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Tag: Gareth Bale

  • Cheshmi’s late goal sends Iran to 2-0 win over Wales

    Cheshmi’s late goal sends Iran to 2-0 win over Wales

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    Al RAYYAN, Qatar — Rouzbeh Cheshmi scored in the eighth minute of second-half stoppage time to break a scoreless stalemate and Iran went on to defeat Wales 2-0 at the World Cup on Friday.

    Cheshmi’s strike from outside the box was just beyond the diving reach of Wales backup goalkeeper Danny Ward, who was pressed into duty when starter Wayne Hennessey was sent off in the 86th minute.

    Ramin Rezaeian added a second goal moments later and Iran wildly celebrated while some of the Welsh players dropped in disbelief to the field.

    Hennessy was ejected in the 86th minute for a high challenge on Mehdi Taremi.

    Gareth Bale made his 110th appearance for Wales, the most all-time for the national team, but the Welsh appeared sluggish early after a 1-1 draw with the United States in their Group B opener.

    Iran, which fell 6-2 to England in its opener to fall to last place in the group, fared better against Wales.

    But outside Ahmad bin Ali Stadium, the ongoing protests in Iran spilled over to the World Cup with pro-government fans harassing anti-government national team supporters.

    Wales was making just its second overall appearance at the World Cup and first since 1958.

    Bale, who played for Major League Soccer’s LAFC this past season, remained stuck on 41 goals for the national team, despite surpassing teammate Chris Gunter (109) for most all-time appearances.

    Iran goalkeeper Ali Beiranvand was ruled out of the game after he sustained a concussion in the opener. Hossein Hosseini started in his place.

    Iran, which qualified for the last two World Cups, has never advanced to the knockout round.

    The Iranian team has been peppered since its arrival in Qatar with questions about unrest back home. The players, who did not sing the country’s national anthem in their opener in an apparent show of solidarity with protestors, linked arms and sang on Friday.

    The two teams had never played each other at a World Cup. Wales won their only friendly match 1-0 in 1978.

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    AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/world-cup and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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  • US returns to World Cup against Wales after 8-year wait

    US returns to World Cup against Wales after 8-year wait

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    DOHA, Qatar — Gio Reyna, Joe Scally and Yusuf Musah were 11 years old the last time the United States took the field in a World Cup match. On the 3,066th day after that loss in Brazil, the Americans return to soccer’s showcase with a new-look team dreaming lofty goals and hoping for actual ones.

    Filled with novelty, nerves and naivety, these young Americans take the field against Wales on Monday night in a match a growing fanbase back home has been pining for since 2014.

    “Three years, four years of just working up to this moment, I think all the guys are ready to go,” midfielder Weston McKennie said.

    President Joe Biden called players to offer encouragement ahead of the opener.

    A Friday match against England follows and group play ends Nov. 29 against Iran, which famously eliminated the U.S. from the 1998 World Cup in France.

    Only DeAndre Yedlin, a 29-year-old defender, remains from the American team eliminated by Belgium in the second round eight years ago. Yedlin, Christian Pulisic, Kellyn Acosta and Tim Ream are among just four holdovers from the group that flopped to the field in anguish after the crushing loss at Trinidad in CONCACAF qualifying in October 2017 that ended the streak of U.S. World Cup appearances at seven.

    McKennie debuted a month later in a 1-1 friendly draw at Portugal along with Cameron Carter-Vickers and Tyler Adams, who was appointed captain Sunday at age 23.

    A total of 118 players were tried over 68 matches in a World Cup cycle interrupted by a pandemic, including 91 after Gregg Berhalter was hired as coach in December 2018. He gave debuts to 56 players and took the second-youngest roster to the tournament at an average age of just over 25 years, older than only Ghana.

    Some are already looking ahead four years, to when the U.S. co-hosts the tournament and the core group figures to be in its prime.

    “We want to build a ton of momentum going into 2026, but it all starts now,” Berhalter said.

    Berhalter becomes the first American to play and coach at a World Cup — his 50th minute shot from Claudio Reyna’s corner kick struck German defender Torsten Frings’ arm on the goal line but was not called a hand ball in 2002′s 1-0 quarterfinal loss.

    “I was in my mom’s belly,” quipped Gio Reyna, Claudio’s son, who was born that November.

    Berhalter has installed a high-pressing style and led the Americans to a 36-10-10 record that included titles in the 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup and Nations League.

    “The final determination of this group,” he said, “will be at the World Cup. That’s how generations are measured. We can all be talking — that’s great, we beat Mexico three times. Or we won the Gold Cup or the Nations League. But the real measuring stick for this group is certainly going to be how you perform in Qatar.”

