Sports

UCL: Inter To Face Bayern After Breezing Past Feyenoord

Published

7 months ago

March 12, 2025

Editor

Inter Milan strolled into the quarter-finals of the Champions League on Tuesday after seeing off Feyenoord 2-1 to go through 4-1 on aggregate.

A thumping early strike from Marcus Thuram and Hakan Calhanoglu’s penalty gave Inter comfortable passage to the last eight, where the Italian champions will face a blockbuster clash with Bayern Munich.

Feyenoord’s deepest run in Europe’s top club competition in decades ended with a whimper although the away side did briefly look like making a game of it when Jakub Moder rattled in a penalty three minutes before the break.

Hosts Inter could have easily won by more after missing a clutch of good chances, with Thuram drilling a great opportunity against the bar moments before being substituted to rapturous applause with 19 minutes remaining.

Inter were already comfortably ahead from their dominant first leg display in Rotterdam but Thuram made sure there would be no nasty surprises in the eighth minute.

The France forward received a ball from Carlos Augusto on the left flank and then charged towards goal, cutting inside onto his right foot and unleashing a ferocious shot against which Timon Wellenreuther could do nothing to stop.

That goal made it near impossible for Feyenoord, now led by former Netherlands striker Robin van Persie whose team showed willing even with 11 players out of action through injury or suspension.

Up to Thuram’s opener Simone Inzaghi’s 200th game as Inter coach had been played in near silence bar sporadic chanting from the 5,000 away supporters, as home fans stayed silent for the first 20 minutes in protest at the increasing cost of tickets for home matches.

Inzaghi, himself hit with a series of important absences including Italy wing-back Federico Dimarco, also rested star striker Lautaro Martinez, Nicolo Barella, Francesco Acerbi and Alessandro Bastoni with a huge match at Serie A title rivals Atalanta coming up at the weekend.

It was one of Inzaghi’s regulars in Calhanoglu who gave Feyenoord a lifeline in the 38th minute when he bundled into Moder to hand the Poland midfielder a chance to level the scores on the night.

However, Calhanoglu redeemed himself five minutes after the break by confidently stroking home from the spot after what looked like a soft foul on Mehdi Taremi by Thomas Beelen.

Calhanoglu’s ninth goal of the season made it party time in the stands and gave Inter a truly high-profile tie with Bayern which will bring back memories of the 2010 treble, the last time an Italian team won the Champions League.

AFP

Sports

Ballon d’Or: Why Neymar Didn’t Win Award – Gerard

Published

5 hours ago

October 16, 2025

Editor

Barcelona legend, Gerard Piqué has said that Brazil legend, Neymar could have won the Ballon d’Or had he remained at the Catalan side a little longer.

Neymar left Barça for PSG in 2017, becoming the costliest player in the world.

Pique said that the move stopped the Brazilian from winning the Ballon d’Or.

He said that the superstar footballer actually deserved to win the France Football award in his career.

Speaking on the PodPah podcast, Pique, who was Neymar’s teammate for many years at Barcelona, said he tried to convince the Brazilian not to make the move but the former PSG star did not listen to him.

“I’m convinced he deserved a Ballon d’Or. I think going to PSG hurt him. We tried to convince him not to go, we did everything possible.

“Everyone thought he was going to stay, even me, but it seemed that it was already decided. In the end, he had an incredible career,” he said.

The Brazilian was at Camp Nou until 2017 when he decided to move to PSG who were willing to activate his €222 million release clause.

He left for Al-Hilal in 2023 and returned to Brazil with Santos in 2025.

Sports

Lionel Messi Names 10 Best Young Players Currently

Published

5 hours ago

October 16, 2025

Editor

Argentina and Barcelona legend, Lionel Messi, has named the 10 players he sees as future stars.

The legendary attacker has players from Chelsea and Liverpool in his list.

As part of an Adidas campaign, the 8-time Ballon d’Or winner was asked to name the players he deems the next big stars in the game.

The Inter Miami goal king partnering with Adidas Football for the ‘Messi+10: Season 2’ campaign named his 10 best rising stars.

He named Liverpool’s Rio Ngumoha, Chelsea’s Andrey Santos, Kendry Paez, also of Chelsea and Brighton & Hove Albion midfielder, Brajan Gruda.

Others are Nico Paz (Como), Rodrigo Mora (Porto), Mika Godts (Ajax Amsterdam), and Kader Meite (Stade Rennes).

He named two female players, Barcelona’s Clara Serrajordi and Olympique Lyon’s Lily Yohannes.

Messi made a similar selection in 2024 to include Lamine Yamal, Antonio Nusa and Kenan Yildiz.

Sports

2026 World Cup: Why ‘England Can’t Win Trophy’ – Paul Scholes

Published

5 hours ago

October 16, 2025

Editor

Former England international, Paul Scholes, has said that the country stands no chance of winning the 2026 World Cup to be hosted in the USA, Canada and Mexico.

England became the first European country to qualify for the World Cup on Tuesday after beating Latvia 5 goals to nothing.

Scholes said Thomas Tuchel’s team has ‘no chance’ of winning the tournament unless the German gaffer brings his ‘three best players’ back into the squad.

Tuchel will now be hoping to lead England to their first major trophy in men’s football since 1966.

The former Chelsea manager was appointed as Sir Gareth Southgate’s successor last year.

England made it to two European Championship finals and two World Cup semi-finals under Southgate but failed to lift those trophies.

But former Manchester United midfielder, Scholes believes that England has ‘no chance’ unless Tuchel brings his ‘three best players’ back into the fold.

Jude Bellingham, Phil Foden and Jack Grealish were left out of the team for their last matches.

“I was a little bit surprised. Those three players, they have to be in his squad and they will be in his squad for the World Cup,” Scholes said on The Overlap.

“If you look at the squad now, you would say they have virtually no chance of winning the World Cup. Even with those three players it’s still a big ask but it gives you more of a chance of winning the cup.

“Jude Bellingham has missed a little bit of football but he’s fit now so I would have brought him back in.

“Thomas Tuchel hasn’t got many games left now until the World Cup actually starts, it’s only the November break and then the March one and then we’re there so we need to get these players playing.”

While announcing his squad for the last international break, Tuchel insisted he had ‘no problem’ with the omitted players, especially Bellingham.