World Cup 2022

GARETH SOUTHGATE remained coy about his future as England manager after suffering World Cup elimination.The Three Lions suffered a heartbreaking 2-1 loss to France in the 2022 World Cup quarter-finals at the Al Bayt Stadium.
England manager Gareth Southgate remained coy about his futureCredit: Reuters
Les Bleus opened the scoring with Aurelien Tchouameni’s long-range stunner and Harry Kane levelled things up from the penalty spot before Olivier Giroud extended his scoring record with 53 goals.
England’s heroic captain had the chance to equalise once more with another spot-kick but he sadly missed the target.
Southgate has a contract until 2024 but his future still appears to remain up for discussion after another World Cup heartbreak for England.
The 52-year-old confirmed there will be talks with the FA once the team flies back from Qatar and a decision will later be made.
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Southgate said in his post-match interview: “After every tournament we have sat and reviewed and reflected and that needs a bit of time to make sure everyone makes the right decisions.”
The England manager praised his players’ performance and insists they deserved better as they “couldn’t have given any more”.
Southgate added: “The performance deserved better but in the end goals are decisive.
“I just said to the players they couldn’t have given any more. They played really well against a top team. There’s fine margins and things at both ends that decided the game.
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“The way this group has progressed through this tournament has been fantastic.”
Southgate insists the reason behind England’s elimination is not down to them “lacking ruthlessness” against France.
He said when asked if his players lacked a ruthless edge: “No. At key moments, you’re playing a high level game where chances will be created.
“And in most of the big moments we were in the right place. We had more shots on goal, our keeper has made a couple of good saves for us but it was a game of fine margins.”
Southgate also defended Kane after his penalty miss.
He said: “We win and lose as a team. We let a couple in and missed a few chances.
“Harry has been incredible for us and so reliable in those sorts of situations.
“We wouldn’t be here but the number of goals he has scored for us.”
England put together a brave performance against France but suffered some questionable decisions by referee Wilton Sampaio.
Southgate, though, refused to be dragged into all the criticism as he considers such talk to be “pointless”.
He stated: “It’s pointless me going into that. I’d rather talk about our players and to congratulate France – they know they’ve been in a hell of a game. We have given a top team a game. We couldn’t have done any more.”
However, Southgate conceded that England missed a major opportunity to win the World Cup.
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He added: “Yeah. We were here to win the tournament.
“We believed we could and we showed with our performance tonight against the reigning champions that we could have done that.”
Kane was comforted by Southgate after the defeat to FranceCredit: AP More

HARRY KANE will keep on believing. He has no choice.But in his heart of hearts, the England captain knows his best chance of glory with the national team has probably gone.
England captain Harry Kane missed a penalty against France in the quarter-finalsCredit: Getty
And with it, perhaps, his best opportunity of winning a major trophy in his career.
Kane will blame himself after skying his second penalty of the evening over the bar.
As this World Cup knockout stage has shown, spot-kicks can make a hero or villain of anyone.
Kane will pick himself up, dust himself down and go again.
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But this was a bitter blow for captain and country.
Kane claimed before the Last 16 clash with Senegal that he and the team would never be in better shape to end however many years of hurt it is now.
Back then, it sounded like a call to arms.
Now it feels like an epitaph for the Three Lions’ latest tournament disappointment, Gareth Southgate’s England and even for Kane’s career.
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Harry Kane may have missed the chance to win a World Cup with EnglandCredit: Reuters
Harry Kane could not stop England losing to France
His first penalty put him level with Wayne Rooney on 53 England goals. He will go on to break that record, Jimmy Greaves’ landmark for Tottenham and possibly Alan Shearer’s tally in the Premier League.
Great those achievements would be, they are not the same as winning a World Cup.
Kane wants to emulate Bobby Moore by lifting a shiny hunk of metal. If he could do it by also matching Geoff Hurst’s final hat-trick, so match the better.
But winning is the thing. And he still hasn’t done it.
It was 40 years since England had met France in the World Cup.
Ron Greenwood’s squad travelled to Spain with the nation humming along to their naff but catchy tune.
But Tottenham superstar Harry kane remains an all-time England greatCredit: Getty
But it was here in Qatar that you felt, this time, more than any other time, an England team might get it right.
Even before Morocco’s shock win over Portugal, there was good reason to believe Southgate’s men could dare to dream.
There was no outstanding team in the tournament. The closest things to it were Brazil, who had also gone out.
And France. Unfortunately.
Kane’s equaliser moved him one ahead of Giroud.
But the former Arsenal and Chelsea striker’s winner nudged him ahead again and, more importantly, a step closer to winning back-to-back World Cups.
England were knocked out of the World Cup quarter-finals by FranceCredit: Getty
At 36 years old, Giroud at least gives his former Premier League rival  hope that his day will come.
On the other hand, the France No9 also shows Kane what might have been – and could still be – if he hadn’t remained loyal to Tottenham.
When major prizes continue to elude him at Arsenal, he left for Chelsea and ended up with a Champions League winner’s medal.
After being deemed surplus to requirements at Stamford Bridge, off he went to Italy and won Serie A with AC Milan.
But if Giroud goes on to win a second World Cup, he will have sealed a place in history that Kane – and let’s face it, any England player of all time – can only dream of.
France’s captain Hugo Lloris has shown that playing for Tottenham need not be a barrier to glory.
England star Harry Kane can still win major honours despite the World Cup sorrowCredit: PA
Kane beat his club skipper with his first penalty, but could not convert the second.
In the first half, Lloris stopped one Kane shot with his body, and pushed away another.
These are the margins between success and failure, the great and the very very good.
Whatever happens in the future, Kane will be remembered for his goals, his drive and his relentless desire to keep on improving and adapting.
Maybe Tottenham will improve enough, soon enough, to give him the chance to compete for the biggest prizes, as someone of his talent and dedication deserves.
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Perhaps everything will finally come together for England at Euro 2024, which will kick off in little more than 18 months’ time.
But in the desolation of defeat last night, it felt like something significant slipped away, for captain and country. More

