..::Football III::..

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Pep: United 'one of the best teams in the world'

Pep Guardiola hailed Manchester United as “one of the best teams in the world” after watching his all-conquering Bayern Munich side struggle to break the Premier League titleholders down at Old Trafford on Tuesday night.

The reigning European champions went into the tie as overwhelming favourites yet found themselves in a spot of bother when Nemanja Vidic headed the hosts into a 58-minute lead.

United’s advantage lasted a mere nine minutes before Bastian Schweinsteiger levelled with a crisp half-volley although his night ended in disappointment after he picked up a second yellow card for a trip on Wayne Rooney.

Guardiola cut a spiky figure in his post-match interviews but insisted he was happy with the 1-1 draw.

He told Sky: “I am pretty satisfied. Man United is one of the best teams in the world.

“We have scored an away goal which is important, but we also got lucky that the efforts from (Danny) Welbeck and Rooney didn't go in.

“The goal we conceded was difficult to defend. It's never easy to play against a team which defends so deeply. We will see if we can find some solutions for the match in Munich.

"It's always dangerous when you go into the second leg with a 1-1 draw, but even a 2-1 victory would have been dangerous for us. We will try to win the second leg and I am sure we can do it.

“I have full confidence in my players and hope the fans in Munich will push us like the United supporters did for their team today.”

Bayern enjoyed 70 per cent possession but struggled to find a way past a well-marshalled United rearguard.

Midfielder Toni Kroos said: “It was a difficult match. We dominated the whole time, as expected, but United fought very well. They defended with almost everybody and conceded very few chances.

“Nevertheless they were sometimes dangerous on the break. We knew that they would play like this.

“We deserved the equaliser. We tried everything but we could not create as many chances as we are used to. The result is okay, we still have all the options for the second leg.

“It was disrespectful to talk about a walkover beforehand, it is still a Champions League quarter-final.”

 

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Hummels: Real Madrid not in crisis

Borussia Dortmund defender Mats Hummels has dismissed suggestions that Real Madrid are in crisis ahead of their Champions League quarter-final on Wednesday.
Having gone 18 games unbeaten in La Liga, Madrid's season has been turned on its head in recent weeks with back-to-back defeats to Barcelona and Sevilla seeing them drop to third place in the table.

Nevertheless, despite Real's indifferent form, Hummels is aware of the task facing a resurgent Dortmund side at the Bernabeu.

"I watched their game against Barcelona. You cannot talk about a crisis after that match," the Germany international told the Bundesliga's official website.

"Real Madrid were by no means outplayed and they have a lot of world-class players. But they're still beatable if you know their weaknesses."
Hummels then went on to stress that BVB cannot afford to solely focus on Cristiano Ronaldo as Madrid have much more to offer up front.

"There's more to Real Madrid than just Ronaldo.

"They've got Karim Benzema, Angel di Maria and Gareth Bale too. That's a lot more than just one player."

Wednesday's first leg takes place at the Santiago Bernabeu, with the return at the Signal Iduna Park scheduled to take place on April 8.

 

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Manchester United & Chelsea target Cavani opens door to PSG exit

Edinson Cavani has opened the door to a summer exit from Paris Saint-Germain, with Manchester United and Chelsea both interested in the striker.

Goal understands that the reigning champions have registered their interest and are preparing a concerted summer move for the Uruguay international, while Chelsea have also held talks through intermediaries.

PSG's mega-rich Qatari owners are confident of keeping hold of the forward despite the Premier League attention, but Cavani has now hinted that he is unhappy at the club.

Asked if he will stay in the French capital, Cavani told L'Equipe: "We'll see at the end of the season. We have to finish the season first.

"I am in Paris, but there are certainly things we must talk about with the club, things should be done differently."

Chelsea were interested in Cavani last summer before the striker's move to Paris, and Jose Mourinho recently hinted that a switch this year "is not impossible".

But while the Uruguay international admitted to last summer's interest from the Blues, he was coy when asked about recent discussions.

