Spanish Press DenounceTeam As Weak After Euro 2016 Exit

*Loss Sperks row

Spanish media blasted the national team as weak on Tuesday and called on coach Vicente del Bosque to resign after the defending champions were knocked out of Euro 2016 by Italy.

"Failure" said the headline in Barcelona-based newspaper Sport after Monday's 2-0 defeat in Paris ended Spain's bid for a third successive European title, while El Mundo Deportivo mocked the side nicknamed La Roja (The Red) with a headline reading "La Floja" (The Weak).

The Madrid-based AS paper carried the headline: "End of an era" and said Del Bosque, who succeeded the late Luis Aragones shortly after Spain's Euro 2008 success, needed to go.

"It's time to hand over the baton, Del Bosque out; (former Sevilla coach Joaquin) Caparros is warming up," AS said, adding that Caparros had turned down offers to coach Betis, Valencia and Alaves in order to become the next national coach.

Along with Michel, who was sacked by Olympique de Marseille in April, and former FC Porto tactician Julen Lopetegui, Caparros is widely considered as a candidate to replace Del Bosque should the 65-year-old step down.

"This early knockout and the early exit from the 2014 World Cup is the epitaph of a glorious cycle of Del Bosque's team," El Mundo Deportivo wrote.

Marca's front page read: "We are no longer the best. 2008-2016, it was beautiful while it lasted".

"It all started and ended with Italy," the newspaper added.

Spain could have avoided facing Italy but their 2-1 loss to Croatia in the group stage meant they ended up in the more challenging side of the draw for the knockouts.

In the quarter-finals of Euro 2008, Spain beat Italy on penalties, a result that proved to be a turning point for the national team who went on to win the 2010 World Cup.

Marca praised Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea, who spared Spain from a more humiliating defeat, giving him a rating of seven out of 10, with only second-half substitutes Aritz Aduriz and Lucas Vazquez coming close with six.

De Gea, who started at Euro 2016 ahead of Spain captain Iker Casillas, the team's first-choice keeper since 2002, made four great saves against Italy.

Euro 2016Exit against Italy:: I'm In My Last Days As Spain Coach, Says Del Bosque

Monday's Euro 2016 elimination at the hands of Italy marked the end of Spain's era of dominance, and the beginning of the end for coach Vicente Del Bosque.

On the back of the last 16 defeat at the Stade de France which curtailed eight years of sustained international success for La Furia Roja, the Marquis appears increasingly resigned to his fate.

"Maybe it is best to let in some fresh air," he said.

"I understand that I am in my last days with the Spanish national team."

The former Real Madrid coach will hold talks with RFEF president Angel Maria Villar before reaching a decision on his future, but his post-match comments in Paris suggested that he will vacate the position he has held since taking over from the late Luis Aragones in 2008.

Between then and 2016, Del Bosque led Spain to a European Championship and one World Cup but with a 17th defeat in 114 games, the cycle was finally broken by Antonio Conte's Italian ensemble.

After Euro 2012, Del Bosque's position was unquestionable but he refused to bow out on a high as his predecessor Aragones had done at the 2008 tournament.

A disastrous World Cup campaign in Brazil, two years later, saw the 65-year-old offer his resignation only for Villar and the Spanish players to convince him otherwise.

That same situation is now set to be revisited in a momentous decision for the future of Spanish football.

COPA America: Argentina's Coach Keeps Job

Argentina's national soccer team, Gerardo Martino, will continue with the side and lead the Under 23 team through the Olympic Games 2016 in Rio de Janeiro.

The news came from the Argentine Football Association (AFA) on Monday, putting an end to rumors of Martino's possible resignation after his team lost the 2016 Centennial Copa America to Chile on Sunday in the United States.

The coach faced his second consecutive frustration in the regional soccer tournament after Argentina lost the final to Chile back in the 2015 edition.

Both matches ended 0-0 after extra time and then Chile went on to take the title in the penalty shootout.

