World Football

Raheem Sterling didn't play for England during Sunday's 3-0 win over Senegal at the Qatar World Cup after his Surrey home was reportedly broken into on Saturday as part of an armed robbery, per ESPN's James Olley.

"A spokesperson for Sterling said the burglary was carried out by armed intruders while his family were home," according to the BBC. However, the BBC noted that "Surrey Police said no-one was at home at the time and no threats of violence were involved."

Sterling was granted permission to travel back to England, according to Olley.

A spokesperson for Sterling said that "as soon as he was alerted he wanted to get home, concerned for the well-being of his children," according to the BBC.

"We've got to give him time to try to resolve that or be there for his family," England manager Gareth Southgate told reporters after Sunday's match. "That's the most important thing at this time. So we are going to give him that space.

"It didn't impact team selection," he added. "I spent a lot of time with Raheem this morning. You know you have days where events happen, and you have to deal with them. He is on his way home, and we're obviously mindful of him being allowed space and privacy respected so we aren't going to talk in too much detail.

Per ESPN's report, many of Sterling's family and friends—including his girlfriend and two of his children—are with him in Qatar, while his mother is in London.

The Chelsea winger started England's first two games in the group stage and has posted a goal and an assist in the tournament. Phil Foden served as the team's starter on the left wing in the last two contests and had two assists on Sunday.

It's a testament to England's depth that they could replace a player of Sterling's caliber with one of Manchester City's starting attackers and star performers.

For his teammates, Sterling taking the time to focus on his family took top priority.

"Our thoughts are with him and his family," starting striker and team captain Harry Kane said of Sterling after the match. "It's a private matter, but it's never easy to see one of your teammates and friends deal with something like that. We'll have to take it day by day. I'm sure Raheem will speak to the manager and take the best decision for him and his family. That's the most important thing. We send him our best wishes and hope to see him as soon as possible."

Some of the most exciting young talent in football has been on display at this year's World Cup. Jude Bellingham is on the short list.

The England midfielder was transcendent during Sunday's 3-0 win over Senegal, notching an assist, playing a key role in all three goals (scored by Jordan Henderson, Harry Kane and Bukayo Saka) and generally bossing the middle of the pitch.

It's important to remember that Bellingham is just 19, and on Sunday he was the best player on the pitch—an impressive feat considering the staggering talent on display for England.

Suffice to say, football Twitter was more than a little smitten with the youngster:

The result was perhaps a bit harsh on Senegal, which played well for much of the first half and had a number of chances to take the early lead.

But England held on, broke the dam and have now outscored their opponents 12-2 at this World Cup in four games with an impressive display of attacking efficiency. (While United States men's national team fans will be disappointed with Saturday's 3-1 loss against the Netherlands, they'll take some consolation from the fact that their young team held England to a scoreless draw.)

That attacking prowess will be tested in the quarterfinals, however, against a France squad that has outscored its opponents 9-4 in four games and features the otherworldly Kylian Mbappe, who is already on five goals by himself.

It's set up to be a brilliant showdown between two European rivals, as the Euro 2020 runners-up look to unseat the defending World Cup champions. The Three Lions haven't won the World Cup since 1966—it's only fitting that they'll have to go through the current holders to end that streak.

It's a tall task, but having one of the world's most exciting young players in Bellingham leaves England with a real shot.

Two of Europe’s most successful men’s soccer teams landed spots in the 2022 FIFA World Cup quarterfinals on Sunday.

France used a 3-1 win to eliminate Poland and continue their title defense.

England benefited from a pair of first-half goals to start the scoring against Senegal and set up a final-eight clash with Les Bleus.

The two sides have had plenty of meetings in their history, but the quarterfinal showdown between the two sides will be their first World Cup match since 1982.

France 3, Poland 1

France’s top two goal scorers carried it into the final eight.

Olivier Giroud opened the scoring in the 44th minute. Giroud surpassed Thierry Henry on the top of France’s all-time men's scoring chart with the first-half tally.

The AC Milan forward tied Kylian Mbappé for France's top scorer in Qatar for 30 minutes.

Mbappé closed the game for Les Bleus with rallies in the 74th and 91st minutes.

The 23-year-old striker holds a two-goal lead over his closest competition for the Golden Boot. Giroud and five others have three goals in Qatar.

Poland left the tournament with a goal thanks to a very late penalty call.

Robert Lewandowski missed his initial penalty, but it was ordered to be retaken after Hugo Lloris was off his line when he saved the Barcelona forward's first attempt. Lewandowski did not waste his second chance, as he deposited his second World Cup goal into the net past the French captain.

The goal might have been the last for Lewandowski at the World Cup. He will be 37 in 2026 when the tournament comes to North America.

England 3, Senegal 0.

England followed a similar pattern of play as France to get ahead of Senegal.

The Three Lions waited until the end of the first half to break into the lead, but they took it one step further than France by scoring twice before halftime.

