AP Photo/Armando Franca

Copa America, EURO Today: Final spots up for grabs; Argentina to learn final opponent

By Nicholas MendolaJun 22, 2016, 10:26 AM EDT

The knockout rounds bracket for EURO 2016 will be set after Wednesday’s play concludes, as will Argentina’s opponent for the Copa America Centenario final (as well as the USMNT’s enemy in the third place game).

[ LIVE: Follow Copa America 2016 ]

Cristiano Ronaldo and Zlatan Ibrahimovic could say goodbye to the tournament with losing performances on Wednesday, and for Ibra it would be the final international of his career.

[ LIVE: Follow EURO 2016 ]

Essential reading: The morning after: Boiling down the U.S. loss to Argentina. … The Yanks admitted they were blown away by Argentina’s game. …

ICYMI: Ronaldo threw a reporter’s microphone into a lake. … Here are nine different angles of Messi’s goal. … Three things we learned from USMNT-Argentina & player ratings.

EURO 2016, Game 33: Iceland vs. Austria

When: Wednesday, Noon ET

Where: Stade de France in Saint-Denis

Live updates: NBCSports.com

Historic draws could be undone if Iceland loses to Austria on Wednesday, but the latter side could be reeling after cruising through qualifying and earning the dark horse label only to pick up a lone point through two games. A draw would be enough to ensure at least third place for Iceland. Austria needs to win.

EURO 2016, Game 34: Hungary vs. Portugal

When: Wednesday, Noon ET

Where: Parc Olympique Lyonnais in Lyon

Live updates: NBCSports.com

Hungary is onto the knockout rounds, while Portugal’s fate is far from settled heading into the match against its stubborn opponents. Cristiano Ronaldo’s side has been flustered with just two points, and he’ll face the Leicester-like tactics and efficiency of Hungary.

EURO 2016, Game 35: Italy vs. Ireland

When: Wednesday, 3 p.m. ET

Where: Stade Pierre-Mauroy in Villeneuve-d’Ascq

Live updates: NBCSports.com

Italy is through after beating Belgium and Sweden, while Ireland is still seeking the win that would lift them above the other two teams in the group. Irish assistant manager Roy Keane has cautioned that his side will do anything to get by, and Italy knows a thing or two about chippy play, too. Expect fireworks.

EURO 2016, Game 36: Sweden vs. Belgium

When: Wednesday, 3 p.m. ET

Where: Allianz Riviera in Nice

Live updates: NBCSports.com

A draw won’t be enough to put Sweden in the top third-place teams, so Zlatan and company will need to go for it against a Belgium side that would do well to close up shop (but probably won’t).

Copa America, Game 30: Chile vs. Colombia

When: Wednesday, 8 p.m. ET

Where: Soldier Field in Chicago

Live updates: NBCSports.com

The reigning champs are coming off a 7-0 thumping of Mexico while Colombia needed kicks to get past Peru. We’d still expect an electric atmosphere and equally charged run of play between these two. Must watch status = close to achieved.

Follow @NicholasMendola

FIFA considering four bids to host 2023 Women’s World Cup

Photo by Jose Breton/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Associated PressDec 13, 2019, 9:25 PM EST

Leave a comment

FIFA has received bids from Brazil, Japan, Colombia and a joint bid from Australia and New Zealand to host the 2023 Women’s World Cup.

[ MORE: Gerrard extends contract amid strong start as Rangers boss ]

Soccer’s international governing body will now assess the bids, which will include visiting each country. Evaluations will be submitted to the FIFA Council and a vote on the host will be held at the organization’s meeting in Ethiopia next June.

Anticipated bids from South Korea and South Africa were withdrawn before Friday’s deadline.

The 2023 World Cup will feature 32 teams, up from the 24 that competed this summer at the tournament in France. The United States won its second straight World Cup title and fourth overall this year, and the event enjoyed unprecedented television viewership of 1.12 billion worldwide.

“France 2019 was certainly a watershed moment for women’s football, and now it is FIFA’s responsibility to take concrete measures to keep fostering the game’s incredible growth,” FIFA President Gianni Infantino said in a statement. “With the FIFA Women’s World Cup generating an unprecedented interest across member associations, we are ensuring that the process to select the hosts is seamless, objective, ethical and transparent. By the time the FIFA Council announces the hosts, there should be no doubt whatsoever as to why that choice was made.”

[ MORE: Ljungberg wants quick appointment of new Arsenal manager ]

The Japan Football Association has already launched a website hyping its bid, which encourages supporters to submit “My Dream of 2023” hopes for the event. Japan’s association proposes using eight stadiums, including the new National Stadium.

Japan is hosting the Olympics next summer.

Football Federation Australia and New Zealand Football announced the co-confederation bid Friday in Melbourne, just hours before the official bid book was submitted to FIFA.

“There is so much untapped potential, not just in Australia but right across Asia and the Pacific region, that I really do believe we would offer something incredibly special,” said Sam Kerr, a striker for the Matildas, Australia’s national team.

[ MORE: Lampard: Chelsea youngsters can’t worry about January transfers ]

Brazil hosted the men’s 2014 World Cup as well as the 2016 Olympics.

The Korean Football Association had initially pushed to jointly host the games with North Korea at the urging of Infantino but strained inter-Korean relations failed to realize a unified bid. South Korea, which hosted the 2002 men’s World Cup with Japan, announced its withdrawal shortly before Friday’s deadline.

South Africa, which hosted the men’s World Cup in 2014, also withdrew an expected bid.

