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Germany head coach Joachim Loew says he knows the areas where the defending champions must improve before the World Cup after drawing 1-1 with Spain on Friday. Rodrigo Moreno put Spain ahead after just six minutes in Duesseldorf, but hosts Germany levelled when Thomas Mueller hit a superb equaliser in his 90th international. "There was a good intensity to the game, it was a test in which we were able to learn a lot," said Loew. "Both teams have room to improve and you do not always want to show everything so soon before a World Cup." Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta gave the Germany midfield a masterclass during the first 45 minutes. The 33-year-old outplayed Germany midfielders Sami Khedira and Toni Kroos by producing countless silky passes at the heart of Spain's attack. "You could see that Spain had a lot of combinations who play together regularly and had that automatic understanding," said Loew. "We knew that Spain ...

Cristiano Ronaldo hit two goals in stoppage time as European champions Portugal defeated Egypt 2-1 in a friendly international on Friday, winning his personal duel with Mohamed Salah who had put the seven-time African champions ahead. Ronaldo, appearing in his 900th career match, made his mark to devastating effect as time ran out. First, he pulled his team level with a header from a Ricardo Quaresma cross, before adding the winner in almost identical circumstances in the fourth minute of injury time. However, the 33-year-old Real Madrid star had to wait for the VAR system to validate his goal after a suspicion of offside. His two-goal salvo took his Portugal tally to 81. Earlier, Salah, who has shone at Liverpool this season with 28 Premier League goals, broke the deadlock in Zurich after 56 minutes. After a quickfire exchange of passes, Abdallah El Said found Salah in space for his teammate to beat Beto in the Portuguese goal with a sweetly-timed left-foot strike from th...

Argentina coach Jorge Sampaoli accepted on Thursday the two-time world champions' chances at the World Cup in Russia will depend far more on Lionel Messi than his own influence. Sampaoli was drafted in for Argentina's final four matches of a faltering qualifying campaign, but it was Messi's brilliant hat-trick in a 3-1 win at Ecuador in their final qualifier that ensured they didn't miss out on the World Cup. "This is going to be his team," said Sampaoli, ahead of Friday's friendly against Italy at Manchester City's Etihad stadium. "He is the best and is in a stage of maturity that he can carry the team on his shoulders. It is more his team than mine." For all his success at club level with Barcelona, Messi has never won a major international tournament with Argentina. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner will again carry the bulk of his nation's expectations. But at 30, this could be Messi's final opportunity to crown hi...

Belgium's Vincent Kompany has no fear about suffering another of the injury breakdowns that have littered his career at Manchester City when he goes to this year's World Cup. The central defender is very confident he will have an outstanding tournament in Russia. “I have the feeling that if I play at the World Cup, it will be my best tournament yet. I want to be the best. I will prepare well and from the first match hope to be flying,” Kompany told a news conference on Thursday. “That’s my character, you know me. I’m always looking for the positives. In my head I will play every minute of every game and I am going to Russia to win the World Cup.” The 31-year-old Kompany has been hampered by a persistent hamstring injury over recent years but has been in good form since returning to the City side last month. He is due to play for play for Belgium in a friendly against Saudi Arabia in Brussels on Tuesday having missed out on the 2016 European Championship and the Wor...

Gerard Pique is unsure whether he would have stayed at Barcelona had former manager Pep Guardiola remained at the club beyond 2012 after the now Manchester City boss lost faith in the Spain defender. The centre back, who has played over 250 league games for Barca, wrote in the Player’s Tribune that a year after winning a Liga and Champions League double under Guardiola in 2011, he was left contemplating his future at the club. He said this was because he could not fully buy into the Catalan coach’s notoriously intense off-field demands and Guardiola's trust in the player had been knocked. "I had the worst season of my career. Everything seemed to fall apart in 2012. I don’t know why,” said the 31-year-old who started out in Barca's youth ranks before joining Manchester United in 2004 and returned to the Nou Camp four years later. "Perhaps I had lost the fear that drove me to that level. But for whatever reason, I started questioning myself. As the season we...

