World Cup quarterfinals: Morocco on the verge of history against ...

CNN —

Morocco already caused the upset of the round of 16 when it beat Spain on penalties to make it to the quarterfinals for the first time in its history, but the North Africans will have to replicate their heroics if they want to get past a reinvigorated Portugal.

Later in the day, the blockbuster final game of the quarterfinals will pit old foes England and France against each other.

Morocco looks to continue dream run

“Before it was just the Moroccans who supported us, now it is the Africans and Arabs,” Morocco manager Walid Regragui said about his team’s journey.

The Moroccans have become the darlings of the World Cup. At the first “Arab” World Cup, they became the first Arab nation to qualify for the quarterfinals of the World Cup and, as the first African side to qualify for the quarterfinals in over a decade, they represent so much more than just their own nation.

Born in Madrid, Achraf Hakimi scored the goal to knock Spain out of the World Cup. Ulrik Pedersen/DeFodi Images/Getty Images

But this has not been the heroic performance of an underdog riding its luck.

The Moroccans have the meanest defense at the competition, conceding only a single own goal so far. Despite having the most difficult run to the last eight of any of the quarterfinalists – playing fellow quarterfinalist Croatia, Belgium and 2010 World Cup champion Spain along the way – only Argentina has conceded less shots than the Atlas Lions.

When teams do get shots off, they have to contend with Yassine “Bono” Bounou. The Sevilla keeper has not conceded a goal to an opposition player in over 300 minutes of football, including a penalty shootout where he saved two penalties.

After three or four key players were injured in its previous match against Spain and a grueling fixture list which included matches against nations ranked second, seventh and 12th in the world, Morocco is down to its bare bones. But that will not dampen the team’s spirit or ambition.

When asked about making a run deep into the tournament, head coach Regragui said, “At some point in Africa, we have to be ambitious and why not win the World Cup?”

In Morocco’s way of more history is a Portuguese side that looked, for the first time under Fernando Santos, to be fully unshackled and playing to its attack potential as it thrashed Switzerland 6-1.

But in order to realize the team’s potential, Santos made the hardest decision of his career, dropping the nation’s greatest ever player, Cristiano Ronaldo. Despite his glittering career and a title as the greatest goalscorer international football has ever seen (118 goals in 194 caps), there are signs that age is finally catching up with the five-time Ballon d’Or winner.

Ronaldo is yet to score a goal in a World Cup knockout game. lorencia Tan Jun/PxImages/Icon Sportswire/Getty Images

In contrast to the 37-year-old’s place as one of the most famous athletes, his replacement Gonçalo Ramos was making his first ever start for the national team, and he took his chance with aplomb.

The 21-year-old Benfica striker scored three goals to help Portugal dominate the Swiss. The last player to score a hat-trick on his World Cup full debut was Miroslav Klose, who is now the competition’s all-time record scorer.

But Ramos is not the only player who has been set free by the absence of Ronaldo. His former Manchester United teammate Bruno Fernandes was at his creative best and Atlético Madrid star João Félix looked like the player who has been long considered the man to take up the torch from Ronaldo.

The last time the two teams met was in the group stage of the 2018 World Cup in a frenetic game which Ronaldo settled with the only goal of the contest.

No team has scored more than Portugal’s 12 at the World Cup, but will the unstoppable Portugal be able to beat the immovable Morocco?

England looks to upset Mbappé and France

The biggest match of the round is left for last as world champion France, looking to become the first country in 60 years to retain the World Cup, takes on an England team on the verge of reaching only its third semifinal.

Despite both sides featuring some of the world’s best players, eyes inevitably turn to Kylian Mbappé. The PSG forward has been nothing short of sensational this tournament. He has scored five goals in just three starts so far, already surpassing his total from 2018.

Mbappé has already surpassed Cristiano Ronalo's World Cup goal scoring record and is level with Lionel Messi on nine. Francois Nel/Getty Images

The biggest question ahead of the game is whether England can shackle the forward.

“England will have prepared for Kylian, but he is in a position to make the difference,” France coach Didier Deschamps said. “We have other players, but Kylian is Kylian and he can make the difference.”

Kyle Walker, who will likely be the defender tasked with stopping Mbappé, was confident when asked about it.

“I do understand what I need to do and that is to stop him,” he said. “It’s probably easier said than done, but I don’t underestimate myself.”

But Mbappé is not the only French threat going forward. On the opposite flank is Ousmane Dembélé who is not the complete product like Mbappé but is no less dangerous with his blistering pace and dribbling. In between the speedsters is Olivier Giroud, who became France’s all-time record goal scorer earlier in the tournament while operating as a foil for the wide men.

Behind the front three is Atlético man Antoine Griezmann, who after a difficult few seasons, looks back to being the player who took both Euro 2016 and the 2018 World Cup by storm.

Despite the excellent performances of Harry Maguire and John Stones in the heart of the English defense so far, they have not been tested by anything close to this attack at a major tournament.

Harry Kane is England's all-time top scorer at major tournaments with 11 goals. Dan Mullan/Getty Images

However, unlike in previous tournaments, England has plenty of tools of its own to hurt a vulnerable French defense.

Along with Portugal, the Three Lions are the top scorers in Qatar. They won their previous two matches 3-0, and for the first time this century, come into this match with more depth in their team than their opponents who have been hampered by a host of injuries.

Like Giroud, Harry Kane is on the verge of becoming England’s all-time record goal scorer. He is now only one goal behind Wayne Rooney’s record of 53.

Bukayo Saka and Marcus Rashford both have three goals a piece despite neither being guaranteed a starting spot and Jordan Henderson has made an unexpected return to the starting lineup with excellent results. The Liverpool captain scored the opener against Senegal and has added much needed balance to the team.

With two stellar attacks – and two unconvincing defenses – this game has the potential to be the best of the entire tournament.

Where and when?

Morocco vs Portugal: Saturday, December 10, 10 a.m. ET at the Al Thumama Stadium

England vs France: Saturday, December 10, 2 p.m. ET and the Al Bayt Stadium

How to watch

US: Fox Sports

UK: BBC or ITV

Australia: SBS

Brazil: SportTV

Germany: ARD, ZDF, Deutsche Telekom

Canada: Bell Media

Cristiano Ronaldo: Has Portuguese star ruined his legacy after TV ...

CNN —

“You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain,” Harvey Dent says in Batman’s “The Dark Knight,” foreshadowing his descent from a hero to a villain.

Could the same be said about Cristiano Ronaldo?

It is no secret that the Portuguese superstar has not enjoyed a fairytale reunion with Manchester United ever since he returned to Old Trafford last year.

In the latest twist in the saga between Ronaldo and United, clips from an explosive interview with Piers Morgan for Talk TV were released this week in which Ronaldo said he had been “betrayed” by the club.

The full interview will be released over two nights on Wednesday and Thursday.

Ronaldo's relationship with Erik ten Hag has been strenuous since the Dutchman took charge at United. Matthew Ashton/AMA/Getty Images

Specifically, Ronaldo is unhappy with new Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag, who dropped the forward after he left Manchester United’s game against Tottenham Hotspur last month before the end of the match.

“I don’t have respect for him because he doesn’t show respect for me,” Ronaldo said. “If you don’t have respect for me, I’m never gonna have respect for you.”

The end of an unhappy marriage

Ronaldo enjoyed unprecedented success at Manchester United after joining the club in the summer of 2003. Over the next six years, he would transform himself from a tricky winger into the best player in the world – collecting the first of his five Ballon d’Ors in 2008.

In that time, he won three Premier League titles, the FA Cup, two League Cups and the Champions League – a tournament with which Ronaldo has since become synonymous.

But since returning to England, he has not enjoyed the same success. Last season was Ronaldo’s first in 17 years in which he did not win any trophies, a stretch going back to his first stint at the club.

Since trying to force a move away from United over the summer, Ronaldo has featured sparingly, only making 16 appearances for the Red Devils.

That number is unlikely to increase after the Talk TV interview, which may well spell the end of his time in Manchester.

Ronaldo now says he feels like he was being forced out of the club by ten Hag, but what he failed to mention was that he was the one pushing for a move in the summer after United failed to qualify for the Champions League.

In the interview, he also reflected on his personal tragedy. Earlier this year, he and his partner, Georgina Rodríguez, announced their baby son had died.

Ronaldo also said his baby daughter ended up in the hospital this year, which he cited as the reason he missed the majority of preseason training with United.

Ronaldo also took shots at his former Champions League winning teammates Wayne Rooney and Gary Neville . Franck Fife/AFP/Getty Images

But after taking aim at his coach, former teammates, the club, and the owners, many have been dismayed by Ronaldo’s swipes at his employer.

“I’m totally baffled and confused as to why he’s done this interview,” former England international turned pundit Jermaine Jenas said on BBC’s Match Of The Day 2.

“We’ve seen nothing but almost petulance throughout the whole year with the walking down the tunnel. Today he was supposedly ill. Now he’s doing interviews with Piers Morgan.

“He’s a frustrated player. Whether he feels lied to or not, today just doesn’t feel right to me. He has to be [done at United].”

Beth Tucker, a presenter for United fan channel The United Stand, appreciated Ronaldo’s criticism of the United ownership, but not of how he treated the club or ten Hag.

“If he wanted to hit the club, he should have come out against the Glazers. He shouldn’t have come out against the manager as well,” Tucker said on The United Stand.

“He thinks he is [bigger than Ten Hag] and in the footballing world he is, but at Manchester United right now he’s not. No player is bigger than the club and the manager.”

Salary and behavior turn clubs away from Ronaldo

This summer, Ronaldo was linked with a variety of teams, including Atlético Madrid, Chelsea, Napoli, Bayern Munich and even a return to Sporting Lisbon, where he emerged as a talent 20 years ago.

But despite his tag as an elite striker and his haul of 18 goals last season, Ronaldo seemed incapable of attracting any offers to take him away from United.

One of the reasons is his immense salary at United, which his current deal believed to be in the region of $560,000 a week.

But the bigger turn off for clubs may be the behavior of Ronaldo, who has now twice left matches early this season and has done an interview in which he openly disparages his club.

Manchester United beat Fulham on Sunday, taking the club to fifth place in the Premier League table. Andrew Boyers/Action Images/Reuters

When Bayern was connected to signing Ronaldo this summer, the club’s CEO Oliver Kahn was quick to say that the player “wouldn’t be a fit.”

He said: “I love Cristiano Ronaldo and everyone knows how fantastic he is. But every club has a certain philosophy and I’m not sure if it would be the right thing for Bayern and the Bundesliga if we signed him now.”

Despite his impressive personal haul last season, Ronaldo was routinely criticized for his behavior at United – both on and off the pitch, where other players seemed to be sacrificing their own talent to service the superstar.

Where does Ronaldo go now

On Monday, Ronaldo tweeted that he had “total and absolute focus on the work of the national team” ahead of the World Cup, which gets underway this week.

When contacted by CNN, Man United and the Glazer family said they had no further comment following an original statement on the matter.

In that statement, the club said: “Manchester United notes the media coverage regarding an interview by Cristiano Ronaldo. The club will consider its response after the full facts have been established.

“Our focus remains on preparing for the second half of the season and continuing the momentum, belief and togetherness being built among the players, manager, staff, and fans.”

Some, including former United defender Rio Ferdinand, believe Ronaldo’s association with the club will have to come to an end.

“This has all been manufactured for one thing – and that’s for him to leave the club,” Ferdinand said on his Vibe with Five podcast.

“I don’t feel the club will take him back and I don’t think that he wants to come back. This is all manufactured for that reason.”

