Football Mag

Another Clasico at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu ended with a win for Barcelona, but the latest one undoubtedly has an even more special meaning for the victors. Their win on Wednesday night in the Copa del Rey tied the win totals between the teams, but with Saturday's success Barcelona now have 96 wins, while Real Madrid have 95 and there have been 51 draws. Real Madrid have been giving up the advantage they had ever more steadily in recent years, particularly due to their negative streak at home. The two triumphs in a week do nothing but confirm the trend of recent years when the Blaugrana come to town, having won on each of their last four league visits. Barcelona have now won 31 times in the capital in Clasicos and proof of their dominance comes with 11 wins in the past decade. The 6-2 win in 2009 was the start of it all and other highlights have come with the 2-0 Champions League semi-final win, the 4-3 thriller in 2012/13, the 4-0 win in 2015, the dramatic 3-2 success in 2

Jose Mourinho has defended his decision to allow Mohamed Salah to leave Chelsea in 2014, claiming he “wasn’t physically prepared” for the Premier League. Salah joined the Blues in 2013 and scored two goals in 13 league appearances, including the final goal in Mourinho’s team’s 6-0 win over Arsenal in March 2014. He was loaned to Fiorentina before being sold to Roma in 2016, where he earned his reputation as a reliable goalscorer in Serie A. Mourinho, who was sacked by Chelsea in 2015 just months after winning a third league title with the club, told BeIN Sports: “I asked Chelsea to sign Mohamed Salah, he was inexperienced and not prepared physically to adapt to the style of play in Premier league. “Now, he is physically and mentally strong and well adapted to Premier League because he went to Italy and gained experience. “He is a wonderful person and I wanted him to stay at Chelsea but he was looking for more minutes.”

Kevin de Bruyne’s injury is a product of Manchester City’s gruelling schedule, says manager Pep Guardiola. The Belgian was forced off the pitch during the Sky Blues' 1-0 victory at Bournemouth on Saturday. John Stones also left the pitch nursing an knock as the champions’ demanding recent fixture list took its toll on Guardiola’s high-flying squad. And the manager worries that the expectations placed on his team are only going to take a higher physical toll as the season heads towards its climax. "John, I think, is more a precaution, we'll see tomorrow,’ said Guardiola. “He was a little bit tight, he didn't feel good, and we didn't take risks. Hopefully it has not a big issue," he said. "And Kevin has something with his hamstring. I don't know (how long he will be out), tomorrow we'll know exactly. "But it's normal, my friends. We played 25 games in, I think, 93 days. It means every three days and a little bit more we play

Eden Hazard reached a major milestone for Chelsea during Sunday’s trip to Fulham after he became only the third player in the club’s history to score and assist 50 Premier League goals. The Belgium international provided the set-up for Jorginho to net the decisive goal in a 2-1 victory at Craven Cottage, clocking up a half-century of assists in the top flight. It means Hazard – who has also found the back of the net on 81 occasions – has had a hand in 131 goals in the Premier League since he joined from Lille in 2012. The 28-year-old has already reached double figures for goals in a single season for the fifth time at Chelsea, needing only four more to equal his personal best of 16 in the league, which he achieved in the 2016-17 campaign. The feat means that he joins a select club in Blues history, with Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba the only other men to have managed such an achievement with the club.

Jose Mourinho claims he put the needs of Manchester United first during his final season at the club, and hinted some players could have made a similar choice prior to his dismissal. Mourinho left Old Trafford in December, having overseen one of the team's worst starts to a campaign in Premier League history. Much was made of an apparent falling out between the Portuguese coach and star midfielder Paul Pogba late in Mourinho's tenure. "If you tell me that in the past season that I had some problems ... I don't want to speak about [that] for obvious reasons," he said. "I will not deny to you that some factors had an influence in that the last period was not a good one. It's impossible to win trophies without a good relationship with players. "What you need sometimes is to accelerate some process, what you need to be is to be a club man and sometimes to be a club man you need to forget yourself a little bit. "I think I always did it

Jorginho's first goal from open play in the Premier League proved decisive in Chelsea's 2-1 London derby win over Fulham on Sunday, as Kepa Arrizabalaga returned from his post-EFL Cup final exile. Spain international Kepa was dropped for the midweek win over Tottenhamafter refusing to be substituted in the Wembley defeat to Manchester City, but he returned at Craven Cottage as Chelsea moved back to within two points of the top four. Fulham, playing their first game since Claudio Ranieri was sacked and replaced by interim boss Scott Parker, put up a scrap at times and even cancelled out Gonzalo Higuain's opener when Calum Chambers equalised. But Jorginho put Chelsea back in front and, despite Fulham's noble efforts, the Blues managed to hold on, leaving Parker's men 10 points adrift of safety.

