Croatia took charge of Group C with a 3-1 victory on Sunday as Ireland s usually reliable defence crumbled in Poznan.
Mario Mandzukic got the Balkan side off to a great start with an early goal but Sean St Ledger restored parity midway through the first half.
Ireland then began to take a back seat in the match and they were punished with goals from Nikica Jelavic and Mandzukic either side of the break.
Croatia were ahead within three minutes of the kick-off.
Darijo Srna drove to the byline and clipped the ball back into the area where Mandzukic recovered from a slip to meet it with his head.
He somehow generated enough power to get his effort on target, catching Shay Given by surprise.
After drawing a free kick from Vedran Corluka, Aid…
England could be considered as the biggest favourite for the 2022 World Cup, according to former Three Lions manager Sven-Goran Eriksson.
Gareth Southgate s team reached the semi-finals at Russia 2018, matching England s best effort at a World Cup since they triumphed on home soil in 1966.
England then made their first major tournament final appearance since 1966 when they faced Italy in a Euro 2020 showdown last year, only to lose on penalties.
Eriksson managed England at the 2002 and 2006 World Cups, reaching the quarter-finals of each tournament respectively, while also getting to the last eight at Euro 2004.
Beaten by Brazil in 2002, and Portugal at the following two tournaments, Eriksson was unable to guide England s golden generation to success.
Group A at the 2014 World Cup is likely to prove one of the most interesting at the tournament finals and not only because it contains the world s most decorated national team that are also hosting the tournament. Luiz Felipe Scolari s Brazil will be chasing their sixth ever World Cup title and the first trophy on home soil and no doubt they are hot favourites to win the first place in the group.
The Seleccao start their campaign against very good Croatia side, who have been on a major uptrend of late and are led by Real Madrid star Luka Modric. At the same time, Mexico will be aiming to progress from the group stage for the sixth consecutive time, whilst Cameroon aim to upset the odds and qualify for the Last 16 phase for the first time since 1990.
Winners of Group A
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Germany striker Mario Gomez insists his Euro 2012 campaign is still alive despite losing his place to Miroslav Klose.
The 26-year-old Gomez was preferred to the Lazio veteran for each of his side s three group games but, despite scoring three goals, was dropped for the 4-2 victory over Greece that sealed their place in the final four.
Klose scored against Fernando Santos team and could start again against Italy on Thursday, but Gomez is adamant that he still has a part to play.
I m not out of the tournament yet, he told Kicker. I know that (being on the bench) wasn t good for me, but I can still contribute significantly, and help us take the title.
I will not let it rankle, Miro (Klose) said it perfectly: It s good for the team to have two good striker…
Having lost the penalty shootout after a thrilling comeback against Argentina in the World Cup final on Sunday, France were forced to hand the greatest trophy in football over to their opponents, and there s no way to hide the fact that such moments hurt. That goes especially for Kylian Mbappe, the man behind that comeback, who put away two penalties and a brilliantly hit volley to get his team back level after a rather disappointing team performance in the earlier stages of the game.
Speaking before the tournament, the Paris Saint-Germain made an interesting comparison, claiming that football is more developed in Europe than in South America due to the presence of a number of top-quality sides, whereas in South America, Brazil and Argentina notably stand out from the rest. Hi…
Steven Gerrard announced his retirement from playing professional football, on this day in 2016.
The announcement came a little over a week after the former Liverpool captain, then aged 36, had left LA Galaxy, the only other club on his resume.
In a statement, he said: “I can confirm my retirement from playing professional football. I have had an incredible career and am thankful for each and every moment of my time at Liverpool, England and LA Galaxy.”
Steven Gerrard confirms retirement from professional football.
— Liverpool FC (@LFC)
It marked the end of a playing career which saw Gerrard come through the academy system of his hometown club to become a European champion and play for England more than 100 times.
In 2000-01, the mi…
Sunday night brings us a battle between the Russell Wilson-less Seattle Seahawks and Pittsburgh Steelers. There are injuries on both teams and that means plenty of player props to take advantage of.
We bring you our favorite free prop picks and predictions for Sunday night’s Seahawks vs. Steelers Week 6 battle.
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On Saturday, we’ll see the Pittsburgh Steelers face the Jacksonville Jaguars in a preseason game which should start to answer some more questions about the future of the Steelers at the quarterback position.
Don’t miss our NFL picks and predictions for the Steelers vs. Jaguars, with kickoff on August 20.
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Da Bears finished with the worst record in football in 2022 at 3-14. That makes their path to be the most improved team in football much easier than other teams heading into the 2023 season.
DraftKings currently has NFL odds for the most improved team available and the criteria for that (which is explained more in the bet slip) is the team with the biggest increase in regular season wins from the previous season.
With a current win total of 7.5 for this season, it’s easy to see why the Chicago Bears odds have them as the betting favorite at +210. However, a lot has to go right for the Bears to flirt with a five-win — or even a four-win — improvement from a season ago.
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The Seattle Seahawks face off against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 9 of NFL action on Sunday. Both of these teams are rolling right now with the Ravens riding a three-game winning streak and the Seahawks winning five of their last six contests.
NFL odds have the Ravens installed as 6-point favorites for this contest with the Over/Under at 44. Here are my best free NFL picks and predictions for the Seahawks vs. Ravens on November 5.
Seahawks vs Ravens odds
Seahawks vs Ravens predictions
The Ravens enter this contest on a three-game winning streak and have moved up to No. 4 on the latest ESPN power rankings. However, the Seahawks aren’t too far behind at No. 10 and have gone 5-1 straight up in their last six games…