After three weeks and six matches, Samara s World Cup story came to an end on Saturday.
The final act proved to be England s comfortable 2-0 quarter-final win over Sweden, which set up a trip to Moscow and a last-four meeting with Croatia.
That triumph proved a fine way for Omnisport to sign off from its stay in the city, at the end of a third and final week which featured Neymar, a (not so, as it turns out) psychic goat, and Harry Maguire s head.
Enjoy our recap of the last seven days in Samara, with our Twitter moment below:
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A jet fuel shortfall at Africa s busiest airport will be investigated to ensure no shortages during the 2010 football World Cup, South Africa s energy minister said Thursday.
Minister Dipuo Peters announced a multi-sector team to probe the dropping of fuel stocks at OR Tambo International airport to a two-day stockpile which the airport said was due to interruptions in the country s supply network.
The minister wants to ensure that we are ready for 2010. She has asked all of them to work together and ensure that there is sufficient supply of jet fuel at the airport, said spokesman Bheki Khumalo.
It is a serious concern about the the period leading to and after 2010, we need to insist and make sure that we don t have a repeat of this.
A five-day stockp…
Harry Kane knows England must make home advantage count as the Three Lions aim to win a major tournament for only the second time.
England beat Denmark on Wednesday courtesy of Kane s extra-time goal to progress to their maiden European Championship final, and their first in any competition since 1966.
Kane s goal also saw him equal Gary Lineker as England s leading scorer in major tournaments, with 10.
Italy, playing in their 10th major tournament final (six at the World Cup, four at the Euros), stand in the way of Gareth Southgate s team, however.
The Three Lions will have the crowd firmly on side at Wembley on Sunday, though, and Kane – who stated winning with England would rank above winning a trophy at club level – is out to make history.
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Ernesto Valverde has led Barcelona to the title in LaLiga for the second season in a row, but their coach remains something of an enigma.
While former Barca bosses such as Pep Guardiola had huge personalities that came to dominate Camp Nou, Valverde is completely the opposite.
Saying little of interest to the media indicates Valverde likes to keep his cards close to his chest, but there is no doubt he has done a fine job since joining from Athletic Bilbao.
Barca may take winning trophies for granted nowadays but, with Valverde s men through to a Copa del Rey final against Valencia, back-to-back doubles is a serious possibility.
And with Barca in the Champions League semi-finals, Valverde may yet write his name into the history books by leading the club to…
Despite improved play in recent months by China s beleaguered football team including a draw with Paraguay this week, the national coach has urged fans to lower expectations for next year s Asian Cup.
In friendly tune-ups for the January tournament in Qatar, China lost to Iran 2-0 last week, but tied World Cup quarter-finalists Paraguay 1-1 on Tuesday in front of 30,000 fans in Nanjing.
Borussia Dortmund forward Lucas Barrios drew first blood in the opening minutes to give Paraguay a 1-0 lead, before China s youthful striker Gao Lin headed home the equaliser in the 34th minute.
Paraguay is a world-class team we played well today and we succeeded in containing their attack, coach Gao Hongbo said in post-match comments.
It was not so important to win or …
Manchester United announced they had agreed a deal to sign centre-half Raphael Varane, on this day in 2021.
The French international arrived at Old Trafford on a four-year deal from Real Madrid, ending a 10-year stay at the Bernabeu.
A statement from United read: “Manchester United is delighted to announce the club has reached agreement with Real Madrid for the transfer of French international defender and World Cup winner, Raphael Varane, subject to a medical and to player terms being finalised.”
Introducing our newest Red
— Manchester United (@ManUtd)
During his time with Madrid Varane won three LaLiga titles, one Copa del Rey, four UEFA Champions League crowns and four FIFA Club World Cups.
The 2018 World Cup winner’s transf…
Baby we can talk all night, but that ain’t getting us nowhere. I told you everything I possibly can. There’s nothing left inside of here.
Blah, blah, blah… TWO OUT OF THREE AIN’T BADDDDDDD!
That was the tune for my NFL survivor pick strategy last week, which was spot on with Tampa Bay as my safe survivor pick and New Orleans as my team to avoid. But my featured pick on Pittsburgh came out looking like two-day-old meatloaf and not the improbable rock god who gave us the above poetry.
Here are my Week 3 survivor pool picks – take ’em or leave ’em.
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The Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers rekindle their NFC rivalry in the Wild Card Round in Arlington, Texas on Sunday afternoon.
The Niners snuck into the postseason with a thrilling come-from-behind win over the L.A. Rams in Week 18 and enter the NFL Playoffs as one of the hottest teams in the NFL, having won seven of their last nine contests. Despite that momentum, San Francisco is a field goal underdog to Dallas, which earned the No. 4 seed in the conference thanks to a soft home stretch.
Here are our free NFL picks and predictions for 49ers at Cowboys on January 16.
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The Seattle Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers meet for a third time this season when the NFL playoffs open with the NFC Wild Card Round on Saturday afternoon.
San Francisco won both regular season matchups with Seattle and is a hefty point spread favorite in this postseason edition of the NFC West rivalry.
We put the spread and total on the back burner for this 4:30 p.m. ET kickoff and concentrate on the popular NFL prop bets for Saturday’s showdown. Here are my best NFL prop picks and predictions for Seahawks at 49ers on January 14.
Be sure to also check out Sam Farley’s Seahawks vs 49ers Wild Card picks and predictions!
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The schedule gets nasty in Week 6 with the opening third of the NFL season coming to a close.
Not only do teams really start to feel the wear and tear of the gridiron, but several clubs are up against tricky situations that could impact the outcome of their Week 6 odds.
Each week I highlight these spots — aka spot bets — and what to consider when folding these angles into your usual handicapping routine.
Here are my top letdown, look-ahead, and schedule spots to consider when betting the Week 6 NFL odds.
Letdown spot: Minnesota Vikings (-3.5) at Chicago Bears
The Vikings shift gears in Week 6, coming off a huge home stand against the Kansas City Chiefs before traveling to the Windy City to fac…