Tevez treble guides City into fourth place

January 12, 2010

Carlos Tevez scored a hat-trick as Manchester City moved up into fourth place in the English Premier League table with a 4-1 win over Blackburn Rovers at Eastlands here on Monday.

Victory meant City maintained their perfect record under Italian manager Roberto Mancini with their fourth straight success even if they did concede their first goal under the former Inter Milan boss when Morten Gamst Pedersen scored for Rovers to make it 3-1.

But the match belonged to Argentina’s Tevez who was in brilliant form as he made it 11 goals in his last nine games.

The former Manchester United striker opened the scoring in the seventh minute and, after Micah Richards’s superb second, Tevez struck two expert curling shots, the second in stoppage time, to seal City’s win.

City are now just seven points behind leaders Chelsea and the big-spenders, backed by their billionaire Abu Dhabi-based owner Sheikh Mansour, could yet have a big influence on the destiny of this season’s title.

By contrast, defeat left Rovers just three points above the relegation zone with all the teams below them having games in hand.

As new signing Patrick Vieira, the former Arsenal midfielder who signed from Serie champions Inter Milan last week, watched on from the stands, City wasted little time in giving the home crowd something else to cheer.

Rovers and England keeper Paul Robinson’s poor punch from Martin Petrov’s corner fell to City striker Benjani Mwaruwari and the Zimbabwean’s mishit shot went into the net off Tevez’s thigh.

Rovers looked as if they might go in at half-time just a goal behind until, six minutes before the break, Richards started and finished a fine move with Benjani again involved in the build-up.

Richards ran some 50 yards from the heart of City’s defence, beating several retreating Rovers players, before passing to Benjani inside the box.

Benjani’s shot hit the post but Richards, who’d continued his run, slotted home the rebound.

Rovers manager Sam Allardyce sent on strikers David Hoilett and Nikola Kalinic at half-time but it was City who scored next, just four minutes into the second-half.

Tevez started the move from inside the City half before finding Benjani, a rejuvenated figure under Mancini, who gave a return ball to his fellow striker.

Then Tevez raced towards the Rovers area before unleashing a magnificent 20-yard curling shot past Robinson.

Tevez might have had a hat-trick in the 57th minute but his header from eight yards out was off-target.

Rovers pulled a goal back 19 minutes from time when Pedersen made the most of a poor first touch by Vincent Kompany to beat Shay Given from 16 yards.

City fans then had to endure a few nervous moments but, importantly, their defence held firm for the remainder of the match and then, in the first minute of injury time, Tevez wrapped things up with a sublime finish.

MANCHESTER (AFP)

Tags: abu dhabi, Argentina, benjani mwaruwari, big spenders, carlos tevez, CHELSEA, David Hoilett, Eastlands, England, English Premier League, english premier league table, home crowd, inter milan, Manchester, manchester city, manchester united, martin petrov, micah richards, Milan, Morten Gamst, morten gamst pedersen, Nikola Kalinic, patrick vieira, paul robinson, premier league, relegation zone, roberto mancini, Rovers, Sam, seven points, Shay Given, stoppage time, straight success, zimbabwean

Funkel sees change in fortunes after Bayer draw

December 12, 2009

Hertha BSC Berlin may have surged to an impressive 4th position in the Bundesliga last term, but a disastrous start to the season has seen them lying at bottom of the table after 16 Rounds of the 2009/10 season.

With high flying league leaders Bayer Leverkusen visiting the Olympic Stadium on Friday night, things looked bleak for the Berliners especially for coach Friedhelm Funkel.

Berlin seemed to be heading for their 13th defeat of the season when Burak Kaplan put Leverkusen 2-1 up going into stoppage time, but Adrian Ramos equalised with almost the final touch of the game to earn a point.

And all of this came to fruition in front of the home crowd when the Blue-Whites were down to ten men, it seems luck has turned good for a struggling side that was full of promise before the start of the season.

At least Funkel believes that his sides’ fortunes have changed.

“I hope that we have managed to win back a bit of fortune with that deserved equaliser in the 92nd minute,” said Funkel.

“We need it if we want to start our recovery in January.”

