Fernando Llorente&#39;s two injury-time goals saw Swansea come from behind to snatch a thrilling 5-4 win over Crystal Palace in an amazing see-saw game at the Liberty Stadium, snapping an 11-game winless streak and handing the Eagles their sixth straight defeat.

Wilfried Zaha opened the scoring for Palace but Bob Bradley&#39;s Swans looked set for their first win since the opening day of the season as a Gylfi Sigurdsson free kick and a brace from Leroy Fer put them 3-1 midway through the second half.

Unbowed, Alan Pardew&#39;s Palace came roaring back, James Tomkins forcing home a corner and Jack Cork deflecting the ball into his own net before Christian Benteke put the visitors 4-3 up with just six minutes left.

But Llorente netted twice in the 91st and 93rd minute to put the home side back on top, and they hung on grimly through seven minutes of injury time for the three precious points that take them off the bottom of the table.

(Reuters)

Bob Bradley's Swans looked set for their first win since the opening day of the season

Fernando Llorente's two injury-time goals saw Swansea come from behind to snatch a thrilling 5-4 win over Crystal Palace in an amazing see-saw game at the Liberty Stadium, snapping an 11-game winless streak and handing the Eagles their sixth straight defeat. Wilfried Zaha opened the scoring for Palace but Bob Bradley's Swans looked set for their first win since the opening day of the season as a Gylfi Sigurdsson free kick and a brace from Leroy Fer put them 3-1 midway through the second half. Unbowed, Alan Pardew's Palace came roaring back, James Tomkins forcing home a corner and Jack Cork deflecting the ball into his own net before Christian Benteke put the visitors 4-3 up with just six minutes left. But Llorente netted twice in the 91st and 93rd minute to put the home side back on top, and they hung on grimly through seven minutes of injury time for the three precious points that take them off the bottom of the table. (Reuters)

Premier League: Swansea stun Palace with last-gasp winner in 5-4 thriller

Former Liverpool and England captain Steven Gerrard announced his retirement from professional football on Thursday at the age of 36, calling time on an emblematic career.

Gerrard spent 17 years at his home-town club Liverpool, 12 as captain, and won nine honours including the 2005 Champions League before finishing his career with an 18-month stint at LA Galaxy.

&quot;Following recent media speculation surrounding my future, I can confirm my retirement from playing professional football,&quot; Gerrard said in a statement.

&quot;I have had an incredible career and am thankful for each and every moment of my time at Liverpool, England and LA Galaxy.&quot;

Although the Premier League title famously eluded him, Gerrard did win two FA Cups, three League Cups, the UEFA Cup, the UEFA Super Cup and the Community Shield.

His finest hour came in Istanbul in May 2005, when he inspired Liverpool to come from 3-0 down against AC Milan at half-time of the Champions League final to win the club&#39;s fifth European Cup in a penalty shootout.

In total he made 710 appearances for Liverpool, the third-highest total behind Ian Callaghan and former team-mate Jamie Carragher, scoring 186 goals.

Gerrard made 114 appearances for England, a tally bettered only by Peter Shilton, Wayne Rooney and David Beckham, and scored 21 international goals.

He appeared at six major tournaments, captaining England at the 2010 World Cup, Euro 2012 and the 2014 World Cup. 
&quot;I feel lucky to have experienced so many wonderful highlights over the course of my career,&quot; Gerrard said.

&quot;I am proud to have played over 700 games for Liverpool, many of which as captain, and to have played my part in helping the club to bring major honours back to Anfield, none more so than that famous night in Istanbul.

&quot;At an international level, I feel privileged to have won 114 England caps and to have had the honour of captaining my country.&quot;Gerrard has been linked with a coaching role at Liverpool and the club`s manager, Jurgen Klopp, said he would be welcomed back with open arms.

&quot;The door is always open for him,&quot; Klopp told a press conference.

&quot;If he wants to make a different career to his former career then we want to help him.&quot;

Gerrard, who has confirmed he turned down an approach from English third-tier side Milton Keynes Dons, said he would take his time before announcing his next move.

&quot;I am excited about the future and feel I still have a lot to offer the game, in whatever capacity that may be,&quot; he said.

&quot;I am currently taking my time to consider a number of options and will make an announcement with regards to the next stage of my career very soon.&quot;

Gerrard said he could no longer ignore the physical signs that his best days were behind him.

&quot;The body starts talking to you, the pains and the aches get more regular, the way you feel out there on the pitch changes,&quot; he told BT Sport.

&quot;Important people in the game who I trust and have a lot of respect for have said to me: &#39;Always go with a tiny bit left. Never overstay your welcome and play on too long where it becomes embarrassing.&#39;

&quot;I can feel that`s not too far away, so now`s the right time.&quot;

Asked if he would like to pursue a career in coaching or punditry, he said: &quot;I think I`d like to do a bit of both.&quot;Born in Whiston, Merseyside, Gerrard joined Liverpool&#39;s academy at the age of nine and made his first-team debut aged 18 as a substitute against Blackburn Rovers in November 1998.

After quickly establishing himself as a dominant force in Liverpool`s midfield, he made his England debut against Ukraine in May 2000.

He got his first taste of silverware under Gerard Houllier in the 2000-01 season, when Liverpool won a treble of FA Cup, League Cup and UEFA Cup honours.

He launched Liverpool`s fightback against Istanbul with a glancing header and scored a 35-yard thunderbolt the following season to inspire his side to victory over West Ham United in the FA Cup final.

Twice strongly linked with moves to Chelsea, he elected to stay with Liverpool, but apart from a third League Cup crown in 2012, the rest of his career proved fallow in terms of silverware.

Liverpool looked to be on course for the Premier League title under Brendan Rodgers in 2014, only for a calamitous slip by Gerrard in a match against Chelsea to clear Manchester City&#39;s path to the title.

He followed in Beckham`s footsteps with a late-career stint in Major League Soccer with LA Galaxy.

&quot;Ability-wise, he was the best midfielder I`ve ever seen,&quot; said former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy. 
Liverpool tweeted simply: &quot;Legend.&quot;

(AFP)

Gerrard spent 17 years at his home-town club Liverpool, 12 as captain, and won nine honours including the 2005 Champions League

Former Liverpool and England captain Steven Gerrard announced his retirement from professional football on Thursday at the age of 36, calling time on an emblematic career. Gerrard spent 17 years at his home-town club Liverpool, 12 as captain, and won nine honours including the 2005 Champions League before finishing his career with an 18-month stint at LA Galaxy. "Following recent media speculation surrounding my future, I can confirm my retirement from playing professional football," Gerrard said in a statement. "I have had an incredible career and am thankful for each and every moment of my time at Liverpool, England and LA Galaxy." Although the Premier League title famously eluded him, Gerrard did win two FA Cups, three League Cups, the UEFA Cup, the UEFA Super Cup and the Community Shield. His finest hour came in Istanbul in May 2005, when he inspired Liverpool to come from 3-0 down against AC Milan at half-time of the Champions League final to win the club's fifth European Cup in a penalty shootout. In total he made 710 appearances for Liverpool, the third-highest total behind Ian Callaghan and former team-mate Jamie Carragher, scoring 186 goals. Gerrard made 114 appearances for England, a tally bettered only by Peter Shilton, Wayne Rooney and David Beckham, and scored 21 international goals. He appeared at six major tournaments, captaining England at the 2010 World Cup, Euro 2012 and the 2014 World Cup. "I feel lucky to have experienced so many wonderful highlights over the course of my career," Gerrard said. "I am proud to have played over 700 games for Liverpool, many of which as captain, and to have played my part in helping the club to bring major honours back to Anfield, none more so than that famous night in Istanbul. "At an international level, I feel privileged to have won 114 England caps and to have had the honour of captaining my country."Gerrard has been linked with a coaching role at Liverpool and the club`s manager, Jurgen Klopp, said he would be welcomed back with open arms. "The door is always open for him," Klopp told a press conference. "If he wants to make a different career to his former career then we want to help him." Gerrard, who has confirmed he turned down an approach from English third-tier side Milton Keynes Dons, said he would take his time before announcing his next move. "I am excited about the future and feel I still have a lot to offer the game, in whatever capacity that may be," he said. "I am currently taking my time to consider a number of options and will make an announcement with regards to the next stage of my career very soon." Gerrard said he could no longer ignore the physical signs that his best days were behind him. "The body starts talking to you, the pains and the aches get more regular, the way you feel out there on the pitch changes," he told BT Sport. "Important people in the game who I trust and have a lot of respect for have said to me: 'Always go with a tiny bit left. Never overstay your welcome and play on too long where it becomes embarrassing.' "I can feel that`s not too far away, so now`s the right time." Asked if he would like to pursue a career in coaching or punditry, he said: "I think I`d like to do a bit of both."Born in Whiston, Merseyside, Gerrard joined Liverpool's academy at the age of nine and made his first-team debut aged 18 as a substitute against Blackburn Rovers in November 1998. After quickly establishing himself as a dominant force in Liverpool`s midfield, he made his England debut against Ukraine in May 2000. He got his first taste of silverware under Gerard Houllier in the 2000-01 season, when Liverpool won a treble of FA Cup, League Cup and UEFA Cup honours. He launched Liverpool`s fightback against Istanbul with a glancing header and scored a 35-yard thunderbolt the following season to inspire his side to victory over West Ham United in the FA Cup final. Twice strongly linked with moves to Chelsea, he elected to stay with Liverpool, but apart from a third League Cup crown in 2012, the rest of his career proved fallow in terms of silverware. Liverpool looked to be on course for the Premier League title under Brendan Rodgers in 2014, only for a calamitous slip by Gerrard in a match against Chelsea to clear Manchester City's path to the title. He followed in Beckham`s footsteps with a late-career stint in Major League Soccer with LA Galaxy. "Ability-wise, he was the best midfielder I`ve ever seen," said former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy. Liverpool tweeted simply: "Legend." (AFP)

Football: Liverpool great Gerrard calls time on career

FIFA is facing a lawsuit in a Zurich court over regulations that ban the transfer of players under the age of 18.

The case was been filed at the Zurich Commercial Court on Wednesday on behalf of a 17-year-old African player and his parents, who say that the rules make FIFA&#39;s transfer regulations unlawful.

A spokesman for Zurich law firm Nater Dallafior Rechtsanwaelte, which has brought the case, said in a statement that the player, who had represented his country at youth level, was unable to move to a club in the European Union because of the rules.

&quot;Thereby, he and his family miss the probably unique chance of a professional and social advancement,&quot; said the statement issued on Thursday.

FIFA bans the international transfers of players under the age of 18 unless their parents have emigrated for reasons not connected to football or both the player and club are based within 50 kilometres of a national border.

The only other exception is for transfers within either the EU or European Economic Area (EEA), where the minimum age is 16.

In those cases, clubs must still ensure that the player continues his education and studies for an alternative career, as well as making sure he has a high living standard.

&quot;FIFA implemented these regulations on the pretext that young football players such as the claimant must be protected,&quot; said the statement.

&quot;In reality, however, these regulations lead to a discrimination of football players from third countries outside the European Union.&quot; This, it said, made them unlawful.

The statement said the rules also infringed EU law, which allowed for unrestricted free movement of students and employees.

FIFA could not immediately be reached for comment but has argued in the past that the rules go back to an agreement signed in 2001 between FIFA, UEFA and the European Commission and these had been further developed over the years.

Spanish clubs Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid have been banned from signing players for two transfer windows by FIFA for breaching the rules while Barcelona have completed a similar ban. All three clubs denied wrongdoing.

Former Cameroon international Jean-Claude Mbvoumin, who has set up the Culture Foot Solidaire group to fight the trafficking of minors, says that young African players are still brought to Europe by false agents.

He told Reuters last year that families sometimes hand over their life savings to the agents hoping to secure a move to a top club, only for their sons to be abandoned on the streets of Europe.

FIFA is also facing a legal complaint at the European Commission from the world players&#39; union FIFPro, which says that the current transfer regulations have led to a lack of competition in the sport.

(Reuters)

FIFA bans the international transfers of players under the age of 18 unless their parents have emigrated for reasons not related to football

FIFA is facing a lawsuit in a Zurich court over regulations that ban the transfer of players under the age of 18. The case was been filed at the Zurich Commercial Court on Wednesday on behalf of a 17-year-old African player and his parents, who say that the rules make FIFA's transfer regulations unlawful. A spokesman for Zurich law firm Nater Dallafior Rechtsanwaelte, which has brought the case, said in a statement that the player, who had represented his country at youth level, was unable to move to a club in the European Union because of the rules. "Thereby, he and his family miss the probably unique chance of a professional and social advancement," said the statement issued on Thursday. FIFA bans the international transfers of players under the age of 18 unless their parents have emigrated for reasons not connected to football or both the player and club are based within 50 kilometres of a national border. The only other exception is for transfers within either the EU or European Economic Area (EEA), where the minimum age is 16. In those cases, clubs must still ensure that the player continues his education and studies for an alternative career, as well as making sure he has a high living standard. "FIFA implemented these regulations on the pretext that young football players such as the claimant must be protected," said the statement. "In reality, however, these regulations lead to a discrimination of football players from third countries outside the European Union." This, it said, made them unlawful. The statement said the rules also infringed EU law, which allowed for unrestricted free movement of students and employees. FIFA could not immediately be reached for comment but has argued in the past that the rules go back to an agreement signed in 2001 between FIFA, UEFA and the European Commission and these had been further developed over the years. Spanish clubs Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid have been banned from signing players for two transfer windows by FIFA for breaching the rules while Barcelona have completed a similar ban. All three clubs denied wrongdoing. Former Cameroon international Jean-Claude Mbvoumin, who has set up the Culture Foot Solidaire group to fight the trafficking of minors, says that young African players are still brought to Europe by false agents. He told Reuters last year that families sometimes hand over their life savings to the agents hoping to secure a move to a top club, only for their sons to be abandoned on the streets of Europe. FIFA is also facing a legal complaint at the European Commission from the world players' union FIFPro, which says that the current transfer regulations have led to a lack of competition in the sport. (Reuters)

FIFA faces lawsuit over rules banning transfer of minors

Spain&#39;s public prosecutor has called for Barcelona soccer player Neymar to be sent to prison for two years for his part in a corruption case over his transfer from Brazilian club Santos to the Liga champions in 2013, said a court filing on Wednesday.

Judge Jose Perals also called for a five-year sentence for former Barca president Sandro Rosell and a fine of 8.4 million euros ($8.9 million) for the club, but called for charges against current president Josep Maria Bartomeu to be dropped.

(Reuters)

The case is related to his part in a corruption case over his transfer from Brazilian club Santos to the Liga champions in 2013

Spain's public prosecutor has called for Barcelona soccer player Neymar to be sent to prison for two years for his part in a corruption case over his transfer from Brazilian club Santos to the Liga champions in 2013, said a court filing on Wednesday. Judge Jose Perals also called for a five-year sentence for former Barca president Sandro Rosell and a fine of 8.4 million euros ($8.9 million) for the club, but called for charges against current president Josep Maria Bartomeu to be dropped. (Reuters)

Spanish court wants two-year prison sentence for Barca's Neymar

The English Premier League has sold its television rights in China to streaming service PPTV for $700 million, a source familiar with the matter said, several times the size of past deals as it cashes in on a growing enthusiasm for soccer.

A spokesman for PPTV, part of retail group Suning, confirmed a three-year deal that will kick in from the 2019/20 season. He did not comment on the value as the agreement has not yet been formalised.

&quot;We were successful in our bid, but it hasn`t formally been signed yet,&quot; said PPTV spokesman Sun Xiaobo. &quot;We`ve definitely already won the tender.&quot;

The Premier League has not confirmed the deal. PPTV is one of China`s largest streaming services and already owns the rights to Spain`s La Liga.

Under President Xi Jinping, China has been looking to expand its global presence in the sport.&nbsp;

It has invested billions of dollars to develop grassroots soccer academies, brought high-profile players and managers into China from overseas, and is buying into global assets from Italian club Inter Milan to Manchester City.

The Premier League, for its part, has seen television revenues shoot up globally in recent years - back home in Britain, pay-TV group Sky last year agreed to pay 4.2 billion pounds ($5.21 billion) to show 126 live English Premier League matches a season from 2016 to 2019.

NBC last year paid around $1 billion for a six-year deal to broadcast the league in the United States until the end of the 2021/22 season, near double that of their prior three-year deal.

Beijing-based Super Sports Media is the current rights holders in China with local media reports suggesting they paid more than 1 billion yuan ($145.13 million) for a six-year deal until the end of the 2018/19 season.&nbsp;

The deal with PPTV will allow the English Premier League to tap into the growing market for pay-per-view online streaming and subscription services in China.

