..::Football IV::..

[Wolverine GTR]

Modric deserved UEFA Player of the Year ahead of 'marketed' Ronaldo - Ramos


Sergio Ramos insists that Real Madrid team-mate Luka Modric deserved to win the UEFA Player of the Year award ahead of those with "more marketing", such as Cristiano Ronaldo.

Modric's win sparked controversy in Italy, with Ronaldo's representative, Jorge Mendes, blasting the snub as "ridiculous and shameful". However, Ramos believes that Modric, who played a key role in the club's Champions League victory, deserved the award over the Portuguese.

Indeed, the midfielder's performances at the World Cup seemed to back up UEFA's decision, the ex-Tottenham midfielder guiding his Croatia side to their first ever final, where they lost to France.Portugal, meanwhile, fell to Uruguay in the Round of 16.

"There are few players that I am as proud of having in my team as [Modric]," said Ramos, per the Daily Mail."He is a great friend and a great player. He is one of the few players who [if he wins] would make me as happy as if they had given it to me."

Ramos also appeared to take a dig at Ronaldo in claiming that Modric is more unassuming than the Juve striker, who has yet to score a goal in Serie A."Maybe there are players with more marketing, with a bigger name but Modric deserves that award," he added.

Modric has so far appeared in all three of Real's La Liga games thus far, laying on an assist in the 4-1 thumping of Leganes.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Tuchel: Areola in pole to be PSG's number one ahead of Buffon


Paris Saint-Germain head coach Thomas Tuchel revealed Alphonse Areola is in pole position to be the club's number one goalkeeper over Gianluigi Buffon.Italian great Buffon left Serie A champions Juventus for PSG as a free agent at the end of the season and the 40-year-old started the first three matches of the Ligue 1 campaign.

However, Buffon has since taken a back seat to France international and PSG academy graduate Areola in the last three games and Tuchel is likely to stick with the 25-year-old.

Areola had previously revealed his determination to win the job amid new contract talks with the club and, according to Tuchel, appears to have an excellent chance to do just that."Yes I chose. The decision is not final but I told Alphonse that he was in my opinion in pole position to be number 1," Tuchel told RMC Sports.

"He comes from the academy. PSG is everything for him. And he absolutely wants to prove himself to PSG. This is a situation that must be respected and capitalised on. We must be proud to have players of this nature, we need this type of players who have the soul of PSG, who embody the club.

"We have a different situation with Gianluigi Buffon, a legend, an idol of Alphonse who is at his side. Both players have very strong personalities. We will have to fine-tune things. Gigi knows it, Alphonse knows it, if you get there, in this configuration, to be smart and generous with both, I'm sure we'll be rewarded. And I'm sure that Alphonse will not be good despite Gigi but thanks to Gigi."

Tuchel added: "Gigi is not just a player on the bench. On a daily basis, he is a player who has a very big influence on the team, he played brilliantly against Guingamp for example, he saved us in the second half, he is on the bench because Alphonse needs to take minutes.

"Gigi would have the right to cross his arms on the bench and watch the game but he does not support it! It's frenetic! He is present, he communicates with the players, tries to help me... and you understand why he is at the top and has such a career."

Ligue 1 titleholders PSG are back in action against Saint-Etienne after the international break on Friday.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

UEFA Nations League Fixtures 2018.09.11

UEFA Nations League Fixtures 2018.09.11

-------------

-------------

Bosnia Vs Austria
Finland Vs Estonia
Hungary Vs Greece
Iceland Vs Belgium
Moldova Vs Belarus
San Marino Vs Luxembourg
Spain Vs Croatia
​

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Good Luck Spain!

VAMOS ESPANA
​

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Full Time

Spain 6 Vs 0 Croatia

Spain Goal(s)

S.Níguez 24'
M.Asensio 33'
L.Kalinic 35(OG)'
Rodrigo 49'
S.Ramos 57'
Isco 70'

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Congratulations Spain!

Pattama gahillak adanamnext generation Spain

Saul,Asensio,Rodrigo,Isco

VAMOS ESPANA​

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Spain 6 Croatia 0: Asensio leads destruction of World Cup finalists

Croatia suffered the biggest defeat in their history as Spain thrashed them 6-0 in Tuesday's Nations League match at Estadio Manuel Martinez Valero.

Marco Asensio scored once and set up four more in Luis Enrique's second match in charge, as the World Cup finalists were run ragged in Elche.Saul Niguez headed Spain in front before Asensio fired in two spectacular strikes, although the second was credited as an own goal from Lovre Kalinic.

