Eto'o: I don't have to explain anything about my age

The Cameroon striker has hit out at suggestions that he is older than 32 after a private conversation involving Jose Mourinho was recorded by a French television station

 

Chelsea striker Samuel Eto’o has hit out at allegations suggesting he is older than 32 years old.

Jose Mourinho was left fuming after a private conversation was recorded by Canal Plus and revealed the Blues boss saying: "The problem with Chelsea is we lack a scorer. I have one [Eto'o] but he's 32. Maybe 35, who knows?"

But when questioned about Mourinho’s comments after Chelsea’s 1-1 draw with Galatasaray on Wednesday, Eto’o told Mediaset: "I do not have to explain anything.

"I triumphed with all the teams I played for, I'm the player I am and I want to help Chelsea to win a cup this season."

At the Turk Telekom Arena on Wednesday, Fernando Torres’ early opener was cancelled out by Aurelien Chedjou’s strike after the break and Eto’o has urged Chelsea to take advantage of playing at home in the second leg.

"It’s a good result for us," said the striker. "In the return leg, however, we must be very careful and take advantage of the home advantage. We need a goal to qualify." 

Lampard: Chelsea need Premier League 'help' to compete in Europe

The 35-year-old believes the Blues, and other sides involved in continental competition, are handicapped by the current fixture list in the English top flight

 

Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard has called for a re-think on Premier League scheduling for clubs competing in the Champions League, and would like the same support enjoyed by their European rivals.

Jose Mourinho's table-toppers are preparing themselves for a west London derby at Fulham on Saturday - just 72 hours after they drew 1-1 with Galatasaray in Istanbul.

And, given the lack of rest afforded to the Blues, Lampard believes the Premier League should follow models used elsewhere in Europe, where domestic games are often moved to allow Champions League clubs more time to recover from continental competition.

"It's not ideal," the England international is quoted as saying by the Daily Mail. "We don't expect any favours and certainly know we won't get them. It's about resting up and getting ready to go.

"I don't know about the Premier League but other countries seem to look after their teams representing them in the Champions League. I'm not sure we do so much here.

"I'm not trying to get one over on other Premier League teams, it just seems a general rule. There could be a bit of common sense if you are getting back at 6:00 (on Thursday)."

However, Lampard is confident Chelsea's squad is capable of coping with the rigorous schedule, and says the players just have to accept the situation.

"We can't moan, we've got a fantastic squad with fit young players. We have to get on with it," he added. 

Mancini: Chelsea deserved to lose

The Italian thinks Galatasaray were the better team in the Champions League clash on Wednesday, but is relatively pleased with the 1-1 result nonetheless

 

Roberto Mancini felt Chelsea deserved to be beaten by Galatasaray in the opening leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Wednesday.

Solid early pressure from Chelsea rewarded them with a ninth-minute opener from Fernando Torres at the Turk Telekom Arena, but Gala controlled the game for long spells.

Mancini reshuffled his pack to tactically stifle the Londoners and the hosts gained their reward through Aurelien Chedjou's equaliser just after the hour.

The 1-1 draw means that the tie is still finely balanced heading into the return at Stamford Bridge on March 18, with an away goal giving the Premier League side a slight edge, but Mancini felt that his side could have been heading to London in a more comfortable position.

Asked by Sky Sports whether he was disappointed to be coming away on level terms, the Italian said: "Yes, because in the second half we probably deserved to score another goal.
"We gained a lot of confidence from the second half, but we had too much respect for Chelsea. Maybe we were too deep in the first half, we played with fear but I'm happy.
"One-one is a good result, we have another game."

Jose Mourinho's Blues will host Mancini's men on March 18 as they pursue Champions League glory for the second time in three seasons.

Ronaldo turned down Barcelona, says Calderon

The Portuguese star could have joined Real Madrid's rivals after erstwhile Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson "offered" him to the Catalans

Cristiano Ronaldo turned down the chance to join Barcelona before signing his world-record deal with Real Madrid, former ex-Blancos president Ramon Calderon has revealed.

