..::Football III::..

[Wolverine GTR]

Luis Enrique: Messi is our leader, not Neymar


Barcelona coach Luis Enrique says Neymar will not be put under pressure to take the attacking burden left by Lionel Messi's injury absence.

The Catalan club are expected to remain without Messi's services until the middle of November, although Neymar showed signs of filling the Argentina superstar's boots with a four-goal haul in Saturday's 5-2 win over Rayo Vallecano at Camp Nou.

Opinions have been divided whether Neymar can step in for Messi until he regains full fitness, but Luis Enrique was quick to take the pressure of being Barca's focal point in attack off the 23-year-old's shoulders.

"We try to work as a group," the coach said. "We have our leader in Leo Messi, we cannot seek new leaders constantly."

However, speaking alongside his coach ahead of Tuesday's Champions League clash with BATE, Barca's Sergio Busquets said the Brazilian can fill in for Messi

"Neymar has the capability to be a leader in the absence of Leo," the midfielder stated. "He's one of those players who can make the team feel better."

Barca have kept just two clean sheets in all competitions this term, relying on outgunning their opponents as they sit top of their Champions League group and level on points with La Liga leaders, and fierce rivals, Real Madrid.

"What is important is our path throughout the season, we are aware that we need to improve," Luis Enrique added.

"When we have a defensive situation in which we are conceding too many goals, it is not just a problem in the defence, but the entire team, starting with the coach.

"We never stop trying to find solutions as a group and we are working every week. In our last game I think the problems were solved."

 

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Klopp: I trust Sturridge 100 percent

Jurgen Klopp has defended Daniel Sturridge after the injury-prone forward missed the German's first match in charge – a 0-0 draw with Tottenham at White Hart Lane on Saturday.

Sturridge missed a large chunk of last campaign with hip and thigh problems, only returning earlier this season.

However, Klopp insists he has no concerns over his forward's fitness record, revealing he felt forced to overlook the England international after seeing Joe Gomez and Danny Ings sidelined with serious injuries.

"I trust this player 100 percent. If Daniel is fit, then he can play no problem," Klopp said. "If he is not then I don’t think about it because if the medics and physiotherapists tell it is not possible, then it is not possible.

"I have known Daniel for one week and for six days he was perfect in training. Everything we did he was full of power, skills.

"He was outstanding. There were so many good things and then he had this contact with [Jordon] Ibe.

"In another situation I would have talked to him and said ‘please try’. But we can't in a week of two ACL injuries.

"It was OK for Daniel to miss the Tottenham match. We need Daniel for sure and if we played this game on Thursday then maybe he would play."

Club great Jamie Carragher has been excited by Klopp's introduction and believes Liverpool's performance against Spurs demonstrated his tactical foundations.

"I liked what I saw. Very rarely do you see a manager stamp his authority on a team from day one, but that's what he did," the 37-year-old told Sky Sports.

"Over the week since he's had the job, we've been reading about what he is like as a manager – pressing, how much distance they are going to cover.

"Transition pressing was a massive thing for Klopp at Borussia Dortmund and it looks like it's going to be a really big thing for this Liverpool team.

"These are things you don't see from every team and that is what impressed me in the past from Klopp and we're seeing it from day one."

 

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Benitez rubbishes 'lies' about Ronaldo relationship

Real Madrid coach Rafael Benitez is tired of reports suggesting a rift with superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, calling the claims in the Spanish media "lies".

Benitez has repeatedly been the subject of stories claiming he has a difficult relationship with the Portuguese forward since he took over the reins of the Bernabeu club in the summer. However, the Spanish coach is sick of rumours of a rift, claiming they are the invention of members of the media who have an agenda against his outfit.

"There are good journalists and others whose interests are against Real. We all make mistakes but not like the false news reported," Benitez told esRadio.

"They say that I have problems with Ronaldo and that I do not speak with him. Lies. I speak with him every day."

Ronaldo - who became Madrid's all-time leading goalscorer at the weekend versus Levante - has also seen his relationship with team-mate Gareth Bale questioned, but Benitez is having none of it.

