Confident Kroos says Germany-Spain clash ‘won’t be my last game’

Germany’s midfielder Toni Kroos gives a press conference at the team’s base camp in Herzogenaurach, on Jul. 3, 2024, during the UEFA Euro 2024 championship. (AFP)

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Updated 03 July 2024

AFP

July 03, 2024 21:34

Confident Kroos says Germany-Spain clash ‘won’t be my last game’

“I don’t think tomorrow will be my last game. I think we’ll see each other again — and I look forward to it,” Kroos said
“If I didn’t see the chance of achieving it with the team, I wouldn’t have done it“

Updated 03 July 2024

AFP

July 03, 2024 21:34

HERZOGENAURACH, Germany: Retiring Germany veteran Toni Kroos said he was confident Friday’s blockbuster Euro 2024 quarter-final against Spain would not be the last game of his career.
Kroos announced in May he would hang up his boots after the Euros on home soil, meaning this week’s match in Stuttgart could be his final game.
Real Madrid teammate Joselu said this week he wanted to “send Kroos into retirement” but the 34-year-old midfielder had his sights set on the July 14 Euros final in Berlin.
“We will still be in the tournament for a while,” Kroos told reporters on Wednesday at Germany’s base camp in the Bavarian village of Herzogenaurach.
“I don’t think tomorrow will be my last game. I think we’ll see each other again — and I look forward to it,” he added.
The 2014 World Cup winner stepped down from the national team in 2021 but agreed to return in March.
“The idea of returning was tied to the goal of winning the Euros,” Kroos said.
“If I didn’t see the chance of achieving it with the team, I wouldn’t have done it.”
Kroos said he “did not fear” life after football, saying “this day will come for every player.”
“Thank god I could make the decision myself, rather than anyone pushing me or making me feel that it might be better to do it earlier.
“I am aware that whatever comes along, or what hobbies I might try and take up, there will never be anything I am as good at as playing football.”
The six-time Champions League winner made his debut for Bayern Munich in 2007, the same year 16-year-old Spain winger Lamine Yamal was born.
“That doesn’t make me feel much younger,” Kroos said, calling Yamal “the best or at least the most dangerous player” for club side Barcelona this season.

Unity key to stopping Mbappe at Euros, says Cucurella

Updated 25 sec ago

AFP

July 07, 2024 21:52

Unity key to stopping Mbappe at Euros, says Cucurella

Joint record three-time winners Spain face France in Munich on Tuesday

Updated 25 sec ago

AFP

July 07, 2024 21:52

DONAUESCHINGEN: Spain defender Marc Cucurella believes the key to stopping France striker Kylian Mbappe in their Euro 2024 semifinal clash is a unified approach.

Joint record three-time winners Spain face France in Munich on Tuesday after ousting hosts Germany in extra-time.

Explosive new Real Madrid signing Mbappe has struggled at the Euros after breaking his nose in France’s first match, scoring once from the penalty spot, but remains Les Bleus’ main attacking threat.

“I think football is a collective sport, and it’s true that if it was one-on-one it would be tricky, but it’s up to us in the end,” Cucurella told a news conference Sunday.

“Apart from being good with the ball, we are a very hard-working team, we give everything for each other, and I think that’s the key.

“We have to be united, to know what to do in each moment, and above all we need to minimize their counterattacks which are perhaps their strongest weapons.”

Cucurella has been one of the most impressive players in Spain’s side this summer, a surprise to some after an inconsistent season with Chelsea.

The left-back had only appeared once for his country before this year, but improving performances at Stamford Bridge in the final months of the season and Valencia defender Jose Gaya’s injury helped him claim a starting spot.

With defender Dani Carvajal suspended against France after a red card in extra time in the 2-1 win over Germany, the 25-year-old could be used at right-back, where he operated for Chelsea on occasion.

“I’ll try to give my best, to contribute my grain of sand,” said Cucurella.

“I feel more comfortable on the left but in the end I have to try to do the best I can and help the team.

“What’s important is that we win, and it doesn’t matter who plays, if on Sunday we are in the final.”

