The UEFA Women’s Champions League Round of 16 wrapped up today, and the best goal of the round almost certainly belongs to Montpellier’s Virginia Torrecilla. The 23-year-old Spanish midfielder put the finishing touches on a 9-2 aggregate victory over Brescia with this inch-perfect 45-yard lob.
And so it’s settled. On November 15, Peru claimed the final spot in the 32-team field for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, bringing us to the final event before the June 14 kick off at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow: the draw to determine the eight groups of four for the finals.
Anthony Martial did some bad, bad things to the Germany defense on Tuesday in Cologne. Alexandre Lacazette scored two goals. But, because this was still Germany, the home side scored late to earn a 2-2 draw in a friendly between two World Cup favorites.
Both teams are looking to build a little cohesion in the buildup to the 2018 World Cup and while much of the match was played with a relaxed demeanor, France will be disappointed to have given up the lead with a 93rd-minute equalizer.
The Patrice Evra punishment for kicking a fan has been handed down and it’s not good for the former French international defender, but it could have been much worse. Evra was banned from UEFA club competitions through June 30, 2018. Soon after, Marseille announced Evra’s contract had been terminated by mutual consent.
Patrice Evra's career may have come to an end Thursday as the 36-year-old Marseille fullback was sent off before a Europa League match against Guimares for trying to kick a fan in the head.
After four goals in the first 35 minutes, Lyon and Monaco slowed down in the second half, and looked to be coasting toward a 2-2 draw.
Lyon's Nabil Fekir, who already had a goal in the game, decided the 2-2 scoreline wasn't to his liking and ripped a free kick past Monaco's wall and goalkeeper in the fifth minute of stoppage time.
What a way to win a game pic.twitter.com/tOSbONw5n4
France, fresh off a successful albeit ultimately disappointing Euro 2016, secured automatic qualification to the 2018 World Cup after defeating Belarus 2-1 on Tuesday. Goals from Antoine Griezmann and Olivier Giroud confirmed France’s passage from a tricky UEFA qualifying group also containing Sweden, the Netherlands and Bulgaria.
How much of Hatem Ben Arfa’s enfant terrible reputation is deserved? It’s impossible to say, because we don’t know the man. However, with only one-year remaining on his Paris Saint-Germain contract, it’s become clear that Ben Arfa’s exit from the French capital is going to look a lot like his exits from Lyon, Marseille, Newcastle United and Hull City.
When PSG agreed to shell out a reported $528 million total for Neymar Jr. (a $263 million transfer fee, plus a five-year, $265 million contract) many people thought the club was crazy. If they're crazy, perhaps they're crazy like a fox. So far for PSG, in only eight appearances, Neymar has racked up eight goals, seven assists and six man of the match ratings. This week, we saw a beautiful Neymar free kick from 35 yards out.
Meet your new favorite player: 20-year-old Nice winger Allan Saint-Maximin has everything you could ask for in a dynamic young attacker. He's pacy, skilled, smart and not afraid to try cool stuff.
Watch him turn into a one-man counterattack against Vitesse Arnhem in the Europa League on Thursday.