Новости за 28.04.2018

Zinedine Zidane believes Real Madrid must perform better than ever to overcome Bayern Munich in the second leg of their Champions League semi-final tie. Los Blancos are in the box seat to advance in their bid for a three-peat as they defend a 2-1 advantage at Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday. However, the back-to-back Champions League winners coughed up the same lead against the Bavarians in the quarter-finals last season and needed a rush of goals in extra-time to progress. Real also gave up a 3-0 lead to Juventus in this year's last eight... Читать дальше...

Chelsea boss Antonio Conte believes "anything can happen" as they look to overtake Tottenham and secure a top-four finish in the Premier League this season. The Blues racked up another three points on Saturday, edging past struggling Swansea City 1-0 at the Liberty Stadium thanks to Cesc Fabregas' fourth-minute goal. The win moves them two points behind Mauricio Pochettino's side, who host Watford at Wembley on Monday, and Conte remains cautiously optimistic that they could yet leapfrog their rivals. Читать дальше...

Jupp Heynckes has dismissed reports questioning Robert Lewandowski's commitment to Bayern Munich and confirmed the striker as a likely starter against Real Madrid on Tuesday. German publication Bild suggested during the week that Heynckes had confronted the star striker over an apparent decline in his training standards. The 29-year-old, who has been heavily linked with a move to Madrid, failed to fire in the Champions League loss to Los Blancos last week and sat on the bench as Bayern beat Eintracht... Читать дальше...

Gary Cahill has challenged Chelsea to take a maximum haul from their remaining Premier League fixtures to crank up the pressure on their Champions League chasing rivals. Cesc Fabregas' 50th Premier League goal earned the Blues a slender 1-0 win over Swansea City at the Liberty Stadium on Saturday, which left Antonio Conte's side two points adrift of Tottenham, who have a game in hand. Mauricio Pochettino's side host Watford on Monday and are in pole position to secure fourth, but Cahill wants the... Читать дальше...

Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson expects his side to avoid relegation from the Premier League after a 5-0 battering of Leicester City moved the Eagles onto 38 points with two games left to play. Palace are 11th in the table, six points clear of 18th-place Southampton who have a game in hand, and Hodgson will take his side to Stoke City before they entertain bottom club West Brom on the final day of the season. The win over Leicester was Palace's third in six matches and extended their unbeaten run to four games. Читать дальше...

Mark Hughes believes his Southampton side proved they are giving everything to stay in the Premier League by beating Bournemouth 2-1 on Saturday. The Saints moved within one point of 17th-place Swansea City after Dusan Tadic struck in each half to sink the Cherries, who had equalised through Josh King, at St Mary's Stadium. It was Southampton's first league win since February and a first on home soil since November, and they still have to play Swansea in a match sandwiched between fixtures against Everton and Manchester City. Читать дальше...

Chris Hughton described the actions of some Burnley supporters as "shameful" after Brighton and Hove Albion defender Gaetan Bong was booed during Saturday's Premier League goalless draw at Turf Moor. The point edged Brighton towards Premier League safety but Hughton was unhappy with the home crowd's reaction to left-back Bong. In January the defender made a complaint against West Brom player Jay Rodriguez - who started his career at Burnley - after a clash between the pair during a Premier League game. Читать дальше...

Brazil's World Cup winning midfielder Gilberto Silva has heaped immense praise onto Andres Iniesta, stating it's 'easy to enjoy' the 33-year-old's style of play. Iniesta confirmed on Friday that he will leave Barcelona at the end of the season after winning eight LaLiga titles, six Copa del Rey and four Champions League crowns. Gilberto, who won the Premier League title during his time with Arsenal, was full of praise for the scorer of Spain's World Cup winning goal in 2010, dubbing him a master. Читать дальше...