    Wales is back in the World Cup for the first time since 1958, led by 33-year-old Gareth Bale and 31-year-old Aaron Ramsey but without injured midfielder Joe Allen. The Dragons advanced to the 2016 European Championship semifinals before losing to eventual champion Portugal and made it to the second round of last year’s Euros before a 4-0 wipeout against Denmark. The lack of World Cup experience has the Welsh as guarded as the Americans heading into the match at Ahmad bin Ali Stadium, a renovated 44,000-seat venue west of the capital.

    “They’re a good young squad and have some fantastic players,” Bale said. “We’re under no illusions that they’re here to win the game just as we are, so we know it’s going to be a difficult match tomorrow and I’m sure they know the same thing, too.”

    With Miles Robinson and Chris Richards injured, the American central defense will start a pair from among Walker Zimmerman, Aaron Long, Carter-Vickers or 35-year-old Tim Ream, back on the national team for the first time in 14 months.

    “Tim’s the grandpa of the group,” Adams said.

    Right back Sergiño Dest and McKennie are fit enough to play, but perhaps not enough to start.

    Forward, a position that produced just three goals in qualifying, also is uncertain for the U.S. Josh Sargent, Jesús Ferreira and Haji Wright are the choices.

    Following Berhalter’s surprising decision to drop Zack Steffen, Matt Turner likely will start in goal over Ethan Horvath and Sean Johnson. Turner has been limited to four Europa League matches in his first season with Arsenal, the last Oct. 20.

    “I showed the coaching staff here how much I’ve grown as a person and a player,” Turner said.

    Pulisic also has struggled for playing time, getting just five starts for Chelsea this season. Dest made only two starts for AC Milan.

    As the opener approached, Pulisic recalled gathering for World Cup games in the basement of his home in Hershey, Pennsylvania, and watching Landon Donovan score the injury-time goal that beat Algeria in 2010 to earn advancement.

    “The family coming together, wearing all our red, white and blue, just getting excited,” Pulisic said. “It was always a dream of mine. I wanted to be there so bad. But now to be here as a part of this team actually at the World Cup, it’s special. And, yeah, I don’t want to take a moment of this for granted.”

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    AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/world-cup and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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  • Gareth Bale And LAFC Win MLS Cup, Put New Premium On Role Players

    Gareth Bale And LAFC Win MLS Cup, Put New Premium On Role Players

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    Not every MLS club has the kind of quality-of-life perks that can convince a star of Gareth Bale’s caliber to play for less than $2.4 million in guaranteed annual compensation. And not every player of Bale’s stature would be content as a late-game weapon off the bench, even if — as we’re told here — that owed mostly to injury.

    But when Bale hammered an astounding 128th-minute leveler past Andre Blake to send Satuday’s MLS Cup final to penalties — where LAFC triumphed following a 3-3 draw — he may have also ushered in a new era: The age of MLS role players.

    Bale’s role as a sort of late-game, not-so-secret weapon made him just one of several LAFC players who had highly focused parts to play at times during their domestic double-winning season.

    Heck, he wasn’t even the only key roleplayer Saturday. Back-up goalkeeper John McCarthy had to be called into action because of an injury to Maxime Crepeau, but his acumen at saving penalties is so exceptional he might have come on as a late-game sub anyway. He was used this way in previous U.S. Open Cup matches at his previous team — the Union.

    Elsewhere on the pitch, former LAFC center back Mamadou Fall was a set piece aerial menace before leaving on a loan move to Villareal B. Ryan Hollingshead was originally intended to be LAFC’s offensive-minded right fullback, though injuries conspired to see him start 22 games at right back.

    This approach isn’t exactly novel in team sports or even in soccer — although it is far easier in soccer recently in the wake of pandemic-era rules changes allowing up to five subs per team, per match. It is however, very rarely taken to the extent in MLS that LAFC were able to by bringing in stars like Bale and Giorgio Chielini on team-friendly deals. (LAFC’s 15 goals scored by substitute’s were the third-most in MLS history.)

    The roster rules in MLS have for most of the league’s life made it difficult for teams to invest money with a focus on depth rather than top-end talent. But those restrictions have loosened slowly over the last decade, with the introduction of general and targeted allocation money to be used on roster spending, and more recently the creation of the league’s U22 initiative. And with the influx of some new money from the league’s new $2.5-billion, 10-year streaming deal with Apple, there’s reason to believe they may loosen even more in the near future.

