..::Football III::..

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Ferguson always gives me great advice - Dyche

Words of wisdom from Sir Alex Ferguson are helping Sean Dyche to adapt to the demands of the Premier League, the Burnley boss has revealed.Dyche masterminded the side's return to the top flight last season as they finished second behind Leicester City in the Championship.

The former Watford boss is still waiting for his first victory as a Premier League manager, as the Lancashire club sit second-bottom of the table with just four points from their first seven games.

Dyche has turned to legendary former Manchester United boss Ferguson, amongst others, for advice and has expressed his gratitude for the Scotsman allowing him to tap into his vast experience in the game.

"There are a number of people I speak to and he is one of them. He is obviously a very important figure and always gives you really good, honest, helpful advice – no holds barred reality as he sees it, and he has been very good to me like that," said Dyche.

"The last time I spoke to him, I said: "Can you win me a game now!"."More or less whenever I've needed it he has answered the call. He has always got time for you."He was like that when he was active as well, not just because he has retired.

When he was manager he always took a phone call and always gave you sound advice."He has experienced virtually everything in the football world and I ask him advice and pick his brains. It's great that he thinks that I talk a bit of sense and try and get the best out of what we have.

"He had to do that himself many moons ago. It wasn't an easy pathway and I don't think there is one in football management to be honest.

"There are certain people in the game you gravitate towards for an opinion. I am aware that you need that and he is one of them and he has been very helpful for me and honest with any view I have asked him about."Sometimes I touch on many different challenges. As you can imagine he doesn't beat about the bush.

"I also speak to [Alex's son] Darren [Peterborough United manager Ferguson]. Me and Darren get on well and have done for a number of years. He almost signed for Nottingham Forest as a kid when I was there so we have known each other for a long time."

Burnley face West Ham at Turf Moor in the Premier League on Saturday.

 

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Thiago handling 'a big mistake', admits Guardiola


Bayern Munich boss Pep Guardiola concedes he may have made an error in the management of Thiago Alcantara's knee injury.

The Spain international has been plagued by a long-standing complaint since first suffering an injury in August last year, and his recovery has repeatedly hit setbacks over the past 14 months.

The latest of those came in training this week, and it was announced the 23-year-old had sustained a partial tear of the medial collateral ligament in his right knee.Thiago had been treated with cortisone injections when the problem first surfaced and Guardiola admitted that may have been to his detriment.

"Maybe it was a big mistake," he said in a press conference on Friday. "I'm sad for him. He's of course upset and disappointed. He needs a little time for himself and his family."No words can help him. He will look and move forward. I'm sure it will be fine again. We, the club, are there for him."

German champions Bayern will protect their unbeaten start to the 2014-15 Bundesliga campaign when they host Werder Bremen on Saturday.

 

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Herrera could wear 'corset' against West Brom - Van Gaal

Ander Herrera could be forced to wear a chest brace when Manchester United face West Brom on Monday.

The midfielder fractured a rib against Everton in early October and was expected to be out for three weeks as a result.

But Herrera has been passed fit to play on Monday, though manager Louis van Gaal has not confirmed he will select the Spaniard.

"Herrera is a fit player and he only had a rib fracture, so we can play him with a corset," Van Gaal told reporters.

"Then he can play. But, of course, I have to select him first."

Elsewhere, fellow midfielder Michael Carrick is back in contention after recovering from ankle surgery, but Van Gaal is wary of rushing him back into first-team action.

He continued: "[Carrick] needs match rhythm and, until now, he has not played a match so we have to give him a chance to play a match.

"Maybe next Friday with the second squad [against West Ham]. Maybe we'll use him on the bench [on Monday] but I don't know."

