United News of Bangladesh

Arambagh Krira Sangha made a flying start in the Bashundhara Group Senior (First) Division Football League 2023-24 outplaying Swadhinata Krira Sangha by 4-0 goals at the Bir  Sherestha Shaheed Shipahi Mohammad Mostafa Kamal Stadium in Kamalapur Tuesday morning. Ripon Miah, Sajol Ahmed, Shafikul Islam and Arafat Mia scored one each for Arambagh KS, which dominated the first half by 3-0 goals. In the day' s another match, East End Club beat Mohakhali Ekadash by 2-0 goals at the same venue Tuesday afternoon. Rabiul Majumder and Parvez Mia scored for East Énd Club, one in each half. The day's other match between Bangladesh Boys Club and Nababpur Krira Chakra ended in a goalless draw at the same venue this afternoon.

Cristiano Ronaldo has confirmed this year's European Championship will be the last of his career. The Portugal superstar, who is 39, is playing at the Euros for a record sixth time and has helped his country reach the quarterfinals — where Kylian Mbappé and France await in Hamburg on Friday. Speaking to Portuguese public broadcaster RTP after the penalty-shootout victory over Slovenia on Monday, Ronaldo said: “It is, without doubt, my last European Championship. “But I’m not emotional about that. I’m moved by all that football means — by the enthusiasm I have for the game, the enthusiasm for seeing my supporters, my family, the affection people have for me." Ronaldo, who is one of the most prolific scorers in soccer history and has a record 14 goals at European Championships, said his main motivation now was “making people happy.” He was reduced to tears during the Slovenia game after having a penalty saved in extra time. “It’s not about leaving the world of football," he said. “What else is there for me to do or win? It’s not going to come down to one point more or one point less.”

Cristiano Ronaldo was not dropped by Portugal for the round-of-16 game this time. Ronaldo is captaining Portugal and leading the attack picked by coach Roberto Martinez to face Slovenia on Monday in Frankfurt in the first knockout round of the European Championship. At the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Ronaldo was benched by then-coach Fernando Santos for the round-of-16 game against Switzerland. His replacement Gonçalo Ramos scored three times in a 6-1 win. Ramos is on the bench on Monday with Ronaldo supported in attack by Rafael Leão and Bernardo Silva. Mbappé and France into Euro 2024 quarterfinals after Muani's late goal beats Belgium 1-0 Martinez looks to have opted for a changed 4-3-3 formation, anchored by holding midfielder João Palhinha. Diogo Dalot had been playing in a three-man central defense. Slovenia's 4-4-2 formation is led in attack by Benjamin Šeško, who was linked with a big-money move to Arsenal before extending his contract at Leipzig days before Euro 2024. Šeško will be up against defender Pepe, 20 years older at age 41, and playing at his fifth Euros. The winner will advance to face Belgium or France in the quarterfinals on Friday in Hamburg. Teams: Portugal: Diogo Costa, João Cancelo, Pepe, Rúben Dias, Nuno Mendes; Bruno Fernandes, João Palhinha, Vitinha; Bernardo Silva, Rafael Leão, Cristiano Ronaldo. Lautaro Martínez scores twice and Argentina playing without Messi beats Peru 2-0 to end group play Slovenia: Jan Oblak, Žan Karničnik, Vanja Drkušić, Jaka Bijol, Jure Balkovec; Petar Stojanović, Adam Gnezda Čerin, Timi Elšnik, Jan Mlakar; Andraž Šporar, Benjamin Šeško.

