Samir scraps with Frimpong as pair renew hostilities after jeers on Arsenal return

Samir Nasri was involved in a tunnel bust-up with former Arsenal team-mate Emmanuel Frimpong after helping Manchester City reach the Carling Cup semi-finals. 

The pair, who clashed on Twitter when Nasri left for City earlier in the season, gestured to each other as they approached the tunnel after the final whistle of a tie settled by Sergio Aguero's only goal.  

Arsenal denied punches were thrown but a witness confirmed the players confronted each other as they left for the dressing rooms at the Emirates Stadium.

Nasri was jeered by home fans thanks to his £25million move in August but the France midfielder had the last laugh after playing his part in City's first win at Arsenal in  36 years. 

But City manager Roberto Mancini was disappointed with the 24-year-old's display and has demanded an improvement. 

'He can play better because he is a top player,' said Mancini. 'I'm sure he will improve. Sometimes you need time. Maybe it was his first night back at Arsenal and maybe he was nervous, it's not easy for a player who was here for four or five years.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger felt his side had the better chances but were guilty of 'naive' defending when Edin Dzeko broke from a corner and the ball  was worked to Aguero to score. 

'It was not an unfair result but I felt we were a bit naive because it was a corner for us and then goal for them,' said Wenger. 'We looked the winner of the game and it is frustrating because we put a lot of effort in and were not rewarded. But our midfield has battled well and showed quality.' 

Source: www.dailymail.co.uk
Picture: www.sport360.com

Time for AVB to start praying Bayer Leverkusen 2 Chelsea 1

ANDRE VILLAS-BOAS was left praying for help last night as his Chelsea nightmare continued.

After a last-gasp Champions League defeat the under-fire Blues boss admitted: "We are in a negative spiral of results and the team is trying desperately to get out if it.

"Our confidence is low right now and they expect the manager to inspire them.

"That is my job — to motivate and inspire these players to change our fortunes. The responsibility is mine.

Group E

Team	Point
Leverkusen	9
Chelsea	8
Valencia	8
Genk	2

 

"But we will also need our fans behind us for our final group game at home to Valencia. It is a critical moment for the team.

"I think it was an unfair result. Neither team played good football but that's not what matters now.

"What matters is Leverkusen have taken three important points to change the whole nature of this group.

"It is still in our own hands to qualify and we expect to do our job, but Valencia are a team on the up.

"It's tough for a lot of the English teams in the Champions League at the moment. We have been suffering a lot, conceding a lot of goals and we have to get back to winning.

"At the moment, everything is happening to us but there are no excuses."

Villas-Boas revealed Brazilian centre-half David Luiz had to come off midway through the second-half and refused to blame sub Alex for Manuel Friedrich's last-gasp winner.

AVB added: "David Luiz was feeling very dizzy and sick at half-time. He decided to continue for the team but we had to make the substitution.

"Alex is a brave defender and the marking at the corner was correct but Friedrich got that inch to head the ball into our net.

source: thesun.co.uk

Milan vs Barcelona 2-3 Highlights

Highlights of exciting game between AC Milan vs Barcelona 2-3  for UEFA Champion League round 1







Milan vs Barcelona 0-1 ( Mark van Bommel own goal Milan 14′)
AC Milan vs Barcelona 1-1 ( Zlatan Ibrahimovic goal vs Barca 20′)
Milan vs Barca 1-2 ( Messi penalty goal vs Milan 31′)
AC Milan vs Barcelona 2-2 ( Kevin Prince Boateng goal vs Barcelona 54′)
Milan vs Barcelona 2-3 ( Xavi goal vs Milan 63′)

Don't wear club shirts on Napoli trip, Manchester City fans are told

Manchester City have taken the dramatic step of writing to supporters travelling to Italy for next week's Champions League match to urge them not to wear club shirts or scarves. 

City take on Napoli, where visiting supporters have previously been subjected to knife attacks. In a letter to the fans who bought tickets for the match, club officials have also urged them to avoid no-go areas, including the railway station and the Old Centre of the city.