The Portuguese star joined Madrid in 2009 for a fee of €94 million from Manchester United and has become a huge hit at the Santiago Bernabeu, winning the 2013 Ballon d'Or for his sensational performances for both club and country.

However, former Madrid president Calderon insists former United manager Sir Alex Ferguson attempted to engineer a move to rivals Barca for the attacker - but Ronaldo refused.

Asked whether the Scot tried to send Ronaldo to the Blaugrana, Calderon told talkSPORT: "It is totally true. In the few weeks he tried to avoid him going to Real Madrid, offering him to Barcelona.

"Barcelona were very happy but in that moment it was very crucial as Ronaldo said: 'I'm not going to any other club but Real Madrid.'‏

"That's why we signed the deal. Everyone was happy: Manchester United got the £80 million [€94m], Real Madrid got the best player in the world and Cristiano got what he wanted because players like him are not only looking for money, they look for glory, and they look for anyone who is giving them that opportunity to win titles, to be the best in the world, to win golden boots. 

"There are only three, four or five clubs that can give him what he wants."

Ronaldo has scored 22 goals in 21 league appearances for Madrid this season, but it is his work ethic and determination that separates him from other players, according to the former Madrid chief.

"Cristiano is the best of the best because every day he gets up in the morning and his only obsession is to be the best. He wants to be better than the day before," Calderon continued.

"I always told players coming to Madrid that this is the most difficult time of your career because anyone who plays against Real is going to give 150 per cent of themselves in order to beat you.

"I think it is very important for young players to understand how important it is every time you are playing or working to want to be the best.  I think that is the secret of Cristiano." 

Miniature Messi: Introducing new Barcelona wonderkid Alen Halilovic

The Dinamo Zagreb wonderkid has announced that he will be signing for the Catalans on a five-year contract. But just how good can the teenager become?

It was a winter of discontent for Barcelona in the transfer market. Not only did they not sign anyone, but the chaos surrounding Neymar's transfer last summer saw their president resign and the club accused of tax fraud allegations that they continue to deny.

However, a month on from the madness of the January window, the Catalans have got back into the swing of poaching the best talent on the planet by swooping for Croatian wonderkid Alen Halilovic in a deal worth an estimated €10 million from Dinamo Zagreb.

Although the move is yet to be officially confirmed by either club, the 17-year-old took to social media to share his joy with the world that he has signed for Gerardo Martino's men.

"Thanks Dinamo Zagreb for everything!!" the three-times capped Croatia international wrote on his Instagram account. "My first club and biggest love!! Now is time to move on to Barcelona."

Halilovic has undeniable talent and, considering Dinamo's modest financial status, it was no surprise that the likes of Real Madrid and Manchester United have been scouting him since he emerged as a star-in-making 17 months ago.

His debut off the bench in September 2012 in a 3-1 win over bitter rivals Hajduk Split made him the youngest ever debutant in the Croatian top flight at 16 years and 102 days. Ten days later the attacking midfielder broke another record - this time becoming the league's youngest ever goalscorer after netting with a superb Lionel Messi-esque chip.

Despite the clamour of interest, it was Barca who convinced him to part with Dinamo in June - when his first professional contract ends - to give him the chance to link up with the likes of Lionel Messi in the distant future.

 

Far from concidentally, the left-footed youngster's pace, dribbling ability, deadly finishing and deceptive strength considering his small frame have earned him comparisons to Barca's Argentine superstar - perhaps prematurely.

Barca are certainly getting a player with huge potential, a player who could develop into a world class attacker, but the fee of €10m is in danger of immediately piling the pressure on the teenager's shoulders.

Since he first shone at Dinamo early last season, there have been further flashes of brilliance but Halilovic has struggled to maintain consistency in a team where, in recent years, the likes of Mateo Kovacic and Milan Badelj dazzled at a similar age.

Still, Halilovic has an ability that only the top attacking players in world football possess: to ghost past players with ease in the final third. It’s this talent which undoubtedly persuaded Barca to fork out such a sum for a teenager despite already having what appears to be a conveyor belt of talented attackers emerging from their B team.

If Halilovic is to be a success at Camp Nou, Barca must keep the pressure off the young Croatian. This points to immediately putting the player to the B team to continue his development, alongside players of a similar age and talent.

