..::Football III::..

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Dante: I was surprised we signed Alonso

Bayern Munich defender Dante says he was surprised by the club's signing of Xabi Alonso from Real Madrid.

The Bundesliga champions bought the midfielder this summer for a reported fee of €10 million and the former Spain international made his debut the following day in a 1-1 draw with Schalke.

Dante was caught off guard by the arrival of the 32-year-old, but says the ex-Liverpool man's experience will help Bayern as they attempt to win the treble in 2014-15."With Mehdi Benatia I wasn't surprised," he told TZ. "But with Xabi Alonso it all happened incredibly fast and we knew nothing about it in advance.

"We are playing in three competitions and want to win all three, so we need a lot of players. I stand by my opinion - when players come with the quality of Xabi or Mehdi, it is always good."I've only trained with him a few times but in the game against Schalke you already saw that he is a great personality. Xabi has an incredible amount of experience and can help us right away."

The centre-back added that Alonso will have to adapt quickly to the German culture of the club, revealing that even coach Pep Guardiola rarely speaks Spanish.Dante continued: "We always try to speak German and Pep only speaks German.He tries to explain everything in German and I speak very little Spanish with him.

"I try to help Xabi and Pepe Reina and sometimes translate speeches for them.Those two are talking to each other in Spanish and that is normal, but the culture at Bayern is German."

 

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Koke: Atletico can do better than last season

Atletico Madrid midfielder Koke is determined to help the team achieve even greater success than in the 2013-14 season in the current campaign.

Diego Simeone's side clinched the Liga title in dramatic fashion with a draw against Barcelona on the final day and reached the final of the Champions League last term, and while Koke admits it will be tough to live up to such standards, he is confident the capability is in the squad to do even better.

"It's very difficult to repeat last season, but we have the drive and the power to do even better," he said in a Q & A session via the club's Facebook page.

"The truth is important players have left, people who add strength to the team, but now new people have arrived with a huge hunger for trophies. We have already won the Supercopa and we'll continue to fight in everything we do."

Koke is fully fired up for the Madrid derby this weekend as the Rojiblancos look to take another scalp from their city rivals.

"As a footballer, you live the passion, because I've always played derbies between Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid since I was small. I'm proud to wear the Atletico shirt in the derby," the 22-year-old added.

Defender Juanfran, however, has made it clear that his side will not head into the game with any complacency.

"We never get too over-confident at this club, whether it's against Real Madrid or anyone for that matter," he is quoted as saying by AS.

"We play the game to win and leave the confidence in the dressing room. The derbies are always evenly matched. The Madrid fans already see us through different eyes.

"If we play well then hopefully we can win at the [Santiago] Bernabeu, as we have done before."

 

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Courtois signs new Chelsea deal

Thibaut Courtois has signed a new five-year contract with Chelsea, the club has announced.

The Beglian returned to Stamford Bridge after a lengthy loan spell at Atletico Madrid and has had the offer of a new deal on the table on the table since the summer.

And Courtois, who has started all of Chelsea's games ahead of Petr Cech so far this season, is relieved to finally confirm that he will remain at Stamford Bridge for the long-term.

"I'm very happy with this new deal. It's really nice to have signed this new contract for five years," the Belgian told the club's official website.

"My future was already sorted but it's nice to know I'm going to be here for another five years and now I can just concentrate on playing games."

Signed from Genk in 2011, Courtois spent three years on loan with Atletico Madrid, winning Copa del Rey and La Liga and establishing himself as one of the world's finest goalkeepers.

 

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Rodgers unhappy after Sturridge ruled out for three weeks

Brendan Rodgers has criticised England’s handling of Daniel Sturridge after the Liverpool striker sustained an injury on international duty.

The 25-year-old suffered a thigh strain in training on Friday – less than two days after playing the majority of the Three Lions’ friendly clash with Norway – and subsequently missed the 2-0 victory over Switzerland in their Euro 2016 qualifying opener.

Rodgers, who later confirmed the former Chelsea striker would be out for up to three weeks, was disappointed with the way in which Sturridge suffered the setback, claiming that the striker was not given adequate time to recover from his midweek exertions.

"The only disappointment for us was Daniel Sturridge coming back injured as he had started the season very well," Rodgers told talkSport.

"We're obviously disappointed because we feel it was an injury which could have been prevented.

"He has worked so hard over pre-season and looked very fit and strong in our last game against Tottenham."

