Swiss move through to Euro 2025 quarterfinals with late Xhemaili goal

Swiss move through to Euro 2025 quarterfinals with late Xhemaili goal
Switzerland’s midfielder #07 Riola Xhemaili celebrates with teammates after scoring her team’s first goal during the UEFA Women’s Euro 2025 Group A football match between Finland and Switzerland at the Stade de Geneve in Geneva, on Thursday. (AFP)
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Updated 11 July 2025
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Swiss move through to Euro 2025 quarterfinals with late Xhemaili goal

Swiss move through to Euro 2025 quarterfinals with late Xhemaili goal
  • Switzerland, who needed only a draw to advance based on goal difference, finished second in Group A behind Norway to go through to the knockout round for the first time
  • The desolate Finland players collapsed to the pitch in tears at the final whistle, while the Swiss lingered after the game’s end to pose for pictures

GENEVA: Switzerland’s Riola Xhemaili scored a last-gasp goal to salvage a dramatic 1-1 draw with Finland on Thursday that sent the joyous hosts through to the quarterfinals at Euro 2025, and heartbroken Finland home.

Switzerland, who needed only a draw to advance based on goal difference, finished second in Group A behind Norway to go through to the knockout round for the first time, and will face the winners of Group B, which would be world champions Spain as things stand now.

“I think we set ourselves a goal on the pitch, to write history, to go into the knockout stages, which we’ve never done before,” Swiss captain Lia Walti said.

Finland looked to be heading for the knockout round after Natalia Kuikka scored a penalty in the 79th minute, awarded after Viola Calligaris’s foul on Emma Koivisto. Center-back Kuikka calmly slotted home a low shot as Swiss goalkeeper Livia Peng dived the wrong way.

But, roared on by the home crowd, the Swiss kept up the attack in the breathless dying moments and Xhemaili, a second-half substitute, scored in the 92nd minute when Geraldine Reuteler mis-hit her shot on goal and Xhemaili was there to tap it in, blowing the roof off at Stade de Geneve.

“I really have to say that I didn’t think that we’re going home because I really believed in this team, until the last second, and I knew we were going to score,” Xhemaili said.

“I knew that Geraldine Reuteler, she will hit the target, of course, because she’s one of our best players, so I was like, just stay on the right spot in the right moment and wait until the ball is coming and it did.”

The desolate Finland players collapsed to the pitch in tears at the final whistle, while the Swiss lingered after the game’s end to pose for pictures and their famed manager Pia Sundhage wrapped her assistants in huge hugs.

But for most of the nervy night, the game was far from a classic, with desperation showing in both sides with the stakes sky high.

Switzerland started brightly and put Finnish goalkeeper Anna Koivunen to work early with a couple of chances. But momentum shifted midway through the half to quiet the nervous crowd and Peng made a huge save on the goal-line seconds before the break to preserve the draw.

Intensity picked up over the second half and Sundhage threw virtually every attacker on her bench into the game in search of the equalizer, with the Swiss ending the night with 15 shots to Finland’s six.

“I am going to dance tonight,” a smiling Sundhage told SRF.

Kuikka said Switzerland were the better team on the night.

“They came to the game like they wanted to win and it kind of showed,” she said.


Newcastle’s Livramento ruled out for eight weeks, says Howe

Newcastle’s Livramento ruled out for eight weeks, says Howe
Updated 03 October 2025
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Newcastle’s Livramento ruled out for eight weeks, says Howe

Newcastle’s Livramento ruled out for eight weeks, says Howe
  • Livramento was taken off on a stretcher after landing awkwardly in an aerial duel in the 2-1 loss on Sunday but Howe said the 22-year-old’s diagnosis brought relief rather than despair

LONDON: Newcastle United full back Tino Livramento will be sidelined for eight weeks after injuring knee ligaments against Arsenal last weekend but the experienced Kieran Trippier will be an able deputy in his absence, manager Eddie Howe said on Friday.