Dinamo could never offer Halilovic a similar alternative - he embarrassed opponents at times representing Dinamo’s youth teams but the pressure, at times, has proven a little too much in front of the roar of the Maksimir Stadium. With that in mind, B team football could prove to be the perfect tonic for Croatia’s biggest talent.

Upon his emergence from the Dinamo youth ranks, there was genuine belief within the club that Halilovic was the best player in a generation to emerge from a club which has produced the likes of Luka Modric and Niko Kranjcar. Now he begins his road to leaving those names in the dust and living up his miniature Messi moniker.

Ignore the Premier League hype: English football is nearing rock bottom

After the abject showing of Premier League teams in Europe, expect no better from the national side with English participation in top-flight matches at an all-time low

 The Premier League likes to consider itself the Hollywood of the football industry.

It is the biggest and the best, they say. Eyes from every corner of the globe are attracted to the razzmatazz, the superstars and the quality of the performances.

But in the last year or two, English football has produced some dodgy scripts that don't live up to the billing, let alone award-winning acclaim.

After last year's Champions League semi-finals were made up of two teams from Germany and two from Spain, none of the four English representatives in this year's competition were able to win the first leg of their last-16 ties last month.

Arsenal and Manchester City are packing up the set and turning off the lights after both lost their home legs 2-0 to Bayern Munich and Barcelona, respectively. Manchester United suffered an embarrassing 2-0 defeat away to Olympiakos and few would rate their chances of progressing to the quarter-finals given their awful performances under David Moyes.

Which means that Chelsea are likely to be the sole representatives of the Premier League in the last eight of the Champions League, providing that they can get past Galatasaray, with whom they drew 1-1 in Istanbul last week. The Turkish chamions, incidentally, were smashed 6-1 when Real Madrid came calling last September.

Roy Keane was eviscerating in his assessment of the quality of the Premier League as his eyes bulged and face turned a shade of puce following United's display in Greece and few, if any, would argue with the former United captain.

The Premier League may pay the biggest wages and market itself brilliantly to the beer companies, betting websites and banking institutions but it is no longer the best competition.

Amid the wreckage England manager Roy Hodgson is left trying to build an Oscar-winning cast with only a handful of decent actors.

Figures obtained by Goal from Opta show that English representation has dropped to a record low this season, with players from these shores playing just 31.97 per cent of minutes in the Premier League so far.

In La Liga, the home of the reigning World Cup and European champions, Spanish players account for 61.35% of all minutes played while the figure stands at 48.21% in the Bundesliga, the home of the Champions League holders.

The old argument used to be that playing alongside the best in the business would raise the level of the young Englishmen coming through at clubs' academies. But the domestic game is left in a situation whereby the club teams are struggling compete in Europe and the national team lacks anything like the depth of talent that its competitors can boast.

Spain, the reigning world and European champions, for example, were able to leave Fernando Torres, the most expensive footballer in the history of English football, Juan Mata, Manchester United's record signing, and £26 million Spurs striker Roberto Soldado out of their squad ahead of their midweek friendly against Italy.

Just 159 of the 511 players to have played in the Premier League this season - less than a third - are English. The downward trend has steadily continued since 71.9% of native players featured in the league's inaugural campaign in 1992-93.

The major worry is whether the trend will even stop, let alone whether it can be reversed and it will take some time for the Premier League's £340m elite player performance plan to produce results in the form of home-grown players.

The same goes for St George's Park, which is likely to be more useful to the FA as a production line for quality youth-team coaches than for young players.

On Wednesday, England's build-up to the World Cup begins in earnest with a friendly against Denmark at Wembley but hardly anyone expects the Three Lions to fare any better than progression from the group stage in Brazil this summer where they are due to face Uruguay, Italy and Costa Rica.

Hodgson's most recent 30-man squad includes some exciting young talent. Few could complain, for example, about the quality of the performances produced by Liverpool duo Daniel Sturridge and Raheem Sterling in recent weeks.

