مباريات من العيار الثقيل في ربع النهائي.. ثمانية منتخبات تطارد المجد …

لم يتبق سوى ثمانية منتخبات في منافسات مونديال 2026 ، ستلعب، انطلاقا من اليوم، مباريات من العيار الثقيل في ربع النهائي.
ويستعرض «العرب» مباريات هذا الدور التي ستقام في الولايات المتحدة. حيث تستهل المباريات بلقاء فرنسا والمغرب اليوم

*إسبانيا ضد بلجيكا
بعد فوزها على البرتغال (1-0)، أصبحت إسبانيا أول منتخب في تاريخ كأس العالم يخرج بشباك نظيفة في ست مباريات متتالية. ولم يُقدّم أبطال أوروبا بقيادة المدرب لويس دي لا فوينتي أداء مبهرا بشكل دائم في البطولة، لكنهم أظهروا فعالية هجومية وسلاسة في الأداء عند الاحتفاظ بالكرة.
وعبَر المنتخب البلجيكي إلى قمة لوس أنجليس ضد الإسبان بعد فوزه على أمريكا، أحد مستضيفي البطولة، 4-1 في دور الـ16. أما في دور الـ32، فتمكن منتخب «الشياطين الحمر» من قلب تأخره بهدفين أمام السنغال إلى انتصار 3-2 بعد الاحتكام إلى شوطين إضافيين (2-2 في الوقت الأصلي).

*النرويج ضد إنجلترا
اعتاد المدافعون الإنجليز على مواجهة النرويجي إرلينغ هالاند في الدوري الإنجليزي، لكن ذلك لن يشفع لهم بالضرورة في إيقافه.
ودخل فريق المدرب الألماني توماس توخل البطولة بثوب المرشح لنيل اللقب، للتتويج بالكأس للمرة الثانية فقط في تاريخ منتخب «الأسود الثلاثة».
ويُعتبر كل من القائد هاري كين وجود بيلينغهام اللاعبين الأبرز في تشكيلة المنتخب، إذ سجلا عشرة من أصل 11 هدفا للمنتخب في البطولة، ومن بينها ثلاثة أهداف في الانتصار المثير على المكسيك في دور الـ16 (3-2).
لكن مهمة المنتخب الإنجليزي لن تكون سهلة في ميامي، في مواجهة منتخب يقوده المتألق هالاند صاحب الأهداف السبعة

*الأرجنتين ضد سويسرا
لم تعبُر الأرجنتين بقيادة ليونيل ميسي إلى ربع النهائي لمواجهة سويسرا سوى بعد مباراتين شاقتين. ففي دور الـ32، اضطر حامل اللقب إلى خوض شوطين إضافيين للإطاحة بالرأس الأخضر.وفي الدور التالي، تأخرت الأرجنتين أمام مصر 0-2 وافتقرت للحلول في ما بدا أنها في طريقها للإقصاء، قبل التوقيع على عودة مذهلة قادها ميسي.
ويدرك مدرب المنتخب الأرجنتين ليونيل سكالوني أن فريقه لا يمكنه أن يعيش مجددا نفس السيناريوهات العصيبة في كل مباراة، إن أراد تحقيق الكأس العالمية للمرة الرابعة.
وستواجه الأرجنتين في مدينة كانساس المنتخب السويسري الذي انتصر على كولومبيا بركلات الترجيح في فانكوفر، بعدما انتهت المباراة بينهما في شوطيها الأصلي والإضافي بتعادل سلبي.

Doha, Qatar: Qatar’s high jump superstar Mutaz Barshim is looking to build on his return from injury, when he competes against an impressive field at the Monaco Diamond League today, being held at the iconic Stade Louis II.

The Tokyo 2020 gold medallist arrives in Monaco after clearing a season’s best 2.27m in Doha last month, his best jump in more than a year, as he continues his comeback following a long spell on the sidelines. catcross.org

“It’s really good to be back here in Monaco. I have a lot of great memories in this stadium,” Barshim said during the press conference yesterday.

“Last year was really difficult for me, dealing with some very serious injuries. Now I’m finally back, able to put on my spikes and do what I love the most, which is jumping and competing,” the 35-year-old said.

“My legs are a bit more tired than they were 15 years ago, but I’m ready to jump. I feel good,” Barshim, who made the second highest jump in the history, said.

Reflecting on his career, Barshim said he is “lucky to have competed through three generations.”

“When I retire, I want people to remember that I produced high-level performances for a very long time. The longer you perform at the highest level, the more you separate yourself from everyone else,” Barshim said.

Beyond his own performance, Barshim also spoke about his involvement in promoting athletics through his What Gravity Tour, a high jump series designed to bring elite competition closer to fans.

“I’ve been travelling for more than a decade and writing down ideas. I feel like this is the right time to make them happen,” he said.

The series has seen immense success during its previous outings in Doha, Germany and Slovakia, with Monaco set to host the next stop on August 5.

“It’s a show for the people while also giving athletes a World Athletics-certified competition. Hopefully we can attract new fans to the sport we love,” Barshim said.

The men’s high jump at tomorrow’s Diamond League meeting promises to be one of the most competitive events, with a field featuring six athletes who have cleared at least 2.33m in their careers.

The Qatari superstar remains the standout performer on paper with a personal best of 2.43m, comfortably the highest in the field, although his season’s best of 2.27m reflects his gradual return to his usual form.

