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Count Down: Argentina vs France: Closing ceremony, team and line-up news in full as Messi starts

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The World Cup has seen 63 games played over the past 28 days and it’s all be building up to this: Argentina vs France in the final at the Lusail Stadium.

Lionel Messi is bidding to win the trophy for the first time in his illustrious career following heartbreak against Germany in the 2014 final at the Maracana in Brazil. Can Lionel Scaloni’s side get past the defending champions to win their first World Cup since Diego Maradona inspired them to glory in 1986?

Bidding to stop them is Didier Deschamps’ hugely experienced French side, who triumphed four years ago against Croatia in the 2018 World Cup final in Russia. France have beaten Poland, England and Morocco to reach successive finals and will be full of confidence.

France appear to have brushed off worries over illness, which has dominated the build-up over the past few days, with Dayot Upamecano, Adrien Rabiot and Kingsley Coman expected to be fit following a bout of flu.

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Didier Deschamps, eyeing a second World Cup, has been surverying his surroundings alongside some of his staff.

He’s already become part of the exclusive group to win the World Cup as a player and a coach.

He said on ITV: “I know there’s talk about Messi but you have to go and produce that’s the bottom line. You need a few breaks and a couple of frights – like Argentina got – to get a reaction but I don’t think for one second a player can sit back and think ‘this is meant to be’. The Argentina supporters might be looking at it and thinking but France fans will be thinking the same, can they win World Cup’s back-to-back? It’s on the line to both teams.”

We’ve only ever seen him in a Barcelona, Argentina or a PSG shirt

The Lusail Stadium only has a smattering of fans inside currently, but will be rammed within the hour.

France XI 

Lloris, Kounde, Upamecano, Varane, T Hernandez, Rabiot, Tchouameni, Griezmann, Dembele, Giroud, Mbappe

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Argentina’s team

Martínez, Molina, Romero, Otamendi, Acuña, Di María, De Paul, Fernández, Mac Allister, Messi, Álvarez.

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BREAKING: Ex-Eagles captainHenry Nwosu dies aged 62

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Henry Nwosu, a former Nigerian international footballer and member of the 1980 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) winning team, has passed away.

He was 62.

His death was confirmed by fellow ex-international Segun Odegbami in a Facebook post on Saturday.

According to Odegbami, Nwosu passed away at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) in Ikeja after a five-day battle for his life.

He also revealed the details of Nwosu’s final days, stating that the man he fondly called “Youngest Millionaire” died at 4:00 a.m. after being in intensive care since Wednesday.

“After 5 days in hospital battling for his life, the one I call ‘Youngest Millionaire’ passed on at 4:00 am this morning at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja, Lagos where he had been in Intensive Care since Wednesday,” he wrote.

“It is with deep pain in my heart that I have to be the conveyor of the news of the death of Henry Nwosu MON. May he rest peacefully with our Creator in Heaven.”

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Arsenal beat Sunderland to move nine points clear

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Arsenal moved closer to a first Premier League title for 22 years after a 3-0 victory over Sunderland took the Gunners nine points clear at the top of the table.

Martin Zubimendi’s long-range drive just before half-time settled the nerves of the home crowd at the Emirates Stadium before Viktor Gyokeres struck twice to quieten his critics.

Manchester City can reduce the gap at the top back to six points should they end a wait since 2003 to beat Liverpool at Anfield in front of a crowd on Sunday.

But after three consecutive second-placed finishes, it appears a matter of when, not if, Mikel Arteta’s men will finally be crowned champions.

Defeat dented Sunderland’s dream of European football on their first season back in the top flight.

Regis Le Bris’ side showed why they sit eighth with a dogged first-half showing that left the Arsenal crowd again bemoaning a lack of creativity from open play.

See also  Flying Eagles dump out Argentina, zoom into quarter-finals

However, Zubimendi picked the lock of the Black Cats’ defence with a crisp strike from outside the box that clipped the inside of the post on its way in for the sixth goal of his impressive debut season in English football.

Gyokeres has attracted plenty of criticism for failing to replicate his free-scoring form at Sporting Lisbon in the Premier League.

But the Sweden international is the club’s top scorer and took his tally for the season to 13 in all competitions.

Gyokeres made the points safe when his powerful drive from Kai Havertz’s pass had too much power for Robin Roefs 25 minutes from time.

He was then presented with an open goal by Gabriel Martinelli in stoppage time.

The shine was taken off Arsenal’s day late on when Leandro Trossard was forced off through injury.

Arteta needs as many players available as possible, with Arsenal still competing in four competitions.

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Arsenal face City in the League Cup final next month, host Wigan in the fourth round of the FA Cup, and cruised into the Champions League last 16 with eight wins from eight games in the league phase.

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Herbalist who promised Mali AFCON win arrested for €33,500 fraud

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A funny twist has been introduced to the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations tournament after a self-proclaimed marabout, or traditional folk healer, who collected 33,500 euros by promising victory for Mali was arrested for fraud after the team lost.

Mali’s national team was eliminated on Friday in the quarter finals by Senegal 1-0.

The man, identified only as Mr Sinayogo, collected more than 22 million CFA francs in donations, according to an associate.

Following Mali’s defeat, an angry mob showed up at his home before police intervened and arrested him.

Sinayogo was arrested in the Malian capital Bamako on Saturday for “fraud” and was being held at the  cybercrime division, according to two videographers who visited him.

“Charlatanism is punishable by law in Mali”, an official from the division told AFP.

However, arresting the man while the national team was still competing would have been difficult “in the heat of the Africa Cup of Nations,” he added.

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The man, formerly known as a political activist, “proclaimed himself a marabout overnight and made a fortune”, a social media content creator close to him said.

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