Berlin still lie six points adrift at the bottom of the table with one game remaining before the midway stage of the season is reached.

Leverkusen extended their lead at the top of the table to four points and their coach Jupp Heynckes had no complaints about dropping two points at the death.

“Hertha deserved the draw with their 92nd-minute equaliser,” he said.

“The game shows that it is not easy when you are the leaders playing against the bottom club.”

Berlin require a similar result against Sporting Lisbon in midweek to secure their passage to the last 32 of the UEFA Europa League before ending the year with a trip to Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga.

Leverkusen’s final task of 2009 comes against Borussia Monchengladbach next Saturday when a win would clinch the unofficial title of autumn champions.

Tags: Adrian Ramos, Bayern, bayern munich, berlin, berliners, bottom club, bundesliga leverkusen, equaliser, Friedhelm Funkel, fruition, hertha bsc berlin, home crowd, jupp heynckes, league leaders, Lisbon, midweek, monchengladbach, olympic stadium, sporting lisbon, stoppage time, unofficial title

Kayserispor jump to top in Turkey

December 7, 2009

Kayserispor are the surprising new leaders in the Turkish Super Lig, following a 3-0 win over Bursaspor on Sunday.

After Fenerbahce’s 2-1 defeat at Eskisehirspor a day earlier, several clubs had a chance to jump into first place.

Galatasaray were the principal candidates to do so but were held to a 1-1 draw by Istanbul BB in a city derby. A goal from Harry Kewell in the 56th minute seemed to be enough for Galatasaray to secure the points, but Hasan Durtuluk silenced the home crowd with a 90th-minute equaliser.

Bursaspor were next in line to threaten Fenerbahce’s lead, but instead lost 3-0 to Kayserispor who now occupy the top spot based on goal record.

Omer Sismanoglu put the home side ahead after nine minutes, and goals from Ariza Makukula in the 32nd and 55th minute gave Kayserispor a comfortable win.

Kayserispor, Fenerbahce and Besiktas all have 31 points from 15 games, but Kayserispor’s goal record is the better of the three.

Tags: bb, besiktas, bursaspor, fenerbahce, galatasaray, harry kewell, hasan, Hasan Durtuluk, home crowd, Istanbul, kayserispor, makukula, new leaders, Omer Sismanoglu, principal candidates, Turkey

Anderlecht extend lead as Club Brugge lose

November 22, 2009

Club Brugge suffered their second consecutive defeat in the Belgian Pro League, 1-2 against Germinal Beerschot, allowing RSC Anderlecht to extend their lead after a 3-1 win over Roeselare.

Sherjill MacDonald put Germinal ahead in the first minute after the break at Club Brugge. Mohamed Dahmane then equalized in minute 76 but a very late goal from Tosin Dosunmu silenced the home crowd once again, 1-2.

‘Club’ were a man down for much of the second half, as Antolin Alcaraz was sent off in the 57th minute.

Anderlecht had little to worry about against Roeselare. Roland Juhasz, Jurgen Sierens (own goal) and Romelo Lukaku handed the Brussels side a 3-0 lead by half time.

Bjarni Vidarsson got one back for Roeselare five minutes after the break, but even a second yellow card to Anderlecht’s Mbark Boussoufa could not threaten the home team’s lead.

After 15 games, the gap between Anderlecht and Club Brugge stands at five points.

Jonathan Roorda

Tags: alcaraz, anderlecht, brussels, club brugge, consecutive defeat, five minutes, five points, games, gap, germinal beerschot, home crowd, jurgen, mbark boussoufa, mohamed, roland juhasz, second half, sherjill macdonald, yellow card

Olympiakos held to draw by Iraklis

November 8, 2009

Olympiakos risk losing their shared lead in the Greek Super League following a 1-1 draw with Iraklis.

Maresca put the defending champions in the lead after 40 minutes but Vellios silenced the home crowd with his equaliser in the dying seconds.

Panathaikos face Levadiakos in an away match on Sunday and a win would leave them in first place, two points ahead of Olympiakos.

Although PAOK Saloniki haven’t been able to keep up with Olympiakos and Panathinaikos, they are still ‘best of the rest’ following a 1-2 win at Panthrakikos.

