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 CONFEDERATION CUP 2016 - PLAY-OFFS - 2ND LEG - details

CONFEDERATION CUP 2016
play-offs
2nd legs

 

Stade Gabesien vs TP Mazembe 2:1 
(2:2 agg Mazembe advance on away goals)

Esperance vs Mouloudia Bejaia 1:1 
(1:1 agg Bejaia advance on away goals)

Sagrada Esperanca vs Young Africans 1:0 
(agg 1:2)

Mounana vs Etoile du Sahel 1:0 
(agg 1:2)

Medeama vs Mamelodi Sundowns 2:0 
(agg 3:3; Medeama through on away goals)

Misr Elmaqasah vs Al Ahly Tripoli 1:1 
(agg 1:1; Ahly through on away goals)

Kawkab Marrakech vs Al Merreikh 2:0 
(agg 2:1)

FUS Rabat vs Stade Malien 4:0 
(agg 4:0)

 

DETAILS

Tunisia's Etoile du Sahel advance in Confederation Cup

Etoile du Sahel of Tunisia have won all five of the African Club competitions past and present

Mazembe went into the second leg with a 1:0 lead but fell to a 2:1 defeat in Gabes, just avoiding a major upset.

Gabesien made it 1:0 on the day, and levelled the tie, when Youssef Fouzai scored a 38th-minute penalty.

Jonathan Bolingi's equaliser put Mazembe back in charge - 2:1 on aggregate - and although Ahmed Hosni restored Gabesien's second-leg lead, and Bolingi was sent off for violent play, the hosts failed to take further chances to score that would have made them victorious.

Mazembe had dropped into the second-tier continental club tournament after losing in the final qualifying round of the Champions League by Morocco's Wydad Casablanca.

And they had been considered heavy favourites to beat Gabesien, whoonly qualified because Tunisian Cup winners Etoile du Sahel secured a Champions League slot.

However, the signs were evident in the first leg, which was Gabesien's first outing in African club competition, that five-time African champions were facing a serious challenge.

They struggled to convert their chances at home, eventually scoring four minutes into injury time at the end of the first leg through Bolingi.

And they almost paid for their profligacy, escaping only because Gabesien were also guilty of missing chances at home on Tuesday.

In Tuesday's other game Esperance, winners of every Caf club tournament except the Confederation Cup, exited the competition at the hands of novices Mouloudia Bejaia of Algeria.

A 1:1 draw in Rades coupled with a goalless draw in the first leg, puts the Algerians through on away goals.

Esperance took the lead through Ghailane Chaalali after 30 minutes, having earlier missed a penalty.

But Bejaia's Mohamed Ndoye equalised for the visitors just four minutes later and they held on for the remainder of the match to go through to the group phase - the draw for which is in Cairo on 24 May.

Tunisia's Etoile du Sahel and Young Africans of Tanzania both lost their Confederation Cup second legs 1:0 but progressed to the group phase with 2:1 aggregate wins.

Louis Ameka Autchanga gave Gabon's Mounana hope against reigning champions Etoile when he scored for the hosts four minutes before half-time.

Etoile held on to advance thanks to their 2:0 win at home 10 days ago.

The 37-year-old Love scored a goal but also missed a penalty as his Angolan side Sagrada Esperanca beat visiting Young Africans 1:0 in the 24th minute.

Love, who played for Angola at the 2006 World Cup in Germany, scored in the 24th minute to reduce the overall lead of the Tanzanians.

However Love then turned to villain as he missed a penalty in the dying minutes of the game that would have forced the game into extra time.

Medeama of Ghana booked their place in the group phase after an impressive 2:0 win over South Africa's Mamelodi Sundowns in Sekondi which put the hosts through on the away goals rule.

Trailing 3:1 from the first leg, Medeama were the underdogs going into their return match at home.

But a penalty from Malik Akowush followed by a Bernard Ofiri goal made it 3:3 on aggregate, and gave Medeama an away goals victory.

Al Ahly Tripoli of Libya scored a late equaliser in Egypt against Misr Elmaqasah to progress, also on away goals. 

Ghanaian Nana Poku gave Elmaqasah an early lead, which they held onto until the last five minutes of the game before conceding a penalty, which was converted by Zakareya Al Lafy.

Penalties were decisive in Morocco where Kawkab Marrakech scored two of them to beat Sudanese giants Al Merreikh. 2:0 it finished to the home team, to take them through 2:1 on aggregate.

And there will be two Moroccan sides in the draw on 24 May, because FUS Rabat put in a fine winning performance at home against Stade Malien - taking the game 4:0.

 

20 May 2016
(BBC Sport UK)

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