Tag: Paris Saint-Germain

‘Neymar was asking for trouble!’ – Amavi blames PSG star for injury

The Brazilian forward is facing up to a lengthy spell on the sidelines after suffering a broken bone during a feisty Ligue 1 encounter with Marseille

Neymar has been accused of “looking for things” during Paris Saint-Germain’s clash with Marseille, with his actions ultimately resulting in a broken metatarsal.

The Brazilian forward was forced from the field in tears on Sunday as Ligue 1 leaders PSG sought to see out a 3-0 victory over arch-rivals.

He had been subjected to eight fouls during an outing cut short 10 minutes from the end, with the 26-year-old having already entered the contest as the most fouled performer in Europe’s top divisions.

While there is no suggestion that anybody has ever intended to cause Neymar harm with the rough treatment, Marseille defender Jordan Amavi has suggested that the South American often asks for trouble.

He told RMC following a feisty encounter with PSG: “We played normally against Neymar. I found him looking for things [fouls].

“I am just telling you what I saw on the pitch. He waited for us to press and then released the ball at the last minute.

“What did he expect? Personally, I do not know, I think he was looking for things though. He reaped a little of what he sows.

“Everybody knows that he has the talent, but he waited for us to press before releasing the ball.”

It has already been reported that certain Marseille players warned the match officials during the game that they were growing tired of Neymar’s antics.

It was eventually a rather innocuous coming together with Bouna Sarr which did for the talented forward , though, leaving him writhing on the deck and awaiting a stretcher.

Post-game analysis determined that a broken bone had been suffered , although PSG head coach Unai Emery has denied his star player needs surgery, as was first feared.

Quite how long Neymar will be sidelined for remains to be seen, but it seems likely he will miss important fixtures in an ongoing Ligue 1 title bid and the second leg of a Champions League last-16 encounter with Real Madrid .

Source: www.goal.com

Barcelona are great even without Neymar – Willian

After helping Chelsea to a first-leg draw against Barca, the Brazilian attacker talked up the talents of the LaLiga leaders

Barcelona are still as fearsome as ever even without Neymar, according to Chelsea attacker Willian.

Willian’s 62nd-minute strike was cancelled out by Lionel Messi as the teams played out a 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie.

His Brazil team-mate Neymar may have left Barca for Paris Saint-Germain last year, but Willian believes that the Spanish giants remain one of the finest teams on the planet.

“I think Barcelona are Barcelona, with or without Neymar,” Willian said.

“Of course Neymar is a great player but they have Messi, they have [Andres] Iniesta, they have [Luis] Suarez.

“They have really good players so Barcelona is always Barcelona.”

While he opened the scoring, Willian also struck the post twice during Tuesday’s clash.

And despite Chelsea’s failure to beat Barca, the 29-year-old still believes his team can reach the quarter-finals with a result at Camp Nou on March 14.

“Of course, we can go there and do a great job again. It will be a completely different game,” Willian said.

“To play there is totally different. But I think we can go there with this mentality. We can go there with great spirit and try to win the game.”

Source: www.goal.com

Hazard: Real Madrid & PSG? I’ll change clubs when I want to

The Chelsea star insists he is happy at Stamford Bridge but did not rule out a potential exit in the future

Eden Hazard has responded to reports linking him with an exit from Chelsea, insisting he will make the decision over if and when he’ll change clubs.

The 27-year-old winger has long been linked with a switch to Real Madrid, while Ligue 1 big-spenders PSG have also been mooted as a potential destination for the Belgian.

Goal reported in January that Manchester City would also be an interested party in signing Hazard, with the club ready to break the £100 million barrier.

Although Hazard insists he is happy with life at Chelsea, he suggested there could well be a time that he decides it’s time to leave and seek a new challenge.

When asked about a potential move he told Telefoot: “In football anything can happen. But in football nothing can happen too.

“Every year they talk about Real or PSG. And when I want to change clubs, I will. But at the moment I’m good where I am.

