Barcelona’s legendary No.10 produced another incredible performance as the Blaugrana comfortably put Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side to the sword.

Photo by: Getty Images

Manchester United came to Camp Nou hoping for a miracle to rival their 1999 Champions League final victory over Bayern Munich.

Then super-sub and now coach Ole Gunnar Solskjaer scored the second of two stoppage time goals to stun the Bavarians and complete an historic treble for the Red Devils.

Twenty years later, trailing 1-0 from the quarter-final first leg, against a Barcelona side unbeaten in their previous 30 Champions League home matches, they needed a similar freak outcome to progress to the semis.

Barcelona have only twice failed to go through after winning the first leg away from home in Europe, in 41 ties.

And perhaps most importantly, they are led by the one man in world football who is capable of making miracles happen – Lionel Messi.

Solskjaer said on the eve of the clash that he believes in sport you get what you deserve. The truth is Barcelona’s inimitable genius deserves far more than the four Champions Leagues he has to his name.

The best player in the world, in the history of football, produced another decisive, debilitating display, ripping Manchester United’s defence apart to score twice in Barcelona’s 3-0 win, 4-0 on aggregate.

Messi ended a freak 12-match run of Champions League quarter-final games, dating back to 2013, without a goal, driving Barcelona into the semi-finals for the first time since they won the tournament in 2015.

Despite that curious drought, throughout that time he has shone while others around him, from the coach to his team-mates, have not delivered, even if he is willing to shoulder his share of the responsibility.

Last season’s quarter-final capitulation at AS Roma – a 3-0 defeat in the Italian capital – which saw Barca spew away their 4-1 first leg victory, plunged the club into a deep depression.

That unmoving gloom weighed heavily on Barcelona, so much so that celebrations of their league and Copa del Rey double felt trite, while mortal enemies Real Madrid swept to a third consecutive Champions League win.

Time heals most wounds and Marc-Andre ter Stegen explained that Barcelona are only thinking about progressing, with Rome standing as a moment in history they can learn from but not ruminate on.

“We don’t want it to happen again and for that we have to take it into account, but we have to look forward,” said the German goalkeeper.

The double was a hugely impressive achievement, but Barcelona are the only European side to win three major competitions in a season twice. Treble-treble winners has a nice ring to it.

Nine points clear in La Liga and with the Copa del Rey final booked against Valencia, Barcelona hearts and minds are preoccupied by one thing only – conquering Europe.

Captain Messi laid the ground work with a rare speech to fans at the start of the season, demanding his team pull the thorn of the past three years out of their side.

The Argentine star was not at his best in the first leg, struggling after a smash in the face from Chris Smalling which left him bloodied and dazed, but his fingerprints were all over Barcelona’s crucial away goal.

Back on home soil the Argentine magician was far more comfortable. Barcelona weren’t, though, at the start.

“Walking to glory,” read a banner hoisted by home fans moments before kick-off.

The team appeared to take it to heart and were shell-shocked in the opening period by a Manchester United side that flew out of the blocks, hitting the crossbar through Marcus Rashford.

Messi’s magical opener out of nothing eased the pressure, with the No 10 capitalising on Ashley Young’s giveaway, nutmegging Fred and then fizzing a perfectly placed effort past David de Gea from the edge of the box.

Messi’s second, under five minutes later, was less stylish, aided by a howler from the Spanish goalkeeper, but he still ripped away into open green space to find room for his low shot.

Barca’s third should have come just before half-time after another heart-stopping Messi run sliced the Premier League side open, but Sergi Roberto’s shot was somehow kept out by De Gea, who knew little about it.

At times it seemed like Messi was deliberately toying with Manchester United. That’s not often how he plays, but after his roughing up at Old Trafford, he wanted to prove a point – and did.

It was another of Messi’s raking balls out to the left that helped create the third for Philippe Coutinho, with Jordi Alba teeing up the Brazilian.

Now that would really be a miracle, if Messi can help bring Coutinho back to life!

You can’t put it past him – and with the Argentine in this untouchable form, Barcelona’s eyes are firmly on the prize which really matters to them this season.

Source – Goal.com

FIFA have banned former Brazilian Football Confederation president Jose Maria Marin from all football-related activities for life.