"Cristiano and Bale get along just fine," the 55-year-old continued. "The most important thing in all this is that they have a common goal - to help Real win.

"The biggest advantage of having a player like Cristiano is that he gives you 50 goals a season."While they keep coming, I am calm."

Los Blancos are the top-scoring team in the league with 18 goals, and Benitez has denied criticism that he is too defensive after leading his team top of La Liga. "I'm a defensive coach, they say, but when [we] state the numbers of shots on target and goals, that is forgotten," he responded.

The Spanish capital outfit are unbeaten this season, and will look to extend their perfect start to the Champions League campaign when they travel to face joint Group A leaders Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday.

 

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I wanted to sign Lewandowski at Chelsea - Ancelotti

Former Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti has revealed that he was interested in signing Robert Lewandowski during his time in charge at Stamford Bridge.

Ancelotti spent two years with the Blues, winning a domestic double in his first season at the helm before being sacked at the end of a trophy-less 2010-11 campaign.

However, the Italian cannot help but wonder about what might have been had he managed to land Lewandowski, who joined Borussia Dortmund from Lech Poznan in 2010 and, after initially struggling to settle at Signal Iduna Park, quickly established himself as one of the deadliest strikers in the Bundesliga.

Indeed, Ancelotti explained that he retained a strong interest in signing the Poland international after taking charge of Real Madrid in 2013 only to be left disappointed by the news that the forward would be joining Bayern Munich the following summer.

"He's a player that I have always followed, particularly in the first part of his career, when he was at Borussia Dortmund," the 56-year-old told Goal.

"Lewandowski was being followed by many clubs, not just me. But even when I was at Chelsea, I was tracking him.

"Also, while I was at Madrid, but by then he was already going to Bayern, so it was too late."

Lewandowski is currently the form striker in Europe, with the 27-year-old racking up 15 goals in six games for club and country prior to the weekend.

He failed to find the back of the net in Bayern's Champions League opener against Olympiacos but his treble in the subsequent 5-0 demolition of Dinamo Zagreb has propelled him into second place in the leading scorers' charts for 2015-16, just two behind Real Madrid hotshot Cristiano Ronaldo.

Ancelotti believes that Lewandowski is more than capable of challenging Ronaldo and Barcelona ace Lionel Messi for the title of top marksman in this season's tournament.

"He has the characteristics to finish as top scorer and he has the team to support him," the ex-AC Milan boss added. "He has a team around him that scores so many goals.

"The battle for top scorer will be fought by the usual suspects: Messi, when he returns from injury, and Cristiano Ronaldo.

"But Lewandowski certainly has the quality to become the Champions League's top scorer this season.

"Indeed, the only way you can stop him scoring at the moment is by taking away the supply line, but it's not easy because Bayern play very offensive football and always have possession of the ball."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Arsenal are already out of the Champions League - Ancelotti

Carlo Ancelotti believes that Arsenal are already effectively out of this season's Champions League, arguing that Arsene Wenger and his players will pay a heavy price for underestimating Dinamo Zagreb.

The Gunners are playing in Europe's premier club competition for the 18th consecutive season, a streak only bettered by Real Madrid (19).

However, while they made it out of the group stage for the past 11 years, they are now facing an early elimination, after surprisingly losing both their tournament opener against Dinamo Zagreb (2-1) and their subsequent home clash with Olympiacos (3-2).

Those results have left the north London outfit in the unenviable position of needing to pick up points from their upcoming double-header with Group F leaders Bayern Munich in order to keep their qualification hopes alive.

Ancelotti is pessimistic about Arsenal's chances of getting anything out of their games against the German titleholders and suspects that they will be punished for taking victory for granted against a Dinamo side that had not registered a win in the Champions League since 1999.

"Arsenal are practically out because they must now face Bayern twice," the Italian coach told Goal.

"I don't agree with those that say that Arsenal have consistently disappointed in Europe, because they have been present in the Champions League for so many years. I just believe that the problem was the first game.

