Mijatovic: Ancelotti can lead Madrid to Champions League glory

Former Real Madrid forward Pedrag Mijatovic is confident coach Carlo Ancelotti has what it takes to lead the club to a second consecutive Champions League title.

Madrid are looking to become the first team to retain the crown in the Champions League era as they host Juventus on Wednesday in the semi-final second leg, but must overturn their 2-1 defeat in Turin on Tuesday.

Ancelotti, though, has come under criticism with his team sitting two points behind Barcelona in La Liga and in danger of slipping out of the continent's most prestigious competition.

However, Mijatovic, who scored the only goal of the game as Madrid beat Juve 1-0 to claim the 1998 Champions League title, believes they will overturn the deficit and feels Italian is the right man to take the Spanish side to their 11th European crown.

“Ancelotti is a great coach," Mijatovic told AS.

“Modric's absence through injury is very important, but I am confident in Ancelotti because he always finds solutions and in one year he won four titles in Madrid. What more can we ask for?

“He is fighting for everything and I don't understand some of the criticism.”

Mijatovic also jumped to the defence of goalkeeper 33-year-old Iker Casillas, who has faced heavy criticism after a number of high-profile errors in recent seasons.

“I do not understand it,” he said.

“With what he's done with for Real Madrid he deserves the respect of everyone who has seen him play.

“He is at a certain age and no one can play forever, but you have to respect him. And I have to say that this season is doing well. Everyone should leave him alone."

'I planned to shoot Ibrahimovic because of his parking'

Swedish convicted murderer Peter Mangs has revealed that he planned to shoot Zlatan Ibrahimovic because of the way the striker parked his car.

In a book about his life, Mangs, who was sentenced to life in prison after a string of shootings in Malmo from late 2009 to late 2010, revealed that he was furious when he saw the Paris Saint-Germain striker's red Ferrari illegally parked on a pavement.

The murderer, a known xenophobe, said he became so angry with what he described as "typically Balkan behaviour" that he then went home to retrieve a firearm.

However, when Mangs returned, the Sweden captain's car was gone.

He wrote in his book: "I had no weapon on me but I saw a potential shooting scene. I hurried home to fetch a gun and I had to come back pretty quickly.

“I thought there would be a proper hullabaloo in the media if the gent in question were to be shot."

Mangs is now serving life in prison for two murders and eight attempted murders, while Ibrahimovic has gone on to become a champion multiple times in Netherlands, Italy, Spain and France.

Transfer blow for Arsenal? Serie A sensation 'agrees personal terms with Inter Milan'

Arsenal target Paulo Dybala has agreed personal terms with Inter Milan - but the Italian club are yet to agree a fee with Palermo.

The striker is one of the most sought-after players in Europe at the moment after scoring 13 goals in Serie A this season.

Arsenal have been linked with a move for the 21-year-old since January, while Juventus are also keeping tabs on the situation.

However, according to Calciomercato, the pair have been overtaken in the race for Dybala by Inter.

The Serie A side have agreed personal terms with the Argentine, who is set for a significant pay rise if he completes a move to the San Siro.

Inter still need to agree a transfer fee with Palermo, who value Dybala at around £30m, but they are hopeful of closing out a deal.

Dybala will be excluded from Palermo's final games to ensure he is not injured ahead of a summer move.

"I've asked [Palermo coach Beppe] Iachini not to play Dybala in these last few games," the club's president Maurizio Zamparini told La Repubblica.

"It's possible that in the next eight to 10 days we'll sell the player, and I want to avoid injuries in this very delicate phase."

Marouane Fellaini admits he cried when David Moyes was sacked by Manchester United

Manchester United midfielder Marouane Fellaini has admitted he cried when David Moyes was relieved of his duties at Old Trafford near the end of last season.

The Belgian star followed Moyes to the Red Devils from Everton two summers ago when the Scot was selected as ‘the chosen one’ to replace outgoing United manager Sir Alex Ferguson.

Things didn’t work out as Moyes hoped though and he was sacked last April just 10 months into his tenure; a decision that upset Fellaini given their close ties.

“When he left I was sad. There were tears. This is normal. I am a human being. I worked with him for six years,” the 27-year-old confessed.

“It was weird. He summoned me to his office and he told me the news. This is football. He was not a second father, but almost. He helped me a lot.”

Fellaini endured struggles of his own in his debut season at Old Trafford after his £27.5m transfer from the Toffees, and he failed to register a goal in his first year.

He was widely expected to leave Manchester last sumemer but for an unlikely upturn in fortunes in 2015, but Fellaini admitted he was unfairly held accountable or the Red Devils’ disappointing season.

He said: “During my first season at Manchester, the team was not performing and I was the scapegoat.

“Everything was Fellaini's fault. If you pay attention to all this [criticism], you sink. It destroyed me on every side."

Inzaghi: I'm not feeling the heat at AC Milan

Filippo Inzaghi has dismissed the suggestion that he is cracking under the pressure at AC Milan, insisting that he remains "happy" at San Siro.

