Page 562

By -
2

Real Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas has said the team went through too much suffering in the match against Borussia Dortmund and will have to learn their lessons ahead of the semi-final.

The shot-stopper, who has been selected by Carlo Ancelotti for Champions League and cup matches this season, was once again the saviour for Los Blancos, pulling off a number of sensational stops to prevent the German outfit completing a remarkable comeback.

Speaking to journalists after the game, he admitted it was a bit too close for comfort, and Los Blancos would have to improve.

The World Cup winner stated: “The first goal is an error from us and the second is after losing the ball in the centre of the park. We had mental strength because with 2-0 in the 37th minute a lot of things go through your head and all this after missing a penalty. The positive thing is that we’ve learnt to suffer in these games. These errors cannot happen in semi-finals.”

He went on to add: “It was too much suffering, I think deserved. Maybe it’s good to have this kind of experience every now and then to know nothing is easy.”

The 32-year-old, who has been linked with a move away from the Santiago Bernabeu this summer, called on his teammates to switch their attention back on La Liga now, rather than the Champions League.

He commented: “We will put the semis and final of the Champions League to one side. We are going to think about Saturday’s game. We need to win our games and hope that those in front of us stumble.”

By -
1

Sevilla midfielder Ivan Rakitic’s agent has made contact with Real Madrid about a possible summer move to the Bernabéu according to Frichajes.net.

Having been a target of Madrid’s for some time, the Croatian had originally been believed to be destined for another season with Sevilla. But the 26-year-old seems to have had a change in heart, following a great rise in form.

Rakitic has tallied 11 goals and 10 assists on the season to pace Sevilla near the top of La Liga table and into contention for one of the league’s four spots in the UEFA Champions League.

A talented attacking midfielder, Rakitic offers enough versatility to drop into deeper lying positions of the midfield.

Rakitic’s signing would almost surely signal the end of Liverpool and Chelsea target Isco’s term with Madrid. Despite a positive start to life in Madrid following his arrival from Malaga last summer, he has found first team opportunities difficult to come by in recent months at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The potential signing would allow Rakitic to reunite with fellow Croatian Luka Modrić in the Real Madrid midfield.

Still, despite contact being made between the two parties, Rakitic is at this point unsure of what the future has in store.

By -
0

Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti said his side was too scared in the first half of their game against Borussia Dortmund last night.

Leading 3-0 going into the game, Los Blancos had a disastrous opening 45 minutes in Germany, missing a penalty and conceding two goals to allow the Germans back into the tie. The nine-time European Cup winners improved slightly in the second half and managed to see out the game and qualify for the semi-finals for the fourth consecutive year.

Afterwards, the Italian boss said he was happy to have qualified, but admitted the team played poorly. “I’m happy to get to the semis, even though we gifted them a lot, especially in the first half. In the second we didn’t lose out heads, we defended better and we had chances to score. Football is like that, we gifted and then we suffered,” he said.

And he continued: “After the missed penalty, we got scared. The first half was hard. At the break I didn’t have to give them a stern talking to. The side was sad, low on confidence, they needed animating and we changed a little, putting Bale on the right and Isco on the left. Things got better in the second half.”

Ancelotti picked out Iker Casillas as the star performer on the night, making some incredible saves to keep his side ahead in the tie. “Casillas made a great save at a very important moment in the game.”

He also admitted Angel di Maria may be pushed down the list of penalty takers in future after his miss from the spot. He stated: “The last time Cristiano Ronaldo didn’t play, against Olímpic de Xàtiva, Di María took it. I don’t know if we’ll change it now and it will be the third or fourth taker.”

By -
4

Real Madrid’s interest in Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero may lead to a swap deal between the clubs, also involving Los Blancos goalkeeper Iker Casillas.

City’s current goalkeeper – and England number one – Joe Hart, has suffered an up and down season, losing his place in the side earlier in the year due to continuous errors, before later winning his place in the first team back.

Casillas has had to get used to being nothing more than a substitute goalkeeper in Madrid after the arrival of Diego Lopez last January and may show an interest if the right club were to approach him.

Aguero, meanwhile, has often been rumoured to be a Los Blancos target over the past couple of years and, although he has missed many matches with various niggling injuries this season, has still shown himself to be one of the world’s elite strikers when available.

The Argentine was previously at Atletico de Madrid before his move to the north of England and the speculation has been fuelled by claims that he would welcome a move back to Spain if an opportunity arises.