The problem is that there simply aren't enough young Englishmen playing at the top of the domestic game. It is so desperate that the FA has even been considering poaching patently non-English players for the national side, like Adnan Januzaj, the 18-year-old Belgian of Kosovan-Albanian decent who could qualify for the Three Lions under residency rules in time for World Cup 2018.

The best opportunity for a young English player is more likely to come in the lower leagues, with 53.64% representation in the Championship and 67.46% in League One.

That route has certainly worked for three Southampton players - Adam Lallana, Jay Rodriguez and Rickie Lambert - in Hodgson's latest squad. You've got no chance of making it if you're not playing.

Sunday's Capital One Cup final between Manchester City was an exciting game to watch but the four goalscorers were an Italian, Ivorian, Frenchman and a Spaniard. There's a joke in there somewhere - maybe something along the lines of 'what good does that do for the England team?'

When Arsenal were completely outclassed by Bayern Munich in February, the goalscorers were both academy graduates. The four Champions League semi-finalists last season - Bayern, Borussia Dortmund, Madrid and Barcelona - were all built around a core of players from their own country. It is almost like they stumbled across a formula of which no-one in the English game had ever thought.

Only twice in the last 15 years has an all-English XI been fielded in the Premier League.

The last team to do it was Middlesborough under Steve McClaren on the final day of the 2005-06 season. Before that you have to go back to February 28, 1999 - 15 years ago last Friday - when John Gregory's all-English Aston Villa side were thrashed 4-1 by Coventry City.

It all paints a depressing picture but the fact is that, on the big awards nights, it's other clubs and other national teams walking away with all the prizes. 

'Put Schalke to the sword' - Goal's World Player of the Week Arjen Robben

In hindsight it seems laughable that there were rumours Arjen Robben would be surplus to requirements at Bayern Munich following Pep Guardiola's appointment as coach last summer.

The Netherlands winger has flourished under his new boss and no more so than in recent weeks. The 30-year-old was excellent in the 2-0 Champions League win over Arsenal at the Emirates and then struck a hat-trick to put Schalke to the sword in a 5-1 win on Saturday.

Goal's Alec Fenn said: "The last thing the Schalke defence needed was the sight of Arjen Robben sprinting towards them after being torn apart by Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale on Wednesday.

"The winger smelt blood from the first whistle and scored his first of the game on 15 minutes with a lovely chip over Ralf Fahrmann.

"His second, on 28 minutes, was a trademark bending effort into the bottom corner from the right with his left foot and he wrapped up his hat-trick from the penalty spot late on to make it 10 goals in 18 league games."

Liverpool owner John W Henry admits Suarez did have €49 million clause

The Reds chief confirms that a bid from Arsenal just slightly over the Uruguayan forward's release clause was rejected during last summer's tense transfer negotiations

Liverpool owner John W Henry has confirmed that Luis Suarez did have a €49 million release clause in his old contract but revealed that the club refused to sell the striker to Arsenal because "contracts don't seem to mean a lot in England".

Arsene Wenger's side submitted a €49m-plus-€1 bid in an attempt activate the Uruguay international's clause but the Reds claimed that the player only needed to be informed of offers over €49 and were not obliged to sell.

Liverpool maintained their no-sale stance regarding Suarez throughout the summer transfer window and the forward signed a new long-term deal with the club in December.

"Luis Suarez is the top scorer in the English Premier League, which is arguably the top soccer league in the world," Henry is reported to have said at the Sloan Sports Analytics Conference.

"He had a buyout clause of £40m. Arsenal, one of our prime rivals - this year we're tied for second - we're actually second because of goal difference - offered £40m plus £1.

"What we've found is that contracts don't seem to mean a lot in England - actually, in world football.

"It doesn't matter how long a player's contract is, he can decide he's leaving.

"We sold a player, Fernando Torres, for £50m, that we did not want to sell - we were forced to. Since apparently these contracts don’t seem to hold, we took the position that we're just not selling.

"It's been great for Luis, it's been great for us.

