..::Football II::..

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La Liga 2013.03.16 Fixtures

La Liga 2013.03.16 Fixtures

Real Sociedad Vs Real Valladoid

Getafe Vs Athletic Bilbao

Real Madrid Vs Mallorca

Valencia Vs Real Betis​

 

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Serie A 2013.03.16 Fixtures

Serie A 2013.03.16 Fixtures

Catania Vs Udinese

Bologna Vs Juventus​

 

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Full Time

Swansea City 0 - 2 Arsenal

Everton 2-0 Manchester City

Aston Villa 3-2 QPR

Southampton 3-1 Liverpool

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Stoke 0-0 West Brom: Potters poor form continues after disappointing home draw

A 0-0 stalemate at the Britannia helped Stoke to climb up the table as it kept its first home clean sheet since November, although there is still pressure mounting on manager Tony Pulis.

The home side has managed only one win in 2013, but displayed a strong defensive performance against West Brom, which had won three of its last four games to help push for a top eight finish before coming into the fixture.A point for Stoke however has seen it climb up the table on goal difference, but the Potters are locked with four other teams on 33 points. West Brom stays eighth in the league, only two points behind seventh-placed Liverpool.

West Brom started the livelier side as it applied the pressure on the Potters in the opening minutes of the tie, with Chris Brunt forcing Asmir Begovic into an early save after James Morrison put in a through ball for the midfielder.Despite a rocky start, Jon Walters went on to have the best chance of the first half, with his shot deflecting off Olsson before creeping inches wide of Ben Foster's goal.

The home side made the first substitution of the game, bringing on Dean Whitehead for Greg Whelan at halftime, but it was West Brom who started the second half brightly. Thomas’ cross was directed to Lukaku who headed the ball towards the Stoke goal, but Begovic caught with ease.

Stoke also came close in the early phase of the second half, but Crouch and Etherington saw their chances go to waste after some resilient keeping from Foster.
Clarke’s side looked dominant however, with West Brom repeatedly breaking on the right side of the pitch, with Morrison’s crosses providing a challenge for Stoke to deal with, although Lukaku failed to make use of his opportunities.

Stoke came agonizingly close to the opening goal with 10 minutes to go, as Wilson’s header travelled inches wide of the goal following Whitehead’s corner.
Despite late chances from Adam and Jones, West Brom held firm to gain a very valuable away point.

 

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Southampton 3-1 Liverpool: Saints secure priceless win in battle to avoid the drop

Liverpool’s hopes of gatecrashing the Champions League places are almost over after being pummelled 3-1 by Southampton in a riveting encouter.

Brendan Rodgers’ team was swept away by the aggression of the relegation strugglers in driving rain on the south coast.

Goals from Morgan Schneiderlin and Rickie Lambert within the opening 33 minutes was due reward for the early dominance of the hosts, who took full advantage of shambolic defending from the Merseysiders.Phillipe Coutinho gave Liverpool hope by pulling one back on the cusp of halftime but the off-color Reds failed to make their marginal second-half improvement count.

With 10 minutes remaining, the excellent Jay Rodriguez slalomed through the porous visiting rearguard and sealed the win with a finish at the second attempt.In front of a Premier League-record attendance at the stadium of 32,070, the 3-1 triumph helped Southampton climb seven points clear of the bottom three and has surely sealed its top-flight status.

Liverpool end the day in seventh place, three points behind Everton and seven adrift of fourth-placed Chelsea, which has two games in hand on the Merseysiders.
Mauricio Pochettino set his team up to attack the visitors and it paid rich dividends early on as Liverpool’s defense and midfield were taken to the cleaners by the aggression of the hosts.

The excellent Schneiderlin conducted the red tidal wave from his central midfield station, and his untracked run led to the opener after six minutes.Gaston Ramirez’s inviting cross was nodded down at the back post by Jay Rodriguez and Schneiderlin dashed in ahead of the floundering Daniel Agger to flick the ball in.

Shortly after Brad Jones had saved well with his legs to keep out Lambert, the boyhood Liverpool fan made amends with his 13th league goal of the season.There was a degree of fortune to the 33rd minute free-kick but it was nothing that the hosts did not deserve, given the dominance of their play. Lambert’s 30-yard curled set-piece contrived to hit Daniel Sturridge, fly through a gap in the wall and into the left side of the net while Jones stood rooted to the spot.

