World Cup 2022

ANCIENT, unfit and out of form, yet now a record-breaking Brazil star — it has been a month to remember for Dani Alves.On Friday one of football’s legendary right-backs becomes his nation’s oldest World Cup player, when he skippers them in the Group G finale against Cameroon aged 39 years and 210 days.
Dani Alves will captain Brazil when they face CameroonCredit: Reuters
Alves has been relegated to the bench during his time in QatarCredit: Getty
It will be a momentous evening for a man best known domestically for his heroics with Barcelona, as he also becomes Brazil’s joint second most-capped star.
Yet it is also tinged with controversy, as coach Tite’s selection of Alves, who joins Roberto Carlos on 125 caps, has not been popular with Selecao fans.
He left Barca during the summer, signing for Mexican side UNAM Pumas in July — but despite playing 12 of their 17 games in the first half of the season, the club have won just twice and fans have questioned if he is up to it.
Alves reckons much of the flak is down to simply being out of the Camp Nou limelight.
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He insisted: “Historically in the Brazil squad someone has always had to pay the bill, someone has always been challenged and now it’s my turn.
“If I was at Barcelona it probably wouldn’t be happening but because I’m not at one of the big European clubs it’s normal.
“It’s normal people might question me because of my age or because I might not be at my best at this minute.
“It is something that bothers me but doesn’t affect me. I am reaping what I have planted over the years.
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“But for Brazil and the World Cup, it is not necessarily about being in your best moment at your (club) team but the best for the national team.
“That’s what I have done since 2003, when I was part of the Brazil squad for the first time. If I have to play the drum I will be the best drummer out there. That’s how I see life.

“I know what I can do for the team. I know there may be others even better than I am to do it but I know I can deliver to my team and to my coach. That’s why I am here.”
Alves, still some way off Cafu’s all-time appearance high of 142, beats  Thiago Silva in Brazil’s all-time oldest player chart by a year and three months — a record his current skipper set only last week.
But he will have to go some to catch Cameroon’s Roger Milla, the oldest outfield player to appear in a World Cup at USA 1994, aged 42.

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The oldest of all is Egyptian goalkeeper Essam El-Hadary, who was 45 when he played in Russia 2018.
Alves is also football’s most decorated player, with 44 trophies. And he is convinced he has a great chance of adding the biggest prize of all with this Brazil squad put together by Tite.
He said: “This is the most balanced team we have ever had in the 16 years I have been in the national team.
“That does not happen overnight and also shows age doesn’t matter if you have fitness and you are intelligent.”
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If Brazil do go all the way, Alves will likely be on the bench, with Danilo close to recovery after damaging ankle ligaments in the first game.
Neymar — out with the same injury — is also set to return when Brazil play their last-16 tie on Monday. More

THEY last played together 17 years ago, but El Hadji Diouf still could not resist another pop at Steven Gerrard when quizzed on England’s last-16 clash with Senegal.Gerrard and Diouf famously did not like each other during their three seasons together at Liverpool back in the early 2000s.
Senegal legend El Hadji Diouf could not resist another pop at Steven GerrardCredit: PA
Stevie G and the Senegal star hated each other at Liverpool and have had spays sinceCredit: Action Images – Reuters
Reds icon Gerrard wrote in his 2007 autobiography that he was “not Diouf’s No1 fan” and was “only interested in himself”.
Diouf hit back claiming that there is “nobody more egotistical than Gerrard”.
The forward, who went on to play for five other English teams including Bolton and Leeds, later branded the Three Lions centurion a “brown-noser”.
Diouf, 41, is now a special advisor to the Lions of Teranga, who face Gareth Southgate’s side at the Al Bayt Stadium on Sunday.
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And when asked about any weaknesses he feels the England team may have, given his experience of playing on our shores, Diouf brought up Gerrard once again, referencing his relationship with fellow midfielder Frank Lampard.
Diouf said: “My time in English football was different because (now) they all copy, the national team as well, Pep Guardiola and Man City.
“They play the same way, they want to have the ball and score a lot of goals and play tiki-taka football.
“Players can do it as well, they have a good team and a very good team spirit as well.
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“It’s not like Stevie G and (Frank) Lampard time – the two of them, they don’t like each other.
“It’s about team spirit and Gareth Southgate did a great job.”
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Diouf joined Liverpool in 2002 off the back of his success with Senegal at the 2002 World Cup.
They beat reigning champions France in their opener and went all the way to the quarter-final, losing to a golden goal against Turkey.
And Diouf feels if Gareth Southgate’s side underestimate Senegal like the French did 20 years ago, then Aliou Cisse’s side could pull off a shock.
He said: “It reminds me of when we played against France. They thought they’d won the game before they played it. If England do the same thing on Sunday, this is good for us.