Vieirinha opened the scoring in PAOK’s favor after 26 minutes, and Pablo Garcia added a second in minute 56.

Bedi Duval then pulled one back in the 69th minute, but PAOK held on to their 1-2 lead to defend their third place.

Jonathan Roorda

Tags: equaliser, home crowd, jonathan, Levadiakos, maresca, Olympiakos, pablo garcia, Panathaikos, Panthrakikos, paok, paok saloniki, risk, saloniki, Sunday, Vieirinha

Higuain keeps Real’s Galacticos on their toes

November 2, 2009

Gonzalo Higuain reminded Manuel Pellegrini of his worth at the weekend, scoring both goals for 10-man Real Madrid in their 2-0 victory over Getafe.

The Argentine youngster was Real’s top scorer with 22 league goals last season, but was making only his third start in nine league games on Saturday.

Higuain has found his chances limited with the arrival of president Florentino Perez and his new batch of Galacticos including Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka and Karim Benzema.

He also has to compete with the experienced heads of Raul and Ruud van Nistelrooy.

“We’ve had to integrate Benzema, Ronaldo and all the others into the team,” coach Manuel Pellegrini said after the Getafe game.

“I am sure that this season Higuain will have a major role to play again. For me he is a fundamental player.”

Higuain has pace, loves to run at defenders, and is not afraid of shooting from distance, but against Getafe he showed one of his most valuable assets which is a gutsy ability to score important goals in high-pressure situations.

The Getafe game was a tense affair at the Bernabeu where defeat could have signalled the end for Pellegrini, and the team had to endure a disgruntled home crowd after their humbling 4-0 King’s Cup defeat to third-tier Alcorcon.

Last season, in the same fixture, Higuain scored a screamer in time added on to give Real a 3-2 victory. His strike came as scuffles broke out all around him following Pepe’s spectacular loss of control that led to him getting a 10-match ban.

In 2008 he scored the goal that delivered Real’s 31st league title, when Bernd Schuster’s side came back with 10 men to beat Osasuna 2-1 away.

The year before that, he completed the remarkable comeback from 3-0 down against Espanyol, netting in the last minute for a 4-3 win that proved to be a psychological turning point in Fabio Capello’s title winning campaign.

After being overlooked by Argentina, Diego Maradona finally threw him on for his first cap against Peru last month and Higuain rose to the challenge scoring the first in a 2-1 win.

Higuain may not sell as many shirts around the world as the players in front of him at Real Madrid, but his fighting spirit should keep them on their toes.

PHOTO: Real Madrid’s Gonzalo Higuain (R) fights for the ball with Getafe’s Cata Diaz during their Spanish First Division soccer match at Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid October 31, 2009. REUTERS/Dani Cardona

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Tags: Argentina, Argentine, bernabeu, Bernd Schuster, cristiano ronaldo, diego maradona, Espanyol, fabio capello, first cap, florentino perez, home crowd, kaka, Karim Benzema, league games, league goals, MADRID, manuel pellegrini, peru, pressure situations, raul, real madrid, remarkable comeback, ronaldo, Ruud, ruud van nistelrooy, Santiago, screamer, team coach, top scorer

Haunted Swiss see South Africa beckoning

October 10, 2009

Switzerland head into the final two World Cup qualifying matches with a three-point lead in Group two this weekend, anxious to wipe out memories of a disastrous Euro 2008 in front of their home crowd.

Since then they have gradually pulled into the reckoning for South Africa after a shaky start in arguably the weakest European qualifying group, thanks to one of Europe’s most successful coaches, Ottmar Hitzfeld.

But they are also haunted by memories of a shock 2-1 home defeat last year to Saturday’s opponents, lowly Luxembourg, that almost dashed their World Cup hopes.

Hitzfeld was trying to keep his side focused ahead of the away tie and a finale against Israel in Basel next Wednesday, following a rollercoaster ride since he took over the side 14 months ago.

“We haven’t reached anything and must first take care of our homework,” he insisted Friday.

The former Bundesliga-winning coach with Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich has restored Swiss hopes since he took the helm shortly after they ended bottom of their group in the Euro 2008 finals.

