..::Football III::..

[Wolverine GTR]

Manchester City 0-2 Middlesbrough: Bamford & Kike seal famous Boro win

Chelsea loanee Patrick Bamford starred in a famous 2-0 win as Middlesbrough stunned Manchester City in the FA Cup fourth round.

The Championship's second-placed side absorbed sustained first-half pressure, with normally second-choice goalkeeper Tomas Mejias making a string of impressive saves at the Etihad Stadium.

And Middlesbrough's resilience was rewarded as City produced some shambolic defending for Bamford to strike in the 53rd minute.

Aitor Karanka's team almost doubled their lead when the excellent Lee Tomlin struck the post before substitute Kike sent a packed away end into raptures by sealing victory in injury time.

City, who arrived back in Manchester on Friday evening following a training break in Abu Dhabi, appeared jaded as their performance unravelled.

Frank Lampard came off the bench to strike the post after 89 minutes but back-to-back, scoreless home defeats means manager Manuel Pellegrini and his players head into next weekends pivotal clash at Bamford's parent club with a season to salvage.

The visitors made a confident and stylish start, though they were almost undone in the fifth minute when Stevan Jovetic was inches away from converting Aleksandar Kolarov's cross.

Middlesbrough had the ball in the net after 19 minutes - Lee Tomlin heading home after Willy Caballero kept out Bamford's flick - but the latter was penalised for offside.

Sergio Aguero's first sight of goal arrived five minutes later as his skipped around Ben Gibson to drill into the side netting.

The hosts' recent problems defending set-pieces were almost exposed when Daniel Ayala's free header from a 26th-minute corner was scrambled clear before City piled on relentless pressure for the remainder of the first half.

A busy period for Middlesbrough goalkeeper Mejias began with him beating away a low drive from Jovetic and he produced similar heroics to deny James Milner after the England international crossed for recalled centre-back Dedryck Boyata to thrash wastefully over.

Mejias was at full stretch to keep out David Silva's deflected 37th-minute strike before frustrating Jovetic once more.

The Montenegro forward found himself in the familiar position of being denied by Mejias as he headed goalwards from Kolarov's 50th-minute corner before some calamitous defending from City handed Middlesbrough the lead.

Fernando played an ill-advised backpass under pressure and Caballero missed his kick, leaving Bamford to scramble over the line.

A poor Caballero clearance gave Middlesbrough a glorious chance to increase their advantage in the 57th minute but the goalkeeper recovered to save from Tomlin and a desperate block by Vincent Kompany kept out Grant Leadbitter's follow-up.

Aguero glanced wide from a Navas centre but City's early poise had disappeared - Albert Adomah failing to lob the ball over Caballero after Tomlin's lofted pass easily unlocked a creaking home defence.

Tomlin went even closer himself in the 64th minute when he spun clear of Kompany to send Caballero the wrong way and stab a shot against the inside of the right-hand post - the rebound rolling agonisingly across the face of goal.

Middlesbrough defender George Friend made an important 73rd-minute challenge to deny Aguero, moments before the visitors streamed forward on the break and Caballero kept out a Jelle Vossen volley.

Lampard's shot clipped former City youngster Adam Clayton and hit the upright but Bamford then drove Middlesbrough forward on the break and fed Kiki, who ensured his team-mates would not rue their profligacy.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Chelsea 2-4 Bradford City: Bantams complete stunning turnaround to knock out Mourinho's men

Chelsea were dumped out of the FA Cup by Bradford in sensational style at Stamford Bridge with the League One side coming back from 2-0 down to stun the Premier League leaders 4-2.
First-half goals from Gary Cahill and Ramires looked to have put the Premier League leaders on course for a comfortable victory on Saturday, but the visitors had other ideas.

Jonathan Stead pulled a goal back before the break and midfielder Filipe Morais, who left Chelsea during Jose Mourinho's first reign at the London club due to a lack of first-team football, equalised 15 minutes from time.

But there was yet more drama when Andy Halliday put Phil Parkinson's side in front in the 82nd minute, and Mark Yeates added a fourth in stoppage time to consign Chelsea to their first home defeat of the season, ending their hopes of winning the quadruple.

