The striker pulled off another of his masked celebrations as the Gunners cruised into the quarter-finals of the Europa League.

Photo by: Getty

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang had his mask ready this time!

The Arsenal forward pulled off another of his trademark masked celebrations in Thursday’s win over Rennes as he helped the Gunners into the Europa Leaguequarter-finals thanks to a 3-0 victory on the night.

Having lost the first leg 3-1 in France, the Premier League club needed a massive turnaround at home to move on the competition, and Aubameyang got things off to a strong start with his first goal of the night just five minutes in.

A second from Ainsley Maitland-Niles 10 minutes later pulled Arsenal level for the tie, giving the home side a dream start.

But it would be the second for Aubameyang that sealed progression and brought about another superhero celebration from the 29-year-old.

Having been foiled in his plans to rock a mask against Manchester United in a 2-0 win at the weekend, the forward made no mistake this time.

“I had a special celebration planned but I couldn’t find my mask,” he explained following Sunday’s contest.

“I asked a member of the staff to put it in the back of the net but when I scored the penalty I couldn’t find it.

“But no worries. Maybe next time.”

Next time came on Thursday.

After tapping home from close range 72 minutes in, the Gabonese star ran to the advertising boards and, after a brief look, found the Black Panter mask he’d hidden for the occasion.

“I needed the mask to represent me,” Aubameyang said to BT Sport after his sixth brace of the season in all competitions.

“Black Panther…in Africa and Gabon we are called the Black Panthers so it represents me – that’s it.”

Aubameyang has a history of turning himself into a superhero for celebrations.

He famously put on a Batman mask after scoring for Borussia Dortmund against Schalke in 2015, Marco Reus taking on the role of Robin to join him.

A goal against Bayern Munich in a Supercup clash in 2014 also brought out a mask for the forward, who transformed into Spiderman on that occasion, while he found himself in hot water for wearing a Nike promotional mask after scoring for Dortmund in 2017.

A Spiderman mask was also used by Aubameyang while playing for Saint-Etienne way back in 2012.

​The forward could have to wait a bit to put on another mask for Arsenal, with the Gunners not back in action until April 1 when they take on Newcastle.

Source – Goal.com

It was Lionel Messi’s turn to take the Champions League spotlight on Wednesday night following Cristiano Ronaldo’s stunning hat-trick for Juventus 24 hours earlier.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s Champions League record is superior to Lionel Messi’s

Messi responded to his old rival’s heroics against Atletico Madrid with an excellent performance of his own for Barcelona, scoring twice as they joined Juventus in the quarter-finals with a 5-1 win over Lyon at the Nou Camp.

Messi’s goals make this the 11th consecutive season in which he has reached the 35-goal mark, but Ronaldo’s hat-trick against Atletico underlined his status as the king of the Champions League.

The Portuguese is the competition’s top scorer with 124 goals in 160 games, putting him comfortably ahead of Messi, who has now netted 108 goals – albeit in just 131 appearances.

How Cristiano Ronaldo’s and Lionel Messi’s Champions League records compare

Ronaldo has also won five Champions League trophies to Messi’s four, meaning he is now aiming to become the first player to win the competition six times.

Interestingly, Messi is in fact ahead of Ronaldo in terms of minutes per goal in the Champions League, averaging a goal every 100 minutes compared to Ronaldo’s 112 minutes, but when it comes to the crunch, Ronaldo’s record is unrivalled.

Ronaldo has a habit of stepping up when it matters most. Incredibly, he has scored 63 goals in 77 Champions League knockout games compared to Messi’s total of 42 goals in 64. It gives him a knockout stage strike rate of a goal every 108 minutes to Messi’s 131 minutes.

Cristiano Ronaldo is the Champions League’s all-time top scorer

The pair are level for Champions League hat-tricks with eight apiece, but it is significant that four of Ronaldo’s have come in the knockout stages compared to only two of Messi’s.

