..::Football III::..

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Fiorentina 1-2 Inter: Icardi hands Nerazzurri vital win

Mauro Icardi's 65th minute strike gave Inter their first away win since November and threw a spanner in the works of Fiorentina's bid for Champions League football.

Rodrigo Palacio had not scored since December – a run dating back to his winner in the Milan derby – but was a constant threat and opened the scoring in the 34th minute for Walter Mazzarri's side on Saturday.Inter dominated the first half but were pegged back just after the break as Juan Cuadrado's 25-yard effort gave him his second goal in as many matches.

The visitors deservedly secured all three points midway through the second half though, as substitute Icardi converted Yuto Nagatomo's cross.The win moves fifth-placed Inter to within five points of their opponents in the league table and opens up a three-point gap on Verona in sixth.

Palacio was lively from the beginning and after closing down Neto, he nearly scored when he blocked the Fiorentina goalkeeper's attempted clearance, only to see the ricochet go narrowly wide.A swift counter-attack from Inter in the 13th minute created another chance for the 32-year-old, but on this occasion he was denied by the post.

Palacio then latched onto a well-weighted through ball and beat Neto with a low shot across goal, but the woodwork intervened.Mazzarri's side were in the ascendancy and Diego Milito was guilty of missing two chances to open the scoring, firstly having a shot well saved by Neto before shooting high and wide 10 minutes later.

The deadlock was finally broken just after the half-hour mark though, as Fredy Guarin turned and lobbed a left-footed ball towards Palacio.The striker controlled the pass on his chest and reacted quickly, beating Neto to the bouncing ball and firing into the unguarded net.

After only testing Inter goalkeeper Samir Handanovic once in the first half, Fiorentina sprang to life after the break and levelled in the 47th minute through Cuadrado.The goalkeeper appeared to misjudge the Colombian's long-range effort and let the ball under his outstretched arm.

Parity lasted just 18 minutes though, as Icardi latched onto a pinpoint cross from Nagatomo to fire past Neto.Replays showed he may have been offside when the ball was delivered and his goal forced Fiorentina's hand, as coach Vincenzo Montella introduced striker Mario Gomez with 22 minutes to play.

But the German, who has been sidelined with a knee injury since September, was unable to earn his side a point as he agonisingly failed to turn a volley across goal from fellow substitute Alessandro Matri in at the far post.

 

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Barcelona 6-0 Rayo Vallecano: Messi matches Raul record

Two goals from Lionel Messi helped Barcelona to a 6-0 hammering of Rayo Vallecano on Saturday night.

The Argentine superstar went into the match at Camp Nou level with Athletic Bilbao legend Telmo Zarra's record total of 335 goals for a single Spanish club, but scored in each half to set the new benchmark.And in scoring twice, Messi also overtook Real Madrid icon Alfredo Di Stefano's tally of 227 La Liga strikes, with his second of the game on 68 minutes drawing him level with another Blancos hero, Raul.

The 26-year-old - who was withdrawn 16 minutes from time with Tuesday's Champions League clash with Manchester City in mind - is now only 23 goals behind Zarra's all-time record of 251 in the Spanish top flight. Messi doubled Barca's lead in the 36th minute with a brilliant, delicate chip after Adriano had put them ahead early on.

Alexis Sanchez and Pedro put the champions 4-0 up before Messi and Neymar - who came off the bench to make his return to Liga action after an ankle injury - completed the scoring in the final 20 minutes, taking them back above Atletico Madrid on goal difference at the top of the table.

It took the hosts just two minutes to take the lead, and they did so in style as Adriano cut in from the left, beat his marker before lashing a powerful drive into the bottom corner.Barca were rampant and should have got a second 14 minutes in. Messi brought down Cesc Fabregas' lofted pass into the area but could only strike the post after producing a clever swivel.

Rayo were unable to capitalise on the hosts’ uncharacteristically wasteful finishing to that point as they struggled to gain a foothold in the game, and Pedro was the next to hit the woodwork as he came in from the left and fired a low effort on to Ruben’s right-hand post.

