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Elanga wonder-goal condemns Man Utd to another PL defeat
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Nottingham Forest moved a step closer to qualifying for the Champions League as Anthony Elanga’s superb solo goal sealed a 1-0 win against Manchester United on Tuesday.
Elanga returned to haunt his former club with a dazzling effort that took the winger over half the length of the pitch before he delivered a clinical finish.
The 22-year-old Swede was sold by United for £15 million ($19 million) in 2023 after being deemed surplus to requirements by then manager Erik ten Hag.
Forest have been the beneficiaries of that mistake and Elanga’s stunning strike at the City Ground helped Nuno Espirito Santo’s side cement their grip on third place.
Sitting eight points clear of fourth-placed Chelsea, who face Tottenham on Thursday, with eight games left, Forest are within touching distance of reaching the Champions League for the first time since 1980-81.
Just a year after battling to narrowly avoid relegation, Forest are enjoying an unexpected fairytale season that also includes progressing to the FA Cup semi-finals for the first time in 34 years.
Although his players were drained by Saturday’s FA Cup quarter-final at Brighton, which they won on penalties after extra-time, Nuno said Forest would adopt a “no excuses” policy against United.
Despite the absences of leading scorer Chris Wood and winger Callum Hudson-Odoi, Forest rose to Nuno’s challenge.
Forest have completed their first league double over United since 1991-92.
The last time they avoided defeat against the Old Trafford club twice in the league in a single season was 1994-95, when they finished third.
It was a first defeat in eight games in all competitions for United, who still haven’t won successive league matches this term.
United won at Leicester in their last game before the international break — their second consecutive victory after beating Real Sociedad 4-1 in the Europa League.
But they reverted to the spluttering form that has frustrated Ruben Amorim since his arrival in November, leaving them languishing in 13th place ahead of Sunday’s clash with Manchester City.
– Dream season –
In a raucous atmosphere by the banks of the River Trent, Elanga raised the decibel level even louder with his memorable strike in the fifth minute.
When United failed to make the most of a corner, Elanga seized possession deep inside his own half and launched a blistering break, covering 85 metres in just nine seconds.
With United’s under-manned defence fatally backing off too long, Elanga shrugged off Alejandro Garnacho’s tackle, advanced to the edge of the area and drilled a fine low finish past Andre Onana.
Only lowly Leicester have conceded the opening goal more often than United among Premier League sides this season.
Amorim’s men almost mounted an immediate response through Bruno Fernandes, but his header from Diogo Dalot’s pin-point cross was straight at Forest goalkeeper Matz Sels.
Casemiro wasted an even better chance to equalise when the Brazilian headed wide from Fernandes’ corner.
Dalot was inches away from hauling United level, the defender meeting a corner with a looping header that hit the bar and fell to Matthijs de Ligt, whose attempt from the rebound was saved by Sels.
Amorim sent on Rasmus Hojlund at half-time, but the much-maligned striker did little to improve United’s cutting edge.
Garnacho carried more menace, curling just over from long range and then smashing a 25-yard blast past the post.
On his first United appearance in 2025, injury-plagued Mason Mount fired narrowly wide before Harry Maguire’s close-range effort was cleared off the line by Murillo as Forest celebrated another memorable moment in their dream season.
AFP
England booked their place in the World Cup round of 32 as Group L winners after a dominant second-half display earned a 2-0 victory over Panama, with Harry Kane setting a new national scoring record at the tournament.
After a subdued first-half performance that echoed their goalless draw against Ghana earlier in the group stage, England finally found their rhythm after the interval to secure maximum points and top the group standings.
Jude Bellingham broke the deadlock midway through the second half, reacting quickest to convert from a corner and hand England a deserved breakthrough, according to Reuters.
The midfielder turned provider five minutes later, delivering a pinpoint cross for captain Harry Kane, who powered home a header to double England’s advantage.
The goal saw Kane become England’s highest-ever scorer at the FIFA World Cup with 11 goals, surpassing the previous record of 10 held by legendary striker Gary Lineker.
The victory confirmed England’s progress to the round of 32 as Group L champions, where they will face one of the tournament’s third-placed qualifiers in the knockout stage. – June 28, 2026
Cape Verde inscribed their name into FIFA World Cup history on Friday, becoming the smallest nation ever to reach the tournament’s knockout stage after holding Saudi Arabia to a goalless draw in their final Group H clash in Houston.
The island nation, with a population of just over 600,000, secured qualification from Group H after finishing unbeaten, collecting three points from three draws against Spain, Uruguay, and Saudi Arabia.
We are small,” said Vozinha, Cape Verde’s 40-year-old goalkeeper who embodied the grit of his nation. “But we have big hearts and we are fighters.”
The tournament debutants pulled off one of the World Cup’s biggest surprises by playing pre-tournament favorites Spain to a scoreless draw in its opener.
They followed that up by scoring their first goals of the World Cup in a 2-2 tie against Uruguay.
With Friday’s draw, they finish undefeated on three points and take second place in Group H behind 2010 winners Spain and a point ahead of two-time World Cup champions Uruguay.
Cape Verde will face defending champions Argentina next up in a round-of-32 matchup in Miami Gardens, Florida, on July 3.
France maintained their perfect start to the 2026 FIFA World Cup with a commanding 4-1 victory over Norway on Friday, thanks to a first-half hat-trick from Ousmane Dembélé that sealed top spot in Group I.
The French winger struck in the seventh, 20th and 32nd minutes, with two of his goals set up by captain Kylian Mbappé and the third assisted by Aurélien Tchouaméni. Désiré Doué added a fourth deep into stoppage time to complete another dominant display by Didier Deschamps’ side.
Norway briefly threatened a comeback when Thelo Aasgaard pulled one back in the 21st minute after being set up by Andreas Schjelderup. However, the Scandinavians struggled to break down the French defence for the remainder of the contest despite enjoying more possession after the interval.
France, who had already secured qualification before kick-off, completed the group stage with three wins from three, underlining their credentials as one of the favourites for the World Cup title. Mbappé once again played a key role, providing two assists before being substituted late in the game.
The result ensured Norway also progressed to the Round of 32 despite the defeat, having already booked qualification with victories in their opening two matches.
France will now head into the knockout stage with maximum points and growing momentum, while Norway will look to regroup before their Round of 32 clash after suffering their first defeat of the tournament.
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