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UCL: Inter Milan in control of quarter-final

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Benfica 0 - 2 Inter Milan Romelu Lukaku scored an 82nd-minute penalty as Inter Milan put themselves in a strong position to advance to the semi-finals of the Champions League after a deserved win away to Benfica. Nicolo Barella's downward header gave Inter the lead in the quarter-final first leg in Lisbon. Benfica struggled to dictate play in front of their own fans as Inter produced a defensive masterclass in Lisbon. This was almost reminiscent of their 2010 triumph with Jose Mourinho.  <Click here to find more news and stories from across Italy> Rafa Silva was denied by Andre Onana's first-half save before Inter's Netherlands defender Denzel Dumfries produced a crucial block from close range as Benfica pushed for an equaliser. The Italian visitors wrapped up their win when substitute Lukaku, on loan from Chelsea, scored from the spot after former Inter player Joao Mario handled. Premier League referee Michael Oliver awarded the penalty after watching the incide...

Barca fight back to win classic match

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Benfica 4 - 5 Barcelona Barcelona overcame two separate two-goal deficits to secure a breathtaking victory over Benfica. Author - Peter Grainger The match at Estádio da Luz started disastrously for the visitors as Greek forward Vangelis Pavlidis netted a stunning 30-minute hat-trick. The first came from a well-placed cross by full-back Álvaro Carreras, while two further goals were gifted by errors from Barcelona's Polish goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny. Robert Lewandowski, however, kept Barca in contention with a first-half penalty after Alejandro Balde was fouled. Barcelona fought back after the break, with Raphinha and Lewandowski scoring either side of an unfortunate Ronald Araújo own goal to leave the score at 4-3. But the drama was far from over. Eric García equalised with a late header, and just when it seemed the game would end in a draw, Raphinha capitalised on a rapid counter-attack in the 96th minute. The Brazilian slotted past Anatoliy Trubin, leaving the home fans stun...

Barca ease into quarter-finals of the Champions League.

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Barcelona 3 - 1 Benfica (Barcelona won 4-1 on aggregate) Lamine Yamal stole the show once again as Barcelona booked their place in the Champions League quarter-finals with a composed victory over Benfica. Author - Jamie P Stadium - Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys The teenager produced a moment of brilliance to set up Raphinha for the opener before outdoing himself with a stunning strike to restore Barcelona’s lead on the night and extend their aggregate advantage to 3-1. Nicolás Otamendi’s towering header had briefly given Benfica hope after cancelling out Raphinha’s opener, but Yamal’s magic proved decisive. Raphinha then sealed the win with a clinical finish into the bottom corner. There was a moment of confusion over the Brazilian’s second goal, as it appeared play had been pulled back for an Otamendi foul on the edge of the area. But after a VAR review, the goal was given and Otamendi’s yellow card was rescinded. Barca v Benfica highlights from TNT Sports youtu.be/jlshweWf...

Pre Season: Brentford draw with Benfica

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Benfica 1 - 1 Brentford Bryan Mbeumo was on target as Brentford drew with Benfica.  Mbeumo capitalised on a sloppy back-pass to give Thomas Frank's side an early lead in Lisbon, but the Eagles levelled on 24 minutes when Vangelis Pavlidis poked home Álvaro Carreras’s cross at the front post. Kevin Schade led the line for Brentford with Igor Thiago sidelined by a meniscus injury. The hosts looked to get off to a flying start on the pitch and fashioned the first chance of note in the fifth minute. Brentford took the lead four minutes later. Schade’s ball up the left channel was intercepted by Morato and the defender’s back-pass to goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin was under-hit, which allowed the alert Mbeumo to steal in and finish first time into the bottom corner. Benfica levelled midway through the first half . Aursnes played a short pass into the overlapping Carreras down the left, who took the ball in his stride, advanced to the byline and delivered a low, fizzing cross to the fr...

UCL: PSG on fire but Juventus are out

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It was a dramatic night in Group H of the Champions League One giant of European competition won't be playing in Europe's premier competition after Christmas. Paris Saint Germain 7 - 2 Maccabi Haifa Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe both scored two goals as Paris St-Germain thrashed Maccabi Haifa to reach the last 16 of the Champions League. Neymar and Carlos Soler also scored while Shon Goldberg scored an own goal. Messi's two goals mean he becomes the first player to score 80 goals in the group phase of the Champions League. PSG top Group H with 11 points from five games, the same as Benfica, while Juventus, who have failed to qualify, and Maccabi Haifa have three.  Highlights from  BT Sport - YouTube One YouTuber commented: "Mbappe and Messi's link-up is phenomenal. Their quick passes are insane!" Another added: "Messi is just something else, people can say whatever they want about the opposition, but football will never ever see anyone like him again. ...

