The Football Association confirmed Capello will stay in his job following extensive consultation with the Club England board and senior figures within the governing body.

SPAIN coach Vicente del Bosque will not be taking anything for granted when his side come up against Paraguay in their World Cup quarter-final.

URUGUAY coach Oscar Tabarez insisted it was "too harsh" to say Ghana had been cheated out of a place in the World Cup semi-finals.

NIGEL DE JONG is hoping his Holland team-mates can keep alive his dreams of playing in the World Cup final as he prepares to sit out the match which could take them there.

MARTIN Demichelis has thanked Diego Maradona for getting him through his form crisis.

Rock 'n' Goal Years STV

AS GERMANY and Argentina prepare to renew old rivalries, Joachim Low admits he is somewhat in awe of Diego Maradona, who he feels won the World Cup on his own in 1986.

ENGLAND humbled was a common theme among the vitriolic headlines that hit the news-stands last Monday morning. If only it were so. Humility seems as difficult a skill to mast

HOLLAND manager Bert van Marwijk is convinced his team can go on to lift the World Cup after dumping favourites Brazil out of the competition.

URUGUAY ended Ghana's dream of being the first African team in the World Cup semi-finals last night when they won a penalty shootout 4-2 after their quarter-final finished

The clash between two of soccer's traditional heavyweights was billed as a close run thing but Germany's meeting with Argentina proved anything but. Thomas Mueller, Miroslav Klose (2) and Arne Friedrich all netted as the South Americans crashed to a 4-0 defeat. Read more... Clinical Germany Dispatch Argentina originally appeared on About.com World Soccer on Saturday, July 3rd, 2010 at 13:43:17.

SIX days after turfing England out of the World Cup with a magical display, Germany cast their spell on Argentina with a brilliant quarter-final performance.

Brazil's Dunga became the latest coach to throw in the towel after his team's shock 2-1 loss to The Netherlands in Port Elizabeth yesterday. Dunga joins Javier Aguirre, who quit as coach of Mexico after their 3-1 defeat to Argentina in the Round of 16 and Takeshi Okada, who stepped down as manager of Japan following the Samurai Blue's penalty shootout exit to Paraguay at the same stage. Several head coaches had already announced their intention to quit before the tournament even began including the hapless French coach Raymond Domenech, the Socceroos' Pim Verbeek and Italy's Marcello Lippi. Fabio Capello survived an anxious waiting period from the English FA before being confirmed in his post for the 2012 European Championship qualifiers that begin in September. Tags World Cup Pens World Cup Posters World Cup football

Keisuke Honda criticised his team's defensive football and admitted that he wouldn't even have watched the match. Takeshi Okada apologised to the nation for failing to achieve his goal of steering Japan to the semi-finals. Meanwhile, broadcaster TBS is under fire for wringing a tearful apology from the mother of defender Yuichi Komano in the aftermath of Japan's heartbreaking 5-3 penalty shoot-out defeat to Paraguay. As the dust settles on Japan's dramatic shoot-out exit from the FIFA World Cup, questions now turn to the future of the Japanese national team - and more specifically just who will coach the Samurai Blue following the rollercoaster reign of Okada. The former Consadole Sapporo and Yokohama F. Marinos coach went into the tournament under a hail of media scrutiny, yet Okada revamped his public image by guiding his unfancied Japanese side to the Round of 16 in South Africa. In the process, Japan recorded their first ever World Cup wins on foreign soil, beating Cameroon 1-0 and Denmark 3-1 en route to the knock-out stage. Yet it was the conservative nature of their tactics against an equally cagey Paraguay which disappointed some critics - including CSKA Moscow midfielder Honda, who told the Asahi Shimbun that he wouldn't even have bothered to watch the game. "My football life will go on," he told the newspaper after the loss. "We played defensively at this World Cup, but I hope we'll pursue winning through more attractive performances at the next World Cup," Honda added. A disappointed Okada admitted his sorrow at failing to fulfill his pre-tournament ambition of reaching the semi-finals, but it was an apology of a different kind which drew fierce criticism in traditionally conservative Japan. Broadcaster TBS drew widespread scorn when they interviewed Yuichi Komano's visibly upset mother in the wake of the defeat, with Jubilo Iwata defender Komano the unlucky player to miss during the shoot-out as his spot-kick clattered against the crossbar. The Tokyo-based network appeared determined to wring an apology from the 28-year-old's mother, with the tacky interview drawing immediate condemnation across the four main islands of Japan. Just why TBS felt compelled to force the issue with the ageing Komano matriarch remains a mystery, but a more pertinent question for fans of Japanese football is just who will take over at the helm of the national team. Former Urawa Reds coach Guido Buchwald appeared to be the frontrunner prior to the World Cup, with his previous working relationship with JFA chief Motoaki Inukai often cited as an important factor. Many domestic observers would like to see Gamba Osaka coach Akira Nishino handed the job, despite the fact that Nishino appears reluctant to throw his hat into the ring. However, a new candidate has now emerged, as reports surface that Kashima Antlers coach Oswaldo de Oliveira may be approached to take over just three years after arriving in the country. The Brazilian has won three successive J. League titles with the Ibaraki outfit, with many pundits now suggesting that the fiery tactician is the perfect candidate to take over from the departing Okada. Whether de Oliveira takes charge of Japan remains to be seen, but if he does move into the international hotseat, he may drastically overhaul the Japanese squad. Just two Kashima players were named in Okada's squad - defenders Atsuto Uchida and Daiki Iwamasa - and neither of them saw a minute of action in South Africa. Copyright © Mike Tuckerman & Soccerphile.com Tags World Cup Pens World Cup Posters World Cup football