Despite its defensive woes, Liverpool looked threatening going forward and, soon after Coutinho fluffed his lines when one-on-one with Artur Boruc, the little Brazilian gave his team hope with his second goal in four games for his new club.
After Sturridge’s shot had been blocked following a smart header by Steven Gerrard, Coutinho kept his composure to slam home the loose ball on the stroke of halftime.

It gave Liverpool a foothold in the game that it scarcely deserved and Rodgers responded at the break by reversing his selection that had badly backfired, replacing the ponderous Allen with Lucas.This brought greater aggression and balance to the visitors, and they were a far more effective force in the second period.

But, with the game on a knife-edge, Southampton continued to create opportunities and Rodriguez made Liverpool pay for more shambolic defending after 80 minutes.

 

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Aston Villa 3-2 QPR: Rangers left on the brink by Benteke winner

A late goal from Christian Benteke secured up a hugely important 3-2 win for Aston Villa and put an end to a truly thrilling Premier League relegation clash against QPR at Villa Park.

QPR bossed possession for the vast majority of the first half and made their dominance count when Jermaine Jenas poked the away side into the lead with 22 minutes played.

But a late header against the run of play from Gabriel Agbonlahor in the final moments of the first half made the scores level, and Villa went ahead 14 minutes into the second half through Andreas Weimann.

QPR, given new life after Adel Taarabt entered the field of play after 66 minutes, fought their way back and Andros Townsend fired in an equalizer of their own with little over quarter-of-an-hour to play.

But Villa kept on fighting and Benteke steered the winner into the back of the net with only 10 minutes left to play.

Clearly encouraged by its victory over fellow relegation candidate Reading last weekend, Aston Villa arguably started the stronger of the two sides, keeping hold of good possession in the opening 10 minutes.

But the tables turned quickly and it was QPR who had the best opportunity to go ahead early on when Brad Guzan pulled off two world-class saves to deny Christopher Samba in the space of a minute. The American first saved a dipping header from the Congolese defender and then acrobatically kept out Samba's shot from the edge of the penalty area just moments later.

However, Guzan was unable to stop Jenas from putting the away side ahead after 22 minutes when poor passing from Aston Villa in the center of the field resulted in Bobby Zamora breaking away and forcing Guzan into saving his shot, allowing Jenas to slide in and poke the ball into the back of the empty net.

The home side, hanging on for its life, could have gone two or three goals down before halftime through great chances from Zamora, Loic Remy and a free kick effort that hit the post from Jose Bosingwa, but Guzan, ever the savior for Villa, was on hand to keep out the constant QPR attacking onslaught.

Despite their dominance, QPR lost their lead on the stroke of halftime when Matthew Lowton crossed in to Agbonlahor to head past a stationary Cesar. The Brazilian goalkeeper had little, if anything, to do all half up until the goal but let his concentration slip when it was most needed.

Clearly spurred on by Agbonlahor's late equalizer in the first half, Aston Villa went 2-1 up just before the hour mark after QPR failed to clear a corner, allowing Weimann to turn inside the QPR box and fire low past Cesar.

Clearly frustrated by his attacking options, Redknapp took off Fabio and replaced him with the ever-threatening Taarabt, and the Moroccan immediately made an impact, putting plenty of pressure on the Villa defense.

The QPR pressure culminated in their equalizer with 73 minutes played after great build-up play led the ball to Townsend just outside the penalty area, the on-loan winger's shot finding its way past Guzan thanks to a wicked deflection.

But Aston Villa refused to give up and Benteke scored the all-important winner with 10 minutes to go after Weimann rushed into the box and forced out Cesar, playing the ball horizontally past the Brazilian and back into the path of the Belgian striker who coolly put away the winning goal.

 

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Swansea 0-2 Arsenal: Monreal strikes vital blow in the race for fourth

Nacho Monreal scored his first goal for Arsenal to help the Gunners to a 2-0 victory over Swansea and a crucial three points at the Liberty Stadium.

The new signing from Malaga pounced on a loose ball in the penalty area after 74 minutes before beating Michel Vorm with a low shot that brings Arsene Wenger's team within two points of Chelsea, which plays tomorrow.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain twice hit the crossbar but both goalkeepers had remained largely untested until Monreal struck and Gervinho slotted in to complete a counterattack in added time.

Oxlade-Chamberlain stepped past Angel Rangel and hit the crossbar with a sidefooted shot from 12 yards but the home side soon took control, stifling Arsenal's attacks with the numbers it brought back behind the ball.

