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Ligue 1: Monaco, Lyon qualify for UCL; Weah’s first start for PSG

Associated PressMay 19, 2018, 10:17 PM EDT
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PARIS (AP) — Memphis Depay scored a hat trick as Lyon came from behind to beat Nice 3-2 and qualify for the Champions League at the expense of Marseille in the French league on Saturday.

Lyon, which had a one-point lead over Marseille ahead of the last round, kept its lead intact and finished in third place behind Paris Saint-Germain and deposed champion Monaco. The first three teams in the French league qualified for the Champions League.

“Lots of joy tonight, everybody was very focused and motivated,” said Lyon forward Nabil Fekir, who is widely expected to leave the club this summer. “It caps an exceptional season.”

Alassane Plea scored Nice’s goals.

Depay scored all three goals in the second half.

Nice coach Lucien Favre confirmed he will leave the club in the offseason.

After losing the Europa League final to Atletico Madrid on Wednesday, Marseille missed out on the Champions League for the second time despite beating Amiens 2-1.

“We had a superb season but our efforts did not pay off,” Marseille top striker Florian Thauvin said.

Marseille ended fourth and will play the Europa League next season alongside Rennes and Bordeaux.

Monaco won at Troyes 3-0 and finished runner-up, 13 points behind PSG, which drew at Caen 0-0. The goalless draw guaranteed Caen stayed in the topflight while Troyes was demoted to the second division.

Monaco needed just one point to qualify for the Champions League but made sure it finished runner-up with a win. The Principality side was in complete control as Rony Lopes scored twice and Jordi Mboula sealed Troyes’ fate in added time.

Troyes finished 19th and joined last-place Metz in the second division.

Toulouse, which beat Guingamp 2-1, will have to win a playoff against a second-division club to remain in the topflight.

Elsewhere, Italian coach Claudio Ranieri won his last game in charge of mid-table Nantes, 1-0 over Strasbourg.

In the absence of Neymar, Edinson Cavani and Kylian Mbappe, PSG coach Unai Emery gave Timothy Weah — George Weah’s 18-year-old son — his first start in Caen.

Caen finished the season with only 27 goals, the worst total since Arles-Avignon was demoted with 21 in 2011.

USMNT’s Miazga scores 3rd goal of season; Vitesse reach playoff

Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images
By Andy EdwardsMay 6, 2018, 9:55 PM EDT
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American defender Matt Miazga scored his third goal of the season, helping Vitesse to a 2-2 tie at Willem II on Sunday, the final day of the Dutch Eredivisie season.

Miazga, a 22-year-old from Clifton, New Jersey, completing his second season on loan to Vitesse from Chelsea, tied the score 1-1 in the 63rd minute with his first goal since Feb. 2.

Vitesse finished sixth and advanced to a playoff for a Europa League berth along with fifth-place Utrecht, seventh-place Den Haag and eighth-place Heerenveen. Vitesse meets Den Haag in a two-leg round, with the winner advancing.

Morocco gets two CONCACAF endorsements in 2026 World Cup hosting race

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By Nicholas MendolaApr 5, 2018, 11:40 AM EDT
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MORE: 2026 World Cup bidding

FIFA will not block US territories from 2026 World Cup vote FIFA will not block US territories from 2026 World Cup vote World Cup bid: US assures FIFA on travel discrimination fear

Everything is going to be fine, even if the 2026 World Cup does not arrive on the shores of the United States. Just remind yourself that.

Morocco will feel it has landed some shots — pun very much intended — against the tri-bid of Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. with the endorsement of CONCACAF nations Dominica and Saint Lucia.

 MORE: De Bruyne on UCL comeback bid ]

“Dominica, which was devastated by Hurricane Maria, has a lot to learn from Morocco, which could help us become the first climate resilient country in the world,” said Dominica foreign minister Francine Baron in a release.

“Morocco has never ceased to provide assistance and expertise to farmers in my country,” said Saint Lucien minister of development and sports Edmund Estephane.

A failure to land the 2026 World Cup would be another shot at the legacy of former U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati, who has overseen much growth in the country but did not seek reelection following Bruce Arena’s failure to lead the USMNT into the 2018 World Cup.

Miazga: “We’re all ready to make an impression” with USMNT

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By Daniel KarellMar 20, 2018, 10:29 AM EDT
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Last October, for reasons unknown, Matt Miazga didn’t make the U.S. Men’s National Team squad for its final two World Cup qualifiers.

Five months later, he’s risen to the top of the centerback depth chart.

[MORE: Digging into the USMNT roster]

The hulking centerback spoke on Tuesday as the USMNT started off its training camp in Cary, N.C., noting that the youth-laden squad wanted to make an impression to stay in the picture moving forward. With four years until the next World Cup and still more than a year until competitive matches, there is still plenty of shuffling and expanding of the player pool to do before then.

Have a listen to Miazga and enjoy the sights and sounds of the USMNT training camp ahead of its friendly match against Paraguay.

 

Morocco to spend $16B on 2026 World Cup venues, infrastructure

AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko
Associated PressMar 17, 2018, 4:19 PM EDT
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Morocco says it will need to spend almost $16 billion to prepare to host the 2026 World Cup, with every proposed stadium and training ground built from scratch or renovated.

With less than three months until the FIFA vote, the north African nation on Saturday presented details of its proposal to take on the joint bid from the United States, Canada and Mexico.

The North American bid plans to rely on existing infrastructure, including large NFL stadiums already hosting events.

When FIFA insiders score the bids, infrastructure – of which half relates to stadiums – will account for 70 percent of the panel’s mark. The remaining 30 percent is based on projected costs and revenues. A high-risk bid can be disqualified before the FIFA Congress votes on June 13.

Morocco says for $3 billion it can build nine stadiums, refurbish five others and build or renovate 130 training grounds.

That is part of the $12.6 billion in public investment that also requires hospital services being upgraded in 20 cities and transport networks improved for the first 48-team World Cup.

The bid says another $3.2 billion of private investment is required to build hotels.

Morocco’s bid team told The Associated Press that the projections had been “carefully costed” but could not provide a breakdown on how the figures were reached.

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