Gerardo Martino's side eventually added a deserved second nine minutes before the break, though, as Messi raced on to Fabregas’ through ball and produced a delightful lob over Ruben from the edge of the area.Barcelona got their third eight minutes after the break as Messi showed good vision to play in Sanchez and the Chilean confidently slotted home his 15th Liga goal of the season.

Number four arrived just three minutes later as a fast, free-flowing passing move ended with Fabregas squaring to Pedro near the penalty spot, and the Spain international tapped into an empty goal.It was then a case of how many Barca would score, and Messi added the fifth when he collected Sanchez's cutback and steered into the bottom-left corner from the edge of the area, but they still were not finished.

Neymar duly wrapped things up in the 89th minute with a wonderful shot into Ruben's top-right corner from 25 yards to round off their final preparations for next week's Champions League clash with Manchester City.

 

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Bayer Leverkusen 1-2 Schalke: Huntelaar nets late winner

Schalke made up ground on Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga after Klaas-Jan Huntelaar's 78th minute strike gave them a 2-1 win at the BayArena.

The visitors broke the deadlock through Leon Goretzka's first half strike, but Leverkusen equalised thanks to Felipe Santana's own goal just past the hour mark.

However, a late goal from Huntelaar saw Jens Keller's side take all three points and hand them a boost in the race for Champions League football.

There was controversy surrounding Leverkusen coach Sami Hyppia's decision to drop Schalke-bound Sidney Sam from the starting XI ahead of the clash between the two Champions League chasing clubs.

But the first chance of the game fell to the home side as Stefan Kiessling received the ball from Lars Bender before losing his man and firing a shot straight at Ralf Fahrmann.

Leverkusen continued to push forward and Heung-Min Son latched on to a dinked ball over the top and produced great chest control to create a shooting opportunity, but Fahrmann closed down the angle well.
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Schalke had threatened little up until then but looked dangerous on the break, as Jefferson Farfan raced down the right wing and provided a looping delivery for Huntelaar, but he was unable to get purchase on the header.

Sebastian Boenisch came close to opening the scoring as he got on the end of a teasing delivery from Roberto Hilbert, which Joel Matip failed to cut out as Leverkusen pressed for the lead.

However, it was Schalke who broke the deadlock on 28 minutes after a mistake by Lars Bender. The midfielder was caught in possession midway in his own half and Goretzka took full advantage as he surged through on goal, evaded the challenge of Philipp Wollschied and dinked the ball over Bernd Leno.

Leverkusen almost restored parity after the break as Son found space in the box, only for his deflected drive to fly wide of the post.

And it almost got worse for the home side when Farfan's electric pace forced Boenisch into a last-ditch challenge and from the resulting free kick the Peruvian curled the effort narrowly over the crossbar.

But Santana put through his own net and gave the visitors the vital goal they needed. The ball was whipped into the box, causing uncertainty, and the Brazilian took full advantage by rifling past Fahrmann.

However, there was to be a late twist with 12 minutes remaining as Huntelaar made it 2-1 to Schalke and gave Keller's men all three points.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Manchester City 2-0 Chelsea: Jovetic & Nasri keep Pellegrini’s men on course for cup double

A first-half strike from Stevan Jovetic put last year's finalists a goal to the good, while Mourinho's men looked second-best throughout the contest.

Samir Nasri doubled City's lead after the break and progression was all but sealed, with Joleon Lescott even having a goal disallowed for offside 15 minutes from time.

Following a week in which Pellegrini and Mourinho had engaged in a war of words as the Premier League title race heats up, it was the City boss who won the argument in this fifth-round clash.

City started brightly and should have taken the lead after 15 minutes when Jovetic hit the crossbar from close range after Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech had spilled a drive from Yaya Toure.

Jovetic redeemed himself a few moments later, though, the Montenegrin finishing off a sweeping team move with a composed low finish that a stranded Cech could do nothing about.

And the Blues stopper was almost picking the ball out of his net again after 23 minutes, forced to produce a diving save to keep out Edin Dzeko's curling effort.