Ibra eclipsed as Maxwell leads PSG’s Brazilian job on Marseille

The Swede was outshone in the Classique victory as the left-back struck the opener while compatriot Lucas Moura lit up Parc des Princes with his weaving runs

Zlatan Ibrahimovic has established himself in France as a specialist at playing Olympique de Marseille. Of course, Ibra is a potent forward against any side, but he has typically saved his best for the men from Provence.

It therefore came as something of a surprise that he was pushed to the periphery at Parc des Princes on Sunday, with Maxwell providing the cutting edge that wrought the opening goal five minutes into the second period of their 2-0 Classique win.

While left-backs are stereotypically cast as ‘unlikely heroes’, the same cannot necessarily be said of the veteran, who celebrated signing a new contract with the club a little under a fortnight ago by registering his third goal of what has been another impressive campaign.

He may not be associated with the glamour of an Ibrahimovic or even an Edinson Cavani, but the former Barcelona and Inter defender remains more than just a reliable presence for the Parisian side.

It would be unfair to cast the 32-year-old as a late bloomer, but there can be little doubt that he is now enjoying something of a belated golden age in his career.

Remarkably it took the Champions League winner until 2013 to make his debut for the national side, but now he appears a likely figure to appear for the Selecao as they chase a dream World Cup triumph on home soil in the summer.

While Maxwell thrives in Paris, Lucas Moura has spent six months treading water, though since returning from the winter break the young attacker has looked increasingly confident. His performance against OM suggests that he is a player who could also have an impact in the summer for Brazil.

A samba of stepovers over the ball with seven minutes left was showboating at its finest and left Jeremy Morel staring helplessly, highlighting the ease with which the powerful attacker is playing, though it was his driving run moments later that set up an opportunity that Ibrahimovic clipped over that was more productive.

Particularly during the first period, his direct running and willingness to commit defenders was a bane of the visiting side. One remarkable run saw him carry the ball half the length of the field, powering by tackles as the Ronaldo of old might – the Brazilian one, that is. Such a gift is not to be easily overlooked and, if he can marry such forceful running with a continued end product, there may yet be space for him in Luiz Felipe Scolari’s thinking.

The foundation of the 2-0 win might have been laid in midfield, but steely defensive duo Thiago Silva and Alex also impressed, with the latter admitting he holds out hope of receiving an unexpected late World Cup call.

Sunday night was wall-to-wall positive news for PSG, who welcomed back Edinson Cavani back into the fold with a thumping header for the second as they moved eight points clear of Monaco and edge ever closer to the Ligue 1 title.

Messi will never surpass Maradona, says Hector Enrique

The 1986 World Cup winner has voiced his opinion that no-one will ever better the legendary forward

Former Argentina international Hector Enrique believes Barcelona attacker Lionel Messi will never reach the level of Diego Maradona.

The 26-year-old is widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the game having won the Ballon d'Or four times and broken a host of goalscoring records in the process, but Enrique is adamant that he will never be as good as his illustrious compatriot.

"Messi does not have anything on Maradona. I love Messi and I would be happy if my son would play at one per cent of his abilities, but Maradona was unique," Enrique told Continental.

"There will never be anyone like Maradona again, not even if Messi wins three World Cups in succession or scores a bicycle kick from midfield.

"Maradona and Messi have different characters on the pitch. Diego radiated confidence and made all of us play better. Messi has personality as well, but not like Maradona."

Enrique was part of the Argentina squad winning the World Cup in 1986

Bayern will not stop signing Dortmund stars, says Rummenigge

The reigning champions are intent on continuing their transfer policy and will keep on trying to sign the best players available from their arch-rivals

Bayern Munich chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge says that the Bundesliga champions will not stop signing players from Borussia Dortmund just to maintain a good relationship with their rivals.

The Bavarians have received their fair share of criticism for their tendency to stockpile the Bundesliga's best talent, with the signings of Mario Gotze and Robert Lewandowski from BVB in particular causing uproar.

Nevertheless, Rummenigge has made it clear that Bayern will not change their transfer policy, irrespective of how their rivals feel about it.

"We would never make a senseless decision to no longer sign players from Dortmund," Rummenigge told ZDF.

"We have a good relationship with Dortmund. I met with their CEO last summer and any bad feelings were cleared up then."