    While not every club can lure a Bale-like player on a below-market-value contract, those developments should lead to salaries being spread more evenly across 30-man rosters. And that in turn will lead to more sporting directors and managers to think not only about spending purposefully on 90-minute players, but only those who can fill a crucial role in shorter shifts.

    There are already some signs of this occurring beyond LAFC. The crosstown rival LA Galaxy are a great example. Veteran midfielders Victor Vazquez and Sacha Kljestan inhabited the role of calming influences in the center of the park, though their 90-minute days are mostly behind them. Dejan Joveljic was arguably the best bench scorer in the league, and all the while Greg Vanney mostly resisted the temptation to start him alongside Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez.

    Elsewhere, Felipe was chief agitator in reserve at Austin FC. Dom Dwyer had a bit of a career resurrection as a super sub striker for Atlanta United. Philadelphia’s Jack McGlynn and Cory Burke were starting-level attacking options off the bench.

    Furthermore, at the most-recent IFAB meeting in June, the governing body of the laws of the game made using five substitutes during a match a permanent option for competitions around the world. Should MLS opt to keep five subs in its league games, it only stands to reason that teams will have more incentive to assemble a wider range of skillsets for managers to be able to deploy at the most opportune times.

    Sure, the Black & Gold may be a special case. Everything in Los Angeles generally is when it comes to MLS. But they may also be a test case, one that passed its examination in stunning fashion when Bale scored in the dying moments on Saturday afternoon.

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    Ian Nicholas Quillen, Contributor

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  • Best vs best: MLS Cup final pits LAFC, Philadelphia Union

    Best vs best: MLS Cup final pits LAFC, Philadelphia Union

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    LOS ANGELES — Major League Soccer’s playoff system rarely rewards the league’s best regular-season teams with the championship celebration they would get in most other top domestic leagues.

    This season, the identity of the league’s best team will be crystal-clear when the MLS Cup is raised Saturday.

    Los Angeles FC and the Philadelphia Union were the top teams in their respective conferences all year long, and they finished the regular season with identical point totals. They’ve survived the playoff gauntlet to play for both franchises’ first MLS Cup title in a rare instance of the best truly facing the best.

    “I think it’s two teams that deserve to be here, the best two teams in the regular season,” Philadelphia captain Alejandro Bedoya said.

    For the first time in 19 years, MLS’ two conference leaders are playing for the title. They’ll meet at Banc of California Stadium amid the roiling, raucous fan atmosphere created for LAFC, which is seeking the crowning achievement to its half-decade of success since joining MLS in 2018.

    “I said from the first day, this club is special,” LAFC captain Carlos Vela said. “This is a really good chance for us, for myself to do something good for them and get something back for fans, for the club, for families, for everybody that’s involved in this club. We have to enjoy it and bring everything, because it’s the most important game of this club.”

    LAFC will attempt to become only the second team in the past 11 years to win both the Supporters’ Shield as the regular season’s top team — the championship standard in nearly all other top soccer leagues — and the postseason playoff trophy. Just seven of the league’s first 26 regular season champions also won the MLS Cup final.

    Philadelphia and LAFC were the two highest-scoring teams in the league this season while topping their respective conferences and finishing with 67 points apiece. LAFC won the Supporters’ Shield because it had two more victories, but Philadelphia had a far superior goal differential.

    These two teams have reached their league’s pinnacle together by taking dissimilar paths. They’ve been two of MLS’ most consistently successful teams over the past half-decade, winning three of the past four Supporters’ Shield trophies.

    Philadelphia’s foundation is built on the products of its innovative player academy, and the Union bolster their lineup with under-the-radar transfer acquisitions. The Union’s starting lineup costs a fraction of LAFC’s group, but under the innovative strategic mind of longtime coach Jim Curtin, they have built a durable core that fits perfectly into an aggressive style of play.

    While the Philadelphia Phillies play in the World Series and the undefeated Philadelphia Eagles reign atop the overall NFL standings, the city’s scrappy soccer team is trying to grab its own trophy.

    “Growing with the club since I (arrived) there in 2014, the club has really come a long way,” said Andre Blake, the Union’s star Jamaican goalkeeper. “I think the biggest thing is the culture has changed, and we are really more of a club that’s never satisfied. We always want to win. We’re not just OK with being in the league. We want to be one of those clubs that every time you talk about the MLS, our name pops up.”

    LAFC has made a splash from its start with Mexican star Vela, but the club has made smart acquisitions from unusual spots across the globe to build a powerhouse roster. After missing the playoffs last season, LAFC roared back to dominance under first-year coach Steve Cherundolo, the German-trained native Californian who instilled a flexible, detail-oriented tactical mindset.

