International Football
Maradona is watching us from above and pushing us, says Messi
Lionel Messi said Argentina have felt the presence of the late, great Diego Maradona throughout their World Cup campaign, including on Friday when they beat the Netherlands on penalties to reach the semi-finals.
Messi looked to have inspired Argentina into a last four meeting with Brazil’s conquerors Croatia after he set up Nahuel Molina’s opener before the break and added the second from the penalty spot.
But Argentina blew a two-goal lead deep into stoppage time before goalkeeper Emi Martinez kept his cool to save the first two Dutch penalties and Lautaro Martinez scored the decisive spot kick to send them through.
“Diego is watching us from heaven. He is pushing us and I really hope this stays the same until the end,” Messi told reporters.
“When Lautaro scored and we qualified there was a huge joy. It was a weight off our chest,” Messi added. “It was a very hard match. From the beginning it was a really tough match, we knew it would be this way.
“We leave that on the pitch with our people. We were really happy and we enjoyed that moment and that’s what we can see here and also in Argentina because people are really happy, they are really excited and they are full of enthusiasm.
“The Dutch team made trouble for us with long balls and a lot of players in the area. In the end they drew and we suffered. But we were able to seal our passage to the semi-finals, which is what we wanted.”
Argentina will take on Croatia for a place in the final, after the 2018 runners-up beat Brazil on penalties earlier.
Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni said despite their second-half collapse, his team had no problem finding players willing to take penalties.
“Sometimes it’s difficult in these situations, they shy away. This time we had too many volunteers. … We only had to decide the order of our penalty takers,” Scaloni said.
“It is true that we would have deserved to avoid the penalty shootout but still we fought until the end… This was a very strange second half. Everything was controlled by us but then we know what happens with football.
“It is a beautiful game, when you think that everything is over, you are surprised. This team had experience, pride, young players, and this is key, because we want to fight.”
Defenders Marcos Acuna and Gonzalo Montiel will miss the match against Croatia after picking up their second yellow cards of the tournament on Friday.
-Reuters
Well-travelled Portuguese coach Paulo Duarte has been named as Guinea’s new coach, less than a month before their next round of World Cup qualifiers.
Duarte, 56, has twice previously coached Burkina Faso and taken charge of Gabon and Togo, while also coaching at clubs in Portugal, France, Tunisia, Angola and Saudi Arabia.
Guinea’s football federation gave no contract details when they made the announcement on Monday, but said they would be looking for Duarte to “restructure their national team”.
Guinea trail leaders Algeria by eight points in their World Cup qualifying group with four games remaining, leaving them with only a slim chance of qualification.
They play Somalia away on September 5 and then Algeria at home on September 8 in their next two qualifiers although a stadium ban means Guinea have moved their home game to Casablanca, Morocco.
-Reuters
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Veteran coach Louis van Gaal says he has been cured of cancer and is keen for a return to the higher levels of the game.
The 73-year-old announced three years ago that he was suffering from prostate cancer, but told a Dutch television talk show, “I’m no longer bothered by cancer.”
When he announced his illness, Van Gaal was the coach of the Dutch national team, but he has not worked since the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
“Two years ago, I had a few operations. It was all bad then. But it all worked out in the end. I have check-ups every few months, and that’s going well. I’m getting fitter and fitter,” he said.
Van Gaal, whose career has included stints at Ajax Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, reiterated a lack of interest in returning to club management but said becoming the national coach of a top-tier country could tempt him back.
He now serves as a special advisor to Ajax.
-Reuters
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In a compelling twist of football destiny, Davide Ancelotti is stepping into his own spotlight as he begins his first head coaching role at Brazilian club Botafogo—just months after parting ways with his legendary father, Carlo Ancelotti, at Real Madrid.
The 35-year-old has been appointed as Botafogo’s new manager, the club announced on Tuesday, following the sacking of Renato Paiva. Davide, who has spent the last decade working alongside his father at some of Europe’s top clubs—including Bayern Munich, Napoli, Everton, and Real Madrid—has signed a one-year deal with the Rio-based team.
This marks a significant milestone for the younger Ancelotti, whose career has long been shaped by his father’s influence, but who now faces the challenge of carving his own identity on the touchline.
The move comes shortly after both father and son departed Real Madrid at the end of last season, with Carlo taking over the Brazilian national team. Now, in a poetic alignment, father and son find themselves on different paths within Brazilian football—one leading the Seleção, the other steering the fortunes of a storied domestic club.
Botafogo’s decision to appoint Davide follows a controversial parting with Paiva, who was dismissed just days after their exit from the Club World Cup. Though he oversaw a stunning win over Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain, a 1-0 extra-time loss to Palmeiras in the round of 16 proved to be his final act after just four months in charge.
As Davide Ancelotti begins this new chapter, all eyes will be on whether the son of one of football’s most decorated managers can step out from his father’s shadow—and perhaps, in time, build a legacy of his own.
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