FOOTBALL

Barcelona return to winning ways, beat Valencia

Published

3 years ago

October 18, 2021

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Barcelona have arrested their slump in form with a resounding 3-1 victory against Valencia at Camp Nou.

Even though the scoreline suggests otherwise, Ronald Koeman’s men did not have the easiest day in office.

After falling behind, the Catalans mounted an impressive comeback, thanks to goals from Ansu Fati, Memphis Depay, and Philippe Coutinho, but had to withstand a turbulent second-half performance from the visitors to hold on to their lead.

The win was only the second for the Blaugrana in the last seven competitive matches, bringing under pressure manager Ronald Koeman some much-needed breathing space.

On the flip side, Valencia’s winless run extended to five matches after Los Murcielagos started their La Liga campaign with three wins in four.

The start of the match, however, indicated another dismal Barcelona performance in the making.

Valencia take the lead

Jose Gaya put Valencia in front after a cleared corner fell on his feet.

The Spanish international dispatched a powerful volley that found its way into the top end of the net, flying past the stretched arms of Marc-Andre ter Stegen.

Barcelona responded with urgency after conceding the goal. As a result, they restored parity shortly afterwards.

Fati equalises

10 minutes after the Valencia goal, Ansu Fati, who inherited Lionel Messi’s iconic number 10 shirt at the club, played a nifty one-two with Depay and fired a curling effort from the edge of the box.

The ball beat former Barcelona number two Jasper Cillessen and rattled the bottom end corner. It was reminiscent of a Lionel Messi goal indeed!

ＡＮＳＵ
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Ｇ#BarçaValencia pic.twitter.com/Ujn5dfanIm
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) October 17, 2021

The goal boosted the morale of the home team and they took full control of the match for the rest of the half.

Barcelona’s persistence forward play was barely threatened by a Valencia counter.

The pressure continued to pile up, and it only seemed like a matter of when, rather than if, Barcelona will score their second goal.

Jose Gaya gave away a penalty in the 39^th minute, eclipsing his phenomenal 5^th minute opener.

The fullback might consider himself unlucky, though, as the contact he supposedly made with Ansu Fati inside the box did not appear to be a clear-cut penalty.

Controversy aside, Depay did not pass up the golden opportunity to grab the lead for Barcelona.

The Dutchman placed the ball far beyond the reach of his compatriot Cillessen to make it 2-1 for Barcelona. As the whistle went off for interval, Barcelona appeared to be in cruise control.

Valencia start second half strongly

But, Valencia came out as a different animal in the second half.

Whatever Jose Bordalas said during his half-time pep talk seemed to be working like magic as Valencia turned the tide of the game.

Only 8 minutes after the restart, Carlos Soler saw his strike hitting the inside of the far post and flirting with the goal line.

Maxi Gomez was in place to tap it in, but the offside flag went up against the Uruguayan. Goncalo Guedes tested ter Stegen with a fierce attempt, only four minutes later.

But, the away team ran out of gas in the final minutes, and Barcelona took full advantage of that to bag the three points.

With five minutes from time, Sergino Dest sprinted into the Valencia box and teed it up for Coutinho, who turned and kept his calm to score the third goal for Barca.

Pure emotion pic.twitter.com/8LjDsHVhmM
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) October 18, 2021

Sergio Aguero replaced Dest two minutes later, making his first appearance for the club since his arrival from Manchester City.

🇦🇷🔝💙❤ ¡@aguerosergiokun debuta con el @FCBarcelona_es! #BarçaValencia #LaLigaSantander pic.twitter.com/iR64GlM6bC
— LALIGA (@LaLiga) October 17, 2021

Barcelona are currently 7th in the La Liga table with 15 points from 8 matches.

Valencia, on the other hand, are 9th with 12 points in 9 games.

FOOTBALL

WATCH: Georgina Rodriguez makes huge claim on Cristiano Ronaldo’s retirement in Football

Published

2 months ago

March 3, 2024

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Georgina Rodriguez made a huge claim on the future of her husband and star player, Cristiano Ronaldo, in Football. In a brief interaction with a host recently, Rodriguez was asked about the time left for Cristiano to make an impact at the highest level. Georgina looked honest in her approach to the question of the host and claimed something the fans would not love to hear.

Georgina claimed that the Portugal star has maybe one year more from him at the highest level. She felt that Ronaldo might play two more years before retiring and not more than that. She was however not sure if he would play for just one or two years and added that the Al Nassr star could also play more than that.

Watch the video of Georgina Rodriguez here –

🚨🎙️| Georgina Rodriguez on Cristiano Ronaldo’s future at Paris Fashion Week yesterday:

“Cristiano one more year, then it’s over. Maybe two, I don’t know.”