“I know we are not the favourite but we are going to do everything to beat them and the players can do it.”
Diouf struggled at Liverpool but made more of an impact at Bolton, where he worked under former England manager Sam Allardyce.
While he was also signed for Leeds by Neil Warnock, despite the then Whites boss previously comparing Diouf to a “sewer rat”.
Yet Diouf clearly has a great relationship still with both former bosses, revealing he has invited both to Sunday’s clash.

He said: “Everyone knows Sam is a part of my family, and Neil Warnock, the two great managers I know in England.
“I love them and I would like to invite them to watch this game as well. Sam can’t come, because he has to go to Phuket with his wife, but Neil is going to try.”
With Sunday being a knockout game, a penalty shootout remains an ominous possibility if the scores are tied after extra-time.
The thought of that is enough to send chills down the spine of any Englishman.
But Diouf has supreme confidence in his side if it goes to spot-kicks, given their successes earlier this year in that format.
Senegal won the African Cup of Nations in February and their World Cup play-off to qualify for finals a month later, both against Mo Salah’s Egypt, on a shootout.
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Diouf added: “If we get to penalties, we’re going to win it. Easy.
“I know the goalkeeper we’ve got (Chelsea’s Edouard Mendy) and I know we can stop some of their penalties.” More

ENGLAND’S stars were in a relaxed mood as they continued their preparations for the World Cup knockouts.The Three Lions face Senegal on Sunday in the last-16 after Tuesday’s 3-0 win over Wales sealed top spot in Group B.
Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw were in a relaxed mood at England trainingCredit: Getty
Jack Grealish looked pumped as he enjoyed some foot tennisCredit: Getty
Eric Dier pictured in action taking part in the foot tennisCredit: Getty
Tuesday’s two-goal hero Marcus Rashford still has his eye on the prize ahead of SenegalCredit: Getty
Having been given the day off yesterday, Gareth Southgate had his men back to work earlier as they get set to try and secure a place in the quarters.
The full remaining England squad were out on the training pitch this morning in Qatar with the boss having no new injury worries.
Ben White, who returned back home for personal reasons this week, was the only absentee.
And after the hard work of the session, Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw enjoyed a quick time out by putting their feet up on the pitchside bench while giving the thumbs up.
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Jack Grealish looked pumped up for action as he celebrated a victory in foot tennis in the inside hall.
Tuesday’s two-goal hero Marcus Rashford and Eric Dier were also involved.
Meanwhile, Harry Kane was leading from the front during the stretch work, while Jordan Henderson was hard at it on the weights in the gym.
Senegal, without star man Sadio Mane, secured wins over Qatar and Ecuador to finish behind the Netherlands and progress.
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Southgate’s side know they go into the knockout clash as the heavy favourites and will be buoyed after scoring nine goals in their opening three matches.
However, should the game finish level after extra-time, it will go down to penalties.
But with the likes of Kane, Callum Wilson and James Maddison in the squad and a special net to practise spot kicks, England will be confident of putting their Euro 2020 final heartache behind them and progressing.
Harry Kane looked focused while undergoing some stretching workCredit: Getty
Jordan Henderson was hard at it on the weights in the gymCredit: Getty More

ROBERTO MARTINEZ left fans in stitches after appearing to “MOONWALK” out of his post match interview. Belgium were eliminated from the World Cup following a 0-0 draw with Croatia to ensure they finished third in their group.
Roberto Martinez was speaking after Belgium’s World Cup eliminationCredit: BBC
Martinez then bizarrely exited the interview backwardsCredit: https://twitter.com/TheSteveBurnio/status/1598363162381877250?s=20&t=OZrRWVENBTxxjh6psiuHFQ
After the game a tearful Martinez confirmed he was LEAVING as the national team manager after six years in charge.
Speaking in his post-match press conference, he said: “That was my last game with the national team.”
But his bizarre antics pitch side left fans laughing.
The viral video of Martinez was captioned: “Did Roberto Martinez just moonwalk out of the job?”
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And fans shared their thoughts on the matter.
One user said: “Highlight of the world cup right here.”
A second user said: “In tears here.”
A third said: “no way 😂😂.”
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Many other fans replied with a string of laughing emojis.
More replied with gifs off moonwalks and one even posted a Michael Jackson parody.
The former Wigan and Everton boss has been in charge of the Belgium national team since the summer of 2016.
Under his leadership the Red Devils made it to the semi-final of the World Cup in 2018 before losing out to eventual winners France.
The team have been ranked as the No1 team in world football for much of the 49-year-old’s tenure, and currently sit behind only Brazil in the rankings.
However, that did not stop them from crashing out of the group stage in Qatar.
Their World Cup got off to a winning start with a 1-0 over Canada, despite a below par performance.
But they were then beaten 2-0 by Morocco before a 0-0 draw with Croatia sealed their fate.
Following the defeat to Morocco, sensational reports emerged suggesting star players Eden Hazard, Kevin de Bruyne and Jan Vertonghen had to be separated after a heated altercation in the dressing room.
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Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois denied the reports, and warned that the person who leaked the information would not play for the national team again.
They then showed a unified front ahead of their clash against Croatia, huddling in a circle in a show of solidarity. More