A 2014 survey by Repucom estimated there were 170 million fans of the English Premier League in China, while Chinese state media last year reported that some 350 million had tuned into matches beamed live from Britain.

Suning have been enthusiastic supporters of President Xi`s ambitious plans for China to become a dominant force in the global sports market.&nbsp;

The acquisition of nearly 70 percent of Italian glamour club Inter for about $300 million in June was the first major step in its plan to create a global sports empire stretching from soccer clubs to online broadcasting.

(Reuters)

A spokesman for streaming service PPTV confirmed a three-year deal that will kick in from the 2019/20 season

The English Premier League has sold its television rights in China to streaming service PPTV for $700 million, a source familiar with the matter said, several times the size of past deals as it cashes in on a growing enthusiasm for soccer. A spokesman for PPTV, part of retail group Suning, confirmed a three-year deal that will kick in from the 2019/20 season. He did not comment on the value as the agreement has not yet been formalised. "We were successful in our bid, but it hasn`t formally been signed yet," said PPTV spokesman Sun Xiaobo. "We`ve definitely already won the tender." The Premier League has not confirmed the deal. PPTV is one of China`s largest streaming services and already owns the rights to Spain`s La Liga. Under President Xi Jinping, China has been looking to expand its global presence in the sport. It has invested billions of dollars to develop grassroots soccer academies, brought high-profile players and managers into China from overseas, and is buying into global assets from Italian club Inter Milan to Manchester City. The Premier League, for its part, has seen television revenues shoot up globally in recent years - back home in Britain, pay-TV group Sky last year agreed to pay 4.2 billion pounds ($5.21 billion) to show 126 live English Premier League matches a season from 2016 to 2019. NBC last year paid around $1 billion for a six-year deal to broadcast the league in the United States until the end of the 2021/22 season, near double that of their prior three-year deal. Beijing-based Super Sports Media is the current rights holders in China with local media reports suggesting they paid more than 1 billion yuan ($145.13 million) for a six-year deal until the end of the 2018/19 season. The deal with PPTV will allow the English Premier League to tap into the growing market for pay-per-view online streaming and subscription services in China. A 2014 survey by Repucom estimated there were 170 million fans of the English Premier League in China, while Chinese state media last year reported that some 350 million had tuned into matches beamed live from Britain. Suning have been enthusiastic supporters of President Xi`s ambitious plans for China to become a dominant force in the global sports market. The acquisition of nearly 70 percent of Italian glamour club Inter for about $300 million in June was the first major step in its plan to create a global sports empire stretching from soccer clubs to online broadcasting. (Reuters)

English Premier League sells China TV rights for $700 million

The Spanish giants Barcelona have struck a sponsorship deal with Japanese online retailer Rakuten for the next four years.&nbsp;

With the 55 million euros ($59 million) a year deal, Rakuten replaces Qatar Airways who had been Barcelona&#39;s shirt sponsor since 2013.&nbsp;

They were reported to have paid 35 million euros for the final year of their deal taking them up to the end of the 2016-17 season.

&quot;I have the pleasure and honour to announce that the board of directors has approved that Rakuten will&nbsp;be the new main and global sponsor of the club for the next four years,&quot; Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu told a news conference at the club&#39;s Camp Nou stadium.

The club success added with some of the world&#39;s most recognisable stars make it a highly attractive assest to the advertisers.&nbsp;

(WION with inputs from AFP) 
&nbsp;

Rakuten has signed a deal worth 55 million euros a year with Barcelona

The Spanish giants Barcelona have struck a sponsorship deal with Japanese online retailer Rakuten for the next four years. With the 55 million euros ($59 million) a year deal, Rakuten replaces Qatar Airways who had been Barcelona's shirt sponsor since 2013. They were reported to have paid 35 million euros for the final year of their deal taking them up to the end of the 2016-17 season. "I have the pleasure and honour to announce that the board of directors has approved that Rakuten will be the new main and global sponsor of the club for the next four years," Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu told a news conference at the club's Camp Nou stadium. The club success added with some of the world's most recognisable stars make it a highly attractive assest to the advertisers. (WION with inputs from AFP)

Football: Barca strikes new sponsorship deal with Japan's Rakuten

Lionel Messi scored a majestic free-kick and set up two more goals as Argentina got their faltering 2018 World Cup qualification campaign back on track with a 3-0 win over Colombia here Tuesday.&nbsp;

Barcelona maestro Messi curled in a superb free-kick from 30 yards in the 10th minute before providing the cross for Lucas Pratto&#39;s 23rd-minute header. The tireless Messi then popped up in the 84th minute to cross for Angel Di Maria&#39;s late goal as Argentina secured all three points.

The two-time world champions had taken just two points from their previous four games to leave themselves languishing just outside the qualification berths in South America&#39;s marathon qualifying tournament.

But Tuesday&#39;s victory puts Argentina back into the qualification positions.

(AFP)

Messi curled in a superb free-kick from 30 yards in the 10th minute before providing the cross for Lucas Pratto's 23rd minute header

Lionel Messi scored a majestic free-kick and set up two more goals as Argentina got their faltering 2018 World Cup qualification campaign back on track with a 3-0 win over Colombia here Tuesday. Barcelona maestro Messi curled in a superb free-kick from 30 yards in the 10th minute before providing the cross for Lucas Pratto's 23rd-minute header. The tireless Messi then popped up in the 84th minute to cross for Angel Di Maria's late goal as Argentina secured all three points. The two-time world champions had taken just two points from their previous four games to leave themselves languishing just outside the qualification berths in South America's marathon qualifying tournament. But Tuesday's victory puts Argentina back into the qualification positions. (AFP)

Messi is magic as Argentina secures 3-0 win over Colombia

England&#39;s caretaker manager Gareth Southgate faces a man he aspires to emulate in terms of style and status in Tuesday&#39;s friendly against Julen Lopetegui&#39;s Spain.

The match at Wembley will be the fourth and final assignment of Southgate&#39;s interim stint and following Friday&#39;s 3-0 win over Scotland in World Cup qualifying he is expected to be handed the role full-time.

Like Southgate, Lopetegui earned the faith of his country&#39;s football association by excelling as under-21s coach, while Spain&#39;s confident passing game is something Southgate wants England to replicate.

&quot;It&#39;s one of the biggest challenges that we can face,&quot; Southgate said ahead of the encounter.&nbsp;

&quot;It looks as though they&#39;ll have a couple of players missing, but they have strength in depth and a clear identity of how they play through all of their age groups.

&quot;Obviously Julen has been the under-21 manager so he knows how the system is there. He&#39;s worked with so many of the players and the style, so it&#39;s going to be a huge test for us.

&quot;But that&#39;s a good challenge, a different type of challenge for us to prepare for.&quot;

While England are unbeaten on Southgate&#39;s watch, they are yet to produce a performance that has got fans off their seats.

After a laboured 2-0 win over Malta, they were fortunate not to lose in a 0-0 draw away to Slovenia.

Against Scotland, they struggled to create chances and might have found themselves level early in the second half had the Scots taken their opportunities at 1-0.

England&#39;s efforts to build play up from the back were unconvincing, but Southgate, 46, will task his players to press on with the tactic against a Spain team who are masters of the art.

&quot;It&#39;s a good means of gauging progress because they&#39;ve been one of the best for such a long time,&quot; says Tottenham Hotspur&#39;s Eric Dier, who made his England debut in a 2-0 loss away to Spain a year ago.

&quot;You always want to measure yourselves against sides like that, both personally and as a team. Obviously, results are what count in senior football but performing the right way as well is important.

&quot;If we defend for 90 minutes and score a last-minute winner on Tuesday then probably everyone goes home happy. But that&#39;s not my way of assessing whether we&#39;ve done well or not.&quot;

Herrera debut

Like England, Spain go into the game on the back of a slightly flattering victory that kept them top of their World Cup qualifying pool: in their case a 4-0 win over Macedonia on Saturday.

Lopetegui, 50, is unbeaten in five games since taking charge after Vicente del Bosque stepped down following their last-16 exit at the hands of Italy at Euro 2016.

Both coaches are expected to shuffle their starting XIs, but for Lopetegui necessity will be the mother of invention as he is without several first-team players.

Sergio Ramos, Gerard Pique, Jordi Alba, Andres Iniesta and Diego Costa are all absent and Alvaro Morata is a doubt after being forced off half an hour from full-time against Macedonia.

Sergi Roberto, Cesar Azpilicueta, Isco, Nolito, Juan Mata and Jose Callejon could all start, while Manchester United midfielder Ander Herrera is in line to make a belated senior debut aged 27.

&quot;It is clear that the three points at stake were (against Macedonia) and now we have a fantastic game against a great national team like England,&quot; said Lopetegui.

&quot;We want to be competitive and play well, so whoever plays it will be a good 11.&quot;

With Ramos and Pique sidelined, Lopetegui has been obliged to rely on an unconvincing centre-back pairing of Nacho and Marc Bartra, which will give hope to England&#39;s forwards.

Dier&#39;s Tottenham team-mate Harry Kane will not take part after he returned to his club to build up match fitness following a lay-off with an ankle injury.

(AFP)

The match at Wembley will be the fourth and final assignment of Southgate's interim stint

England's caretaker manager Gareth Southgate faces a man he aspires to emulate in terms of style and status in Tuesday's friendly against Julen Lopetegui's Spain. The match at Wembley will be the fourth and final assignment of Southgate's interim stint and following Friday's 3-0 win over Scotland in World Cup qualifying he is expected to be handed the role full-time. Like Southgate, Lopetegui earned the faith of his country's football association by excelling as under-21s coach, while Spain's confident passing game is something Southgate wants England to replicate. "It's one of the biggest challenges that we can face," Southgate said ahead of the encounter. "It looks as though they'll have a couple of players missing, but they have strength in depth and a clear identity of how they play through all of their age groups. "Obviously Julen has been the under-21 manager so he knows how the system is there. He's worked with so many of the players and the style, so it's going to be a huge test for us. "But that's a good challenge, a different type of challenge for us to prepare for." While England are unbeaten on Southgate's watch, they are yet to produce a performance that has got fans off their seats. After a laboured 2-0 win over Malta, they were fortunate not to lose in a 0-0 draw away to Slovenia. Against Scotland, they struggled to create chances and might have found themselves level early in the second half had the Scots taken their opportunities at 1-0. England's efforts to build play up from the back were unconvincing, but Southgate, 46, will task his players to press on with the tactic against a Spain team who are masters of the art. "It's a good means of gauging progress because they've been one of the best for such a long time," says Tottenham Hotspur's Eric Dier, who made his England debut in a 2-0 loss away to Spain a year ago. "You always want to measure yourselves against sides like that, both personally and as a team. Obviously, results are what count in senior football but performing the right way as well is important. "If we defend for 90 minutes and score a last-minute winner on Tuesday then probably everyone goes home happy. But that's not my way of assessing whether we've done well or not." Herrera debut Like England, Spain go into the game on the back of a slightly flattering victory that kept them top of their World Cup qualifying pool: in their case a 4-0 win over Macedonia on Saturday. Lopetegui, 50, is unbeaten in five games since taking charge after Vicente del Bosque stepped down following their last-16 exit at the hands of Italy at Euro 2016. Both coaches are expected to shuffle their starting XIs, but for Lopetegui necessity will be the mother of invention as he is without several first-team players. Sergio Ramos, Gerard Pique, Jordi Alba, Andres Iniesta and Diego Costa are all absent and Alvaro Morata is a doubt after being forced off half an hour from full-time against Macedonia. Sergi Roberto, Cesar Azpilicueta, Isco, Nolito, Juan Mata and Jose Callejon could all start, while Manchester United midfielder Ander Herrera is in line to make a belated senior debut aged 27. "It is clear that the three points at stake were (against Macedonia) and now we have a fantastic game against a great national team like England," said Lopetegui. "We want to be competitive and play well, so whoever plays it will be a good 11." With Ramos and Pique sidelined, Lopetegui has been obliged to rely on an unconvincing centre-back pairing of Nacho and Marc Bartra, which will give hope to England's forwards. Dier's Tottenham team-mate Harry Kane will not take part after he returned to his club to build up match fitness following a lay-off with an ankle injury. (AFP)

Football: Gareth Southgate ends England audition with Spain test

Paul Pogba and Dimitri Payet scored as France fought back to beat Sweden 2-1 in a World Cup qualifier on Friday that was marked by tributes to the victims of last year&#39;s Paris terror attacks.&nbsp;

Emil Forsberg had put Sweden in front from a free-kick early in the second half at the Stade de France in a meeting of the top two teams in Group A in European qualifying for the 2018 World Cup.&nbsp;

But Pogba headed in the equaliser in the 58th minute and Payet profited from a goalkeeping error to score the winner and allow Les Bleus to move three points clear of Sweden at the top of the section.&nbsp;

&quot;Decisive no, but important yes,&quot; was how France coach Didier Deschamps summed up the significance of the result.

&quot;It was a difficult game but the result is all that counts. Sweden made things complicated for us.&quot;

The result came on a poignant evening that saw a minute&#39;s silence held in memory of the victims of the terror attacks that struck the French capital, and the Stade de France, almost exactly a year ago.&nbsp;

France were playing Germany in a friendly on Friday November 13, 2015 when three suicide bombers blew themselves up immediately outside the ground.&nbsp;

A 63-year-old man, Manuel Dias, was killed by one of the explosions at the beginning of a night of terror around Paris that killed 130 people and injured many more.

French president Francois Hollande was there to pay tribute in a capacity crowd of 80,000 at Friday&#39;s match, which was played on a national holiday to mark the day that ended the First World War in 1918.

The French team featured many of those who had played in that game against Germany, including Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud, recalled in attack in place of Kevin Gameiro.

They had numerous chances in a bright start to the game, with Swedish goalkeeper Robin Olsen saving well from a curling shot from the edge of the box by Payet.

Pogba and Moussa Sissoko also sent efforts just over the bar, but Sweden -- fielding a rejuvenated side as they rebuild following the international retirement of Zlatan Ibrahimovic -- were an occasional threat too.

Forsberg stunner

Indeed, they should have taken a 10th-minute lead, but John Guidetti, inside the six-yard box, was unable to convert a Ludwig Augustinsson free-kick from the left.

And they stunned the Stade de France when they went in front in the 54th minute, the impressive RB Leipzig winger Forsberg sending in a free-kick from fully 30 yards that left Hugo Lloris rooted as it swerved through the air and in.

However, France were level just four minutes later when Payet delivered a free-kick from the left and the world&#39;s most expensive player Pogba just beat team-mate Raphael Varane to the ball to head in his eighth international goal.

The relief was palpable and France, who have needed play-offs to qualify for each of the last two World Cups, went in front on 65 minutes.

Olsen failed to hold a cross under pressure from Antoine Griezmann, who was just offside when the ball came in, and Payet pounced to roll the ball in.

Griezmann almost got a third but Sweden made it a nervy finish with substitute Isaac Kiese Thelin missing the target with a great chance to equalise.

Their coach Janne Andersson was left to bemoan the lack of an offside call at the second goal.

&quot;We deserved a better result. It is a bit of a shame because the second goal was offside, but these things happen in sport,&quot; he said.

The Netherlands can join Sweden and also close to within three points of France with a win away to minnows Luxembourg on Sunday.&nbsp;

France are next in qualifying action in Luxembourg in late March, although they play the Ivory Coast in a friendly in Lens next Tuesday.