Mourinho named a much-changed side with a League Cup semi-final second leg against Liverpool and a crunch league clash with Manchester City to consider over the coming week and, despite bringing on Cesc Fabregas and Eden Hazard, he was unable to avoid an embarrassing defeat.

Teenage defender Andreas Christensen made only his second competitive start for Chelsea as Mourinho made nine changes to the side which drew at Liverpool in midweek, with Cahill and John Obi Mikel the only men to retain their places.

Bradford were clearly not overawed by the occasion and Petr Cech produced an outstanding one-handed save to keep out Davies' header from a Morais corner after 14 minutes.

It was a corner at the other end which led to the opening goal seven minutes later, when Oscar swung the ball in and Cahill was on hand to flick in his second goal of the season from close range.

Didier Drogba almost doubled Chelsea's lead a couple of minutes later with a measured effort after a sharp turn, but Ben Williams denied the veteran striker with a fine save.

The hosts doubled their lead seven minutes before half-time, though, as Bradford lost possession on the halfway line and were made to pay by Ramires, who played a one-two with Mohamed Salah before seeing his shot go in off the post.

There appeared to be no way back for the League One side, but Stead pulled a goal back from out of the blue when he let fly with a venomous left-footed drive which Cech got a hand to but was unable to keep out just three minutes after Ramires' strike.

That was by no means a false dawn for Bradford, who started the second half on the front foot and Morais had a shot tipped over the crossbar by the alert Cech.

Billy Knott then tried his luck with a curled effort, but failed to work Cech, and Salah, shot narrowly wide of the far post after 63 minutes as Chelsea strived to give themselves breathing space.

Chelsea were stunned when they failed to deal with a long throw from James Meredith, and Morais was on hand to side-foot home after Knott's shot was saved by Cech to send a huge away contingent into raptures.

Better was to come for the visitors, though, as Halliday found the top corner after Stead had laid the ball off and Stead then laid on a fourth goal for Yeates, who kept his composure to finish four minutes into time added to seal one of the most astonishing FA Cup upsets of all time.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Ada FA Cup matches wala shock results set 1kak neh awith thiyenne

Chelsea,Manchester City & Tottenham Knockout
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Ada FA Cup matches wala shock results set 1kak neh awith thiyenne

Chelsea,Manchester City & Tottenham Knockout
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godak shock result thynne machan Chelsea 2-0 idan 2-4
Chelsea,City,Tottenham,Southampton & Swansea Knockout

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Lazio 3-1 AC Milan: Klose and Parolo fire hosts to victory

Lazio climbed into Serie A's top three on Saturday after two goals at the start of the second half set them on their way to a 3-1 come-from-behind win over AC Milan at the Stadio Olimpico.

Milan - who finished with 10 men after Philippe Mexes' stoppage-time tussle with Stefano Mauri - gained an early lead in the Italian capital as former Roma man Jeremy Menez took advantage of Dusan Basta's mistake to race away and provide an accomplished finish for his 10th league goal of the season.

Miroslav Klose and Antonio Candreva were both guilty of wasting chances for the home side to equalise in the first half, but, after the interval, Lazio turned the match around in the space of four minutes.

First Klose set up Marco Parolo for a fine effort, before Riccardo Montolivo's misplaced pass let the former Germany international in and he made no mistake in front of goal.

Parolo then added a second inside the final 10 minutes, although it may have come at a cost with substitute Filip Djordjevic appearing to injure himself by treading on the ball in the build-up.Victory saw Lazio climb above both Sampdoria and Napoli into third, with those sides not in action until Sunday and Monday respectively.

For Milan, defeat extended their winless run in the league to five matches, as Filippo Inzaghi's men continue to struggle to find any degree of consistency in their results.

Lazio felt they should have had a penalty in the second minute when Stefan Radu went down under a challenge from Giacomo Bonaventura, but all the Romanian received was a yellow card after protesting too much to referee Paolo Mazzoleni.

And the home side were further ruing that decision when Milan took the lead two minutes later.Menez robbed Basta on the halfway line and broke clear before firing a low left-footed finish into the right-hand corner.

Lazio threatened an equaliser in the 18th minute, but Diego Lopez was quick to rush from his line to thwart Klose before Mexes blocked Candreva's follow-up effort.Candreva then crossed for Klose, but the German headed wide when he ought to have brought the scores level.

