..::Football III::..

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Basel 1-0 Liverpool: Streller strike sees off Rodgers's side

Marco Streller's close-range finish continued Basel's impressive recent record against Premier League opposition and dealt Liverpool's hopes of qualifying from Champions League group stage a serious blow as they were beaten 1-0.

Streller capitalised on some slack marking from a corner in the 52nd minute to bundle in the only goal of a game which saw the Reds uninspired in the first half and profligate in the second.

Raheem Sterling and Lazar Markovic both spurned presentable opportunities as the Reds pushed forward in search of an equaliser but Brendan Rodgers's men now go into two matches with Real Madrid level on points with the Swiss champions.

Liverpool made two changes to their starting line-up from Saturday's Premier League derby draw against Everton, with Jose Enrique replacing Alberto Moreno and Philippe Coutinho coming back in for Adam Lallana.

Basel went into the match with problems at the back, with Marcelo Diaz suspended and fellow defenders Philipp Degen, Ivan Ivanov and Walter Samuel all sidelined through injury. Paulo Sousa also preferred Breel Embolo to Derlis Gonzalez up front, even though the Paraguay international was on target in defeat at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Sterling had the ball in the net in the opening stages but the flag was correctly up for offside, while Basel had to make an early change when Behrang Safari limped off to be replaced by Gonzalez.

Liverpool survived a scare when Gerrard was dispossessed in front of his own box, while Gonzalez was twice guilty of a poor touch when getting the wrong side of Enrique.

Basel continued to show plenty of pace on the break, with Simon Mignolet saving well with his legs from a Serey Die shot, and Enrique caused problems when getting forward for Liverpool but it remained goalless at the break.

The home fans were appealing for a penalty when Sterling appeared to bundle over Gonzalez in the area at the start of the second half and then Mignolet had to get down well to save from Ahmed Hamoudi on the break.

However, Mignolet could only palm out a deflected header from the resulting corner and veteran striker Streller pounced on the loose ball to score from close range after 52 minutes.

Basel goalkeeper Tomas Vaclik only just dealt with a Mario Balotelli free kick from fully 30 yards out and Sterling was later put clean through following a neat build-up, but could not control the pass.

Rickie Lambert replaced Markovic as Liverpool went in search of an equaliser but Gerrard's late free kick failed to really test Vaclik and Balotelli was offside when netting as the hosts held on.

Basel, who had to play their last European home match behind closed doors because of crowd trouble, could face more disciplinary action, though, after referee Jonas Eriksson reported an object thrown onto the pitch.

 

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Prandelli: My tactics not to blame for Arsenal thrashing

Galatasaray coach Cesare Prandelli rejected suggestions his tactical approach was to blame for the 4-1 Champions League loss to Arsenal.

Prandelli, who had captain Selcuk Inan withdraw late, sent his side out in a 3-5-2 formation that was torn to shreds by Arsenal's rampant attack before half-time.
Danny Welbeck netted a double inside the first half-hour before Alexis Sanchez effectively ended the game as a contest in the 41st minute.

Welbeck completed his hat-trick and Galatasaray's misery seven minutes after half-time, meaning Wojciech Szczesny's red card for a professional foul on Burak Yilmaz - who converted the resultant 63rd-minute penalty - was never likely to have an impact on the result."We made some errors in one-on-one situations," said Prandelli, who saw Burak snatch a last-gasp 1-1 draw at home to Anderlecht in Galatasaray's competition opener.

"There was nothing wrong with the tactics. We should have been more active. We always have to be ready to play more aggressively."Our first-half performance was negative. In the second half, there was a little tactical change and we started to play with more width. Thus, they felt comfortable. We'll gradually decide on our ideal formation."

Felipe Melo struggled at the heart of Galatasaray's back three and Prandelli - who inherited the squad from countryman Roberto Mancini in the close season - accepted his share of the blame for the Brazil international's torrid evening.
"We wanted to put quality and aggression in that position, therefore I opted to field Felipe Melo as a centre-back," he said."I take all the responsibility for this. We're trying to settle into a new system."

