“African Nations” qualifiers: Sudan loses by four to Senegal

The Sudanese national team suffered a major defeat away from home to Senegal 4-1 in the third round of Group Ten in the African Cup of Nations qualifiers today (Thursday).

Senegal topped the group with seven points from three matches, while Sudan remained in third place with three points from one victory.

Nicola Jackson put the hosts in front in the 31st minute, but captain Abu Aqla Abdullah equalized for Sudan in the last minute of the first half with a wonderful individual effort that ended with a shot from close range into the net.

Senegal scored three goals in the second half through Boulaye Dia in the 61st minute, and Ibrahim Mbaye three minutes later. Four minutes before the end, Paté Mboub scored the fourth goal for the hosts.

Mozambique occupies second place in the group with four points before facing Ethiopia, bottom of the standings, with no points, tomorrow (Friday).

Xavi Hernandez, coach of the Dutch national team, decided to officially give the team captaincy to Frenkie de Jong during the current international break.

The Spanish Barcelona midfielder will lead the team nicknamed “The Windmills” in the absence of Virgil van Dijk, the English Liverpool star, who is absent from the stadiums due to suffering from physical problems.

Xavi confirmed, during a press conference held on Thursday, that De Jong will serve as captain in the Netherlands national team's next two matches in the European Nations League, where the orange team will play against its Greek counterpart on Friday at the Johan Cruyff Arena, before visiting the German national team in the capital, Berlin, led by coach Jurgen Klopp, on Monday.

This decision comes in light of the continued absence of main captain Van Dijk from the two matches due to injury.

De Jong is no stranger to the responsibility of representing his country, but this appointment represents a milestone in his international career, and the player expressed his pride in this role earlier this week, saying: “Of course, this has great significance. I believe that holding the captaincy is a great honor for any player, myself included. To be a leader of your country. Representing the national team is the utmost that any player can aspire to, and now I have also become captain of the Dutch national team.”

The Dutch national team coach was quick to highlight the specific characteristics that made De Jong the ideal choice to lead the team in the absence of Van Dijk.

Having previously supervised his training at Barcelona, ​​Xavi has a deep understanding of the player’s mental and technical characteristics.

Xavi told the media: “I gave De Jong the captaincy primarily because of his personality. He loves possession of the ball, seeks to improve daily, and is always keen to be an active part of the team. “I know him well, and he always takes responsibility.”

In addition to his leadership qualities, De Jong's tactical importance in the Netherlands national team system cannot be overlooked, as Xavi sees him as a fundamental pillar of the team's identity, regardless of who wears the captaincy.

The Spanish coach confirmed this, saying: “Of course, I gave him the badge because of his potential as well, as I consider him one of the best midfielders in the world. “These reasons are very important to me as a coach.”

This match against Greece will be De Jong's 71st appearance with his country's national team, in a career that began in September 2018 when he participated for the first time as a substitute for Georginio Wijnaldum in a confrontation against Peru, cementing his position as an essential and indispensable element in the team's starting lineup since then.

Ronald Koeman, Frank de Boer, and Louis Van Gaal are the three coaches who preceded the current national team coach, so De Jong has played under the leadership of four different coaches at the international level.

The next two matches are of great importance to the Dutch team's hopes of reaching the quarter-finals of the European Nations League, as the team currently sits at the top of the standings of Group Two in the first level of the continental competition with eight points, superior on goal difference to its closest rivals, the Greek national team, who are on par with them on the same score, which makes Friday's match decisive in the qualification race.

The German team is in third place in the group standings with five points, while Serbia is at the bottom without any point.

Argentine football legend Lionel Messi is among the final candidates for the 2026 MLS Player of the Year award, which puts him on the cusp of an unprecedented achievement by winning the award for the third season in a row.

The Inter Miami captain was crowned with the award in 2024 and 2025, and became the second player to win it twice after Predrag Radosavljevic, known as “Bricky,” who won it in 1997 and 2003.

Messi (39 years old) topped the list of regular season scorers with 26 goals in 31 matches with Miami, which will seek to win its second consecutive league title when the playoffs begin next week.

The other candidates for the award are German playmaker Hani Mokhtar from Nashville SC, Brazilians Evander from FC Cincinnati and Gerima from Houston Dynamo, and American Cavan Sullivan from Philadelphia Union, the surprise of the season, who is only 17 years old.

Sullivan, who scored nine goals in 29 matches, is also considered a candidate for the Best Young Player award, along with his compatriot Julian Hull and Albanian-born Adre Mohammadi from the New York Red Bulls.