Argentina and Mexico fans lit up the World Cup on Saturday with their vast and vociferous followings creating a thunderous atmosphere in and around Qatar's Lusail Stadium.
Many flocked to Buenos Aires's tattoo parlors to commission designs depicting Lionel Messi.
Neymar began his career with Santos in 2009 aged 17, racking up 136 goals and 64 assists in 225 matches to help the club secure their first Copa Libertadores title in nearly 50 years in 2011.
Argentine, somehow, were ready for an emotional, nail-biting encounter, having already gone through a dress rehearsal in the same stadium against the Netherlands in the quarter-finals.
IMAGES from the FIFA World Cup quarter-final played between Argentina and The Netherlands on Friday.
Lionel Messi drew level with Diego Maradona's number of World Cup goals and appearances on Saturday, but the current No. 10 knows that only winning the trophy at long last will earn him the same eternal love of his fellow Argentines.
Images from the opening day's action in the FIH men's Hockey World Cup in Odisha.
Argentina won the 2021 Copa America but despite always being one of the World Cup favourites they have not lifted football's most precious trophy in the last 36 years.
Godrej Consumer Products (GCPL) had a disappointing third quarter (Q3FY25) with flat volumes (after 7 per cent growth H1FY25). Price hikes will be required to maintain margins to offset the cost of palm oil inflation. However, some analysts see Q3 as an exception with strong volume growth expected to resume and it may be the fastest growing FMCG player in FY26.
The 35-year-old also paid tribute to Messi, who played for Real's arch-rivals Barcelona.
The Dutch also face the possibility of the majority of the 80,000-odd crowd cheering on Argentina as a surprisingly small number of orange-clad Dutch supporters have travelled.
Argentina have called up Mallorca's Spanish defender Pablo Maffeo for the first time ahead of this month's World Cup qualifiers against Uruguay and Brazil in the squad announced by its FA on Friday.
The comparison with Maradona for the title of the greatest Argentine player of all time cannot be complete without a world title, which the late Maradona won almost single-handedly 36 years ago.
The stadium erupted in cheers once more with Fernandez's late strike which sealed Argentina's first win in the tournament and rekindled Messi's hopes of a first-ever World Cup title.
Argentina and Australia have only two full days to rest, a factor Argentine manager Lionel Scaloni called 'madness'.
Croatia were not the favourites to reach the last four again but they came through two penalty shootouts in a repeat of their 2018 exploits.
'For the Indian economy to maintain a growth rate of 7 to 8 per cent, it needs large foreign direct investment coming in, and that's mainly coming from the US.'
Lionel Scaloni picked the same starting line-up from the World Cup final win over France as they looked dominant from the start
Argentina and South Africa settled for an exciting 2-2 draw in their Women's World Cup Group G clash at Dunedin Stadium
Saudi Arabia, FIFA's 51st ranked team and who have suffered 5-0 and 8-0 World Cup defeats down the years, roared back to claim an astonishing 2-1 victory that will go down as one of the greatest shocks in any sport ever.
Argentina marked the revival of the Cup of Champions in style as an inspired Lionel Messi helped them outclass Italy 3-0 in a heavyweight clash billed as the 'Finalissima' at a raucous Wembley Stadium in London on Wednesday.
Gurjit Kaur scored a brace as the Indian women's hockey team dished out a spirited performance to stun Olympic silver medallist Argentina 2-1
"Mateo, Luka and Marcelo are the best Croatia midfield in history. I don't think it can be repeated. When you pass them the ball it is safer than having your money in the bank," the defender said.
Images from the international friendly and Euro qualifying football matches played on Tuesday.
Fans crowded into plazas to watch the game on giant screens, cheering when Messi scored the opening goal -- a penalty -- but groaning and slowly going silent as Saudi Arabia pulled two quick goals back in the second half.
Saudi Arabia stunned Lionel Messi's Argentina 2-1 with brilliant individual goals from Saleh Al-Shehri and Salem Al-Dawsari during the FIFA World Cup Group C match on Tuesday.
Posing a series of questions to the prime minister, Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh also asked if Modi would convey to the US president that India would send its own aircraft -- like Venezuela and Colombia did -- to bring back Indian deportees in the future.
Several thousand Argentinians are expected to descend on Qatar for the tournament starting next month but not all are having an easy ride.
US shale oil would act as an alternative to India's heavy dependency on Russian crude, which is currently facing sanctions.
Ace pistol shooter Manu Bhaker will lead a 35-member Indian team in the season-opening ISSF World Cups in April in South America.
The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) on Saturday announced the return of three hostages -- Alexandre, Sagui, and Iair -- after 498 days in captivity.
Julian Alvarez bagged Argentina's second from close range in the 57th minute after fatal hesitation from Ryan with the ball at his feet following a backpass.
After Sunday's win, India remained at second spot in the league standings with 16 points from eight matches, behind Netherlands. Argentina also remained at fourth spot with 11 points from six matches.
Lautaro said Argentina dominated the match against the Saudis and did not deserve to lose, having three goals ruled out for close offside calls by VAR.
Inter Miami manager Javier Mascherano said on Thursday it was "impossible" to even consider bringing Neymar to the club
Argentina are on a 36-match unbeaten run with top scorer and captain Messi playing his fifth and last World Cup in search of the elusive honour
Leading oil companies dedicated the second day of India Energy Week (IEW) 2025 to announcing strategic deals and business agreements across the supply chain - from sourcing more crude oil supply to deploying more domestic ships and building gas distribution capacity.
The three match-ups which are likely to have a strong bearing on the result in Sunday's FIFA World Cup final.
'We wanted to compensate for the defeat (against Saudi Arabia). Today it was a great game, we played very well collectively'
The Indian government has informed Parliament that there are currently over 10,000 Indian prisoners, including undertrials, in foreign jails. The Ministry of External Affairs shared country-wise data, with Saudi Arabia and the UAE having the highest number of Indian prisoners. The government has assured that it prioritizes the safety and well-being of Indians abroad and provides consular assistance, legal aid, and financial support to those imprisoned.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances