Asia

Melbourne derby abandoned after fans storm pitch, attack goalkeeper

The A-League derby between Melbourne City and Melbourne Victory was abandoned amid chaotic scenes following a pitch invasion on Saturday in which City goalkeeper Tom Glover was left bloodied after he was struck in the face.

Glover was hit by a metal bucket used to dispose of flares as fans from the Victory end stormed onto the pitch after the 20-minute mark of the game with City leading 1-0 at Melbourne Rectangular Stadium.

Croatia beats Japan on penalties as keeper pulls off 3 saves in the shootout

AL WAKRAH, Qatar - Croatia goalkeeper Dominik Livaković saved penalties from Takumi Minamino, Kaoru Mitoma and Maya Yoshida before Mario Pašalić netted the winning spot-kick in their 3-1 shootout win over Japan on Monday to reach the World Cup quarterfinals.

Croatia vs. Japan full penalty shootout

A fan’s perspective in Qatar – USA exit at the hands of the Netherlands

The United States qualified for the knockout stage of the FIFA World Cup. It had been over eight years since the men’s team had last reached this stage, only to fall in overtime to a strong Belgium side in 2014. This time, the Netherlands stood between the United States and a place in the quarters. 

The Dutch side was no stranger to making it all the way to the final match. Their world-class team was headlined by one of the top defenders in the world, Virgil Van Dijk, along with Frenkie de Jong, a speedy midfielder in his prime. Netherlands were clear favorites to win. 

Ronaldo in focus ahead of Portugal match after reportedly agreeing $500M deal with Al Nassr

AL RAYYAN, Qatar - Speculation regarding the future of Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo and his outburst following his substitution against South Korea were in sharp focus on Monday ahead of their World Cup last-16 game against Switzerland.

The forward, who left Manchester United by mutual consent last month following a controversial interview, was linked with a potential move to Al Nassr of Saudi Arabia but Portugal coach Fernando Santos said he knew nothing about it.

Desperate fans facing 1,000% markups in Qatar for World Cup tickets

DOHA - Ashraf Ali arrived at Stadium 974 six hours ahead of the Argentina-Poland World Cup match and, in desperation, raised a hand-written sign: "We need tickets."

Someone offered one for $2,000, nine times face value.

That was too steep for Ali, 30, who traveled to Qatar from Egypt to fulfill a dream to see Argentina star Lionel Messi play. Thirty minutes before kickoff, he managed to nab a ticket for $500 and witnessed Argentina's 2-0 win.

Brazil coach Tite delivers one-word answer when asked if Neymar's fit to face South Korea

AL RAYYAN, Qatar - Brazil forward Neymar will train later on Sunday and is set to play for the five-times champions in their World Cup last-16 match against South Korea after recovering from an ankle injury, coach Tite said.

Neymar suffered the injury in Brazil's opening 2-0 win over Serbia, which ruled him out of their 1-0 win over Switzerland and the shock defeat by Cameroon, one of a series of injury problems within the squad.

"Neymar will train today in the afternoon and if he trains well he will play," Tite told a news conference.

Son gets his World Cup moment and helps send South Korea to Round of 16 with 91st minute assist

South Korea secured a spot in the Round of 16 of the World Cup on Friday with an incredible last-minute goal against Portugal to win 2-1. The South Korean victory paired with Uruguay defeating Ghana 2-0 meant that the Asian underdogs advanced due to the tiebreaker of having more goals scored than Uruguay.

Group E chaos is exactly why we love soccer

Unpredictability is inherent in soccer, and major international tournaments seem to always throw up a heaping of craziness. The gulf between reality and previous perceptions reminds anyone who claims to know soccer that they don’t, and if we were truly as smart as we claim to be, we’d stop trying to predict results. Just embrace the unpredictability and the chaos and enjoy these moments. 

Tyler Adams handles geopolitical interview question better than most politicians

One day before the United States takes to the field against Iran in a must-win Group B clash, the crucial match at hand seems to be the last thing anyone wants to talk about. In their pre-game press conference with the media on Monday, American midfielder Tyler Adams joined head coach Gregg Berhalter. The pair faced questions about racism, geopolitical tension and many other questions one would feel would be better suited to a press conference at the White House than a World Cup match. 

Los goles del rompecorazones surcoreano no alcanzaron ante Ghana

Pese al doblete del número 9, Cho Gue-sung, y de pelearla hasta el final, Corea del Sur se quedó con el sabor amargo de la derrota, luego de caer  por 3-2 ante Ghana e hipotecar sus chances de avanzar a la seguna fase del Mundial.

Los coreanos controlaron el balón desde el inicio, pero dos goles por vía aérea de los ghaneses Mohammed Salisu y Mohammed Kudus pusieron todo cuesta arriba antes de llegar al descanso.

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