..::Football III::..

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Real Madrid Castilla suspicious of Odegaard

Martin Odegaard has endured a tough start to life at Real Madrid and Goal understands that members of the club's Castilla squad were unhappy with the level of publicity generated by his arrival in the Spanish capital.

The 16-year-old is widely regarded as one of the game's most exciting young talents, with the European champions' decision to sign the much-coveted attacking midfielder from Stromsgodset for €3 million in January making headlines across Europe.

That fanfare was greeted with a mixed reception by Los Blancos' second team, who have received nothing like the same level of attention as they bid to force their way into the Santiago Bernabeu side's senior squad.

Odegaard is already a full Norway international but is yet to make a first-team appearance for his new club and has even struggled for regular appearances in their reserves, with the youngster managing just one goal in five outings thus far.

While international duty forced Odegaard to miss one recent game, coach Zinedine Zidane opted to leave him out of their following fixture for tactical reasons. Castilla had lost their previous four games with the teenager in the starting XI but won both games without him.

That said, Odegaard is doing his best to adapt to life on and off the pitch by having four Spanish lessons a week as he bids to improve his communication with his new team-mates.

Furthemore, the club remain unconcerned over his development, given his tender years and the fact that this is his first move away from his homeland.

Carlo Ancelotti and his staff also recognise the added difficulty that he has faced in training with both the first team and Castilla squad - he works with Zidane and his team just once a week.

A Madrid source also dismissed any notion of regret at Odegaard's arrival, adding that he is clearly "a very talented player" and he also appears likely to start against Tudelano on Sunday.

 

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I watched Law and Order rather than cup draw - Klopp

Borussia Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp says he watched the American television show Law and Order instead of the draw for the DFB-Pokal semi-finals.

BVB overcame Hoffenheim to secure their place in the last four and were paired with Bayern, who beat Bayer Leverkusen 5-3 on penalties in their quarter-final.
But, so convinced was Klopp that his side would draw their rivals, he opted for some lighter viewing before later finding out Dortmund's cup fate.

"I didn't need to watch it because I just knew we'd get Bayern," he is quoted as saying by the club's official website. "I watched Law and Order instead on the peculiarities of the American legal system!"

Klopp's men travel to Munich for the game on April 28 but the 47-year-old isn't concerned about facing Pep Guardiola's side at the Allianz Arena.

"Our matches in that stadium are always very close. It's cool that it's in Munich. This is a big event and I certainly don't feel that we don't stand a chance."

The DFB-Pokal remains Dortmund's last chance of success this season, with the club 10th in the Bundesliga and already out of the Champions League after losing to Juventus in the last-16.

 

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Alves set to leave Barca after 'unsatisfactory' offers, says agent

Dani Alves looks set to leave Barcelona after his agent claimed the latest contract offer made by the Catalan club was "unsatisfactory".

The right-back's representative, who also happens to be his ex-wife, met with Barca officials on Wednesday to discuss a new deal for the Brazil defender and called a press conference on Thursday to clarify the current situation.

After reading a long list of his achievements as a player, Dinorah Santa Ana told reporters the 31-year-old had been offered only a one-year renewal by the Blaugrana, but said an unnamed club are prepared to hand him a lucrative new deal.

"We waited a whole year to talk to Barca," Santa Ana said. "We had two offers on the table, but we stopped all negotiations to listen to what Barca had to say."
She added: "There is another club willing to give Dani a three-year contract with a higher wage, plus the option of another year. But Barca told us they could not get near those figures.

"Dani would be happy to stay on the same wages he is on now, but they offered one year plus the option of two more. This morning, a formal offer arrived by e-mail, but it stipulated that he has to play 60 per cent of the games for it to be renewed the following year."Dani is sad. He expected more from Barca. The negotiations are finished now. He will finish his contract as best as he can."

Santa Ana was pressed on whether Alves could still stay at Barcelona and said: "We never know. I have already talked to other candidates ahead of the elections who don't agree with the current proposal from Barca."

The player's ex-wife also added that the pair would now study the two offers they have on the table - but claimed Paris Saint-Germain are not in the race for his signature.

""We do not have an offer from PSG, she said. "I cannot say the teams that have already made offers, but there are two of them."Alves joined Barca from Sevilla in 2008 and has won 16 trophies at the Catalan club.

 

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Dani Alves Barcelona walin yai wage.​

 

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Pique stirs Ronaldo controversy

Barcelona defender Gerard Pique has stirred the controversy surrounding Cristiano Ronaldo's latest gesture towards a referee by highlighting his previous behaviour involving officials.