 

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Barclays Premier League 2014.10.18 Fixtures

Barclays Premier League 2014.10.18 Fixtures

(In Progress)

After 68th minute

3-1

Manchester City Vs Tottenham

Arsenal Vs Hull City

Burnely Vs West Ham

Crystal Palace Vs Chelsea

Everton Vs Aston Villa

Newcastle Vs Leicester

Southampton Vs Sunderland

QPR Vs Liverpool

​

 

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La Liga 2014.10.18 Fixtures

La Liga 2014.10.18 Fixtures

Levante Vs Real Madrid

Cordoba Vs Malaga

Athletic Bilbao

Barcelona Vs Eibar​

 

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Serie A 2014.10.18 Fixtures

Serie A 2014.10.18 Fixtures

Roma Vs Chievo

Sassuolo Vs Juventus​

 

[unicornx]

CR CHICA ISCO JAMES #HalaMadrid

 

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Arsenal 2-2 Hull City: Welbeck saves Gunners with stoppage time strike

Arsenal narrowly avoided an embarrassing home defeat to Hull City after Danny Welbeck struck to secure a 2-2 draw for the Gunners at the Emirates Stadium.

The hosts went ahead through Alexis Sanchez's well-taken finish early on but Hull equalised through a controversial Mohamed Diame goal.

Abel Hernandez put Steve Bruce's side in front at the start of the second half, but with time running out Welbeck combined with Alexis to beat second half substitute Eldin Jakupovic in the Hull goal.

Hull goalkeeper Steve Harper was required to make a smart double-save from Welbeck and then Jack Wilshere as well as tip Santi Cazorla's free-kick over as the hosts - who handed a league debut to Hector Bellerin - began strongly.

But Harper could do nothing about Alexis' opener, as the Chilean bamboozled Curtis Davies in the right channel with a skilful stepover before cutting inside and firing across Harper.

Arsenal's lead last just five minutes however, when Diame trundled into the area and dinked home his fourth Premier League goal in five games for Hull, as the hosts fumed at the lack of a free-kick from referee Roger East for a perceived tug on Mathieu Flamini.

Harper, continuing in goal due to the injury-enforced absence of Allan McGregor, was himself forced off just before the interval with a shoulder problem and replaced by Jakupovic.

But Bruce's men made an ideal start to the second half when Hernandez stole in ahead of Per Mertesacker to head Tom Huddlestone's delivery from the right and put Hull ahead.

Behind for the first time, Arsenal swiftly sought an equaliser with Michael Dawson denying Welbeck a one-on-one chance before wayward passing in the final third from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Cazorla frustrated the home support.

Wilshere's withdrawal after tweaking his knee in a challenge with Gaston Ramirez looked to have capped a miserable day for the hosts as Hull's defence were standing firm with a string of brave blocks.

But Alexis proved the inspiration, slaloming through the midfield before feeding Welbeck in the area to slam home and rescue a draw.

The Gunners pushed for a winner late on and Aaron Ramsey made his return from injury, but the hosts were forced to settle for a point.

 

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Everton 3-0 Aston Villa: Lukaku on target in Toffees stroll

Everton moved away from the bottom of the Premier League with a convincing 3-0 win over Aston Villa at Goodison Park.

Centre-back Phil Jagielka met a Leighton Baines cross to open the scoring in the first half.

Romelu Lukaku netted his third goal of the season after half time, combining with Ross Barkley, before Seamus Coleman wrapped up the points with less than 15 minutes remaining.

Villa were without Fabian Delph due to a dislocated shoulder, but Paul Lambert was able to recall Christian Benteke and captain Ron Vlaar following their respective lay-offs.

Neither man was able to make much of an impact, however, and Everton led at the break through Jagielka's 18th-minute header.

Baines' teasing right-footed delivery across the face of goal was too inviting to be missed and Jagielka nodded it in from point-blank range.

Villa grew into the contest as the first half progressed, but struggled to provide Benteke with service in the Belgian's first start since March.

Everton should have made the most of Villa's troubles by doubling their lead just before the break, as Coleman – back from injury in place of Tony Hibbert – cut into the area and saw his left-footed drive palmed away by Guzan.

The home side may not have been completely comfortable in the lead-up to half-time, but Villa were left with a much tougher task on their hands three minutes into the second period.

Lukaku collected a throughball from Barkley, held off Tom Cleverley and then saw a low effort squirm under Guzan, who will feel he should have done better.

With Villa desperately searching for a way back into the contest, Everton demonstrated quick thinking from a free-kick to grab a third goal with 14 minutes remaining.