"The Gunners underestimated Dinamo Zagreb. Because of Dinamo's CV, Arsenal miscalculated the challenge facing them.

"Dinamo had not won in the Champions League for many years and this affected Arsenal's concentration. I believe that Dinamo were underestimated not only by the coach but also by the players."

Wenger has come under mounting pressure in recent seasons because of Arsenal's failure to make the quarter-finals of the Champions League for the past four years, as well as their continued inability to sustain a Premier League title challenge.

However, Ancelotti does not believe that the French manager, who has been at the helm of the Gunners since 1996, is in danger of being axed.

"There's still the FA Cup, and they're well placed in the league," the former Chelsea boss argued. "As a result, I don't think that Wenger's job is at risk."

Still, Ancelotti does not hold out much hope of Wenger masterminding a victory over Bayern, who are arguably the form team in Europe with a 100 per cent record in the Bundesliga and Champions League.

Ancelotti was impressed by Arsenal's counter-attacking prowess in their 3-0 win over Manchester United before the international break but he is not sure if they will see enough of the ball to hurt Pep Guardiola's slick, passing side.

"I see Bayern as favourites," the 56-year-old admitted. "Arsenal need to pick up points against Bayern but it will be very hard.

"You can never take the ball away from Bayern because, by now, it's in their DNA. But where you can hurt them is on the counter-attack. And, as seen against United, Arsenal's speed on the break can give them an advantage.

"I saw impressive pace up front with Alexis Sanchez, Theo Walcott and Mesut Ozil. It's this weapon that can upset Bayern.

"But I still think it will be very hard for Arsenal."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Lewandowski lays down gauntlet to Arsenal: It's your last chance

Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski says the pressure is all on Arsenal as the two clubs prepare to face off in the Champions League.

The Gunners have endured a disastrous start to their European campaign and have the unenviable task of picking up positive results from back-to-back games against the German champions if they are to resurrect their hopes of a place in the knockout stages.

But Bayern are a daunting opposition and Lewandowski, in the form of his life with 15 goals in his last seven games across all competitions, told Goal that Arsene Wenger's men have to step it up - or they will be punished.

"I hope we get the three points," the striker remarked. "With three victories, we would nearly be in the next round. Arsenal would have an issue, yes, but that's not our worry. We are Bayern Munich and we're thinking of ourselves.

"We know it won't be an easy game. For our opponents, at home, it is almost the last chance to reach the next round. Arsenal really need to step on the gas, otherwise it's over."

In recent years Bayern have exerted total domination over their rivals in German football and already have a seven-point lead in this season's Bundesliga, but Lewandowski is wary of the club taking their feet off the pedal, which he feels happened in 2014-15 to derail their Champions League hopes once the domestic title was secure.

"In the Bundesliga, it is not certain that we will be German champions again," he said. "We know we should win, every year, all three competitions. Especially in the German Cup against Wolfsburg and in the Champions League, we should not allow any slips-up. In football, you have to think from game to game. You can never feel safe.

"We should not make the same mistakes as last year. No matter how many points ahead we are, we have to give everything. Only then we will compete in the Champions League at the highest level. We will simply set new targets. I cannot reveal our secret but we must simply deal with it differently. We can make it."

The 27-year-old believes that luck played a large role in his side's failure to win the Champions League last season and hopes for better when the business end of the campaign comes around.

He continued: "Last year we played very well until the moment came in which many players were injured and we had no luck. You cannot explain why all that happened. I hope this season will pan out better in the crucial moments – for me, too. Against Barcelona I had to play with the mask, which was a big problem, and [Franck] Ribery and [Arjen] Robben were missing.

"How good is the chance [that we win the Champions League]? No idea. The squad is better, I think. Nevertheless, it is difficult to foresee what will happen in the important months, in April and in May. We can only focus on our job.

