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England and Chelsea star defender Reece James confirms he will miss 2022 World Cup due to injury

England right back Reece James confirmed on Wednesday he will not be a part of the England team at the World Cup in Qatar due to a knee injury, further depleting manager Gareth Southgate's options in defense.

Chelsea's James had stolen ahead of a packed field to make his spot on the right of England's back five his own, but a knee injury picked up on Oct. 11 against AC Milan ruled him out for eight weeks.

In a news conference on Tuesday, Chelsea manager Graham Potter had said James was only taking part in light training.

Team-by-team guide: 2022 Croatia World Cup preview

To prepare you for the tournament, The18 has launched team-by-team previews for the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. Here's the Croatia World Cup preview 2022. The Vatreni will play in Group F against Belgium, Morocco and Canada.

Croatia World Cup Preview 2022

World Cup appearances: 6th

Best Finish: Second place (Russia 2018)  

Mexico suffers tough blow as Tecatito Corona is officially ruled out from the World Cup

When Jesús Corona broke his left leg during a training session in Sevilla last August, people immediately thought he would miss the World Cup. On the Mexican national team, however, nobody wanted to accept the reality and brace themselves waiting for a miracle.

Sadly for El Tri, now that hope is over: 12 days before the World Cup kick-off, Tecatito has been officially ruled out from the competition. 

CAS points out the use of false information in Byron Castillo's case but confirms Ecuador's spot in Qatar

Ecuador will play at this year's World Cup in Qatar after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Tuesday said Byron Castillo, whom Chile claimed was ineligible to play during the qualifiers, was deemed an Ecuadorean national.

Ecuador will, however, get a three-point deduction at the start of the qualifying campaign for the 2026 World Cup and must also pay a fine of 100,000 Swiss francs ($101,600) for the "use of a document containing false information", CAS said.

Team-by-team guide: 2022 Canada World Cup preview

To prepare you for the tournament, The18 has launched team-by-team previews for the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. Here's the Canada World Cup preview 2022. The Canucks will play in Group F against Belgium, Morocco and Croatia.

Canada World Cup Preview 2022

World Cup appearances: 2nd

Best finish: Group stage (1986)  

Interview with Qatar World Cup ambassador abruptly stopped after homophobic comment

BERLIN — A Qatar World Cup ambassador has told German television broadcaster ZDF that homosexuality was "damage in the mind", as the Gulf state prepares to host the global tournament in less than two weeks.

In an interview filmed in Doha and to be screened later on Tuesday, former Qatari international Khalid Salman addressed the issue of homosexuality, which is illegal in the conservative Muslim country.

Team-by-team guide: 2022 Morocco World Cup preview

To prepare you for the tournament, The18 has launched team-by-team previews for the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. Here's the Morocco World Cup 2022 preview. The Atlas Lions will play in Group F against Belgium, Canada and Croatia.

Morocco World Cup 2022 preview

World Cup appearances: 6th

Best Finish: Round of 16 (1986)  

Team-by-team guide: 2022 Belgium World Cup preview

To prepare you for the tournament, The18 has launched team-by-team previews for the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. Here's the Belgium World Cup preview 2022. The Red Devils will play in Group F against Canada, Morocco and Croatia.

Belgium World Cup Preview 2022

World Cup appearances: 14th

Best Finish: Third place (Russia 2018)  

Are players faking injuries to miss the World Cup?

I know what you’re thinking: “This is insane. Nobody would intentionally miss the World Cup. It’s the largest event on the planet, and for the players, it's something they’ve dreamed about since childhood.”

And to an extent, you’d be correct, but this story isn’t exactly about injuries. It’s about social issues and the appalling track record of the nation that's hosting the tournament. Could it be remotely possible that players would feign injury to avoid being part of an event that's riddled with human rights abuses? 

Gio Reyna scores his eighth career Bundesliga goal with one of the iciest penalty kicks

Giovanni Reyna was given an early birthday present on Saturday when he was handed the ball to take a penalty for Borussia Dortmund during the team’s 3-0 victory vs. Bochum.

Reyna isn’t Dortmund’s usual penalty taker, but the American teenager — who turns 20 on Nov. 3 — confidently stepped up and scored from the spot in the 12th minute to give his side a 2-0 lead.

The goal was his eighth Bundesliga goal and his 12th in all competitions for Dortmund.

Prior to the penalty Donyell Malen was tackled in the box after a clever spin.

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