..::Football IV::..

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Sampaoli: Barcelona don't want me

Jorge Sampaoli says he has no need to renew his contract at Sevilla and maintains he is not a target for Barcelona to replace Luis Enrique.

The Argentine replaced Unai Emery at the helm of the Spanish side ahead of this season and has guided them from last year's seventh-placed finish to third with 11 games left.

The coach's thrilling attacking style has seen him touted as a potential Barcelona coach, with reports increasing after current incumbent Luis Enrique announced he will leave at the end of the current campaign.

Sampaoli is contracted to Sevilla until the end of next season, but he sees no reason to sign a new deal yet, insisting there are no concerns over his future."I do not have to renew because I have a contract," he told reporters. "Nor is it real that Barcelona have taken an interest in me, they did not contact me."

Sevilla sporting director Monchi could leave the club at the end of the season after they prevented him from doing so last summer. Sampaoli maintains the highly-rated director's future will have no effect on his."I would like Monchi to stay, but it is not a condition for me to stay," he added. "According to the football project that has Sevilla, one is here to help or not, I feel useful, loved and respected."

After seeing his side eliminated from the Champions League at the hands of Leicester City in midweek, the former Chile boss admitted he was hurt but stressed his side will bounce back.

"After you fall down you must get back up and try again," he added. "It is important that you never get too down or get too high either."The Champions League loss was a painful defeat for us but I don't consider it a great failure."It did cause me great pain that even meant I wasn't able to sleep but as I said, life must go on.

"People will think that we are in a state of depression but it won't be like that. I am really enjoying my time at the club this season so it is only natural that any defeat we suffer hurts me."

 

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Conte: Chelsea need 21 points to clinch Premier League title

Antonio Conte has set Chelsea a 21-point target to be sure of clinching the Premier League title.

After a 3-1 win over Swansea City last month, Conte said he thought 29 points were required in order for the Blues to guarantee the return of the top-flight trophy to Stamford Bridge.A hard-fought 2-1 victory against Stoke City on Saturday, secured by Gary Cahill's 87th-minute strike, sent Chelsea 13 points clear at the summit.

Although their advantage could be cut on Sunday with Tottenham, Manchester City and Liverpool in action, the Italian has revised his goal for the final 10 matches.

"This win is important, honestly. We played two games away, West Ham and Stoke, and to win both games is very important in this part of the season," said Conte.

"There are 10 games to go. I like to think that now we need to take 21 points to be sure to win the league."But today it is important against a strong team and in a stadium with a great atmosphere."

Conte confirmed that Eden Hazard was left out of the matchday 18 after sustaining a calf injury during a training session.

"In the last training he felt a bit of a problem in his calf, for this reason I decided not to risk him. That is why he didn't play," the Italian said.With 20 minutes remaining Conte replaced Victor Moses with Cesc Fabregas, switching formation from 3-4-3 to 4-2-3-1.

The Chelsea boss knew his side risked conceding as a result, but wanted to actively search out an important win in the title race.He said: "This is not the first time [the system was changed mid-game]. This happened against Burnley.

"When you want to take more risks, to try to take three points and not only one, to try to change. For sure there is the great possibility to score the goal, but also to concede a goal.


"You must know this, but then I prefer to decide and risk to take three points. In other situations, I decide to keep the result."

 

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Barclays Premier League Fixtures 2017.03.19

Barclays Premier League Fixtures 2017.03.19

Middlebrough Vs Manchester United

Tottenham Vs Southampton

Manchester City Vs Liverpool

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Middlebrough tough match 1kak wei but must win matches meh thiyenne

Good Luck Manchester United!​

 

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LA Liga Fixtures 2017.03.19

LA Liga Fixtures 2017.03.19

Leganes Vs Malaga

Atletico Madrid Vs Sevilla

Deportivo Vs Celta Vigo

Sporting Gijon Vs Granada

Barcelona Vs Valencia​

 

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Serie A Fixtures 2017.03.19

Serie A Fixtures 2017.03.19

Empoli Vs Napoli

Atalanta Vs Pescara

Bologna Vs Chievo

Cagliari Vs Lazio

Crotone Vs Fiorentina

Sampdoria Vs Juventus

Udinese Vs Palermo

Roma Vs Sassuolo​

 

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Budesliga Fixtures 2017.03.19

Budesliga Fixtures 2017.03.19

Mainz Vs Schalke

Monchengladbach Vs Bayern​

 

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Half Time

Middlesbrough 0 Vs 1 Manchester United

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Full Time

Middlesbrough 1 Vs 3 Manchester United

Middlesbrough Goal(s)

R.Gestede 77'

&

Manchester United Goal(s)

M.Fellaini 30'
J.Lingard 62'
A.Valencia 90+3'
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Congratulations Manchester United!