Lionel Messi had blood in his mouth after a clash with Real Madrid defender Sergio Ramos during Saturday's La Liga Clasico, claims Gerard Pique. Messi and Ramos were involved in a flashpoint in the first half of Barca's 1-0 win at the Santiago Bernabeu that moved Ernesto Valverde's men 10 points clear at the top of the La Liga table. Ramos knocked the ball past Messi but then seemed to thrust his arm into the face of the Barcelona captain, who made his displeasure clear to the officials, although Madrid's skipper was not punished. "Leo had blood in his mouth," said Pique. "It was an aggression. "Intensity does not have to be measured. I get along great with the Real Madrid players. "But when you go out to the field you defend your colours and the rivalry is what you get. "But once the game is over, the cordiality is mutual, the players respect us very much."

Manchester City have handed a one-year contract extension to Eliaquim Mangala despite the defender not featuring in Pep Guardiola's first-team plans. Mangala last played a Premier League match for City in a 0-0 draw at Crystal Palace in December 2017. The French centre-back was then sent on loan to Everton, where he suffered a serious knee ligament injury in his second match. The 28-year-old has not featured for City in any competition this season but recently returned to training and the club confirmed his terms had been extended beyond June 2019 in a short statement. "Eliaquim Mangala has signed a one-year contract extension, keeping him at Manchester City until 2020," it read.

The LA Galaxy unveiled a statue of David Beckham ahead of the club’s 2019 season opener on Saturday night. The statue is prominently placed near the main entrance to the Galaxy's Dignity Health Sports Park, with the unveiling ceremony joined by a host of club and league icons, including former coach Bruce Arena and MLS commissioner Don Garber. Beckham joined the Galaxy in 2007 as one of the first premier signings in MLS history and played for the club through 2012, helping the LA side to two MLS Cup titles and two Supporters’ Shields on a star-studded team that also included U.S. national team hero Landon Donovan and Robbie Keane. The former Manchester United and Real Madrid star was the first player ever signed under the designated player rule in Major League Soccer, with his signing signaling a change in the way the league approached landing top players. Other world stars like Thierry Henry, Steven Gerrard, Didier Drogba and Zlatan Ibrahimovic have since followed, but Beckham

Jose Mourinho has slammed Real Madrid's "soft performance" in their 1-0 Clasico defeat to Barcelona on Saturday. Ivan Rakitic scored in the first half at the Santiago Bernabeu and the Croatian's goal stood up as the only tally of the match. With the loss, Madrid fell 12 points behind first-place Barcelona, effectively ending their La Liga title hopes for the season. Mourinho, who managed Real Madrid between 2010 and 2013, saw his former team low on confidence in Saturday's Clasico. "It was not a happy performance. It was not the performance of a happy team," Mourinho said on beIN Sports. "It was not the performance of a team with great belief and self-esteem. "Clearly they are now in a zone after a few bad results, especially in the cup match, where they are in a low." "They couldn't bring to the game what I used to call the temperature of the big matches," Mourinho continued. "They were passive. I cannot speak about

Bayern Munich pulled level on points with Borussia Dortmund at the Bundesliga summit after thumping Borussia Monchengladbach 5-1 on Saturday. Long-time leaders Dortmund had opened the door for Niko Kovac's side after suffering a shock 2-1 defeat to Augsburg on Friday and the reigning champions never looked in danger of failing to take advantage as they swatted aside their hosts, who now sit fourth. Javi Martinez gave them a second-minute lead before Thomas Muller's fifth league goal of the campaign extended their lead nine minutes later. Lars Stindl pulled one back for the hosts in the 37th minute, but Robert Lewandowski's glorious finish shortly after the restart extinguished any hopes of a comeback as Bayern – who added two more late on through Serge Gnabry and a Lewandowski penalty – cruised to an 11th win in their last 12 Bundesliga games.

Ivan Rakitic scored a delightful winning goal as Barcelona triumphed 1-0 in a tight Clasico clash with Real Madrid to move 10 points clear at the top of the LaLiga table.    Barca won 3-0 at the Santiago Bernabeu to reach the Copa del Rey final in midweek and, three days later, they prevailed once more at the home of their bitter rivals in a game that saw captains Sergio Ramos and Lionel Messi involved in a flashpoint.    Rakitic struck the only goal with a cute chip that beat Thibaut Courtois with Barca comfortably holding Los Blancos at bay to inflict more Clasico misery and consecutive home league losses on Madrid.    And with Santiago Solari's side now 12 points behind Barca the title race may be almost over as a contest, although Atletico Madrid can stay in the hunt by winning at Real Sociedad on Sunday.