US bounce back with Guatemala thrashing
Agence France-Presse
The United States got their flagging 2018 World Cup qualification campaign back on track on Tuesday with a 4-0 thrashing of Guatemala.
A shock 2-0 defeat to the Guatemalans last Friday had left Jurgen Klinsmann's side facing a must-win return fixture in Columbus, where a defeat would have all but eliminated them from North, Central America and the Caribbean (CONCACAF) zone qualifiers.
But the USA, who have appeared at every World Cup finals since the 1990 tournament in Italy, never looked like being denied all three points as they dominated from the opening minutes.
The result vaulted the Americans over Guatemala into second place in the standings in the four-team Group C, behind Trinidad and Tobago, who defeated St. Vincent and the Grenadines 6-0 on Tuesday.
The top two teams in the group qualify for the final round of competition to determine CONCACAF's World Cup contingent.
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Disputed Dutch winner keeps England in check
John Geddie, Reuters
England came crashing down to earth with a frustrating 2-1 loss to an inexperienced Netherlands side at Wembley on Tuesday, failing to build on their defeat of world champions Germany last weekend.
Second-half goals from Dutch forward Vincent Janssen and substitute Luciano Narsingh cancelled out a Jamie Vardy strike in the first half, sapping the optimism around Roy Hodgson's side ahead of this June's European Championship finals.
On paper it should have been a routine victory for England -- a team undefeated at Wembley for 2-1/2 years, brimming with Premier League talent and up against an injury-hit, experimental Dutch outfit that failed to qualify for the Euros.
But history was never on their side. Barring one win in 1996, they have not tasted success against the Netherlands in more than 30 years.
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Germany punish Italy to atone for England shock
Reuters
World champions Germany crushed Italy 4-1 in their friendly international on Tuesday to equal their biggest win against their opponents and recover from a surprise loss to England as they put down a marker for the European Championship.
Goals from Toni Kroos, Mario Goetze and Jonas Hector in the first hour gave Italy no chance, with Mesut Ozil then converting a 75th-minute penalty after Sebastian Rudy was brought down.
A more secure defence, with centre-back Mats Hummels playing the full game, meant Italy were made to work hard for a trickle of chances and had to wait until the 84th minute for Stephan El Shaarawy to pull a goal back and deny Germany their biggest victory over their European rivals.
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Messi scores 50th Argentina goal in 2-0 win over Bolivia
Luis Ampuero, Reuters
Lionel Messi scored his 50th international goal to help Argentina beat Bolivia 2-0 in a 2018 World Cup qualifier on Tuesday.
The win put Argentina third in the South American group with 11 points from six matches, two points behind joint leaders Ecuador and Uruguay.
Argentina defender Gabriel Mercado, who scored the winner in Thursday's 2-1 away victory over Chile, opened the scoring in the 21st minute against Bolivia.
Argentina were awarded a penalty in the 29th minute after Ronald Eguino fouled midfielder Ever Banega, and Messi made no mistake from the spot to net his 50th goal for Argentina, putting him within six of Gabriel Batistuta's record.
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Goals galore for France as Russia are swept aside
Julien Pretot, Reuters
France bristled with goalscoring threat just 10 weeks before they host Euro 2016 as they beat Russia 4-2 in a friendly international on Tuesday.
In the first soccer match at the Stade de France since last November's deadly Paris attacks, Les Bleus played some attractive football and scored through N'Golo Kante, Andre-Pierre Gignac, Dimitri Payet and Kingsley Coman.
Seven players have now scored in two games after Antoine Griezmann, Olivier Giroud and Blaise Matuidi were on target in the 3-2 win against the Netherlands four days earlier.
Alexander Kokorin and Yuri Zhirkov reduced the arrears for Russia, making the most of France's lapses in concentration on a rainy night in the capital.
Security was tight in and around the Stade de France following the attacks in Paris by militant Islamists on Nov. 13 that killed 130 people.
The crowd observed a minute's silence before kick-off in memory of the victims of last week's bombings in Brussels.
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Ibrahimovic returns as Sweden draw 1-1 with Czech Republic
Reuters
Sweden, buoyed by the return of captain Zlatan Ibrahimovic, drew 1-1 with the Czech Republic as both sides continued their preparations for Euro 2016 with a warm-up friendly on Tuesday.
The home side, looking to rebound after losing 2-1 to Turkey on Thursday, took the lead in the 14th minute when Marcus Berg converted a cross with a first-time effort past Czech goalkeeper Tomas Vaclik.
The Czechs, who lost to Scotland 1-0 at home last week, levelled in the 26th minute through Matej Vydra's diving header.
The Swedes controlled much of the game and created a number of chances throughout, forcing Vaclik into several sharp saves.
They also welcomed the return of Ibrahimovic, who missed Sweden's friendly against Turkey.
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Thousands pay tribute to Cruyff in 14th minute at Wembley
Reuters
Thousands of fans stood and applauded in a moving 14th-minute tribute to Johan Cruyff during the friendly between England and the Netherlands at Wembley on Tuesday.
The great Dutch player and coach, who wore the number 14 shirt for most of his glittering career, died last Thursday from lung cancer aged 68.
"Johan Cruyff 1947-2016" was displayed on the electronic boards surrounding the pitch, while Cruyff's face was shown on the giant scoreboards. The Wembley arch that spans the stadium and can be seen across London was lit up in orange, the national Dutch colors.
source: www.abs-cbnnews.com