AC Milan coach Gennaro Gattuso says he and his players are fighting for their futures as they seek to bounce back from a shock defeat to Benevento. Milan suffered a surprising 1-0 loss to the league's bottom side at the San Siro last weekend, which led Gattuso to scrap a family holiday in Spain and cancel proposed days off for his players. Having slipped behind Atalanta in the race for Europa League qualification, Milan can ill-afford another slip-up when they visit Bologna on Sunday. "After losing to Benevento we touched bottom. Читать дальше...

West Brom caretaker manager Darren Moore praised his Baggies side for doing everything asked of them to secure a 1-0 victory against Newcastle United. Matt Phillips' first-half goal maintained Moore's unbeaten run in charge of the rock-bottom Premier League outfit, maintaining their slim hopes of avoiding relegation. The Baggies sit five points behind Swansea City, who can relegate West Brom with a victory against Chelsea in Saturday's late kick-off, with two matches left to play. Moore knows... Читать дальше...

Sam Allardyce defended his track record after Everton supporters jeered him during their 2-0 win at Huddersfield Town. Goals in either half from Cenk Tosun and Idrissa Gueye were enough to secure the Toffees a second successive Premier League victory and Allardyce's team have lost just one of their last seven matches - against champions Manchester City. Despite their good form, criticism from supporters unhappy with the team's style of play persists and Allardyce - who has guided the team from... Читать дальше...

Dusan Tadic labelled Southampton's 2-1 victory over Bournemouth as "one of the most important wins in our history" as the Saints breathed fresh life into their Premier League survival bid. The Serbia international struck in each half at St Mary's to render Josh King's goal inconsequential, as Mark Hughes' men closed on 17th-place Swansea City with a first home league win since November. And Tadic, who took his league tally for the season to six, did not downplay the significance of the result.... Читать дальше...

Barcelona head coach Ernesto Valverde says forcing teams to put on a guard of honour can be "humiliating", with his side set to be crowned LaLiga champions before a meeting with rivals Real Madrid. Atletico Madrid must win at Deportivo Alaves on Sunday to keep their slim title hopes alive, but Barca will have an unassailable lead regardless if they avoid defeat at Deportivo La Coruna later in the day. If the Catalan giants clinch the trophy before the visit of Madrid to Camp Nou on May 6, Zinedine... Читать дальше...

Empoli have secured an instant return to Italy's top flight as Serie B champions thanks to Saturday's 1-1 draw at home to Novara. Palermo's 3-0 defeat at Venezia on Thursday meant Aurelio Andreazzoli's side only needed a point at their Stadio Carlo Castellani and led in the 36th minute when Francesco Caputo converted Giovanni Di Lorenzo's cross. Relegation-threatened Novara levelled deep into first-half stoppage time through George Puscas but there were no further goals, meaning it was time to get the party started at the final whistle. Читать дальше...

Cologne's relegation from the Bundesliga was confirmed on Saturday as Fortuna Dusseldorf returned to Germany's top division in dramatic fashion. Rouwen Hennings scored a 90th-minute winner in a 2-1 victory at Dynamo Dresden that means Fortuna are back in the Bundesliga for the first time since 2013. Cologne's stay in the Bundesliga is over, though, with a 3-2 defeat at Freiburg ensuring they can no longer climb out of the relegation zone. A Nils Petersen double left Cologne 2-0 down, although... Читать дальше...

Jurgen Klopp hailed a 'really important point' after a goalless draw at home to Stoke City moved Liverpool a step closer to securing a top-four finish in the Premier League. Mohamed Salah should have given the Reds an early lead against their relegation haunted opponents, while Stoke defender Erik Pieters was fortunate to escape punishment for handball in the penalty area as the clock ticked down. However, very much at odds with his irritable reaction to last weekend's 2-2 draw at West Brom, Klopp... Читать дальше...

Jordan Henderson felt the match officials cost Liverpool victory over Stoke City at Anfield after visiting defender Erik Pieters was not punished for an apparent handball in the penalty area. Mohamed Salah spurned a glorious early chance but Liverpool were never close to their rampaging best from the 5-2 Champions League thumping of Roma, faced with a Stoke side battling valiantly against relegation. The flashpoint arrived in the 87th minute when Georginio Wijnaldum drove across goal and Pieters'... Читать дальше...

