FIFA pays tribute to Van Quyet; Ronaldo scores 906th goal
The home page of the World Football Federation pays tribute to striker Nguyen Van Quyet after his decision to retire from the national team; Ho Chi Minh City Club and 7 other teams enter the quarter-finals of the AFC Champions League; Ronaldo scores his 906th goal... are notable sports news in the past 24 hours.
FIFA pays tribute to Van Quyet
The homepage of the World Football Federation (FIFA) pays tribute to striker Nguyen Van Quyet after his decision to retire from the national team on the evening of October 12.
"Class is forever," FIFA briefly shared in a post paying tribute to striker Nguyen Van Quyet.
The FIFA homepage simultaneously posted 9 different photos, capturing memorable moments of the Hanoi FC captain in the national team jersey. FIFA's post attracted more than 1,600 interactions after just over 10 minutes of posting.
After the 1-1 draw against the Indian team on the evening of October 12, striker Nguyen Van Quyet officially retired from the national team after 13 years of association.
Van Quyet first called up to the national team in 2011. After 13 years wearing the Vietnamese national team jersey, he scored 16 goals in 55 appearances. One of Van Quyet's most memorable moments was the goal against Manchester City in a friendly match in 2015.
Van Quyet was a mainstay of the Vietnamese national team under coach Toshiya Miura. He scored many important goals, including the decisive goal that helped Vietnam beat Malaysia 2-1 in the quarter-finals of the 2014 AFF Cup at Shah Alam Stadium.
Van Quyet's consistent performance at club level helped him continue to be present in the Vietnam national team during the Park Hang-seo and Philippe Troussier eras, before being named by Kim Sang-sik. Under the previous two coaches, Quyet had the opportunity to officially play in both the AFF Cup 2022 and the World Cup 2026 qualifiers.
Determined 8 teams in AFC Champions League quarterfinals
On the evening of October 12, Ho Chi Minh City Women's Club competed for the top spot with Urawa Red Diamonds. Against the top candidate for the championship, it was not surprising that Doan Thi Kim Chi and her team accepted defeat.
In the 26th minute, striker Mei Shimada hit the home team defender's foot with her heel, sending the ball flying into the net. The game belonged to the Japanese representative. The HCMC women's club tried hard but could not score.
The Urawa Red Diamonds girls controlled 71% of the ball in the first half. The number of passes was also more than double that of the HCMC women's team. The second half followed a similar scenario and had one more goal.
In the 50th minute, taking advantage of a quick free kick on the left wing, captain Yuzuho Shiokoshi sprinted down the sideline and crossed for substitute midfielder Fuka Tsunoda to tap the ball in.
Towards the end of the match, the physical strength of the Ho Chi Minh City players decreased. Therefore, their resistance was also weaker. This forced the coaching staff to replace many other players to ensure the strength.
The score of 2-0 was maintained by the away team until the end of the match. Huynh Nhu could not find a fourth goal for herself. Meanwhile, the 3 foreign players of the HCMC Women's Club also did not have any goals.
Despite losing 0-2 to Urawa Red Diamonds, Ho Chi Minh City Women's Club still entered the quarterfinals of the AFC Champions League Women's 2024 - 2025 for the first time. They won 6 points in Group C and were the second-placed team with the best performance after the group stage.
Thanks to that result, Ho Chi Minh City Women's Club is seeded with the top 3 teams in the remaining 3 groups. They will play at home in the quarter-finals taking place in March 2025.
Thus, the 8 teams that will continue in each group are: Hyundai Steel Red Angels, Abu Dhabi Country (group A); Melbourne City, Bam Khatoon (group B); Ho Chi Minh City, Urawa Red Diamonds (group C) Taichung Blue Whale and Wuhan Jiangda (group D).
Mbappe causes controversy again
The French striker is said to refuse to participate in less attractive matches for the national team.
Foot Mercato said Mbappe has informed coach Didier Deschamps that he only wants to play in important matches for the French team, aiming to compete for the 2025 Ballon d'Or award.
