The Scotland women's national football team is missing the efforts of its captain, Caroline Weir, in the World Cup qualifying play-off final against Sweden. This is because she is recovering from a muscle injury.
The midfielder felt pain during the warm-up before the match that ended with Scotland's victory over the Czech Republic a month ago, and she has not participated in any match with her French club Lyon since then.
Aston Villa's English striker, Mia McCauley, will also be absent due to leg muscle problems, while Beth Lumsden (Newcastle) and Eilidh Adams (Ipswich) were decided to be included in the Scottish national team's roster, according to what the official website of the British Broadcasting Corporation "BBC" reported, today, Wednesday.
The Swedish national team will host its Scottish counterpart for the first leg, on the first of next December, with the return match being held in the capital, Stockholm, on the fifth of the same month.
The victory may guarantee Scotland a place in the 2027 World Cup finals in Brazil, with reference to the possibility of competing in a playoff between the continents next February, for the European team that wins the playoff, and which has the lowest classification among the qualifying teams.
It is noteworthy that Sweden has participated in all editions of the World Cup since the tournament began in 1991, and achieved third place in the last two editions.
The main arbitration incidents committee in the English Premier League decided that Liverpool deserved to receive a penalty kick during its confrontation with Arsenal, after its Swedish striker, Alexander Isak, was pulled by his shirt by the Dutchman, Joren Temper, the London team’s defender.
According to “The Athletic” network, the failure to award a penalty kick upset coach Andoni Iraola’s team during the match that Liverpool lost at Anfield earlier this month, after Timber grabbed Isaac’s shirt while the striker rose to head a ball, trying to reach a cross sent by Bradley Barkola from the left side.
Despite being pulled, Isaac maintained his balance and did not fall to the ground, and his reaction was limited, while arena referee Andy Madley decided not to call a violation, and VAR referee Stuart Atwell did not ask him to review the incident on the side screen.
According to the assessment of the five-member Main Refereeing Incidents Committee, four members to one voted that the decision not to penalize Timber was wrong, while three members to two voted that the video technology should have intervened and recommended that the referee review the incident on the field.
Arsenal was leading 1-0 when the incident occurred, thanks to a goal scored by German Kai Havertz, a goal that decided the result of the match in favor of the London team.
Following the confrontation, Liverpool coach Iraola expressed his belief that his team was deprived of a clear penalty kick, indicating that in the future he would ask his players to fall inside the penalty area if they were exposed to a violation. Until they get the arbitration awards they deserve.
Iraola told reporters: “It is unfortunate that you ask me this question, but yes, we have to tell our players: Get down; Because the referees will not count violations otherwise.”
He added: “I think Alex is an honest player. "He tried to reach the ball, and everyone could see the very obvious tug on his shirt."
He continued: “He was about to head the ball directly in front of the goal when they grabbed his shirt. I do not understand why his failure to act or his failure to fall to the ground becomes a reason for not awarding the penalty kick.”
Arsenal leads the English Premier League standings with 27 points from the first ten matches, while Liverpool ranks fourth, nine points behind the London team.
Hani Abu Raida, President of the Egyptian Football Association, confirmed that the new technical staff of the first team, led by Ali Maher, faces a great challenge to continue the achievements achieved by the previous staff, led by Hossam Hassan.
On the other hand, Maher stressed his confidence in the abilities of his players before the Egyptian national team’s confrontation with Malawi in the third and fourth rounds of the qualifiers for the 2027 African Cup of Nations.
The Egyptian national team is preparing to face Malawi on November 13 and 17, in the first official test for the new technical staff led by Ali Maher, who took charge last Saturday.
Abu Raida said, during the press conference held by the Egyptian Football Association, today (Wednesday), to present the new technical staff, that the Board of Directors extends its thanks and appreciation to Hossam Hassan, his brother Ibrahim, and all members of the previous staff for what they provided during the last period.
He added that the achievements achieved by the previous agency put the current agency under great pressure, especially since the ambitions do not stop at preserving what has been achieved, but rather extend to achieving more successes during the next stage.
Abu Raida expressed his happiness at having a group of former Egyptian football stars assume responsibility for leading the national team, noting that they had previously worked with him when they were players, and have now become prominent names in the field of training.
He explained that the presence of the national teams of all age groups inside the national team center represents one of the important steps that the federation sought to implement, noting that the players of the national teams born in 2007 and 2009 followed the training of the first team yesterday (Tuesday), and took memorial photos with its stars, in a scene that reflects the spirit of unity and interdependence between the national teams.
For his part, Ali Maher expressed his happiness at assuming technical responsibility for the Egyptian national team, stressing that leading the national team represents a great honor for him and a dream that any coach seeks.
Maher thanked Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi for his support for football and the national coach, and the Football Association Board of Directors for its confidence in the new technical staff, praising the efforts made by Hossam Hassan during the last period, as he stressed that he seeks to complete what the previous staff started and provide a new addition to the team.
Maher said that the lack of time represents the biggest challenge for the technical staff, especially since he took charge only five days before the first confrontation against Malawi, but he is betting on the players’ experiences, capabilities, and ability to comprehend technical ideas and implement them on the field.
The new coach of the Egyptian national team added that working with national teams is different from clubs, as the coach in clubs has the opportunity to work daily with the players, while the nature of international work requires setting priorities and exploiting short gathering periods in the best possible way.
Maher revealed his agreement with members of his supporting staff to hold meetings with the players via video communication technology (Zoom) after the two matches against Malawi, with the aim of explaining technical ideas and reducing the time required to transmit instructions during the upcoming camps.
Maher praised Mohamed Salah, the captain of the Egyptian national team and the Turkish star of Trabzonspor, saying: “He is the most beautiful thing that has happened to Egyptian football,” stressing that the presence of a player of his size and value represents a great addition to the team.
Ali Maher revealed that the team includes a distinguished group of players who possess the technical and personal capabilities capable of making a difference, noting that all players have the desire, enthusiasm, and focus to provide levels worthy of the aspirations of the fans.
Regarding the possibility of building a new generation for the national team, Maher stressed that each stage has its own circumstances and technical requirements, and that dealing with the issue of blood renewal must be done according to the team’s needs, while making maximum use of the distinctive elements that currently exist.
The technical director concluded his statements by affirming his confidence in the players’ ability to make the Egyptian fans happy, stressing that football plays an important role in the mood of the Egyptian people, and that the technical staff seeks to achieve results that give the fans the joy they have been waiting for.
It is noteworthy that the Egyptian national team sits at the top of the standings of Group Two in the African Nations qualifiers with 4 points, on goal difference in front of its closest competitor, the Angola national team, which is on par with it with the same score, while the Malawi national team occupies third place with three points, and the South Sudan national team lies at the bottom of the standings with no points.
It is noteworthy that the winner and runner-up of the group will qualify for the finals, which will be held next summer in Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya.