How PSG and Inter got to the brink of glory

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The journey to the 2025 Champions League final PSG face Inter in Saturday’s Champions League. How did we get there? Let's explore some of the key moments from this season's competition. Starting with the semi-finals and working backwards. Author | Josh D Semi-finals second leg PSG 2 - 1 Arsenal (PSG won 3-1 on aggregate) Another trophyless season for Arteta’s side. Their hopes of reaching a first Champions League final since 2006 came to an end in Paris. Click here to read more reaction from London Super News . Did PSG deserve this relatively comfortable result? Inter Milan 4 - 3 Barcelona (Inter won 7-6 on aggregate) Inter Milan staged a remarkable late comeback to beat Barcelona in one of the most thrilling Champions League semi-finals in recent memory. Semi-finals first leg Barcelona 3 - 3 Inter Milan Barcelona twice came from behind to earn a draw against Inter Milan in a pulsating six-goal Champions League semi-final first leg, leaving the tie finely balanced ahead of ...

UCL: Barcelona knocked out and Benfica qualify

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It was a dramatic night in Champions League group E as Barcelona were knocked out and Bayern Munich finished with a 100% record. Benfica will join Bayern in the next round after they beat Dynamo Kiev 2-0. Despite only having 36% possession, it was a fairly comfortable win that was secured by goals from Yaremchuk and Junior. You can watch the highlights in the video below. One Benfica fan told us: "I would have been happy with 3rd place and getting into the Europa League but I am very happy that we are staying in the Champions League." A horror night for Barcelona Barcelona lost 3-0 to Bayern Munich to miss out on the Champions League knockout stages for the first time in 17 years. They have not been absent from the last 16 since 2003-04. It was a terrible night for the club. They never really looked like troubling Bayern and the home side ran away comfortable winners. The draw for the Europa League takes place on Monday at 12:00 GMT in Nyon, Switzerland and Barca will p...

UCL: Liverpool and City progress

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Let's have a look at all the reaction from another dramatic night of Champions League football. Atlético Madrid 0 - 0 Manchester City (Agg:0-1) City produced a  disciplined performance to hold off the challenge of Atletico Madrid - and set up a Champions League semi-final showdown with the Spanish side's city rivals Real. Knowing a clean sheet would be enough to seal the tie, City kept their cool in the face of a hostile home crowd and intimidation from a physical Atleti side showing far more ambition than in the first leg. The Manchester City boss told BT Sport: "It is the champion of Spain and they played with energy. Overall we are in the semi-finals, it is well deserved. The opponent is so tough, all the teams in the Champions League come here and suffer so it is important we go through." Tough and intense one, but we withstood it well! On to the semis! 💪🏼💙 @ManCity pic.twitter.com/XOWfk6w0xA — Ilkay Gündogan (@IlkayGuendogan) April 13, 2022 UCL: A memorable...

United defender joins PSV on loan

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Another player has left Manchester United on a temporary basis.  Tyrell Malacia has joined PSV Eindhoven on loan until the end of the season, as he looks to regain full match fitness after a prolonged injury layoff. Author - Olivia T The 25-year-old Dutch international made his return to action for United in November, having endured 17 months on the sidelines due to persistent knee problems. Malacia initially signed for United from Feyenoord in July 2022 for £13m, penning a four-year deal. His move comes in the wake of United securing Denmark wing-back Patrick Dorgu from Lecce on a five-and-a-half-year contract over the weekend. Since making his long-awaited comeback on 28 November, Malacia has been limited to just eight appearances across all competitions, struggling to establish himself in Erik ten Hag’s side following two separate knee operations. Manchester United forward moves to Villa on loan Click here for more PSV news and stories He was Ten Hag’s first signing as Unite...

UCL: Best ever Champions League finals

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 Let's explore some of the best Champions League and European Cup finals. There have been some truly memorable encounters in the final of the competition since it started in the 1950s. Real Madrid 4 - 3 Stade de Reims: 1956 A football match that you have probably never heard of. This was actually the first final of the European Cup. Real Madrid triumphed in what would prove to be the first of five consecutive title in the competition. On this night, the Spanish giants came back from behind to win 4–3. This was thanks to goals from Alfredo Di Stéfano and Marquitos, as well as two goals from Héctor Rial. Benfica 1 - 4 Manchester United: 1968 A memorable night where Man United became the first English side to win Europe's premier competition.  United took the lead from Bobby Charlton's header eight minutes into the second half. Jaime Graça's 79th-minute equaliser meant the match went into extra time. United scored three times in seven minutes in the first extra tim...