This year's World Cup will likely be Ronaldo's last appearance at the biggest tournament in football. Octavio Passos/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images

Ronaldo still holds phenomenal commercial value as a player and is the most followed person on the planet on social media platforms. Even with his incredible salary, most club accountants would say it is worth signing him.

But Ronaldo has struggled to find his place of late, demanding that a club not only incorporates him in the team, but also builds the team around him. For a 37-year-old arguably past his best, that is not something clubs are looking to do.

After this interview, it is also clear Ronaldo is a potential liability for an elite team and most clubs will now look at signing the forward with less wonder and more caution.

Once a hero of the game, he is in danger of quickly becoming a villain.

Diego Maradona: How the 'world's most famous football' became a ...

CNN —

The two goals are perhaps as famous as each other – the first fabled for its audacity and guile, the second for its brilliant, breathtaking skill.

Just four minutes separate Diego Maradona’s two memorable contributions at Mexico City’s Estadio Azteca 36 years ago, and together they typify Argentina’s flawed genius and beloved footballing icon.

“The Hand of God” – when Maradona rose above England goalkeeper Peter Shilton and punched the ball into the net – needs little introduction to football fans of any era, while his slaloming run through the heart of England’s defense moments later was voted the Goal of the Century.

It comes as little surprise, then, that the match ball from that day in Mexico City – now deflated and faded in places – was tipped to fetch up to $3.3 million at auction on Wednesday.

“Without a doubt, it’s the world’s most famous football,” Terry Butcher, who captained England during the 2-1 defeat against Argentina at the 1986 World Cup, tells CNN Sport.

Maradona runs clear of Butcher (left) to score against England. STAFF/AFP/AFP via Getty Images

Even being in the presence of the ball, as he was at Wembley Stadium in London ahead of the auction, brings back uneasy memories for Butcher.

It’s a reminder of how he remonstrated with Tunisian referee Ali Bin Nasser after Maradona’s first goal, and of how he tried in vain to stop the second with an outstretched leg.

“It’s really weird to be in the same room as the ball, it’s difficult to explain,” Butcher adds. “It’s quite surreal in many respects … That ball – it’s the biggest injustice the world’s ever seen when it comes to football matches.”

‘Hand of God’ controversy

In the aftermath of his death two years ago, memorabilia from Maradona’s life and career have fetched huge sums at auction.

In May, the jersey he wore against England sold for $9.3 million, at the time making it the most expensive piece of sports memorabilia in history.

As for the match ball, it is currently owned by Nasser after FIFA, football’s global governing body, declared that referees would get to keep the ball after each game they officiated at the 1986 World Cup.

The match ball from the 1986 World Cup quarterfinal is expected to sell for up to $3.3 million. ISABEL INFANTES/AFP/AFP via Getty Images

Nasser is 78 now and his refereeing days are long behind him. With the proceeds from the sale, which is being overseen by Graham Budd Auctions in the UK, he will donate some of the money to charity and says the remainder will “raise my standard of life a little.”

“It is a gift from God,” Nasser tells CNN Sport, “because I had a career of 25 years … and I made all the decisions that needed to be made.”

Asked about Maradona’s first goal and Nasser is eager to defend his reasons for letting it stand.

FIFA’s instructions for the tournament, he says, were to rely on other match officials if they had a better view of an incident. Unable to see what had happened in the aerial contest between Maradona and Shilton, Nasser instead turned to his linesman, Bulgarian Bogdan Dochev.

“[Dochev] arrived at the center line, which means the goal is 100% valid,” says Nasser, adding that he “applied the FIFA guidelines regarding the first goal.”

Maradona's controversial hand ball gave Argentina a 1-0 lead against England at the 1986 World Cup. Bob Thomas/Getty Images/file

For his part, Dochev, who passed away five years ago, said he thought he saw “something irregular” about the goal, but claimed FIFA protocols didn’t allow assistants to discuss decisions with the referee. The fallout from the incident would tarnish his refereeing career.

“Diego Maradona ruined my life,” Dochev later told Bulgarian media in the years before his death. “He is a brilliant footballer but a small man. He is low in height and as a person too.”

‘A genius footballer’

While multiple balls would be used over the course of a match in today’s game, back then only one was used for the full 90 minutes.

According to Graham Budd, the auction house chairman at Graham Budd Auctions, Nasser’s ball has been cross-checked against match footage and high-res photographs, while an independent body has also verified it as the original.

With the World Cup beginning in Qatar on Sunday, this week was an optimum time for the ball to go up for auction.

There were hopes it would become the most expensive sports ball ever sold at auction by eclipsing the $3 million paid for Mark McGwire’s 70th home run baseball in 1999.

However, after receiving interest from several potential buyers, Graham Budd Auctions said negotiations between the seller and interested parties are ongoing after the bidding failed to reach the pre-sale reserve.

Ali Bin Nasser speaks to the media following Maradona's death two years ago. FETHI BELAID/AFP/AFP via Getty Images

The ball’s sizable price tag is not only derived from the nature of Maradona’s two interventions.

The match was the first time England and Argentina had met on a sporting arena since the Falklands or Malvinas War four years earlier, and many of the players had – at least on Argentina’s side – friends or relatives who had been conscripted to fight in the war.

That backdrop created a sense of drama well before the “Hand of God” took center stage.

“We had an energy, a great desire to win, not just because it was England, but also so that our country could in one way be happy,” Jorge Luis Burruchaga, who would go on to score the winning goal in the final for Argentina against West Germany, told CNN Sport four years ago.

“We were aware that we wouldn’t bring back the dead of the Falklands War, but we were aware that we would bring some happiness.”

Former England international Peter Reid also acknowledges the political context of the game, which he says contributes to the “unique” status of the match ball.

“There’s a lot of Argentinians there, there was a lot of pressure on both sets of players, and that’s when he [Maradona] handled the pressure really well,” says Reid. “Whatever you say, he was a genius footballer.”

And as for the first goal? “Listen, he’s cheated,” adds Reid, “but he’s been very clever as well.”

Despite his decades-long career in football as a player and manager, Reid says he still gets mocked for being outpaced by Maradona for the second goal – even by the man himself when the pair met in Jordan many years later.

And while it was Nasser who kept the “Hand of God” match ball from that game and his old teammate Steve Hodge who kept Maradona’s shirt, Reid did end up with a gift from his wily opponent – albeit decades after they had faced each other in Mexico City.

“He came with a signed shirt for me: ‘To my friend. Lots of love, Diego Maradona,’” says Reid. “I’ve got that on my wall, so that’s not a bad one. I’ll hold onto it.”

Solskjaer starts Man U with win; Man City and Chelsea lose

AP

Manchester United was stunning and Manchester City was stunned.

United responded to a change in coach by producing a rampant display to thrash lowly Cardiff 5-1 hours after English Premier League leader City slumped to a first defeat at home, to struggling Crystal Palace 3-2 on Saturday.

Former striker Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, back at United as manager in midweek after Jose Mourinho was sacked, appeared to give the team a new lease of life as it turned on the style in the Welsh capital.

The last time United scored five goals was in Alex Ferguson's last match in charge in May 2013, a 5-5 draw with West Bromwich Albion.

Meanwhile, City's loss brought to an end its 100 percent home record in the league, and left leader Liverpool four points clear at the top after 18 rounds.

In another upset, former England striker Jamie Vardy scored to guide Leicester to a 1-0 victory at Stamford Bridge and inflict on fourth-placed Chelsea its first loss at home, also.

Arsenal drew level on points with Chelsea after easing past Burnley 3-1.

Southampton won for the second successive match under new coach Ralph Hasenhuttl when it defeated Huddersfield 3-1, while Watford ended West Ham's run of four consecutive victories by winning at London Stadium 2-0.

Bournemouth beat Brighton 2-0, and Newcastle's home game with Fulham ended 0-0.

UNITED BACK ON SONG

Manchester United's often ponderous style was one of the reasons Mourinho was fired. Solskjaer promised more attacking intent upon his appointment and the former Norway forward was as good as his word as his new team romped to victory at Cardiff.

Former captain Wayne Rooney summed up the drastic change of mood at United when he said, "The players obviously looked a bit restricted (before). The players have ability and today we've seen that. A lot of things were happening around the team and around the manager, which isn't good.

"Ole's given them that freedom," he told BT Sport. "It's a fantastic day for the club."

Jesse Lingard struck two goals, one a penalty, while Marcus Rashford, Ander Herrera, and Anthony Martial were also on target for the visitors.

Victor Camarasa replied with a penalty for Cardiff.

United was still in sixth place but Chelsea's defeat means the Old Trafford club was only eight points off the Champions League qualifying positions.

TOWNSEND SCORCHER

Palace forward Andros Townsend scored one of the goals of the season as Palace won at Manchester City for the first time in 28 years.

Ilkay Gundogan headed the home team in front before Jeffrey Schlupp equalized.

Townsend then turned the match on its head in spectacular fashion when the ball dropped invitingly toward the former England international 30 meters out, and he met it with a ferocious volley that flew into the roof of the net.

Luka Milivojevic made it 3-1 for Palace with a 51st-minute penalty.

Kevin De Bruyne pulled one back late on but it proved too little, too late for City.

"Palace had three shots on target and scored three goals," City coach Pep Guardiola said. "Football is like this."

Roy Hodgson's mood was rather different after his Palace side climbed to 14th place.

"You don't produce that sort of performance by waving a magic wand or having a five-minute team talk, there's a lot of work that goes into that structure and we were excellent," Hodgson said.

"We are playing against a team with enormous skill levels and their focus, their ability to sustain attacks, is an example to us all."

BRIDGE OF SIGHS

Leicester won at Chelsea for the first time in 18 years thanks to Vardy's sixth goal of the season.

A run of two victories in 12 games led to media speculation that Claude Puel's job as Leicester manager was in jeopardy.

Vardy said on Friday that Puel's patient playing style did not suit him but his goal showed the value of having a top striker in the team. The Stamford Bridge crowd was left stunned in the 51st minute when Ricardo Pereira made a strong run down the right before finding James Maddison and he set up Vardy.

OTHER RESULTS

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored twice and Alex Iwobi also struck in Arsenal's win over Burnley.

Troy Deeney's penalty and a goal from Gerard Deulofeu steered Watford past West Ham.

Nathan Redmond, Danny Ings, and Michael Obafemi netted in Southampton's win at Huddersfield.

Wales international David Brooks scored twice in Bournemouth's win against Brighton, for which captain Lewis Dunk was sent off in the 73rd minute for two yellow cards.

___

More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/apf-Soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

England cruises past Senegal 3-0 to reach World Cup quarterfinals ...

CNN —

England reached the quarterfinals of the World Cup for a second tournament in a row thanks to a comprehensive 3-0 victory over Senegal.

It was a sluggish start from the Three Lions, but two quickfire goals from Jordan Henderson and Harry Kane at the end of the first half sparked a brilliant performance and put Gareth Southgate’s men in complete control of the match.

Kane’s goal was his 11th for England at a major tournament, the most by any Three Lions player in history.

Bukayo Saka added gloss to the scoreline in the second half, dinking the ball wonderfully over Senegal keeper Edouard Mendy after being found by Phil Foden’s low cross, as Aliou Cissé’s side never looked like it was getting back into the game.

The result and performance are as good as England has produced in knockout football under Southgate and will undoubtedly have set off renditions of ‘It’s Coming Home’ up and down the country.

Reaching the semifinals of the 2018 World Cup and the final of Euro 2020 has given this side invaluable experience in the latter stages of tournament football and fans will be hopeful this group of players can finally put an end to 56 years of hurt.

