#name a better striker duo I’ll wait

[ronanolynch]

FUCK

[youllallriseintheink]

Breaking the Time Loop chapter 10: Camaraderie

I can’t lie, chapters 10 and 11 are my least favourite of this story. But I hope you enjoy it anyhow. Also, I learned how to put those “Keep reading” things in!

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Alice scampered into the ink machine chamber to find a slightly beaten-up fisher and striker and no one else. She drew her sword and slew the duo before they could land a single hit, as any reasonably armed, able-bodied person would have been able to do. God, Henry was stupid! But there was no time to dwell on that. She had to figure out whether Bendy had survived, and examine her options for if he hadn't. There was a large ink splatter on the ground in front of the machine. That could have just been from Henry, or it could have been the both of them. She examined the entry point of the machine-liquid ink was upon it- a good, if not definite, sign.

"Do you think that could be from you?" she asked Boris. Boris shrugged in response. "Alright. just let me sit down a moment. I have to think some things over."

Henry was okay. He'd said himself that he could come back from attacks from ink monsters. But without a demon, they'd have to make a new one or they wouldn't be able to save anyone. That meant sacrificing a soul and an ink creature. Whose body would they use? They could make a new ink creature, which would have a nine in ten chance of coming out malicious, then wrestle it into a glass tube and force a transformation on it, but that would be awfully risky. Otherwise, it would have to be one of them. Not her, obviously- she was too weak to ink. Tom wasn't much better, and Boris was cowardly. The harder question, though, was of who's soul to sacrifice. One of the lost ones? Sammy would never go for that, especially if the idea came from her. She'd have to do it in secret, and who knew-

"Where... is my lord?" came Sammy's voice, cutting into Alice's train of thought.

Alice sprung to her feet. "Sammy! I-".

"Where. Is my lord?!" he yelled. He was only a searcher now- not really dangerous. Alice had already drawn her machete due to blind instinct. Still, as the massive hoard of equally weak, half-formed ink creatures came to surround her, she hardly dared to breathe. Tom stepped between her and the horde, dragging Boris with him.

"Please, just let me explain," she begged. "Henry ran ahead of us. He was unarmed, so the butcher gang killed him. I don't know if he managed to get Bendy into the ink machine first. I'm sorry."

"Really? Because it seems to me that you killed them, angel!" He spat out the word 'angel' as though it were a slur.

"Stop! There's a simple solution here. Soon enough, Henry will come back. Then, he can tell you the truth. Alright? No need for anyone here to get hurt."

The horde backed away a bit. They agreed to wait, but many were still spoiling for a kill. In what was mere minutes, but felt to Alice like hours, Bendy tumbled out of the ink machine. Alice and Sammy were so grateful that they ran over and hugged him. "Bendy, thank goodness!" Alice beamed.

"Huh? What's going on?" he asked.

"Oh, sorry," Alice said, letting the rather overwhelmed imp down. "Henry got defeated. He'll be back soon, but we didn't know if you'd made it!" Alice turned to the horde. "You see, everyone? I'm innocent."

"Alright. You're innocent. I suppose we should get to work then?"

"Right. The last soul we need is Grant Cohen's. When's the last time you managed to separate him out?"

"I have never separated him out, I'm afraid."

"Why not?"

"Most likely he doesn't want to be. That is, if he's even here at all. Tell me, have you ever been to his office?"

"I don't... wait, you mean the one with the writing all over the walls? Yeesh."

"Yeah, Alice, you got your work cut out for you on that one," Bendy said.

"Mind if I tell you a bit of his story?" Sammy asked.

"Go ahead."

"Well, Grant Cohen was the accountant here long ago. And Joey... he disliked most of us. But what he had with Grant was a special hatred. We don't know exactly what happened, but one day, he just broke down. The janitor of this old studio... I can't remember his name, gathered us the day after, telling us that he'd written insane messages all over the walls of his office. Joey decided after that to make him one of the next ones we sacrificed. It only made sense- according to Joey he would have quit soon anyhow if he had so little faith in the company. I couldn’t do it, though. I came in while he was weeping over the budget, and he didn’t even notice I was there. He disappeared the next day. Everyone assumed the worst- kidnapping, suicide, murder, something like that. Why does Henry think he's here? Why do you trust that he knows?"

"Well, for one thing, he's been right so far. The other reason is hard to explain."

"I can actually back Alice up on this one. It's one of the things I saw through the cutouts. Grant had been really scared the morning after you decided not to kill him- hands shaking and everything- because he had to tell Joey about something called a bankruptcy. And when Joey heard about that, he got up in Grant's face and he told him he had three options: he could either figure out a way to avoid the bankruptcy, he could get fired and blacklisted from every place in New York, or he could come to a special meeting with him after work. Well, take a guess which he chose and what happened at that meeting." Bendy shook his head. "Not pretty. Screaming-searcher-in-a-cage-above-an-abyss not pretty."

"That's sad, but it still doesn't explain why he's never separated."

"It is not so uncommon, actually," Sammy said, "many of the people here choose nonexistence over existence. Scatter their soul so evenly that they aren't ever aware of themselves. That's why now is the best time for this. I doubt that a dominant soul is present in any of my sheep so soon after their revival. It's just a matter of taking one of them, isolating them, and playing some audio tapes. He will be drawn in, whether he likes it or not."

