World Cup 2014 enters knock out stage

SAO PAULO: The last 16 teams at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil have been decided, and the knockout rounds get underway on Saturday when Brazil take on Chile.

Notable casualties from the group stages include reigning champions Spain as well as Italy, England and Portugal.

Costa Rica were the surprise package in the first round, coming through on top of a group including the Three Lions, the Azzurri and South America's Uruguay.

Here is the full schedule for the last 16, the first stage where a loss categorically means returning home:

World Cup 2014: Last 16 Schedule

June 28 9pm PST Brazil vs. Chile
June 28 1am PST(Sunday) Colombia vs. Uruguay

June 29 9pm PST Netherlands vs. Mexico
June 29 1am PST(Sunday) Costa Rica vs. Greece

June 30 9pm PST France vs. Nigeria
June 30 1am PST(Sunday). Germany vs. Algeria

July 1 9pm PST Argentina vs. Switzerland
July 1 1am PST(Sunday). Belgium vs. USA

The Netherlands have so far looked one of the best sides in the tournament, winning all three of their games including a 5-1 demolition of Spain.

They take on a strong Mexico side—who held Brazil to a draw in Group A—in one of the last 16's best matchups, which could well go to extra time or penalties.

Colombia will be buoyed by the suspension of Uruguay's Luis Suarez, per FIFA World Cup, and should see themselves through to the quarter-finals as a result. They have been one of the tournament's standout teams so far, impressing with their attacking flair.

One of Costa Rica or Greece will also make the last eight, having both upset the odds to make it out of the group stages to the surprise of many.

Many people's favourites for the competition, Argentina, face a Switzerland side who have bucked their previous trends in the tournament so far, conceding plenty but also scoring more goals than many had expected.

Lionel Messi should have enough to inspire his side to victory but the Swiss have shown their quality and will present a stiff test.

The last 16 is where the World Cup really gets interesting. The games do not come quite as thick and fast, but they are of even greater importance as survival is on the line.

Apart from Spain, most of the pre-tournament favourites still remain and the quality of football is likely to only get better as the competition moves forward and last-eight places are on the line.

Portugal beat Ghana 2-1 but fall out of World Cup

BRASILIA: Cristiano Ronaldo scored the winner for Portugal as they beat Ghana 2-1 in Brasilia in Group G on Thursday but both sides still crashed out of the World Cup.

Ronaldo missed three chances with only goalkeeper Fatawu Dauda to beat that would have been enough to put his side into the last 16.An own goal from John Boye gave Portugal the lead before Asamoah Gyan equalised for the Black Stars.

Ronaldo scored the second half winner but he will be ruing the misses which left Portugal stuck behind second place United States on goal difference.

Germany won the group after beating he United States 1-0. (AFP)

Germany will definitely reach World Cup final: Cafu

MARACANA, Brazil: The two-time champion is a huge admirer of Joachim Low's side and feels they will be the hosts' opposition at the Maracana on July 13.

Cafu is in no doubt that Brazil will meet Germany in the finalof this summer's World Cup. The former Selecao skipper has the utmost respect for Joachim Low'smen, who reached the semi-finals in South Africa in 2010 with ayoung side that drew praise for their attacking endeavour.

Cafu now believes that the Germans, with a further four years ofexperience under their belts, are now host nation Brazil's mostlikely opponents in Rio on July 13.

'Germany are a very strong team,' the two-time World Cup winnertold Sportinformations-Dienst.'

They are very highly rated here [in Brazil]. Germany have developed very well.'We all believe in a final against Germany. They will definitely reach the final.'

Cafu, who represented the likes of Roma and AC Milan during astellar playing career, led Brazil to a 2-0 victory over Germany inthe final of the 2002 World Cup.

Police, strikers clash in Brazil World Cup host city

SAO PAULO: Brazil´s World Cup preparations endured a rough Friday, as police clashed with striking subway workers in Sao Paulo, massive traffic jams snarled the mega-city and fans booed the national team.

The scuffle in the metro station and a separate anti-government protest that gathered 3,000 people raised fears of more unrest when Brazil and Croatia open the World Cup in Sao Paulo on Thursday.

Police fired tear gas and swung batons to beat back picketing strikers inside a central station after commuters tried to enter.

The strike, affecting millions of commuters, will continue for a third day Saturday after the workers´ union and their employers failed to reach a deal on a pay raise.

Across town, meanwhile, demonstrators blocked the street in front of the Central Bank in a peaceful protest organized by the Force Union against the economic policies of President Dilma Rousseff.

"Our problem is not with the national team. We will cheer for them. But on October 5, we will send Dilma Rousseff to hell," said union leader Paulo Pereira da Silva, referring to the upcoming presidential election.

The subway strike caused headaches for fans who attended Brazil´s labored 1-0 victory against Serbia in the team´s final friendly in Sao Paulo´s Morumbi stadium.

Sections of the crowd jeered the team led by Barcelona star Neymar as it struggled to find the net against the Serbians.

