RAHEEM STERLING is back in training for England after returning to the UK to attend to personal matters.The winger saw his Surrey home broken into during the World Cup but is now back in Qatar training with his teammates.
Meanwhile, Ben White reportedly had a bust-up with England assistant coach Steve Holland which led to his World Cup camp exit.
The FA initially stated that White left the England camp ahead of their last-16 clash with Senegal for “personal reasons”.
But reports have also claimed that the Gunners full-back became unhappy in the camp and struggled to mix with his fellow teammates.
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Kane is ‘clinical’, says Giroud
Ex-Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud has said he sees similarities between himself and Harry Kane ahead if England v France on Saturday.
The Frenchman had his say on his opposite number with the World Cup Quarter-Final clash approaching quickly.
Giroud said: “I’ve spoken to Hugo Lloris about Harry Kane because he has a profile that can maybe be compared to mine.
“He’s very powerful and over the last few years he’s moved further down the pitch to be more involved in the game.
“He’s also very good at assists and a good finisher that’s clinical. He’s generous with his team mates and has the ability to hurt opponents.
“He’s obviously a great asset to the English team. There’s similarities between us but differences too.”
Croatia 0-0 Brazil
A few minutes in to this afternoon’s big clash.
There is a typically cagey feel to the game in the opening couple of minutes.
Casemiro is the first to commit, and the first to concede a foul against Kovacic.
Going for gold with Silvestre
Former Manchester United and Arsenal star Mikael Silvestre has picked his combined England-France XI.
And there are no less than FIVE of Gareth Southgate’s men in the side – including one who is unlikely to start against the world champs on Saturday.
Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe face off in a striker showdown tomorrow for a place in the World Cup semis.
There are sure to be thrilling battles all over the pitch as a host of star names look to make an impact.
And it has opened the door for fans to choose some brilliant combined team XIs, with both countries spoiled for choice in terms of talent.
One man who knows a thing or two about England AND France is Silvestre.
Llor-is up for the fight
Hugo Lloris has been playing in the Premier League for so long that he probably qualifies as an honorary Englishman.
But tonight the Spurs goalkeeper will be belting out The Marsellaise as loud as any Frenchman as he looks to keep his grip on the World Cup he lifted four years ago.
And if that means breaking the heart of his good friend Harry Kane, well that’s a price he will be more than willing to pay.
Three weeks short of his 36th birthday, Lloris will become his country’s most capped player when he makes his 143rd appearance for Les Bleus this evening.
But that will mean nothing to him if it ends in defeat by the nation he has come to regard as home after ten years in North London.
Credit: Rex
Saka needs to ‘cheat’ like Mess, says Lallana
Adam Lallana believes Arsenal attacker Saka has just as an important role to play and he believes he can be utilised properly being allowed to “cheat” like Argentinean legend Messi.
Writing in The Times, the ex-England ace said: “If it appears as though he [Messi] is not doing anything and leaving everything to his team-mates, then that ignores the fact he is constantly looking, scanning and taking pictures of the pitch in his head.
“Then, when he does get the ball back, Messi is fresher than anyone else and capable of weaving his magic. He may walk the most, but he is also taking in the most information. He could well be the cleverest player who has ever played the game.
“Yet when people mention it, the implication tends to be that he is cutting corners with his team, whether that is Argentina or at club level with Paris Saint-Germain.
“You often hear people say, ‘This player cheats out of possession. He doesn’t defend properly.’”
The 34-year-old continued: “There has been so much focus on how to stop Kylian Mbappe, but England do not want Saka doubling up with right back Kyle Walker every time the French attacker gets the ball.
“If he does that, then Saka is going to be too deep and he is not going to be as effective on counterattacks, which is one of his great strengths.
Vinicius Jr has faith in Casemiro to stop Luka Modric
Real Madrid star Vinicius Jr has revealed Brazil’s plan to stop Luka Modric in the quarter-final of the World Cup.
The pair face off for their countries in Qatar at 3pm UK time, and both will be hoping to make it to the semi-finals with victory.
Vinicius Jr has revealed that he has faith in his former teammate Casemiro in stopping Modric.
Casemiro and Luka Modric made up Real Madrid’s midfield with Toni Kroos during a successful period for the club before Casemiro joined Manchester UnitedCredit: Getty
“Playing against Modric is going to be very special,” he told FIFA.
