football

Agencies Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored twice on his Clasico debut and set up Ferran Torres as Barcelona defeated runaway league leaders Real Madrid in an entertaining El Clasico match on Sunday.  According to Reuters, a rejuvenated Barcelona gave a football masterclass to inflict a humiliating 4-0 defeat on rivals Real Madrid, thrashing Carlo Ancelotti’s LaLiga leaders on their own ground. A sold-out Santiago Bernabeu stadium watched silently as a much-improved Barca under the command of new coach Xavi Hernandez dominated 'El Clasico' from the start. With Ousmane Dembele and Ferran Torres exposing Real's defensive frailty on the flanks, Barca opened the scoring in the 29th minute with an Aubameyang header from a Dembele cross. According to Reuters, Barca kep...

Agencies Crystal Palace boss Patrick Vieira says the club is enjoying an "exciting period" after booking their place in the FA Cup semi-finals with a dominant 4-0 win over Everton at Selhurst Park. According to the BBC, first-half goals from Marc Guehi and Jean-Philippe Mateta put them in full control before Wilfried Zaha and Will Hughes secured the win, as the hosts' verve and attacking purpose overpowered a poor Toffees side on Sunday. "Going to Wembley is fantastic," Vieira told ITV after the game. "You can hear the atmosphere in the stadium, the fans; this is what they wanted and we wanted to give it to them. "They've been fantastic in getting behind the team. It is just a step forward; there is a long way to go. This is an exciting period for us, we will enjoy it and ...

Agencies Runaway Ligue 1 leaders Paris St-Germain (PSG) slipped to their biggest loss of the season with a dismal display at Monaco. During Sunday’s match that did not feature PSG forward Lionel Messi, the visitors were toothless in their 3-0 defeat to Monaco According to the BBC, Wissam Ben Yedder scored twice for the hosts, flicking in a near-post cross and converting a late penalty. In between, he created Monaco's second, with Kevin Volland placing his shot past PSG keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma. Mauricio Pochettino's side have now lost four of their last six matches in all competitions. And it was no more than PSG deserved for a dreadful performance in which they were second best throughout, BBC further reported. With Lionel Messi absent due to illness, Kylian Mbappe ...

By a Staff Reporter Kathmandu - Nepal’s men’s national football team is all set to leave for Thailand on Monday to play two friendly matches. Nepal will face Thailand’s national team on March 24 and then a local club – Chonburi FC – on March 27. Both the matches will be held on Chonburi’s ground. ANFA has announced Kiran Chemjong as the captain of the 25-member squad. Chemjong is currently in the Maldives to play professional football in the island nation. He will join the national team in Thailand alongside defender Rohit Chand, who is in Indonesia. Jagjeet Shrestha, another influential player of Nepal’s 25-member squad announced for the friendlies, is in Australia. The two friendly matches serve as Nepal’s preparation for the AFC Asian Cup qualifiers. Prior to this, Nepa...

By a Staff Reporter Kathmandu - Anjila Subba, goalkeeper of Nepal’s national women’s football, is all set to appear on the silver screen. She will be playing the lead role in a film based on her real story. It was informed during a press conference on Friday that the name of the film will be ‘Anjila’. The film will be produced by Kendra Motion Pictures while the co-producer of the film will be Moon Light Entertainment. Besides Anjila, the film will also feature Dayahang Rai, Srijana Subba, Buddhi Tamang, Mao Tse Gurung, Prem Kumar Shrestha among other celebrities. Prem Kumar Shrestha and Kendra Limbu are the producers of the film while the co-producers are Binod Agrawal and Rajesh Agrawal. The film will be directed by Milam Chams. According to producer Shrestha, the shooti...

Agencies Holders Chelsea will face 13-time winners Real Madrid in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, according to the draw of Europe’s elite club championship held at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland on Friday. According to the BBC, Manchester City will play Atletico Madrid, while Liverpool tackle Benfica and Bayern Munich take on Villarreal. In the semi-finals, the winner of the Chelsea v Real Madrid tie will face Atletico Madrid or Manchester City, while Benfica or Liverpool will play either Villarreal or Bayern Munich. The two-leg quarter-finals take place on 5-6 April and 12-13 April. The first legs of the semi-finals will be on 26-27 April, and the second legs on 3-4 May. The Stade de France in Paris will host the final on Saturday, 28 May aft...

Agencies Defending champions Chelsea advanced to the Champions League quarterfinals defeating Lille 2-1 in the second leg of round of 16 match at a lively Stade Pierre-Mauroy to secure a 4-1 aggregate win. According to the BBC, the Blues took a 2-0 first-leg lead to France but, in a match played amid continued uncertainty over the club's future, they had to come from behind after a slow start to earn success in the return leg. Burak Yilmaz pulled Lille back into the tie with a penalty after Jorginho handled, only for Christian Pulisic to reply in first-half injury time. Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta then put the last-16 encounter beyond the French champions when he finished at the back post with 19 minutes remaining, BBC further reported. Thomas Tuchel's side will f...

Agencies Liverpool beat Arsenal 2-0 at the Emirates Stadium to secure crucial three points in the Premier League title race. Diogo Jota's breakthrough goal early in the second half was soon followed by a second from substitute Roberto Firmino to move Jurgen Klopp's side within a point of Manchester City. Skysports reported that Arsenal had chances of their own, none clearer than when Martin Odegaard failed to beat Alisson Becker from point-blank range after Thiago Alcantara's sloppy back pass. But while the Liverpool goalkeeper kept that attempt out, Aaron Ramsdale should have done better than allow Jota's low shot to squeeze beyond him at his near post. It was tough on Mikel Arteta's team who started the game with real intensity, their performance featuring a standout dis...

Agencies Manchester United will end a fifth successive season without a trophy after bowing out of the Champions League at home to Atletico Madrid, the British media reported on Wednesday. Long since out of the Premier League title race, Ralf Rangnick’s Red Devils saw their final route to silverware slammed shut by Diego Simeone’s wily, well-drilled side on Tuesday evening. United failed to build on their scarcely-deserved draw in the first leg of this last-16 clash in Spain, with Renan Lodi’s first-half header securing a 1-0 Old Trafford win as Atletico progressed to the quarter-finals. The 2-1 aggregate exit extinguished any faint hopes of a first piece of silverware since the 2017 Europa League as the Premier League side saw a fifth successive continental campaign end i...