Juventus goalkeeper and captain Gianluigi Buffon has called for full commitment when the Italian champions host Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday, looking to put one foot in the quarterfinals of the Champions League. . The Turin giants welcome Jurgen Klopp’s side on a high, having boosted their Serie A lead over challengers Roma to nine points at the weekend. . Buffon, who admitted to getting frustrated with himself and the team during difficult encounters in recent weeks, said he has every respect for the Germans. . Dortmund beat Juventus 3-1 to win the 1997 European Cup and were beaten in the…
Author: David F.
Barcelona coach Luis Enrique declared on Monday that there would be no hangover from his side’s shock defeat by Malaga in their Champions League last 16 clash with Manchester City. . Barcelona saw an 11-game winning run abruptly ended by Saturday’s 1-0 loss at home to Malaga and despite Tuesday’s first leg with City looming into view, questions about the weekend defeat dominated the eve-of-match press conference. . At times Enrique appeared close to exasperation with the Spanish journalists’ line of questioning, but he said that one bad result should not overshadow the sparkling displays that had come before. .…
Atletico Madrid’s players are hoping coach Diego Simeone can become the club’s equivalent of Alex Ferguson, midfielder Tiago has said amid reports the Argentine is poised to sign a multi-year contract extension. . Simeone, who took over at the end of 2011, has a deal with the Spanish champions until June 2017, while Ferguson became the most successful British manager in history when he was in charge at Manchester United between 1986 and 2012. . Under the inspirational Simeone, Atletico have won the Europa League, the King’s Cup and their first La Liga title in 18 years, while Ferguson’s haul…
Two referees who were criticised for their performances in Premier League matches over the weekend will not take charge of games in the next round in the English top flight. . Martin Atkinson and Kevin Friend have been appointed as fourth officials for games on Saturday. . Atkinson failed to send off Burnley striker Ashley Barnes for a strong tackle on Chelsea’s Nemanja Matic during a game at Stamford Bridge on Saturday. An unhappy Matic subsequently pushed Barnes to the ground, and received a straight red card. . The Football Association declined on Monday to take retrospective action against Barnes…
Burnley’s Ashley Barnes will not be punished for his ugly tackle on Chelsea’s Nemanja Matic, the English Football Association announced on Monday. . The foot up and studs showing challenge, labelled “criminal” by Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho, in the 70th minute of Saturday’s 1-1 draw resulted in Matic’s sending off for lashing out angrily. . While the Serbian midfielder was dismissed, Burnley forward Barnes went unpunished by referee Martin Atkinson and the Clarets took advantage of their numerical advantage to snatch a late equaliser. . Having initially gone to ground in pain, Matic ran towards Barnes and bundled him to…
Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard accused Mario Balotelli of being disrespectful after the controversial Italian striker snatched penalty-taking duties away from Jordan Henderson during Thursday’s 1-0 Europa League win over Besiktas. . Gerrard was angry that Balotelli overruled Henderson when the stand-in Reds skipper tried to take an 85th-minute penalty in the last 32, first leg at Anfield. . With the game goalless, Jordon Ibe won the spot-kick and England international Henderson appeared set to fulfil his role as the assigned penalty taker in the absence of the injured Gerrard. . But Balotelli took the ball out of Henderson’s hands, prompting…
Chelsea Football Club have condemned an incident, captured in amateur video footage in the Paris metro, that shows fans pushing a black man off a train and chanting “we’re racist”. . The video was filmed before Chelsea’s Champions League match against Paris St Germain at the Parc des Princes stadium in Paris on Tuesday evening. . The men can be heard chanting “we’re racist, we’re racist, and that’s the way we like it”. . A Paris police prefecture spokesman said on Wednesday that no immediate complaint had been filed in relation to the video which was posted on the website…
Preston goalkeeper Thorsten Stuckmann says Manchester United’s Wayne Rooney apologised for the way he won a penalty in Monday’s 3-1 FA Cup win at Deepdale. . The striker went down in the box after a challenge from Stuckmann, who appeared to make little or no contact. . “Rooney told me: ‘Sorry, it was my chance to get a penalty. I had to use that’,” Stuckmann told The Sun. . The England striker scored United’s third from the spot to secure an FA Cup quarter-final tie at home to Arsenal. . The incident split opinion among the BBC pundits during Monday…
Out-of-contract Super Eagles boss,Stephen Keshi will be offered a two-year deal worth N120m following the recommendation of the technical and development sub-committee of the Nigeria Football Federation that the big boss should be retained . . The sub-committee,Complete Sports scooped recommended a two-year deal for the former Eagles captain with a N7m monthly pay but a member of the executive committee of the federation who does not want to be named says the federation cannot afford the recommended salary and has opted to retain the coach on his former salary of N5m a month. The source also rubbished reports in…
Former Nigeria skipper Joseph Yobo has urged the Flying Eagles to work harder so they could be bigger stars than he and his contemporaries were. . Yobo met up with the Nigeria U-20 at the Murtala Mohammed Airport in Lagos at the weekend on their way to Ghana for two test matches against their Ghanaian counterparts. . “You can be bigger stars than we were, Yobo told the players. . “I left this country for Europe when I was just 17 and before you know it, I was my family’s bread winner. You can also do same and even more,…
