Germany and England don’t always see eye to eye on the football pitch after decades of contentious football matches. But even with all their history, that Ruben Loftus-Cheek double nutmeg was just nasty.
Many of us are not fans of international friendlies. One often gets the feeling that the soccer world stops spinning in order for some meaningless and frequently boring matches to take place.
However, there are times when friendlies feature some impressive plays, skills and goals.
A friendly between 2018 World Cup participants South Korea and Colombia in Suwon reached utterly deplorable levels in the 62nd minute with the Koreans leading 2-0 following a brace from Tottenham forward Son Heung-Min.
The Canadian women’s program is undoubtedly on the rise, but their hex against the USWNT remains an unsolvable issue dating back to their last victory against their southern neighbors in 2001. On Thursday night in Vancouver they had their chances, but the United States held on for a 1-1 draw after Alex Morgan’s sweetly struck volley was canceled out by Adriana Leon.
U.S. Soccer has announced the squad called in to play a friendly against Portugal in Leiria on November 14, the USMNT’s first match since the disaster in Trinidad & Tobago. The squad is highlighted by five uncapped players — goalkeeper Jesse Gonzalez (22), defender Cameron Carter-Vickers (19), midfielders Tyler Adams (18) and Weston McKennie (19), and forward Josh Sargent (17).
Mexico are certainly not taking it easy with regards to November’s international window. Friendlies against Belgium and Poland in Brussels and Gdansk represent World Cup warmups against the nations currently ranked fifth and sixth in the world, and their UEFA qualifying campaigns certainly give credence to those high-water marks.
The U-17 World Cup begins on Friday in India and what better way to get amped up for a youth tournament in the world’s second-most populous nation than by watching a soccer match between amateurs. But these aren’t your typical amateurs. One team was made up of Indian cricket stars while the other was comprised of Bollywood stars.
India hosts the 24-team FIFA U-17 World Cup from Oct. 6-28. The United States plays India on Friday.
The USWNT steamrolled New Zealand 5-0 at Nippert Stadium in Cincinnati last night in front of an announced crowd of 30,596. Goals from Lindsey Horan, Mallory Pugh, Lynn Williams and a brace for Alex Morgan saw the States claim their second victory over the Kiwis in the space of five days following their 3-1 win in Commerce City, Colorado last Friday.