International Football
OBITUARY: ANOTHER ARGENTINA WORLD CUP WINNER DIES
Argentinian football is mourning the passing of 1978 World Cup-winning striker Leopoldo Luque at the age of 71.
Luque had been hospitalised at the Clínica de Cuyo in Mendoza before Christmas and struggled to recover from COVID-19.
Hospital sources said he had suffered a fatal heart attack and had a history of cardiac trouble.
His former striking partner Mario Kempes led tributes describing Luque as “a great soccer player, a great friend and companion”.
Kempes added: “Rest in Peace and fly high friend!”
Kempes posted a picture of the pair taken last year when they were together in Mendoza.
Osvaldo Ardiles, a midfielder in the 1978 team, insisted Luque had been an “instrumental figure of our triumph in the World Cup of 78”.
“Nobody suffered more to achieve it,” continued Ardiles.
“It was a great honour to have him as a companion.
“Impossible to have someone better by your side.”
Argentinian newspaper La Nacion described Luque as “a luminous human being and an extraordinary footballer”.
The greatest moments of his football career came at the 1978 FIFA World Cup, but were tinged with tragedy when his brother Oscar died in a road accident during the tournament.
Luque scored Argentina’s first goal of the tournament in a 2-1 win against Hungary and four days later, his memorable long-range effort proved the winner against France.
It was described in the French paper L’Équipe as “a shot from a cannon from 20 metres” and lauded as one of the goals of the tournament.
It made sure of Argentina’s qualification for the second phase.
Later in the match, Luque dislocated an elbow but that evening came the news of the tragedy involving his brother.
Luque was allowed home to mourn and did not play in the next two matches, though the team carried a banner saying “Leopoldo we are waiting for you”.
He returned to the side for their second-poll-phase match against Brazil, a brutal 0-0 draw which left Luque nursing a black eye.
In their last second-round match, Argentina needed to beat Peru by four clear goals to reach the World Cup final.
Luque scored the fourth goal himself and Argentina eventually won 6-0 on an emotional night.
He also played the full 120 minutes in the World Cup final victory over The Netherlands.
In club football, Luque won five titles with River Plate and later went into coaching in Mendoza.
Luque was capped 43 times for Argentina, including a memorable appearance alongside Diego Maradona at Hampden Park in Glasgow in 1979 when both players were on the scoresheet against Scotland.
Maradona, often considered the greatest football player of all time, missed out on selection for the 1978 FIFA World aged 17, and died in November aged 60.
-insidethegames
International Football
German Thomas Tuchel becomes 3rd foreign manager for England
Former Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel has been named the new head coach of the England national team, the country’s Football Association said in a statement on Wednesday.
The German, who is England’s third foreign manager, after Sweden’s Sven-Goran Eriksson and Italian Fabio Capello, will be assisted by Englishman Anthony Barry, the statement added.
“We are thrilled to have hired Thomas Tuchel, one of the best coaches in the world and Anthony Barry who is one of the best English coaches to support him,” FA CEO Mark Bullingham said.
Tuchel replaces Lee Carsley, England’s under-21 manager, who has been in temporary charge since the resignation of Gareth Southgate after England’s defeat by Spain in the Euro 2024 final in July.
-Reuters
International Football
Factbox on England head coach Thomas Tuchel
German Thomas Tuchel has been appointed head coach of the England national team on Wednesday.
Born: Aug. 29, 1973 in Krumbach, Germany.
PLAYING CAREER
* Tuchel played for his local club TSV Krumbach, before moving to FC Augsburg’s academy at the age of 15.
* He never played for Augsburg’s senior side and joined German second division team Stuttgarter Kickers in 1992.
* After eight league appearances for Kickers, Tuchel moved to fourth-tier SSV Ulm.
* Tuchel made 69 league appearances for Ulm as a central defender before he was forced to retire in 1998 at the age of 25 due to a knee injury.
COACHING CAREER
* Tuchel began his coaching career with a youth team role at VfB Stuttgart in 2000, working with future Germany internationals Mario Gomez and Holger Badstuber.
* He returned to Augsburg and took charge of their reserve team for the 2007-08 season.
* Tuchel was appointed Mainz 05 manager in 2009, replacing compatriot Juergen Klopp.
* He guided Mainz to Bundesliga stability during his five-year stint at the club, gaining plaudits for his team’s high energy, attacking style of play.
* Tuchel took over from Klopp as Borussia Dortmund coach in 2015.
* He led Dortmund to a 2-1 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt in the 2017 German Cup final. He was sacked by Dortmund three days later.
* Tuchel joined Paris St Germain in 2018 on a two-year contract, replacing Unai Emery.
* He won two Ligue 1 titles, including a domestic quadruple in his second season, and guided the club to their first Champions League final, where they lost 1-0 to Bayern Munich.
* Tuchel was sacked by PSG on Christmas Eve in 2020, despite the club finishing top of their Champions League group and sitting third in the Ligue 1 table.
* He was named Chelsea manager in January 2021 on an initial 18-month contract following the dismissal of Frank Lampard.
* Tuchel revived the team’s Premier League season and guided the London club to the Champions League final, where they beat Manchester City. Chelsea also won the Super Cup and Club World Cup.
* Chelsea sacked Tuchel in September 2022 following a shock 1-0 defeat at Dinamo Zagreb in their opening Champions League group game.
* Bayern Munich appointed Tuchel to succeed Julian Nagelsmann in March last year.
* Bayern decided to let Tuchel go at the end of the 2023-24 season despite a contract until 2025. Tuchel steered Bayern to the Bundesliga title in 2022-23, but they finished the last campaign without any silverware for the first time in more than a decade.
* Tuchel will become England’s third foreign manager after Sweden’s Sven-Goran Eriksson and Italian Fabio Capello.
* Tuchel will take over the team in January ahead of the qualification campaign for the 2026 World Cup.
-Reuters
International Football
Portugal call up same player named in England Under-18 squad
Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Mateus Mane has become hot property after Portugal named the 17-year-old in their Under-18 squad on Friday, one day after England included him in their squad.
Mane was called up for a second successive England youth camp by coach Liam Bramley before the team travel to Marbella for a four-team tournament this month.
Mane is eligible for both teams having played for the Portugal Under-17 side last season. As the Under-18 team is a non-UEFA age group, both nations are entitled to call the player up.
He made his England international debut last month against the Portugal Under-18 side who have named Mane in their squad for a four-nation tournament this month.
With both tournaments running concurrently, Mane can only play for one team and Wolves and England confirmed he would feature in Bramley’s side.
Reuters has contacted Portugal’s football association for clarification.
While players with multiple nationalities have played for more than one country if they are eligible, they are not allowed to switch allegiances at senior level – unless they have played only in friendly matches for the first country.
-Reuters
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