IT’S COMING HOME!
Justin Rose has given his thoughts on England’s chances, how they should approach the Belgium game and he has a cheeky message for Martin Kaymer after Germany’s exit.
Russian president Vladimir Putin joined FIFA’s president Gianni Infantino and Brazil legend Ronaldo for a kick-about in Red Square.
LO CELSO: WE HAVE SUFFERED
Argentina midfielder Giovani Lo Celso says his team-mates have suffered to reach the last 16, and must now enjoy their time in the knockout rounds.
‘WE MUST WAKE UP’
Ahead of Saturday’s mouthwatering Last 16 clash against Argentina, France defender Presnel Kimpembe says Les Bleus must ‘wake up’ after some below-par performances at the 2018 World Cup.
‘LINGARD WAS A QUIET LAD’
Ahead of tonight’s showdown with Belgium in Kaliningrad, the vice-principal of Jesse Lingard’s former school says the England midfielder was quiet as a pupil in comparison to the dance celebrations we see today.
SUSPENDED SANCHEZ RETURNS FOR COLOMBIA
Carlos Sanchez returns for Colombia alongside Mateus Uribe as coach Jose Pekerman changes up his midfield for his side’s decisive Group H encounter with Senegal in Samara on Thursday.
Sanchez, who was shown a red card in the opening minutes of Colombia’s opener against Japan, returns from suspension and replaces Wilmar Barrios. Uribe comes in for the injured Abel Aguilar in the only two changes from Colombia’s 3-0 win against Poland.
Senegal boss Aliou Cisse has recalled captain Cheikhou Kouyate to the midfield in place of Alfred N’Diaye, whilst Keita Balde and Lamine Gassama are also called up in three changes to the team who drew 2-2 with Japan.
BOATENG: WORLD CUP HAS BEEN A DISASTER
Jerome Boateng has apologised to Germany’s fans for their disastrous World Cup campaign, and said the team are on ‘the bottom of the world’.
AZMOUN QUITS IRAN DUTY
Iran striker Sardar Azmoun has announced his retirement from international football, saying he had decided to quit the national team because insults aimed at the 23-year-old had ruined his mother’s health.
Iran were knocked out of the World Cup with a win, a defeat and a draw in their three Group B matches, and Azmoun, Iran’s top scorer in qualifying, did not replicate his best form in Russia, where he failed to score a single goal.
“Playing in my national team has been a great honour for me and I will be proud of myself to the end of my days,” Azmoun said in a post on social media. “Unfortunately… I have come to the decision to say goodbye to my national team.
“This is one of the most painful and significant life decisions for a youth of 23, who faced great hardships to get here.”
Germany’s defeated World Cup squad are on their way back home following their 2-0 defeat to South Korea on Wednesday, which saw them finish bottom of Group F.
Sky Sports News reporter Kaveh Solhekol explains how England and Belgium will be separated if even their fair play records cannot set them apart.
Kaveh Solhekol✔@SkyKaveh
If England & Belgium tied on points, goal difference, goals scored and fair play record, FIFA will draw lots to determine who finishes top. Will be done at 10pm tonight at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow
Gary Cotterill takes a closer look at England’s possible line up against Belgium with the help of England Matryoshka Dolls.
Diego Maradona says there is nothing to worry about after he was treated by medics at Argentina’s game against Nigeria.
Group H draws to a close today with the double-header of Japan vs Poland and Senegal vs Colombia, and Sky Sports News assesses what each team needs to do to qualify.
England and Belgium fans pay attention – your teams will play one of the sides from this group in the last 16.
Switzerland will be without Stephan Lichtsteiner and Fabian Schar in next week’s World Cup knockout match against Sweden after being booked against Costa Rica but coach Vladimir Petkovic has no regrets about having fielded them in their last group match.
Swiss captain Lichtsteiner and his defensive partner Schar both collected a second caution of the tournament in the 2-2 draw at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium and miss Tuesday’s match in St Petersburg in a blow to Swiss hopes.
