got the better of Hateboer for his second after 33 minutes with Sportiello denying Mane the chance of a third minutes later. But Salah broke through two minutes after the break and set up Mane for the fourth two minutes later past an out-rushing Sportiello, with Jota completing the rout on 55 minutes. The Portuguese became just the second player to score on his first two starts in the Champions League for Liverpool since Robbie Keane 2008, having opened the scoring in a 2-0 win over Midtjylland last time out.
LIVERPOOL/MARSEILLE (AFP) - Lacklustre Liverpool beat Midtjylland 2-0 on Tuesday (Oct 27) to make it two wins out of two in the Champions League but their defensive problems mounted as Fabinho limped off injured. The Premier League champions were toothless in the first half but finally clicked 10 minutes after the break when the impressive Trent Alexander-Arnold set up Diogo Jota for a tap-in. A late penalty scored by substitute Mohamed Salah gave the scoreline unwarranted gloss. The manager left his first-choice attack of Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino on the bench against the Danes, giving his second string a chance to shine. But Liverpool, lacking urgency and fluency at an empty Anfield, struggled to break down the hard-working visitors, who lost their Champions League opener to Atalanta 4-0. The opening could have been worse for Klopp's men. Midtjylland had a chance to take a shock lead in the opening minutes when a long clip down the middle sent Anders Dreyer in on goal and Alisson Becker had to make a smart save. Liverpool, who beat Ajax away in their Champions League opener, hogged possession but struggled to create clear chances in the early stages. Most of what little threat there was in the first half came from full-back Alexander-Arnold, who produced a cross which Takumi Minamino failed to connect with. Alexander-Arnold then danced through the Midtjylland defence midway through the opening period but failed to find the Japan international. But Klopp's problems became a lot more serious just before the half-hour, when Fabinho, filling in alongside Joe Gomez in central defence, limped off with an apparent hamstring injury. Klopp is already coming to terms with the absence of central defensive lynchpin Virgil van Dijk, who could be out for the whole season. As half-time approached, Alexander-Arnold drilled another cross to Minamo, who headed wide. But Liverpool failed to register a single first-half shot on target for the first time in 51 home games in all competitions, since October 2018. Gini Wijnaldum replaced captain Jordan Henderson at half-time and after a few minutes Klopp ordered Salah and Mane to warm up on the sidelines. The breakthrough finally came when Alexander-Arnold received the ball on the right and exchanged passes with Xherdan Shaqiri before crossing for Jota to finish from close range. It was Liverpool's 10,000th goal in all competitions, 128 years after their first, netted by Jock Smith in September 1892. Salah and Mane came on just after the hour mark for Minamino and the disappointing Divock Origi but Liverpool still struggled for rhythm. Firmino missed a clear chance for Liverpool in the closing minutes after yet more good work from Alexander-Arnold. They almost paid the price immediately but Dreyer could only find the side-netting after drifting past Gomez. Liverpool escaped and Salah won the penalty which he converted. Meanwhile, Manchester City made it two wins from two in their latest bid for Champions League glory as Kevin De Bruyne starred in a straightforward 3-0 win at Marseille on Tuesday. The English side, who have never reached the semi-finals under Pep Guardiola, sit top of the early Group C table after their opening victory at Porto last week. With De Bruyne running the show in midfield on his first start since returning from injury, City cruised past a largely ineffective Marseille. Andre-Villas Boas's men, playing in their first Champions League campaign since 2013, are rooted to the foot of the group after back-to-back defeats. Porto sit second behind City after a 2-0 win over Olympiakos in Group C's other match on Tuesday. City, who have only won two of their opening five Premier League games this season, started with Ferran Torres up front in the absence of injured duo Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus. The visitors dominated the early stages without creating many clear-cut chances, but were handed the opening goal in the 18th minute. Marseille midfielder Valentin Rongier's dreadful pass put De Bruyne in the clear, and the Belgian squared for Torres to slot in his third City goal since signing from Valencia. City appeared likely to win without any help from their opponents, but Marseille defender Leonardo Balerdi contrived to lose the ball inside his own area and was fortunate to see Oleksandr Zinchenko's effort clip the base of the post. The home side were much improved after the interval, though, and City goalkeeper Ederson was lucky to fumble a long-range strike from Florian Thauvin onto his post and behind. But any hopes of a push for a late OM equaliser were put to bed 14 minutes from time. Phil Foden stood a high ball up to the back post which Raheem Sterling nodded down for Ilkay Gundogan to score. It was not long before De Bruyne collected his second assist of the game, as his low pass was tapped home by Sterling.
MANCHESTER (AFP) - Manchester City's latest quest for Champions League glory got off to a winning start as Pep Guardiola's men came from behind to beat Porto 3-1 at the Etihad on Wednesday (Oct 21). Luis Diaz's solo effort punished a sloppy City start for the Portuguese champions, who felt hard done by when Sergio Aguero equalised thanks to a contentious penalty award. However, the Premier League side's quality shone through after half-time when Ilkay Gundogan's free-kick and substitute Ferran Torres' fine finish moved City to the top of Group C. Guardiola admitted on Tuesday to still feeling guilty over the experimental line-up and formation that led to City's latest Champions League calamity in last season's quarter-finals against Lyon little over two months ago. The Catalan is into the final year of his contract at the Etihad and potentially his last chance to land the prize City most desired when they brought him to Manchester five years ago. However, in the early weeks of the season, City have look a faded force from the prime of Guardiola's reign in winning back-to-back Premier League titles between 2017 and 2019. Without the injured Kevin De Bruyne, the English giants were again far from their free-flowing best and Porto took advantage early on. Former Benfica captain Ruben Dias was at fault for giving the ball away for the opener against his old rivals. But Diaz still had a huge amount to do as he eased past timid challenges from Rodrigo and Joao Cancelo before unleashing a powerful effort into the far corner. The visitors' lead only lasted seven minutes and City levelled with a good deal of fortune. Gundogan inadvertantly caught Porto 'keeper Agustin Marchesin as he tried to direct the ball goalwards and after the German's shot came off the post, Raheem Sterling was barged over in the box by Pepe. After a lengthy VAR review, Gundogan's challenge was not deemed a foul to overturn the initial decision to award a penalty and Aguero smashed home his first goal of the season. Porto still had the better chances to retake the lead before half-time as Matheus Uribe fired over with the goal gaping from a misplaced clearance by Ederson. Kyle Walker then saved Dias from scoring an own goal as he turned Moussa Marega's cut-back towards his own net. City regained control after the break, but it wasn't until a moment of magic from Gundogan 25 minutes from time that they went in front. The midfielder won a free-kick on the edge of the area and then curled the ball over the wall to the relief of Guardiola on the sidelines. Gundogan was starting for the first time since testing positive for coronavirus and he was replaced seconds after scoring as Guardiola added a fresh injection of pace in Phil Foden and Torres. The 20-year-olds combined to seal the points as Foden's pass fed the Spaniard, who skipped inside Pepe before curling high into the far corner. Marchesin kept the score down late on with great saves from Riyad Mahrez and Rodrigo, while tempers flared between Guardiola and Porto boss Sergio Conceiçao after Pepe and Sterling clashed off the ball. However, City suffered a late injury blow when captain Fernandinho, who had only been on the field nine minutes, was forced off with what looked like a muscle problem.