NEWS – Page 95 – Football Flame

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FA Cup: Gillingham stun Cardiff City with 1-0 win at Priestfield

London League one strugglers Gillingham produced the biggest shock of the FA Cup third round by beating Premier League Cardiff City 1-0 at Priestfield.Midfielder Elliott List scored the vital goal on 81 minutes and Gillingham held on in eight minutes of injury time to send Neil Warnock’s side out at the first time of asking.While, Manchester United beat second-tier struggler Reading 2-0 for a fifth straight win since Ole Gunnar Solskjaer replaced the fired Jose Mourinho last month. It ties the record of Sir Matt Busby, who also won his first five games in charge in the 1946-47 season.Juan Mata, from the penalty spot, and Romelu Lukaku scored the first-half goals to see off Reading at Old Trafford, while Alexis Sanchez played a part in both strikes amid a busy display in the Chilean’s first...
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Neymar reacts to PSG Champions League draw and Jose Mourinho sacking

United finished second in UCL Group H under Mourinho and also expect a difficult match-up in the round of 16.On Monday, French giants PSG were selected to face United in February. A day later, Mourinho lost his job and has since been replaced by club legend Ole Gunnar Solskjaer on an interim basis.United’s caretaker manager will guide the team against PSG when they visit Old Trafford for the first leg on February 12.Solskjear’s men then go to the Parc des Princes on March 6 for the return fixture.Neymar and his team-mates have big ambitions in the competition this season and are many people’s tip to win the trophy.PSG topped a tough Group C ahead of runners-up Liverpool and Europa League-bound Napoli.Manchester United ultimately decided they could not move forward with Mourinho in cha...
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Sevilla and Villarreal progress in Europa

Sevilla and Villarreal qualified for the knockout rounds of the Europa League yesterday, the final night of group-stage matches.Rapid Vienna, Malmo, Krasnodar, Rennes.Genk and BATE also advanced.Sevilla advanced from Group J after a 3-0 win over Krasnodar, which also advanced. Villarreal defeated Spartak Moscow 2-0 to progress from Group G with Rapid, which scored in the 84th minute to win 1-0 and knock out Rangers.Genk cruised to the next phase with a 4-0 rout of Sarpsborg in Group I, and Malmo also made it with a 1-0 away victory over Besiktas.Rennes' new coach, Julien Stephan, celebrated a 2-0 victory in Group K and a spot in the next round by knocking out Astana.Arsenal, Bayer Leverkusen, Chelsea, Dinamo Zagreb, Dynamo Kiev, Eintracht Frankfurt, Fenerbahce, Lazio, Real Betis, Salzburg,...
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Rangers out of Europa League after Dejan Ljubicic fires late winner for Rapid Vienna

Rangers crashed out of the Europa League on Thursday after falling 1-0 at Rapid Vienna. Steven Gerrard’s Rangers, who had to win in Vienna in their final group game in order to qualify for the last 32, finish third in Group G, two points behind Rapid thanks to Dejan Ljubicic’s 84th-minute winner, which sees the Austrians through to the knockout stages, level on 10 points with group winners Villarreal.The Spaniards ensured top spot by beating bottom club Spartak Moscow 2-0 thanks to goals from Samuel Chukwueze and Karl Toko Ekambi.Rangers came close to breaking the deadlock in the 21st minute of a match with few shots and little incident when Connor Goldson headed the ball against the bar, but Ljubicic rolled home the winner late on to seal Rangers’ fate.
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Newcastle owner plans to sell club before January transfer window

Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley plans to sell the Premier League club before the January transfer window and told Sky News on Monday that talks on a deal had made promising progressAshley, who is also majority shareholder at sportswear retailer Sports Direct, said in October he had not received any acceptable offers for Newcastle a year after he officially put the club up for sale.Asked on Monday if it was realistic for Newcastle to be sold before the transfer window opened on Jan. 1, Ashley said:“Realistic? It’s possible. Realistic is maybe too strong a word. Hopefully we can carry on our recent good form and get the deal done.” Newcastle had a difficult start to the season under Rafa Benitez but three wins in a row moved them up the table before a 3-0 home defeat by West Ham United at...
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Luka Modric: the new winner of Ballon d'Or

Luka Modric saw off competition from a host of French World Cup stars as the Real Madrid and Croatia midfielder won the 2018 Ballon d'Or on Monday, ending the 10-year stranglehold on the award by Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.Modric, 33, was announced as the winner of the prestigious prize in a glitzy ceremony held in Paris. Ronaldo was second, with France and Atletico Madrid striker Antoine Griezmann completing the podium.Paris Saint-Germain's teenage forward Kylian Mbappe came fourth, leaving Messi to settle for fifth position. Another Frenchman, Modric's Madrid teammate Raphael Varane, was seventh, just behind Liverpool's Egyptian forward Mohamed Salah.Modric said:"As a kid we all have dreams. My dream was to play for a big club and win important trophies."The Ballon d'Or was more ...
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Europa League: Chelsea and Arsenal win to top their group with ease