After being released down the left, Baines fired a devilish cross into the six-yard box that Coleman met with an easy tap-in.

That ended any hope of a Villa fightback and Martinez will hope his side can now kick on as they aim to bounce back from a poor start to the league campaign.

 

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Levante 0-5 Real Madrid: Ronaldo scored twice in Blancos stroll

Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 14th and 15th goals of the Liga season in Real Madrid's 5-0 dismantling of Levante on Saturday afternoon.

The Portugal star went into the game at the Estadio Ciudad de Valencia having scored 13 goals in just six league appearances this season.

And he wasted little time in taking his tally to 14, scoring from the penalty spot after Javier Hernandez had been fouled by Juanfran after 13 minutes.On-loan Manchester United striker Hernandez got on the scoresheet himself just before half-time with a well-taken header, before Ronaldo added his second of the game and 15th of the campaign with a brilliant individual effort just after the hour.

James Rodriguez got in on the act shortly after, and Isco rounded the scoring off with superb finish from 20 yards eight minutes from time as Real warmed up for a week featuring a Champions League trip to Liverpool and the season's first Clasico against Barcelona in style.

Ronaldo immediately showed that he meant business, first beating the offside trap to fire wide before sending a low drive whistling past the post within the first five minutes.

And there was a sense of inevitability about Real's opener 10 minutes later.Some neat play from the visitors resulted in Hernandez bursting into the box, before he was scythed down by Juanfran - allowing Ronaldo to open the scoring with a typically cool spot-kick.

Despite the visitors dominating possession, Levante nearly managed to respond after 25 minutes, with Papakouli Diop’s effort deflected just wide and Luka Modric being forced into a superb goal-line clearance to deny Hector Rodas' header from the resulting corner.Modric was on hand at the other end to test Diego Marino with a vicious strike from 25 yards 10 minutes before the break, but Real did not have to wait long to double their lead through Hernandez.

A curling cross from Rodriguez found the Mexican unmarked in the box, and he duly marked his first Liga start with his third goal for the club.Ronaldo continued to be the star attraction after the break, forcing a good save from Marino early in the second half before getting among the goals again after 61 minutes.

A superb run from the left saw Ronaldo skip past several Levante challenges before bursting into the area and finishing with aplomb.Things got even better for Carlo Ancelotti's side five minutes later when a dinked ball from Toni Kroos found Rodriguez, who chested down brilliantly before poking home.

And Real were not finished there, as Isco took their collective goal tally to 30 from just eight league games when he ran at the heart of the home defence before dispatching a curling shot beyond Marino.

 

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Burnley 1-3 West Ham: Cole & Valencia help Hammers ease past struggling Clarets

West Ham ran out comfortable 3-1 winners over Burnley in the Premier League on Saturday.

Diafra Sakho, signed from Metz in the close-season, netted for a sixth successive game in all competitions shortly after half-time as Sam Allardyce's men came away from Turf Moor with all three points.

That goal continued Sakho's record of scoring in every game he has started this season, and strike partner Enner Valencia doubled the visitors' lead soon after with a superb header from Carl Jenkinson's delivery.

George Boyd reduced the deficit on the hour mark to give Burnley hope of a remarkable comeback, but substitute Carlton Cole nodded home from a corner 20 minutes from time, putting the seal on West Ham's victory.

The result means Burnley - who were on top in the opening half - continue to wait for a first win of the season, and Sean Dyche's men remain rooted in the bottom three with four points from eight matches.

West Ham, meanwhile, have managed back-to-back victories for the first time since March following their 2-0 win over QPR before the international break.

Burnley were boosted by the returns of Danny Ings and David Jones from injury, while West Ham welcomed Mark Noble back into midfield and James Collins came in for the injured James Tomkins.

The home side made a bright start and almost opened the scoring in the fifth minute when Boyd struck the underside of the crossbar with a sweet left-footed half-volley.

Three minutes later Lukas Jutkiewicz saw a close-range finish ruled out for offside, before West Ham's first chance arrived in the 26th minute when Sakho somehow headed wide from four yards after an excellent cross from Aaron Cresswell.