"Chelsea were interested," he continued. "But the only thing that matters in the transfer window is spending money, just like Palermo did in 2009, Napoli in 2011 and PSG did last summer.

"PSG showed real desire and determination to include me in their project. When you see how much they invested in me, it is proof that they really want me.

"I do not know [if my agent met with representatives from United and Chelsea]. If something should happen, it's my brother who will do it and will be at the table with interested parties."

 

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Cavani PSG walin yanna hadanawaHithagannath amarui nehLast summer 1ke neh PSG join une

 

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UEFA Champions League 2014.04.02 Quarter-Finals 1st Leg Fixtures

UEFA Champions League 2014.04.02 Quarter-Finals 1st Leg Fixtures

Real Madrid Vs Dortmund

PSG Vs Chelsea

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FIFA Hits Barcelona With Transfer Ban

Barcelona have been banned from making signings for two consecutive transfer windows after failing to abide by rules governing transfers of players under 18, FIFA announced on Wednesday.

FIFA carried out an investigation last year and found the club as well as the Spanish football federation (RFEF) guilty of several violations in relation to rules governing international transfers and registering foreign players.The world governing did not explicitly state when the punishment was due to start, but if imposed immediately it would prevent Barca making signings in summer 2014 or winter 2015.

A FIFA statement read: “The FIFA Disciplinary Committee has sanctioned the Real Federacion Espanola de Futbol (RFEF) and Spanish club FC Barcelona for breaches relating to the international transfer and registration of players under the age of 18.“The investigations concerned several minor players who were registered and participated in competitions with the club over various periods between 2009 and 2013.”

FIFA only permits international youth transfers when one of the three following situations apply: The player’s parents have moved country for their own non-related reasons; The move takes place within the European Union if a player is aged between 16 and 18; The player’s home is less than 50 kilometres from the national border being crossed.The FIFA statement added: “FC Barcelona has been found to be in breach of art. 19 of the Regulations in the case of 10 minor players and to have committed several other concurrent infringements in the context of other players, including under Annexe 2 of the Regulations.

“The Disciplinary Committee regarded the infringements as serious and decided to sanction the club with a transfer ban at both national and international level for two complete and consecutive transfer periods, together with a fine of CHF 450,000 [$508,000 or 368,000 euros]. Additionally, the club was granted a period of 90 days in which to regularise the situation of all minor players concerned.”

In February 2013, FIFA found that Barca had regularly failed to comply with its transfer regulations and extended a ban to cover six players from Barca's Cadete and Juvenil youth teams. This meant that South Koreans Lee Seung-Woo, Jang Gyeolhee and Paik Seung-Ho, French youngster Theo Chendri, Nigerian-Dutch player Bobby Adekanye and Cameroonian Patrice Sousia were training with their teams but unable to play in competitive games.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter backed the move at the time, saying: “The Barca case will be studied by FIFA's Players' Status Committee, but the rules for the signing of minors are very clear."Despite Wednesday's ruling, a Barca spokesperson has told AS the club do not expect the ban to come into force this summer.

“We are relaxed,” the spokesperson said. “It is a habitual process in which we have 90 days to explain how we signed these players.”El Pais reported on Wednesday that club sources have indicated that they will appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport, using Chelsea's successful appeal of a ban relating to the Gael Kakuta transfer from Lens as a precedent.

If the punishment is enforced this summer, the ruling could pose serious problems for Barcelona, who are also still contending with the ongoing investigation by a Spanish judge into irregularities in last summer’s signing of Neymar.

Given that both Barcelona's senior goalkeepers, Victor Valdes and Jose Manuel Pinto, are out of contract this summer, the club had been expected to sign at least one replacement, with Borussia Moenchengladbach's Marc Andre ter Stegen rumoured to have already agreed to a move. It has already been suggested that Valdes could yet stay on, but he has been ruled out for the next seven months through injury.