But, with four points needed to secure certain qualification — or just three if their closest challengers Greece draw against Latvia on Saturday — Hitzfeld also knows that the tide can turn swiftly.

Despite the 60 year-old’s canny coaching, Switzerland have had a flimsy World Cup campaign.

They squeezed a fragile a 2-2 draw in Tel Aviv and then slumped to their electrifying embarrassment at the Letzigrund stadium in Zurich against Luxembourg in September 2008.

Despite a winning run thereafter, another narrow 2-2 draw in Latvia last month only paid dividends because Greece also failed to overcome Moldova.

By contrast, the improving Israelis put seven goals past the hapless Luxembourgeois last month.

Hitzfeld, who established his footballing career in the 1970s as a striker in the Swiss league for Basel, is asking his players to shed the caution they have shown recently and to score goals.

“We have worked on that specially this week and now I hope for a more positive approach,” he said.

Hitzfeld has drafted Zurich and former PSV Eindhoven striker Johann Vonlanthen back into his squad to add spice down the right wing, while Arsenal’s Philippe Senderos is filling in in defence.

He can also count on the national side’s top scorer, captain Alex Frei, who suffered a knee injury early during Euro 2008 and struggled with his recovery until he returned to the Swiss league with Basel this season.

Frei said the 2-1 victory in Greece a year ago marked the turning point.

“We won the match we shouldn’t have lost to stay in the running for direct qualifying,” he said.

“The match at the Letzigrund is part of the past. I hope everyone has learned the lessons of that defeat.”

“If we win 6-0, fine. But 1-0 would be enough to make me happy,” Frei added.

GENEVA (AFP)

Tags: basel, Bayern, borussia dortmund, Bundesliga, captain Alex Frei, challengers, dividends, dortmund, Eindhoven, embarrassment, euro 2008, Europe, footballing career, four points, geneva, greece, home crowd, Johann Vonlanthen, Letzigrund Stadium, ottmar hitzfeld, philippe senderos, qualifying group, rollercoaster ride, striker, swiss league, Switzerland, Tel Aviv, world cup campaign, world cup qualifying matches, ZURICH

Ten-man Inter held by Rubin Kazan

September 30, 2009

Italian champions Inter Milan were held to a 1-1 draw in their second Champions League group stage match at Russian champions Rubin Kazan on Tuesday.

Argentine striker Alejandro Dominguez scored a superb opener for the hosts, who chalked up their first point in the Champions League, while Serbian midfielder Dejan Stankovic was on target for Inter.

“I wish we could get more points from two matches but everything goes as it goes,” Inter manager Jose Mourinho said after his side were left on two points from two draws in Group F which also includes Barcelona and Dynamo Kiev.

“Kazan’s good playing was not a surprise for me. They performed very spectacular football in front of their home crowd.

“Rubin could win but we also had chances to clinch three points. In general I’m satisfied with the result.”

The hosts, playing their first ever Champions League game on home turf, made a lively start and Inter, who had three wins and one defeat in six previous matches against Russian opposition, were initially content to sit back.

Their cautiousness backfired in the 11th minute, when the mercurial Domeadinguez received a pass from Alexander Bukharov before dribbling past two Inter defenders and firing a rising shot into the roof of the net past Julio Cesar.

Jose Mourinho’s side responded positively, creating several scoring opportunities, but Kazan’s Spanish defender Cesar Navas spurned a clear-cut chance to extend his side’s lead when he headed Dominguez’s cross wide from close range.

Inter levelled after 25 minutes, with the unmarked Stankovic heading home Maicon’s precise centre from the right flank.

Roared on by a capacity 25,000 crowd, Kazan took the game to their illustrious opponents in the second period and their hopes of victory were boosted when Inter striker Mario Balotelli was sent off for a second bookable offence just after the hour-mark.

The Italian champions found themselves pinned back in the game’s last 10 minutes and Kazan skipper Sergei Semak came inches away from securing all three points when his right-footed effort from the edge of the six-yard box struck Julio Cesar’s left-hand post and rebounded to safety.