A neat move in midfield ended in Ki Sung-Yueng threading a through ball into the path of Rangel, but under pressure from two Arsenal defenders, the right back miscued his shot.

Michu did much the same when Carl Jenkinson's poor pass across the edge of his own penalty area was intercepted by Jonathan de Guzman. The Spaniard checked back to wriggle away from Per Mertesacker but scuffed his effort from 15 yards wide of the far post.

Thereafter, though, Swansea struggled to work clear sights of goal just as much as the visitors. Oxlade-Chamberlain again clipped the crossbar, this time from 30 yards, before the half was out but the tempo was desperately slow after the restart.

Arsenal, though, would find the breakthrough from an unlikely source. Olivier Giroud looked to have wasted a good chance when he controlled a Cazorla cross poorly in the Swansea box, but the loose ball ran to Monreal, who drilled a low shot past Vorm.

Swansea's captain, Ashley Williams, had already reminded his teammates that they must not become complacent after their Capital One Cup victory but De Guzman's free kick against the side netting was the closest they came to an equalizer as they slipped to a second straight defeat.

The Swans were always likely to be prone to an Arsenal counterattack as they poured forward in search of a late goal, and Gervinho took advantage by finishing off a break led by Aaron Ramsey.

 

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Everton 2-0 Manchester City: 10-man Toffees deliver further blow to visitors' slim title hopes

Roberto Mancini’s hoodoo at Goodison Park was extended on Saturday as Everton dealt a crushing blow to Manchester City ’s already slim Premier League title hopes with a commanding 2-0 win.

Mancini’s men, who have now lost their last four games in the Toffees’ backyard, were thoroughly outplayed in the first half and a stunning strike from stand-in captain Leon Osman ensured they headed into the break with a 1-0 deficit.

Steven Pienaar was sent off on the hour mark but the hosts held on – even doubling their advantage late on through Nikica Jelavic – as David Moyes’s side produced the perfect reaction to its FA Cup humiliation against Wigan last Saturday.

The opening 10 minutes yielded 65% possession for the Toffees as key men Leighton Baines and Mouraoune Fellaini – whose evident enthusiasm saw him booked after just six minutes – imposed themselves on the action from the off.

And on 12 minutes, the hosts looked to have earned just reward for their early dominance as Kevin Mirallas hit the back of the net with a finely-struck volley. Controversially, though, the linesman raised the offside flag, despite replays definitively showing he was onside.

But on the half-hour mark, Osman gave Everton the lead in spectacular fashion – and there was nothing the linesman could do to stop this one. Receiving the ball 30 yards from goal, the stand-in skipper sent a stunning strike straight into the top-left corner with his first touch. Hart was rooted to the spot.

The visitors needed a response and Tevez and Dzeko – their biggest threats so far – fired just off target minutes later but the hosts were firmly in control going into the break.

And it was more of the same after halftime. That was until the hour mark, however, when Pienaar – who was booked in the first half – dived in with a rash challenge on Javi Garcia and referee Lee Probert showed no hesitation in sending the South African off.

The man advantage gave City all the space it needed – and it duly threatened on 66 minutes as Tevez and Milner fired in a shot each. Jan Mucha produced two top-quality saves, however, and proved equal to both.

Then, the visitors were given cause to feel aggrieved late on as Fellaini handled inside the penalty area but Probert gave a free kick just outside the box.

Kolarov could not convert the set piece and Jelavic compounded City's misery by adding a second minutes later. If the title race was already tilted heavily in Manchester United’s favor, now it had surely become a foregone conclusion.

 

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Borussia Dortmund 5-1 Freiburg: Lewandowski and Sahin both net twice in convincing victory

Borussia Dortmund came from behind before emerging a 5-1 winner against Freiburg in an exhilarating encounter at Signal Iduna Park.

The visitors began impressively and took a deserved lead through Jonathan Schmid, but goals from Robert Lewandowski either side of a Nuri Sahin strike ensured BVB went into the break in front. With the Freiburg resistance broken, Sahin bagged himself a second before Leonardo Bittencourt completed the scoring.

BVB looked utterly disjointed and displayed a lack of fluency across the pitch in the early going. But the visitors deserved credit for maintaining their positive start to the game and in the 28th minute they got their reward.

Julian Schuster swung in a deep cross from the right which was held up at the back post by Max Kruse. And with Dormund's defense all at sea, he held the ball up before standing it up for Schmid to add a simple finish.

Freiburg continued to press Jurgen Klopp's men high up the field, but a flurry of action before the break saw the hosts complete an astonishing turnaround with three goals in five minutes.