Their Champions League rivalry is now poised to continue, with Juventus and Barcelona set to learn their quarter-final fate when the draw takes place on Friday at 11am.

Will Ronaldo and Messi be drawn against each other? Or will they be kept apart until the final? What’s certain is that a Champions League showdown between these two titans of the competition would whet the appetite of football fans everywhere.

Source – Sky Sports

A 16-year-old boy has been arrested for allegedly calling Huddersfield Town midfielder Philip Billing a “black donkey” online.

Philip Billing has made 20 appearances for Huddersfield so far this season, scoring one goal

Billing, 22, tweeted a private message he had been sent on Instagram, with a ‘thumbs down’ emoji.

In the expletive-ridden message, Billing, a Denmark international of Nigerian descent, was told to “leave our club”.

West Yorkshire Police confirmed the arrest was made on Wednesday morning.

“I never want to see you in a Town kit ever again, you useless wannabe black donkey,” the message said.

A police statement read: “Following a report received by West Yorkshire Police this morning (13 March) in relation to abusive racial comments on social media, police have now arrested a 16-year-old male.

“The teenager has been arrested on suspicion of malicious communications and is being investigated as a hate crime. Enquiries remain ongoing.

“Kirklees District Police would like to reassure the public that this incident has been swiftly and proportionately investigated.

“All reports of hate incidents are taken extremely seriously by West Yorkshire Police and all such reports will be thoroughly investigated.”

Huddersfield said in a statement that the club “does not tolerate abuse of any kind and has a zero-tolerance stance towards any form of discrimination”.

It added: “We will give our full co-operation to the police to deal with this matter in the strongest possible way.”

Kick It Out said in a statement: “We condemn the disgraceful abuse that Philip Billing has received online and call on social media companies to take steps to act against people who use their platforms to carry it out.

“Recent events underline that players should be protected from abuse both on and off the pitch. We are liaising with Huddersfield Town and have offered our support to Philip.”

Billing, who was named youth player of the season in 2016, joined the Terriers in 2014 and has made 74 senior appearances for the club.

Huddersfield are bottom of the Premier League, 16 points from safety, having won just three games all season.

Source – BBC News

Just 24 hours after the Portuguese’s brilliant hat-trick against Atletico Madrid, the Argentine put on a show at Camp in a 5-1 win over Lyon.

Photo by: Getty 

They may now be playing in different countries but the rivalry between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo rumbles on and on.

Having watched the former Real Madrid striker score a hat-trick to send Juventus through to the Champions League quarter-finals on Tuesday night, the Barcelona captain put on a spectacular show of his own a day later.

The Argentine was sensational as he struck two and set up two more as the Catalans thrashed Olympique Lyonnais 5-1 to earn their place in Friday’s draw.

They may now be playing in different countries but the rivalry between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo rumbles on and on.

Having watched the former Real Madrid striker score a hat-trick to send Juventus through to the Champions League quarter-finals on Tuesday night, the Barcelona captain put on a spectacular show of his own a day later.

The Argentine was sensational as he struck two and set up two more as the Catalans thrashed Olympique Lyonnais 5-1 to earn their place in Friday’s draw.

The Argentine star is not accustomed to chasing back and making tackles back in his own half but he twice came back deep to rob the ball and start attacks.

It was Messi at the start of the season who gave a speech to the fans about being determined to win the Champions League, having seen Madrid lift the trophy three years running.

Despite having the best player in the world, and of all time, in their ranks, Barcelona have lifted the European Cup just once in the last seven years.

Messi is on a one-man mission to change that and broke the deadlock with a perfectly executed Panenka penalty. “We mean business,” it screamed.

Luis Suarez was a leader too, in many ways. As well as setting a fantastic example in work-rate and performance level, he was supportive, applauding Coutinho for trying to press the defence, even though it’s not the Brazilian’s favourite pastime.