It was also announced last month that captain Carles Puyol would leave at the end of the season and Barca were expected to reinforce their defence, while club president Josep Maria Bartomeu has spoken recently of having 120 million euros to spend in a major squad reorganisation ahead of the 2014-15 campaign.The reigning Spanish champions last week announced that Croatian youngster Alen Halilovic was due to move to the Camp Nou in the summer after a deal was agreed with Dinamo Zagreb.

 

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Ohhh Barcelona ta Chater wadak neh wela thiyenneLoku problem 1kak wenna puluwan meka nisa.Valdes tath atleast 7 months play karanna baha anisa Anisa Ter Stegen transfer 1katath problem 1kak weida?

Habai Kiyala nam thibbe danatamath agreed wela thibbe kiyala Ter Stegen to Barcelona deal 1ka.

 

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Real Madrid Vs Dortmund

Real Madrid Line-Up

Iker Casillas
Pepe
Sergio Ramos
Fábio Coentrão
Daniel Carvajal
Xabi Alonso
Luka Modric
Isco
Cristiano Ronaldo
Karim Benzema
Gareth Bale

&

Dortmund Line-Up

Roman Weidenfeller
Mats Hummels
Sokratis Papastathopoulos
Lukasz Piszczek
Erik Durm
Sebastian Kehl
Henrik Mkhitaryan
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Nuri Sahin
Kevin Großkreutz
Marco Reus​

 

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Half Time

Real Madrid 2 Vs 0 Dortmund

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Full Time

Real Madrid 3 Vs 0 Dortmund

Real Madrid Goal(s)

Bale 3'
Isco 27'
C.Ronaldo 58'
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FIFA Hits Barcelona With Transfer Ban

 

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Real Madrid 3-0 Dortmund: Bale, Isco and Ronaldo dispatch BVB

Real Madrid sent a warning to the rest of Europe as goals from Gareth Bale, Isco and Cristiano Ronaldo dispatched Borussia Dortmund 3-0 in the first-leg of their Champions League quarter-final.

Dortmund knocked Real out of the Champions League at the semi-final stage last season, but Carlo Ancelotti's side are on course to exact revenge over the Bundesliga side after sweeping them aside in a clinical first-leg display.

World-record signing Gareth Bale put them in front just two minutes in and Isco doubled their advantage before half-time as Jurgen Klopp's charges had no answer to Real's attacking threat.Ronaldo then took centre stage after the break, scoring his 14th Champions League goal of another outstanding season to equal the record set by Barcelona forward Lionel Messi two years ago.

Robert Lewandowski scored all four goals when Dortmund beat Madrid 4-1 in the semi-final first leg at the Westfalenstadion last season and Klopp could do with a repeat performance from the Poland striker in the second leg next week when he returns after sitting out the first leg due to suspension.

Left-back Fabio Coentrao made a rare start for Real in the absence of Marcelo (hamstring), while Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was charged with the considerable task of replacing Dortmund's talismanic striker Lewandowski.Coach Ancelotti vowed to take the game to the visitors and his positive approach was rewarded when Bale put Real ahead.

Karim Benzema had a big hand in the goal as he picked out Daniel Carvajal and the marauding right-back provided a perfectly weighted pass for the onrushing Bale, who burst into the penalty area before taking a touch then poking the ball past Roman Weidenfeller with his left foot.Ancelotti urged the Bernabeu faithful to get behind his side after turning on Ronaldo at the weekend and they were on their feet for a second time in the 27th minute when Isco produced a clinical finish from the edge of the box.

Dortmund were struggling to live with the home side and Weidenfeller pulled off another fine save to keep out Bale's dangerous free-kick after midfielder Sebastian Kehl was shown a yellow card that will keep him out of the second leg.

Having struck early in the first half, Bale almost caught Dortmund out again two minutes after the break when he raced into the box but this time a tame finish left-foot finish with the outside of his left foot was saved.