Jordan Henderson put the Three Lions in front in the 38th minute. Jude Bellingham set up the goal with a run down the left side of the box.

Bellingham’s assist added to his already loaded resume. The Borussia Dortmund midfielder is one of the most coveted young players in the world.

The 19-year-old sprung another attack that led to a goal right before halftime.

Bellingham fed Phil Foden, who then passed to Harry Kane for the striker’s first goal of the tournament.

Foden was back in the assisting role in the 57th minute, when he found Bukayo Saka for the thrid England goal.

England has scored at least three goals in three of its four games in Qatar. The Three Lions may need that attacking firepower to keep up with Mbappé and Co. on Saturday afternoon.

Senegal departed the tournament without a goal in the knockout round. The Lions of Teranga put together a fantastic effort throughout their four games even without the injured Sadio Mané.

Monday Schedule

Japan vs. Croatia (10 am ET, Fox)

Brazil vs. South Korea (2 pm ET, Fox)

Within 30 minutes of the defeat to the Netherlands on Saturday in Doha, Gregg Berhalter was asked by reporters if he intended to remain on as the U.S. men's national team coach. The 49-year-old said he’d have to think about it.

You can imagine the U.S. Soccer Federation will do some critical thinking too.

In his time with the national team, Berhalter has collected notable victories, including beating Mexico three times in a year, winning the CONCACAF Nations League and Gold Cup in the same summer, qualifying for the World Cup after missing it in 2018 and making it out of the group.

The USMNT has a clear culture of positivity and brotherhood, cultivated in part by the man at the helm. He's also overseen a successful dual-national recruitment process, bringing promising talent such as Sergiño Dest and Yunus Musah to American shores while keeping the best interests of each player in mind.

Ultimately, though, a sound defeat to the Netherlands in the round of 16 is just good enough. A group stage exit would be seen as failure. A quarterfinals berth would be historic success. What this team did is set a foundation; it was just enough.

But the nation and the federation have higher hopes as they prepare to co-host the 2026 World Cup, and they'll need to accelerate progress and implement changes to achieve them.

In that pursuit, U.S. Soccer should look gratefully at the foundation Berhalter built and then find the best candidate to keep building. For Berhalter, returning to the club level—perhaps on foreign shores—might be preferred after a pressure-packed tenure as manager.

The foundation is set

The second-youngest team in the tournament has World Cup experience under their belt—and the bitter taste of defeat to drive them. They believed they could do more in Qatar. With four years to work toward redemption, this crew of youth will hit their prime on home soil after four years of developing at club level.

Ideally, the men plying their trade in Europe—Musah, Weston McKennie, Tyler Adams, Christian Pulisic and company—will continue to grow their roles at the top level. They already have youth and accomplishments. As they add more experience, they'll be lethal.

The trend of young Americans who depart for competitive, European shores will continue. On arrival, they'll need to work tirelessly to play central roles in top leagues. The program would be wise to identify players who start to excel at that level and integrate them more quickly into the senior team.

Clubs like the Philadelphia Union and FC Dallas play no small role in developing young talent and getting them to Europe. They'll need to continue that contribution, and other clubs would be wise financially to join them. The benefits of developing talent and selling to Europe seem self-evident for a club, though many have yet to do so successfully.

A glaring issue as the World Cup wore on is that depth in the squad was too shallow. The drop-off in output from the first to the second half as starting players tired or were substituted became a core issue. But building on the talent pool who are proving themselves at the highest level solves that problem.

Success in 2026 will require the continued growth of young stars in Europe. It will also require younger prospects to break out at that level, adding confidence to this team's depth and rotation.

Life, liberty and the pursuit of a striker

The role of striker-savior in the 2026 World Cup is up for grabs. It remains among the USMNT's more elusive positions.

That hero might not be known yet. The hungry and hopeful are practicing for that position as we sit typing.

It could also be somebody already in the program. Jesús Ferreira is long out of form and happy at FC Dallas, but one wonders if he might grow his game abroad given the hunger acquired from this tournament. Josh Sargent and Haji Wright both had their moments in Qatar. Sargent did well against Iran before going off injured. Though Wright was imperfect, he did score one of the team's three goals. Both are doing well with their clubs and their careers still developing. Sargent will be just 26 and Wright 28 at the next World Cup.

Ricardo Pepi—spurned from the roster, now in form in the Netherlands—has a fire burning inside him. Pepi seems resolute in his intention to break back into the team. It will be a joy to track that progress. He'll be 23 when the World Cup comes to home soil.

Beyond the striker, the U.S. needs to create more chances, necessitating a style that encourages creativity. The next manager must identify creative talent and build around it.

Hope is in the future

Develop the talent, identify the talent, build creatively around them, find a striker. Sounds easy, right? That will be the work of the next four years.

Observe the progress, catalog the stories and find a way to convey them to the American public—that's the job of the pundits and writers.

The race is on, for all of us. We're looking at 2026 with hopes set high. And the main question is pending: Will we be ready?