Opportunities gradually dried up, however, as Chelsea began to gain a foothold in the contest, although City were unfortunate not to double their advantage two minutes before the interval when Dzeko only just failed to get on the end of a dangerous low ball from James Milner.

Mourinho made a change at the break, winger Mohamed Salah replacing Samuel Eto'o, but it was City who continued to dictate the pace of the game.

They failed to capitalise on several promising openings in the early stages of the second period but the introduction of Nasri for Jovetic proved instrumental on 67 minutes, as the France international pounced to put Pellegrini's side firmly in command.

The former Arsenal man played a neat one-two with David Silva, who - despite a suspicion of offside - presented Nasri with the simple task of tapping into an empty net to mark his comeback in the perfect manner.

Chelsea got the benefit of the offside flag a few minutes later as Lescott's effort was ruled out after he had pounced on a rebound from Javi Garcia's header, though that decision proved to be little more than a footnote as City coasted to a deserved win that gave Pellegrini something to cheer.

 

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Bastia 0-2 Monaco: James Rodriguez stars to keep Ranieri's title dreams alive

Monaco ensured that Paris Saint-Germain’s lead of Ligue 1 will be no bigger than it was at the beginning of the weekend as they defeated Bastia 2-0 at Furiani on Saturday evening.

In response to PSG’s comfortable 3-0 win over Valenciennes on Friday evening, Claudio Ranieri’s men claimed a hard-fought victory courtesy of a goal in each half from Colombia playmaker James Rodriguez.

Although the home side enjoyed some pressure in the opening period, they failed to work visiting goalkeeper Danijel Subastic. The Corsicans were not without a threat, but following set pieces neither Djibril Cisse nor Francois Modesto could get their efforts on target when a goal was possible.

Monaco were not at their best but were still carving out good opportunities from which to profit. Valere Germain’s acrobatic early effort flew just over, while a header from adventurous left-back Layvin Kurzawa passed narrowly wide of the home goal after a pinpoint centre from James.

The South American has been in electric form of late and would play a decisive role late in the first half as he smashed home a direct free kick only minutes after a driving run had ended with a fierce shot that had narrowly cleared the bar.

With Bastia more enterprising at the beginning of the second half as they fought to find a way back into the match, James was simply invited to make use of the greater space he was afforded and did so brilliantly, setting up opportunities for Emmanuel Riviere and Germain that were ultimately squandered.

It was little surprise that when Monaco’s second goal did arrive, it was the former Porto man who was once again their inspiration. Leading a counterattack, a pass seemed the best option for James, but he simply drove on and smashed a shot past Jean-Louis Leca to put the visiting side out of sight.

With the game virtually killed off, the hosts at last mustered their first shot on goal through Ryad Boudebouz, yet this was comfortably dealt with by Subastic, who tipped it over the top and preserved a deserved cleansheet.

Victory means that Monaco are still only five points back of league leaders Paris Saint-Germain, whose European commitments may open up opportunities for the principality club to profit in future. With James in such hot form, their title challenge should not be written off yet, particularly after a relatively comfortable win at one of France’s most inhospitable venues.

 

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Atletico Madrid 3-0 Valladolid: Costa helps end caustic week for hosts

Atletico Madrid's explosive start on Saturday helped end a three-game losing run and secure a comfortable victory over Valladolid.

Atletico's hopes of retaining their Copa del Rey crown were ended by city rivals Real Madrid at the semi-final stage this week, while an unlikely 2-0 loss at Almeria saw them toppled as league leaders.

But the hosts were quick to lay down a marker at Vicente Calderon with two goals inside the opening four minutes.

Raul Garcia stroked in his eighth league goal of the season to set the tone for the match before Diego Costa doubled Atleti's advantage with a cool lobbed finish a minute later.

Diego Godin went close to grabbing a third for Diego Simeone's men in the 52nd minute and Mario Suarez put a header onto the crossbar just after the hour mark, but the Uruguayan eventually made sure of the victory 16 minutes from time with a well placed header.