Jordan Henderson finished off a flowing team move for the opening goal. Alex Pantling/The FA Collection/Getty Images

Slow start, fast finish

This England team is without a doubt one of the best at this tournament and the players will be confident of improving on their semifinal appearance in Russia four years ago.

England fans have grown weary of disappointment and heartbreak in the years since the country’s only major trophy win at the 1966 World Cup, and since taking over as manager in 2016, Gareth Southgate has given supporters renewed hope of finally ending that barren run.

The lead up to this tournament was far from ideal, however, as England suffered relegation from its Nations League group and was on the receiving end of some surprise defeats: the worst, a 4-0 hammering at home to Hungary.

But this team is tournament hardened, reaching the semifinal and then the final of its last two major competitions, and the players have turned it on when it’s mattered.

No team earned more points or scored more goals than England during the group stages and Southgate has the enviable problem of trying to pick from a plethora of attacking talent.

Given the vast amount of quality options in attack at the manager’s disposal, the former England international has been criticized at times for his conservative team selection and tactics, but it’s an approach that has so far served him well.

Senegal started the game on the front foot and dominated the opening stages. Francisco Seco/AP

Southgate certainly hadn’t changed that approach here in what was an extremely cagey opening 25 minutes, and it was Senegal that had the first real chance of the game.

Harry Maguire, arguably England’s best player so far in this tournament, gave the ball away in a dangerous area which led to a brilliant chance for Ismaila Sarr, but he skied his effort over the bar under pressure from Jordan Pickford.

Despite the absence of star man Sadio Mané through injury, this Senegal team still boasts quality all over the pitch and England certainly would not have been taking the African champions lightly.

Senegal has grown into the tournament, improving with each passing game. The Lions of Teranga stepped it up once again against England and were undoubtedly the best team of the opening half an hour.

It was another England error, this time from John Stones while under pressure, that gave Senegal another opening, with Boulaye Dia drawing a smart save from Pickford.

But just when Senegal was really beginning to dominate, England countered with a sucker punch seven minutes before halftime.

Henderson finished off a sweeping counterattack, steering the ball home from inside the penalty area after being found by Jude Bellingham’s low cross.

That goal sparked England to life and the Three Lions finished the first half strongly, with Kane – still without a goal in this tournament – and Luke Shaw spurning good opportunities.

England will play France in an epic quarterfinal on Saturday. Carl Recine/Reuters

With the last kick of the half, England doubled its lead and put one foot into the quarterfinals.

It was only a matter of time before Kane got on the score sheet, with the Tottenham Hotspur forward finishing off another counterattack that was again started by Bellingham.

The Borussia Dortmund midfielder, still only 19 years old, was having a remarkable first half; it was an individual performance as good as any so far at this World Cup.

That quickfire double forced Senegal manager Aliou Cissé into making three substitutions at halftime, but his changes had very little effect on the game, if any.

The result was put beyond any doubt a little over 10 minutes into the second half, as Saka’s cute finish capped off another wonderful England move. Fans of the Three Lions have been used to nerve-racking matches over the years, but those second 45 minutes were likely the most relaxed supporters have been watching this team in a knockout match for years.

This victory sets up a mouthwatering clash against Kylian Mbappé and defending champion France in the quarterfinals, with the two European powerhouses battling it out for a place in the last four on Saturday.

Kylian Mbappé: Why the 'unstoppable' star now wears the crown as ...

CNN —

At just 23, Kylian Mbappé has won more in his short career than most players are ever able to achieve.

He’s already claimed five domestic titles in France, scored 250 career goals and, four years ago, lifted the World Cup trophy.

Despite already proving he belongs among the elite, Mbappé has continued to improve season upon season and this year’s World Cup arguably feels like the moment he steps out alone as the best player in the world.

It’s a title that doesn’t come without dispute, though.

While an aging Cristiano Ronaldo can no longer stake a claim, Mbappé’s Paris Saint-Germain teammate Lionel Messi – who has won seven Ballon d’Or awards – has produced some mesmeric performances for Argentina in Qatar. And let’s not forget players such as Erling Haaland, who failed to qualify for the tournament with Norway, but who promises to challenge Mbappé for accolades.

But, with this being Messi’s final World Cup, former France international and current Bordeaux coach Rio Mavuba says this tournament has seen the baton of greatness passed onto Mbappé.

“In this World Cup, it’s been the transfer of power from Messi to Mbappé,” he told CNN, ahead of the pair’s showdown in the World Cup final on Sunday.

“Messi is still one of the greatest, maybe the best player of all time, but, at this point, Mbappé can eat at the same table as Messi.

“When he’s focused, he’s probably the best player in the world.”

Messi and Mbappé both play for French club Paris-Saint Germain. GABRIEL BOUYS/AFP/AFP via Getty Images

Mavuba made 13 appearances for France and was included in Didier Deschamps’ squad for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

He’s watched from afar as a young Mbappé has matured quickly into France’s most important player and says the attacker’s pace and finishing prowess makes him “unstoppable” at times.

Mbappé was born and raised in Bondy, a suburb of Paris 11 kilometers from the city center and, aside from a two-year spell playing for Monaco, has lived in the French capital his entire life.

His spell at Monaco, where he won his first league title, caught the world’s attention and the teenage sensation moved to PSG in 2017, initially on loan for the first year.

The deal was reported to be worth $214 million but Mbappé seemed to take it all in his stride.

Despite all the trophies he’s won and goals he’s scored, Mavuba says the forward is only now coming into his prime.

“For sure, he’s got a lot of speed but I think the best skill is he can do a lot of things. He can run fast, he can dribble, he can score, this is why it’s very difficult to catch him,” he said.

‘He’s been gifted’

While Mbappé’s physical attributes are undeniable, it’s his ability to cope with such intense pressure that separates him from the others, according to former Paris Saint-Germain captain Didier Domi.

Domi, who played over 100 games for PSG and who now works for the club’s academy in Qatar, says Mbappé holds the weight of a nation on his shoulders but it seems his value reaches beyond just his performances on the pitch, and into the political arena.

French President Emmanuel Macron intervened earlier this year to implore the young star to stay at PSG amid a transfer saga involving Spanish giant Real Madrid.

But despite all the pressure that comes both on and off the field, Mbappé continues to produce the goods.

“His game is so unbelievable but the way he lifts the team, this is what has impressed me the most, mentally,” Domi told CNN.

“We know his qualities with his feet but mentally he’s staying in that zone, as a leader, always being crucial for the team. It’s impressive.

“He’s got a talent, of course, but he’s got a talent in his head as well. He controls his nerves and that’s part of the game.

“It’s unbelievable, he doesn’t feel pressure. He’s been gifted.”

Mbappé has torn defenses apart with his pace at Qatar 2022. Francois Nel/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images

While Mbappé has likely over a decade left to play at the top level, Qatar 2022 also marks the end of arguably the greatest rivalry in football history – with it being the last time we see Ronaldo and Messi play at a World Cup.

But as that chapter closes, Mbappé has the chance to take center stage.

“He [Mbappé] will be the legacy of Messi and Ronaldo, maybe he’s already the best player in the world,” Domi added.

“He doesn’t have the vision of Messi but, at his best, Mbappé is the best player in the world. He can make a difference at every moment.”

Better than Zidane?

Mbappé has scored five goals in Qatar – level as top goalscorer with Messi – bringing his World Cup total to nine from just two tournaments.

Just Fontaine is the only Frenchman to score more World Cup goals – netting all 13 of his efforts in 1958.

More importantly, Mbappé is on the verge of winning his second successive World Cup, something that would make him potentially the greatest French player in history, according to Mavuba.

“If he won the second World Cup, he’d probably be the best French player,” Mavuba said.

“I love [Zinedine] Zidane but imagine, 23 years old, two World Cups, he’d be the best.”

