Showing posts with label UEFA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label UEFA. Show all posts

Man U win the UEFA Europa League, qualify for Champions League

Manchester United on Wednesday night completed what will be termed a very successful season by defeating Ajax 2-0 to win the UEFA Europa League final, guaranteeing the Old Trafford club a place in next season's UEFA Champions league tournament.
Two goals from Paul Pogba and Henrikh Mhikitaryan was all Jose Mourinho needed to win his third trophy (League Cup, Community shield, Europa league) of the season- a tactical win that showed Man U's experience over Ajax who had more of the possession and more passes.

Congrats to Man U.

Aftermath of Manchester attack, UEFA puts additional security measures In place for Europa League Final

The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) has released a statement following Monday’s attack at the Manchester Arena in which a suicide bomber killed 22 people. The statement reads,
 'UEFA is shocked by last night’s attack in Manchester. Our thoughts are with the victims and the families of those affected. 
UEFA has been closely working with local authorities and the Swedish FA for many months and the terrorist risk had been taken into account since the very beginning of the project. Furthermore, a number of additional security measures were implemented following the attacks in Stockholm last April. Due to the tight security arrangements, UEFA urges fans to arrive at the stadium as early as possible, as detailed checks will be made at the entrances, resulting in potential delays in accessing the stadium'.
Manchester United will play Ajax in the Europa League Final on Wednesday, May 24, in Stockholm, Sweden.

Bayern vs Arsenal, Leicester vs Sevilla (UEFA champions league last 16 fixtures in full)

European football governing body, UEFA, today released the draw for the last 16 of the UEFA champions league. 

Man city will face French giants Monaco, Defending champions Real Madrid will face Napoli, Benfica vs Dortmund, Bayern will play Arsenal while FC Porto will tackle Juventus.

In other draws, Leverkusen will face Atletico Madrid, PSG will face Spanish heavyweights Barcelona while Sevilla will play EPL champions Leicester City.

Neymar, Ronaldo and Messi included as UEFA release 40 man shortlist for team of the year

Monday was truly a busy day for European football's governing body- UEFA, as they released their 40 man shortlist for their team of the year.

Expectedly, some players from EURO 2016 cup winners, Portugal, were included- while players from Champions league winners Real Madrid were also nominated.

Premier league stars like Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Paul Pogba, Riyad Mahrez, Aaron Ramsey and current African player of the year Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang were nominated. See the star studded list below...

Goalkeepers: Rui Patricio (Sporting), Keylor Navas (Real Madrid), Jan Oblak (Atletico Madrid), Gigi Buffon (Juventus)

Defenders: Gerard Pique (Barcelona), Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich), Toby Alderweireld (Tottenham), Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid), Raphael Guerreiro (Borussia Dortmund), Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus), Laurent Koscielny (Arsenal), Diego Godin (Atletico Madrid), Pepe (Real
Madrid), Juanfran (Atletico Madrid), Dani Carvajal (Real Madrid, Jerome Boateng (Bayern Munich)
Midfielders: Dimitri Payet (West Ham), Yannick Carrasco (Atletico Madrid), Paul Pogba (Man United), Riyad Mahrez (Leicester), Kevin De Bruyne (Man City), Joe Allen (Stoke), Luka Modric (Real Madrid), Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal), Toni Kroos, (Real Madrid), Andres Iniesta (Barcelona), N’Golo Kante (Chelsea), Grzegorz Krychowiak (PSG)

Strikers: Leo Messi (Barcelona), Luis Suarez (Barcelona), Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid), Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Man United), Gonzalo Higuain (Juventus) Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid), Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Borussia Dortmund), Neymar (Barcelona), Gareth Bale (Real Madrid), Alexis Sanchez (Arsenal), Sergio Aguero (Man City)

UEFA threatens to kick out England & Russia from EURO 2016 if fans violence continues

England and Russia have been warned they face Euro 2016 disqualification if their fans continue with violent acts after Russian fans fought with English fans after Saturday's 1-1 draw.

UEFA has charged Russia and England with 'crowd disturbances, racist behaviour and setting off fireworks' while star player Wayne Rooney and England coach Roy Hodgson have pleaded with English fans to stay calm during the Euro tournament in France.

