Lautaro Martinez and Giovani Lo Celso were on target for Argentina as they downed Venezuela 2-0 to set up a mouth-watering Copa America semi-final against hosts Brazil.
Martinez s instinctive 10th-minute finish was his sixth goal in 10 international appearances and due reward as Lionel Scaloni s men made a rapid start.
They faded during the second half but Lo Celso capitalised upon an error from Venezuela goalkeeper Wuilker Farinez to settle matters at the Maracana the stadium where Argentina lost the 2014 World Cup final to Germany.
It means Lionel Messi s ambitions of a first international title remain on track, with Argentina s bitterest rivals now standing in his way.
Martinez displayed his burgeoning understanding with Sergio Aguero in attack by play…
Yussuf Poulsen bounced back from conceding a first-half penalty to score the decisive goal in Demark s 1-0 victory over Peru in their World Cup Group C opener.
The RB Leipzig forward was deemed to have tripped Christian Cueva in the box when referee Bakary Gassama consulted VAR, but the Peru midfielder skied his spot-kick and left the field in tears at the end of a tense opening period.
Denmark settled into the game after the interval and the talismanic Christian Eriksen provided Poulsen with a chance to turn his evening around in the 59th minute, and the 24-year-old made no mistake.
Paolo Guerrero came on from the bench following a successful appeal to suspend his 14-month drug ban cleared him to feature, but he could not turn the game in Peru s favour.
Aaron Ramsey confessed he was a bit starstruck by the presence of high-profile names when he joined Arsenal from Cardiff City at the tender age of 17.
Ramsey joined the likes of Robin van Persie, Samir Nasri and Cesc Fabregas in north London in 2008 as a promising youngster who had yet to prove himself at the highest level.
Having overcome feelings of disbelief upon meeting such esteemed players, the Wales international feels a lot has changed over the past eight years.
As soon as I came in on the first day I was a bit starstruck with all the faces there, some of the biggest players in world football, Ramsey told the club s official website.
I am sure they were all thinking, Who is this guy coming in? and it was nerve-wracking going around and intr…
It was a day to forget for defending champions Germany as they were unceremoniously dumped out of the World Cup following defeat to South Korea.
Joachim Low s side were beaten 2-0 in Kazan on Wednesday, leaving them bottom of Group F with three points from their three matches.
While Sweden and Mexico celebrated progression to the knockout stages, and Korea revelled in a memorable victory, Germany were left downbeat.
The post-match data made for miserable reading for fans on Die Mannschaft, here we take a look at the Opta facts that Low will be keen to avoid.
Complete list of World Cups featuring both England Germany where England will have played more games than Germany:
2018
— Duncan Alexander (@oilysailor)
Germany are the fou…
Speculation that Ernesto Valverde might become the next head coach of Barcelona is nothing new for the Athletic Bilbao boss.
In the aftermath of the Spanish champions thrashing Sporting Gijon on Wednesday, current boss Luis Enrique announced he would stand down when his contract expires at the end of this season.
Valverde, who played for the Camp Nou club between 1988 and 1990, was mentioned in dispatches around the Barcelona job either side of Pep Guardiola s glorious 2008-2012 reign and after his late successor Tito Vilanova stood down due to ill health.
The 53-year-old s impressive job since rejoining Athletic for a second spell in 2013 – he also boasts two stints at Greek giants Olympiacos and tenures with Espanyol, Villarreal and Valencia – has done noth…
Former England midfielder Jill Scott believes the Lionesses can win the Women’s World Cup and says Sarina Wiegman’s side will be the best-prepared team at the tournament in Australia and New Zealand.
The 36-year-old Euro 2022 winner praised the “humble” squad ahead of their Group D opener against Haiti on July 22 and insists she will have no problem being a pundit this time instead of a player.
She said: “I’ve watched the Lionesses a few times as a player since I’ve retired – they were too fast for me, and too good!”
Scott, who won ITV’s I’m a Celebrity last year after retiring, continued: “We’ve got a great group of girls – grounded, humble, but also incredible players.
“I think it’ll be the best-prepared team going out to…
Tributes have been paid to former Swansea City and Arsenal great Mel Charles, who has died at the age of 81.
Charles, who played as a defender and a striker, spent seven years with Swansea before joining the Gunners in 1959 for a reported fee of £46,750 a record for a transfer between two British clubs at the time.
He also earned 31 caps for Wales and was part of the side that reached the quarter-finals of the World Cup in 1958, with Brazil great Pele reportedly describing him as the best defender he faced during the tournament.
It s a sad, sad loss, Swansea coach Alan Curtis told the club s official website. Mel was part of a huge sporting family in Swansea.
Not only was he highly respected as a footballer, he was a fantastic character who enjoyed l…
Bruno Fernandes is relishing the hostile atmosphere at Galatasaray as Manchester United look to keep their Champions League hopes alive.
Erik ten Hag’s side look unlikely to be playing at European football’s top table in the new year after defeats in three of their four Group A matches left them rooted to the bottom of the table.
United have lost away to Bayern Munich and Copenhagen and at home to Galatasaray, meaning another defeat in Istanbul on Wednesday would end their Champions League dreams with a match to spare.
“In the (playing) group the feeling is that we have to win both games we have ahead to hope to go through,” United captain Fernandes said ahead of the trip to Galatasaray and home game against already-qualified Bayern.
“We know th…
Kasper Schmeichel accused referee Michael Oliver of wanting to make himself a hero in Leicester City s 4-0 loss to Liverpool.
The second-placed Foxes were comprehensively beaten by the Premier League leaders at the King Power Stadium on Boxing Day to fall 13 points behind Jurgen Klopp s Reds.
Liverpool went in front through Roberto Firmino s first-half header and scored three times in seven second-half minutes, with the first of those goals coming from a James Milner penalty.
Schmeichel was incensed by the decision to award the spot-kick, which came after Caglar Soyuncu leant into the ball and it struck his arm following a Trent Alexander-Arnold corner.
Asked whether the final score was a fair reflection, Schmeichel told Amazon Prime: I think it was a …
Steven Gerrard is convinced the World Cup break will benefit Liverpool s bid to rescue their season, backing the Reds to make a flying start when the Premier League returns.
Liverpool fell narrowly short of winning an unprecedented quadruple last term, lifting the EFL Cup and FA Cup before finishing as runners-up in the Premier League and Champions League.
Jurgen Klopp s team have failed to mount a similar charge this season, and they entered the World Cup break sitting sixth in the Premier League, a troubling 15 points adrift of leaders Arsenal.
Asked whether it felt like Liverpool had been afforded a second pre-season, former Reds captain Gerrard told the club s website: Yeah, it s an opportunity to get a lot of work in on the training ground, reset a few thing…