Mali scored twice within three minutes of the kick-off en route to an ultimately meaningless 3-1 victory over Malawi in an Africa Cup of Nations Group A match on Monday.
Hosts Angola topped the mini-league after a goalless Luanda draw with Algeria, who finished level on four points with Mali but reached the quarter-finals because of a superior head-to-head record.
Frederic Kanoute and Seydou Keita were the early scorers for the Eagles and Mamadou Bagayoko wrapped up the three points after Russell Mwafulirwa had reduced arrears during the second half.
Mali lacked Mamamadou Diarra of Real Madrid and fellow midfielder Bakary Soumare through suspension and made four changes from the team beaten 1-0 by Algeria last Wednesday.
The opening goal came gift wrappe…
Simon Mignolet s representative Nico Vaesen has confirmed that the goalkeeper is unlikely to sign a new deal at Sunderland.
The 25-year-old has been with Sunderland since 2010 and played every match in the Premier League last season.
Mignolet is currently away on international duty with Belgium, who top Group A in FIFA World Cup qualifying, but he is battling for a first-team place as Chelsea s Thibaut Courtois has been preferred.
However, Mignolet is in demand with Liverpool and Arsenal both rumoured to have expressed interest in him.
Mignolet s representative Vaesan, the former Birmingham City goalkeeper, told the Sunderland Echo: I think it is very unlikely that he will sign a new contract.
Simon has obviously come to a point where he wants to step up a level and …
Leroy Sane is relishing the chance to link up with Riyad Mahrez after the Algeria international swapped Leicester City for Manchester City.
Mahrez had long been linked with a move to Etihad Stadium, with a January switch failing to materialise.
Pep Guardiola returned for the 27-year-old this month as the Premier League champions shelled out a reported £60million for the winger – a club record.
And Sane is delighted to have Mahrez lining up alongside him in 2018-19, having been frustrated by the 2016 PFA Player s Player of the Year in previous campaigns.
I m happy he s here, said when asked about his new team-mate. Every time we played Leicester and he had the ball, I was like: Okay, please don t do anything creative!
I m really happy that he…
Toby Alderweireld cast doubt over his future at Tottenham after describing the club s decision not to utilise him towards the end of 2017-18 as unjustified .
The Belgium international started six of his country s games at the World Cup after playing just 14 times for Spurs in the Premier League last season, and he said he was glad to have proved his form and fitness in Russia.
A hamstring injury kept the 29-year-old out of Mauricio Pochettino s plans for part of last season, but Alderweireld told Nieuwsblad he was disappointed not to have been more involved in the club s charge to third place in the table.
Reflecting on his part in Belgium s run to the World Cup semi-finals, he said: I m glad I was able to prove myself here again.
Belgium, we wanted it so…
Real Madrid have become the first sports team in the world to generate annual revenue in excess of 400 million euros (362 million pounds, 543 million dollars), according to figures compiled by accountancy firm Deloitte.
The latest edition of the Deloitte Football Money League published on Tuesday also shows Spanish giants Real as the world s largest revenue generating football club, for the fifth consecutive year.
Real s broadcast income of 161 million euros was greater than the total revenue of all but the top ten clubs in the Deloitte table.
Their arch domestic rivals Barcelona moved up into second place, primarily as a result of winning last year s Champions League final while Barca s beaten opponents Manchester United dropped down into third position, partly…
Germany captain Michael Ballack is set to sign a one-year contract extension which will keep him at Premier League side Chelsea until 2011, German daily Bild claimed Thursday.
The 33-year-old midfielder, who last June extended his contract by a year, has told club bosses in London that he sees himself playing until 2012 and will have the option of a further year s extension, Bild reported.
The German daily say Ballack has also told Germany coach Joachim Loew that he intends playing on after this June s World Cup in South Africa, where Germany are one of the favourites.
Having scored 48 goals in 98 appearances for the national side, Ballack is set to reach the 100 caps mark this season and wants to play on until at least the European Championships which will be h…
Jonathan Walters paid tribute to the work of manager Martin O Neill and his assistant Roy Keane after firing Republic of Ireland to Euro 2016.
Stoke City forward Walters scored a first-half penalty before meeting Robbie Brady s excellent delivery to squeeze home the second in a 2-0 win in Dublin as Ireland wrapped up a 3-1 play-off success.
Walters refused to take all the credit, though, choosing instead to spread the praise across the team and reserving particular acclaim for O Neill and Keane – who qualified for a major tournament at the first attempt having taken over in November 2013.
The whole team on the pitch are heroes, it was unbelievable from everyone, Walters told Sky Sports. We ve done it the hard way, but we got there.
I ve got to …
Mats Hummels nears Dortmund exit
Borussia Dortmund captain Mats Hummels is being linked with a move away from Signal-Iduna Park, .
The World Cup winner has seen his name paired with quite a few top clubs in the last couple of years, but the Millionaires somehow managed to keep hold of his services.
Nevertheless, it appears that Hummels is now closer than ever to Dortmund exit, having also clashed with coach Thomas Tuchel.
The highly rated centre-back has been well below par over the last few weeks, but he hasn t reacted well to the boss s criticism of his performances.
This is enough to suggest that Hummels could decide to leave the Millionaires at the earliest opportunity and there is a good chance the club would consider serious offers for his…
Didier Deschamps acknowledges a five-hour time difference and a synthetic pitch will make life difficult for France in Kazakhstan, but believes the world champions have an obligation to get a result .
Sunday s early World Cup qualifier takes Les Bleus to Astana four days on from a disappointing 1-1 home draw against Ukraine.
France can ill afford another slip up but face potentially tricky opponents in Kazakhstan, who have not yet played their first match but enjoyed their most successful European Championship qualifying campaign to date ahead of Euro 2020.
That included a dominant 3-0 home win over Scotland, who ultimately qualified for the finals, in which Kazakhstan had just 41 per cent of the possession but mustered 10 shots including six on target and their …
Barcelona s injury problems have deepened as midfielder Pedri and left-back Jordi Alba have been ruled out with muscular injuries sustained in the 3-0 defeat to Bayern Munich.
Alba was taken off in the 74th minute of Tuesday s Champions League contest with a hamstring issue, while Pedri played a full part on his return to action following a three-week rest.
Barca announced on their official website on Wednesday that Pedri is suffering with a thigh problem and has joined Alba in the treatment room ahead of Monday s LaLiga clash with Granada.
No timeline has been given for both players return to action.
The first team player Pedri has a quadriceps muscle injury in his left thigh, Barca revealed. The player is unavailable for selection and his recovery wil…