Lingard

Ada win 1ka godak watinawa

& Lingard ge goal 1ken passe Manchester United play karapu widiyanam hari naha.Goal 1ka score karapu gamang dagattha thawath defender kenek.Full defending.Anthimata goal 1kakuth concede kalathawa podden match ekath kana seen 1kak wage thibbe

btw Well Done guys!

Next thiyenne Everton International break 1ken passe.thawath tough match 1kakgood luck Manchester United!
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Man Utd midfielder Schweinsteiger's farewell letter to ex-Arsenal man Podolski

Bastian Schweinsteiger may be facing plenty of uncertainty surrounding his own future at Manchester United, but he has taken the opportunity to wish Lukas Podolski all the best in the next chapter of his career.

The former Arsenal forward has already announced that he will be departing Galatasaray for Japanese side Vissel Kobe at the end of the 2016-17 campaign.

Before making that switch, the World Cup winner has the opportunity to sign off in Europe on a high, while also bidding an emotional farewell to the international scene.

He has been included in the Germany squad set to take in a friendly date with England on Wednesday, with Joachim Low set to hand a long-serving member of his plans a 130th cap.

Podolski has enjoyed many highs in the colours of his country and a man who has taken in many of those alongside him has returned a kind gesture shown to him when he bowed out with Die Mannschaft.

Schweinsteiger, who walked away in 2016, has thanked a close friend for all of his support down the years and wished him well as he prepares to close one door and open another.

He wrote in a tribute letter to Podolski:

“Dear Lukas,"For years we have been connected by a friendship that is so rare in life" – so began your letter ahead of my farewell from the national team in "Welt am Sonntag". I do not know how I could begin my letter in a better way.

“I remember very well the moment of my substitution in my farewell game when I saw you sitting in the stands with my family. In the middle of those people who occupy a special place in my life – and you are also a part of those people.

“With your positive charisma, your open style and last but not least thanks to your inimitable left foot, you have inspired not only me, but also the German, English and Turkish audience alike. So I'm not worried about the fact that you will soon turn the Japanese fans into Poldi fans, if you are moving to the Far East now.

“Servus, Poldi, my friend. Bye for now!

“Your Basti.”

Podolski has netted 48 goals in his 129 appearances for Germany to date.

The last of those came back in 2015, so he will be hoping to bow out on a goal-scoring high against old adversaries England.

 

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Guardiola admires Klopp's charisma: He celebrates much better than me

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has voiced his admiration for charismatic Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp ahead of their Premier League encounter at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.

Guardiola and Klopp were rivals during their respective stints in charge of Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, an era the Spaniard's side dominated.

But the City boss has not forgotten the warm welcome his counterpart gave him when he first arrived at Bayern in 2013 and suffered a 4-2 defeat to Dortmund in the DFL-Supercup."He is a charismatic trainer. I admire him a lot. He is a top trainer," Guardiola told Sky Sports.

"As a foreign trainer going to Germany, when he had a lot of success, how he took care of me. The first day when I lost the Supercup, how gentle he was, and when he won and I won.

"Of course the way we play is completely different, I am Catalan and he is German so the influence is completely different."He celebrates goals much better than me, he hugs his players better than me.

"It is always a pleasure to face the big trainers in the world and test myself against them."


Liverpool triumphed 1-0 when the two managers faced off for the first time in the Premier League in December.

 

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Middlesbrough 1 Manchester United 3: Valencia adds late gloss after Valdes error

Manchester United claimed their 600th Premier League victory with a 3-1 win against managerless Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium on Sunday.