(AFP)

France beat Sweden 2-1 in Friday's Group A European qualifying for the 2018 World Cup

Paul Pogba and Dimitri Payet scored as France fought back to beat Sweden 2-1 in a World Cup qualifier on Friday that was marked by tributes to the victims of last year's Paris terror attacks. Emil Forsberg had put Sweden in front from a free-kick early in the second half at the Stade de France in a meeting of the top two teams in Group A in European qualifying for the 2018 World Cup. But Pogba headed in the equaliser in the 58th minute and Payet profited from a goalkeeping error to score the winner and allow Les Bleus to move three points clear of Sweden at the top of the section. "Decisive no, but important yes," was how France coach Didier Deschamps summed up the significance of the result. "It was a difficult game but the result is all that counts. Sweden made things complicated for us." The result came on a poignant evening that saw a minute's silence held in memory of the victims of the terror attacks that struck the French capital, and the Stade de France, almost exactly a year ago. France were playing Germany in a friendly on Friday November 13, 2015 when three suicide bombers blew themselves up immediately outside the ground. A 63-year-old man, Manuel Dias, was killed by one of the explosions at the beginning of a night of terror around Paris that killed 130 people and injured many more. French president Francois Hollande was there to pay tribute in a capacity crowd of 80,000 at Friday's match, which was played on a national holiday to mark the day that ended the First World War in 1918. The French team featured many of those who had played in that game against Germany, including Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud, recalled in attack in place of Kevin Gameiro. They had numerous chances in a bright start to the game, with Swedish goalkeeper Robin Olsen saving well from a curling shot from the edge of the box by Payet. Pogba and Moussa Sissoko also sent efforts just over the bar, but Sweden -- fielding a rejuvenated side as they rebuild following the international retirement of Zlatan Ibrahimovic -- were an occasional threat too. Forsberg stunner Indeed, they should have taken a 10th-minute lead, but John Guidetti, inside the six-yard box, was unable to convert a Ludwig Augustinsson free-kick from the left. And they stunned the Stade de France when they went in front in the 54th minute, the impressive RB Leipzig winger Forsberg sending in a free-kick from fully 30 yards that left Hugo Lloris rooted as it swerved through the air and in. However, France were level just four minutes later when Payet delivered a free-kick from the left and the world's most expensive player Pogba just beat team-mate Raphael Varane to the ball to head in his eighth international goal. The relief was palpable and France, who have needed play-offs to qualify for each of the last two World Cups, went in front on 65 minutes. Olsen failed to hold a cross under pressure from Antoine Griezmann, who was just offside when the ball came in, and Payet pounced to roll the ball in. Griezmann almost got a third but Sweden made it a nervy finish with substitute Isaac Kiese Thelin missing the target with a great chance to equalise. Their coach Janne Andersson was left to bemoan the lack of an offside call at the second goal. "We deserved a better result. It is a bit of a shame because the second goal was offside, but these things happen in sport," he said. The Netherlands can join Sweden and also close to within three points of France with a win away to minnows Luxembourg on Sunday. France are next in qualifying action in Luxembourg in late March, although they play the Ivory Coast in a friendly in Lens next Tuesday. (AFP)

Dimitri Payet nets winning goal as France mark anniversary of attacks

A trio of thundering headers gave England a thumping victory over their oldest foes as Scotland put up a fight before being swept aside 3-0 in Friday&#39;s World Cup qualifier at Wembley.

Daniel Sturridge&#39;s bullet header in the first half and equally impressive efforts after the break from Adam Lallana and Gary Cahill ensured England emerged from international football&#39;s oldest fixture having consolidated their lead at the top of Group F.

While it was not the one-sided romp the scoreline suggests and England only pulled clear in the second half having survived some nervy moments, the result will have strengthened interim boss Gareth Southgate&#39;s chances of claiming the role on a permanent basis.

With his side having moved onto 10 points from four matches, two clear of nearest rivals Slovenia, Southgate now looks almost certain to be appointed the permanent replacement to Sam Allardyce.

&quot;Tonight is down to the players they have shown what they are capable of,&quot; he told reporters -- although he was equally keen to stress his side had almost been the architects of their own downfall when Scotland put them under pressure in the second half.

For his counterpart Gordon Strachan, though, the future looks increasingly bleak, his side sitting second bottom in the standings with four points.

However, he was adamant, that he would not be rushed into decisions about his role.

&quot;If you think I&#39;m thinking about myself now, or worrying about myself, you don&#39;t know me,&quot; was his response to questions about his future.

Strachan had made sweeping changes to the side that lost to Slovakia in their previous qualifier and had clearly set his team up to make England uncomfortable and it was a game plan that worked to perfection until 24th minute.

A sprawling Scottish defender blocked Raheem Sterling&#39;s shot, but the ball fell kindly for Kyle Walker whose driven cross was angled superbly into the net by a stooping Sturridge.

Having broken the visitors&#39; resistance, England conspired to hand them a route back into the match two minutes later and would have been pegged back had Scotland defender Grant Hanley not headed hopelessly over the bar when completely unmarked.

That was the first of a series of let-offs for England, who survived two heart-in-mouth moments at the start of the second half when James Forrest pulled a shot hideously wide from 10 metres and Robert Snodgrass had one blocked from a similar range.

Within moments, however, England put the encounter to bed showing the sort of quality in front of goal Scotland had lacked, as Danny Rose&#39;s cross from the left found Lallana on the penalty spot to head powerfully past Craig Gordon.

England&#39;s third arrived on 60 minutes as Wayne Rooney&#39;s corner found Cahill, who flashed his near-post header past Gordon and into the far corner.

The defeat was already ensured, but England should have rubbed further salt into Scotland&#39;s wounds but Sterling somehow scooped his finish over from almost under the cross bar.

(Reuters)

Sturridge's bullet header in the first half and equally impressive headers from Lallana and Cahill handed England a 3-0 win

A trio of thundering headers gave England a thumping victory over their oldest foes as Scotland put up a fight before being swept aside 3-0 in Friday's World Cup qualifier at Wembley. Daniel Sturridge's bullet header in the first half and equally impressive efforts after the break from Adam Lallana and Gary Cahill ensured England emerged from international football's oldest fixture having consolidated their lead at the top of Group F. While it was not the one-sided romp the scoreline suggests and England only pulled clear in the second half having survived some nervy moments, the result will have strengthened interim boss Gareth Southgate's chances of claiming the role on a permanent basis. With his side having moved onto 10 points from four matches, two clear of nearest rivals Slovenia, Southgate now looks almost certain to be appointed the permanent replacement to Sam Allardyce. "Tonight is down to the players they have shown what they are capable of," he told reporters -- although he was equally keen to stress his side had almost been the architects of their own downfall when Scotland put them under pressure in the second half. For his counterpart Gordon Strachan, though, the future looks increasingly bleak, his side sitting second bottom in the standings with four points. However, he was adamant, that he would not be rushed into decisions about his role. "If you think I'm thinking about myself now, or worrying about myself, you don't know me," was his response to questions about his future. Strachan had made sweeping changes to the side that lost to Slovakia in their previous qualifier and had clearly set his team up to make England uncomfortable and it was a game plan that worked to perfection until 24th minute. A sprawling Scottish defender blocked Raheem Sterling's shot, but the ball fell kindly for Kyle Walker whose driven cross was angled superbly into the net by a stooping Sturridge. Having broken the visitors' resistance, England conspired to hand them a route back into the match two minutes later and would have been pegged back had Scotland defender Grant Hanley not headed hopelessly over the bar when completely unmarked. That was the first of a series of let-offs for England, who survived two heart-in-mouth moments at the start of the second half when James Forrest pulled a shot hideously wide from 10 metres and Robert Snodgrass had one blocked from a similar range. Within moments, however, England put the encounter to bed showing the sort of quality in front of goal Scotland had lacked, as Danny Rose's cross from the left found Lallana on the penalty spot to head powerfully past Craig Gordon. England's third arrived on 60 minutes as Wayne Rooney's corner found Cahill, who flashed his near-post header past Gordon and into the far corner. The defeat was already ensured, but England should have rubbed further salt into Scotland's wounds but Sterling somehow scooped his finish over from almost under the cross bar. (Reuters)

World Cup qualifier: England record a heady win against Scotland

England captain Wayne Rooney will return to the starting line-up for his country&#39;s 2018 World Cup qualifier against Scotland on Friday, interim manager Gareth Southgate announced on Thursday.

Rooney, 31, started on the bench in England&#39;s last game, a 0-0 draw away to Slovenia, after losing his place in Manchester United&#39;s starting XI.

But he has started United&#39;s last two games, scoring from range in their 2-1 Europa League defeat at Fenerbahce last week, and will win his 119th cap from the start against Scotland at Wembley.

&quot;He&#39;s confident and I think experience in a game like this is important,&quot; Southgate told reporters at the St George&#39;s Park football centre in Burton-on-Trent, central England.

&quot;He&#39;s in a better place than he was for the last get-together in terms of his sharpness, his confidence. There was no hesitation to be playing him.

&quot;He&#39;s playing well. He&#39;s played well in his last couple of matches for Manchester United. When he&#39;s in a rhythm of playing, that helps.&quot;

Rooney takes the captain&#39;s armband back from Liverpool midfielder Jordan Henderson, who Southgate confirmed will start.

Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane is also in contention to start after proving his fitness in training following his comeback from a seven-week lay-off with an ankle ligament injury.

Southgate said he had a fully fit squad to choose from and all 25 players at his disposal were present at the pre-match training session.

England are top of UEFA qualifying Group F after three games, two points above Lithuania and Slovenia and three points clear of old rivals Scotland.

England host Spain in a friendly on Tuesday, for what will be the last game of Southgate&#39;s four-match stint following the departure of previous manager Sam Allardyce.

British newspaper reports suggest Southgate will be given the role full-time provided England avoid embarrassment against Scotland, but he said he did not feel any pressure.

&quot;I&#39;m really enjoying being in the role,&quot; said the former England Under-21 coach.

&quot;What happens to me is not important. We&#39;ve got to win this game for the country and to be top of the group, heading to (World Cup hosts) Russia.

&quot;That&#39;s the task I ws given. What happens to me is important to my family, but it&#39;s not the reason and the focus for the game.

&quot;I want the players to go out, enjoy their football and play well, and I&#39;m sure they will.&quot;

Southgate was reluctant to declare an interest in taking on the role full-time, but FA chief executive Martin Glenn is hopeful he will put his name forward.

&quot;We get through the next two games and then we are going to put our heads together, talk to Gareth and really understand what his level of interest is in the role,&quot; Glenn told reporters at the Sport Industry Breakfast Club in London.

&quot;I hope he is interested and wants to put his hat in the ring. We have a bit of time then to assess him and then the other candidates.&quot;

(AFP)

Rooney started on the bench in England's last game, a 0-0 draw away to Slovenia, after losing his place in Manchester United's first XI

England captain Wayne Rooney will return to the starting line-up for his country's 2018 World Cup qualifier against Scotland on Friday, interim manager Gareth Southgate announced on Thursday. Rooney, 31, started on the bench in England's last game, a 0-0 draw away to Slovenia, after losing his place in Manchester United's starting XI. But he has started United's last two games, scoring from range in their 2-1 Europa League defeat at Fenerbahce last week, and will win his 119th cap from the start against Scotland at Wembley. "He's confident and I think experience in a game like this is important," Southgate told reporters at the St George's Park football centre in Burton-on-Trent, central England. "He's in a better place than he was for the last get-together in terms of his sharpness, his confidence. There was no hesitation to be playing him. "He's playing well. He's played well in his last couple of matches for Manchester United. When he's in a rhythm of playing, that helps." Rooney takes the captain's armband back from Liverpool midfielder Jordan Henderson, who Southgate confirmed will start. Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane is also in contention to start after proving his fitness in training following his comeback from a seven-week lay-off with an ankle ligament injury. Southgate said he had a fully fit squad to choose from and all 25 players at his disposal were present at the pre-match training session. England are top of UEFA qualifying Group F after three games, two points above Lithuania and Slovenia and three points clear of old rivals Scotland. England host Spain in a friendly on Tuesday, for what will be the last game of Southgate's four-match stint following the departure of previous manager Sam Allardyce. British newspaper reports suggest Southgate will be given the role full-time provided England avoid embarrassment against Scotland, but he said he did not feel any pressure. "I'm really enjoying being in the role," said the former England Under-21 coach. "What happens to me is not important. We've got to win this game for the country and to be top of the group, heading to (World Cup hosts) Russia. "That's the task I ws given. What happens to me is important to my family, but it's not the reason and the focus for the game. "I want the players to go out, enjoy their football and play well, and I'm sure they will." Southgate was reluctant to declare an interest in taking on the role full-time, but FA chief executive Martin Glenn is hopeful he will put his name forward. "We get through the next two games and then we are going to put our heads together, talk to Gareth and really understand what his level of interest is in the role," Glenn told reporters at the Sport Industry Breakfast Club in London. "I hope he is interested and wants to put his hat in the ring. We have a bit of time then to assess him and then the other candidates." (AFP)

Football: Rooney to make England return against Scotland

Northern Ireland&#39;s players will not wear the black armbands with poppies to pay tribute on Armstice Day in their World Cup qualifier, the Irish Football Association said, news agency AFP reported.

England and Scotland&#39;s football&#39;s associations decided to wear the poppy despite a sanction threat from the world governing body FIFA. Britain remembers its war dead on November 11, which happens to be the day England play Scotland in a World Cup qualifier at Wembley.

FIFA bans political, religious and commercial symbols on team uniforms while playing a match.&nbsp;

Northern Ireland&#39;s players will wear plain black armbands for their Armistice Day game in Belfast.

&quot;We asked FIFA if permission could be granted for the Northern Ireland team to wear a poppy on the shirt or on an armband,&quot; IFA chief executive Patrick Nelson said in a statement on Tuesday, AFP reported.

&quot;FIFA advised that they could give no guarantee that there would not be disciplinary proceedings if the Northern Ireland team was to wear a symbol of remembrance on the playing shirt.&quot;

Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane said that wearing the poppies would make him &quot;happy&quot;.

&quot;As long as we&#39;re wearing the poppy, we&#39;re happy,&quot; Kane told a press conference at the St George&#39;s Park football centre in Burton-on-Trent, central England. &quot;We all wanted to wear it. Being on the top or the sleeve, it doesn&#39;t matter too much. As long as we&#39;re wearing it, it&#39;s a big positive.&quot;

British Prime Minister Theresa May has described FIFA&#39;s stance on the matter as &quot;utterly outrageous&quot;.

(With inputs from AFP)

Northern Ireland's players will wear plain black armbands for their Armistice Day game in Belfast

Northern Ireland's players will not wear the black armbands with poppies to pay tribute on Armstice Day in their World Cup qualifier, the Irish Football Association said, news agency AFP reported. England and Scotland's football's associations decided to wear the poppy despite a sanction threat from the world governing body FIFA. Britain remembers its war dead on November 11, which happens to be the day England play Scotland in a World Cup qualifier at Wembley. FIFA bans political, religious and commercial symbols on team uniforms while playing a match. Northern Ireland's players will wear plain black armbands for their Armistice Day game in Belfast. "We asked FIFA if permission could be granted for the Northern Ireland team to wear a poppy on the shirt or on an armband," IFA chief executive Patrick Nelson said in a statement on Tuesday, AFP reported. "FIFA advised that they could give no guarantee that there would not be disciplinary proceedings if the Northern Ireland team was to wear a symbol of remembrance on the playing shirt." Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane said that wearing the poppies would make him "happy". "As long as we're wearing the poppy, we're happy," Kane told a press conference at the St George's Park football centre in Burton-on-Trent, central England. "We all wanted to wear it. Being on the top or the sleeve, it doesn't matter too much. As long as we're wearing it, it's a big positive." British Prime Minister Theresa May has described FIFA's stance on the matter as "utterly outrageous". (With inputs from AFP)

Football: North Ireland decide against wearing poppies

Jose Mourinho has taken a swipe at the Manchester United players he fears might not have the right attitude to guide his side back into the Premier League title race.

Mourinho saw first half goals from Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Paul Pogba help United to only a second league victory in eight games as his side cruised to a 3-1 success at Swansea on Sunday.

However, in the wake of the win, Mourinho spoke openly about the need for players to play through the injury pain barrier.

&quot;We have players with problems, but we also have players on the pitch who have problems,&quot; he said.

&quot;And that is what I mean, because in every sport, and I know that because I have friends from other sports, playing at the highest level. How many times do they play when they are not 100 per cent?

&quot;I have a friend who is a big tennis player and he tells me that he remembers more times when he has played with pain than the times he has played without any pain. To compete, you have to work to the limits.

&quot;It is a cultural thing, for some. That&#39;s not my culture.&quot;

Asked if players needed to change to play for him, Mourinho said; &quot;Exactly, but more than me, Man United. More than me, Man United.&quot;

Despite Mourinho&#39;s blast, he could have no complaints about the overall United performance on Sunday.

&quot;After the draw against Burnley we needed points,&quot; he said.

&quot;We put in a great performance against Burnley, but only came away with one point. We needed three points today, more than the performance. But we got both.

&quot;Zlatan does not lack confidence. I used to say that a striker who doesn&#39;t score goals and does nothing else, means you have one player less.

&quot;A striker who doesn&#39;t score goals, but does everything else, is a very important player for the team. When Zlatan was not scoring goals, he was doing everything else. He was working defensively, he was working in the build up, he was giving assists and he was contributing towards the fact that the goalkeepers who played against us were the man of the match.

&quot;So, he was doing so many things that I was not worried. Today we needed goals to win and we got them.&quot;

Calling the tune

While Ibrahimovic was calling the tune in the final third, it was veteran Michael Carrick who was dictating the pace of the game in front of his back four.&nbsp;

Mourinho added; &quot;I would love Michael to play every game, but that is not possible.&nbsp;

&quot;He can&#39;t play in every game for the same reason I can no longer go to the gym every day. But he started today and he played very, very well.&quot;

Not even a 69th minute headed goal from Mike van der Hoorn could bring a smile to the face of Swansea manager Bob Bradley, whose side are stuck in the relegation zone.

