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☆ Amid anguished joy, ‘nothing is impossible’ for the Palestinian national soccer team on its Asian Cup adventure
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-29 | by ( Eoin Mcsweeney | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —As the echoes of the final whistle rang out around the Abdullah bin Khalifa stadium in Doha, Qatar, Palestinian players celebrated with anguished joy last week. The historic sporting moment for Palestinians comes as Israel’s war against Hamas rages in Gaza, causing widespread destruction and initiating a catastrophic humanitarian crisis. The Palestinian Football Association says that, as of December 6, 55 football players are amongst the dead, including amateur and youth members. Some Palestinian national team footballers, like Saleh, have reportedly lost family members or have relatives and friends trapped in Gaza. Palestinian national team players observe the national anthems prior to the AFC Asian Cup Group C match between Iran and Palestine at Education City Stadium on January 14, 2024 in Al Rayyan, Qatar.

Persons: Abdullah, Oday, Israel, Rami Hamada, Mohamed Saleh, Mohammed Rashid, CNN’s Eleni Giokos, “, Hong Kong, ”, “ We’re, Rashid, Mohammed Saleh, Hector Retamal, Saleh, ” Rashid, there’s, “ They’ve, ” Mohammed Rashid of, Mohammad Mohebbi, Masashi Hara, Gianni Infantino, we’re, Robert Cianflone, Monday’s Organizations: CNN, Palestinian national soccer team, AFC Asian, Hong, Qatar, Iran, Palestinian, UAE, Group C, Janoub, Getty, Ministry of Health, Palestinian Football Association, West Bank, Palestinian soccer, Education City, FIFA, UEFA, Russian, Israel, Persib, “, Hamas Locations: Doha, Qatar, Palestinian, Gaza, Hong Kong, Hong, Palestine, Al, AFP, “, Ramallah, Israel, Iran, Al Rayyan, Ukraine, Persib Bandung, refence, Russia

☆ Palestinian killed by Jewish settler in West Bank, Palestinians say
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-11 | by ( Ali Sawafta | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

JERUSALEM, Feb 11 (Reuters) - A Jewish settler fatally shot a Palestinian in the occupied West Bank on Saturday, Palestinian officials said. A number of Jewish settlers carrying pistols and one with a rifle had approached the village of Qrawat Bani Hassan and one fired a shot, killing 27-year-old Mothqal Rayyan, a Palestinian witness told Reuters. According to the witness, the Israeli military arrived but only protected the settlers. The Israeli military said its soldiers had been dispatched to the scene after riots erupted between dozens of Palestinians and Israelis. The military said it was aware of reports that a Palestinian was evacuated to hospital before soldiers arrived and was killed as a result of a gunshot wound.

☆ Morocco playing seven games at one World Cup is priceless, says Regragui
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-16 | by ( Rohith Nair | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"But I told my players this is our seventh World Cup game. If you told any Morocco fan we would be playing our seventh game on Dec. 17, they would be proud. "Morocco played six World Cup games in 20-odd years and now we've played six games in a month - this is priceless. After the first game (where Morocco and Croatia drew 0-0 in the group stage) we knew the performance was very good," Regragui said. "I don't know if it's Modric's last game, he's a competitive warrior and will want to finish his World Cup in style.

☆ World Cup 2022: How Qataris have reacted to tournament on home soil
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-13 | by ( Ben Church | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

CNN —Reem Al-Haddad still remembers how excited she felt when Qatar won the right to host the 2022 World Cup. “The World Cup has almost always been in Western nations. The report did not connect all 6,500 deaths with World Cup infrastructure projects and has not been independently verified by CNN. She still remembers watching the 2002 World Cup from home, cheering on Italy before it was knocked out by host South Korea in the round of 16. “That person who watched the World Cup behind the screen never believed that she would actually get to experience it in real life,” she added.

☆ Argentina have worked out where to hurt Croatia - Scaloni
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Rohith Nair | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

AL RAYYAN, Qatar, Dec 12 (Reuters) - Argentina will trust their system when they face Croatia in the World Cup semi-finals and believe they have worked out how to hurt the 2018 runners-up, coach Lionel Scaloni said on Monday. I won't mention the key players or their strengths and weaknesses but we've analysed where we can hurt them. "He's a role model for so many of us - not just because of his talent but also his behaviour," Scaloni said. ARGENTINA CRITICISMScaloni was also asked about the criticism directed at Argentina after their players' "unsporting behaviour" following their shootout win over the Netherlands. "The previous game was played the way we had to play... that's football.

