World Cup Group E, Kaliningrad Stadium - Serbia 1 (Mitrovic 5') Switzerland 2 (Xhaka 52', Shaqiri 90')

Xherdan Shaqiri scored a dramatic, late winner as Switzerland came from behind to claim a 2-1 win over Serbia in this World Cup Group E clash.

Aleksandar Mitrovic had given the Serbians the lead in the first half, getting on the end of a cross to glance a header into the net. And the Newcastle United forward, who spent the second half of the season on loan at Fulham, caused problems throughout.

But Switzerland made a change to their team and their approach at the break and emerged for the second half a different team, restoring parity on the 53rd minute when Granit Xhaka swept home a left-footed strike from 25 yards out.

The Swiss continued to press forward as the match became more open, and they got their reward with just minutes left to play when Shaqiri broke the offside trap on the halfway line to beat his man for pace and finish calmly past Vladimir Stojkovic in the Serbian goal.

TALKING POINT - Why is VAR not being used for manhandling in the box?

Mitrovic now knows how Harry Kane felt during England’s game against Tunisia. There was an incident in the second half when the Serbian striker was dragged to the ground by both Stephan Lichtsteiner and Fabian Schar as they challenged for a cross. Yet, just as happened with Kane, the refereeing team in Moscow using VAR failed to indicate anything to the referee. VAR has worked rather well at this World Cup so far, but why is it not being used for manhandling in the box?

MAN OF THE MATCH - Xherdan Shaqiri (Switzerland)

He was identified as Switzerland’s difference-maker before the match and so it proved by full time. Shaqiri scored the winning goal with just minutes left to play, but he was key to the way the Swiss managed to change the flow of the game after the half time break. The Stoke City man took a grip of things in the second half and gave Serbia all kinds of problems.

PLAYER RATINGS

Serbia - Stojkovic 6, Ivanovic 6, Milenkovic 6, Tosic 6, Kolarov 7, Matic 6, Milivojevic 6, Tadic 8, Milinkovic-Savic 7, Kostic 6, Mitrovic 8. Subs - Ljajic, Radonjic.

Switzerland - Sommer 6, Lichtsteiner 5, Schar 5, Akanji 7, Rodriguez 7, Behrami 6, Xhaka 7, Shaqiri 9, Dzemaili 7, Zuber 6, Seferovic 5. Subs - Embolo 7, Gavranovic 7.

KEY MOMENTS

5’ GOAL! Serbia 1-0 Switzerland: Mitrovic for Serbia! He's grabbed the opening goal of the game! Tadic sends a cross into the box and the Newcastle United striker glances a fantastic header high into the net! Great goal from Mitrovic.

31’ CHANCE FOR SWITZERLAND! That might have been 1-1. Dzemaili played a lovely ball in behind for Seferovic, but Stojkovic comes off his line to make the intervention at the striker's feet.

43’ WHAT AN OPPORTUNITY! That should have been a second goal for Serbia. The corner kick from Tadic was a wicked one, Tosic misses his header and Matic knees it wide. Wow.

53’ GOAL! Serbia 1-1 Switzerland: Switzerland are back on level terms! The ball fall to the edge of the Serbian penalty area and Xhaka met it first time to sweep home into the back of the net with his left foot. Excellent goal by the Arsenal man!

58’ WOWEEEE! OFF THE POST! That would have been a sensational goal. That would have been goal of the tournament. Shaqiri tries his luck from an impossible angle, but his wicked curling strike clips the outside of the far post.

66’ PENALTY CLAIM! Mitrovic believes that he was dragged to the ground by Lichtsteiner and Schar. He certainly has a case. How hasn't VAR caught that in the soft checks? That was a penalty.

89’ GOAL! Serbia 1-2 Switzerland: The Swiss have probably won this game in the last minute of regular time! Shaqiri broke the offside trap at the halfway line, beating Tosic for pace, and the Stoke man had enough about him to slide home the calm finish! Drama!

KEY STATS

Aleksandar Mitrovic has scored 18 goals in 26 games for club and country in 2018.

