Match Reports
Bundesliga forward shines, Real Madrid star fails to live up to hype – Wales 1-1 Switzerland Player Ratings
Wales and Switzerland played out a tight draw in their opening game of Euro 2020 on Saturday. It was an open first half which Switzerland had the better of. However, it was Wales who came the closest to opening the scoring before the break. Daniel James got down the left and swung in an excellent cross for Kieffer Moore. The Cardiff City forward headed towards the far corner, but Yann Sommer produced a fine save to tip over. Down the other end, Fabian Schar had a flick from a corner saved by Danny Ward, and Haris Seferovic twice missed the target with shots inside the box. Just before the whistle, Vladimir Petkovic’s men had a glorious chance to take the lead when Breel Embolo laid off for Seferovic, but the 29-year-old’s shooting was once again wayward. The chances continued to come for S...
Former Man Utd and PSG players shine in opening game – Belgium 3-0 Russia Player Ratings
Belgium laid down a marker in their opening game of the tournament, comfortably defeating Russia 3-0. The first half was comfortable for Roberto Martinez’s men, who took the lead after ten minutes. Dries Mertens’ pass trickled through the legs of defender Andrey Semenov and fell perfectly for Romelu Lukaku, who was never going to miss. Lukaku was in an offside position in the build up, but VAR adjudged that Semenov had deliberately played the ball. Russia came close to equalising not long after when Mario Fernandes headed straight at Thibaut Courtois from Aleksandr Golovin’s corner. Meanwhile, down the other end, Georgiy Dzhikiya made a fantastic tackle to deny Lukaku a second. But it wasn’t long before Belgium got their second. Thorgan Hazard’s cross was spilled by goalkeeper Anton Shunin...
Chelsea and Juventus men impress, AC Milan playmaker disappoints – Turkey 0-3 Italy Player Ratings
Italy made the perfect start to their Euro 2020 campaign on Friday, seeing off Turkey with three second-half goals. Roberto Mancini’s men dominated the first half but were met by a stern Turkey defence seemingly happy to take a draw. Ciro Immobile had a couple of half-chances that missed the target, and Lorenzo Insigne bent a shot wide following a one-two with Immobile. The closest either side came to opening the scoring came through centre-back Giorgio Chiellini. The Juventus man’s header was goalbound, but he was denied by an excellent save from Ugurkan Cakir. Despite Italy’s control, the first half ended goalless. Turkey went in at the break with just 33% possession and no attempts on goal, as opposed to Gli Azzurri’s 14. The second half began in the same fashion, and Italy eventually g...
Youri Tielemans hits screamer as Leicester City win the FA Cup
Leicester City defeated Chelsea 1-0 in the FA Cup final courtesy of a wonder strike by Youri Tielemans. Chelsea came to Wembley looking to avenge last year’s heartbreak when they were defeated at this stage by Arsenal. For their opponents, it was an opportunity to win this competition for the first time in their history. They have previously been runners-up on four occasions. The first half was quiet. Both sides showed plenty of attacking intent, but the defences came out on top. Thomas Tuchel’s men came close when Mason Mount’s 20-yard shot was deflected wide, while Timo Werner blazed over from a similar distance. Werner put another shot wide, and Thiago Silva’s cross went just wide of the back post, with just a touch needed to find the net. As for Leicester, Jamie Vardy had a shot blocke...
United grind their way to success as Europa League final – and a tough May schedule – awaits
Manchester United progressed through into the final of the Europa League with an 8-5 aggregate win over A.S. Roma, though Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side did lose out 3-2 to the Italians in the second leg at the Stadio Olimpico. A brace by Edinson Cavani was bettered on the night by goals from Edin Džeko, Bryan Cristante and the debuting Nicola Zalewski. United were fresh going into the clash as their scheduled fixture on Sunday with Liverpool was postponed due to fan protests against the Glazers’ ownership of the club. That said, Solskjaer’s side now face four games in seven days (including the second leg against Roma), so squad rotation will be key. Accordingly, the manager named his starting 11 and there were three changes from last week’s first leg of the semi-final at Old Trafford: Manche...
Arsenal eliminated from Europa League after being held to goalless draw by Villarreal
Arsenal were knocked out of the Europa League by Villarreal after playing out a 0-0 draw in the second leg, with the tie ending 2-1 on aggregate. The first half was seriously flat, with neither side able to create anything clear cut. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang had the best chance of the opening 45, doing well to strike a volley against the outside of the post. As for the visitors, the closest they came to changing the scoreline was through Dani Parejo. The former Queens Park Rangers loanee took a free kick from just outside the box, but put it marginally over the crossbar. It was a first half that will have satisfied Unai Emery more than Mikel Arteta. On his return to the Emirates Stadium, his side were limiting Arsenal to half-chances while also providing a bit of threat. The second half b...
