March 2014 - Soccer Wiretap

Hazard: Chelsea Not Made To Play Football

May 1, 2014 1:53 PM

Chelsea fell 3-1 to Atlético Madrid in the Champions League Semifinal after taking an early lead with a Fernando Torres goal.

Eden Hazard didn't appear to be at full healthy, but he spoke more existentially about Chelsea's tactics as he goes into a summer with an uncertain future at Stamford Bridge. 

"I don't know what we lacked," Hazard told beIN Sport. "After scoring, we had the game in our hands. Maybe they wanted it more than we did... It was an intense game. Beautiful to watch with opportunities. 

"I'm sad but logic has been respected because they deserved to qualify. 

"Chelsea is not made to play football. We're good on the counter, a little bit like Real against Bayern. 

"We did it well tonight since we scored. But their goal hurt us before the break. We failed to make the difference in the second half.  

"Often, I'm asked to do it all by myself and it's not easy. It was a complicated game. It will be a lesson for us regarding next year."

Hazard has been linked to Paris Saint-Germain and he previously told the media that he would have to consider a move if his wife insisted upon it.

Liam Twomey/Goal.com

Tags: Chelsea, IQ, Misc Rumor, Transfer Rumor

Discuss
Atleti Beats Chelsea 3-1, Will Face Real Madrid In UCL Final

May 1, 2014 1:53 PM

Atlético Madrid defeated Chelsea 3-1 at Stamford Bridge to advance to the Champions League Final in which they'll face Real Madrid.

Fernando Torres scored the first goal in the 36th minute converting a cross from Cesar Azpilicueta to put Chelsea up 1-0 over his boyhood club.

But Atleti responded eight minutes later when Tiago made a brilliant diagonal pass over the top from left to right that Juanfran hit back across to setup Adrián. Eden Hazard switched off Juanfran to allow him space to receive the cross cleanly.

In the 61st minute, Samuel Eto'o made a careless foul on Diego Costa, which the referee awarded a penalty kick. Diego Costa took his time setting up the penalty kick, unable to get the ball propped on the grass properly and was awarded a yellow card. But Diego Costa converted the penalty kick once it was eventually taken to put up Atleti 2-1.

Atleti fully put Chelsea away in the 72nd minute with another great cross over the top by Tiago to Juanfran, which found Arda Turan for the header and third goal.

RealGM Staff Report

Tags: Atletico Madrid, Chelsea, Real Madrid, UEFA Champions League

Discuss
Report: Atlético Madrid Closes Deal For Ivan Rakitić

Apr 30, 2014 12:23 PM

Atlético Madrid has closed on a $23.5 million USD signing of Ivan Rakitić.

Rakitić has been one of the best midfielders in La Liga since arriving at Sevilla from Schalke in 2011.

Agência News

Tags: Atletico Madrid, Sevilla, Misc Rumor, Transfer Rumor

Discuss
Donovan: Ronaldo Worth More Than Entire USMNT Combined

Apr 30, 2014 11:42 PM

The United States are in a difficult Group G in the World Cup in which they'll play Ghana, Portugal and Germany.

"If we play very well, are we capable of beating Ghana? Yes. Are we capable of beating Portugal? Yes. Are capable of beating Germany? Yes. We have to play well, and we have to force them to not play well," Donovan said. "That all ties into it. If we do that, we can advance. It’s also possible that we play as well as we can, and Germany, Ghana and Portugal could either tie us or beat us. They have great players, too. But as a starting point, if we don’t play well it’s going to be really difficult. That’s what we focus on. The rest of it, we can’t control, but I think we have a pretty good chance."

Donovan said he is aware of the challenges the team will face just to advance out of the first group.

"There are realities, right?" he said. "So Cristiano Ronaldo, I’m guessing, earns more than our whole team combined. He is, from a value standpoint, worth more than our whole team combined, if someone bought him versus our players on the open market. You can’t ignore that. It’s not an excuse, but it’s reality.

"He’s a special player and a special talent. We could play an amazing game against Portugal, and he could pull off two plays that only he can pull off, and we could end up losing. So what has to happen is we have to play well, no question."