 

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Clement: It's a challenge to keep Real Madrid players happy

Real Madrid assistant coach Paul Clement believes the challenge of keeping the club's players happy remains a tough one.

The European champions were busy restructuring their squad during the last transfer window with the likes of James Rodriguez, Toni Kroos and Keylor Navas arriving at Santiago Bernabeu.

However, Madrid president Florentino Perez drew some criticism from supporters for allowing Xabi Alonso and Angel Di Maria to depart the club, with the duo having played a starring role in Real's Copa del Rey and Champions League double last term.

Clement is unperturbed, though, and insists head coach Carlo Ancelotti still has several selection dilemmas to contend with.

"It's a big challenge [keeping everyone happy], particularly for the manager," he said in an interview with BBC Sport.

"You look at our situation here, just before Xabi and Angel departed we had 20 high-level players and basically two for each position. We're slightly lower than that now, we're down to 18, but the problems are still there.

"These players are very competitive, playing at a high level and they want to play every game in almost all circumstances here.

"We see the disappointment of the players that get left out but they're very professional and show in a good way the way to move forward from those disappointments."

 

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Tottenham deny takeover claims

Tottenham have rejected newspaper claims that owner Joe Lewis is preparing to sell the club.

Reports of a potential sale emerged a day after it was announced that plans for Tottenham's move to a new stadium had been held up.

A compulsory purchase order (CPO) was pushed through by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government Eric Pickles in July to allow Tottenham to press ahead with construction work that was hoped to be completed by 2017.

However, landowners Archway Sheet Metal Works Ltd and the Josif family have exercised their right to challenge the CPO in the High Court, meaning that the project will now be subject to further delays.

As a result, Tottenham's hopes of continuing to play at White Hart Lane while work is carried out have now been shelved in order to speed up the construction time, leaving the Premier League club with no choice but to find a new home for the 2017-18 campaign.

However, the north London outfit have moved to quash rumours surrounding the club's ownership following reports that a €1.2 billion sale could be in the offing.

"The stadium redevelopment plans are a significant part of the future for both our club and the local area and represent a complex infrastructure project that requires funding," read a club statement.

"This substantial construction project requires discussions with multiple providers of finance so that the optimum financing package can be achieved.

"To this end, we have appointed [financial advisors] Rothschild to advise us on those options.

"Accordingly, we are at a stage where we are starting to engage with a number of financing institutions and potential funders in respect of the new stadium development project.

"Contrary to recent press speculation, neither the club, nor its majority shareholder, are in any takeover discussions and the focus of the club is fully on delivering the new stadium project."

 

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Roma hopeful of Rabiot deal

Roma remain interested in signing Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Adrien Rabiot.

Roma coach Rudi Garcia confirmed last week that the Serie A side were monitoring the Frenchman in hope of bringing him to Stadio Olimpico, but denied an agreement was already in place with the Ligue 1 champions for the January transfer window.

However, the club's sporting director, Walter Sabatini, has now confirmed that Roma would like to strike a deal before the 19-year-old becomes available for a free transfer.

"He is an exceptional player, who has forged ahead. We like him very much," Sabatini said at a news conference.

"He is a player that we would like and we will discuss him through correct behaviour, we will not wait for a solution to acquire him on a free transfer.

"If we have the privilege and the desire to negotiate for Rabiot, we will do so in agreement with Paris Saint-Germain.

"But I believe it will be difficult, as his contract situation is unknown. We will try to work on this as something between clubs of great prestige."

Sabatini also expressed his joy that Roma were able to keep hold of Netherlands international Kevin Strootman.

The midfielder, who has been out of action since March after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament, had been linked with Manchester United, but Sabatini says the club have no desire to cash in on the 24-year-old.

"He [Strootman] is an extraordinary player, and these rumours [of his sale] have been based on the desires of other clubs," he added.

"We want to keep him, he is our point of strength. We hope to see him back in the field with all his powers. He played an exemplary role last season.

"For now we enjoy him even whilst he is injured. We are not thinking in any way of selling him, we hope to have him return. We must have patience and wait, he is a decisive player."

 

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Falcao has proved himself in first training session - Van Gaal

Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal insists loan signing Radamel Falcao has already proved his form and fitness in his first training session.

The Colombian striker arrived from Monaco on deadline day and, at his unveiling on Thursday alongside Daley Blind, confirmed his intention to earn a permanent move.