“We played with courage and discipline but unfortunately missed our chances in the second half,” Rubin coach Kurban Berdyev said. “I’m happy with my players’ creative performance tonight but a little bit upset with the result.

“We need to keep on working hard to keep alive our chances for a place in the play-offs.”
MOSCOW (AFP)

Tags: Alejandro Dominguez, Alexander Bukharov, Argentine, Barcelona, bookable, cautiousness, Cesar Navas, champions league group, dejan stankovic, dynamo, dynamo kiev, group stage, home crowd, home turf, inter milan, italian champions, Jose, jose mourinho, julio cesar, Kiev, league game, Mario Balotelli, Milan, Moscow, navas, rubin kazan, russian champions, russian opposition, sergei semak

Trinidad overwhelmed 4-1 in U-20 opener

September 25, 2009

Trinidad & Tobago surrendered three second-half goals and was overwhelmed 4-1 by Egypt and a partisan crowd of 84,000 in the opening game of the Under-20 World Cup on Thursday.

Egypt’s Afrato and Trinidad’s Jean Luc Rochford traded first-half goals six minutes apart, but a pair of strikes by Hussam Arafat in the 51st minute and in injury time, and another goal by Mohammed Talaat in the 59th sunk the Caribbean islanders.

Trinidad had the better of play early with Egyptian keeper Aly Lofty palming away Rochford’s free kick from the edge of the area. But buoyed by the home crowd, Egypt began to assert itself and took the lead on Afrato’s goal in the 30th minute.

Rochford equalized six minutes later, finishing after Jake Thomson worked his way free along the right and sent a ball across the box.

Egypt regained control quickly in the second half, with Trinidad keeper Glenroy Samuel making a dramatic save to deny Arafat’s header. But on the resulting corner, Samuel’s punch fell to Arafat, who finished from the edge of the penalty area.

Talaat’s goal and Arafat’s second came amid a dominant performance by the Pharaohs, which outshot the Soca Warriors 24-7 and 9-5 with shots on goal.

Trinidad will try to recover with its next game, on Monday, against Italy in Cairo.

ALEXANDRIA, Egypt

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Tags: arafat, Cairo, caribbean islanders, dominant performance, free kick, home crowd, hussam, injury time, jean luc, mohammed, partisan crowd, pharaohs, rochford, shots on goal, six minutes, soca warriors, talaat, thomson, World Cup

Gomez hands Germany injury worry, Oezil to start

September 6, 2009

Striker Mario Gomez handed Germany a World Cup qualifying headache on Sunday when he pulled up with a knee injury while highly-rated winger Mesut Oezil was confirmed as a starter for Wednesday’s clash with Azerbaijan.

Gomez and 20-year-old Werder Bremen player Oezil both scored in Saturday’s 2-0 friendly win over South Africa.

Coach Joachim Loew used the speed of Oezil and fellow 20-year-old winger Marko Marin to exploit space down the flanks for lone striker Gomez against South Africa.

“My team did well both in terms of result and performance,” said Loew, who criticised his team last month when they struggled to a 2-0 win over Azerbaijan in Baku in the first Group Four meeting between the two countries.

“That was a clear improvement in relation to our last few games, we were more fluid on the ball. We have been together for a week now and you could see the benefits of the extra training.

“There are still a few things which don’t fit into the way we play.

“There is still some room for improvement in defence, Arne Friedrich and Heiko Westermann put in good claims for their centre-back places. Our structure has improved greatly.”

Oezil put in the most eye-catching performance of the night having been handed his first start for Germany and Loew singled him out for praise before adding the youngster will start against Azerbaijan.

“Mesut Oezil brought a lot of creativity and was technically excellent, he has a good eye and can produce some dangerous situations for us,” said the coach.

“He played very well in attack, but he still has things to learn on tracking back, but I am very happy with his performance. I assume he will start against Azerbaijan.”

In front of his home crowd, Leverkusen goalkeeper Rene Adler gave a good account of himself, but his rival Robert Enke will be in Germany’s number one shirt for Wednesday’s qualifier in Hanover.

Germany lead Group Four by a single point and face their most important game of the qualification campaign so far when they take on Russia in Moscow on October 10.

BERLIN (AFP)