International

Real Madrid will welcome capital rivals Atletico Madrid, one of the most awaited matches at The Alfredo Di Stefano Stadium on Saturday night. The hosts are fourth, six points behind Atletico champions, who also have a game in hand. But unlike Real Madrid Diego Simeone’s side have made an excellent start to the 2020-21 season. There was a lot of pressure on Real Madrid and indeed head coach Zinedine Zidane when the Spanish champions lost back-to-back matches. Los Blancos were losing ground in the league at that time and were also in danger of being excluded from the Champions League group stages. However, they picked up a 2-0 win over Borussia Monchengladbach in the Champions League. Zidane's side managed to pick up a massive 1-0 victory away from Sevilla in the league last we...

Manchester United and Manchester City lock horns in Manchester Derby this Saturday with only one point and one position separating the teams. Both clubs have experienced a poor start to their respective campaigns. But in recent weeks they have started to climb the table and remain in touch with the leading pack with victory in this match. No Manchester United fan would have believed that Man Utd will be playing derby while they sit on top of them in the table this season. But here they are despite their inconsistency. The loss to RB Leipzig in midweek again condemned them to Europa League football. They needed just one point from their final two matches to qualify for the last 16 of the Champions League. The Red Devils have now won a club-record nine consecutive away league ...

Real Madrid secured qualification for the Champions League round of16 with a 2-0 win over Borussia Monchengladbach. Real's win was followed by a goalless draw between Inter Milan and Shakhtar Donetsk which also ensured the Bundesliga side's spot in the knockout phase. It was a do or die match for Real Madrid as they were on the verge of demotion to the Europa League. Only a victory would have been necessary to retain the 100 percent record of Los Blancos in qualifying from their Champions League group. Real Madrid took the lead after just nine minutes when Benzema headed home from Lucas Vazquez's cross. Real Madrid doubled their lead before half time, thanks to Benzema again. It was 2-0 on 31 minutes with Benzema again scoring via a header -- this time from a Rodrygo assist. ...

Tottenham Hotspur will host Belgian outfit Royal Antwerp for the top spot of Group J as Thursday night sees the final group fixtures of the 2020/21 UEFA Europa League. Tottenham are seated at the top of the Premier League table. And they have advanced to the quarterfinals of the Carabao Cup and are through to the Europa League knockout stages. Spurs are still second in the group following their 3-3 draw against LASK last week, two points less than their opponents on Thursday. However, Spurs will be in a buoyant mood after beating Arsenal 2-0 in the season's first north London derby this past weekend. Nevertheless, they will be aware that against a Royal Antwerp side. They are one of only two teams to have won against Jose Mourinho's side this term, apart from Everton. Antwerp...

RB Leipzig sent Manchester United home from the Champions League after beating English outfit 3-2 in the final match of the group. The team of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer entered the match, requiring at least a point to progress to the round of 16. But the hopes of qualification dampened as Angelino beat David De Gea with a fine finish at the far post in the second minute. Soon after, Angelino turned supplier as the Bundesliga side doubled their advantage. Amadou Haidara smashed a volley home and take Leipzig to a 2-0 lead they would take at half-time in the dressing room. Solskjær switched to 4-2-3-1 for the second half. He replaced Alex Telles, with Donny van de Beek at left midfield, and his team got on to the front foot. Fernandes' shot hit the crossbar early on. At the hour ...

The UEFA Champions League tie between Paris St. Germain and Istanbul Basaksehir had to be canceled after 15 minutes due to alleged racist remarks from the match officials. The match was abandoned on Tuesday after the fourth official was accused of using a racist word against one of the staff on the Istanbul bench. The incident happened just 14 minutes into the Champions League Group H tie, which was still goalless. According to the Istanbul unit, Sebastian Coltescu, the fourth official, used the language to point assistant coach Pierre Webo on the bench. In an exchange on the touchline, former Cameroon international Webo was handed a red card. In protest, Istanbul players walked off the pitch, with PSG players following. There followed a wait of around two hours before offici...

Cristiano Ronaldo scored twice and Weston McKennie added another as Juventus defeated Barcelona 3-0. The victory saw the Italians top the table in head-to-head results with Barca. Lionel Messi & Co. experienced a miserable night at Camp Nou to settle for second place. In one of the most anticipated matches this season, Ronaldo tested Ter Stegen very early in the game. But he made sure the German goalkeeper went the wrong way when Juventus were awarded a penalty and Ronaldo slotted it home in the 13th minute. As the visitors cranked up the pace, defender Danilo flashed an effort just wide. But with a spectacular McKennie volley bringing the Italian champions two goals up and in full charge seven minutes later. Clement Lenglet was penalized for handball seven minutes fro...

Injal Bhattarai, Kathmandu A year ago Arsenal sacked Unai Emery because of his poor tactics and underperformance from a decent squad. Emery's tactics saw large gaps in midfield and toothless attacks in the last matches at Arsenal. He gave the impression of a manager who simply does not know how to fix the problems. The Spaniard used players out of position e.g Xhaka at LCB, Torreira as CAM/CM. He used the same tactics in every game and was so vulnerable that even teams that were bottom in the league dominated Arsenal and gave hard times. But now he is enjoying his reign at Villareal. Times have changed and the scenario at Arsenal too. Staff redundancy, player bust-ups, Covid-19, new major signings, Ozil’s exclusion have all happened in these last 8 months or so. But if he ...

Barcelona are set to welcome Italian champions Juventus to Camp Nou in the Champions League on Tuesday night. Both Barcelona and Juventus will be aiming to secure first place in Group G. Both sides have already booked their places in the last-16 stage of the competition. Barca has a three-point advantage over second-placed Juve. If Barca wants to confirm the top spot from Ronald Koeman's side on the final matchday, the Blaugrana has serious work to do. This season, Barca's Champions League form was exceptional. They have won all five of their Group G fixtures with an aggregate score of 16-2. And they look to comfortably book their place in the competition's knockout stage. The Catalan giants are very much in charge of the section's first place. They will only give Juve top spot...

Tottenham's Harry Kane scored his 250th goal for club and country on Sunday as Tottenham romped to a 2-0 win over city rivals Arsenal. Kane's goal also marked his 100th home goal and made him the top scorer in the derby in north London. In the 13th minute, Kane perfectly managed a Moussa Sissoko pass from a Spurs counter-attack. He found Son in the counter-attack as the South Korean unleashed a 20-yard shot into the net to put Spurs ahead. A minute into extra time at the end of the first-half, it was then Son's turn to provide an assist for Kane. Son kept the ball again with Arsenal trapped on the counter-attack. Kane emerged on his outer left and then slipped a pass to him. Kane then powered the ball from near range into the roof of the net. Partey couldn’t track Kane’s run as ...