Switzerland have lost just one of their last 24 games (a qualifier against Portugal in October, 2017 was their last loss).

Roger Federer had to save two match points before finally overcoming Benoit Paire 6-3 3-6 7-6(7) to reach the quarter-finals of ATP Halle.

The Swiss continued his Wimbledon preparations with the tough victory, which demanded that he come through a deciding set tie-break.
Federer fended off the brace of match points to deny the Frenchman a memorable surprise win and eventually won the breaker 9-7.
The 36-year-old Swiss extended his winning run on grass to 18 matches and must triumph in Halle with a record-extending 10th title to remain at the top of the world rankings.
He will next take on Australian Matthew Ebden in the last eight, competing in Halle at a career high ranking of 60, who rallied from a set down to beat local hope Philipp Kohlschreiber 4-6 6-1 6-2.

Manchester United have confirmed the signing of Brazil international Fred.

“Manchester United is delighted to announce it has finalised the transfer of Frederico Rodrigues de Paula Santos (Fred) from Shakhtar Donetsk,” read a statement on the Manchester United website.

The Premier League club announced on June 5th that a deal had been agreed with Shakhtar Donetsk for the transfer of the 25-year-old, and with the formalities now complete, the Brazilian has signed a five-year deal.

The fee for the former Internacional player is thought to be in the region of £47 million.
“This is the biggest club in the world and I am delighted to be a part of this amazing team,” said Fred.

" To work with Jose Mourinho, who has won so many trophies in his time as a coach, is an opportunity not to be missed."
”I cannot wait to get started and to meet my new team-mates. I would like to thank everyone at Shakhtar Donetsk for everything they have done for me over the past five years.
“This is a very exciting time for me with my focus now fully on the World Cup with Brazil.”

Fred began his career in his native Brazil with Internacional, before making a €15 million switch to Shakhtar back in 2013.

He went on to make 156 appearances and score 15 goals as he helped his side to three Ukrainian Premier League titles.

Juventus have confirmed the signing of German international Emre Can on a four-year deal.

"Juventus Football Club announces that Emre Can has signed with the Bianconeri to officially join the club on 1 July 2018 on a four-year deal," read a statement on the Juventus website.
The 24-year-old joined Liverpool in 2014 and made his 167th and final appearance for the Merseyside outfit when he came on as a substitute in their Champions League final defeat by Real Madrid last month.Can, who has 20 caps for Germany, featured in 38 matches across all competitions for Liverpool last season, scoring six goals, but was not included in his nation's World Cup squad.

World Cup, Group C – France 1 (Mbappe 34’) Peru 0

Kylian Mbappe’s first World Cup goal was enough to send France into the knockout stages and send Peru crashing out of the tournament after just two matches.

France made a slow start against Peru, the team many predicted would be their greatest challenge in Group C, despite not having qualified for a World Cup in 36 years.

Matchcast

Peru again impressed, as they had in their opening round defeat to Denmark, but couldn’t find a way to unlock a well-organised French defence.

The first clear chance of the match was in the 31st minute with Paolo Guerrero’s shot blocked by Hugo Lloris on his 100th appearance for France.

Guerrero would come to regret the missed opportunity moments later as Mbappe was the beneficiary of a deflected cross, turning home into an empty net after 34 minutes of a tight encounter.

Having picked up their pace in the latter part of the first half, the break seemed to have slowed the tempo for France once more in the opening stage of the second and it was Peru who saw the bulk of the action and had the lion’s share of the chances.

Nonetheless, they were unable to capitalise on those chances with a 1-0 victory, France sealed their passage into the final-16, while Peru – who well deserved a point – saw their tournament end at the group stage.

Talking Point – Do France have the momentum to go the distance?

Despite having secured a place in the final-16 after just two matches and two victories, France looked at best lethargic for the majority of the match. The team has faced much criticism from French press, which seems unlikely to dissipate on the basis of today’s performance.

Man of the Match - Kylian Mbappe

From a sportsmanship perspective, at times his conduct left something to be desired, but with the only goal of the match, at 19 years of age, Mbappe becomes France's youngest goal scorer in World Cup finals.