 

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Wenger praises Welbeck after Champions League hat-trick

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger paid tribute to Danny Welbeck after the striker scored a hat-trick to make the Frenchman's 18th anniversary in charge of the club a night to remember.

Welbeck netted his first career hat-trick as the Premier League side ran out dominant 4-1 winners over Galatasaray in the Champions League clash.

In the Gunners' opening 2-0 defeat at Borussia Dortmund, the €20 million man was guilty of missing a pair of clear chances, but he more than made amends on Wednesday with a hat-trick while the impressive Alexis Sanchez also got his name on the scoresheet.

Alexis made a crucial mark by giving away possession in the move that saw Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny sent off for a professional foul on Burak Yilmaz, who converted the 63rd-minute penalty, but there remained plenty of positives for Wenger to focus on, not least Welbeck's stellar display.

"He had a great performance," the manager enthused to Sky Sports. "He added that instinct of a goalscorer, was more aggressive and made great runs.

"He finished the work of the team well. Overall the team played well until we were down to 10 men - then you could see how quickly you can lose control of a game - but the overall performance was still great.

"He has such good pace that it gives him time to finish calmly. Once a player understands that, their finishing soon improves a lot."

Alexis was central to the pace and directness that tore Galatasaray apart and Wenger praised the former Barcelona forward's best performance in an Arsenal shirt despite his later error - a final contribution before making way for substitute goalkeeper David Ospina.

"He played well, made some good passes apart from the goal we conceded," the veteran boss observed, "but, before that, I thought he had a very good performance."

Wenger refused to criticise Szczesny - the Poland international also received his marching orders in last season's second-round defeat to Bayern Munich - but saw the incident as a lesson for his team to guard against complacency.

"It's difficult for [Szczesny]," he added. "It's a fraction of a second. He has to come out and makes a penalty. When you lose the ball in your own half like we did those kind of things can happen.

"That's the problem in the Champions League - the opponent never gives up and you can only keep consistent domination of the game if you keep your concentration. We just relaxed a little bit with the fourth goal."

 

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Juanfran: Atletico haven't achieved anything yet

Juanfran has warned Atletico Madrid haven't "achieved anything yet" after defeating Juventus 1-0 in the Champions League on Wednesday.

The Spanish champions got up and running in this year's competition courtesy of Arda Turan's late strike, extending their impressive home record and recovering from their defeat at Olympiakos in their opening group game two weeks ago.
Diego Simeone's men avoided defeat in European action at the Vicente Calderon last season and inflicted Juve's first defeat of the campaign on Wednesday.

However, the experienced Juanfran, who supplied the assist for Turan's goal, has warned there is still room for improvement after a scrappy contest.
"It was a very passionate game against one of the best teams in Europe. We played really well and we deserved the victory," he told reporters."Juve are a great team. We still have a lot of work to do; we still haven't achieved anything yet.

"Before the game we said that Juventus were a great team. Their plan was to play long balls and our plan was the same as always: to work hard and keep working hard all game.

"The fact we didn't concede any goals says a lot about our team."

 

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Klopp: Immobile & Ramos one-two punch was my masterplan


Jurgen Klopp revealed how his masterplan of tiring Anderlecht's defenders with Ciro Immobile before finishing them off with Adrian Ramos' power helped Borussia Dortmund to ease to a 3-0 away triumph on Wednesday.

Last season's Bundesliga runners up started with Immobile in attack, with fellow summer signing Ramos having to settle for a spot on the bench in their second Champions League game of 2014-15.

However, despite Immobile scoring in the first few minutes, Ramos emerged from the bench to secure the win with two goals, and Klopp claimed after the game that utilising different strengths of the strikers had been his intent all along.