Chelsea and Arsenal both enjoyed high-scoring Europa League wins on Thursday as Glasgow giants Celtic and Rangers were left with work to do on the final matchday to qualify for the next stage.Unai Emery selected a youthful Arsenal to play in the Ukraine and they romped past Vorskla Poltava 3-0, guaranteeing top spot in Group E in a match switched to freezing Kiev after security concerns in the east of the country.Teenagers Emile Smith Rowe and Joe Willock scored either side of an Aaron Ramsey penalty as the Gunners went in 3-0 at half-time.Arsenal will now avoid any of the Champions League drop outs in the draw for the next round as they have a better head-to-head record with second-placed Sporting Lisbon.Maurizio Sarri had demanded a reaction from his Chelsea side after they lost at Totte...
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Mauro Icardi praises Argentina 'Union'

Inter Milan striker Mauro Icardi said there is an atmosphere in the Argentina camp like never before after scoring his first international goal.Icardi scored for Argentina during Tuesday’s 2-0 win against Mexico, and the Inter captain  praise the sense of union established by caretaker Lionel Scaloni and his assistants.Icardi stated after after the game:“I’d lacked a goal, I was waiting for it and now I’m happy.“It’s not easy to go without scoring. It creates a lot of chatter, but now I hope to keep going like this.“We’re a really great group, we can grow a lot and we are happy with the work of Leo Scaloni, Walter Samuel and Pablo Aimar.“Of course it will be the federation which decides their future but I can say that right now, there’s an atmosphere in the national team like ne...
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Sanches assisted Portugal to end the Nations League group stage with a 1-1 draw against Poland

Renato Sanches set up the opening goal for Andre Silva with a corner in the 33 minute to assist the Portuguese national team to end the Nations League group stage with a 1-1 draw against Poland. Poland equalised midway through the second half when Arkadiusz Milik converted a penalty conceded by Portugal defender Danilo, who saw red for the foul. Poland missed their captain Robert Lewandowski, who travelled back to Bayern Munich because of slight knee problems. While Portugal have qualified for the finals tournament as winners of Group A3.
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England beat Croatia 2-1 to reach UEFA Nations League semi-final

England beat Croatia 2-1 to qualify for UEFA Nations League semi-final on Sunday. England were almost relegated to the second tier of the competition after Andrej Kramaric gave Croatia the lead in the second half at Wembley.But Southgate's side bounced back in the closing stages to grab victory, Jesse Lingard came off the bench to help England's equalise and captain Kane doubled their tally in five minutes left.England's comeback took them to the top of Group A4, above Spain and relegated Croatia, and they can look forward to playing in the last four in June next year.
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Portugal hold off Italy with 0-0 draw to qualify for UEFA Nations League Semi-final

European Champions Portugal drew with Italy 0-0 on Saturday to grab the point it needed to qualify for the UEFA Nations League semi-finals. Despite the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo,Porturgal progressed with one match to play, and are confident to finish top of Group A3, with Italy hope in tournament over. Portugal coach Fernando Santos said:"There's a lot of satisfaction at having reached the final phase. "It was a difficult match, much more than we thought it would be. When we had the ball it was difficult to build and that was merit to Italy and demerit to us. Italy had a great game."
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Denmark beat Wales 2-1 to top their Nations league group

Denmark reduced Wales with 2-1 win in Cardiff to top their Nations League groupB4 and in the process condemned Ireland to bottom place in the group. Nicolai Jorgensen gave Denmark a half-time lead and Martin Braithwaite's superb volley two minutes  added to their tally to end Welsh hopes. Gareth Bale quickly response, sliding home his 31st international goal.ADVERTISEMENTLearn more          But in what was proving a lively opening Wales settled and went close to scoring twice inside a minutWales had an even better chance moments later when Ramsey's back-heel allowed David Brooks to cross and James Chester headed wide from six yards out. Bale almost equalised when his free-kick was brilliantly clawed away by Kasper Schmeichel and tempers th...
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Wales head coach Giggs has confirmed Bale is fit for Denmark clash in their Nations league group game

Real madrid winger Gareth Bale joined Wales squad on Thursday morning and Ryan Giggs expects him to be available for Friday's match at the Cardiff City Stadium.Giggs said:"Bale is fine, obviously he arrived a little bit later than the rest of the group."He's looked good this week and he's ready."He had a little bit of a different programme earlier in the week but the last couple of days he's been good."Wales will finish top of Group B4 and achieve promotion to the top flight of the Nations League if they beat Denmark on Friday.
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Borussia Dortmund winger Jadon Sancho set for full England debut against United States at Wembley