The same duo were in action again midway through the half as this time Klose teed up Candreva, who scuffed his effort into the ground which allowed Lopez to make a one-handed save.

Lazio continued to press for an equaliser and felt they should have had a spot-kick for a second time when Mexes tugged on the shift of Mauri, but once again Mazzoleni waved the appeals away.

After threatening a leveller for much of the first half, one duly arrived for Lazio two minutes into the second when Klose sent in a superb cross from the right and Parolo cushioned a first-time finish into the net from 10 yards.Klose then turned from provider to goalscorer four minutes later as he capitalised on Montolivo's mistake.

The midfielder's loose pass was wide of Mexes and Klose nipped in before slotting beyond Lopez.With nine minutes remaining, Lazio wrapped up the points when Parolo swept in his second after Djordjevic had failed to make a telling connection on Candreva's low ball into the middle.

As tempers flared in stoppage time, Mexes grabbed Mauri by the throat having earlier been provoked and received a straight red card to cap another miserable outing for Milan.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Atletico Madrid 3-1 Rayo Vallecano: Griezmann shines again for champions

An Antoine Griezmann-inspired Atletico Madrid responded to Wednesday's Copa del Rey first-leg defeat to Barcelona by cruising to a comfortable 3-1 Liga win over neighbours Rayo Vallecano.

The France international was in lethal form for the champions, scoring twice in the first half and playing a pivotal role in the third - an own goal - as Atletico eased to a routine triumph at the Vicente Calderon on Saturday.Griezmann pounced on a defensive mistake to break the deadlock in the 12th minute and doubled his tally midway through the opening half.

Rayo lost the corresponding fixture 5-0 last term and, although Roberto Trashorras netted to halve the deficit with 35 minutes gone, Paco Jemez's men rarely looked capable of gaining revenge.

Griezmann's search for a hat-trick proved fruitless, but he did play an integral part as Atletico re-established a two-goal lead in the 56th minute, crossing for a Manucho to put through his own net.Diego Simeone's men seemed to ease off the throttle towards the end, but the result was secured and they stay four points behind pacesetters Real Madrid.

Atletico put Rayo under pressure right from the start and the visitors almost contributed to their own downfall in the sixth minute, but Ze Castro cut out Arda Turan's teasing delivery after a dreadful pass by goalkeeper Tono.

The former Atletico defender turned culprit six minutes later, though, as Ze Castro saw his pass intercepted by Griezmann, who burst free and coolly slotted beyond the keeper.

And the France international doubled his tally with 22 minutes on the clock, prodding past the goalkeeper after being released on goal by a Mario Mandzukic header.

Despite offering very little attacking threat, Rayo pulled one back 10 minutes before the break, as Trashorras steered home from the edge of the area after Gael Kakuta showed great awareness to pick out his captain.

Atletico began the second half brightly and Griezmann almost completed his hat-trick in the 51st minute, but Tono managed to keep the Frenchman's miscued cross out with a desperate dive to his right.The goalkeeper was rendered helpless when Atletico eventually restored the two-goal cushion five minutes later, however, as Manucho knocked Griezmann's corner delivery into his own net.

The Rayo defence simply had no answer to the terrific Griezmann, but a third goal continued to elude him as he fired agonisingly wide of the bottom-right corner just a few moments after the own goal.

Rayo crafted a great opportunity to ensure a tense finish as Alberto Bueno raced on to Trashorras' clever delivery, but he failed to make a proper connection and there was still time for the industrious Griezmann to strike the post.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Liverpool 0-0 Bolton: Reds face replay after Anfield stalemate

Bolton Wanderers put in a battling display at Anfield on Saturday to secure a goalless draw and an FA Cup fourth-round replay with Liverpool.

The Championship outfit, who fielded the veteran strike pairing of Eidur Gudjohnsen and ex-Liverpool man Emile Heskey, proved tireless opponents and made it a frustrating evening for their hosts.

Javier Manquillo passed up the clearest opening for Liverpool, while a lively Raheem Sterling was regularly thwarted by last-ditch challenges from a disciplined Bolton defence - behind which goalkeeper Adam Bogdan excelled.