The defender was involved in a controversial moment against Germany where the ball struck his hand in the area but the hosts were not awarded a penalty.

“If the referees said it wasn’t a penalty, then I will respect that,” said Cucurella.

“In the end these are things that happen, they are decisions ... (Germany’s Toni) Kroos could have been booked before and then sent off.

“Football is a game of errors and accuracies; in the end we were more accurate than them, we scored one goal more and we got through.”

Kroos hacked down Barcelona’s Pedri in the early stages and the midfielder was substituted and will miss the rest of the tournament with a knee ligament sprain.

The former Real Madrid star wished Pedri a speedy recovery in an open letter to Germany fans after his retirement from football, and the Spaniard replied on Sunday.

“I came to Germany for Euro 2024 and here I will stay, until the end, because don’t doubt it, the dream continues,” wrote Pedri on social media platform X.

“Thanks Toni Kroos, for your message, this is football and these things happen. Your career and your achievements will always remain.”

Topics: Euro 2024 Kylian Mbappé Marc Cucurella

Rodriguez inspires Colombia into semifinals with 5-0 win over Panama

Updated 07 July 2024

AFP

July 07, 2024 08:04

Rodriguez inspires Colombia into semifinals with 5-0 win over Panama

James Rodriguez delivered another top class performance for Colombia, creating two goals and scoring a penalty
Colombia will face the winner of Saturday’s last quarterfinal in the last four in Charlotte

Updated 07 July 2024

AFP

July 07, 2024 08:04

GLENDALE, Arizona: Confident Colombia marched into the semifinals of the Copa America with an impressive 5-0 win over Panama on Saturday setting up a meeting with Brazil or Uruguay in the last four.

James Rodriguez delivered another top class performance for Colombia, creating two goals and scoring a penalty as Panama were put to the sword.

Colombia, now unbeaten in 27 games, will face the winner of Saturday’s last quarterfinal in the last four in Charlotte on Wednesday.

The other semifinal, on Tuesday in New Jersey, will see world champions Argentina take on surprise package Canada.

Colombia went ahead in the eighth minute when Jhon Cordoba showed great strength to hold off his marker and power home a header from a Rodriguez corner.

Seven minutes later Rodriguez converted from the penalty spot after Jhon Arias burst into the area and was brought down by diving Panama keeper Orlando Mosquera.

Panama, who had qualified from the group stage after beating the US in group play, desperately needed a foothold in the game and went close when Roderick Miller headed against the post after a cross from Eric Davis.

But four minutes before the break, Colombia put the game beyond the reach of the Central Americans when Rodriguez showed great awareness to take a quick free-kick from in his own half, lifting the ball over the top to Luis Diaz.

The Liverpool winger raced goalward and with Mosquera caught in no-man’s land pulled off a wonderful chip to make it 3-0.

Colombia kept calm control of the game after the break and added a fourth in the 70th minute with a 25-yard blast from Richard Rios.

Daniel Munoz had looked to be brought down inside the box but before the referee could blow his whistle, Rios pounced on the loose ball and blasted home.

In stoppage time, Panama defender Jose Cordoba crashed into Santiago Arias in the area and with Rodriguez having been substituted, Miguel Borja slotted home the penalty to complete the rout.

Rodriguez has had a mixed career at club level but has been outstanding in this tournament, recapturing the kind of form that he showed when he emerged on the global stage at the World Cup in Brazil ten years ago.

The 32-year-old’s inventive passing and deft touches have added class to a team which has an abundance of pace and solid organization.

“It was a tough game despite how the result looks. They are strong, but we came in very well, we were able to score goals quickly and that gave us control of the game,” said the midfielder, who now plays in Brazil for Sao Paulo.

“Let’s hope we can reach the final we all want that. We’re all going through a good moment and that’s good,” added the former Real Madrid and Bayern Munich playmaker.

“We have a very good team, all committed to the objective, and we’ll see what comes for us in the semifinals,” he said.

Panama coach Thomas Christiansen felt the scoreline was harsh on his team but said they needed to remember their achievements at the tournament as they turn their attention to qualifying for the 2026 World Cup.

