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Haaland, Mbappe Clash In Group Stage

WASHINGTON: France coach Didier Deschamps is excited about a high-profile showdown between Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland after the two stars were drawn in the same group for the 2026 World Cup.

France are placed in Group I with Norway and Senegal, with another slot to be filled by the winner of a playoff between Iraq, Bolivia or Suriname.

“It will be a great battle. Both teams have a lot of quality players, but Mbappe and Haaland are names recognised all over the world and they are among the top scorers,” said Deschamps.

Mbappe is currently showing exceptional form with 30 goals in 24 matches with Real Madrid and France this season, while Haaland has collected 33 goals in 24 matches with Manchester City and Norway.

Haaland led Norway’s comeback to win their qualifying group, qualifying for the World Cup for the first time since 1998.

France, meanwhile, is chasing a third world title after losing to Argentina in the 2022 final in Qatar.

The meeting with Senegal also brings back memories of the bitter episode in 2002 when they arrived as defending champions but lost in the opening match and were eliminated in the group stage.

Deschamps, who will end his 14-year tenure as manager after the tournament, reminded the players to stay focused.

“Every World Cup has its own story. We want to make sure this edition is as beautiful as possible.

“As France, we bring great status and high expectations. But we need to show respect and humility from the beginning,” he said.

If France emerge as group winners, they will face one of the best third-placed teams in the round of 32, before facing a tough road that is expected to find them with Germany in the round of 16.

Tight Schedule, Injuries Haunt Arteta

LONDON: Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is concerned that the increase in injuries in his squad could jeopardize his bid to win the Premier League title this season.

Most recently, Declan Rice and Cristhian Mosquera joined Arsenal’s long list of injuries during the 2-0 win over Brentford this morning.

Arsenal strengthened their position as league leaders with a five-point lead over Manchester City thanks to goals from Mikel Merino and Bukayo Saka at the Emirates Stadium.

The victory extended Arsenal’s unbeaten run to 18 matches in all competitions and secured their eighth consecutive home win.

Mosquera had to be taken off before half-time, joining a list of injured defenders, including Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba.

The situation became even more worrying when Rice was seen suffering from a calf problem and had to be substituted 10 minutes before the end.

“Of course it’s not good news. Declan has to go out. We don’t know yet, we’ll have to see tomorrow what the problem is.

“Declan can walk, but he can’t play. He’s played a lot of minutes and now we play on Wednesday night and have to go back on Saturday morning,” said Arteta, who is also missing Kai Havertz and Leandro Trossard.

After a busy week with matches against Tottenham, Bayern Munich and Chelsea, Arteta tried to rest Saka, Jurrien Timber and Eberechi Eze against Brentford.

However, all three were still forced to be included to ensure victory, causing Arteta’s dissatisfaction with the match schedule.

“Rest? That’s a pretty positive word. We had to make some changes.

“We had a very challenging week at every level. We were asked to play three days later, with one less recovery day than our opponents.

“We can play extra minutes, but if we can give ourselves a little extra time to recover and look after the players’ welfare, that would be very helpful,” he said.

Slots Give Two Players A Chance Following Salah’s Absence

LIVERPOOL, England: Liverpool are preparing for a crucial winter period when Mohamed Salah will be helping his country Egypt at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) from December 21 to January 18 in Morocco.

Salah’s absence could potentially cause the striker to miss a month of action in a phase that often determines the English Premier League (EPL) championship.

The situation sparked a debate about Arne Slot’s management selection strategy.

Slot previously used Federico Chiesa’s services cautiously.

The Italian striker has scored two goals in the EPL but is still a rotation option.

Chiesa is expected to be given more opportunities in Salah’s absence, providing a natural replacement with his quick and aggressive movements in the opposition area.

Slot also uses Florian Wirtz and Cody Gakpo on the left side, thus increasing competition for playing minutes and emphasizing technical safety in high-stakes matches.

The focus is now on how many minutes Rio Ngumoha will get.

The 17-year-old has only played 30 minutes in the EPL this season, but Slot appreciates his greatness and feels he is ready to be used.

Ngumoha’s debut may not be until the new year, when Liverpool face this season’s FA Cup, but the AFCON window opens up an opportunity for the young player to shine.