Lionel Messi holds up the World Cup trophy after Argentina defeated France in the tournament final on Sunday, December 18. Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post/Getty Images Argentina fans celebrate in Buenos Aires. Rodrigo Abd/AP Messi holds the Golden Ball trophy, awarded to the tournament's top player, while kissing the World Cup trophy. Julian Finney/Getty Images Argentina players react after Gonzalo Montiel scored his penalty to clinch the shootout victory. Julian Finney/Getty Images French star Kylian Mbappé sits on the team's bench after the loss. Franck Fife/AFP/Getty Images French players react during the penalty shootout. Julian Finney/Getty Images Montiel becomes emotional after slotting home the winning penalty. Ian MacNicol/Getty Images Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez celebrates after blocking Kingsley Coman's penalty in the shootout. Natacha Pisarenko/AP Mbappé scored a penalty late in extra time to force the shootout. He scored all of France's three goals. Natacha Pisarenko/AP Messi scored for Argentina in extra time, giving his team a brief 3-2 lead. Hannah Mckay/Reuters Mbappé slams home his team's second goal to tie the match at 2-2 in the second half. It came just moments after he scored on a penalty. Dan Mullan/Getty Images Argentina's Julián Álvarez, left, competes with France's Dayot Upamecano. Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto/Getty Images Angel Di Maria celebrates after scoring Argentina's second goal in the first half. Argentina led 2-0 at halftime. Catherine Ivill/Getty Images Di Maria slots the ball past France goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, finishing an Argentina counterattack for the 2-0 lead. Dan Mullan/Getty Images Messi opens the scoring with a penalty in the 23rd minute. Matthias Hangst/Getty Images Messi celebrates after converting his penalty. Dan Mullan/Getty Images Players line up for the national anthems before the final at the Lusail Stadium. Christophe Ena/AP Croatia players celebrate after defeating Morocco 2-1 in the World Cup's third-place match on Saturday, December 17. David Ramos/FIFA/Getty Images Croatia captain Luka Modrić celebrates with his daughter after the medal ceremony on Saturday. Francisco Seco/AP Morocco's Achraf Dari scores a header to tie the match against Croatia. Croatia ultimately regained the lead with a goal from Mislav Oršić. Alex Livesey - Danehouse/Getty Images Croatia's Joško Gvardiol, right, celebrates after scoring his side's opening goal against Morocco. Francisco Seco/AP French players celebrate after defeating Morocco 2-0 in the World Cup semifinals on Wednesday, December 14. Ulrik Pedersen/DeFodi Images/Getty Images Morocco's Jawad El Yamiq attempts a bicycle kick during the first half against France. His shot clanged off the post. Fabio Ferrari/LaPresse/Sipa Morocco fans show their support at Wednesday's semifinal. Buda Mendes/Getty Images Theo Hernandez scores France's opening goal early in the match against Morocco. Dan Mullan/Getty Images Argentina star Lionel Messi, left, celebrates with teammate Julián Álvarez after Álvarez scored his first of two goals against Croatia in the World Cup semifinals on Tuesday, December 13. Messi scored the other goal on a first-half penalty. Richard Heathcote/Getty Images Croatian defender Joško Gvardiol reacts in the net after Álvarez scored to put Argentina up 3-0. Martin Meissner/AP Argentina players celebrate their 2-0 lead in the first half. David Ramos/FIFA/Getty Images Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez reaches out for a save against Croatia. Markus Gilliar/GES Sportfoto/Getty Images England's Mason Mount appears dejected as French players celebrate their 2-1 quarterfinal win at the World Cup on December 10. Robbie Jay Barratt/AMAGetty Images French players try to block a Marcus Rashford free kick late in the match. Michael Regan/FIFA/Getty Images Olivier Giroud celebrates after scoring a goal for France that turned out to be the match-winner. Marc Atkins/Getty Images England's Harry Kane scores a penalty to even up the score against France. But he missed a penalty in the second half with France leading 2-1. Clive Brunskill/Getty Images Aurélien Tchouaméni celebrates after scoring France's opening goal against England. Dylan Martinez/Reuters French star Kylian Mbappé is tackled by England's Declan Rice. Matthias Hangst/Getty Images A memorial for American journalist Grant Wahl sits in the press area of Al Bayt Stadium on December 10. Wahl died after collapsing during the quarterfinal match between Argentina and the Netherlands. His wife, Dr. Celine Gounder, said he died of an aortic aneurysm that ruptured. Hector Vivas/FIFA/Getty Images Morocco players celebrate after defeating Portugal 1-0 on December 10. The "Atlas Lions" made history by becoming the first African team to reach a World Cup semifinal. Tom Weller/dpa/Getty Images Morocco fans celebrate in the stands following their team's victory on December 10. Justin Setterfield/Getty Images Sofiane Boufal of Morocco celebrates with a family member. Mike Hewitt/FIFA/Getty Images Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo sinks to the ground beside Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bounou. Manan Vatsyayana/AFP/Getty Images Youssef En-Nesyri heads the ball to score Morocco's goal against Portugal. Francois Nel/Getty Images Players from Argentina, top, and the Netherlands react at the end of the penalty shootout that decided their quarterfinal match at the World Cup on December 9. Argentina prevailed on spot kicks after the match ended 2-2. Paul Childs/Reuters Argentina's Lionel Messi, left, and Leandro Paredes celebrate their berth in the semifinals. Ricardo Mazalan/AP Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez tries to shake Teun Koopmeiners' hand during the shootout. Elsa/Getty Images Martinez saves the penalty of Dutch captain Virgil van Dijk early in the shootout. Martinez made two saves in the shootout, which finished 4-3 for Argentina. Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters Dutch players celebrate after Wout Weghorst scored late into second-half stoppage time to extend the match. Patrick Smith/FIFA/Getty Images Weghorst overpowers Enzo Fernández on a carefully orchestrated set play to tie the match at 2-2. Patrick Smith/FIFA/Getty Images Van Dijk knocks over Paredes as Dutch players run onto the field in the second half. The skirmish started after a hard Paredes foul on Nathan Aké. Paredes then smashed the ball into the Dutch bench. Matthias Hangst/Getty Images Brazilian star Neymar is comforted by Dani Alves after Brazil were knocked out of the World Cup by Croatia on December 9. Croatia won a penalty shootout after the match ended 1-1. Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images Croatian goalkeeper Dominik Livaković celebrates after Marquinhos hit the post on the last kick of the penalty shootout. It was Croatia's second straight shootout win in this World Cup. Matthew Childs/Reuters Croatian players run around the field and celebrate their victory as Marquinhos, bottom right, falls to his knees. Alessandra Tarantino/AP Croatia's Borna Sosa hits Antony in the face while tussling for position. Frank Augstein/AP Neymar opens the scoring in extra time after the match went scoreless in regulation. With the goal, he tied Pelé as Brazil's all-time goalscorer. But Croatia would tie the match a few minutes later with a goal from Bruno Petković. Manu Fernandez/AP Gonçalo Ramos celebrates his first of three goals in Portugal's 6-1 thrashing of Switzerland on December 6. The win booked Portugal's spot in the quarterfinals. Justin Setterfield/Getty Images Pepe scores Portugal's second goal on December 6. Peter Cziborra/Reuters Portugal manager Fernando Santos speaks with Cristiano Ronaldo before bringing him off the bench against Switzerland. Ronaldo started the first three group-stage games but was replaced by Ramos for the round-of-16 clash. Justin Setterfield/Getty Images Morocco players celebrate after Achraf Hakimi scored to win a penalty shootout against Spain on December 6. The match ended 0-0 before going to the shootout. Wolfgang Rattay/Reuters Morocco's Abdelhamid Sabiri scores during the penalty shootout against Spain. Matthew Childs/Reuters Spain's Aymeric Laporte reacts after the loss to Morocco. Bernadett Szabo/Reuters Morocco goalkeeper Yassine Bounou makes a save near the end of the Spain match. Richard Heathcote/Getty Images Hakimi tries to win the ball from Spain's Dani Olmo, seen in the foreground. Jack Guez/AFP/Getty Images Richarlison, left, scores Brazil's third goal during the World Cup match against South Korea on December 5. Brazil won 4-1 to advance to the quarterfinals. Manu Fernandez/AP From left, Vinicius Junior, Raphinha, Lucas Paqueta and Neymar celebrate after one of Brazil's four first-half goals. Manu Fernandez/AP Mario Pasalic, right, celebrates with goalkeeper Dominik Livaković after Croatia won a penalty shootout over Japan. Livaković made three saves in the shootout after the match ended 1-1. Frank Augstein/AP Livaković saves the first penalty in the shootout against Japan. Marko Djurica/Reuters Croatian midfielder Lovro Majer falls near Japanese midfielder Ao Tanaka. Andrej Isakovic/AFP/Getty Images England players celebrate after Harry Kane scored against Senegal on December 4. England won 3-0 to advance to the quarterfinals. Carl Recine/Reuters A Senegal supporter cheers before the match against England. Anne-Christine Poujoulat/AFP/Getty Images France's Olivier Giroud celebrates scoring his team's first goal against Poland on December 4. With the goal, Giroud became Les Bleus' all-time top goalscorer. France defeated Poland 3-1 to advance to the quarterfinals. Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP/Getty Images France's Dayot Upamecano collides with Poland goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny. Natacha Pisarenko/AP Argentina's Lionel Messi, left, celebrates with teammates after opening the scoring against Australia on December 3. Argentina's 2-1 victory set up a quarterfinal match against the Netherlands. Hector Vivas/FIFA/Getty Images Australian fans in Sydney celebrate their team's goal against Argentina on December 3. Loren Elliott/Reuters US captain Tyler Adams sinks to the ground after the Americans lost 3-1 to the Netherlands on December 3. Dan Mullan/Getty Images The United States' Brenden Aaronson, left, and the Netherlands' Frenkie de Jong battle for the ball on November 3. Elsa/Getty Images Switzerland's Remo Freuler, right, celebrates with Ricardo Rodriguez after scoring the third and decisive goal in the 3-2 victory over Serbia on December 2. With the win, Switzerland advanced to the next stage of the World Cup. Suhaib Salem/Reuters Players argue during the Serbia-Switzerland match. Serbia was eliminated with the loss. Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images Switzerland's Manuel Akanji heads the ball during the Serbia match. Carl Recine/Reuters Dušan Vlahović scores Serbia's second goal on December 2. Suhaib Salem/Reuters Bremer heads the ball for Brazil during the match against Cameroon on December 2. Cameroon came out on top 1-0, but Brazil still won Group G thanks to two earlier victories. Amanda Perobelli/Reuters Bremer controls the ball against Cameroon. Moises Castillo/AP Cameroon's Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting tries to bring the ball down between Fabinho and Éder Militão. Amanda Perobelli/Reuters South Korea's Hwang Hee-chan celebrates December 2 after his team's 2-1 victory over Portugal clinched a spot in the next round. Hwang scored the game-winning goal in second-half stoppage time. Stuart Franklin/Getty Images South Korea's Son Heung-min slides for a tackle against Portugal's João Mário. Portugal lost the match but still won Group H. Glyn Kirk/AFP/Getty Images Portugal's Ruben Neves, left, heads the ball against South Korea. Patricia de Melo Moreira/AFP/Getty Images Uruguay's Giorgian de Arrascaeta scores his second goal in the 2-0 victory over Ghana on December 2. Uruguay finished Group H with the same amount of points as South Korea, but the South Koreans advanced because they scored more goals in the group. Ashley Landis/AP Uruguay's Luis Suarez, foreground, looks to head the ball against Ghana. Siphiwe Sibeko/Reuters Ghana's Inaki Williams leaps for a kick against Uruguay. Serhat Cagdas/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images Japan's Kaoru Mitoma passes the ball near the goal line, leading to a goal that was upheld by a video assistant referee (VAR) review during the match against Spain on December 1. Japan took a 2-1 lead and held on to win by that score. It finished first in Group E while Spain finished second. Petr David Josek/AP Wataru Endo celebrates with teammates after Japan's victory. Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters Spain's Alejandro Balde tries to hold up Japan's Ritsu Doan. Ryan Pierse/Getty Images Germany's Thomas Müller hugs Antonio Rüdiger after their 4-2 win over Costa Rica on December 1. Despite the win, Germany was eliminated from the tournament because Japan defeated Spain. Thaier Al-Sudani/Reuters German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer punches a ball clear against Costa Rica. Ariel Schalit/AP Referee Stephanie Frappart, center, warms up with assistant referees Karen Diaz, left, and Neuza Back before the Germany-Costa Rica match. They made history as the first all-female refereeing crew for a men's World Cup match. Frappert became the first woman to referee a men's World Cup match. Matthew Childs/Reuters Belgium players react after their 0-0 draw against Croatia meant that they would be eliminated on December 1. Belgium finished third at the last World Cup in 2018. Thanassis Stavrakis/AP Belgium's Leandro Trossard, left, and Croatia's Josko Gvardiol compete for a ball. Croatia finished second in Group F to advance to the tournament's knockout stage. Luca Bruno/AP Croatia's Borna Sosa heads the ball near Belgium's Thomas Meunier. Thanassis Stavrakis/AP A Belgium supporter looks dejected after the match against Croatia. Stephane Mahe/Reuters Morocco head coach Walid Regragui is lifted into the air by his team after a 2-1 victory over Canada on December 1. Morocco finished first in Group F. Catherine Ivill/Getty Images Canada's Alistair Johnston tries to head the ball into Morocco's net on December 1. Matthias Hangst/Getty Images Youssef En-Nesyri celebrates after scoring Morocco's second goal against Canada. Carl Recine/Reuters Argentina's Julian Alvarez is put in a headlock by teammate Enzo Fernandez after scoring against Poland on November 30. Argentina won 2-0 to finish first in Group C and advance to the knockout stage. Poland qualified as well despite the loss. Natacha Pisarenko/AP Argentina star Lionel Messi is hit in the face by Poland's Wojciech Szczesny in the first half November 30. A penalty was given after video review, but Szczesny saved Messi's shot. Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images Messi and Poland's Bartosz Bereszynski compete for the ball. Guiseppe Cacace/AFP/Getty Images Mexico's Orbelín Pineda, left, and Saudi Arabia's Mohamed Kanno go for a header during their match on November 30. Mexico won 2-1. Moises Castillo/AP Mexico's Henry Martín scores the first goal against Saudi Arabia. Matthew Childs/Reuters A fan wears La Catrina-style makeup at the start of the Mexico-Saudi Arabia match. Ricardo Mazalan/AP Australia's Mathew Leckie, left, celebrates after scoring the only goal in the 1-0 win over Denmark on November 30. The win advanced the "Socceroos" to the knockout stage. Francisco Seco/AP A Denmark supporter reacts to Australia's goal on November 30. Robbie Jay Barratt/AMA/Getty Images Australia's Riley McGree shields the ball from Denmark's Mikkel Damsgaard. Wolfgang Rattay/Reuters Tunisian players mob teammate Wahbi Khazri after his goal against France on November 30. Tunisia won 1-0, but it was not enough to advance to the knockout stage. France still won Group D. Ian MacNicol/Getty Images Tunisia's Issam Jebali heads the ball next to France's Aurélien Tchouaméni. Christophe Ena/AP American star Christian Pulisic scores the only goal in the match against Iran on November 29. With the victory, the United States advanced to the tournament's knockout stage. Yukihito Taguchi/USA Today Sports/Reuters Iran's Ramin Rezaeian heads the ball during the match against the United States. Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters Shaq Moore slides in for a tackle against Iran's Abolfazl Jalali. Manu Fernandez/AP England's Phil Foden celebrates after scoring his team's second goal in the 3-0 win over Wales on November 29. England won Group B. Markus Gilliar/GES Sportfoto/Getty Images Marcus Rashford scores England's third goal against Wales. He had two goals in the match. Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images Rashford's free kick whizzes by Wales' Danny Ward for England's first goal. Hannah McKay/Pool/Getty Images Wales' Connor Roberts stretches for a ball during the match against England. Abbie Parr/AP Senegal's Ismaila Sarr celebrates after a 2-1 win over Ecuador secured his team's spot in the knockout round of the World Cup. Dylan Martinez/Reuters Senegal's Ismail Jakobs, left, tries to fend off Ecuador's Enner Valencia on November 29. Stephane Mahe/Reuters The Netherlands' Frenkie de Jong scores his team's second goal in the 2-0 victory over Qatar on November 29. The Dutch won Group A. Qatar, the host nation, lost all three of its games. Julian Finney/Getty Images Qatar's Homam Ahmed leaps near the Netherlands' Denzel Dumfries on November 29. Alberto Lingria/Reuters Portugal's Bruno Fernandes celebrates after scoring his second goal in the 2-0 victory over Uruguay on November 28. The win clinched Portugal's spot in the knockout stage. Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images A man runs onto the field with a rainbow flag during the match between Portugal and Uruguay. The man, an Italian named Mario Ferri, was also wearing a shirt that said "save Ukraine" on the front and "respect for Iranian women" on the back. In a series of posts of his Instagram story, Ferri called himself the "new Robin Hood" and said, "Breaking the rules if you do it for a good cause is NEVER A CRIME." He was banned from attending future matches. Abbie Parr/AP Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo tries to head the ball toward goal in the second half of the Uruguay match. He appeared at first to nod in the first goal, but after review it was determined that he didn't touch it and Bruno was credited with the goal. Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP/Getty Images Portugal's Bernardo Silva, left, tries to keep the ball from Uruguay's Mathias Olivera. Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP/Getty Images Brazil's Vinícius Júnior performs a rabona during his team's 1-0 victory over Switzerland on November 28. The Brazilians' win ensured that they would be advancing from their group. Clive Brunskill/Getty Images Brazilian midfielder Casemiro, front left, is mobbed by teammates after scoring against Switzerland. Carl Recine/Reuters Ghana midfielder Mohammed Kudus celebrates a goal during the match against South Korea on November 28. It was his second goal of the day, and it was the difference in Ghana's 3-2 victory. Jung Yeon-je/AFP/Getty Images South Korea's Kim Min-jae, left, and Ghana's Andre Ayew, center, jump for a header during their match on November 28. Lee Jin-man/AP Ghana supporters celebrate victory on November 28. Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images Serbia's Sergej Milinković-Savić celebrates a goal during a 3-3 draw with Cameroon on November 28. Anthony Dibon/Icon Sport/Getty Images Cameroon forward Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting scores his team's third goal against Serbia, tying the match in the second half. Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images Fans of Spain attend the team's match against Germany on November 27. The match ended in a 1-1 draw. Paul Chesterton/Sipa/AP Belgium's Thorgan Hazard, left, and Morocco's Selim Amallah compete for the ball on November 27. Morocco defeated Belgium 2-0. It was Morocco's first World Cup win since 1998 — and its third-ever at the tournament. Mustafa Yalcin/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images Alphonso Davies celebrates after scoring Canada's first-ever World Cup goal on November 27. The goal against Croatia came 68 seconds after kickoff and was the fastest at the 2022 tournament so far. But despite the early lead, Canada lost 4-1. Yukihito Taguchi/USA Today Sports/Reuters Costa Rica's Yeltsin Tejeda and Keysher Fuller celebrate their 1-0 win over Japan on November 27. Fuller scored the winning goal. Issei Kato/Reuters Kylian Mbappé scores his second goal on November 26, leading France to a 2-1 victory over Denmark. The win ensured that France, the tournament's defending champions, would be the first team to qualify for the knockout stage. Mohammad Karamali/DeFodi Images/Getty Images Argentina's Lionel Messi celebrates scoring the opening goal against Mexico on November 26. Argentina went on to win the match 2-0. Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP/Getty Images Fans in Doha, Qatar, watch the match between Poland and Saudi Arabia on November 26. Ibraheem Al Omari/Reuters Robert Lewandowski celebrates after scoring Poland's second goal in the 2-0 win against Saudi Arabia on November 26. This was Lewandowski's first-ever World Cup goal. Lars Baron/Getty Images Australia's Jackson Irvine falls on Tunisia's Aissa Laidouni as they battle for the ball on November 26. Australia won 1-0. Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images US star Christian Pulisic takes a shot against England in the first half of their World Cup match on November 25. The shot smacked off the crossbar, and the game would eventually end 0-0. Clive Mason/Getty Images England goalkeeper Jordan Pickford dives to make a save in the match against the United States. Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP/Getty Images Senegal players celebrate at the corner flag after Bamba Dieng scored the third goal in their 3-1 victory over host nation Qatar. Petr Josek/AP Mohammed Muntari, center, celebrates after scoring Qatar's first-ever World Cup goal. Muntari headed home a cross in the 78th minute to cut Senegal's lead to 2-1. Bernadett Szabo/Reuters Senegal fans attend the match against Qatar. Senegal's football team is nicknamed the Lions of Teranga. Ozan Kose/AFP/Getty Images The Netherlands' Cody Gakpo is challenged by Ecuador's Jhegson Mendez, bottom, during their teams' 1-1 draw on November 25. Gakpo scored in the sixth minute for the Dutch. Darko Vojinovic/AP Iranian players celebrate after Roozbeh Cheshmi scored late into second-half stoppage time to break a 0-0 deadlock against Wales on November 25. Iran added another goal to win 2-0. Fadel Senna/AFP/Getty Images Welsh players are dejected as Iran celebrates on Friday. Manu Fernandez/AP A fan holds a Mahsa Amini jersey as a protest before the Iran-Wales match . Recent protests in Iran were sparked by the death of Amini, a 22-year-old woman who died after being detained by Iran's morality police allegedly for not abiding by the country's conservative dress code. Juan Luis Diaz/Quality Sport Images/Getty Images Richarlison scores a spectacular goal during Brazil's 2-0 win over Serbia on November 24. Richarlison scored both of Brazil's goals. Amanda Perobelli/Reuters Brazilian superstar Neymar celebrates the first goal, which he helped create. Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo does his trademark goal celebration after converting a penalty against Ghana to become the first man in history to score in five World Cups . It was the first goal of a match that ended in a 3-2 Portugal win. Hassan Ammar/AP Rafael Leão smiles as his shot goes by Ghana goalkeeper Lawrence Ati-Zigi for Portugal's third goal. Glyn Kirk/AFP/Getty Images Ghana's Andre Ayew, right, celebrates with Mohammed Kudus after tying the match at 1-1 shortly after Ronaldo's penalty. Julian Finney/Getty Images Ronaldo slams his penalty into the upper-left corner of the net. Marko Djurica/Reuters Ronaldo makes a face as he celebrates his goal with teammate João Félix. Clive Brunskill/Getty Images Ghana fans cheer prior to the start of the match against Portugal. Hassan Ammar/AP South Korea's Jung Woo-young competes for a ball with Uruguay's Federico Valverde on November 24. Their match ended 0-0. Bernadett Szabo/Reuters South Korean star Son Heung-min wears a protective eye mask against Uruguay after he suffered a fractured eye socket earlier in the month. Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters Switzerland's Breel Embolo, second from right, shoots past Cameroon's Andre Onana to score the only goal of their match. Claudio Villa/Getty Images Michy Batshuayi celebrates after giving Belgium a 1-0 lead over Canada in their World Cup opener on November 23. That ended up being the only goal of the match. Siphiwe Sibeko/Reuters Belgian players insist there is no foul as Canada's Richie Laryea tumbles over in the box. Molly Darlington/Reuters Canada's Alphonso Davies, left, reacts after missing a penalty early in the first half against Belgium. Ian MacNicol/Getty Images Spain's Ferran Torres, right, shoots past Costa Rican goalkeeper Keylor Navas to give his team a 4-0 lead in their opening match on November 23. Spain went on to win 7-0. Dylan Martinez/Reuters Costa Rica players watch the Spain match from the bench. Patrick Smith/FIFA/Getty Images Media members work at Al Thumama Stadium in Doha for the Spain-Costa Rica match. Peter Cziborra/Reuters Japan midfielder Ritsu Doan, center, is mobbed by teammates after scoring the team's first goal against Germany on November 23. Japan went on to win 2-1. Anne-Christine Poujoulat/AFP/Getty Images Germany's Antonio Rüdiger, top right, is first to a header during the match against Japan. Matthias Schrader/AP Before kickoff against Japan, Germany's starting 11 posed for their team photo with their right hands in front of their mouths. The team's social media feed confirmed that the gesture was designed to protest FIFA's decision to ban the "OneLove" anti-discrimination armband that many European captains had been hoping to wear in Qatar. Visionhaus/Getty Images Morocco's Selim Amallah tries to dribble past Croatia's Marcelo Brozovic, left, and Dejan Lovren during their 0-0 draw on November 23. Croatia was the runner-up in the last World Cup. Darko Vojinovic/AP French players swarm Kylian Mbappé after he scored the team's third goal on November 22. Mbappé was one of the leading stars of the team's World Cup triumph four years ago. Adrian Dennis/AFP/Getty Images French striker Olivier Giroud attempts a shot on goal during a match against Australia on November 22. Giroud scored twice as the defending champions won 4-1. His two goals tied him with Thierry Henry for most international goals by a Frenchman (51). Molly Darlington/Reuters An overhead view of Al Janoub Stadium, in Al Wakrah, Qatar, before the start of the France-Australia match. Pavel Golovkin/AP Poland striker Robert Lewandowski reacts after he missed a second-half penalty in his team's 0-0 draw against Mexico on November 22. Andrej Isakovic/AFP/Getty Images Tunisia's Yassine Meriah stretches to defend a header from Denmark's Andreas Cornelius during their 0-0 draw on November 22. Justin Setterfield/Getty Images Saudi Arabia players celebrate their victory over Argentina on November 22. The 2-1 result was one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history Lionel Hahn/Getty Images Argentina superstar Lionel Messi reacts during the match against Saudi Arabia. Messi opened the scoring with a 10th-minute penalty, but the Saudis rallied with two goals in the second half. Ebrahim Noroozi/AP US forward Timothy Weah celebrates after scoring a first-half goal against Wales on November 21. The match ended 1-1. Matthew Ashton/AMA/Getty Images US fans stand for the national anthem prior to the Wales match. Stu Forster/Getty Images Walker Zimmerman fouls Wales' Gareth Bale in the box, conceding a second-half penalty that Bale would convert to tie the match at 1-1. Pedro Nunes/Reuters Welsh and American players walk onto the field. Elsa/Getty Images The Netherlands' Cody Gakpo celebrates his second-half goal that gave the Dutch a 1-0 lead over Senegal in their World Cup opener on November 21. The Netherlands added a second goal just before the final whistle to win 2-0. Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters Senegal's Ismaila Sarr eyes the ball during a match against the Netherlands on November 21 Petr David Josek/AP The Senegal-Netherlands match kicks off at Al Thumama Stadium in Doha. Dan Mullan/Getty Images Senegal fans wait for the start of their team's match against the Netherlands. Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters England players celebrate after Raheem Sterling scored a goal during their match against Iran on November 21. England won 6-2. Frank Augstein/AP Iranian fans hold up a sign that reads "Woman Life Freedom" during the match against England. Anti-government protests have entered a third month back in Iran. Outside the stadium before the game, CNN witnessed a number of Iran supporters wearing protest T-shirts , with slogans such as "Free Iran" or "Rise with the women of Iran." Juan Luis Diaz/Quality Sport Images/Getty Images Labour Party leader Keir Starmer, center, celebrates England's second goal with colleagues David Lammy, left, and Lucy Powell, right, in his parliamentary office at the Palace of Westminster in London. Stefan Rousseau/PA Images/Getty Images Jude Bellingham scores England's first goal against Iran. Peter Cziborra/Reuters England players take a knee before the start of the Iran match. England manager Gareth Southgate confirmed Sunday that the team would be making the symbolic gesture. "We think it's a strong statement that will go around the world for young people in particular to see that inclusivity is very important," Southgate said. Hannah Mckay/Reuters Iranian players line up during the national anthems before the match. They did not sing during their anthem. Marko Djurica/Reuters A light show is displayed over the skyline in Doha on November 20. Alex Grimm/Getty Images Enner Valencia, third from left, celebrates after scoring a second goal against host nation Qatar in the tournament's opening match. Ecuador went on to win 2-0. Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters Spectators leave Al Bayt Stadium before the end of the Qatar-Ecuador match. No host country had lost a World Cup opener before. Robert Michael/DPA/Picture Alliance/Getty Images Valencia slots a penalty kick past Qatari goalkeeper Saad Al Sheeb to open the scoring in the 16th minute. Robert Michael/DPA/Picture Alliance/Getty Images A fan attends the Qatar-Ecuador match on November 20. Qatar is the first Islamic country to host a World Cup. Ian MacNicol/Getty Images Qatari fans enjoy the pre-match atmosphere at Al Bayt Stadium on November 20. Michael Steele/Getty Images Fans drink beer as they watch the match from a fan zone in Doha. No alcohol is being sold inside the stadiums during the World Cup. Qatar tightly regulates alcohol sales and usage. Francisco Seco/AP A family watches the opening match from their home in Doha. Ibraheem Al Omari/Reuters People watch as fireworks go off before the start of the opening match. Aijaz Rahi/AP People dance in Al Bayt Stadium during the opening ceremony. Pawel Kopczynski/Reuters A girl waves a Qatari flag at a fan zone in Doha. Moises Castillo/AP Actor Morgan Freeman and Qatari YouTuber Ghanim al Muftah take part in the opening ceremony on November 20. Natacha Pisarenko/AP La'eeb, the official mascot of this World Cup , flies during the opening ceremony. La'eeb is an Arabic word meaning super-skilled player. Dylan Martinez/Reuters A performer plays drums during the opening ceremony. Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters People watch the opening ceremony from a cafe in Baghdad, Iraq. Ahmed Saad/Reuters South Korean singer Jung Kook performs at the opening ceremony. Natacha Pisarenko/AP Dancers light up the ground during the opening ceremony. François-Xavier Mart/AFP/Getty Images A view inside Al Bayt Stadium during the opening ceremony. Amr Abdallah Dalsh/Reuters The best photos of the 2022 World Cup Prev Next

