International Football
Saka to feature in much-changed England team against Senegal
Arsenal winger Bukayo Saka will feature in a much-changed England team for the friendly against Senegal on Tuesday, manager Thomas Tuchel said.
England laboured to a lacklustre 1-0 win over Andorra in World Cup qualifying on Saturday.
“After the last (Premier League) game of the season I had a little strain,” Saka told reporters on Monday. “Fair play to England, they managed me well. The manager left me out (on Saturday) and said I will play tomorrow.
“I love coming to England camps and playing for England. It has been a bit of frustrating year with injuries but I am here now and looking forward to tomorrow.”
Tuchel was very critical of his team’s “lack of urgency” after the win over Andorra which put them in command of Group K.
“I protect my players, I said no names of players, it is not an individual matter,” Tuchel said at the team’s training base at St. George’s Park.
“But as a team we did not reach our standards. I felt we didn’t play seriously enough in what we needed to do in a World Cup qualifier.
“Why should we sugar coat it? You have been in the stadium, why should I tell you that we had a good game? No harm done. We can handle criticism.”
England should face a tougher test against Senegal.
The African side, who lost 3-0 to England at the 2022 World Cup in the only previous match between the teams, are unbeaten in their last 23 matches across all competitions.
England have won all three games under Tuchel and their last six matches in all competitions, keeping a clean sheet in each of the last five.
Saka sidestepped a question about how Tuchel’s managerial style compares to his predecessor Gareth Southgate.
“I don’t really like to compare, if I’m honest,” Saka said. “Since I have come into the camp (Tuchel) has been quite demanding, quite intense on the pitch and off the pitch he’s been more relaxed.
“He’s a nice guy, he let us enjoy ourselves and created a nice environment for all the players to enjoy.”
The team spent Sunday evening watching Portugal beat Spain in the Nations League final.
“It was high level in the final. High-quality football,” Tuchel said. “That’s the benchmark, we will try to hunt that, to reach that and I’m convinced we have everything it takes to match that when we play these teams.”
-Reuters
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Well-travelled Portuguese coach Paulo Duarte has been named as Guinea’s new coach, less than a month before their next round of World Cup qualifiers.
Duarte, 56, has twice previously coached Burkina Faso and taken charge of Gabon and Togo, while also coaching at clubs in Portugal, France, Tunisia, Angola and Saudi Arabia.
Guinea’s football federation gave no contract details when they made the announcement on Monday, but said they would be looking for Duarte to “restructure their national team”.
Guinea trail leaders Algeria by eight points in their World Cup qualifying group with four games remaining, leaving them with only a slim chance of qualification.
They play Somalia away on September 5 and then Algeria at home on September 8 in their next two qualifiers although a stadium ban means Guinea have moved their home game to Casablanca, Morocco.
-Reuters
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Veteran coach Louis van Gaal says he has been cured of cancer and is keen for a return to the higher levels of the game.
The 73-year-old announced three years ago that he was suffering from prostate cancer, but told a Dutch television talk show, “I’m no longer bothered by cancer.”
When he announced his illness, Van Gaal was the coach of the Dutch national team, but he has not worked since the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
“Two years ago, I had a few operations. It was all bad then. But it all worked out in the end. I have check-ups every few months, and that’s going well. I’m getting fitter and fitter,” he said.
Van Gaal, whose career has included stints at Ajax Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, reiterated a lack of interest in returning to club management but said becoming the national coach of a top-tier country could tempt him back.
He now serves as a special advisor to Ajax.
-Reuters
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In a compelling twist of football destiny, Davide Ancelotti is stepping into his own spotlight as he begins his first head coaching role at Brazilian club Botafogo—just months after parting ways with his legendary father, Carlo Ancelotti, at Real Madrid.
The 35-year-old has been appointed as Botafogo’s new manager, the club announced on Tuesday, following the sacking of Renato Paiva. Davide, who has spent the last decade working alongside his father at some of Europe’s top clubs—including Bayern Munich, Napoli, Everton, and Real Madrid—has signed a one-year deal with the Rio-based team.
This marks a significant milestone for the younger Ancelotti, whose career has long been shaped by his father’s influence, but who now faces the challenge of carving his own identity on the touchline.
The move comes shortly after both father and son departed Real Madrid at the end of last season, with Carlo taking over the Brazilian national team. Now, in a poetic alignment, father and son find themselves on different paths within Brazilian football—one leading the Seleção, the other steering the fortunes of a storied domestic club.
Botafogo’s decision to appoint Davide follows a controversial parting with Paiva, who was dismissed just days after their exit from the Club World Cup. Though he oversaw a stunning win over Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain, a 1-0 extra-time loss to Palmeiras in the round of 16 proved to be his final act after just four months in charge.
As Davide Ancelotti begins this new chapter, all eyes will be on whether the son of one of football’s most decorated managers can step out from his father’s shadow—and perhaps, in time, build a legacy of his own.
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