Player Ratings

France: Lloris 6, Pavard 6, Varane 5, Umtiti 6, Hernandez 5, Kante 7, Pogba 6, Matuidi 6, Mbappe 7, Griezmann 7, Giroud 7. Subs: Nzonzi 5, Dembele 6, Fekir 5.

Peru: Gallese 7, Rodriguez 7, Trauco 6, Cueva 7, Guerrero 7, Ramos 6, Advincula 7, Carrillo 7, Yotun 6, Flores 7, Aquino 7. Subs: Santamaria 6, Farfan 6, Ruidiaz 6.

Key Moments

31’ SHOT! Guerrero is in the six yard box with the ball and he shoots - the first proper chance of the game. Cleared.

34’ GOAL! Mbappe intercepts Olivier Giroud's shot into the box as the keeper chases it down. Just taps it in the open goal. France 1-0 Peru.

61’ SHOT! An extended period of pressure by Peru, pressing forward. Carillo strikes from outside the 18 yard box and it's good - but just a little too high over the bar.

66' Advincula strikes now, from the near corner of the 18 yard box. It's a good effort, but again it's over the bar.

87’ Guerrero takes the free kick from outside the 18 yard box, but it's nowhere near high enough - over the wall and straight into the arms of Lloris.

World Cup Group D, Nizhny Novgorod Stadium – Argentina 0, Croatia 3 (Rebic 53’, Modric 80’, Rakitic 90')

Croatia bounded through to the last 16, a brilliant midfield performance ravaging and devastating a clueless, broken Argentina.They must now beat Nigeria in their final match and hope that Iceland earn fewer than four points in their two remaining fixtures.

The first half was a tight affair, the teams missing a sitter each and also exchanging, er, old-fashioned challenges. But then on 53 minutes, Willy Caballero cunningly tried to play out from the back, lifting a pass out to Gabriel Mercado. The problem being that he underhit it, and underneath it, Ante Rebic was backpeddling to lash a stunning volley over his head and into the roof of the net.

In response, Jorge Sampaoli tried to shake things up, sending on Gonzalo Higuain and Paulo Dybala, but his team still had no idea what they were meant to do, so it was no especial surprise when, on 80 minutes, the wonderful Luka Modric curled home a clinching second.

And still there was more pain for Argentina, a break culminating in a third goal for Croatia - scored by Ivan Rakitic, facilitated by the phalanx of opponents not bothered to chase back.

So Argentina's continued participation in the World Cup is no longer in their own hands, and rightly so: they are equal parts debacle and a disgrace. Croatia, meanwhile, are a difficult proposition for anyone, a team with a plan, an attitude, and Luka Modric.

TALKING POINT

What is Jorge Sampaoli doing? Argentina did not play well against Iceland, but most teams do not play well against Iceland. It made very little sense for him to take out Angel di Maria and reconfigure his team's formation such that none of the players tasked with getting the ball to Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero are able to pass the ball effectively. Meanwhile, on the bench sat Ever Banega and Gonzalo Higuain, which is to say that it is impossible to extract less from these players than he is currently managing.

MAN OF THE MATCH

Luka Modric (Croatia) A maestro. He passed and moved beautifully, then scored a great clinching goal. The greatest midfielder of his generation.

PLAYER RATINGS

Argentina: Caballero 4, Mercado 5, Otamendi 5, Tagliafico 6, Salvio 5, Perez 5, Mascherano 4, Acuna 5, Mesi 4, Meza 5, Aguero 4. Subs: Higuain 6, Dybala 5, Pavon 6.

Croatia: Subasic 6, Vrsaljko 6, Lovren 6, Vida 6, Strinic 6, Rakitic 8, Brozovic 7, Modric 9, Rebic 8, Mandzukic 6, Perisic 7. Subs: Kramaric 6, Kovacic 6, Corluka 6.

KEY MOMENTS

30’ - WHAT A MISS! OH DEAR DEAR ME WHAT A MISS! A pass is lifted down the left by Acuna, Vrsaljko makes a hash of it, knocking it into the middle, and so does Lovren, letting Salvio pinch it off him and feed Perez while Subasic wanders about like he's at Woodstock. But Perez, 10 yards out, passes a finish into the side-netting. Oh, mate!