As he contends with League Cup and Europa League campaigns alongside Premier League commitments, the return game at the Macron Stadium is unwelcome for Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers, but a preferable fate to the shock defeats endured by fellow heavyweights Manchester City and Chelsea on a memorable day of FA Cup action.

Bolton made a confident start, with Matt Mills seeing an 11th-minute strike blocked before the defender returned to his own penalty area to deny Adam Lallana - making a first Liverpool start since New Year’s Day - with a perfectly timed challenge.

Bogdan extended himself to keep out a sweetly struck 30-yard effort from Jordan Henderson, while Mills was on hand to frustrate Sterling after a lofted ball forward exploited a high Bolton defensive line.In the 33rd minute, Dean Moxey was inches away from putting the Championship team ahead - his half-volley from the edge of the penalty area whistling narrowly past Simon Mignolet's right-hand upright.

Like Mills, Tim Ream was enjoying an impressive outing at centre-back for Bolton and the USA international stopped Lallana from bundling home.

Glen Johnson and Lallana then fired rasping strikes into Bogdan's arms as Liverpool began to find their rhythm during the closing stages of the first half.Rodgers sent on Lazar Markovic in place of Jose Enrique at half-time and Sterling tore towards the Bolton area within a minute of the restart, but Mills was on hand to block the shot.

Mills was nursing a yellow card for an earlier foul on Sterling and there was an anxious moment for the former Reading man when Markovic went to ground under his challenge. Referee Kevin Friend was unmoved, prompting a furious reaction from Rodgers on the touchline.

Bogdan was out bravely to save at Sterling's feet when Philippe Coutinho unpicked the Bolton defence with a 53rd-minute throughball and the goalkeeper made another fine stop by getting down to push a Coutinho drive away from the bottom corner.

Moxey stumbled as he looked to deal with the rebound but Liverpool wing-back Manquillo pulled a glorious chance wide.Youngster Conor Wilkinson was introduced in place of Heskey but Gudjohnsen remained and spurned a pair of chances in quick succession.

The former Chelsea and Barcelona man side-footed wide from Ream's low cross before more wastefully blazing over on the end of Wilkinson’s 64th-minute cutback.

Manquillo made way for Fabio Borini as Liverpool chased victory and the Italian forward forced Bogdan into another splendid stop with 19 minutes to play.Borini headed agonisingly wide in stoppage time and Lucas Leiva saw Bogdan beat away a fierce drive as Neil Lennon's team claimed the replay they craved.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Referee report could see Ronaldo ban reduced

Cristiano Ronaldo may be set to avoid a lengthy ban after being sent off in Real Madrid's 2-1 win over Cordoba.

The Portuguese star slapped and kicked out at defender Edimar in a frustrating afternoon and was quickly dismissed.

With eight minutes left on the clock and the game tied at 1-1, the red card came as a massive blow to his side, but he was lucky to see Gareth Bale step up late in the game to steal the win with a penalty.

The Real Madrid talisman would be expected to miss the next three games for violent conduct, meaning he would be ruled out of the derby with Atletico Madrid.

However, Marca report that referee Alejandro Hernandez Hernandez did not refer to any violent conduct in his report:

"In the 83rd minute Cristiano Ronaldo was sent off for the following reason: kicking an opponent when the ball was out of reach," the document is said to read.

As a result, Ronaldo could only miss one match in La Liga.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Elche 0-6 Barcelona: Messi and Neymar run riot

Lionel Messi and Neymar scored twice each as Barcelona recorded an emphatic 6-0 win over Elche on Saturday.

Barca had already beaten Elche three times this season - and scored 12 goals in the process - ahead of the La Liga clash at Estadio Manuel Martinez Valero and the Catalan giants heaped more misery on Fran Escriba's struggling side.

Gerard Pique marked his 200th La Liga appearance with the opening goal in the first half and Barca ran riot in the second, with Messi scoring from the penalty spot before Elche had Faycal Fajr sent off for a second bookable offence.

The majestic Messi then laid on two goals for Neymar, who struck twice in as many minutes to take his goal tally for the season to 19 and Messi added a fifth with his 31st of another outstanding campaign before Pedro got in on the act in stoppage time.