Livramento was taken off on a stretcher after landing awkwardly in an aerial duel in the 2-1 loss on Sunday but Howe said the 22-year-old’s diagnosis brought relief rather than despair as his return timeline was better than expected.

“He went to see a specialist a couple of days ago as the scan initially looked better than we thought it was,” Howe told reporters ahead of Sunday’s home game against Nottingham Forest.

“He has confirmed it is looking like an eight-week injury, which is a blow given our schedule, but it is looking better than what we initially feared,” Howe added.

INJURY BLOW AMID HECTIC SCHEDULE

Howe said Newcastle would turn to 35-year-old Trippier to fill in for the England international amid a busy schedule with the club involved in three competitions.

“That is the beauty of the squad and the strength of the squad we have, which will make a difference for us. We have real depth in the strength of the defensive areas,” Howe added.

“Losing Tino is a big blow for us with his athleticism and quality, but I have spoken many times about the role Kieran plays and his experience and quality he brings to the squad.”

Meanwhile, Sky Sports reported tat the club’s new striker Yoane Wissa, who was sidelined for four weeks after suffering a knee injury on international duty with DR Congo last month, will likely return only in November.

Newcastle have work to do in the Premier League, where they are 15th with one victory in six games.

“We’ve got a few clicks to go but I will always be saying that regardless of how well we are playing,” Howe said.

“We are finding our rhythm, we are a new team and any change takes time to absorb but I am confident we can continue to get better.”

HOWE 100 percent COMMITTED TO NEWCASTLE

Howe also shot down reports linking him to the Manchester United job with their coach Ruben Amorim under pressure.

“My commitment is that I am all in. I am 100 percent here and always have been,” he said.

“My family are still here and we are fighting every day to make a success of what we are doing. The season ahead could be a wonderful thing and that is what I want to focus on.”

Another manager facing fan fury is Forest’s Ange Postecoglou, with Sunday’s opponents yet to win since the Australian took charge at the City Ground last month, and Howe said that was the ‘fragility’ of the job.

“No amount of success previously can take you out of that firing line,” Howe said.

“We are all subjected to the same forces and dictated to by results. In any moment, good or bad, you have to be yourself and that is what Ange is.”


Roma miss penalty 3 times in Europa League and Celtic denied by ‘baffling’ VAR decision

Roma miss penalty 3 times in Europa League and Celtic denied by ‘baffling’ VAR decision
Updated 03 October 2025
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Roma miss penalty 3 times in Europa League and Celtic denied by ‘baffling’ VAR decision

Roma miss penalty 3 times in Europa League and Celtic denied by ‘baffling’ VAR decision
  • Aston Villa seem to have firmly shaken off their early-season struggles, as captain John McGinn scored again in a 2-0 win over Feyenoord
  • Nottingham Forest lost 3-2 to Danish club Midtjylland in their first home game in a European competition in almost 30 years

Roma missed three attempts at an equalizing penalty, Celtic had an equalizer ruled out after a “baffling” VAR decision and Nottingham Forest remained winless under Ange Postecoglou after a dispiriting loss in the Europa League on Thursday.

Aston Villa seem to have firmly shaken off their early-season struggles, though, as captain John McGinn scored again in a 2-0 win over Feyenoord for the English team’s third straight victory in all competitions.

Celtic were left to rue a strange VAR decision as they lost 2-0 to Braga after an earlier equalizer was ruled out for handball, even though replays seemed to clearly show that Kelechi Iheanacho had scored the goal without any use of his arm. The VAR took several minutes to review the incident before upholding the referee’s initial decision to disallow the goal, which Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers lamented as “baffling.”

An even stranger scene took place in Rome, where the home team lost 1-0 to Lille even though it was given three tries to equalize from the penalty spot late in the game. The first two efforts from Artem Dovbyk were both saved by goalkeeper Berke Ozer — only for the referee to order the penalty to be retaken each time because of encroachment.