Croatia, for whom Ivan Rakitic was making his 100th appearance, rarely got to grips with their opponents and conceded three times more in the second half through Rodrigo Moreno, Sergio Ramos and Isco.

The result is their heaviest ever defeat, the first time they have conceded six goals and the first game in which they have let in five since a 5-1 loss to England in 2009.Ivan Santini and Ivan Perisic missed good early chances before Spain seized control 23 minutes in, as Saul headed the ball in off the turf after being picked out by Dani Carvajal's sublime cross.

It got worse for Croatia before the break as Asensio forced two memorable goals in the space of two minutes, first blasting beyond Kalinic from 25 yards before driving towards the box and curling a stunning effort that smacked the crossbar and went in off the unfortunate goalkeeper.

Zlatko Dalic cut a furious figure on the touchline, and his mood darkened just four minutes after the restart, when Rodrigo beat the offside trap to latch onto a pass from Asensio and slot between Kalinic's legs.The Real Madrid winger got his second assist of a spectacular display before the hour mark, his corner finding the head of the unmarked Ramos, who made no mistake from eight yards out.

A memorable result was capped by a stylish sixth from Isco, who took a touch from Asensio's pass and fired high into the net across the helpless Kalinic.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Iceland 0 Belgium 3: Red Devils cruise with in-form Lukaku at the double

Romelu Lukaku was on target twice as Belgium cruised to a 3-0 win over Iceland in the World Cup semi-finalists' Nations League opener on Tuesday.

Roberto Martinez's side might have been worried for a time early in the first half as they were kept at bay in the League A encounter, but Eden Hazard's opener from the penalty spot was followed by a Lukaku strike just 121 seconds later.While Belgium were not wholly convincing, their lead never looked threatened and they spent the second half on the front foot, chasing a further goal that eventually arrived through Lukaku again.


Even at three goals down, Iceland were able to retain at least some respectability in response to a weekend showing when Group 2 rivals Switzerland ran out 6-0 winners with embarrassing ease.


Iceland made the early running, perhaps keen to atone for Saturday's humbling, but the visitors slowly turned the screw and opened the scoring from the spot with their first real opening, Hazard converting after Sverrir Ingi Ingason tangled with Lukaku.And Belgium quickly doubled their advantage. Hannes Thor Halldorsson parried Vincent Kompany's header, but Lukaku prodded the rebound just over the line for a second goal in three minutes.

The hosts came out rejuvenated at the start of the second half but, once again, it did not last and Thomas Meunier should have added a third when he turned Hazard's pinpoint cross wide. The same man struck the foot of the post shortly afterwards when he looked destined to score, dashing into the area on the right and shooting low past the goalkeeper.

Gylfi Sigurdsson belatedly stung the palms of Thibaut Courtois with Iceland's first effort of note, yet there never appeared a real danger of Belgium ceding their comfortable advantage and Lukaku beat Ingason to a low cross to net the third.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

England 1 Switzerland 0: Rashford gets Southgate's men back to winning ways

Marcus Rashford scored in consecutive matches for the first time in his international career as England returned to winning ways with a 1-0 victory over Switzerland in Leicester.

Manchester United forward Rashford gave the Three Lions an early lead at home to Spain on Saturday before they fell to a 2-1 Nations League defeat.He was one of only two players to keep their place as Gareth Southgate shuffled his pack at the King Power Stadium and a disjointed first-half showing followed.


There was a marked improvement in the second period, with Rashford on hand to halt a run of three consecutive defeats for the World Cup semi-finalists.Xherdan Shaqiri hit the outside of the post in the seventh minute after his former Stoke City team-mate Jack Butland made two poor passes out from the back.

Butland atoned for his earlier wobbles by thwarting Mario Gavranovic and Ricardo Rodriguez as England struggled to impose themselves on the contest.Danny Rose saw a rasping shot pushed clear by Yann Sommer, with the Tottenham wing-back the most regular source of fleeting attacking encouragement for the hosts.

England were fortunate to reach half-time on terms but there was an improvement in terms of intensity and performance from Southgate's men after the restart.The reward arrived in the 54th minute as Kyle Walker arrowed Rose's overhit corner back into the box from the right and Rashford stroked home unmarked at the far post.


John Stones was introduced in a triple substitution alongside Harry Kane and Jesse Lingard after the hour and the Manchester City defender ended up with a bloodied head having bravely denied Shaqiri.

