Page 439

By -
0

Real Madrid playmaker Isco has said the 3-0 over Espanyol will provide a timely boost for the players as they look to get back on track in their quest for trophies.

James Rodriguez, Gareth Bale and Nacho scored the goals that secured Real their first win of 2015 following recent defeats against Valencia in La Liga and Atletico de Madrid in the Copa del Rey.

And the 22-year-old told reporters afterwards that the players needed the win ahead of a huge match against Atletico as Los Blancos look to overturn a 2-0 deficit at the Santiago Bernabeu.

“We got into the game really quickly. At last we have our first win of the year and we are happy with the result. We closed down more today, we were good at going after the ball when we lost it, putting on pressure and we had a bit of luck in front of goal, that has been missing in the last few matches,” he told reporters.

Speaking about the next game, the youngster admitted it would be a tall order to come back against Diego Simeone’s men, but the players are confident they can do it.

“It is important to get the winning feeling back. We are very confident about turning the Copa del Rey knockout tie around. It is going to be very difficult but I hope that we can manage it with the support of the fans,” he stated.

By -
0

Real Madrid captain Iker Casillas has revealed he prefers Carlo Ancelotti being the coach at the club rather than Jose Mourinho.

In news that won’t surprise many, Casillas told radio station Cadena Cope that he likes working with the Italian as the pair actually talk to each other and communicate well.

The World Cup winner and Mourinho famously fell out during the Portuguese’s time in charge at the Santiago Bernabeu, with the now Chelsea boss controversially dropped the Real legend to the bench in favour of Diego Lopez.

Casillas has never been too keen to get into too much detail about what went on, but revealed he prefers the Italian. He added that should he and Mourinho cross paths again, he would shake his hand.

“Ancelotti [is better than Mourinho] because I never spoke to [Mourinho] in the dressing room. I don’t think I need to talk when he’s coaching another team and I’m dedicating myself to my own. It would be a bit opportunistic and a little cowardly on my part,” he said.

He continued: “In his time at Real Madrid, he won titles so we must thank him for that. We don’t think about the coaches of our past or what happened two seasons ago.

“[I have] no problem [with Mou]. Perhaps we looked away from each other last summer, but if I cross him tomorrow and offer him my hand, I think he’d take it. With him, I had a love-hate relationship.”

By -
0

Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti has said the team did well after Fabio Coentro received an ‘incomprehensible’ red card against Espanyol.

Leading 2-0 at half time, Real were reduced to 10-men early in the second half after the Portuguese clashed with Jose Canas. Despite the setback, Los Blancos continued to press and scored a third goal through Nacho towards the end to secure the points and get back to winning ways after two recent defeats.

Speaking to the press afterwards, Ancelotti said he was pleased with the response from his players.

“The sending-off of Coentrão is an incomprehensible decision. It made the match more difficult for us but the team was in good mental shape and we dealt with it well,” he stated.

He then went on to switch his attention to the Copa del Rey tie this week against Atletico de Madrid – which Real go into 2-0 down after the first game.

“We have time to prepare for the match well. We’ll field our best team, because we’re going to try to turn the tie around and do everything we can to reach the quarter-finals. Everyone is waiting for this game, but right now we have to be calm. We’re going to prepare for it, and playing at home is going to help us,” Ancelotti commented.

He also wanted to set the record straight about the relationship between Ronaldo and Gareth Bale after the Portuguese seemed upset at one point that Bale went to shoot rather than pass to him.

“We shouldn’t start a fuss over these things. It’s a moment in football of the sort that happen often. The relationship between the players, not just between those two, is very good and the team has always shown that. We work with the same aim of taking Real Madrid as high as possible, and I don’t think it’s fair to carry on talking about this subject,” he said.

 

By -
0

Former Real Madrid and Barcelona winger Luis Figo has said picking between Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo for the Ballon d’Or is like choosing between caviar and truffles.

The pair are up for the award next week alongside Bayern Munich and Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, with the Real Madrid man favourite to pick up the prize for the second consecutive year.

The 29-year-old was pivotal in Real’s success last season in lifting the Copa del Rey and Champions League. He has already netted 26 goals in the league this season and has helped his team lift the European Super Cup and Club World Cup.