Jeff Carlisle/ESPN

Tags: United States, Portugal, World Cup

Discuss
John Terry Hopeful Of New Deal With Chelsea

Apr 30, 2014 11:10 AM

John Terry would like to remain at Chelsea for the remainder of his career.

Terry's deal expires at the end of the current season, but has had a resurgent campaign with the arrival of José Mourinho.

"I want to stay here for the rest of my footballing days," Terry said. "It's the club I've been at since 14 and I've been nowhere else.

"We're in talks. We've had big games, so we haven't spoken for a few weeks, but I hope it gets done.

"It's down to the club but I want to stay and I hope something gets sorted out."

Mark Bowering/Goal.com

Tags: Chelsea, Misc Rumor

Discuss
Andros Townsend Ruled Out Of World Cup With Ankle Injury

Apr 30, 2014 11:08 AM

Andros Townsend of Tottenham has been ruled out of England's World Cup roster with an ankle injury.

Townsend will undergo surgery on the ankle.

"Following further examination and consultation, Andros Townsend is to undergo surgery on his left ankle on Thursday (tomorrow) after damaging ligaments during  our fixture against Stoke City last Saturday," read a Spurs statement. "The injury is likely to sideline the young winger for up to ten weeks."

Kevin Palmer/ESPN

Tags: Tottenham Hotspur, England, Injury, World Cup

Discuss
Real Madrid Planning On Summer Exhibition In San Francisco

Apr 30, 2014 10:06 AM

Real Madrid is attempting to arrange an exhibition game in the San Francisco Bay Area for late July.

Real is one of eight European soccer clubs featured in the Guinness International Champions Cup.

The venue choices appear to be Candlestick Park or Stanford Stadium.

The San Jose Earthquakes of the MLS are scheduled to open Levi's Stadium on Aug. 2 against the Sounders, perhaps eliminating the San Francisco 49ers' new stadium.

San Jose Mercury News

Tags: Real Madrid

Discuss
Zanetti To Become Director Of Inter Milan

Apr 30, 2014 1:23 AM

Javier Zanetti will become director of Inter Milan as the end of the season.

Zanetti's 19th season as an Inter player will be his last.

Rumors that Zanetti would stay at Inter after his playing career finished have been circulating in the Italian media for most of the season.

"The meetings with Zanetti have been going on for the last couple of months to understand his vision," Thohir said.

"The discussion is done already; he'll become part of the management."

FourFourTwo

Tags: Internazionale, Misc Rumor

Discuss
Ronaldo: Ancelotti Changed Everything, Mentality Of Players

Apr 29, 2014 8:37 PM

Real Madrid has advanced to the Champions League final in the first season of Carlo Ancelotti's tenure as manager.

Ancelotti replaced José Mourinho, who led Real to the semifinals in 2011, 2012 and 2013.

“Ancelotti deserves all the credit," said Cristiano Ronaldo. He’s changed everything. He’s changed the mentality of the players.

“Scoring four goals on the road against Bayern isn’t easy. The team played very well. We are elated, I have to congratulate the team, who are very close. The team is playing in the best possible way and things got easier. The team was phenomenal. We are in the final, which is what we wanted.

“We’ve been searching for this for a long time. We are now in the final and deservedly so. We have to keep out heads up with both feet on the ground.”

Tom Conn/Inside Spanish Football

Tags: Real Madrid, IQ

Discuss
Mourinho Dismisses Criticism From 'Philosophers'

Apr 30, 2014 11:07 AM

José Mourinho defended his tactics, which have been criticized in the media as merely "parking the bus" to achieve results for Chelsea.

Chelsea defeated Liverpool 2-0 during the weekend despite only moving forward in counterattack.

"At this moment, football is full of philosophers," Mourinho said. "People who understand much more than me. People with fantastic theories and philosophies. It's amazing. But the reality is always the reality. A team that doesn't defend well doesn't have many chances to win. A team that doesn't score lots of goals, if they concede lots of goals, is in trouble. A team without balance is not a team.

"I remember in my first period here, if you have a goalkeeper like Petr Cech who puts the ball in the opponents' box, and a striker like Didier Drogba who wins everything in the air, why play short? Because you are stupid?

