Belgium used a combination of daring, intelligence, resilience and not a little luck to oust World Cup favourites Brazil 2-1 in a memorable quarter-final tie on Friday that would have made a worthy final.
It took a great escape in injury time to get there after being two goals down to Japan, but Belgium can now view their quarter-final against Brazil free of the weight of expectation.
Belgium go into Monday's World Cup last 16 match against Japan full of confidence but wary that relying on individual talent against similarly well-organised but less fancied teams has cost them dear in the past.
Everton defender Phil Jagielka has been ruled out of England's friendly against Denmark next week with a hamstring injury, his club manager Roberto Martinez said on Thursday.
England and Belgium face a World Cup conundrum ahead of Thursday's crunch in Kaliningrad
"Sergio Aguero will be assessed by Club doctors today after being involved in a road accident on Thursday," City said of the Argentina striker in a statement on their website. (www.mancity.com)
Arsenal, Everton and Stoke City have all agreed to play in this year's Asia Trophy in Singapore in preparation for the 2015-16 Premier League season.
Henry, who started out playing for Monaco and went on to enjoy a stellar club career with Arsenal and Barcelona, has been working as assistant coach for the Belgian national team but has never been in charge of a team in his own right.
Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo will be looking to rekindle some of the magic they once served up under Carlo Ancelotti on Wednesday when they face their old coach in the latest edition of Real Madrid's rivalry with Bayern Munich.
It was not a day for FA Cup romantics as Manchester United scrambled past Sheffield United and minor league Eastleigh came within a whisker of causing the third round's only genuine shock.
The 19-year-old Mbappe followed up a domestic treble with Paris St Germain with a string of impressive performances in France's World Cup winning campaign.
France are favourites as Moscow basked in sweltering summer sun
Belgium struck early and held off a late Brazil fightback to send the five-time champions tumbling out of the World Cup with a 2-1 victory in an end-to-end thriller on Friday that earned them a semi-final against France.
Belgium play in a second successive World Cup quarter-final, looking to reach the semi-finals for the second time after they advanced to the last four in Mexico 32 years ago.
Belgium passed a test of character with a display of true grit that bodes well for a World Cup quarter-final against Brazil, coach Roberto Martinez said after they came from 2-0 behind to beat Japan 3-2 in injury time.
Argentine referee Nestor Pitana will take charge of Thursday's opening World Cup match between hosts Russia and Saudi Arabia in Moscow, FIFA said on Tuesday.
Everton now go to up to fifth in the table with 12 points from seven games
Belgium hammered the final nail into Egypt's halting World Cup warm-up campaign with an assured 3-0 win in Brussels on Wednesday that settled some nerves among the fancied hosts.
Out-of-sorts Chelsea have a golden opportunity to restore battered self-confidence when they face Maccabi Tel Aviv in their opening Champions League Group G match.
Manchester United maintained their push for a top-four Premier League finish when they beat Everton 1-0 with a second-half goal by French striker Anthony Martial at Old Trafford on Sunday.
Chelsea's commanding start to the Premier League season continued with a 3-0 victory over Aston Villa on Saturday as their rivals for the title continued to look vulnerable.
Chelsea striker Diego Costa needs to learn to show respect to opponents after the Spaniard goaded Everton players during their pulsating 6-3 English Premier League win on Saturday, Toffees coach Roberto Martinez said.
Jose Mourinho believes football is only about winning and that managers who favour a possession-dominated beautiful game and neglect steely defence and lethal counter-attacking are "stupid".
Hull City edged towards Premier League safety while Wigan Athletic, will play in the third tier of English football.
Kevin Mirallas' first-half penalty miss proved costly as Everton's dismal run continued with a 0-0 Premier League draw at home to West Bromwich Albion on Monday.
Everton's Romelu Lukaku spared his side a fifth straight defeat by snatching an added-time equaliser to salvage a 1-1 home draw with West Ham United in the FA Cup third round on Tuesday.
Newcastle United striker Papiss Cisse has been charged with violent conduct, the FA said in a statement on Monday referring to an incident in the Premier League match against Everton.
Analysis of the eight groups for the 2018 FIFA World Cup to be held in Russia.
Zoo director Vladimir Gerasimov believes Cleopatra might have a little better understanding of soccer than other animals.
As Chelsea's season suffered a final sorry implosion with an FA Cup defeat at Everton on Saturday, it was fitting that it should end with another display of fury from their angry young man, Diego Costa. While the inquest into the Premier League champions' dismal campaign will continue long after their 2-0 quarter-final reverse at Everton, the immediate topic consuming social media centred on the combustible Spain striker's sending-off, surprisingly his first for Chelsea. Alan Shearer, one of England's greatest strikers, joined the debate by telling BBC viewers the Brazilian-born forward had become "tiresome". Much of the attention focused on whether Costa, who became embroiled in a late face-to-face brouhaha with Everton's Gareth Barry, had gone as far as biting his opponent, Luis Suarez-style. Another question was whether he spat at the feet of referee Michael Oliver after being booked earlier for an altercation with Barry. "It's tiresome from him now. He spends too much time abusing and fighting and scrapping," Shearer said. "You can't do that every game because you turn the ref against you."
Follow the latest developments from all the on-field and off-the-field action in the Premiership.
France earned a rollercoaster 4-2 home win over Croatia in an entertaining top-tier Nations League Group 3 match, while England were held to a 0-0 draw by Denmark in an uninspiring game.
Manchester City produced a blistering first-half performance to win 4-1 at Sunderland in the League Cup third round on Tuesday, inflicting more misery on Dick Advocaat's struggling side.
Belgium beat England 2-0 in the World Cup third-place play-off on Saturday to secure their best ever finish at a World Cup and send Gareth Southgate's side home with a second straight loss.
IMAGES from the FIFA World Cup first semi-final played between France and Belgium on Tuesday
Burnley's seemingly doomed attempt to avoid relegation from the Premier League.
Anthony Martial snatched a late winner to send Louis van Gaal's Manchester United into a potentially season-redeeming FA Cup final as the favourites following a 2-1 victory over Everton at Wembley on Saturday.
Adrian fired past opposite number and Spanish compatriot Joel Robles immediately after the Everton keeper had crashed his spot kick against the crossbar as West Ham won 9-8 on penalties.
There was no way through for Chelsea as Watford halted their recent resurgence in a goalless Premier League stalemate at Vicarage Road while Everton piled more woe on Newcastle United with a 3-0 victory on Wednesday.
Manchester City reached the League Cup final after recovering from a shaky start as Sergio Aguero's brilliant header sealed a 3-1 win over Everton in the semi-final second leg to clinch a 4-3 aggregate victory.
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