Such unacceptable behaviour by so-called supporters of the national teams of England and Russia has no place in football, a sport we must protect and defend,' UEFA staunchly said on their website.  
'The UEFA executive committee has warned both football associations that — irrespective of any decisions taken by the independent disciplinary bodies relating to incidents inside the stadium — it will not hesitate to impose additional sanctions on the FA and the Russian Football Union, including potential disqualification of their respective teams from the tournament, should such violence occur again.' 
Wayne Rooney then pleaded with England fans in a video uploaded on the country's Instagram page:
‘I'd like to thank the England fans for the great support inside the stadium against Russia and now we have a big game coming up against Wales,’ said Rooney. I’d like to ask the fans, please, if you don't have a ticket don't travel. And for the fans with tickets, be safe, be sensible, and continue with your great support for the players. Thank you.
Meanwhile, Roy Hodgson, coach of England admitted he is concerned about the prospect of being kicked out of the tournament due to matters that are not football related.
‘As England manager I'm obviously very concerned about the threat which is now hanging over us and the sanctions that could possibly be imposed on the England team,’ said Hodgson.  
We worked very hard to get here and we really desperately want to stay in the competition, I'm appealing therefore to all of our fans - and we appreciate your support at the matches of course. But I'm appealing to you to stay out of trouble and to try to make certain that these threats that are being issued are never carried out and we will be able to attempt to do the best we can to stay in this competition by football means.’
England will play Wales on Thursday.

Real Madrid Beat Atletico Madrid On Penalties to win the Champions League

Real Madrid have won the Champions League for the 11th time, beating Atlético Madrid 5-3 on penalties, with Cristiano Ronaldo hitting the winning spot-kick after a 1-1 draw.
After successful kicks for Real by Lucas Vázquez, Marcelo, Gareth Bale and Sergio Ramos, and for Atlético by Antoine Griezmann, Gabi and Saúl, Juanfran’s penalty was saved and Ronaldo did the rest
Real took the lead in the 15th minute when Sergio Ramos turned the ball in from close range after Bale flicked on a Toni Kroos free-kick.
Atlético were awarded a penalty early in the second half, after Torres cleverly got across Pepe, let the ball run past him and the defender bundled into him. But Griezmann’s effort rebounded off the crossbar.
However, with 11 minutes left, shortly after Bale had an effort cleared of the line, Griezmann lofted a ball down the right channel for Juanfran, who volleyed across goal to find Yannick Carrasco, who smashed it home.
Neither side was able to score again in either normal time or the extra half-hour, and the second all-Madrid final – two years after Real won the first – went to spot-kicks.

Michel Platini resigns as UEFA president after his ban from football is reduced to 4years

Michael Platini has resigned from his post as UEFA president after his ban from football for 6 years was reduced to four years by the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS).

CAS effectively removed Platini from world football by ensuring his ban runs beyond his current Uefa mandate, which expires in March 2019. The court said in a statement that the ban “corresponds to the duration of a presidential term”.

“I take note of today’s decision from Cas but I see it as a profound injustice,” Platini said in a statement. “This decision inflicts a suspension on me that, as luck would have it, stops me from contesting the next election for the FIFA presidency.''
“As agreed with the national associations, I am resigning from my duties as Uefa president to pursue my battle in front of the Swiss courts to prove my innocence in this case. 
“Life is always full of surprises: I am henceforth available to experience more of them.”
In a media statement made this morning, CAS said;
''The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has rendered its decision in the arbitration procedure between Michel Platini and the Fédération Internationale de Football Association(FIFA). The suspension of Mr. Platini has been lowered from 6 to 4 years and the CHF 80’000 fine to CHF 60'000.'' 
''The Panel, however, was not convinced by the legitimacy of the CHF 2,000,000 payment, which was only recognized by Mr. Platini and Mr. Blatter, and which occurred more than 8 years after the end of his work relations, was not based on any document established at the time of the contractual relations and did not correlate with the alleged unpaid part of his salary (CHF 700’000 x 4 = CHF 2’800’000). Moreover, the Panel took note that Mr. Platini benefitted from the extension of a pension plan to which he was not entitled.''

Real Madrid to play Atletico Madrid in UEFA Champions League final after defeating Man City 1-0