Suarez teed up Coutinho for the second, with a wonderful piece of control on the edge of the box and a dart forward, before squaring for his team-mate.

The first moment the Catalans let their concentration levels slip, Lyoncapitalised, with Lucas Tousart smashing home after a scramble in the box.

It sucked the air out of Barcelona for a moment and memories of their painful elimination against Roma quickly surfaced, but Messi put a lid on them.

The Argentine secured progress in a quick-fire burst of pure creativity. One mazy dribble left, then right, bamboozled the defence and he squeezed home the third.

Then he set up Gerard Pique and Dembele for two more goals as Barca racked up a big scoreline which speaks volumes for their intentions this season.

Messi is determined to write Barcelona’s name on the trophy.

Source – Goal.com

The Reds stormed into the quarter-finals of the Champions League with a stunning 3-1 victory over Bayern Munich on Wednesday night.

Photo by: Getty

Modern football kills emotion. Or at least that’s what the banner in the Bayern Munich end said.

Who are they kidding?!

This sport may have its flaws, but for emotion, for excitement, for sheer unscripted drama it has no equal. Here, at the Allianz Arena, Liverpool served up yet another reminder that, where the Champions League is concerned, few do it better.

Asked the questions, the Reds came up with the answers.

Could they handle the occasion? Tick. Could they do it away from home? Tick. Could they take on Bayern Munich, the mighty Bayern Munich, at their own game, in their own back yard and come out on top? Tick.

Does Jurgen Klopp know what he’s doing? What do you think?

Can they win the Champions League? With Klopp and Virgil van Dijk, with Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah, anything feels possible.

“We shall not be moved,” sang the travelling Liverpudlians, high up in the Gods. The Allianz Arena was the Allez Allez Allez- anz tonight. The voices you heard came from Merseyside. They will be heard long into the night.

No wonder. What a team Klopp is building here. You can doubt them and criticise them, you can ask them questions but you can’t deny the progress being made at Anfield. Premier League contenders, Champions League contenders. This is a serious side. “Back on the landscape of European football,” Klopp said. He was spot on.

For Bayern there will be regrets, perhaps, at their passive first-leg performance. They thought a goalless draw was a good result, but it wasn’t. Liverpool came to Bavaria and humbled the German champions. This wonderful stadium was half-empty by the time referee Daniele Orsato blew his whistle for the final time.

Niko Kovac’s side were exposed brutally; slow, sloppy and terrified when Liverpool attacked them. They had their chance at 1-1, but Van Dijk’s towering header burst the balloon. They looked a sorry bunch by the game’s conclusion.

At the end, Klopp made his way to the away supporters, eyes wide and smile wider. A fist pump, then another, another. He knew what this meant to his people. The bier halls will be packed with smiling Scousers tonight. They believe. How could they not?

Mane and Van Dijk did the damage, but this was a triumph of the collective. Liverpool handled setbacks, the loss of their captain Jordan Henderson to injury inside the opening 15 minutes and the disappointment of a carelessly-conceded equaliser after Mane’s sublime opener. They took the blows, rode the storm and played their football. Bayern’s stadium, Liverpool’s night.

Mane was immense, Van Dijk imperious, the Dutchman’s performance good enough to get John Henry tweeting. Salah worked like a full-back and delivered the pass of the game, James Milner ran himself into the ground. Trent Alexander-Arnold, Fabinho, Joel Matip, all of them had their struggles, but all of them won their battles.

Robert Lewandowski, Mats Hummels, Javi Martinez, Thiago Alcantara, Manuel Neuer, great players, they had no answer. Liverpool played with belief in the first half and a strut in the second.

Before the game Franz Beckenbauer, a Bayern legend, had spoken glowingly about Klopp. He was “the one who taught the Germans how to play football quickly”. They’d love him as their manager, Beckenbauer said.

No wonder. What Klopp did at Dortmund, he is doing at Liverpool. We’re heading into the defining weeks of the season, and the big prizes are still very much in sight .

