Sports

Lionel Messi equalled a long-standing Diego Maradona record but is still yet to score a goal in the World Cup knockout stages.

The Argentina captain recorded two assists as Jorge Sampaoli s side exited Russia 2018 with a 4-3 loss to France, for whom teenager Kylian Mbappe struck a brilliant brace in the second half.

Setting up two goals for Argentina, the second a delightful cross Sergio Aguero headed home to spark hope of a late fightback, Messi matched the two assists recorded by Maradona against South Korea at the 1986 tournament.

However, having failed to find the net, Messi has now played an astonishing 756 minutes in the World Cup without finding the net in a knockout tie.

0 Lionel Messi is still yet to win a major senior title with Argentina s…

Arjen Robben was pleasantly surprised at the return of Jupp Heynckes to Bayern Munich and has called on the team to improve in the weeks ahead.

Bayern sacked Carlo Ancelotti last month after a poor start to the season, the 3-0 Champions League loss to Paris Saint-Germain proving too much for the club s board to stomach.

The Bundesliga title-holders have lured Heynckes out of retirement to lead the rescue mission.

And Robben, who won the Champions League under the 72-year-old in 2012-13, was delighted to learn he will be working under a familiar face. 

It was strange because I was gone in Holland and of course the Dutch media was full of speculation too but nobody ever mentioned the name Heynckes, he said of the change in personnel made during the intern…

Jack Wilshere scored his first Arsenal goal since May 2015 as Arsene Wenger s men cruised to a 6-0 win over BATE in their final Europa League group game.

An Arsenal line-up featuring a number of fringe players made light work of their Belarusian opponents, taking the lead after 11 minutes when Mathieu Debuchy ended a three-year goal drought with an accurate finish.

Theo Walcott, who dynamism and pace caused BATE problems all evening, scored Arsenal s second from close range before Wilshere buried their third from the edge of the penalty area before half-time.

Walcott forced an own-goal by Denis Polyakov shortly after half-time and Olivier Giroud added a fifth from the penalty spot before Wilshere teed up Mohamed Elneny for the sixth as Arsenal swaggered to a vict…

that Kasper Schmeichel has signed a new five year deal with Leicester City.

The shot-stopper, who helped the Foxes secure the Premier League title last season had been linked with a move away from the King Power Stadium, with Everton eyeing a move to secure his services.

However, he has committed himself to the East Midlands’ outfit and will be with them as they begin the defence of their crown next weekend.

Schmeichel began his career with Manchester City but made just ten appearances for them before being sold to Notts County while prior to his switch to Meadow Lane he had loan spells with Darlington, Bury, Falkirk, Cardiff City and Coventry City.

He moved to Leeds United in 2010 before being sold to Leicester a year later and he has so far rack…

Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni voiced concerns about the physical condition of his players while highlighting the importance of Lionel Messi after La Albiceleste booked their spot in the Copa America quarter-finals.

Papu Gomez was the hero for Argentina, with his 10th-minute goal sealing a 1-0 win over Paraguay on Monday and a spot in the last eight of the showpiece CONMEBOL tournament.

There was no rest for superstar captain Messi, who equalled Javier Mascherano s record for most Argentina appearances with his 147th cap, despite Scaloni s men backing up from Friday s success against Uruguay.

Messi has not missed a minute of Argentina s three Group A games so far, amassing 74 touches against Paraguay while winning 75 per cent of a team-high 16 duels.

…

Virgil van Dijk is focused purely on ensuring Netherlands complete the job and qualify for Euro 2020, not on Liverpool s Premier League title bid.

The Reds defeated reigning champions Manchester City 3-1 at Anfield on Sunday to open up an eight-point gap at the top of the table, with Pep Guardiola s side nine back.

Powerful centre-back Van Dijk was asked by Sky Sports whether establishing such a commanding lead made it feel like this season could see Liverpool end a 30-year wait for top-flight glory.

But Van Dijk will not look beyond Saturday s contest with Northern Ireland in Belfast, where a point will be enough for Netherlands to book their place in the Euros.

I m not gonna say that [it feels like Liverpool s year], he said. 

It s something …

We’re halfway into the first legs of the Champions League Round of 16 with four highly intense matches behind us.

For those of you who might have missed this week’s results, here’s a look back at the Round of 16 so far:

Juventus 2-2 Tottenham Hotspur
FC Basel 0-4 Manchester City
Real Madrid 3-1 PSG
FC Porto 0-5 Liverpool

What we witnessed this week was four matches of brilliant football, fantastic individual performances and collective spirit that can only be found at the top stage such as the Champions League. And as anticipation slowly builds for the remaining four clashes next week, let us sum up these four games through as many things we learned this week.

Rio Ferdinand is right – Harry Kane is the Best Striker in the World

Manchester United leg…

Domenico Criscito gained redemption by breathing new life into Genoa s Serie A survival bid with a late penalty winner to secure a 2-1 success over Juventus. 

Genoa captain Criscito erred from the spot in a 1-0 loss to local rivals Sampdoria on Saturday but got the better of Wojciech Szczesny with the final kick of the game from 12 yards in an incredible finale at the Marassi. 

Paulo Dybala appeared to have Juve heading into Wednesday s Coppa Italia final on the back of a win, but Albert Gudmundsson equalised in the 87th minute. 

Moise Kean inexplicably missed a chance to win it for Juve with the goal gaping, and Criscito took full advantage after Mattia De Sciglio tripped Kelvin Yeboah to spark scenes of jubilation. 

After a first half of few chances…