“As far as neutralising him goes, I’ll leave that to Casemiro because he can do a better job than me!
“He knows Modric really well because they played together for a long time.”
Ozil jumps to Ronaldo’s defence
Former Arsenal star Mesut Ozil has taken to Twitter to defend Cristiano Ronaldo after recent criticism.
The pair held a strong relationship during their time together at Real Madrid, and Ronaldo was benched against Switzerland in the last-16.
Fernando Santos saw his decision pay off, with Portugal coming out 6-1 victors and Ronaldo featuring from the bench.
Mesut Ozil played with Cristiano Ronaldo at Real MadridCredit: Getty
Speaking on Twitter, Ozil weighed in on the recent media criticism of Ronaldo as he said: “I really don’t get where this constant negativity from the press about Cristiano comes from…
“The media is just trying to get clicks, and pundits who don’t have a career anymore just want to get attention with his big name and try to make him look bad.
“He is soon 38 years old – so what’s the surprise that he doesn’t score 50 goals a season anymore? Every football fan out there should be happy to have seen him playing world class football for 20 years.”
Brazil look to samba their way to the semi-final
Tite’s side are the favourites for the World Cup but face a tough challenge when they come up against Croatia today.
The South Americans have enjoyed their World Cup so far, but been criticised by Roy Keane for their dancing celebrations.
Despite this, don’t expect this to change, with the Brazilians ready to pull out more iconic celebrations if they can find the back of the net against Croatia.
Brazil brought out several new dancing celebrations in the last-16Credit: Alamy
Raheem Sterling returns
England winger Raheem Sterling has returned to Qatar and been pictured back in training.
The 28-year-old left the squad before they faced Senegal to attend to personal matters back in England.
This comes after his family home in Surrey was broken into by burglars, with it unclear as to whether he was going to return to Qatar.
However, the Chelsea forward is now back with his England teammates as they seek World Cup glory ahead of their quarter-final clash against France on Saturday.
Raheem Sterling is back training with his teammates at the World Cup
Croatia hopeful of semi-final place
Luka Modric and co will be hoping to qualify for the semi-finals of the World Cup today.
The Croatians play Brazil today, who are the favourites to lift the trophy, so will be up against it.
But victory today will set-up a semi-final clash against the winner of Netherlands and Argentina’s match later tonight.
Could they repeat 2018 and make another final? Time will tell.
Deschamps supports Southgate
Didier Deschamps insists Gareth Southgate does not get the credit he deserves for turning into a World Cup fighting force.
French boss Deschamps, one of only three men to win the World Cup as a player and a coach, has nothing but admiration for the job Southgate has done as Three Lions manager for the past six years.
But he does not believe that is the case in England ahead of this evening’s quarter-final blockbuster in Qatar.
He says: “I like Gareth very much. We have met on a number of occasions and have talked about a number of things.
“But if I understand the situation correctly, not everyone appreciates him so much in his own country.
“That isn’t because he wasn’t a good footballer himself because he had a long and distinguished playing career.
“But he is also a very good coach who has enabled England to get some very good results in the recent tournaments.”
England won’t sit back on the ropes, says Southgate
When asked by ITV whether Southgate wants the attacking approach of his team to remain, he said: “Yeah without a doubt.
“There is no point going into a game like this and just covering up and sitting on the ropes. We believe we can cause problems with the ball and we intend to do that.
“We’ve beaten some big teams. We know we have the experience of high pressure nights behind us and as a team we’ve been resilient through a lot of situations but they all prepare you for nights like this.
“We got to the first final for 55 years, this is a quarterfinal. We’ve won a semi-final and been to a semi-final of the World Cup before.
“But, of course, it is a big game against a high quality opponent. Everything that has happened in the past is history, it all comes down to Saturday night.
“What they have been through and what they’ve learnt and the way we have gone about things in this tournament.
“They’ve understood what we have been trying to do, they’ve kept calm and shown belief in what they’ve been asked to do and shown a great mentality about the way they’ve played.
Southgate hints at England change
England manager Gareth Southgate has hinted at playing an attacking team against France.
The Three Lions take on the reigning world champions in the quarter-finals of the World Cup in Qatar on Saturday.
here has been much talk about whether Southgate will stick with the 4-3-3 he has fielded for every game at the tournament or if he will revert to the back five he played against Germany and Italy at last year’s Euros.