Felix completes loan move to San Siro

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Chelsea forward João Félix has joined AC Milan on loan until the end of the season. The Italian giants have paid a £5m loan fee for the 25-year-old Portugal international, but there’s no obligation to make the move permanent in the summer. Author - Lauren W Felix on his first spell for Chelsea in 2023 Although the deal was only officially announced on Tuesday, all the necessary paperwork had been submitted ahead of Monday’s transfer deadline for both Serie A and the Premier League. Félix signed a seven-year contract with Chelsea last August when he completed a £45m permanent switch from Atletico Madrid, following a loan spell at Stamford Bridge during the second half of the 2022-23 season. His move came about in unusual circumstances, as Chelsea and Atletico effectively swapped players—academy graduate Conor Gallagher heading to Spain in a £33m deal. Click here for more February 2025 Deadline Day news Chelsea had initially been in talks to sign Atletico striker Samu Omorodion, but ...

Midweek football stories and gossip: 01/12/21

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Let's have a look at some football gossip from around Europe Mancini to Old Trafford? Italy head coach and former Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini has emerged as a candidate to be appointed Manchester United manager next summer. The former City manager is reportedly interested in getting back into club football. It remains to be seen whether he would carry on as manager of Italy throughout the Qatar World Cup should they qualify. Barcelona looking to re-build Barcelona has offered Manchester United the opportunity to sign Brazil winger Philippe Coutinho. He would become one of very few players to play for both Liverpool and Manchester United. It has been reported that Barcelona have a "total agreement" in place to sign Manchester City and Spain forward Ferran Torres, 21, but hope City will lower their asking price of  around £60m. Would he leave Manchester for Barcelona and then be part of the huge regeneration project under Xavi.  More news from around the Premier ...

Scotland: Celtic eventually ease to win over Dundee

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 Dundee 0 - 3 Celtic Paulo Bernardo and Mikey Johnston emerged as the unexpected goal heroes for Celtic in their match against Dundee.  However, there is now a concern about Cameron Carter‑Vickers' injury ahead of the upcoming clash with Rangers at Parkhead on Saturday. Bernardo slotted in the opening goal in the 52nd minute at Dens Park, marking his inaugural goal for Celtic. Johnston, coming on as a substitute, netted his first two goals for the Hoops since December 2019, securing a 3-0 victory. Despite leading by five points, the champions face a challenge from Rangers, who have two games in hand, including their midweek match against Ross County at Ibrox on Wednesday. Manager Rodgers stuck with the same starting lineup from the 2-0 win against Livingston. Dundee, on the other hand, had Cammy Kerr in for the absent Ricki Lamie, and Zak Rudden returned as one of the two strikers. Celtic took control early on without breaking down Dundee's defence. Kyogo Furuhashi's ...

Euro 2024 preview: A closer look at Italy

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Can Italy retain their European Championship crown? Italy are not among the favourites in Germany.  The holders qualified after finishing second in Group C behind England, the key game being a goalless draw with Ukraine in Germany. At Euro 2024, Italy will play Albania, Spain and Croatia in one of the toughest groups of the tournament.  Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini, the defensive duo that led Italy to glory in 2021 , will watch from home. Nicolò Barella and Gianluigi Donnarumma need to step up and become the key players for the team. They will have to cope without Destiny Udogie, Nicolò Zaniolo, Francesco Acerbi, and Giorgio Scalvini, who are all out injured. Iconic Euros moments: Throwback to England v Italy (2021) How did they reach Germany? They qualified for Euro 2024 after a goalless draw against Ukraine in Germany. This was a welcome relief for everyone within Italian football after they failed to reach the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The qualifying campaign for t...

Icons: Denis Law

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 It's time to explore another football icon. This time it's Denis Law Denis Law had a fantastic career and many older fans of Manchester United still refer to him as The King of the Stretford End. Early Life of Denis Law He grew up in an Aberdeen Council Flat and was the youngest of six siblings. His dad George Law was a fisherman, and this fact would later feature in a chant created by Manchester United fans.  He supported Aberdeen and watched them on the terraces when he had the money to do so. He got his first pair of football boots as a teenager after receiving them as a present. The obsession with football led to Law turning down a place at the local grammar school as their sport of choice was Rugby.   The start of a glorious football career After being scouted by Huddersfield Town, he was eventually signed by the Yorkshire side in April 1955. Not long after, he had an operation to remove his quint. This greatly improved his self-confidence. Following Hudde...