According to the AFA, from next Monday, Martino and his coaching team will begin working with the Under 23 national side ahead of their participation in the Olympic Games in August.

The first practice session will take place at 15:00 local time (18:00 GMT) at the Ezeiza training ground, on the southern outskirts of Buenos Aires.

Since Sunday's defeat to Chile, soccer star and Argentine captain Lionel Messi has announced his resignation from international soccer due to the lack of results.

The team, including the forward, arrived in Ezeiza's international airport on Monday evening and from there they were transported to the AFA's headquarters.

Iceland fans rejoice

On paper at least it looked like an easy win. England, with a population of 53 million against Iceland, total population 330-thousand and with a dentist as co-trainer. But Iceland triumphed in their first ever game in the knock-out round of a major tournament, leaving England manager Roy Hodgson with little choice but to quit.

Euro 2016: Italy Beat Spain, Now , waits For Germany

It has a new favorite: the rugged  Italians. In the first of Monday's round of 16 matches, they made Spain look over the hill, beating the defending champions 2-0. It was a surprisingly one-sided affair. It was the sort of match between big footballing nations that many fans would prefer to see in a later stage of the tournament. But with Spain having only finished second in their qualifying group, they were forced to take on an opponent whose defense had proved as uncompromising as the best Italian teams of yesteryear.

The Spaniards were nonetheless the favorites on a rainy evening in Paris - perhaps because they had dispatched Italy 4-0 to win the tournament four years earlier. But the Italians were the better team at the start, with Graziano Pelle outjumping Sergio Busquets on a free kick and drawing a save from David de Gea in the eighth minute.

Spain's famed tiki-taka style was nowhere to be seen. Indeed, the defending European champions struggled to gain control of the ball against the surprisingly attack-minded Italians. It was the sort of match between big footballing nations that many fans would prefer to see in a later stage of the tournament. But with Spain having only finished second in their qualifying group, they were forced to take on an opponent whose defense had proved as uncompromising as the best Italian teams of yesteryear.

The Spaniards were nonetheless the favorites on a rainy evening in Paris - perhaps because they had dispatched Italy 4-0 to win the tournament four years earlier. But the Italians were the better team at the start, with Graziano Pelle outjumping Sergio Busquets on a free kick and drawing a save from David de Gea in the eighth minute.

Spain's famed tiki-taka style was nowhere to be seen. Indeed, the defending European champions struggled to gain control of the ball against the surprisingly attack-minded Italians.

Euro 2016: Hodgson Quits Following Country's Exit

England's 2-1 defeat to tiny Iceland has had immediate repercussions for the Three Lions. Before the match coach Roy Hodgson had said a loss would end his tenure, and on Monday he proved as good as his word. Hodgson announced he was stepping down minutes after the final whistle of the loss to Iceland, which sent England crashing out of the 2016 European Championships."I am sorry it will have to end this way but these things happen," Hodgson said. "I hope you will still be able to see an England team in a final of a major tournament soon."

Hodgson tried to defend the performance of his players, who were outplayed for large stretches of a match against a team from a nation with only 330,000 inhabitants.

"When I arrived I was told the players would not turn up, but I have not seen that," Hodgson told reporters

The 68-year-old former Liverpool manager Hodgson was in charge for four years and led England to Euro 2012 and the last World Cup.

Tennis: Djokovic, Williams Cruise As Wimbledon Startss

Action got underway at the All England Tennis club with a startling upset on the women's side. Among the men, world number one Novak Djokovic, bidding for a Grand Slam, easily won his opening match. The world's top-ranked men's tennis player, Novak Djokovic, jumped all over his British opponent James Ward, winning the first set to love. Djokovic opened the second with a service break as well, but Ward fought back, taking the set to a tie-breaker.

Djokovic won that affair 7-3 before prevailing by a single break in the third set. The 6-0, 7-6, 6-4 victory sends the Serb, who's on a quest to win all four tennis majors in a calendar year, into the next round of Wimbledon 2016.