32’ - OH! OH! Vrsaljko is given an aeon to lift a ball to the back post, Argentina step up because they can't be arsed defending properly, and Mandzkic is there, alone and palely loitering! But he dives to head wide! He looks totally baffled by it all, and well he might.

53’ - WHAT A GOAL! Argentina 0-1 Croatia (Rebic) Aaaarrrgggg! Caballero is dead clever, see, so he dinks a pass over Rebic and to Mercado ... except he underhits it, and Rebic adjusts magnificently, backpeddling but keeping his eye on the ball to hook a brilliant volley over him and into the net! Argentina are in all sorts! Clever Willy!

80’ -WHAT A GOAL! WHAT A PLAYER! I SAID WHAT A PLAYER! Argentina 0-2 Croatia (Modric) He is so, so good - a great in fact. He takes a pass that comes across the face of the box, goes outside Otamendi, then inside, then turns and goes outside again ... before spanking a right-footed curler that scream, hisses and pants its way past Caballero! Argentina are done!

87’ - So, free-kick Croatia, 25 yards out ... and Rakitic curls an absolute sort over the wall and against the face of the bar! Fantastic effort!

90+1’ - GOAL! Argentina 0-3 Croatia (Rakitic) Croatia break, 17 on 1, and Rakitic shoots, but Caballero pushes away ... except Kovacic in there to square for him, and he taps home! argentina have been ravaged, rustled and devastated!

KEY STATS

This is Argentina's heaviest World Cup defeat since they lost 6-1 to Czechoslovakia in 1958.

Sergio Aguero touched the ball 0 times in the final 20 minutes of the first half.

World Cup Group B, Luzhniki Stadium, – Portugal 1 (Ronaldo 4) Morocco 0

Cristiano Ronaldo’s quest for the Golden Boot stayed on course after his fourth-minute header helped Portugal grind out a 1-0 win over Morocco at the World Cup.

For the north African side it was Moscow or bust as they needed at least a point to keep their hopes of qualifying alive.

And they made the worst possible start as Ronaldo ghosted in early on to net a header for his 85th goal for his country.

But Morocco created the better chances as they dominated the midfield battle and nullified William Carvalho, Joao Mario, playing instead of Bruno Fernandes, and Bernardo Silva.

But they were let down by poor finishing and some good saves from Rui Patricio including a world class one-handed stop to keep out Younes Belhanda’s header.

Fernando Santos’s side continued to soak up the pressure in the latter stages, with some last-gasp defending to deal with a string of corners and free-kicks.

And they had a penalty shout in the dying minutes when Ronaldo went down after minimal contact from Nordin Amrabat which led to the Real Madrid making the VAR signal himself.

Similar to their triumph at Euro 2016, the Portugese grinded out another win to eliminate Morocco with the sort of performance that would have made compatriot Jose Mourinho smile.

TALKING POINT

Are Portugal winding the clock back to two years ago with their dogged displays?

They are not great to watch, were under the cosh for most of the game and their attacking players were on the periphery yet Portugal have four points from two games. Just like Euro 2016 when they progressed with draws against Austria and Hungary in the group stage, it's more of the same this time aroud. But Portugal did ride their luck with Morocco missing a hatful of chances in the box which more clinical teams would punish. Fernando Santos and his team may respond, if it ain't broke, dont fix it..

MAN OF THE MATCH

Nordin Amrabat: The Watford man was not expected to play after a nasty head injury against Iran. But he started the game wearing a protective skull cap, which he later threw off in the first half. He gave Raphael Guerrero a torrid time with his trickery, setting up a host of chances.

PLAYER RATINGS

PORTUGAL: Patricio 8, Pepe 6, Raphael 4, Fonte 5, Cedric 5, Moutinho 5, Mario 4, Silva 5, Carvalho 4, Ronaldo 7, Guedes 5. Subs: Martins 5, Fernandes 5, A. Silva n/a.