With the number of matches at the national team level increasing, the former PSG star wants to stay fit to play in big matches and contribute to Real Madrid.
Previously, coach Deschamps admitted that he did not call up Mbappe for the Nations League series because he was not in the best physical condition. However, fans suspected that Mbappe prioritized Real Madrid over contributing to the national team.
The relationship between Mbappe and French fans has become strained. The 26-year-old striker has been heavily criticized for refusing to be called up to the national team despite having just played 71 minutes for Real Madrid. On the day France defeated Israel 4-1 in the Nations League on October 11, Mbappe was seen going to a nightclub with friends.
Mbappe has been given a break by Real Madrid this week. Since the start of the 2024/25 season, the former PSG star has scored 7 goals and contributed 2 assists for "Los Blancos". Mbappe will return to action when Real Madrid meets Celta Vigo on October 20 in La Liga. The striker has just shared photos of himself working out in the gym to improve his fitness, preparing for having to compete in many arenas in the final months of the year.
Ronaldo scored the 906th goal
Rated higher than host Poland, Portugal is confident in its goal of winning all 3 points in its trip to Stadion Narodowy in Warsaw.
Cristiano Ronaldo continues to be given the captain's armband and starting position by coach Roberto Martinez after he had impressive performances in the opening two matches of the Nations League against Croatia and Scotland.
With a strong attacking lineup led by Ronaldo, Portugal quickly created an overwhelming situation against the home team Poland. The score would have been opened for the away team in the 11th minute if Ronaldo's close-range shot had not hit the crossbar of the Polish team's goal.
The visitors did not have to wait much longer to explode with joy. In the 26th minute, Nuno Mendes crossed the ball from the left wing and Bruno Fernandes headed it back with a very delicate header for Bernardo Silva to quickly connect. Poland goalkeeper Lukasz Skorupski could only watch as the ball flew like lightning and landed neatly in the net.
With the opening goal, Portugal maintained a very high attacking tempo and the away team scored again not long after. In the 37th minute, Rafael Leao dribbled down the left wing and fired a powerful shot. Goalkeeper Skorupski managed to block it but could not stop Ronaldo from firing a quick rebound from close range.
The first half ended with a two-goal advantage for the visitors. In the second half, Poland pressed forward but were still wary of Portugal's quick counterattacks. After much effort, the home team Poland managed to narrow the score to 1-2 thanks to Piotr Zielinski in the 77th minute.
In the 88th minute, Nuno Mendes crossed from the left wing and Polish centre-back Jan Bednarek scored an own goal, sealing a 3-1 victory for Portugal.
Barca's young players are worth half a billion euros
According to Transfermarkt, 24 players from La Masia have been promoted to the Barca first team during President Joan Laporta's second term. The total valuation of this group of players is up to nearly 500 million euros.
Lamine Yamal leads the way with a valuation of €150 million, followed by Gavi (€90 million) and Dani Olmo (€60 million).
Olmo is a special case. Barca let this striker leave in 2014 on a free transfer to Dinamo Zagreb's youth team. Last summer, the Camp Nou team spent 55 million euros to buy Olmo back from Leipzig.
With Yamal, the 17-year-old player ranks 5th in the top most expensive players in the world of Transfermarkt, after Erling Haaland, Vinicius Junior (200 million euros), Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappe (both 180 million euros).
Three other faces from La Masia with valuations above 30 million euros are Alejandro Balde, Pau Cubarsi (both 40 million euros) and Fermin Lopez (30 million euros).
During President Laporta's second term, coaches always prioritized promoting La Masia players to the first team. Coach Ronald Koeman was the one who gave Gavi a chance to play. Spanish football legend Xavi was instrumental in bringing Yamal, Cubarsi, Fermin Lopez and Hector Fort to the light.
Following Xavi, coach Hansi Flick also put his faith in the young players of La Masia. Casado, Bernal and Gerard Martin had their first minutes playing for the first team.
Among these, Bernal is an unfortunate case. In early September, this 17-year-old player had to undergo surgery to repair an anterior cruciate ligament and meniscus injury, and is expected to be out of action for a year.