&quot;We are in a tough spot, there is no two ways about that. We understand very clearly where we are and there is no hiding from that. But we understand all the areas where we need to be better,&quot; Bradley said.

&quot;We kept giving the ball back too quickly. I don&#39;t think we showed enough commitment to close people down. We cannot take solace from playing a little better in the second half.

&quot;There is only one way to win the support of the fans and that is to play well and to win games.

&quot;We need to focus on the only part we control and that is how we play. If the fans are angry, I understand that.&nbsp;

&quot;We didn&#39;t do enough to win them over. They had every right to be angry.&quot;

(AFP)

Mourinho spoke openly about the need for players to play through the injury pain barrier

Jose Mourinho has taken a swipe at the Manchester United players he fears might not have the right attitude to guide his side back into the Premier League title race. Mourinho saw first half goals from Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Paul Pogba help United to only a second league victory in eight games as his side cruised to a 3-1 success at Swansea on Sunday. However, in the wake of the win, Mourinho spoke openly about the need for players to play through the injury pain barrier. "We have players with problems, but we also have players on the pitch who have problems," he said. "And that is what I mean, because in every sport, and I know that because I have friends from other sports, playing at the highest level. How many times do they play when they are not 100 per cent? "I have a friend who is a big tennis player and he tells me that he remembers more times when he has played with pain than the times he has played without any pain. To compete, you have to work to the limits. "It is a cultural thing, for some. That's not my culture." Asked if players needed to change to play for him, Mourinho said; "Exactly, but more than me, Man United. More than me, Man United." Despite Mourinho's blast, he could have no complaints about the overall United performance on Sunday. "After the draw against Burnley we needed points," he said. "We put in a great performance against Burnley, but only came away with one point. We needed three points today, more than the performance. But we got both. "Zlatan does not lack confidence. I used to say that a striker who doesn't score goals and does nothing else, means you have one player less. "A striker who doesn't score goals, but does everything else, is a very important player for the team. When Zlatan was not scoring goals, he was doing everything else. He was working defensively, he was working in the build up, he was giving assists and he was contributing towards the fact that the goalkeepers who played against us were the man of the match. "So, he was doing so many things that I was not worried. Today we needed goals to win and we got them." Calling the tune While Ibrahimovic was calling the tune in the final third, it was veteran Michael Carrick who was dictating the pace of the game in front of his back four. Mourinho added; "I would love Michael to play every game, but that is not possible. "He can't play in every game for the same reason I can no longer go to the gym every day. But he started today and he played very, very well." Not even a 69th minute headed goal from Mike van der Hoorn could bring a smile to the face of Swansea manager Bob Bradley, whose side are stuck in the relegation zone. "We are in a tough spot, there is no two ways about that. We understand very clearly where we are and there is no hiding from that. But we understand all the areas where we need to be better," Bradley said. "We kept giving the ball back too quickly. I don't think we showed enough commitment to close people down. We cannot take solace from playing a little better in the second half. "There is only one way to win the support of the fans and that is to play well and to win games. "We need to focus on the only part we control and that is how we play. If the fans are angry, I understand that. "We didn't do enough to win them over. They had every right to be angry." (AFP)

Football: Mourinho hits out at United 'problem players'

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has urged his players to &ldquo;be cool&rdquo; after his side went top of the Premier League for the first time since he arrived at Anfield.

Klopp watched Liverpool produce one of their most emphatic displays of the season as they thrashed Watford 6-1.

Sadio Mane scored twice while Philippe Coutinho, Emre Can, Roberto Firmino and Georginio Wijnaldum also got their names on the scoresheet as Liverpool produced the kind of performance that will further fuel title talk.

However, Klopp was keen to urge caution despite the fervour whipped up by the red half of Merseyside, who have not seen Liverpool win the league title since 1990.

&ldquo;If somebody thinks being one point ahead after 11 matchdays is a big sign for the rest of the season, I can&#39;t help this person, so sorry,&rdquo; Klopp said.

&ldquo;We stay cool, it&#39;s the best position I can imagine, nothing else happened. We didn&#39;t speak one word that Arsenal drew against Tottenham, not one word about the possibility of being top of the table.

&ldquo;The only thing you can do is work and stay concentrated, because a lot of different things could happen in the next few weeks and months. No matter how positive they are is up to us, actually.&rdquo;

Klopp insisted that the extra scrutiny on his side as they head into the international break top of the pile for the first time since May 2014 will not affect them.

&nbsp;No pressure&nbsp; 
He added &ldquo;There is no pressure after 11 matchdays. Chelsea played yesterday, quite impressive. We saw Manchester City play Barcelona, quite impressive.

&ldquo;Never write Manchester United off. Tottenham, good side. I&#39;m not sure if I&#39;ve forgotten anybody but there&#39;s a lot of really good teams around.

&ldquo;You can play a really good season and when they are better what&#39;s possible is you could be fifth or sixth and no one would be really happy.&nbsp;

&quot;Stay cool, take the things like they are, play your best football and win football games. That&#39;s the only thing you can do.

&ldquo;When I came here I asked for time, patience, belief, a lot of things. Now after 11 matchdays everybody is asking for guarantees and they are not there, there&#39;s no guarantees.&nbsp;

&quot;The only thing we obviously have is a pretty good football team, let&#39;s try to use it.&rdquo;

While Klopp was keen to take the sting out of any title talk, Watford manager Walter Mazzarri was happy to rank Liverpool as his favourites.

Watford have played Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United this season but Mazzarri was adamant where Liverpool are in the pecking order for Premier League title challengers.

&ldquo;From the teams we have played against, there is no doubt they are the team I am most impressed with,&rdquo; said the Italian.

&ldquo;If they continue like this, they are number one in my list for winning the Premier League.

&ldquo;I am very very impressed, not only tactically but on their running, their pressing, they are really a great team.&rdquo;&nbsp;

Watford lost goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes to an injury in the 33rd minute of the game and the Brazilian left Anfield his knee heavily strapped up, although Mazzarri does not know the extent of the blow.

&ldquo;He had a very big knock on the knee,&rdquo; he added. &ldquo;But we need to check in the next days if the knee twisted and we will know in the next days.&rdquo; 
&nbsp;

(AFP)

Talk has begun of a title challenge; the Reds last won the league in 1990

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has urged his players to “be cool” after his side went top of the Premier League for the first time since he arrived at Anfield. Klopp watched Liverpool produce one of their most emphatic displays of the season as they thrashed Watford 6-1. Sadio Mane scored twice while Philippe Coutinho, Emre Can, Roberto Firmino and Georginio Wijnaldum also got their names on the scoresheet as Liverpool produced the kind of performance that will further fuel title talk. However, Klopp was keen to urge caution despite the fervour whipped up by the red half of Merseyside, who have not seen Liverpool win the league title since 1990. “If somebody thinks being one point ahead after 11 matchdays is a big sign for the rest of the season, I can't help this person, so sorry,” Klopp said. “We stay cool, it's the best position I can imagine, nothing else happened. We didn't speak one word that Arsenal drew against Tottenham, not one word about the possibility of being top of the table. “The only thing you can do is work and stay concentrated, because a lot of different things could happen in the next few weeks and months. No matter how positive they are is up to us, actually.” Klopp insisted that the extra scrutiny on his side as they head into the international break top of the pile for the first time since May 2014 will not affect them. No pressure He added “There is no pressure after 11 matchdays. Chelsea played yesterday, quite impressive. We saw Manchester City play Barcelona, quite impressive. “Never write Manchester United off. Tottenham, good side. I'm not sure if I've forgotten anybody but there's a lot of really good teams around. “You can play a really good season and when they are better what's possible is you could be fifth or sixth and no one would be really happy. "Stay cool, take the things like they are, play your best football and win football games. That's the only thing you can do. “When I came here I asked for time, patience, belief, a lot of things. Now after 11 matchdays everybody is asking for guarantees and they are not there, there's no guarantees. "The only thing we obviously have is a pretty good football team, let's try to use it.” While Klopp was keen to take the sting out of any title talk, Watford manager Walter Mazzarri was happy to rank Liverpool as his favourites. Watford have played Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United this season but Mazzarri was adamant where Liverpool are in the pecking order for Premier League title challengers. “From the teams we have played against, there is no doubt they are the team I am most impressed with,” said the Italian. “If they continue like this, they are number one in my list for winning the Premier League. “I am very very impressed, not only tactically but on their running, their pressing, they are really a great team.” Watford lost goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes to an injury in the 33rd minute of the game and the Brazilian left Anfield his knee heavily strapped up, although Mazzarri does not know the extent of the blow. “He had a very big knock on the knee,” he added. “But we need to check in the next days if the knee twisted and we will know in the next days.” (AFP)

'Be cool', Liverpool's Klopp says after they go top of table

Manchester&nbsp;United&#39;s woes deepened as stunning goals by Moussa Sow and Jeremain Lens gave&nbsp;Fenerbahce&nbsp;a 2-1 Europa League win on Thursday that left Jose Mourinho&#39;s side facing a battle to reach the knockout stages.

Without a victory in four Premier League games,&nbsp;United&nbsp;desperately needed a morale-lifting result in Turkey but were undone by a brilliant second-minute overhead kick from Sow and a superb curling set piece by Lens before Wayne Rooney smashed home a consolation.

While Mourinho&#39;s men are third in Group A, Zenit St Petersburg have made it look easy in Group D and reached the knockout stages with two games to spare after a 2-1 win over Irish side Dundalk maintained their perfect record.

Athletic Bilbao&#39;s Aritz Aduriz became the first player to score five times in a Europa League match, his haul comprising three penalties in a 5-3 triumph over Racing Genk in Group F.

Anderlecht were also on the goal trail in Group C as Nicolae Stanciu and Lukasz Teodorczyk netted twice for the Belgians who brushed aside Mainz 05 6-1.

AS Roma&#39;s Edin Dzeko bagged a double as they moved top of Group E after a 4-2 win at Austria Vienna.

A gloomy pall has descended over Mourinho&#39;s reign at Old Trafford with the manager under scrutiny for his team&#39;s poor start and the disciplinary problems that have earned him a domestic one-match touch line ban.

After victories in their last two group games, Europe&#39;s second-tier competition had supplied United&nbsp;with some relief from their league struggles but they were sliced apart by&nbsp;Fenerbahce who exposed some glaring defensive weaknesses.

The two spectacular goals they conceded, however, were almost unstoppable.

The match had barely begun when Sow flung himself on the edge of the box into an overhead volley from a floated cross, smashing the ball past&nbsp;United&nbsp;keeper David De Gea and into the top corner.

Fenerbahce&nbsp;then took a stranglehold on the tie when Lens stepped up to nonchalantly curl a free kick around the wall and into the corner 14 minutes after the restart, leaving De Gea rooted to the spot as the ball bulged the net.

It should have got a lot worse for&nbsp;United&nbsp;when second-half substitute Emmanuel Emenike threatened three times to extend the lead before Rooney drove the ball home from 25 metres to set up a nervy finish.

United, who suffered an injury blow when the world&#39;s most expensive player Paul Pogba was forced off in the first half, are now a point behind group leaders Feyenoord and&nbsp;Fenerbahce&nbsp;with two games remaining.

(AFP)

United manager Jose Mourinho accused his side of playing with the intensity of a 'summer friendly'

Manchester United's woes deepened as stunning goals by Moussa Sow and Jeremain Lens gave Fenerbahce a 2-1 Europa League win on Thursday that left Jose Mourinho's side facing a battle to reach the knockout stages. Without a victory in four Premier League games, United desperately needed a morale-lifting result in Turkey but were undone by a brilliant second-minute overhead kick from Sow and a superb curling set piece by Lens before Wayne Rooney smashed home a consolation. While Mourinho's men are third in Group A, Zenit St Petersburg have made it look easy in Group D and reached the knockout stages with two games to spare after a 2-1 win over Irish side Dundalk maintained their perfect record. Athletic Bilbao's Aritz Aduriz became the first player to score five times in a Europa League match, his haul comprising three penalties in a 5-3 triumph over Racing Genk in Group F. Anderlecht were also on the goal trail in Group C as Nicolae Stanciu and Lukasz Teodorczyk netted twice for the Belgians who brushed aside Mainz 05 6-1. AS Roma's Edin Dzeko bagged a double as they moved top of Group E after a 4-2 win at Austria Vienna. A gloomy pall has descended over Mourinho's reign at Old Trafford with the manager under scrutiny for his team's poor start and the disciplinary problems that have earned him a domestic one-match touch line ban. After victories in their last two group games, Europe's second-tier competition had supplied United with some relief from their league struggles but they were sliced apart by Fenerbahce who exposed some glaring defensive weaknesses. The two spectacular goals they conceded, however, were almost unstoppable. The match had barely begun when Sow flung himself on the edge of the box into an overhead volley from a floated cross, smashing the ball past United keeper David De Gea and into the top corner. Fenerbahce then took a stranglehold on the tie when Lens stepped up to nonchalantly curl a free kick around the wall and into the corner 14 minutes after the restart, leaving De Gea rooted to the spot as the ball bulged the net. It should have got a lot worse for United when second-half substitute Emmanuel Emenike threatened three times to extend the lead before Rooney drove the ball home from 25 metres to set up a nervy finish. United, who suffered an injury blow when the world's most expensive player Paul Pogba was forced off in the first half, are now a point behind group leaders Feyenoord and Fenerbahce with two games remaining. (AFP)

Europa League: Fenerbahce beat Manchester United to heap misery on Mourinho

Mateo Kovacic&#39;s late strike avoided embarrassment for Real Madrid as the European champions surrendered a two-goal lead before drawing 3-3 with Legia Warsaw in an enthralling Champions League game played amid an empty stadium on Wednesday.

&nbsp;

Croatia midfielder Kovacic capped a fine individual display by rifling in the equaliser in the 85th minute after Legia had come from behind in the Group F encounter to take the lead in the 83rd through Thibault Moulin&#39;s powerful finish.

&nbsp;

UEFA had ordered the game to be played behind closed doors after crowd trouble overshadowed Legia&#39;s opener against Dortmund, meaning only several hundred visiting Real supporters witnessed the thriller that featured a historic start.

&nbsp;

Gareth Bale gave Real the lead in the Polish Army Stadium in just 57 seconds with a thunderous strike from outside the area to record the fastest ever goal scored by Real in a Champions League match.

&nbsp;

Karim Benzema doubled their advantage in the 35th, taking advantage of a Bale cutback to sidefoot home.

&nbsp;

Yet Legia hit back with a brilliant piece of skill and finish from Vadis Odjidja five minutes before halftime, while Miroslav Radovic completed a shock comeback by the hosts with an arrowed toe poke into the bottom corner in the 58th.

&nbsp;

Real are second in Group F on eight points, two behind leaders Borussia Dortmund, who qualified by beating Sporting Lisbon 1-0 on Wednesday.

&nbsp;

Real travel to Sporting on Nov. 22, where a point will also see them through. Legia are out but can still challenge Sporting for third place to reach the Europa League last 32 after taking their first point in the competition for 21 years.

&nbsp;

Bale, who signed a new five-year contract with the European champions in midweek, got the game off to a flying start by swiveling to hook the ball into the top corner.

&nbsp;

The Wales international teed up Benzema later in the half with the help of Kovacic and Real looked set to cruise towards a victory that would have qualified them for the last 16, but Legia hit back before the break with Odjidja&#39;s wonderful goal.

&nbsp;

Radovic then took advantage of slack Real defending to drive at the defence and let fly from the edge of the box, sending the ball under Keylor Navas.

&nbsp;

Aleksandar Prijovic hit straight at Navas but barely a minute later made amends by laying the ball off to Moulin to crash the ball in off the post.

&nbsp;

Real&#39;s blushes were saved barely two minutes later though by Kovacic, who has taken on new importance in the absence of compatriot Luka Modric.

