Tiny little Iceland, which thrilled neutrals across the world in the 2016 Euros, has nearly qualified for the 2018 World Cup, which would be the first for the island nation. A nation of 334,000, Iceland traveled to Turkey, a nation of nearly 80 million, and pummeled the hosts 3-0 on Friday to climb to the top of the Group I standings with one match left to play in UEFA World Cup qualifying.
Does your goalie like to pick out passes to nearby teammates and help the team play out of the back or does he like to hoof it up the park to get it as far away from him as possible? The answer may determine your spot in the English Premier League table. Goalie distribution is almost directly correlated to EPL success according to the chart below.
This graphic shows the percentage of passes from EPL goalies that are long balls and the top five teams are all among the top seven teams through seven games in the 2017-18 season.
Spain secured automatic qualification to the 2018 World Cup on Friday by virtue of finishing top of UEFA’s tricky Group G. La Furia Roja’s 3-0 victory over Albania confirmed their position while dooming Italy to the playoff round. Rodrigo scored the opener, Isco added a sumptuous second and Thiago grabbed Spain’s third on a celebratory night in Alicante.
Jupp, he’s back, again. Jupp Heynckes was appointed to be the new Bayern Munich coach through the end of the season on Friday, the German’s fourth stint with the club dating back to 1987. Heynckes replaces Carlo Ancelotti, who was canned in September after a 3-0 hiding from Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League combined with a slow start in the Bundesliga.
We here at The18 have never really given much thought to Francesco Guidolin. The former Swansea City, Monaco and Palermo manager just never crossed our minds in a way that was interesting. Until now. It has been reported that in 2006, when Guidolin was managing at Palermo, he used a very, um, explosive prop in a team talk.
From FourFourTwo:
Speculation over the future of FC Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta was emphatically squashed Friday with the signing of a lifetime contract, keeping the Spanish international at the club for the remainder of his playing career and ostensibly into a non-playing capacity after retirement.
Scotland’s dreams of qualifying for their first major international tournament since the 1998 World Cup were given a major shot in the arm following a dramatic 1-0 victory over Slovakia before a bonkers crowd at Hampden Park in Glasgow.
Harry Kane, wearing the armband, sent England to the World Cup with a 94th minute winner against Slovenia Thursday.
Harry Kane. In stoppage time. To send England to the World Cup. https://t.co/TqgW5l6dPu
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) October 5, 2017
Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski is now Poland's all-time leading scorer after nailing two free kicks in the first half of a World Cup qualifier against Armenia Thursday, plus a tap-in in the second half. Lewandowski's hat trick gives him 50 international goals, including 15 in the current World Cup qualifying campaign.
First, Lewandowski lined up a superb free-kick to put Poland up 2-0.
¡GOLAZO!
Two of Real Madrid's hot young things, 21-year-old attacker Marco Asensio and 24-year-old center back Raphael Varane, have signed contract extensions that will keep them at the club until 2023 and 2022, respectively.