"The idea was originally to play Adrian Ramos from the start," he told Sky. "But, for various reasons, I decided on Ciro Immobile.

"We wanted to run them tired and then Adrian could come in and deliver the killing blow. And it worked. The guys who played 90 minutes made them tired and the guys who came on benefited from that."

Although he refrained from being critical of Dortmund's defensive work, Klopp hinted that improvements need to happen so that they are not reliant on good fortune to come away from games with clean sheets.

"We defended with lots of passion but in some situations we were a bit lucky," the coach added. "Roman Weidenfeller pulled off some great saves and they scored an offside goal. But in football you need a little luck.

"I did not have the feeling we defended perfectly, but in the end we did not concede. Tonight we can be a little happy and tomorrow morning we start preparing for Hamburg. There is no time to breathe at the moment."

Colombian striker Ramos, who joined BVB from Hertha Berlin in the summer, was overjoyed with his first Champions League goals against the Belgian hosts.

"The team ran a lot [12 kilometres overall more than Anderlecht] and did a superb job," he said.

"I feel great. I always dreamt about getting Champions League goals and now I have done it. I hope it goes on like this. We have to keep working hard and playing with this intensity."

Dortmund, who top Group D on six points ahead of second-placed Arsenal, who they beat 2-0 in September, face Galatasaray in their next Champions League tie on October 22.

 

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Balotelli needs to do more, says Rodgers

Brendan Rodgers wants to see Mario Balotelli make a bigger contribution to the team after Liverpool's 1-0 defeat to Basel on Wednesday.

The Premier League club were beaten by a second-half strike by Marco Streller in a Champions League game in which the visitors failed to significantly threaten the Swiss outfit in front of goal.

Balotelli's goal in the 2-1 win over Ludogorets is the only one he has scored since arriving from AC Milan this summer and the Liverpool boss wants more from his investment.

"[He] worked hard, [but he] needs to do more," Rodgers told Sky Sports. "That's the simplicity of it. Mario will be judged on what he creates and what he scores and he didn't score.

"But the boy is trying, he is working hard."

Despite seeing a goal disallowed for offside, Raheem Sterling also struggled to test the Basel back line, but Rodgers refused to criticise the youngster.

He added: "I think [Sterling]'s gaining lots of experience. He's still a young player. He worked very hard tonight, he obviously had a task on his hands on that side of the field and he got into some real good positions.

"Unfortunately he obviously had the goal disallowed in the first half and got himself just offside for that and, as I said, he was unfortunate.

"He had a great combination on the edge of the box, got in and his touch just got away from him but that's something that he's learning from. He's still only 19 and he's an exceptional talent."

 

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Liverpool lath out of form​

 

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Ancelotti: Madrid must fix dodgy set piece defending

Real Madrid's dodgy defending from set pieces must be addressed, Carlo Ancelotti has admitted, after it nearly cost them an embarrassing result against Ludogorets on Wednesday.

Marcelinho put the hosts into a shock lead in Bulgaria from a corner and, although a Cristiano Ronaldo penalty and Karim Benzema late goal gave the visitors all three points in the end, their corner marking went close to being the Blancos' downfall, and not for the first time this season.

Although he claimed to be pleased with the Champions League group stage performances, Ancelotti conceded that there is work which needs to be done to better their defence from set pieces especially.

"We had many chances to score," the Santiago Bernabeu coach told Canal+. "I am satisfied, the start for us was not good, to concede a goal from a corner again, that might have complicated things.

"But the reaction from us was good. The team played with good attacking nous and are physically very fit in this period. We had many chances and we could have scored again at the end. We won with merit.

"We must continue to work to fix our corner problem. It's the same type of goal we conceded against Atletico Madrid and Real Sociedad. There should be better coverage at the near post, for instance. We are paying attention to this, though."

Ancelotti opted to rest a few regular starters against Ludogorets, including James Rodriguez, Toni Kroos and Karim Benzema, the latter of whom came off the bench to save Madrid's blushes.