Jupp Heynckes named Bayern Munich's youngest starting XI in 47 years for the Bundesliga champions' clash with Eintracht Frankfurt at Allianz Arena. Facing the task of overturning a 2-1 deficit to Real Madrid in the second leg of Tuesday's Champions League semi-final, Heynckes rested a glut of Bayern's stars for Saturday's encounter against Frankurt, coached by Niko Kovac, who will take charge of the Bavarian giants at the end of the campaign. Bayern made eight changes in total, with only Mats Hummels... Читать дальше...

Terry Antonis went from zero to hero as Melbourne Victory ended Sydney FC's A-League defence and booked a place in the Grand Final with a stunning 3-2 win after extra time at Allianz Stadium. Former Sydney midfielder Antonis agonisingly put through his own goal with 12 seconds of the allotted five minutes of second-half stoppage time left, but he came to Victory's rescue in a dramatic change of fortunes with a solo effort in the 117th minute. The 24-year-old managed to avoid a second yellow card... Читать дальше...

Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone concedes that his behaviour needs to improve following his dismissal in the first leg of his side's Europa League semi-final with Arsenal. Simeone was sent to the stands in the early stages of an eventful game at Emirates Stadium on Thursday, having complained to officials following the red card shown to right-back Sime Vrsaljko in the 10th minute. UEFA has charged the former Argentina international with insulting a match official and improper conduct, with a disciplinary panel to judge the case on May 4... Читать дальше...

Sadio Mane has been left out of Liverpool's matchday squad to face Stoke City but Jurgen Klopp has made few other concessions to Wednesday's Champions League semi-final second leg at Roma. Mane missed training on Thursday and Klopp confirmed the Senegal forward would face a late fitness test. It has been decided his participation against Paul Lambert's relegation threatened side is not worth the risk, but the other members of Liverpool's potent three-man forward line – PFA Player of the Year Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino – start. Читать дальше...

Neymar's attempts to reach full fitness in time for the 2018 World Cup are on track, according to Brazil's team doctor. The Paris Saint-Germain forward had his season curtailed when he fractured the fifth metatarsal in his right foot during the 3-0 Ligue 1 victory over Marseille, undergoing surgery on March 3. Last week Neymar identified May 17 as a target date to return to training, with Brazil's Russia 2018 opener against Switzerland coming exactly a month later in Rostov. And Rodrigo Lasmar... Читать дальше...

In the Allianz Stadium press room after Kalidou Koulibaly powered home a 90th-minute winner for Napoli to blow the Serie A title race wide open, Juventus head coach Massimiliano Allegri had reached the end of his tether. Asked why his reigning champions, chasing a seventh consecutive Scudetto, were not playing well at a crunch moment in the season, the 50-year-old's face was a picture of perplexed incredulity. "The quality of our play?" he began. "For four years, Juventus have been playing 57 matches a year, you know? Читать дальше...

Antonio Conte believes Gary Cahill should be named in England's World Cup squad despite dropping the defender for Chelsea earlier this season. Cahill was an unused substitute for matches against Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham and Barcelona over recent months. The 32-year-old was also left out of Gareth Southgate's England selection for the March friendlies against Netherlands and Italy, with untried duo James Tarkowski and Alfie Mawson picked instead. But he has returned to Conte's... Читать дальше...

League titles have already been decided in England, Germany and France, while Barcelona are expected to be crowned LaLiga champions this weekend, leaving the Serie A race as the most exciting among Europe's elite. Juventus are chasing a seventh consecutive Scudetto but they are being hunted down by Napoli, with Maurizio Sarri's side trying to win the league for the first time since the 1989-1990 season, when Diego Maradona's goals fired them to glory. The battle between the two clubs has been in the balance for much of the season... Читать дальше...