Scott Murray's Blog, page 41

Newcastle 1-0 Bournemouth, Aberdeen 2-3 Rangers, and more: clockwatch – as it happened

Newcastle, Leicester, Southampton and Wolves all made it through to the last eight of the Carabao Cup without fuss, while Rangers stunned Aberdeen with an injury-time double whammy

A shock start at St Mary’s! A Lincoln corner sent in from the left. Maitland-Niles takes a wild swipe at the ball in his attempt to clear it. The ball balloons miles into the sky and back towards his own goal. On the line, Bazunu goes up with O’Connor, who may or not win the header that forces the ball over the line. The keeper’s been awarded the own goal, for now.

The League Cup matches are kicking off in Milton Keynes, Southampton, Newcastle and Wolverhampton. Action soon! Action hopefully soon!

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The Football Daily Christmas Awards 2022

Give the one you love something special this year: a free subscription to Football Daily. The gift that never starts giving

Welcome to the very first Football Daily Christmas Awards. This is the bit where, in our old guise, we would bang on about becoming so jaded that we’d lost count of how many years we’d been churning out this old tat. Hmm, all of a sudden, the penny’s beginning to drop. So OK, here we are, refreshed and ready to go! Pour yourself a pint of wine, throw your boots up on the desk, decompress, de-depress, and sing along: ♫♪ It feels like the first time, it feels like the very first time … ♫♪♫

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2022 World Cup final: Argentina 3-3 France (aet, 4-2 on pens) – as it happened

Kylian Mbappé scored only the second hat-trick in World Cup final history, but it wasn’t enough to deny Lionel Messi his destiny

While we’re on the subject of music, here are the national anthems that’ll stir the soul before kick-off. As Vanesa Valenti of La Nacion wrote in our pre-tournament guide to Argentina …

The Himno Nacional Argentino was written by the clearly multi-talented politician Vicente López y Planes and the music composed by Blas Parera and approved by the general constituent assembly in 1813. Initially it included a strong anti-Spanish sentiment, which was taken out in 1924. It starts “Hear, mortals, the sacred cry: ‘Freedom! Freedom! Freedom!’ Hear the sound of broken chains. See noble equality enthroned.” But because of the anthem’s length often at sporting events only the instrumental intro is played.

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Argentina 3-0 Croatia: World Cup 2022 semi-final – as it happened

Argentina will play either France or Morocco in Sunday’s final after a Lionel Messi masterclass blew Croatia away

Pre-match postbag. “What does Scaloni have against Lisandro Martinez? He’s mostly been excellent this World Cup, having spent the first half of the season turning Manchester United’s defence from a laughing stock into a semi-competent outfit. Yet he’s still on the fringes of the Argentina team and has been dropped tonight. I think Argentina will miss him if Croatia get on top” – Jon Collins

“I wonder if, with the benefit of hindsight, the defining duopoly of the last decade wasn’t Messi and Ronaldo, but Messi and Modric. I don’t say this to disparage the Portuguese, who’s practically the archetype of a great forward. However, the legends on show tonight were the first generation to come of age on the improved pitches of today, and when most footballers could be relied on having a good first touch. These two, each in their own way, found a brand new way to be a creative maestro, pinging passes around that before them would’ve been too risky” - Kári Tulinius

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England 1-2 France: World Cup 2022 quarter-final – as it happened

Harry Kane sent a penalty over after Olivier Giroud had given France the lead to send England out of the World Cup

Pre-match postbag. “Do you think it’s wise that Southgate named an unchanged team from the last England game? It was probably the best performance by the Three Lions under his management, but Senegal and France pose very different problems. As it looks to me, he’s making the risky bet that his forwards will outscore Deschamps’ ” – Kári Tulinius

“I fear that England will uphold the time-honoured tradition of going out on penalties” – Jim Fullton

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World Cup quarter-final: Croatia 1-1 Brazil (4-2 pens) – as it happened

Neymar scored a stunner, but Croatia went on to knock out five-time champions Brazil on penalties to reach the last four

5 min: The first shot in anger, and it’s a decent one. Vinicius Junior cuts in from the left and attempts to find a team-mate. His pass rebounds back to him. He opts to shoot instead, curling for the top right. It’s on target, but not hit firmly and an easy claim for Livakovic. Lovren then passes out carelessly from the back, allowing Raphinha to intercept and nearly find Vinicius Junior on the edge of the box. Goal kick.

3 min: Kovacic dribbles down the left and draws a free kick from Casemiro. A chance for Croatia to put one into the box, but Brozovic can’t manage it. Still, there’s an early sign that the 2018 finalists haven’t come here to simply defend.

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Football Daily | Romantic denouements in football are a big ask and no mistake

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It doesn’t matter how big a star you are: the World Cup doesn’t really do fairytale endings. Take Zinedine Zidane, the embodiment of France 98, sticking the nut on Marco Materazzi in 2006 and traipsing off down the tunnel in disgrace, his chances of a second title following in lockstep. Garrincha’s reward for sprinkling stardust at the 1958 and 1962 tournaments was to be kicked all over the shop in 1966, his last international a 3-1 defeat to Hungary, the only game for the Seleção he ever lost. Or how about Alcides Ghiggia, Uruguay’s matchwinner of 1950’s legendary Maracanazo, ending his World Cup career in 1957 by getting sent off while representing Italy in a 2-1 qualifying defeat to Northern Ireland. Italy didn’t make it through to the finals; that sort of news used to be a big shock back then.

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Brazil 4-1 South Korea: World Cup 2022 last 16 – as it happened

Brazil breezed into the quarter-finals after blowing South Korea away with a four-goal first-half blitz

4 min: A bit of space for Raphinha down the right. Under no pressure whatsoever, he rolls the ball out of play for a goal kick.

3 min: Marquinhos launches long. Richarlison chests down and tries to tee up Neymar, but he’s quickly dispossessed. Still, that’s a first touch for the returning superstar.

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World Cup 2022 briefing: Asia’s finest take aim at Croatia and Brazil

Japan and South Korea could meet in the quarter-finals if they make it through. Could we even see Asia’s first winner?

It took a while for an Asian team to make a mark at the World Cup. Indonesia were the first to compete at the tournament, trading as the Dutch East Indies in 1938, and were battered 6-0 by eventual losing finalists Hungary. The next Asian side to make it fared even worse. In 1954, South Korea were mauled 9-0 by the Hungary side of Puskás, Kocsis and Czibor, then belted 7-0 by a Turkey team that would go on to lose 7-2 against West Germany, who in turn were thumped 8-3 by Hungary in the groups before beating them 3-2 in the final. Strange old tournament, 1954.

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England 3-0 Senegal: World Cup 2022, last 16 – as it happened

Goals from Jordan Henderson, Harry Kane and Bukayo Saka guided Gareth Southgate’s team into a quarter-final clash with France

Gareth Southgate is asked about Raheem Sterling’s absence by ITV. “He’s dealing with a family matter. I’ve had quite a bit of time with him this morning, but I’ve now had to pass that on to other people to help him with that. He’s going to go and deal with that matter, and we’ll have to take it from there.”

As for his team selection? “Saka was excellent in our first two matches. Marcus was also very good. It’s great to have him able to come into the game as it opens up. We have an embarrassment of riches in that area of the pitch. We’ve liked Bukayo’s performances, and think Phil and him deserve that opportunity.”

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