Football

The loss of their star player has dented Brazil's chances of winning a record-extending sixth World Cup, and first on home soil.

"We have not yet delivered our very best performance," said Loew. "We are going against a class team from France, who have high motivations.

Brazil striker Neymar and Colombia playmaker Rodriguez have led their teams to the quarterfinals, dominating the attention and the scoring.

The coach has been there for everyone in the young Brazilian team carrying the responsibility of winning the World Cup at home.

The road to the semi finals is full of speed bumps and potholes and the team that negotiates these tight curves and bends best will reach the top four.

"We're very happy to have extended our coach's contract. With this extension we have made it clear that Mazzarri is a cornerstone of our project," Thohir said.

Romelu Lukaku and Kevin De Bruyne scored in extra time to give Belgium a 2-1 win over the United States and a spot in the World Cup quarter-finals.

The Dutch football association said on Tuesday that an MRI scan revealed the injury, almost certainly ruling De Jong out of the tournament.

Catch all the live updates from the Round of 16 match between Argentina and Switzerland at the Arena de Sao Paulo in Sao Paulo.

Neuer heroics and skipping abilities helped Germany scrap past Algeria 2-1 in extra time to move into the World Cup quarter-finals.

Germany and France snuffed out African hopes with hard-won victories over Algeria and Nigeria, while Suarez broke his silence to apologise for biting.

FIFA said the current edition of the World Cup is one of the best, stressing on the increased passion the tournament has caused, reflected by TV viewership.

Giggs, who briefly took over when United sacked David Moyes towards the end of last season, says he is "not quite ready" to become a manager.

The possibility of Brazil and Argentina meeting in the July 13 final has loomed closer ever since the South American giants were kept in opposite sides of the draw.

Suarez was also suspended from any football-related activity for four months and fined 100,000 Swiss francs for biting Italy's Giorgio Chiellini.

Algeria have qualified for the knockout stages for the first time, with Islam Slimani's headed equaliser giving his team a 1-1 draw against Russia.