..::Football III::..

[Wolverine GTR]

Italy 1-1 Luxembourg: Late equaliser gives visitors a draw

Italy were left embarrassed by a 1-1 draw with Luxembourg in their final World Cup warm-up match on Wednesday.

After a disappointing draw with the Republic of Ireland last weekend, the 2006 world champions were again far from impressive as the European minnows grabbed a late equaliser.

They looked to be comfortable when Claudio Marchisio opened the scoring in the ninth minute, but Italy promptly wasted a host of chances to extend their lead.
And they were punished with five minutes left to play when Maxime Chanot rose to head home a Mario Mutsch corner, earning Luxembourg a shock draw.

Cesare Prandelli made eight changes to the side that was held by the Republic of Ireland on Saturday, with Gianluigi Buffon returning in goal and Mario Balotelli starting up front.

And it was the AC Milan striker who created the opening goal in the ninth minute.
Having drifted to the right, Balotelli delivered a perfect cross into the penalty area where Marchisio headed home from close range after getting in front of his marker.Rather than use the momentum of that early goal, Italy sat back and the crowd had to wait until the 28th minute for the next chance.

Marco Verratti found enough room on the edge of the Luxembourg penalty area to play a through ball to Balotelli, the 23-year-old timed his run perfectly but fired straight at the goalkeeper from five yards.

Antonio Candreva and Andrea Pirlo both went close to doubling the lead in the closing five minutes of the half but the Azzurri had to settle for a one-goal lead.The introduction of Antonio Cassano in 54th minute breathed new life into the match and within two minutes of coming on, he had created a chance for Balotelli, but the striker struck the crossbar from 12 yards.

Worryingly for Prandelli, the visitors were able to create some good openings after the hour mark, but Aurelien Joachim was unable to meet crosses from Mathias Janisch and Dwayn Holter.With five minutes remaining the minnows did shock their hosts, though, as Chanot rose above Alberto Aquilani to head beyond Buffon.

Italy now travel to Brazil for the World Cup, with their opening game of the tournament coming against England on June 14 - and Prandelli will know there is much work to do.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Netherlands 2-0 Wales: Robben and Lens fire Oranje to victory

Netherlands rounded off their pre-World Cup friendly schedule with a lacklustre 2-0 victory against a depleted Wales.

Louis van Gaal's men have been far from impressive in their build-up to the tournament and looked below par once again in Amsterdam against their Welsh visitors, who were without star names including Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey.
Arjen Robben scored the opening goal of the encounter shortly after the half-hour mark, but chances were few and far between throughout.There was, however, one more goal for the home side to celebrate, when Jeremain Lens found the net from a Robben cross in the 76th minute.

Van Gaal brought Leroy Fer in for the injured Jonathan de Guzman in his only change of personnel from the 1-0 win over Ghana on Saturday, while there was a debut for defender James Chester in a Welsh defence that was missing captain Ashley Williams.

And Chris Coleman's charges had to be on high alert in the early stages as Robin van Persie – celebrating the ninth anniversary of his international debut - had the first chance of the encounter, but Wayne Hennessey got down well to deny his low drive from just inside the penalty area.

Robben dragged an effort wide of the right-hand post in the ninth minute, before Wales settled and began to put the hosts under pressure at the back – Van Gaal's men far from assured in defence.

However, just as Netherlands' sluggish start was beginning to draw the ire of the home crowd, Robben burst into the penalty area only to see his strike deflected over by Chris Gunter.And it was Robben who eventually made the breakthrough, netting in the 32nd minute after a Van Persie shot had ricocheted out off the shin of Hennessey.

Van Persie diverted agonisingly wide of the left-hand upright five minutes before the break as the hosts were made to settle for a one-goal advantage at the interval.
The first 20 minutes of the second period passed without incident, but Wales almost caught the Oranje napping when substitute Jermaine Easter latched onto a Gunter throw-in, but his close-range effort was kept out by Jasper Cillessen.Fulham's George Williams came off the bench to make his Wales debut and the home side had Ron Vlaar to thank for denying the youngster an almost instant goal to go with it.

But it was the hosts who had the final say, as Robben – arguably his side's brightest player in these pre-tournament friendlies – found an unmarked Lens with a cross from the right, and the Dynamo Kiev man tapped home unmarked.

It may have been another win for the Dutch, but Van Gaal will be well aware his squad will need to up their game for their World Cup curtain-raiser against defending champions Spain a week on Friday.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Van Persie calms fresh injury fears

Robin van Persie has allayed fears of an injury after he was substituted at half-time in Netherlands' 2-0 win over Wales on Wednesday night.