"If your opponents are very fast on the counter and want space behind your defensive line, if you give them that space you are stupid. So when a team plays strategically and [a manager] thinks about his team and the qualities of the opponent … 10 years ago, 20 years ago, 30 years ago, 'good teams, intelligent teams'. In this moment – depending on the coach and the club obviously – the critics speak."

Daniel Taylor/The Guardian

Tags: Chelsea, IQ

Discuss
Real Madrid Advances To UCL Final With 4-0 Win Over Bayern
Real Madrid has advanced to the 2014 UEFA Champions League final with a 4-0 win over Bayern Munich (5-0 on aggregate).

Christopher Reina/RealGM

Walcott Could Miss Beginning Of Arsenal's 14-15 Season
Theo Walcott was ruled out of the remainder of Arsenal's campaign and the World Cup for England when he ruptured the ACL in his left knee in January.

ESPN

Liverpool Confident Luis Suarez Won't Want To Leave In Summer
The outstanding season from Luis Suarez has triggered rumors that Real Madrid has renewed their interest in a transfer for the striker.

ESPN

Atlético Madrid Planning On Keeping Diego Costa
Diego Costa has scored 35 goals in all competitions.

FourFourTwo

Man City, PSG Found In Breach Of FFP Rules
UEFA doesn't expect either club to be excluded from the Champions League next season.

BBC

Barça Cleared By LFP Of Wrongdoing In Neymar Transfer
Barcelona has been cleared of any wrongdoing in the signing of Neymar by the Liga de Futbol Profesional (LFP).

FourFourTwo

Bayern Keeping More Possession, Not Scoring On Set Pieces
Last season, Bayern scored eight goals from set pieces while they haven't scored a single goal this season in set pieces.

Sean Ingle/The Guardian

Four World Cup Teams Have German Manager
Argentina, Colombia, Italy and Portugal each have three managers, while Bosnia and France have two apiece.

SportingIntelligence.com

Neymar Starts Anti-Racism Campaign With 'We Are All Monkeys' Slogan
Neymar is battling racism leveled against teammate Dani Alves by taking to social media.

Goal.com

Hummels Hopes Shinji Kagawa Returns To Dormund
When Mario Goetze left Dortmund for Bayern in 2013, the club reportedly made a move for Shinji Kagawa.

Stephan Uersfeld/ESPN

Luis Suárez Named PFA Player Of The Year
Luis Suárez has been named the Professional Footballers' Association player of the year for 13-14, becoming the first non-European to win the award.

James Riach/The Guardian

Louis Van Gaal Hopes Deal With United In Place By End Of Week
Louis van Gaal prefers to have his future decided before World Cup preparations as national coach of Holland begin on May 7.

Jamie Jackson/The Guardian

Rio Ferdinand Considering Foreign Move, Would Prefer To Stay At United
Rio Ferdinand is considering offers from Galatasaray, Besiktas, LA Galaxy and Al Gharafa, but he would prefer to remain with Manchester United next season.

Jamie Jackson/The Guardian

Dani Alves Eats Banana In Response To Racist Taunt
Dani Alves was victim of a racist taunt on Sunday in Barcelona's match at Villarreal.

AP

Draxler Confident He'll Be Selected For Germany's World Cup Roster
Julian Draxler has 10 senior caps as one of the best young attacking midfielders in Europe.

Andrew Wychrij/Goal.com

Rodgers: Chelsea's Defensive Tactics, Not Nerves Produced Loss
José Mourinho's defensive tactics produced a 2-0 win for Chelsea over Brendan Rodgers' Liverpool side.

FourFourTwo

Thiago Alcântara Makes Faster Than Expected Return From Knee Injury
Thiago Alcântara was expected to miss six to eight weeks, but he has made good progress in his rehabilitation and could return before the end of the season.

Alex Fisher/Goal.com

Liverpool's Title Odds Fall From 84 Percent To 54
Liverpool remains a narrow favorite to win the Premier League.

Paul Carr/ESPN

Chelsea Shock Liverpool 2-0
José Mourinho's priorities are in the Champions League, but he pulled off the 2-0 win over Liverpool.

RealGM Staff Report

Gonzalao Higuain Escapes Scary Ankle Injury With Minor Sprain
Gonzalao Higuain had to be stretchered off in Napoli's draw with Inter on Saturday.

Miles Chambers/Goal.com