Stewart Downing then cut inside from the right and struck the left-hand upright on the half-hour mark as the visitors began to gain a foothold in proceedings.

Four minutes after the interval, West Ham hit the front through the in-form Sakho.

Once again Cresswell delivered a pinpoint cross from the left, and this time Sakho made no mistake in powering a header into the net from close range.

Five minutes later Valencia doubled West Ham's advantage, meeting Jenkinson's accurate delivery with a thumping header which left goalkeeper Tom Heaton with no chance.

Valencia was withdrawn soon afterwards, and his replacement Cole saw another headed effort cleared off the line by Kieran Trippier.

That intervention appeared set to prove crucial as Burnley broke upfield and won a corner that was dropped by Adrian, allowing Boyd to thump home the loose ball.

Ings almost levelled a minute later, but his glancing header from Trippier's fine cross flew narrowly wide with Adrian beaten.

Cole then restored West Ham's two-goal buffer, nodding in from close range after Sakho had headed Noble's corner back across goal.

Burnley substitute Ashley Barnes struck the bar with three minutes remaining to sum up the home side's day as West Ham provided Allardyce with the perfect present on the eve of his 60th birthday.

 

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Crystal Palace 1-2 Chelsea: Fabregas off the mark as Mourinho’s juggernaut rumbles on

Chelsea restored their five-point lead at the Premier League summit with a 2-1 win at Crystal Palace as both teams finished with 10 men.

Oscar gave the visitors a sixth-minute lead thanks to a stunning free-kick but tempers boiled over as Chelsea defender Cesar Azpilicueta and his Palace counterpart Damien Delaney received red cards within three minutes of each other in a feisty conclusion to the opening period.

Chelsea adapted better to the reduced numbers as Cesc Fabregas instigated and finished a brilliant team move to score his first Premier League goal for the club after half-time - ensuring Jose Mourinho's men found the appropriate response to Manchester City's Sergio Aguero inspired 4-1 win over Tottenham in Saturday's early kick-off.

Palace threatened sparingly as Chelsea dominated second-half possession until Fraizer Campbell, who came close three times during a lively opening, converted Wilfried Zaha's cross from close range to set up a grandstand finale.

Loic Remy made a first league start for Chelsea as Diego Costa was ruled out by his troublesome hamstring, while Delaney was given the task of shackling the French striker with Palace centre-back Scott Dann sidelined.

The hosts had an early chance as Campbell raced on to Joel Ward's searching pass, but goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois raced out to block before Chelsea opened the scoring in memorable fashion.

Delaney clumsily fouled Willian on the edge of the penalty area, leaving Oscar to devilishly whip the ball beyond Julian Speroni and into the top left corner.

Gary Cahill endured a torrid opening at Campell's hands and the striker prodded onto the roof of the net in the 12th minute before beating his man to drag an effort wide.

Jason Puncheon tested Courtois with a stinging shot ahead of the first-half's tempestuous final five minutes.

Azpilicueta received a 40th-minute red card for a rash lunge on Mile Jedinak - and Campbell and Fabregas might have joined him off the field but were only booked for their clash in the ensuing melee.

It was 10-a-side just three minutes later as Delaney, already booked for fouling Remy, pulled back Willian and then, for good measure, remonstrated with referee Craig Pawson.

Nemanja Matic almost added insult to Palace injury by heading narrowly wide from the resulting set-piece.

Following his involvement in the unsavoury scenes before half-time, Fabregas demonstrated his technical brilliance in extending Chelsea's lead after 51 minutes.

The Spain midfielder exchanged passes with Eden Hazard and Oscar in a sumptuous display of one-touch football before slotting past Speroni at his near post.

Palace had switched Martin Kelly to centre-half from right-back in Delaney's absence and the former Liverpool man slid in to stop Hazard converting Fabregas' low 61st-minute cross - the Belgian playmaker subsequently flashing a shot past the post with 16 minutes remaining.

