Category: Football

MADRID: Vinicius Junior, Eder Militao and Marco Asensio made strikes as Real Madrid fought back after conceding an early goal to beat Espanyol 3-1 at Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday.

Second-placed Real Madrid cut leader Barcelona’s advantage to six points at the La Liga top and maintained their thin chances to defend the title by moving up to 56 points.

Barcelona, however, have a chance to regain nine points lead when they face Atheltic Club on Sunday.

Espanyol, who remain 13th, took the lead early on as Joselu smacked the ball into the top corner past goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois following Ruben Sanchez’s cross in the 8th minute.

Madrid made a forceful response to the poor start as Eduardo Camavinga had a shot on target before Vincus stepped up with his masterful skills to pierce into the box, evading two defenders and firing in the leveller in the 22nd minute.

The 22-year-old registered his 19th goal this season in all competitions and moved ahead of Karim Benzema as the club’s top scorer this season.

Pushed back to their own area, Espanyol had no answer to Militao’s thunderous header through Aurelien Tchouameni’s cross six minutes before halftime.

Madrid kept the pressure on the opponents after the break with Rodrygo nearly scoring on a free kick but the ball deflected off the crossbar.

Asensio wrapped up the win for Madrid in the added time as he produced a superb finish with his left foot after a brilliant sprint from Nacho.

In another La Liga fixture on Saturday, Celta Vigo thrashed Rayo Vallecano 3-0 thanks to Iago Aspas’ brace.

Later, Valencia prevailed at home as they beat Osasuna 1-0.

Earlier Elche held Valladolid to a 1-1 draw through Tete Morente’s leveller deep into the stoppage time.

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BUENOS AIRES: The gloves worn by Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano “Dibu” Martinez in the nail-biting penalty shootout with France at Qatar’s World Cup final last year were auctioned Friday for $45,000 in aid of a children’s cancer hospital.

“$45,000 for the Dibu gloves to help the Garrahan boys!” the Argentine Pediatric Foundation said on Instagram, referring to the oncology ward of the Garrahan Hospital, the main pediatric hospital in Argentina.

The auction was held online Friday and featured Martinez via video-link from his home in England, where he plays for Aston Villa.

The gloves were worn by Martinez as he faced the penalty shootout against France in the final in Qatar, with Argentina winning 4-2, granting Lionel Messi’s team the championship after drawing the match 3-3 in extra time.

“When they gave me the option to donate the World Cup gloves, I didn’t hesitate, it’s a good cause for the boys,” said the goalkeeper during the event.

Martinez had autographed the inside of the gloves when announcing the donation in February.

“The World Cup finals are not played every day, (the gloves) are special. But it helps a child much more than me having them hanging in a frame in my house,” he said.

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MANCHESTER: Manchester United bounced back from a historic thrashing by Liverpool to beat Real Betis 4-1 in the first leg of their Europa League last 16 tie on Thursday, while a 2-2 draw away to Sporting Lisbon gave Arsenal work to do to reach the quarter-finals.

United equalled their heaviest ever defeat and worst since 1931 in losing 7-0 at Anfield on Sunday.

Erik ten Hag responded by naming the same starting line-up and was rewarded with a return to form.

“You see how a team reacts after a setback,” said Ten Hag. “This is not the first time this season, I think you see five or six times we can reset and bounce back. This team has character so a big compliment to the team.”

Marcus Rashford smashed United into an early lead with his 26th goal of the season, but Betis levelled against the run of play when Ayoze Perez fired into the far corner.

It was two of United’s most fiercely criticised stars in recent days who made the difference after the break.

Antony curled a brilliant shot into the top corner before Bruno Fernandes, who Ten Hag named again as captain, headed in Luke Shaw’s corner.

“Bruno was brilliant today,” added Ten Hag. “He led the team from the first minute by his game in possession, making the rhythm of the game and scored a goal so I am happy.”

Wout Weghorst then netted just his second goal in 15 appearances for United by pouncing from close range six minutes from time.

Premier League leaders Arsenal were forced to come from behind to salvage a draw in the Portuguese capital.

Despite going for a first league title in 19 years, Mikel Arteta named a strong side and William Saliba headed the visitors into the lead.

Sporting equalised shortly after in near identical fashion, with Goncalo Inacio heading home Marcus Edwards’ corner.

