FOOTBALL

Champions League: Will Tottenham crumble against Marseille?

Published

1 year ago

October 31, 2022

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With all four teams still alive in the race for Champions League knockout places, Group D will be the centre of all attention in the final group stage match week of the 22/23 Champions League.

Tottenham Hotspur will travel to the Orange Velodrome as group toppers. But a defeat against their Tuesday night hosts, Marseille, could flatline their Champions League campaign.

Les Olympiens lie at the bottom of the group, but a win will be enough to send them to the next stage of the competition.

Recent form

After two back-to-back defeats against Tottenham and Eintracht Frankfurt to start their Champions League mission, Marseille rejuvenated their European campaign at the expense of Sporting Lisbon.

The Portuguese outfit had players sent off in both matches against Marseille. The Ligue 1 side exploited their numerical advantage in both games and picked up six points.

But Marseille could not keep up the momentum when they took on Eintracht Frankfurt last week.

In a 11v11 affair, the Germans won 2-1 as Daichi Kamada and Randal Kolo Muani hit the target. Marseilles had restored parity through Matteo Guendouzi after Kamada put Frankfurt ahead. But the French giants had no answer for Muani’s strike, and they had to fall back to the fourth place of the group.

Despite the defeat at Deutsche Bank Park, Marseille’s Champions League fate is firmly in their own hands.

A win against Spurs on home turf will give them the ticket for the Champions League RO16. They could also win the group if the Frankfurt-Sporting match ends undecided.

However, Marseille’s recent form does not make room for much optimism in the minds of their fans.

They have only one win to show for their last five matches at the Orange Velodrome. Marseille have also failed to keep a clean sheet in their last six home games.

That’s not an encouraging piece of statistic for a team about to face the attacking might of a Spurs attack featuring Harry Kane and Son Heung-min.

But Tottenham also have their own problems to deal with.

They have appeared out of sync in their recent games, and their failure to see off Sporting at home has now put their Champions League future in jeopardy.

Harry Kane sent ruptures around the home crowd as he sent the ball on the back of the net late into the game. But a lengthy three-minute VAR check ruled the goal out for offside and allowed the visitors to leave with a valuable point.

A frustrated Antonio Conte was sent off for his sideline antics, so the Spurs manager will have to watch the Marseille game from the stands.

Marseille will get Samuel Gigot back in defence as he had to sit out the Frankfurt game with a suspension. But it remains to be seen whether or not Igor Tudor picks Gigot over Sead Kolasinac, who has been impressive in the Marseille backline.

Sead Kolasinac has experienced many heated encounters with Tottenham during his Arsenal days, but he will not be the only ex-Gunner to feature for Marseilles against Spurs.

Team news

Alexis Sanchez and Matteo Guendouzi will renew their rivalry with the Lilywhites. Arsenal loanee Nuno Tavares is also expected to start for Marseille.

Spurs will not get Richarlison, who had scored a brace in the reverse fixture, as he is suffering from a calf injury.

Dejan Kulusevski will also be unavailable because of a hamstring problem. Cristian Romero is expected to be available for selection after being sidelined for the matches against Bournemouth and Sporting.

Will Spurs prevail?

History is not in Tottenham’s favour since no English side managed to win away against a French opposition in European competitions.

On top of that, they are yet to score on the road in the ongoing Champions League campaign.

However, that dry run might come to an end since Marseille will have to attack from the start and that should make it easier for the Lilywhites to hit them on the counter.

But, Tottenham’s shaky defensive performances in recent time makes it hard to believe they will return from France with a clean sheet.

We are expecting Spurs to do the bare minimum and salvage a 1-1 draw against Marseille to book their place in the knockout stage.

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.