Kylian Mbappé and France advanced to the European Championship quarterfinals after Randal Kolo Muani's deflected shot secured a 1-0 win over Belgium on Monday. Kolo Muani sent in an effort in the 85th minute that looped up off Belgium defender Jan Vertonghen and over stranded goalkeeper Koen Casteels. France will play Portugal or Slovenia in the quarterfinals on Friday. Mbappé, again wearing a mask to protect his broken nose, had five shots but none were on target in a low-quality match between the teams ranked No. 2 (France) and No. 3 (Belgium) who largely canceled each other out. Euro 2024: Portugal brings title-winning experience to face knockout rounds newcomer Slovenia The French won ugly but, for coach Didier Deschamps, it was “beautiful.” “We played a tough game against a great team, it was close,” he said. "Although I think we had a lot more possession and a lot more chances. Kolo is Kolo! “We have to savor it. We mustn’t underestimate this achievement. We’re in the quarterfinals.” Add a fortunate deflected shot to an own-goal and a penalty — scored by Mbappé — as France's only goals at Euro 2024. That will do little to stop the growing dissent of France's fans who feel more can come from a talented bunch of players headlined by Mbappé, playing on the day he officially became a Real Madrid player. Mbappé will be playing in his first ever quarterfinal at the European Championship, with France having lost on a penalty shootout to Switzerland in the last 16 at the last tournament in 2021. Lautaro Martínez scores twice and Argentina playing without Messi beats Peru 2-0 to end group play It was also a nice moment for Kolo Muani, whose last big moment at a major tournament came when he bore down on goal in the last seconds of extra time in the 2022 World Cup final against Argentina. His shot was saved by Emi Martinez, when a goal would surely have won the title for France. “I was lucky enough to get my shot on target,” he said of his decisive intervention against Belgium. “It was blocked but it went in. We’re very, very happy and very, very proud.” Belgium heads home after a fairly miserable Euro 2024, during which the players were jeered loudly by their own fans following a 0-0 draw with Ukraine at the end of the group stage. Belgium captain Kevin De Bruyne was deployed as a deep-lying midfielder in a bid to help control the game, with the Belgians intent on not leaving it open for France's quick attackers like Mbappé. The tactic would have been a masterstroke had Belgium won. It didnt, and more criticism is likely heading coach Domenico Tedesco's way.

Portugal plays Slovenia on Monday in the round of 16 at the European Championship. The game kicks off at 9 p.m. local time (1900 GMT) at the Waldstadion in Frankfurt. The winner will advance to face Belgium or France in the quarterfinals on Friday. Here's what to know about the match: Match facts — Portugal starts the group stage with wins over the Czech Republic and Turkey, then rests some starters in the third game and loses 2-0. Sound familiar? Portugal started Euro 2008 just as it has 16 years later. Then, Portugal did not get momentum back and was eliminated in the first knockout round — to a Germany team heading to the final. Slovenia is a different kind of test. — Slovenia will play its first knockout game at a major tournament in 32 years as an independent soccer nation. Slovenia went home after the group stage at Euro 2000, and the World Cups of 2002 and 2010, though only the top two advanced at those tournaments. — Slovenia started Euro 2024 the same way eventual champion Portugal did in 2016: three straight draws, no wins in the group to advance among the best third-place teams. — Portugal already has more wins in 90 minutes at this tournament (2) than in its 2016 title-winning campaign (1). — Frankfurt hosts its fifth and final game and is not a city where favorites thrive. So far here, Belgium lost to Slovakia, England played poorly in a draw against Denmark, and Germany needed a stoppage-time equalizer against Switzerland. Team news — At the 2022 World Cup, Cristiano Ronaldo was dropped to the bench for the round of 16 game that Portugal won 6-1 against Switzerland. His replacement Gonçalo Ramos scored a hat trick. That was by then-coach Fernando Santos. Ronaldo is in better standing with current coach Roberto Martinez and Ramos got just 24 game minutes off the bench so far. — Josip Iličić has not started a game for Slovenia but the 36-year-old’s return to the national team has been a positive story. The former Atalanta player’s career was derailed by depression he suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic. Iličić came on as a substitute in the 0-0 draw with England on Tuesday. By the numbers — This is the second most lopsided mismatch by FIFA world rankings of the round of 16. There are 51 ranking places between No. 6 Portugal and No. 57 Slovenia but 66 between No. 8 Spain and No. 74 Georgia. — 2-0. The score Slovenia beat Portugal by in March when they played a friendly in Ljubljana. — Slovenia lost just once in 15 games over the past year, a 2-1 defeat in Denmark last November in their qualifying group. — Only Germany had more attempts on goal than Portugal's 54 in the group stage. Only Scotland had fewer than Slovenia's 25. Slovenia star forward Benjamin Šeško had five of those attempts without scoring yet. — Portugal defender Pepe continues to extend his tournament record as the oldest-ever player. He will be aged 41 years and 126 days on Monday. — Cristiano Ronaldo, who turned 39 in February, will set the record as the oldest ever scorer if and when he gets his first goal at Euro 2024. The record is held by Luka Modric, scoring against Italy on Monday at age 38 years and 289 days. What they’re saying — "He’s going to be very good for this knockout phase of the tournament, and I hope — or I’m sure —that he’ll give us a lot of joy.” — Pepe praises Ronaldo — “Two years ago, we played against Serbia and we lost 4-1 in Belgrade. This was a turning point and since then we’ve only grown as a team.” — Slovenia midfielder Adam Gnezda Čerin  