The coach explained his decision to start with Javier Hernandez, Isco and Asier Illarramendi was to keep motivation high and prevent fatigue for regular starters, while insisting Cristiano Ronaldo's knock is not a major issue.

"I wanted to rest Karim, who has played a lot so far," Ancelotti added. "Chicharito had a good game, he did not score but his performance was good.

"The first reason for the changes was to give rest to some who have played a lot like Kroos, James and Karim. The other reason is to motivate Isco, Illarra, James and all the staff.

"Cristiano has only a bruised ankle, I don't think it's anything serious. He's a bit sore, but nothing serious."

Ancelotti also expressed his surprise that Basel had defeated Liverpool 1-0 on Wednesday, opening up the race for the top two spots in Group B though Madrid are three points adrift of both clubs still.

"It is rather surprising, the Liverpool result, but this is the Champions League, all games are tough and you have to fight for your place in the competition," the former Chelsea boss added. "But the group is looking good for us."

 

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Benzema delighted with Madrid victory

Karim Benzema has downplayed his contribution to Real Madrid's 2-1 win over Ludogorets, despite scoring the winning goal in Wednesday's Champions League clash.

The France striker was left out of the starting XI for the Spanish side's clash with the Bulgarian club as Javier Hernandez was preferred by coach Carlo Ancelotti.

Ludogorets took an early lead and Cristiano Ronaldo missed a penalty shortly after but did not pass up his second chance to level the score after 24 minutes with another spot kick.

Benzema then emerged from the bench to make the difference when he buried a 77th-minute winner to make it two Champions League wins in a row for Ancelotti's side.The Frenchman spoke of his delight in the European champions' ability to take all three points from the clash as they go three points above Liverpool and Basel in Group B.

He told Canal+: "Scoring goals is important for every striker but what matters to me is playing for the team. The important thing was a win. The fans want me to score a lot of goals but I’m happy with what I give for the team."I have great confidence in myself and when I went on I gave my all.

"It was a very difficult game against a very difficult opponent. We have to learn many things. But most important are the three points."

 

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Zenit 0-0 Monaco: Ligue 1 runners-up held in drab draw

Zenit stretched their unbeaten run to 15 matches as they were held to a dismal 0-0 draw by Monaco in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Both sides headed into the Group C encounter at the Stadion Petrovsky having earned wins in the opening matchday, Zenit impressively overturning Benfica in Lisbon while Monaco beat Bayer Leverkusen.

However, neither team was able to find the inspiration that helped them to their respective opening victories in a dour affair in St Petersburg.

Leonardo Jardim's Monaco had the better of the play for the majority of the contest but were unable to find a way through Zenit goalkeeper Yuri Lodygin, who produced a string of saves to preserve the impressive streak for Andre Villas-Boas' side.The result leaves both clubs on four points heading in to the third round of fixtures in three weeks' time.Monaco almost went ahead as early as the third minute when Dimitar Berbatov was denied from close range by Lodygin after meeting a pull-back from Lucas Ocampos.

Nabil Dirar then narrowly fired over the crossbar with a spectacular scissor-kick volley from long range before Ocampos headed a Joao Moutinho free-kick wide at the near post as the visitors dominated the early stages.

Zenit did manage to weather the early storm but their lack of a goal threat was evident throughout a first half which was low on excitement for the most part.
Ocampos looked the player most likely to break the deadlock and only a flying save from Lodygin prevented him from doing so in the 43rd minute.

Zenit enjoyed a better share of possession in the second half but the final ball continued to desert them as the hosts' attack was frustrated by a stern Monaco defence.

Villas Boas' men did finally force Monaco goalkeeper Danijel Subasic into a save with 25 minutes to play, but Nicolas Lombaerts could only direct his header from Hulk's corner directly at the Croatian shot-stopper.Having replaced Berbatov, Yannick Ferreira Carrasco went close to punishing Zenit for their lack of attacking threat, the winger shooting narrowly wide on the rebound after seeing his initial effort well saved by Lodygin.

