Clarke: 'It was right time to leave Scotland job'
Steve Clarke said it was a straightforward decision to step down from his role as Scotland head coach because he always planned to depart if the World Cup did not go to plan.
The 62-year-old told his players on Saturday night, at their hotel in Charlotte, that he was bringing the curtain down on his seven-year reign after it was confirmed that the Scots had failed to get out of a group containing Brazil, Morocco and Haiti.
The shock announcement came exactly a month after he signed a new four-year contract that would have incorporated Euro 2028 and the 2030 World Cup.
In a Scottish Football Association interview reflecting on his time in charge, Clarke – heavily criticised in some quarters following back-to-back defeats by Morocco and Brazil – said he was leaving “just because that’s the feel”.
“Listen, what I wanted to make sure was that when I felt it was time to step away, it was time to step away,” he said. “Signing the contract before (the World Cup) was a case of trying to give a little bit of comfort to the players knowing that we could continue the journey.
“I always had in my head that if we didn’t come out of the group, which is something that we’ve tried to do across three tournaments now, I always had in my head that if that didn’t happen then it was probably the right time to step away.
“Obviously if we’d managed to get that extra point and got out of the group then I’d probably have stayed on and tried to do another tournament.”
Asked if it was an easy decision, a philosophical Clarke said: “Yeah, in some respects it was easy because I already had in my head what I wanted to achieve as a head coach. I’d also ticked all the boxes.
“I wanted to go to a major tournament with my country. I did that with the Euros. The first Euros (in 2021) was a little bit not the Euros because it was Covid affected. The second Euros was great. The tournament didn’t go as we wanted but getting to Germany was fantastic. My lifelong ambition was to do a World Cup with my country. I’ve done that, so not a bad time to step aside.” PA
PSG in talks with RB Leipzig to buy Ivory Coast star Diomande
Paris Saint-Germain are in talks with Bundesliga side RB Leipzig to buy Ivory Coast forward Yan Diomande, a source close to the dossier told AFP.
The 19-year-old has told the German club he wants to join the French giants and the two clubs opened negotiations after Diomande, who is under contract with Leipzig until 2030, told PSG management he was “very keen” to sign for the reigning European champions this summer, the source added. Liverpool are also interested in the player but his future does look to be in the Premier League.
His arrival would also likely involve the departure of Portuguese forward Goncalo Ramos to AC Milan with PSG having reached a deal with the Italian outfit, the source said. AFP
Thanks Luke. Hello one and all! Why not start the day with 3000 words from a sleep deprived man? Plus it should take a while to get to the end, so I have time to make a coffee.
It’s been a hell of a ride, but it’s time for me to go. Will Unwin is here to guide you through the next bit. Ciao.
The first line of our Netherlands team guide is: “Has Ronald Koeman ever started a major tournament with more headaches?” – which was entirely fair given all the pre-tournament injuries.
To me, they look light on huge stars (Virgil van Dijk notwithstanding) but heavy on team spirit, a strong tactical plan, an accomplished manager – and excellent players, too. How many teams in the tournament would want Denzel Dumfries, Van Dijk or Micky Van de Ven in their team?
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#TalkingPoints:
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“No, please, stop with this nonsense,” snapped Julian Nagelsmann. Germany had just lost 2-1 to Ecuador in their final group game and the television interviewer was suggesting that with Germany already qualified, perhaps the Ecuadoreans had simply wanted it more. “They didn’t want it more,” Nagelsmann bristled. “I cannot tell any of my players that they didn’t give it their all. That’s far too simplistic.”
If that was the line, then fair enough. Albeit, a line Nagelsmann may have wanted to run past his players before they did their post-match media duties. “The difference today was that the opponent wanted to win more than us,” said Joshua Kimmich. “I had the feeling they wanted it more than us,” said the substitute Deniz Undav.
A minor disagreement, on the face of things. And yet also quietly emblematic of this Germany team at the moment, on and off the pitch: a team operating on multiple planes, a little lost in translation, a little lacking in message discipline. If they can get their constituent parts working in harmony, they can be a genuine threat. Until then, it remains hard to take them seriously.
Let’s turn our attention to Germany. Jonathan Liew content incoming.
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Imminent World Cup fixtures
Brazil v Japan (1pm EST, 6pm BST)
Germany v Paraguay: (4.30pm EST, 9.30pm BST)
Netherlands v Morocco (9pm EST, 2am Tue BST)
Who could offer valuable insight into Carlo Ancelotti’s methods, before Brazil v Japan?
Rodrygo, that’s who:
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“Morocco were welcomed enthusiastically in Mexico’s north-east and their head coach was quick to compare the hosts’ passion for football with the fervour that engulfs his own country.
“In fact, the hand of friendship between the nations reaches back four decades. Morocco drew with Poland and England in Monterrey during Mexico 1986, when they made history by reaching the knock-out stage.”
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And in ‘Let’s get jazzed up about Netherlands v Morocco’ news …
Meanwhile, in ‘Let’s get jazzed up about Brazil v Japan’ news:
something tells me the Japan Brazil game is going to be greatest game of the World Cup so far.
there is going to be tremendous carnivalesque fan-energy in the stadium that you could bottle and sell on Amazon for 5000 yen a 330ml unit. and some individual brilliance by a handful of Brazilian players are going to give us some goals that will look more like athletics where the ball is an acrobat. but i think Japan will tikka-takka weave the ball around their decluttered player-grid and equalize twice with pointed shots just inside and outside the box for this reason i’m going to get to the supermarket shortly to buy a bottle of Korean soju and a six-pack of Guinness
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People love to hate commentators, in general, so it’s refreshing to see good work being recognised and praised:
Fantastic BBC Radio coverage last night, from Vicki Sparks and Dion Dublin. How to commentate on an important game that, actually, wasn't a very good match? Be as entertaining, as honest, as smart and as funny with your words over the lack of action on the pitch.
(And while we’re on the subject, for all the haterz: until you’ve actually picked up a mic and tried to commentate on a football match, or any other sport, you are hardly in a position to criticise.)
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If you would like to email thoughts about any of this, please do so here.
Let’s begin with everyone’s favourite subject: His Majesty’s England football team.
Andrew Beasley takes a look at the data on the Jude Bellingham x Harry Kane collaboration for England:
Preamble
Canada are the first team into the last 16:
And in a little over nine hours, Brazil v Japan will go toe-to-toe in Houston, as the mouthwatering-ness of the knockout ties increases further.
Let’s talk about the World Cup.
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Got to fancy at least one shock today (if you'd even call Morocco beating Netherlands a shock). I know Japan absolutely can beat Brazil, just really struggle to see it happening on this stage, they've slightly disappointed for me so far. I think Netherlands were better than I expected in the groups, but Morocco look like a serious team, against Scotland they never really looked threatened. I think they're a threat in the tournament. Paraguay looked pretty toothless in the group stages, but Germany could easily have scars from that Ecuador game, so can't completely discount them. After yesterday's game was an incredibly tame start to the knockouts (South Korea there's blood on your hands), feels like a huge day.
Brazil 2-1 Japan
Germany 2-0 Paraguay
Netherlands 1-2 Morocco
Also once again showing how stupid the 3rd placed teams going through makes the tournament. The draw has become absurdly important, Netherlands win a very tough group and get Morocco in the next round as a result. Suppose the prize for whoever comes through that is an incredibly limited Canada team.