Qatar are the biggest movers in FIFA s first rankings update of 2019, ascending 38 places to 55th after their Asian Cup success.
Felix Sanchez s men went into this year s edition having never got past the quarter-finals, reaching the last eight in 1988 and 2011, both times as hosts.
But in the United Arab Emirates, Qatar went all the way despite not being considered among the favourites.
They won all seven of their matches, scoring 19 goals and conceding just one, in the 3-1 final triumph over Japan.
We Are The Champions
— Qatar Football Association (@QFA_EN)
As a result of their success, Qatar become the fifth highest-ranked nation in the AFC behind Iran, Japan, South Korea and Australia.
Beaten finalists Japan have a…
Cristiano Ronaldo celebrated his eighth anniversary at Real Madrid on Thursday and the Liga champions marked the occasion with a montage of his best and most memorable strikes.
The Portugal superstar moved to the Santiago Bernabeu in 2009 for what was then a world-record fee of €94million, and he has more than delivered on Madrid s investment.
Ronaldo has netted more than 30 goals in every season in the Spanish capital, with 2014-15 seeing him score 61 times in all competitions.
Over 394 appearances, the 32-year-old has become the club s all-time record scorer and won 11 trophies including three Champions League crowns and two LaLiga titles.
There have also been three Ballon D Or successes for Ronaldo at Madrid, and on the international stage he lifted…
Liverpool s transfer activity is ramping up.
After securing the services of Spanish midfielder Thiago Alcantara, Diogo Jota is reportedly next on the list.
Could there be more arrivals?
TOP STORY – JOTA LIVERPOOL BOUND
Premier League champions Liverpool are set to complete the signing of Wolves star Diogo Jota, according to Goal.
Liverpool announced the arrival of Thiago Alcantara from Bayern Munich on Friday as they look to retain their Premier League crown in 2020-21.
Now, Jurgen Klopp s men are poised to bring former Atletico Madrid forward Jota to Anfield amid widespread speculation.
Another big summer signing for Liverpool
By
— Goal News (@GoalNews)
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Mario Mandzukic scored a late header to hand Juventus a precious 2-1 win over Sporting CP in a hard-fought Champions League clash at the Allianz Stadium.
The hosts squandered a number of excellent opportunities in a dominant opening half, but Croatian striker Mandzukic stepped up in the 84th minute to ensure that the Bianconeri were not made to pay for their profligacy.
Sporting had taken an early lead as the unfortunate Alex Sandro put through his own net, but Juve responded brightly.
Paulo Dybala, Sami Khedira and Mandzukic all missed chances to score before Miralem Pjanic did finally pull them level with a superb free-kick in the 29th minute.
There was little to get excited about in a dire second half until Mandzukic s late intervention secured the Ser…
Luis Enrique said his Spain team delivered a perfect display as they thrashed Germany 6-0 to secure their Nations League progression, while also revealing that Sergio Ramos injury appears to be minor.
Ferran Torres scored a hat-trick while Alvaro Morata, Rodri and Mikel Oyarzabal also grabbed goals in a remarkable match on Tuesday, meaning Spain top Group A4 ahead of their opponents.
It was Spain s first win in four matches, Luis Enrique s side having drawn successive matches against Switzerland and the Netherlands on the back of a 1-0 defeat to Ukraine.
However, victory in Seville was never in doubt as they dominated from start to finish, amassing 23 attempts to Germany s two and controlling 69.7 per cent of the possession.
Neither o…
According to a recent report from Gazzetta dello Sport, Real Madrid are gearing up to make a huge €70 million bid in order to try and secure the signing of Napoli midfielder Fabian Ruiz. Liverpool are also in the running to try and sign the popular Spaniard, but the belief is that Real will skip to the front of the queue once again with a bid of this nature.
While Liverpool almost certainly have the resources necessary to get a deal like this one over the finish line, they have to start thinking about their priorities. There are plenty of other big fish in the sea for them to go after, whereas Real seem hell-bent on getting this deal confirmed – as they have been for quite some time now.
Napoli have done all they can, but now, it seems like it’s a matter of…
Discussions between Ousmane Dembele and Barcelona over a new deal for the forward are going slower than hoped, according to the club s president Joan Laporta.
Dembele, a €105million signing from Borussia Dortmund in 2017, is out of contract at the end of the season and has been linked with a move away from Camp Nou in January.
Recent reports from Spain suggest the France international s agent, Moussa Sissoko, is prepared to listen to offers as he is not happy with Barca s latest contract proposal.
The 24-year-old can discuss a free transfer with overseas clubs from next month if fresh terms cannot be finalised with Barca, but Laporta is hopeful of an agreement being found.
It has been a slower process than desired on our part, he told TV3. We are wo…
Raheem Sterling s lack of goals at Anfield is of no concern to Pep Guardiola head of Manchester City s crunch trip to face Liverpool on Sunday.
The England forward has scored three times in his past four Premier League appearances, helping to prolong a nine-match winning run that has put Guardiola s men on top of the table.
Sterling is his club s top scorer in all competitions this season with 10, although his record against the team he left to join City in 2015 is paltry.
In 14 matches for City against Liverpool, the 26-year-old has scored twice the opener in the 2019 Community Shield at Wembley and the second in a 4-0 win over Jurgen Klopp s freshly crowned champions at the Etihad Stadium last July.
Six return visits to Anfield have drawn a blank, but G…
Best odds: 4/6
Bookmaker:
Paris Saint-Germain are on the verge of securing yet another Ligue 1 title on Saturday evening, when they travel to the Stade de la Meinau to thface Strasbourg in the 37th round of the season in the French top flight. Meanwhile, the home side are also on the verge of achieving their current aim for the campaign by securing survival in the league, even though they would ve had greater ambitions ahead of 2022/23.
This should be an interesting game, given it s competitive significance to both sides, despite obvious difference in quality between them.
Strasbourg
The expectations regarding Strasbourg s ambitions going into this season stemmed from the fact that they narrowly missed out on qualifying for Europe at the end of 2021/22.…
Paris Saint-Germain head coach Mauricio Pochettino does not believe his team are favourites to win the Champions League after eliminating holders Bayern Munich.
PSG advanced to the semi-finals for the second successive season on away goals after the blockbuster tie ended 3-3 following Tuesday s 1-0 loss at home to Bayern.
Ligue 1 champions PSG exacted some revenge after moving through to the final four, having lost last season s decider to Bayern.
PSG will face either Manchester City or Borussia Dortmund in the semis, while Chelsea are set to meet the winner of the Liverpool-Real Madrid clash.
Pochettino, though, dismissed the idea that PSG are the main contender to win the Champions League this season.
1 PSG s elimination of Bayern Munich tonight…