December 2019 – Page 3 – Football Flame

19Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

BUNDESLIGA

Joshua Zirkzee nets Crucial goal in Bundesliga debut

Joshua Zirkzee of Bayern Munich celebrates with team-mates after scoring his team's second goal during the Bundesliga match between Sport-Club Freiburg and FC Bayern Muenchen at Schwarzwald.Serge Gnabry invited sub Joshua Zirkzee to beat Freiburg keeper Mark Flekken in injury time, the 18-year-old sending FC Bayern into raptures. 104 seconds after coming on in his Bundesliga debut, the Dutchman found the net with his first touch, scoring Bayern's crucial second goal on Wednesday.In the closing stages it looked as if Freiburg and the German record champions would share the spoils, but Hansi Flick was soon vindicated in his decision. The FCB coach introduced striker Zirkzee, who paid back the trust. "Joshua has been with us for a few weeks, he's doing a very good job in traini...

19Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

NEWS

Roberto Firmino strikes late to take Liverpool into Club World Cup final

Roberto Firmino of Liverpool (L) scores the second goal of his team during FIFA Club World Cup Semi-Final match between Monterrey and Liverpool FC at Education City Stadium.Substitute Roberto Firmino grabbed a stoppage-time winner as Liverpool beat Mexico’s Monterrey 2-1 on Wednesday to reach the Club World Cup final, where they will play Brazil’s Flamengo.Liverpool, without centre back Virgil van Dijk, who was missing through illness and with Firmino and Sadio Mane starting on the bench, never truly imposed themselves on the game but their trademark perseverance paid off and earned them a place in Saturday’s final.“They fought really hard, we had problems before the game and during the game as well but I think the boys did exceptionally well,” said Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp.It was a ...

19Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

SERIE A

Flying Ronaldo fires Juventus three points clear

Cristiano Ronaldo (L) of Juventus FC scores a goal during the Serie A football match between UC Sampdoria and Juventus FC. Juventus FC won 2-1 over UC Sampdoria.Cristiano Ronaldo’s scoring streak continued on Wednesday as the Juventus forward netted a soaring header to secure a 2-1 victory at Sampdoria, putting the defending champion back atop the Serie A standings.Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon matched Paolo Maldini’s all-time record of 647 Serie A appearances in the game, but Ronaldo found a way to steal the spotlight once again.The Portugal star leaped above a defender and hung in the air to meet a cross before planting a header into the top of the net for the winning goal on the stroke of halftime. Earlier, Gianluca Caprari had canceled out Paulo Dybala’s opener for Juve.“The goa...

19Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

LALIGA

Postponed Clasico ends up with goalless draw

Lionel Messi of FC Barcelona competes for the ball with Sergio Ramos of Real Madrid during the Liga match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid CF at Camp Nou.After being postponed in October, Barcelona and Real Madrid made their La Liga season's first Clasico at Camp Nou stadium on Wednesday, but the game ended with a disappointing 0-0 draw result for the first time since 2002.For Real Madrid, Gareth Bale started for the first time in four matches, while Ramos played in his 43rd Clasico, a record for any player in history.For Barcelona, Sergio Busquets was included in the line-up first announced before he was swapped out for Ivan Rakitic, which Barca claimed was a communication error.If it was, it was not the first mistake of the night, with a frantic first half.Real were the better side i...

18Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

NEWS

Ozil removed from PES 2020 in China

Mesut Ozil of Arsenal looks on during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Manchester City at Emirates Stadium.Arsenal midfielder Mesut Ozil has been removed from China's version of the Pro Evolution Soccer 2020 video game following his criticism of China's treatment of Uighur Muslims.Ozil, who is a Muslim, called Uighurs "warriors who resist persecution".He also criticised both China and the silence of Muslims in response.NetEase, which publishes the PES franchise in China, said the former Germany player had been removed from three existing titles in the country."The German player Ozil posted an extreme statement about China on social media," it said in a statement."The speech hurt the feelings of Chinese fans and violated the sports spirit of love and peace. We do not understa...

18Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

LALIGA

3,000 security officers to be deployed for Barcelona Real Madrid clasico

Zinedine Zidane, Manager of Real Madrid greets Ernesto Valverde, coach of Barcelona prior to the La Liga match between Real Madrid and Barcelona.El clasico on Wednesday night takes place at Barcelona's Camp Nou against the backdrop of high political tension in Spain.Police were taking no chances with thousands of protesters expected to take to the area around the ground in support of Catalan independence.Originally slated for October 26, Spain's most anticipated match was postponed due to civil unrest which included the jailing of nine Catalan separatist leaders.Such was the friction, the Barcelona and Real Madrid coaches were escorted to the ground together to minimise the risk – having stayed at the same hotel on Tuesday night.Real coach, Zinedine Zidane, however, says he was not overly ...

17Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

PREMIER LEAGUE

Zaha Strikes late to earn Crystal Palace point

Wilfried Zaha of Crystal Palace dribbles past Martín Montoya of Brighton & Hove Albion during the Premier League match between Crystal Palace and Brighton & Hove Albion at Selhurst Park.Wilfried Zaha's equaliser lifted Crystal Palace up to ninth in the Premier Leaguetable as they shared the points in a 1-1 draw at home to Brighton on Monday. Neal Maupay fired the visitors into a 54th-minute lead but Palace star Zaha drew the Eagles level against the Seagulls with a fine solo effort 15 minutes from time at Selhurst Park. Palace have now moved above London rivals Arsenal in the table and Zaha was proud of the way his side stayed in the game against a Brighton team who had much the better of the play."It was a big game for both teams and I'm glad we got back in it -- if you ...

16Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

UCL

Jurgen Klopp reacts to Liverpool drawing Atletico Madrid in Champions League

Jurgen Klopp the head coach / manager of Liverpool during the Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Watford FC at Anfield.Liverpool will face Atletico Madrid in the Round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League.Monday’s draw in Nyon, Switzerland, pitted the reigning champions against the Spanish club. The first leg of the series will take place at 9 p.m. West Africa time on Feb. 18 in Madrid at Estadio Metropolitano, and the second leg will take place at 9 p.m. West Africa time on March 11 at Anfield. Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp offered his reaction to the pairing with Atletico Madrid, predicting a “tough and intense” series for the teams. “It’s an interesting draw,” he told Liverpool’s website. “Before the draw I actually thought it would be Madrid — either one of the two ...

16Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

NEWS

Saint-Etienne 0-4 PSG: Kylian Mbappe and Mauro Icardi strike against 10-man hosts to send Ligue 1 leaders seven clear despite Neymar penalty miss

Kylian Mbappe of PSG celebrates his first goal during the Ligue 1 match between AS Saint-Etienne (ASSE) and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) at Stade Geoffroy-Guichard.Kylian Mbappe helped Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) extend their Ligue 1 lead on Sunday with a brace in a comfortable 4-0 win over 10-man Saint-Etienne.France forward Mbappe took his league tally to nine in 11 appearances as his side took advantage of second-placed Marseille only drawing at Metz on Saturday to move seven points clear and tighten their grip on the French championship, which they have won six out of the last seven seasons.Leandro Paredes set the ball rolling in the 10th minute with a deflected strike and once Jean Eudes Aholou was sent off in the 25th minute for a dreadful late tackle on the Argentine PSG could stroll the...

16Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

PREMIER LEAGUE

Jose Mourinho hails players after 'very important' Tottenham win over Wolves

Jose Mourinho the head coach / manager of Tottenham Hotspur during the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Tottenham Hotspur at Molineux.Mourinho is getting the best and more from Spurs. There have been small signs since he took over at Tottenham of the old Jose Mourinho -- the good Jose Mourinho, the one you probably hated if you didn't support his team but definitely loved if you did. But perhaps Tottenham's 2-1 win over Wolves on Sunday was the biggest one yet, a victory achieved with a late header that was frankly a robbery, Wolves arguably aggrieved they didn't get all three points, let alone none at all."It's one of these victories where quality is not enough," said Mourinho after the game. "If you're not a team, a real team, in the real sense of what the wo...

16Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

SERIE A

Inter, Conte's post-match comments after Fiorentina draw

Antonio Conte manager of FC Internazionale looks on during the Serie A match between ACF Fiorentina and FC Internazionale at Stadio Artemio Franchi.A win by Juventus and a draw from Inter mean that the two rival clubs are tied for top of the table. The nerazzurri were held without a win away at Fiorentina, drawing 1-1 against the hosts at the Artemio Franchi. Afterwards, Inter coach Antonio Conte gave his thoughts on the match to Sky Sport: "We got back less than we deserved, just like against Barcelona. I'm upset because the team gave a good response, we deserved more. That being said, we must do better in all phases. In the last three matches we are talking about three possible wins which became two draws and a defeat. But this is a process of growth, we must be patient and bui...

15Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

SERIE A

Ronaldo scores twice in Juventus win over Udinese

Cristiano Ronaldo of Juventus competes for the ball with Bram Nuytinck of Udinese Calcio during the Serie A match between Juventus and Udinese Calcio.Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice as Juventus beat Udinese to go top of Serie A - for a few hours at least.The Portuguese blasted in a crisp shot from the edge of the area for a fourth goalscoring game in a row.He then smashed in a first-time shot from Gonzalo Higuain's through ball before Leonardo Bonucci headed home to make it 3-0 before the break.Ronaldo almost grabbed his first Serie A hat-trick as he hit the post, before Ignacio Pussetto's late consolation.Juve keeper Gianluigi Buffon made his 646th Serie A appearance, one short of Paolo Maldini's all-time record. It was Buffon's 700th league appearance including Serie B and the French top ...

14Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

BUNDESLIGA

Coutinho hat trick as Bayern bounces back to rout Bremen 6-1

Philippe Coutinho of FC Bayern Muenchen celebrates after scoring his team's sixth goal with team mates during the Bundesliga match between FC Bayern Muenchen and SV Werder Bremen at Allianz Arena.Bayern Munich's Philippe Coutinho scored a hat-trick and Robert Lewandowski added two more goals as the champions demolished Werder Bremen 6-1 on Saturday to impressively bounce back from two straight league defeats.The Bavarians, missing several players through injury, climbed to fourth place on 27 points, just four behind leaders Borussia Moenchengladbach who are in action against VfL Wolfsburg on Sunday. Bayern fell behind in the 24th minute from a Milot Rashica goal after once more wasting several golden chances, including missed chances from top scorer Lewandowski, as had been the case i...

14Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

LALIGA

Barcelona slip up ahead of El Clasico with draw against Real Sociedad

Luis Suarez of FC Barcelona duels for the ball with Mikel Oyarzabal of Real Sociedad during the Liga match between Real Sociedad and FC Barcelona at Estadio Anoeta.Barcelona suffered a potentially costly slip-up ahead of Wednesday’s Clasico as they were held to a 2-2 draw at Real Sociedad.Luis Suarez scored one goal and made another as Ernesto Valverde’s men, who had won their previous six games in all competitions, came from behind to lead at Anoeta.However, Alexander Isak’s 62nd-minute strike earned fourth-placed Sociedad a deserved share of the spoils, meaning Real Madrid now have the chance to move two points clear at the top of LaLiga with victory at Valencia on Sunday.Barca could have few complaints about their failure to win, having been outplayed for large parts of an entertaining ...

14Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

PREMIER LEAGUE

Mo Salah sends Liverpool 10 points clear

Christian Kabasele of Watford FC reacts after Mohamed Salah of Liverpool's second goal during the Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Watford FC at Anfield.Liverpool moved 10 points clear at the top of the Premier League thanks to Mohamed Salah's double, but had some wasteful finishing from bottom-of-the-table Watford to thank for a 2-0 victory at Anfield.The Hornets remain six points adrift of safety, but will wonder how they headed home empty handed after enjoying the vast majority of the chances against the European champions.Salah produced the two moments of real quality from Jurgen Klopp's men by finishing off from a rapid counter-attack from a Watford corner to open the scoring before flicking home a second a minute from time.Nigel Pearson was taking charge of Watford for t...

14Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

PREMIER LEAGUE

Chelsea stunned with a loss to Bournemouth at home

Dan Gosling of AFC Bournemouth scores his team's first goal over Kepa Arrizabalaga of Chelsea after it was reviewed by VAR during the Premier League match between Chelsea FC and AFC Bournemouth at Stamford Bridge.Chelsea crashed to their fourth league defeat in five as they rightly fell foul to a late VAR decision, as Bournemouth scored the only goal at Stamford Bridge this afternoon.This was an abject performance by the west Londoners who could claim to have had one clear-cut chance – an Emerson point-plank header well saved by Aaron Ramsdale.It was left to Dan Gosling six minutes from time to beat the offside trap and hook the ball into the Chelsea net. Not even a vain effort by Cesar Azpilicueta, who hooked the ball away could alter the decision by VAR, who after seeing the linesma...

14Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

TRANSFERS

Atletico Madrid set asking price for Manchester United and Chelsea to sign Saul Niguez

Saul Niguez of Atletico de Madrid controls a ball during the UEFA Champions League, Group D match between Atletico de Madrid and Lokomotiv Moscow.Manchester United and Chelsea have been buoyed in their efforts to sign Saul Niguez by reports that Atletico Madrid are prepared to lower their asking price. Niguez is said to have been the subject of a long-standing interest at Manchester United but is committed to Atletico, a club he first joined at the age of 14. The 25-year-old broke into the first team back in 2010 and is about to make his 250th appearance for the Madrid side, helping them to two Europa League titles, a Champions League final and a La Liga win.His performances in midfield have earned him plaudits all over Europe and according to the Telegraph, Manchester United and...

14Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

SERIE A

Inter Congratulate Cristiano Biraghi Following Birth Of His Second Child

Cristiano Biraghi of FC Internazionale in action during the UEFA Champions League group F match between Inter and FC Barcelona at Giuseppe Meazza Stadium.Inter Milan have taken to social media platform Twitter to congratulate defender Cristiano Biraghi and wife Sara on the birth of their second child, Carol.Carol was born on Friday morning and the club were quick to post their well wishes online for the 27-year-old wing back, who returned to the club where he came through the youth ranks, this past Summer on a season long loan from Fiorentina.Since his return, Biraghi has made 13 appearances across all competitions, in which he has provided two assists.“Congratulations. Welcome to Carol Biraghi, Cristiano’s second child! All the best from the Nerazzurri family,” the club posted.

13Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

NEWS

Steven Gerrard: Rangers manager signs new deal until 2024

Steven Gerrard, Manager of Rangers FC looks on prior to the UEFA Europa League group G match between Rangers FC and BSC Young Boys at Ibrox Stadium.Rangers Football Club is today delighted to announce manager Steven Gerrard has agreed a two-year extension which will keep him at Ibrox until the summer of 2024.Steven, 39, joined Rangers in the summer of 2018 and has driven significant improvement in the Club’s fortunes since then.The manager guided the Club through four preliminary rounds and into the Europa League group stages last season with what was a new team which went on to gain memorable results against Villarreal and Rapid Vienna in the sectional phase.That initial success was followed by an unprecedented second consecutive qualification for the group stage this year, where again, t...

13Dec

By Silver EmmanuelNo Comments

PREMIER LEAGUE

Liverpool Star Sadio Mane named Premier League Player of the Month

Sadio Mane of Liverpool during the Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Brighton & Hove Albion at Anfield.Sadio Mane was today named Premier League Player of the Month for November.The Liverpool forward was in outstanding form to help his team win all four of their matches and establish an eight-point lead at the summit.Mane set up an equaliser and headed home a winner as the Reds came from a goal down to beat Aston Villa, then provided the third strike in the 3-1 Anfield victory over Manchester City.He was on the scoresheet again when Liverpool beat Crystal Palace 2-1 away from home and, as he had in the previous three games, played every minute of the win against Brighton and Hove Albion by the same scoreline.It is the third time Mane has won Player of the Month, following A...