Monaco pressed for the late winner their strong away performance perhaps deserved, yet Ferreira Carrasco's chance proved to be the last meaningful opportunity of the contest as the spoils were shared.The principality club will next host Benfica while Zenit visit the BayArena to take on Leverkusen.

 

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Everton using Eto'o and McGeady experience against Kuban

Everton manager Roberto Martinez is looking to Samuel Eto'o and Aiden McGeady for advice on how to deal with the threat of Kuban Krasnodar.

The sides meet in Russia on Thursday for their second Europa League tie in Group H, with Eto'o and McGeady both available to feature on their return to the country in which they used to play.

McGeady turned out for Spartak Moscow before joining the Toffees while Eto'o played for Anzhi Makhachkala for two years and Martinez has tapped into their knowledge as Everton seek to make it two wins from two in the competition.

"I have been impressed with how [Kuban] play. Their draw with Lille made everyone take notice," the Spaniard told reporters.

"We are not going to underestimate the game. The insight from Aiden and Samuel has helped us prepare.

"We want to enjoy our first trip to Russia and show what we are as a club and a team."

Martinez will be without James McCarthy, Sylvain Distin, Seamus Coleman and Kevin Mirallas due to injuries and the manager is awaiting further scans on the Belgian's right hamstring after he was forced off during Saturday's 1-1 draw against Merseyside rivals Liverpool.

The Toffees boss explained: "Kevin has had a couple of scans but at the moment it is a bit too early because of the inflammation in the area - [it] doesn't give us the real extent.

"Clearly it is an injury that is going to keep him out for a while. It’s the tendon of his hamstring and in the next 48 hours we will get the clear diagnosis."

 

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Monaco more motivated for Champions League - Jardim

Leonardo Jardim suggested his Monaco side are more motivated for the Champions League than Ligue 1 after they held Zenit St-Petersburg to a 0-0 draw on Wednesday.

Les Rouges et Blanc followed up their opening group game win at home to Bayer Leverkusen with a goalless stalemate against Andre Villas-Boas' men in Russia.

The draw ensures Monaco remain unbeaten in Europe - a far cry from their tumultuous start to Ligue 1 in which they find themselves nine points off the pace - and Jardim has requested his team step up their game to an equal extent in domestic matches from now on.

"It's a good result for us," the Stade Louis II coach told BeIn Sport. "It was an intense game, my players have shown they have a lot of qualities, we had many opportunities to score in our counter-attacks.

"For every coach, though, the Champions League is easy to handle. My players are totally motivated and at 100 per cent. I would like to see the same attitude in Ligue 1."

However, Jardim revealed that there is bad news on the injury front for Monaco as star striker Dimitar Berbatov may not be fit to face Paris Saint-Germain in Ligue 1 this weekend.

"The substitution of Berbatov was because he is injured," the Portuguese coach added. "I don't know if he will be able to play in the big clash against Paris Saint-Germain on Sunday."

Monaco are back in Champions League action on October 22 at home to last season's Europa League runners up Benfica, who play Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday.

 

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Totti: Manchester City tweet inspired me to score

Roma forward Francesco Totti has thanked Manchester City for giving him extra motivation to score against them on Tuesday night.

The veteran became the oldest player to score in the Champions League in the tie, when he cancelled out Sergio Aguero's opener for Manuel Pellegrini's side.
And the 38-year-old has now revealed that a tweet from the Sky Blues - which pointed out that he had never scored in England - inspired him to net in the fixture.

“City’s tweet? It really brought me luck,” Totti told Gazzetta dello Sport. “It was a beautiful goal and a good performance.“I really wanted to score as soon as possible as I had not found the back of the net this season.