“We were not sure of the scenario we needed to qualify so I wanted to field my best players and make sure that all of them play. The round of 16 was the minimum objective that we set ourselves to achieve,” Petkovic said, explaining why he fielded players already sitting on one yellow card in a game against a team already eliminated from the tournament.
Have you seen Adebayo Akinfenwa (aka The Beast) replicate Tim Cahill’s famous 2014 World Cup goal for Australia against the Netherlands?
Well if not, you should check it out – even Cahill himself approves.
TIM CAHILL✔@Tim_Cahill
Soccer AM✔@SoccerAM
@daRealAkinfenwa recreates @Tim_Cahill’s famous World Cup volley against Netherlands:
Smashes home a top bin!
Recreates it on his next attempt…
Smashes home a top bin!
Recreates it on his next attempt…
The media this morning makes for grim reading if you are a Germany fan. Newspapers and websites are understandably leading on the national team’s first group stage exit from the World Cup in 80 years.
Newspaper Suddeutsche Zeitung went with the headline “Disgraced World Champions”, Kicker called Germany’s campaign an “Historic Fail”, while BILD simply said “No words”.
Meanwhile, Frankfurter Allgemeine’s website had two articles leading: the first read “Public Post-Mortem”, while the second said “Loew Must Not Be Untouchable.”
With the group stage fixtures nearly over, Sky Sports News analyses who is playing who as we reach the business end of the World Cup.
Tunisia will start third-choice goalkeeper Aymen Mathlouthi and have striker Fakhreddine Ben Youssef act as his back-up in their final World Cup game against Panama on Thursday after FIFA rejected their request to add a replacement keeper to the squad.
Tunisia’s first and second choice keepers are unavailable after picking up injuries at the tournament and they flew Moez Ben Cherifia from champions Esperance to Moscow on Wednesday in the hope he might be allowed to be included in the squad.
However, the Tunisian Football Federation said on Thursday that this request had been rejected by FIFA and they would have to use the players currently in the squad.
The German FA (DFB) have tweeted to thank fans for their support after their loss to South Korea on Wednesday saw them exit the World Cup in the first-round for the first time in 80 years.
The DFB also congratulated South Korea for their win, as well as Sweden and Mexico for qualifying from the group.
#classy #nicetouch
Germany✔@DFB_Team_EN
Dear fans, we feel just as disappointed as you. The World Cup only comes around every four years and we expected so much more from us. We’re sorry for not playing like world champions, and as painful as it is, we deserve to be out…
Germany✔@DFB_Team_EN
Your support across the globe was incredible. We celebrated together in 2014, but sometimes in football you have to accept defeat and admit that your opponents were better.
Congrats to #SWE and #MEX, and of course to #KOR on their win.
Thanks to Russia for your hospitality! pic.twitter.com/g5yrMtl3GS
Brazil fans would have been concerned on Wednesday when Marcelo went off early in their win over Serbia, looking emotional as he hobbled down the tunnel.
However, he has since tweeted and dismissed concerns about the injury, saying: “Thank you all for the messages!!! Thank God it was nothing serious!!! I’ll be back in a little while!!! Very happy with the victory!!!”
Marcelotwelve✔@MarceloM12
Obrigado a todos pelas mensagens!!!
Graças a DEUS nao foi nada grave!!!
Em pouco tempo estarei de volta!!!
Muito feliz com a vitória!!!#M12
Brazil’s fans have been reacting to their side’s comfortable qualification for the last 16 of the World Cup – where they will face Mexico.
A round-up of the reaction to Germany’s stunning group stage exit from the World Cup, including the question marks now surrounding Joachim Low’s future.
Ahead of England’s clash with Belgium for the right to finish top of Group G, Sky Sports News assesses the Three Lions’ possible route to World Cup glory.
Very much overshadowed by Germany’s elimination, South Korea also exited the tournament despite their players thinking a 2-0 win had been enough to send them into the knockout stages.
South Korea needed to beat Germany by more than two goals and hope Mexico beat Sweden but their slim hopes ended when the Scandinavians raced into a 3-0 lead.
The stoppage time goals from Kim Young-gwon and Son Heung-min which gave Korea their first win in this World Cup after two defeats sparked jubilant scenes among Korea’s players and goalkeeper Cho Hyun-Woo said he and his team mates thought they were going through until they learned of the result from Yekaterinburg.
