NATIONAL TEAM - SWITZERLAND - 2014 WORLD CUP - Goodbye, Ottmar Hitzfeld. All the best and take care.

Hitzfeld has made a positive impression wherever he has been stationed and his name is still regularly chanted in the stands at Bayern Munich.

“He put together a really good team that will last for many years to come,” Granit Xhaka told FIFA.com, before Josip Drmic added: “He’s done a great job.” 

2 Jul 2014
2014 WORLD CUP - DAY 19 - LAST SIXTEEN - ARGENTINA VS SWITZERLAND 1:0

LAST SIXTEEN
1st July 2014

Argentina vs Switzerland 1:0

1 Jul 2014
2014 WORLD CUP - DAY 19 - LAST SIXTEEN - BELGIUM VS USA 2:1

LAST SIXTEEN
1st July 2014

Belgium vs USA 2:1

1 Jul 2014
2014 WORLD CUP - ARGENTINA - KEY PLAYER - ‪LIONEL MESSI - PROFILE

Lionel Andrés Messi; born 24 June 1987, is an Argentine footballer who plays as a forward for Spanish club FC Barcelona and the Argentina national team. He serves as the captain of his country's national football team.

By the age of 21, Messi had received Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year nominations. The following year, in 2009, he won his first Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year awards. 

1 Jul 2014
2014 WORLD CUP - USA - KEY PLAYER - ‪JERMAINE JONES - PROFILE

Jermaine Junior Jones, born 3 November 1981, is a German-American footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Turkish club Beşiktaş. He has previously played for Eintracht Frankfurt, Bayer Leverkusen, Blackburn Rovers and Schalke 04. He was born in Germany and represented them at U21 and senior level.

1 Jul 2014
NATIONAL TEAM - NIGERIA - COACH - STEPHEN KESHI RESIGNS AFTER EXIT

He becomes the sixth manager to leave his job during the World Cup, following the departures of Honduras's Luis Suarez, Iran's Carlos Queiroz, Japan's Alberto Zaccheroni, Italy's Cesare Prandelli and Ivory Coast's Sabri Lamouchi.

Keshi, who captained Nigeria at the 1994 World Cup finals, was previously in charge of Mali and Togo.

1 Jul 2014
2014 WORLD CUP - DAY 18 - LAST SIXTEEN - FRANCE vs NIGERIA 2:0

LAST SIXTEEN
30th June 2014

France vs Nigeria 2:0

30 Jun 2014
2014 WORLD CUP - DAY 18 - LAST SIXTEEN - GERMANY vs ALGERIA 2:1

LAST SIXTEEN
30th June 2014

Germany vs Algeria 2:1

30 Jun 2014
2014 WORLD CUP - GERMANY - KEY PLAYER - THOMAS MUELLER‬ - PROFILE

Müller's role can be described as an attacking all-rounder, a player able to play in a variety of forward positions. He can play in any of the attacking midfield roles but usually plays in the center for Bayern Munich, and on the right for Germany.

He has been used as an out-and-out striker on occasion. Müller has been praised for his maturity, pace, technique, awareness and positioning.

30 Jun 2014
2014 WORLD CUP - FRANCE - KEY PLAYER - ‪KARIM BENZEMA - PROFILE

He has been named French Player of the Year twice for his performances in 2011 and 2012. Benzema is a former French youth international and has represented his nation from under-17 level onwards. 

Benzema has earned over 65 caps and represented France at three major international tournaments; the 2008 and 2012 editions of the UEFA European Football Championship and the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

30 Jun 2014

AFRICAN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 2014 - SEMI FINALS - 1St LEG - ALL RESULTS

AFRICAN CHAMPIONS LEAGUE 2014

• Entente Sétif  vs TP Mazembe 2:1
• AS Vita Club vs CS Sfaxien 2:1

A late individual goal from Abdelmalek Ziaya helped Algerian club Entente Setif win 2:1 against Congolese side TP Mazembe in their African Champions League semi-final first leg.

Ziaya's goal came on 89 minutes and gave the home club victory in a match which was seemingly destined to end in a draw.

Receiving the ball on the edge of the penalty area with his back to goal, Ziaya turned Mazembe defender Chongo Kabaso and struck the ball past veteran goalkeeper Robert Kidiaba into the net.

The goal earned Setif a first win over Mazembe in five Champions League and second-tier Confederation Cup matches in five years.

TP Mazembe will regret not making the most of their good start.

The Congolese went ahead soon after half-time when Algerian defender Said Arroussi deflected a low Rainford Kalaba cross past goalkeeper Abdelwahab Khedairia.

Setif levelled three minutes later as 38-year-old Kidiaba allowed a Sofiene Younes header - off a Sid Ali Lamri cross - to slip over the goal-line.

Zambia star Kalaba wasted several stoppage-time chances to create an equaliser when he crossed poorly and over-hit a free-kick.

The match was played behind closed doors on the orders of the Confederation of African Football (CAF). 

Spectators were barred because of their behaviour during previous home matches.

Despite Setif's win, four-time African champions TP Mazembe host the return match in the Democratic Republic of Congo mining city of Lubumbashi next Sunday, and they remain favourites to reach the final.

The other semi-final produced an identical scoreline to Setif as a second Congolese club, AS Vita Club, used home advantage to build a slender advantage over Tunisians CS Sfaxien.

Leading Vita scorer Firmin Ndombe Mubele ended a 557-minute Champions League goal drought with the only goal of the opening half.

Luvumbu Nzinga doubled the lead nine minutes after half-time at Stade Tata Raphael with his first goal of the Caf campaign.

But Ali Maaloul halved the deficit with a goal that leaves Sfaxien in a similar situation to Mazembe. - 1:0 home wins next weekend will secure final places.

In contrast to the eerie emptiness of Setif, the 35,000-capacity Kinshasa stadium was packed, creating a vibrant atmosphere.

Sfaxien and Mazembe clashed in the final of the second-tier CAF Confederation Cup last season with a late second-leg goal giving the Tunisians a 3:2 overall victory.

 

22 Sep 2014
(BBC Sport UK)

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