Marouane Fellaini's first league goal of the season, a thundering strike from Jesse Lingard and an injury-time Antonio Valencia finish secured maximum points for Jose Mourinho's side and lifted into fifth place in the table, piling the misery on Boro at the end of a week in which Aitor Karanka lost his job.

Mourinho – whose men are now unbeaten in 18 top-flight matches – had claimed that a draw would be a good result for his side, given their exhaustive exploits in the FA Cup and Europa League this week, and Boro certainly started in the ascendancy against a United side shorn of a number of first-team regulars.

But Fellaini's 30th-minute header gave the visitors a stranglehold that they never looked likely to relinquish and Lingard's emphatic strike in the second half left the home side on course for a 14th defeat in 28 league games this season.

Rudy Gestede got a goal back in the closing stages – Boro's first in 509 minutes of league action – but Valencia pounced on a horror moment for ex-United goalkeeper Victor Valdes to ensure United move to within three points of the Champions League places, having played a game fewer than fourth-placed Liverpool, who face Manchester City later on Sunday.

The pressure is growing on second-bottom Boro, however, with five points now separating them from safety, though they do have a game in hand on Hull City and Swansea City above them.

Valdes' outing started well as he made a fine low stop to deny Marcus Rashford six minutes into the contest after the young striker raced in behind the defence onto Lingard's pass.

Boro – guided by stand-in boss Steve Agnew – enjoyed by far the better of the opening exchanges, though, and David de Gea produced a smart save to his left to prevent Gaston Ramirez's fierce strike from breaking the deadlock.

Valdes proved the home side's saviour again in the 22nd minute, sticking out a leg to deny Rashford from point-blank range after a superb United move before reacting well to keep out Valencia's rebound.

United were beginning to cause real problems for the home defence and Fellaini took full advantage when the next chance came his way. Ashley Young curled a deep cross towards the far post from the right and the Belgium international escaped Fabio before nodding the ball high into Valdes' net.

Boro began the second half in much the same fashion as they did the first, enjoying close to 57 per cent of the possession, but without finding a way to cause any trouble for De Gea, with United's defence staying resolute.

Mourinho's side continued to look a threat on the break, with Rashford and Valencia twice causing panic in the Boro box with runs down the right, and it was from another counter-attack that Lingard doubled the lead just past the hour mark.

Collecting Juan Mata's pass, Lingard raced unchallenged through the middle of the home side's half before blasting a shot from 20 yards that swerved beyond the static Valdes and into the top-right corner.

Agnew threw on Gestede to give Alvaro Negredo some support and the striker gave his side a lifeline when he capitalised on Chris Smalling's error to slot past De Gea from close range.

Boro laid siege to United's goal late on, but Valencia made the points safe in the dying seconds when Valdes slipped as he prepared to clear a backpass, allowing the United full-back the simple task of finishing into an empty net – much to the delight of Mourinho as the Portuguese made his way down the tunnel.

 

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Manchester United record landmark 600th Premier League win at Middlesbrough

Manchester United have become the first team to win 600 Premier League games following a 3-1 victory away at Middlesbrough.The Red Devils have won the Premier League title on 13 occasions, with a record-setting 20 top-flight crowns secured in all.

As the most decorated side in English football, it should come as no surprise to find that the Old Trafford outfit have amassed a remarkable number of victories.The success at the Riverside Stadium was United’s 14th of the current campaign, with that return enough to have them in contention for a top-four finish.

Jose Mourinho will feel as though they should have hit the 600 win mark before now, with 10 draws having frustrated his side at times.

The Red Devils have, however, been in impressive form of late and are unbeaten in top-flight action since October 23.

Marouane Fellaini and Jesse Lingard put United 2-0 up against struggling Boro, with Mourinho’s men showing no ill-effects from their midweek endeavours in Europe. Rudy Gestede pulled a goal back for the hosts, but Antonio Valencia made sure of the points in added time after a mistake by Boro keeper Victor Valdes.

The most productive seasons in United’s Premier League history have seen them collect 28 victories over the course of a single campaign – having achieved that feat on five occasions.

If they are to avoid setting a new low this term, then they will need to claim another five wins from their remaining 11 fixtures – with only 19 successes secured in two of the last three seasons.