Bayern lured Gotze to the Allianz Arena last season by triggering his €37 million exit clause, while Lewandowski will make the move to Bavaria on a free transfer this summer.

Manchester City midfielder Samir Nasri keen to make France's World Cup squad

Samir Nasri hopes to earn himself a place in France's World Cup squad by repeating his Capital One Cup final heroics for the rest of the season.

The attacking midfielder, who was named man of the match after scoring in Manchester City's Capital One Cup success against Sunderland, has been left out of France's squad for this week's friendly with Holland, casting doubt over his chances of making Les Bleus' squad for this summer's World Cup finals.

Nasri, who only recently returned to action after a month out with a knee injury, is keen to let his football do his talking as he looks to win his place back in Didier Deschamps' plans.

"The best response is on the pitch," Nasri told L'Equipe. "It's up to me to give him headaches by repeating this kind of performance."
The former Arsenal and Marseille man found himself frozen out of Deschamps' plans for a period after being banned for three games following a clash with a journalist during Euro 2012 and Nasri feels he is unfairly treated in his homeland.
"I reacted badly, of course," added Nasri. "But I was provoked. I responded. I didn't kill anyone - I insulted a journalist.

"People don't know us. They read the papers, they watch the TV and if they hear that 'him, he's a moron,' that obviously leads to a negative connection with the public

"I can seem arrogant because I want to be sure of myself. If you don't believe in yourself, no one will do it for you. But if the only thing you hear is criticism then inevitably, in your head, that bothers you.
"I am annoyed to not be loved in my own country. Last season, everything went wrong.
"There was first Euro 2012 where I have been killed. I came back to my club where I had problems too.
"It was just a negative series. You have to be strong to get through it.

Cavani thrilled with goalscoring return

The Uruguay international was delighted to return to the pitch after a spell on the sidelines due to injury, while Maxwell spoke of his joy at scoring and extending PSG's lead

 

Edinson Cavani was elated to mark his return from a thigh injury with a goal in Paris Saint-Germain's 2-0 win over rivals Olympique de Marseille on Sunday.

Les Parisiens completed a 'Classique' double on Sunday, with Maxwell scoring the opener before Cavani returned from a five-match lay-off to power home a header just nine minutes after coming off the bench.

Sunday's goal took Cavani to 14 league goals this term and the Uruguayan was thrilled to return to first-team action and aid PSG's cause.

"It was fantastic to score," Cavani told the club's official website.

"I was sidelined for several weeks. I worked hard to get back. This was a very nice evening. I am very happy to have scored. I know how important it is for the fans."
Maxwell, meanwhile, was delighted to see PSG extend their lead at the top of Ligue 1 to eight points following Monaco's 2-0 loss at Saint-Etienne on Saturday.

"Monaco's defeat offered us the opportunity to widen the gap. We seized the opportunity.

"On my end, Zlatan Ibrahimovic gave me a great ball. This allowed us to open the scoring, it was very important. I am very happy to have to scored."

Everton boss Roberto Martinez keen to keep Romelu Lukaku and other on-loan players

Roberto Martinez believes it would be 'great' if Everton could keep hold of their on-loan players and has described Romelu Lukaku as an 'irreplaceable footballer'.

Lukaku has impressed during his season-long loan from Chelsea and marked his return from a month out of action by scoring the winner against West Ham United at the weekend.

Veteran midfielder Gareth Barry, who is on loan from Manchester City, and Barcelona winger Gerard Deulofeu have also caught the eye at Goodison Park this term.

Martinez would be keen to hang on to his temporary players, but is prepared to use the loan market again next season if the likes of Lukaku and Deulofeu move on.
"All I want for the boys that we have on loan is that they have an incredible experience as players," said Martinez.

"Some of the young ones just to develop, Gareth just to have a real enjoyment and create memories for the future.

"The loan market is very important for us. If we can keep those players great, if not then we will have to use the loan market again."

Lukaku has scored 10 goals in 20 league appearances for Everton and Martinez feels the Belgium striker has a similar influence for the club as Lionel Messi has for Barcelona.