    Vela has been solid as usual, but LAFC’s best player has been Cristian Arango, who has scored a whopping 30 goals in 51 matches since signing out of Colombia’s domestic league last year.

    “We are in a position to do something good, to really say we made something special,” Vela said.

    The Hollywood team with co-owners including Will Ferrell and Magic Johnson also landed two more major stars this year, signing Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini and Welsh forward Gareth Bale at midseason.

    While the 38-year-old Chiellini has been a solid contributor in central defense and a strong leader, LAFC has reached the final with a minimal contribution from Bale. The Welsh superstar scored two quick goals after joining the club, but he has played only five minutes since Sept. 18 and none since Oct. 2 while dealing with an unspecified injury, possibly prioritizing his fitness for Wales’ first World Cup appearance in 64 years later this month.

    Just as he often was at Real Madrid, Bale is largely a hobbled spectator while his club chases trophies. Yet Bale also has a knack for delivering on big stages, making him a compelling factor in the MLS Cup final.

    “One of them barely plays, but he’s a big guy, right?” Bedoya said with a grin when asked to evaluate LAFC’s big-name additions. “That’s a headline. But no, it’s a team that has incredible talent. We all know that. That’s no disrespect to him. He’s a fantastic player.”

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    AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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  • A look at the players who won’t be at the World Cup in Qatar

    A look at the players who won’t be at the World Cup in Qatar

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    BERLIN — Not every soccer star will be competing at the World Cup.

    Some big names will be missing from the tournament in Qatar because of injuries or because their countries didn’t qualify.

    ERLING HAALAND (Norway)

    The 22-year-old Haaland has had a phenomenal start in his first season at Manchester City with 17 goals in his first 11 Premier League appearances, but Norway failed to beat the Netherlands in the team’s final qualifying game in Group G. Haaland, who had scored in the 1-1 draw when they met in Oslo, missed the decisive game because of an injury. The Dutch qualified as group winners with a 2-0 victory, while Norway was left in third place. Haaland has 21 goals in 23 games for Norway but he has to wait until at least 2026 for his country to reach its first World Cup since 1998.

    MOHAMED SALAH (Egypt)

    Salah, who won the Golden Boot as the Premier League’s top scorer alongside Son Heung-min last season, missed a penalty against Senegal in the shootout that eliminated Egypt from the World Cup playoffs. Salah blasted his attempt over the crossbar and former Liverpool teammate Sadio Mané kicked the winner for his team’s 3-1 victory. It was a repeat of Senegal’s win on penalties in the African Cup of Nations final the month before. This season, Salah has scored four goals in his first 12 matches as Liverpool has struggled for wins.

    PAUL POGBA (France)

    Paul Pogba was ruled out of the tournament this week because of ongoing right knee problems. The 29-year-old Pogba played a vital part in France’s World Cup success four years ago, but has yet to play a game this season since his last official match in April. After returning to Juventus from Manchester United in the offseason, Pogba tore his meniscus during the Italian club’s preseason tour of the United States in July. He initially decided against having an operation, but then had surgery on his right knee in early September. Pogba’s agent, Rafaela Pimenta, said Monday that he “needs more rehabilitation after his operation.” Pogba has also been mired in an extortion scandal involving his older brother and childhood friends.

    N’GOLO KANTE (France)

    Kante hasn’t played for his club or his country since August, and Chelsea confirmed last month that the midfielder will miss the tournament while recovering from surgery on a hamstring injury. Widely regarded as one of the world’s best midfielders, Kante played a key role alongside Pogba in France’s run to the 2018 title. Another France midfielder, Boubacar Kamara, was already ruled out because of injury.

    DAVID ALABA (Austria)

    Austria didn’t qualify for the World Cup after losing to Wales in the playoffs. Gareth Bale scored two goals in the 2-1 victory that ended his Real Madrid teammate’s hopes of appearing at soccer’s biggest tournament for the first time. The 30-year-old Alaba, who joined Madrid from Bayern Munich in 2021, captained Austria at last year’s European Championship, where the team lost to eventual champion Italy in the round of 16.

    LUIS DÍAZ (Colombia)

    Díaz’s World Cup hopes were over even before he injured his knee while playing for Liverpool because Colombia finished sixth in South American qualifying. The 25-year-old Díaz, who instantly became a Liverpool favorite after his transfer from Porto in January, still hasn’t played at a World Cup. He has scored eight goals in 37 appearances for Colombia. James Rodríguez and “El Tigre” Radamel Falcao will also miss the tournament.