But the England head coach is adamant he wants his side to go at the holders in their pursuit of a place in the last four.
Saka must avoid defensive effort like Messi
A former England star says Bukayo Saka must “cheat” like Lionel Messi in order for the Three Lions to beat France.
Gareth Southgate’s side take on Les Bleus in the World Cup quarter-final on Saturday.
Much of the talk before the bumper showdown has been on how Kyle Walker will nullify the threat from French talisman Kylian Mbappe.
However, Adam Lallana believes Arsenal attacker Saka has just as an important role to play and he believes he can be utilised properly being allowed to “cheat” like Argentinean legend Messi.
Keane doubles down on dance debate
Roy Keane has reignited his war of words with Brazil boss Tite by telling him to save his dancing for the nighclub.
The Samba Boys put on a blistering display on Monday as they cruised into the World Cup quarter-finals with a 4-1 win over South Korea.
Keane has spoken about the dancing antics again while talking to Sky Bet, saying: “I love watching Brazil and what they stand for.
“I don’t get how a manager can dance when the game is still going ahead, he’s got an opposition manager 10 yards away from him, you’ve got to watch that.
“The game is about respect. Dance afterwards in the dressing room, or in the nightclub, that’s not a problem.
“But why is it okay for Brazil to do it during the game? If everyone has a dance after a goal, the games will be going on for three days.
“Do you know what they should start doing, when coaches do their pro licence, show the managers how to do a little dance on the sideline, forget tactics.”
Tite will be hoping that he has his dancing shoes on again this afternoon when Brazil face Croatia in the World Cup quarter-final.
More on the reasons behind White dismissal
The trouble with White allegedly boiled to a head when the star arrived for a team meeting before the bore draw with USA not knowing vital statistics relating to his own performances in training.
The experienced coach is also believed to have felt let down by the versatile defender’s lack of knowledge on their strengths of their upcoming American opponents.
A mutual decision was then agreed that White would be released from his first-ever World Cup and allowed to return back to the Gunners.
White was an unused sub in the first two games, and was not in the squad for the 3-0 win over Wales on Tuesday.
White ‘struggled to integrate’
The 25-year-old did not play in any of England’s three games at the World Cup.
Now the Daily Star are claiming that White’s exit was down to a supposed fall-out with a key member of the coaching staff.
And they also state the ex-Brighton ace was struggling to fully integrate into the squad off the pitch.
White – who revealed before the tournament that he didn’t watch football while growing up and still doesn’t today – and Holland reportedly got into an argument in front of the rest of the squad after mounting tensions.
White bust up with England coach, say reports
Ben White reportedly left England’s World Cup squad due to an alleged fall-out with Gareth Southgate’s assistant Steve Holland.
The Three Lions announced on November 30 that the Arsenal defender was leaving the camp in the Qatar due to personal reasons.
Good morning football fans
It was announced that Chelsea star Raheem Sterling would return to England’s World Cup base in Qatar on Thursday.
Sterling has been expected to rejoin the squad ahead of Saturday’s quarter-final against France.
The forward flew back to the UK due to a burglary at his home in Surrey.
But the 28-year-old is now expected to link back up with Gareth Southgate’s squad for this weekend’s crunch clash.
However, it is unlikely the ex-Manchester City star will play against Didier Deschamps’ reigning world champions.
Meanwhile, Luis Enrique has departed from his position as Spain manager after the shock 2022 World Cup exit to Morocco.
The Furia Roja were stunned by the Atlas Lions in a penalty shootout defeat earlier this week.
It means the Spaniards have failed to make it past the Last-16 since winning the World Cup in 2010.
And Spain announced Under-21 boss Luis de la Fuente as their new manager – just hours after Enrique’s departure.
The board of directors is expected to rubber stamp De la Fuente’s appointment in a meeting on Monday.
The 61-year-old’s first two games in charge will come against Norway and Scotland in March as the Furia Roja bid to qualify for Euro 2024.
The Spanish tactician has been in the national set-up since 2013 and led both Spain’s Under-19s and Uner-21s teams to Euros glory.
Finally, Cristiano Ronaldo reportedly threatened to quit Portugal’s World Cup squad after finding out he would be benched in the Last-16 clash against Switzerland.
That is according to Record, but the Portuguese FA have categorically denied that report.
Ronaldo, who is a free agent after leaving Manchester United following his explosive interview, has shared a statement of his own.