Lautaro Martínez scored twice and Argentina, playing without the injured Lionel Messi, wrapped up Copa America group play with a 2-0 win over Peru on Saturday night. A nicely placed through ball from Ángel Di María led to Martínez's goal in the 46th minute. Martínez was embraced by teammates afterward, then went to hug Messi, who was standing near Argentina's bench. Martínez doubled Argentina’s lead in the 86th minute and now has a tournament-leading four goals. Messi did not play Saturday as he nurses a leg injury suffered in Argentina’s 1-0 victory over Chile on Tuesday that clinched a quarterfinal berth for the defending champions. Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni was also absent after being suspended because of his team’s late second-half return to the pitch in its previous two Copa matches. Saturday, the Albiceleste walked out for the second half just a few seconds before Peru. Argentina coach Scaloni suspended from Copa America match vs. Peru for being repeatedly late Playing with nine changes to its starting lineup, Argentina controlled possession (74%) for the third straight match and had six shots on goal, while being held scoreless in the first half for the third straight match. The game was played in front of about 64,000 fans at the Miami Dolphins' Hard Rock Stadium, which will also host the final on July 14. Most fans cheered for Argentina while wearing different versions of Messi's No. 10 jersey. Canada played Chile to a scoreless draw in another Group A match on Saturday in Orlando, Florida, to also advance to the quarterfinal round. Lionel Messi to rest for Argentina's final Copa America group match against Peru with leg injury Argentina will learn its knockout stage opponent when Group B finishes on Sunday. Group leader Venezuela plays Jamaica at Austin, Texas, and second-place Ecuador plays Mexico at Glendale, Arizona. Nicolás Tagliafico appeared to score for Argentina in the 55th minute after tapping in the ball at the back post, but the officials ruled that goaltender Pedro Gallese, who made four saves, was blocked and the goal was waived off. Argentina had another chance when the team was awarded a penalty after a handball in the box by Jesús Castillo. Leandro Paredes blasted the ball into the right post, and the score remained 1-0. Goaltender Emiliano Martínez made one save. Lionel Messi hopes leg injury sustained during Argentina's Copa America win over Chile not serious Peru was held without a goal for the third ga.me of the tournament and has no goals in 11 of its last 14 matches. Peru played a scoreless draw against Chile in its Copa America opener, then lost 1-0 to Canada. The team reached the semifinals in 2021 before losing to Brazil.

Defending champion Italy crashed out of the European Championship after losing to Switzerland 2-0 in the last 16 on Saturday. Goals in each half from Remo Freuler and Ruben Vargas gave the Swiss their first win over their southern neighbor for 31 years and set up a quarterfinal against England or Slovakia in Düsseldorf on July 6. Switzerland dominated in terms of possession, shots, attacks and passes. By the time Italy responded in the second half, the aggressive Swiss defense was able to deal with it. Coach Murat Yakin’s gameplan worked to perfection and he repaid the faith his federation showed him when there were calls for him to go in November. All Italy counterpart Luciano Spalletti could do was put his hands out in exasperation on the sideline. Freuler deservedly broke the deadlock in the 37th minute when he set up Vargas’ cross with his first touch and smashed it in with his next. Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, who had earlier denied Breel Embolo in a one-on-one, produced a flying save to deflect Fabian Riedler’s free kick onto the post before the break. But the second half had barely started before Vargas curled a shot from the edge of the penalty area inside the top right corner. Italy was immediately more proactive and Switzerland defender Fabian Schär was relieved to see his attempted headed clearance rebound off the post minutes later. Fans tried to get a Mexican wave going through the Olympiastadion but the Italian fans were not in the mood. Their team pushed forward in search of a way back only to find none. Gianluca Scamacca went closest when he hit the post but looked offside in any case. Spalletti spoke of his team’s “ beautiful suits ” before the Spain game, but this time, after substitute Mattia Zaccagni’s last-second equalizer against Croatia, he was unable to pull a rabbit out of Italy’s hat.