Firstly, Lewandowski evaded his marker inside the area and headed the ball past Baumann from Sahin's delivery in the 41st minute.

Three minutes later, some brilliant dribbling from Jakub 'Kuba' Blaszczykowski unlocked the Freiburg defense and Sahin powered the ball into the far corner after his teammate rolled it across the box.

Then, in the final minute of the first half, Marco Reus saw his close-range shot saved by Baumann, but Christian Gunter's clearance fell to Lewandowski inside the area. He took one touch to put the ball on his left before rifling an effort into the bottom corner.

The goals almost continued at the same pace as Gundogan threaded Reus through on goal within two minutes of the restart, only for Baumann to be equal to the Germany international's effort.

Reus saw several opportunities narrowly slip through his fingers, before Mario Gotze failed to convert in front of an open goal after a brilliant pass from Sahin had set Kuba free down the right.

But the fourth goal did come, and once again it was Sahin on the scoresheet. Santana's long ball initiated the danger and the midfielder was first to a loose ball in the area to poke a shot over the top of Baumann.

The rout was then completed in the 78th minute, as Lewandowski glided past Fallou Diagne and sent the ball across the face of the goal where Bittencourt, who had only been on the field for two minutes, added the final touch.

BVB opened a four-point gap on third-placed Bayer Leverkusen, which takes on league leader Bayern Munich later on Saturday, bringing Champions League football ever closer to returning to Signal Iduna Park next season.

 

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Congratulations Manchester United!!!

Manchester United 1-0 Reading: Rooney edges runaway leaders closer to 20th league title

Manchester United extended its lead at the top of the Premier League table to 15 points after a 1-0 win over Reading at Old Trafford on Saturday.

Wayne Rooney opened the scoring with 20 minutes gone but the Red Devils failed to kick on against the Royals in a less-than-entertaining first period.

And the below-par display continued after the break, with both sides failing to threaten the other, meaning Sir Alex Ferguson's men take full advantage of Manchester City's loss to Everton while their manager-less opponents remain in deep trouble at the bottom.

After a sluggish opening 15 minutes or so, Ashley Young collected a fine ball from Rio Ferdinand before flashing a shot narrowly wide of the post in the first half-chance of the clash.

And the center half was again heavily involved as United got the breakthrough with 20 minutes played. Ferdinand expertly carried the ball up from the back, before finding Rooney whose strike deflected off Alex Pearce and looped over Taylor.

Welbeck then dragged a shot wide, with Rooney and Van Persie sending long-range efforts into the keeper's arms, as Ferguson's men comfortably dominated possession but just failed to create any clear chances against a stubborn Royals defense.

Hal-Robson Kanu went inches from an equalizer with a superb, curling left-footed effort from outside the United box, in the visitors' first shot at goal, but the score remained 1-0 at the halftime whistle.

Reading started the second period much brighter and was unfortunate not to be awarded a penalty when Nemanja Vidic shoved Adrian Mariappa to the floor in the box.

The Red Devils finally sprung back into action with about an hour played as Welbeck had a strike deflected wide and Van Persie and Young saw efforts rise over the bar.

Taylor then palmed away a powerful Van Persie free-kick as the slight pressure continued, but it only lasted for a matter of minutes before the match returned to its former uninspiring standard.

Reading offered little in attack as it searched for another late goal, and it was in fact the hosts who went closest to a second through a Rooney pile-driver and a neat effort from Giggs in the last five minutes.

Van Persie then also shot acrobatically over the bar very late on before the hosts held firm to grind out another win that puts even more space between them and rival City.

 

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Congratulations Manchester United!!!

Congratulations Manchester United!​

 

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Fiorentina's Jovetic fuels Manchester City rumors

The Premier League champions have negotiated a first option agreement for the 23-year-old with Fiorentina, who would prefer not to sell to domestic rivals Juvents Fiorentina star Stevan Jovetic has fuelled speculation of a summer move to Manchester City by admitting he wants to test himself with a bigger club.

Earlier this month Goal.com revealed City has negotiated a first-option agreement with the Viola for Jovetic, who is unwilling to increase the current release clause in his contract, believed to be around 30 million euros.

And while the Montenegrin striker did not directly address the interest of the Premier League champions, he did admit he feels ready to move on to bigger and better things.

"It's better to play in a team where you know you are a starting player, but in life you have to grow and test yourself," he told Gazzetta Dello Sport. "It's a risk that I would face.