Jose Mourinho has launched a defiant defence of his Manchester United reign, insisting "people with a brain" should understand his team are going through a rebuilding period. United have endured a difficult season and trail 16 points behind runaway Premier League leaders Manchester City. Mourinho's side crashed out of the Champions League after a tame home defeat to Sevilla and also suffered an embarrassing League Cup exit against second tier Bristol City. "I understand the sadness of being knocked out in the Champions League, but I don't understand anything more than that," Mourinho told CNN. "In the history of football all around the world, not just in England, you had the biggest clubs with the moments of transition, you have the biggest clubs with moments of continuous and permanent victories, and these are phases in the club." Widely criticised for the unadventurous nature of United's performances for much of this season, Mour...

Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk was named captain of the Netherlands by manager Ronald Koeman on Thursday, a day ahead of his first game in charge of the national team against England. Van Dijk, who played under Koeman at Southampton, became the world's most expensive defender when he moved to Liverpool in January for a reported £75 million. The 26-year-old replaces Arjen Robben as skipper after the Bayern Munich winger retired from international football in October. "To be named captain of Holland is something very special," Van Dijk told a news conference on Thursday. "I hope I can keep going and get better every day." The imposing centre-back will lead a newlook Dutch side in Koeman's first game as the Dutch seek to put the disappointment of failing to qualify for this year's World Cup behind them. Van Dijk will come up against several Liverpool team mates in the friendly in Amsterdam on Friday, including club captain Jordan Henderson,...

Zlatan Ibrahimovic has signed for the Los Angeles Galaxy and could make his debut for the Major League Soccer side this month, US media reported on Thursday. The Los Angeles Times and Sports Illustrated both reported Ibrahimovic had inked a deal with the Galaxy shortly before Manchester United confirmed the Swedish star had been released from his Old Trafford contract. Sports Illustrated said Ibrahimovic's move to California would be officially announced in a full-page advertisement in Friday's edition of the Los Angeles Times. MLS rules allow clubs to sign three designated players who are not subject to salary limits, a rule introduced when David Beckham arrived in the league in 2007. However, because the Galaxy have already signed their designated players for the 2018 season, Ibrahimovic's salary will be limited to around $1.5 million according to the Sports Illustrated report. That represents a fraction of the reported £19 million a season Ibrahimovic was pa...

The coach of the under 20 male national selection of Cameroon has thisd afternoon published a list of 35 Lions in that category to camp ahead the Lions first qualifiers game against either South Sudan or Uganda in the second round of the under 20 AFCON qualifiers. The is made up of home based players and the list surprisingly is without the name 19 year old elite 1 top scorer Christian Emmanuel Nguidjol Bayemi who has 5 goals in 6 Cameroon league appearances. CHAN 2018 intermediate Lion Herve Steve Bonnie Elame of Dragon of Yaoundé makes the list alongside other elite 1 and amateur players. Abdel Salam Mefira of AS Fortuna gets the coaches attention after his great start of the season.Mefira has been one of the bright stars for new MTN elite club AS Fortuna. 18 year old Cotonsport of Garoua academy graduate, Moise Sakava has been a dreaded winger since the beginning of this season.He gets an invitation from his former kinterim coach just like team mates Boubakary II Sar,Abba...

The General Pierre Semengue led Generation of Cameroon professional football league (LFPC) reached another landmark yesterday signing a partnership agreement with Spanish La Liga boss Javier Tebas. It was just after midday on Monday that LFPC official website reported that the body had reached an agreement with their Spanish counterparts. The partnership is aimed at developing football in Cameroon was made public on Monday at the headquarters of the Spanish institution with the Spanish professional football league(La Liga)boss Javier Tebas,LFPC boss General Pierre Semengue, La Liga Director of International Development Oscar Mayo,La Liga delegate in Cameroon Javier Morente, LFPC Secretary General Mme Paulene Manguelle and vice president Faustin Domkeu all present. The agreement will also see La Liga benefit from local knowledge about Cameroon football, more visibility in Cameroon and the behavior of Cameroon football fans. La Liga has a long history with Cameroonians with Th...