On Wednesday night the Real Madrid forward was booked for simulation after going to ground inside the penalty area following a tackle by Rayo Vallecano's Antonio Amaya.

The club have confirmed they will appeal the decision, with the 30-year-old set to miss Saturday's clash with Eibar if the caution is upheld having picked up his fifth yellow card of the season.

But Ronaldo sparked further drama by making a gesture with his hands that is commonly used in Spain to represent a robbery, with Pique quick to point to his history of histrionics on the pitch.

The centre-back said on Thursday: "It isn't the first time he's made this gesture. He has never been punished before and I don't think it'll happen now. It is also not my problem."

Pique, who was talking during an ambassadorial event for the Laureus Foundation, also added his thoughts on the upcoming Champions League quarter-final against Paris Saint-Germain.

"We are two teams that know each other well and we respect one another. I think it will be two similar games to what we saw in the group stages.

"Playing in Paris is always difficult. We have to go out and play our game, creating chances through possession although they now practice a more direct game."

 

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Ramos will stay at Real Madrid - agent

Sergio Ramos is happy at Real Madrid and has no interest in leaving the club, according to his brother and agent Rene Ramos.

The 29-year-old remains Carlo Ancelotti's first choice centre-back, with Pepe and Raphael Varane both partnering him at the heart of the back four this season.

But, despite having over two years still to run on his current deal, recent reports linked the former Sevilla defender with a move to Bayern Munich.

However, those rumours have been swiftly put to bed by the player's brother, who
also acts as his representative.

He told Marca: "Sergio is very happy at Real Madrid. He's too happy at Madrid! As long as Sergio has a contract at Madrid he will wear the club's shirt."

Ramos is in his 10th year at the Santiago Bernabeu having joined the club as a teenager back in August 2005.

He has since gone on to win 13 trophies for club and country, including La Liga three times and the Champions League, as well as the World Cup and European Championship with Spain.

 

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Falcao one of world's most naturally gifted strikers - Aguero

Sergio Aguero says Radamel Falcao is "one of the most naturally gifted strikers in football", despite the Colombian's struggles at Manchester United.

Falcao arrived at United on loan from Monaco in September but has managed just four goals in 12 Premier League starts, prompting Louis van Gaal to admit he is looking for a "solution" to the striker's poor form.

"[United] have a number of very talented strikers," Aguero told reporters at a sponsor's event. "The one who in his career has been the most predatory is Falcao.

"He isn't having an easy time this season, but I really admire his commitment and his class and qualities are permanent. He is probably one of the most naturally gifted strikers in football at the moment."

United host City on Sunday sitting a point clear of their local rivals in the Premier League. However, Aguero still questions whether Van Gaal's men can turn in a good enough team performance.

"They are a team with a lot of great individual players, who can form an incredible unit when they work well together," he added. "But this season that has not always been the case.

"Some matches they don't seem to play at the maximum, with the attacking qualities that they have in the team. But then in other games, they have really shown that those qualities, so they are a bit unpredictable.

"We know we will have to be at our very best to beat them - there's no doubt about that."

 

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Real Madrid to appeal Ronaldo yellow card

Real Madrid have confirmed they will appeal the yellow card shown to Cristiano Ronaldo in the 2-0 win over Rayo Vallecano on Wednesday.

The 30-year-old was booked for simulation after going to ground in the penalty area following a tackle by Antonio Amaya, a decision which prompted protests from him and his team-mates.

Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti also hit out at what he said was an "unbelievable" decision by the referee, which resulted in Ronaldo's fifth yellow of the season, ruling him out of the clash with Eibar on Saturday.

However, the club remain hopeful of overturning the caution after releasing a statement on Thursday: "Real Madrid will present an argument against the yellow card shown to Cristiano Ronaldo in yesterday's match against Rayo Vallecano."

It wasn't all bad news for the Portugal captain, though, as he scored the opening goal of the game to bring up his 300th strike in all competitions for the club, making him their third-highest goalscorer of all-time.

James Rodriguez later added a second as Madrid ensured the gap between themselves and leaders Barcelona remains just four points.

 

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Pedro: How can people criticise Barcelona?

Criticism aimed at Barcelona for recent performances has baffled forward Pedro due to the club flying high in La Liga, the Champions League and having reached the Copa del Rey final.