&nbsp;

(Reuters)&nbsp;

Mateo Kovacic's late strike avoided embarrassment for Real Madrid as the European champions surrendered a two-goal lead before the draw

Mateo Kovacic's late strike avoided embarrassment for Real Madrid as the European champions surrendered a two-goal lead before drawing 3-3 with Legia Warsaw in an enthralling Champions League game played amid an empty stadium on Wednesday. Croatia midfielder Kovacic capped a fine individual display by rifling in the equaliser in the 85th minute after Legia had come from behind in the Group F encounter to take the lead in the 83rd through Thibault Moulin's powerful finish. UEFA had ordered the game to be played behind closed doors after crowd trouble overshadowed Legia's opener against Dortmund, meaning only several hundred visiting Real supporters witnessed the thriller that featured a historic start. Gareth Bale gave Real the lead in the Polish Army Stadium in just 57 seconds with a thunderous strike from outside the area to record the fastest ever goal scored by Real in a Champions League match. Karim Benzema doubled their advantage in the 35th, taking advantage of a Bale cutback to sidefoot home. Yet Legia hit back with a brilliant piece of skill and finish from Vadis Odjidja five minutes before halftime, while Miroslav Radovic completed a shock comeback by the hosts with an arrowed toe poke into the bottom corner in the 58th. Real are second in Group F on eight points, two behind leaders Borussia Dortmund, who qualified by beating Sporting Lisbon 1-0 on Wednesday. Real travel to Sporting on Nov. 22, where a point will also see them through. Legia are out but can still challenge Sporting for third place to reach the Europa League last 32 after taking their first point in the competition for 21 years. Bale, who signed a new five-year contract with the European champions in midweek, got the game off to a flying start by swiveling to hook the ball into the top corner. The Wales international teed up Benzema later in the half with the help of Kovacic and Real looked set to cruise towards a victory that would have qualified them for the last 16, but Legia hit back before the break with Odjidja's wonderful goal. Radovic then took advantage of slack Real defending to drive at the defence and let fly from the edge of the box, sending the ball under Keylor Navas. Aleksandar Prijovic hit straight at Navas but barely a minute later made amends by laying the ball off to Moulin to crash the ball in off the post. Real's blushes were saved barely two minutes later though by Kovacic, who has taken on new importance in the absence of compatriot Luka Modric. (Reuters)

Champions League: Real Madrid held to 3-3 draw against Legia Warsaw

Despite a sanction threat from the world governing body FIFA, England and Scotland&#39;s players will wear black armbands with a&nbsp;red poppy in a World Cup qualifier on Armistice Day.

FIFA bans political, religious and commercial symbols on team uniforms while playing a match. The English and Scottish football associations have been arguing with the governing body to let players wear the bands.

The wearing of a poppy represents an &quot;appropriate tribute&quot; to Britain&#39;s war dead, the FA insisted.

&quot;The poppy is an important symbol of remembrance and we do not believe it represents a political, religious or commercial message, nor does it relate to any one historical event,&quot; said an FA statement, reported news agency AFP. &quot;The FA intend to pay appropriate tribute to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice by having the England team wear black armbands bearing poppies in our fixture on Armistice Day.&quot;

Britain remembers its war dead on November 11, which happens to be the day England play Scotland in a World Cup qualifier at Wembley.

The Scottish FA issued a statement saying the wearing of a poppy was &quot;an appropriate tribute&quot;.

&quot;The Scotland national team (will) wear black armbands bearing poppies in our fixture against England on Armistice Day,&quot; said the Scottish body, reported AFP

British Prime Minister Theresa May expressed outrage at FIFA&#39;s opposition to the tribute.

&quot;It is utterly outrageous,&quot; May said.&nbsp;

Earlier Wednesday, British Prime Minister Theresa May branded as &quot;outrageous&quot; FIFA&#39;s opposition to the gesture. &quot;Our football players want to recognise those who gave their lives for our security.

&quot;It is absolutely right that they should be able to do so. A clear message is going from this house before they (FIFA) start telling us what to do they jolly well ought to sort their own house out.&quot;

The governing body restated its stance in a statement on Wednesday. It said the body &quot;respected the significance&quot; of Remembrance Day on November 11.

&quot;The laws of the game are overseen by the International Football Association Board (composed of the four British FAs and FIFA) and applicable to all 211 member associations.

&quot;The relevant Law 4, para. 4, clearly states that the players equipment should not carry any political, religious or commercial messages. The laws are applied uniformly in the event of similar requests by any member association to commemorate similar historical events.&quot;

However, FA chairman Greg Clarke told ITV that &quot;we should wear poppies&quot;. &quot;We are commemorating millions of people who gave their lives in wars over the last hundred years and they deserve that. The people who lost relatives deserve that. That&rsquo;s our plan. We&#39;ll be wearing poppies at Wembley,&quot; Clarke said.

In 2011, FIFA agreed to let England wear a poppy symbol on black armbands when they played Spain in a friendly on November 11.

(With inputs from AFP)

The Football Association insisted that the wearing of a poppy represents an 'appropriate tribute' to Britain's war dead

Despite a sanction threat from the world governing body FIFA, England and Scotland's players will wear black armbands with a red poppy in a World Cup qualifier on Armistice Day. FIFA bans political, religious and commercial symbols on team uniforms while playing a match. The English and Scottish football associations have been arguing with the governing body to let players wear the bands. The wearing of a poppy represents an "appropriate tribute" to Britain's war dead, the FA insisted. "The poppy is an important symbol of remembrance and we do not believe it represents a political, religious or commercial message, nor does it relate to any one historical event," said an FA statement, reported news agency AFP. "The FA intend to pay appropriate tribute to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice by having the England team wear black armbands bearing poppies in our fixture on Armistice Day." Britain remembers its war dead on November 11, which happens to be the day England play Scotland in a World Cup qualifier at Wembley. The Scottish FA issued a statement saying the wearing of a poppy was "an appropriate tribute". "The Scotland national team (will) wear black armbands bearing poppies in our fixture against England on Armistice Day," said the Scottish body, reported AFP British Prime Minister Theresa May expressed outrage at FIFA's opposition to the tribute. "It is utterly outrageous," May said. Earlier Wednesday, British Prime Minister Theresa May branded as "outrageous" FIFA's opposition to the gesture. "Our football players want to recognise those who gave their lives for our security. "It is absolutely right that they should be able to do so. A clear message is going from this house before they (FIFA) start telling us what to do they jolly well ought to sort their own house out." The governing body restated its stance in a statement on Wednesday. It said the body "respected the significance" of Remembrance Day on November 11. "The laws of the game are overseen by the International Football Association Board (composed of the four British FAs and FIFA) and applicable to all 211 member associations. "The relevant Law 4, para. 4, clearly states that the players equipment should not carry any political, religious or commercial messages. The laws are applied uniformly in the event of similar requests by any member association to commemorate similar historical events." However, FA chairman Greg Clarke told ITV that "we should wear poppies". "We are commemorating millions of people who gave their lives in wars over the last hundred years and they deserve that. The people who lost relatives deserve that. That’s our plan. We'll be wearing poppies at Wembley," Clarke said. In 2011, FIFA agreed to let England wear a poppy symbol on black armbands when they played Spain in a friendly on November 11. (With inputs from AFP)

Football: England, Scotland to defy FIFA ban by wearing poppies

Mateo Kovacic&#39;s late strike avoided embarrassment for Real Madrid as the European champions surrendered a two-goal lead before drawing 3-3 with Legia Warsaw in an enthralling Champions League game played amid an empty stadium on Wednesday.

Croatia midfielder Kovacic capped a fine individual display by rifling in the equaliser in the 85th minute after Legia had come from behind in the Group F encounter to take the lead in the 83rd through Thibault Moulin&#39;s powerful finish.

UEFA had ordered the game to be played behind closed doors after crowd trouble overshadowed Legia&#39;s opener against Dortmund, meaning only several hundred visiting Real supporters witnessed the thriller that featured a&nbsp;historic start.

Gareth Bale gave Real the lead in the Polish Army Stadium in just 57 seconds with a thunderous strike from outside the area to record the fastest-ever goal scored by Real in a Champions League match.

Karim Benzema doubled their advantage in the 35th, taking advantage of a Bale cutback to sidefoot home.

Yet Legia hit back with a brilliant piece of skill and finish from Vadis Odjidja five minutes before halftime, while Miroslav Radovic completed a shock comeback by the hosts with an arrowed toe poke into the bottom corner in the 58th.

Real are second in Group F on eight points, two behind leaders Borussia Dortmund, who qualified by beating Sporting Lisbon 1-0 on Wednesday.

Real travel to Sporting on Nov. 22, where a point will also see them through. Legia are out but can still challenge Sporting for third place to reach the Europa League last 32 after taking their first point in the competition for 21 years.

Bale, who signed a new five-year contract with the European champions in midweek, got the game off to a flying start by swivelling to hook the ball into the top corner.

The Wales international teed up Benzema later in the half with the help of Kovacic and Real looked set to cruise towards a victory that would have qualified them for the last 16, but Legia hit back before the break with Odjidja&#39;s wonderful goal.

Radovic then took advantage of slack Real defending to drive at the defence and let fly from the edge of the box, sending the ball under Keylor Navas.

Aleksandar Prijovic hit straight at Navas but barely a minute later made amends by laying the ball off to Moulin to crash the ball in off the post.

Real&#39;s blushes were saved barely two minutes later though by Kovacic, who has taken on new importance in the absence of compatriot Luka Modric.

(Reuters)

Mateo Kovacic's late strike avoided embarrassment for Real Madrid as the European champions surrendered a two-goal lead before drawing 3-3

Mateo Kovacic's late strike avoided embarrassment for Real Madrid as the European champions surrendered a two-goal lead before drawing 3-3 with Legia Warsaw in an enthralling Champions League game played amid an empty stadium on Wednesday. Croatia midfielder Kovacic capped a fine individual display by rifling in the equaliser in the 85th minute after Legia had come from behind in the Group F encounter to take the lead in the 83rd through Thibault Moulin's powerful finish. UEFA had ordered the game to be played behind closed doors after crowd trouble overshadowed Legia's opener against Dortmund, meaning only several hundred visiting Real supporters witnessed the thriller that featured a historic start. Gareth Bale gave Real the lead in the Polish Army Stadium in just 57 seconds with a thunderous strike from outside the area to record the fastest-ever goal scored by Real in a Champions League match. Karim Benzema doubled their advantage in the 35th, taking advantage of a Bale cutback to sidefoot home. Yet Legia hit back with a brilliant piece of skill and finish from Vadis Odjidja five minutes before halftime, while Miroslav Radovic completed a shock comeback by the hosts with an arrowed toe poke into the bottom corner in the 58th. Real are second in Group F on eight points, two behind leaders Borussia Dortmund, who qualified by beating Sporting Lisbon 1-0 on Wednesday. Real travel to Sporting on Nov. 22, where a point will also see them through. Legia are out but can still challenge Sporting for third place to reach the Europa League last 32 after taking their first point in the competition for 21 years. Bale, who signed a new five-year contract with the European champions in midweek, got the game off to a flying start by swivelling to hook the ball into the top corner. The Wales international teed up Benzema later in the half with the help of Kovacic and Real looked set to cruise towards a victory that would have qualified them for the last 16, but Legia hit back before the break with Odjidja's wonderful goal. Radovic then took advantage of slack Real defending to drive at the defence and let fly from the edge of the box, sending the ball under Keylor Navas. Aleksandar Prijovic hit straight at Navas but barely a minute later made amends by laying the ball off to Moulin to crash the ball in off the post. Real's blushes were saved barely two minutes later though by Kovacic, who has taken on new importance in the absence of compatriot Luka Modric. (Reuters)

Champions League: Real Madrid 3-3 Legia Warsaw

Coach Pep Guardiola was left thrilled after Manchester City revived their Champions League bid by beating his old club Barcelona 3-1 in a gloriously open Group C encounter at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday.

Ilkay Guendogan scored twice and Kevin De Bruyne netted a superb free kick in a magnificent display from the home side that ended Barcelona&#39;s 100 per cent record and made handsome amends for City&#39;s 4-0 drubbing at the Nou Camp two weeks ago.

Guardiola&#39;s men now have seven points from four matches, two behind leaders Barca. Borussia Moenchengladbach are on four points after drawing 1-1 with bottom club Celtic.

City&#39;s victory looked unlikely when Lionel Messi followed up his hat-trick in the game at the Nou Camp with a dazzling opener on the counter-attack in the 21st minute and Barca were in control before Guendogan cashed in on a Sergi Roberto mistake.

In a game peppered with fine attacking and dubious defending, City then ran Barca ragged as the exceptional De Bruyne netted in the 51st minute before helping set up Guendogan&#39;s second after 74.

City&#39;s best Champions League night left Barca frustrated as they failed to gain the win that would have sealed their place in the knockout stages for a 13th successive season.

The home side&#39;s big night started brightly as Raheem Sterling appeared to be brought down in the box by Samuel Umtiti only to be booked, harshly perhaps, for diving.

Then, in a devastating counter-attack initiated by Javier Mascherano when he broke up a City thrust in his own box, Messi found Neymar on the left before marauding down the field to latch on to the Brazilian&#39;s pass and claim his 90th Champions League goal.

Barca looked poised to take over, threatening a second goal until Sergi Roberto stroked a pass carelessly across his own defensive line, allowing Sergio Aguero to intercept and feed Sterling who crossed for Guendogan to tap the ball in.

A poor touch from Sterling stopped him putting City ahead at the start of the second half but they did not have to wait long to go ahead as De Bruyne&#39;s free-kick dipped over the wall and beat the despairing dive of Marc-Andre ter Stegen.

De Bruyne came close to adding to the lead as the hosts flooded forward.

Barca should have equalised when a stray back pass from John Stones led to Andre Gomes hitting the bar when it seemed easier to score.

City, though, earned reward for their domination and some wayward defending by the visitors when De Bruyne&#39;s pass cut them apart and set up Jesus Navas to whip in the cross that eventually fell to Germany midfielder Guendogan who hammered his fourth goal in two games.

(Reuters)

Coach Pep Guardiola's men now have seven points from four matches, two behind leaders Barca

Coach Pep Guardiola was left thrilled after Manchester City revived their Champions League bid by beating his old club Barcelona 3-1 in a gloriously open Group C encounter at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday. Ilkay Guendogan scored twice and Kevin De Bruyne netted a superb free kick in a magnificent display from the home side that ended Barcelona's 100 per cent record and made handsome amends for City's 4-0 drubbing at the Nou Camp two weeks ago. Guardiola's men now have seven points from four matches, two behind leaders Barca. Borussia Moenchengladbach are on four points after drawing 1-1 with bottom club Celtic. City's victory looked unlikely when Lionel Messi followed up his hat-trick in the game at the Nou Camp with a dazzling opener on the counter-attack in the 21st minute and Barca were in control before Guendogan cashed in on a Sergi Roberto mistake. In a game peppered with fine attacking and dubious defending, City then ran Barca ragged as the exceptional De Bruyne netted in the 51st minute before helping set up Guendogan's second after 74. City's best Champions League night left Barca frustrated as they failed to gain the win that would have sealed their place in the knockout stages for a 13th successive season. The home side's big night started brightly as Raheem Sterling appeared to be brought down in the box by Samuel Umtiti only to be booked, harshly perhaps, for diving. Then, in a devastating counter-attack initiated by Javier Mascherano when he broke up a City thrust in his own box, Messi found Neymar on the left before marauding down the field to latch on to the Brazilian's pass and claim his 90th Champions League goal. Barca looked poised to take over, threatening a second goal until Sergi Roberto stroked a pass carelessly across his own defensive line, allowing Sergio Aguero to intercept and feed Sterling who crossed for Guendogan to tap the ball in. A poor touch from Sterling stopped him putting City ahead at the start of the second half but they did not have to wait long to go ahead as De Bruyne's free-kick dipped over the wall and beat the despairing dive of Marc-Andre ter Stegen. De Bruyne came close to adding to the lead as the hosts flooded forward. Barca should have equalised when a stray back pass from John Stones led to Andre Gomes hitting the bar when it seemed easier to score. City, though, earned reward for their domination and some wayward defending by the visitors when De Bruyne's pass cut them apart and set up Jesus Navas to whip in the cross that eventually fell to Germany midfielder Guendogan who hammered his fourth goal in two games. (Reuters)

Champions League: Manchester City beat Barcelona 3-1

Former Germany midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger&#39;s exile came to an end on Monday as he returned to first-team training.

Pictures posted on the club&#39;s social media accounts featured the 32-year-old training with team-mates ahead of Thursday&#39;s match at Fenerbahce.

Since United manager Jose Mourinho&#39;s arrival Schweinsteiger has not played and was also left out from United&#39;s Europe League squad.

&quot;It&#39;s great to see him back,&quot; United left-back Luke Shaw told AFP at United&#39;s training complex.

&quot;We found out the news a couple of days ago and it&#39;s so great to have him back. He&#39;s a big influence in the dressing room and obviously on the pitch, especially for the young players like myself. It&#39;s a great boost for us, the experience and the quality that he brings.&quot;

Former United captain Bryan Robon also hailed Schweinsteiger&#39;s return.

&quot;Bastian&#39;s a great lad, speaks perfect English, has got great quality and vast experience,&quot; Robson said at the launch of a United deal with Chinese mattress firm Mlily.