(via @ArobaseGiovanny)pic.twitter.com/4dxw2j5DuC

— Pubity Sport (@pubitysport) March 3, 2024

“Cristiano one more year, then it’s over. Maybe two, I don’t know,” said Rodriguez in the little chat she had with the host. The video has gone viral on X and the fans have started sharing it on different platforms. Some of the fans feel that Georgina might be right, while others feel that she could be wrong, given the fitness and longevity of the star player.

Legacy of Cristiano Ronaldo

On the 5th of February, Ronaldo celebrated his 39th birthday. He is currently one of the oldest players in the world. In the past, players at this age would have retired way back. But the fitness and consistency of Ronaldo make him play the sport as long as he wishes. In his career so far, Ronaldo has won many major leagues for Portugal and league teams like Real Madrid, Al Nassr, and Manchester United.

With United, Portugal won some major leagues like the FA Cup and the Champions League. With Real Madrid, the 39-year-old won the leagues like the UCL, Copa Del Rey and La Liga. He won it three consecutive times for Real Madrid. For Portugal, Cristiano had a huge contribution to Portugal. He has the most number of appearances and goals for an international team and won the Euro 2016 with Portugal.

FOOTBALL

Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham slapped with Red Card as he argued with referee

Published

2 months ago

March 3, 2024

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Jude Bellingham shown Red Card (Image Credit: Twitter)

England and Real Madrid player Jude Bellingham was slapped with a Red Card during the La Liga game against Valencia. In the game, the home team, Valencia was leading by 2-0 after 30 minutes before Madrid scored in the injury time of the first half. Vinicius Junior opened the scoring for Madrid while Hugo Duro (27′) and Roman Yaremchuk (30′) scored a goal each.

In the 76th minute, Junior scored an equalizer to keep the team in the game. However, in the injury time of the second half, Bellingham was given a red card as he argued with the referee against calling it a full-time before he could score. In reply, the match official decided to slap the England international with a Red Card. The team coach Carlo Ancelotti wasn’t happy with the verdict as the Three Lions player was making a pass at the time.

Jude Bellingham verbally abusing officials and other footballers at the slightest provocation needs to be talked about more. It’s embarrassing he gets applauded by Real Madrid Fans.

Mason Greenwood should’ve allowed La Liga to deal with this simp. pic.twitter.com/ixYSw6YxaC

— Herman Facundo© (@hermanfacundo_7) March 3, 2024

“I think what’s just happened is unprecedented. It’s never happened to me,” Ancelotti told reporters.

“We had possession of the ball and the match should have been finished when Valencia had the ball.

“What bothers us is the red card for Bellingham because he didn’t say anything insulting. He was frustrated of course,” said Ancelotti, adding that Bellingham had used a common English swearword when telling the referee it was a goal.

We are annoyed with Jude Bellingham’s Red Card: Carlo Ancelotti

“We were annoyed with Bellingham’s red card. He didn’t say any insults. He said in English ‘it’s a f—ing goal,’ but he was just saying what we were all thinking … [The referee] allowed play to continue. I think he made a mistake.”

“[Bellingham] was clear in what he said,” Ancelotti added. “He was quite vehement [in his reaction] but that’s normal, after what happened. It wasn’t an insult, not at all.”

FOOTBALL

PL 2023-24: MCFC vs MUFC Dream11 Prediction, Playing XI, Fantasy League Today’s Captain, Vice-Captain, and more for Manchester derby

Published

2 months ago

March 2, 2024

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Super Sunday is set to witness the Manchester Derby in the Premier League 2023-24. The match between Manchester City (MCFC) and Manchester United (MUFC) is set to take place in Etihad Stadium, the home ground of Manchester City. The two teams have had a contrasting journey in the league till now. The fortunes of City changed ever since Pep Guardiola took over the club as the manager.

While the home side are placed in the second position in the points table currently, United are in the sixth place in the points table. In their previous encounter, City hammered Luton Town by 6-2 in the FA Cup. United have shown massive improvements in the last few weeks after not having a good start to their campaign. United were involved in a thrilling game where they beat Nottingham Forrest by 1-0 in their last game.

Both teams feature some of the best players in the world. The likes of Julian Alvarez, Erling Haaland, Marcus Rashford, Kevin De Bruyne, Bruno Fernandes, Casemiro, and others would be taking part in the match. Manchester City will start the match as the favourites, given their record in the ongoing league so far and the match taking place in their home. United with their improved record can challenge the home side.

MCFC vs MUFC – Match Details

Match – Manchester City (MCFC) vs Manchester United (MUFC), Premier League 2023-24

Venue – Etihad Stadium, Manchester

Date and Time – 3^rd March 2024, 21:00 IST

Live Coverage – Star Sports Network and Disney plus Hot Star

MCFC vs MUFC – Head-to-Head

Both the teams from Manchester have a rich history in the sport. they have been up against each other in 191 instances. In as many games, Manchester United have been historically the better side with 78 wins to their name. City have managed to win 60 wins, as 53 games ended in a draw. In the last five games between the two sides in the Premier League, City have won four of the five games.