Former Tottenham midfielder Edwards then had a role in Sporting’s second as Paulinho reacted quickest to finish inside the area.

Arsenal were level just after the hour mark, though, when Granit Xhaka’s cross deflected off the unfortunate Hidemasa Morita and rebounded into his own net.

“Considering you concede two goals away from home and still escape with a draw you have to take some positives,” said Arsenal boss Arteta.

“But we gave them too much hope by giving the ball away in our own half too many times.”

– Advantage to Italian giants –

Juventus will take a narrow lead to Germany next week after the in-form Angel di Maria scored the only goal in a 1-0 win over Freiburg.

Jose Mourinho’s Roma are also on course for the last eight after goals from Stephan El Shaarawy and Marash Kumbulla saw off Real Sociedad 2-0 at the Stadio Olimpico.

Six-time winners Sevilla may be fighting a relegation battle in La Liga, but are always a threat in the Europa League and will take a 2-0 first leg lead over Fenerbahce to Istanbul next week thanks to goals from Joan Jordan and Erik Lamela.

The game of the night saw Bundesliga surprise package Union Berlin snatch a 3-3 draw against Union Saint-Gilloise despite having trailed three times.

Bayer Leverkusen beat Ferencvaros 2-0 at home, while Shakhtar Donetsk and Feyenoord played out a 1-1 draw.

In the UEFA Conference League, Michael Antonio hit two first half goals to earn West Ham a 2-0 win at AEK Larnaca.

Villarreal were held 1-1 away at Anderlecht, while Nice and Fiorentina took 1-0 leads over Sheriff Tiraspol and Sivasspor respectively.

LONDON: Chelsea kept their season alive by beating Borussia Dortmund 2-0 at Stamford Bridge to progress to the quarter-finals of the Champions League 2-1 on aggregate on Tuesday.

Raheem Sterling and Kai Havertz, with a twice-taken penalty, got the goals as the Blues relieved the pressure on manager Graham Potter.

The Englishman’s job was on the line after a season that has so far failed to deliver any return on a world-record injection of over £500 million ($600 million) in one season on new signings.

Chelsea had won just three of their previous 16 matches to fall to 10th in the Premier League and bow out early of both domestic cups.

But some of their expensive collection of stars showed up in time to remain in the hunt for a third European Cup.

“There was a fantastic feeling in the dressing room. We have been through a tough period and this competition means a lot for us,” said Potter.

“We wanted to progress and get into the last eight and it sets us up for the next few weeks.”

Dortmund arrived in England on the back of a 10-game winning run in all competitions.

But the visitors posed barely any attacking threat in the first half bar a Marco Reus free-kick that Kepa Arrizabalaga did brilliantly to palm to safety.

“We have to say, over the course of two games, Chelsea deserve to go through,” said Dortmund boss Edin Terzic.

“Both legs were very tight games. In this type of games inches and moments decide if you are going to the next round or not.”

Chances came and went frequently at the other end. Havertz smashed a volley off the inside of the post and then finally found the net via the underside of the bar only for the goal to be ruled out for an offside against Sterling earlier in the move.

The worst miss was to come as Kalidou Koulibaly miscued with an open goal from Ben Chilwell’s free-kick and Felix’s follow-up effort was blocked on the line.

Potter was uncharacteristically animated on the touchline as he constantly whipped the crowd up to keep pushing his side forward.

“There is a lot of emotion in the end,” added Potter. “It was tense in the end but the boys played fantastic.

“I am delighted for them to get the win and great for everyone here.”

The home fans finally had something to celebrate three minutes before half-time.

– Sterling comes good –

Sterling’s first attempt was another one to forget as he swiped and missed Chilwell’s low cross, but the England international composed himself to dribble past Reus and fire high into the net.

“I had a little mis-kick with the first touch but it landed perfectly and allowed us to build on that for our performance,” said Sterling.

That was just Chelsea’s third goal in the last eight games.

Havertz’s penalty early in the second half meant Potter’s men scored more than once for the first time since December 27, but the German international needed two spot-kicks to make his mark.

Marius Wolf was penalised for handling Chilwell’s cross after a VAR review.

Havertz’s first penalty came back off the post, but VAR came to Chelsea’s rescue once more as Dortmund were further punished for encroaching.

There was no second reprieve as Havertz coolly slotted the ball the same way, this time finding the corner of the net.