"In the Champions League, you can never talk about a favourite. You have three or four teams who can win the title every year. Sometimes there are surprising teams. With Dortmund we reached the final and almost won it. Who will reach the semi-finals or the final, you can never say for 100 per cent."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Chelsea targeting quadruple - Mourinho

Jose Mourinho boldly claimed Chelsea could still win the quadruple this season and is refusing to prioritise any competition over the other, warning they risk finishing empty-handed if they do so.

Chelsea remain in the running for all four competitions but have endured a terrible start in the defence of their Premier League crown, trailing leaders Manchester City by 10 points after losing four of their opening nine games.

Pressure on the 52-year-old eased slightly after a 2-0 home win over Aston Villa at the weekend, and Mourinho is refusing to rule out an unprecedented trophy haul as Chelsea prepare for their Champions League Group G clash against Dynamo Kiev.

"We can win all four [competitions], or we can lose all four. I think it is possible [to win everything], but I think it’s also possible to lose all four. Everything is open.We are in October,” Mourinho told reporters ahead of Tuesday's encounter.

"For us, it depends on other teams, depends on other results. We don’t depend on ourselves, we depend on what happens also in other matches and other teams.

"When you prioritise in this league, you have a big risk, which is the risk of not winning the Champions League and not finishing in the top four, and not playing Champions League the next season"So, we cannot prioritise in this league. We have to go all the way and ensure we finish in the top four."

The Stamford Bridge side crucially need a result in Kiev on Tuesday evening to begin climbing up Group G again following their defeat to Porto last time out.

 

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Matuidi confident of 'very good year' for PSG in Champions League


Blaise Matuidi has backed Paris Saint-Germain to be one of the frontrunners in the Champions League this season but admits they are not favourites in their clash with Real Madrid.

The top two sides, who are both unbeaten this term, meet in Group A at the Parc des Princes on Wednesday evening.

And while Matuidi and PSG are targeting "something big" this season, the midfielder has warned against underestimating Madrid.

“We must be careful,” Matuidi told Goal.

“Real have won 10 Champions Leagues, not so long ago they did the "decima", as they say in Spain. Us, we are still far from everything. They are favourites, it's still Real Madrid.

“We will not hide, we have a very good team. A great team. But in Europe we still have not won anything.

“This year we want to do something big, and we’re focusing on that. We also know that there are many great teams who also want to win this competition.
"There are many factors to take into account like the draws later on but I think it can be a very good year for PSG.”

Laurent Blanc’s side are already five points clear at the top of Ligue 1 after 10 games and Matuidi insists PSG should be expected to retain their title for a fourth successive season.

“If we do not win Ligue 1, it would be a tragedy,” said the midfielder.

“Everyone would be surprised, we must pay attention to that and stay focused in Ligue 1. We want to win everything.

“It's hard to do as well as last year because four titles was something exceptional, historic. People do not necessarily realise but what we did was really something great. It's hard to do that again the following season but it would be really good to win at least one title.”

 

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Mourinho: I am a lonely guy in the modern world of football

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho says he feels out of place in modern football and has claimed he does not have many friends in the game.

The 52-year-old has courted controversy throughout his career as a result of multiple disputes with opposition managers, players and match officials.

Mourinho was recently fined £50,000 and given a suspended stadium ban following comments he made about the referee in the aftermath of Chelsea's defeat to Southampton.

The incident continued his and the Blues' nightmare start to the season, which sees them sat 12th in the Premier League after winning the title last term.

"I feel lots of affection, more than I could imagine. I feel affection from my players, lots of people in the street. I have lots of affection," Mourinho told The Irish Times.

"It's the football world that is changing. I feel that I am a strange case because my world is football. I love it, I love my job. This is the job I always wanted and I dedicate myself to it.

"But I don't belong, I don't belong to what Desmond Morris called many years ago 'The Tribe of Football' (sic)," he said, referring to 1981 book The Soccer Tribe.
"I belong to the tribe in the Desmond Morris concept of the tribe of football, but in the modern concept of the tribe of football, I don't belong.

"I live in a different world. I'm not with the power. I'm a lonely guy in this modern world of football. I do my work. I'm not a politician, I'm not a PR, I don't care what people think about me. I don't, you know, I'm just [am] what I am.