MOROCCO: El Kajoui 5, Dirar 5, Benatia 6, Da Costa 7, Hakimi 5, Belhanda 6, El Ahmadi 6, Boussoufa 5, Ziyach 6, Boutaib 5, Amrabat 8. Subs: El Kaabi 6, Carcela-Gonzalez n/a, Fajr n/a.

TALKING POINT

Are Portugal winding the clock back to two years ago with their dogged displays?

They are not great to watch, were under the cosh for most of the game and their attacking players were on the periphery yet Portugal have four points from two games. Just like Euro 2016 when they progressed with draws against Austria and Hungary in the group stage, it's more of the same this time aroud. But Portugal did ride their luck with Morocco missing a hatful of chances in the box which more clinical teams would punish. Fernando Santos and his team may respond, if it ain't broke, dont fix it..

MAN OF THE MATCH

Nordin Amrabat: The Watford man was not expected to play after a nasty head injury against Iran. But he started the game wearing a protective skull cap, which he later threw off in the first half. He gave Raphael Guerrero a torrid time with his trickery, setting up a host of chances.

PLAYER RATINGS

PORTUGAL: Patricio 8, Pepe 6, Raphael 4, Fonte 5, Cedric 5, Moutinho 5, Mario 4, Silva 5, Carvalho 4, Ronaldo 7, Guedes 5. Subs: Martins 5, Fernandes 5, A. Silva n/a.

MOROCCO: El Kajoui 5, Dirar 5, Benatia 6, Da Costa 7, Hakimi 5, Belhanda 6, El Ahmadi 6, Boussoufa 5, Ziyach 6, Boutaib 5, Amrabat 8. Subs: El Kaabi 6, Carcela-Gonzalez n/a, Fajr n/а

KEY MOMENTS:

5’ - GOAL FOR RONALDO! The corner from Silva is played short to Moutinho and the cross finds Ronaldo who heads it in from six yards out. Where was the marking?!

39’ - GOOD SAVE! Ronaldo lofts the ball into the box for Guedes whose shot is well parried by the keeper 57’ - but he really should have scored from there.

57' - WHAT A SAVE! Morocco have a free-kick on the right flank. Ziyach's delivery is headed into the bottom corner by Belhanda and Patricio gets one hand on it to put it over the bar!

60’ - WHAT A CHANCE! Morocco have another free-kick 40 yards out. Its lofted into the box, Benatia gets a touch, it falls to Belhands who lashes it over the bar.

90’+3 - BENATIA MISS! The ball is played into the box, it falls to Benatia who snatches at it and wallops it over the bar. Morocco have missed a hatful of opportunities.

KEY STATS

Ronaldo has now scored more internationals goals than any European player in history with 85.

Portugal manager Fernando Santos has lost just one competitive game in 90 minutes in four years in charge - a 2-0 loss against Switzerland in qualifying.

World Cup Group A, Rostov Arena - Uruguay 1 (Suarez 23') Saudi Arabia 0

Luis Suarez's goal, on his hundredth appearance for his country and which made him the first Uruguayan to score in three World Cups, was enough to win a truly horrendous match and see Uruguay into the last 16. They will now play Russia to decide which team tops Group A, with Portugal and probably Spain awaiting in the second phase.

The game started slowly and continued in similar vein throughout, but on 23 minutes, Uruguay won a corner at which Mohammed Alowais flapped, allowing the unfathomably unmarked Suarez to tap home.

Neither side upped the pace in the second half, Uruguay bloodymindedly content to defend their lead and Saudi apparently content to avoid a second hiding. Carlos Sanchez missed a decent chance after Edinson Cavani's run and cross, but otherwise neither side came especially close to scoring, with the Saudis showing little sense of urgency even in the closing stages.

So Uruguay progress to the knockout stages, and the question begs: has any side ever played as badly for a 100 percent record after two games? But one thing is for sure: the Uruguayans will not care.

