Australia qualify for U-20 Cup finals, Kuwait defeated
KUWAIT CITY, Oct 19, (Agencies): Australia qualified for the AFC U-20 Asian Cup finals after beating Iraq 1-0, while Kuwait lost 2-1 against India.
Australia scored in the 59th minute, gaining nine points, while Iraq obtained six points.
Kuwait netted in the 73rd minute, while India scored in the 8th and 77th minutes. India have three points, while Kuwait have none.
Uzbekistan will host the AFC U-20 Asian Cup finals on March 1-18, 2023.
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France star N’Golo Kante was ruled out of the World Cup on Tuesday after Chelsea said the midfielder would be out for four months following surgery on a hamstring injury.
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Kante hasn’t played a game for his club or country since Chelsea’s 2-2 draw with Tottenham on Aug. 14.
Chelsea manager Graham Potter said last week that Kante had suffered a setback in his bid to return from injury.
“The midfielder visited a specialist with the club’s medical department to explore the options for his
rehabilitation approach,” a Chelsea statement read, “and it was mutually agreed for N’Golo to have surgery to repair the damage.
“Following a successful operation, N’Golo is now expected to be sidelined for four months.”
Kante, widely regarded as one of the world’s best midfielders, played a key role in France’s run to the World Cup title in Russia in 2018.
His absence is the latest blow to France’s chances of retaining the trophy, with fellow midfielder Boubacar Kamara already ruled out because of injury and Paul Pogba only returning to training on Tuesday after tearing his meniscus in early September.
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Paul Pogba returned to training with Juventus on Tuesday, raising hopes that the midfielder can regain
his form in time to be included on France’s World Cup squad.
Pogba underwent surgery on his right knee in early September after tearing his meniscus during Juventus’ preseason tour of the United States in July - having rejoined the Italian club two weeks earlier from Manchester United.
It’s been a rough period for Pogba, amid an inquiry into allegations that he was targeted by extortion attempts by his brother and childhood friends.
Defending champion France opens against Australia on Nov. 22 at the World Cup in Qatar, with Denmark and Tunisia also in Group D.
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FC Dallas forward Jesús Ferreira has been named Major League Soccer’s Young Player of the Year.
Ferreira had 18 goals this season to match the franchise record. His goals were the third-most for any player under 22 in league history.
He had five multigoal games, including his first career hat trick on March 19 against the Portland Timbers. All three goals came in the span of 10 minutes.
Ferreira, 21, is the second consecutive Dallas player to win the award after Ricardo Pepi was honored last season.
A homegrown player who made his MLS debut in 2017, Ferreira also had five goals this year for the United States. He scored four goals against
Grenada in the CONCACAF Nations League in June. He also scored in a World Cup qualifying match against Panama.
The Young Player of the Year award is voted on by current MLS players, technical staffs and the media.
Ferreira won with 32.4% of the total vote, ahead of Atlanta United FC’s Thiago Almada (17.27%) and
FC Cincinnati’s Brenner (8.17%).