“Tolu Arokodare was the hero as Nigeria boosted their hopes of reaching the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) with a 3-1 home win over tournament co-hosts Tanzania. With the East Africans already assured of a spot at the finals, the Super Eagles are battling for the one qualification spot available in Group L and have little margin for error after losing 3-0 in Guinea-Bissau in September. Alhassan Yusuf kept his composure to slot Nigeria into a second-minute lead in Uyo from Ademola Lookman’s pass, but the visitors equalised through Alphonce Msanga just after the half-hour mark. …”
BBC
‘No one is unbeatable’: Tuchel eager for England to impose style on Spain
“Proof of concept. It is Thomas Tuchel’s latest buzz phrase. The England manager has dropped it into the conversation pretty regularly since the Friday of last week when he named his squad for this international window, the one that was always going to decide whether his team finished first or second in their Nations Leaguegroup. By it, Tuchel means a test of his methods, what he is trying to build – or, more accurately, fine-tune – as he turns his gaze towards Euro 2028 and tries to move on from the devastation of the World Cup semi-final exit against Argentina. The test does not come any bigger than the one which faces him and his players in Madrid on Sunday night. …”
Guardian
Liverpool and Van Dijk have a decision to make
“After Liverpool beat Brighton in October, Virgil van Dijk went upstairs to the Boardroom at Anfield and met up with Alan Hansen. It was Van Dijk who, at the end of the 2024-25 season, asked the former Liverpool and Scotland defender to present him with the Premier League trophy and this time they posed for a picture that inevitably did the rounds on social media. Whenever the time comes for Van Dijk to move on from Liverpool, he will go down as arguably their greatest centre-half, alongside Hansen. The question now is whether he will finish his career at Anfield like Hansen did in 1991. …”
Yahoo
The world’s smallest football league: 20 fixtures against the same team and just one referee
“St Mary’s Football Club are unique. Not just because they have a permanent exhibition in the FIFA Museum in Switzerland and a place in the Guinness Book of World Records, or that football greats David Beckham, Steven Gerrard, Michael Ballack and Patrick Vieira have graced their Garrison Field pitch. This small club on the Isles of Scilly are exceptional because they have spawned both participants in the world’s smallest affiliated football league. Yes, you read that right. The Isles of Scilly Football League, recognised by and affiliated to the English FA, has only two competing teams — the Garrison Gunners and the Woolpack Wanderers — and they play each other home and away at the same time every Sunday 20 times a season. …”
NYT/ATH
The Isles of Scilly Football League, recognised and affiliated to the English FA, has only two competing teams Josh Birch.