The Everton boss added: "Lukaku is an irreplaceable footballer and that is a reality. Barcelona are one of the best teams in the world but when they have not got Messi, the team suffers."

Leighton Baines created Lukaku's goal against West Ham and Martinez is expecting big things from the England international now that the left-back's future has been resolved.

"It's been a difficult season for him because of the transfer speculation," said Martinez.
"He has had a little interruption but I think Leighton can have a phenomenal end to the campaign.

Something On Messi

Talking about records, Messi is no stranger to re-writing the history books. Here are just some of the records he has already broken at Barcelona:

Most goals in a calendar year: 91
Most goals in a season: 68
Most goals in a La Liga season: 50
Most La Liga hat-tricks in a season: 8
Barcelona's top goal scorer in all official competitions: 339

Some facts about CR7

Don't miss this post. This is very

informative and attracting.

1. Cristiano Ronaldo (45) has the most goal this
season, followed by Zlatan (44).
2. Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 23rd league goal in
22 La Liga appearances this season.
3. Cristiano Ronaldo has now scored 12 goals
versus Atletico Madrid.
4. No other player has scored more goals than
Cristiano (104) since the start of last season.
5. Cristiano Ronaldo has now 10 goals in 2014.
6. Cristiano has now scored 37 goals in
34 games this season, in all competitions.

Premier League: Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho says Manchester City are title favourites

Jose Mourinho has Chelsea at the top of the table, but feels the Premier League title is Manchester City's to lose.

 

A 3-1 derby victory over west London rivals Fulham on Saturday, coupled with Arsenal's shock 1-0 defeat at Stoke City, saw Chelsea open up a four-point lead at the summit, with Liverpool now in second place.
City, who were in Capital One Cup final action on Sunday, have slipped to fourth in the standings, six points off the pace.
Manuel Pellegrini's side do, however, have two games in hand on all of their fellow challengers for the top flight crown.
Mourinho believes that makes them favourites to come out on top, with it unlikely that his side will be able to take maximum points from their 10 remaining fixtures and turn the heat up on the men from the Etihad Stadium.

"I prefer to have the destiny in my hands, and only City have destiny in their hands," he said.
"If I win every game until the end of the season, all 10 - which we won't - maybe we are not champions.
"If they win all 12 games they have, they are champions. They have their destiny in their hands."
Mourinho has also been explaining his decision to use Fernando Torres and Demba Ba ahead of Samuel Eto'o against Fulham.
Eto'o did not even make Chelsea's matchday squad at Craven Cottage, but Mourinho claims that is because the experienced Cameroonian is a frontman better suited to leading the line on home soil.
He added: "There's nothing wrong with Samuel. I just felt in this kind of match - away from home, against normally defensive teams, aggressive defenders - I thought to go with Fernando and, if I need to risk in the last part of the game, I'd use Demba.
"You see, Eto'o scores goals but at home. He scores in the league, in the Champions League but all of them at home.
"Playing away is more difficult for him. I think he is our best striker to play at home because of his technique, his movement and his understanding with Eden (Hazard) and Oscar.
"For me, he is best to play at home. Away he is showing some difficulties."

 

Today's Football Gossip

Liverpool will move for Tottenham defender Jan Vertonghen this summer if the Reds secure Champions League qualification.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has revealed his interest in Real Sociedad's 22-year-old French winger Antoine Griezmann, who is reportedly valued at £25m.

Manchester United have ditched plans to sign Everton right-back Seamus Coleman after developing their interest in PSV Eindhoven's Colombian international Santiago Arias.
Former Barcelona and Netherlands coach Louis van Gaal has emerged as a potential candidate for the Manchester United job, should manager David Moyes leave the Old Trafford club.
And finally...
Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero posted pictures on Twitter celebrating his team's Capital One Cup triumph with lifelong City fan and Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher.

Juventus and Real Madrid for Real Sociedad startlet Antoine Griezmann.

Juventus are facing stiff competition from Premier League sides Arsenal and Manchester United Real Sociedad startlet Antoine Griezmann.