Roma then switched penalty takers to Matias Soule, but Ozer saved that one as well, diving to his right to punch the ball away in the 85th minute — nearly four minutes after Dovbyk had made his first attempt.

Hakon Arnar Haraldsson had put Lille ahead with an angled shot in the sixth minute at Stadio Olimpico, which was enough for the French club to earn a second win in two games.

Pressure grows on Postecoglou

Nottingham Forest lost 3-2 to Danish club Midtjylland in their first home game in a European competition in almost 30 years, leaving recently hired manager Ange Postecoglou without a win after six games in charge.

Some Forest fans seemed to be running out of patience with the Australian, chanting for him to be sacked during the final minutes of the game.

Midtjylland led 3-1 after substitute Valdemar Andreasen scored in the 88th minute, before Chris Wood reduced the deficit from the spot in stoppage time.

Rangers also lost 2-1 at Sturm Graz, while Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv fell to a 3-1 “home” defeat to Dinamo Zagreb in a game played in Serbia. Dinamo fans were banned from the game by UEFA after a “thorough risk analysis.”

Villa win again

McGinn scored on a fast counter in the 79th minute to seal the win for Aston Villa after Emiliano Buendía had put the team ahead from the edge of the area on the hour mark.

Until the goal, the hosts wasted a number of decent chances.

Still, it was a fitting return for Villa to Feyenoord’s De Kuip Stadium where the club triumphed 1-0 over Bayern Munich in 1982 to become the European champion.

McGinn has now scored in each of Villa’s three wins — against Bologna in the Europa League and Fulham in the Premier League — after the team opened the season with two losses and three draws domestically.

In other early games, a precise strike by Giovani Lo Celso from the edge of the area and an own goal from Spanish defender Son gave Real Betis a 2-0 win away at Ludogorets.

Fenerbahce forward Kerem Akturkoglu scored when one-on-one with goalkeeper Yehvann Diouf early in the game and added the second with a deflected shot en route to a 2-1 win over Nice.

Bologna drew 1-1 at home against Freiburg after Riccardo Orsolini scored for the hosts on a rebound before Junior Adamu equalized from the spot.

Milan Smit scored two late goals as Go Ahead Eagles came from behind to beat Panathinaikos 2-1 in Athens.

Crystal Palace shine in European debut

Crystal Palace marked their first game in a major European competition by beating Dynamo Kyiv 2-0 in the Conference League. The victory extended the London team’s unbeaten run to a club record 19 games, stretching back to April.

Daniel Muñoz headed in Yeremy Pino’s cross and substitute Eddie Nketiah doubled the advantage in the 58th. Palace finished the game with 10 men after midfielder Borna Sosa received his second yellow card in the 76th minute, but it was another impressive performance for Oliver Glasner’s side which remains the last unbeaten team in the Premier League after beating defending champion Liverpool 2-1 on Saturday.

The FA cup winner was demoted to to the third-tier Conference League for breaching UEFA rules on club ownership.

Also, Rayo Vallecano celebrated their return to Europe after 25 years with a 2-0 win over newcomer Shkëndija from North Macedonia.

The Conference League uses the same 36-team league format as the Champions League and the Europa League. But teams play only six, not eight different opponents during the league phase.

 


Football cannot solve conflicts like Gaza but carries message of peace, says FIFA’s Infantino

Football cannot solve conflicts like Gaza but carries message of peace, says FIFA’s Infantino
Updated 02 October 2025
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Football cannot solve conflicts like Gaza but carries message of peace, says FIFA’s Infantino

Football cannot solve conflicts like Gaza but carries message of peace, says FIFA’s Infantino
  • FIFA promotes peace amid global conflicts, says Infantino
  • FIFA faces calls to suspend Israel from international football

ZURICH: FIFA President Gianni Infantino said on Thursday that football could not solve conflicts, but it must carry a message of peace and unity as Israel’s military operation in Gaza and other global tensions fuel calls for the sport to take a stand.