Luis Enrique's side are just a point behind leaders Real Madrid, who won 2-1 at Cordoba earlier in the day, while defeat for Elche came after back-to-back La Liga wins and they remain mired in trouble just above the relegation zone.

The attacking duo combined to ruthless effect after Gerard Pique's early goal against a home side forced to play much of the second half with 10 menLionel Messi and Neymar scored twice each as Barcelona recorded an emphatic 6-0 win over Elche on Saturday.

Barca had already beaten Elche three times this season - and scored 12 goals in the process - ahead of the La Liga clash at Estadio Manuel Martinez Valero and the Catalan giants heaped more misery on Fran Escriba's struggling side.

Gerard Pique marked his 200th La Liga appearance with the opening goal in the first half and Barca ran riot in the second, with Messi scoring from the penalty spot before Elche had Faycal Fajr sent off for a second bookable offence.

The majestic Messi then laid on two goals for Neymar, who struck twice in as many minutes to take his goal tally for the season to 19 and Messi added a fifth with his 31st of another outstanding campaign before Pedro got in on the act in stoppage time.

Luis Enrique's side are just a point behind leaders Real Madrid, who won 2-1 at Cordoba earlier in the day, while defeat for Elche came after back-to-back La Liga wins and they remain mired in trouble just above the relegation zone.

Luis Suarez was dropped to the bench on his 28th birthday despite this week being backed to put a disappointing start to his Barca career behind him by Luis Enrique.

Xavi was restored to the starting line-up and the fit-again midfielder almost created the opening goal when he picked out Jordi Alaba with a clever free kick 13 minutes in, but the left-back's well struck volley flashed over the crossbar.

Elche were working hard off the ball to frustrate Barca, but Messi came close with a free kick which flew narrowly wide.

The home side posed an attacking threat of their own and Fajr called Claudio Bravo into action following a swift counter-attack and then worked the Barca goalkeeper again with a long-range free kick after 27 minutes.

Neymar then wasted a glorious chance to open the scoring, when he miskicked with only Przemyslaw Tyton to beat after Messi breached the Elche defence with a lovely ball over the top.

Barca were in front 10 minutes before the break, though, when Pique showed great composure to bring down Xavi's free kick with his chest before beating Tyton with a deflected right-footed finish.

Another sublime pass from Messi opened up the Elche defence once again seven minutes after the interval, but Tyton was alert to the danger as he came out to thwart Pedro.

Barca strengthened their grip on the game a minute later, though, when Elche were caught on the break and Sergio Pelegrin was adjudged to have upended Neymar when the Brazil forward jinked past him.

Messi casually slotted home the resulting spot-kick to take his La Liga tally for the season to 20 and there was worse to come for the home side as Fajr was shown a second yellow card for a late challenge on Rafinha only 12 minutes into the second half.

Neymar added to Elche's misery by adding a third goal with a clinical right-footed finish after being set up by a perfectly weighted pass from the outstanding Messi after 69 minutes.

And the pair combined once again two minutes later, with Neymar again applying the finish after playing a one-two with the imperious Argentina forward.

Messi then doubled his tally, as he created space for himself in the area and fired into the far corner with his left foot two minutes from time.

Neymar laid on a sixth goal for Pedro, who rounded off the scoring when he tapped home following a rapid counterattack in stoppage time.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Blanc: I want to keep Rabiot at PSG

Laurent Blanc has again reiterated his desire to keep Adrien Rabiot at Paris Saint-Germain amid loan interest from Tottenham.

The two clubs have been negotiating a six-month deal for the 19-year-old during January, but progress has stalled with the Ligue 1 champions thought to want a replacement signed first.

Rabiot is keen to move to White Hart Lane after being afforded just three starts in Ligue 1 so far this season, with Tottenham hoping to retain an option to make the move permanent.

But Blanc maintains Rabiot is part of PSG's long-term plans, with the youngster penning a new five-year deal in October, and was blunt when asked about possible transfer plans at the club.

"I want to keep Rabiot," he told reporters.

"Clement Chantome is the only one who asked to leave. He has a great chance of leaving this winter."

