England stormed into the FIFA World Cup quarter-finals with a dramatic 3-2 victory over Mexico at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico city today. Thomas Tuchel’s side even survived Jarell Quansah’s red card early in the second half to record one of their finest wins in recent years. Mexico had lost only two of 89 competitive games at their Azteca fortress, but England’s cool approach early on allowed them to take command when the outstanding Jude Bellingham scored twice in the space of 98 seconds before half-time.
In another match, Brazil’s veteran player Neymar Jr. has announced his retirement from international football after the five-time world champions suffered a stunning 2-1 defeat against Norway in FIFA World Cup Round of 16 last night. He finished his international career as the all-time leading scorer for Brazil. The 34-year-old forward brought the curtain down on his international career moments after Brazil’s hopes of a sixth World Cup title were ended by Erling Haaland’s late brace, with Neymar scoring a stoppage-time penalty that proved only a consolation. His retirement brings to an end one of the most celebrated international careers in Brazilian football.
For Brazil, the defeat marked a seventh consecutive World Cup knockout loss to European opposition and their earliest World Cup exit since 1990, while Neymar’s emotional farewell closed the chapter on an era that defined Brazilian football for more than a decade.