“The result was excessive from my point of view. But the mistakes we made cannot be made against teams of Colombia’s quality, with their speed, their intensity and the moment they are living,” he said. “I’m honestly satisfied with the players’ performance, it wasn’t the result we wanted or deserved, but we have to learn from it.

“I’m proud of my players... we must congratulate them for this great Copa America, which has not ended as we would have liked, but this is also a learning experience,” he said.

Topics: Copa America 2024 James Rodriguez Colombia Panama

Netherlands mount Euros comeback against Turkey to set up England semi

Updated 07 July 2024

AFP

July 07, 2024 00:33

Netherlands mount Euros comeback against Turkey to set up England semi

Netherlands overcame the pressure from the stands and Turkey's energetic style, as well as a flurry of late chances, to reach the Euros semi-finals for the first time since 2004

Updated 07 July 2024

AFP

July 07, 2024 00:33

BERLIN: The Netherlands struck two second-half goals in seven minutes to come from behind to beat Turkey 2-1 on Saturday and set up a Euro 2024 semi-final clash with England.
Samet Akaydin sent Turkey ahead in the first half but Stefan de Vrij headed the Netherlands level and Murt Muldur turned into his own net under pressure from Cody Gakpo after 76 minutes to hand the Dutch victory.
The build-up to the quarter-final clash in Berlin was overshadowed by a diplomatic row between Turkey and Germany after their last-16 hero Merih Demiral was banned for two matches for making a controversial salute.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attended the match at the Olympiastadion as a result, along with tens of thousands of fans who greeted every sustained Dutch period of possession with a barrage of whistles.
Netherlands overcame the pressure from the stands and Turkey's energetic style, as well as a flurry of late chances, to reach the Euros semi-finals for the first time since 2004.
Turkey coach Vincenzo Montella deployed five at the back, hoping his young side could catch Netherlands on the counter-attack.
It was the 1988 Euros champions who carved out the first chance, with Gakpo and Memphis Depay linking up well before the latter blazed over.
Koeman captained the Netherlands to glory 36 years ago but until their convincing 3-0 win over Romania in the last 16, the Dutch looked incapable of challenging for the trophy, sneaking through their group in third place.
They reverted to that weaker self in the first half after their early incursions, allowing Turkey to firmly establish themselves in the game.
Montella's side began to pin the Netherlands back with a string of set pieces, eventually capitalising after 35 minutes when Arda Guler recycled a corner which was only half-cleared.
The 19-year-old Real Madrid playmaker swirled in a cross dripping with temptation with his weaker right foot, and Akaydin, who returned from suspension to replace the banned Demiral, powered home a far post header.
Turkish fans, unsurprisingly filling three-quarters of the stadium given their large diaspora in Germany, roared and ignited flares in celebration.
Koeman had to shake things up at the interval and brought on Wout Weghorst, the team's saviour against Poland in their opening fixture, for Steven Bergwijn.
The burly Burnley striker made a rapid impact, giving the Netherlands a target to hit up front, which they looked for with regularity.
Guler continued to probe at the other end and was scythed down by Nathan Ake as he threatened to break free.
The youngster took the resulting free-kick himself and crashed a low effort against Bart Verbruggen's post with the goalkeeper scrambling.
Netherlands captain Virgil van Dijk was booked for fouling the rapid Baris Alper Yilmaz as he flew past him on the right wing.
Turkey, in their first quarter-final at a major tournament since 2008, almost grabbed a second but Verbruggen saved well from Kenan Yildiz's stinging low effort from the edge of the box.
With 20 minutes to go, Weghorst forced a smart save from Mert Gunok, but the Turkish goalkeeper was eventually beaten by De Vrij after 70 minutes.
Memphis Depay swung in a cross after a short corner and Inter Milan defender De Vrij met it with a towering header to level the score.
Just six minutes later Netherlands went ahead when Denzel Dumfries swept in a dangerous low cross which Muldur bundled into his own net under heavy pressure from Euros joint-top scorer Gakpo. It was the 10th own goal of the tournament.
Although Weghorst was not directly involved in either goal, his presence in the box unsettled a Turkey defence that largely kept the Netherlands at bay in the first half.
Turkey should have levelled but Zeki Celik and Kerem Akturkoglu had efforts blocked and the Netherlands lived to fight another day -- against England on Wednesday in Dortmund.

