FOOTBALL: Ronaldo SLAMS Real Madrid team-mates after derby defeat to Atletico

Cristiano Ronaldo has slammed his Real Madrid team-mates after Saturday’s derby defeat to Atletico Madrid, claiming they would be top of the table if others were on the same level as him.
Antoine Griezmann’s second-half strike sealed a 1-0 win for Atletico which has left Zinedine Zidane’s side nine points behind La Liga leaders Barcelona, who also have a game in hand.
And in an explosive interview after the loss at the Santiago Bernabeu, Ronaldo blamed his team-mates for Madrid's failing title challenge and believes criticism directed at his own performances is unfounded.

"If everyone was as good as me, maybe we would be first,” said Ronaldo.
"I do not want to belittle anyone but when they are not the best it is difficult to win. I like to play with Karim, Bale and Marcelo.


"I do not mean that Jese, Lucas [Vazquez] and [Mateo] Kovacic are not good, they are very good, but to win a competition you need the best and that has been our main problem this year.

“I don’t know if it was poor preparation in the first half of the season but we’re having a lot of injuries and that hurts us.

“We had more chances and we deserved to win but football is like that.

“From what the press says it seems like I am doing sh*t but the numbers and statistics do not lie. They are there.”

SOURCE: GOAL.COM

FOOTBALL: Alba: Nobody thinks they're above anyone else at Barca

Jordi Alba does not believe anyone at Barcelona would criticise their team-mates in the same way Cristiano Ronaldo did at Real Madrid, describing Luis Enrique's men as a "band of brothers".

Portugal international Ronaldo drew headlines in the aftermath of Real's 1-0 La Liga defeat to city rivals Atletico Madrid on Saturday when he said "if everyone was at my level, perhaps we would be first".

Ronaldo later sought to clarify his comments by insisting that his words were about Real's injury woes and not the performances of his team-mates.

"I didn't hear them [Ronaldo's criticisms]," the Spain full-back said. "With regard to Barca I can say we're like a band of brothers and no one thinks they're above anyone else. 

"There are individuals that make a difference, but we're a team."

Real's loss coupled with Barca's 2-1 win at home to Sevilla on Sunday means the gap between the two great rivals is now 12 points.

However, Alba insists leaders Barca are not yet discounting the chances of third-placed Real in the fight for the title.

"The gap is significant but it has to stay like that," he added. "I'm not counting Real Madrid out, they're a big team. 

"We're top and those behind us are going to make it difficult for us. We have a significant gap but they could give us a scare at any time."

SOURCE: GOAL.COM

RUSSIAN: 17 year old model tortured and killed by her jealous 19 year old sister

A 17 year old girl Russian model, Stefania Dubrovina, from St Petersburg has been  allegedly stabbed to death by her jealous older sister who gouged her eyes out, cut off her ears then stabbed her140 times  Her corpse was found mutilated after her sister 19 year old Elizaveta allegedly attacked her while high on drugs .
The sisters who are orphans grew up in foster homes and orphanages and ran away several times before they started living together.

The sister was  allegedly 'jealous' of Stefania and had been 'partying' with the older man when he left the flat to buy more alcohol.

As soon as he shut the door, the elder sister allegedly attacked Stefania

A friend also told the russian newspaper how Stefania had visited the unnamed man a week before and that he had organised photoshoots for the model.
Ekaterina Dubrovina, the girls' aunt, called Stefania's death a 'shocking tragedy' and added:


"My blood turns to ice. "These poor children are not guilty in their gruesome childhood and in all their unhappy life which unfortunately ended for Stefania."

Elizaveta has since been arrested on the suspicion of murder.



source: lindaikejisblog.com

FOOTBALL: JUAN MATA TO MANCHESTER UNITED NEW BOY RASHFORD

Manchester United star Juan Mata has urged Marcus Rashford to keep his feet on the ground after taking the football world by storm last week.

Rashford scored a brace as a depleted United side stunned Premier League title hopefuls Arsenal 3-2 at Old Trafford on Sunday.