Aubameyang could have made him pay for that miss a minute later, but the Gabon international fired a shot wide of the far post from a tight angle.Ronaldo then took the game beyond Dortmund with his 45th goal of the season after 54 minutes. Luka Modric was the provider, picking him out in the area, and he rounded Weidenfeller before tucking the ball into the empty net.

Dortmund were still causing problems of their own and it needed a timely block from Pepe to thwart Henrikh Mkhitaryan, then the busy Weidenfeller produced another great stop to deny Benzema.Bale could have added a fourth goal seven minutes from time, but blazed over the bar after embarking on a trademark run.

Klopp had conceded that Dortmund were underdogs for the tie and they looked every inch that as Real stayed on course to be crowned European champions for a 10th time.

 

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Paris Saint-Germain 3-1 Chelsea: Late Pastore strike leaves Mourinho's men on the brink

Chelsea face an uphill battle to reach the Champions League semi-finals after losing 3-1 to Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of their last-16 tie.

The French champions showed the full array of the attacking flair that has put them on the verge of defending their Ligue 1 crown this term to claim a healthy advantage on Wednesday, leaving Chelsea with plenty to do in the return clash at Stamford Bridge next week.

Ezequiel Lavezzi - a constant menace to the Londoners' defence - put the hosts ahead inside the opening four minutes of the encounter at the Parc des Princes with an effort from 12 yards.

But Chelsea were back on level terms shortly before the half-hour mark when Eden Hazard converted from the penalty spot after Thiago Silva had carelessly felled Oscar in the box.

Hazard then hit the post before the end of the first half as Chelsea pushed for the lead, but David Luiz found his own net - after giving away a cheap free kick - to restore PSG's lead.

PSG talisman Zlatan Ibrahimovic was worryingly withdrawn in the second half, appearing to be nursing a hamstring injury.

But the French side soon forgot about that blow when substitute Javier Pastore - a late replacement for Lavezzi - added a superb third in injury time to give his side a two-goal margin.

Chelsea opted to start without a recognised striker, leaving Fernando Torres and Demba Ba on the bench, while PSG boasted one of the most recognisable of them all in Ibrahimovic, who this week appeared to rule out a future move to the Premier League.

While Jose Mourinho's men will have been suitably prepared to deal with the Swedish frontman's capabilities, it was Lavezzi who struck the first blow four minutes in.

The Argentine superbly controlled a weak headed clearance from John Terry on his chest, before allowing the ball to bounce and firing a left-footed effort into the top corner of the net from the centre of the penalty area.

Lavezzi continued to pose a threat to the Chelsea goal, sending an attempt into the side netting after 25 minutes, but a clumsy challenge on Oscar by masked captain Thiago Silva – recovering from a fractured cheekbone – offered the Premier League outfit a way back into the clash just two minutes later.

Referee Milorad Mazic pointed to the spot and Hazard made no mistake in rolling the ball beyond Salvatore Sirigu, who leapt the wrong way.

Hazard – back in the country where he cut his teeth as a player with Lille – almost doubled his tally five minutes before the break, striking the right-hand post with a volley from a chipped Willian cross.

There were strong shouts for a penalty at the other before the players returned to the changing rooms, but the referee waved play on after Edinson Cavani fell to the ground under the challenge of Gary Cahill.

As in the first half, PSG started brightly once again after the interval, Lavezzi heading narrowly over from a Blaise Matuidi cross when unmarked in the box.

And they were back in front just after the hour, when Luiz inadvertently knocked the ball into his own net from a teasing Lavezzi free kick.

However, there were worrying scenes for the hosts in the 68th minute, when Ibrahimovic, who was quiet for much of the encounter, pulled up with what appeared to be a hamstring strain.

Cavani's late curling effort whistled just wide of the right-hand upright, but Pastore forced his way into the penalty area in stoppage time to drive home from a tight angle and compound Chelsea’s misery.

 

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Roma 4-2 Parma: Majestic Giallorossi reduce gap to Juventus

Roma closed to within eight points of Serie A leaders Juventus with an exhilarating 4-2 victory over Parma at the Stadio Olimpico on Wednesday evening.