Arsenal have also been linked with a move for Rabiot, but the player is confident of more regular first-team football at Tottenham after his relationship with Blanc deteriorated.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Ronaldo apologises after rash red card against Cordoba

Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo has apologised for his dismissal against Cordoba on Saturday.

With the scores deadlocked at 1-1, the Portugal star kicked out at defender Edimar after a tussle at the far post following a free kick.

Referee Alejandro Hernandez issued an immediate red card to Ronaldo - the fourth of his career in La Liga - and the Ballon d'Or winner took to Twitter after the game to accept he had only himself to blame for the incident.

"I apologise to everyone, and especially to Edimar, for my thoughtless actions during the game today," he said.

Madrid went on to snatch maximum points after Gareth Bale won and converted a penalty in the dying minutes.

However, Iker Casillas revealed Ronaldo was still deeply frustrated to have left his side a potential mountain to climb as Cordoba threatened to take points from the Liga leaders.

"Cristiano is annoyed because no player wants to leave his team with 10," he told reporters.

Carlo Ancelotti, meanwhile, refused to be draw on the incident as he had not seen it clearly.

"I didn't see Cristiano's action and I can't judge it," said the Italian.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Rodgers: Balotelli is fit, I just won't pick him

Brendan Rodgers admits he overlooked Mario Balotelli for Liverpool's FA Cup fourth round 0-0 draw with Bolton Wanderers at Anfield because the Italian forward is not working well enough in training and does not fit in with his current style of play.

Balotelli was "not well" in the past week and, as such, was not available to be selected for the League Cup semi-final first-leg against Chelsea on Tuesday.

However, he was fit for selection for Saturday's match but Rodgers opted against bringing him in despite the continued absence of Daniel Sturridge due to injury.

"I've had a chat with Mario," Rodgers told the press. "He knows exactly what's required to be in this squad before he can be in the team. He is available, like the rest of the team. We had about an hour or so yesterday chatting. I think he understands where it's at.

"He was out for a week or so, not well, obviously wasn't available for selection in midweek and last week. It's difficult for him. He knows now the level of what this team is at. You see the pressing in our game, the aggression in our game. If you can't do that, then you're not going to be part of what this team is trying to achieve."

Rodgers says Balotelli has learned a lot about what is expected of him at Anfield due to the team's recent performances, and will return to the matchday squad when he demonstrates a greater work ethic in training.

"He probably sees the real Liverpool over these last six or seven weeks and he understands just what is required to get into the team.

"Of course, I'm judging it every day in training as well. Mario is exactly the same as every other player. There's no special treatment for anyone. Fabio Borini, Rickie Lambert, they're working tirelessly for me in training and when they go on they've contributed. I have to judge it on that.

"We suffered as a team in the first four odd months of the season or so. We can't go back to that. There's been a change structurally in the team to allow that pressing, that creativity to come back.

"He is a player that will work very hard now to get back in. It doesn't matter who the player is, what price he came with or what he was bought for. It's a collective team, it's about the team, and if you want to contribute then you have to be at it every single day in training in order to be in the squad for a matchday.

"He was fully understanding. He has seen the level of our performance against Chelsea and in fairness to him he actually said that was a struggle for him in terms of how he would play the game because he's naturally a box player, really. But there's much more asked of this team, the intensity of the team."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Barca can be unbeatable - Neymar

Barcelona forward Neymar was full of praise for his colleagues following their 6-0 crushing of Elche on Saturday, insisting it’s difficult to see how his side can lose when they show the right attitude.

The Brazil captain struck twice, as did Lionel Messi, in the rout at Estadio Manuel Martínez Valero – the duo now have 19 and 31 goals for the season, respectively.

The result leaves Luis Enrique’s side just a point behind Liga leaders Real Madrid and Neymar is confident they can now push on and put together a serious run of results after bouncing back from defeat to Sociedad with three straight victories, and 13 goals in the process.

"I’m very happy and pleased about everything," said Neymar.

"I’m very happy with the season I’m having. I am always improving. With our attitude, it’s hard to lose.

"Elche started the strongest and they are a good team at home, but eventually we played well and got the win.

"Now we have to keep doing it."

There have been numerous reports of unrest amongst the squad following a patchy start to Luis Enrique's tenure.