"Then that's what we'll do."

Sammy sent all but one of his searchers out of the room. Four of them had been petting Boris, so he went with them as well. The trio played the tapes of Grant Cohen, of which there were only two: one of him complaining about Joey's terrible business skills, and the other of him screaming and growling as he was sacrificed and transformed. The searcher showed little reaction to the first. With the second, though, the searcher began to look uncomfortable. That could have just been a reaction to the noise, but regardless, Sammy asked, "Do these tapes mean anything to you?" The searcher nodded. "Good. It's going to be okay, Grant. Look who we have here," Sammy motioned at Bendy. "He will set us free."

"Stop. Please," The searcher begged, "I don't want to be here. I don't want to remember what's happened. I don't even understand how I'm still alive. I slid out from between the bars of that cage and fell to my death. Is... this Hell?"

"This isn't Hell," Alice answered, "Look, it's really hard to explain. But just let us kill you and-"

"What!?" the ink creature whispered in alarm. Its instinct was suddenly to run. Alice out her rope and lassoed the Searcher. She drew him in close. In a panic, he grabbed her wrist, which immediately began to burn. She tore it away immediately to reveal that her left hand had nearly melted off. That was it. She took out her machete, and struck. It cut through the newly-formed searcher like butter. She dropped the machete and grabbed the soul, which she passed along to Bendy.

"Alice, what did you just do? That's not how the Church of Unity treats a lost sheep. I could have explained everything to him."

"Sorry, but I'm a miracle worker, not a therapist. I didn't survive this long by taking chances."

Sammy looked thoughtful a moment. "You know, I could kill you with a single touch, but you're one of the toughest people I've met down here. I need someone to look after my people once I'm gone. Alice, what if I chose you? With my endorsement, and that of our lord, they'd surely accept it."

"Sammy, that's really sudden. But, I was hoping that your church would open up to me at least a little. I'm not like you. I'm not good with giving people hope, or a reason to keep going, or any of that. But I could separate these souls out and send them to heaven. If we can't save them like you're being saved, well, it's what's best for them."

"So you agree?"

"If there's no one else to do it, then yes. I'll do it, Sammy."

"Thank you."

The two shared a firm handshake just as Henry dragged himself out of one of the puddles of ink. Alice helped Henry to his feet and then promptly slapped him across the face. Sammy followed suit.

"That's for running ahead of us without a weapon! Henry, what could've happened if the butcher gang had caught up with you a little sooner?"

"Alright, point taken. I guess I was just in a bit of a panic, is all. The important thing is that everyone made it out okay."

"Yeah. And uh, thanks. Fer savin' my life."

"Anytime, little guy." He turned back to Alice. "I didn't know that you and Sammy would be getting along. It's nice to see. Anyhow, who's soul is there left to save?"

Alice started giggling. "No one's, Henry. We're done. We just need to revive them now. Let's go to Boris' hideout so I can fix up these souls."

"Oh. Well, okay. Sammy, we're probably going to be playing cards. Do you like cards, or should I just, you know..."

"Actually, I think I'll be wanting his company, if he's alright with that."

"I certainly am."

[aquariusxiv]

Strike! AU magic

Strike! has a very unique class system in that a class defines only what overall mechanics you can use and actively encourages a total reskin or refluff if you want - on the one hand, it's easy to make a concept work, on the other you gotta start with a concept rather than start with your class (I'll just play a cleric since we need a healer) and then letting your concept grow over time.

Still, that flexibility appeals to me. One of the classes, shapechanger, is generally intended to be a druid-like wild shape class; but one of the suggested reskins is for a Metroid-like suit of powered armour that has different offensive modes or functions you can activate. Necromancer works fine as an actual necromancer, but I quickly saw it could be used to play a Diplomacy-based negotiator character that (after an enemy is roughed up a bit) convinces them to fight on your side.

So because I'm sick and bored, I wanted to do an experiment: Take five character concepts, identify the role and class they would be normally.

Then keep the role the same, randomly roll for class, and see how that changes/would fit the concept.

Using my own characters from LARPS or MMO roleplaying, with the caveat that I can only use one Valentein because otherwise they'd all be similar concepts.

Strike! has five roles: Leader (healer/buffer), Defender (tank), Striker (focused damage-dealer), Controller (debuffer), Blaster (area damage-dealer) and eleven classes: Necromancer (uses defeated enemies as a resource), archer (ranged attacker), martial artist (stance fighter), warlord (party support), magician (ranged fighter with vancian spell slots), bombardier (area attacker), shapechanger (can change into a different form once per encounter, so different type of stance fighter), summoner (summons static zone or power effects), buddies (pet class), rogue (class powers focus entirely on mobility rather than attacks.)

- Leader (Epoch) - - Valentein Prince, Scholar of the Arcane, Archmage, Lord-Accountant of the Carreg Wynn Cavaliers, Commander of the Carreg Wynn Guard, Zell of the No'Jiyuu Pryde, Scion of Familia Flaccara, Apprentice to the Goddess Malabascamabara, Slayer of Cascadian, and Prime of Carreg Wynn -

Epoch Valentein, because I really want him to be, would be a Necromancer Leader. Despite being a priest of a nominally undead-banning religion (a mite bit heretical) his skill with Essence and Void-aligned magic grants him the ability to animate and revive dead and dying bodies - serving to both subvert enemies and heal allies.