The victory takes the home side to 60 points from 24 matches, while Valladolid remain in the bottom three with just 21 points from the same number of games.

Despite facing a trip to Milan in the Champions League on Wednesday, Simeone did not rest many key men for Valladolid's visit and Thibaut Courtois returned in goal after a spell out with a thigh strain.

The hosts appeared in determined mood to end their recent run of poor form and took the lead in just the third minute as Gabi took a short free-kick to Garcia on the edge of the area and he subsequently steered past Diego Marino.

Atletico doubled their advantage within a minute, with Garcia turning provider as he lofted a pass over the visitors' defence that Costa collected before looping over the advancing goalkeeper.

The final chance of the first half fell to Garcia on the edge of the area, but his tame effort failed to trouble Marino.

Godin nearly opened up a three-goal lead for Atletico early in the second half as he met Gabi's in-swinging corner with a header at the back post, but Marino palmed it around the post.

The match was almost put beyond Valladolid with just over an hour gone as Suarez flicked Koke’s dangerous corner delivery towards goal, but the crossbar came to Marino's rescue.

However, Atleti finally put the game to bed in the 74th minute as Godin rose to head home Gabi's corner and put the pressure back on Barcelona and Real Madrid.

 

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Borussia Dortmund 4-0 Eintracht Frankfurt: Auba double secures straightforward success

Borussia Dortmund cemented their top-three place in the Bundesliga with a comfortable 4-0 success over Eintracht Frankfurt.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored twice in the first half for the home side before a penalty from Robert Lewandowski early in the second period secured the points.

The rout was completed when Milos Jojic marked his debut for Jurgen Klopp's men with a fourth.

The win moves Klopp's side to within a point of the second-placed Bayer Leverkusen, although Sami Hyypia's side will play Schalke later on Saturday.

Dortmund were unchanged following a 1-0 DFB Pokal quarter-final win at Frankfurt on Tuesday and they started brightly as Lewandowski, Nuri Sahin and Henrikh Mkhitaryan all had early chances.

All three players were unable to beat Frankfurt goalkeeper Kevin Trapp but they did claim the lead in the 10th minute, taking advantage of some terrible defending from Sebastian Jung.

Mkhitaryan robbed the full-back on the edge of the Frankfurt area and rolled a pass into Aubameyang, with the Gabon international making no mistake from close range as he side-footed past Trapp.

The hosts were in rampant form but had a slice of luck to double their lead midway through the first half.

Sahin's corner was headed towards goal by Manuel Friedrich and although Trapp did well to save, the loose ball dropped to Aubameyang and he stabbed home from three yards.

Dortmund goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller was a mere spectator for the majority of the first half, but made a good low save to keep out a Constant Djakpa free kick on the only occasion he was called into action.

BVB extended their lead just after the break after Djakpo was adjudged to have fouled Lewandowski while challenging for a left-wing cross.

The Polish striker picked himself up and rifled home the spot kick for his 14th league goal of the season.

Frankfurt were struggling to cope with Dortmund, who saw Marcel Schmelzer's header clawed off the line by Trapp, but within a minute of coming on Jojic got his side's fourth.

Jojic, who replaced Mkhitaryan, pounced after Trapp failed to hold a Kevin Grosskreutz strike, tapping into an empty net.

Despite being beaten four times Trapp continued to do his best to keep the Dortmund forwards at bay, and he made a late stop from Lewandowski to deny the 25-year-old a second goal of the game.

 

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Bayern Munich 4-0 Freiburg: Perfect prep for Pep as Shaqiri double seals emphatic win

A Xherdan Shaqiri double, a powerful Dante header and a brilliantly taken Claudio Pizarro goal ensured the perfect preparation for the Champions League last-16 clash against Arsenal as Bayern Munich confirmed their superiority with a comprehensive victory over Freiburg on Saturday.

Dante headed the hosts in front in the 19th minute at the Allianz Arena before Shaqiri netted his first of the game 15 minutes later.