The young attacking midfielder has been in scintillating form for La Real this season, recently earning his first call up to the France squad to face the Netherlands this week and is attracting interest from Europe’s top sides.
According to TalkSPORT both Juventus and Real Madrid showed initial interest in the playmaker, however the 22 year old’s future is most likely to be in the Premier League with Arsenal and Manchester United being in pole position to secure his signature.
Griezmann has been one of the stand out players in the Spanish Primera Divison this season, he already has twenty goals to his name in all competitions and would be likely to command a fee of around €30 million.

Rogers On Suarez

Brendan Rodgers told Liverpool fans to bask in the feeling of their side being second in the Barclays Premier League, but personally maintained a sense of calm after the 3-0 win over Southampton on Saturday.

The Reds produced a display of clinical efficiency on the south coast, stemming the threats of the hosts and striking back through Luis Suarez, substitute Raheem Sterling and Steven Gerrard's late penalty.

Victory at St Mary's followed defeat for close rivals Arsenal earlier in the day - a set of circumstances which allowed Rodgers' team to leap two places into second position in the standings with 10 fixtures remaining.

"It's my job," the manager reflected after the final whistle. "My ambition is for the club - I want the club to succeed.

"We've made many changes on and off the field in the time I've been here, but what we have created is a one-club mentality. Now when anyone talks about Liverpool, it's about the football, and that's very pleasing.

"We still have a lot of work to do in terms of where I want to take the team. It's great to have a group of players that are very honest and want to go with you on the journey. You can see by their work-rate, intensity and quality that we're improving all the time.

"We'll stay calm. It's good for the supporters to dream. It's great for them because they've seen the evolution of this team over the last 18 months - and we've been constantly for over a year progressing and performing at a good level.

"We stay calm, we don't get too carried away and we always just focus on the next game. After Swansea we knew this was going to be a really difficult game here today.

"They've scored in all but two games here, have some wonderful players and the manager is excellent. For us to come and play as we did today and find the solution to nullify that threat was impressive."

The Northern Irishman altered both his starting XI and his system for the encounter against Southampton, with Joe Allen named in place of Sterling as part of a diamond formation in midfield.

In response, three goals and a first clean sheet in six matches were recorded - prompting Rodgers to describe the display as a 'really significant performance' in his team's continuing evolution.

He explained: "That's what we've been working towards since I've been here. The systems are relevant - we can look at each game and analyse the strengths of what we have available against the opponent we're playing.

"The style will always be the same - we want to control and dominate the game, be tactically strong and very good in transition. We saw all of those aspects today.

"We've played 4-3-3, 4-2-3-1 and 3-5-2 and today we played a 4-4-2 diamond. You've got to heap huge praise onto the players, who kept the tactical discipline in order to block up the space and be a threat going forward.

"We've had an outstanding performance today - a really significant performance - against a very, very good side with an excellent manager. Our players were tactically brilliant today; kept a clean sheet collectively as a team and scored three goals.

"We'll just stay calm. 10 games to go, we're in a good position and we just want to continue working at the level we've been at."

Suarez achieved the latest in a long line of Man of the Match awards for his personal contribution on Saturday, which included the opening goal, an assist for Sterling and drawing the foul which won the stoppage-time spot-kick.

In doing so, the Uruguayan extended his advantage at the summit of the Premier League scoring charts and established himself as the player with the most assists in the division so far this season.

Rodgers commented: "Luis has been sensational; I think everyone was saying last week he'd only scored four of our last 33 goals. But he's a huge influence for us.

"Today was very much about the squad and the collective. Everyone had to do their job - the goalkeeper made a great save and we looked a real threat going forward."

he boss also reserved words of praise for defender Jon Flanagan, who racked up a 15th Liverpool appearance in this campaign after being overlooked for the England squad earlier this week.

"I couldn't believe he wasn't even in the U21s!" the 41-year-old said.

"I thought he might have been in with a chance of the full national team because he's played in big games since he came into the team and has been outstanding - but I was equally as surprised he wasn't in the U21s.

"He is a young player and still has a way to go. He's improving all the time - you can see home and away he's playing at a really high level. He'll just continue to improve and develop and I'm sure he will get in there at some stage."