Messi’s free-kick gave the World Cup champions a 1-0 victory in their first qualifying match for the 2026 tournament in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

Since joining Spurs in 2021, Romero has established himself as one of the top defenders in the Premier League, having lined up alongside Messi during their victory in Qatar late last year. Additionally, he has scored twice this season as a result of his team’s quick start under new manager Ange Postecoglou.

Messi was full of praise for his compatriot after the Ecuador win, saying: “For me, [Cristian Romero] is the best defender in the world right now. Amazing performance tonight, man of the match.”

Romero did come in for criticism towards the end of the 2022/23 season as Tottenham finished horribly under Antonio Conte, Cristian Stellini and Ryan Mason.

In response to his teammate’s compliment, he acknowledged that it will live in his memory forever.

Romero said: “These are things that will remain in my memory for a lifetime. I didn’t expect it.

“You always try to take advantage of the opportunity that the coach gives, the opportunity that my teammates gave me on the first day, who received me with affection.

“They welcomed me. They trust me a lot and I try to give back the trust to all of them. I am very happy and very grateful to all of them.”

Romero is “fit to play” in Tuesday’s match against Bolivia, according to manager Lionel Scaloni, despite reports in Argentina that he suffered a minor injury to his right leg during the victory over Ecuador.

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According to reports, Moises Caicedo is a player that Brighton are determined to keep hold of this January.

A number of clubs are now attentively examining the 21-year-old midfielder who has recently emerged as one of the best young players in the world of football.

When Caicedo left Ecuador in 2021, he was highly regarded as a young player, so it surprised many when he chose Brighton over clubs like Manchester United. Despite playing fewer than 50 Premier League games, he is making an impression with his consistent first-team football.

Excessive spending Chelsea are enormous fans, which is not surprising given that they not only have former Brighton manager Graham Potter in charge, but also a slew of backroom staff who were instrumental in Caicedo’s development.

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Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, and Newcastle are all interested in Caicedo and are expected to compete for his signature if and when Brighton show signs of wanting to transfer the Ecuadorian. However, we understand that this is not the case right now.

According to sources, the club does not anticipate any situation this month that would persuade them to even consider a trade. The Seagulls are also in a good position because Caicedo’s contract spans until 2025.

Brighton chief executive Paul Barber revealed at the start of January his side would not be pressured into letting any first-team stars leave.

He said: “We have not offered anyone to anyone and have no plans to. In an ideal world our squad, which is as good as it has been for a long time, will remain intact through the whole of January and we will go into the second half of the season as we are.”

Brighton are dealing with wantaway winger Leandro Trossard, who has demanded to leave the club this month, while they are also planning new contract moves for stalwart winger Solly March and loanee defender Levi Colwill.

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Gareth Southgate says he hasn’t yet watched Senegal in action at the World Cup, but he has seen England’s next opponents and believes they are a “very dangerous team.”

Tuesday night, England won their World Cup group after defeating Wales 3-0. Earlier in the day, Senegal defeated Ecuador 2-1 to take second place in Group A.

Although Southgate still has a ton of reading to do before the game on Sunday night, he has seen the Lions of Teranga’s draw with Iran from September and thinks they will pose a serious threat.

‘I haven’t been able to see their games in the tournament, I saw them play Iran in Vienna in September, so I had a good look at them then,’ said Southgate.

‘From now, from when we get on the coach we’ll be studying the games now to prepare for the game.

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‘We obviously know quite a few of the individuals. Some big players playing in big leagues across Europe, some playing in England.

‘We know that on the rankings we’ll be the favourites, we’ve got to deal with that, but we play a very dangerous team.’

The England coach was ecstatic with the team’s mentality, conceding that expectations are far higher than they were when he took over but believing that the Three Lions are in a good position to live up to them.

‘Compared to Russia there’s a different mentality across the whole group, there’s more belief,’ he said. ‘Our objectives are different, in Russia we were just thinking about whether we could win a knockout game.

‘There’s more expectation now, but more confidence and more experience of big matches.

‘I don’t now if we’re ahead of where we were last summer, but definitely we’re pleased that the objectives we set out to do, the first objective is achieved.

‘The spirit of the team is good, we’ve got most of the group on the pitch which is fabulous for the dynamic of the group, and no yellow cards as well which is a really good position for us.’

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Despite Mohammed Muntari scoring the country’s first-ever World Cup finals goal in a 3-1 loss to Senegal on Friday at the Al Thumama Stadium, host nation Qatar is dangerously close to being eliminated from the tournament.

Qatar will be the first team mathematically eliminated from the competition if the Netherlands defeats Ecuador, which defeated Qatar in the tournament’s opening game, later on, Friday.

The jitters from the opening night were completely gone as Qatar quickly dominated Senegal. They also should have been awarded a penalty after Ismaila Sarr tripped Akram Afif, but Spanish referee Antonio Mateu waved them off and the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) did not step in.