☆ Brazil's best shooters should have taken penalties first, says Klinsmann
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Rohith Nair | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Croatia, the 2018 runners-up, stunned Brazil 4-2 on penalties after Marquinhos and Rodrygo failed to convert. "After conceding the equaliser in the 117th minute, Brazil had no time to switch gears. From the disappointment of conceding a last minute goal to the penalty shootout, there was no time to settle and approach the shootout positively. "With Argentina, they had extra time to play, even with the shock of the (Wout) Weghorst equaliser in the last minute," Klinsmann added. At the end of the game they were far more clearer (in the head) going into the penalty shootout."

WASHINGTON, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Grant Wahl, a U.S. sportswriter covering the soccer World Cup, died in Qatar on Friday, his family and U.S. Soccer said. His wife responded to the U.S. Soccer statement on Twitter, saying she was "in complete shock". Wahl, a former Sports Illustrated journalist who later moved to Substack, had been tweeting about the Netherlands-Argentina match earlier on Friday. He said last month he was briefly detained when he tried to enter a World Cup stadium in Qatar while wearing a rainbow shirt in support of the LGBTQ community in a country where same-sex relations are illegal. Wahl said in late November that World Cup security denied him entry to the United States' opener against Wales at the Ahmad Bin Ali Stadium in Al Rayyan and asked him to take his shirt off.

☆ Brazil Loses to Croatia on Penalty Kicks to Exit the World Cup
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Andrew Beaton | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

AL RAYYAN, Qatar—Brazil arrived in this tiny emirate accompanied by a level of unmatched hysteria before this tournament even began. The country is always crazy about its soccer team. It’s even crazier when the team is the World Cup favorite. Then bleak reports about the health of Pelé put the entire country on the verge of national mourning. Suddenly, the Seleção faced the added pressure of trying to win the tournament for perhaps the most revered figure in soccer history.

☆ England have more belief they can win World Cup than in 2018, says Kane
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Rohith Nair | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

England reached the final of the Euros last year where they lost in a penalty shootout to Italy, but Kane is confident they can dethrone world champions France when they meet their European neighbours in Saturday's quarter-final. Of course we went there with the belief that we could win, but it was almost a new experience for a lot of us," Kane said. But whether we had the full belief to go and win the tournament, I'm not quite sure. "I feel like the belief has been building and building over the four or five years now. I know we're going into the game with maybe more belief than what we did back in 2018."

☆ Neymar says he is unsure if he will play again with Brazil
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Fernando Kallas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/3] Soccer Football - FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 - Quarter Final - Croatia v Brazil - Education City Stadium, Doha, Qatar - December 9, 2022 Brazil's Neymar looks dejected after being eliminated from the World Cup REUTERS/Suhaib Salem TPX IMAGES OF THE DAYAL RAYYAN, Qatar, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Brazil's Neymar said on Friday he was unsure if he would play again for the national team after their heartbreaking World Cup quarter-final defeat to Croatia on penalties. Maybe I'm not thinking straight," an emotional Neymar told reporters. "I want to take this time to think about it, think about what I want for myself. I will not close the door to playing with Brazil, nor do I say 100% that I'll come back." Against Croatia, Neymar put the South Americans ahead with a brilliant mazy run in the first half of extra time.

☆ Distraught Brazil rue what might have been
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Ossian Shine | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

You have to lift your head,” Brazil captain Thiago Silva said. “I'm very proud of the boys and what we've done, but unfortunately, it's part of football. It was in our hands, and it slipped away,” he added, before reflecting philosophically: “Now it's time to keep calm and life must go on.”With two Brazil penalty misses, Neymar never got to take a spot kick, but coach Tite defended the decision to put Neymar fifth. The players know how proud I am of their performance. "Time will tell what my legacy is.”Editing by Hugh LawsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Argentina had toughest route to World Cup final in 1990 - Gracenote study
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

But France did have the second-most difficult route in 2006 (8%), followed by West Germany in 1986 (11%), with both teams losing in the final. "Argentina (2014) and Croatia (2018) were the only runners-up with a more favourable route to the World Cup final than their opponents (Germany and France respectively). In both cases, they were the underdogs in the final," Gracenote said. "According to Gracenote, Argentina (1986) are the only underdogs in the last nine World Cup finals to go home with the trophy and their chance of 49% to win was the highest of those nine underdogs." Morocco have already won one game in Qatar as underdogs in the last 16 when they beat Spain on penalties.