Chelsea’s spending spree may have ruled them out of the running for Jude Bellingham with the Dortmund midfielder expected to have his choice of Europe’s top clubs this summer.

But on his return to England, Bellingham missed Dortmund’s best chance to take the tie to extra-time when he side-footed wide from close range.

PARIS: Neymar is set to be sidelined for the rest of the season after Paris Saint-Germain said on Monday the forward will undergo ankle surgery and be out of action for three to four months.

The Brazilian, who suffered the injury on February 19 against Lille in Ligue 1, “has had several episodes of instability in the right ankle in recent years,” said the club, adding that its medical staff “recommended a ligament repair operation” be undertaken in Doha.

PSG, still waiting for a maiden Champions League title, bid to overturn a 1-0 first-leg deficit in the last 16 against Bayern Munich in Germany on Wednesday.

Neymar, who has scored 18 goals in all competitions this season, was in fine form for the French champions before the World Cup break.

But the 31-year-old has netted only twice in eight league appearances since returning from Qatar, where Brazil were dumped out in the quarter-finals by Croatia.

Neymar has previously missed matches in the Champions League knock-out phase due to injuries in 2018, 2019 and 2021.

BARCELONA: Barcelona claimed a narrow 1-0 win over Valencia on Sunday, thanks to Raphina’s stand-alone goal, and moved nine points ahead of Real Madrid at the top of La Liga. 

Reigning champions Real, however, stumbled at Benito Villamarín later on and ended the frustrating week with a nil-nil draw against Real Betis.

Barcelona, who defeated the arch-rivals at home in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final on Thursday, bagged three more points and cemented their claim on the La Liga title as they top the standings with 62 points after 24 games.

The home side at Camp Nou started strongly, led by Raphinha, who missed a couple of early chances before heading the ball over the goalkeeper off a superb long pass by midfielder Sergio Busquets in the 15th minute.

But, in the second half, Ferran Torres missed a penalty and Ronald Araujo was sent off to leave the hosts battling tooth and nail to maintain the lead.

At Seville, holders Madrid dominated the proceedings but could not find a way to break the deadlock against the threatening Betis.

Karim Benzema’s effort from a free-kick was disallowed while Betis goalkeeper Claudio Bravo made a string of fine saves to deny the French forward and Vinicius Junior.

Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois was also put to test in the second half by Betis but made two superb stops while the game intensified.

In another Sunday’s La Liga fixture, Valladolid cruised past Espanyol 2-1 on the back of Ivan Sanchez and Alvaro Aguado’s goal in each half.

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MADRID: Dutch forward Memphis Depay got off the mark with two goals for Atletico Madrid as the side thrashed Sevilla 6-1 in La Liga on Saturday. 

Antoine Griezmann and Yannick Carrasco also scored goals each before Alvaro Morata had a brace in the win that marked manager Diego Simeone’s record 613th game as coach.

Atletico seized the opportunity to go third in the standing with 45 points after Real Sociedad drew at home 0-0 against 14th-placed Cadiz on Friday.

Sociedad now sit fourth on 44 points, while holders Real Madrid are second on 52 points with leaders Barcelona seven points ahead of them, both with a game in hand.

Sevilla end up 16th with 25 points, only one point clear of the relegation zone, after consecutive defeats in the last three games.

Atletico dominated the visitors completely throughout the game to record Simone’s 359th win as the club’s manager compared to  Luis Aragones’ 308.

Playing his first game for Atletico since he transferred from Barcelona in January, Depay received a long pass from the French forward Griezmann and slotted past the goalkeeper to open the scoring in the 23rd minute.

The Dutch striker doubled the lead three minutes later with another assist from Giezmann.

Sevilla retaliated through Youssef En Nesyri, who was quick enough to beat goalkeeper Jan Oblak inside the box from close range and made it 2-1 in the 39th minute.

Atletico, however, unleashed a more vigorous attack in the second half with Griezmann regaining the two-goal cushion for his side eight minutes after the break.

Carrasco extended Atletico’s lead in the 69th minute, before Ivan Rakitic missed a penalty, hitting the post from the spot.

Substitute Morata delivered the final blows to a hopeless Sevilla, who had Pape Alassane Gueye sent off in the 81st minute.

Earlier Mallorca beat Elche thanks to Lucas Boye’s late winner two minutes before time while Villarreal dominated Almeria 2-0 to go sixth on the table.

