National Teams

Héctor Cúper Becomes World Cup Enemy No. 1 For Leaving Mo Salah On Bench

Everyone wanted to see Mohamed Salah, the lovable Liverpool winger. Héctor Cúper was just focused on trying to earn a point against the group favorite. Sadly, the Uruguay vs Egypt match really could’ve used the influx of speed, guile and grace Salah would have provided. Instead we got the first a late winner in a 1-0 victory for the group favorite.

Proof Saudi Arabia Wasn’t Paid To Lose To Russia

Russia crushed Saudi Arabia 5-0 in the World Cup opener on Thursday, a perfect result for the host nation. So was Russia that good or Saudi Arabia that bad? Let’s just say Russia vs Saudi Arabia was a mix of both thanks to Russia’s two stoppage time goals. 

Portugal vs Spain Prediction: 3 Key Factors In Tomorrow’s Battle Royale

The Portugal vs Spain World Cup 2018 prediction articles from around the planet have been somewhat rocked by news of Julen Lopetegui’s dismissal as coach of Spain, but the drama surrounding la Furia Roja has only intensified the hype surrounding what’s quite possibly the game of the 20

Heroes And Villains Of The World Cup: Matchday One

No event escalates individuals to the status of national hero or global villain as dramatically as the World Cup. The idolatry that follows success and the stigma that follows failure are woven into the fabric of history, and the repercussions will typically follow footballers for the rest of their lives. Daily, we’ll take a look at who played the role of hero and who played the role of villain at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Heroes and Villains of the World Cup: Matchday One 

Hero: Denis Cheryshev (Russia)

Denis Cheryshev Scores The First Great Goal Of The World Cup. Just Look At This Touch

If every country has it’s own lesser version of Lionel Messi (“The Alpine Messi”, “The Egyptian Messi”, etc.) then Russia’s is certainly Denis Cheryshev. The 27-year-old has spent his entire career in Spain (including coming through at Real Madrid and making two appearances for the club before joining Villarreal in 2016), and he demonstrated his talents Thursday after coming on as a 24th minute substitute for the injured Alan Dzagoev.

19 minutes after coming on, Cheryshev doubled Russia’s advantage with a sweet strike in the 43rd minute. 

Russia Opens The Scoring At The 2018 FIFA World Cup

To the delight of 80,000 at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow, Russia has opened the scoring against Saudi Arabia in the 2018 World Cup’s curtain raiser. CSKA Moscow midfielder Aleksandr Golovin provided some excellent service from the left wing, and FC Krasnodar’s Yury Gazinsky directed his header beyond Abdullah Al-Mayouf to give Russia the lead in the 12th minute.

Mohamed Salah Injury Update: Attacker ‘Almost 100 Percent’ Certain For Uruguay

After being spotted training alongside his Egypt teammates at yesterday’s training session in Grozny, manager Hector Cuper has today revealed that star forward Mohamed Salah is almost certain to feature against Uruguay on Friday in Yekaterinburg. 

The United States, Mexico And Canada Win The 2026 World Cup

In the end, we did it. The joint bid of the United States, Mexico and Canada has been voted co-hosts of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, edging out a Morocco bid that caused everyone to nervously throw up in their mouths for a little while there. Apologies for the unpleasantness, but good grief. After losing out to Qatar in 2022, the worst was certainly feared here.

Spain Fire Manager Julen Lopetegui Two Days Before Portugal Opener

With less than 24 hours until the start of the World Cup and just two days before Spain takes on Portugal in one of the marquee group stage matches of the tournament, the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) has announced its decision to fire manager Julen Lopetegui. 

Tobin Heath Celebrates Return To USWNT With An Absolutely Silly Goal

Tobin Heath missed the start of the 2018 NWSL season with an ankle injury and hadn’t played for her country since September. She returned in style, scoring the winner for the USWNT vs China as the U.S. won 2-1 on Tuesday in Cleveland. 

The U.S. women have now gone 16 matches without a loss, last tasting defeat on July 27, 2017. China gave the USWNT a run for its money, especially in the second half, and scored an equalizer in the 72nd minute. But Heath scored three minutes later and order was restored. 

Heath’s goal itself was a bit goofy. 

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