Tag: World Cup 2022

The USMNT would be screwed if Michael Sheen were Wales coach

We are all ready to run through a brick wall for Wales

Wales head coach Rob Page may not need to give any team talks at the World Cup.

Instead, Page may be better off repeatedly playing the incredible speech that Welsh actor Michael Sheen delivered on the Sky Sports sports comedy quiz show “A League Of Their Own.”

Sheen was asked by host Romesh Ranganathan what he would say if given the chance to deliver a team talk to Wales ahead of the upcoming World Cup.

After taking a moment to collect himself and letting some dramatic music begin, Sheen delivered an incredible speech including chill-inducing lines like “a victory song that floats through the valleys, like a red mist, rolls over the mountain tops, like crimson thunder. A red storm is coming to the gates of Qatar!”

The actor has some experience delivering team talks after he played legendary coach Brian Clough in “The Damned United” in 2009 — and it showed.

We are all ready to run through a brick wall for Wales.

The Welsh kick off their World Cup campaign, of course, against the U.S. on November 21, before they also face England and Iran in Group B.

Watch Sheen’s incredible speech for Wales

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New Fox analyst Chad Johnson says he’ll bring in viewers who never watched soccer before

The former NFL star says viewers will be surprised by his knowledge of the game

Chad Johnson has claimed he’ll bring in a whole new audience to the sport of soccer when he makes his debut as a TV analyst at World Cup 2022.

Fox announced this week that the former NFL star will serve as an analyst on the network’s “FIFA World Cup Tonight” show during the tournament.

The move drew some criticism due to Johnson’s lack of background in the game, with Fox’s announcement describing him as a “soccer aficionado.”

Johnson’s Fox colleague and former USMNT star Alexi Lalas had the ex-wide receiver on his “State of the Union” podcast, and Johnson sounded bullish on his ability to analyze soccer despite his background as a football player.

“What I’m going to give is information that no one knew I even had,” Johnson said. “I’m going to talk about the game of soccer [in a way] that people who don’t follow me didn’t know I knew about.”

The man formerly known as Chad Ochocinco added that he believes he can attract a new demographic to the game in a way that an analyst with a soccer-only background could not.

“I think I’m going to have a different demographic of people watching the game of soccer that have never watched before,” he added. “We’re going to have a large following in general, and I’m going to get them interested in a game that many of my friends and people who are in the States don’t respect.

“I want them to understand that this is a great game, and it’s called the beautiful game for a reason.”

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Iran re-hires Queiroz to end strange coaching saga ahead of World Cup

The country’s longest-tenured coach ever is back for a third World Cup

Iran has brought back Carlos Queiroz as head coach just two months before the start of the 2022 World Cup.

Queiroz coached Iran between 2011 and 2019, taking the country to the World Cup in 2014 and 2018.

Iran will hope Queiroz will bring some stability after a tumultuous period under previous coach Dragan Skočić, who was removed from his position twice in a two-month span.

Skočić was originally fired in July, but widespread protests saw the Croatian reinstated just days later. The Iranian federation would offer no such reprieve this time around.

Skočić led Iran to a 8W-1D-1L record in 10 World Cup qualifiers, but his time in charge of the team was filled with reported conflicts with some of his top players.

After leaving his post with Iran in 2019, Queiroz coached Colombia and Egypt, adding to a lengthy coaching career that also included a stint in MLS with the then-NY/NJ MetroStars, Real Madrid, and his native Portugal, which he took to the 2010 World Cup.

Iran was drawn in Group B at the World Cup, where it will face England (Nov. 21), Wales (Nov. 25) and the United States (Nov. 29).

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Fox hires Chad Johnson, née Ochocinco, as a pundit for World Cup

The former NFL star’s inclusion will raise some eyebrows due to his lack of soccer experience

Fox has announced that former NFL star Chad Johnson will serve as an analyst on the network’s “FIFA World Cup Tonight” show during the tournament this winter.

The show will air nightly during the 2022 World Cup on FS1 at 11 p.m. ET and at midnight across all time zones on Fox.

In addition to Johnson, Fox also confirmed that Kate Abdo will serve as host and ex-USMNT star Maurice Edu will be an analyst, along with an additional guest analyst who will join the trio.

“Kate, Mo and Chad bring expertise, experience and originality to Fox Sports’ nightly coverage of the tournament, and we look forward to having them, along with a few surprise guests, raise the level of excitement in recapping all the action for viewers across America,” said David Neal, executive producer of Fox’s World Cup coverage, in a statement.

Johnson, who from 2008 to 2012 was known as Chad Ochocinco to honor his uniform number of 85, was called a “soccer aficionado” in Fox’s release.

Johnson had a four-day trial with Sporting Kansas City in 2011. Fox said that Johnson’s “passion for soccer has grown exponentially since then as both an avid fan and constant consumer of the beautiful game worldwide.”

Johnson was a six-time Pro Bowler and a four-time All-Pro over 11 seasons in the NFL.

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That may be it for Paul Pogba’s World Cup hopes

The midfielder is undergoing surgery, and Juventus expects him back in January

Paul Pogba’s hopes of playing at the 2022 World Cup have been dealt a major blow as the France and Juventus midfielder will have to undergo surgery on his troublesome knee injury.

Pogba opted to pursue a conservative course of therapy on his meniscus injury last month, but that plan has not been successful and the France star will now be forced under the knife.

“This morning Pogba trained for the second time, but then stopped, and it was then decided that he undergo surgery,” said Juventus head coach Massimiliano Allegri at a press conference on Monday.

“We will realistically get him back in January.”