"When I am in a great moment it looks like nothing's happened; when I am in a bad moment, I pay for this a little bit. I don't have many friends in the football world."

 

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Lewandowski: Goals alone do not impress Guardiola

Robert Lewandowski insists his remarkable scoring feats for Bayern Munich have not seen him earn preferential treatment from coach Pep Guardiola, who the striker says expects more than just goals.

The prolific Poland international has netted an impressive 12 strikes in eight Bundesliga appearances so far this campaign, while his record for club and country combined in all competitions this season - 22 goals in only 16 games - makes for even better reading.But Lewandowski is adamant Guardiola does not rate him based on his marksmanship alone, and states the Catalan constantly urges him to be more than just a goalscorer.

"I don't think the coach approaches me differently when I score more goals. It's the same. I'm sure he is happy with my goals, but he also wants me to play good football and help my team-mates," the 27-year-old told Uefa's official website.

"I know that I don't have to score in every single game for the coach to be happy with my performance. Sometimes my movements on the pitch are more important for him, like how I exploit the space and how I perform overall.

"Goals not only help me, but the whole team. They're something the coach doesn't just expect from me. I am not a striker who is only waiting in the penalty box to score a goal. I move, make passes and look for opportunities for others."

Lewandowski will be looking to return to scoring form when Bayern visit Arsenal in the Champions League on Tuesday, after his failure to find the back of the net in Bayern's 1-0 win at Werder Bremen at the weekend brought a halt to his four-game scoring run for his club.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Mourinho: I laid foundations for Real Madrid's La Decima

Jose Mourinho claims he laid the foundations for Real Madrid's historic Champions League triumph in 2014, the year after he departed the Spanish capital.

The Portuguese left Real in the summer of 2013 after guiding Los Blancos to three consecutive Champions League semi-finals, only for his successor Carlo Ancelotti to go one better and win La Decima - Real's tenth European Cup crown.

The Chelsea boss, who won the competition with both Porto and Inter, claims he was responsible for positive "change" at the Santiago Bernabeu but admitted he thought he would win the Champions League for a third time with Real.

"When I arrived at Real Madrid they hadn't reached the quarter-finals for almost a decade and when we got Lyon in the last 16, the club was in panic," the 52-year-old told UEFA.com.

"We went through that barrier and the club changed, the players changed. We thought we would win the competition. But in three consecutive years we reached the semi-finals, and for different reasons we didn't manage to reach the final."

Despite his failure to win the competition with Real, Mourinho said he was happy with Ancelotti's feat.

He added: "The one that was really difficult was the one we lost on penalties [to Bayern]. It was a big disappointment, but when Real Madrid won it in 2014 the club deserved it. The club deserved it totally, and I was happy."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

FIFA presidential election date confirmed

FIFA's presidential elections will go ahead as planned on February 26 next year, the governing body's executive committee has confirmed.

The provisional 90-day suspension levelled at incumbent Sepp Blatter - as well as secretary general Jerome Valcke - as part of FIFA's anti-corruption investigations had led to calls for the elections to be brought forward or suspended.

Following an extraordinary meeting of the executive committee on Tuesday, however, FIFA has announced the extraordinary elective congress will be held on the original date at the end of February 2016.

FIFA has also confirmed that the code of ethics will be subjected to an amendment in order to create "more transparency" relating to the organisation's activities.

The change will be made to article 36 of the current code, which specifies the levels to which executive committee members must keep the details of their operations confidential.

Blatter was re-elected as FIFA president in May, though he later announced he would step down from his position after claiming he did not feel he had the support of football at large.

The 79-year-old was provisionally suspended earlier this month following the launch of a criminal investigation into his actions. He has denied any wrongdoing.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Klopp would have been perfect for Sterling, says agent

Aidy Ward, the agent of Manchester City forward Raheem Sterling, has suggested the England international might have stayed at Liverpool had he known Jurgen Klopp would replace Brendan Rodgers.

