Nigeria have no sympathy for the struggles of Argentina striker Lionel Messi at the World Cup and will do everything they can to bring his tournament to a premature end when the teams meet in St Petersburg on Tuesday.
Nicolas Mahut and Pierre-Hugues Herbert made sure of that with a gripping doubles win that keeps France's hopes against Croatia alive in the last final to be staged in the event's traditional format.
'There are many myths about the team and about this generation'
Spain midfielder Koke revealed he and his team mates have been unable to watch some World Cup games because it interferes with their 'siesta', the traditional afternoon nap.
Nigeria's top players needed persuasion to change positions in a tactical shake-up but coach Gernot Rohr's plans paid dividends as they beat Iceland 2-0 on Friday to get back in contention to progress to the World Cup's last 16.
Ahmed Musa returned to the line-up with devastating effect as he scored both goals for Nigeria to help them resuscitate their World Cup hopes in a 2-0 win over Iceland at the Volgograd Arena on Friday.
'Everyone now has the technology and the information to prepare games down to detail. Many years ago you used to go to a World Cup and it was a surprise on the day and talent and decisions on the pitch made a bigger difference'
Les Bleus needed a penalty, given by the video assistant referee, and goal-line technology to beat Australia 2-1 in their opening game and they were shaken up by Peru on Thursday but won 1-0 thanks to a Kylian Mbappe goal.
Croatia had shown glimpses of their potential at the last European Championships in France two years ago when they beat Spain but went out in the second round to eventual winners Portugal after conceding in extra time.
Sampaoli looked morose after Argentina's heaviest defeat in a World Cup group stage since 1958 and appeared resigned to his side's fate.
Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone said Argentina look lost and have no leadership after the 3-0 loss to Croatia which left them on the verge of a disastrous early exit from the World Cup, in an audio message leaked to Spanish and Argentine radio stations.
Jorge Sampaoli took the blame for Thursday's shambolic 3-0 World Cup defeat by Croatia as he tried to deflect the criticism from a terrible goalkeeping mistake and a poor performance by his captain Lionel Messi.
Sergio Ramos has responded to a putdown from Argentina great Diego Maradona
'We know it is going to be very difficult to play against them, and that is why we need to trust in our assets and play the perfect game'
'I think obviously my choice would be England to win the competition, but that's me being biased and passionate about my country'
Morocco are looking for an upset win over the European champions at the Luzhniki Stadium to realistically keep alive their interest in the tournament but mindful that the genius of the Portugal captain could send them towards an early exit.
The Argentina captain turns 31 in a few days and may be playing his last World Cup. He would need to win it to rival fellow great Diego Maradona for the eternal love of his compatriots.
While the England players grab the headlines for their on-field showing, at the ongoing FIFA World Cup in Russia, their WAGS also enjoyed a spot in the limelight.
Colombian soccer supporters brought a wave of tropical exuberance to the stolid citizens of Saransk
'I have calmly accepted that, and since I need my players fit and ready to play, I have made this decision'
Cunningham, an LGBT campaigner who works with England's football authorities, is one of only a handful of openly gay England fans who have made the trip to Russia where gay activists have been detained for taking part in demonstrations.
Brazil's stuttering performance stemmed from anxiety at playing their first World Cup game, coach Tite said after their 1-1 draw with Switzerland.
Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic says he will turn to his Barcelona midfielder Ivan Rakitic for ideas on how to stop Argentina's Lionel Messi in Thursday's Group D match between the two teams.
Tunisia fear facing England's 'most dangerous weapon'" - attacking midfielder Dele Alli - but the North Africans will be pushing for an upset in their opening game on Monday, said coach Nabil Maaloul.
Croatia midfielder Luka Modric suggested that his team's 2-0 victory over Nigeria on Saturday had turned up the heat on Group D favourites Argentina
Despite an abundance of individual talent, Argentina have looked anything but impressive during Sampaoli's year in charge and their 1-1 draw against the World Cup debutants, including a missed Lionel Messi penalty, was another frustrating afternoon.
Serbia and Costa Rica begin their World Cup campaigns on Sunday with the teams likely to adopt contrasting approaches to making the most of their limited resources at the tournament.
Dark horse Croatia take on spirited Nigeria in a World Cup opener on Saturday that could leave one side fighting for their tournament lives in the Group of Death.
Spain started their World Cup qualifying campaign with a crushing 8-0 win over Liechtenstein, laying down a marker in Group G with a ruthless second-half display on Monday.
Champions Manchester City will expect to get back to winning ways at home to Newcastle United in a match which pits Pep Guardiola against his fellow Spaniard Rafa Benitez.
England will adopt an aggressive approach to their World Cup fixtures and tackle the tournament 'head on' as Gareth Southgate's youthful squad hopes to make its mark in Russia, captain Harry Kane has said.
With just a few days to go to the World Cup, Argentina are not considered favourites as they struggled through qualifying for the prestigious tournament.
Argentina players will do everything in their power in Russia to help the team lift the World Cup trophy again after falling at the last hurdle four years ago in Brazil, defender Marcos Rojo has said.
Sheep eyeball juice, frog smoothies and fruit bat soup... Which one do you find yucky?
Argentina showed once again how reliant they are on Lionel Messi as the Barcelona forward scored a hat-trick in their 4-0 World Cup warm-up win over Haiti on Tuesday.
IMAGES from the Euro 2020 qualifiers
The predictions by the world's biggest wealth manager were based on a statistical model using the results from the previous five tournaments and controlling for factors such as team strength and success in the qualification phase.
According to a recent survey, Indians clearly do not prefer coffee.
The head of the Argentine Football Association has apologised for the publication of a World Cup manual that included advice on how to woo Russian women.
Germany scored five times in 27 minutes in the first half to crush Estonia 8-0 and make it three wins in three Euro 2020 Group C qualifiers.
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