When asked if Pogba would be fit in time for the World Cup, Allegri responded: “The World Cup is not my problem, Juventus’ problem is that he comes back in January.”

Pogba has yet to make his second Juventus debut after returning to the club from Manchester United on a free transfer this summer. The 29-year-old picked up the knee injury in a preseason training session.

France will be aiming to retain its World Cup title this winter after winning the 2018 tournament. Pogba scored in a 4-2 final win against Croatia in Moscow.

On the bright side for France, a potential standoff between Pogba and Kylian Mbappé over an alleged witch doctor’s curse may no longer be an issue.

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Puma’s new World Cup away kits did not go down well

The box theme did not appear to be a winner for the kit manufacturer

Puma dropped its 2022 collection of international away kits on Monday, and the backlash was swift and merciless.

The manufacturer released 13 away kits in total, including six from countries that will compete at the 2022 World Cup: Switzerland, Uruguay, Senegal, Serbia, Ghana and Morocco.

Puma’s usage of a template across most of the kits struck a nerve with several observers, with a centralized box for a player’s number visible across almost all of the designs.

Also at issue: 10 of the 13 kits are white, with Senegal, Ghana and Paraguay the three countries that will feature non-white away kits.

Here is a sampling of the reaction across Twitter after Puma released its 2022 away kits.

Mexico unveils World Cup away kit inspired by country’s pre-Hispanic history

Fittingly for a team that calls the Azteca Stadium home, the kit incorporates many Aztec-inspired designs

Mexico has unveiled its away kit for the 2022 World Cup, which draws inspiration from the country’s pre-Hispanic history.

Fittingly for a team that calls the Azteca Stadium home, the kit incorporates many Aztec-inspired designs including grass known as Malinalli, a conch shell, a staff, and fire.

“These items represented on the away jersey display the history, roots, and culture of our country, carrying knowledge and power to the playing fields of Qatar, revealing not only a uniform, but armor filled with magic, power and poetry,” read a release from the kit’s manufacturer Adidas.

Mexico will wear the kit for the first time on Wednesday in a friendly against Paraguay at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

View images of Mexico’s 2022 World Cup away kit

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Georginio Wijnaldum is set to miss the World Cup with a broken leg

A major blow to the Dutch hopes in Qatar

Georginio Wijnaldum will almost certainly miss the World Cup due to a broken leg suffered in training with Roma.

The Netherlands captain joined Roma from PSG on a one-year loan deal with a purchase option, but he played just 12 minutes for his new club before suffering the injury.

Roma confirmed on Sunday that the midfielder had suffered a fracture to the tibia in his right leg, with further tests to be carried out.

Speaking to Sky Sports after Friday’s Europa League draw, Roma general manager Tiago Pinto said that Wijnaldum would be aiming for a January return, which would rule him out of the World Cup in November and December.

“It was a difficult 24 hours to manage,” Pinto said. “It took a lot of us to bring Gini to Roma. We knew he was very important for the team.

“It seemed that had been here for a year, it was unfortunate but he was the first to show motivation to recover. He will be our reinforcement in January.”

Gazzetta dello Sport reported that Wijnaldum has opted against surgery on his leg and will instead proceed with a more conservative rehab plan.

Wijnaldum has been capped 86 times by the Netherlands, and played every minute of his country’s four matches at Euro 2020 last summer.

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Yunus Musah hopes to face old friends in USMNT vs. England World Cup clash

Musah hopes to see Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith Rowe in Qatar

Yunus Musah is looking forward to an Arsenal reunion at the World Cup.

Speaking to reporters via conference call Thursday, the Valencia midfielder—who spent seven years in the Arsenal academy system—said that the U.S. men’s national team drawing England has special meaning to him.

“I enjoyed my time in London so much. Playing for Arsenal, playing for England, it was so fun. I have great friends from there that I’m still in contact with,” said Musah. “I call it my home as well, because that’s where my family lives….that place is very special to me.”

Given that Musah was in the England youth national team system from the Under-15 level all the way up to the Under-18s, it’s no shock that he hopes to come across some old teammates when the USMNT faces England in Group B.

“Being able to have the opportunity to hopefully play against (England) in November will be very special,” said Musah. “Playing against Bukayo Sako for example, and Emile Smith Rowe, I played with them in the academy a few times. To be playing at a World Cup, (what) a special moment that would be.”

Saka has, like Musah with the USMNT, carved out a regular role with England despite his young age, and both players have a distinct chance of starting at the Al Bayt Stadium on November 25. Smith Rowe, meanwhile, was left out of England’s Nations League squad in June, but has three caps, most recently playing for the Three Lions in a 3-0 friendly win over Ivory Coast in March.

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Tecatito Corona to miss World Cup with injury in huge blow for Mexico

The 29-year-old was expected to start for Mexico in Qatar

Sevilla has announced that winger Jesús “Tecatito” Corona will miss 4-5 months with a broken fibula and a rupture of his ankle ligaments.

That timeframe will see the Mexico international miss the 2022 World Cup, dealing a major blow to El Tri’s prospects in Qatar.

Corona appeared in 13 of Mexico’s 14 World Cup qualifiers, starting 10 of those matches. He was projected to be a starter at the World Cup.

The 29-year-old debuted for Mexico in 2014 and has earned 67 caps to date, scoring 10 goals. He was also a part of Mexico’s roster for the 2018 World Cup.

With Corona out, Mexico head coach Gerardo “Tata” Martino could consider 18-year-old Arsenal winger Marcelo Flores, who is currently on loan with  Real Oviedo in the Spanish second division.

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