One of Djokovic's main rivals, Swiss legend Roger Federer, defeated Guido Pella of Argentina, 7-6 (7-5) 7-6 (7-3) 6-3.

The tournament ended early for the 21st seed Philipp Kohlschreiber. He's headed home after losing to France's Hugues Herbert 7-5, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3.

In the women's tournament, number eight seed and five-time Wimbledon singles champion Venus Williams progressed with a close straight-set win over Croatia's Donna Vekic 7-6, 6-4.

Germany's Sabine Lisicki had a far easier time of it, beating Shelby Rogers of the United States 6-1, 6-3. So did Angelique Kerber who defeated Britain's Laura Robson 6-2, 6-2 .

But former women's number one Ana Ivanovic, nursing a wrist injury, has crashed out of Wimbledon. She lost to world number 223 and Grand Slam debutante Ekaterina Alexandrova of Russia. The score there was 6-2, 7-5. 

Germany Celebrates Its New Philipp Lahm

Facts couldn't have been more convincing: 87.5 percent of his passes in Germany's last group match against Norther Ireland found their man, he won nearly 60 percent of his man-on-man duels, touched the ball 104 ball times and he ruled the right flank. We are talking about a young man 21-years of age and the possible long-term solution for German head coach Joachim Loew's search for solution to his right back problem. Kimmich could well help Germany win Euro 2016. The next challenge for the intelligent midfielder could be Germany's first knock-out game at Euro 2016 against Slovakia in Lille this coming Sunday.

German media and fans are celebrating Joshua Kimmich's performance when winning only his second cap. Hermann Gerland, recently appointed by Bayern Munich coach Carlo Ancelotti as his future assistant at the 2016 German champion, expressed what most pundits in Germany and in the rest of football Europe are thinking: "Joshua Kimmich will be ready to step into Philipp Lahm' s shoes at right back. When Lahm retires in about two years, we don't have to worry," Gerland said. "But of course Joshua Kimmich at the moment can't be at the same level as a Philipp Lahm. But he has all the abilities needed to have a great future."

For Joachim Loew, Joshua Kimmich's star already seems to have risen. Despite the fact that Northern Ireland is not regarded as one of the big guns of Europe's football, the youngster is on his way to solving all the problems Germany has suffered ever since Philipp Lahm stepped down from international football after the 2014 World Cup. Up until the Northern Ireland game, Benedikt Hoewedes (FC Schalke 04) was Loew's compromise solution as right back. It was one Loew was never entirely happy about as Hoewedes, an out and out central defender, wasn't a great help when the team was going forward.

Joshua Kimmich could solve Loew's expectations is that he is not only able to close all doors at the back but also drive Germany's game along the flanks. Against Northern Ireland, Kimmich, along with Jonas Hector (1. FC Cologne) down the left, gave the German game the balance it had been lacking. "Before, our game relied too much on forays down the left," said the German head coach.

Who then is the young Joshua Kimmich who seems to be ready to take over the hard job of an all time great in Philipp Lahm (113 caps for Germany). Kimmich's career was far from what you call a rocket like one. Leaving the club of his childhood and early youth, VfB Stuttgart, he joined RB Leipzig in the third division and was part of a team that was promoted to the second Bundesliga. "For me it was just the right way into professional football. It was a step by step thing," Kimmich said in a recent Xinhua Interview.

hile Beats Argentina 4-2 I 2016 Copa America Final

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Lionel Messi Retires From Argentina Squad

The 29-year-old star player has achieved everything in club football - but failed to crown his career by leading his country to win a major trophy. Now he resigned from the international stage, after losing to Chile in the final of the Copa America. 

Scholes ExcitedTo Play In India

Former Manchester United and England midfielder Paul Scholes has expressed his delight after he signed a three-year deal to play in India's new Futsal League.

The 41-year-old hanged his boots in 2013 after making more than 700 appearances for the Red Devils and winning 11 Premier League titles and two Champions League trophies.