Gerrard extends contract amid strong start as Rangers boss

Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images

By Andy EdwardsDec 13, 2019, 8:09 PM EST

Leave a comment

Steven Gerrard is quite keen to stick around as Rangers boss following a strong start to his managerial career, leading the 39-year-old first-time manager to sign a two-year contract extension on Friday.

[ MORE: Ljungberg wants quick appointment of new Arsenal manager ]

With his current contract previously set to run through the 2021-22 season, Gerrard’s services have been secured until the summer of 2024.

Gerrard has been largely successful since taking over the Scottish Premiership side last summer, guiding Rangers to their highest points total (78) since returning to the first division in 2016, and a second-place finish (also for the first time) behind rivals Celtic. Rangers reached the Europa League’s round of 32 on Thursday, marking their first trip to the knockout round of European competition since 2011.

That much success so quickly will undoubtedly lead to Gerrard’s name being linked with increasingly large jobs in England, likely prompting Rangers to act preemptively.

“I’m delighted to be extending my stay at this fantastic football club. When the chairman approached me about the possibility of extending my contract with Rangers, it was a very easy decision to make because I’m very happy and feel that we are building something special together at the club.

“I’d like to thank the board for the backing they have given me already in my time at the club and also most importantly, the Rangers fans who have given me and the team such tremendous backing both this season and last.”

Follow @AndyEdMLS

Ljungberg wants quick appointment of new Arsenal manager

Photo by Chris Brunskill/Fantasista/Getty Images

By Andy EdwardsDec 13, 2019, 7:34 PM EST

Leave a comment

Freddie Ljungberg is honored to serve as Arsenal’s interim manager following Unai Emery’s dismissal, but the Swede is also hoping for a speedy conclusion to the club’s search for a permanent replacement.

[ MORE: Lampard: Chelsea youngsters can’t worry about January transfers ]

In theory, taking over the most famous club for which Ljungberg played was a no-brainer. In practice, though, he openly admits it’s been not only a difficult time for everyone emotionally, but also in terms of the staff members available to assist him during the day-to-day grind. Throw in the fact he has no idea whether or not he’ll still have a role at the club when the new manager arrives, and it’s beginning to sound like a no-win situation. Perhaps he’s being considered to remain in the job permanently, but Ljungberg says he’s been given no indication of any such thing — quotes from the Guardian:

“The club have said I have to wait until they make a decision, so I can’t do anything at the moment. I have Per [Mertesacker] but at the same time he is academy manager. He is helping me with the coaching. The club has said when they make a decision then that’s it — or I’m leaving, obviously — and maybe then we can do something with the staff. But it’s up to the club.

“If you look at the person who was here before, he had a lot of staff and maybe I don’t have so many. So if you keep on going like that for months and months, it’s not so easy. But that’s totally up to the club.”

…

“I haven’t got any indication of if I’m here or not. What I’ve said to the bosses and the club is I will do everything in my power to do as well as I can for this club and the players. Then obviously it is up to them to make a decision. I try not to put any emotions into that.”

Arsenal came back from a goal down (twice) to draw Norwich City in Ljungberg’s first game in charge, then the Gunners were comprehensively beaten (at home) by Brighton & Hove Albion. The bounced back with a win over West Ham United on Monday, but could only draw Standard Liege (albeit with a weakened team) in the Europa League on Thursday.

Follow @AndyEdMLS

Lampard: Chelsea youngsters can’t worry about January transfers

Photo by Alex Burstow/Getty Images

By Andy EdwardsDec 13, 2019, 6:45 PM EST

Leave a comment

Frank Lampard knows it’s only natural that some of Chelsea’s youngsters will have worries about the January transfer window and the Blues’ newfound ability to sign players, considering they were only afforded a first-team opportunity by the club’s transfer ban.

[ PL Preview: Chelsea v. Bournemouth ]

He doesn’t, however, want those thoughts and fears to dominate their thoughts for the next three weeks, until the window opens and Chelsea can sign players for the first time since January of this year. As Lampard sees it, the fact he has roughly $200 million to inject into the squad doesn’t necessarily mean they promising teenagers and early-20-somethings will immediately be cast aside. It does, however, mean he has to navigate this very unique set of circumstances extra carefully — quotes from the Guardian:

“I haven’t banned the talk [about the January window], but I am not going to set out to engage in it. If players want to come and see me and talk then I will happily have a conversation with them individually, but that hasn’t happened.

“I speak to them regularly. I can be, not hard on them, but I push them because I think they need that. I think they feel the trust I have in them because they know I’m prepared to give them the opportunities if they train well and they come in the team and play well. I think they should naturally feel a little bit of tension all the time so that’s not the worst thing.

“They just need to work and believe in their own talents because their talent is there for all to see. We also have to be patient with that because it may take different periods of time for them to fully blossom as players. They might have a period in and out of the team, have a run of the games and then not. I am prepared to stick with them through that because I really believe in them.”

22-year-old Tammy Abraham currently sits second in the race for the Premier League Golden Boot with 11 goals in 15 appearances. 21-year-old Christian Pulisic, while not an academy product, has shone brightly of late with a half-dozen goals and nearly as many assists to his name in the last two months. 20-year-old Mason Mount was a surprising revelation in the season’s opening weeks. 21-year-old defender Fikayo Tomori has been a regular starter for the last three months. 20-year-old Reece James has made the starting job at right back his own.

While the temptation to sign high-priced replacements for these budding stars will be hard to resist, perhaps Chelsea would be wiser to sign players in other positions and ride the wave of what could turn out to be a golden generation of homegrown products.

Follow @AndyEdMLS