“We did not know (the Sweden score), it was only after the game was over that we knew,” Cho told a news conference.
“All the Korean players and the head coach here, we were playing for the Korean people. It was only after the match was over that we knew the score, that was why a lot of us cried.”
German fans have called for a shake-up within the national team, after watching their side suffer a shock early exit from the World Cup.
“It didn’t go well from the start. The first game wasn’t great, the second game wasn’t great and we shouldn’t even talk about today,”said Robert Koeschinger.
“We deserved to lose. Something definitely has to change now.”
“The team just didn’t even fight. It was a terrible game,” said Janin Roethig.
The defending champions finished bottom and the recriminations will begin. But what exactly went wrong for Joachim Low and his team?
Sky Sports’ Adam Bate says the clues were there in the opening game defeat by Mexico and there was further evidence of Germany’s flaws in their unconvincing last-gasp victory over Sweden in the second fixture. But being beaten by a hitherto point-less South Korea side in the final game really rammed home the point. This was a pitiful defence of their crown.
Read the full analysis HERE!
Midfielder Sami Khedira says Germany had simply failed to live up their status as defending champions in Russia.
“This is one of the most difficult moments for the team and me personally,” the Juventus midfielder said.
Khedira was recalled to the team against South Korea after being dropped for the narrow win over Sweden, but produced another ineffective performance.
“Before the tournament, we said that the world champions have to lead the way. That is not easy to do, but we didn’t take on the task.
“Personally, I am one of the first to take responsibility and we now have to live with the consequences.
“The last 10 years have been sensational,” he added.
More reaction now from Germany coach Joachim Low. He said his side lacked their “usual confidence” and “decisiveness”.
“It’s a massive disappointment, I’m not really in a position to say anything at all,” he said. “It’s hard to explain at this moment.
“In our build-up we tried everything to sharpen our concentration, but in the game we lacked our usual confidence.
“We had no dynamic play and made too many errors. We did have chances against Sweden and today but the decisiveness wasn’t there.
“We had a bit of bad luck. We did have a plan, but we couldn’t carry it out at the end of the day.”
Germany defender Mats Hummels said their elimination from this year’s World Cup was a “bitter” shock for the team.
“It is a really, really bitter evening for us,” he told ZDF.
“The situation is very difficult to put into words. We did not put the ball in the net, even though we had plenty of opportunities, including myself in the 86th minute. I have to score from chances like that.
“It is a very bitter evening for us and for all German football fans.
“We believed in it until the very end, we tried to shoot, but we just couldn’t get the ball in.
“We had plenty of opportunities, we broke our necks trying out there today.”
Germany coach Joachim Low has been speaking at the post-match news conference in the last few moments and has apologised on behalf of the team.
“All of German football has lost not just a match, but everything we have built in the last few years,” he said.
“We say sorry.
“I’m the first to ask myself questions, what went wrong. I need to sleep on it. I’m responsible.
“I need a few hours to see it clearly. There is disappointment deep within me.
“I need to have some conversations tomorrow.”
Here’s how fans back in Germany reacted to their side’s shock early exit from the World Cup.
England manager Gareth Southgate was holding a press conference at the same time as Germany were being dumped out of the finals.
“Of course I am surprised,” he said of both the defeat and the fact that the Germans are heading home after the group stage.
“I was here last summer for the Confederations Cup and they brought a young team, they also won the Under-21 finals but in this tournament I think they have been ahead for about a minute-and-a-half in their matches.
“It has been unusual to see them struggle as much as they have but the level of all of the teams is strong and they have played teams who have been tactically very good against them and exposed counter-attack situations in particular.
“I didn’t look at that group and think automatically that they would go through. I watched some of the game and they were just unable to break South Korea down.”
2006 – Italy champions
2010 – Italy out at group stage
2010 – Spain champions
2014 – Spain out at group stage
2014 – Germany champions
2018 – Germany out at group stage
Even among the shock and disappointment of being knocked out of the World Cup, Germany have congratulated Sweden and Mexico on progressing.