Fascinating

Chelsea’s Willian Not In Brazil Provisional Squad For The Olympic Games

Chelsea winger Willian will not be called to play in this summer’s Olympic games in Rio. The Brazilian was part of his country’s Copa América squad in the USA, but he does not feature on Rogerio Micale’s 35 man provisional list for the games.

Previous coach Dunga is known to have wanted Willian in the squad, but reportedly met opposition from Chelsea who did not guarantee that they would be willing to release him. Douglas Costa withdrew from the Copa América squad through injury, so Costa has made himself available for the Olympics with Bayern Munich’s blessing.

This seems to have satisfied the CBF, who are allowed to call a total of 3 players into their 18 man squad who are over the age of 23. One will certainly be Neymar, while two from Douglas Costa, Thiago Silva, Fernando Prass, Casemiro and Renato Augusto will join him.

It seems most likely that Costa and Thiago Silva will be the overage players called, though a goalkeeper shortage may force Rogerio to consider Palmeiras ‘keeper Fernando Prass. The entire list of 35 was not disclosed by the CBF, but the final 18 man squad will be announced on Wednesday.

 

 

Aubameyang Returns To His Roots

Reigning African Footballer Of the year,Borussia Dortmund star Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang may represent Gabon, have been born in France and ply his trade in the Bundesliga, but there is Spanish blood coursing through the forward's veins too, and this week he's been paying a visit to the little village

in Castile from where his mother's family hail.The Crespo clan emigrated to France many decades ago, but having grown up very close to his family the striker's impeccable Spanish means he's felt right at home amongst the townspeople, and he's certainly made a big splash.

The town of El Barraco has produced several footballers of note over the years but the current African footballer of the year, who hit 39 goals for his club last season, is a true global superstar.

He's been the centre of attention but has taken it all in his stride, signing shirts, posing for photos and mixing with the locals, with the mayor delighted that he's taken time out to visit a primary school and swim at the municipal pool as well as having the odd kick-about and enjoying the mountains.

I'd Like To Change History And Be champions, Says Messi

Argentina international Lionel Messi is hoping it will be fourth time lucky when they face Chile - after losing three previous finals with his country in the 2014 World Cup and Copa America in 2007 and 2015.The Albiceleste captain articulated in his pre-match press conference that it would be a big disappointment to be runners-up again in the Copa America Centenario  final, being held in New Jersey on Sunday night. I don't know if it's the last chance but we must seize it and win this cup, as I would like to change our history and to be champions this time," said the 29-year-old.Although they beat Chile 2-1 in a group game, the Barcelona star said that a final is different."Chile are a team which puts you under pressure and won't let you play your way."He explained why he criticised the Argentina Football Association -which is now under FIFA's control after president Luis Segura was charged with fraud concerning TV broadcasting rights - for its "disastrous" travel arrangements.He went public after the squad's flight from Houston to New York for the final was delayed for several hours."This is not just about what's happening now but things have happened over a long time although we haven't said anything," explained the forward."Maybe I was wrong to speak out now without asking anyone."The five times Ballon d'Or winner said he would rather focus on the final than think about the AFA."We don't ask for anything extra but at the very least we can travel, rest and be well prepared for the game to come," he added.

Copa AmericaThird Final In Three Years: Messi Nears Overtaking Pele And Maradona

Following a 4-0 victory over the host United States, Argentina are preparing for a Copa America final which takes Lionel Messi just a step closer to overtaking both Pele and Diego Maradona. The 2015 edition of the tournament was heartbreaking for the Argentinean side after they lost in the final to Chile, and La Roja will be their opponents once again as Messi & CO look to exact revenge in New Jersey.

Barcelona's forward has never won a major tournament at international level and it is a failing that haunts the 28-year-old.

The last two summers have seen him pick up a runners-up medal in two different tournaments and he appears on a mission to avoid a dreaded hat-trick.

Neither Pele nor Maradona have ever lifted the Copa America and here lies the opportunity for Messi to truly stake his claim to the best ever mantle.

