Hakim Ziyech has been named in Morocco's World Cup squad after missing the Africa Cup of Nations due a fallout with the former national team head coach.

Vahid Halilhodzic opted to leave Chelsea playmaker Ziyech out of the squad for last the AFCON at the beginning of this year, explaining "Ziyech's behaviour does not fit the selection."

Ziyech responded by retiring from international football in February, but Halilhodzic's dismissal in August opened the door for a possible return.

New boss Walid Regragui reintroduced Ziyech into the squad for two friendlies in September, and despite his lack of minutes for Chelsea this season, the attacker features in Morocco's squad heading to Qatar.

Noussair Mazraoui, who played alongside Ziyech at Ajax, is another player Regragui opted to bring back into the fold after being exiled by Halilhodzic, and the Bayern Munich defender makes the World Cup squad.

Centre-back Nayef Aguerd is in despite missing three months with an ankle injury for West Ham in pre-season while Sevilla forward Youssef En-Nesyri is also named, Regragui undeterred by the striker failing to find the net in LaLiga this term.

Other notable names include Paris Saint-Germain's Achraf Hakimi, Sevilla goalkeeper Yassine Bounou, former Wolves defender Romain Saiss and Marseille's Amine Harit.

Morocco open up their World Cup campaign against Croatia on November 23 before facing Belgium four days later. Their final Group F match comes against Canada.

Morocco squad: Yassine Bounou (Sevilla), Munir El Kajoui (Al Wehda), Ahmed Reda Tagnaouti (Wydad Casablanca); Nayef Aguerd (West Ham), Yahia Attiat Allah (Wydad Casablanca), Badr Benoun (Qatar SC), Achraf Dari (Stade Brest), Jawad El Yamiq (Real Valladolid), Achraf Hakimi (Paris Saint-Germain), Noussair Mazraoui (Bayern Munich), Romain Saiss (Besiktas); Sofyan Amrabat (Fiorentina), Selim Amallah (Standard Liege), Bilal El Khannouss (Genk), Yahya Jabrane (Wydad Casablanca), Azzedine Ounahi (Angers), Abdelhamid Sabiri (Sampdoria); Zakaria Aboukhlal (Toulouse), Soufiane Boufal (Angers), Ilias Chair (Queens Park Rangers), Walid Cheddira (Bari), Youssef En-Nesyri (Sevilla), Abde Ezzalzouli (Osasuna), Abderrazak Hamdallah (Al Ittihad), Amine Harit (Marseille), Hakim Ziyech (Chelsea).

Gareth Southgate says Harry Maguire is one of England's "best centre-backs" after the defender was named among the Three Lions' Qatar 2022 World Cup squad.

The Manchester United captain will head to his third major tournament with the national team, following Russia 2018 and Euro 2020, despite struggling for regular minutes at club level.

One of a dozen players retained from the squad that reached the semi-finals four years ago, Maguire has been a regular for England under Southgate.

That experience in major knockout encounters has helped him keep his spot despite underwhelming for United, with inclusion indicating the strong support Southgate has for his player.

"He's one of our best centre-backs," he stated. "I think within the squad, we've got a lot of players that have been to tournaments, have performed at that level, and know what's required.

"We've got other players who are playing well, who are in form right at this moment, and we've got to balance all of that when picking our team."

Maguire's selection was expected but has nevertheless raised eyebrows amid the promising form of younger understudies, such as Milan's Fikayo Tomori and Crystal Palace's Marc Guehi.

Southgate suggested that, despite limited opportunities for Maguire, his youthful rivals had not shown enough to dislodge his faith in Maguire and others, such as Everton loanee Conor Coady.

"We've picked our more experienced defenders," he added. "In this moment in time, the younger ones have got some really good qualities.

"But we don't think they've done quite enough to push the more experienced ones out. With the tournament we're going into and the level of the matches, that had to be the pecking order."

Gareth Southgate says James Maddison "earned the right" to be called up to England's squad for the World Cup in Qatar.

Maddison's 22 Premier League goal involvements in 2022 are the second most among England players behind Harry Kane's 32.