&quot;For me he could definitely help the group, on the confidence side and just the know-how on how to play the game in that central role. I still think he could be valuable to the squad.&quot;

Mourinho had criticised Shaw after United lost 3-1 at Watford last month and was left out of the squad for their recent 4-0 loss to Chelsea.

Shaw said that although he was &quot;unhappy&quot; to miss the game against Chelsea but there were no issues between him and the manager.&nbsp;

&quot;I really wanted to play that game,&quot; said Shaw. &quot;But at the end of the day it&#39;s the manager&#39;s decision. After the game I spoke with him about it and I 100 percent agreed with what he said and why I wasn&#39;t involved. Obviously we&#39;ll keep that between us two. But it&#39;s been really good the last couple of games. I&#39;ve felt fitter and stronger.&quot;

(With inputs from AFP)

Pictures posted on the club's social media accounts featured the 32-year-old training with team-mates

Former Germany midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger's exile came to an end on Monday as he returned to first-team training. Pictures posted on the club's social media accounts featured the 32-year-old training with team-mates ahead of Thursday's match at Fenerbahce. Since United manager Jose Mourinho's arrival Schweinsteiger has not played and was also left out from United's Europe League squad. "It's great to see him back," United left-back Luke Shaw told AFP at United's training complex. "We found out the news a couple of days ago and it's so great to have him back. He's a big influence in the dressing room and obviously on the pitch, especially for the young players like myself. It's a great boost for us, the experience and the quality that he brings." Former United captain Bryan Robon also hailed Schweinsteiger's return. "Bastian's a great lad, speaks perfect English, has got great quality and vast experience," Robson said at the launch of a United deal with Chinese mattress firm Mlily. "For me he could definitely help the group, on the confidence side and just the know-how on how to play the game in that central role. I still think he could be valuable to the squad." Mourinho had criticised Shaw after United lost 3-1 at Watford last month and was left out of the squad for their recent 4-0 loss to Chelsea. Shaw said that although he was "unhappy" to miss the game against Chelsea but there were no issues between him and the manager. "I really wanted to play that game," said Shaw. "But at the end of the day it's the manager's decision. After the game I spoke with him about it and I 100 percent agreed with what he said and why I wasn't involved. Obviously we'll keep that between us two. But it's been really good the last couple of games. I've felt fitter and stronger." (With inputs from AFP)

Football: Schweinsteiger's exile ends, rejoins Man Utd training

Cristiano Ronaldo returned to goalscoring form with his first hat-trick of the season and also missed a penalty as Real Madrid extended their lead at the top of La Liga with a 4-1 win at Alaves on Saturday.

Barcelona move up to second, just two points adrift, despite a below-par display in edging past bottom-placed Granada 1-0 thanks to Rafinha&#39;s spectacular winner.

Atletico Madrid remain three points back of city rivals Real thanks to doubles from Yannick Carrasco and Kevin Gameiro in a 4-2 win over Malaga despite playing with 10 men for the final half hour.

Ronaldo&#39;s wayward form in recent weeks had come under the spotlight &#39; even drawing whistles from the Santiago Bernabeu crowd last weekend &#39; but he turned the game around after Deyverson had put Alaves into a shock early lead.

&quot;We are always going to demand goals from Cristiano, but he was good in all aspects,&quot; said Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane.

&quot;We knew how to suffer because the first half and the start of the second weren&#39;t comfortable or easy.

&quot;But playing like this, if you know how to suffer and then add a bit of movement, we know what we can do.&quot;Real&#39;s unbeaten run stretches to 26 matches, but their defensive struggles continued in Vitoria as Zidane&#39;s men got off to the worst possible start when Deyverson pounced on an error from goalkeeper Keylor Navas to slot Alaves into a seventh-minute lead.

The visitors needed two slices of fortune to turn the game around before half-time.

Firstly, Deyverson was adjudged to have handled a Gareth Bale free-kick inside his own area and Ronaldo slotted home the penalty.

Ronaldo&#39;s second came 16 minutes later when his low effort from outside the area deflected off Zouhair Feddal and flew into the far corner.

The Portuguese missed the chance to seal his hat-trick when his second spot-kick was saved by Fernando Pacheco 12 minutes from time.

However, Alvaro Morata again made his presence felt off the bench as he raced onto Marcelo&#39;s through ball and lobbed the onrushing Pacheco for his fourth goal as a substitute this season.

And Marcelo was involved again in the fourth as he and Ronaldo exchanged passes before the latter smashed home two minutes from time.

An injury-ravaged Barcelona named Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar in attack against winless Granada, but had to rely on free-scoring midfielder Rafinha in a much closer contest than anticipated at the Camp Nou.

&quot;It is clear it wasn&#39;t a brilliant match on our part,&quot; admitted Barca boss Luis Enrique. &quot;Sometimes the players aren&#39;t machines.&quot;

Rafinha&#39;s overhead kick broke the deadlock three minutes into the second-half after Barca toiled to break down Granada&#39;s deep-lying defence before the break.

Neymar, Suarez and Messi all missed chances to add a second, but Granada never threatened to end their record of losing in every one of their now 24 visits to the Camp Nou.Atletico bounced back from their first defeat of the season at Sevilla last weekend, but made life difficult for themselves against Malaga.

Carrasco fired home his sixth goal in his last six games to put Atletico in front before Gameiro took advantage of some slack Malaga defending to double the lead inside 25 minutes.

Sandro Ramirez&#39;s stunning free-kick brought Malaga back into the game, but Gameiro restored Atletico&#39;s two-goal lead when he latched onto Antoine Griezmann&#39;s flick-on to make it 3-1 just before the break.

However, Stefan Savic picked up two quickfire yellow cards to leave Atletico a man short for the final half hour.

Ignacio Camacho headed home from a corner to cut Malaga&#39;s deficit once more, but Carrasco showed stunning speed and produced an unerring finish into the far corner to seal the points four minutes from time.

&quot;I think he has improved with a lot of hard work and sacrifice. He has understood his own potential,&quot; Atletico boss Diego Simeone said of Carrasco.

&quot;Today he scored a goal with his left foot and then another one on his right on the counter-attack with the finish of a striker.&quot;

Sevilla slip to fourth after being held 1-1 at Sporting Gijon.

(AFP)

The 4-1 win against Alves helped Real Madrid hold off Barca and Atletico in the La Liga standings

Cristiano Ronaldo returned to goalscoring form with his first hat-trick of the season and also missed a penalty as Real Madrid extended their lead at the top of La Liga with a 4-1 win at Alaves on Saturday. Barcelona move up to second, just two points adrift, despite a below-par display in edging past bottom-placed Granada 1-0 thanks to Rafinha's spectacular winner. Atletico Madrid remain three points back of city rivals Real thanks to doubles from Yannick Carrasco and Kevin Gameiro in a 4-2 win over Malaga despite playing with 10 men for the final half hour. Ronaldo's wayward form in recent weeks had come under the spotlight ' even drawing whistles from the Santiago Bernabeu crowd last weekend ' but he turned the game around after Deyverson had put Alaves into a shock early lead. "We are always going to demand goals from Cristiano, but he was good in all aspects," said Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane. "We knew how to suffer because the first half and the start of the second weren't comfortable or easy. "But playing like this, if you know how to suffer and then add a bit of movement, we know what we can do."Real's unbeaten run stretches to 26 matches, but their defensive struggles continued in Vitoria as Zidane's men got off to the worst possible start when Deyverson pounced on an error from goalkeeper Keylor Navas to slot Alaves into a seventh-minute lead. The visitors needed two slices of fortune to turn the game around before half-time. Firstly, Deyverson was adjudged to have handled a Gareth Bale free-kick inside his own area and Ronaldo slotted home the penalty. Ronaldo's second came 16 minutes later when his low effort from outside the area deflected off Zouhair Feddal and flew into the far corner. The Portuguese missed the chance to seal his hat-trick when his second spot-kick was saved by Fernando Pacheco 12 minutes from time. However, Alvaro Morata again made his presence felt off the bench as he raced onto Marcelo's through ball and lobbed the onrushing Pacheco for his fourth goal as a substitute this season. And Marcelo was involved again in the fourth as he and Ronaldo exchanged passes before the latter smashed home two minutes from time. An injury-ravaged Barcelona named Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar in attack against winless Granada, but had to rely on free-scoring midfielder Rafinha in a much closer contest than anticipated at the Camp Nou. "It is clear it wasn't a brilliant match on our part," admitted Barca boss Luis Enrique. "Sometimes the players aren't machines." Rafinha's overhead kick broke the deadlock three minutes into the second-half after Barca toiled to break down Granada's deep-lying defence before the break. Neymar, Suarez and Messi all missed chances to add a second, but Granada never threatened to end their record of losing in every one of their now 24 visits to the Camp Nou.Atletico bounced back from their first defeat of the season at Sevilla last weekend, but made life difficult for themselves against Malaga. Carrasco fired home his sixth goal in his last six games to put Atletico in front before Gameiro took advantage of some slack Malaga defending to double the lead inside 25 minutes. Sandro Ramirez's stunning free-kick brought Malaga back into the game, but Gameiro restored Atletico's two-goal lead when he latched onto Antoine Griezmann's flick-on to make it 3-1 just before the break. However, Stefan Savic picked up two quickfire yellow cards to leave Atletico a man short for the final half hour. Ignacio Camacho headed home from a corner to cut Malaga's deficit once more, but Carrasco showed stunning speed and produced an unerring finish into the far corner to seal the points four minutes from time. "I think he has improved with a lot of hard work and sacrifice. He has understood his own potential," Atletico boss Diego Simeone said of Carrasco. "Today he scored a goal with his left foot and then another one on his right on the counter-attack with the finish of a striker." Sevilla slip to fourth after being held 1-1 at Sporting Gijon. (AFP)

Ronaldo hat-trick extends Real Madrid's La Liga lead

Juan Mata swept home to steer Manchester United into the League Cup quarter-finals with a 1-0 win over holders and bitter local rivals Manchester City on Wednesday as Jose Mourinho got one over old adversary Pep Guardiola.

Mata rifled in a low finish past City keeper Willy Caballero early in the second half at Old Trafford on a night of few chances but plenty of derby fervour as United boss Mourinho won the tactical battle against Guardiola&#39;s much-changed City side.

The result lifted some of the pressure off Mourinho following Sunday&#39;s 4-0 defeat to Chelsea, but for his old sparring partner, Guardiola, it was a sixth successive game without victory, his longest winless streak as a manager.

West Ham United also moved into the last eight after they overcame Chelsea 2-1 in a London derby spoiled by ugly scenes of fan violence at the end of the game, while Southampton heaped more misery on struggling Sunderland with a 1-0 victory.

Recent results and the gathering pressure on both Mourinho and Guardiola ensured the clash at Old Trafford had all the usual spice of a derby encounter even if City made nine changes to their side against a virtually full-strength United team.

City should have gone ahead after two minutes, but Kelechi Iheanacho darted in front of his marker to direct his header hopelessly off target from close range.

United offered little attacking threat, but gained control of possession as the match wore on and were the more dangerous side for most of the encounter.

It took until the start of the second half, however, for them to create a meaningful chance when Paul Pogba&#39;s low shot was turned onto the post by Caballero, sparking an onslaught from the home side that ended with Mata&#39;s opener on 54 minutes.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic shrugged off a challenge then played the ball back towards Ander Herrera, who went down dramatically in the box but Mata was following up to powerfully steer the ball home.

Derby Knockout

Then it was just a case of holding on, which they did comfortably, as Mourinho recorded his fourth victory over Guardiola in a rivalry spanning 18 matches.

The greater satisfaction for the Portuguese, however, seemed to be erasing some of the negativity of Sunday&#39;s thrashing by his former club Chelsea.

&quot;The fans felt deeply such a negative result and today was a good chance to clear that feeling because a derby knockout and to win gives everyone a better feeling,&quot; he said.

West Ham&#39;s woeful start to the season is turning round and the revival continued in the first derby at their new London Stadium home.

Tight security arrangements, including a ban on the sale of alcohol in the vicinity of the Olympic Park, was intended to prevent flashpoints off the pitch, but there were still ugly scenes towards the end as rival fans clashed behind the goal with several seats being ripped out.

On the pitch, a vibrant West Ham proved too strong for a Chelsea side much-changed from their weekend trouncing of Manchester United.

Cheikhou Kouyate put the Hammers on their way to a third consecutive win with a thumping header from skipper Mark Noble&rsquo;s driven cross after 11 minutes and Edimilson Fernandes beat Asmir Begovic with a low shot three minutes after the restart.

Gary Cahill did grab a Chelsea consolation in stoppage time but by that time all eyes were on stewards trying to keep rival fans apart.

Southampton&#39;s record signing Sofiane Boufal scored from long range in the second half in their 1-0 victory over Sunderland, a fourth defeat in five games for Sunderland manager David Moyes.

(Reuters)

The result lifted some of the pressure off Mourinho following Sunday's 4-0 defeat to Chelsea

Juan Mata swept home to steer Manchester United into the League Cup quarter-finals with a 1-0 win over holders and bitter local rivals Manchester City on Wednesday as Jose Mourinho got one over old adversary Pep Guardiola. Mata rifled in a low finish past City keeper Willy Caballero early in the second half at Old Trafford on a night of few chances but plenty of derby fervour as United boss Mourinho won the tactical battle against Guardiola's much-changed City side. The result lifted some of the pressure off Mourinho following Sunday's 4-0 defeat to Chelsea, but for his old sparring partner, Guardiola, it was a sixth successive game without victory, his longest winless streak as a manager. West Ham United also moved into the last eight after they overcame Chelsea 2-1 in a London derby spoiled by ugly scenes of fan violence at the end of the game, while Southampton heaped more misery on struggling Sunderland with a 1-0 victory. Recent results and the gathering pressure on both Mourinho and Guardiola ensured the clash at Old Trafford had all the usual spice of a derby encounter even if City made nine changes to their side against a virtually full-strength United team. City should have gone ahead after two minutes, but Kelechi Iheanacho darted in front of his marker to direct his header hopelessly off target from close range. United offered little attacking threat, but gained control of possession as the match wore on and were the more dangerous side for most of the encounter. It took until the start of the second half, however, for them to create a meaningful chance when Paul Pogba's low shot was turned onto the post by Caballero, sparking an onslaught from the home side that ended with Mata's opener on 54 minutes. Zlatan Ibrahimovic shrugged off a challenge then played the ball back towards Ander Herrera, who went down dramatically in the box but Mata was following up to powerfully steer the ball home. Derby Knockout Then it was just a case of holding on, which they did comfortably, as Mourinho recorded his fourth victory over Guardiola in a rivalry spanning 18 matches. The greater satisfaction for the Portuguese, however, seemed to be erasing some of the negativity of Sunday's thrashing by his former club Chelsea. "The fans felt deeply such a negative result and today was a good chance to clear that feeling because a derby knockout and to win gives everyone a better feeling," he said. West Ham's woeful start to the season is turning round and the revival continued in the first derby at their new London Stadium home. Tight security arrangements, including a ban on the sale of alcohol in the vicinity of the Olympic Park, was intended to prevent flashpoints off the pitch, but there were still ugly scenes towards the end as rival fans clashed behind the goal with several seats being ripped out. On the pitch, a vibrant West Ham proved too strong for a Chelsea side much-changed from their weekend trouncing of Manchester United. Cheikhou Kouyate put the Hammers on their way to a third consecutive win with a thumping header from skipper Mark Noble’s driven cross after 11 minutes and Edimilson Fernandes beat Asmir Begovic with a low shot three minutes after the restart. Gary Cahill did grab a Chelsea consolation in stoppage time but by that time all eyes were on stewards trying to keep rival fans apart. Southampton's record signing Sofiane Boufal scored from long range in the second half in their 1-0 victory over Sunderland, a fourth defeat in five games for Sunderland manager David Moyes. (Reuters)

Football: ManU beat holders Man City 1-0, reach League Cup quarter-final

Italians with selective memories might remember Marcello Lippi as the coach who quit moments after the Azzurri&#39;s first-round elimination, as defending champions, from the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

But for connoisseurs of the beautiful game the dapper 68-year-old is the wily tactician who, in 2006, ended Italy&#39;s 24-year wait to be crowned world champions again.

Lippi, named coach of China on Saturday, won&#39;t be expected to work the same magic with a team that is ranked 84th in the world and likely to miss the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

But with one of football&#39;s most impressive CVs, coupled with a mandate that should give him significant control over players and resources, the Italian has the tools to put the underperforming Chinese on the road to success.

He was the first coach to win both the Champions League and World Cup and the first -- and only -- to win the Champions League in Europe and Asia (AFC).

