Africa

If you slept in and missed Croatia vs. Morocco don’t worry because you didn’t miss anything

AL KHOR — Croatia's World Cup campaign got off to a stuttering start with a 0-0 draw against a battling Morocco on Wednesday as the 2018 runners-up lacked the punch of the side that went so close in Russia.

Chances were at a premium at Al Bayt Stadium as an even Group F contest produced little goalmouth action, and ended in the third goalless draw in nine games at the World Cup so far.

There were glimpses of goal for both sides, with Nikola Vlasic going close for Croatia at the end of the first half while Noussair Mazraoui had a header saved for Morocco.

Tunisia's Aïssa Laïdouni is my new favorite player

You'll hear the sentiment over and over again during tournament coverage: There are no mysteries at the World Cup anymore — modernity and globalization have combined to eliminate the past thrill of the complete unknown showing up on our TV screens and taking over.

¡Ouch! Frenkie de Jong le da un manotazo en los "Países Bajos" a Cheikhou Kouyaté

El partido entre Países Bajos y Senegal, en el Grupo A del Mundial, fue un verdadero bostezo. Pero en medio de la refriega, al menos una imagen quedó para el recuerdo: el duro golpe que Frenkie de Jong le dio a Cheikhou Kouyaté, ahí donde nace la vida.

Manotazo de Frenkie de Jong a Cheikhou Kouyaté

La jugada se produjo en el minuto 69 (no, no es chiste) cuando Kouyaté intentaba evadir a De Jong con un sombrerito. El neerlandés pasó de largo y al intentar apoyarse en algo puso toda su mano en los "Países Bajos" del volante senegalés.

3 things we learned from Netherlands vs. Senegal: Clockwork Oranje

At the 2018 World Cup (one of the best group stages ever), we didn't have a 0-0 until Day 13 of the tournament. We looked set for one on Day 2 of the 2022 World Cup before Frenkie de Jong's beautifully measured ball met the advancing Cody Gakpo just ahead of the outrushing Édouard Mendy in the 84th minute, and Davy Klaassen added another at the death.  

World Cup injury list: Sadio Mané is out after fibula injury

Following is a list of players who have been ruled out or are doubtful for the Nov. 20-Dec. 18 World Cup through injury.

Who will miss World Cup 2022? World Cup injury list  

PAUL POGBA (FRANCE)

Pogba injured his knee in pre-season and went under the knife in September to repair a damaged meniscus. The 29-year-old resumed training but on Oct. 31 his agent said the midfielder would not return to action for Juventus nor the world champions before the World Cup.

Belgium suffers 2-1 defeat to Egypt in final warm-up game before the World Cup

KUWAIT CITY — Belgium were beaten 2-1 by Egypt in a friendly international on Friday in a sobering defeat that belied their status as one of the fancied teams for the World Cup in Qatar.

An error by Kevin De Bruyne and an inspired pass from Mohamed Salah ensured goals for Egypt, who narrowly missed out on World Cup qualification in March, as they posted victory in a stop-start affair in Kuwait City.

Mostafa Mohamed scored in the 33rd minute with a rasping short ball after De Bruyne had lost possession just outside his own penalty area to give Egypt a halftime lead.

Here’s the list of the best countries that failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup

The 2022 World Cup is here and the field of 32 teams is set. Several World Cup regulars will be missing the big tournament this year. Here are some of the best teams not in World Cup 2022 that will be missed.

This list will go by region and is based on if the team has had previous World Cup appearances. The list also includes the country's FIFA ranking in the parentheses. 

Terrible, horrible, godawful news: Sadio Mané is out of the World Cup

Senegal forward Sadio Mané has been ruled out of the World Cup in Qatar in a crushing blow to his team’s chances after officials confirmed on Thursday he would need surgery on a leg injury sustained in the run-up to the tournament.

Mané had been a doubt for the west African side after injuring his right fibula playing for German club Bayern Munich.

"Unfortunately, today's (Thursday) MRI shows us that the recovery is not as favorable as we hoped and we unfortunately resolve to declare Sadio's withdrawal from the World Cup," Senegal team doctor Manuel Afonso told reporters.

Morocco just recalled Hakim Ziyech for the World Cup — that was a great idea

Hakim Ziyech is a shooter. We've forgotten that this year with the Moroccan winger rarely playing for Chelsea, but when the goals were flying in at Ajax he was averaging 5.3 shots per game, and when he last represented his country at a major tournament (AFCON 2019) he was firing off 4.5 per game.

Can an African team win the World Cup?

Many football lovers hope an African team will finally win the men’s 2022 FIFA World Cup. The world has been waiting for this since the great Brazilian player Pelé predicted (in the 1970s) that an African country would win before the year 2000. That didn’t happen, but it didn’t stop Patrice Motsepe, president of the Confederation of African Football, from saying (in 2021): "An African team must win the World Cup in the near future."

Pages