ROMELU LUKAKU destroyed the dugout with one punch following Belgium’s shock World Cup exit.Roberto Martinez’s men knew a point was unlikely to be enough in their final group-stage match against Croatia to see them through to the last-16.
Romelu Lukaku was raging as Belgium were knocked out of the World CupCredit: BBC
The Chelsea loanee smashed the dugout up with a single punchCredit: BBC
He then stormed down the tunnel in an emotional stateCredit: BBC
Thierry Henry consoled Lukaku on the side of the pitchCredit: Alamy
And with Morocco beating Canada 2-1 in the other game in Group F, Belgium became aware they needed to find a late goal against the Croats as the contest headed for a stalemate.
They had several good opportunities in the dying moments – including ones which fell to Lukaku – but could not find a winner, and crashed out of the World Cup as a result.
Lukaku, who came into the tournament carrying an injury, showed his frustration after the game, punching the side of the dugout which came loose.
He then headed down the tunnel in tears, but not before Belgium coach Thierry Henry consoled him pitchside.
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BBC pundits Didier Drogba and Alan Shearer were sympathetic with Lukaku – who attempted to save his team despite not being fully fit.
Shearer said: “It will hurt him. He was nowhere near ready, otherwise they would have started him.
“He gave them a focal point. His lack of game time has hurt them.”
And Drogba added: “He is frustrated not only because he missed the goal but because of the spirit of the team during this tournament.
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“All the talk of fights between players. This is what he will be frustrated by more than the missed chances.”
Belgium’s squad togetherness was called into question earlier this week as reports of a dressing room row surfaced.
They were thought to have stemmed from Kevin de Bruyne publicly stating that the squad was too old.
Speaking to The Guardian about Belgium’s chances of winning the competition, the Man City man said: “No chance, we’re too old. I think our chance was 2018. We have a good team, but it is aging.
“We lost some key players. We have some good new players coming, but they are not at the level other players were in 2018.
“I see us more as outsiders.”
Following the game, manager Roberto Martinez announced he was leaving his job. More

GHANA’S Otto Addo has defended Luis Suarez’s infamous 2010 handball against them – and says he would expect his side to do the same against Uruguay.The African nation, who have four points from two games after the win over South Korea, will be out for revenge against Uruguay, who only have one going into their now must-win last group game tomorrow.
Ghana’s coach Otto Addo has defended Luis Suarez over his famous handball against themCredit: AFP
The Uruguayan was sent-off after denying Ghana a goal in the 2010 World Cup quarter-finalCredit: AFP
The sides faced off in the quarter final back in 2010 during the World Cup in South Africa, and a rivalry was born.
Sulley Muntari put Ghana ahead only for Uruguay to equalise through Diego Forlan to send the match to extra time.
With penalties looming as the score remained level, Ghana were putting on the pressure and came close to scoring in the final minute of the match only for Suarez to punch the ball off the line.
He was instantly sent-off as the referee awarded a penalty – but Asamoah Gyan blew his country’s semi-final dream by blasting over.
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If that was not bad enough, Suarez was still on the touchline watching on and burst into wild celebration as the game went to a shoot-out – which was eventually won by Uruguay.
That made him public enemy No.1 in Ghana – although Suarez showed no remorse for his actions when quizzed about it in the pre-match press conference.
However, now Ghana coach Addo has claimed the much-maligned forward had sacrificed himself for his team-mates and claimed his actions are “normal”.
And he added that he would expect his side to do all they can to qualify for the knock-out stages.
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Addo said: “In general it is about perspective, if the same incident would have happened the other way around and Ghana proceeded to the semi-finals, everyone would say it is normal that a player would do anything he can to help his team go to the semi-finals.
“For me, it’s not a big topic. This is what I wish from every player, to do all he can to help his team qualify. Sometimes even sacrificing himself with a red card.
“It was a very sad day for me, I watched it and I was sad, but this is my perspective.
“If I see it from another perspective, it is a normal thing.” More