One of Germany’s 2014 World Cup winning squad, Lukas Podolski, cannot believe his eyes.
Lukas-Podolski.com✔@Podolski10
Germany have had a tournament to forget and their players will probably need some consoling tonight. Arsenal have been quick to offer their support to Mesut Ozil.
Arsenal FC✔@Arsenal
Commiserations, @MesutOzil1088
#WorldCup
Nobody saw that coming. Germany finish Group F in last place asSweden finish top thanks to their 3-0 win over Mexico, who also progress to the knockout stages.
The biggest surprise of this year’s World Cup sees Germany fail to get past the group stage for the first time since 1938. Champions curse strikes again.
Germany✔@DFB_Team_EN
Speechless
Germany are out of the #WorldCup. #DieMannschaft #ZSMMN #KORGER 2-0
Germany are out of the If Senegal avoid defeat tomorrow they will qualify for the knockout stages of the tournament, but they face a rejuvenated Colombiaside.
Senegal coach Aliou Cisse is confident his side can progress.
“I think it is going to be a highly contested and interesting match, with two teams that could reach the last 16 in the tournament,” he said. “So, yes, Colombia could raise a few difficulties for us but we have a few aces up our sleeves and I think we will be able to use them tomorrow.
“I have no reason whatsoever to believe we won’t reach the round of 16. I think the rhythm is right even if we could have defeated Japan and have six points, but still we would need three more points tomorrow, this would not have guaranteed anything for us, even if we had defeated Japan.”
Japan are quietly confident ahead of tomorrow’s decisive World Cup game, but coach Akira Nishino warned that “world-class” striker Robert Lewandowski will be gunning for a goal to salvage eliminated Poland’s pride.
Japan need just a draw to advance to the knockout rounds after they beat Colombia and drew with Senegal in their opening Group H games, defying low expectations at the start of the tournament.
In contrast, Poland’s Lewandowski, who scored 16 goals in qualifying, has failed to find the net in the first two games.
“There is no such thing as a consolation match or that the match does not matter,” Nishino told reporters on Wednesday.
“I am sure Poland would like to play for their pride. Lewandowski is a world class marksman. I am sure he will come out trying to score.”
Up and down the country the debate is ongoing as to what Gareth Southgate should do. Should he stick with the same side that secured wins against Tunisia or Panama and keep England’s momentum going? Should he rest Golden Boot contender Harry Kane?
Or should he give his squad players a chance against Roberto Martinez’s side, resting his first-team players ahead of a potential last-16 tie next Monday or Tuesday?
All will become clear at around 6pm tomorrow but before then you can have YOUR say!
Speaking of Harry Kane, one bar in Liverpool has honoured the England striker with his very own cocktail.
England have arrived in Kaliningrad for their final group game against Belgium and top scorer Harry Kane got an unsurprisingly warm welcome from fans gathered at the hotel.
Anton Toloui@SkyAntonEngland have arrived to a warm welcome here in Kaliningrad. Unsurprisingly, Harry Kane got the loudest cheer of them all.
Now to the bizarre story of Mexico head coach Juan Carlos Osorio, who moved in to a family’s house in Melwood in order to watch Liverpool’s training sessions.
Jesse Lingard✔@JesseLingard
Ready for tomorrow, we go again. #JLingz
@Art_of_Football @official433
England have arrived in Kaliningrad for tomorrow’s game with Belgium.
England✔@England
Destination: Kaliningrad. #threelions pic.twitter.com/8UBASaui0B
England✔@England
England are due to arrive at their hotel in Kaliningrad shortly, where Sky Sports News reporter Anton Toloui says the atmosphere is laid back despite a strong security presence.
Anton Toloui@SkyAntonLots of security await England when they get to their hotel in Kaliningrad. It’s all pretty laid back though. England should arrive in about 15 mins or so.
Uruguay returned to training today as they prepare for their last-16 clash with Portugal on Saturday.
Speaking of Serbia… They might be in need of a hero if they want to beat Brazil later today so these fans in Moscow have resorted to embracing their super status.
Serbia’s Dusan Tadic will join Ajax for an undisclosed fee, Southampton have confirmed.