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MADRID: Eder Militao’s own goal handed a depleted Barcelona a surprise 1-0 away victory over Real Madrid in a stormy Copa del Rey semi-final first leg on Thursday.

The Catalans arrived on the back of two consecutive defeats and without an injured trio of key players — top scorer Robert Lewandowski, key midfielder Pedri and explosive winger Ousmane Dembele.

After their Europa League elimination by Manchester United last week and a first ever loss against La Liga minnows Almeria, Madrid fans smelled blood, but left bitterly frustrated.

Militao deflected a rebound into his own goal after 26 minutes to split the teams and hand Barcelona the edge ahead of the second leg on April 5 at Camp Nou.

The hosts had more of the ball but failed to muster a shot on target, while Barcelona defended well.

“This was the game we wanted to play — not with this result, but it gives us confidence for the second leg,” Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti told reporters.

“We did not let Barcelona do what they wanted, that’s good for us, and we just have to repeat it (at Camp Nou).”

Asked if Barcelona deserved to win or not, Ancelotti said it was clear his team deserved more.

“No, that is obvious, we had chances, but I think that it was one of Madrid’s best games in terms of pressing high,” added Ancelotti.

“It was a bit strange, their way of playing, but they have learned very well, it’s a very solid team defensively.”

Barcelona lined up with Marcos Alonso out of position at centre-back, after Andreas Christensen was only deemed fit enough to start on the bench.

Sergio Busquets made his 46th Clasico appearance, overtaking former Real Madrid and Barcelona greats Sergio Ramos and Lionel Messi to set a new record.

Despite Barcelona’s seven-point lead over champions Madrid in La Liga, many, including Barca coach Xavi Hernandez, had Madrid as favourites.

Los Blancos have not won the trophy since 2014 and pushed Barca back early on, with Benzema scoring a goal ruled out for offside.

A handful of Madrid fans had protested outside the Santiago Bernabeu about Barca’s involvement in the “Negreira case” — the Catalan club paying a former refereeing chief for advice until 2018.

The temperature rose considerably when Vinicius Junior was booked midway through the first half for wrestling Frenkie de Jong to the ground.

Vinicius remonstrated vociferously with the referee, and Madrid may still have been distracted by the argument moments later when Barcelona took the lead.

The goal came against the run of play, created by Ferran Torres, who slipped through Franck Kessie, just onside.

Thibaut Courtois saved the Ivorian midfielder’s low shot but the ball rebounded off Militao, into his own net, with Nacho trying and failing to hack it clear.

Madrid players and supporters reacted angrily as Barcelona midfielder Gavi got away with smashing into Militao, but the hosts struggled to carve out chances.

Barcelona held their lead until the break comfortably, with supporters whistling the officials as they walked towards the tunnel.

With Carlo Ancelotti’s side unable to muster a shot on target against an underwhelming Barcelona side, perhaps some of the home supporters’ frustration aimed at the referee was misplaced.

Madrid struggled to connect with Benzema, isolated and unable to influence the game.

Record Copa winners Barcelona should have doubled their lead with 20 minutes remaining when Torres cut the ball back to Kessie, but his goal-bound shot was blocked by his own team-mate, Ansu Fati.

Rodrygo whipped a shot wide for Madrid in the final stages as they remained unable to test Ter Stegen, despite Barcelona’s deficiencies.

More traditional roles were reversed as Madrid had more of the ball but Barcelona defended solidly and took the advantage back home.

“Today they dominated us with the ball, but there are other aspects in the game, sometimes the opponent forces you to this,” admitted Xavi.

“Madrid can dominate you, it’s hard to get the ball off (Toni) Kroos and (Luka) Modric, but defence is part of the game.”

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ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Football Federation Norma­lisation Committee chairman Haroon Malik has failed to give the election date for the country’s football governing body, saying it is not possible to complete the electoral process before the NC term expires on June 30. 

Speaking at a press conference along with Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordi­nation Ehsan-ur-Rehman Mazari, Haroon announced that the elections for district football associations would be held on May 15.

“In the first step we are holding the elections for district associations,” he said while not giving any date for PFF governing body elections.

He affirmed that the mandate of FIFA-accredited NC will expire in June this year but it was not possible to hold the election before it.

“The constitution is clear regarding the football federation’s elections. Eight departments and four provinces have voting rights for the process.”

Moreover, he added that the ministry of IPC was extending its full support to the PFF NC for holding elections.