Sharing a snap of the squad, including himself as a sub, celebrating a goal from Tuesday, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner wrote: “A group too close to be broken by outside forces. A nation too brave to let itself be frightened by any adversary.
“A team in the truest sense of the word, which will fight for the dream until the end! Believe with us! Strength, Portugal!”
Three’s the dream
Borussia Dortmund star Jude Bellingham will seal a transfer to Manchester City over any of their rivals, according to Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand.
Speaking on FIVE, he said: “Pep Guardiola’s signed a new deal, if they don’t win the Champions League this year, he goes there with a mindset, ‘I am going to be the man that brings you the Champions League.’
“That’s how I think he’s moving, that’s how I think he rolls. I think he will [go to City], I think he’ll say he’s got a couple of mates there, England boys, ‘I can go to [Real] Madrid in five years’.
“I think he thinks, ‘listen man, I’m a superstar, I want to go win the league and the Premier League because I’m an English-born boy and then I’ll go Madrid and do the same there in a couple of years’.
“The mad thing is he’s got the chance, the great thing is he has the absolute choice and pick of what he does. There will be clubs queuing up”
Credit: Getty
Patrice Evra warning
Despite Patrice Evra’s confidence in France’s ability to beat England, he warned Les Bleus against underestimating Gareth Southgate’s men.
Evra said: “With England, the star is the team. It’s not just one player.
“This is the best English side, as a team, not as a group of individuals. England look more of a unit than France.
“But [Jude] Bellingham will be by far the best midfielder England have ever had.
“What a joy it is to see him play. He is a complete player. It’s scary he’s only 19”
Patrice Evra prediction
Patrice Evra reckons both England and France are capable of lifting the World Cup next Sunday if they both get past their “biggest test of the tournament”.
But the 41-year-old reckons his national team could embarrass the Three Lions on the biggest stage.
Evra told Betfair: “I am confident, but not arrogant. I’m happy with what France are doing. It’s a big mix. I feel like France are going to smash England.
“France will face an angry, strong team. If they play with the attitude that they are stronger and more confident than England, France can smash them.
“Playing against England is always special as a French player. It’s always an amazing game. It’s a nice rivalry, it’s not bitter. We’re jealous of each other in a nice way”
Maguire vs Mbappe
England aces John Stones and Harry Maguire will find it nearly impossible to deal with France superstar Kylian Mbappe, according to Patrice Evra.
Evra said: “[Kyle] Walker is going to block Mbappe, he did it against Neymar very well in the Champions League for Manchester City.
“He can be confident and say he’s got him because he’s fast and strong, but Mbappe will find a way to escape. He will move into the centre.
“I hope he does because Stones and Maguire won’t be able to deal with him. It will be difficult for them to stop him.
“To stop Mbappe when he’s in the centre, you have to be close to him every time, frustrate him, foul him – he doesn’t like to be fouled.
“Maguire and Stones will love playing against [Olivier] Giroud though, he’s not fast, he’s strong and that is the jackpot for them”
Rashford’s top Marcs
Manchester United star Marcus Rashford is the latest England international to take on the gauntlet that is Bukayo Saka’s “spelling school.”
A host of other Three Lions aces including Jack Grealish, James Maddison and Declan Rice have all tried and failed to pass Saka’s tricky spelling bees.
After realising he was being filmed Rashford burst into giggles, as the winger revealed his word was “embarrassed.”
After a moment’s thought the forward gave it his best shot, and was so close to becoming the first person to pass Saka’s spelling test.
However, Rashford went with only one r, when of course he needed two.
To signal Rashford’s wrong answer, Saka made an attempt at a Britain’s Got Talent type of buzzer before bursting out into laughter and yelling : “You’re wrong”
England World Cup ace Marcus Rashford takes Bukayo Saka’s spelling test, but does he do better than Grealish and Co?
Ring the Bell
Liverpool are set for a boost as Jude Bellingham is reportedly ready to tell Borussia Dortmund he wants to quit the club and switch to Merseyside.
According to a recent report by SPORT BLID, Bellingham is set to tell Dortmund that he wants to quit the club in order to facilitate a move after the 2022 World Cup.
The midfielder’s father Mark, mother Denise and adviser Mark Bennett are the main negotiators representing him.
It is believed that they have a “strong desire” for the England international to move to Liverpool
Credit: Getty
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