    GIANLUIGI DONNARUMMA (Italy)

    Arguably the best goalkeeper in the world won’t be at the World Cup after Italy surprisingly failed to qualify for the tournament — again. Donnarumma was the player of the tournament when he helped Italy win Euro 2020, but he was unable to stop Aleksandar Trajkovski’s injury-time winner for North Macedonia in the World Cup playoffs in March. Italy also failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Donnarumma, considered the heir to the great Gianluigi Buffon, will get his chance again. Despite already making 49 appearances for Italy, he’s only 23 years old.

    DIOGO JOTA (Portugal)

    Jota said “one of my dreams collapsed” when it was confirmed he will miss the World Cup with a calf injury sustained in Liverpool’s 1-0 win over Manchester City on Oct. 16. He had already missed the first month of the season because of injury. Liverpool coach Jürgen Klopp said Jota faced “months” to recover. Portugal teammate Pedro Neto is also out after sustaining an ankle injury while playing with Wolverhampton.

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    AP World Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/world-cup and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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  • What If Gareth Bale Is A Bust And LAFC Wins MLS Cup Anyway?

    What If Gareth Bale Is A Bust And LAFC Wins MLS Cup Anyway?

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    When news first circulated this June that Los Angeles Football Club would be adding Gareth Bale to an already talented, first-place squad, conventional wisdom suggested the rest of their season would go one of two ways:

    1. Bale would add an extra gear to the Black & Gold as they steamrolled to their first MLS Cup title, or …
    2. He would ruin team chemistry as a square peg inside a round hole and sabotage an excellent season.

    Perhaps we should’ve seen envisioned a third scenario that already transpired once in his last season at his former club, Real Madrid: That Bale plays a largely ornamental role, and the most talented team in the league — Bale’s team — wins the title anyway.

    There’s still two games to go, of course, but that third possibility now appears entirely credible after LAFC vanquished intracity rival the LA Galaxy 3-2 in the Western Conference semifinals on Thursday night.

    That’s not to say LAFC haven’t benefited from their ability to splash cash during the summer transfer window where other teams might not have as many resources.

    Cristian Arango, added during the 2021 summer window, scored Thursday night’s match-winning goal, his 31st in 52 MLS regular season and playoff appearances. Denis Bouanga, signed this summer from St. Etienne in France, was man of the match with two goals and a key contribution on Arango’s winner. He also scored the goal that sealed LAFC’s Supporters’ Shield triumph in Portland.

    But Bale was not even on the team sheet, officially recovered from a minor injury but not yet fit enough to play, according to the FS1 broadcast. And given how LAFC acquitted itself, it’s hard to imagine a scenario at this point where he is anything more than a bit-part player this postseason.

    While Bale started life at LAFC well, scoring twice in his first four matches, it’s been downhill since. He’s played 355 minutes in 12 appearances. His new side failed to score while he was on the field in either of his two starts, and overall LAFC have posted a -5 goal differential when he’s on the pitch. In those same games, they’ve outscored opponents by 11 goals when he’s not on the field.

    So while there remains some chance he could be scapegoated as the one piece of the LAFC puzzle that failed to come through if they fall short of MLS Cup, it’s near-equally likely he could leave a somewhat confusing legacy as an MLS Cup winner.

    There’s many examples of European stars who come to MLS and immediately lift their new teams to a next level. Among them: Robbie Keane at the LA Galaxy, David Villa at New York City FC and Wayne Rooney at D.C. United. Equally, there are stars whose arrivals seemed to do as much harm as good, at least at first. Exhibit A would be the early years of David Beckham’s tenure at the LA Galaxy, and the most recent example might be Gonzalo Higuain’s first season-and-a-half at Inter Miami.

    But what do you make of a star of Bale’s brightness having almost no tangible impact?

    One interpretation could be that LAFC have built one of the first MLS brands bigger than a single global icon. But Bale has been — from outward appearances at least — a model citizen since his arrival in Southern California. And this might all have gone differently if he had expressed displeasure publicly with how he had been used so far.

    A second potential argument is that his mere presence had a benefit even if it didn’t come with on-field production. The idea that a guy who played at Real Madrid could replace you if you don’t perform could have been a motivator to players like Arango and Bouanga, in particular. Conversely, all the attention given to Bale since his arrival may have actually taken pressure off the rest of the roster.

    In the long term, it seems like Bale’s MLS chapter is unlikely to change many minds in front offices about their approach toward signing big stars. Clubs inclined to stay away from big names are likely to look at Bale’s underwhelming impact as evidence that such star power is unnecessary. Clubs who want glitz and glamour might see Bale’s travails as evidence you can swing and miss on one big signing and still succeed on the field if you do other things right.

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    Ian Nicholas Quillen, Contributor

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