And the result was beyond doubt before the break as the Swiss drove home a third from the centre of the penalty area and staked his claim for a starting spot in Wednesday's Champions League last-16 clash with Arsenal.

Claudio Pizarro then added a fourth in the dying moments as Freiburg sank without trace.

The victory is Bayern's 13th in a row in the Bundesliga and stretches their record unbeaten top-flight streak to 46 matches.

Bayern coach Pep Guardiola opted to rest a number of players ahead of the midweek trip to the Emirates Stadium, with Bastian Schweinsteiger named among the substitutes as he neared a long-awaited Bundesliga return following his ankle injury.

After soaking up some early Freiburg pressure, Bayern went close with two long-range efforts from Shaqiri and Rafinha.

A free kick on the edge of the penalty area presented the visitors with an opportunity to test home goalkeeper Manuel Neuer in the 14th minute, but Jonathan Schmid's effort struck the top of the wall before Matthias Ginter saw a strike blocked by Toni Kroos.

However, it was Guardiola's side who took the lead five minutes later, when Dante got his head to a Diego Contento cross from the left to guide the ball just beyond the reach of Oliver Baumann and into the bottom right-hand corner of the net.

Having looked like making it an uncomfortable 90 minutes for Bayern in the early stages, the opening goal seemed to knock the stuffing out of Freiburg, and the champions doubled their advantage in the 34th minute.

Shaqiri benefitted from a delightful Pizarro flick and capped off a flowing team move before the winger put the result beyond doubt by making it 3-0 with a low drive from 12 yards shortly after.

Admir Mehmedi thought he had pulled one back for the visitors on the stroke of half-time, but his effort was ruled out for offside.

Bayern took their foot off the gas somewhat after the break, but could have found themselves even further ahead as Arjen Robben and Thomas Muller both went close.

Diego Contento headed over from close range just after the hour mark, before Kroos nearly found the top right-hand corner with a well struck effort.

Freiburg had offered little in the way of goal-scoring opportunities in the second half, but almost reduced the deficit when Sebastian Kerk had Neuer beaten. However, he saw his effort creep wide of the target.

Javi Martinez had the chance to put the icing on the cake for Bayern in the closing stages, but side-footed his effort wide of the right-hand upright.

However, Pizarro got in on the act two minutes from time as he cut inside from the left and fired home from the edge of the area.

And encouragingly for Bayern fans, the returning Schweinsteiger was given a 30-minute run out by Guardiola, coming on in place of two-goal hero Shaqiri.

 

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Sunderland 1-0 Southampton: Gardner thunderbolt blasts Black Cats into last eight

Craig Gardner's screamer sent Sunderland into the quarter-finals of the FA Cup after a hard-fought victory over Southampton at the Stadium of Light.

Gus Poyet's side continued their excellent form in cup competitions as they reached the last eight, but only after Rickie Lambert somehow contrived to clear the crossbar from two yards in the closing stages.

Gardner's stunning strike five minutes after the break proved decisive, the midfielder turning away from Victor Wanyama before firing home from outside the penalty area.

Sunderland had several chances to make it more comfortable but none as good as the one presented to England man Lambert, whose miss let the hosts off the hook.
Poyet, whose men remain embroiled in relegation trouble, promised to ring the changes ahead of a busy schedule for his side and he duly obliged, making nine alterations as forward Ignacio Scocco was handed his debut.

Mauricio Pochettino has no such problems, with his charges eighth in the table, but he made six changes as both sides struggled to find their rhythm in a frenetic opening.The visitors had the first opportunity, Adam Lallana finding Lambert with a cross before the striker nodded down for James Ward-Prowse, whose effort was well saved by Oscar Ustari.

Poyet was angered by the officials' decision not to award a penalty when Fabio Borini went down under the challenge of defender Luke Shaw after 12 minutes.
Emanuele Giaccherini then squandered a promising opportunity when he failed to get a shot away after dribbling his way into the Southampton area.Lambert was denied an excellent chance to put his side ahead eight minutes before the break when Santiago Vergini executed a well-timed tackle in the box.