“I still have two year left on my contract. I feel very good over here.

“The fans love me, my family enjoys life over here. We will see.”

Hazard has been one of the shining lights in a below-par season for the club, when compared to their title-winning exploits from the 2016-17 season.

The former Lille star has scored six goals in his last six games in all competitions, including two in a 3-0 win over West Brom last time out in the Premier League.

And Blues head coach Antonio Conte took the decision to rest Hazard in Chelsea’s 4-0 victory over Hull City in the FA Cup on Friday, with Chelsea facing Barcelona in Tuesday’s crunch Champions League clash.

Source: www.goal.com

‘Ronaldo scores with his knee or his belly’ – Heynckes notes Real Madrid fortune against PSG

European experience, the influence of the home crowd and a little luck helped Zinedine Zidane’s side to a notable scalp, says Bayern’s ex-Blancos boss

Jupp Heynckes felt Paris Saint-Germain were the better team against Real Madrid but paid the price for a lack of Champions League pedigree.

Late goals from Cristiano Ronaldo – who earlier equalised from the penalty spot– and Marcelo gave Zinedine Zidane’s side a 3-1 lead from the Santiago Bernabeu leg of the eagerly awaited last-16 tie.

Bayern Munich head coach Heynckes was among the keen midweek observers and, speaking at a news conference ahead of Saturday’s Bundesliga match against Wolfsburg, the former Madrid boss praised PSG’s approach.

Asked whether the match proved Ronaldo to be superior to PSG superstar Neymar, Heynckes replied: “I think that’s a bit superficial. It’s interesting to hear sometimes when you watch TV and listen to experts who summarise games. Usually they talk about the winner.

“My opinion is different. I thought Paris played well for 83 minutes. I think they had a very good tactical plan and were the better team

“However, they were unable to extend that performance for a further 10 minutes.

“Of course, Ronaldo has extraordinary skills. Sometimes he is a bit lucky and scores with his knee or belly or what have you.”

Heynckes, whose side return to Champions League action against Besiktas next week, feels the influence of Madrid’s tradition of success on such occasions, when weighted against PSG’s relative inexperience, should not be underplayed.

“It was a victory based on willpower but, of course, that’s nothing new in front of the Bernabeu crowd,” he added.

“They always believe in winning and that’s what happened in this game.

“Paris, I think, were punished for their lack of experience and lack of tradition in the Champions League. Madrid just have that. That was the difference in the end”

Source: www.goal.com

Ronaldo makes Champions League history with 100th Real Madrid goal

The striker converted a penalty to hit the century mark with Los Blancos in the competition, the first player to do so

Cristiano Ronaldo has reached the century mark in goals scored in the Champions League with Real Madrid, becoming the first player ever to accomplish that feat with a single team.

Ronaldo stepped up in the final minutes of the first half to convert a penalty against Paris Saint-Germain after Tony Kroos was pulled down in the area.

That leveled the score at 1-1 in the Champions League last-16 first leg match at the Santiago Bernabeu, canceling out Adrien Rabiot’s 33rd minute goal for the visitors.

And that spot-kick saw Ronaldo become the only player in history to score 100 goals with the same club in the Champions League, adding to the 15 he had scored with Manchester United prior to his arrival in the Spanish capital.

However, Ronaldo may not be alone in that feat for long.

Barcelona star and rival Lionel Messi stands at 97 goals in the Champions League, with Barca squaring off against Chelsea on Feb. 20 in the first leg of their last-16 tie.

The goal also continued another impressive streak for Ronaldo as he now has scored at least 10 goals in seven consecutive Champions League seasons.

No other player has reached that mark in more than two consecutive seasons.

The Madrid star added a second for Los Blancos to make it 2-1 in the 84th, running his Champions League tally to 101 with the Spanish giants, while an 87th minute strike from Marcelo handed the home side a commanding 3-1 lead, which they will carry to Paris for the second leg on March 6.

