Sadio Mane will be hoping to fire Senegal back into the Africa Cup of Nations final when they take on Burkina Faso in the semi-finals on Wednesday.
Senegal s hopes of winning a first AFCON title were dashed by Algeria back in 2019 but they are looking to become the first team since Egypt in 2010 to reach successive finals – and this time they will be desperate to go one better and lift the trophy.
History appears to be in their favour too. That loss to Algeria is the Lions of Teranga s only defeat in their past six knockout games in the competition, and they have only conceded two goals in that span.
Furthermore, they are unbeaten in their two previous AFCON meetings with Burkina Faso, though both of those came in the group stage.
But Burkina Fas…
Alan Shearer claims England will be happy with their group for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, with the Three Lions facing the United States, Iran, and the final European play-off winner.
The draw means Gareth Southgate s men could face a clash against rivals Wales or Scotland, with the Scots due to face Ukraine for a place in June s play-off final in Cardiff.
It also threw up a repeat of England s 2010 clash with the United States, with whom they shared a 1-1 draw in their opening game at the tournament in South Africa.
England have never faced Wales, Scotland, or Ukraine at the World Cup, but did face a home nation in each of their last two European Championship campaigns, beating Wales 2-1 at Euro 2016 and drawing 0-0 with Scotland at Euro 2020.
Form…
The dominance of Bayern Munich is not just down to financial muscle, but more the lack of consistency from their Bundesliga competition.
That is according to former Bayern midfielder Toni Kroos, who played 130 times for the Bundesliga giants before swapping Bavaria for Real Madrid in 2014.
Bayern became the first team across Europe s top five leagues to win their respective top flight on 10 successive occasions after a 3-1 victory over Klassiker rivals Borussia Dortmund last Saturday.
Julian Nagelsmann s side had previously shared the record of nine with Juventus, who won Serie A each year from 2012 to 2020, before cruising to their record-setting triumph with three games to spare.
Many cited Bayern s financial power as an issue in the German top flig…
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Georgia is on the brink of making history as they host Greece in Tuesday s Euro 2024 qualifying playoff Path C semi-final in Tbilisi, just 90 minutes away from their first-ever appearance at a major tournament.
Willy Sagnol s team secured their spot in the showpiece event with a commanding 2-0 victory over 10-man Luxembourg in the semi-final showdown. Meanwhile, the Pirate Ship Crew sailed to a resounding 5-0 victory over Kazakhstan in their semi-final clash.
Georgia
In the absence of Napoli s Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who was serving a suspension, there may have been a glimmer of hope for Luxembourg as they faced Georgia in the semifinal. However, Karlsruher SC striker Budu Zivzivadze emerged as the hero in Kvaratskhelia s place,…
Carlo Ancelotti praised the spectacular attitude of his Real Madrid side in a 2-0 LaLiga win at Cadiz.
Los Blancos dominated the game at Estadio Nuevo Mirandilla on Saturday, registering more shots than any other team in a LaLiga match this season, with 35 attempts.
Madrid had to wait until Nacho s brilliant finish after 72 minutes to take the lead and Marco Asensio gave them breathing space four minutes later.
Vinicius Junior and Toni Kroos were not risked by Ancelotti ahead of Tuesday s Champions League quarter-final second leg at Chelsea due to muscle strains, while Luka Modric and Eduardo Camavinga came off the bench.
Dani Carvajal and David Alaba were unused substitutes as Madrid prepared for the game at Stamford Bridge, which they will start with a …
The United States Soccer Federation has confirmed it will host the 2016 Copa America Centenario.
The tournament, which marks the 100-year anniversary of the South American football championship, will take place between June 3-26 in various venues and locations across United States.
Despite announcing they would be hosting the competition last year, corruption concerns threatened the event after the US Department of Justice indicted several top officials from the confederations of North and South America in May for more than $110million in bribes.
However, a statement on Friday released on ussoccer.com provided confirmation.
The U.S. Soccer Federation will partner with The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACA…
Cristiano Ronaldo has returned to Manchester United. It was a move that took many by surprise, given he was linked to arch-rivals Manchester City initially, but the deal is done.
After a 12-year absence, via stops at Real Madrid and Juventus, the five-time Ballon d Or winner has made it back to Old Trafford.
Ole Gunnar Solskajer s last-ditch intervention invoked memories of Barcelona in 1999, though this time he nipped in front of Pep Guardiola instead of past Oliver Kahn.
Rio Ferdinand and Alex Ferguson are said to have played a key role, too, reminding Ronaldo of United s halcyon days, nudging him towards one final dance – or drop of a shoulder – with the Stretford End.
Using Opta data, Stats Perform looks at the numbers behind the 36-year-old sta…
Five years ago to the day, Paris Saint-Germain sent shockwaves across world football by paying a world-record amount to bring in Brazil superstar Neymar from LaLiga heavyweights Barcelona.
The €222million PSG splashed out on Neymar remains by far and away the most any team has ever paid for a player. Next on that list? Kylian Mbappe, who swapped Monaco for PSG that same transfer window, initially on loan, for a fee rising to €180m.
Indeed, across the past five years, the Parisians gross outlay has hit a whopping €792m, which is around 40 per cent more than the preceding five-year period. If it was not clear enough upon Qatar Sports Investments takeover in 2011, PSG will not stop in their pursuit of becoming the world s best team.
Yet here we are, more than …
Presnel Kimpembe is set for a spell on the sidelines after injuring his hamstring in a rash challenge that left Brest coach Michel Der Zakarian furious.
Kimpembe was already on a booking in the closing stages of Paris Saint-Germain s 1-0 win on Saturday when he lunged in on Irvin Cardona.
The France defender somehow escaped punishment, but he went away clutching his hamstring and left PSG down to 10 men regardless as he departed down the tunnel for treatment with all five substitutions already used.
It now appears likely Kimpembe will not play against either Maccabi Haifa or Lyon ahead of an international break for which he will also be a doubt.
He suffers from a muscle injury, coach Christophe Galtier said. He will have tests and we will wait within 48 …
Michy Batshuayi has ended all speculation about his future by signing a new and improved contract with Marseille until June 2020.
The 22-year-old was heavily linked with clubs such as Tottenham and Newcastle United in recent weeks, but he has made the decision to stay with the Ligue 1 outfit instead.
The striker s previous deal ran until the end of the 2018-19 campaign, but he has now signed a one-year extension.
Batshuayi joined Marseille from Standard Liege in August 2014 and has since developed into a key player at the Stade Velodrome.
He currently sits second in the Ligue 1 scoring charts with 11 goals from 19 appearances this season, trailing PSG striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic by four strikes.
Furthermore, promising defender Benjamin Mendy has al…