Gardner sparked the game into life with 50 minutes gone, putting his side ahead with a long-range strike that crashed in off the underside of Kelvin Davis' bar.
It was Gardner's third goal of the season and the visitors struggled to mount a response, with Pochettino opting to introduce Jay Rodriguez and Morgan Schneiderlin just after the hour mark.Connor Wickham should have made it two 17 minutes from time but he failed to connect with a pass when through on goal, while Lallana could only put Nathaniel Clyne's cross wide from close range.

Pochettino must have realised it was not to be Southampton's day when Lambert spooned Clyne's low cross over the bar with the goal at his mercy as Sunderland sent the visitors crashing out of a second cup competition this season following their 2-1 Capital One Cup win in November.

 

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Cissokho defends under-fire Toure

Aly Cissokho has leapt to the defence of under-fire Liverpool team-mate Kolo Toure after a couple of costly errors.

Toure was at fault for West Brom's equaliser in the 1-1 draw at The Hawthorns earlier this month, and the centre-half scored a comical own goal to leave his side trailing after eight minutes at rock-bottom Fulham on Wednesday.

Liverpool recovered from that early setback but Toure's displays have attracted criticism as Brendan Rodgers' side try to keep pace in the Premier League title race.

Frenchman Cissokho, however, has no doubt as to Toure's ability and he hailed the 32-year-old's impact on his own development, particularly as the former Manchester City man can speak French.

"Kolo has been a big influence on me," the left-back said in quotes reported by The Independent.

"He has marked my card on many occasions. For example, he told me what to expect when we went to play Stoke at the Britannia. He explained to me it would be windy, the ball would be in the air all the time and I'd be up against big, strong lads.

"There are a lot of youngsters in the squad and people like Kolo and Steven Gerrard are very important, especially in the middle of a match. They are a voice out on the park, telling us to slow things down or play a longer game.

"Simon Mignolet also speaks French and that’s important for me because I've got Kolo alongside me and Mignolet in goal behind me.

"Sometimes, you do have to react quickly and then your first thoughts will be in French and it helps if you can shout it out to someone near you."

Liverpool travel to Arsenal in the FA Cup on Sunday, with both clubs also harbouring ambitions of a title push, and Cissokho is expecting a tough test despite having hammered Arsene Wenger's men 5-1 last weekend.

"Their run of form isn't that impressive but Arsene Wenger is very experienced at handling these big games," he added.

"We have to make sure we profit from their slight drop in form and not allow them to develop their game, not allow them to pass the ball or feel comfortable."

 

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Mazzarri lauds Guarin performance

Inter boss Walter Mazzarri lauded the performance of Fredy Guarin after the midfielder's showing in Sunday's 2-1 win at Fiorentina.

The Colombian came close to leaving San Siro for Juventus in a swap deal involving Mirko Vucinic before the move fell through and he was crucial as goals from Rodrigo Palacio and Mauro Icardi sealed the Nerazzurri's first away win since November.

"Guarin forgot he was supposed to defend at times but he excelled in the first half," the coach told reporters after the match.

"There aren't many players like him around. He just needs to perform consistently over 90 minutes. If he can do that, it will be great.

"Hernanes is a player who knows how to deal with pressure and that's what we needed. He's got the composure and class to make those around him play well.

"I thought we were excellent in the first period, especially considering the side we were up against. If we'd made better use of the chances we had we could have won by a bigger margin.

"When we're on our game we start playing the sort of football I want to see."

The win is Inter's second consecutive victory, which sees the San Siro side consolidate fifth place in Serie A.

 

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Klopp relieved to end Dortmund's home drought

Jurgen Klopp breathed a sigh of relief after Borussia Dortmund earned their first win at home since November with a dominant 4-0 win over Eintracht Frankfurt.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was on hand to put the hosts two goals ahead in the first half, while Robert Lewandowski and debutant Milos Jojic completed the win after the break."We played really well," Klopp said. "From the first second we played football as we had planned."It was a great football game from us, we scored all the goals at the right time, and that does not happen in every game.

