Lionel Messi scored and missed a penalty in Argentina's 3-1 win in Germany and Belgium stunned Netherlands 4-2 as a flurry of new coaches and debutants cut their international teeth in friendlies on Wednesday.
The teams that have qualified for the 2010 Football World Cup in South Africa.
Former Chelsea and Ivory Coast striker Didier Drogba was offered a whopping $1 million by Atletico de Kolkata's co-owners to become the marquee player of the Indian Super League side though the high-profile player is yet to respond, according to a report in London.
It is not money but the big challenge in an unfamiliar land that lured Didier Drogba to China, the Ivory Coast striker said on Saturday.
Arsenal made a controversial start to their Premier League campaign on Saturday as striker Gervinho was sent off on his debut in a scrappy 0-0 draw at Newcastle United while wasteful Liverpool were held at home by Sunderland.
Champions Chelsea demolished West Bromwich Albion 6-0 on Saturday, shrugging off poor pre-season form to launch their Premier League campaign in style.
Ivory Coast striker Didier Drogba will leave Chelsea when his contract expires in June, the Premier League club said in a statement on Tuesday.
Ivory Coast and Chelsea striker Didier Drogba will visit India next month for the grand finale of Pepsi T20 Football event.
Didier Drogba scored Chelsea's goal and their winning Champions League penalty against Bayern Munich on Saturday and then solemnly appeared to say his farewells.
Arsenal recruited Lille's 24-year-old Ivory Coast forward Gervinho Monday as they bid to boost their firepower this season and end a trophy drought stretching back to 2005.
Chelsea striker Didier Drogba is set to miss next month's Community Shield clash with Manchester United and their Premier League opener after undergoing groin surgery, which will rule him out for three weeks.
Didier Drogba became Chelsea's fourth highest all-time scorer when he bagged the second goal in their 3-0 victory over Bolton Wanderers in the Premier League on Saturday.
Sudan advanced into the African Nations Cup quarter-finals after a 2-1 win over Burkina Faso on Monday handed them second place in Group B by the slimmest of margins.
Manchester City defender Kolo Toure has been suspended after failing a drug test, the Premier League club said on their website (www.mcfc.co.uk) on Thursday.
Didier Drogba cemented his name in Chelsea folklore with his 150th goal for the club on Saturday but it was not enough to prevent a 3-1 home defeat by Aston Villa in the Premier League.
Chelsea striker Didier Drogba, restricted to a brief substitute appearance in the 1-1 home draw with neighbours Fulham in the Premier League on December 26, is looking to chalk up his 150th goal for the London club on Saturday.
Chelsea striker Didier Drogba, restricted to a brief substitute appearance in the 1-1 home draw with neighbours Fulham in the Premier League on December 26, is looking to chalk up his 150th goal for the London club on Saturday.
Thirty-two teams that qualified for the 2006 Football World Cup Finals in Germany were on Friday drawn into eight groups.
Cameroon and Inter Milan striker Samuel Eto'o set a new landmark for individual success in African football on Monday after being named the continent's Footballer of the Year for a record fourth time.
The defender confirmed he would make his comeback in France's friendly against Ivory Coast on August 17.
Chelsea's clash with champions Manchester United on Sunday (1930 IST) has come too soon for striker Didier Drogba who is unlikely to feature as he continues his recovery from a serious head injury, said manager Andre-Villas Boas.
Chelsea striker Didier Drogba joined famous stars from cinema, music and the fashion world in the UK to celebrate Kerala -- 'God's own country', as one of the world's top tourist destinations.
To bolster their midfield, weakened by the flight of Ivory Coast's Pierre Douhou to Pune FC, Mumbai glamour outfit Mahindra United signed up Serbian Svetozar Mijin from Romania's top division Club FC Politehnica Iasi for the upcoming football season.
Elano's nagging ankle injury has ruled him out of Brazil's quarter-final with Netherlands, prompting him to criticise World Cup referees for not clamping down on violent play.
Brazil and Portugal fought themselves into a stalemate on Friday but the 0-0 draw was enough for both teams to go through comfortably into the second round of the World Cup.
Portugal coach Carlos Queiroz questioned FIFA's decision to let Didier Drogba play for Ivory Coast on Tuesday wearing a cast on his broken arm while others are kept off the pitch for wearing string bracelets.
Striker Didier Drogba has apologised for his behaviour following Chelsea's dramatic Champions League exit against Barcelona on Wednesday.
Ivory Coast captain Didier Drogba was named African Footballer of the Year on Thursday, beating Cameroon's Samuel Eto'o and Ghana's Michael Essien for the 2009 award.
India has moved up in rankings from ninth to the fourth spot this year in the tally of top 20 countries affected by spam calls, owing to a significant increase in sales and telemarketing calls, as per a report by Truecaller. This year, all categories of sales-related calls made up a vast majority (93.5 per cent) of all incoming spam calls. Interestingly, over 202 million spam calls were made by just one spammer in India this year between January to October - which is over 6.64 lakh calls every day and 27,000 calls every hour of every day.
Chelsea striker Didier Drogba has been banned for three matches for throwing a coin towards Burnley supporters during his club's shock League Cup defeat at Stamford Bridge last week. The 30-year-old Ivory Coast international will serve the ban with immediate effect, ruling him out of the Premier League matches against Newcastle United, Arsenal and Bolton Wanderers.
An injury time goal from Lukas Podolski rescued a 2-2 friendly draw for Germany against Ivory Coast on Wednesday, the home team's first game since last week's suicide of keeper Robert Enke.
Didier Drogba scored twice on his return from a three-match European suspension as Chelsea drew 2-2 at Atletico Madrid to seal their place in the knockout round of the Champions League on Tuesday. They were joined in the last 16 by Manchester United, Porto and Girondins Bordeaux, although four-time European champions Bayern Munich are on the brink of elimination after losing at home to the French champions.
With the Premier League season kicking off on Saturday we look at the prospects of the 20 top-flight clubs.
Manchester City returned to English Premier League rivals Arsenal on Wednesday to sign Ivory Coast defender Kolo Toure for an undisclosed sum. Toure, 28, whose team mate Emmanuel Adebayor joined City earlier this month, has signed a four-year deal with Mark Hughes' side, the club said on their website.
Frank Lampard struck four goals as Chelsea rebounded from their FA Cup reverse at Barnsley at the weekend to defeat Derby 6-1 in EPL.
Images of Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo and Samuel Eto'o are still festooned on posters all over South Africa -- but sadly for them that's their only involvement as the World Cup reaches its final stages.
Just as he seemed to be returning to something near his peak, Kaka will have to endure the frustration of missing Brazil's final group game against Portugal as he serves a one-match suspension for his sending-off against Ivory Coast.
Cristiano Ronaldo finally ended his dry spell for Portugal with a quasi-comical goal, but the real drivers behind Portugal's sumptuous 7-0 rout of North Korea on Monday were midfielders Raul Meireles and Tiago.
Luis Fabiano's second goal against Ivory Coast at the World Cup was not with the Hand of God as the Brazilian claimed, Diego Maradona said on Monday.