“But above all, I am thrilled for my team because we have shown a lot of strength, which was not easy.”“After the group was drawn, few people gave us any hope of doing well, but we have proved that we can play against any team.“We have shown we are strong and competitive and we fear no one.

“Our aim is to progress to the next round and we know it’s not going to be easy because City and Bayern Munich are very strong.”Theveteran star, who has spent his entire 22-year senior career at the Italian club, also talked about breaking the oldest scorer record.

“It really wasn’t something I was thinking of when I was on the pitch,” he added. “Records arrive thanks to the help of your team-mates and what really matters is the result of the team.“My main focus is on the team and not on myself.”

 

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Mazzarri: Inter can learn from Cagliari defeat

Inter coach Walter Mazzarri says his side will learn from the mistakes they made in their shock 4-1 reverse to Cagliari at San Siro on Sunday.

The Italian giants levelled in the tie through Pablo Daniel Osvaldo after an early goal for the Sardinians, but they then conceded a further three without reply to put the game out of reach.The Nerazzurri face Azerbaijani outfit Qarabag next up, at home in the Europa League on Thursday, and Mazzarri is hoping for a vast improvement from his players.

“One tries to be balanced," the 53-year-old told reporters. "The result against Cagliari was not Inter, I do not believe we are like that, nor perhaps like the [Inter] side that won [7-0] against Sassuolo [in September].”

“If you have followed me from day one, I have always reacted in a certain way.
“The guys are as disappointed as me at the Cagliari defeat and we have tried to figure out what went wrong. I have made some mistakes in evaluating the intensity of the matches.“Tomorrow we face a different game, from a competitive point of view and we will ensure that we can play football.

“We are a group under construction, we must show as a group that this was a hiccough.“When you encounter certain difficulties you try to limit the damage. Sunday was a bad game from every point of view.

“We will try to figure out what went wrong and perhaps if the guys can understand it then it will serve as something we can grow from.”The former Napoli boss also said he and his players would not be underestimating his side's upcoming opponents.

“Qarabag are unknown but are good and have important players, it’s a game that is not to be taken lightly," he added. "We have to show that we are different to the side that played on Sunday."

 

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Diego Costa doubts Mourinho-Del Bosque 'war'

Diego Costa insists he is fit to play for Spain next week and hopes to avoid being at the centre of a club versus country “war” between Jose Mourinho and Vicente del Bosque.

The Chelsea striker played the full 90 minutes of his side’s 1-0 win over Sporting Lisbon in the Champions League on Tuesday despite continuing concerns over a lingering hamstring injury and Mourinho claiming he was capable of doing “almost nothing” in training.

Mourinho had previously stated that the former Atletico Madrid striker was incapable of playing two games in a week but is almost certain to start the striker against Arsenal on Sunday.

Spain face Slovakia and Luxembourg in the next fortnight and Costa hopes to be part of Del Bosque’s squad regardless of the impact it may have on his long-term fitness.

Asked if there would be a "war" between Mourinho and Del Bosque regarding an international call-up, Costa said: "I don't think it's a thing that will happen.

"I played 90 minutes - it's clear that I'm okay, I feel better every time and is up to the manager. I work intensively during the week with the physios because I have had some discomfort for a while."

Costa swapped international allegiances after earning two caps for Brazil, in order to represent Spain at the World Cup, and the 25-year-old hopes that the subject of his loyalty can be put to bed for good as he looks to prove his worth for La Roja.

"I've had enough with the theme of Brazil. Now you have to leave me alone to work and make things right, even in the Spanish national team," he added. "The truth is that that's what I need. I hope to be in good conditions and be with Spain."

Costa has enjoyed a prolific start to his Chelsea career, scoring eight goals in six games, to lead the Premier League scoring charts by three strikes.

 

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Pique: I'm still scared of Roy Keane

Barcelona centre-back Gerard Pique admits he is still scared of Roy Keane following his time at Manchester United.