The 20-year-old joined City ahead of the 2015-16 campaign for a transfer fee in the region of £49 million.

And Sterling's representative has now revealed the presence of Rodgers was one of the main reasons behind the player's decision to move on.

"The new Liverpool manager probably would have been a great fit for Raheem - passionate, disciplined in the right way, new ideas, not afraid of trying new things. He'll do great at Liverpool," Ward told the Daily Mail.

"Would Raheem under Klopp have been a good scenario? Yes, 100 per cent, definitely, mainly because of the person Klopp is - the passion, the drive, the emotion, wanting to achieve. Raheem has all of this, but you won't always see it outwardly. Working with Klopp - that could have been great. He's going to get the best out of those players. It could have been a dream come true.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Pedro: Mourinho the right man for Chelsea

Chelsea winger Pedro is confident Jose Mourinho has what it takes to get the reigning Premier League champions back on track.

The Stamford Bridge side have been in unimpressive form in the opening months of the 2015-16 campaign, and sit 12th in the league table after just three wins from their nine opening fixtures.

Mourinho has received his fair share of criticism in recent weeks following Chelsea's underwhelming start and there have even been reports that he has lost the dressing room.

Pedro, a close-season signing from Barcelona, has backed the Portuguese manager to turn things around, however.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Arsenal target Carvalho set for new Sporting deal

Sporting president Bruno de Carvalho has hinted that William Carvalho is on the verge of signing a new contract with the club.

Earlier in October, Goal exclusively revealed that Arsenal are unlikely to follow up their summer interest with a January move for the midfielder, who has openly admitted that the Gunners are a club he is “fond of”.

Carvalho’s current deal, which includes a €45 million (£33m) release clause, expires in the summer of 2018.

"What he wants and what we want are perfectly tuned,” De Carvalho told RTP Africa.

“We will have news about it sooner or later."

 

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Muller: Ozil perfect fit for Arsenal

Mesut Ozil is excelling at Arsenal because the playmaker "perfectly fits" the Gunners' style of play, according to Bayern Munich star Thomas Muller.

After two mixed seasons in North London, Ozil has been in sublime form this term and boasts six assists in eight Premier League matches – the joint most with Manchester City's David Silva.

The Germany international will come face to face with a number of his compatriots when Arsenal host Bayern in Tuesday's crucial Champions League encounter and Muller is not surprised by the form of his international team-mate.

"Mesut is very lively," Muller told Arsenal Player.

"His left foot is outstanding and he’s always got a great eye for a pass to a team-mate. His style of play fits perfectly to Arsenal’s game. That’s why he plays a good role there."

 

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Arsenal better off without Champions League - Ian Wright

Former Arsenal striker Ian Wright believes an early elimination from the Champions League would give the Gunners the edge in the Premier League title race.

Arsene Wenger's side find themselves in a difficult position in Group F with no points from two games after defeats to Dinamo Zagreb and Olympiakos, and a double header against leaders Bayern Munich looming.

Domestically, however, Arsenal are on sizzling form and currently sit in second place, two points behind early Premier League pace-setters Manchester City, following Sunday's 3-0 win at Watford.

Wright claims it would not necessarily be a disaster if his former club don't make it out of their Champions League group, as it would give them an advantage of their domestic title rivals.

"We all saw with Liverpool a couple of seasons ago how not being in Europe at all can really boost your chances," Wright wrote in his column for The Sun.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

UEFA Champions League Group Stage Fixtures 2015.10.20

UEFA Champions League Group Stage Fixtures 2015.10.20

BATE Vs Barcelona

Bayer Leverkusen Vs Roma

Arsenal Vs Bayern

Dinamo Zagreb Vs Olympiacos

Dynamo Kyiv Vs Chelsea

Porto Vs Tel-Aviv

Valencia Vs Gent

Zenit Vs Lyon

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Muller: Arsenal are under enormous pressure

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UEFA Champions League Group Stage Fixtures 2015.10.20

BATE Vs Barcelona

Arsenal Vs Bayern

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