PAOK Salonika president Ivan Savvides on Wednesday faced disciplinary charges that could lead to a lengthy stadium ban and a points deduction for his team, as world soccer's governing body Fifa warned Greece to act or face potential suspension. The Georgia-born businessman's pitch invasion with what appeared to be a gun in his belt on Sunday triggered a suspension of football matches in Greece with Fifa urging the country for immediate action. In a brief statement, the Greek football federation said Savvides had been charged with a series of football code violations, including making threats, which carry a fine and a potential stadium ban of up to five years. The top division Superleague's disciplinary body will now be responsible for any further action, a league official said. Savvides' team could also be punished with a points deduction which could put them out of the running for the title which they were competing for before Sunday's match. The charg...

Manchester United have no one to blame but themselves for their shock Champions League last 16 exit after going down 2-1 to Sevilla at Old Trafford, midfielder Nemanja Matic has said. Two late goals from French striker Wissam Ben Yedder helped the Spanish side prevail on Tuesday following a goalless draw between the teams in Spain last month. United's performance against Sevilla was in stark contrast to their battling 2-1 Premier League win over arch-rivals Liverpool last weekend and Matic said Vincenzo Montella's side deserved to advance. "There is no excuse," the Serb told United's website (www.manutd.com). "We had a big game ... against Liverpool and we came with high confidence to play this game, but Sevilla were better than us, so they deserved it." United are 16 points behind league leaders Manchester City and the FA Cup represents their best chance of silverware this season. They face Brighton and Hove Albion in the quarterfinals on Sat...

Jose Mourinho was condemned for his negative tactics after Manchester United crashed out of the Champions League to Sevilla, with Alexis Sanchez anonymous and Paul Pogba's confidence apparently in tatters. United, riding high in the Premier League, started the second leg of their last-16 tie on Tuesday as strong favourites to progress to the quarterfinals after a goalless draw in Spain but mustered just four shots on target across both legs. Two late goals from substitute Wissam Ben Yedder gave the home side a mountain to climb and a consolation goal from Romelu Lukaku was far too little, too late, with United exiting the competition 2-1 on aggregate. Mourinho fielded four forwards -- Sanchez, Lukaku, Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard -- in an attacking-looking line-up at Old Trafford but United only broke free of the shackles in the desperate closing minutes. A stubborn Mourinho, who has won the competition with Porto and Inter Milan, said his side had not put in a ...

56 year old former indomitable Lion, Bertin Ebwelle Ndinge one time player of TKC, CNPS Yaoundé, Olympique de Mvolye,Canon Yaounde, PSPS in Indonesia amongst many other clubs has reached an agreement today to replace Minkro Birwe as head coach of 14 times champions of Cameroon Cotonsport of Garoua. Sources close to Cotonsport told this reporter just after midday this Tuesday that the club have reached an agreement to bring the former national team coach for the under 15,Under 17,20 and military Lions to Garoua. Ebwelle who began his coaching career in 2000 at former club PSPS in Indonesia before returning home in 2002 to manage second tier side Colombe of Dja for 2 seasons.Ebwelle move abroad in 2004 to work with Equatorial Guinean side Renacimento FC for two seasons before returning home again in 2005 and have since then trained Tiko united, Canon Yaoundé,Colombe of Dja. A successful footballer with the Cameroon national selection who won 69 caps participating in 2 AFCON fina...

The complete picture of match day 7 in the MTN elite one championship produced the following outcome s; 9 matches played by 18 clubs, a win for 8 of the clubs that is UMS(Biggest winners),Stade Renard,Apejes Mfou(1st win),Fovu,Feutcheu, Astres,Cotonsport and surprisingly YAFOOT FC 1 game ended in a draw(Dragon 2-2 Eding Sport FC) In all 20 goals were scored surprisingly by 20 players mostly midfielders,with 60% of the goals scored by away sides(6 away goals for UMS Loum and Feutcheu FC )and 40 Percent by home sides. In Garoua COTON SPORT   –  YONG SPORT Marius Mouandimaldji scored and takes his season tally to 4 goals this season •  BAMBOUTOS  -  APEJES A goal from Moukeu was all it took for Apejes to register their first win of the season after 4 draws. Apejes missed a penalty in the game. •  AIGLE  -  FOVU Ntebeu Djoko got the lone goal for Fovu. The real story of the day was written by Fovu’s unbeatable goalkeeper Maho...