FIFA have banned Jose Maria Marin for life

A FIFA statement read: “The adjudicatory chamber found that Mr Marin had breached art. 27 (Bribery) of the FIFA Code of Ethics and, as a result, banned him for life from all football-related activities (administrative, sports or any other) at both national and international level.

“In addition, a fine in the amount of 1m Swiss francs (£760k) has been imposed on Mr Marin.”

Marin was one of seven FIFA officials arrested at Hotel Baur au Lac in Zurich in 2015

Marin, 86, was one of seven FIFA officials arrested at a Zurich hotel in May 2015 and following a six-week trial at a United States federal court, he was found guilty in December 2017 on six of the seven counts against him of money
laundering, wire fraud and conspiratorial racketeering.

He was sentenced in August 2018 to four years in prison, 13 months of which had already been served. He was also ordered to forfeit 3.3m US dollars (£2.6m) and was fined $1.2m (£950k).

Source – Sky Sports

An incident where a nine-year-old needed medical treatment after a flare was thrown during Liverpool’s win over Chelsea on Sunday is being investigated by police.

The flare was thrown on to the Anfield pitch after it landed among Chelsea fans

If the players at the world’s biggest football club can’t be bothered, why should you?

Photo by: Getty Images

Karim Benzema fought bravely against the tide, but Real Madrid put in an eminently unwatchable performance at Leganes in a 1-1 draw on Monday.

Zinedine Zidane’s return was supposed to have reinvigorated Madrid but they are lamely stumbling towards the finish line of a season which seems, at this point, endless.

They are third, 14 points behind leaders Barcelona, nine ahead of Sevilla in fourth, in purgatory until the summer sales begin.

The fact that they were playing on Monday speaks for itself. It’s a slot reserved for the teams in mid-table and lower. And that seemed fitting.

The first half was one of the direst in Madrid’s recent history, which really is saying something.

Marco Asensio spurned one good chance near the start, fluffing his lines after being teed up by Isco.

Then, tumbleweed. Even given the low stakes, though, this collection of players should be capable of putting on a more entertaining performance than this.

Madrid are the most successful club in the history of football, and this display was just the latest embarrassment in a season of misery for the storied Spanish capital side.

Los Blancos created nothing until a chance for Raphael Varane came after a scramble in the box, which was parried by Leganes goalkeeper Ivan Cuellar.

The French centre-back should have scored but it would have been far more than Madrid deserved, putting in the same hopeless performance they have offered up for most of the season.

Even though their hero Zidane has returned, nothing has changed. It will not and cannot until the club is scrubbed clean.

The deadwood needs to go. Until now, the media has focused on which players are performing badly to see whom Madrid might sell, but after Zidane’s comments on Sunday, that theory has changed.

“There are many players here that can be sold because they are all really good,” said the coach ahead of this clash.

So now the focus was on which players could put themselves in the shop window – and none obliged.

The one player who showed some conviction was the same player who all season has been head and shoulders above the rest – Karim Benzema.

He is one of the very few whom Zidane will want to keep, along with Varane and captain Sergio Ramos.

Benzema levelled for Madrid early in the second half after Leganes took the lead with Jonathan Silva slamming the hosts ahead at Butarque in the 45th minute.

Luka Modric slipped in the Frenchman and after seeing his first shot saved, he showed the heart and desire the team as a whole desperately lacked to slip in the rebound.

It might have sparked something in the European champions, it should have. But they continued to disappoint.

Marcelo came close with one effort but Leganes gave as good as they got, with Youssef En-Nesyri having a goal ruled out for offside at the other end.

Real Madrid players have to take a good look at themselves after this. Even though they are firmly ensconced in third place, they owe the shirt and badge more commitment than they offered at Butarque.

Source – Goal.com

Swapping football shirts at the end of a game is usually a sign of respect. Not so much in Milan’s game against Lazio.

Franck Kessie (left) scored the only goal of the game against Lazio

Tiemoue Bakayoko and Franck Kessie have both apologised for holding up Lazio defender Francesco Acerbi’s shirt like a trophy after Milan’s 1-0 home win on Saturday.