Both sides contributed greatly to a game that had had to be abandoned after just eight minutes of play back in February because of torrential rain, with the hosts opening the scoring through Gervinho only to see the Giallorossi equalise almost immediately courtesy of Afriyie Acquah.

However, Francesco Totti put Roma back in front with an emphatic finish before Miralem Pjanic and Rodrigo Taddei added second-half goals to render Jonathan Biabiany's late strike purely academic.

With Napoli having upset Juventus at the San Paolo on Sunday, the pressure was on Roma to restore their nine-point advantage of the third-placed Partenopei in the battle for automatic qualification for next season's Champions League.

Of course, although Giallorossi coach Rudi Garcia has conceded the title, there was also the opportunity to close to within eight points of the league-leading Bianconeri.

Parma, meanwhile, knew that a win would see them move about fifth-placed Inter and into a Europa League place.

In that context, it was hardly surprising that the two sides produced a wonderfully open affair.

Indeed, Parma could have opened the scoring almost right away but Ezequiel Schelotto headed wastefully wide after Acquah's deflected strike had dropped invitingly for him on the edge of the six-yard box.

The on-loan Inter winger's profligacy was immediately punished. Rodrigo Taddei released Gervinho down the right wing with 12 minutes on the clock and he passed inside Totti, who put Mattia Destro in on goal with a sublime first-time pass.

The striker's shot came back off the base of the far post but Gervinho was following up to put Roma ahead with the simplest of finishes.

The Ivorian thought he had struck again just seconds later but his wonderfully controlled volley was correctly ruled out for offside.

Parma capitalised on that narrow escape in the 15th minute, with Acquah controlling a pass from Massimo Gobbi on his chest before spinning and then shooting into the bottom left corner in one fluid movement.

The Gialloblu were level for less than 60 seconds, though, as Pjanic surged down the right flank before pulling the ball back for Totti, who blasted the ball past Antonio Mirante from the edge of the area.

Roma really should have extended their advantage before the break but the unlucky Destro, who also had a goal disallowed, cannoned a header against the bar, after being brilliantly picked out by Maicon.

Garcia's men continued to attack relentlessly after the restart, though, and deservedly went 3-1 up four minutes into the second half when Pjanic pounced on a loose ball in the area, after Gervinho had been denied.

Despite the relative comfort of a two-goal advantage, Roma continued to press and their admirable attacking endeavour was rewarded again with eight minutes to go when Taddei found the far corner with a majestic near-post header.

It was Parma, though, who had the final word, with Biabiany beating Morgan De Sanctis with a stunning first-time strike in the dying seconds - fitting reward for their efforts during what was a wonderful advert for Serie A.

 

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PSG can't get complacent - Verratti

Marco Verratti has warned Paris Saint-Germain not to assume their 3-1 victory over Chelsea is enough to see them into the Champions League semi-finals.

Ezequiel Lavezzi's early opener was cancelled out with half-time looming by an Eden Hazard penalty, but David Luiz inadvertently tapped the ball into the back of his own net before Javier Pastore finished the Blues off in stoppage-time.

The midfielder, who was brought off with an unspecified but seemingly minor injury late in the game by Laurent Blanc, has called for PSG to resist complacency.

"We will not commit the mistake of thinking we are already in the semi-finals," he told Sky Sport. "There are still 90 minutes left in the tie and we will try to attack in the second leg."

Verratti has been regularly linked with a return to Serie A since his move to Parc des Princes, but the 21-year-old has looked to end rumours by categorically stating he wants to stay in Ligue 1.

"I have no nostalgia for Italy," the Azzurri international added. "I enjoy this experience and I hope to stay in Paris for as long as possible."

The Parisiens will go to Stamford Bridge next Tuesday looking for a spot in the last four of the Champions League.