Falcao had misssed the World Cup due to a cruciate ligament injury picked up in January but his new boss says that he is fit and ready to fire - though he admits patience will be required.

"Today in training he got one ball and it was in the goal so he confirmed [his readiness] in his first training session with me," Van Gaal told reporters, "but, when I say this, I put too much pressure on him and that's not good.

"I know it's very difficult to come from another club to Manchester United in a new process."

Falcao and Blind were among six high-profile recruits for the Red Devils this summer but Van Gaal is not worried about struggling to fit them into the side after shipping out several players at the same time - including striker Danny Welbeck, an academy product who joined Arsenal for €20 million on deadline day.

"How do you fit all the players? We bought five, one player is on loan here and maybe we can buy him - that's Falcao - and we let go 14 players," the manager remarked, "so how to fit these players in is not so difficult when you let go 14 players and only six players come in their place.

"We need also the youth education, that is the philosophy of Manchester United also. Because of this policy we give youth players a chance but the question is if they take the chance.

"It is, of course, more risky but I think it's the only way to do it and I think Manchester United have always had homegrown players in the squad and that's the way to do it."

Javier 'Chicharito' Hernandez was another striker who joined Welbeck in leaving to make way for Falcao, heading to Real Madrid on loan, and Van Gaal explained that the two players had been consulted before departing the club.

He continued: "We have spoken with Welbeck and also with Hernandez before there was a chance to get Falcao.

"We have to be fair because, for example, I see that we have a lot of youth that can fit in, it's only [fair] that they have to take the chance to play football and I have to put them in the squad but, when you can hire or buy a player like Falcao then I don't have doubts because he is one of the best strikers in the world and, when you see his record, it's unbelievable."

 

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Falcao & Di Maria play karanawa balanna hena asawen inne​

 

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Tottenham groundshare with MK Dons 'a possibility' - Pochettino

Tottenham could relocate to Milton Keynes for a season while construction on the club's new stadium is completed, Mauricio Pochettino has revealed.

Spurs announced on Wednesday that the project has been delayed due to a high court challenge, meaning they are "highly unlikely" to be able to move into their new 56,250 capacity home in time for the 2017-18 campaign.

Revised plans involve Tottenham playing their home matches in a temporary stadium for one season and Pochettino admits that MK Dons' stadium:mk is on a list of potential options also understood to include Wembley and the Olympic Stadium.

"Every single decision the club makes is to improve and give better facilities to our supporters, so I back this decision," the Argentine told reporters.

"Yes, I was in Milton Keynes to watch the game with Manchester United in the Capital One Cup. It was the first time I had been there. It is a very good stadium with very good facilities but nothing more - it's a possibility.

"We need to speak a lot about this decision because we need all the information about the club, the supporters and the team but at the moment we are not talking about this."

 

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Great things coming for Manchester United, says Rojo

New Manchester United signing Marcos Rojo believes that Louis van Gaal has assembled a squad capable of restoring the club to their former glory.

The Argentina international signed for United from Sporting Lisbon in August in a deal worth €20
million but has not yet featured for his new club due to delays in obtaining a visa.

However, he has now been granted the all-clear to play and is relishing the chance to line up alongside fellow new arrivals such as Radamel Falcao and Angel Di Maria.

"It is a huge step forward in my career and my life and I am very happy to play for one of the best clubs in the world at the moment," Rojo told Perform.

"There are some great players [here]. We obviously need to give time so the new manager can build his team but, with the great names we have in our squad and the intelligence of the manager, I am sure many achievements will come along."

Di Maria arrived from Real Madrid for a British record fee of €75m, making his debut at Burnley before the international break, and Rojo is familiar with the winger from their time with the Argentina national team.

"He's got a lot of quality," the defender proclaimed. "He is very sharp and very fast so he can help a lot attacking in the second line."

United - without a win from their opening three Premier League fixtures - recruited Monaco forward Falcao on loan on transfer deadline day.

"There are some good strikers in the squad," Rojo enthused, "but Falcao is always in the penalty box; he is very sharp and capable to make the most of any chance.

"I will try to find my place as soon as possible and help in every way I can so we get important trophies."

 

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Maxi Rodriguez: Real Madrid did not value Di Maria

Maxi Rodriguez believes Angel Di Maria was not valued enough during his time at Real Madrid.

The Argentina star left for Manchester United in a €75 million deal this summer after finding his place in the first team usurped by new signings Toni Kroos and James Rodriguez.

