Pep Guardiola has plenty to think about over the summer after a last-16 defeat to Al-Hilal in the United States A manager rejuvenated is no overblown assessment of Pep Guardiola, whose friendly wave to this correspondent during a morning training session at Manchester City’s Boca Raton camp was emblematic of a man who oozed energy and commitment for the challenge of elevating his side again throughout the Club. World Cup. Immediately after the winding blow of Monday’s 4-3 defeat by Al-Hilal in Orlando, the 54-year-old blended disappointment with a measured optimism, fairly pointing to how if chances had been taken then City would be facing off against Fluminense in Friday’s quarter-final, back at the Camping World Stadium. Continue reading...

Minute-by-minute updates on the action in Miami Any comments or thoughts? You can email Rob The Brazilian teams have breathed life (and soul) into the Club World Cup. Palmeiras are already in the quarter-finals; Flamengo and Fluminense, who meet Inter Milan tomorrow, are hoping to join them. Flamengo (possible 4-2-3-1) Rossi; Wesley, Ortiz, Pereira, Alex Sandro; Pulgar, Jorginho; Gerson, De Arrascaeta, Araujo; Plata. Substitutes: Matheus Cunha, Danilo, Varela, Ayrton Lucas, Vina, Victor, Allan, de la Cruz, Gustavo Fernandes, Everton, Bruno Henrique, Juninho, Pedro, Michael, Wallace. Continue reading...

Friday updates as the summer of football continues Any comments or thoughts? You can email John The Euro Under-21 final takes place on Saturday. England’s Young Lions are in the final again. Today is a rare day off from the Copa Gianni but it resumes on Saturday with the last 16. Palmeiras - Botafogo B (Philadelphia) Benfica - Chelsea (Charlotte) PSG vs. Inter Miami Group A (Atlanta) Flamengo vs. Bayern Munich (Miami) Inter Milan vs. Fluminense (Charlotte) Manchester City vs, Al-Hilal (Orlando) Real Madrid vs. Juventus (Miami) Borussia Dortmund vs. Monterrey (Atlanta) Continue reading...

All four Brazilian clubs make last 16 Dortmund tops Ulsan, wins Group F Fluminense completed a full Brazilian contingent in the Club World Cup round of 16 after a goalless draw with Mamelodi Sundowns secured their progress from Group F on Wednesday. Despite being on the back foot for much of the match at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium, Fluminense advanced after finishing second in the group with five points, two behind group winners Borussia Dortmund, who edged Ulsan 1-0. Continue reading...

Flamengo, Botafogo, Palmeiras and Fluminense are not as rich as European clubs but they have heart and heritage “The graveyard of football is full of ‘favourites’,” warned Botafogo manager Renato Paiva in what has proven to be this summer’s coldest line in sweltering United States heat. Gritty draws achieved by Palmeiras against Porto and Fluminense against Borussia Dortmund at the Club World Cup were enough to start a conversation. But the underdog heroics of Brazil’s other two clubs have shaken up how we see club football across the world. For the first time since Corinthians shocked Chelsea in Yokohama in 2012, when some Brazilian fans sold their homes and vehicles to make the trip, the reigning Copa Libertadores champions have beaten the Champions League winners. Igor Jesus, who has been strongly linked to Nottingham Forest, scored the only goal of the game as Botafogo beat Paris Saint-Germain 1-0 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, a special setting for Brazilians given it is where they won the World Cup in 1994 and honoured the recently deceased Ayrton Senna. Continue reading...

The Copa do Brasil is back after a nine-year break but there are concerns about Brazil’s top flight before a first World Cup in South America After a nine-year hiatus, fans of Brazilian women’s football will once again be able to support their clubs in the Copa do Brasil. The cup will bring together 65 clubs from the three divisions of the national women’s football league, starting with a preliminary round on 21 May and concluding with the final in November. It is a return that has long been requested by the women’s football community in Brazil in order to expand the calendar for lower-division clubs and gives high-profile teams such as Flamengo, Corinthians and Santos another opportunity to compete for silverware. However, all is not rosy on the Brazilian club scene only two years before Brazil are to host the Women’s World Cup for the first time. There have been a few years of growing sponsorship and visibility in the top tier, the Brasileirão A1, but this season has exposed the challenges facing the game. This is an extract from our free weekly email, Moving the Goalposts. To get the full edition, visit this page and follow the instructions. Moving the Goalposts is back in to its twice-weekly format, delivered to your inboxes every Tuesday and Thursday. Continue reading...