Cameroon may have left Gabon with a fifth Africa Cup of Nations title in the bag, but their preparation was far from ideal.

Less than one year into his tenure as coach, Hugo Broos was already drawing criticism for an overhaul of the squad that saw him place his faith in youth over experience.

Cameroon had failed to qualify for the 2012 or 2013 AFCON editions, while they suffered a group-stage elimination in Equatorial Guinea two years ago. Broos was given little leeway upon taking over in February 2016 and his decision-making was quickly under intense scrutiny.

And when established stars including Liverpool defender Joel Matip and Schalke forward Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting were among a group of eight players who snubbed the chance to represent their country in Gabo…

The United States edged into the CONCACAF Gold Cup semi-finals with a 1-0 win over Curacao in Philadelphia on Sunday.

Weston McKennie s first-half header lifted USA past the minnows in their quarter-final clash at Lincoln Financial Field.

The defending champions were comfortable for long periods, with McKennie getting on the end of a Christian Pulisic cross for the game s only goal.

The result saw USA reach the semi-finals of the tournament for the 10th straight time.

USA started well as Pulisic went close twice in the opening four minutes.

The attacker fired wide after a driving run before then being denied by Curacao goalkeeper Eloy Room, who made a superb save to tip over a Pulisic effort from close range after Paul Arriola s cross from the lef…

Spain’s World Cup-winning coach Jorge Vilda has criticised suspended football federation president Luis Rubiales, calling the moment he kissed squad member Jenni Hermoso “inappropriate and unacceptable”.

Rubiales, the president of the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), has been provisionally suspended by FIFA in the wake of kissing Hermoso on the lips while she collected her medal after Spain’s 1-0 final win over England in Sydney last Sunday.

Hermoso stressed on Friday she did not consent to the kiss and the fallout from incident continued on Saturday afternoon as Spain women’s coaching staff resigned en masse – with the exception of Vilda.

Se acabo#El FÚTBOL es FÚTBOL y ojalá pudiéramos estar hablando de lo conseguido …

— Montse To…

Bayern Munich midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger believes Barcelona are more than capable of reaching the UEFA Champions League final.

The German side hold a four-goal lead over the La Liga table-toppers going into Wednesday s semi-final second leg, but the midfielder believes they will have to play at their best to reach the Wembley showpiece.

Barca beat Bayern 4-0 in a quarter-final tie in 2009 and Schweinsteiger has told his team-mates to blank out the atmosphere at Camp Nou and focus on the match.

Barcelona can turn the tie around – they are capable of it, he said.

Barcelona have been wounded so that makes them dangerous. The first leg has opened the door but we haven t crossed the threshold yet.

It ll be a difficult match as few teams have stood up to Barc…

Michel Platini does not expect his appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against his six-year ban from all football-related activity to be successful.

Platini was initially handed an eight-year suspension by FIFA in relation to a disloyal payment made by the organisation s then president Sepp Blatter in 2011.

On February 24, the Frenchman had the length of his sanction reduced by the FIFA Appeal Committee, but signalled his intention to continue fighting his case by filing an appeal with CAS on March 2.

However, the 60-year-old former UEFA chief does not hold out much hope of being exonerated.

I have rarely seen someone win against FIFA or UEFA through CAS. My lawyers are optimistic, but I m very sceptical, Platini told L Equipe.

…

Fernando Hierro will take charge of Spain for the duration of the World Cup following the sacking of Julen Lopetegui, the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) has confirmed.

The 50-year-old former national team captain was appointed within hours of the announcement of Lopetegui s departure.

The RFEF did not specify whether Hierro may continue in the role beyond the finals in Russia.

Lopetegui was sensationally sacked on Wednesday after agreeing to become the next Real Madrid head coach, with RFEF president Luis Rubiales furious that the European champions only informed him of the deal minutes before the news was made public.

Rubiales told a news conference that he was left with no choice but to dismiss Lopetegui, just three weeks after he signed a new…

I have written many times in my editorials about the fact that I like Bournemouth head coach Eddie Howe’s honesty and approach to the game. However, for all he has done for the Cherries, which has been fantastic, they now look to be on a downward turn.

Money wasted in recent years

The Cherries have spent much of their existence as a football club in the lower leagues of English football, some of those years on the precipice of financial ruin. However, their recent years in the Premier League has seen the club from the south coast splash the cash, well relatively compared to previous years.

A good example is the Cherries £16million purchase of winger Jordon Ibe from Liverpool in 2016. Granted at the time he was a highly-rated youngster when he made the move. However,…

Jose Mourinho says he couldn t care less about Paul Pogba s assessment of their relationship towards the end of his time at Manchester United.

Mourinho was dismissed by United midway through the 2018-19 season after two-and-a-half years in charge.

His relationship with members of United s squad was said to have deteriorated, with an apparent training ground argument with Pogba coming after the midfielder was stripped of his vice-captaincy role in September 2018.

Speaking ahead of United s game against Burnley on Sunday, Pogba suggested current Red Devils boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has a better man-management style than Mourinho.

What I have now with Ole is different, he wouldn t go against the players, Pogba told Sky Sports. He wouldn t go against the pl…

Paris Saint-Germain sporting director Leonardo insists he is very happy with Mauricio Pochettino despite reports the coach wants to leave the club.

It has been claimed Pochettino, who only took over from Thomas Tuchel at Parc des Princes in January, has told the Ligue 1 giants that he wishes to terminate his contract.

The Argentine, whose contract runs until next year with the option of a further 12 months, has been linked with a return to Tottenham or a move to Real Madrid to succeed Zinedine Zidane.

However, it has also been reported that Pochettino would be prepared to stay at PSG for another season if required as he does not wish to sour his relationship with a club where he spent two and a half years as a player.

Speaking to Europe1, Leonardo said: M…

Borussia Dortmund are actively searching for options to replace Jadon Sancho, who seems more likely to leave the Signal Iduna Park next summer by the day. That s according to Sport Bild, who add that the Bundesliga side are currently considering Javairo Dilrosun of Hertha Berlin and Ferran Torres of Valencia as potential candidates.

Sancho arrived to Dortmund for very little money as a youngster who wasn t getting enough game-time for his development, but since then he has set the Bundesliga alight with his pace and trickery on the ball. In the 56 games he s played in the black-and-yellow so far, the 19-year-old scored 17 goals and laid on a further 26 assists. These performances haven t gone unnoticed, of course, and not only has he broken into the England senior team, but his…