Cahill emulated Kelly with a last-ditch challenge to thwart Yannick Bolasie before substitute Zaha handed Campbell a simple 90th-minute finish, but Palace, who made Selhurst Park such a fortress in their stirring escape from relegation trouble last season, have now won just once in five outings at home this term.

 

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Bayern Munich 6-0 Werder Bremen: Lahm at the double in Bavarians romp

Philipp Lahm scored twice and Xabi Alonso struck his first goal for the club as Bayern Munich thumped Werder Bremen 6-0 on Saturday afternoon.

Werder travelled to Bavaria having conceded 18 goals in their last three league meetings with Bayern - and the champions were in no mood to forgive them further embarrassment on this occasion with a devastating first-half display.

Goals from Lahm (2), Xabi Alonso, Thomas Muller and Mario Gotze (2) secured the points for Pep Guardiola's side, with the Bayern boss having the luxury of taking off several of his star men early ahead of Tuesday's Champions League trip to Roma.

Even without Robert Lewandowski - left on the bench after picking up a heavy knock while on international duty with Poland - Bayern had an overwhelming amount of attacking quality for their opponents to handle and continued their unbeaten start to the season in ominous fashion.Werder, by contrast, remain rooted to the foot of the table awaiting their first victory of the campaign.

The gulf between the teams in this top-versus-bottom clash was evident from the off - the pattern of the game set as the visitors chased shadows while Bayern zipped the ball around at dizzying speed.

Despite their overwhelming possession, the champions were made to wait until the 20th minute before taking the lead through Lahm.

Alaba swung in a cross from the left, Muller re-directed the ball into the path of his onrushing captain, who shot low beyond Raphael Wolf from just inside the area.

Just six minutes later, Bayern's second arrived. Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg was fouled on the edge of the area, and Alonso's clever, low free-kick went under the Werder wall and into the bottom corner for his first goal for the club.Muller made it three from the penalty spot two minutes before the break - sending Wolf the wrong way after being brought down by Sebastian Prodl.

Gotze saved the best moment of the first period until last, though, as he produced a sublime, curling finish from 20 yards after turning brilliantly on Alaba's sharp pass on the stroke of half-time. Bayern picked up where they left off after the interval, though Gotze missed a sitter after good work from Juan Bernat down the right before Rafinha shot wide from just outside the box.

The home team were proving less clinical than before the break, but Lahm's second of the game after 79 minutes was worth waiting for.Muller crossed low into the former Germany skipper, who flicked it into Xherdan Shaqiri for a lightning-quick one-two that bamboozled Werder's tired backline before slotting calmly past Wolf.

And Gotze was on hand to score his second with four minutes to play, shooting low beyond Wolf after slick interplay involving Ribery and Muller to keep up Bayern's recent average of six goals a game against the hapless Werder.

 

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Roma 3-0 Chievo: Totti scores in routine victory

Francesco Totti scored as Roma saw off Chievo 3-0 in Saturday evening's Serie A clash at the Stadio Olimpico.

Mattia Destro gifted Rudi Garcia's men an early lead before Adem Ljajic and Totti effectively put the match to bed in the opening 45 minutes.

The hosts started the match with intent and were rewarded after just four minutes. Miralem Pjanic found Destro's head with a superb corner and the striker thumped home from close range to open the scoring.Roma continued to dominate after the 1-0 and Ljajic nearly made it two after a fine cross from Totti, but the winger's attempt looped over the crossbar.

Ljajic did get his goal halfway through the first half, however, when he found the net with a low finish after a superb individual effort.The home side were awarded a spot kick in the 32nd minute after Daniele De Rossi was fouled inside the area and Totti made no mistake from 12 yards.

Chievo failed to really create any major chances, but briefly threatened via Maxi Lopez shortly after the break. The attacker collected the ball after Perparim Hetemaj failed to test the Roma goalkeeper, but his shot from a dangerous position was blocked by Davide Astori.

Ljajic continued to cause the Chievo defence all kinds of trouble and came close to doubling his personal tally in the 53rd minute. The Serbian unleashed a powerful shot after cutting inside from the left, only to see his attempt go inches wide.Destro also had a number of chances to score his second of the evening, but the 23-year-old was unable to beat Francesco Bardi again.