Back in September 2008 when South Korea struggled to a 1-1 draw with North Korea in the opening match of the final round of qualification for 2010 World Cup, few would have thought that the departure of coach Huh Jung-moo would be a cause for sadness and concern. Almost two years ago, the issue was all about whether a lacklustre looking eleven would reach South Africa at all -last week Huh admitted that he considered resigning after the Shanghai stalemate. In the end, there was little need to worry as the Taeguk Warriors marched into the last 16 of an overseas World Cup for the first time ever and can even regard themselves a little unlucky to go down 2-1 to Uruguay in Port Elizabeth. The players left the Rainbow Nation with their heads held high and Huh leaves his post in similarly upright fashion. The 2-0 win over Greece started the campaign in style and the incisive football and the pleasing technical ability of the players were hailed around the world. The 4-1 defeat against Argentina came against a team at the top of its game and the 2-2 tie with Nigeria that sent Korea into the Promised Land may not have been a perfect display but it was thrilling entertainment – not least for the 500,000 or so fans who took to the streets at 3.30 in the morning. If there are any regrets it comes in the form of the knockout match against a solid Uruguay team. Trailing to an early goal, Korea pushed the South American semi-finalists evermore on to the backfoot. Lee Chung-yong grabbed an equalizer and the Asian team had chances to score again both before and after Luis Suarez’s late strike that eventually won the game. It was expected that Huh would step down after the tournament but the success of the team prompted hopes and then reports that he may stay on at least for long enough to lead the team to the Asian Cup in January. The theory was that with the same coach and a similar set of players then Korea has a genuine chance of winning the continental competition for the first time since 1960. Last Friday however, Huh finally confirmed that he was vacating the hotseat. "I'm out of competition for the job," he told reporters in Seoul. "I've reached this early decision so the KFA won't have much burden in choosing the next national team coach." "It's not exactly resignation because my contract expired at the end of the Korean World Cup campaign," he said. "I'm content with what the national team has achieved this time. Now I would like some time to recharge with my family." It was not easy for the braver of his relatives who read some of the criticism that came Huh’s way during the early stages of qualification and then a shock 3-0 loss against China in February –the first time ever that Korea had lost to its giant neighbor. Overall though, Huh will be remembered well. After the slow start, the team picked up and qualified smoothly for the World Cup despite being placed in a tough group. Then the World Cup itself was a success with Korean players such as Park Chu-young, Park Ji-sung and Lee Chung-yong winning plaudits in the international media. Huh also demonstrated that going local can pay dividends. There may have been concern within the KFA a couple of years ago at the way things were going but the body stuck with its coach and was rewarded with a place in the second round. Financially the World Cup is very important to the KFA and doing well just increases those benefits. The same can be said of the fact that this success wasn’t achieved by a big-name highly-paid foreign coach but by the man who was taken from K-League club Chunnam Dragons. Huh’s success is going to make it more likely the next man is Korean. The KFA’s international committee deals with such matters and meets on Wednesday for initial discussions. As usual in these matters, the media has got there first. Hong Myong-bo, the captain of the 2002 team that reached the semifinals would be a popular choice but the ‘eternal libero’ is in charge of the 2012 London Olympics challenge, has never coached a club team and has already said ‘thanks but no thanks.’ There are few other options that spring to mind. Kim Hak-bom enjoyed success with Seongnam Ilhwa before stepping down in December 2008 and he is available and has experience of winning the K-League. Huh’s assistant Jung Hae-sung is also in the frame. Others, both domestic and foreign will be added over the coming days and weeks. Copyright: John Duerden & Soccerphile.com Tags World Cup Pens World Cup Posters World Cup football