"There are three categories of players: those like Totti, who chose to stay in their home, the team where they're born - a choice I would have made if I had stayed in Belgrade - those that stay in a place because they have fear to move, and those that fear can't stop. Me? I have no fear."

Serie A leader Juventus is also a long-term admirer of the 23-year-old, but earlier this month Fiorentina director Daniele Prade revealed the club would prefer not to sell its star man to a domestic rival.

 

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Ancelotti: Barcelona is not unbeatable

The Italian is quietly confident of his side's chances of defeating the Liga leaders when they meet in Europe Carlo Ancelotti has proclaimed Barcelona as the favorite in Paris Saint-Germain's Champions League quarterfinal clash, but insisted that his team does not see it as unbeatable.

Les Parisiens triumphed over two legs against Valencia in the last 16, while the Blaugrana defeated AC Milan 4-0 at Camp Nou to overturn their 2-0 loss at San Siro in the first leg.

Ancelotti told reporters on Saturday: "We will have our chances. We will play against one of the best teams in the world, and it will be very exciting for us to prepare for this match.

"We will not be favorites, but I do not think an unbeatable team exists in football. We will do our chance to win.

"[Barcelona] is a great team with great individual qualities," he added. "On paper, Barcelona has more of a chance to reach the semifinals, but anything is possible, and this is what makes the beauty of our sport.

The former Chelsea boss insisted that his team must also be focused on its Ligue 1 campaign, starting with Sunday's clash with Saint-Etienne.

"We must remain focused and I expect to see significant effort against Saint-Etienne and in our home game against Montpellier. Then we can turns our heads to Barcelona."

Saint-Etienne has been impressive this season and sits fourth in the table, and Ancelotti had praise for its rise up the Ligue 1 standings.

"They work well because they have a very good coach, a very good tactician, who has established a good offensive and defensive organization," he said. "They are a complete team, and we must be careful."

 

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Beckenbauer: Juventus-Bayern Munich tie on a knife edge

The legendary sweeper believes the two sides will be difficult to separate, despite his allegiance with the Bavarians Franz Beckenbauer has admitted that Bayern Munich was handed a "tough draw" in the quarterfinals of the Champions League after it was paired with Juventus.

The Bavarians ran out 4-1 victors in the two sides' last meeting back in 2009 - also in Europe's elite club tournament - but their former captain is under no illusions as to the difficulty of the tie.

"It is a tough draw. It's 50-50, although it's not such a good thing that Bayern kick the tie off at home," Beckenbauer told Sky Sport Deutschland.

"Whoever leads the Italian league with a nine-point advantage can obviously play football. Malaga or Galatasaray would have been more feasible, but a draw cannot be requested."

Former Bayern trio Stefan Effenberg, current CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and ex-midfielder Lothar Matthaus were also all wary of the Italians' threat.

"It will be an unpleasant task. Juventus can take on any opponent in the world, are incredibly strong defensively and have a superior clock-ticker in Andrea Pirlo," said 1999 Champions League runner-up Effenberg.

Meanwhile, Rummenigge noted: "This is not a dream draw. Although we won 4-1 the last time we played them, we will nonetheless need two more good days in the office to reach the semifinals.

"I hoped that Bayern would have been paired with another opponent," concluded FCB legend Matthaus.

"They found their style this season and will have two key players available in Franck Ribery and Bastian Schweinsteiger this time around."

 

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Ronaldo is carrying Real Madrid, says Schuster

The 53-year-old has voiced his admiration for the prolific forward, and feels Jose Mourinho has done a good job this season Former Germany international Bernd Schuster has praised Cristiano Ronaldo for his recent displays for Real Madrid over recent weeks.

The Portugal international has already netted 19 goals in 16 official appearances for Madrid in 2013, including crucial goals against Manchester United and Barcelona, and Schuster has nothing but praise for the prolific attacker.

"He has proven that he is willing and capable of carrying the team on his shoulders, which is a good thing. I'm not in the least bit surprised," Schuster told Marca.

"Cristiano Ronaldo's hunger, which he shows in every match, and his desire to score goals and win stand out most for me."

Schuster, who wore the Madrid jersey from 1988 until 1990, then went on to stress that Jose Mourinho has done a good job to prepare the team for the most important stage of the season.

"I think he wasn't doing anything terrible before and hasn't started doing anything special now. He has a consistent way of working and he has the team primed for the business end of the season, the last three months during which the Champions League is at stake.