But despite his impressive form this year, Maddison was not called up for England's Nations League games in September and, having not featured for the national team since 2019, there was a debate over whether he should be included in the squad for Qatar.

Thursday's announcement confirmed his seat on the plane, and Southgate says the Leicester City man deserves it.

"He's playing really well. He's a good player, we've always said he's a good player. He's earned the right," the England boss said.

"We think he can give us something slightly different to the other attacking players that we've got.

"We like the fact he finds those pockets of space. He plays forward, not enough players play forward in this day and age.

"His set-play delivery is outstanding. He can score goals from distance, which against low-block defences is another attribute which is a little different from our other players."

Maddison has only collected one cap, and his three-year absence for the Three Lions came after he was spotted in a casino the same evening he said he was too unwell to play for England.

But Southgate says this was not the reason for his exile, explaining: "That was unfortunate from his perspective because it became a bigger issue than it was for me.

"You end up in the papers, nobody likes that. But for me, that wasn't the drama that it seemed to be for everyone else. He's always been up against some really good players in that area of the pitch."

One of those to miss out on the squad was Roma's Tammy Abraham, who has only managed three Serie A goals this term after scoring 17 last season.

Southgate cited that poor form as the reason for his exclusion, saying: "Tammy's had a poor run of scoring form at the wrong time, really.

"It's not a case where we are three or four weeks away from the finals and the first match, we're now 10 days. Form could be more important.

"We don't really know with any of the players. We're watching their club form, but we don't know where they are until we see them face-to-face on the training pitch."

When asked which players he had spoken to in order to deliver the good or bad news, Southgate added: "I did speak to James [Maddison] because I think this morning there was a lot of speculation that James wouldn't be with us.

"We'd decided a couple of weeks ago that we would, but we weren't obviously going to go and tell him then.

"My priority always on these days is the difficult conversations and sad news, and that is really tough. There's not many situations in football harder than that.

"But the nature of those conversations, good and bad, reminds you of how much it means to a player to go to a World Cup. So it is a great day, but for some of those, I've had to disappoint them."

Gareth Southgate has recalled James Maddison and Callum Wilson to his England squad for the World Cup, with Kyle Walker also featuring.

Maddison has been in superb form for Leicester City this season, though his only previous cap for the Three Lions came in November 2019.

Yet his six Premier League goals and four assists have persuaded Southgate to hand the playmaker a recall along with Newcastle United striker Wilson, though like Maddison the last of his caps came three years ago.

Wilson and Maddison join Phil Foden, Raheem Sterling, Jack Grealish, Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Sako and Harry Kane, the winner of the Golden Boot at the 2018 World Cup, as the forwards heading to Qatar.

There is no room however for Tammy Abraham, who scored 27 goals for Roma last season but has managed just four this term, while Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Jadon Sancho and Ivan Toney also miss out.

Brentford striker Toney was included in Southgate's squad for England's September internationals, yet has not made the cut for Qatar despite being the Premier League's highest-scoring English player this season after Kane.

In defence, Southgate has been able to call on Manchester City defender Walker, who has been recovering from a groin issue, though Chelsea duo Reece James and Ben Chilwell are unavailable due to injury.

Trent Alexander-Arnold, Kieran Trippier and Luke Shaw have been called up, though Fikayo Tomori – a Serie A champion with Milan – and Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi have missed out.

Ben White's form for Arsenal has seen him named alongside Conor Coady, Eric Dier, John Stones and Harry Maguire, who has struggled for minutes at Manchester United under Erik ten Hag, though Southgate has stood by the 29-year-old.

Jude Bellingham's terrific season continues as he heads to his second major international tournament, while Kalvin Phillips has been selected after having surgery to fix a shoulder problem last month. 

Jordan Pickford was superb in England's run to the semi-finals in Russia and to their progression to the final at Euro 2020, with Nick Pope and Aaron Ramsdale also picked.