Roma sit second in the table following Saturday's victory with 18 points from seven games, while Chievo are battling against relegation with a mere four points.

 

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Newcastle 1-0 Leicester City: Obertan eases pressure on struggling Pardew

Newcastle eased the pressure on manager Alan Pardew after Gabriel Obertan's goal earned the struggling Magpies their first Premier League win of the season against Leicester City on Saturday.

The Frenchman hit home in the 71st minute to give Newcastle victory at the eighth time of asking and cap an unconventional day at St James' Park.

Kick-off on Tyneside was delayed by an hour due to issues with the newly installed big screen at St James' Park, with engineers scaling the stadium walls to fix the issue and ensure the game went ahead.

Once the game did get under way Newcastle enjoyed the better of the proceedings, though a lack of composure in front of goal looked likely to cost them - with their profligacy typified by Papiss Cisse missing an open goal.

But Obertan ensured Cisse's miss was not punished by netting his first goal since October 2012.

A first maximum haul of 2014-15 moves Newcastle within a point of the teams immediately above the drop zone - including neighbours Sunderland after their 8-0 mauling at Southampton earlier in the day.

The pre-match drama continued as Cheick Tiote was injured in the warm-up and replaced by Vurnon Anita, supplementing Pardew's only other change which saw Steven Taylor replace Mike Williamson in defence.

Newcastle settled better after the bizarre events leading up to kick-off and Fabricio Coloccini curled a seventh-minute effort narrowly wide.

Matty James returned to the midfield along with Esteban Cambiasso in two of Leicester's three changes and the former Manchester United man wasted an opportunity to punish some slack Newcastle defending as he shot straight at Tim Krul.

For all Newcastle's dominating possession, they were perhaps fortunate not to concede a penalty in the 28th minute when Daryl Janmaat appeared to illegally impede Leonardo Ulloa as the Argentine forward sought to get on the end of a dangerous cross in the area.

Leicester began to get a foothold in the game in the latter stages of the first half, with only the woodwork denying them the opener in the 38th minute when Marc Albrighton's cross-cum-shot struck Krul's left-hand post.

Pardew's side emerged with renewed confidence after the half-time interval, Moussa Sissoko seeing an effort deflected wide before Cisse could only find the side-netting from a tight angle after rounding Kasper Schmeichel.

Jack Colback saw a fierce free-kick turned over the bar by Schmeichel but Obertan's moment of magic finally put the hosts into a deserved lead.

The winger cut in from the left and avoided three Leicester challenges before unleashing a superb low shot out of Schmeichel's reach to his right.

An end-to-end finish saw each side come close but Newcastle ultimately hung on and the habitual ill-feeling at the final whistle of Newcastle games was finally lifted as Pardew celebrated success.

 

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Koln 2-1 Dortmund: Zoller stuns hapless BVB

Simon Zoller's 74th minute strike condemned Borussia Dortmund to their fifth defeat of the Bundesliga season as they were stunned 2-1 by Koln.

Jurgen Klopp's side have experienced a dreadful opening to their league campaign and that run continued with a tame loss on the road.Even the return of several key players failed to spark a turnaround at the Rhein Energie Stadion, with Cologne adding to Dortmund's woes by taking the lead in the 40th minute through Kevin Vogt.

Ciro Immobile equalised early in the second half and it was the visitors looked the more likely until Zoller restored Cologne's advantage in the 74th minute.
Klopp’s men were deflated and, although they pressed towards the end, they were unable to penetrate Cologne's stubborn defence.

Dortmund, who had lost three of their last four Bundesliga fixtures, were boosted by the returns of Marco Reus, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Ilkay Gundogan from injury.

Midfielder Gundogan has been sidelined by a persistent back problem since last August, with Reus back after picking up a knock on Germany duty last month, and Mkhitaryan featuring following a foot injury.

And they were clearly buoyed by the trio's presence in the early exchanges, with Reus and Mkhitaryan combining superbly to play in Immobile, but the Italian forward sliced his shot wide from an acute angle, before Reus himself went close with a curling effort.