"Our players are ready to accept criticism when they don´t play well," said manager Luiz Felipe Scolari, whose team is under massive pressure to deliver a record sixth World Cup trophy.

While Brazil played at Morumbi Friday, the first World Cup game will be played in the city´s new Corinthians Arena, which is awaiting safety clearance to operate at full capacity, highlighting the authorities´ struggle to be ready for the tournament.

Officials are hard-pressed to resolve the metro strike because the subway will be the main link to the arena for legions of fans.

With three of five metro stations disrupted by the strike, bumper-to-bumper traffic stretched as much as 251 kilometers (155 miles) as the subway system´s 4.5 million users turned to cars or buses amid torrential rain.

"I´m going to have to return home. I can´t get to work like this," said Pedro Henrique Rodrigues, a 28-year-old pastry factory worker who stood in a massive bus line.

Australia thrash England 5-0 at hockey World Cup

THE HAGUE: England's men suffered their first defeat of the 2014 Hockey World Cup after going down 5-0 against Australia at the Kyocera Stadium – leaving their semi-final hopes in the balance.

Having won two and drawn one of their opening three Group A games, England were outclassed in parts by the Kookaburras, who booked their place in the last four with victory.

Australia set about their business inside just 25 seconds as Matt Gohdes scored the second-fastest goal of this year's World Cup.

Soon after, a good initial save from George Pinner was not enough to prevent Liam De Young converting the rebound to make it 2-0.

Jamie Dwyer scored Australia's third before they extended their lead in the dying seconds of the first half courtesy of a superb volley from Kieran Govers.

Australia increased their lead early in the second half through Aran Zalewski but Pinner showed his class late on with a number of fine saves to keep the score down.

England now need to beat Belgium on Monday to secure a place in the semi-finals.

France´s Ribery out of World Cup

PARIS: France´s World Cup hopes suffered a massive blow Friday when star winger Franck Ribery withdrew from the tournament because of a back injury that has virtually stopped him running.

The latest in a series of injuries to hit the 31-year-old Bayern Munich forward´s this year, flared up again Friday and forced the last-minute change on the shocked French camp. "We had stepped up his level of work this week and it was in a training session this morning, before even he could join team training, which involved him running and stepping up his routine that he pulled up with a sharp pain in his back," Deschamps told a press conference. "We had him undergo examinations which unfortunately confirmed that he had aggravated his back problem and there was no question of him being able to either train nor play," the coach added.

Ribery, who has scored 16 goals in 80 appearances for France, had said before the tournament that this would be his last World Cup.

Deschamps also announced that midfielder Clement Grenier would not be fit for Brazil because of a groin injury. He called up Montpellier´s attacking midfielder Remy Cabella and Southampton´s Morgan Schneiderlin as replacements.

Quitting the tournament completes a miserable six months for Ribery, veteran of the past two World Cups, who arrived at France´s training camp already laid low with the back pain.

His form even before that had dipped after he suffered depression, which he blamed on his failure to land the Ballon d´Or trophy for the world player of the year.

He finished third behind Portugal´s Cristiano Ronaldo and Argentina´s Lionel Messi.

Ribery underwent a buttock operation and his performances on his return to the Bayern team were way below his stunning displays in 2013 when Bayern won Europe´s Champions League and every Germany trophy.

The back problem plagued him into the dying weeks of the domestic season and prevented him from playing in Bayern´s two final Bundesliga matches.

He had not been fit to train even after he appeared in Bayern´s German Cup final win over Borussia Dortmund on May 17.

His withdrawal means he misses also the chance to atone for his role in France´s humiliating 2010 World Cup finals campaign.

Ribery was part of the he French team that went on strike for a training session in protest at striker Nicolas Anelka being sent home for a foul-mouthed outburst against coach Raymond Domenech. Ribery was given a three game suspension for his role. But he returned to become a central figure in the French team.

The loss is a major blow to Deschamps as Ribery was one of only perhaps two world class players in the squad, with Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema.

Ribery has instilled fear into opposing teams for years with blistering runs as he displayed in the 2006 World Cup, playing a large part in France´s surprising acheivement in reaching the final.

The class that he was capable of and which France will miss was seen to devastating effect in the 2012-2013 season for Bayern Munich.

In a remarkable 12 months, Ribery -- whose face was scarred in a car crash as a child -- was arguably the standout player in a Bayern side that won the Champions League, Bundesliga, German Cup, UEFA Super Cup and Club World Cup. (AFP)

Capello names his World Cup squad

MOSCOW: Russia coach Fabio Capello on Monday named his final 23-man squad to play in the World Cup finals led by experienced defender Sergei Ignashevich, midfielder Roman Shirokov and forward Alexander Kerzhakov.

The 31-year-old Kerzhakov is the only player in the squad who has previous World Cup experience having been in the squad that competed in 2002, the last time Russia reached the final stages.

Capello trimmed his original squad of 30 down to 25 in mid-May and the two players to miss out on being in the final selection were Denis Cheryshev from Spanish hi-flyers Sevilla and Pavel Mogilevets of Rubin Kazan.

