DOHA-- Late goals by substitutes Ritsu Doan and Takuma Asano gave Japan an incredible 2-1 comeback victory over Germany in the World Cup on Wednesday in another emotional fillip for Asian soccer after Saudi Arabia's shock win over Argentina.
LUSAIL, Qatar-- The stars appeared to be aligning for Lionel Messi as he arrived at the Qatar World Cup as the talisman for an Argentina squad that has been simply unbeatable since 2019.
AL KHOR, Qatar- - Ecuador eased past World Cup debutants Qatar 2-0 on Sunday with first-half goals from veteran striker Enner Valencia in a one-sided affair that was the first opening game defeat for a host nation in the tournament's history.
DOHA-- Three-time World Cup finalists Netherlands returned to the biggest international stage after an eight-year absence, beating Senegal 2-0 on Monday in their Group A match with late goals from Cody Gakpo and substitute Davy Klaassen.
TURIN-- Rafa Nadal may be heading home but he made sure he avoided matching his worst ever losing sequence with a 7-5 7-5 victory over Norway's Casper Ruud at the ATP Finals on Thursday.