Roll the dice and... Buddies, essentially a pet class but can work as two characters fighting as a duo. Ok.

- Buddies Leader - - Prime Valentein Amaris and Talon Knight Leona Rey -

A personal bodyguard, Leona is armed and armoured. The Leader-powered healing magic originates from Valentein, but Leona has a majority of offensive and defensive manoeuvres.

Leona is healthier and sturdier than Valen is, so taking the Super-Buddy feature represents that. Leona has some typical tanky passives - Brave to intercept hits, Tough to be armoured - and some weapon-related Actives - Focused to mark, Pushy to knock away. They work as a team to support their allies.

- Defender (Secrets of Magic) - - Łukasz Żelazowski, Lendzianie Knight -

Łukasz would be a Martial Artist Defender, the mechanical 'stances' of the class being represented by different weapons and equipment he carries with him. At his core, he is a nonmagic character who is super tough and tanky.

Roll the dice and... Martial Artist. And... Martial Artist. AND... Martial Artist.

One more time... finally, Magician. Wow.

Magicians are inherently ranged fighters who can pick several of many spell options, made for people who like the utility of D&D wizards - not really fitting with a nonmagical fighter. Łukasz does also have some connections with death magic, since I was considering making him a necro-knight, but that never actually took shape. However, looking at the Blood Magic class feature - spending some of his own inner essence to generate otherworldly abilities - and the fact that there are defensive and melee-ranged spell effects in the Magician's kit we can assemble him into some kinda Witcher.

- Magician Defender - - Łukasz the Returned, Demon Hunter -

Dying an honourable death and glimpsing the dark powers that wait to swallow souls, Łukasz willingly allowed himself to be resurrected by a draconic sorceress in order to defend his world.

Magician Features: Ranged Basic becomes range 10 - Łukasz can slash a sword wind to hit at a distance.

Blood Adept: Łukasz can put more of his life essence into his attacks to increase their potency. Only once his blood has been spilled can he access higher-level supernatural effects - probably something a restricting or making vulnerable nature. Eventually he gains a Blood Curse - when he is Taken Out, he can spend his life energy on a major spell effect - used to make normally invincible demons vincible.

- Striker (Elegy) - - Crow, Wilder Survivor -

Crow was the dumbass last survivor of a dumbass Wilder forest clan that wandered over to Bartertown because his dumbass family was dead. He had shit luck with firearms, his 'old trusty' revolver jamming every time he fired it, so he relies mostly on a machete and getting the hell away from trouble to not die. He can swing a good hit when he lands, so overall he sounds like a Rogue Striker - prioritizing mobility and evasiveness to fancy attacks.

Roll the dice... Archer.

Crow's original concept was supposed to be more of a highwayman until I decided not to actively seek PvP and could not get a working dart gun for the life of me. So, let's hew close to that concept...

- Archer Striker - - Crow, Wretch Highwayman -

Leaning into 'soft control', Crow picks up Sentinel and a well-cared for revolver to take down those that get too close to him, or something he cares about. Focusing on opportune strikes he delivers the damage at range to multiple targets. Taking a trophy from every victim, he wears mostly black leather.

- Controller (Ultima Online) - - Dark Lord Ultimus, Vampire Mage -

Well, since I was 13, he'd probably also be a Necromancer but his original build in UO hewed closer to a Summoner Controller. Using mage abilities to summon elemental creatures to ensnare, bamboozle, and confound his targets. Also he's half-drow for maximum emo. Atlantic-shard UO Roleplay was... a lot.

Roll the dice... Shapechanger. Hm.

Well, he's already undead and half-drow. There's something there, right?

- Shapechanger Controller - - Tathkah Eilsett, Death-Cursed Shade -

Ultimus fluctuated through several concepts in my turbulent youth. One that stuck with me was his 'Shade' that came up when he was hiding his identity for some reason - emotionless and quiet, with more direct shadow powers in place of his elemental magic.

With this concept, he can manifest traits of different undead as his form power: Wraith (Hawk), Mummy (Viper), Shade (Kraken).

Manifesting the Wraith form lets him fly with moderate insubstantiability (no major changes needed to the flight power, since it already makes you untargetable).

The Mummy form lets him spread a curse that eats away at a foe's life-force.

Shade (for lack of a better idea) lets him grab multiple targets with shadowy tendrils, siphoning away their life-force.

- Blaster (Guild Wars) - - Warmaster Victor, Ascalonian Elementalist -

Cheating a bit, since this character was technically a Valentein but that really only stuck because I didn't want to remake the character with a new name. One of the names I was considering with Victor, so here we are. Elementalists in Guild Wars (1) are area-damage magical casters; Bombardier has mechanics that are best used by a non-magical concept, so he'd be a Magician Blaster. Hailing from the farms in Ashford, he joined the army as a battlemage.

Rolling the dice gives us... Rogue.

- Rogue Blaster - - Lightbringer Victor, Order of Whispers Elementalist -

The Order of Whispers, in opposition to the Ascalonian Army, teaches ways to move about in secret and to fight Torment Demons. Victor applies his elemental knowledge to move about in gusts of wind, travel on streams of water, shaped earth, or jets of fire. He uses his wide-ranging magic to affect groups of foes with status effects - blinding lightning, poisoned water, burning fire, and ankle-breaking stone.