Ahead of France’s first knockout match at the European Championship, some of the players are turning their minds to politics back home. Sunday sees the first of two rounds of National Assembly elections called by France President Emmanuel Macron in an attempt to counter success for his far-right opponents in European parliamentary elections on June 9. That comes the day before France’s soccer team plays Belgium in the round of 16 at Euro 2024. “I urge everyone to go and vote,” France and Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konaté said on Saturday at a news conference at the national team’s base camp in Paderborn, Germany. “I don’t want to tell people what to do but we must be together in all circumstances, we mustn’t be divided, that will only bring harm to everyone and to future generations.” Argentina coach Scaloni suspended from Copa America match vs. Peru for being repeatedly late The snap elections for the National Assembly, the lower house of parliament, could lead to the country’s first far-right government since the World War II Nazi occupation. French opinion polls suggest the National Rally party could dominate the next parliament after the second round held July 7 and get the prime minister’s job. In that scenario, Centrist President Macron would retain the presidency until 2027 but in a sharply weakened role. “Of course it worries me, what is happening worries me,” the 25-year-old Konaté said. “We cannot leave power to certain people who are intent on dividing people. “Diversity has always been our strength. I come from an immigrant background. … Behind our skin color, there are hearts, that’s the most important thing.” Several France players have spoken out from Germany about the political turmoil back home, including Kylian Mbappé, Marcus Thuram and Ousmane Dembélé. Ronaldo, soccer's ultimate showstopper, still Portugal's main man despite slow start to Euro 2024 Before the tournament, Mbappé also urged young people to vote. “We know that it is a pivotal moment for French history, this is a never-before-seen event,” Mbappé said. “We are a generation that can make a difference, we can see that the extremes are knocking on the door of power and we have the opportunity to shape the future of our country.” Konaté was born in Paris to parents from Mali and grew up in the French capital. He played for Sochaux and Leipzig, in Germany, before joining Liverpool in 2021 — making his France debut the following year. “We must stop with prejudices and stereotypes,” Konaté said. "There is always a minority who will cause harm to the majority but when I see my parents, the jobs they had, garbage collector or cleaning lady, working at impossible hours, it saddens me that we do not highlight these kind of people who gave their health for France. “We talk a lot about immigration and Islam, we have to stop and that saddens me because it’s never the people concerned who talk about these subjects."