"Real Madrid have risen to the occasion and should be recognised for that. I think they can keep up the level they showed in the Clasicos and at Old Trafford. They were worthy winners and proved that when push comes to shove, they are up to the task."

Madrid is currently preparing for the Liga match at home against Real Mallorca.

 

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Congratulations Manchester United!​

me para nam title 1 sure!

 

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Swansea 0-2 Arsenal: Monreal strikes vital blow in the race for fourth

 

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Conte: It annoys people when we win

The Juventus coach believes that Bologna boss Stefano Pioli took offense to his celebrations after his side's 2-0 win at Dall'Ara purely due to Juve's status.
Juventus coach Antonio Conte has defended his exuberant celebrations in the wake of his team's 2-0 win against Bologna on Saturday.

Rossoblu counterpart Stefano Pioli took offense to the 43-year-old's actions, labeling them disrespectful, but the former Siena boss has claimed that he is only objecting due to antipathy towards the Bianconeri.

"If I can’t even celebrate with my fans after such an important victory, I don’t know what you can do any more," Conte told reporters after the match. "I know that it annoys many people when we win, but there was no lack of respect whatsoever. There are so many other horrible things elsewhere, like throwing rocks at team buses, so what's wrong if I want to celebrate with my fans?

"To be happy at winning another Scudetto is considered a lack of respect? I was just celebrating alongside my fans, while the gestures were spontaneous toward my daughter."

The Dall'Ara win took Juve 12 points clear at the top of the table, but Conte has warned his team not to get complacent in the title run-in.

"We’ve taken a big step forward, but there are still 27 points to play for. We're achieving important things and must continue," he continued. "Today we faced a team who approached the fixture off the back of three victories, and if we had lost we would have handed a boost to the sides behind us.

"Instead we deserved to win and I’m happy with how the lads played. We play good football and I'm proud of this team.”

 

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'I can still do something at 68' - Heynckes dismisses retirement rumors

The veteran coach has insisted that he still has a lot to offer, despite Bayern Munich bringing Pep Guardiola to the club to replace him in the summer.

Bayern Munich coach Jupp Heynckes has hinted that he might not retire at the end of the season despite the impending arrival of Pep Guardiola at the Allianz Arena.

It had been widely reported that the 68-year-old could end his career in the summer, but, taking inspiration from public figures who have worked despite their advancing years, he has claimed that he still has a lot to offer.

"When I think of [former Chancellor of Germany] Konrad Adenauer assuming office at 71, and now our new Pope who is 76, then I think can still do something at 68," he told Liga Total.

"I would not consider that directorial role. I am only going to reveal my future after the end of this season."

Bayern ran out the 2-1 winner over Leverkusen at the BayArena thanks to a late Philipp Wollscheid own-goal, and Heynckes was delighted with his side's response to the midweek defeat to Arsenal.

"This win has made me happier than many others," he added. "We are very satisfied. Today was very difficult after the Champions League game on Wednesday. We played a good game in the first-half, and were strongly driven.

"The legs were heavy after the break, but the team was ultimately rewarded."

 

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Balotelli: Too many stories are invented about me

The Italy international has insisted rumors of his eccentric behavior are false and that he gets on well with all of his former coaches.AC Milan striker Mario Balotelli has insisted that various media reports about his behavior are mostly wrong.

During the 22-year-old's time at Manchester City, rumors of numerous misdemeanors circulated, including an incident where he set off fireworks in his own house.

"They invent too many stories about me," he revealed to Le Iene. "I never burned my house down, never came to blows with Manchester United fans and never wore Milan's socks to training at Inter - 0.01 per cent of what they say about me is true.

"I've destroyed zero cars, and the only real fine I've ever paid was when I came to Italy instead of celebrating the title [last season] with Manchester City.

"As a child, I've been unable to do the normal things of boys my age. You can have a nice car or house, but sometimes it makes it hard for me to try to be seen as a normal guy."

Balotelli also played down talk of rifts with ex-coaches Jose Mourinho and Roberto Mancini despite publicized run-ins, and admitted his admiration for Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

"I was lucky enough to have coaches who were all great. I had a lot of quarrels with Mourinho on the field, but I also remember good times and joy, when we laughed," he added. "With Mancini, I committed a foul in training and he was angry, but nothing more. We've reconciled.

"There are three players who I admire and who are stronger than me - Messi, Ronaldo and Ibrahimovic. I hope to become the strongest player in the world. That I have not won the Balon d'Or is my own fault."