The striker appeared to be struggling towards the end of the first half of the meeting in Amsterdam and didn't emerge for the second half having been replaced by Jeremain Lens.

Van Persie admitted after the game that he felt some pain in his groin but insists the replacement was merely a precaution and he will be fit to play in his side's first World Cup game against Spain.

"You don't have to worry. I have a little pain in my groin," he told NOS.
"I don't even call it an injury though. It was more of a precaution as the game next week is a lot more important."

Coach Louis van Gaal reiterated Van Persie's point before going on to discuss his tactics in the game, having started with a 4-4-2 against Wales despite playing with a 5-3-2 against Ghana.The Oranje boss insists he will line up with a more attacking formation when they face Spain and Chile in the World Cup.

"It was a precaution with Van Persie, but he didn't come off for no reason," Van Gaal told SBS6. "I have many attackers in the team.

"I knew Wales would sit back, but I did not expect them to play so deep. I just have to say that we are in a process and we are preparing for better opponents.

"I could have played 4-3-3 from the first minute to make it more attractive. But I wanted to see the implementation of this system [4-4-2]."Against Spain and Chile we will go back to the other system [5-3-2]. It sure looks that way. We will now focus on Spain, for which the 4-4-2 system is not possible."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Italy can still have a great World Cup, says Prandelli

Italy coach Cesare Prandelli still believes his side can enjoy a positive World Cup despite stretching their winless run to seven games with Wednesday night's shock 1-1 draw with Luxembourg.

Claudio Marchisio gave the Azzurri an early lead but the European minnows fought back and drew level in the dying minutes through a Maxime Chanot header to secure a surprise result.

Despite the setback, Prandelli refused to label his side's performance a failure, although he did admit that his side have to improve between now and their tournament opener against England on June 14.

"This test was not an absolute failure," he told reporters after the game. "However, it is clear that we need to improve.

"This was a test we had to go through because we have played a few games and we know we are not brilliant. We trained until yesterday, but let's start with the belief that we can have a great World Cup."

The coach admitted his side are missing Riccardo Montolivo, who has been ruled out of the tournament in Brazil after picking up an injury in their draw with Republic of Ireland on Sunday.

"It's clear that we are missing someone who has been with us for so many years," said Prandelli.

"But at this time we need to consider other things such as the position of Candreva and I saw some other interesting things.

"Mario Balotelli had two good opportunities in the first half and had another chance when Antonio Cassano came on.

"We have missed a few chances and then conceded a goal from a corner, where our marking was completely wrong."We must also get better with our closing down because we have more players in midfield and less on the outside."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Pique: Barcelona don't appreciate Fabregas

Gerard Pique has criticised Barcelona for the way they have treated team-mate Cesc Fabregas, insisting that the club don't appreciate him as much as they should.

The midfielder has failed to cement himself as a key player in the first-team of the Catalan giants since he re-joined them from Arsenal back in 2011.

This summer, Fabregas has been linked to a move back to England, with Manchester City, the Premier League champions, already preparing a €37 million bid for the Spain international, while the Gunners are also interested.

Pique hopes his Spain team-mate will ignore the advances of his Premier League admirers and remain with Barca, but admits he feels the club have not shown Fabregas the respect he deserves.

"I really like Cesc and I know he is going through a tough time because the club don't appreciate him as much as they should," the defender said at a press conference."He is one of those players who would be first-choice at any other club in the world, the star of the team.

"Despite that, he is finding it harder at Barca. I don't know what he is going to do; we haven't spoken about that.

"I hope he stays, because if you look at his stats this season, he is our highest-scoring midfielder and the one with the most assists. Of course I want him to stay with us."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Sterling & Valencia see red in England - Ecuador friendly

Liverpool's Raheem Sterling and Manchester United's Antonio Valencia have been sent off following a late flashpoint in the Ecuador v England friendly in Miami.

Sterling went in late on Valencia with a reckless lunge down near his own corner flag, with the United man springing to his feet to grab his opponent around the neck.

Following a brief brawl between players from the two teams, referee Jair Marrufo showed both men a straight red card.

Neither man will be suspended for any World Cup matches, but it will provide both managers with headaches with the tournament just over a week away.

Sterling, 19, had only been introduced as a 65th-minute substitute on the evening, but rather than impress boss Roy Hodgson he will have only prompted questions about his temperament.

Earlier on, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain had been withdrawn with an injury following a challenge with Carlos Gruezo.

The Arsenal man missed much of the previous Premier League season through injury but was fit enough to walk from the pitch, albeit gingerly.