"We won the ball back more often and were able to prevent Frankfurt's deliveries into our area."

The win was Klopp's 111th win as Dortmund boss, equalling Ottmar Hitzfeld's club record, although the 46-year-old downplayed that achievement after the match."This is, for me, just a nice number," he added. "When I hear it, I also think of the defeats."We have not won at home for a long time, it could have been 114 victories now.

"What I can say is that I have a great coaching team, Borussia Dortmund is a fantastic club and we always have had good teams."

Dortmund had not won any of their last four fixtures at Signal Iduna Park since their 6-1 hammering of Stuttgart last year.

The win moves BVB to within a point of second-placed Bayer Leverkusen, after Sami Hyypia's side lost to Schalke later on Saturday.

 

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Pellegrini plays down importance of FA Cup win


Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini has played down the psychological significance of his side's 2-0 FA Cup win over Chelsea.

Pellegrini's men moved into the quarter-finals of the FA Cup with an accomplished performance against their Premier League title rivals, who had completed a league double against City with a 1-0 win at the Etihad Stadium 12 days earlier.

Stevan Jovetic put City ahead after 16 minutes, before Samir Nasri sealed the triumph in the second half with a goal in his first appearance since suffering a knee injury last month.

The Chilean had been embroiled in a war of words with Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho in the build-up to the game but, despite City's fine display, Pellegrini denied suggestions his side had sent a message to the Stamford Bridge outfit and their other Premier League challengers with the performance.

"The way we won today is important for the trust of the team," Pellegrini said. "It's important for continuing in FA Cup, but nothing more."

City's midweek home clash with Sunderland was postponed due to high winds, while Chelsea played out a 1-1 draw at West Brom on Tuesday.

And - after disappointing showings in league games against Chelsea and Norwich - Pellegrini was quick to highlight the extra rest as a factor in City's dominant victory.

"It was very important for our team not to play against Sunderland on Wednesday," Pellegrini added.

"This team has played 18 games in the last two months and I saw that the team was not fresh, that's why we were a little down in our performances against Chelsea (in the league) and against Norwich.

"But working on Thursday and Friday I saw that the team was fresh and was absolutely sure that we were going to have a very good game as we did."

 

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Messi will break all records - Martino

Gerardo Martino believes Lionel Messi is capable of breaking any records he wants,after the forward starred in Barcelona's 6-0 win against Rayo Vallecano on Saturday.

Messi's two goals took him joint-third alongside Real Madrid great Raul in La Liga's all-time highest goalscorer charts, with strikes from Adriano, Alexis Sanchez, Pedro and Neymar completing the rout.

"Messi will break all records he wants, and he won't be aware, he'll lose count. I'd like to think he's not at his best yet," Martino told reporters after the match.

"Messi is one of those players who come around once every 30-40 years."

Turning to the performance, the trainer praised the team effort he saw: "This was one of our best games of the season.

"Carles Puyol was subbed off because he had some discomfort in his back. But until then he played a very good game.

"The game against Valencia [a 3-2 home loss] was a step back, this is again a step forward."

Victory has lifted Barcelona back to top of La Liga and level on points with Atletico Madrid. Fellow contenders Real Madrid will travel to local rivals Getafe on Sunday.

 

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Mourinho: I'm always the bad guy


Jose Mourinho says he has been painted as "the bad guy" following the recent comments exchanged between the Chelsea manager and his Arsenal counterpart Arsene Wenger.

On Friday, Mourinho called Wenger "a specialist in failure" after the Frenchman stated his belief that Mourinho's "fear of failure" was the chief cause for the Portuguese playing down Chelsea's title prospects.
But when the Chelsea boss was asked about the recent media furore in his post-match press conference, he said he has been portrayed as the wrongdoer in the episode.

"It's your [the media's] fault. It's always the same guy who is the bad guy," Mourinho told reporters.

"You like it that way. One is polite and the other one is the bad guy. I'm not surprised."