The Catalans are the only Spanish club still able to win a treble of trophies in 2014-15 having stepped their performances up a gear in 2015 following heavy criticism at the start of the year.

Pedro, who started only his fourth Liga game of the calendar year in Wednesday's 4-0 triumph over Almeria, understands fans crave perfection but cannot grasp how their run of nine successive wins can be looked at negatively.

“We do not understand much of the criticism that is directed at our performances,” the 27-year-old told reporters. “But the public can be demanding and that is normal.”

“Personally, I'm happy with how I played against Almeria. I wanted to help my team-mates and contribute to our success. The the first half we struggled a bit but in the second half we were better.“Sevilla on Saturday will be a tough match, one of the hardest games we have left this season for sure.”

Pedro also conceded he will have a major decision to make this season - whether to stay at Barca and accept his bit-part role behind Neymar, Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez, or leave Camp Nou after 11 years with the club.

“It is a difficult situation for me right now,” the Spain international added. “But I will be patient until the end of the season to make my decision on what to do next.“I know there are clubs interested in me, which is a compliment, but I will evaluate where I stand in June.”

 

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Bayern struggling without Robben and Ribery - Guardiola

Pep Guardiola has conceded Bayern Munich are struggling to break down opponents without star wingers Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben.

The Bavarians have scored just once in their past three games in all competitions and needed penalties to defeat Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday for a spot in the DFB-Pokal semi-finals.

Robben was injured early in the first game of their current three-game dry spell while Ribery has not featured in over a month for Bayern, and Guardiola was open about the impact their absence is having."We are having a lot of problems," the former Barcelona head coach told reporters. "We don't have any others players for the one-on-one situations right now.

"We are a different team without Robben and Ribery fit, but we have to adapt to the current circumstances."

Bayern are still 10 points clear of second-placed Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga and are back in action on Saturday when they host eighth-placed Eintracht Frankfurt at the Allianz Arena.

Guardiola will then prepare for a Champions League quarter-final first leg visit to Porto, while they must defeat Borussia Dortmund in the DFB-Pokal semi-final on April 28 to keep their treble hopes alive.

 

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Bayern struggling without Robben and Ribery - Guardiola

Especially Robben nathi nisa​

 

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Belgium rise to third in Fifa ranking

Belgium have climbed to their highest-ever placing in Fifa's world ranking, rising to third behind only World Cup winners Germany and runners up Argentina.

Euro 2016 qualification wins over Israel and Cyprus saw them nudge Colombia down to fourth, while Brazil's eighth consecutive victory has seen them edge into the top five.

Netherlands' win over Spain was negated by drawing with Turkey and they drop a spot to sixth, ahead of seventh-placed Portugal, Uruguay and Switzerlands who climbed three places to get to ninth.

Reigning European champions Spain edged into the top 10 at France's expense, with Didier Deschamps' men having been beaten by the Selecao in March's international break.

Italy are situated 14th having dropped three places, just ahead of England in 15th after the duo shared the spoils in a friendly last month.

Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey will be proud at helping propel Wales to their best-ever placing (22nd) in the ranking as their superb European Championship qualification campaign continued.

Other teams to be higher than at any other point in their history are Faroe Islands (102nd), Timor-Leste (152nd) and Bhutan (163rd).

The latter nation's ascent from bottom of the Fifa ranking was especially notable last month as they caused a World Cup 2018 preliminary round shock by knocking out Sri Lanka over two legs.

 

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Wilshere to Man City? Arsenal don't need to sell their stars - Wenger

Arsene Wenger insists Arsenal are no longer forced to sell their best players amid reports linking Jack Wilshere with a move to Manchester City.

Goal understands City are monitoring Wilshere's situation as they prepare to refresh a squad that looks unlikely to defend last season's Premier League title and is one of the oldest of any major club in Europe.

Recent years have seen Robin van Persie, Samir Nasri and Gael Clichy make a similar switch from north London to Manchester but Wenger insists that Wilshere, who has struggled with form and fitness this season, is going nowhere.

When asked about the possibility of the midfielder joining City, Wenger replied: "We are not in a position anymore where we have to sell our best players."

Wilshere has made just 12 appearances in all competitions for Arsenal this season, scoring one goal.

 

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I dream of managing Man United - Allardyce

Sam Allardyce has revealed his ambition to one day manage Manchester United.

The current West Ham boss is out of contract in the summer and is expected to leave the east London club with Marcelo Bielsa already being lined up as his replacement.