It’s also a reminder that while Ronaldo has struggled at times this season, he has remained a dominant figure in Europe’s premier competition. He has scored 11 times in seven Champions League games this campaign, compared to 11 goals in 18 La Liga matches.

Ronaldo & Real show why they’re champions to leave PSG project in peril

The champions came out on top at the Bernabeu and proved they can never be written off in this competition as their rivals flattered to deceive again

Real Madrid’s season is still alive. Zinedine Zidane’s side came from a goal down to beat Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of the teams’ last-16 tie on Wednesday to show why they have such a special affinity with the Champions League.

Los Blancos have won the European Cup 12 times and six of those trophies arrived before PSG were founded in 1970. The next six have come in more recent times, including back-to-back victories in the past two seasons. And sometimes, history has an impact in these ties.

Despite Madrid’s poor form, which had seen them fall out of contention in La Liga and eliminated from the Copa del Rey, there was always the feeling they could produce when it mattered most – even against PSG’s formidable forward line that came into this game rated as the best in Europe.

“I am disconcerted by Real Madrid,” the club’s former player Jorge Valdano said in the lead-up to this match. “I will find it even more difficult to understand if they brush aside PSG, but it wouldn’t surprise me either.”

And ultimately, that is exactly what happened. In truth, it can always happen in the Champions League. Why? Because in these huge one-off games when their future is at stake, and in their competition of choice, Madrid’s players work harder. They give more.

It is for that reason that Madrid have won the Champions League three times over the past four seasons, but more often than not lacked the consistency to claim La Liga (one title since 2012) week in, week out over nine or 10 months.

Madrid were in trouble. Not just before the game, but also in it as PSG took the lead through Adrien Rabiot. Then, the match and probably the tie was there for the taking and there was a chance for Unai Emery’s side to make it 2-0.

Real were all over the place, but they soon settled and were able to get back into the game through a somewhat soft penalty. Cristiano Ronaldo stepped up to score it and it was his 100th goal for the club in the Champions League – an absolutely astonishing feat.

After that, it looked like it would finish all square as the second half became more and more cagey. A draw would not have been a particularly great result for Madrid, though, with a tough trip to Paris ahead on March 6. So, in the last few minutes, Zidane’s side went for it – and they received their reward.

Zidane was stubborn, first by picking the out-of-sorts Karim Benzema and then by leaving him on the pitch for so long. But he eventually opted for Gareth Bale plus the extra energy of Lucas Vazquez and Marco Asensio, and those substitutions made all the difference.

Ronaldo was in the right place at the right time to knee home a second goal he knew little about with seven minutes left, before Marcelo’s deflected shot made it 3-1 right before the end. It was not the perfect result, but given the circumstances of the night, it was a dream scenario for Real.

There was an element of luck about all three goals, while some of the decisions went their way on the night too (including the penalty and a Sergio Ramos handball the referee failed to spot).

But Madrid had earned that good fortune. PSG had appeared content to stick with what they had, failing again on the big occasion just as they had against Barcelona last season, throwing away the 4-0 lead they had earned exactly a year earlier on February 14, 2017.

“We have to be optimistic ahead of the second leg, and play again as we did today, when we created a lot of chances,” Emery said, putting a brave face on a defeat which could and should have been a better result for side.

It will be a long way back now, however, even at the Parc des Princes, and perhaps Sergio Ramos summed it up best. “You can never take Real Madrid as dead,” he said.

In the Champions League, that has been proven over and again and, as PSG’s project looks on the brink, Los Blancos seem set for the quarter-finals. And despite the pre-match form guide, nobody should really be surprised at all.

Zidane already knows who he will pick to face PSG

While his counterpart has indicated he does not know who will make up his team against the Spanish giants, the Madrid boss is sure of his side

Zinedine Zidane has already decided on the team he will select for Real Madrid’s Champions League home tie with Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday.