Pique moved to Old Trafford in 2004 but didn’t make his Premier League debut for United until after Keane’s surprise departure in November 2005.

And the Spain international has revealed that he avoided Keane, who is now Paul Lambert’s assistant at Aston Villa and Martin O’Neill’s No.2 with the Republic of Ireland national side, before Barcelona’s Champions League win over Celtic at Parkhead last October.

“I wouldn't say I was scared of [Sir Alex Ferguson]. Roy Keane? Well, maybe that's different!” Pique told FourFourTwo.

“I remember we were in the changing room at Old Trafford and my phone started vibrating. Keano could hear the vibrations and went crazy trying to find out who the phone belonged to. That’s who he was.

“Before we [Barca] beat Celtic 1-0 last season, I noticed him by the side of the pitch as a pundit as we went to warm up. I hid my face with my hand because he still scares me. I was 26 years old, and I was sh*tting myself!”

 

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Icardi: I would be happy to sign new Inter contract

Mauro Icardi is keen to sign a new contract with Inter following his great start to the new Serie A season.

Icardi - who joined Inter from Sampdoria in July last year - already has six goals to his name in all competitions this term and has formed an impressive strike partnership with Daniel Pablo Osvaldo.

The 21-year-old, whose contract with Inter expires in 2018, is reported to be in negotiations with the club over a new deal and, while he insists he knows nothing of those apparent discussions, the Argentinian would be happy to extend his stay at San Siro.

"I honestly do not know anything, my agent is dealing with it. Should I get the call I only need to sign," Icardi said."Would I be happy to extend? Yes, if my agent calls me to sign the renewal then I am definitely happy."When I left Sampdoria for Inter I knew this was a great team, and I am happy to be here."

Icardi also reserved praise for Osvaldo, who has five goals in eight appearances since signing on loan from Southampton in August."To play with him [Osvaldo] is to play with a great striker, as is the case with [Rodrigo] Palacio," Icardi added.

"Of course we all want to play. Unfortunately you cannot, but when we play together we work well in attack."

 

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group E walin kawuru last 16 yaida kiyala sure nae
Bayern
M City
Roma

Ow machan group 1ke teams 4n 3nakma hodaiGroup of death neh [/CENTER]

 

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Tottenham 1-1 Besiktas: Late Ba penalty punishes Spurs

Mauricio Pochettino was denied a maiden win in Europe as Demba Ba struck late on against Tottenham to claim a 1-1 draw for Besiktas and prolong the north Londoners' wait for a win in the Europa League group stages.

The visitors threatened early on, with the dangerous Ba lashing a furious shot against the bar, but Spurs slowly took greater control of proceedings and found a breakthrough when Harry Kane unleashed a stingy drive into the far corner.

The north Londoners were unable to build on that goal though and were indebted to captain-for-the-night Hugo Lloris for keeping the Turkish giants at bay, with the French shot-stopper making a string of fine, reflex saves.

Lloris could do little about Besiktas's late equaliser, however, with Vlad Chiriches handling the ball inside the box and gifting the away side a penalty which was ruthlessly dispatched by the former Newcastle and Chelsea forward.

Pochettino made 10 changes from Saturday's 1-1 draw at Arsenal, with only Lloris keeping his place, and the goalkeeper survived a scare as early as the second minute when Sahan side-footed wide after capitalising on poor defensive play from Spurs.

Besiktas went even closer to opening the scoring 10 minutes later, Ba crashing a shot off the crossbar, and Gokhan Tore fired wide of the right-hand post midway through the half as the visitors made an assured start to proceedings.

Their positivity was punctured in the 27th minute, however, as Kane received a pass from Nabil Bentaleb and struck a sweet left-footed shot low into the bottom-right corner from 25 yards.

Lloris brilliantly denied Sahan six minutes later, somehow diverting the forward's close-range effort wide of the post with his trailing leg.