Cristiano Ronaldo has been a showstopper, as expected, at the European Championship. Just not necessarily in the way he’d like to be. The Portugal superstar with 632 million followers on Instagram and a never-ending stream of endorsement deals has had to deal with a raft of on-field selfie-seekers, during matches and in training. One presumed super-fan even leapt from the stands over the players’ tunnel toward a startled-looking Ronaldo as he headed to the locker room after Portugal’s match against Georgia. He’s raged at a referee (earning a yellow card), booted away a water bottle, and angrily remonstrated in the dug-out. He’s also had 12 shots, more than anyone else at Euro 2024. What Ronaldo hasn’t done is score a goal — and that’s the currency he deals in, at least in soccer. OK, there was that moment he passed up a golden chance to score by passing unselfishly to Bruno Fernandes for Portugal’s third goal in the 3-0 win over Turkey. A double-stepover that befuddled Abdulkerim Bardakci and left the Turkey center back on his back has proved a hit on social media and gave the world a reminder of the Ronaldo of 10, 15, even 20 years ago. Ronaldo, though, is 39 now. Those big moments have become fleeting, especially when it comes to the big tournaments and when he’s playing against top-level defenses. Make that seven straight matches in which he has failed to score at a major tournament, covering the 2022 World Cup and Euro 2024. For the first time in his 21-year international career taking in five World Cups and six European Championships, he has ended a group stage without a goal. So, with the powers of this undoubted soccer great on the wane, the question will again be asked heading into the knockout stage: will the constant drama surrounding Ronaldo wind up being a distraction for the Portugal team in its bid for another big soccer title, eight years after winning its only one at Euro 2016? Roberto Martinez clearly doesn’t think so. The Portugal coach is in thrall with Ronaldo, as shown by his reaction to the striker’s assist — his record-tying eighth at the European Championship — against Turkey. “It should be shown in every academy in Portugal and world football,” Martinez said, purring at this “spectacular” piece of play. A day earlier, he’d got into an exchange with a journalist who questioned whether Ronaldo could handle the intensity of a major tournament at age 39. “All you need to do is look at what he has done in the last 12 months,” Martinez proffered, pointing to his record in the Saudi league with Al-Nassr, for whom he started 31 of 34 games and scored a league-high 35 goals, and his 10 goals in Euro 2024 qualifying — second only to Belgium’s Romelu Lukaku. Before the tournament, Martinez had lauded Ronaldo by saying he “approaches every day as a new way to be the best” and that his stats “are better than anything, subjectively, that you can say.” Maybe to justify his arguments — or who knows, to keep in Ronaldo’s good books — Martinez started the striker against Georgia despite resting all of his other key outfield players for a game that meant little for Portugal, which had already qualified as group winner. It was at this stage at the last World Cup where Ronaldo lost his place in Portugal’s team, to the shock and anger of his millions of fans who might not see him play as much these days because of his move to the Middle East. He had started all three of the group games, scoring only a penalty, and reacted poorly to being substituted by then-coach Fernando Santos against South Korea in the third. Ronaldo didn’t start the 6-1 win over Switzerland in the round of 16 — his replacement, Goncalo Ramos scored a hat trick — nor the quarterfinal loss to Morocco, after which he left the field in tears. Given his public comments, it's unlikely Martinez will follow Santos’ path and drop his captain in the knockout stage, starting against Slovenia on Monday, for what may prove to be Ronaldo's last matches at a major tournament. Nor do his teammates, who have grown up idolizing Ronaldo, want that to happen. “We want to be side by side with our captain,” Portugal defender Diogo Dalot said, while midfielder Vitinha has spoken of the “privilege to be able to share moments with him on and off the pitch.″ Ronaldo’s desire and passion clearly remains. He is still a prolific scorer, albeit mostly against weak opposition these days, even if his mobility and, in particular, his pressing isn't at the level of a top-notch striker. It would be no surprise to see the top scorer in men’s international soccer — with 130 goals — get off the mark against Slovenia. Whether his continued selection is beneficial for Portugal is another thing entirely.

Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni has been suspended for one match and will miss his team's last Copa America group match against Peru on Saturday. Scaloni was suspended because Argentina was late returning for the second half in its two Copa matches, a 2-0 win against Canada and a 1-0 triumph over Chile, the disciplinary commission of CONMEBOL said on Friday. Scaloni also can't attend the post-match news conference. Later, Chile coach Ricardo Gareca was also suspended for one match for the same reason. Chile plays Canada on Saturday in Orlando. Defending Copa America champion Argentina has already secured a berth in the knockout stages. Argentina assistant Walter Samuel said during Friday’s press conference that Scaloni “was a little bitter about the situation.” “We consider ourselves a correct coaching staff,” Samuel said. ”In these six years (on the job) we have almost never had this type of sanction. (It is) a little abnormal. He wanted to be with the team tomorrow.” Copa America regulations say players must be on the pitch at the right time after the break and will be warned after a first violation. The sanction came after the second violation. Canada's players publicly complained about Argentina's late return for the second half of their match on June 20. Argentina needs a draw against Peru to secure first place in Group A.