 

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Busquets is a liar, claims Pepe

Real Madrid defender Pepe has branded Sergio Busquets a liar and says he would have been kicked out of the club if he had stamped on his head the way the Barcelona man did to him.

Pictures emerged following the Clasico in March that showed the Portuguese defender suffering a blow to the head while on the floor, courtesy of the Blaugrana midfielder's boot.

Busquets denied he had touched the Blancos centre-back despite the photographic evidence, with Pepe saying his rival lacked decency.

"No one is that silly, there are pictures proving it happened," the 31-year-old told reporters following the club's 3-0 win over Borussia Dortmund in their Champions League quarter-final on Wednesday.

"One of the values of a human being is to be honest and admit at times knowing when to apologise.

"If instead of Busquets it was me, then I would not be playing for Real Madrid, which is what many want, to see me outside the team.

"If it was me who did it, people wouldn't want me in Spain. I seem to have the reputation of a murderer, they'd cast me out.

"But these things happen in football, of course I'm happy at Madrid."

 

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'Ronaldo not injured' - Ancelotti calms Madrid fears following substitution

Carlo Ancelotti has confirmed that Cristiano Ronaldo is not injured and was just substituted as a precaution in Real Madrid's 3-0 Champions League win over Borussia Dortmund.

Wednesday's quarter-final first leg marked another high point in the Ballon d'Or-winner's incredible campaign, as he equalled Lionel Messi's record of 14 Champions League goals in a season during the 3-0 win over last season's European runners-up.

The Portugal captain was booed by his own supporters during Saturday's 5-0 thrashing of Rayo Vallecano at the Santiago Bernabeu, but his name was being chanted after he scored his side's third goal against Dortmund to take his tally for the season to 45.

Ancelotti revealed last week that Ronaldo was carrying a minor knee injury and the Italian brought the former Manchester United man off with 10 minutes remaining against the side who beat the Spanish giants in the semi-final last term.

But the Italian coach played down concerns that his prolific forward could face a spell on the sidelines at such a crucial stage of the season, as his side attempt to win a Champions League, La Liga and Copa del Rey treble."Cristiano had a knee injury," Ancelotti told reporters. "I've taken him out to avoid risks. He is not injured, just a minor annoyance.

"I'm satisfied with the result and the attitude of the team. It wasn't an easy game but we started well. Then we slowed down and Dortmund are a very dangerous team on the break.

"Now we have to play in Dortmund. They use dangerous and quick counterattacks, but our defence was good. We also pushed up to stop them doing long balls."

 

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Injury rules Ibrahimovic out of second leg

Zlatan Ibrahimovic will miss the second leg of Paris Saint-Germain's quarter-final with Chelsea through injury, according to Paris Saint-Germain president Nasser Al-Khelaifi.

Midway through PSG's 3-1 defeat of Chelsea on Wednesday, the former AC Milan and Barcelona forward pulled up with what looked like a hamstring injury, but it has since been suggested could have been his calf causing him pain.

The Swede made a pass out wide but pulled up as he sprinted forwards in pursuit of a potential return ball with 66 minutes on the clock.

Laurent Blanc brought on Brazilian winger Lucas Moura, with Ibrahimovic grimacing as he shuffled down the tunnel, casting doubt on whether he will be fit for the return leg at Stamford Bridge and even the rest of the season.

And PSG chief Al-Khelaifi was not optimistic, telling beIn Sport after the match: "Ibrahimovic picked up an injury. He will be out for a few weeks."

Ibrahimovic's absence in Ligue 1 will be less obviously felt as les Parisiens are well ahead of second-placed Monaco in the title race and coach Blanc added that it was beyond question that at least a short spell on the sidelines is needed.

"Zlatan felt a slight muscular pain - I'm not sure whether it's his calf or his hamstring," Blanc added. "We'll have to look after that but it will require a certain amount of rest."

Eight minutes after Ibrahimovic made way for the hosts, Marco Verratti suffered a similar fate as he was forced off the pitch with an unspecified injury as January signing Yohan Cabaye came on in his place.