The 18-year-old's exploits came just days after announcing himself with a double against Midtjylland in the Europa League.

Comparisons to past greats have since followed and Mata has told the talented striker to stay grounded.

"He needs to keep calm," Mata said. "Everyone is going to call him, text him, speak about him and write about him.

"But he needs to keep calm because I think he has a bright future coming up ahead of him – he needs to keep playing his football."

While Rashford has shone brightest, injuries have provided some of his academy team-mates with an avenue to the senior side in recent weeks and they have not disappointed.

Timothy Fosu-Mensah and James Weir came off the bench against Arsenal, while Guillermo Varela impressed at right-back.

Joe Riley played almost 80 minutes in the 5-1 win over Midtjylland on Thursday.

"You know the great thing with young lads, is that you don't really know what you've got until you put them in there and give them a chance," said United midfielder Michael Carrick.

"Over recent weeks, that's probably been the massive bonus for us – probably over the whole season really – the young lads coming in.

"And they've all looked comfortable, they've all settled in really well, and I think everyone else responds to that.

"There's a togetherness in the squad and the older boys all want to try to look after them and try to help them, and it brings everyone together, and I think the fans respond to that.

"They certainly did against Arsenal, and I think there was a real spirit generated throughout the whole ground, which helped us a lot."

SOURCE: GOAL.COM

FOOTBALL: Cristiano Ronaldo apologises to Real Madrid team-mates

Some 40 hours after losing 1-0 to rivals Atletico, Real's player were reunited on Monday in the Valdebebas training complex. Zinedine Zidane had scheduled training for 11am following a day off, and in the meantime plenty had been said since match official Clos Gomez blew for full time at the Bernabeu. 
Almost all was negative, and much had to do with Ronaldo's outburst in the mixed zone. 
"If all my team-mates were at my level, we might be first," he said. There was also criticism for the club's medics, their preparations in pre-season and the team's current performance, as well as a rousing defence of his own talent and statistics. The consensus was that Ronaldo had shown arrogance and disrespect to his team-mates in his attempt to highlight his own performances. 
Ronaldo himself tried to explain on Saturday night that he had been taken out of context, despite the strong words he used. But Monday was the day when he would see those faces he apparently disrespected just 36 hours prior. 

And Goal understands that, before training, Ronaldo sought to 'justify himself' to the dressing room, claiming that he "expressed himself poorly" and did not "wish to annoy any team-mates."

Ronaldo's Madrid team-mates, meanwhile, are understood to have played down the significance of the Portugal international's outburst.

Without a doubt, bridges will need to be mended amongst the players in the Madrid dressing room, and this was a good start to a tough week. Wednesday brings a visit to Levante minus Marcelo, Sergio Ramos, Dani Carvajal, Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema and perhaps Pepe as well. On Saturday Celta Vigo come to the capital, as a forerunner to the massive Champions League clash against Roma on Tuesday. 
It is a moment in which the team's unity will be tested - and to see if Ronaldo's apology has as much of an effect as the outburst that preceded it.

SOURCE: GOAL.COM

FOOTBALL: League Cup victory Celebration Inside The Manchester City's Dressing Room (VIDEO)

Manuel Pellegrini's men picked up the first trophy of the English football season with a penalty shoot-out win after Philippe Coutinho had cancelled out Fernandinho's opener.

But Yaya Toure, who was hobbling around the pitch after the 120 minutes was up, looked less than impressed when he was asked to join in with a bouncy rendition of 'Olé, Olé, Olé' and seemed more concerned with checking his phone and hiding his modesty behind a towel. SEE CLIP AFTER THE CUT.




SOURCE: GOAL.COM

FOOTBALL: Pique:...Neymar will never join Real Madrid

Gerard Pique is so confident Barcelona striker Neymar would refuse to join Real Madrid that he would be willing to bet "an arm or a hand" it will never happen.

The Brazilian is yet to extend his current deal at Camp Nou which has led to speculation surrounding his future while former Madrid defender Roberto Carlos has claimed he could persuade the 24-year-old to move to the Bernabeu.