 

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Congratulations Manchester United!​

 

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'We have two doors open for the Champions League' – Mourinho hails Man Utd fight at Middlesbrough

Jose Mourinho praised Manchester United's attitude as his side ensured they have "two doors open" to the Champions League with a 3-1 win at Middlesbrough.

Mourinho had claimed this week that a draw would be a good result for his side, given their hectic recent schedule, and he was forced into fielding something of a makeshift side at the Riverside Stadium on Sunday due to injuries and suspensions.

The manager's faith in his fringe players was rewarded, though, with Marouane Fellaini and Jesse Lingard opening up a two-goal lead before Antonio Valencia made the points safe after Rudy Gestede had halved the deficit.

With United now just three points outside the top four and into the quarter-finals of the Europa League, Mourinho is delighted to have more than one route to a Champions League return available."I'm super happy," he told BBC Sport. "The attitude of the boys was magnificent. I made them feel important, trusted.

"We organised the team to come here and do what we did until the second goal: defend well, don't concede, be dangerous on the counter-attack, play with the fast boys in front.

"Until two-zero, the game was the game we wanted. Then they played direct football with Gestede and [Alvaro] Negredo, we brought an extra defender in [Marcos Rojo] to cope with that, but our mistake was that we let them push.

"You are always worried, especially when you miss chances like we did in the first half. Anything can happen with big football, with tall, direct players. It was open until the end.

"I was exactly expecting this. I knew that that answer would be positive, according to the qualities of my players. I cannot expect Marcus [Rashford] to be Zlatan [Ibrahimovic], [Michael] Carrick to be [Paul] Pogba, or Ashley Young to be [Daley] Blind. But they have their qualities.

"The good thing is that the group is really United. It's a group of friends, a group of guys, everybody fights for everybody. The spirit is fantastic. "We have two doors open for Champions League football, so we will try for the Europa League and for fourth place in the Premier League, and see what happens."

Mourinho admits he would prefer his players to be given a rest during the international break, but is nonetheless happy to have domestic and European commitments to return to in April.

"I would prefer the break for the players, not for me," he said. "Do I need a break? Yes, I need two days. The players need more.

"Everybody goes to the national teams, everybody has two matches. Then they come back and we play West Brom on the Saturday and the Europa League is coming again.

 

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Sampdoria 0 Juventus 1: Cuadrado strike ends Samp run

Juventus put the brakes on Sampdoria's Serie A resurgence with a straightforward 1-0 win at Stadio Luigi Ferraris despite losing Paulo Dybala to injury.

Samp were unbeaten in seven when the champions arrived in Genova, but Juan Cuadrado's first-half goal gave Massimiliano Allegri's men an early lead that they protected for 83 minutes without being unduly troubled by their hosts.

Dybala broke down just before the half-hour mark with an apparent thigh injury and Allegri did not hesitate to replace the influential forward, who could miss Argentina's forthcoming World Cup qualifiers against Chile and Bolivia depending on the extent of the problem.

Juve will use the international break to prepare for a hectic month in April, when they face Napoli in Serie A and the Coppa Italia, as well as Barcelona in the Champions League quarter-final, and Allegri will hope the confident, resolute approach seen on Sunday is still in evidence by then.

Samp coach Marco Giampaolo saw his side offer up a spirited display, but the clinical manner in which the game was effectively won inside the opening 10 minutes showed the gulf in class between the two sides.

Juve showed no signs of fatigue amid a busy run of league, cup and Champions League fixtures and they took the lead after seven minutes of a high-tempo opening to the game.

Kwadwo Asamoah sent over a wickedly curling cross from the left and Samp captain Vasco Regini could not prevent Cuadrado from plundering the ball into the net with a flying header and claiming his second Serie A goal of the season.

Cuadrado was in mischievous mood and the hosts struggled to deal with his jinking runs down the right flank. He twice fed Gonzalo Higuain for close-range chances, but goalkeeper Christian Puggioni saved both of the burly striker's attempts.

Everything was going Juve's way until the talismanic Dybala, who had scored four goals in his previous four games, went down holding his thigh after 28 minutes and had to be replaced by Marko Pjaca, but the visitors withstood a number of attacks before Higuain drew another excellent save from Puggioni on the cusp of half-time.
The home side started the second half with more energy about them and Fabio Quagliarella sent a dipping shot towards the far corner of the net, but Gianluigi Buffon was equal to it.

