Comebacks

In front of a partisan crowd of 9,531 at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, NC, the second-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels stormed to a 2-0 lead over the top-ranked UCLA Bruins in the 2022 NCAA Women's College Cup Final on Monday night.

After a goalless first half, Avery Patterson opened the scoring for UNC with a header off Emily Colton's cross in the 59th minute.

58 ' I THE TAR HEELS STRIKE FIRST IN CHAMPIONSHIP PLAY ‼️

South Korea secured a spot in the Round of 16 of the World Cup on Friday with an incredible last-minute goal against Portugal to win 2-1. The South Korean victory paired with Uruguay defeating Ghana 2-0 meant that the Asian underdogs advanced due to the tiebreaker of having more goals scored than Uruguay.

Unpredictability is inherent in soccer, and major international tournaments seem to always throw up a heaping of craziness. The gulf between reality and previous perceptions reminds anyone who claims to know soccer that they don’t, and if we were truly as smart as we claim to be, we’d stop trying to predict results. Just embrace the unpredictability and the chaos and enjoy these moments. 

Serbia and Cameroon arguably played the best game of the 2022 World Cup on Monday with a six-goal thriller that ended 3-3. The game also saw a Serbia tiki-taka goal that honestly looked like it could have been scored by that legendary 2010 Spain squad.

The Eagles of Serbia were soaring after scoring two goals in first-half stoppage time to take a 2-1 lead. Playing with supreme confidence, Serbia scored one of the prettiest team goals of the tournament in the 53rd minute.

Look at this string of passes from the Serbs.

Leeds United had a horrific collapse vs. Spurs on Saturday with a 4-3 loss at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium after leading 3-2 as late as the 80th minute. For Tottenham’s first goal U.S. fans discovered what would happen if Tyler Adams marked Harry Kane during a corner kick.

Tyler Adams Harry Kane Corner Kick

With Leeds leading 1-0, Tottenham scored a controversial equalizer through Kane in the 25th minute. Clément Lenglet appeared to foul Leeds goalkeeper Illan Meslier when the cross was delivered.

FRANKFURT - Germany handed a surprise call-up to Borussia Dortmund teenager Youssoufa Moukoko in their World Cup squad on Thursday as 2014 World Cup winner Mario Götze marked a sensational return to the national team set up after five years.

Germany coach Hansi Flick announced his 26-man squad for the tournament in Qatar starting on Nov. 20, with the 17-year-old Moukoko, who has scored six times in the Bundesliga this season, included.

"Youssoufa is lively and quick player. We are really happy for him," Flick said.

Saturday’s stunning early action between Leeds and Bournemouth at Elland Road saw the home crowd’s halftime boos turn to bliss in the second half as Jesse Marsch’s side snatched a 4-3 win from the jaws of defeat. 

Heading into the final matches of the Champions League group stage, there was no set of games as appealing as the action in Group D. Tottenham entered Tuesday on top with eight points, but Sporting (seven), Eintracht Frankfurt (seven) and Marseille (six) all had a clear path to the round of 16.

Spurs had a difficult task, traveling to the Vélodrome in southern France but needing only a draw to go through. They also had to do it without manager Antonio Conte on the touchline because of a one-match ban.