They’ll take some stopping. Germany‘s best couldn’t. What have the rest got?

Bring them on, Klopp will say. “We are back,” he said here. He believes. So should you.

Source – Goal.com

Declan Rice will be called up to the England squad for the first time for the upcoming Euro 2020 Qualifiers, Sky Sports News understands.

Declan Rice looks set to receive his first England call-up

Rice is expected to be named in Gareth Southgate’s squad on Wednesday for England’s games against the Czech Republic and Montenegro later this month.

The West Ham midfielder decided in February that his international future lies with England, even though he has Irish grandparents and has already received three Republic of Ireland caps at senior level.

On Tuesday afternoon, Rice was named Ireland’s Young Player of the Yearand despite only recently receiving FIFA clearance to switch his international allegiance, Southgate has decided to select the 20-year-old at the first opportunity.

It is also understood Burnley goalkeeper Tom Heaton is set for an England recall. He was on Southgate’s standby list for the World Cup in Russia after recovering from a shoulder injury but hasn’t featured for his country in nearly two years.

Tom Heaton’s last cap for England came in a 3-2 defeat to France in June 2017

However, Heaton’s recall won’t affect Jordan Pickford, who retains the England manager’s full confidence despite a dip in form for Everton, and he is expected to continue in goal.

England face the Czech Republic at home on March 22 before an away trip to Montenegro three days later as they begin their campaign to qualify for Euro 2020, of which the semi-finals and final are at Wembley.

Source – Sky Sports

The Portuguese superstar single-handedly hauled the Bianconeri past Atletico Madrid by recording his eighth treble in Europe’s elite club competition.

Photo by: Getty

Cristiano Ronaldo’s hat-trick heroics for Juventus against Atletico Madrid mean that he now owns as many Champions League match balls as eternal rival Lionel Messi.

The Portuguese has been the all-time leading scorer in Europe’s premier club competition for some time.

He pulled further clear of the chasing pack in his most recent outing.

Juve headed into a home date with Atletico needing inspiration from somewhere as they trailed a last-16 encounter 2-0.

It came as little surprise to see Ronaldo step up and deliver the kind of match-winning showing with which he has become synonymous.

He single-handedly turned a continental clash on its head by breaching one of the tightest defensive units in the business on three occasions.

And in doing so, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner matched the hat-trick return of a man from Barcelona with whom he has spent several years raising the bar of individual excellence.

Ronaldo had entered a meeting with Atletico sat on seven Champions League hat-tricks for close to two years.

He was, however, running into a favoured foe.

The Rojiblancos often found themselves on the receiving end of his prolific strike rate during a record-breaking spell at city rivals Real Madrid.

Atletico were the last side Ronaldo fired a European treble against, back in the semi-finals of 2016-17.

He had achieved the same feat a round earlier that season against Bayern Munich.

Ronaldo now has his first hat-trick for Juve as the records continue to tumble around him.

Remarkably, in his debut campaign with the Bianconeri, he is now the joint-leading scorer of Champions League goals at the Allianz Stadium.

Ronaldo has also helped Juventus to make their own piece of continental history.

Never before had they been able to overturn a two-goal deficit in order to keep their European dreams alive.

Ronaldo is now on course to chase down a fourth successive Champions League crown, having completed an historic hat-trick prior to leaving Madrid.

He has lifted that trophy on five occasions over the course of his remarkable career and was taken to Turin in an effort to return it to a club that has not tasted European glory since 1996.

Source – Goal.com

The Catalan coach witnessed the most crushing of Champions League wins for his side against Bundesliga foes, but claims they made a shaky start.

Photo by: Getty

Pep Guardiola has claimed that Manchester City were “scared to play” during the early stages of a Champions League clash with Schalke which eventually saw them run out 7-0 winners.

The Premier League title holders headed into the second leg of a last-16 clash with Bundesliga opponents boasting a narrow 3-2 advantage.