Zidane was part of the World Cup-winning team in 1998 and the midfield maestro won the Ballon d’Or the same year.

Mbappé is still waiting for his first Ballon d’Or, but Mavuba insists achieving glory with the national team matters more than any individual accolade.

“It’s very difficult to win the World Cup, you see Messi, Ronaldo and Neymar [not win one], but Mbappé has a chance to win two World Cups,” he said.

“It’s better to win two World Cups than to win five or seven Ballon d’Or awards.”

With Messi’s Argentina the only hurdle standing in his way, Mbappé has a huge opportunity to stake a claim to the title of world’s best player.

In truth, he has a long way to go before he matches the legacies of Ronaldo and Messi but already, at such a young age, he’s done things that those other superstars have so far failed to do.

For Iranians, this World Cup is about more than football | CNN

CNN —

For the last few months, soccer in Iran has witnessed small acts of defiance against the country’s regime amid widespread protests in the country; Sardar Azmoun’s refusal to celebrate scoring an equalizer against Senegal and several players changing their social media profile pictures to black.

Soccer, like everything else in Iran, has been affected by the protests, chaos and violence convulsing the country and threatening the very nature of the regime that has been in power for more than 40 years.

It is amid this turmoil the Iranian national team has traveled across the Persian Gulf to Qatar where it will face two of the country’s fiercest geopolitical rivals, England and the US, in its group – the ‘Old Fox’ and the ‘Great Satan’ as they are referred to colloquially by some in Iran.

“How can this team go and perform when you’re supposed to be a national team, a representative of the people?” Peyvand Mossavat, an Iranian-born Canadian former soccer player and now coach, told CNN Sport.

In the buildup to the World Cup in Qatar, there were calls for Iran to be thrown out of the tournament. As the team prepares to play England for its opening World Cup match on 21 November, all eyes will be on its players for more than soccer.

The protests, referred to by experts as the most significant since the establishment of clerical rule following the 1979 Iranian Revolution, were sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who died after being detained by Iran’s morality police allegedly for not abiding by the country’s conservative dress code.

Iranian demonstrators take to the streets of Tehran during a protest for Mahsa Amini in September, days after she died in police custody. AFP/Getty Images

What began as a clamor for women’s rights has morphed into a movement, still driven by women, demanding the end of a regime that “people no longer believe…is reformable,” Abbas Milani, director of Iranian studies at Stanford University, told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour earlier this month. “They want a different social contract without the clergy claiming divine right.”

Iranian security forces have unleashed a violent response, killing at least 378 people, the Norway-based Iran Human Rights NGO (IHRNGO) group has claimed, while a UN official says as many as 14,000 people have been arrested across the country, including journalists, activists, lawyers and educators.

CNN cannot independently verify these figures as non-state media, the internet, and protest movements in Iran have all been suppressed. Death tolls vary by opposition groups, international rights organizations and journalists tracking the ongoing protests.

‘The number one sport’

Football is the “number one sport” in Iran, Iranian-born Canadian coach Mossavat says, giving the team a potentially powerful platform from which to voice its support for the protestors.

In the past, the national team had been seen as more representative of the Iranian people than the regime, Omid Namazi – Iranian national team’s assistant coach from 2011 to 2014 – told CNN Sport.

When the FIFA World Cup Twitter account posted images of the Iranian players smiling and goofing around in a pre-tournament photoshoot, it prompted criticism by some on social media.

“I am so disappointed, so heartbroken by these,” Iranian-born football journalist Sina Saemian tweeted. “The lack of common sense, lack of empathy and insensitivity shown in these pictures is genuinely disheartening. The photo op is absolutely FIFA’s requirement, but the poses are not. There is a clear absence of any sense of awareness.”

Although its star forward, Azmoun, has shown his support for the protestors, Namazi says that many of the other national team players have remained relatively quiet, “leaving a bad taste.”

“The perception has really changed about the players, the national team itself,” he adds. “People call it the national team of the Islamic Republic and not the national team of the people of Iran.”

Iran's Portuguese coach Carlos Queiroz attends a training session at the Al-Rayyan training facility in Doha on November 20, 2022, on the eve of his side's first match. Fadel Senna/AFP/Getty Images

Azmoun, who plays for the German team Bayer Leverkusen, posted multiple times to social media, and changed his profile picture to black in support of the protesters, and indicated that it could have cost him a place in the World Cup squad.

“That is worth sacrificing for one strand of Iranian women’s hair,” he wrote in an Instagram story. “Shame on you who kill people so easily. Long live Iranian women.”

Azmoun was ultimately selected to play in Qatar, but Iranwire, an opposition news outlet, reported that Iranian men’s football team manager Carlos Queiroz had come under pressure from Iran’s Sports Ministry to leave him out the squad.

Protesting at the World Cup, on the biggest stage of all for football, carries potentially huge risks for the current players in the national team.

“The players are under a lot of pressure by the government. It affects their livelihood, their future, their earnings,” Namazi says.

Nonetheless, players will be free to protest at the World Cup so long as they do not break FIFA rules, their manager Queiroz has said.

“I don’t know if they’ll do anything,” Iranian football fan Payam, who didn’t give his surname for safety reasons, tells CNN Sport.

“We are all hoping they do something…If they don’t, it’s going to be a big egg on their face, to be honest.”

Defender Ehsan Hajsafi became the first member of the national team to speak out at the World Cup in apparent support of anti-government protests at home. “They should know that we are with them. And we support them. And we sympathize with them regarding the conditions,” he told reporters, per Reuters, on Sunday.

Saeed Piramoon imitates cutting his hair during a match. Telegram/Kanali

CNN has reached out for comment to FIFA regarding its stance on potential player protests but, at the time of publication, had not yet received a response.

Former player Ali Daei, a soccer great in Iran, has publicly supported the protestors, with Daei refusing to attend the World Cup in solidarity with protestors.

Meanwhile, beach soccer player Saeed Piramoon imitated cutting his hair, signaling his support for the protesters, after he scored the winning goal in the final of the Intercontinental Beach Soccer Cup while his team was seen not singing the Iranian national anthem before the match.

Iran’s football authorities vowed that “people who have not followed professional and sports ethics … will be dealt with according to the regulations,” a statement published by Iran’s Football Federation after the beach soccer game said.

“I’ve got goosebumps just telling you the courage that it takes,” Mossavat says. “Their entire team was reported to have been taken away from the airport because they didn’t celebrate.”

A video published on BBC Persian allegedly showed journalists blocked from speaking to the national team when they arrived back at the Imam Khomeini Airport in Tehran. CNN could not verify the video.

The build-up to the World Cup has been dominated by discussions surrounding human rights, from the death of migrant workers and the conditions many have endured in Qatar, to LGBTQ and women’s rights.

Iran faces England in its opening World Cup match. In October the Athletic reported that England didn’t have any plans to “publicly demonstrate its solidarity” with the Iranian protestors. Speaking to CNN, an English Football Association spokesperson said: “We are aware of the protests in Iran, and following the situation. It is obviously worrying, but the best people to comment on it are the Iranian people.”

CNN has also reached out to the Welsh FA and US Soccer, teams also in Iran’s group, but, at the time of publication, had yet to receive a response.

‘Maybe we can show people what’s going on’

In the wake of the protests and the human rights violations happening in Iran, several groups inside and outside the country have called upon FIFA to ban it from the World Cup.

In October, a group of prominent Iranian athletes lobbied FIFA via a law firm, urging it to suspend the Iranian Football Federation (FFIRI) and ban it from participating at the World Cup.

“Iran’s brutality and belligerence towards its own people has reached a tipping point, demanding an unequivocal and firm disassociation from the footballing and sports world,” a press release issued alongside the letter reads.

They were joined in this stance by a human rights group, ‘Open Stadiums,’ which describes itself as “a movement of Iranian women seeking to end discrimination” and allow women to attend football stadiums. “The Iranian FA is not only an accomplice of the crimes of the regime, it is a direct threat to the security of female fans in Iran and wherever our national team plays in the world,” the group wrote in an open letter to FIFA in September.

Iranian women were allowed to attend a national football championship match for the first time since the 1979 Islamic Revolution on August 25, 2022. Hossein Zohrevand/Tasnim News/AFP/Getty Images

The Ukrainian Football Association also called on FIFA to “consider excluding” Iran’s national team, citing the “systematic human rights violations” there, and “the possible involvement of Iran in the military aggression of Russia against Ukraine.”