Stones was less impressive in allowing Albian Ajeti to barge beyond him in the final minute, but the Switzerland substitute blazed over.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Brazil 5 El Salvador 0: Two-goal Richarlison leads rout as Neto ends eight-year wait

Neto made his long-awaited international debut and Richarlison scored a brace as Brazil eased past minnows El Salvador 5-0 on Tuesday.There were no surprises in Maryland, where captain Neymar converted his second penalty in two games, while Richarlison and Philippe Coutinho were also on target at FedEx Field.

Neymar opened the scoring when El Salvador were harshly penalised for a foul on Richarlison inside two minutes, before the latter capped his starting international debut with a stunning curled effort in the 16th minute, and Coutinho added a third on the half-hour mark.


Richarlison netted his second of the match – the Everton star producing another fine finish past Henry Hernandez five minutes into the second half – and Marquinhos completed the rout in the 90th minute.

All eyes were on goalkeeper Neto, however, after the 29-year-old ended his wait for a senior appearance following eight years and 25 games.Fans barely had a chance to take their seats when Neymar stepped up and scored from the spot after Richarlison went down under a challenge from El Salvador's Roberto Dominguez in the second minute.

Neymar's opener took his international tally to 59 – three adrift of Ronaldo and 18 behind all-time leading scorer Pele.It was routine for Brazil – who defeated the United States 2-0 last time out – as Richarlison got himself on the scoresheet with a beautiful first-time shot from the edge of the area.

Neymar should have made it 3-0 six minutes later but his shot rattled the crossbar, though, Brazil eventually got their third in the 30th minute via Coutinho, who left the keeper stranded having received a ball from the former just outside the penalty box.El Salvador emerged from the interval with renewed enthusiasm and attacking intent, and it caused some nervy moments for Brazil, however, it left the CONCACAF nation exposed in defence.

Richarlison was at it again in the 50th minute, firing a low shot into the bottom corner of the net as he showcased his goalscoring instincts, before Marquinhos headed home Neymar's corner at the death.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Colombia 0 Argentina 0: South American rivals play out draw

Argentina maintained their long unbeaten run against Colombia after a 0-0 friendly draw between the nations in New Jersey.Despite an entertaining first half at MetLife Stadium, the two understrength South American sides were unable to find a breakthrough.

Argentina – without Lionel Messi – were perhaps the better side for the most part, but Colombia also had their chances on Tuesday.But under interim coaches Lionel Scaloni and Arturo Reyes, the teams played out a draw, leaving Colombia without a win against Argentina since 2007.

Argentina looked the more dangerous side in the opening stages, and Exequiel Palacios forced a good save from David Ospina in the seventh minute.Scaloni's side continued to search for an opener and Mauro Icardi was the next to be denied by Ospina, who kept out the Inter forward after he was played through by Nicolas Tagliafico.

Argentina were almost punished for those missed chances approaching the half-hour mark, Radamel Falcao's low strike pushed away by Franco Armani.Colombia grew into the encounter as the half wore on and while it was a mostly open first 45 minutes, the teams headed into the break level.


Armani was needed to keep Argentina level just after half-time, the goalkeeper diving to his left to deny a powerful strike from Luis Muriel.However, despite both teams pushing for a winner amid a flurry of substitutions, they struggled to create clear-cut chances.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Asensio sees pre-World Cup spirit in Luis Enrique's Spain


Marco Asensio believes Spain have recovered the positive spirit of their pre-World Cup form following Tuesday's destruction of Croatia in Elche.

The Real Madrid star scored one and forced another four goals as the home side inflicted a 6-0 defeat on the World Cup finalists in their Nations League clash.It was Croatia's heaviest ever defeat and the second time Spain have scored six times this year, having thrashed Argentina 6-1 back in March.

Spain's World Cup campaign ended in chaos and disappointment, as they lost to hosts Russia on penalties in the last 16 after coach Julen Lopetegui was sacked on the eve of the tournament for holding talks with Real Madrid without informing the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF).

With victories over England and Croatia this international break under new manager Luis Enrique, Asensio thinks they have recaptured some of the good vibes they felt before the World Cup."The truth is we had a great game. We concluded a very good international break," he told TVE.

"We needed to recover those feelings we had. We played two big games, our fans supported us, and it's nice to play here."Whenever I'm on the pitch, I try to do my best. We had a great game, on a collective level especially. We defend and attack together."We've played against teams who got very far in the World Cup. These games are important to reach the final phase."

Luis Enrique was thrilled with the way his side performed, including debutants Jose Gaya and Dani Ceballos, and described Asensio's shooting ability as "unique".
"It's difficult to overcome a team who presses like Croatia," he said to Teledeporte. "They had the chance to score, but then we were superior."The attitude of all the players was very good. Asensio scored two amazing goals. He has a unique strike. Players like Gaya and Ceballos made their debuts, and they should be proud.