Senegal needed to score to tie the game, but with Qatar’s strong defence, it would either require a miraculous play or a disastrous error. Unfortunately for Qatar defender Boualem Khoukhi, the latter occurred.

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Krepin Diatta’s typical low pass into the box, which was his attempt to clear, went horribly awry when he went to the ground without making adequate contact with the ball.

Dia pounced as Khoukhi’s shot failed, and the 26-year-old attacker needed no further encouragement to slam the ball home at the near post to give Senegal the lead.

In the 48th minute, Famara Diedhou extended Senegal’s lead with a spectacular glancing header from an Ismail Jakobs corner as the Qatari audience had significantly thinned out at the start of the second half.

Muntari cut the lead in half in the 78th minute with a powerful header from an Ismail Mohamad cross, but Senegal’s third goal, scored by substitute Bamba Dieng, sent Qatar to the bottom of Group A with 0 points while their group opponents all had three.

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Friday’s pivotal Group A match between Senegal and World Cup hosts Qatar will take place at the Al Thumama Stadium.

Qatar vs Senegal in the second round of Group A fixtures at the 2022 World Cup is a must-win game for both teams.

Both teams lost their respective openers, with Ecuador outplaying Qatar in the tournament’s opening match on Sunday. The following day, Senegal fell to the Netherlands.

The World Cup for either of these teams is still ongoing. But winning this game in what each team will probably now consider being their most favourable match is essential going into the final round of group games.

• Team News:

Both backup goalkeepers have played in pre-tournament friendlies, and Qatar’s Saad Al Sheeb looked quite shaky in the game against Ecuador.

Meshaal Barsham is the obvious candidate if Sanchez decides to switch things up because he saved the crucial penalty in their 2021 Arab Cup final triumph against Egypt and is thought to be less unpredictable.

Al Sheeb was one of four players issued warnings on Sunday, and because Karim Boudiaf, Ali, and Afif, three strikers, are also unable to play against the Dutch, all of them face suspension.

As one of the five centurions likely to start, captain Hassan Al Haydos will play in midfield and earn his 171st cap for Qatar.

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Abdou Diallo was forced to leave the match against Holland due to cramps, but Senegal has stated that he is healthy and can return to training right away.

That will be a comfort because Diallo had been filling in as a temporary left-back due to Fode Ballo-injury Toure’s in the weeks leading up to the championship game.

Cheikhou Kouyate, a midfielder for Nottingham Forest, is less lucky because he was forced to leave the game due to a muscular injury of his own.

After his disastrous performance on Monday, Edouard Mendy may be replaced, with Seny Dieng of the Queens Park Rangers reportedly ready to step in.

• Possible Lineup:

Qatar’s possible starting lineup:
Barsham; Pedro Miguel, Khoukhi, Salman, A Hassan, Ahmed; Al Haydos, Boudiaf, Hatem; Ali, Afif

Senegal’s possible starting lineup:
Dieng; Sabaly, Koulibaly, Cisse, Diallo; I Gueye, N Mendy; Ndiaye, I Sarr, Diatta, Dia

• Score prediction:

In the opening round of group matches, both nations suffered defeats by a score of 2-0. Even without the loss of icon and national star Sadio Mane, Senegal played arguably the better opposition and had players with more club experience.

In their first-ever World Cup game, Qatar played poorly, and it seems unlikely that their fortunes will turn around.

Prediction: Qatar 0-2 Senegal

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When the Netherlands face Ecuador at the Khalifa International Stadium on Friday, they will be attempting to make it two victories in their opening two games of the 2022 World Cup.

Although they underperformed, for the most part, Louis van Gaal’s team defeated Senegal with two goals in stoppage time, while La Tri defeated the hosts Qatar on the opening night.

Any team that wins another game will almost certainly advance to the round of 16.

• Team News:

Due to his injury issues for Barcelona this season, Memphis Depay was not declared fit enough to start for the Netherlands against Senegal, but he played the final 30 minutes of the match.

With Gakpo and Steven Bergwijn also expected to play in the last third of the field, the attacker, who has 42 goals for his country, may now start in place of Vincent Janssen.

Frenkie de Jong, Steven Berghuis, and Denzel Dumfries are all expected to play in a 3-5-2 formation, with Daley Blind and Denzel Dumfries manning the full-back positions. There are unlikely to be any more changes.

Marten de Roon was an injury doubt ahead of the contest with Senegal, but the midfielder also featured off the bench last time out, and he is again expected to receive minutes at some stage of the contest.

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Concerning Ecuador, Valencia, 33, sustained a knee injury during the play with Qatar, but it is anticipated that he will be able to start this game.

Valencia has scored five goals in World Cups and has scored 37 goals for his country overall. The medical staff will be working to guarantee that Valencia can play here.