PORTUGAL boss Fernando Santos has declared he has NO REGRETS over not starting Cristiano Ronaldo in the quarter-final defeat to Morocco. Ronaldo and Co saw their World Cup dreams crash and burn as Morocco earned a 1-0 win to progress into the semi-final.
Fernando Santos remained defiant over his decision to not start Cristiano RonaldoCredit: Getty
Ronaldo came on as a second half substituteCredit: AP
But Santos struck a defiant tone and doubled down on his decision to not start Ronaldo.
Speaking after the game, he said: “I do not regret (leaving Ronaldo on the bench).
“It wouldn’t change anything, in terms of the team I can’t be thinking with my heart.
“I used the team that played really well against Switzerland and there was no reason to change it (against Morocco).
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“The strategic decision that I had to make was one of the hardest, but I can’t think with my heart, I have to think with my head.
“It’s not that Ronaldo is no longer a great player, that has nothing to do with it.”
The 37-year-old’s Wag Georgina Rodriguez slammed the decision by Santos.
Taking to social media she raged: “Today your friend and coach made a bad decision. That friend for whom you have so many words of admiration and respect.
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“The same as when you got into the game, he saw how everything changed, but it was too late.
The best player in the world, his most powerful weapon, cannot be underestimated.
“You can’t stand up for someone who doesn’t deserve it either. Life gives us lessons.
“Today we have not lost, we have learned.”
Ronaldo, who also sat on the bench in the 6-1 drubbing of Switzerland, came on shortly after half-time to try and force an equaliser.
However, he was unable to affect such a change and was pictured crying as he went down the tunnel after the game.
Ronaldo is his nations all-time leading goalscorer with 118 goals in 196 games.
But with his nation’s exit in what could be his final World Cup, he has failed to score in any of his eight knockout games at the tournament.
Now Morocco will face France after they beat England 2-1 in the other quarter-final.
Ronaldo was in tears at the end of the gameCredit: ITV
Georgina Rodriguez looked on from the standsCredit: AFP More

GARY NEVILLE hit out at World Cup referee Wilton Sampaio in a scathing attack after England’s loss to France. Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions were dumped out of the tournament in the quarter-final stages following a bitter 2-1 defeat.
Gary Neville hit out at World Cup referee Wilton Sampaio in a scathing attackCredit: Rex
But Sampaio was slated for questionable decisions throughout the match and faced Neville’s wrath after the final whistle.
He told ITV: “You see French defending it was startling, we knew it was the weak point in their team but I don’t think we knew they’d make those poor decision in those types of areas.
“The referee had a nightmare game, an absolute joke of a referee.
“I’m not saying that was all down to England’s defeat because that’s making excuses, he was just a bad referee, rank bad.”
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England fans fumed after Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka appeared to be brought down by defender Dayot Upamecano with no punishment.
Real Madrid midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni would just moments later open the scoring with a stunning strike from outside the box.
Sampaio was again under fire after Harry Kane was brought down by Upamecano and protested for a penalty.
The ref was not interested and neither was VAR – but that was not the end of the penalty drama.
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Saka was brought down in the second half and Harry Kane stepped up to score past Tottenham team-mate Hugo Lloris in the France goal.
Ex-Arsenal and Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud put the 2018 reigning champions back in the lead with an excellent header.
But England were awarded another penalty after Theo Hernandez shoved Chelsea’s Mason Mount in the box.
Sampaio amazingly waved off protests but after a VAR check, he changed his mind.
Hernandez escaped a red card despite Jude Bellingham & Co clearly feeling a clear goalscoring opportunity was denied.
Kane once more stepped up but this time blazed over as England were cruelly dumped out with France progressing to play Morocco.
Harry Kane misses from the penalty spotCredit: Reuters More