“At FIFA, we are committed to using the power of football to bring people together in a divided world,” Infantino told a FIFA Council meeting in Zurich.

“Our thoughts are with those who are suffering in the many conflicts that exist around the world today, and the most important message that football can convey right now is one of peace and unity.”

Infantino said world football’s governing body could not solve geopolitical crises, but “it can and must promote football around the world by harnessing its unifying, educational, cultural and humanitarian values.”

FIFA has faced repeated calls to act over the war in Gaza, with Palestinian officials pressing for Israel to be suspended from international football.

The issue has been under review by FIFA for months, but no decision has been taken. Infantino has consistently said such matters require consensus with the confederations and must be handled with caution.

The comments came a day after FIFA Vice President Victor Montagliani noted that any decision over Israel’s participation in European competitions, including World Cup qualifiers, was a matter for UEFA to decide, effectively putting the onus on the European body.

“First and foremost, it (Israel) is a member of UEFA, no different than I have to deal with a member of my region for whatever reason... They have to deal with that,” Montagliani told reporters at the Leaders sports business conference on Wednesday.

Israel are third in Europe’s Group I of the qualifying stage for next year’s World Cup in the US, Canada and Mexico. Amnesty International on Wednesday sent a letter to FIFA and UEFA calling on them to suspend the Israel Football Association.


Ramos snatches Champions League holders PSG late win at Barca

Ramos snatches Champions League holders PSG late win at Barca
Updated 02 October 2025
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Ramos snatches Champions League holders PSG late win at Barca

Ramos snatches Champions League holders PSG late win at Barca
  • It was an even and thoroughly entertaining bout between two of the competition’s favorites at the Olympic stadium which was eventually settled by Ramos’ late strike, as PSG exploited Barca’s high defensive line

BARCELONA: Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain stunned Barcelona with a 90th-minute Goncalo Ramos winner to claim a 2-1 away victory in the league stage on Wednesday.

Ferran Torres sent Hansi Flick’s Barcelona ahead with a cool finish but Senny Mayulu fired a depleted PSG level before half-time.

It was an even and thoroughly entertaining bout between two of the competition’s favorites at the Olympic stadium which was eventually settled by Ramos’ late strike, as PSG exploited Barca’s high defensive line.

“After scoring the (first) goal we got a confidence boost and in the second half we were better,” Luis Enrique told reporters.

“I’m happy... because it’s an important victory and playing against Barcelona is always difficult.”

Luis Enrique, who won the treble coaching Barcelona in 2015, was lacking several key players and his team held on at times but eventually got the better of last season’s semifinalists.

“If you let in a goal in the last minute and you lose at home, you’re going to be disappointed,” Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong told Movistar.

“There’s a long way to go in the Champions League. It was a good game to test where we are — we have to improve. We know that and we will do it.”

Barcelona and PSG have not been on the best of terms over the past decade, with the Catalans recording one of the sport’s greatest comebacks in 2017 with a 6-1 win over the Parisians.

PSG snatching Neymar and going on to sign all-time Barca great Lionel Messi worsened relations, although Luis Enrique’s approach and a spate of injuries left the visitors shorn of star names on their return to Catalonia.

Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele and his usual attacking partners Desire Doue and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia all missed out, but PSG midfielders Vitinha and Fabian Ruiz were fit to start.

From kick-off Barca starlet Lamine Yamal was out to prove a point. After finishing as runner-up behind Dembele, the teenager started stating his case for next year’s award.

Yamal pirouetted away from two defenders and dodged Nuno Mendes, starting an enthralling battle with PSG’s left-back.

The defender shut him down for Portugal in the Nations League in the summer and managed to dispossess the winger in the box a few minutes later to strike back in their individual tussle.

Yamal created the first clear chance with a sensational pass using the outside of his boot to send Torres through.

The Spaniard rounded goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier but Illia Zabarnyi slid in to block his goal-bound effort.