It is the first time City have issued such advice. The move comes after four Bayern Munich supporters were slashed with knives outside the Stadio San Paolo before a Champions League match last month. There were numerous reports of knife-wielding thugs on mopeds carrying out vicious assaults and two more German fans were stabbed in the city centre.

Last year three Liverpool fans were knifed, with two taken to hospital, when they visited Naples in the Europa League. Worried Manchester City officials drew up the advice after meeting officials from police at home and in Italy.

City's letter, signed by the operations manager Steve Sayer, says fans should "take care and use common sense" and "travel in groups where possible".

It says the club is "confident that there is a low risk of problems" but adds: "We would also advise against wearing club colours away from the game, particularly when taking public transport."

Tensions around the televised encounter are set to be high as defeat could see the Italians knocked out of the tournament. No alcohol will be served inside the ground and City supporters will be locked in after the final whistle for 45 minutes.

City said they had been working closely with the British consulate in Naples, Napoli and the Italian police to ensure the safety of their fans. The Premier League club are second in Group A, with seven points, behind Bayern Munich on 10 and ahead of Napoli with five.

source: www.theguardian.co.uk, picture from www.dailymail.co.uk

Top 5 impossible goals

Some goals in the video looked very impossible but they became the beautiful scores.

Forgetful Fabio misses son's wedding due to England match

Fabio Capello just can't stay away from controversy it seems.

First the England manager saw his Euro 2012 plans wrecked by a three-game ban for talisman Wayne Rooney.

Then his captain John Terry was caught up in racism storm.

 

And now he has upset his son's wedding plans by England organising a friendly with world champions Spain.

It means Capello will miss his younger son Pierfilippo tying the knot with long-term partner Tiziana in Milan on Saturday - the same day as the England match at Wembley.

The friendly was originally scheduled for Friday but Spain insisted that the kick off was moved back 24 hours to give their Barcelona contingent more time to recover from Wednesday's Copa del Rey game against L’Hospitalet.

The rules oblige Barcelona to play at least seven recognised first-team players in the tie.

Capello forgot to tell his right-hand man Franco Baldini about the wedding plans when he organised the game with the Spanish federation.

And Pierfilippo, a sports lawyer who works in Milan and negotiated his father’s contract with the FA four years ago, said that the family had been able to see the funny side.

He told The Independent: 'It [Capello missing the wedding] is not a problem, absolutely not. He is a football manager first; he has been that ever since I was a child and sometimes being a football manager can make strange demands on your time. You just have to accept that.

'It will be a beautiful ceremony and a beautiful party. We will all toast him sitting there on the bench at Wembley and look forward to him coming to join us for the celebrations after the games.' 

source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/

Cristiano Ronaldo is Real Centurion

CRISTIANO RONALDO scored his 100th goal for Real Madrid as they saw off Lyon in the Champions League.

The £80million man reached the landmark haul on just his 105th appearance for the Spanish giants after leaving Manchester United two years ago.

Ronaldo's brace sealed Madrid's place in the last 16 of the tournament and left boss Jose Mourinho purring over his star player.

The Special One said: "It is an incredible record. To score 100 goals for Real is tremendous, especially scoring two goals here in Lyon where we have a negative record historically. I think it's fantastic."

Portugal superstar Ronaldo opened the scoring in the 24th minute by curling home a free-kick.

And he became a Real centurion on 69 minutes when he converted a penalty after Lyon fullback Mouhamadou Dabo had fouled him.

The win put Madrid top of Group D on 12 points — five clear of second placed Ajax, who thumped Dynamo Zagreb 4-0.

But the night belonged to Ronaldo, who is battling Barcelona's Lionel Messi for the World Player of the Year crown.

Argentine ace Messi hit a hat-trick last night in the 4-0 victory at Viktoria Plzen — taking his tally to an amazing 202 goals in 286 matches for the reigning Spanish and European champions.

source: http://www.thesun.co.uk/

Highlight video: Lyon vs Real Madrid : 0-2