Speaking to Goal.com, Figo said: “It’s hard to choose between truffles and caviar, but for me it has to be Cristiano. He’s had a fantastic year all the way through for Real.”

The former Los Blancos player also went on to praise Neuer, who would be only the second goalkeeper to win the Ballon d’Or should he be named was the winner next week. The shot stopper won the domestic double with Bayern Munich last season and then helped his nation to success in the World Cup in Brazil in the summer.

“I know Germany won the World Cup and I understand there are those who think Neuer, who is such a great keeper and was a big part of their success, should win it,” Figo stated.

By -
1

Nacho Fernandez has revealed his delight at scoring for Real Madrid in their 3-0 win over Espanyol.

The defender netted the team’s third goal in the second half at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday afternoon as Los Blancos put their two recent defeats behind them with a convincing display that saw them extend their lead at the top of the table to four points.

James Rodriguez and Gareth Bale were the other scorers on the day, with the only negative being the red card for Fabio Coentrao.

Nacho, who was assisted by Alvaro Arbeloa, told journalists afterwards: “I am really happy with my goal for Real Madrid and with the victory. I am very happy because it is important for people to show their love for you when playing at home”.

“We came here following two games in which we didn’t manage to play at our best, but generally speaking, we had a good game today. We go home with good feelings about our game on Thursday against Atlético.”

During the game, Ronaldo appeared to be annoyed with Gareth Bale for opting to shoot rather than pass to him. It was the second time this week that the pair appeared to disagree, with Bale being criticised for being too selfish against Valencia too.

When asked about the situation, Nacho said the forwards are great mates and people are reading too much into it.

“We cannot question Bale and Cristiano’s dedication to Madrid, and how they are great team mates. All of the players want to score, there is nothing more to it,” he stated.

By -
15

FIFA agent Francois Gallardo has claimed there are two Bayern Munich players that could complete a move to Real Madrid next summer: Thomas Muller and David Alaba.

Gallardo explained at Spanish television show El Chiringuito that Muller’s agent has phoned the Santiago Bernabeu directors to offer his player.

“It happened during Christmas. The agent told the club that Muller would be willing to move to Madrid on June 30th,” Gallardo stated. “I doubt he’s happy at Bayern Munich, and that’s why his agent has taken this step,” he added.

Gallardo revealed Muller’s signing would cost around 60 or 70 million euros, so it seems highly unlikely that Los Blancos would even take it into consideration.

However, Real Madrid directors could be very interested in bringing another Bayern Munich man. Galllardo has declared that Los Blancos have targeted five players for next summer and one of them is Alaba.

“Fabio Coentrao will most likely leave next summer, and there will surely be a vacancy in that position, because if Coentrao doesn’t leave, Marcelo will,” Gallardo claimed.

“Real Madrid know that Barcelona can’t make any signings this year and they want to build a strong team so there is no way Los Azulgranas can match them,” the agent concluded.

By -
0

Real Madrid got back to winning ways this afternoon with a comfortable 3-0 over Espanyol despite being reduced to 10-men in the second half.

Jame Rodriguez, Gareth Bale and Nacho got the goals that extend Los Blancos’ lead at the top of the league to four points and will provide a timely boost in confidence ahead of the second leg of their Copa del Rey tie against Atletico de Madrid this week.

Espanyol, sitting in midtable, came into the game confident they could get something against a side that had lost two matches in a row – three including the friendly loss to AC Milan in Dubai over Christmas.

But Real were not in the mood to be picked apart, and were infront within the first 15 minutes when James Rodriguez tucked home past Kiko Casilla after receiving Cristiano Ronaldo’s cross.

French defender Raphael Varane could have extended the lead shortly afterwards but he header went inches past the wrong side of the post. However, Real didn’t have to wait long to move further ahead. Gareth Bale, criticised in some quarters for being too selflish last week against Valencia, scored a wonderful free kick off the post on the half hour mark.

Los Blancos were on top for much of the first half, but the visitors thought their luck would change in the second period when left back Fabio Coentrao was sent off after clashing with Jose Canas.

But Carlo Ancelotti’s men had other ideas and continued to push for a third, despite being a man down. Ronaldo and Isco were both guilty of spurning good opportunities. Central defender Nacho had his shooting boots on though and showed the rest how it’s done after receiving a decent pass from Alvaro Arbeloa.