His compatriot and former Atletico Madrid midfielder Rodriguez, who played alongside Di Maria at the World Cup this summer, claims the European champions considered other players as priority during the 26-year-old's time in Spain.

"I don't think Real Madrid valued Di Maria as they did other players," he told television programme Al Primer Toque.

Atletico captain Gabi, meanwhile, feels Di Maria was the player who caused his side the biggest problems during derby matches as the two sides prepare to face off in La Liga on Saturday.

"The one who did the most damage when we played them was Di Maria, it was he who dictated the pace of the game," he said to Cadena Cope.

"We have achieved things no-one thought possible, but the past is gone - now we must be judged by what we do this season."

 

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Barkley recovery ahead of schedule

Everton midfielder Ross Barkley's recovery from a knee injury is ahead of schedule, according to manager Roberto Martinez.

Barkley suffered medial ligament damage in training before the start of the new Premier League season, ruling him out of Everton's campaign so far.

However, Martinez says the England international is showing good progress and could be back in the fold sooner than initially expected.

"Ross is progressing well but is still receiving treatment," he said. "He's in week four now and is probably a couple of weeks ahead of where he should be.

"But he's still halfway through his recovery period."

Like most top-flight clubs, Everton have welcomed back a host of international stars this week, and Martinez is delighted with the overall condition of his squad.

"Everyone has come back in a really good frame of mind," he added. "They all had really good experiences.

"We had up to 12 or 13 players going away on international duty and you always feel that the players are a little bit out of your control.

"You hope that they come back strong and ready to participate with a real confident look about their player and I think that's exactly what's happened.

"Steven Pienaar, Arouna Kone, Bryan Oviedo and Romelu Lukaku joined the group for training today which has been very positive.

"Leon Osman and Samuel Eto'o picked up a couple of knocks in the last two games and we're going to assess them over the next 48 hours.

"But everyone else is fit and available for the next period. Not just the game at the weekend, but I think in the period of so many games coming up, it's going to be really important for the squad to be ready and available."

 

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Dortmund hit with Blaszczykowski injury blow

Borussia Dortmund winger Jakub Blaszczykowski has received a fresh injury blow after being ruled out for a month with a muscle tear.

The 28-year-old winger has not featured in a competitive outing since tearing his anterior cruciate ligament against Augsburg in January.

Blaszczykowski did make a brief cameo in a 3-0 pre-season friendly victory over Slask Wroclaw last month, but he will now have to wait even longer for a first-team comeback after his latest setback.

"Unfortunately it's been confirmed: Kuba has suffered a muscle tear and will be out for around four weeks," read a statement on the player's official Facebook page.

Dortmund have a growing injury list at Signal Iduna Park, which includes forward Marco Reus, who tore his ankle ligaments for the second time in four months while playing for Germany in their Euro 2016 qualifying victory over Scotland last week.

With Nuri Sahin (knee), Oliver Kirch (thigh) and Ji Dong-won (hamstring) also on the sidelines and Ilkay Gundogan still recovering from a long-term back problem, Blaszczykowski's absence is a further blow for Dortmund head coach Jurgen Klopp.

 

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Koscielny: Giroud will come back stronger

Laurent Koscielny is backing Olivier Giroud to play a key role in Arsenal's season when the striker returns from injury.

Giroud was ruled out for up to four months after suffering a broken tibia in the 2-2 Premier League draw with Everton last month

And Koscielny believes his France team-mate will be sorely missed at the Emirates, but expects the former Montpellier man to make a big impact when he regains full fitness.

The defender told the club's official website: "Olivier is an important player for us. He's very strong during the game and he's scored a lot of goals. So for us it's very difficult to lose him. But I know him and I know he will come back stronger.

"It is important for us that Olivier keeps this mentality and comes back stronger for us.

"He will want to show everyone that he can be a very good player and a good striker in the Premier League and in Europe. It is important for us that Olivier keeps this mentality and comes back stronger for us.

"We have a lot of players in the forward positions now so we have a solution. We played with Alexis [Sanchez], Yaya Sanogo and Lukas Podolski, so we have a solution and now we need to be a unit and to prepare the same way to win the game.

"When you are injured for three, four or five months, the most difficult thing is to keep motivated and be happy enough to come back. Some days you could just say I don’t want to come back - I can't arrive this week. We need to be with him.