"It's difficult to criticise something in a game of such a high level. I'll now analyse everything in detail. I'm where I want to be."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

'Rashford could develop into England's Ronaldo' - Southgate hails Man Utd starlet


Could Marcus Rashford be a Cristiano Ronaldo figure for England?
Three Lions boss Gareth Southgate believes the Manchester United youngster is a "special talent" and has likened him to the Juventus and Portugal star, even pointing out that the 20-year-old is better in front of goal than Ronaldo was at that tender age. Rashford scored the winning goal for England against Switzerland on Tuesday, making it three home internationals in row with a goal for the youngster.

And while Southgate knows that there is still plenty of room to improve, he is impressed with the amount of game time Rashford is seeing and belives the youngster can develop into one of the top players in the world.

“He is a special talent,” the England manager said.“We have to remember that Harry Kane at that age had hardly played anywhere near the matches for Spurs.“You can even compare it to some of those other top players who have broken through.

"Some of the step-overs and things Ronaldo was doing at that age [were remarkable], but Ronaldo wasn’t converting them into the same number of goals.“So we have got to give Marcus time to develop."He has still played a lot of football, although maybe not the continuous starts, and I’m really pleased for him that he leaves here full of confidence.”

Rashford has indeed out-paced Ronaldo's early production with Manchester United, outscoring the former No. 7 in a direct comparison of the pair's first three seasons at Old Trafford.The England international netted 32 times in 123 games in that period, while Ronaldo managed 27 in 137 outings.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Man City star Aguero feels best he has in years


Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero feels the strongest he has in years following successful knee surgery at the end of last season.The Argentina international had an operation on a troublesome issue in April and missed his side's final six Premier League matches of 2017-18.

The 30-year-old has started this term in encouraging form, though, scoring twice in the Community Shield win over Chelsea before netting a hat-trick in the 6-1 thrashing of Huddersfield Town.

Although he has failed to score in City's three other league games to date, Aguero is feeling the benefit of playing pain-free for the first time in years.

"Honestly, I feel fantastic," he said, as quoted by City's official website. "Dr Cugat did amazing work with my knee and now I don't feel any sort of discomfort."During the past few years, I felt pains at times and when last season came to an end, we decided it would be best to start treatment. And the results were very positive.

"I'm not sure if this is the best start of a season for me, but it's the best I've felt in years. It shows in my game. The challenge now is keeping up this level, and I'll be working non-stop to maintain it."

City resume domestic action on Saturday, when they host last season's Championship play-off final winners Fulham.
Pep Guardiola's side were held to a 1-1 draw at Wolves last month and Aguero is keen not to underestimate another of the promoted teams."They have a long-standing tradition in England of being a good footballing team and now they've won a place back in the Premier League," he said.

"It's no secret this is one of the most competitive tournaments in the world, played at the highest of levels, so it doesn't matter if they are fresh from promotion or not – they've earned their place here."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

'He already has offers' - Dybala will leave Juventus in January, claims Zamparini


Paulo Dybala will leave Juventus in January and already has offers from clubs in Spain and England, Palermo owner Maurizio Zamparini has claimed.

The forward started his side's Serie A opener against Chievo last month, but did not play in the 2-0 win over Lazio and only managed 10 minutes off the bench in the 2-1 victory against Parma prior to the international break.

The 24-year-old has also found life difficult at international level in recent months, having been left out of Argentina's last two starting line-ups after being omitted from their World Cup squad.

Zamparini, who sanctioned Dybala's move to Juve from Palermo in 2015, has hit out at head coach Massimiliano Allegri for his treatment of the player and backed him to move to La Liga in the next transfer window.

"Every time he is left out, it makes me want to cry," Zamparini told RMC Sport."He's on the bench because of Allegri. Allegri should come to Palermo and win the Scudetto.

"Two years ago, I sent Dybala a message and advised him to go to Spain, not Italy. "He'll leave, because Juventus want to get €120 million. In January, I think he'll leave for Spain. He has offers in Spain and England.

"Juventus have a lot of champions and it's obviously a reason to cry when a phenomenon like him is not playing."Barcelona have been linked with Dybala in the past, while Real Madrid were rumoured to be interested after they sold Cristiano Ronaldo to Juve in a €112m deal.

Manchester United are also said to be considering an offer, possibly as part of a deal that would see Paul Pogba return to Turin, with the midfielder reportedly keen to move back to the Serie A champions.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Barcelona unveil striking new pink third kit for 2018-19 season.