Respected for his intricate knowledge of tactics and ability to squeeze every last drop from his players, Lippi&#39;s fatherly approach contrasts with his cold and calculated demeanour.

Amid the bombshell of a damaging betting scandal weeks before the 2006 World Cup, Lippi put an arm around the shoulders of his players to steer them, against all odds, to one of the most memorable World Cup finals in recent history.

Few believed Italy&#39;s 2006 squad, which included many players who failed to make an impact at the 2002 World Cup and Euro 2004, would succeed under Lippi.

Goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon said Lippi&#39;s &quot;humility&quot; and &quot;intelligence&quot; was key as he guided the controversy-hit Italians to international football&#39;s greatest prize.

&quot;I&#39;ve not worked with anyone quite like him. He can stimulate the players to such a degree that everyone gives 120 percent,&quot; the Italy and Juventus goalkeeper said prior to the 2006 final.

&quot;He makes every player feel important and treats everybody equally. It is difficult to find all these qualities in a coach.&quot;

&nbsp;

Monumental success

A former defender with Sampdoria, with whom he spent the bulk of his 363-game professional career, Lippi achieved his first significant coaching success by steering Napoli to the 1993-1994 UEFA Cup.

It was a huge achievement, given the financial demise of a club still basking in the triumph of the two titles they won in three seasons while under the spell of Diego Maradona.

When such a coaching talent emerges in Italy, Juventus are never usually far behind, and Lippi was appointed during the summer of 1994.

The silver-haired, straight-talking Tuscan helped Italy&#39;s most successful domestic club fill their trophy cabinet over a nine-year period that was interrupted by a comparatively disastrous season at Inter Milan in 1999-2000.

Lippi led Juventus to their second Champions League title (1996), five Serie A titles, one Italian Cup, four Italian Supercups, one European SuperCup and the Intercontinental Cup.

Although he had the likes of Edgar Davids, Zinedine Zidane and Pavel Nedved, he always insisted team unity was key.

&quot;A group of the best players do not necessarily make for the best team,&quot; Lippi would say.

He would later go on to manage Chinese side Guangzhou Evergrande to three consecutive league titles between 2012 and 2014, setting him up for the next chapter in the career of one of the world&#39;s greatest coaches.

&nbsp;

(AFP)

?With his CV & a mandate that gives him enough control, the Italian has the tools to put the underperforming Chinese on the road to success

Italians with selective memories might remember Marcello Lippi as the coach who quit moments after the Azzurri's first-round elimination, as defending champions, from the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. But for connoisseurs of the beautiful game the dapper 68-year-old is the wily tactician who, in 2006, ended Italy's 24-year wait to be crowned world champions again. Lippi, named coach of China on Saturday, won't be expected to work the same magic with a team that is ranked 84th in the world and likely to miss the 2018 World Cup in Russia. But with one of football's most impressive CVs, coupled with a mandate that should give him significant control over players and resources, the Italian has the tools to put the underperforming Chinese on the road to success. He was the first coach to win both the Champions League and World Cup and the first -- and only -- to win the Champions League in Europe and Asia (AFC). Respected for his intricate knowledge of tactics and ability to squeeze every last drop from his players, Lippi's fatherly approach contrasts with his cold and calculated demeanour. Amid the bombshell of a damaging betting scandal weeks before the 2006 World Cup, Lippi put an arm around the shoulders of his players to steer them, against all odds, to one of the most memorable World Cup finals in recent history. Few believed Italy's 2006 squad, which included many players who failed to make an impact at the 2002 World Cup and Euro 2004, would succeed under Lippi. Goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon said Lippi's "humility" and "intelligence" was key as he guided the controversy-hit Italians to international football's greatest prize. "I've not worked with anyone quite like him. He can stimulate the players to such a degree that everyone gives 120 percent," the Italy and Juventus goalkeeper said prior to the 2006 final. "He makes every player feel important and treats everybody equally. It is difficult to find all these qualities in a coach." Monumental success A former defender with Sampdoria, with whom he spent the bulk of his 363-game professional career, Lippi achieved his first significant coaching success by steering Napoli to the 1993-1994 UEFA Cup. It was a huge achievement, given the financial demise of a club still basking in the triumph of the two titles they won in three seasons while under the spell of Diego Maradona. When such a coaching talent emerges in Italy, Juventus are never usually far behind, and Lippi was appointed during the summer of 1994. The silver-haired, straight-talking Tuscan helped Italy's most successful domestic club fill their trophy cabinet over a nine-year period that was interrupted by a comparatively disastrous season at Inter Milan in 1999-2000. Lippi led Juventus to their second Champions League title (1996), five Serie A titles, one Italian Cup, four Italian Supercups, one European SuperCup and the Intercontinental Cup. Although he had the likes of Edgar Davids, Zinedine Zidane and Pavel Nedved, he always insisted team unity was key. "A group of the best players do not necessarily make for the best team," Lippi would say. He would later go on to manage Chinese side Guangzhou Evergrande to three consecutive league titles between 2012 and 2014, setting him up for the next chapter in the career of one of the world's greatest coaches. (AFP)

Lippi: One of the world's great coaches

World Cup-winning manager Marcello Lippi has been named as coach of China&#39;s national team, the Chinese Football Association (CFA) said on its website on Saturday.

The Italian replaced Gao Hongbo, who resigned this month after a 2-0 defeat in Uzbekistan dealt a further blow to the country&#39;s slim hopes of qualifying for the 2018 World Cup.

&quot;The Chinese Football Association decided to appoint Mr. Lippi as coach of China&#39;s men&#39;s national team following amicable negotiations,&quot; read a short statement on the website.

No details of the contract were revealed but Lippi will be introduced to the media at a news conference in Beijing on Friday.

The 68-year-old, who won the World Cup with Italy in 2006, enjoyed a successful three-year spell with Guangzhou Evergrande, winning the Chinese League title three times and the Asian Champions League in 2013.

Lippi had been linked with a return to Guangzhou but the Chinese champions cleared the way for him to take the national team job when the club announced on Saturday they had agreed to terminate a contract signed early last month.

He will be China&#39;s third coach this year after Gao and Frenchman Alain Perrin, who was sacked in January, as the CFA bids to fulfil the ambition of President Xi Jinping for the country to qualify for the World Cup finals for a second time.

Lippi&#39;s first match in charge will be the World Cup qualifier against Qatar in Kunming on Nov. 15 but he will have his work cut out to resurrect their campaign.

The loss to Uzbekistan left China bottom of the six-team Asian Group A with one draw and three defeats after four of 10 matches in the round.

The top two qualify directly for Russia in 2018 with the third-placed side offered a passage to the finals via two playoffs.

At Evergrande, Lippi was handed a huge budget to bring in big-name European and Brazilian players, an option clearly not open to him with the national team.

Finding players to bolster China&#39;s goal tally - they have scored just two in their first four matches of this round of qualifying - will be a major challenge.

Of the top 13 goalscorers in the Chinese Super League going into this weekend&#39;s round of matches, only one - Shanghai SIPG&#39;s Wu Lei - was Chinese.

(Reuters)

The Italian replaced Gao Hongbo after a 2-0 defeat in Uzbekistan dealt a further blow to the country's 2018 World Cup hopes

World Cup-winning manager Marcello Lippi has been named as coach of China's national team, the Chinese Football Association (CFA) said on its website on Saturday. The Italian replaced Gao Hongbo, who resigned this month after a 2-0 defeat in Uzbekistan dealt a further blow to the country's slim hopes of qualifying for the 2018 World Cup. "The Chinese Football Association decided to appoint Mr. Lippi as coach of China's men's national team following amicable negotiations," read a short statement on the website. No details of the contract were revealed but Lippi will be introduced to the media at a news conference in Beijing on Friday. The 68-year-old, who won the World Cup with Italy in 2006, enjoyed a successful three-year spell with Guangzhou Evergrande, winning the Chinese League title three times and the Asian Champions League in 2013. Lippi had been linked with a return to Guangzhou but the Chinese champions cleared the way for him to take the national team job when the club announced on Saturday they had agreed to terminate a contract signed early last month. He will be China's third coach this year after Gao and Frenchman Alain Perrin, who was sacked in January, as the CFA bids to fulfil the ambition of President Xi Jinping for the country to qualify for the World Cup finals for a second time. Lippi's first match in charge will be the World Cup qualifier against Qatar in Kunming on Nov. 15 but he will have his work cut out to resurrect their campaign. The loss to Uzbekistan left China bottom of the six-team Asian Group A with one draw and three defeats after four of 10 matches in the round. The top two qualify directly for Russia in 2018 with the third-placed side offered a passage to the finals via two playoffs. At Evergrande, Lippi was handed a huge budget to bring in big-name European and Brazilian players, an option clearly not open to him with the national team. Finding players to bolster China's goal tally - they have scored just two in their first four matches of this round of qualifying - will be a major challenge. Of the top 13 goalscorers in the Chinese Super League going into this weekend's round of matches, only one - Shanghai SIPG's Wu Lei - was Chinese. (Reuters)

Football: World Cup-winning coach Lippi appointed China manager

Defeating all odds, an 11-year-old football player from Odisha&#39;s Sabar Sahi slum has made the country proud by making his way to Germany&#39;s Bayern Munich Club. 
 
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="480" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/PVceV-lv_o4?list=PLmWa9ZZLlCjt0Jlg7kN3JBNX4LH1sRsGh" width="970"></iframe> &nbsp; 
 
The young football genius, Chandan Nayak, has been chosen to travel to Munich to get a two-month training at the reputed club. Nayak, who hails from an extremely underprivileged family, will stay there as an academy player in an all-expenses-paid junior football camp. 
 
Bayern Munich is a German sports club based in Munich, Bavaria, best known for its professional football team, which plays in the Bundesliga. It is the most successful club in German football history, having won a record 26 national titles and 18 national cups.

Nayak will stay there as an academy player in an all-expenses-paid junior football camp

Defeating all odds, an 11-year-old football player from Odisha's Sabar Sahi slum has made the country proud by making his way to Germany's Bayern Munich Club. The young football genius, Chandan Nayak, has been chosen to travel to Munich to get a two-month training at the reputed club. Nayak, who hails from an extremely underprivileged family, will stay there as an academy player in an all-expenses-paid junior football camp. Bayern Munich is a German sports club based in Munich, Bavaria, best known for its professional football team, which plays in the Bundesliga. It is the most successful club in German football history, having won a record 26 national titles and 18 national cups.

Video: An Indian village boy makes it to Germany's top football club

Spain defender Gerard Pique has grown &quot;tired&quot; of the criticism against him and has announced plans of retiring from international soccer after World Cup 2018.

&quot;Yes, I&#39;m tired of it and the World Cup in Russia is going to be my last commitment with the Spain team and then I hope I can be left in peace,&quot; Pique said on Sunday.

Pique came under the radar during the Sunday&#39;s 2-0 win in the World Cup qualifier against Albania after he claims that he had cut off the sleeves from his shirt which bore Spain&#39;s colours of yellow and red. The Barcelona centre-back clarified after the match that he had, in fact, cut off the sleeves from a different shirt that did not have the flag design.

&quot;I cut my shirt because the sleeves were very short and they were bothering me. I&#39;ve tried everything but I can&#39;t take it any more, the thing with the sleeve is the straw that has broken the camel&#39;s back.&quot;

The 28-year-old&#39;s relationship with Spain supporters has been rocky because of his repeated jibes at Real Madrid and his support for a referendum on Catalan independence.

The Royal Spanish Football Federation defended the Barcelona-born defender&#39;s action of cutting the sleeves in a statement.

&quot;Contrary to what was indicated by some malicious comments - that the player cut his sleeves to avoid wearing a top with the national colours - the RFEF wishes to clarify that this trimming only exists in the Adidas short-sleeve shirt, and not in the long sleeves, which is what Pique wore in the match.&nbsp;

&quot;This lack of trimming can be seen on the shirt of his partner, Sergio Ramos, who also wore long sleeves,&quot; a statement read, goal.com reported.

Pique&nbsp;has made 86 appearances for Spain and won the 2010 World Cup in South Africa and Euro 2012. He was also present in Spain&#39;s disappointing campaigns in the 2014 World Cup and Euro 2016.

(WION with inputs from Reuters)

'The thing with the sleeve is the straw that has broken the camel's back,' the Barcelona-born defender said on Sunday

Spain defender Gerard Pique has grown "tired" of the criticism against him and has announced plans of retiring from international soccer after World Cup 2018. "Yes, I'm tired of it and the World Cup in Russia is going to be my last commitment with the Spain team and then I hope I can be left in peace," Pique said on Sunday. Pique came under the radar during the Sunday's 2-0 win in the World Cup qualifier against Albania after he claims that he had cut off the sleeves from his shirt which bore Spain's colours of yellow and red. The Barcelona centre-back clarified after the match that he had, in fact, cut off the sleeves from a different shirt that did not have the flag design. "I cut my shirt because the sleeves were very short and they were bothering me. I've tried everything but I can't take it any more, the thing with the sleeve is the straw that has broken the camel's back." The 28-year-old's relationship with Spain supporters has been rocky because of his repeated jibes at Real Madrid and his support for a referendum on Catalan independence. The Royal Spanish Football Federation defended the Barcelona-born defender's action of cutting the sleeves in a statement. "Contrary to what was indicated by some malicious comments - that the player cut his sleeves to avoid wearing a top with the national colours - the RFEF wishes to clarify that this trimming only exists in the Adidas short-sleeve shirt, and not in the long sleeves, which is what Pique wore in the match. "This lack of trimming can be seen on the shirt of his partner, Sergio Ramos, who also wore long sleeves," a statement read, goal.com reported. Pique has made 86 appearances for Spain and won the 2010 World Cup in South Africa and Euro 2012. He was also present in Spain's disappointing campaigns in the 2014 World Cup and Euro 2016. (WION with inputs from Reuters)

Spanish defender Pique decides to quit international soccer after 'shirt sleeve' controversy

England captain Wayne Rooney is set to be benched from the World Cup qualifier against Slovenia on Tuesday, according to media reports.

As England prepares to maintain its 100 per cent record, manager Gareth Southgate has decided to name the Manchester United striker among the substitutes for the game in Ljubljana, BBC and Sky Sports reported.

Southgate is likely to name Eric Dier and Jordan Henderson as his two deep-lying central midfielders, Sky Sports reported.

Rooney, with 117 appearances, is England&#39;s most capped outfield player but has recently faced criticism for his performances. The Manchester United player has scored just once in 12 games this season and only once in the last seven internationals.

The 82,000-strong Wembley crowd booed the striker near the end of their 2-0 win in a World Cup qualifier over Malta on Saturday.

Southgate defended Rooney saying his experience was crucial to the team and that the criticism was &#39;at times unfair&#39;.

&quot;He ploughs on and plays with pride and captains his country with pride,&quot; said the interim boss who took over after the resignation of Sam Allardyce last month. &quot;I think his experience, his leadership has been crucial throughout this week, not just today.&quot;

Rooney has been a substitute in Manchester United&#39;s last three games. Southgate added he was not overly concerned that Rooney had been left out of United&#39;s recent starting sides.

&quot;I think at this moment in time that`s irrelevant,&quot; said former England defender Southgate. &quot;Part of that is because we`ve got 30 percent of the Premier League eligible for England. Of that, some don`t want to play; of that, some aren&#39;t good enough to play. And you&#39;ve got a captain who is desperate to lead on and off the field and continues to make an outstanding contribution to that group of players. So that was why he was selected. What&#39;s happening at Manchester United for this week is not as important.&quot;

Slovenia coach Srecko Katanec said he hoped Rooney would not be playing against his side.&nbsp;&quot;Because of his experience and quality, I would rather he would not start than he does start.&quot;

Southgate is expected to announce the captain in a news conference later in Slovenia.