The Ballon D'Or holder has enjoyed a wonderful tournament and already has five goals, just one behind the top scorer Eduardo Vargas, despite a lack of playing time the first few games due to injury.

Records continue to tumble for the diminutive playmaker with his fantastic strike against the United States in the semi-final officially making him the nation's top goalscorer with 55.

Both Maradona and Pele's respective failures to win the Copa America are puzzling, especially considering the former Argentine star has played in three editions of the competition.

The former Napoli midfielder played in 1979, 1987 and 1989 and couldn't win a single one of the competitions.

Pele only ever participated in one Copa America and this came in 1959 with his Brazilian team finishing second, one point behind Argentina.

Superstars Grace Opening Round Of EURO2016 Knockout Games

Potential fairytales, possible upsets and the road to a blockbuster clash. The opening Euro 2016 knockout games have it all, including two of world football's biggest stars in Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale.

BOXING: Fury Postpones Klitschko Rematch Due T Injury

Tyson Fury has postponed his world heavyweight title rematch against Wladimir Klitschko after spraining an ankle on a training run. A rematch is still on the cards for later in the year. Fury, the WBO and WBA champion, said on his Instagram account he suffered the injury 10 days ago and had been advised to rest for six to seven weeks.

The Briton did not give a new date for the fight, which was to have been staged in Manchester on July 9, but said it would take place when he had recovered.

"The fight will be postponed," Fury said. "Sorry to all my fans to let you down but injuries do happen."

Fury said he had attempted to continue his training after injuring his ankle and having an X-ray and MRI scan. Having taking advice from two doctors, the decision was made to postpone the fight.

"Of course I am totally disappointed about the postponement," said Klitschko. "But one thing is clear: I'll get my belt back a few weeks later."

Fury upset Klitschko in a unanimous decision in Düsseldorf in November, the Ukrainian's first defeat in 11 years.

The Best Faces And Outfits At Euro 2016

Gaudy, playful, fun - fans at the European Championship in France are giving it their best to support their teams.

*Germans

 Belgium's Obelix never meets these two Italian legionaries. After wild boars, they're the big Gaul's favorite quarry. These two Fratelli d'Italia with the historic touch seem surprised at how well their team is doing.

    

Germany v Northern Ireland: The The Perfect Game UEFA Craves For

The atmosphere at Germany’s final group stage game was exactly the sort of thing that UEFA would like to see more of. Agency reports said that the two sets of fans celebrated together before, during and after the match.  Germany and Northern Ireland come from opposite ends of the spectrum in many ways. Germany entered this European Championship as the World Cup champions, with nothing less than the Euro 2016 title acceptable to their fans. The Northern Irish, on the other hand, are just happy to be there.

To an outsider, the Germans may often seem dour, humorless people, focused only on work, efficiency and getting the beach towel out on the recliners beside the pools at some tourist destination in the south to prevent the English from getting there first.

The Northern Irish, on the other hand, are still probably tainted to many by the “troubles” that were pretty much put to bed by the Good Friday Agreement.

Serena Closing On Graf Record In The Women’s Draw

*Focused for another try

In the women’s draw, defending champion and six-times winner Serena Williams is still one title away from equalling Steffi Graf’s Open era record of 22 grand slam singles titles after three times coming close to matching the German's feat.Since beating Garbine Muguruza in last year’s title match, American Williams has fallen to Roberta Vinci of Italy in the final of the U.S. Open, Germany’s Angelique Kerber in the Australian Open final and Muguruza in this month’s French Open showpiece.

Spaniard Muguruza, who many are tipping to take over from the 34-year-old Williams at the summit of the women’s game, is seeded second in London and is hoping to join a select group of players to complete the Roland Garros-Wimbledon double.

“She’s come a long way,” former American great Chris Evert said this week. “That will be a real curiosity for me. Whether she can carry that momentum and confidence and do well … or is she going to have a hard time re-setting, especially in dealing with expectations.”

While Djokovic is in a league of his own and Murray stands ahead of the chasing pack, there are signs a new generation could be ready to break up the status quo in the men’s game.