One change could be made by head coach Alfaro from the lineup that faced Qatar, with Jeremy Sarmiento perhaps replacing Michael Estrada in a different formation.

But Robert Arboleda, 31, will be on the manager’s mind before kickoff on Friday because he is competing for a spot at the back.

• Possible Lineup:

Netherlands possible lineup:
Noppert; De Ligt, Van Dijk, Ake; Dumfries, F de Jong, Berghuis, Blind; Gakpo; Memphis, Bergwijn

Ecuador possible lineup:
Galindez; Preciado, Torres, Hincapie, Estupinan; Plata, Caicedo, Mendez, Ibarra; Sarmiento; Valencia

• Score prediction:

This shouldn’t be a relationship with many ambitions, so I’m writing it in part in the hopes of a jinx.

While the Netherlands hardly challenged Senegal until late in one of the more dull games so far this tournament, Ecuador was pleased to shut down shop after scoring two past a very weak Qatari team. Ecuador will remain within striking distance the entire way, but Van Gaal’s team has the elite quality and experience to edge this.

Prediction: Netherlands 2-0 Ecuador.

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On Monday, Senegal will face the Netherlands in Group A of the ongoing World Cup. This will be the third match of the FIFA World Cup 2022. This will be the first time that either side has played the other; they have never met before.

The match will kick off at 4 pm GMT in Al Thumama, Qatar, exactly 24 hours after the hosts’ opening match begins against Ecuador on Sunday.

On Monday at the Al Thumama Stadium in Doha, the current winners of the Africa Cup of Nations, Senegal, will play host to the Netherlands in the third game of the FIFA World Cup 2022.

Senegal has a solid defensive unit, but Sadio Mane, who is their finest attacking player, is sidelined due to injury. Despite their own fitness issues, the Netherlands enter their first World Cup since 2014 in terrific shape. Since Louis van Gaal was hired as manager for the third time last year, the Dutch have gone unbeaten in 15 games.

• Injury and team news:

Although Memphis Depay leads the Netherlands‘ international scoring charts, he has been dealing with a hamstring problem ever since making his Oranje debut in September. The forward would not start their World Cup debut, according to Van Gaal, as he continues to heal. Marten de Roon and Denzel Dumfries are still questionable starters for this game.

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Mane has been formally disqualified from the tournament despite attempts to repair the fibula fracture he incurred on November 8—including using a witch doctor. Abdou Diallo also has knee issues, which is a concern.

• Possible Lineup:

Senegal’s possible starting lineup:
E. Mendy; Sabaly, Cisse, Koulibaly, Ballo-Toure; Kouyate, N. Mendy, I. Gueye; I. Sarr, Dia, Diatta

Netherlands possible starting lineup:
Pasveer; Timber, Van Dijk, Ake; Frimpong, F. De Jong, Koopmeiners, Blind; Klaassen; Gakpo, Bergwijn.

• Senegal vs Netherlands: Scores Prediction:

Nine of Senegal’s past 14 goals in competitive games have either been scored by Mane or created by him. The Senegal front line has suffered a tremendous loss without the Bayern Munich star. The Netherlands will also feel Memphis’ absence very strongly, but Van Gaal likely has more choices for a striker than his rival. Even though the Netherlands’ defence is far from perfect, Van Gaal’s team should be able to defeat a Senegal team without its top player.

Prediction: Senegal 1 – 2 Netherlands

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At the opening of the World Cup tournament, Ecuador easily defeated Qatar 2-0 with two goals from Enner Valencia. Still, Qatar’s historic night was marred by a series of mistakes that made them the first World Cup hosts to lose their first game.

Valencia scored an early penalty and added a well-taken 31st-minute header to give the South Americans a commanding first-half lead as the Qataris looked overcome by the significance of the occasion.

In front of 67,372 fans at the Al Bayt Stadium, the hosts’ situation may have been considerably worse if Valencia, 33, had not had a third-minute header disallowed for a slight offside when goalkeeper Saad al-Sheeb flapped at the ball.

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Al-Sheeb later fouled Valencia while the Ecuadorian was in the box and then dove the wrong way as Valencia calmly converted the ensuing penalty in the 16th minute.

In order to accept Angelo Preciado’s cross practically from behind him and head past al-Sheeb once more, Valencia had to be unmarked, but he still displayed excellent technique.

Qatar appeared to be largely toothless despite having an enviously long amount of time to connect and train together, including summer camps in Europe. The best opportunity for Almoez Ali came at the end of the first half when he headed wide but was later ruled offside.

In the final seconds, Mohammed Muntari also missed a shot.

Qatar’s chances of earning points or making it out of the group stage appear minimal given that both teams now have to play Senegal and the Netherlands.

Ecuador hopes to improve upon their best World Cup performance, which came in 2006 when they advanced to the round of 16.

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