Barcelona have scored 18 goals against Elche this season in all competitions, six more than versus any other side, and are now on a run of six consecutive victories in all competitions.

On Wednesday they take a 1-0 lead to Madrid for the second leg of their Copa del Rey showdown with current Spanish champions Atletico.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Defence to blame for Southampton cup exit - Koeman

Ronald Koeman blamed Southampton's FA Cup fourth-round exit at the hands of Crystal Palace on poor first-half defending from his side.

The Saints led twice through Graziano Pelle and Scott Dann's own goal at St Mary's Stadium on Saturday, but eventually fell to a 3-2 defeat to former boss Alan Pardew.

Marouane Chamakh cancelled out Pelle's early opener, before Yaya Sanogo and Chamakh's second turned the game in Palace's favour, with all the goals arriving in the first half."I think the defeat came out of our poor first half, defensively. Normally that's one of the strengths of the team," Koeman said.

"We made a lot of mistakes so they got a lot of opportunities and they scored three times, and that's not usual."Defensively, we didn't work together and we didn't have the concentration we usually have.

"It's not normal that a team like Crystal Palace - with all due respect, because they played very well - creates so many possibilities."At least we had a good reaction in the second half, but it wasn't enough."

Shane Long was introduced into the action shortly before the hour mark but lasted only 13 minutes, leaving the field after a collision with Joel Ward, and Koeman revealed that the forward has a suspected fractured rib."That's a pity because he's doing well," Koeman said.

 

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Gundogan injury blow for Dortmund

Borussia Dortmund were left sweating on the fitness of Ilkay Gundogan after he limped out of their 1-1 friendly draw with Fortuna Dusseldorf.

The midfielder only returned from a back injury late in 2014, so Jurgen Klopp will be hoping it is not a serious setback.The visitors had to come from behind in the match at the Esprit Arena after Joel Pohjanpalo gave Dusseldorf the lead, with Jakub Blaszczykowski converting a late penalty.

Dortmund were grateful to Roman Weidenfeller early on as he made two good saves, but there was nothing he could do with four minutes of the half remaining.
Charlison Benschop cut the ball back for Pohjanpalo to poke home and give the hosts a surprise lead.

Klopp introduced Ciro Immobile at the break and he almost brought the visitors level with a low shot across goal.Dortmund began to pose a greater threat with Mats Hummels heading over and Immobile seeing an effort rebound off the post, with Michael Rensing beaten.

They were saved with nine minutes to go as Blaszczykowski was brought down by Jonathan Tah in the area, the Polish midfielder duly scoring from the spot.Dusseldorf still had a chance to win the game as Axel Bellinghausen found space in the penalty area, but he failed to connect properly and the ball drifted wide.

Dortmund return to league action on January 31 against Bayer Leverkusen as their attentions revert back to a scrap for Bundesliga survival.

 

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Man City demolition delights Karanka

Aitor Karanka is confident that the belief garnered from Middlesbrough's shock 2-0 FA Cup victory at Manchester City could trigger a lengthy run in the competition.

Second-half strikes from Chelsea loanee Patrick Bamford and substitute Kike at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday secured a famous victory for the visitors, who sit second in the Championship.

And Karanka, who saw his side go out of the League Cup against Liverpool on penalties at Anfield earlier in the season, believes his youthful outfit are a match for any team."It was amazing, against an amazing squad with an amazing manager, but we were brilliant and when we play like that we can beat anyone," the Spaniard said.

"I'm very proud of the players, the staff, the fans, the whole club. It's impossible to explain my feelings."I can't believe we beat them like that, but I am very proud because everyone deserves these things. The crowd deserved that because they are the best."

Over 5,000 Middlesbrough fans made their way to Manchester to witness the upset, which would have been the shock of the fourth round if not for Bradford City's victory at Chelsea. Despite City missing several chances in the first half – with second-choice goalkeeper Tomas Mejias in fine form for Middlesbrough – it was the visitors who took the lead through Bamford shortly after the interval.

Karanka's team rode their luck, only for substitute Kike to double their advantage in the 93rd minute. "We have players who can score up front because we have quality and when we are organised we can play against teams like this," added Karanka.