So for some like Łukasz, the class affected the concept more than others - Crow just fought in a different way, whereas Łukasz changed specialties entirely from a fighter to a mage-knight. Something like this might be interesting to do as an in-game adventure. A divine curse or magical effect might have rewritten the party's history or changed their cutie marks around, resulting in a changed moveset for a spell until the bad guy is defeated. I dunno!

[thisdaynews]

World Cup 2026: Meet the future North American stars dreaming of success

New Post has been published on https://thebiafrastar.com/world-cup-2026-meet-the-future-north-american-stars-dreaming-of-success/

World Cup 2026: Meet the future North American stars dreaming of success

At the Under-17 World Cup in Brazil this November, the US, Mexico and Canada took to the international stage – with thoughts already turning to the 2026 World Cup that will be hosted by the three nations.

Here, BBC Sport profiles three players – one from each country – who are already being described as future stars who could make their mark at the tournament.

Alvarez has a dog called Salah – named after the Liverpool forward

Efrain Alvarez (LA Galaxy & Mexico)

Date of birth: 19 June 2002

Position: Midfielder

Efrain Alvarez might just be the most coveted North American footballer since Freddy Adu. The 17-year-old LA Galaxy forward has been called “by far the biggest talent in the MLS” by none other than Zlatan Ibrahimovic.It’s little surprise then, that he’s the subject of an international tug-of-war.

Born in California to immigrant parents from Mexico, ‘Efra’ grew up in east Los Angeles and joined the Galaxy Under-9s when he was seven years old. Even at that age he was attracting some very influential admirers.

One of his matches that season was watched by Eric Cantona. Legend has it the former Manchester United player – then director of football at New York Cosmos – was in town for a few under-17s and under-19s games. But it was Alvarez who caught his eye, with Cantona saying:“I’ve seen enough; I just want to watch this kid all day.”

The Frenchman moved on but Alvarez progressed. For the under-14s, he scored a Cantona-esque lobfor his 24th goal in 19 games, and when he turned professional by joining the Galaxy’s second team aged 15 years and one month, he became the youngest signing in United Soccer League history, usurping Alphonso Davies, the Canadian now playing for Bayern Munich.

Alvarez is deployed mainly as a creative number 10 and has a left foot that can split defences in a second. He pairs it with an innate knack for finding the back of the net. The youngest player to hit a hat-trick in the USL Championship, he scored 12 goals for Galaxy II on the way to being named their 2018 Young Player of the Year. After making his first-team debut in March this year, he contributed three assists in 14 MLS appearances.

Ibrahimovic – who left Galaxy in November – has had nothing but praise for his protege.

“You see when he plays, he’s all natural: the way he thinks, the way he moves the ball, the way he touches the ball,” the Swedish striker told reporters in July. “He’s by far the biggest talent in the MLS. He thinks football. He has that football in him, and it’s natural.”

Alvarez has always been regarded as the standout in a family that, he says, has “football in our blood”. Two of his older siblings have played professionally, with brother Carlos now at Las Vegas Lights alongside, as fate would have it, a 28-year-old Adu – one player who did not quite live up to the billing he was given as a teenager.

Yet while everything is sweet at the Galaxy, at national team level there have been hiccups. Alvarez represented the USA for three years and even captained the country’s under-15s at a youth tournament in Argentina, scoring a hat-trick en route to the title. Yet two months later, after a run of just one start in four games, he decided to ditch red, white and blue in favour of Mexican green.

The 23 potential World Cup 2026 venues in Canada, the United States and Mexico – 16 will be selected

“There were and still are no decisive factors, really,” Alvarez tells BBC Sport when asked about his decision to switch. “It’s just wherever I am happy. Right now, I’m happy with Mexico so, as long as I’m happy, it’s going to be Mexico. But in the future you never know.”

This November, Alvarez helped Mexico reach the final of the Under-17 World Cup – where they lost 2-1 to hosts Brazil.

Marco Ruiz, Mexico Under-17 coach, describes him as “very promising”, “committed” and “important to me”, yet despite being involved in more goals than any of his team-mates, Alvarez was also often the first player to be substituted. Boasting a thickset build reminiscent of a young Carlos Tevez, he does not share the Argentine’s tireless running and completed 90 minutes just once in Brazil.

“I have talked to him about dynamics,” Ruiz adds. “He needs to be a little bit more dynamic; if he moves a little faster, he will find better spaces to take advantage of all his talent.”

Alvarez’s World Cup campaign in a microcosm came in the semi-final against the Netherlands. Starting on the bench, he was introduced in the 73rd minute, equalised in the 79th, then in the shoot-out struck a horrible ‘Panenka’ penalty that was easily saved. Mexico still went through, and afterwards he suggested – in a very Zlatan-like way – that he would do it again: “Most do not dare. I dared.”

Somewhat enigmatically, Alvarez says he does not remember where he was when he learned North America will host the 2026 World Cup. Nor is he willing to gaze too far into the future. “I obviously want to go to every World Cup I can, every tournament, every game,” he says. “I don’t want to miss one game. But I take everything day by day, I don’t like to look too far forward.”

