2nd October 2012
Portuguese giants Benfica take on mighty Barcelona at a sold out Estadio da Luz in what should be the most interesting match of Tuesday’s Champions League programme. The Eagles have already proved they can mix it up even with the best of them, and they can now further improve their reputation with a good showing against the La Liga leaders.
Benfica spent much of the last decade trailing arch rivals Porto on domestic stage and largely struggling in Europe, but everything changed with the arrival of coach Jorge Jesus. Backed by the club board, the experienced coach built a very strong side that helped the club return to old glory days. While doing well to win the league title in 2009/2010 and several other domestic trophies, the Eagles also managed to p…
Luis Enrique said one only has to look at Barcelona s history to see they are not yet defeated in the Supercopa de Espana, despite Athletic Bilbao s 4-0 win on Friday.
After watching his side decimated by Aritz Aduriz s second-half hat-trick at San Mames, the Barca boss stayed calm in the face of crisis the Catalans having conceded eight times in two matches.
Monday s second leg would need to see Barcelona pull off one of their better Houdini efforts but Luis Enrique said the history books show his men are capable.
Barca arrested a 2-0 deficit against Milan in the UEFA Champions League round-of-16 in 2012-13, while they also came from 3-1 down against Chelsea (1999-00 quarter-finals) and by the same margin against Sevilla in the 2010 Supercopa all of their reviva…
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger maintains there is no bad blood between his side and Saturday s Premier League opponents, Stoke City.
The teams meet at the Emirates Stadium at the weekend with their rivalry having eased off somewhat in recent seasons Stoke s previously robust approach often attracting the ire of Wenger and his side.
A broken leg suffered by Aaron Ramsey in a tackle with Stoke captain Ryan Shawcross at the Britannia Stadium in 2010 served as a catalyst for emotions to run high.
Stoke have never won at the Emirates while Arsenal have traditionally struggling at the Britannia.
After a mixed start to Arsenal s season, Wenger wants to kick-start the campaign against a Stoke team now geared towards attacking flair with the likes of Xherdan Shaqir…
Sean Dyche and Tony Pulis were both content with their sides efforts as Burnley and West Brom battled to an entertaining 2-2 draw at Turf Moor on Saturday.
The Clarets edged ahead early in the second period through Sam Vokes, but the Baggies levelled as Salomon Rondon netted his first goal in 19 matches, ending West Brom s five-game drought in the process.
And things got better for the visitors as birthday boy Craig Dawson headed home only for Vokes to earn a draw for the Clarets, who reached 40 points and are all-but assured of their Premier League status for next season.
I prefer not to [celebrate] until it s definitely done, but everyone recognised 40 points as a very strong marker in the Premier League, Dyche told Sky Sports.
Two-goal hero Sam Vokes …
Arsenal avoided an upset and booked a place in the semi-finals of the FA Cup on Saturday, but defeating fifth-tier Lincoln City 5-0 at Emirates Stadium is unlikely to ease the intense scrutiny bearing down on manager Arsene Wenger.
Strikes from Theo Walcott, Olivier Giroud, Alexis Sanchez, Aaron Ramsey and Luke Waterfall s own goal sealed the victory, but more protests prior to the game called for the departure of the veteran manager, who is out of contract at the end of the season and under pressure to walk away having failed to win the Premier League since 2003-04.
A humiliating 5-1 loss to Bayern Munich in the Champions League in midweek, which sealed a catastrophic 10-2 aggregate exit at the last-16 stage for a seventh successive season, could yet prove too great an…
With another stacked schedule on our hands from across Europe this weekend, we have a host of noteworthy meetings that are worth keeping an eye out for. So, for those of you looking to stick on a Saturday acca, we have searched far and wide to find you a few helpful tips.
Saturday 27th February
BST 12:30 Bournemouth vs Watford
Starting with Saturday s guests, managing to pick up what was an action-packed 3-2 win away at Blackburn earlier in the week, the Hornets do appear to have found their feet under new boss Xisco Munoz. With their sights set on securing an immediate Premier League return this season, they open up this weekend s fixtures with just their goal difference stopping them from breaking into the top-two. Enjoying what has been a hugely impressiv…
It is December 16, 2018 – Liverpool have just beaten Manchester United 3-1 at Anfield in Jose Mourinho s final match in charge of the Red Devils.
Victory sends Liverpool to the top of the Premier League, and while they ultimately narrowly missed out on the title that season, hindsight shows it was a signpost for their potential and depths United have plumbed.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer came in soon after on an interim basis and, despite there being critics who consistently call his abilities into question, there can be no doubt of the impact he has had.
Sunday January 17, 2020 – United go to Anfield top of the Premier League, three clear of their bitter rivals. It is an achievement in itself, though Solskjaer has taken every opportunity to play it down – his ters…
Russian football s chief believes Fabio Capello will continue as national team manager, despite rumoured interest from Paris Saint-Germain.
Capello is the latest name to be tipped to take over from Carlo Ancelotti, who has made no secret of his desire to leave PSG and join Real Madrid.
Reports had indicated that Capello had signed a one-year deal to take over at the Parc des Princes.
However Russian Football Federation president Nikolai Tolstykh insists the former England boss is focused on his efforts to help the UEFA Euro 2008 semi-finalists qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Capello has a contract with the Russian Football Federation, he told R-Sport.
He has repeatedly talked about how happy he is with the Russian national side and that he intends to c…
Marco Silva admitted it is inevitable that bigger clubs will be interested in Fulham’s players in the wake of the club’s success last season, but would not be drawn on reports Joao Palhinha is set to join Bayern Munich.
Palhinha, who scored a late equaliser in last weekend’s draw against Arsenal, trained with the team on Thursday morning ahead of their trip to face Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday.
Reports in Germany have claimed a deal has been agreed in principal between the player and the Bundesliga champions, but the west London club would not confirm the midfielder is about to be sold ahead of Friday’s transfer deadline.
João Palhinha.
— Fulham Football Club (@FulhamFC)
Should Palhinha move to Germany, it would l…
Former Manchester United and France international striker Louis Saha has announced his retirement from professional football.
Saha, 35, began his career with Metz after spending time at the famous Clairefontaine academy.
He moved to Fulham in 2000 following a short loan spell at Newcastle United, helping establish the Craven Cottage outfit as a Premier League club with 63 goals in 142 games before Manchester United came calling in 2004.
Saha would go on to enjoy great success at Old Trafford, winning the Premier League title on two occasions and tasting victory in the UEFA Champions League in 2008.
Stints at Everton, Tottenham and Sunderland followed, but the latter part of Saha s career was heavily marred by injuries.
Lazio proved to be his final stop, wit…