Ngumoha, who left Chelsea at the age of 15 before signing his first professional contract earlier this season, is considered the club’s most exciting long-term project.

Slots are not in a hurry but recognize the opportunity to shape the player’s development.

Fan support for Ngumoha is high and many see Salah’s absence as the best opportunity for him to shine, even if it’s just a brief appearance.

Attention is also being drawn to Chiesa, who has rarely been given full appearances before, with some supporters believing he could impress if given a consistent chance.

Liverpool now have a deeper and more versatile squad under Slot and if Ngumoha can shine throughout this period, it could be one of the main stories of the season.

Kane Believes England Can Challenge For 2026 World Cup Trophy

TIRANA (Albania): England captain Harry Kane is confident the country’s current squad is ‘the best we’ve ever had’ after finishing the World Cup qualifying campaign with a brilliant record, winning 2-0 over Albania, early this morning.

The Bayern Munich striker scored two goals late in the game in Tirana, helping Thomas Tuchel’s side secure eight wins in Group K.

The 32-year-old was once part of the England squad that finished runner-up in the European Championship twice and also reached the semi-finals of the World Cup.

However, Kane believes that Tuchel has formed the best squad in his 10 years of experience with England, besides labelling the team as among the favorites to win the World Cup next year.

“I think it’s the best we’ve ever had,” Kane said. “If you look at the starting line-up and the reserves, we’re going into the tournament as one of the favourites.

“We have to accept that. We’ve been at this level for the past few tournaments.”

England became the first European team to play at least six matches in a World Cup qualifying campaign and win every match without conceding a goal.

They scored 22 goals in total in the World Cup qualifiers in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Kane, who has now scored 78 goals for the national team, is aware of the real challenge awaiting him at the World Cup.

However, Kane is confident England can provide competition in their quest for their first World Cup trophy since 1966.

“We’ve built this squad, had a great year with a new coach, and now we look forward to 2026 with confidence,” said Kane.

“I think we’ve set a new standard now, especially in the last few camps and we’ve continued to maintain that.

“It was an important win. You don’t want to end it with a loss at the end of the year and then have to wait until March to play again.

“Now, we can relax and enjoy it,” he said.

Liverpool Bought The Wrong Player – Fowler

LONDON: Former Liverpool sensation Robbie Fowler believes the Reds’ summer transfer window spending strategy is the main reason for their sudden decline in form this season.

Liverpool, the defending Premier League champions, were beaten 3-0 by Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium thanks to goals from Erling Haaland, Nico Gonzalez and Jeremy Doku, recording their sixth defeat in their last seven league matches.

Last summer, Liverpool spent big – around 446 million pounds including twice breaking the British transfer record when signing midfielder Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen for 116 million pounds and striker Alexander Isak from Newcastle for 125 million pounds.

However, their performance has declined compared to last season. Fowler, who scored 183 goals throughout his career with Liverpool, said the defeat proved that Arne Slot’s squad had now dropped out of the championship race.

“Before the game, I was asked if Liverpool had come out of the slump. I said don’t get too excited.

“They won against Aston Villa, but they only played well for 45 minutes. For me, they’re out of the title race,” Fowler said on The Good, The Bad & The Football programme with Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt.

Scholes also admitted that he previously still believed Liverpool could win the league, but changed his mind after seeing how they lost at the Etihad.

Fowler then slammed the club’s transfer approach which he said was not in line with the Slot system.

“(Jeremie) Frimpong is the most obvious example. He was bought to replace (Trent) Alexander-Arnold, but he’s actually a defensive winger, not a traditional right-back.

“So is (Milos) Kerkez. He was a big favourite last season, but playing for Liverpool is not the same as playing at Bournemouth or Brentford – the pressure is a lot different,” said Scholes.

Frimpong and Kerkez joined Liverpool for 29.5 million pounds and 40 million pounds respectively.

Also bought were Eintracht Frankfurt striker Hugo Ekitike for 85 million pounds and young defender Giovanni Leoni from Parma for 30 million pounds.

Liverpool are currently eighth in the league, eight points behind leaders Arsenal and four points behind second-placed Manchester City.

Nicky Butt described City’s victory as a “revelation” that they are back to their best, while Scholes added: “Arsenal may be four points ahead, but with the experience City have compared to Arsenal, I still see City as the favourites to win.”