Klopp's side had accumulated just seven league points out of a possible 21 and slumped to a 1-0 home loss to lowly Hamburg before the International break.Dortmund enjoyed just less than 60 per cent possession in that game and, despite amassing 17 shots on goal, only managed to get three on target.

History looked set to repeat itself when, in spite of the early Dortmund pressure, it was Cologne who took the lead just before half-time, capitalising on shaky defending from the visitors.

Midfielder Vogt latched onto a Marcel Risse through ball before calmy prodding home his first goal of the season in what was the hosts' first chance of note.But last season's runners-up levelled just three minutes after the interval, Reus advancing through the parting Cologne midfield before slipping a cute reverse pass to Immobile.

The 25-year-old made no mistake with his finish this time around, expertly dinking the ball over the onrushing Timo Horn.Dortmund suddenly looked fearsome again, with Reus and Gundogan becoming more prominent as Cologne dropped deeper.

However, they were unable to breakthrough, and Cologne almost regained their lead in the 68th minute when Zoller squirmed an effort just wide of the upright under pressure from Mats Hummels.And the Austrian atoned six minutes later when Dortmund again conceded possession in their own third.

Cologne worked it wide to Yuya Osako, who floated in an inviting cross that found Zoller to poke it into an empty net after Weidenfeller had charged off his line to ensure Peter Stoger's side leapfrogged Dortmund in the table.

 

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BVB la meh season 1ke kanawa wadi​

 

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Manchester City 4-1 Tottenham: Aguero nets four as Fazio sees red on debut

Sergio Aguero's four-goal haul continued Manchester City's dominance over 10-man Tottenham with a 4-1 win at the Etihad Stadium.

The man Mauricio Pochettino described this week as the "best striker in the world" inspired Saturday's win as Spurs - who shipped 11 goals to City in the Premier League last term - were left to lament Roberto Soldado's saved penalty and Federico Fazio's dismissal in a game that saw four spot-kicks awarded by referee Jon Moss.

Both sides pounced on mistakes to score inside the opening 15 minutes, with Aguero the beneficiary of some sloppy play from Erik Lamela as City broke the deadlock.

Spurs hit back through Christian Eriksen just two minutes later after Fernando was dispossessed in midfield, only for Lamela to endure more frustration as he was penalised after Frank Lampard went down in the box.

Aguero stroked home his second from the spot to become City's all-time leading Premier League goalscorer with 59 and restore the hosts' lead in the 20th minute.

City spurned the chance to extend their advantage when Aguero saw a penalty saved by Hugo Lloris shortly after the half-hour mark, volleying the rebound over the bar, and Soldado followed suit in the second half as Joe Hart kept his penalty out.

The game was put beyond Spurs when Aguero wrapped up his hat-trick from yet another penalty, with Fazio's red card for hauling him down putting a blemish on his full Premier League debut, and the City man added his fourth to take his top-flight tally for the season to nine.

Manuel Pellegrini made six changes to his starting XI from the victory at Aston Villa prior to the international break, possibly with an eye on Tuesday's Champions League trip to CSKA Moscow, and Spurs' fluid passing caused City problems early on.

Eriksen should perhaps have hit the target from inside the area eight minutes in before Aguero made Lamela pay for his carelessness by shifting the ball quickly onto his right foot and curling an effort past Lloris.

However, the visitors' response was almost immediate - Ryan Mason taking the ball off Fernando before Soldado's pass allowed Eriksen a clear sight of goal, his shot coming off Hart's knee and nestling into the net via the crossbar

Lamela's difficult half continued when he was harshly adjudged to have fouled Lampard inside the area, allowing Aguero to continue his fine form and surpass Carlos Tevez in terms of Premier League goals for the English champions.

Lampard – one of the six to come into the City side – was forced off with an apparent thigh injury following a challenge from Mason before Aguero wasted the chance to wrap up a first-half hat-trick.

Lloris kept his penalty out following Younes Kaboul's clumsy tackle on David Silva, and the Argentinian acrobatically fired the rebound over.

Spurs were awarded the game's third penalty when Martin Demichelis was adjudged to have fouled Eriksen - but Soldado, making his first league start since March, fluffed his lines with a weak effort easily saved by Hart.