England squad:

Jordan Pickford (Everton), Nick Pope (Newcastle United), Aaron Ramsdale (Arsenal); Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Conor Coady (Everton), Eric Dier (Tottenham), Harry Maguire (Manchester United), Luke Shaw (Manchester United), John Stones (Manchester City), Kieran Trippier (Newcastle United), Kyle Walker (Manchester City), Ben White (Arsenal); Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Conor Gallagher (Chelsea), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Mason Mount (Chelsea), Kalvin Phillips (Manchester City), Declan Rice (West Ham); Phil Foden (Manchester City), Jack Grealish (Manchester City), Harry Kane (Tottenham), James Maddison (Leicester City), Marcus Rashford (Manchester United), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Raheem Sterling (Chelsea), Callum Wilson (Newcastle United).

Sam Simmonds and Jack van Poortvliet will start for England against Japan at Twickenham on Sunday.

Eddie Jones has named five changes from the shock 30-29 defeat to Argentina last weekend as they prepare to face Japan, who he coached between 2012 and 2015.

Number eight Simmonds has not featured for England since the Six Nations in March but comes in for Billy Vunipola, who drops to the bench.

Alex Coles is replaced by debutant David Ribbans at lock while Van Poortvliet, who scored within 30 seconds of coming on the pitch against Argentina, will start at scrum-half.

Jonny May also comes in for Joe Cokanasiga and Guy Porter is the final introduction as he is chosen to start over Manu Tuilagi at outside centre.

Owen Farrell will captain England and earn his 99th international cap, while hooker Jamie George is on the bench after recovering from a foot injury.

England team to face Japan: 15. Freddie Steward, 14. Jack Nowell, 13. Guy Porter, 12. Owen Farrell (c), 11. Jonny May, 10. Marcus Smith, 9. Jack van Poortvliet; 1. Ellis Genge, 2. Luke Cowan-Dickie, 3. Kyle Sinckler, 4. David Ribbans, 5. Jonny Hill, 6. Maro Itoje, 7. Tom Curry, 8. Sam Simmonds.

Replacements: 16. Jamie George, 17. Mako Vunipola, 18. Joe Heyes, 19. Alex Coles, 20. Billy Vunipola, 21. Ben Youngs, 22. Henry Slade, 23. Manu Tuilagi.

India captain Rohit Sharma admits his side failed to handle the pressure of knockout cricket as they lost by 10 wickets to England in the T20 World Cup semi-finals.

A record-breaking opening stand from captain Jos Buttler (80 not out) and Alex Hales (86 not out) saw the Group 2 winners shattered at the Adelaide Oval.

The pair's stand of 170 set a record for the highest partnership in T20 World Cup history, beating the 168 put on by South Africa duo Quinton de Kock and Rilee Rossouw against Bangladesh last month.

Rohit – a member of the India team that won the inaugural edition of the tournament in 2007, their only tournament triumph to date – admitted his side did not do themselves justice on the biggest stage in the end.

"When it comes to knockout stages, it is all about handling that pressure," he said. "You cannot really teach how to handle pressure.

"All these guys have played enough cricket to understand that. It's all about handling pressure and keeping calm.

"Look at the [group] stages, when we won that first game, we showed a lot of character. We handled it pretty well, [we] executed our plans.

"It's all about executing [that]. If you don't execute, you'll find yourself in trouble. It's really disappointing how we turned up.

"We were not good enough with the ball. It was not a wicket where a team should chase us down in 16 [or] 17 overs. We just didn't turn up."

England will now face Pakistan in Sunday's final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, while India will turn their attention to a red-ball tour of New Zealand, starting next week.

Alex Hales believed his chances of competing at a World Cup were over, yet is now on the verge of T20 glory with England.

Hales, who was called up in place of the injured Jonny Bairstow for the T20 World Cup, has been superb for England in Australia and, alongside captain Jos Buttler, delivered a remarkable batting display against India on Thursday.

England's openers put on an unbeaten partnership of 170 – a T20 World Cup record – to claim a resounding 10-wicket victory in Thursday's semi-final at the Adelaide Oval.

It tees up a final against Pakistan at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Sunday.

Hales lost his place in the England set-up after testing positive for a recreational drug in 2019, yet the 33-year-old has made the most of his comeback, with his 86 not-out in Adelaide including 11 boundaries, seven of which were sixes.