Sancho is set to make his full international debut as England manager Gareth Southgate will include Sancho in his starting lineup for Thursday friendly match against USA, According to Skysports. This will be Sancho’s second cap after earning his first against Croatia in October. The winger has been in good form at the club level this season, scoring four goals and assisting five while earning a starting role with his form. Sancho will get chance to prove his worth with a critical match against Croatia is on the horizon, as England has the chance to secure a spot in the Nations League semi-finals with a win. This will come alongside Wayne Rooney, who will be included in the squad and get the opportunity to play in a farewell match.
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Monaco boss Thierry Henry urge his side to stay positive despite being thrashed by PSG

Thierry Henry poor start as Monaco coach shows no sign of ending but the Frenchman has urged his injury-hit Monaco side to remain positive despite being thrashed by Paris Saint-Germain.Edinson Cavani scored a  hat-trick while Neymar's penalty completed the defeat to put PSG 13 points clear at the top of Ligue 1, with Monaco being kept off the foot of the standings on goal difference alone.Henry, who has lost four and drawn two of his first six matches in charge of Monaco, said: “There was a difference in quality.“At the beginning of the match they were not serene but in the end it's a pretty easy win for PSG.“There was a reaction, no player lost focus. “Even with all our injuries, we have created opportunities against PSG. We must stay positive.”
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Olivier Ntcham extends his contract with Celtic until 2022

Celtic Midfielder Olivier Ntcham has penned a new four-year contract. The French midfielder is in his second season with Brendan Rodgers' side and helped the club win the domestic treble last term. The former Genoa player has netted 14 goals since joining Celtic from Manchester City.Olivier told Celtic website:"I want to improve on everything in respect of the game. "Scoring more goals is, of course, part of the game and is important for me as well."
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UEFA Europa League: Fenerbahce 2-0 Anderlecht

Fenerbahce thrashed Anderlecht 2-0 in the UEFA Europa League Group D match on Thursday.  Fenerbahce scored two goals in 3 minutes in the second half. Valbuena scored in the 71st minute and Frey in 74th minute to double their lead at Fenerbahce's Sukru Saracoglu Stadium in Istanbul. Fenerbahce dominated the first half. Anderlecht almost scored when Andrien Trebel struck the bar with a free-kick in the last minute of the half. The first half ended goalless.Anderlecht's Bakkali received a second yellow card and was sent off in the 79th minute. The match ended 2-0.While, Olivier Giroud scored his first Chelsea goal in 794 minutes as the Blues progressed to the Europa League knockout stages with a 1-0 win at BATE Borisov.
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Gareth Bale in Wales squad for Nations League game against Denmark

Wales have included Gareth Bale in team squad for their Nations League group game against Denmark after the Real Madrid forward missed  last month international action. Bale missed the high-profile friendly defeat to Spain and the Nations League victory against the Republic of Ireland in Dublin through muscle fatigue.But Bale has featured in Real Madrid four games since the last international break and he is part of Ryan Giggs 26-man squad for the Denmark tie on November 16 and the away friendly with Albania four days later.Ireland are hoping for a Wales win against Demark. This means that if Ireland beat Denmark in Arhus on 19 November they will avoid Nations League relegation.The bottom side in the three-team group will be relegated from B to C, but a win would se...
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Arsenal thrashed Sporting CP 1-0 to top their Europa League group

Danny Welbeck strike gave Arsenal a 1-0 victory over Sporting CP in 77th-minute to make it Arsenal 11 wins in a row and move three points clear at the top of their Europa League group.The first half featured little in the way of attacking action, Nani coming close with a long range effort while Sokratis Papastathopoulos was lucky to stay on the pitch after dragging down Fredy Montero as he moved through on goal.Arsenal appeared to be strong after the break as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang missing good chance before Welbeck eventually broke the deadlock.
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Former Arsenal Player Robin Van Persie disclose plans to retire at the end of the season

Robin Van Persie has returned to Feyenoord, the club which he started his youth career before moving to Arsenal in 2004.Van Persie won the FA Cup with Arsenal before exiting to join Manchester United. He then assisted  Sir Alex Ferguson team to the 2012-13 Premier League title.Van Persie moved from Manchester United to Fenerbahce in Turkey in July 2015 before returning to his homeland in January and helping Feyenoord win the KNVB Cup.In an interview with Dutch media outlet AD, Van Persie confirmed his plans to make the current campaign his last as a player.Van Persie said:“When do I have to stop? That is normally at the end of this season, I will be 36 years old, i have been a professional for 18 years and from the age of five, I have only been involved in football.”Van ...
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