IPC minister Mazari, who had given seven days ultimatum to Haroon for announcing the election date last week, said FIFA blocked the funds of the PFF for its inability to hold the elections.

“We want PFF elections at the earliest,” he said, adding they want to promote the sports in the country.

It may be noted here that the football affairs in Pakistan have been mired in crisis since 2015 in the absence of an elected body. FIFA appointed a Normalisation Committee in September 2019 to put the country’s football back on track. FIFA also suspended PFF membership for a 15-month period during that time after the Normalisation Committee was thrown out of office.

The FIFA suspension was only lifted in June last year and extended the mandate of the NC by one year after it regained control of PFF in May.

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MADRID: Eder Militao’s own goal handed a depleted Barcelona a surprise 1-0 away victory over Real Madrid in a stormy Copa del Rey semi-final first leg on Thursday.

The Catalans arrived on the back of two consecutive defeats and without an injured trio of key players — top scorer Robert Lewandowski, key midfielder Pedri and explosive winger Ousmane Dembele.

After their Europa League elimination by Manchester United last week and a first ever loss against La Liga minnows Almeria, Madrid fans smelled blood, but left bitterly frustrated.

Militao deflected a rebound into his own goal after 26 minutes to split the teams and hand Barcelona the edge ahead of the second leg on April 5 at Camp Nou.

The hosts had more of the ball but failed to muster a shot on target, while Barcelona defended well.

“This was the game we wanted to play — not with this result, but it gives us confidence for the second leg,” Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti told reporters.

“We did not let Barcelona do what they wanted, that’s good for us, and we just have to repeat it (at Camp Nou).”

Asked if Barcelona deserved to win or not, Ancelotti said it was clear his team deserved more.

“No, that is obvious, we had chances, but I think that it was one of Madrid’s best games in terms of pressing high,” added Ancelotti.

“It was a bit strange, their way of playing, but they have learned very well, it’s a very solid team defensively.”

Barcelona lined up with Marcos Alonso out of position at centre-back, after Andreas Christensen was only deemed fit enough to start on the bench.

Sergio Busquets made his 46th Clasico appearance, overtaking former Real Madrid and Barcelona greats Sergio Ramos and Lionel Messi to set a new record.

Madrid frustrations

Despite Barcelona’s seven-point lead over champions Madrid in La Liga, many, including Barca coach Xavi Hernandez, had Madrid as favourites.

Los Blancos have not won the trophy since 2014 and pushed Barca back early on, with Benzema scoring a goal ruled out for offside.

A handful of Madrid fans had protested outside the Santiago Bernabeu about Barca’s involvement in the “Negreira case” — the Catalan club paying a former refereeing chief for advice until 2018.

The temperature rose considerably when Vinicius Junior was booked midway through the first half for wrestling Frenkie de Jong to the ground.

Vinicius remonstrated vociferously with the referee, and Madrid may still have been distracted by the argument moments later when Barcelona took the lead.

The goal came against the run of play, created by Ferran Torres, who slipped through Franck Kessie, just onside.

Thibaut Courtois saved the Ivorian midfielder’s low shot but the ball rebounded off Militao, into his own net, with Nacho trying and failing to hack it clear.

Madrid players and supporters reacted angrily as Barcelona midfielder Gavi got away with smashing into Militao, but the hosts struggled to carve out chances.

Barcelona held their lead until the break comfortably, with supporters whistling the officials as they walked towards the tunnel.

With Carlo Ancelotti’s side unable to muster a shot on target against an underwhelming Barcelona side, perhaps some of the home supporters’ frustration aimed at the referee was misplaced.

Madrid struggled to connect with Benzema, isolated and unable to influence the game.

Record Copa winners Barcelona should have doubled their lead with 20 minutes remaining when Torres cut the ball back to Kessie, but his goal-bound shot was blocked by his own team-mate, Ansu Fati.

Rodrygo whipped a shot wide for Madrid in the final stages as they remained unable to test Ter Stegen, despite Barcelona’s deficiencies.

More traditional roles were reversed as Madrid had more of the ball but Barcelona defended solidly and took the advantage back home.

“Today they dominated us with the ball, but there are other aspects in the game, sometimes the opponent forces you to this,” admitted Xavi.

“Madrid can dominate you, it’s hard to get the ball off (Toni) Kroos and (Luka) Modric, but defence is part of the game.”

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