He had been in impressive form up until that point, providing several energetic runs to give England an outlet in the face of pacey Ecuadorian attacks.

England's Group D opponents Italy were also in action on Wednesday, but could only muster a 1-1 draw with Luxembourg.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Leverkusen confirm Liverpool bid for Can

Bayer Leverkusen chief executive Michael Schade has confirmed Liverpool have made an official approach for midfielder Emre Can.

The 20-year-old has been linked with a move to the Premier League in recent weeks, and Schade told the German press on Wednesday that after initial enquiries a bid has now been lodged from Anfield.

Leverkusen are keen to hold onto their star youngster but after impressing during the last Bundesliga campaign, interest in the player from around Europe has grown.

"Until Tuesday, it was a rumour [about a bid]," Schade told Bild. "Now I can confirm that an official offer from Liverpool has been received by mail."

Can, who only arrived from Bayern Munich last season, is reported to have a €12million [£9.75million] release clause in his current contract at the BayArena.

Anfield boss Brendan Rodgers has already made one signing in the close-season with the purchase of England striker Rickie Lambert from Southampton.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Diego Costa will thrive in England, says Mata

Juan Mata believes his Spain team-mate Diego Costa will "thrive" in the Premier League as he looks set to complete a move to Chelsea.

The striker is expected to join Jose Mourinho's side in a €43 million move from Atletico Madrid in the near future after he passed a medical with the Premier League giants on Wednesday.

As the move looks imminent, the Manchester United player is sure Costa has what it takes to shine in the English top flight.

"I wish him the best," Mata told reporters. "He is a forward who is very well suited to English football because of his power and strength. He is the type of player that thrives there, but at the moment he is still an Atletico player."

Mata was then asked about the World Cup and he says he is elated to be part of the Spain squad again heading into another major tournament.
He said: "I'm over the moon and very proud to have been to two Confederations Cups, a World Cup and a European Championship and now I'm getting ready to experience another World Cup.

"I'm proud to be part of the most historic period in our national team's history. I'm raring to contribute and to keep enjoying this moment; here's hoping we keep making history."

He then turned his attention to his side's friendly against El Salvador on Saturday.
"Hopefully they take the match 100 per cent seriously, as if it were a final. Over the last few years all of Spain's opponents in friendlies have approached them like a competitive fixture. Now we have to do the same thing to prepare for the World Cup.

"Like all warm-up games, it will allow us to continue getting into our stride. We're training hard, both in the morning and in the evening; let's hope there are no injuries, that we play well and build up confidence ahead of the World Cup, which is the whole point of these matches."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Filipe Luis Chelsea join wai waga..!

ow aiya chance 1kak thiyanawa
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[Wolverine GTR]

Mu PSG giyoth, godak CFC qualities nathi wenawa..! Anika France league ekata play keranawa kiyanna maha Gu wadak..

Hazard ta Chelsea walin yanna dunnoth aparade aiya
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[Wolverine GTR]

Real Madrid 2014/15 Home and Away Kits Released!

Real Madrid 2014-2015 Home Kit

Real Madrid 14-15 Away Kit

Real Madrid 14-15 Goalkeeper Home Kit

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[Wolverine GTR]

Lassanai 2014/15 season 1ke Real Madrid kits tikaAway kit 1kath patta
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[rcccc]

Reus wins German players’ player of the year

 

[rcccc]

Anika France league ekata play keranawa kiyanna maha Gu wadak..

sira
Hazard EPL ennama one..

 

[charitha chandi]

Hazard ta Chelsea walin yanna dunnoth aparade aiya
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meka yanna ona kiwwoth, mourinho ge thiyana lokuwa nisa kawadawath yanna epa kiyanna na..! giyoth num wadak na ithin.. France league eka hondai nakinta...!

 

[charitha chandi]

sira
Hazard EPL ennama one..

aniwa

 

[charitha chandi]

ow aiya chance 1kak thiyanawa
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enna dunna nathi wunoth thama ithin. nathnum pora aniwa enawa...!

 

[Wolverine GTR]

meka yanna ona kiwwoth, mourinho ge thiyana lokuwa nisa kawadawath yanna epa kiyanna na..! giyoth num wadak na ithin.. France league eka hondai nakinta...!

Big money nisa thamai aiya kamathi unoth...ath aiya kiwwath wage France League 1kanam hari yanne nahaEwagema thamai MLS
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[Wolverine GTR]

enna dunna nathi wunoth thama ithin. nathnum pora aniwa enawa...!

Hoda deal 1kak dunoth aniwa ai aiya

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[Wolverine GTR]

sira
Hazard EPL ennama one..

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