​

​

​

​

​

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Guardiola: De Bruyne has €250m release clause


Pep Guardiola insists Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne is not for sale, and says the midfielder has a release clause of €250 million (£223/$292m).

De Bruyne was the star man as City smashed a string of records in romping to the Premier League title under the Catalan's leadership last term.City are currently without the Belgium international due to a knee injury that is set to rule De Bruyne out of action until November.

And Guardiola intimated it could take a world-record fee to prise De Bruyne away from City, the 27-year-old having signed a six-year contract earlier this year.

"He's very good. He's a very dynamic player," Guardiola said in an interview with Universo Valdano."[Leeds United boss] Marcelo Bielsa told me he was his favourite player. He does everything.

"The other day, I met his parents and you often understand how the children are when you know the parents."He's an incredible boy. The clause is €250m. I'm sorry, he's not for sale."

Guardiola also told Universo Valdano he aims to return to Barcelona B, where he began his coaching career, before he retires. And the 47-year-old confirmed he also has ambitions to try his hand at international management should the chance arise.

"Yes. I'm going to coach a national team if I'm given the opportunity and they want me," Guardiola said. "I want to try it. I've always been curious about it."Like De Bruyne, Guardiola has committed his future to City with a contract extension and the former Barcelona and Bayern Munich coach is settled at the Etihad Stadium.

"Yes, I've renewed. I'm really happy there," he added. "I'm well protected, I don't feel judged. I'm at the club that interests me."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Man City break £500m revenue barrier in record year


Premier League champions Manchester City have announced record revenues of £500.5 million ($656m) in their 2017-18 annual report.City made a profit for the fourth consecutive year, with their balance sheet in the black to the tune of £10.4m ($14m), while the wage-revenue ratio sits at 52 per cent.

City, whose 2016-17 revenue stood at £473.4m ($620.5m), have become only the second English club to break the £500m barrier after Manchester United in 2016 – a feat their neighbours repeated last year by bringing in £581.2m ($762m).

City are now the fifth club in Europe to hit revenues of half a billion pounds, along with Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and United, who are due to release their latest figures this month.

On the field, Pep Guardiola's team enjoyed a record-breaking campaign last time around, hitting 100 points as they lifted the Premier League with new best marks in terms of overall wins, consecutive victories, goals scored and goal difference.They also won the Carabao Cup and reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League, where they lost to Liverpool.

"The 2017-18 season will go down in history because of the incredible football we all witnessed," City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak said."We are filled with an extraordinary sense of pride in the hard work of Pep Guardiola, the players, and the staff who work tirelessly to support them.

"Our aim is obviously to build on the achievements of the last year. We will always strive for more."This month marked the 10th anniversary of Sheikh Mansour's takeover of City and Al Mubarak added: "Our journey is not complete and we have more targets to fulfil.

"There should be no doubt that we are looking forward to the challenges of the new season and those beyond it with equal commitment and determination to the 10 seasons that came before."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Man Utd will be fine without Pogba, says Neville


Gary Neville insists that Manchester United will be just fine if Paul Pogba leaves Old Trafford, stating that "no one is bigger than the club".Pogba's relationship with manager Jose Mourinho is said to be on the rocks, with the French midfielder recently telling the press that there are things he cannot talk about for fear of being fined.

Additionally, Pogba's future at Old Trafford has been called into question as the player himself has done little to play down the possibility of a move away amidst links to Barcelona among other elite clubs.

And while Pogba is a fan favourite as well as a marketing dream, Neville has called for the 25-year-old to act more professionally or find a new club as the Red Devils would cope without him.

“There are four ways to look at it,” Neville told The Times. “Pundit, owner, fan and a personal word.“Neville the pundit would say: he's a talented player but I want to see more consistency and leadership.

“As a fan, honestly, part of me says that no one is bigger than the club and I am not interested in people who are looking left and right.“So, Paul, if you want to go play somewhere else, let's make that work for you because Manchester United will be fine, don't worry about that.

“The owner in me would do what United are doing at the moment, saying he is not for sale.“They have to protect their asset but privately they might be doing a deal because they want to get their £90 million back.

“If I was still in that dressing room giving personal advice it would be: 'Paul, it's obvious you want to play somewhere else but be professional.'“Don't be someone who is seen as a mercenary or a mutineer. You don't need to do that.”

Manchester United, who currently sit tenth in the Premier League, return to action on Saturday, September 15 with a trip to Watford.

 

[RottenCOLT]

Barcelona unveil striking new pink third kit for 2018-19 season.

​

mekanam patta kathai