Aston Villa head coach Unai Emery stated John Duran’s winning goal against Bayern Munich came as a result of a pre-planned tactic. Duran came on in the contest at Villa Park as his late lob over Manuel Neuer earned the English side a 1-0 win over the German giants. “In the analysis we did, we were speaking a lot about the usual position of Neuer, which is high.”He (Duran) had in his mind this possibility about Neuer,” Emery said. The 20-year-old Colombian sent the Villa Park crowd into ruptures with his goal in the 79th minute, receiving a long ball…
Author: Somto Isaac
Juventus gaffer Thiago Motta was extremely pleased with his side’s show of great spirit in their 3-2 comeback win at RasenBallsport Leipzig in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday. Juve battled despite two early injuries and a red card as they came from a goal down to triumph on the night thanks to Francsico Conceicao’s late goal. “It was a good match, even in the first half where we made some mistakes in the details,” said Juve coach Thiago Motta. “In the second half, we did better, even playing with 10 men. It was a great performance and a great…
Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has stated the club will make a late decision on whether Kylian Mbappe will feature in the Champions League trip to France to face Lille. The Frenchman, who picked up a muscle problem in the 3-2 win against Deportivo Alaves last week, has recovered from the issue. The 25-year-old missed the draw at bitter rivals Atletico Madrid last week Sunday. “Mbappe has recovered very well, very quickly,” Ancelotti informed reporters. “He trained yesterday and today, he will do the full training session with us. Then we’ll make the decision together because the last thing we…
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta was over the moon for the performance of Kai Havertz in the Gunners’ 2-0 win against Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday. The German international who was brought in for £65 million last season, had a poor start to life at the Emirates, but he looks rejuvenated since the start of the year – with his latest input being netting one of the goals against the French champions in the 20th minute. Havertz needed 10 games to finally get his first Arsenal goal last season, but now he has netted his fifth of the campaign while also claiming…
Barcelona attacker Raphinha expressed pride in the team’s showing in the 5-0 win against Young Boys. The Blaugrana began their Champions League journey with a 2-1 loss at Monaco and their perfect start of seven successive LaLiga wins was brought to a halt in the 4-2 defeat at Osasuna last weekend. Raphinha, who picked up the man of the match award for his goal and assist contribution, admitted the team needed the win to ease pressure. “We knew that with this new Champions League format, after losing our debut at Monaco we needed to hit back quickly and decisively and…
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola is confident his 24-year-old attacker Phil Foden will be back to his best in a matter of time. The Englishman has struggled to hit the heights he reach last season, as he scored 28 goals in all competitions for club and country, and was also named PFA Player of the Year — but has only managed just one start this season, against Watford in the League Cup. Guardiola insisted he was not concerned and maintained Foden will be in good shape soon, while speaking ahead of City’s Champions League game in Slovakia against Slovan Bratislava.…
Thibaut Courtois will spend some time on the sidelines after picking up an injury to the abductor of his left leg, as revealed by Real Madrid. The goalkeeper featured for the full 90 minutes at Wanda Metropolitano in the 1-1 draw against Atletico, but will now miss the Champions League game against Lille on Wednesday and Saturday’s league game with Villarreal. The 32-year-old has started all of Los Blancos’ 10 games this season, after sitting out most of last season with a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. Courtois, who has refused to return to the Belgium national…
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag insists he retains the backing of the club’s owners following their 0-3 loss to Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford. Ten Hag’s men went behind just three minutes into the contest after Micky van de Ven ran the full length of the pitch easily to find an unmarked Brennan Johnson who taped home. Goals from Dejan Kulusevski and Dominic Solanke in the second half completed the rout in front of the Red Devils backyard. Following the display, Ten Hag dismissed talk of his job security, stating he still has the support of the hierarchy. “No,…
Diego Simeone has stated that there should be punishments for players who push fans to provocation as well as the fans who make unnecessary steps at channeling their frustrations. Atletico Madrid ultras Fondo Sur hurled objects at Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who alerted the referee which resulted in the temporary suspension of the match, in the derby on Sunday after Eder Militao’s opener. Following the delay, Angel Correa equalised deep in injury time to ensure a share of the spoils between the rivals and a 1-1 result. “My opinion is that people who have committed incidents should be sanctioned…
Barcelona saw their perfect start in LaLiga come to an end with a 4-2 loss at Osasuna on Saturday, and manager Hansi Flick has insisted the cause of the loss falls on his shoulders. The Blaugrana won all seven of their opening games but Flick made several changes in the contest in Pamplona. Ante Budimir netted twice and Bryan Zaragoza along with Abel Bretones were also on the scoresheet for the hosts. A victory for Barcelona – who got their goals through Pau Victor and Lamine Yamal – would have seen them match their best ever start to a league…