"It would be right up there, for sure," replied Hales when asked if it was the perfect performance.

"A huge occasion, India in a semi-final of the World Cup – really happy with how I played, as special as it gets.

"This is one of the best venues to bat at in the world, especially in the powerplay, good value for shots, small and square boundaries and a ground I've got good memories at.

"I never thought I'd play in a World Cup again, so to get the chance is a special feeling, in a country I love and where I've spent a lot of time. It's one of the best nights of my career."

Hales became the third England batter, after Buttler and former captain Eoin Morgan, to reach 2,000 runs in the shortest format.

England did not have it all their own way, however, with a late flurry from Hardik Pandya, who plundered 63 from 33 balls, propelling India to a seemingly competitive 168-6 - Virat Kohli (50) had previously become the first batsman to reach 4,000 runs in T20Is.

Yet India never gained any momentum with the ball, and England skipper Buttler, who scored 80 and hit a huge six to round off the win, hailed an outstanding display from his team, who lost to Ireland in their second match of the tournament to leave them with plenty of work to do to get out of Group 1.

"Certainly does feel a long time ago, which is great," Buttler said of the Ireland match. "The character we've shown as a group ever since that moment, coming into a huge game against New Zealand and getting to this point to put in our best performance so far.

"We always wanted to start as fast as we can and be really aggressive – Adil Rashid was down to come in at number 11 today and that's an incredibly long batting line-up, it gives you a lot of freedom when you start out to know you have such depth.

"It's important to enjoy this, it was a brilliant performance. We can reflect on this and enjoy it, and of course we know there's one big task to go."

Of Hales, Buttler said: "He was so tough to bowl at, he used the dimensions of the ground incredibly well.

"We probably complement each other quite nicely, different players, different styles and he's shown fantastic form in the last few matches and he was a brilliant partner."

Chris Jordan played for the first time in the tournament due to Mark Wood's injury, and stepped up with figures of 3-43.

"I think I have to give special praise to Chris, coming into this game having not played and I asked an incredibly tough thing of him to do, to bowl three overs at the death," Buttler added.

"Against a set batsman like Hardik who's one of the best in those situations in the world, he handled it incredibly well."

Germany head coach Hansi Flick said the omission of Mats Hummels from his World Cup squad is with a "view to the future".

The Borussia Dortmund defender has not represented the national side since 2021 but was a candidate for a return after impressive performances at club level this season.

However, Flick opted against bringing the 33-year-old back into the fold and instead handed a spot to Southampton's 20-year-old Armel Bella-Kotchap and Hummels' 22-year-old Dortmund team-mate Nico Schlotterbeck.

With the pair facing a stern battle for minutes, and Antonio Rudiger and Niklas Sule for competition, Flick's selection sees him cast an eye to the future.

"We thought about how to put together the squad. We watched a lot of his games, he has excellent form, is in top shape and has given Dortmund a lot," he said.

"With a view to the future, we have opted for a younger player in the coaching team, it's nothing against Mats. Mats can be good for any team."

One player who could make his international debut in the squad is Werder Bremen striker Niclas Fullkrug, who stands second in the Bundesliga scoring charts with 10 goals, and Flick says he has been watching him for six years.

"The first time I noticed Füllkrug was in 2016, when it came to nominating players for the Olympics. I've seen him a few times," he added.

"He is very confident on the ball, has a good finish and his headers are also an element that is good for us. How far a player appears in our considerations for a game is up to the players themselves."

"Niclas has ten goals. He has the momentum on his side. He does it very well. I also talked to Ole Werner (Bremen coach) for a very long time.

"If you look at Bremen's games, they have always changed something in the last minute. He gives the team confidence and self-image. He can identify well with any role."

Mario Gotze's return after a five-year absence is another highlight in the squad and Flick singled him out for praise.

"We all know that Mario is a brilliant footballer and a great person. He has flashes of thought. He was the last games at a very, very high level. He's in top shape," he said.

"It's the first time he's been there for a long time. He is very happy about it, we are looking forward to him too. This squad nomination gives us a lot of opportunities."