The deal will be confirmed on July 1.
Tadic is in action later today when Serbia take on Brazil.
“How will Brazil react emotionally to the possibility of going out of the World Cup at this very early stage?”
That’s the question posed by Tim Vickery, South American football expert, as Brazil head into their final group game against Serbia on Wednesday knowing a defeat would likely knock them out of the tournament.
The five-time World Cup winners have underwhelmed in Russia – drawing their opening game to Switzerland 1-1 and edging past Costa Rica 2-0 in stoppage time. These results leave themselves needing a point in their final game to qualify.
“Pre-tournament you had to see them among the big favourites with Spain, Germany and France. Everyone has struggled really, certainly the major powers have,” Vickery told Sky Sports News.
“A lot of what went on in between has been a little unconvincing, they’re finding that the World Cup is different from the qualification – the pressure is much greater.
“Now they’re in uncharted waters because if they lose it’s almost certain that the World Cup is over for them.”
The final games of Group F are underway. Here’s a reminder of how things stand at kick-off.
FIFA World Cup✔@FIFAWorldCup
Marcos Rojo‘s winning goal last night sent Argentinian fans (including Diego Maradona) a little loco! Even this news channel in Argentina was interrupted by the celebrations.
Turn your sound on and have a listen.
Colombia midfielder Abel Aguilar won’t play on Thursday against Senegal because of a left adductor injury.
Aguilar was injured in the first half of Colombia’s 3-0 victory over Poland last Sunday in Kazan and had to be stretchered off the field.
Colombia coach Jose Pekerman said Aguilar would not be available in the team’s decisive final group match in Samara, but he did not rule the 33-year-old veteran out of the rest of the tournament should Colombia advance.
Aguilar underwent an MRI to determine the extent of the injury. Pekerman said on Wednesday the injury was not as serious as feared but it would still keep him out of the group finale.
Features
Who could England face?
Brazil on the rise?
What went wrong for Germany?
Videos
World Cup: Russia Report
Akinfenwa recreates Platt volley!
England’s Matryoshka Dolls
WHO IS THE REF?
The referee for the England vs Belgium match is a man the Three Lions know well. Slovenia’s Damir Skomina was the referee when England lost to Iceland at Euro 2016, although they were awarded a penalty that Wayne Rooney converted.
Skomina was also in charge of Belgium’s Euro 2016 quarter-final loss to Wales where he gave a total of six yellow cards.
At this year’s World Cup Skomina was the first referee to brandish a red card, given to Colombia’s Carlos Sanchez for deliberate handball.
Prior to this tournament, Skomina also refereed the second leg of Liverpool’s Champions League semi-final with Roma last month when he gave the Italians a late penalty in a 4-2 victory.
Skomina sent off England goalkeeper Rob Green in a 1-0 loss to Ukraine in 2009.
FAIR PLAY EXPLAINER
With England and Belgium neck and neck as they prepare for their final Group G game on Thursday, here is a handy explanation of the fair play rules – which may decide who finishes top of the table.
If both teams are level on points, goal difference, goals scored and head-to-head record, then the number of red and yellow cards accumulated is used.
England have two disciplinary points (Kyle Walker and Ruben Loftus-Cheek’s yellow cards) and Belgium are on three disciplinary points (Kevin De Bruyne, Jan Vertonghen and Thomas Meunier’s yellow cards).
Teams are given one point for each yellow card, three points for a red card (two yellows) and four points for a straight red card.
Lots will be drawn to decide group winners if they are on the same disciplinary points.
GERMANY HEAD HOME
Germany’s defeated World Cup squad are on their way back home following their 2-0 defeat to South Korea on Wednesday, which saw them finish bottom of Group F.
MARADONA DISMISSES HEALTH SCARE
Diego Maradona says there is nothing to worry about after he was treated by medics at Argentina’s game against Nigeria.
GROUP H PERMUTATIONS
Group H draws to a close today with the double-header of Japan vs Poland and Senegal vs Colombia, and Sky Sports News assesses what each team needs to do to qualify.
England and Belgium fans pay attention – your teams will play one of the sides from this group in the last 16.