Before the game Acerbi said in an interview that there was “no comparison” between the teams’ players and that Lazio were “stronger”. Bakayoko, on loan from Chelsea, took umbrage and tweeted ‘OK Acerbi see you Saturday’.

After the game, Acerbi, who played 10 times for Milan in 2012-13, swapped shirts with Bakayoko in a bid “to put an end to the issue”.

But the Frenchman and Kessie, who scored the only goal, briefly held the shirt up so their fans could see it as Milan players went to celebrate their win in front of their supporters.

“Fomenting hatred is not sport but a sign of weakness,” said Acerbi on social media afterwards, with team-mate Ciro Immobile calling the Milan duo “two little men”.

The pair apologised on social media on Saturday evening, Bakayoko saying it was “a playful gesture” and Kessie saying he “just wanted to joke, nothing more”.

Milan issued a statement on Sunday saying the incident had “no mockery, no aggressive or anti-sporting intentions”.

It added: “Milan is founded on values ​​such as respect [on and off the field], equity, inclusion. Tiemoue and Franck know, share and express those values ​​every day.”

Lazio are now six points below fourth-placed Milan in the battle for a Champions League place.

Source – BBC News

The pair are both included in a 22-man travelling party as the Red Devils head to Spain looking to keep their dream of silverware alive for the season.

Photo by: Getty Images

Manchester United duo Nemanja Matic and Alexis Sanchez could be set to make a return from injury this week after both were named in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s travelling party for their Champions League clash against Barcelona.

The pair were named among a 22-man squad for the trip to Camp Nou as the Red Devils aim to overturn a first leg 1-0 deficit against Ernesto Valverde’s side and reach the semi-finals for the first time in eight years.

Matteo Darmian is also named after a spell on the sidelines, while Luke Shaw also heads to Spain despite being banned for the tie after picking up a yellow card in defeat last Wednesday.

However, there is no place for Ander Herrera, who remains out with a hamstring problem.

The return of Matic hands a prospective major boost to United if he is able to play, with the Serbia international likely to slot into midfield as Solskjaer looks to mastermind his second remarkable European turnaround of the season.

The Norwegian led his side to the quarter-finals with a shock 3-1 win over Paris Saint-Germain last month, overturning the 2-0 reverse sustained at Old Trafford, with Marcus Rashford snatching a berth in the last eight with his late penalty.

Much has already been made of Solskjaer’s return to Camp Nou, where he famously helped United to an injury-time comeback win over Bayern Munich in the 1999 Champions League final after coming off the bench.

Sanchez has struggled for game time this season but could also be in line for an appearance against his former club if fit as the Red Devils looks to bounce back from a wobbly run of form in recent weeks.

Since Solskjaer took the top job at Old Trafford on a permanent basis, United have only won two of their four games, with Saturday’s victory over West Ham requiring two spot-kicks from Paul Pogba to seal the three points in a laboured performance.

Manchester United squad in full: David de Gea, Sergio Romero, Lee Grant; Diogo Dalot, Matteo Darmian, Ashley Young, Phil Jones, Victor Lindelof, Marcos Rojo, Chris Smalling, Luke Shaw; Fred, Nemanja Matic, Scott McTominay, Andreas Pereira, Paul Pogba, Jesse Lingard, Juan Mata; Anthony Martial, Alexis Sanchez, Romelu Lukaku, Marcus Rashford.

Source – Goal.com

Napoli postponed Juventus’s march to the Serie A title and consigned Chievo to relegation with a 3-1 win at the Stadio Bentegodi on Sunday.

Kalidou Koulibaly scored a pair of goals as Napoli relegated Chievo. Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images

Carlo Ancelotti’s side needed a victory to ensure that the Turin club, who lost 2-1 at SPAL on Saturday, would not wrap up their eighth consecutive league championship with a record six games to spare.

Two goals from Kalidou Koulibaly either side of an Arkadiusz Milik strike confirmed Chievo’s demotion despite Bostjan Cesar‘s late consolation, after a miserable season in which the Verona club have recorded just one win in 32 games.

The result leaves second-placed Napoli on 67 points, 17 behind runaway leaders Juventus on 84.

Juve can secure the title by avoiding defeat at home to Fiorentina next weekend.

