ZURICH (AP) ― Cristiano Ronaldo’s match-winning goals for Portugal in World Cup playoff matches against Sweden lifted his country to No. 5 in the monthly FIFA rankings.Portugal’s 1-0 and 3-2 wins fueled a nine-place jump in the standings published Thursday as rivals played only friendly matches which score fewer points in the calculations.FIFA set World Cup seedings for the Dec. 6 draw from October rankings so playoff teams would not gain unfair advantage.Spain leads an unchanged top four from G

LONDON (AP) ― Nine-time winner Real Madrid qualified for the Champions League’s last 16 alongside Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday, while Juventus kept alive its chances of reaching the knockout stage.Madrid, which only needed a draw at home to Galatasaray to clinch top spot in Group B, won 4-1 with goals from Gareth Bale, Alvaro Arbeloa, Angel Di Maria and Isco.Juventus claimed its first win of the campaign and moved into second place in the same group with a 3-1 victory o

SAO PAULO (AP) ― Part of the stadium that will host the 2014 World Cup opener collapsed Wednesday, killing two workers and aggravating already urgent concerns Brazil won’t be ready for soccer’s signature tournament.The accident at the Arena Corinthians, known locally as the Itaquerao, could hardly have come at a worse time ― just a week ahead of the draw that will determine the tournament’s schedule and with the top names in soccer all descending on Brazil.Preparations have been plagued by setba

Ten-man Ajax held on for a shock 2-1 win over Barcelona on Tuesday to keep alive its hopes of qualifying for the knockout stages of the Champions League.The young Amsterdam team dominated the first half against a Barcelona side that had already qualified and took a well-deserved 2-0 lead into the break thanks to goals from Thulani Serero and Danny Hoesen.But Ajax gifted Barcelona a way back into the Group H match almost immediately after the break when Joel Veltman brought down Neymar, earning t

FC Seoul head coach Choi Yong-soo in the top South Korean league has been named the top coach of 2013 in Asia.The K League Classic bench boss earned the Coach of the Year award at the annual Asian Football Confederation (AFC) awards ceremony in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, late Tuesday. He became the sixth South Korean coach to win the honor since the award was first presented in 1994, and the second straight after Kim Ho-gon of another K League Classic club, Ulsan Hyundai.This year, Choi's FC Seoul

Guus Hiddink, a Dutch soccer manager who led the South Korean squad to the 2002 World Cup finals, is set to receive knee surgery from a national team doctor here.  “Hiddink will visit Korea early next year and receive surgery on his right knee for arthritis,” said Song Joon-seop, head doctor of the Korean soccer team. Hiddink previously underwent an operation on his right knee in 2001, when he was the head coach of the Korean team.When he flew in to Seoul to cheer for the Korean team during a w

MANCHESTER, England (AP) ― Free-scoring Manchester City moved into the Premier League’s top four by embarrassing Tottenham 6-0, but Manchester United’s revival was halted by a late equalizer in a 2-2 draw at Cardiff on Sunday.Spurs arrived at Etihad Stadium with the league’s best defensive record but left having tied a record for its worst loss in the Premier League era, with Sergio Aguero and Jesus Navas both scoring twice for City.“It is impossible to play better than we did today,” said City

LONDON (AP) ― Arsenal extended its Premier League lead to four points with a 2-0 win over Southampton on Saturday while Liverpool was held to a 3-3 draw at Everton.Arsenal bounced back from a defeat to defending champion Manchester United with a dominant display, capped by two goals from Olivier Giroud. The first came after Southampton goalkeeper Artur Boruc bizarrely lost the ball to the France striker in the box.Substitute Daniel Sturridge salvaged a draw for Liverpool. Chelsea reasserted its

BARCELONA (AP) ― Barcelona forward Lionel Messi won a record third Golden Boot on Wednesday for scoring the most goals in Europe’s domestic leagues last season.The 26-year-old Messi helped Barcelona win the 2012-13 Spanish league by scoring 46 goals despite missing several games with a right hamstring injury near the end of the season.Messi also won the award for 34 goals in 2009-10, and a Spanish record 50 in 2011-12.The first player to receive the award three times, Messi dedicated his latest

France, Portugal reach World Cup

Despite suffering a loss in its final game of 2013 this week, the South Korean men’s national soccer team still showed hope for next year’s FIFA World Cup in Brazil.South Korea blew an early lead and lost 2-1 to Russia in Dubai on Tuesday. It foiled South Korea’s bid to close out the year on a three-game winning streak, after the country’s wins over Mali last month and Switzerland last week.Under head coach Hong Myung-bo, who was appointed in June, South Korea won three games, lost four and drew