Aguero ensured his hat-trick from the spot after Fazio brought him down inside the area, before adding to his tally with a smart curled finish late on.

James Milner struck the post inside the final two minutes, but the damage had already been done in yet another disappointing trip to the Etihad for Tottenham.

 

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Southampton 8-0 Sunderland: Hosts run riot against Poyet's beleaguered side


Southampton took full advantage of some questionable Sunderland defending to seal a comprehensive 8-0 win in the Premier League on Saturday.

Ronald Koeman's side struck three times in the opening half and, although its attacking play was impressive, it was helped to a club-record top-flight win by a number of mistakes from the visitors.

Santiago Vergini's spectacular own goal after 12 minutes gave Southampton the lead, with Graziano Pelle, boosted by a goal on his Italy debut on Monday,capping a memorable week with his fifth league goal of the season six minutes later.

Jack Cork added the third before halftime, substitute Liam Bridcutt bundled home a second own goal just past the hour and Pelle made it five with his second after 68 minutes.

Dusan Tadic, Victor Wanyama and Sadio Mane completed the rout in the closing minutes as Southampton, which is unbeaten at home this season, stays third in the table.Meanwhile, Sunderland remains in the bottom half after suffering its heaviest defeat of the campaign.

The hosts began in positive fashion and were gifted the opener as Vergini fired into his own net.Shane Long, recalled for Mane as one of two changes, played a neat one-two with Pelle, but as Vergini tried to get the ball under control he volleyed beyond Vito Mannone from the edge of the box.

Sunderland, which recalled Wes Brown for Billy Jones, continued to be its own worst enemy as a mistake from Will Buckley led to Southampton's second goal six minutes later.

The midfielder's attempted clearance struck the back of Sebastian Larsson, the loose ball was rolled onto Steven Davis and his low cross was tapped home by the in-form Pelle.

With halftime looming Steven Fletcher saw a penalty shout waved away, and to rub salt into Sunderland's wounds Koeman's side added a third eight minutes before the interval.Tadic superbly found Cork at the back post and his effort somehow beat Mannone, who should have done better.

Pelle was causing the Sunderland defense all kinds of problems and, after setting up Davis for a chance on goal, he saw his effort cleared off the line by Patrick van Aanholt.The fourth goal eventually came three minutes after the hour, though.

Ryan Bertrand raced clear on the left, his pull-back found Pelle whose effort was saved, but Bridcutt clumsily turned the ball into his own goal from two yards.
As Sunderland began to sink without a trace Pelle added a fifth, the striker latching onto a Tadic pass before firing across Mannone.To add to Sunderland's nightmare it conceded another two goals inside as many minutes as first Tadic and then substitute Wanyama got themselves on the scoresheet.

Tadic capitalized on a dreadful clearance from Mannone to fire into an empty net from 25 yards, and a minute later Wanyama lashed home the seventh from inside the penalty area.

If Sunderland thought the scoring was over it was wrong, as substitute Mane made it eight with four minutes to play with a simple finish from another Tadic delivery.

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Klopp fuming after Dortmund defeat

Jurgen Klopp has voiced his frustration with Borussia Dortmund's performance in their 2-1 defeat at the hands of Koln on Saturday and has insisted that they can no longer afford to make simple mistakes.

BVB created numerous chances and had 16 shots against Koln's five, but it was not enough to prevent defeat at the RheinEnergieStadion, much to the dismay of Klopp.

"We played a style of football that made no sense whatsoever. We were very sloppy in our passing in the first half and made some simple mistakes. This cannot be happening," the Dortmund coach said at a press conference."We made things hard for ourselves again. We weren't good enough at the decisive moments, both in defence and in attack. We lacked focus at the back and weren't clinical enough going forward. That's why we still only have seven points.

"We simply didn't do enough against this opponent. We have to turn this situation around. We have to iron out the mistakes. Not tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, but right now."We nearly always score and we wouldn't be in this situation if we didn't concede so many goals."

Dortmund sit 14th in the Bundesliga table with seven points from eight games.