☆ Croatia beat Brazil on penalties to reach semi-finals
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Steve Keating | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/6] Soccer Football - FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 - Quarter Final - Croatia v Brazil - Education City Stadium, Doha, Qatar - December 9, 2022 Croatia's Dominik Livakovic celebrates with teammates after winning the penalty shootout and qualifying for the semi final REUTERS/Hannah MckayAL RAYYAN, Qatar, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Dominik Livakovic saved Rodrygo's first penalty and Marquinhos hit the post to give Croatia a 4-2 shootout win over Brazil on Friday after their World Cup quarter-final finished level at 1-1. After a scoreless 90 minutes Brazil took a 1-0 lead with a bit of extra time solo magic from Neymar but gritty Croatia refused to quit, Bruno Petkovic equalising in the 117th minute to send the contest to penalties. Croatia now await the winner of Argentina and the Netherlands who clash later on Friday. Reporting by Steve Keating in Al Rayyan. Editing by Christian RadnedgeOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Croatia oust favourites Brazil 4-2 on penalties to reach semi-final
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Karolos Grohmann | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

In an evening filled with tension and drama, Brazil superstar Neymar thought he had won the game when he rifled in an extra-time goal for the five-time world champions. Croatia substitute Bruno Petkovic's left-footed equaliser three minutes from the end of extra time drew his side level, breaking Brazilian hearts in Doha's Education City Stadium. Croatia initially refused to be intimidated by their more illustrious opponents and in the first half successfully stifled most Brazil moves early. Apart from a weak Vinicius Jr. shot, Brazil had little else to offer in terms of attack with Neymar off the pace and shut out by a hard-working backline. But the Croats refused to surrender with Petkovic's equaliser forcing penalties and coming out on top in the shootout with Livakovic saving Rodrygo's spot kick and Marquinos hitting the post.

☆ Neymar draws level with Pele as Brazil's top goalscorer
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Fernando Kallas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

AL RAYYAN, Qatar, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Neymar scored in extra time as Brazil were winning 1-0 against Croatia in their World Cup quarter-final on Friday to reach 77 goals and draw level with Pele as the team's top scorer, a record held by the Brazilian great for 51 years. The 82-year-old football icon, who is hospitalized in delicate conditions in Sao Paulo due to cancer, scored his last goal for Brazil in a friendly against Austria in 1971. Pele is the only player to have won the World Cup three times, in 1958, 1962 and 1970, and scored 77 goals in 92 matches. The 30-year-old Neymar reached 77 goals in his 124th appearance as he is bidding to win his first World Cup title and help Brazil reach a record-extending sixth championship, 20 years after they last won the title in 2002. Reporting by Fernando Kallas Editing by Christian RadnedgeOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Leave Ronaldo alone, says Portugal coach Santos ahead of quarter-final
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Rohith Nair | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Later, the country's football federation had to publicly deny reports that their skipper had threatened to leave during the tournament after talking with Santos. "He (Ronaldo) has never told me he wanted to leave our national team. It's high time to leave Ronaldo alone and acknowledge what he has done for Portuguese football," Santos said. "But we had a normal conversation where I explained my viewpoints and, of course, he accepted. We had a frank and normal conversation."

☆ France wary of England's pace and set-piece threat in quarter-final
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Rohith Nair | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Deschamps, who has won the World Cup with France as a player and coach, said he did not see many weaknesses in the England team but they did have some "slightly less strong points". "Pace is often one of the keys - when you are quick then the opponents have less time to get organised. But you need more than just pace to score goals," Deschamps said ahead of Saturday's game at Al Bayt Stadium. "If we compare both sides, there were more English players here who were at the World Cup in Russia than France players," Lloris added. "England reached the semi-finals at the last World Cup and were runners-up at the Euros, there's been a real progression.

☆ How Cho Gue-sung became the breakout thirst trap of the World Cup
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Soo Youn | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +6 min

Cho, 24, was a local celebrity as a player for Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors FC before the World Cup, when he had 20,000 Instagram followers. Cho first generated buzz in his World Cup debut during Korea’s match against Uruguay, which ended in a scoreless tie. South Korea's Cho Gue-sung, center, during the FIFA World Cup match against Ghana in Al Rayyan, Qatar, on Nov. 28. One can point to 2002’s World Cup heartthrob, Ahn Jung Hwan, whose beauty was only celebrated locally in South Korea. “He’s hot, he knows it, and he scored two goals for Korea in the World Cup.

☆ World Cup quarter-finals 2022: which teams have qualified?
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Captain Lionel Messi, who has said he intends to retire from the national team after the tournament, scored his first goal in a World Cup knockout round in his 1,000th match to beat Diego Maradona's tally of eight World Cup goals. The Selecao have lifted the World Cup five times and are the pre-tournament favourites to win a record-extending sixth title. This is the sixth World Cup for Croatia, who reached the final in 2018 when they lost to France. England have won the World Cup only once in 1966, and finished fourth in 2018. France won the World Cup in 1998 and 2018.