Chelsea were knocked out of the FA Cup in the fifth round by Manchester City, with goals from Stevan Jovetic and the returning Samir Nasri giving Manuel Pellegrini's side victory at the Etihad.

Mourinho paid credit to City for their victory and admitted that the best side had won. He did, however, state his belief that the second goal, Nasri's effort, was offside and criticised referee Phil Dowd and his assistants for their second-half display.

"When the best team wins, football is in peace," said Mourinho.

Meanwhile, on the disappointing performance of striker Samuel Eto'o, the Portuguese coach said: "There are things I cannot say. There are things I can just think and keep for myself.

"I don't want to individualise. I don't want to speak about my striker, my keeper or my left-back or wherever. We are a team. We win, we lose."

 

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Ancelotti: Ronaldo and Isco are unhappy

Carlo Ancelotti has revealed that Cristiano Ronaldo and Isco have both been unhappy in recent weeks as Real Madrid prepare to face Getafe on Sunday.

Ronaldo was handed a three-match league suspension after becoming embroiled in an altercation during los Blancos' 1-1 draw with Athletic in early February.

The 29-year-old courted more controversy when a lighter was thrown at him in Tuesday's 2-0 win over Atletico Madrid in the Copa del Rey, leading Ancelotti to label the situation as "strange".

"I won’t get into that [the €600 fine for Atleti]," the coach told reporters. "It’s better not to talk about money. I’d rather talk about the issue of the three-match suspension for Cristiano.

"He isn’t happy, because he wants to play every game. He played well against Atletico Madrid, and now has three days off.

"We submitted our appeal on Tuesday and we’re waiting for the [Spanish Sports Disciplinary] Committee’s answer. It’s strange."

Ancelotti then admitted summer signing Isco has had trouble adapting to his recent tactics, but expects the midfielder's frustration at a lack of playing time to only be a temporary issue.

"Benching Isco is for tactical reasons, because he has difficulties with this system," the Italian continued. "Of course he isn’t happy because he wants to play.

"It’s a temporary problem because he’s an important player. He’s a serious player, he’s professional and there are no problems with him.

"I haven't forgotten that he scored a lot of important goals at the start of the season and won us a lot of points when the team wasn’t in good shape."

The Italian will be keen to leave the off-pitch issues behind him as Madrid travel to face Luis Garcia's men in the hope of securing three points to go back top of La Liga.

 

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FA Cup Fixtures 2014.02.16

FA Cup Fixtures 2014.02.16

Everton Vs Swansea

Sheffield Vs Nottingham Forest

Arsenal Vs Liverpool​

 

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La Liga 2014.02.16 Fixtures

La Liga 2014.02.16 Fixtures

Granada Vs Real Betis

Getafe Vs Real Madrid

Athletic Bilbao Vs Espanyol

Sevilla Vs Valancia​

 

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Serie A 2014.02.16 Fixtures

Serie A 2014.02.16 Fixtures

Catania Vs Lazio

Atalanta Vs Parma

Cagliari Vs Livorno

Genoa Vs Udimese

Juventus Vs Chievo

Sassoulo Vs Napoli

Roma Vs Sampdoria​

 

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Smoke bomb suspends Villarreal's game against Celta

Villarreal's Primera Division clash at home to Celta Vigo was suspended temporarily on Saturday night after a smoke bomb was thrown onto the pitch.

With the game just minutes from the final whistle and Celta leading 1-0, the pitch at El Madrigal was engulfed as a smoke bomb landed close to the visitors' goal.

Fans left the stadium, many covering their faces to protect themselves, while the players returned to the dressing rooms.

The match eventually got started again and Nolito scored a second for Celta to give the Galicians a valuable 2-0 victory.

"Villarreal absolutely condemns this behaviour," club president Fernando Roig said afterwards. "It has obviously come from someone who wanted to harm our club.

"We have all suffered the consequences of this, but it was obviously planned - it came from the area where our quietest fans [are seated]."

The incident comes only a few days after Cristiano Ronaldo was struck by a lighter thrown from the stands in the derby between Atletico and Real Madrid at the Vicente Calderon on Tuesday.