Current Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini has worked with Casillas before during his brief spell in charge at the Santiago Bernabeu and, if possible, would surely sanction a move for his former player.

By -
2

Real Madrid reached the semi-final of the Champions League last night but not without coming close to throwing it all away.

Holding a 3-0 lead from the first leg against Borussia Dortmund, all they had to do was avoid a disaster to qualify. But they chose to do it the hard way, putting in a shocking first half display full of errors.

Angel di Maria missed a penalty in the 16th minute, and errors from Pepe and Asier Illarramendi allowed Marcus Reus to score twice in the first half. Los Blancos improved marginally in the second period and weathered the storm to end the two-legged affair as 3-2 victors overall.

Today’s papers are fairly muted about the achievement of reaching a fourth consecutive semi-final, focusing instead on the disappointing performance.

Marca and AS have plenty of quotes from various players after the match in which the general messages was one of relief and time to switch back on for the challenges ahead. Iker Casillas described the result as a “shock to the system”, while Luke Modric admitted the players always say they need to learn but never do. Manager Carlo Ancelotti admitted his side played with too much fear, particularly in the first half.

Sticking with the Champions League theme, the papers also cover Chelsea’s win over PSG, which raises the prospect of a reunion with Jose Mourinho. Speaking after his side’s win, the man who failed to land the Decima for Los Blancos, said if the clubs were drawn together, it would be an enjoyable experience.

By -
1

Iker Casillas saved Real Madrid from a disastrous elimination in the Champions League quarter-finals, as Borussia Dortmund came one goal short from equalising the tie.

Los Blancos played a terrible first half, especially the defence. Two mistakes from Pepe and Asier Illarramendi allowed the hosts to earn a 2-0 advantage. Yet, a brilliant performance from Casillas prevented the Germans from scoring their third.

The match would have certainly been a lot different had Angel di Maria scored a penalty. In Real Madrid’s only chance in the first half, the Argentine slipped when shooting and his effort never had enough power to beat Roman Weidenfeller.

A few minutes later, Di Maria would regret that miss, as Marco Reus rounded Casillas before slipping one into the bottom corner from close range. It was a horror moment from Pepe, whose back-header never had enough power to find his own goalkeeper.

German fans went mad as Illarramendi missed an easy pass, handing the ball to Robert Lewandowski. The Polish international exchanged passes with Reus, and smashes a shot that Casillas pushed onto the post. However, Reus was there to follow the rebound emphatically home.

Luckily, half-time arrived before Dortmund could make it 3-0, taking advantage of Madrid’s catastrophic first half.

Ancelotti cleverly replaced Illarramendi, who had been very nervous on the night, and brought isco in, sending Di Maria back to the midfield line and gaining more control of possession with the Andalucian alongside Xabi Alonso and Luka Modric.

Los Merengues had their best chances to score the goal that would seal their qualification for the next round. However, Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale, who had a terrible night, missed two clear chances.

Madrid players started to feel nervous again and Dortmund came close to finishing their comeback. Reus slided a low pass towards Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who rounded Casillas but his effort smashed the post.

The Armenian had another wonderful chance four minutes later with a strike from inside the box, but Casillas brilliantly made the save.

The Spanish goalkeeper made another superb save in the next play, denying Kevin Grosskreutz from close range. And he kept his side on the game again as Grosskreutz attacked a loose ball inside the box and seemed primed to bang his shot into the corner, but Casillas got two strong hands across to push it away.

With Dortmund desperately trying to score, Real had up to four clear counter-attack chances to score in the last minutes. Yet, Weidenfeller was solid on goal.

Los Blancos finally resisted, by they will have to improve their game and their defence in order to succeed in their next crucial challenges: the final of the Copa del Rey and the Champions League semi-finals.

By -
0

Real Madrid visit Borussia Dortmund tonight in the second leg of their quarter-final tie knowing that, barring a disaster, they will be making their fourth consecutive semi-final appearance in the Champions League.

Los Blancos hold a 3-0 lead, but will have in the back of their minds the nightmare at the Westfalenstadion from 12 months ago, when an inspired Robert Lewandowski performance saw Jurgen Klopp’s men win 4-1.