Romelu Lukaku has been included in Belgium's 26-man squad for the Qatar World Cup, despite injury concerns.

Head coach Roberto Martinez warned that Lukaku had to prove his fitness for the group stage if he was to be named in the squad, which the striker appears to have done.

Belgium's record goalscorer Lukaku, on loan at Inter from Chelsea, made his comeback from a hamstring injury, coming off the bench to score against Viktoria Plzen in the Champions League on October 26.

However, that is one of just two appearances the 29-year-old has managed since August, with his last game coming on October 29 against Sampdoria.

There is no place for another forward plying his trade in Serie A, with Milan's Divock Origi left out, though his club team-mate Charles De Ketelaere does make it.

The Premier League has plenty of representation, with three players from Leicester City, including Youri Tielemans, along with Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne, Brighton and Hove Albion's in-form winger Leandro Trossard and midfielders from Everton and Aston Villa in the form of Amadou Onana and Leander Dendoncker.

Eden Hazard has started just two games for Real Madrid this season, but makes the cut among Martinez's forwards, while club-mate Thibaut Courtois will be hoping for another fine tournament on an individual level, after he won the Golden Glove at Russia 2018.

This could be what has been dubbed the "golden generation" of Belgian football's last chance to win a major tournament, with several of their star players now over or approaching the age of 30. They finished third in 2018, beating England in a play-off match after losing to eventual champions France in the semi-finals.

Belgium kick their tournament off against Canada on November 23, before playing Morocco and Croatia in their other Group F matches.

Belgium squad: Koen Casteels (Wolfsburg), Thibaut Courtois (Real Madrid), Simon Mignolet (Club Brugge); Toby Alderweireld (Royal Antwerp), Timothy Castagne (Leicester City), Zeno Debast (Anderlecht), Leander Dendoncker (Aston Villa), Wout Faes (Leicester City), Thomas Meunier (Borussia Dortmund), Arthur Theate (Rennes), Jan Vertonghen (Anderlecht); Yannick Carrasco (Atletico Madrid), Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City), Thorgan Hazard (Borussia Dortmund), Amadou Onana (Everton), Youri Tielemans (Leicester City), Hans Vanaken (Club Brugge), Axel Witsel (Borussia Dortmund); Michy Batshuayi (Fenerbahce), Charles De Ketelaere (Milan), Jeremy Doku (Rennes), Eden Hazard (Real Madrid), Romelu Lukaku (Inter), Dries Mertens (Galatasaray), Lois Openda (Lens), Leandro Trossard (Brighton and Hove Albion)

Mario Gotze has returned to the Germany squad for the World Cup, with Youssoufa Moukoko and Niclas Fullkrug also included.

Gotze, scorer of the winning goal in the 2014 final against Argentina, has not played for the national side since 2017 but has earned a fresh opportunity following his impressive form since moving to Eintracht Frankfurt last year.

Meanwhile, Dortmund attacker Moukoko could make his first senior appearance for Germany, benefitting from the injury-enforced absences of Timo Werner and Lukas Nmecha, but there is no return for Mats Hummels, who has not played international football this year, despite fine form this season.

Defensively, Southampton's Armel Bella-Kotchap and RB Leipzig's Lukas Klostermann are included, the latter of whom has not featured in the Bundesliga since the opening weekend of the season, along with Freiburg duo Christian Gunter and Matthias Ginter.

Bayern quartet Joshua Kimmich, Jamal Musiala, Thomas Muller and Leon Goretzka are all included, along with Manchester City's Ilkay Gundogan and Chelsea's Kai Havertz.

Werder Bremen's Niclas Fullkrug is another attacker looking to make his first appearance for Germany, having scored 10 Bundesliga goals so far this season.