"He knows all of the players are with him, and we are behind him to help him to come back quickly, stronger, because we need to play with him to score a lot of goals. I think he will be very important for us in the last six months of the season."

Arsenal paid £16 million to acquire Danny Welbeck on transfer deadline day and the ex-Manchester United striker is set to replace Giroud against Manchester City this weekend, with Koscielny backing the England international to fill the sizeable void left by the injured Frenchman.

"For a striker we talk a lot about his goals, but when you watch Olivier during a game you can see his job, which is not just offensively but also defensively because he can come back for free-kicks to help us," he added.

"When we play the long ball, he can keep the ball and he’s strong so the defenders can't touch the ball. He's very, very important for us. Now we need to do without him and I hope there is a player who can replace him and do the job well."

 

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'Barcelona's philosophy has changed under Luis Enrique'

Barcelona defender Adriano has hailed the influence of Luis Enrique and feels the club's philosophy has already changed a huge amount under their new coach.

Luis Enrique was appointed as the new man in charge at Camp Nou this summer after the departure of Gerardo Martino and Adriano has little doubt that the former Roma boss is the right man for the job."The philosophy has changed a lot under Luis Enrique. He has plenty of character and that’s been good for us,” Adriano told the official Barcelona website.

"There is now a much higher focus on fitness issues. The changes show what kind of boss he is.“He is always on at us, demanding more, and that gives us confidence. Luis Enrique knows the club well, and that’s a good thing too.”

Barcelona won their opening two games of the new Liga season under the new coach and will be hoping to make it three victories from as many matches when they meet Athletic Bilbao at the weekend.

 

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Klopp: Dortmund need Kagawa right away

Borussia Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp is hopeful Shinji Kagawa can make an instant impact at the Bundesliga side following Marco Reus' injury problems.

The Signal Iduna Park side were initially planning to take things one step at a time with Kagawa after two difficult years at Manchester United.However, Klopp has made it clear that they have no other option but to turn to the Japan international right away due to Reus' absence, caused while on duty with Germany in this month's international break.

"We cannot afford to wait for a few more weeks before we bring Kagawa," Klopp told Kicker."Shinji will be very important to us right away. He has made a good impression on the training pitch in the past few days and has shown that he still has plenty to offer.

"Although we realise that we cannot expect Shinji to be back to his former best from two years ago right away."

Kagawa netted 21 goals in 49 Bundesliga appearances during his first spell with Dortmund.

 

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Fearless Gundogan vows to be better than ever

Borussia Dortmund midfielder Ilkay Gundogan is confident he will be better than ever once he returns from his injury nightmare.

The Germany international was restricted to just three appearances in all competitions for Jurgen Klopp's men last term due to a back problem that also saw him miss his country's World Cup victory in Brazil.Gundogan resumed light training during the close-season and has been stepping up his workload since then.

The 23-year-old is itching to return to action in the Bundesliga and believes that he will be a better player upon his return and that his injury will not change his combative style."I don't feel fear at all," he said in an interview with Bild. "I tackle the normal way and don't take it easy. "If I can keep my pace and there aren't any setbacks, I am sure that I can be better than before my injury. I'm sure that I have not forgotten anything."

Gundogan then went on to welcome the return of Shinji Kagawa to Signal Iduna Park, with the Japan international enduring a frustrating two-year spell at Manchester United before returning to Dortmund during the transfer window."He [Kagawa] fits very well with our team. We have a great midfield."

 

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Fellaini: I will fight for my place at Man Utd

Marouane Fellaini insists he will fight to prove his worth at Manchester United this season.

The Belgium international was the subject of interest from Serie A side Napoli in the summer, with Louis van Gaal reportedly deeming the £27 million signing from Everton expendable.

However, no permanent deal materialised and Fellaini remains at United, with the midfielder now outlining his intention to cement his place in the starting XI as the season progresses.

"I want to fight for my place," Fellaini said. "The coach wants to play with the 11 players who make the best team. I want to be part of that.

"I've had a meeting with the coach before the start of the season where he told me that there is a lot of competition in midfield. I told him that I wanted to compete with the other players for a place in the starting XI.

"Louis van Gaal is a good coach. We have a lot of team meetings and he analyses much - other teams, our own players at training, a lot. Everywhere he has been, he was successful."

United added to their midfield in the summer, acquiring Ander Herrera, Angel Di Maria and Daley Blind ahead of the transfer deadline.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Aparade Fellaini wa sell karaganna bari una neh​