CNN has reached out to FIFA and the FFIRI for comment about calls for Iran to be banned from the Cup but, at the time of publication, had not received a response.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino defended Iran’s participation in the 2022 Qatar World Cup in his pre-tournament press conference, saying it is “two football teams” going head-to-head in matches rather than “two regimes” or “two ideologies.”

Infantino reminded journalists of FIFA’s role as an organization, saying “we’re not the United Nations. We’re not the world police. We’re not… I don’t know the blue helmets.”

Saman Ghoddos, Iran’s only player to play in the English Premier League, and who has publicly supported the protests, also believes that Iran should compete at the World Cup.

“I’ve heard about it and from my point of view, I don’t know if it’s the right direction,” he told CNN’s Don Riddell in October. “Because I always think that football should be outside politics and should not be involved in that.

“But I don’t think it’s the right move to kick out Iran from the World Cup, but maybe we can put a light and show people what’s going on.”

For Mossavat, the World Cup seems to be operating in an alternate reality to the protests unfolding in his home country.

“While this is happening, I cannot see people being overly excited [about the World Cup] when they’re out on the street fighting for freedom,” Mossavat says. “I think it’s going to be difficult to galvanize people.”

Saman Ghoddos plays for Brentford. John Patrick Fletcher/Shutterstock

The national team, Queiroz said on Twitter, are seeking to bring “joy, happiness and pride” to the fans in Iran.

“For him to have the audacity to come and say: ‘Oh, our job is to entertain people and make people happy.’ What people are you making happy?” Mossavat says.

“Can Mahsa Amini’s parents, or [the parents] of Navid Afkari…be happy, be joyful to watch you play football? That’s impossible.”

Afkari was a famous Iranian wrestler who was executed by the government in Iran in 2020 for a crime human rights activists, his family and friends say he did not commit.

Football seems of diminished importance in the wake of such grief that Iranians have experienced in the last few months.

“When you know what’s going on, it’s very difficult to prioritize football,” Ghoddos added. “It’s very difficult and football comes in the second hand because it’s lives that are being lost by fighting for freedom.”

When Iran’s football team takes to the field at the World Cup, complete with national anthems, flags and as a tangible manifestation of the country itself, more than progress to the knockout stages is at stake, for it will find itself inadvertently entangled in the fight for Iran’s future.

Wayne Rooney: As former Premier League star rolls sushi in Dubai ...

CNN —

Wayne Rooney holds down the bamboo mat with one sinewy hand while the other is busy mixing rice into slices of salmon and avocado.

Carefully, the former Premier League footballer, wearing a bright orange apron, moisturizes the blend with vinegar and water, before wrapping it in one of the toasted seaweed sheets known as nori.

After wetting his knife, Rooney slowly cuts the pillar of sushi into bite-sized chunks, standing back to inspect his handiwork.

“I doubt anyone’s going to want to eat this,” he smiles bashfully, turning crimson as he realizes he’s not quite as good with his hands as with his feet.

Rolling sushi with CNN in a Dubai restaurant, 230 meters above the iconic man-made island called Palm Jumeirah, is a far cry from the district of Croxteth in Liverpool, where Rooney was born.

Rooney is warmly welcomed by resident sushi chef, Moon Kyung Soo, who cannot contain his excitement at meeting a former teammate of one his country’s idols, South Korean Park Ji-Sung. The pair hit it off, and chef Moon proudly names the finished concoction “The Rooney Roll.”

The Japanese dish is not a common menu item at the Rooney household, admits the former Manchester United player, who says his pallet is more accustomed to spaghetti bolognese or stir-fry.

The 37-year-old’s diet is emblematic of his character – despite playing top-level football for nearly 20 years, he’s not flashy or conceited, and is almost embarrassed to be on camera.

Wearing a black baseball cap, unironed chinos and an unassuming polo shirt, it’s telling that rather than his mercurial dribbling ability, boxer-like power or lightning-quick pace, Rooney believes his work ethic was instead his biggest strength on the pitch.

“That’s an ability … the biggest skill you can have. Every day, that’s probably what I’m most proud of,” Rooney tells CNN’s Becky Anderson, while overlooking a highlight of the city’s skyline, the world’s highest observation wheel, Ain Dubai.

Wayne Rooney rolls sushi with CNN's Becky Anderson in Dubai. CNN

A career of records, firsts and superlatives

England’s record-goal scorer is in town ahead of the Globe Soccer Awards, an international ceremony which celebrates the best the sport has to offer.

The nominees for best men’s player include recent Ballon D’Or winner Karim Benzema and the Frenchman’s Real Madrid teammate, Thibaut Courtois. In the women’s category, FC Barcelona star Alexia Putellas and England defender Lucy Bronze are up for contention.

CNN has partnered with the awards, now in its 13th edition, to launch the CNN Off the Pitch category at this year’s ceremony on November 17. The award will recognize the achievements of an individual, club or other soccer organization for their impact on wider society and culture as well as charitable work.

Rooney himself is nominated for an award celebrating his playing career – and his two-decade long rollercoaster ride at the top of the sport was undoubtedly something special.

“The outstanding moment … is with my team when you win a trophy and you lift that and the celebrations you have initially after that game. That’s what you work so hard for … That’s why you play,” Rooney reminisces.

“Actually, the best one was the first Premier League trophy we won,” he reveals, referring to Manchester United’s title success in the 2006/2007 season.

“I was actually sat at home… and if Chelsea didn’t win, we won the league. I had my clothes ironed ready to go out, but I didn’t want to jinx anything. Anyway, Chelsea didn’t win so I just remember the phone going off and we had a great night.”

The mercurial talent made his Premier League debut for his home club Everton in 2002 at the age of 16. His debut goal – a stunning strike that rocketed past then Arsenal goalkeeper David Seaman – has gone down in Premier League folklore

Earmarked as the outstanding talent of his generation, Rooney went on to become the first man to score 50 goals for the England national team, also overtaking Bobby Charlton’s long-held record as Manchester United’s top-scorer. Along the way, he won five league titles and played in three Champions League finals.

You might think that after such a grueling career, that a much-needed break was on the cards for Rooney. But at the age of 37, he has instead turned his attention to coaching.

He relocated to Washington in July, to manage D.C. United, a team he spent some time playing with. It won’t be an easy task considering the franchise finished bottom of the MLS Eastern Conference, but that doesn’t seem to bother Rooney.

D.C. United head coach Wayne Rooney before an MLS match in August. Rich von Bibersttein/Icon Sportswire/Getty Images

“I love it. Trying to develop players, young players, but also having that relationship with the more senior players, and trying to develop them.”

“The appealing thing, obviously going back to D.C. and going in as head coach for me was if you look at all the big teams and the culture, it’s so diverse with different nationalities, different religions.”

While Rooney is happy stateside for now, it’s clear his long-term ambitions lie closer to home.

“Obviously Everton and Manchester United are the two clubs who are really close to my heart so to manage one of them two would be a dream,” he admits, the latter currently coached by his former England teammate, Frank Lampard.

“I’m still gaining a lot of experience from what I’m doing. You want to learn, and I want to go into Everton or Manchester United, I want to go in there and be able to give the best version of me.

“I’d be naive to say, ‘I’m going to go and manage Manchester United in the next year or so.’ For me it’s about putting the work in and developing myself and if I do that and I do it in the right way, then I feel these jobs, these opportunities will come to me eventually.”

Rooney’s tenure at DC United comes after a tumultuous reign at English side Derby County.

The club went into administration after debts spiraled and it failed to play players their wages. Deducted points for financial mismanagement, Derby was eventually relegated, but Rooney was praised for his efforts to keep them in the Championship, English football’s second tier.

Wayne Rooney gives his team instructions during a Derby County game. Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images

“I’m proud of what we achieved there … we were relegated but without the deductions we would’ve stayed in the division.

“There was so many difficulties in what we were facing and obstacles for us to try and get over,” Rooney laments.

“I give them [sic] players so much praise because I think it was 21 debuts from the academy … There are players who maybe didn’t even have a career in football who now have [one].”

Learning from the best

If he’s looking for advice, Rooney has no shortage of mentors to draw from.

David Moyes, now West Ham manager, handed him his debut as a 16-year-old in 2002, La Liga winner Fabio Capello coached him for a spell at England, and Rooney finished his United career under two-time Champions League champion José Mourinho.

But he says his biggest influence was the Manchester club’s most successful coach, Alex Ferguson, who signed him for the club for a then-record sum for a teenager of nearly $50 million.

“He was great to play for, he’s the reason I signed for Manchester United to play for him. The best advice I got … was from Alex Ferguson, [and it] was [that] the hardest thing to do in life is to work hard every day. And that’s the best. That’s always stuck with me.

Then Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson congratulates Wayne Rooney after his final Premier League title win in 2013. Alex Livesey/Getty Images

“From a football point of view, coaching point of view, of course you’re going to make mistakes, you’re going to get things wrong, but there’s no excuse really to not work.”

Manchester United has seen scant success since Ferguson retired in 2013. The 20-time English league winner has seen derby rivals Manchester City outpace them on and off the field since the takeover of the club by the Abu Dhabi United Group in 2008.

Erik ten Hag took over the coaching reins in the summer and the Dutchman has notched a few impressive wins which have lifted the mood around Old Trafford. While Rooney was in Dubai, goals from Fred and Bruno Fernandes gave the Manchester club a dominant victory over Tottenham Hotspur.

“It’s the best I’ve seen Manchester United for a long time,” says Rooney. “I think you can see what he’s trying to do. High energy, high press with the team and it was very difficult for Tottenham to play against.”

The only black mark on that performance was star player Cristiano Ronaldo walking down the tunnel with several minutes left to play because he didn’t get on the pitch. Ten Haag later suspended the player, but Ronaldo’s clear desire to play, is a positive sign for a coach, according to Rooney.

“Football’s emotional and you want players who want to be on the pitch. I don’t mind a player coming off and not being happy. I’ve done it myself,” says Rooney, who played with Ronaldo during his most successful period at United.

If Rooney has any regrets from his playing career, it’s his performance for England at international tournaments.

At the age of 18, Rooney became the youngest scorer in European Championship history – a record that only stood for four days after the Englishman’s landmark was taken by Switzerland’s Johan Vonlanthen at Euro 2004.

Rooney celebrates scoring a goal at Wembley in 2015, breaking the record for most international goals for England. Shaun Botterill/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images

When he set the record, Rooney grabbed two goals in England’s second group game, a 3-0 defeat of Switzerland. He then broke a bone in his foot in the quarterfinal defeat by Portugal when England lost on penalties.

Two years later Rooney was infamously sent off at against Portugal at the 2006 World Cup for lashing out at then club teammate Ronaldo.

Despite playing as part of a team containing English icons such as Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard, known as the “Golden Generation,” Rooney never won a trophy with the national side.

“We were unlucky a few times,” Rooney laments. “Obviously in the Euros, 2004, 2006 World Cup, getting knocked out on penalties, both at the quarterfinal stage. And, again, that’s that little bit of luck you need, if you go through there, you potentially go on to win the competition.”

Eoin Mcsweeney Becky Anderson
Eoin Mcsweeney
Becky Anderson

From bloody Balkan war to World Cup heavyweight: the making of ...

CNN —

Panama, Mauritania, Georgia and Eritrea are four countries with roughly the equivalent population sizes of Croatia.

Those four nations share one World Cup appearance between them and that was when Panama played at Russia 2018, finishing the group stage with three defeats and conceding 11 goals.