Real’s job for the day was done, and the attention now switches to the Copa del Rey and how to overcome the 2-0 deficit.

 

By -
0

Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti has said he wants his players to get back to winning ways against Espanyol today.

Los Blancos has suffered a dip in form at the start of 2015, losing to Valencia in La Liga last weekend and then against Atletico de Madrid in the first leg of their `Copa del Rey tie. They have a mountain to climb to overturn that 2-0 deficit and want to get their confidence back ahead of that tie by defeating the Catalan outfit at the Santiago Bernabeu.

“The players want to get back to winning ways. We have a slight advantage in La Liga and we would like to keep it. We want to start off a positive run of results. It would be good for our mood. It is the first home game of the year and we want to play just as we did when we closed out the year, and make our fans happy,” Ancelotto told reporters at a press conference ahead of the game.

Revealing his team news, the Italian stated Ronaldo would play having been rested for the game against Atletico. Sergio Ramos will sit out today’s game as he needs a breather too.

“I have spoken to him, just as I have spoken to all of the players. Each game we take the necessary decisions so that all of the players are in good condition. He was a little tired before the Atlético game and we chose to give him a little rest, so that he didn’t play 90 minutes. Tomorrow, he will be completely recovered, in good condition, and he is going to play,” Ancelotti commented.

He added: “Pepe was rested against Atlético. Now I am going to give Ramos a little rest in order to avoid problems.”

By -
0
Real Madrid Espanyol match preview

Real Madrid will look to end their three-game losing run as they host Espanyol on Saturday at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Los Blancos are having a terrible start to 2015. They lost against Valencia in La Liga and were also defeated by Atletico Madrid in the Copa del Rey.

More importantly, they have lost Sergio Ramos, who will be sidelined for the Espanyol match out of precaution, as he’s been suffering from muscle problem since the Club World Cup in December. That means Raphael Varane will feature at centre-back alongside Pepe.

Carlo Ancelotti will also miss Daniel Carvajal due to yellow-card suspension, meaning that Alvaro Arbeloa will be among the eleven starters. Luka Modric is also out through injury.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Iker Casillas will return to the starting line-up after resting in the Copa del Rey. Ancelotti could choose to keep Sami Khedira in midfield after his good performance against Atletico, but that would force him to bench Isco, Gareth Bale or James Rodriguez. If Khedira stays out, Isco will pair with Toni Kroos once again.

Espanyol’s manager Sergio Gonzalez will welcome Victor Sanchez, who missed the previous game due to suspension. However, he will miss former Real Madrid Castilla man Lucas Vazquez, whose loan contract forbids him to play against Los Blancos. Eric Bailly is also a loss, having been picked to play the African Cup of Nations with Ivory Coast.

Possible line-ups:

Real Madrid: Casillas; Arbeloa, Pepe, Varane, Marcelo; Bale, Isco, Kroos, James Rodriguez; Benzema, Bale.

Espanyol: Casilla; Arbilla, Colotto, Alvaro, Fuentes; Montanes, Canas, Abraham, Sanchez; Garcia, Caicedo.

By -
0

Real Madrid left back Marcelo has said he was unimpressed with the way Atletico de Madrid played in the Copa del Rey first leg on Wednesday night.

Diego Simeone’s men won 2-0 at the Vicente Calderon to put one foot in the next round. The second leg takes place at the Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday evening.

But Brazil left-back Marcelo said the best team lost on the night and that there was only one team trying to play football. He accused Real’s cross-city rivals of using dirty tricks to con the referee and slow the game down.

In quotes published by AS, Marcelo said: “Atletico played the long ball and used dirty tricks. This result is very difficult to overcome. We started well but again, set-pieces… The defeat is not fair. The pitch was difficult. Their game is only to play the long ball.

He added that despite the setback, the players would do all they can to overcome the deficit next week to progress in the competition they won last season.

“There is another game and it is in our stadium. Let’s see what the coach will tell us to counter that kind of football. There are 90 minutes left and we will fight on our home soil and attempt to get back into it.”

1...438439440...733Page 439 of 733

www.gambleaware.co.uk or www.gamcare.org.uk
Please gamble responsibly