Giampaolo sent on Czech striker Patrik Schick as he sought to ignite his attack and the 21-year-old might have levelled the game from close range had it not been for Asamoah's superb tackle.

Schick was later withdrawn with a knock and replaced by Filip Djuricic, but Samp had run out of steam by the final 15 minutes and Dennis Praet's pass across the face of goal ran loose with no player in a blue shirt there to meet it.

Dani Alves was booked for his part in a clash with Regini in the dying minutes, but the incident only served to help Juve close out the game and claim another three points towards their bid for another title.

 

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Caen 0 Monaco 3: Mbappe caps stunning week with double

Kylian Mbappe's incredible form continued as he capped a stunning week with a man-of-the-match performance to help Monaco claim a 3-0 win at Caen and ensure they remain top of the Ligue 1 table.

The 18-year-old opened the scoring in the 13th minute with a fine finish, then won a penalty after a spectacular run, before doubling his personal tally nine minutes from time.

His magnificent showing came at the end of a week in which he helped Monaco knock Manchester City out of the Champions League in the last-16 and was handed his first call-up for France's senior side.

Monaco now sit six points clear of Paris Saint-Germain ahead of the reigning champions' clash with Lyon later on Sunday, while third-placed Nice are seven points adrift.

Leonardo Jardim opted to rest Bernardo Silva and Tiemoue Bakayoko, with Joao Moutinho and Nabil Dirar coming into the side, but the changes did not hold Monaco back and they went ahead when Mbappe beat goalkeeper Remy Vercoutre after a quick one-two with Valere Germain.

Monaco then felt they should have been awarded a penalty after Thomas Lemar went to the ground inside the area late in the first half, but referee Antony Gautier waved away the protests.

However, Gautier did point to the spot shortly after the restart. Damien Da Silva brought down Mbappe after a stunning run from midfield and Fabinho made no mistake from 12 yards to double Monaco's lead.

Mbappe had the final word, though, as he netted his 19th goal of the season with a fine header from Moutinho's cross from the left, before going off to warm applause from the entire crowd late on.

Leonardo Jardim opted to rest Bernardo Silva and Tiemoue Bakayoko, with Joao Moutinho and Nabil Dirar coming into the side, but the changes did not hold Monaco back and they went ahead when Mbappe beat goalkeeper Remy Vercoutre after a quick one-two with Valere Germain.Monaco then felt they should have been awarded a penalty after Thomas Lemar went to the ground inside the area late in the first half, but referee Antony Gautier waved away the protests.

However, Gautier did point to the spot shortly after the restart. Damien Da Silva brought down Mbappe after a stunning run from midfield and Fabinho made no mistake from 12 yards to double Monaco's lead.

Mbappe had the final word, though, as he netted his 19th goal of the season with a fine header from Moutinho's cross from the left, before going off to warm applause from the entire crowd late on.

 

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Mbappe patta

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He gave me a kiss – Gestede denies biting Bailly

Rudy Gestede denied biting Eric Bailly in Middlesbrough's 3-1 Premier League defeat to Manchester United on Sunday, claiming the Ivorian had actually kissed him.

Substitute Gestede slotted home Boro's first league goal in 509 minutes of action to give the relegation-threatened side hope after Marouane Fellaini and Jesse Lingard had put the visitors in control with first-half goals.

But in the closing stages there were ugly scenes as Gestede and Bailly clashed, with television replays showing the forward moving his head towards United defender's eck as if attempting to bite him.

The Benin international played down the incident, in which he grabbed Bailly around the neck as his opponent pushed his face into Gestede's shoulder, and insisted there was nothing more malicious from either player."We had a few words together, it was nothing major," said Gestede.

"He gave me a hug and a kiss, that's it. I didn't feel anything."Ben [Gibson, Boro defender] thought he bit me, so that's why he reacted like he did. But I told him now we were just talking, there was no problem."

Rows between players continued in the tunnel after the full-time whistle, but managers Jose Mourinho and Steve Agnew – standing in following this week's sacking of Aitor Karanka – denied having seen any incident.

Bailly did not reference the clash when posting on social media following the game, writing on Twitter: "We knew how to work seriously and suffer until the last minute. Three points well earned."