International Football
Mane shines as Senegal beat Togo in World Cup qualifiers
Expectedly, top seeded African team, Senegal beat Togo on home soil in one of the Matchday 1 of the World Cup qualifying series in Africa on Wednesday.
Talismanic Sadio Mane opened the scoring as Senegal earned three points in their opening Group H encounter.
After blazing over the bar in the first half, Mane played a neat one-two before poking home just before the hour as the Liverpool star took full advantage of his ability to represent his nation.
While Mane is free to play since his matches are in countries that are not on the British government’s Covid red list, club colleague Mohamed Salah cannot at home to Angola on Wednesday as Egypt is on the list.
Unburdened by the threat of having to quarantine for 10 days upon his return to England, Mane was lively throughout in a game wrapped up when Abdou Diallo lashed home nine minutes from time.
The victory represents a modicum of revenge for the Senegalese, who could not beat Togo as the Sparrowhawks pipped them to the 2006 World Cup when they last met at this stage.
Senegal travel to Congo on Tuesday, while Togo seek their first points at home to Namibia on Sunday.
Elsewhere, it ended 1-1 as neighbours Guinea-Bissau and Guinea met in a World Cup qualifier for the first time in 25 years.
The game should have been played in Bissau but as the stadium there was deemed unfit by the Confederation of African Football (Caf) last month, it took place in Mauritania.
An available Liverpool player was again in the thick of the action as Naby Keita teed up Francois Kamano for Guinea’s opener before Joseph Mendes earned both sides a point in Group I.
Earlier, Central African Republic (CAR) put aside the difficulties of being barred from using their stadium when drawing 1-1 with Cape Verde as the Group C game marked the very first in Africa’s second round.
The match was played in the Cameroonian city Douala after the national stadium in CAR capital Bangui has also been deemed unfit to host international matches by Caf.
Contesting the second qualifying round for only the second time in their history, CAR earned a vital point as Tresor Toropite fired home from close range after 53 minutes.
This levelled the scores after Julio Tavares had neatly side-footed Cape Verde in front nine minutes before the break, with the visitors then missing two decent chances to extend their advantage.
When they last contested the second round, CAR impressed in their opening game – when registering their sole World Cup qualifying win to date – before losing their remaining five matches.
The next game in Group C takes place on Friday when Nigeria host Liberia.
Wednesday’s evening games see a Salah-less Egypt side host Angola and Gabon travel to Libya, with both games in Group F, while Mali take on Rwanda in Group E’s opening tie.
Like others, Mali should have been playing the game on home soil but will instead take to the field in the Moroccan city Agadir after their stadium did not meet Caf standards.
Mali built new stadiums to host the Africa Cup of Nations in 2002 but none are now deemed suitable.
International Football
Former Brazil coach Tite taking break to take care of mental, physical health
Former Brazil coach Tite said he is taking an indefinite career break in order to take care of his mental and physical health.
The 63-year-old, who led Brazil to the 2019 Copa America title, was hospitalised due to a heart issue last August. He was sacked by Flamengo the following month and had most recently been linked with the Corinthians job.
“I realised that there are times when you have to understand that, as a human being, I can be vulnerable and admitting that will certainly make me stronger,” Tite said in a statement posted on his son Matheus Bachi’s Instagram on Tuesday.
“I’m passionate about what I do and I’ll continue to be so, but after talking to my family and observing the signals my body was giving off, I decided that the best thing to do now is to take a break from my career to look after myself for as long as it takes.
“As has become public, there was a conversation in progress with Corinthians, but it will have to be paralysed by a difficult but necessary decision.”
Tite, who stepped down as Brazil coach after their quarter-final exit from the 2022 World Cup, has previously coached a string of Brazilian sides including Gremio, Atletico Mineiro and Palmeiras.
-Reuters
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Brazil have sacked head coach Dorival Jr, the country’s football confederation (CBF) said on Friday after the five-time world champions were thrashed 4-1 away to fierce rivals Argentina in a humiliating qualifying loss in Buenos Aires.
The 62-year-old was appointed in January 2024 after the team spent a year under two caretaker coaches as the Brazilian FA were unable to lure Italian Carlo Ancelotti from Real Madrid.
“The Brazilian Football Confederation informs that coach Dorival Jr is no longer in charge of the Brazilian national team,” the confederation said in a statement.
“The management thanks (Dorival) and wishes him success in continuing his career … the CBF will work to find his replacement,” it added.
Dorival was handed the job after his success with Flamengo in 2022 where he won the Copa Libertadores and Brazilian Cup, a trophy he lifted again the next year with Sao Paulo.
However, he never seemed to get to grips with the national team job and failed to earn the trust of Brazil’s demanding fans after winning only seven of his 16 games in charge.
Sources told Reuters the CBF was not confident in Dorival’s work, considering there had been little to no progress since a lacklustre Copa America campaign when Brazil were knocked out in the quarter-finals by Uruguay last year.
Still, the CBF was willing to wait and see until the 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Ecuador and Paraguay in June to reassess the situation following the end of the European season and the Club World Cup in the U.S. in June and July.
But after Brazil slumped to their heaviest-ever loss in a qualifier when they were thrashed by Argentina this week, CBF president Ednaldo Rodrigues decided to pull the trigger.
IDEAL CANDIDATE
Sources told Reuters Ancelotti was still the ideal candidate but he is under contract with Real until July 2026 and there is no indication he would leave the European and Spanish champions.
Brazilian media have reported that Al Hilal’s Portuguese coach Jorge Jesus is the favourite to replace Dorival.
Brazil have been in unfamiliar territory for over two years since crashing out of the 2022 World Cup against Croatia on penalties in the quarter-finals, a heartbreaking elimination that led to the exit of long-time manager Tite.
Their humbling defeat in Buenos Aires was the latest of a series of negative records Brazil have set under caretakers Ramon Menezes and Fernando Diniz and with Dorival in charge. They had never conceded four goals in a World Cup qualifier.
Brazil are in the midst of their worst-ever World Cup qualifying campaign. They are fourth in the South American standings with 21 points, a point above sixth-placed Colombia who currently occupy the final direct qualifying berth.
Never have Brazil lost so many games, conceded so many goals or set so many negative records in the qualifying competition. They have lost five of their 14 games and conceded 16 goals.
Brazil’s 1-0 defeat by Argentina in the Maracana late in 2023 was their first-ever qualifying loss on home soil.
They also lost to Colombia for the first time, saw the end of their unbeaten run against Uruguay stretching back over two decades and were defeated by Morocco and Senegal, having never previously lost to an African nation.
-Reuters
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International Football
England’s German manager Tuchel will not sing the English anthem in his first game
England manager Thomas Tuchel said he would have to “earn the right” to sing the national anthem, God Save the King, after announcing his 26-man squad on Friday ahead of the team’s World Cup qualifiers.
Tuchel, who was appointed as Gareth Southgate’s successor in October and named his first squad to face Albania and Latvia this month, said he would not sing the anthem in his first games in charge.
“It means a lot to me, I can assure you, but I can feel that because it is so meaningful and it is so emotional and it is so powerful, the national anthem, that I have to earn my right to sing it,” the 51-year-old German told a news conference.
Former caretaker manager Lee Carsley was criticised last year for not singing the anthem during his tenure.
However, Tuchel added that while he is proud to be in charge of the team and knows the words to the anthem, he plans to earn the right with results.
“Maybe I have to dive more into the culture and earn my right from you, from the players, from the supporters, so everyone feels like ‘he should sing it now, he’s one of our own, he’s the English manager, he should sing it’,” he said.
-Reuters
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