Giovanni Reyna (Borussia Dortmund & USA)

Date of birth: 13 November 2002

Position: Forward

Reyna has been playing in the U19 Bundesliga this season

The United States disappointed in Brazil, exiting the group stage following heavy defeats by Senegal and the Netherlands and a 0-0 draw with Japan. If their much-hyped forward Giovanni Reyna is seeking solace, he need not look too far from home.

Reyna’s father Claudio – who played for Rangers, Sunderland and Manchester City – crashed out of the same tournament in 1989 before going on to captain the USA at the 2002 and 2006 World Cups. Similarly, current US skipper Christian Pulisic failed to reach the knock-outs in 2015 yet is now setting the Premier League alight with Chelsea following a move from Borussia Dortmund.

‘Gio’ Reyna may then process the pain of the past month as a positive, as a rite of passage that all successful American soccer players must go through. Named after Giovanni van Bronckhorst, his dad’s former team-mate at Rangers, perhaps the hardest thing to accept will be that, arguably for the first time in his fledgling career, he was not the standout performer among players his own age.

Reyna was born in England and has been regarded as the jewel of his generation for more than a decade. Comparisons with America’s soccer sweetheart Pulisic were perhaps inevitable, but they sharpened this summer when, aged 16, Reyna signed for Dortmund after gaining a Portuguese passport through his paternal grandmother, Maria. The German club’s assistant manager, Jorg Heinrich, says Reyna is “similar… or maybe a little bit better” than 21-year-old Pulisic.

Such talk does not faze a teenager who has been encircled by expectation since his days dominating at Under-9 level aged five years old. Now 6ft 1in, he has an assertive presence on the field, can read a game well and is at his best when driving at pace towards defenders. He carries the ball quickly, but in a style closer to one of his favourite players, Kaka, than his compatriot Pulisic.

“Of course, it’s nice to be compared to Christian because he’s the best American player right now, but really I would like to create my own path,” Reyna, who exchanges messages with Pulisic, tells BBC Sport.

“It’s good to have someone only a few years older than me that I can look up to. We have similarities, but we are very different players, so I think some years down the line we can make a good duo.”

Media playback is not supported on this device

Three countries react to getting the World Cup 2026 bid

During Under-17 World Cup qualifying Reyna scored six times in six games, and in Brazil he wore the captain’s armband despite being the third-youngest player in the squad. “Gio is one of the best players I’ve ever coached in this age group,” says his US manager Raphael Wicky. “He’s a special player; a lot of technical ability. He can make a difference.”

At just 17, there are obvious areas to improve. In the 4-1 loss to Senegal, Reyna failed to find a way to impose himself on the game, and after the 4-0 defeat by the Netherlands his reluctance to press was highlighted by the Dutch coach as a reason for the comfortable scoreline. Wicky, however, believes his young captain is now in the perfect place to learn.

“Gio has made the big step up and at Dortmund there is no red carpet,” says Wicky, a former Switzerland defensive midfielder who spent 10 years playing in the Bundesliga. “You have to prove yourself every day. If you don’t, someone else will take your place. Gio has a lot of the qualities that a player needs, but football is not only attacking; it’s defending, commitment, mentality. That’s something he’ll learn at a top club in Germany. And if he learns that, 100% he will be there at the World Cup in 2026.”

For now at least, Brazil appears to be a mere bump in the road. In July, Reyna made his first start for Dortmund in a pre-season friendly against Liverpool and two months later coach Lucien Favre included him in his Champions League squad. No surprise then, that seven years seems like too long a wait.

“Of course 2026 is there, but for me, my goal is to be at the next World Cup,” he says. “I’ll be 19 by then and I think, all going to plan, I am more than capable of making it.”

Jayden Nelson (Canada & Toronto FC II)

Date of birth: 26 September 2002

Position: Forward

Nelson was nicknamed ‘The Canadian Valderrama’ by fans

There is a joke among the parents of Canada Under-17 players that the only thing bigger than Jayden Nelson’s afro is his potential. Born in Toronto but raised about 30 miles to the west in the suburban city of Brampton, he started out at the same club as Cardiff City’s Junior Hoilett, Brampton YSC.

A fearless winger with electric feet and an eye for goal, Nelson was playing for Canada Under-12s by the age of nine and within two years had been picked to join the academy of MLS outfit Toronto FC. On his reserve-team debut in April aged 16, he created three clear-cut chances in an eight-minute cameo. He has also since trained with the first team.

“Jayden’s strengths are in his ability to take people on, but what compelled us to put him in a professional environment was the confidence he has,” says Michael Rabasca, the Toronto reserve team coach who has since used Nelson in a further 13 games. “He has developed a confidence that enables him to succeed and perform each and every week.”

Again, playing at the Under-17 World Cup in Brazil held particular significance. Nelson grew up studying videos of Ronaldinho and the way he runs is more than a little similar: right foot repeatedly kissing the ball, silky body feints and stepovers. “I like how he took players on and how his motto was always to play free,” he says of the former Barcelona star. “It’s something I try to implement in my game too.”