Full squad: Manuel Neuer (Bayern), Marc-Andre ter Stegen (Barcelona), Kevin Trapp (Eintracht Frankfurt); Armel Bella-Kotchap (Southampton), Matthias Ginter (Freiburg), Christian Gunter (Freiburg), Thilo Kehrer (West Ham), Lukas Klostermann (RB Leipzig), David Raum (RB Leipzig), Antonio Rudiger (Real Madrid), Nico Schlotterbeck (Borussia Dortmund), Niklas Sule (Borussia Dortmund); Julian Brandt (Borussia Dortmund), Leon Goretzka (Bayern), Mario Gotze (Eintracht Frankfurt), Ilkay Gundogan (Man City), Kai Havertz (Chelsea), Joshua Kimmich (Bayern), Jamal Musiala (Bayern), Thomas Muller (Bayern), Karim Adeyemi (Borussia Dortmund); Niclas Fullkrug (Werder Bremen), Serge Gnabry (Bayern), Jonas Hofmann (Borussia Monchengladbach), Youssoufa Moukoko (Borussia Dortmund), Leroy Sane (Bayern).

Gerard Pique has hinted he will run for Barcelona presidency in the future but will "focus on other things" immediately after his retirement.

The Spain international brought a close to his illustrious career this week, hanging up his boots with eight LaLiga titles and three Champions League victories, as well as international glory at the European Championships and World Cup.

Having been developed at Barcelona, Pique starred in the first team after a four-year stint at Manchester United to become a mainstay in a 14-year spell.

Unlike former team-mates Xavi and Andres Iniesta, Pique is unlikely to go into management but revealed club presidency is something to consider in the future.

"I'm sure it will appeal to me at one point, but not right now," Pique told Ibai Llanos on Twitch.

"Not training every day will give me the opportunity to focus on other things. In the future, we will see, but I would like to help the club of my life maximise the potential it has."

Pique was unable to feature in the midweek victory against Osasuna, having been shown a red card as a substitute at half-time, but did bid farewell to Camp Nou in the 2-0 victory against Almeria previously.

That send-off meant a lot to the defender, who explained he had been considering retirement throughout the first few months of the season.

"Saturday was spectacular for me. I was not giving too much importance to it, but I am so grateful to get a send-off like that and to realise the appreciation the fans have," he added.

"There were a lot of reasons [for retiring] which I had been thinking about throughout the season. I spoke with Xavi at the start of the campaign and he told me it would be difficult for me this year, but I wanted to give it a go. Last year had been good for me personally.

"But the sensations were not good in general. There were moments I thought about retiring earlier when I was not playing. After one game, I was doing the post-game session at Camp Nou for players that had not played and I thought about going into the dressing room and calling it a day.

"In the end, with the injuries we had in defence, I delayed the decision but now, with the World Cup break, felt like a good moment."

Rafael Nadal and Nick Kyrgios could face off in the inaugural United Cup, while WTA world number one Iga Swiatek will represent Poland.

The United Cup is the new warm-up tournament for the ATP and WTA Tour seasons, and will take place in Australia in December and January.

While ATP world number one Carlos Alcaraz will not feature, compatriot Nadal will be competing for Spain, and they have been drawn alongside Australia and Great Britain in Group D.

Those matches will be played in Perth, with a clash between Nadal and Kyrgios, who have enjoyed an entertaining rivalry down the years, in the offing.

They were set to meet in the semi-finals at Wimbledon this year, but Nadal withdrew due to injury, handing Kyrgios a walkover into his first grand slam final, which he lost to Novak Djokovic, who will not be playing in Australia.

Serbia are not among the batch of teams taking part, but even so, there remains doubt whether Djokovic would be able to enter Australia given his stance against the COVID-19 vaccine, which eventually saw him deported from the country after a drawn-out legal battle ahead of this year's Australian Open.

Emma Raducanu has decided against playing for the British team, which also does not feature Andy Murray.

Casper Ruud, the beaten US Open finalist, will play for Norway in Group E, in Brisbane, while Alexander Zverev will be in action for Germany.

Swiatek is the biggest name from the WTA Tour to enter, with the brilliant 21-year-old lining up alongside Hubert Hurkacz for Poland in Group B.

Maria Sakkari and Stefanos Tsitsipas, along with his brother Petros, will team up for Greece in Group A.

Two more countries will be admitted to the tournament later in November.