Lionel Messi was left very angry with his miss in Argentina s penalty shoot-out victory over Ecuador in the Copa America quarter-finals.
La Albiceleste progressed to the semi-finals after a dramatic contest at the NRG Stadium in a game where Kevin Rodriguez s injury-time leveller ensured the contest would go the distance in a 1-1 draw after Lisandro Martinez s first-half opener.
The legendary Messi was first to step up for his team but saw a dinked penalty hit the crossbar. Thankfully for the 37-year-old, Emiliano Martinez saved penalties from Angel Mena and Alan Minda as Argentina triumphed 4-2 in the shoot-out.
Speaking after the game, Messi told reporters: I was very angry, I was convinced that I would take it like that.
I had spoken with Dibu (Martin…
Mbappe was involved in the decisive moment, his penalty kept out by Sommer as France failed to reach the quarter-final stage of a major tournament (European Champion and World Cup) for the first time since the 2010 World Cup.
Very difficult to turn the page, Mbappe – who has had more shots (14) without scoring than any other player at Euro 2020 – said in a post shared on Instagram. The sadness is immense after this elimination, we were not able to achieve our objective.
I am sorry for this penalty. I wanted to help the team but I failed. It will be hard to sleep but sadly these are the risks of this sport that I love so much.
I know that you the fans are disappointed, but I would still like to thank you for your support and for having always believed in us…
World Cup 2022 countdown: Salah v Mane, Italy or Portugal, grudge matches galore – the key talking p
Will it be Mohamed Salah or Sadio Mane? Italy or Portugal – or indeed neither? Can Canada end their long wait, and are the United States and Australia at risk of missing out?
Those questions and plenty more are set to be answered over the next week or so as World Cup qualifying concludes for many nations.
Just 15 of the 32 participants have so far been confirmed for Qatar 2022, leaving 48 teams battling for the 17 remaining spots.
Fourteen more countries will be assured of a finals berth come the end of next week in what is very much crunch time for those still in contention.
Stats Perform looks at the key talking points.
Egypt seeking revenge in AFCON final repeat
Less than two months on from meeting in the Africa Cup of Nations final, …
Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti has no plans to end his glittering career anytime soon as he prepares to take charge of Los Blancos for the 300th time, versus Alaves in LaLiga on Tuesday.
Ancelotti has taken charge of Madrid 299 times across two spells, overseeing 119 games between 2013 and 2015, winning the Copa del Rey in 2013-14 and also leading the Spanish giants to their long-awaited 10th European Cup/Champions League crown.
Since returning to the Santiago Bernabeu in 2021, Ancelotti has overseen a further 180 matches, leading the side to two more Champions League successes, two domestic title triumphs and a further Copa del Rey win.
Ancelotti – who last season became the first coach to win the European Cup/Champions League on five occasions – turned 65…
Milan head coach Stefano Pioli has signed a new contract with the Serie A club until 2023.
Pioli put pen to paper on a two-year deal to replace the sacked Marco Giampaolo at San Siro in October 2019.
The former Fiorentina boss led Milan to second in Serie A behind city rivals Inter last season, sealing Champions League qualification for the first time in seven years.
Pioli on Friday signed a contract to keep him at the club until the end of the 2022-23 campaign.
The 56-year-old told Milan TV: I hope to be able to experience many emotions on this bench, we are ambitious and we want to continue like this.
Milan are second in Serie A, level on points with leaders Napoli, after amassing 32 points from their opening 12 games for their first time…
Reigning Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) champions Senegal and continental powerhouse Ivory Coast have been drawn together for the 2022 African Nations Championship (CHAN).
The biennial tournament is due to be held in Algeria in January and February 2023, with 18 teams competing across five groups. The participants must consist only of players playing in their domestic national league competitions.
Group B looms as the toughest with Senegal drawn alongside two-time AFCON winners Ivory Coast, as well as DR Congo and Uganda. DR Congo missed out on 2022 World Cup qualification in the playoffs to Morocco.
Hosts Algeria are in Group A with 2014 winners Libya, Ethiopia and Mozambique, while Morocco, who have lifted the past two African Nations Championship titles, are in…
With just a few months remaining until the 2018 FIFA World Cup, many fans find themselves awaiting some truly remarkable results and now, we ve got one before the tournament even begins. While they were without the likes of Lionel Messi, Argentina will be thoroughly embarrassed tonight in the wake of a crushing 6-1 defeat at the hands of former world champions Spain.
Football masterclass
Bizarrely enough the Argentines actually started the game really well, and probably should ve found themselves ahead when Gonzalo Higuain was in on goal, only for him to blast the ball high and wide. From that point on it was business as usual for Spain, who seem to be finding their groove at the perfect time with Russia looming on the horizon.
It was never going to be a simple affair …
Porto suffered their first home league defeat since 2008 as Estoril claimed a 1-0 win at Estadio do Dragao on Sunday.
The hosts had been on a run of 81 games unbeaten on home soil, but were undone by a 78th-minute Evandro penalty.
Porto struggled to create any meaningful chances in the opening 45 minutes as the sides went in goalless at the break.
However, Eliaquim Mangala felled Evandro in the penalty area 12 minutes from time, and the Brazilian made no mistake in finding the back of the net.
Goalkeeper Vagner pushed away a free-kick in the closing stages to keep Estoril ahead, before the final whistle was greeted by heckles from the home support.
Defeat leaves Porto four points adrift of leaders Benfica, who have a game in hand.
At the other end of …
The touchdown market has become one of the most popular and potentially profitable props in the NFL betting world. Each week, we’re going to throw down three to five units as we try to uncover some of the best weekly NFL TD props and dig into the matchups that surround them.
It’s Turkey time, so dig in and gorge on our Week 12 Thanksgiving Day TD props where we’ve been profitable in eight of the 11 weeks of the season.
Without further ado:
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The undefeated New York Giants welcome the division rival Dallas Cowboys to MetLife Stadium for Monday Night Football in the Week 3 finale.
New York is off to a good start under new head coach Brian Daboll, who is winning over Big Apple football fans with close victories over Carolina and Tennessee. His team catches a break in this primetime home stand, facing a Dallas attack down starting quarterback Dak Prescott.
The Cowboys are leaning on backup QB Cooper Rush and a disruptive defense to keep the team afloat while Prescott heals up. Dallas stunned Cincinnati last week and takes aim at New York QB Daniel Jones, who has been pressured more than any passer through two weeks of play.
We breakdown the spread and total for Monday Night Football and give ou…