Madrid warmed up for the last-16 first leg with a 5-2 demolition of Real Sociedad at the Santiago Bernabeu in La Liga on Saturday, Cristiano Ronaldo scoring his first club hat-trick of the campaign.

Zidane left Casemiro out of his squad, while Luka Modric was withdrawn for the final half-hour and Gareth Bale was given 17 minutes from the bench.

But Ronaldo played the full 90 minutes as Zidane instead took off youngsters Marco Asensio and Lucas Vazquez, who headed a first-minute opener from Ronaldo’s left-wing cross.

“I know [the XI], but we will see on Wednesday,” Zidane told reporters, after Unai Emery suggested he was unsure over the make-up of his PSG selection.

“Everyone is ready to play on Wednesday and I do not want to say who will come out.”

Of Madrid blitzing Sociedad by racing into a 4-0 lead before the interval, Zidane added: “The first half was phenomenal, we scored fast, we pushed, we put intensity in.

“Then we controlled the game and made the changes, thinking about the next game, but I’m happy.

“It makes things easy when you score in the first minute. It was the full first half in this way, intense, determined, motivated. It was a good way to prepare for Wednesday’s game.

“We have to correct certain things, especially in the second half, but I am left with the positive side, with the five goals and our start of the game. Wednesday will be another game and we will have to put in another effort.”

While Ronaldo has hit top form in timely fashion ahead of the PSG clash – he has scored more goals in La Liga in 2018 than any other player – Karim Benzema drew another blank.

 

“The important thing is that he thinks about the next match, which will change his streak.

“You asked me if I was worried about [Ronaldo] and then you have three goals, we know he always wants to score, PSG will have to be careful with him.”

Benzema hit the post in the early stages and missed a fantastic stoppage-time chance to break a seven-game drought in the league, prompting Madrid fans to whistle the French striker.

“I do not know why they whistle him,” Zidane said of Benzema, who has only hit two La Liga goals this term.

“People come to the stadium and can do what they want, he had chances to score and he did not.

‘Neymar will not go to Real Madrid’ – PSG director makes bold prediction

Luis Fernandez, the head of the Ligue 1 side’s academy, believes the Brazilian is committed to a long-term project and will shun interest from Spain

Neymar is still being heavily linked with a move to Real Madrid, but Paris Saint-Germain academy director Luis Fernandez has boldly predicted that the Brazilian “will not go”.

Having left La Liga for Ligue 1 in the summer of 2017, speculation suggests that a return journey could be made some 12 months on from a record-breaking €222 million transfer.

With those at Santiago Bernabeu planning a squad overhaul on the back of a disappointing campaign, former Barcelona star Neymar is considered to fit the ‘Galactico’ mould.

PSG, though, have no intention of selling and have been quick to talk up the 26-year-old’s happiness in France, with Fernandez the latest to play down reports of a one-season stint at Parc des Princes.

He told Cadena SER: “I’ll stick my neck out, because Neymar will not go to Real Madrid.

“If PSG went after Neymar and [Kylian] Mbappe then it was for them to stay here, not for them to leave.

“Neymar is the star of PSG.

“He is very happy, very comfortable here with his team-mates.

“When you see him play, you don’t see what is being reported. He is eager to succeed here.

“There were reports that he had a problem with [Edinson] Cavani but those are just stories and you can see on the pitch by how they play together [and] how they pass each other the ball that this is not true.

“All of his team-mates and everyone knows that Neymar is the top player and that is how it is. I see Neymar being the one that guides the team, that triumphs here.”

Neymar has been a big hit in France, with 27 goals netted in 26 appearances to date.

That haul has already topped his return from a final campaign at Camp Nou, when he found the target 20 times.

There is the promise of plenty more to come, with PSG still challenging for Ligue 1, Coupe de la Ligue and Champions League honours – with a last-16 meeting with Real providing the next hurdle to overcome in European competition.

Source: www.goal.com