Australia forward Mitchell Duke said bring on whoever when asked about taking on Lionel Messi or Robert Lewandowski in the World Cup round of 16.

The Socceroos progressed to the knockout stage of a World Cup for only the second time in their history, 16 years on from first doing so in 2006, by beating Denmark 1-0 on Wednesday.

Australia s victory at Al Janoub Stadium was required, with Tunisia stunning a much-changed France side in Group D s other game.

Messi s Argentina or Lewandowski s Poland are the most likely candidates to face Australia on Saturday, though Saudi Arabia could yet sneak through as Group C winners.

But whoever Australia have to face, Duke said they will be ready.

Bring on whoever, I feel like we could take on anyone right now,…

Hansi Flick wants to see changes made to the way football is coached in Germany, with more players in Jamal Musiala s mould the ideal outcome.

Germany beat Costa Rica 4-2 on Thursday, but the victory at Al Bayt Stadium was not enough for them to progress from Group E due to Japan s shock win over Spain.

A topsy-turvy second half saw Germany, who had gone ahead through Serge Gnabry s early goal, fall behind before Kai Havertz grabbed a double and Niclas Fullkrug completed the scoring.

Germany finished third, condemned to a second straight group-stage exit from the World Cup, after they had progressed from the first round in each of their 16 previous such appearances at the tournament.

With Euro 2024, which Germany are hosting, on the horizon, Flick believe…

Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal has once again underlined his desire to add more pace and creativity to his forward line.

The Red Devils have come under fire for scoring just twice in their last four games in all competitions and supporters at Old Trafford have become increasingly frustrated with the style of football on offer in recent weeks.

Having allowed Angel Di Maria to depart for Paris Saint-Germain before the start of the season and losing out to Chelsea in a pursuit of Pedro, Van Gaal previously admitted that United are lacking quality out wide.

And the former Netherlands boss has hinted at possible transfer activity by again calling for reinforcements in those positions.

We have to score more goals, I agree with that, but only one more…

Ukraine veteran Anatoliy Tymoshchuk says he will probably leave Bayern Munich at the end of the season.

The experienced midfielder s contract with the Bundesliga club ends in June, and he has admitted he is unlikely to ink a new deal due to a lack of regular first-team football at the Allianz Arena.

I think that I will move on this summer, the 34-year-old was quoted as saying by Kicker.

Time and time again, I get the feeling that I will get playing time, and then it doesn t happen. It s rather annoying.

Tymoshchuk joined Bayern from Zenit St Petersburg in 2009, but has never been able to secure regular first-team action at the Allianz Arena.

Ukraine s most-capped player with 127 appearances, Tymoshchuk he has made just 12 Bundesliga appearances…

Verdict: Home win

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Two of the most decorated European sides at Under-21 level will square off in the semi-final of the European Championship in Poland, but they head into the game in contrasting moods. While Spain won all three group games, Italy enjoyed a controversial 1-0 triumph over Germany to squeeze into the final four.

Spain U21

Four-time winners Spain arrived at the tournament finals in Poland high on spirits and with a star-studded squad, so no wonder they were made the main candidates for the coveted trophy. With players like Hector Bellerin, Marco Asensio, Jose Gaya, Saul, Denis Suarez and Gerard Deulofeu in the ranks, La Furia Roja enjoyed a bright start to the championship, hammering FYR Macedonia 5-0 before the 3-1 t…

Sunderland manager Sam Allardyce feels he did a fantastic job at West Ham as he prepares to return to his former club in the Premier League on Saturday.

Allardyce was in charge of the Hammers for four seasons from 2011 to 2015, leading them to promotion from the Championship before a trio of mid-table finishes set against the backdrop of sustained opposition from supporters over his playing style.

He now returns to Upton Park with his team sitting second bottom of the table, but just one point adrift of safety after picking up four points from two games against Liverpool and Manchester United.

And Allardyce has spoken of his pride at what he achieved at West Ham, claiming it was only a small minority of supporters who opposed him.

Overall, the vast major…

Fulham captain Tom Cairney has signed a new deal, one that is set to keep him at Craven Cottage for further five years, the club have .

Cairney arrived from Blackburn Rovers in 2015 and since then he has made 130 appearances and scored 27 goals. Wearing the Fulham shirt, he has been named EFL Player of the Year, he has been selected for the PFA Team of the Season twice, he was the club s Player of the Year for the 2016/17 season, and last season he scored Fulham s Goal of the Season. On top of all that, his goal against Aston Villa in the Championship Play-Off final was enough to secure the club s Premier League promotion.

Those achievements have not gone unnoticed, and there were several interested clubs with West Ham going the furthest in their pursuit by offering a s…

Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas says Yerry Mina would prefer to play for his side over Everton, claiming the promise of Champions League football gives them the edge over the Barcelona defender s other suitors.

Mina had talks with Everton about a move to the Premier League but the 23-year-old said he would prefer to fight for his place at Camp Nou after only arriving from Palmeiras in January.

Aulas, however, is confident he can do a deal to bring the Colombia international to the Groupama Stadium.

Speaking ahead of his side s pre-season friendly with Huddersfield, Aulas discussed transfer targets and told reporters:  I have in my mind one example where we are in a battle with Everton.

I don t think they play in the Champions League. There is in…

According to , as relayed by , Lazio are interested in signing Arsenal central defender David Luiz in the summer of 2021. The former Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain star is out of contract at the Gunners at the end of the season, and Serie A outfit Lazio are reportedly looking into the possibility of securing the services of the Brazilian on a free transfer.

Wesley Hoedt and Matteo Musacchio have not performed as well as expected, and Lazio are now reportedly on the hunt for a new central defender. Simone Inzaghi’s side are sixth in the Serie A table at the moment with 55 points from 29 matches, six points behind fourth-placed Atalanta and could still finish in the Champions League places.

Luiz has been on the books of Arsenal since 2019 and is an important player in …

Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan has warned his team-mates that opponents will try to derail their quadruple bid with negative tactics.

City claimed a 2-0 win over Everton at Goodison Park on Saturday to reach the FA Cup semi-finals for the third season in succession – the first time they have achieved the feat since 1931-32 and 1933-34.

The victory, courtesy of goals from Gundogan and Kevin De Bruyne, was hard fought as a defensive-minded Everton side packed men behind the ball, happy to surrender the majority of the ball to City. 

Indeed, Everton s total possession of 25.9 per cent was their lowest since a fixture against Pep Guardiola s side in March 2018 (18 per cent).

Midfielder Gundogan praised City s patience against the Toffees and pr…