The former England manager, who recently extended his contract with the Russian Football Union until the end of the 2018 World Cup, retained talented youngsters like Andrei Semenov and Maxim Kanunnikov.

He named his final squad two days after a 1-1 draw with Norway in a friendly match. Last month Russia defeated Slovakia 1-0 in their first World Cup warm-up match.

All of Capello´s squad are from Russian Premier League sides including six from Dynamo Moscow, who finished fourth in the league this season.

Five players represent champions CSKA, who retained their title this season, and four are from runners-up Zenit St Petersburg. Russia will open their World Cup campaign against South Korea on June 18. Capello´s side have been drawn in World Cup Group H, which also has Belgium and Algeria as they make their first appearance at the finals in 12 years.

The last time Russia played in the World Cup finals in 2002 they went up against Belgium, Japan and Tunisia, but failed to advance into the knock-out stages.

The best performance by a Russian team in the World Cup dates back to 1966 in England when the then Soviet Union came fourth.

Squad

Goalkeepers: Igor Akinfeev (CSKA Moscow), Yury Lodygin (Zenit St Petersburg), Sergei Ryzhikov (Rubin Kazan)

Defenders: Vasily Berezutsky, Sergei Ignashevich, Georgy Shchennikov (all CSKA Moscow), Vladimir Granat, Alexei Kozlov (both Dynamo Moscow), Andrei Yeshchenko (Anzhi Makhachkala), Dmitry Kombarov (Spartak Moscow), Andrei Semenov (Terek Grozny)

Midfielders: Igor Denisov, Yury Zhirkov (both Dynamo Moscow), Alan Dzagoev (CSKA Moscow), Roman Shirokov (FC Krasnodar), Denis Glushakov (Spartak Moscow), Viktor Faizulin, Oleg Shatov (both Zenit St Petersburg)

Forwards: Alexander Kerzhakov (Zenit St Petersburg), Alexei Ionov, Alexander Kokorin (both Dynamo Moscow), Maxim Kanunnikov (Amkar Perm), Alexander Samedov (Lokomotiv Moscow) (AFP)

World Cup city gripped by dengue fever

RIO DE JANEIRO: The Brazilian city where Portugal´s Cristiano Ronaldo and Nigeria´s John Mikel Obi will train for the World Cup is in the grip of a crippling dengue fever epidemic.

Workers in Campinas have embarked on a huge operation to eradicate mosquitos, which spread the disease, before the Portuguese and Nigerian teams arrive.

Some 32,384 people have been infected by dengue this year in the southeastern city about one hour from Sao Paulo.

At least three people have died. "It´s a record epidemic. It´s bigger than the 11,500 cases registered in all of 2007," said Andrea Von Zuben, who coordinates the Campinas dengue control program.

Dengue is a viral infection carried by the aedes aegypti mosquito. The fever is like chronic influenza with severe headaches, muscle and joint pain, vomiting and a rash. Severe cases can be deadly. Three people have died of dengue this year in Campinas, women aged 27, 69 and 81. Three other deaths are being investigated to see if they were caused by the disease. There is no cure for dengue, so prevention is the best medicine.

The World Health Organization recommends people in infected areas prevent mosquito bites with window screens, insect repellant and mosquito coils.It also suggests covering up exposed skin -- advice that may cramp Portuguese captain Ronaldo´s bare-chested style, a topic of much commentary after his pectoral-flexing goal celebration at this year´s Champions League final.

Brazil has been hit harder by dengue than any other country so far this century, with seven million cases reported between 2000 and 2013.

Von Zuben said the Campinas outbreak was being driven by a heatwave at the beginning of the year, the prevalence of a particularly virulent dengue strain and poor sanitation that leaves pools of standing water where mosquitos breed. But she said the areas where the Nigerian and Portuguese squads will be are a mosquito-control priority for health officials. "We put larvicides and anti-mosquito poisons at the airport, in the training centers and in the hotels, so the teams will run a much smaller risk than the local population," she told AFP.

The authorities have been in touch with the teams´ doctors, who were "concerned," Von Zuben said. She said her staff had recommended insect repellant. "We´ve been guaranteed that the situation has been identified and is under control. There shouldn´t be any reason for alarm," said the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF).

In early May, when Portuguese coach Paulo Bento visited the training center, city officials told him three mosquito-control operations would be carried out before the team arrives on June 11.

The army has helped sanitation workers clean up 83,000 tonnes of rubbish and dozens of buildings have been sealed off and sprayed.

Campinas is not the only city facing the dengue threat. Medical journal The Lancet Infectious Diseases recently said World Cup host cities Natal, Fortaleza and Recife in the northeast were also at risk. Of course, infectious diseases are a two-way street. Campinas has also launched a program to give citizens free vaccinations before World Cup fans descend on the city from Africa and Europe, where "polio and measles are still persistent," it said.

Priority will be given to taxi and bus drivers, employees at restaurants and tourist attractions, and the staff of six major hotels. (AFP)