Super Eagles goalkeepers’ trainer, Ike Shorunmu is excited that national team player Brown Ideye is back to his full potentials at West Brom after he was being criticized by fans of the English Premier League side that he was not living up to his £10 million transfer fees. . “I feel excited seeing these young boys doing well in their clubs and to be honest with you, Ideye will now have a relaxed mind to play and with time, he will even do more than the coach expects from him. It is good he has started scoring and with that,…
Former U-20 international Gero Abdullahi was the surprise exclusion from the 21 –man list released by the Head Coach of U-23 Eagles Coach Samson Siasia for this weekend’s All- Africa Games qualifying game against Gabon in Libreville. . Others who failed to make the team are Aminu Umar, who arrived late to camp and Warri Wolves’ forward Freedom Omofonma who also arrived camp late after his club’s CAF Confederation Cup game in Burkina Faso. . The list of 16 home boys and five overseas- based professionals are expected to depart the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos on Wednesday evening for…
Dominant in the first half but scrappy and ineffective in the second, Bayern Munich blamed themselves for failing to score in their 0-0 draw at Shakhtar Donetsk for their Champions League Round of 16 first leg on Tuesday. . The Bavarians had the best scoring chances and allowed only one shot on goal from their opponents but did not make their dominance count, lacking the final pass in front of goal. . “Now it is clear. We have to win in Munich. Nothing else will do,” said Dutch winger Arjen Robben. “We had a good first half and we had…
Out-of-contract Nigeria manager, Stephen Keshi, is now one step away from clinching the head coach job of Burkina Faso, supersport.com can report. . Keshi has been shortlisted among the final three for the coaching job of the Stallions. . The Burkina Faso Football Federation (FBF), on Tuesday, released a three-man shortlist that also include Serbian Milovan Rajevac and German coach, Gernot Rohr. . “The Burkinabe Football Federation has just taken the first step in selecting a national coach, producing the shortlist that includes the names of the top three contenders for the post,” the FBF announced. . Keshi and the…
Super Falcons head coach, Edwin Okon has said top grade warm-up matches are quite key to the side successful campaign at upcoming Fifa Women’s World Cup in Canada. . The African champions are expected to open camp on Sunday, February 22 in Abuja to commence preparations for the All Africa Games (AAG), Olympic Games qualifiers as well as World Cup campaign in June. . Falcons are pitched in Group D at the World Cup together with former champions, USA, Sweden and Australia. . Okon said he discovered that the All Africa Games and Olympic qualifying matches against mali are inadequate…
Paris St Germain sustained their hopes of reaching the Champions League quarterfinals when Edinson Cavani’s powerful second-half header salvaged a 1-1 home draw against Chelsea in their last-16 first leg on Tuesday. . Cavani struck early in the second half to cancel out Branislav Ivanovic’s first-half header, which was scored against the run of play after the French champions had dominated from the start at the Parc des Princes. . Chelsea, who won last year’s quarterfinal with PSG on away goals, scored with their only chance while the hosts had several opportunities to take a lead into the second leg…
Jose Mourinho conceded his Chelsea side ‘got away with it’ in a 1-1 draw at Paris St Germain in their Champions League last-16 first leg on Tuesday and had one man to thank for a flattering result — Thibaut Courtois. . The Belgium keeper made several brilliant saves, including one to deny PSG’s Sweden striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic in added time at the Parc des Princes, to keep his team afloat ahead of the March 11 return leg at Stamford Bridge. . “The 1-1 reflects one half for Chelsea, one half for Paris but on chances created and goalkeepers’ performances we…
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho admitted his side were fortunate to come away with a draw in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie with Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday as he hailed goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois. . PSG had the better of the game but only had a second-half Edinson Cavani goal to show for their efforts, with Courtois producing half a dozen vital saves to help Chelsea claim a 1-1 draw in the French capital. . As a result, Branislav Ivanovic’s precious away goal in the first half – from Chelsea’s only chance of the game – gives the…
Enyimba’s new centre back Chima Uluocha has said his side will go for an outright win at the Beninese side Buffles du Borgou. . The former Abia Warriors captain was sidelined by slight knee injury in the side’s 3-0 win against the West African foes in Sunday’s Caf Champions League first leg clash at the Aba Township Stadium. . Uluocha said he is positive to regain 100% fitness before the side head to Parakou, Benin Republic, for the decisive clash. . “We won’t defend the 3-0 win advantage in Benin Republic but go all out for another convincing victory. .…
Head coach of Nigeria’s Under-23 tean, Samson Siasia says he is not building his side around any individual as he prepares for this weekend’s All Africa Games qualifying match against Gabon in Libreville. . Siasia has also warned the five overseas-based players called up for the game against Gabon not to rest on their laurels as any dip in standards will see the affected individual instantly dropped. “There is no automatic shirt in this team. Anybody who does not work hard or meet our standards will be dropped immediately,” Siasia told supersport.com shortly after he named a squad of 21…