Topics: Euro 2024 Netherlands Switzerland

End beckons again for Ronaldo after Portugal Euros exit

Updated 06 July 2024

AFP

July 06, 2024 22:44

End beckons again for Ronaldo after Portugal Euros exit

Striker is without a goal in his last nine major tournament matches

Updated 06 July 2024

AFP

July 06, 2024 22:44

BERLIN: Time is up — again — for Portugal’s aging superstar Cristiano Ronaldo after an inglorious Euro 2024 exit.

France ousted the 2016 winners 5-3 on penalties after a goalless quarterfinal in Hamburg on Friday and Ronaldo was ineffectual at best, damaging to his own side’s aspirations at worst.

In the 2022 World Cup when former coach Fernando Santos dropped Ronaldo to the bench for the team’s 6-1 demolition of Switzerland, a bright Portugal future shimmered on the horizon.

However, his successor Roberto Martinez has backed the 39-year-old, now playing in Saudi Arabia at Al-Nassr, to the hilt and beyond.

Maintaining the former Real Madrid and Manchester United forward as their figurehead, Portugal swept through Euros qualification with a 100 percent record and were among the favorites in Germany.

However, they have badly under-performed with Ronaldo failing to find the net in five appearances this summer. The striker is without a goal in his last nine major tournament matches.

Despite boasting strong options to replace him, including Liverpool’s Diogo Jota and Paris Saint-Germain’s Goncalo Ramos, Martinez refused to take Ronaldo off against France.

Didier Deschamps substituted Les Bleus icon Kylian Mbappe as he struggled to make an impact but Ronaldo remained even as the game passed him by.

In the last 16 win over Slovenia, Ronaldo missed a penalty in extra-time and burst into tears, a distracting sideshow, but Martinez praised the forward’s emotional reaction after the game as a sign of his passion.

However, many suspect those tears were not for Portugal but for himself, as he failed to break the record for the oldest player ever to score at a European Championship.

Ronaldo also ended his run of scoring at every major international tournament he has competed in, and could not extend his record of 14 Euros goals.

He took 23 shots without success in Germany, and perhaps the most damning was a glittering opportunity in extra-time against France.

Spritely winger Francisco Conceicao cut the ball back to the forward, a few yards out from goal, but somehow he fired his team’s clearest chance high over the bar.

It was the kind of chance that Ronaldo has dispatched a hundred times in his career.

Ronaldo’s presence heavily conditions the way Portugal plays.

His teammates, including creative geniuses Bruno Fernandes and Bernardo Silva, often resort to crosses to try and find him.

Ronaldo no longer has the pace to consistently break in behind the defense, limiting the passing options of the team’s playmakers.

Martinez not only did not seem powerful enough to leave Ronaldo out of his plans altogether but could not even bring himself to substitute the forward at the tournament, except for in the shock 2-0 defeat by Georgia.

Ronaldo started that match even though Portugal were guaranteed to win the group, while virtually every other regular was rested.

The coach said after elimination by France that no decision had been made over Ronaldo’s future at the international level.

“We just finished the game, everything is still too raw, we’re suffering a defeat as a team, there’s no individual decisions at this point,” Martinez told reporters.

One of the reasons the Spanish coach may not feel powerful enough to cut the cord is the “cult of Cristiano” which is evident among the team’s supporters.

To attend a Portugal match is to swim in a sea of maroon Ronaldo “7” shirts, with some fans wearing masks of their talisman’s face.

Even opposition fans come to watch the Ronaldo circus, though there is more sulking and pouting than goals now.

“(Our fans) mostly wanted to see Ronaldo, that’s why they flocked to the match,” noted Slovenia midfielder Adam Gnezda Cerin of a March friendly in which they beat Ronaldo and Portugal 2-0.

Although at the Euros they were eventually eliminated by Portugal on penalties, they exposed Ronaldo’s inadequacies once more at this level and France finished the job.

