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

2015 AFRICA CUP - Senegal & Guinea prepare in Morocco

AFRICA CUP 2015 GROUP C GROUP D

Guinea, who played their home Nations Cup qualifiers in Morocco after being banned from hosting matches due to the outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus, will be based in Casablanca.

The Teranga Lions, who will name their squad on 26 December, will hold their training camp in the town of El Jadida.

Both sides have other friendlies planned while in Morocco - Senegal are set to face another Nations Cup-bound side Gabon, while Guinea will play the Moroccan Under-23 side on 10 January.

Senegal have been draw in Group C at the Nations Cup in Equatorial Guinea, where they will play Ghana, South Africa and Algeria,

The Syli Nationale, making their 11th appearance at the biennial championship are in Group D with Cameroon, Ivory Coast and Mali.

Morocco had been due to host the Nations Cup finals but had the tournament taken away from them after asking for a postponement because of their concerns over the Ebola outbreak in West Africa.

Hosts Equatorial Guinea are already preparing in Portugal with 15 locally-based players set to be joined by their foreign-based stars in the coming days.

The Nzalang Nationale will stay in Portugal until just two days before they kick-off of the finals on 17 January against Congo-Brazzaville in Bata.

They will then play Burkina Faso four days later before completing their Group A campaign against Gabon.

The president of the Equatorial Guinea Football Federation, Domingo Mituy Edjang has refuted media reports that Spanish head coach Andoni Goikoetxea would be sacked before the finals.

Reports had suggested that Goikoetxea could be replaced by either Nigerian Stephen Keshi or former Ghana coach Milovan Rajevac.

"We cannot replace a coach within one month of the Africa Cup of Nations," Edjang told the Confederation of African Football website.

"We have a contract with the current coach which ends on 31 December, but will be extended till the end of the Africa Cup of Nations."

 

23 Dec 2014
(BBC Sport UK)

Related countries

Related articles