Nelson – who is also eligible to represent Jamaica – netted five times, including a hat-trick against Guatemala, to help secure Canada’s place at November’s tournament. Yet with his country having never won a World Cup game at six previous Under-17 competitions, he was always unlikely to prove more than a tournament footnote. Three defeats sent Canada home after a week, but if one player did not deserve to be on the losing side in a cruel 1-0 defeat by New Zealand, it was the big-haired number 11 who fans nicknamed ‘The Canadian Valderrama’.

Nelson proved a tireless menace as Canada dominated possession. He had a goal chalked off by the video assistant referee and his constant dribbling was appreciated by the vocal Brazilian crowd, if not always by his coaches. There is, after all, a fine line between self-assurance and selfishness. “When you are facing four or five guys, it’s probably not the best time to go it alone,” says Rabasca. “Jayden has his strengths, but now he needs to learn how to incorporate his talent to the benefit of the team.”

For his part, Nelson – consistently described as humble and respectful by those who know him best – is aware his decision-making must improve if he is to realise his dream. “Honestly, since I can remember, I’ve always wanted to be a professional soccer player,” he says. “I knew I played for fun, but also knew I could go far because of the comments I was getting.

“Going forward, I’m going to be playing with older, smarter and bigger players, so I need to know when to dribble and when to pass. If I train more, work harder and stay humble though, I like to think 2026 is a realistic goal.”

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[ultrasfcb-blog]

EFL: Manager and players sent off on day of dismissals and new records

EFL: Manager and players sent off on day of dismissals and new records

EFL: Manager and players sent off on day of dismissals and new records

Southend goalkeeper Mark Oxley was one of three players sent off in stoppage time against Charlton

September, September. Summer is in its final throes and schools will soon be starting back for a new year.

The first day of a new month featured some warm sunshine and seemingly a few hot collars both on and off the pitch as tempers flared.

Managers and players were being handed their marching orders, with nine red cards shown on the pitch across the three divisions and a couple off it for those the other side of the touchline.

Meanwhile, one boss had an uncomfortable watch from the stands of his new employers in action.

Good Evans! – Posh boss dismissed on touchline

Peterborough United have been pulling up a few trees with their impressive start to the campaign in League One, but on Saturday their boss was the centre of attention for the wrong reasons.

Steve Evans has never been one to shy away from the limelight, but on this occasion he may have been wise to have done so.

Posh dropped their first points of the season in a 1-1 draw at home to Doncaster, a club managed by Evans’ predecessor at the ABAX Stadium, Grant McCann.

Evans and assistant manager Paul Raynor were sent off by referee Darren Bond in the closing stages, having both previously been cautioned.

Referee Darren Bond showed Peterborough boss Steve Evans two yellow cards

“I’ve not seen the FA in a while, but I suspect I’ll be seeing them next week,” Evans said after the game.

“If the fourth official deems being half-a-yard outside the technical area is worthy of a second yellow card, then that’s not what the League Managers’ Association were told in the summer meetings by the officials’ body.

“Mrs Evans won’t be happy when I’m giving them some money, but hopefully someone can explain the decision to me.”

A red mist by the seaside

Sticking with the theme of red cards – there were three of them in Southend United’s meeting with Charlton Athletic at Roots Hall.

They were all shown in time added on, two to the hosts and one to the visitors, who incidentally came away 2-1 winners.

Referee Brett Huxtable tries valiantly to keep the peace late on between Southend and Charlton

Referee Brett Huxtable dismissed Shrimpers duo goalkeeper Mark Oxley and winger Michael Kightly along with the Addicks’ midfielder Tariqe Fosu after an 18-man kerfuffle between the two teams.

All this had come moments after a late header from Krystian Bielik had seen the Addicks snatch the three points.

“Hurry up Harry!”

It’s been an eventful week on and off the pitch at Notts County. They started the week with Kevin Nolan in charge and ended it with Harry Kewell as incoming manager.

But there was a familiarity at the end of it all – County were on the wrong end of the scoreline.

Harry Kewell (right) watched his new club from the stands alongside Notts County owner Alan Hardy

Former Leeds and Liverpool striker Kewell, 39, left fellow League Two club Crawley for the banks of the River Trent on Friday and was watching on from the stands as his new club were beaten 3-1 at home by Forest Green Rovers.

Mark Crossley took caretaker charge of the Magpies, but there were scenes of discontent as many home supporters headed for the exits early as the hosts conceded their third.

“Harry didn’t have any input into today’s team selection,” Crossley told BBC Radio Nottingham at full-time. “It’s been a very tough week. I’m disappointed with the result.

“I understand now why managers don’t sleep at night, because I didn’t last night.

“We’ll be in tomorrow, the new manager is excited. Luckily for him we are only six games in”.

Luckily indeed as County are rock bottom of League Two with just a point to their name.

Incidentally, Kewell’s former employers Crawley fared little better as they were beaten 2-1 at Oldham by a late winner from Sam Surridge.

Pope sets new club record

Some things in life are certainties. Births, marriages, deaths and Tom Pope goals for Port Vale.

It was a day to remember for the 33-year-old as he became the club’s new record goalscorer at Vale Park, notching his 56th strike in front of his own supporters.

Tom Pope found the net once again at Vale Park but could not inspire his side to a home win against Newport

But despite surpassing Stan Steele’s previous tally of 55 with a thundering first-half header, Pope was unable to steer the Valiants to victory against Newport County.