Having seen the likes of Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid suffer stunning European exits, City were eager to avoid heading the same way.

In the end they secured a crushing victory over Schalke, setting a new record for the biggest aggregate win enjoyed by an English side in the Champions League along the way.

They did, however, take 35 minutes to open the floodgates and Guardiola says there were signs of nerves at the Etihad Stadium.

He told BT Sport: “It was a clear result. We are happy to get to the quarter-finals. We didn’t start that well, we were a bit scared to play. But after it went 1-0, we relaxed and decided to play and be aggressive.

“Of course with the qualification already secured, it was tough for them and we kept a good level. We have a lot of injured players so we want to continue this run and get those players back fit.

“Everyone has to compete with each other to play. They all want to play. Everybody tried to play, be bold and keep going.”

Sergio Aguero got City on their way against Schalke.

He then doubled the Blues’ lead before Leroy Sane, Raheem Sterling, Bernardo Silva, Phil Foden and Gabriel Jesus all got in on the act.

Guardiola’s side ultimately swept aside German opposition with the minimum of fuss, but they did have to put up with several VAR delays over the course of the evening.

Technology worked in their favour, but questions continue to be asked of a process that is being used in the Champions League for the first time and will be introduced into the Premier League next season.

Guardiola said: “They need to be a little bit quicker to make decisions but it is fair.

“The two penalties went against us from VAR in Germany but at the end it is fair. At the end that is what we are looking for.

“Hopefully in the Premier League next season that is what can happen. I am happy with VAR. Hopefully it can be quicker than today.

“I like the teams who deserve to win, go through. Sometimes you don’t go through for wrong decisions. It helps referees to make those decisions fairly.”

Having booked their place in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, City will be looking to move a step further in the FA Cup on Saturday when a last-eight showdown with Swansea carries them into the international break.

Source – Goal.com

With the European clash tied at 0-0 after the first leg at Anfield, the Dutch defender is aware that the Reds must improve their level.

Photo by: Getty Images

Virgil van Dijk has spoken of the challenge facing Liverpool ahead of their Champions League second leg clash with Bayern Munich, insisting that he and his team-mates need to up their game.

The tie is poised at 0-0 after the first leg at Anfield and the Dutch defender knows that the Reds will have to play to the best of their ability to advance.

While Van Dijk talked up the Reds’ chances of progressing, he also acknowledged the problems posed by the Germans, and that his team needs to improve on their away form in Europe so far this season.

“It’s going to be an exciting tie. They played very well [at Anfield], kept it tight – especially at the back – and they obviously showed us a lot of respect,” the central defender told a press conference on Monday.

“They changed a bit the way they played I think, so we need to be up for a big fight because they are probably going to come all in, especially in the beginning. It is going to be tough and we need to do better than we did in the last away games in the Champions League.

“The group stage games were not as good as we wanted, but we got through to the knockout phase. Now we have a 0-0 and we want to do everything that is possible to get through. We know it is going to be a very hard and tough game.”

Van Dijk downplayed any perceived advantage Bayern might have after the goalless first leg and, hopeful that the Reds will progress again, believes that Liverpool’s quality would shine through.

“To keep a clean sheet in the first leg is always good for both teams but we know if we score they need to score two. That is how it is. We want to win the game and go through.

“There will be times when it is going to be very tough, we are going to be under a lot of pressure because they have a lot of quality and they showed that. But we will definitely have our own moments because of the quality we have as well.

“Everyone can see how tough it is already in the Champions League. The situation is we have a 0-0 to start with and hopefully we can get the job done.”

Van Dijk and his team will hope the confidence from the weekend’s win over Burnley carries over into the Allianz Arena on Wednesday.

Source – Goal.com

Everton manager Marco Silva has been charged by the Football Association with “improper conduct” after he argued with the match officials on the pitch.

Ayoze Perez scored twice in the final nine minutes as Newcastle beat Everton 3-2 at St James’ Park