The Madrid giants were interested in signing the attacker from former club Santos back in 2013, with Spanish press reported in January that Los Blancos are continuing their pursuit.

However, club team-mate Pique is adamant the deal would never go through, stating via Periscope: “I’d bet an arm or a hand that Ney will never join Madrid.

“He likes Barcelona very much, he’s in love with the club and I think he’ll stay here for many years."

SOURCE: GOAL.COM

FOOTBALL: Lavezzi: I rejected Inter, Chelsea & Manchester United

Ezequiel Lavezzi has revealed he turned down the chance to sign for Inter, Chelsea andManchester United in order to move to the Chinese Super League.

Lavezzi departed Paris Saint-Germain in January for a contract reportedly worth €15 million per season, and claims he joined Hebei China Fortune to be part of a project which has seen the likes of Jackson Martinez, Ramires and Alex Teixeira make similar moves.

The Argentine attacker had been courted by several elite European clubs during his spell with Ligue 1 champions PSG but saw significant positives in exposing himself to Asian culture and opted for a move to the Far East.

“I could have signed for Inter, Chelsea or Manchester United,” the 30-year-old told Canal+.

“But I made the decision to go to China. It’s an important choice for my career, I’m sure I’ll face many challenges here.

“I like the project to develop this club. It was that which convinced me to come to Hebei, as well as the financial aspect.

“I’m also fascinated by Chinese culture, so to come and play here is definitely an interesting challenge.”

Former Napoli forward Lavezzi admits his international career has almost certainly been brought to an end by his move away from a major club competition, but feels he has made the correct decision.

“Yes, it’s likely that experience is over," he said. "But I’ve already made the decision to come here and I want to do my best for my new club.”

SOURCE: GOAL.COM

FOOTBALL: Karim Benzema out for atleast three matches due to hamstring injury.

Real Madrid are set to be without Karim Benzema for at least their next three matches after the club confirmed that the striker has suffered a hamstring injury.
Benzema was withdrawn at half-time of Saturday's derby defeat to Atletico, with Borja Mayoral replacing the France international forward who was only passed fit for the match on Thursday having been suffering from a hip problem.
Indeed, the 28-year-old was absent from the 1-1 draw with Malaga and is now set for a further spell on the sidelines that could see him miss La Liga fixtures against Levante and Celta Vigo, as well as the Champions League last-16 second-leg clash with Roma.
A statement on Madrid's official website read: "After tests at the University Hospital Sanitas La Moraleja the player Karim Benzema has been diagnosed with a muscle injury to his right hamstring."
Benzema has scored 23 goals in all competitions for Madrid in the 2015-16 campaign but has only struck once in his last four games for Los Blancos.
The striker joins Gareth Bale on the sidelines although the Welshman could be close to a return having started individual training on February 25 as he steps up his recovery from a calf problem.

source: goal.com

FOOTBALL: Suarez: I'd love to have Messi's left foot and Neymar's pace

Luis Suarez has revealed the traits he would take from his fellow South American forwards at Barcelona - Lionel Messi's left foot and Neymar's pace.
The Catalans' front three have produced some sublime football this season, scoring 59 Liga goals between them as Barca target success in the Spanish top-flight, the Champions League and the Copa del Rey.
And Suarez admits he would relish being as strong on his left side as Messi and as quick across the ground as Neymar.
"I'd love to have Messi's left foot, which is one-of-a-kind in the world, remarkable" he was quoted as saying by Marca, before going on to praise Neymar's speed and  'joie de vivre'.

"All of the players have a great relationship and it shows, we're always laughing amongst ourselves and hugging - it's not just us three. It's not about affection, it's about support.

"We don't plan anything; it all just comes naturally. We just enjoy ourselves and if we're happy, we're able to do that."

Barcelona, who are eight points clear of second-placed Atletico Madrid at the top of the La Liga table, take on Rayo Vallecano on Thursday.

source: goal.com