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UCL: Mbappe bags brace as PSG thrash Barca, Dortmund eliminate Atletico

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A brace from Kylian Mbappe and a strike from Ousmane Dembele saw Paris Saint-Germain thrash Barcelona 4-1, in the Champions League quarter-final second leg tie in Spain.

It was a night to forget for Barcelona as Xavi, defender Ronald Arajuo, and even goalkeeping coach Jose Ramon de la Fuente sent off.

The LaLiga giants came into the second leg holding a 3-2 advantage from their victory in Paris last week.

They looked on course for the semi-final when Raphinha’s early strike put them 1-0 up on 12 minutes.

However, the tie turned on its head when Arajuo was shown a straight red card on 29 minutes for impeding Bradley Barcola as the last man back.

Former Barcelona man Dembele equalised with five minutes left in the first half.

Vitinha then put PSG 2-1 ahead on the night nine minutes into the second half.

Barca boss Xavi lost his head at how referee Istvan Kovacs had officiated the contest.

The Spaniard booted the advertising hoarding in front of the fourth official in frustration and his aggression saw him get sent to the stands.

Things went from bad to worse for the Catalans when Joao Cancelo dived in late on Dembele inside the box to give away a penalty.

Mbappe, who will likely be facing Barcelona as a rival player for Real Madrid next season, then made no mistake from the spot to make it 3-1 on 61 minutes.

Barcelona goalkeeping coach Jose Ramon de la Fuente’s protests saw him join Xavi in being shown a red as the club pushed for a way back.

But after committing players forwards, Mbappe got his second and PSG’s fourth goal on 89 minutes.

His second-half double meant Mbappe has now scored six goals against Barcelona in the Champions League – his most against any opponent in the competition.

PSG will now face Borussia Dortmund in the semi-finals after the Germans ousted Atletico Madrid.

Dortmund lost the first leg 2-1 in Spain before triumphing 4-2 in the reverse fixture.

On Wednesday, holders Manchester City will host Real Madrid with everything to play for after the first leg ended 3-3.

At the Allianz Arena, Bayern Munich will hope to overcome Arsenal whom they held to a 2-2 draw at the Emirates.

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EPL: David Raya reacts to mistake in Arsenal’s 3-2 win over Spurs

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Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya has said that he is open to learning new things through his own mistakes.

Some of such mistakes were prevalent during Arsenal’s 3-2 win against Tottenham in the Premier League on Sunday.

Arsenal were 3-0 up in the first half through Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg’s own-goal and strikes from Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz.

However, Tottenham came back from the break stronger and were handed a way back in the 64th minute when Raya’s attempted lob ended up at the feet of Cristian Romero at the edge of the box.

The Argentine finished off the chance to make it 3-1.Son Heung-min then scored from the penalty spot with three minutes to go in regulation following a foul by Declan Rice on Ben Davies.

However, Mikel Arteta’s side somehow fended their north London rivals off for the remainder of the contest.

Raya told Sky Sports,
“I’ve learnt from making mistakes. If you don’t make mistakes, you don’t learn. It’s a part of football, everybody makes mistakes.

“But the thing [is] when a keeper makes a mistake, it’s a goal, it’s more seen, more talked [about], compared to a striker missing a tap-in or whatever.

“But it’s just part of football and you learn from that. That’s the most important thing – you learn from the mistakes.”

 

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Finidi`s appointment long overdue, says Sports Analyst

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A renowned Sports Analyst, Tayo Balogun  said that the appointment of Finidi George as the Super Eagles head coach was long overdue.

Balogun told the NEWSMEN in Ibadan on Tuesday   that it was surprising that NFF waited this long to make the appointment.

“In view of the Eagles tight schedule, one would have expected that immediately José Peseiro said he was leaving, George should have been upgraded to continue with the plans already on ground.

“Giving all the statistics and all things involved I think there was no choice than to appoint him because he worked with Peseiro for 20 months and also as an interim manager.

“He had earlier coached a football team in Nigeria. He knows the terrain. He might not have been involved in the politics of Nigeria football, but every other thing he knows and he’s home grown.

“With organisation and dedication, I see no reason why we can’t qualify ahead of Rwanda, Benin Republic and South Africa in our group.

“After working with Peseiro, who was a defensive minded coach, he’ll have to pick his own style. In the next few matches, I’ll want him to be very cautious,”he said.

Balogun said that if we love Nigeria, this is the time for us all to come together and support George.

“His salary should be decided, mode of payment as and when due. I prefer that George is the chosen one over a foreign coach who won’t know much about Nigerian football and its terrain.

“There are advantages in having a foreign coach, but there are many more disadvantages,” he said.

NEWSMEN reports that the NFF on Monday announced the appointment of George as the Super Eagles head Coach.

George in interim capacity edged Ghana 2-1 in the first match, ending an 18-year winless streak against the Black Stars, but lost 0-2 to Mali in the second game.

 

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EPL: I just like him – Peter Schmeichel picks best manager to replace Ten Hag at Man United

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Former Manchester United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel has picked Thomas Tuchel as the best manager to become the next Red Devils boss.

Schmeichel, who is impressed by Tuvhel’s football knowledge, says the German has what it takes to get the best out of the players.

Speaking on BeIN Sports, Schmeichel said he former Chelsea boss did not fail at Stamford Bridge and should be given a chance at Manchester United.

He believes the current Bayern Munich manager projects authority and said: “I like Thomas Tuchel. I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing him a couple of times and his football knowledge is fantastic.

“He’s been a little bit unlucky with being at two big football clubs at the wrong time of their history, at times where things weren’t working on every level.

“It’s not that he didn’t do well Chelsea, for instance. I mean, he won the Champions League, didn’t he?!

“I just like him, there’s something about him. He projects authority. Never compare people but he’s got the same kind of thing that [Jurgen] Klopp has.

“You know he’s the boss and you know what he’s doing. If Manchester United were in the market for a manager then he should be somebody mentioned in that respect.

“He should be. He has that kind of pedigree, he’s got the authority, he’s proven he can win which I think is really important. He doesn’t come with a set system, ‘This is how our football is being played’… yeah, of course, he’s a big-club manager, isn’t he.”

Tuchel, who is the current boss at Bayern Munich, will be leaving the German side at the end of the season.

Meanwhile, Erik ten Hag’s future at Manchester United is hanging in the balance, with many reports linking him with an exit.

 

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