Barcelona took the lead in the 19th minute after Yamal and Pedri combined and Torres slotted home from Marcus Rashford’s quick first-time pass.

PSG started to grow into the game and forced Wojciech Szczesny into his first save, tipping Achraf Hakimi’s free-kick around the post.

Mendes gave Yamal a taste of his own medicine by blazing away from the youngster downfield, cutting through Barcelona players, only to be felled by a desperate De Jong.

Mendes repeated the trick to set up the equalizer, tearing into Barca territory. Pau Cubarsi misjudged a lunge to try and cut out his pass for 19-year-old striker Mayulu, who beat Szczesny in the 38th minute.

- Marauding Mendes -

Bradley Barcola fired narrowly over and then forced Szczesny into a solid save either side of the interval as the European champions clicked into a higher gear.

PSG were fortunate Mendes was not issued a second yellow for felling Yamal in full flow on the edge of the box as the pendulum swung back the other way.

Dani Olmo’s shot was cleared off the line by Hakimi and PSG’s Kang-in Lee curled against the post as the clock ticked down and Barca started to tire.

Eventually Ramos grabbed three points for PSG as he stayed onside to collect Hakimi’s pass, after the Moroccan got in behind Barca’s defense, and slot home.

“We’re happy with what we showed today,” said Luis Enrique, after PSG sealed their second win from two league stage games.

The coach hailed his full-backs Mendes and Hakimi, calling them the finest in their positions in the world.

“No doubts, the two best,” added Luis Enrique. “Nuno and Hakimi played excellently.”


Gordon penalties lead Newcastle to big win over Union SG

Gordon penalties lead Newcastle to big win over Union SG
Updated 01 October 2025
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Gordon penalties lead Newcastle to big win over Union SG

Gordon penalties lead Newcastle to big win over Union SG
  • Nick Woltemade flicked in Sandro Tonali’s shot to give Newcastle the lead in Brussels
  • Gordon converted twice from the spot on a comfortable night for Eddie Howe’s men

BRUSSELS: Anthony Gordon scored a pair of penalties as Newcastle eased to a 4-0 win away to Belgian side Union Saint-Gilloise on Wednesday to pick up their first points in the Champions League.

Nick Woltemade flicked in Sandro Tonali’s shot to give Newcastle the lead in Brussels before Gordon converted twice from the spot on a comfortable night for Eddie Howe’s men.

Harvey Barnes came off the bench to add a fourth as Newcastle responded well to a stinging Premier League defeat by Arsenal on Sunday and an opening loss in Europe to Barcelona two weeks ago.

Newcastle’s two most expensive summer signings Woltemade and Anthony Elanga started alongside Gordon for the first time with the club looking to move on from the acrimonious departure of Alexander Isak to Liverpool.

Woltemade struck his third goal since arriving from Stuttgart for a club-record £69 million ($92 million) fee, getting a touch on Tonali’s volley to wrong-foot home goalkeeper Kjell Scherpen and give Newcastle the lead on 17 minutes.


Elanga earned a penalty shortly before half-time after he was clattered by Fedde Leysen, with Gordon tucking it away to double Newcastle’s advantage at Anderlecht’s stadium, Union’s temporary home as their own does not meet UEFA standards.
Sweden international Elanga tested Scherpen straight after the interval before Union enjoyed their best spell. Nick Pope saved well from Adem Zorgane and Ousseynou Niang moments after Anan Khalaili steered narrowly wide for the Belgian champions.
Newcastle were awarded a second penalty following a VAR review for a handball by Kamiel Van de Perre, and Gordon made no mistake with another clinical spot-kick just past the hour.
Union, who beat PSV Eindhoven 3-1 on their Champions League debut last month, saw their 10-match unbeaten run in all competitions come to a jarring end as Barnes wrapped up a convincing Newcastle victory by rounding off a breathless counterattack 10 minutes from time.