Allardyce admits he is proud to have managed West Ham who, under his leadership, are now an established Premier League club again after relegation in 2011, but concedes it would be a dream to one day take the reins at Old Trafford.

Speaking on the Clare Balding Show on BT Sport and the BBC, he said: "If I didn't say West Ham were the dream club to manage then I'd be in trouble with West Ham fans... but it has been a dream club to manage.

"There has always been one dream club - and that is Man United.

"Playing at Old Trafford myself and then going back there as a manager, I think probably in this country, they are the one."

 

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I dream of managing Man United - Allardyce

Eeeeyya....oneth naha Allardyce nam​

 

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De Laurentiis threatens to cancel Napoli squad's holidays

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has slammed his players' "squalid" performances and threatened to cancel their holidays unless they find form.

Defending champions Napoli suffered a 1-0 home defeat to Lazio on Wednesday in the Coppa Italia, with Senad Lulic's 79th-minute goal eliminating them 2-1 on aggregate at the semi-final stage.

Rafa Benitez refrained from tearing into his players after the game but De Laurentiis had no such issue as he criticised the Stadio San Paolo stars, saying he'll drag them to a training camp at the end of 2014-15 if they don't arrest form which has seen them win just one of their last nine matches.

"We have a commitment to the fans, who are quite right to be unhappy," De Laurentiis told SportItalia.

"From today until the end of the season - if we don't change course and the players are incapable of honouring the jersey on their back - then they are going into a training retreat for an undetermined length of time.

"I hope all of this will serve as a turning point to spark some pride. We have put in some squalid performances that are unworthy of Napoli.

"From today, we change. We need a training session on mentality, and more respect for the fans, the club, the coach and for themselves."

Next up for Napoli - who have slumped down to sixth in Serie A from third place - is a home clash with fourth-placed Fiorentina, whom they can leapfrog if they claim a rare victory.

 

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Rodgers hails Henderson as 'real captain'

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers believes Jordan Henderson is a "real captain" and revealed that the midfielder barely slept the night before their FA Cup win over Blackburn Rovers due to the birth of his second child.

Henderson left the team hotel on Tuesday to be with his partner as she gave birth but promised Rodgers he would not miss the sixth round replay at Ewood Park.

The Liverpool skipper played the entire match on Wednesday, setting up Philippe Coutinho for the only goal in his team's 1-0 triumph, which sent them into the semi-finals.

Rodgers was full of praise for Henderson's commitment to both his family and Liverpool.

"Jordan Henderson actually had to go back from the hotel - his partner had their second child during the night, so he had gone away, hadn't slept so much and travelled back again and put in a performance like he did tonight, a real captain's performance," Rodgers said at his post-match media conference.

"Some players maybe would have missed the game, but he said to me: 'Boss, as soon as the baby's out I'll be coming back!' There was a car waiting!

"He spent time with his young partner, child and family, which is great, but he said, 'I'll be back' - and he was.

"He had his lunch, he had a good sleep this afternoon and then played like a real captain."

Rodgers also confirmed both Mamadou Sakho and Daniel Sturridge will need further medical assessment after being substituted at Ewood Park.

"We'll see with Sakho in the morning," the 42-year-old said.

"He felt his hamstring tighten, so we'll just need to see it.

"Daniel Sturridge had a bit of tightness, so we took him off and we'll assess that tomorrow."

 

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I dream of managing Man United - Allardyce

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Wilshere to Man City? Arsenal don't need to sell their stars - Wenger

 

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Caen 0-3 Monaco: Bernardo Silva fires visitors into third

Monaco edged up to third in Ligue 1 as Bernardo Silva netted a second-half double in the 3-0 win at Caen.

Leonardo Jardim's team led at the interval after Yannick Ferreira Carrasco twisted and turned down the left flank before cutting back for youngster Anthony Martial to score his sixth goal in his past seven appearances after 29 minutes.

Bernardo Silva took centre stage in the second half and combined with Carrasco to catch the Caen defence napping with a clever short-corner routine, finishing stylishly in the 64th minute.Caen striker Emiliano Sala passed up a glorious chance to reduce the deficit in the 77th minute as he missed his kick at the back post with the goal gaping.

That left Silva to coolly complete the scoring six minutes from time as Martial turned provider.

Monaco are now a point ahead of Marseille, who take on Bordeaux on Saturday, while Caen are six points clear of the bottom three ahead of the weekend action.