The lineup for the hosts tonight will be very different though, despite the return of the Polish striker from suspension. Neven Subotic (knee), Ilkay Gundogan (back), Jakub Blaszczykowski (knee), Marcel Schmelzer (groin), Sven Bender (groin), and Jannick Bandowski (foot) are all missing, while Sebastian Kehl misses out through suspension.

Carlo Ancelotti has a selection headache of his own, with Cristiano Ronaldo doubtful due to the recurrence of the pain in his knee from tendinitis. The 29-year-old pulled out of training after just 20 minutes yesterday and will not be risked. Sami Khedira (knee), Jese Rodriguez (knee), Alvaro Arbeloa (knee), and Marcelo (hamstring) remain on the sidelines.

Probable Lineups:
Borussia Dortmund: Weidenfeller; Piszczek, Sokratis, Hummels, Durm; Kirch, Sahin; Aubameyang, Mkhitaryan, Reus; Lewandowski

Real Madrid: Casillas; Carvajal, Ramos, Pepe, Coentrao; Alonso, Modric, Illarramendi; Bale, Benzema, Isco

By -
1

Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale has admitted Los Blancos will “come out fighting” against Borussia Dortmund and “approach it like any other game” despite their 3-0 victory in the first leg at the Santiago Bernabeu.

“Last Wednesday’s match at home was great, we played well and deserved to win, but it will be a different game in Dortmund. They’ll come out fighting and we have to approach it like any other game, looking to win it and seal our place in the semifinals,” he said in an interview with Bwin website.

The Welshman confessed he’s “never played in Signal Iduna Park”. “I’ve seen it on TV and I’ve heard people talk about it. They say the atmosphere is incredible. We’re professionals and we know how to go about our business. We’ll approach it like we always do and try to win the match as we always do,” he added.

When asked about Robert Lewandowski, who will make his return after missing the first leg due to suspension, Bale admitted “he is a great player and has been showing that over the last few years, but we have to concentrate on our own job, like we did in the first leg, defending well. You can’t do things any differently when you come up against other good attacking players. We have to defend well and I hope the team is at its best for this game.”

As Real Madrid look to seal their place in the semi-finals, Bale argued that in order to win La Decima they’ll need to take it “one game at a time and not get too far ahead of ourselves”. “It is important to take it one step at a time and not get too distracted, otherwise things could go badly,” he concluded.

By -
0

Borussia Dortmund boss Jurgen Klopp has said his side is up for the challenge of overcoming the 3-0 deficit they face against Real Madrid to qualify for the semi-final of the Champions League.

The Bundesliga side have a mountain to climb when they welcome Carlo Ancelotti’s men, but they can draw confidence from the 4-1 humiliation they dished out to the same opponents at the semi-final stage last year.

The star man that night was Robert Lewandowski, who scored all four goals. The Pole missed the first leg in Madrid last week, but is back from suspension for the game tonight.

Speaking to journalists at his press conference, Klopp said: “Last year, we ‘went out’ in the final. This year it looks like the quarter-finals. But it is not over yet. Real Madrid are one of the favourites to win the Champions League but we want to defend better and use our chances better than in Madrid.

And he added: “I do believe my team showed ‘cojones’ in the first leg. We made mistakes in defence but we gave them a game. We are specialists for the second half and this is the second half of the quarter-final. We want to win it.”

By -
0
Daniel Carvajal with Bayer Leverkusen

Daniel Carvajal says Real Madrid must treat the match against Borussia Dortmund like it’s a final.

Los Blancos built up a healthy 3-0 lead in the first leg last week in Spain with goals from Gareth Bale, Isco, and Cristiano Ronaldo. But right-back Carvajal said the Bundesliga side will come out fighting and will have the backing of the amazing Westfalonstadion crowd.

“This is practically a final. The lead from the first leg is big, but not conclusive. They are going to come out and give their all and we are going to try and win and not speculate,” he told journalists gathered at a press conference.

And he added: “This stadium puts pressure on you and the first 15 or 20 minutes will be crucial because they’ll be lifted by their fans and will try to score and put pressure on the tie.”

The 22-year-old also spoke once again of his time playing in Germany, and says it the experience taught him the value of hard work.

“It’s only been a year, last year I was playing in Germany and tomorrow I could be on the pitch. It’s an example of what you can get from hard work. It’s a very important match and we’ll approach it with verve and the intention of winning to get to the semi-finals,” he stated.

1...561562563...733Page 562 of 733

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