Chelsea see off Real Madrid to reach Champions League final
Chelsea defeated Real Madrid 2-0 at Stamford Bridge to reach their first Champions League final in nine years. It was a cagey opening 20 minutes, with neither side creating anything clear cut. Antonio Rudiger had a shot from distance beaten away by Thibaut Courtois, while Toni Kroos and Luka Modric both had long-range strikes saved. Timo Werner thought he had opened the scoring when he tapped in from Ben Chilwell’s low cross, but the offside flag was raised. But the German was not to be denied a second time ten minutes later. After some brilliant footwork and link up play by N’Golo Kante, he found Kai Havertz. The German’s chipped effort came back off the bar, but compatriot Werner was on hand to nod home from about a yard out. Los Blancos were struggling to create anything, with wingers E...
Manchester City reach Champions League final after home win over PSG
Manchester City have reached the Champions League final for the first time in their history, defeating Paris Saint-Germain 4-1 on aggregate. PSG thought they had made the perfect start when referee Bjorn Kuipers pointed to the penalty spot after an alleged handball by Oleksandr Zinchenko. However, VAR stepped in and overturned the decision after replays showed that the ball hit the Ukrainian’s shoulder. Not long afterwards, the hosts took the lead on the night and went two ahead on the tie. A brilliant pass by Ederson found Zinchenko down the left, who cut it back for Kevin De Bruyne. The Belgian’s shot was blocked, but the ball fell perfectly for Riyad Mahrez, who slotted through the legs of Keylor Navas. The visitors weren’t deterred by this, and came within inches of netting an immediat...
Barcelona miss opportunity to go top after shock home defeat to Granada
The La Liga title race took another huge twist as Granada came from behind to win at Camp Nou on Thursday. Barcelona dominated the early stages, with Antoine Griezmann providing the threat. The World Cup winner combined with Frenkie de Jong down the right, but the Dutchman’s cutback was cleared. Griezmann then had a go himself but saw his low shot saved. The home side eventually made their dominance pay off, and Griezmann was once again involved. Lionel Messi played a one-two with the Frenchman before firing into the far corner for his 26th league goal of the season. Not long afterwards, the Argentine had the opportunity to add number 27 to his tally after being played clean through on goal by Sergio Busquets, but his effort was poked around the post by the right foot of Aaron Escandell. G...
Five star second-half performance puts Man Utd in control of Europa League semi-final tie with Roma
Manchester United will take a commanding 6-2 lead into the second leg of their Europa League semi-final tie against Roma. The Red Devils were 2-1 down at the break, but five unanswered second-half goals put them firmly in the driving seat ahead of next week’s trip to Rome. United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer made three changes to his side from their 0-0 draw with Leeds United in the Premier League on Sunday. Goalkeeper David De Gea returned in goal, while Paul Pogba and Edinson Cavani also came into the starting XI: United: De Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Lindelöf, Maguire, Shaw, Fred, McTominay, Rashford, Fernandes, Pogba, Cavani. Roma arrived at Old Trafford on the back of a 3-2 defeat to Cagliari in Serie A, which sums up a poor season for the Italian side. Currently seventh in the league and...
Man City come from behind to beat PSG in Champions League semi-final first leg
Manchester City defeated Paris Saint-Germain at the Parc des Princes in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final tie. PSG applied all of the early pressure, and got their reward in the 15th minute. Angel Di Maria’s excellent corner was glanced home by Marquinhos, scoring a semi-final goal for the second year running. Les Parisiens continued to control the game, and twice came close to extending their lead. Neymar had a deflected effort turned over the bar, and Leandro Paredes headed wide from a set piece when perhaps he should have hit the target. Man City did have a couple of chances of their own, first coming close through Bernardo Silva. He had to stretch to reach a long pass by compatriot Joao Cancelo, but managed to divert his effort on target. Keylor Navas turned it wide fo...
Benzema’s volley cancels out Pulisic’s opener in Champions League semi-final tie
Real Madrid and Chelsea played out a close 1-1 draw in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final tie. The visitors made a strong start to the game, and should have taken the lead in the ninth minute. Christian Pulisic nodded across goal for Timo Werner, but the striker put his close-range effort straight at Thibaut Courtois when he really ought to have scored. Five minutes later, the Blues were in front. Antonio Rudiger’s floated through ball found Pulisic, who expertly rounded Courtois and smashed into the back of the net. Real Madrid were struggling to get a grip on the game, rarely troubling the Chelsea backline. Although, they came close to an equaliser out of nowhere when Karim Benzema saw his left-footed strike graze the post. And the Frenchman was on hand to bag the equalis...
