Naveen Boora in medal rounds of Strandja Memorial tourney
Now, if he can keep at bay an England attack that might include club mates Raheem Sterling and Mason Mount, Mendy could yet finish the year on another high note, having started it with success in the Africa Cup of Nations.
The Barcelona striker has won the FIFA World Player of the Year a record six times and is widely considered one of the greatest players ever to play the game, alongside Pele and countryman Diego Maradona. But his inability to win an international title with Argentina always left an asterisk beside his name on the all-time greats list.
Mourinho wants to see Pogba's World Cup focus at Man United
Thomas Partey scored his first goal for Atletico Madrid as they reached the last 16 of the King's Cup with a 1-0 home victory over third-tier Reus on Thursday that secured a 3-1 aggregate success.
Honduras scored their first World Cup goal for 32 years on Friday, but Enner Valencia replied twice to earn Ecuador a 2-1 Group E victory that gives them a fighting chance of making the knock-out phase.
Goals from Karim Benzema and Jese led Real Madrid to a 2-0 win over Osasuna in their King's Cup last-16 first leg at the Bernabeu on Thursday.
If Atletico Madrid's 2013 King's Cup triumph was a shock and their 2013-14 La Liga title a surprise, few would raise an eyebrow if Diego Simeone's ruthlessly efficient side were to win another major trophy.
Germany's Leon Goretzka scored two expertly-taken early goals to set them on the way to a thumping 4-1 win over Mexico in a dramatic, end-to-end Confederations Cup semi-final on Thursday.
Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez was at a loss to explain how Luis Suarez missed three golden chances in his side's 1-0 win over Egypt in their opening World Cup Group A game but refused to blame his leading striker.
With champions Germany out, Argentina only scraping through, and Spain in turmoil, many see Brazil as the clear favourites to lift the World Cup in Moscow on July 15.
Real Madrid have sacked coach Carlo Ancelotti after the world's richest club by income failed to win major silverware this season.
A look at some of the major disasters in soccer stadiums over the last 40 years after at least eight people were killed and 38 injured in a stampede at the Yaounde Olembe Stadium in Cameroon on Monday before their Africa Cup of Nations round of 16 game against Comoros.
While the world delights at the pace of Arjen Robben and finishing of Robin van Persie, younger, less heralded Dutch players are emerging as a key part of the Netherlands' superb start to the World Cup.
All other players and staff tested negative
India's assistant coach Sanjay Bangar termed out-of-form Shikhar Dhawan as a vital cog, saying the team management wants the right-left combination to fire at the top of the order with the World Cup round the corner.
FIFA World Cup set pulses racing and ended with a young, exciting France team clinching the title.
Costa turned Juanfran's low cross into the net in the 69th minute for Atletico's third goal in the first leg of the last 16 tie against third division Lleida but immediately limped to the sidelines. He did return to the pitch, however, and completed the game despite bleeding from his knee.
Brazil goalkeeper Julio Cesar celebrated Saturday night after his dream performance helped erase the nightmare of the 2010 World Cup when his mistake helped lead to Brazil's early elimination and four years of vilification by sceptical fans.
Hosts Brazil will look to clinch their berth in the last 16 of the World Cup as they host already-eliminated Cameroon in their final Group A match at the National Stadium in Brasilia.
Lionel Messi said he and his family had trouble adapting after his move to Paris St Germain in 2021.
England and Belgium, already qualified from World Cup Group G, meet on Thursday in what Belgian midfielder Marouane Fellaini says could be a "strange match". Depending on the outcome of other games, it may not be an advantage to finish top of the group, but both sides insist they won't take such calculations into account.
In their three group matches, the Azzurri have faced only 12 shots, on or off target, and also have kept a clean sheet in each of their last 11 matches in all competitions, going 1,055 minutes -- 17 hours and 35 minutes -- without conceding since last October.
Supported by his sons and receiving a standing ovation from a 12,000-strong crowd, Serbia midfielder Dejan Stankovic entered retirement as his country's most capped player with a 2-0 victory over Japan in a friendly on Friday.
Chile will be devastated to have exited the World Cup on penalties after pushing Brazil to their limits on Saturday, but the one emotion they surely will not feel is surprise.
England's last appearance at this stage was in 1990 when they lost in a penalty shootout to West Germany in Turin while eight years later, in their first World Cup as an independent nation, Croatia lost to hosts and eventual winners France.
Man Utd sign Mount from Chelsea on five-year deal
Nadal, playing his first match since losing to Roger Federer in the Wimbledon semi-finals, fell behind 5-2 in the tiebreak before roaring back to prevail in his first career meeting with world number 53 Evans.
Morocco and Iran's hopes of making a mark at the World Cup before a ball has been kicked, and they head into their opening match in St Petersburg on Friday knowing defeat could likely mean an early exit.
Thailand, coming off a record 13-0 loss to defending champions United States in their Group F opener, conceded twice in the opening 20 minutes as they struggled to win aerial battles against a much taller Swedish team.
Summary of World Cup qualifiers played across the world on Thursday
Indian archer Atanu Das expressed disappointment at being denied the chance to play the mixed team event with his world No. 1 wife Deepika Kumari, whom he credited for his stunning victory over two-time Olympic champion Oh Jin Hyek in the men's individual even at the Tokyo Olympics on Thursday.
Was it badminton sensation PV Sindhu, who became the first Indian to win the World Championships gold medal? Or is it the young shooting progidy Saurabh Chaudhary? Or his India colleague Elavenil Valarivan, who recently took over as World No 1? What about India's heroes on the cricketing field -- Virat Kohli? Rohit Sharma?
IMAGES from the FIFA World Cup Group G match played between Serbia and Cameroon on Monday.
Atletico Madrid are close to tying up a deal for Spain forward Fernando Torres to return to his boyhood club on loan from Chelsea.
'It's useless trying to make a leader out of a man who goes to the toilet 20 times before a game'
Arsenal's defence of the trophy ended with something of a whimper as Mikel Arteta's side struggled with repeatedly sloppy defending.
'It was surprising and I think that even though there were motives and reasons behind the decision, the players had no say in it and it was not the right time'
Mark your calendars! Here's all the lowdown of all the major sporting events coming up in 2022...
Les Bleus' average age is 26 years old -- like England -- and Kylian Mbappe is 19, but it was he who ran riot after France fell 2-1 behind early in the second half.