Pope’s three spells with the club, stretching back to an initial loan spell from Rotherham in early 2011 have included 91 goals in all competitions from 248 appearances.

On another day, he could have had more than the record-breaking one as he hit the post with a first-half header and also had a penalty appeal turned down.

“In 20 years time I might sit in the pub and tell people that I was record goalscorer at Vale Park, but when you’re losing games, it’s the last thing you want to think about,” Pope told the club’s website.

A 118-year-old home banker

And talking of records – how about this one for a club that would be seemingly happy to play the same opposition at home every week.

While a goalless draw in League One between Walsall and Blackpool may not have appeared much on the surface, it did stretch the Saddlers’ impregnability against the Tangerines on home soil to 18 matches.

You have to go back to September 1900 for the last time Blackpool were victorious at Walsall.

I’m not sure how many travelling fans made the trip that day, but maybe they’ve passed the story down through the generations who are still waiting for success at the Banks’s Stadium.

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Belgium vs Panama: Live World Cup score, goals and updates

Belgium’s so-called golden generation begin their World Cup campaign against finals debutants Panama in Sochi.

Chelsea forward Eden Hazard, Manchester City playmaker Kevin De Bruyne and Manchester United striker Romelu Lukaku are among the attacking options in Roberto Martinez’s squad.

Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois and defenders Vincent Kompany, Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld provide strength at the other end of the pitch.

Opponents Panama are the fifth lowest ranked team in the competition and playing in a World Cup for the first time.

BELGIUM 0-0 PANAMA

Belgium XI: Courtois, Alderweireld, Boyata, Vertonghen, Meunier, Witsel, De Bruyne, Carrasco, Mertens, E. Hazard, R. Lukaku.

Panama XI: Penedo, Murillo, Escobar, Torres, Davis, Gomez, Godoy, Cooper, Rodriguez, Barcenas, Perez.

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Belgium vs Panama: Live World Cup score, goals and updates

BELGIUM 0-0 PANAMA

15: Referee Janny Sikazwe makes a fairly poor decision to book Thomas Meunier. And I’m not just saying that because he’s in my World Cup fantasy football team.

14: Close! That would have been painful for Panama’s Roman Torres. His terrible backpass is intercepted by Eden Hazard, who sliced it into the side-netting. Should be 1-0.

11: It’s all looking a bit ominous I’m afraid. Panama are being suffocated by Belgium, who haven’t shifted into second gear yet. Perhaps a bit of stage fright?

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Belgium vs Panama: Live World Cup score, goals and updates

8: Eden Hazard weaves his way forward and spots the overlap from Carrasco, who tamely strikes at Penedo. The goalkeeper is drawn into action a few seconds later by tipping Mertens’ effort over.

5: Huge roar as Panama win themselves a free-kick. Boyata was the culprit. The box is loaded, Davis to deliver… easily cleared and Courtois plucks the rebound out of the sky.

3: Oh, hello Mark Lawrenson. Good to have you in the commentary box this afternoon…

It didn’t take long for Belgium to carve out their opening chance. 59 seconds to be precise. KDB crosses over for Romelu Lukaku, who shanks it miles wide.

1: I’m afraid that I wasn’t totally impressed with the national anthems from these two, but the award goes to Panama for a higher decibel level inside the stadium. We’re underway…

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Belgium vs Panama: Live World Cup score, goals and updates

THE PLAYERS ARE OUT

15:55: And here they come! Belgium and Panama emerge from the tunnel to a reasonably full Fisht Olympic Stadium.

I’m not going to complain about the attendance given Saint Petersburg is located 2,355.8km from Sochi.

Time for the national anthems. I haven’t got a clue what the Panama one sounds like.

THE FINAL COUNTDOWN…

15:50: There’s roughly three hours until England get their World Cup campaign underway folks, and my anxiety level are through the roofe!

I’ve had Three Lions on repeat for the last 12 hours and fully convinced myself that we’re going to win the tournament.

I’ll be here to guide you through all the thrills, spills and bellyaches a little bit later.

GETTY

Belgium vs Panama: Live World Cup score, goals and updates

PANAMA

15:45: Here’s a small fact file on Panama’s national side. I’ve added a few facts about the country that might surprise you too. I’m nice like that.

Coach: Hernan Dario Gomez, Star player: Blas Perez, World Cup best: Debut

What are their chances? Panama have been edging closer to reaching the World Cup finals for the first time in recent tournaments and crossed the line this time thanks to a last-gasp 2-1 victory over Costa Rica in their final qualifier. Little is expected of them and it would be a huge shock to either Belgium or England if they beat them to the second round.

*Panama has more than 976 bird species, which is more than the United States and Canada combined.

*Panama has the second-largest duty-free zone in the world, the Colon Free Zone, second in size only to Hong Kong.

Probably my favourite ever facts.

NO THANKS…

15:40: I believe Gary Lineker has just volunteered Phil Neville, Danny Murphy, Cesc Fabregas and himself to strip naked if Panama win the World Cup.

You would have thought that resenting Match of the Day in his underwear would have taught him a lesson…

Panama’s president (whose name escapes me…) declared a national holiday after Panama sealed qualification in October.

Can we have one of those please?