Among his challengers today, Ukraine’s Oleh Doroshchuk has the best seasonal best mark (2.33m) while Czech Republic’s Jan Stefela also arrives in excellent form with a season best of 2.32m.

Italy’s Gianmarco Tamberi, who famously shared the gold medal with Barshim at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, also returns to Diamond League action following a long hiatus, while Doha meeting winner Matteo Sioli of Italy, Mexico’s Erick Portillo, Jamaica’s Romaine Beckford and American JuVaughn Harrison also add strength to the field.

Among other highlights, the meeting will also features some of the biggest names in world athletics, led by pole vaulter Armand Duplantis, who has set his sights on a 16th world record at his new home stadium after relocating to Monaco.

Olympic 100m champion Julien Alfred headlines a stacked women’s 200m field that also includes Olympic champion Gabrielle Thomas and world leader Adaejah Hodge, promising one of the fastest races of the season.

The men’s 100m is also under the spotlight, with reigning world champion Oblique Seville taking on Olympic 200m champion Letsile Tebogo and world indoor champion Jordan Anthony, promising fireworks at the 10th stop of the prestigious series.

من المقرر أن يتم تقديم جورجي جيزوس اليوم، مدربا جديدا لمنتخب البرتغال لكرة القدم خلفا للإسباني روبرتو مارتينيس، بحسب ما علمت وكالة فرانس برس امس من مصدر مقرب من الملف.
وأشار المصدر إلى أن المدرب البرتغالي البالغ 71 عاما والاتحاد المحلي للعبة توصلا إلى «اتفاق كامل» وسيعقدان مؤتمرا صحفيا في مقر الهيئة الكروية بضواحي لشبونة.
وسيتولى جيزوس قيادة البرتغال بعد خمسة أيام من خروجها من دور الـ16 لكأس العالم 2026 بخسارتها أمام إسبانيا 0-1.

Doha, Qatar: Four years after their dream run in Qatar was ended by France in the World Cup semi-finals, Morocco return to familiar territory with a different status and a bigger belief.

The Atlas Lions left the 2022 tournament as the first African and Arab nation to reach a World Cup semi-final, winning admiration across the globe despite falling short of a place in the final. They were the surprise package then. Today, they arrive as a team that has earned its place among football’s elite.

When Morocco face France in a highly anticipated quarter-final at Boston Stadium today, with kick-off at 11pm Qatar time, the contest will not be about an underdog chasing another fairytale. It will be a battle between two established contenders fighting for a place in the last four.

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France remain favourites but Morocco have already proved they can compete with the best.

Didier Deschamps’ side have maintained the standards expected of a title contender throughout the tournament. Les Bleus swept through Group I with victories over Senegal, Iraq and Norway before easing past Sweden in the Round of 32. Their narrow 1-0 win over Paraguay in the last 16 showed another dimension to the French team as they displayed patience and resilience when their attacking quality alone was not enough.

Morocco’s journey has required greater character as they began with a creditable draw against Brazil before defeating Scotland and Haiti to secure second place in Group C. The Atlas Lions then survived a dramatic penalty shootout against the Netherlands after Issa Diop’s late equaliser forced extra time, before producing one of their strongest performances of the tournament in a convincing 3-0 victory over co-hosts Canada to reach a second successive World Cup quarter-final.

“We’re no longer a surprise today, and that’s a great source of pride,” Morocco coach Mohamed Ouahbi said after the victory over Canada.

“I think this is only the beginning and I hope we’ll keep producing this kind of run for many years.”

Ouahbi has also played down suggestions that revenge is motivating his team following their semi-final defeat to France in Qatar.

“We want to go as far as possible and make our people proud,” he said.

France, meanwhile, continue to rely heavily on the brilliance of Kylian Mbappe. The captain has scored seven goals in the tournament, placed among the leading contenders in the Golden Boot race, while his penalty against Paraguay took his World Cup tally to 19, leaving him just two behind Lionel Messi’s record of 21. With Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele, creative playmaker Michael Olise and a wealth of attacking options around him, Mbappe leads one of the most dangerous forward lines in the competition.

Morocco, however, have the defensive structure and discipline to challenge any opponent.

France’s players take part in a training session.

Yassine Bounou has once again produced impressive performances on the biggest stage, while Achraf Hakimi remains one of the tournament’s standout right-backs.

Azzedine Ounahi rediscovered his scoring touch with two goals against Canada, although striker Ismael Saibari remains a doubt after suffering a hamstring injury in the previous round.

The meeting between Hakimi and Mbappe will be one of the key battles in Boston.

The two players developed a close friendship during their time together at Paris Saint-Germain, but that relationship will be put aside when they meet on opposite sides with a World Cup semi-final place at stake.

Deschamps expects Morocco to provide a far tougher test than France have faced so far.

“Morocco are one of the best teams,” the France coach said. “We played them four years ago in Doha and they also got to the Africa Cup of Nations final.”

France will also have disciplinary concerns, with Bradley Barcola, Manu Kone and Olise all one booking away from missing a potential semi-final.

History is on Les Bleus’ side, with France winning two of the previous three meetings between the nations, including their memorable 2-0 victory in the Qatar 2022 semi-finals. The other match ended in a 2-2 draw.

But Morocco no longer arrive looking for recognition, and standing in their way is a France side chasing a third consecutive World Cup final appearance.

The prize is a place in Dallas, where either Spain or Belgium will await in the semi-finals.