As the game opened up, Kane brought a save out of Tolga Zengin with a thumping effort from a tight angle.

Spurs began the second half brightly and Andros Townsend curled a shot off target from 20 yards after linking up well with Benjamin Stambouli.

Once again Lloris kept out Sahan, leaping high to his left to tip the ball over the bar after the Turkey international had been played in by Ba.

Bentaleb fired narrowly wide just before the hour mark and Sahan's acrobatic volley flew wide of the upright in the 64th minute with Lloris motionless. Kane was denied a second by a fine reaction stop from Zengin 19 minutes from time, before Besiktas substitute Mustafa Pektemek headed over with his first touch.

Lloris performed heroics again five minutes later to tip Ba's powerful effort from eight yards behind for a corner but, just when it seemed Tottenham would escape with a win, Chiriches needlessly handled under pressure from Pektemek and Ba stroked home the resulting penalty to rescue a draw.

Spurs have now won only one of their past seven matches in all competitions and both they and Besiktas have two points from as many group fixtures in the Europa League - though Ba's late strike at least ensured a happier return to north London for the Turkish side, who crashed out of the Champions League at the hands of Arsenal earlier this season.

 

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Inter 2-0 Qarabag: Icardi on target as Nerazzurri scrape to victory

Inter returned to winning ways with a somewhat laboured 2-0 Europa League Group F victory over Qarabag on Thursday.

Walter Mazzarri's team had their unbeaten start to the campaign blown apart by a shock 4-1 home defeat to Cagliari on Sunday and a much-changed XI were second-best early on against the Azerbaijani champions.However, Danilo D'Ambrosio, who scored the only goal when Inter won at Dnipro in their group opener, settled San Siro nerves with an 18th-minute strike.

Brazilian striker Reynaldo carried the main threat for Qarabag but was ultimately unable to return fire in a game of few chances, which Mauro Icardi settled five minutes from time with Inter's second goal.

Former Manchester United defender Nemanja Vidic dropped to the bench after a poor showing against Cagliari as Mazzarri made seven changes to his starting line-up, including a first appearance of the season for goalkeeper Juan Pablo Carrizo.
Qarabag coach Gurban Gurbanov made three alterations to the side that drew 0-0 with Saint-Etienne in the group opener, with Admir Teli, Namiq Yusifov and Ilgar Gurbanov the men to come in.Gurbanov hooked a ninth-minute corner wide during a confident start from the visitors, who stroked passes around with aplomb during the early stages.

Reynaldo should have done better from a 14th-minute opening but he failed to get a shot away quickly and countryman Juan Jesus bailed out some sloppy defensive work by getting a block in.

It was therefore against the run of play when Qarabag made a mess of clearing D'Ambrosio's left-wing cross and the same player rifled home the loose ball with the aid of a deflection and the underside of the crossbar. Andrea Ranocchia and Hernanes both went close from Fredy Guarin crosses as Inter started to find their rhythm.

Qarabag were fortunate not to fall further behind when goalkeeper Ibrahim Sehic fumbled D'Ambrosio's low 42nd-minute centre in a crowded penalty area, before the lively Reynaldo stormed forward past Juan to stab agonisingly past the far post.
Sehic was at full stretch to push over a rasping 30-yard drive from Icardi in the 57th minute, punctuating a low-key opening to the second period.

Hernanes landed awkwardly and left the field on a stretcher with 19 minutes to play, causing concern for Mazzarri that Qarabag were unable to match in the Inter penalty area, despite Gurbanov retaining laudable ambition by sending on attacking reinforcements in the form of Vuqar Nadirov and Javid Tagiyev.Icardi shot wastefully wide in the 82nd minute but made amends by galloping onto a wonderful floated pass by Pablo Daniel Osvaldo a few moments later and drilling home impressively.

Inter boast a healthy four-point cushion in Group F, while back-to-back games against Dnipro are likely to prove pivotal to Qarabag's chances.