NO REGRETS FOR PETKOVIC
Switzerland will be without Stephan Lichtsteiner and Fabian Schar in next week’s World Cup knockout match against Sweden after being booked against Costa Rica but coach Vladimir Petkovic has no regrets about having fielded them in their last group match.
Swiss captain Lichtsteiner and his defensive partner Schar both collected a second caution of the tournament in the 2-2 draw at the Nizhny Novgorod Stadium and miss Tuesday’s match in St Petersburg in a blow to Swiss hopes.
“We were not sure of the scenario we needed to qualify so I wanted to field my best players and make sure that all of them play. The round of 16 was the minimum objective that we set ourselves to achieve,” Petkovic said, explaining why he fielded players already sitting on one yellow card in a game against a team already eliminated from the tournament.
AKINFENWA DOES A CAHILL
Have you seen Adebayo Akinfenwa (aka The Beast) replicate Tim Cahill’s famous 2014 World Cup goal for Australia against the Netherlands?
Well if not, you should check it out – even Cahill himself approves.
GERMAN MEDIA REACT TO EARLY EXIT
The media this morning makes for grim reading if you are a Germany fan. Newspapers and websites are understandably leading on the national team’s first group stage exit from the World Cup in 80 years.
Newspaper Suddeutsche Zeitung went with the headline “Disgraced World Champions”, Kicker called Germany’s campaign an “Historic Fail”, while BILD simply said “No words”.
Meanwhile, Frankfurter Allgemeine’s website had two articles leading: the first read “Public Post-Mortem”, while the second said “Loew Must Not Be Untouchable.”
TUNISIA’S KEEPER CRISIS
Tunisia will start third-choice goalkeeper Aymen Mathlouthi and have striker Fakhreddine Ben Youssef act as his back-up in their final World Cup game against Panama on Thursday after FIFA rejected their request to add a replacement keeper to the squad.
Tunisia’s first and second choice keepers are unavailable after picking up injuries at the tournament and they flew Moez Ben Cherifia from champions Esperance to Moscow on Wednesday in the hope he might be allowed to be included in the squad.
However, the Tunisian Football Federation said on Thursday that this request had been rejected by FIFA and they would have to use the players currently in the squad.
GERMAN FA THANKS FANS
The German FA (DFB) have tweeted to thank fans for their support after their loss to South Korea on Wednesday saw them exit the World Cup in the first-round for the first time in 80 years.
The DFB also congratulated South Korea for their win, as well as Sweden and Mexico for qualifying from the group.
#classy #nicetouch
MARCELO PLAYS DOWN FITNESS CONCERNS
Brazil fans would have been concerned on Wednesday when Marcelo went off early in their win over Serbia, looking emotional as he hobbled down the tunnel.
However, he has since tweeted and dismissed concerns about the injury, saying: “Thank you all for the messages!!! Thank God it was nothing serious!!! I’ll be back in a little while!!! Very happy with the victory!!!”
BRAZIL CRUISE INTO LAST 16
Brazil’s fans have been reacting to their side’s comfortable qualification for the last 16 of the World Cup – where they will face Mexico.
WHAT NOW FOR GERMANY?
A round-up of the reaction to Germany’s stunning group stage exit from the World Cup, including the question marks now surrounding Joachim Low’s future.
GOOD MORNING!
Hello and welcome to day 15 of the World Cup! Today is the final day of group stage action, and we will be bringing you all the latest as we build-up to the day’s four matches.
England take on Belgium in a shootout for top spot in Group G (but does either side want it?), while Japan play Poland, Senegal take on Colombia and Panama and Tunisia search for their first 2018 World Cup wins.
We will also have reaction to yesterday’s results, as Brazil and Switzerland eased into the last-16 – where they were joined by Sweden and Mexico – while current world champions Germany were shockingly dumped out in the first-round for the first time in 80 years.
In the blink of an eye it’s all change in Group H! Yerry Mina rises highest at the corner to head the ball powerfully into the ground and into the back of the net.
As things stand, Colombia will qualify as group winners, while Japan, who are losing 1-0 to Poland, will finish second. Senegal will go out!