"Their chances in the first half came from our mistakes. We stopped doing that in the second half, had more of the ball, and created more chances. "I think we showed everyone we were here to win the game after we scored. When the second goal went in we knew we had won."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Bayern want invincible season - Robben

Arjen Robben insists Bayern Munich are targeting an historic, unbeaten Bundesliga-winning campaign.

Guardiola's side resume league action on January 30th against second-placed Wolfsburg after a productive training camp during the mid-season break and a 5-1 friendly win over Bochum on Friday, where Robben was on target twice.

Bayern were dominant in the first half of the 2014-15 Bundesliga season, with 14 wins in their 17 matches giving them an 11-point advantage over nearest rivals Wolfsburg.

And winger Robben has warned the rest of the league that Bayern do not intend to let their performance levels slip in the title race."I hope we are ready," said the Netherlands international. "We still have a week of training and you have to use the time well.

"We did a good job, especially in our training camp in Qatar, and now we want to move on. "We simply must have the mindset that we want to win every game. It begins with the first match.

"In it, we can already make a really big step. We play against the team in second. If we win, we have a 14-point lead and that must be the goal. We have to keep moving forward."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Ancelotti: I didn’t see Ronaldo red

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti refused to be drawn on Cristiano Ronaldo’s red card during his side’s narrow 2-1 victory away to Cordoba on Saturday.

The Ballon d’Or winner was dismissed eight minutes from time after appearing to aim a kick and slap at Cordoba defender Edimar, and has subsequently apologised for the incident.

"I didn't see anything and haven't spoken with him," Ancelotti said. "I can't judge what happened."

The coach was quick to turn attention back to the game.

"Cordoba played very well," he continued.

"They fought for every ball and were very good on the break. We struggled in this game but the important thing was to take three points and we've done just that."

It was Ronaldo’s fourth Liga red card since his 2009 arrival in Madrid.

Gareth Bale rescued three points for the league leaders with a late penalty, and expressed Ronaldo’s regret for his 82nd-minute dismissal.

"There's still a long way to go this season, a lot of games before we talk about the title," Bale said.

"What's clear to us is that there can be games like this one when the going gets tough. Cristiano is really disappointed with his red card, but these are things that happen in football."

It was the first time Real Madrid have had to wait until the final five minutes of the season to earn points in the current campaign.

The victory leaves them one point clear of second-placed Barcelona with a game in hand.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Man City victory the best of my career - Karanka

Middlesbrough manager Aitor Karanka hailed his side's shock FA Cup victory over Manchester City but insisted promotion to the Premier League remained his main focus.

Boro claimed a 2-0 win at the Etihad Stadium with Patrick Bamford and Kike helping topple Manuel Pellegrini's men.

"It is important for our fans we win, but my thoughts are now with Brentford for next week - our priority remains the Championship," he beamed.

Karanka did admit, however, it was his best win since stepping into management with Boro just over one year ago.

"I have been a manager for just 14 months, we got close at Liverpool in League Cup, but today we beat one of the best teams in the world," he said.

"It was a game that for me was like we played in the Championship, we created a lot of chances but didn't score, like the league matches, but today we had a Champions League team to play so we knew it would be difficult."

Karanka says he told his players at half-time, with the scores still level, that the game was there for the taking.

The former Real Madrid assistant coach added: "At half time I told them that we had City in our hands, as the only chances they had came from our mistakes.

"We fixed that in the second half and worked hard with the ball and we had those chances."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Official: Sampdoria sign Eto'o from Everton

Sampdoria have announced the signing of Samuel Eto'o from Everton.

The former Cameroon striker only moved to Goodison Park last summer after his one-year deal with Chelsea had expired, but he has now been allowed to move to the Serie A club.

He scored three goals in 14 Premier League appearances for the Toffees, but had not featured since the 3-2 defeat at Newcastle United on December 28 as a move away became increasingly likely.

Sampdoria have been one of the best teams in Italy this season and currently sit fourth in Serie A, level on points with third-placed Napoli.

Coach Sinisa Mihajlovic said of the striker: "He's a great player, who has won everything, and that attracts a lot of attention from the media, but this should not distract us.

"The reason we are third is thanks to these guys, their commitment and their daily work."

Eto'o is expected to be presented to the fans ahead of Sampdoria's clash with Palermo on Sunday.