TALKING POINT

Uruguayan substance is Uruguayan style. There is something hilariously admirable about Uruguay's refusal to amend their style according to circumstance. Most teams would have looked to set about a side who played so poorly in their first game, but Uruguay played just as they did against Egypt and just as they will against better opposition. They are getting results, and any side that faces them can expect to be dragged out onto the cobbles for a scrap.

MAN OF THE MATCH

Luis Suarez (Uruguay) Real talk, this match was so poor that there oughtn't to be one. But here we are, and in such circumstances we can only go for the scorer of the winning goal. With regret.

PLAYER RATINGS:

Uruguay: Muslera 6, Varela 6, Godin 6, Gimenez 6, Caceres 6, Sanchez 5, Betancur 5, Vecino 5, Rodriguez 5, Cavani 5, Suarez 5. Subs: Laxalt 6, Torreira 5, Nandez 6.

Saudi Arabia: Alowais 4, Alburayk 5, Osama 6, Ali 6, Yasser 6, Otayf 5, Salman 5, Taiseer 5, Hatan 5, Fahad 4, Salem 4. Subs: Hussain 5, Kanno 6, Alsahlawi 6.

KEY MOMENTS

12’ - A poor touch from Salem allows Suarez to nick off with the ball on halfway, so Salem hacks him down, avoiding a booking. The resultant free-kick goes short and Bentancur lifts a pass down the line for Caceres, whose low cross is a little behind Cavani, and he lashes over the bar from eight yards.

22’ - Uruguay are coming. Cavani snaps a pass into the path of Rodriguez, nashing down the left, he catches up with it, just, and screws back a cross which forces a corner.

23’ - GOAL! Uruguay 1-0 Saudi Arabia (Suarez) The 100th cap is marked with a goal! Over comes the corner and out comes Alowais for a flap; he gets nowhere near the ball, and Suarez is right there to tap home on the volley. His marker is, well, em, um, I don't know.KEY STATS

79 percent of games at Russia '18 have been decided by one goal or fewer, the highest ratio of any World Cup.

So far there have been eight 1-0 wins, as many as were recorded in the entire group stage of Brazil 2014.

29’ - Chance for Saudi! Salem goes down the left and crosses; in the middle, Godin can't win the header, and with Caceres dreaming, Hatan steals in only to bang the bal over the bar! Uruguay have been warned!

62’ - Uruguay break via quick free-kick from Caceres, but Cavani finds himself alone on the left so waits for support to arrive, then steps inside and curls a lovely cross for Sanchez on the far side of the box ... only for him to send his falling header well over the top.

86’ - Uruguay get it downfield and Cavani picks it up on halfway; with no one in support, he sticks it into space and pegs after it, beating two defenders in the process. Osama then cuts him off ... but slips, allowing Cavani to spin and shoot, but Alowais is out to narrow the angle and block to safety.

World Cup Group B, Kazan Arena - Spain 1 (Costa 54') Iran 0

Diego Costa was on target as Spain secured a crucial 1-0 win over Iran in their World Cup Group B clash in Kazan.

The Spain striker got on the scoresheet again from close range as their doughty opponents saw their efforts prove to be in vain.

Iran had a goal disallowed for offside via VAR just after the hour mark, just as their noisy fans celebrated wildly in the stands.

It's a hugely valuable win for Spain after their thrilling 3-3 draw against Portugal earlier in the group.

Brazil forward Neymar left training early on Tuesday after feeling pain in his right ankle and will spend the rest of the day undergoing physiotherapy, the Brazilian Football Confederation said.

"He was feeling pain thanks to the large number of fouls he suffered in the Switzerland game," a spokesman told reporters. "He complained of pain and so he went to physio and he will train normally tomorrow."
Neymar stopped training in Sochi after a few minutes, leaving his team mates to continue preparations for their second World Cup game against Costa Rica in St Petersburg on Friday.

Neymar was fouled 10 times in the first match against Switzerland which Brazil drew 1-1
The Paris St Germain forward was subdued in the match and unrecognisable from the man who became the world's most expensive footballer when he left Barcelona last August to join the French champions.

Neymar was out all of March, April and May with a fractured right foot and sprained ankle after he was injured in a French league match in late February.