Croatia’s World Cup pedigree is an altogether different story. In six World Cup appearances, the country has reached the semifinals on three occasions, while four years ago Croatia contested the final, ultimately losing to France.

Croatia only gained independence in 1991, during the bloody Balkan war which lasted until 1995 and its population is just under four million, though you’d never have known given the way it traded blows with soccer superpower Brazil in the quarterfinals, before winning a penalty shootout.

That success was very much a case of David knocking out Goliath given Brazil’s population is 214 million people.

Next up for Croatia is Lionel Messi and Argentina – population: 45 million.

Igor Štimac, who played in all of Croatia’s 1998 World Cup matches during its run to third place, told CNN that the country’s recent history has helped play a part in forging elite competitors.

“Our people went through many difficulties in its survival, in its independence, fighting for it, in the aggression which we suffered from our neighbors,” Štimac, who coached the Croatia national team between 2012-13, told CNN.

“These things are helping to stay with a great mental strength, great discipline, staying humble and surviving with the pride, whatever difficulties there are in front of us.

Štimac challenges Clarence Seedorf of the Netherlands during the 1998 World Cup third place playoff match, which Croatia won 2-1. Shaun Botterill/Getty Images Europe/Getty Images

“But we cannot say that only the last war which happened here helped in these things because the wars were going on through this region for many occasions. It’s something also about this region in regards to the climate, in regards to the culture.”

Croatian football journalist Srđan Fabijanac, who has been on the ground in Doha to watch this current iteration of the national team, says the squad’s harmony has proved vital in another extraordinary World Cup for the the Vatreni (the ‘Blazers’)

Fabijanac calls the team – constructed with a blend of experience from the likes of Luka Modrić, Ivan Perišić and Dejan Lovren with new faces such as Joško Gvardiol and Borna Sosa – as like a “family.”

“You’ve seen what’s happened in this World Cup; Brazil have excellent players, Portugal have excellent players, Germany have excellent players but in my opinion, they have spirit and they don’t have a team,” Fabijanac told CNN. “That’s the problem. Croatia is too strong as a team.”

Croatia's Bruno Petkovic celebrates with his teammates after scoring his side's goal against Brazil in the quarterfinals of the 2022 World Cup. Croatia eventually won on penalties. Manu Fernandez/AP

From the rubble

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, democratic movements swept across much of Eastern Europe, including Yugoslavia. With the election of non-communist governments in four of Yugoslavia’s six republics, the Federation began to crumble and ethnic divisions resurfaced.

By 1991, the prosperous Croatian republic sought to create a loose confederation or to dissolve the union entirely. Less wealthy Serbia opposed this. In June of 1991, Slovenia and Croatia declared independence.

Fighting soon began as the Yugoslav army, consisting primarily of Serbs, tried to prevent Slovenia from establishing its own border posts. In July, fighting also broke out between Croatian forces and Serb militiamen.

Among the other republics, only the smallest – Montenegro – sided with Serbia. The two remaining republics, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Macedonia, voted in favor of independence.

In 1992, the Serbian minority in Bosnia, helped by the federal army, attempted to carve out enclaves for itself, laying siege to Sarajevo.

By the time the United Nations dismissed Yugoslavia from its General Assembly, some 20,000 people had died and up to two million had become refugees from fighting and “ethnic cleansing.”

Back in 2018, Lovren recounted his memories of his escape as a young child from war-torn Bosnia in 1992.

“I just remember when the sirens went on,” Lovren said. “I was so scared because I was thinking ‘bombs’ or that something will happen now.

“I remember my mum took me and we went to the basement, I don’t know how long we’d been sitting there, I think it was until the sirens went off. Afterwards, I remember mum, my uncle, my uncle’s wife, we took the car and then we were driving to Germany.”

Lovren defends against Brazil's Neymar. Robert Michael/picture alliance via Getty Images

Lovren’s family settled in Germany, but after seven years they were told to leave and had to start life again in Croatia.

Fabijanac admits while some of the squad were not even born during the bloody Balkan war, it is something which still hangs over the country, spurring its players on.

“We want to put the things which happened in the 1990s far from us,” he explained. “There are sports, but we have very strong national emotions and this … is why the Croatian football players always play with the full heart for the national teams.

“Because we are a small country, we have a very, very ugly war which made many traumas for many people in Croatia.

“And sports and players in football and in other sports are national heroes. And that is the reason why they always play for the national teams one level higher than the highest. When we play for the national team in football, in any sport, we play with more than 100%, we play with 110%.

“They put their last atomic force on the field to do something for the country.”

Croatia's Mario Pasalic celebrates with goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic after scoring the winning penalty against Brazil at the 2022 World Cup. Frank Augstein/AP

A new story

The Croatian Football Association applied and gained admittance to soccer’s world governing body FIFA, in 1992 and Europe’s governing body UEFA in 1993.

“We have football in the blood. Every male child in Croatia wants to be a football player,” Fabijanac said. “First they learn how to walk, after that they take a football or something to play football.”

Fabijanac added: “For a small country like us, it’s very important to have this fantastic national team because my granddaughter is three years old and she doesn’t play with dolls, she plays with the ball and says only: ’ Modrić, Modrić, Modrić.’ That’s something which is amazing.”

It didn’t take long for Croatia to make its mark on the international soccer stage.

First, Croatia reached the quarterfinals of the 1996 Euros – beating a star-studded Denmark along the way.

Two years later, in its first ever World Cup appearance, Croatia got to the semifinals of the 1998 edition in France, eventually finishing third.

Thanks to its first golden generation of players – led by Davor Šuker and with Robert Prosinečki and Zvonimir Boban adding a sprinkling off stardust – Croatia qualified with two wins from its group, then beating Romania and Germany in the knockout stages, before losing out to eventual-winners France in the semifinals.

The Croatia players celebrate a goal against France in the 1998 World Cup semifinals. Alexander Hassenstein/Bongarts/Bongarts/Getty Images

Šuker finished as the 1998 tournament’s top scorer and with its distinctive red and white kit as well as its propensity for shocking football’s traditional heavyweights, Croatia became an immediate favorite for neutrals.

Štimac said that his former teammates and squad had the responsibility of laying down the foundations for Croatia’s modern soccer heritage.

“Our generation was the one that we had the most difficult path because we were responsible to create a cult of Croatian culture in football and to make the road for the generations to come,” Štimac told CNN.

“And as a newly recognized country, it was obviously very difficult when you are such a small country in the football world and nobody appreciates to consider you at all as important part or subject.

“And from that point of view, we had the most difficult situation and we did well and that’s obviously helped generations which followed.”

The arrival of Zlatko Dalić as Croatia’s coach in 2017 has also proved pivotal.

Having been appointed after the team’s qualification for the 2018 World Cup, Dalić came with pressure on his shoulders.

With many of the team’s star players in their prime – in particular, the midfielder three of Modrić, Ivan Rakitić and Marcelo Brozović – Croatia was expected to perform well.

Croatia did better than just perform well.

Thanks to the harmony Dalić was able to engender in the team, Croatia exceeded everyone’s expectations by reaching the final – showing remarkable grit and resilience to win twice on penalties followed by an extra-time victory over England in the semifinals – before being overpowered by France in the final.

Modrić reacts after his team conceded a goal against France in the final of the 2018 World Cup. Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP/Getty Images

Returning to Croatia and a hero’s welcome, with more than 500,000 fans turning Zagreb’s streets into a tapestry of red and white to celebrate the players’ success, the team was feted for surpassing the so-called “bronze” generation of 1998.

“In the past, we also had very good teams. In 1998, we had much better players maybe in the time like Boban, Šuker, Prosinečki, (Robert) Jarni, but maybe they don’t share the chemistry between them to do what this team has done in the past few years,” said Fabijanac.

“We only have one star, it’s Luka Modrić. The other players are not stars, like Kylian Mbappé or Cristiano Ronaldo or Neymar. But the rest of the team is a family and does the most important thing for us.

“When Dalić came to be head coach, when he chose the team … he looked for characters.”

With Modrić at his magical best and goalkeper Dominik Livaković in imperious form and with the team able to seemingly pluck a goal out of thin air when needed, this Croatia side has continued to surprise, just like it did four years ago.

“When we come to represent the national team, all the egos need to disappear,” said Stimac.

Fans in Zagreb celebrate Croatia's victory over Brazil. Antonio Bronic/Reuters

“There is no place in the national team dressing room of Croatia for big egos, and everyone knows that. No one is bigger than the team, no one is bigger than the manager and that’s what is taking us forward.”

Back in 1998, Štimac came off the bench to face Argentina and the likes of Gabriel Batistuta and Juan Sebastián Verón.

On Tuesday, Croatia will meet Lionel Messi and the next generation of Argentine stars knowing two wins stand between them and a new age of glory.

Chopra picked by Tendulkar's Kerala Blasters

AP

MUMBAI, India (AP) — Former Newcastle striker Michael Chopra's Indian origin made him a top pick as he was bought quickly by Kerala Blasters on Thursday in the international player draft of the Indian Super League.

Chopra, the only English player among 49 players in the draft, was picked by the south Indian franchise which is part-owned by retired cricket great Sachin Tendulkar.

"When the drafts came up, the first name that caught our attention was that of Chopra," said former England goalkeeper David James, a player and manager with the Kerala Blasters. "We immediately decided to pick him and are happy to have him in this team."

Chopra will get $58,185 per season, according to organizers.

Other prominent picks included French defender Bernard Mendy ($80,000) and former Manchester United midfielder Bojan Djordjic of Sweden ($58,185) by the Chennai franchise, while Spanish midfielder Jofre Mateu ($58,185) went to Atletico de Kolkata.

The players were classified in pay brackets of $39,000 to $80,000 as the league, to be played from Oct. 12-Dec. 20, brought in a mix of some big names by Indian standards as well as upcoming players in a bid to boost the game's following.

The order of draft picks was decided by draw of lots, with the teams choosing from players in pre-decided sets according to their positions of play.

Unlike the biddings at cricket's Indian Premier League, from which the ISL is inspired, there was no glamour quotient as the cricketers and film stars associated with the tournament did not turn up for the draft.

Giant screens showed the team selection process inside the hall for the draft at a prominent five-star hotel facing the Arabian sea.

All the teams have the option of selecting three players from outside the draft process, including a marquee player.

Luis Garcia (Kolkata), Joan Capdevila (North East United FC) and David Trezeguet (Pune) are some of the marquee players announced so far, while other teams are still scouting for big names, which are being paid more than those in the draft.

Teams will have squads of 22 with a similar process for Indian players completed last month. Most of the Indian players also figure in the national I-League tournament run by the All India Football Federation, which is likely to play second fiddle to the heavily-promoted ISL in the coming seasons.

The I-League also features several foreign players but no big names since fees are generally much lower.

"Frankly speaking, the I-League has not delivered," All India Football Federation secretary-general Kushal Das said. "Indian football needed some adrenalin and we are hoping the ISL will help attract people to the game."

The eight-team ISL is being organized by IMG-Reliance in collaboration with Rupert Murdoch's Star India group.

The presence of former cricketers and Indian film stars as co-owners in the league is expected to arouse interest in the cricket-crazy country of 1.2 billion where a number of franchise leagues in other sports have mushroomed over the past few years.

Former India cricket captain Sourav Ganguly has a stake in Atletico de Kolkata, while Bollywood actors Salman Khan, Ranbir Kapoor and John Abraham are among the other co-owners of teams in Pune, Mumbai and Shillong, respectively.

Meanwhile, organizers announced that Bangalore owner Sun Group has dropped out and will be replaced with one from Chennai that will be run in collaboration with Italian club Inter Milan. The name of the team will be announced later.