GETTY

Belgium vs Panama: Live World Cup score, goals and updates

COURTOIS EXPECTS…

15:35: Eden Hazard is in the best form of his life but that doesn’t matter to his Chelsea colleague Thibaut Courtois, who still wants more.

You just can’t please some people, right?

The Belgians are considered a good outside bet to lift the World Cup for the first time and start the tournament against rank outsiders Panama in Group G.

Courtois said his Chelsea team mate Hazard, who scored the winning goal in the FA Cup final last month, was highly motivated.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen him train or play as amazing as in the last three games,” Courtois told reporters. “I think he has reached another level of his game.”

“I don’t think it is only Eden we need at his best,” the Chelsea keeper added. “I think we need Romelu (Lukaku) to score goals, for Kevin (De Bruyne) to play like at (Manchester) City. I think if you want to go far you need your players to be at their best.”

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Belgium vs Panama: Live World Cup score, goals and updates

TWITTER ROUND-UP

Chris: This afternoon’s game between Panama and Belgium is the first time we’ll have seen a proper mis-match of playing ability in this World Cup. Big scoreline inbound…

Tom: Still waiting for one of the World Cup “contenders” to play an impressive opening match. Wonder if Belgium might be the first to do so as they are far better than Panama.

Sean: Time too watch Belgium! Should hammer Panama on paper but not expecting anything after this week. 2-0 maybe 3-0 I’m saying though.

The people have spoken, and they all agree that Panama are going to take a beating.

BIG MONEY…

15:25: I’ve just heard that the 2018 FIFA World Cup is set to become the most wagered event of all time, with as much as £1.5 billion being staked on the tournament.

£1.5billion?! The boffins down at BonusCodeBets.co.uk found that the total amount wagered equates to £4,000 per second.

I don’t know about these punters, but I haven’t won a sausage from my series of mahussive £1 stakes.

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Belgium vs Panama: Live World Cup score, goals and updates

TEAM NEWS – PANAMA

15:20: Now I’ll admit my knowledge of the Panama squad isn’t as strong as my love of the trademark hat would suggest.

Panama, who are playing their first ever World Cup match, start with a 4-1-4-1 formation with 37-year old striker Blas Perez, who scored the goal that secured their qualification, leading the line up front.

TEAM NEWS – BELGIUM

15:15: OK, let’s see what Roberto Martinez has done with this starting XI.

There aren’t too many surprises with Dries Mertens, Romelu Lukaku and Eden Hazard forming the three-pronged attack.

The injured Vincent Kompany is replaced by Celtic’s Dedryck Boyata, while Tottenham duo Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen are also included.

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Belgium vs Panama: Live World Cup score, goals and updates

PRIVILEGED…

15:05: Roberto Martinez knows he’s a lucky boy to have this star-studded squad at his disposal.

Makes a change from the Wigan days I suppose. Although Gary Caldwell shouldn’t be underestimated…

Anyway, the glittering array of talent has seen Belgium installed as one of the tournament favourites and Spaniard Martinez hopes he can mould his individual stars into an effective team unit.

“We’ve said it for a long time now, we’re privileged to have this sort of group of players, not just with their skills – their skills are essential – but I think it’s more their attitude and the way they are ambassadors for Belgian football,” said Martinez.

“In Belgium we’ve got a population of 11 million and to produce these sort of players is not by accident or coincidence, it’s a lot of work. Now we have got players that are very important at club level and what we want to do is bring them together in the national team.

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Belgium vs Panama: Live World Cup score, goals and updates

THE TEAM ARRIVES…

15:00: And here ate your line-ups , folks. Roberto Martinez makes the big decision to start Celtic defender Dedryck Boyata ahead of Manchester City’s Vincent Kompany.

Belgium XI: Courtois, Alderweireld, Boyata, Vertonghen, Meunier, Witsel, De Bruyne, Carrasco, Mertens, E. Hazard, R. Lukaku.

Subs: Mignolet, Casteels, Kompany, Dendoncker, Hazard, Tielemans, Dembele, Fellaini, Chadli, Januzaj, Batshuayi.

Panama XI: Penedo, Murillo, Escobar, Torres, Davis, Gomez, Godoy, Cooper, Rodriguez, Barcenas, Perez.

Subs: Claderon, A Rodriguez, Cummings, G Torres, Diaz, Machado, Pimentel, Arroyo, Ovalle, Tejada, Avila, Baloy.

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Belgium vs Panama: Live World Cup score, goals and updates

REUTERS

Belgium vs Panama: Live World Cup score, goals and updates

REUTERS

Belgium vs Panama: Live World Cup score, goals and updates

HAVE YOUR SAY

14:45: If you want to vent your frustrations, or discuss any issues in the world of football (within reason), then get in touch!

You can either comment at the bottom of the page or contact me via Twitter using the hashtag #ExpressSport.

WELCOME

14:40: Hello everyone, welcome to our LIVE coverage of the World Cup.

How’s everyone feeling today? Don’t worry if you’ve been working and missed today’s opener between Sweden and South Korea, because the main events are still to come.

England opener their World Cup campaign a little later this evening, but first their Group G rivals Belgium take on the mighty Panama…

Panama are the fifth lowest ranked team in the competition and playing in a World Cup for the first time.

Could we see a few goals? I think it’s a certainty. Standby for team news and line-ups.

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