Ancelotti picked a strong team as he lookaed to return to winning ways ahead of his side’s Europa League quarter-final second leg against Arsenal on Thursday.

The Liverpool attacker scored a memorable goal against the Blues after being the victim of racist chanting from a section of the club’s fans last week.

Photo by: Getty Images

Andrew Robertson praised Liverpool team-mate Mohamed Salah for “shutting up” the Chelsea fans who racially abused him with a superb long-range strike at Anfield on Sunday afternoon.

The Reds secured a vital 2-0 Premier League win over the Blues at the weekend, which saw them return to the top of the table by two points ahead of Manchester City.

A Sadio Mane header opened the scoring early in the second half before Salah doubled Liverpool’s lead two minutes later with a stunning strike from 25-yards out which flew into the top corner of the net.

The brilliant goal came just three days after a group of Chelsea fans were filmed singing “Salah is a bomber” in a local bar before the club faced Slavia Prague in the Europa League.

The Egyptian is a Muslim and there has been a public outcry of sympathy in reaction to the video, with Chelsea set to issue significant bans to the supporters responsible.

Robertson backed his Liverpool colleague in the aftermath of their latest victory, insisting that his goal was the best possible response to the mindless hate he has received.

“There was a bit of stuff that had gone on in the week and that’s the way to shut them up,” he told the Evening Standard.

“The club released a statement on the day and Mo was fine about it. It’s not nice but he dealt with it. It didn’t affect him at all – it didn’t look like it, did it?

“Sadly people are getting used to things like this now because it is happening far too often. Raheem Sterling said the other day that the only way to shut people like this up is to score goals and to beat them (their team). I know it is only a minority of Chelsea fans but Mo certainly quietened them down.”

Salah’s thunderous strike was his 19th Premier League goal of the 2018-19 campaign, taking him level with City’s Sergio Aguero in the race for the Golden Boot.

The 26-year-old has faced plenty of criticism since the turn of the year, having suffered an uncharacteristic goal drought, but his latest effort was a stark reminder of his unique quality.

Robertson hopes Salah’s confidence will now be renewed heading into the final weeks of the season, as he added: “It was a fantastic goal. He cut inside and clearly fancied his chances.

“As soon as he hit it, everyone knew that it was in. The place went wild and fair play to him.

“He has come under a bit of criticism (for his performances) this season, unfairly in my opinion. But that will silence them too and hopefully, that will give him a lot of confidence going into the final games.”

Next up for Jurgen Klopp’s men is a huge trip to Portugal in the Champions League quarter-finals to face Porto on Wednesday, where they will defend a 2-0 first leg lead.

The Reds will then turn their attention to Cardiff City on Sunday, as the crucial fixtures begin to pile up in their hunt for silverware.

Source – Goal.com

BARCELONA, Spain — Ernesto Valverde compared Lionel Messi‘s clash with Chris Smalling to being hit by a truck after leaving the Barcelona forward out of the squad for Saturday’s game against Huesca.

Lionel Messi was inadvertently struck in the face by Chris Smalling during Barcelona’s 1-0 victory. PETER POWELL/EPA

Manchester United defender Smalling unintentionally caught Messi in the face, drawing blood, during Barca’s 1-0 win at Old Trafford in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Messi, Barca’s top scorer this season with 43 goals in all competitions, ended the game with bruising and swelling around his nose and cheek but tests ruled out any serious damage.

Valverde, though, has opted to err on the side of caution and has not included the Argentine in the 18-man squad for this weekend’s match against bottom-of-the-table Huesca.

“It’s possible that Messi rests,” the coach said in a news conference before announcing the squad. “I spoke with him [on Thursday] and he’s doing OK after the blow to the face.

“But he was knocked [by the incident]. [It was like] being hit by a truck. We will assess him in training [on Friday] but it’s likely that he will rest.”

Smalling told BBC Radio 5 Live’s Football Daily podcast on Friday that Messi knew there was nothing intentional about the knock.

“We spoke afterwards. We had a brief chat and shook hands,” Smallin said.

“He knew it was an accident.”

Messi’s not the only Barca player who will have the weekend off ahead of the second leg of their quarterfinal against United at Camp Nou on Tuesday.