Ronaldo admitted these will be his last Euros, but as Portugal now turn their attention to the 2026 World Cup, their chances will surely be magnified without the preening, past-it hitman.

Topics: Euro 2024 Cristiano Ronaldo Portugal

England beat Switzerland in a penalty shootout to reach Euro 2024 semifinals

Updated 06 July 2024

July 06, 2024 22:05

England beat Switzerland in a penalty shootout to reach Euro 2024 semifinals

Trent Alexander-Arnold scored the winner as England swept all of their penalties to win the shootout 5-3
England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford earlier saved from Manuel Akanji, who took Switzerland’s first penalty kick

Updated 06 July 2024

July 06, 2024 22:05

DUESSELDORF, Germany: Three years on from losing the European Championship final on penalties, England beat Switzerland in a shootout to reach the semifinals of Euro 2024.
Trent Alexander-Arnold scored the winner as England swept all of their penalties to win the shootout 5-3 after a 1-1 draw in extra time on Saturday.
England converted their first four penalties and Alexander-Arnold won the game with the fifth, blasting his shot into the top corner. Another who scored was Bukayo Saka, who missed the last penalty kick of the final shootout in 2021.
England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford earlier saved from Manuel Akanji, who took Switzerland’s first penalty kick.
England go on to play Turkiye or the Netherlands in Dortmund on Wednesday for a spot in the final.
Switzerland, which have never reached the semifinals of a major tournament, exit the European Championship on penalties in the quarterfinals for the second time running after defeat to Spain three years ago.
It was the second game in a row that England left it late to win, after beating Slovakia 2-1 in extra time in the last 16.
The quarterfinal went to extra time after England forward Saka scored with a shot off the post in the 80th minute to cancel out Breel Embolo’s goal five minutes earlier for Switzerland.
The Swiss had the better chances to win in extra time, including substitute Xherdan Shaqiri hitting the frame of the goal direct from a corner.
England were without captain and striker Harry Kane for the shootout after he collided with manager Gareth Southgate on the touchline while challenging for a ball and appeared to be hurt. He was replaced by Ivan Toney.

Topics: Euro 2024 England Switzerland Trent Alexander-Arnold

Confident Kroos says Germany-Spain clash ‘won’t be my last game’

Confident Kroos says Germany-Spain clash ‘won’t be my last game’

Demiral double sends Turkiye into Euro 2024 quarters at Austria’s expense

Ronaldo says he is playing his ‘last European Championship’

Unity key to stopping Mbappe at Euros, says Cucurella

Unity key to stopping Mbappe at Euros, says Cucurella

Sancho praises Saka for redemptive penalty at Euro 2024 and says “you did it for me and Marcus“

End beckons again for Ronaldo after Portugal Euros exit

Rodriguez inspires Colombia into semifinals with 5-0 win over Panama

Rodriguez inspires Colombia into semifinals with 5-0 win over Panama

Canada stun Venezuela on penalties to reach Copa America semifinals

Argentina reach Copa America semifinals, beating Ecuador 4-2 on penalty kicks after 1-1 draw

Netherlands mount Euros comeback against Turkey to set up England semi

Netherlands mount Euros comeback against Turkey to set up England semi

England beat Switzerland in a penalty shootout to reach Euro 2024 semifinals

Turkiye take on Dutch in politically charged Euros quarter-final, England face Swiss

End beckons again for Ronaldo after Portugal Euros exit

End beckons again for Ronaldo after Portugal Euros exit

France beat Portugal in shootout to reach semis and end Ronaldo’s dream

Turkiye take on Dutch in politically charged Euros quarter-final, England face Swiss

England beat Switzerland in a penalty shootout to reach Euro 2024 semifinals

England beat Switzerland in a penalty shootout to reach Euro 2024 semifinals

Emotional Nagelsmann lauds returned belief despite Germany’s Euros exit

Merino last-gasp goal sends Spain to Euro 2024 semis after dramatic extra-time win over Germany

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Confident Kroos says Germany-Spain clash ‘won’t be my last game’

Confident Kroos says Germany-Spain clash ‘won’t be my last game’

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