☆ Morocco Stuns Spain in Penalty Shootout to Advance to World Cup Quarterfinals
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Andrew Beaton | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

AL RAYYAN, Qatar—For a young Spanish team reeling from a shocking loss to Japan at the end of a group stage, Morocco provided a nasty test in the Round of 16. The Moroccans dominated qualifying in Africa, emerged first from a group here that included 2018 semifinalists Belgium and Croatia, and brought a sea of fans in red with green stars. Education City Stadium, inside a development that houses satellite campuses for international universities, sounded like it was smack dab in the middle of Casablanca.

☆ Brave Morocco advance as Spain flop in shootout
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Fernando Kallas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Morocco goalkeeper Yassine Bounou saved spot-kicks from Carlos Soler and Sergio Busquets after Pablo Sarabia had hit the post and Spanish-born Hakimi held his nerve to earn his team a quarter-final against either Portugal or Switzerland. Morocco became only the fourth African nation to reach the last eight of the tournament, 12 years after Ghana did so in South Africa. After a scrappy match finished deadlocked at 0-0 after extra time with few shots on target, Morocco fed off the raucous support of their red-clad supporters in the shootout as Spain crumbled. Spain enjoyed more than 75% of possession and completed almost 800 passes but Morocco caused problems for them on the counter-attack and goalkeeper Unai Simon made some good saves. It was the fourth time Spain have been knocked out of the World Cup on penalties and the second in a row.

☆ Morocco and Spain scoreless at halftime
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/3] Dec 6, 2022; Ar Rayyan, QATAR; Spain forward Marco Asensio (10) reacts after a missed scoring chance against Morocco during the first half in the round of sixteen match of the 2022 FIFA World Cup at Education City Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Yukihito Taguchi-USA TODAY SportsAL RAYYAN, Qatar, Dec 6 (Reuters) - Morocco and Spain were deadlocked at 0-0 at halftime in their World Cup last-16 clash on Tuesday as both sides struggled to create clearcut scoring chances. Spain enjoyed plenty of possession at a raucous Education City Stadium with Morocco content to sit back and absorb the pressure, waiting for their chance to counter-attack. Morocco's best opportunity came near the end of the half when Nayef Aguerd headed over the bar from close range. Reporting by Steve Keating in Al Rayyan, Editing by Ed OsmondOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Morocco knock Spain out of World Cup on penalties
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/5] Soccer Football - FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 - Round of 16 - Morocco v Spain - Education City Stadium, Al Rayyan, Qatar - December 6, 2022 Morocco's Achraf Hakimi celebrates after scoring the winning penalty during the penalty shootout as Morocco progress to the quarter finals REUTERS/Matthew ChildsAL RAYYAN, Qatar, Dec 6 (Reuters) - Morocco dumped Spain out of the World Cup in a last-16 penalty shootout on Tuesday with Spanish-born Achraf Hakimi scoring the decisive spot-kick after Spain squandered all three of their attempts, following a 0-0 draw over 120 minutes. Hakimi, a product of the Real Madrid youth system, calmly slotted his penalty past Unai Simon in Spain's goal to seal Morocco's 3-0 win in the shootout. During the 90 minutes plus extra time, Spain dominated possession but failed to create many clear chances against Morocco’s stubborn defence. Morocco advanced to a quarter-final clash with either Portugal or Switzerland who meet later on Tuesday. Reporting by William Schomberg, editing by Ed OsmondOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Analysis: Soccer-Morocco success hands Arab world its first World Cup quarter-finalist
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Mark Gleeson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

In doing so, they became the first Arab nation to advance to the last eight, ensuring a breakthrough for the region in the first global tournament in the Middle East, and also became the fourth African side to go this far in World Cup history. The ear-shattering cacophonic combination of singing, drumming, jeering and whistling from Morocco’s supporters has created an atmosphere like no other in Qatar’s stadiums. They were again the vast majority in the capacity 44,667 crowd at the Education City Stadium, completely drowning out the Spain fans. But most of them shuffled from one side to another, rarely producing the penetrative pass Spain were looking for. They will however be mightily concerned to have lost centre back Nayef Aguerd, who limped off in tears in the second half, having just made the World Cup after ankle surgery kept him out for most of the season at his new English club West Ham United.

☆ U.S. Soccer Believes That It Will Win—in 2026. There’s Work to Do.
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Joshua Robinson | Andrew Beaton | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

AL RAYYAN, Qatar—An hour after the U.S. men’s national team had been eliminated from the World Cup, a handful of players were still strolling around the field at Khalifa International Stadium. They walked around, barefoot on the grass, soaking in their final moments on soccer’s biggest stage before they began the four-year wait for another shot. U.S. captain Tyler Adams lingered for as long as he could before the grounds crew ushered him off. The Americans had lost 3-1 to a technically superior Netherlands side, but Adams was convinced that his team shouldn’t have been the one going home.

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