Fernando’s own goal handed Real Madrid a 1-0 aggregate win over Manchester City in the Champions League semi-final second leg at the Bernabeu.
After Vincent Kompany was forced off inside 10 minutes with an injury, Fernando's own goal gave Real the advantage after Gareth Bale's cross deflected off his foot, before Bale's superb header came back off the crossbar in the second half. 
City lacked real intensity throughout both halves, with top scorer Sergio Aguero failing to touch the ball inside the area, and the hosts held out comfortably as they look for an 11th success in the competition.
Real will play city rivals Atletico Madrid in Milan on May 28, the second time the two sides have met in the final in the space of three seasons.
Zinedine Zidane made three changes from the first leg in Manchester, including the reintroduction of Cristiano Ronaldo to the starting eleven, while Yaya Toure replaced the injured David Silva for City.
City were dealt a blow early on after captain Kompany limped off holding his right leg, forcing Manuel Pellegrini to replace him with Eliaquim Mangala.
Clear chances were at a minimum during the early stages until Real took the lead through Bale's deflected effort in the 20th minute, his right-footed cross from the right side of the penalty area hitting Fernando and flying into the top left corner past Joe Hart
Despite initially giving the goal to Bale, UEFA eventually marked it as an own goal for Fernando.
Real goalkeeper Keylor Navas was made to work five minutes later to smother Jesus Navas' right-wing cross as Sergio Aguero piled in, and Navas got more joy on the right later in the half, forcing Dani Carvajal to intercept ahead of Aguero again
Real had the ball in the net 10 minutes before the break as Jese poked home from Toni Kroos' dangerous cross, but the linesman correctly raised his flag for an offside against defender Pepe at the far post.
Fernandinho came closest for the visitors in the first half, hitting the outside of Navas' right-hand post from just inside the area after being found by Kevin De Bruyne.
Hart kept City in the tie after half-time, rushing out to block Luka Modric's effort from point-blank range after a superb through ball from Bale, before saving well to his left from Ronaldo's header back across goal.
England goalkeeper Hart was there again to get down low to his left to save from Ronaldo's near-post effort just before the hour mark, but it was the woodwork that came to their rescue moments later as Bale's header from a corner came off the crossbar.
Lucas Vazquez received a yellow card for a late tackle on Raheem Sterling with seven minutes remaining, but replays show the Real Madrid midfielder's high challenge could have warranted a red.
Aguero, who was forced deep by Real throughout the game, saw his effort from 25 yards fly just over the bar late on as City eventually pressed, but it wasn't their night as Real held on.

Bayern Munich 2-1 Atletico Madrid (Agg: 2-2): Atletico reach final on away goals after dramatic clash

Atletico Madrid reached the Champions League final after a dramatic 2-1 defeat at Bayern Munich saw them go through on away goals after a 2-2 aggregate draw.
In a thrilling affair which saw two missed penalties, Xabi Alonso handed Bayern the lead on the night after 31 minutes with a deflected free-kick from just outside the area.
Jan Oblak denied Thomas Muller from the penalty spot just moments later, and Atletico were back level on the night and 2-1 up on aggregate just after the break through Antoine Griezmann's neat finish having been one-on-one with Manuel Neuer.
With Bayern needing two goals, Robert Lewandowski's close-range header brought the hosts to within one, before Neuer saved Fernando Torres' penalty with six minutes remaining.
Atletico held on, and will play either Manchester City or Real Madrid in the final in Milan on May 28 as they look for their first success in Europe's elite competition.
Pep Guardiola, who has now been knocked out at the semi-final stage in each of the last four seasons, made three changes from the first leg in Madrid, bringing Muller back into the starting line-up to replace Thiago Alcantara, while Diego Godin returned from injury to replace Stefan Savic 
Gabi drew the first save of the game out of Neuer from 25 yards, but Bayern dominated the first 45 minutes in both chances and possession.
Arturo Vidal forced a good save out of Oblak with a firm strike, before the Atletico 'keeper was again made to work hard, getting down low to smother Lewandowski's left-footed effort.
The hosts took the lead on the night and levelled the tie just after the half-hour mark through Alonso, whose free-kick from 20 yards deflected off Jose Gimenez and past the rooted Oblak.
Just moments later, Bayern had a penalty to take the lead for the first time in the tie after Gimenez was penalised for grabbing Javi Martinez from a corner, but Oblak guessed correctly and parried away Muller's spot-kick, before blocking again from Alonso's rebound.
Atletico got their advantage back eight minutes after the break through Griezmann's, who was just onside as he latched onto Fernando Torres' through-ball before slotting past Neuer for his 31st goal of the season, meaning Bayern needed to score twice.
Oblak produced another smart save with 20 minutes remaining, getting down well to stop Lewandowski's half volley from inside the area before smothering the rebound.
Bayern created a nervy finish with 16 minutes remaining through Lewandowski, who headed home from close range after Vidal's superb header across goal from David Alaba's left-wing cross.
Atletico earned a controversial penalty through a rare counter-attack with seven minutes remaining as Martinez brought down Torres, but the replays showed that the initial contact was half a yard outside of the area.
Torres brushed himself down and stepped up to take the penalty, but Neuer saved to his right to keep Bayern in the game.
Oblak performed more heroics with just two minutes left, saving low to his left on the line from Alaba's deflected shot from the edge of the box, but the La Liga side held on to reach their second final in three seasons.