(WION with inputs from agencies)

England may start without Rooney, who scored only once in 12 games this season, as it looks to maintain 100 per cent record in qualifiers

England captain Wayne Rooney is set to be benched from the World Cup qualifier against Slovenia on Tuesday, according to media reports. As England prepares to maintain its 100 per cent record, manager Gareth Southgate has decided to name the Manchester United striker among the substitutes for the game in Ljubljana, BBC and Sky Sports reported. Southgate is likely to name Eric Dier and Jordan Henderson as his two deep-lying central midfielders, Sky Sports reported. Rooney, with 117 appearances, is England's most capped outfield player but has recently faced criticism for his performances. The Manchester United player has scored just once in 12 games this season and only once in the last seven internationals. The 82,000-strong Wembley crowd booed the striker near the end of their 2-0 win in a World Cup qualifier over Malta on Saturday. Southgate defended Rooney saying his experience was crucial to the team and that the criticism was 'at times unfair'. "He ploughs on and plays with pride and captains his country with pride," said the interim boss who took over after the resignation of Sam Allardyce last month. "I think his experience, his leadership has been crucial throughout this week, not just today." Rooney has been a substitute in Manchester United's last three games. Southgate added he was not overly concerned that Rooney had been left out of United's recent starting sides. "I think at this moment in time that`s irrelevant," said former England defender Southgate. "Part of that is because we`ve got 30 percent of the Premier League eligible for England. Of that, some don`t want to play; of that, some aren't good enough to play. And you've got a captain who is desperate to lead on and off the field and continues to make an outstanding contribution to that group of players. So that was why he was selected. What's happening at Manchester United for this week is not as important." Slovenia coach Srecko Katanec said he hoped Rooney would not be playing against his side. "Because of his experience and quality, I would rather he would not start than he does start." Southgate is expected to announce the captain in a news conference later in Slovenia. (WION with inputs from agencies)

England to bench captain Rooney in World Cup qualifier against Slovenia: Reports

Wales let slip two 2018 World Cup qualifying points in a 1-1 draw at home to Georgia in Cardiff on Sunday.

Real Madrid star Gareth Bale headed Wales into a 10th-minute lead and the Euro 2016 semi-finalists should have scored more goals before half-time.

Georgia hit back after the break, equalising through Tornike Okriashvili&#39;s 57th-minute header and they nearly won the game late on when Valeri Kazaishvili struck the crossbar.

&quot;People will look at it as two points dropped but it might be a point gained at the end of the day, in the second half,&quot; Wales manager Chris Coleman told Sky Sports.

&quot;We got a great start but you&#39;ve got to take care of business. We didn&#39;t and we were punished, we tried to come again but it was too late, they&#39;d got a bit of confidence by then.&quot;

He added: &quot;We could have lost it in the second half but you think Georgia at home, you&#39;ve got to take the three points.

&quot;The next game now is Serbia here (on November 12). It puts more pressure on us to take three points there and we have to deal with that.&quot;

 
&nbsp;

(AFP)

The match ended in a 1-1 draw with Gareth Bale getting wales a 10th-minute lead and Georgia's Tornike Okriashvili's 57th-minute header

Wales let slip two 2018 World Cup qualifying points in a 1-1 draw at home to Georgia in Cardiff on Sunday. Real Madrid star Gareth Bale headed Wales into a 10th-minute lead and the Euro 2016 semi-finalists should have scored more goals before half-time. Georgia hit back after the break, equalising through Tornike Okriashvili's 57th-minute header and they nearly won the game late on when Valeri Kazaishvili struck the crossbar. "People will look at it as two points dropped but it might be a point gained at the end of the day, in the second half," Wales manager Chris Coleman told Sky Sports. "We got a great start but you've got to take care of business. We didn't and we were punished, we tried to come again but it was too late, they'd got a bit of confidence by then." He added: "We could have lost it in the second half but you think Georgia at home, you've got to take the three points. "The next game now is Serbia here (on November 12). It puts more pressure on us to take three points there and we have to deal with that." (AFP)

Wales drop two World Cup points in Georgia draw

Thomas Mueller netted twice as Germany eased to an impressive 3-0 home win over the Czech Republic to keep them top of their World Cup qualifying group on Saturday.

It leaves Germany with a perfect six points ahead of Tuesday&#39;s next qualifier, home to Northern Ireland, who beat San Marino 4-0 in Belfast.

Germany stay top of Group C on goal difference from surprise-package Azerbaijan on the road to Russia 2018.

&quot;We can be very happy with the win and we had a good grip on the game,&quot; said Germany coach Joachim Loew.

&quot;After 60 minutes you could see the opposition had run themselves into the ground and didn&#39;t have any more clear chances.&quot;

After Mueller gave Germany an early lead, Toni Kroos weighed in with a crisp strike just after the break.

Mueller then hit Germany&#39;s third with the best goal of the game midway through the second half to cap a very polished display from the world champions.

&quot;We&#39;re very serious about these two games (against the Czech Republic and Northern Ireland), we could have scored more goals, but we delivered a very concentrated performance,&quot; said Mueller.

&quot;The fans deserve some praise, the atmosphere was really good. It made it even more fun to play for Germany and, of course, I am happy to have scored twice.&quot;

Centre-backs Mats Hummels and Jerome Boateng were outstanding in shutting down the Czech attack and putting in damaging long-range passes.

With his only out-and-out striker, Mario Gomez, injured, Loew opted to play Mario Goetze as his lone striker, in front of attacking midfielder Mesut Ozil with Julian Draxler and Mueller on the wings.

The Czech Republic dealt Loew the heaviest home defeat of his 10-year tenure when they won 3-0 in Munich in October 2007 in a Euro qualifier.

But with veteran midfielder Tomas Rosicky injured and goalkeeper Petr Cech now retired, Czech shot-stopper Tomas Vaclik had a busy night.

The hosts went ahead after just 13 minutes. Goetze&#39;s pass to Ozil was flicked on to the unmarked Mueller, who drilled his shot past FC Basel&#39;s Vaclik.

&nbsp;

It could easily have been 3-0 at half time as Germany dominated the first 45 minutes.

&nbsp;

Goetze went one-on-one with Vaclik, who brought him down, but the German&#39;s chipped shot went wide and the referee waved away shouts for a penalty.

&nbsp;

Draxler&#39;s effort was just the wrong side of the post, while a superb long ball from Hummels found Goetze in behind the defence, but he was incorrectly flagged for offside.

&nbsp;

Four minutes into the second half, left-back Joshua Kimmich&#39;s pass allowed Kroos to curl his shot around Vaclik&#39;s despairing reach to double Germany&#39;s tally.

&nbsp;

But Germany saved their best goal for last.

&nbsp;

Ozil released Jonas Hector on the flank and he played in a superb cross which Mueller expertly converted on 65 minutes.

&nbsp;

It was nearly 4-0 on 80 minutes when replacement Benedikt Hoewedes fired just wide.

&nbsp;

(AFP)

Germany managed to stay on top of their World Cup wualifying group with a 3-0 win over Czech Republic

Thomas Mueller netted twice as Germany eased to an impressive 3-0 home win over the Czech Republic to keep them top of their World Cup qualifying group on Saturday. It leaves Germany with a perfect six points ahead of Tuesday's next qualifier, home to Northern Ireland, who beat San Marino 4-0 in Belfast. Germany stay top of Group C on goal difference from surprise-package Azerbaijan on the road to Russia 2018. "We can be very happy with the win and we had a good grip on the game," said Germany coach Joachim Loew. "After 60 minutes you could see the opposition had run themselves into the ground and didn't have any more clear chances." After Mueller gave Germany an early lead, Toni Kroos weighed in with a crisp strike just after the break. Mueller then hit Germany's third with the best goal of the game midway through the second half to cap a very polished display from the world champions. "We're very serious about these two games (against the Czech Republic and Northern Ireland), we could have scored more goals, but we delivered a very concentrated performance," said Mueller. "The fans deserve some praise, the atmosphere was really good. It made it even more fun to play for Germany and, of course, I am happy to have scored twice." Centre-backs Mats Hummels and Jerome Boateng were outstanding in shutting down the Czech attack and putting in damaging long-range passes. With his only out-and-out striker, Mario Gomez, injured, Loew opted to play Mario Goetze as his lone striker, in front of attacking midfielder Mesut Ozil with Julian Draxler and Mueller on the wings. The Czech Republic dealt Loew the heaviest home defeat of his 10-year tenure when they won 3-0 in Munich in October 2007 in a Euro qualifier. But with veteran midfielder Tomas Rosicky injured and goalkeeper Petr Cech now retired, Czech shot-stopper Tomas Vaclik had a busy night. The hosts went ahead after just 13 minutes. Goetze's pass to Ozil was flicked on to the unmarked Mueller, who drilled his shot past FC Basel's Vaclik. It could easily have been 3-0 at half time as Germany dominated the first 45 minutes. Goetze went one-on-one with Vaclik, who brought him down, but the German's chipped shot went wide and the referee waved away shouts for a penalty. Draxler's effort was just the wrong side of the post, while a superb long ball from Hummels found Goetze in behind the defence, but he was incorrectly flagged for offside. Four minutes into the second half, left-back Joshua Kimmich's pass allowed Kroos to curl his shot around Vaclik's despairing reach to double Germany's tally. But Germany saved their best goal for last. Ozil released Jonas Hector on the flank and he played in a superb cross which Mueller expertly converted on 65 minutes. It was nearly 4-0 on 80 minutes when replacement Benedikt Hoewedes fired just wide. (AFP)

Mueller brace inspires Germany win

Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane denied his side were facing a crisis after they drew 1-1 at home to La Liga minnows Eibar and racked up a fourth consecutive draw for the first time in more than 10 years.

The last time Real drew four games in all competitions was in March 2006, when the club were reeling from on-field and institutional crises and president Florentino Perez had recently resigned.

Although Real remain unbeaten in the league, they are without a win in their last three games and are on 15 points from seven games, the number Zidane&#39;s predecessor Rafael Benitez had earned at the same stage last season.

The Spaniard was sacked three months later.

&quot;We are not in crisis, we&#39;re only in October. What we need to do is improve, we can&#39;t lose our minds over this,&quot; Zidane told a news conference on Sunday.

&quot;I&#39;m not going to go crazy and neither are my players, all I can see is that we need to work harder and be more intense at the start of games.&quot;

Real fell behind to Fran Rico&#39;s header in the sixth minute after a lapse in concentration at the back and a mistake from goalkeeper Keylor Navas, who let the ball slip through his hands.

The Costa Rica international returned to the side only last Tuesday against Borussia Dortmund after more than four months out with an Achilles injury and was also at fault for one of the goals in the 2-2 draw in Germany.

Gareth Bale equalised later in the first half but Real, missing Luka Modric, Casemiro and James Rodriguez through injury, struggled to create many chances against the Basques, although Bale hit the post after the break.

Real&#39;s next game is away to Real Betis in a fortnight&#39;s time, after the international break.

&quot;We leave tonight with a bad taste in the mouth. We let our opponents play in the first half and we knew that they could score like that and we didn&#39;t deal with it,&quot; added the coach, who lead Real to their 11th European Cup last season and last month saw them match the La Liga record of 16 straight wins.

&quot;We can&#39;t blame fitness issues, we just need to work with more intensity, starting with me. When the players return from international duty we have to turn this around, we can&#39;t continue like this.&quot;

(Reuters)

The last time Real drew four games in all competitions was 10 years ago when the club was reeling from on-field and institutional crises

Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane denied his side were facing a crisis after they drew 1-1 at home to La Liga minnows Eibar and racked up a fourth consecutive draw for the first time in more than 10 years. The last time Real drew four games in all competitions was in March 2006, when the club were reeling from on-field and institutional crises and president Florentino Perez had recently resigned. Although Real remain unbeaten in the league, they are without a win in their last three games and are on 15 points from seven games, the number Zidane's predecessor Rafael Benitez had earned at the same stage last season. The Spaniard was sacked three months later. "We are not in crisis, we're only in October. What we need to do is improve, we can't lose our minds over this," Zidane told a news conference on Sunday. "I'm not going to go crazy and neither are my players, all I can see is that we need to work harder and be more intense at the start of games." Real fell behind to Fran Rico's header in the sixth minute after a lapse in concentration at the back and a mistake from goalkeeper Keylor Navas, who let the ball slip through his hands. The Costa Rica international returned to the side only last Tuesday against Borussia Dortmund after more than four months out with an Achilles injury and was also at fault for one of the goals in the 2-2 draw in Germany. Gareth Bale equalised later in the first half but Real, missing Luka Modric, Casemiro and James Rodriguez through injury, struggled to create many chances against the Basques, although Bale hit the post after the break. Real's next game is away to Real Betis in a fortnight's time, after the international break. "We leave tonight with a bad taste in the mouth. We let our opponents play in the first half and we knew that they could score like that and we didn't deal with it," added the coach, who lead Real to their 11th European Cup last season and last month saw them match the La Liga record of 16 straight wins. "We can't blame fitness issues, we just need to work with more intensity, starting with me. When the players return from international duty we have to turn this around, we can't continue like this." (Reuters)

Zidane says Real Madrid 'not in crisis' after fourth consecutive draw

Barcelona battled back from a goal down and scored twice in the second half to beat hosts Borussia Moenchengladbach 2-1 in their Champions League Group C match on Wednesday despite the absence of the injured Lionel Messi.

Second-half goals from substitute Arda Turan and Gerard Pique gave the Spaniards their second win in two group matches to top the standings, after their opening 7-0 demolition of Celtic.

The hard-working Germans had taken a surprising lead, scoring against the run of play, with Thorgan Hazard slotting in to complete a quick break in the 34th minute.

Barcelona, who had Argentine Messi missing with a groin injury, dominated the game but were made to work hard for their second group win that put them on six points.

The hosts, who managed just one shot on target but gave the Spaniards a run for their money, have zero, having lost both matches so far and ended an 11-match winning streak at home in all competitions.

Manchester City drew with Celtic 3-3 in the other group game to stay second on four points.

Barca coach Luis Enrique started with Andres Iniesta, Javier Mascherano, Jordi Alba and Ivan Rakitic, all of whom were rested in the 5-0 thrashing of Sporting Gijon at the weekend.

Despite the absence of Messi, replaced by youngster Paco Alcacer, it was the Spaniards who stamped their authority on the game early on and carved out the first chance with Neymar&#39;s shot from inside the box saved by keeper Yann Sommer after seven minutes.

Luis Suarez should have put them ahead three minutes later when he pounced on a defensive error but he saw his powerful left-footed shot sail narrowly wide.

The Uruguayan was also the recipient of a brilliant defence-splitting pass from Neymar but instead of rifling the ball home he tried a cutback to Alcacer that was cleared.

Gladbach gradually grew in confidence but struggled to get past a Spanish wall when they tried to venture forward.

They scored when forward Raffael, back from injury, gained possession in midfield and launched a quick break with Hazard tapping in from a Mahmoud Dahoud pass.

The Brazilian&#39;s injury in the 48th minute and his substitution took out most of the Gladbach pace.

The introduction of Turan on the hour brought instant results for the Spaniards, with the Turk picking up a Neymar assist in the 65th and drilling the ball into the roof of the net from a tight angle.

Pique then pounced on a weak clearance by Sommer from a Suarez shot to tap in from close range and hand Barcelona a hard-fought victory.

(Reuters)

Manchester City drew with Celtic 3-3 in the other group game to stay second on four points

Barcelona battled back from a goal down and scored twice in the second half to beat hosts Borussia Moenchengladbach 2-1 in their Champions League Group C match on Wednesday despite the absence of the injured Lionel Messi. Second-half goals from substitute Arda Turan and Gerard Pique gave the Spaniards their second win in two group matches to top the standings, after their opening 7-0 demolition of Celtic. The hard-working Germans had taken a surprising lead, scoring against the run of play, with Thorgan Hazard slotting in to complete a quick break in the 34th minute. Barcelona, who had Argentine Messi missing with a groin injury, dominated the game but were made to work hard for their second group win that put them on six points. The hosts, who managed just one shot on target but gave the Spaniards a run for their money, have zero, having lost both matches so far and ended an 11-match winning streak at home in all competitions. Manchester City drew with Celtic 3-3 in the other group game to stay second on four points. Barca coach Luis Enrique started with Andres Iniesta, Javier Mascherano, Jordi Alba and Ivan Rakitic, all of whom were rested in the 5-0 thrashing of Sporting Gijon at the weekend. Despite the absence of Messi, replaced by youngster Paco Alcacer, it was the Spaniards who stamped their authority on the game early on and carved out the first chance with Neymar's shot from inside the box saved by keeper Yann Sommer after seven minutes. Luis Suarez should have put them ahead three minutes later when he pounced on a defensive error but he saw his powerful left-footed shot sail narrowly wide. The Uruguayan was also the recipient of a brilliant defence-splitting pass from Neymar but instead of rifling the ball home he tried a cutback to Alcacer that was cleared. Gladbach gradually grew in confidence but struggled to get past a Spanish wall when they tried to venture forward. They scored when forward Raffael, back from injury, gained possession in midfield and launched a quick break with Hazard tapping in from a Mahmoud Dahoud pass. The Brazilian's injury in the 48th minute and his substitution took out most of the Gladbach pace. The introduction of Turan on the hour brought instant results for the Spaniards, with the Turk picking up a Neymar assist in the 65th and drilling the ball into the roof of the net from a tight angle. Pique then pounced on a weak clearance by Sommer from a Suarez shot to tap in from close range and hand Barcelona a hard-fought victory. (Reuters)

Champions League: Barcelona beat Gladbach 2-1

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