The former Italy international only succeeded Clarence Seedorf at the helm last summer but, after a relatively encouraging first half of the season, the Rossoneri suffered a dramatic dip in form at the turn of the year.

Indeed, Milan have now gone five Serie A games without a win, losing their last three in succession, and it has been claimed that Inzaghi is starting the feel the strain of having his position openly discussed on a daily basis.

However, the World Cup winner says that he is still enjoying his job and is ignoring all of the speculation surrounding both his future and that of the club, with owner Silvio Berlusconi set to sell a significant amount of shares to Thai businessman Bee Taechaubol.

"I am very lucky and happy and I am certainly not tired," the 41-year-old told reporters on Friday.

"But talking about Milan’s future right now is not something I am interested in.

"When you have a president like Silvio Berlusconi you know you are in good hands because he wants the best for Milan."

Milan currently sit 11th in Serie A, nine points behind fifth-placed Fiorentina, who, as it stands, occupy the final Europa League berth.

Given there are just four rounds of the season remaining, the Rossoneri's hopes of qualifying for Europe are all but over, but Inzaghi is still calling on his players to finish their campaign with a flourish, starting with Saturday's clash with Roma at the Giuseppe Meazza.

"I am aware that it will be a tough match but also very appealing as we’re going to be facing a side fighting for a Champions League finish and in need of points," he stated.

"But we have four games left to finish the season strongly and with our heads held high.

"To beat Roma we clearly have to play the perfect match and that’s what we’re hoping for.

"I think by doing this we can come away with a positive result as both the team and I are in need of one right now.

"During our first meeting earlier in the season we played very well but I'm upset that after that game that we haven’t been able to continue improving.

"I hope that we can find that identity again in these final four matches."

Benatia: Bayern can beat Barcelona 4-0!

Mehdi Benatia is adamant that Bayern Munich can overturn a three-goal deficit in next week's Champions League second-leg showdown with Barcelona but conceded that Pep Guardiola's men will have produce "the perfect game" to progress to the final.

The German titleholders suffered a shock 3-0 loss at Camp Nou on Wednesday, with Lionel Messi netting a sensational double before Neymar struck in the dying seconds to seemingly end the last-four tie as a contest.

However, Benatia insists that all is not lost and is taking heart from the fact that Bayern hammered Porto 6-1 at the Allianz Arena in the quarter-finals, having lost the first leg 3-1.

"It is not easy, but if we do not believe, we can all stay at home," the defender is quoted as saying by L'Equipe.

"We also have great players and the ability to play better.

"If we get our shots away quicker, we will score. We can win 4-0.

"But we need the perfect game and to go in there and get ahead early.

"We have shown that we can score goals at home, even though we have not played against Barca yet."

Bayern are hoping to avoid bowing out at the same stage of the Champions League for the second successive season, with the Bavarians having been routed 5-0 on aggregate by Real Madrid in last year's semis.

Nuno: Valencia must stop Ronaldo

Valencia coach Nuno admits his side’s chances of securing a result against Real Madrid on Saturday will depend on whether they can stop Cristiano Ronaldo.

The Portugal international is la Liga’s top scorer with 42 goals in 32 appearances this season, putting him two strikes clear of Barcelona’s Lionel Messi.

Nuno, whose side came from behind to beat Madrid when the two sides met earlier this season, says los Che are going to the Bernabeu looking for nothing but victory.

“Nullifying Cristiano Ronaldo is the basis of success against Real Madrid,” the Valencia boss stated.

"It will be a tough game, between two teams that have a lot at stake and with great players on the pitch.

“There will be times that we have possess and will be looking to score, and other times in which we will have to defend and be strong.

“To beat Madrid we must play a precise game and compete against them. We want to go to the Bernabeu and compete. The opponents are a big side, but we will go there to win the game.”

Valencia sit fourth in la Liga and remain on course to secure a return to the Champions League, but will go to Madrid without forward Rodrigo, who was handed a three-game ban for tripping Vallecano goalkeeper Tono.

Nuno believes the sanction was too severe, insisting the former Benfica forward was the victim, after Tono appeared to strike him twice in the head.

"The images are very clear, Rodrigo reacted to provocation,” Nuno said.

“We had hoped that this would serve as mitigating circumstances, but that has not been the case. The ban seems excessive."

Madrid are the league’s in-form side with seven consecutive victories and come into the weekend two points behind league leaders Barcelona.

Messi Wouls Win CL For PL Top Four

Jose Mourinho insists that any top-four club in the Premier League would win the Champions League if they had Lionel Messi in their squad.

Messi inspired Barcelona to a comprehensive 3-0 thrashing of Bayern Munich on Wednesday, scoring twice - including a sumptuous chip over Manuel Neuer - and assisting Neymar in injury-time.

And Mourinho has lavished praise upon the four-time Ballon d’Or winner, insisting that he would inspire any elite English club to European glory.

"I think this guy makes the gap by himself," Mourinho told reporters. "You have doubts that Man City with Messi can win the Champions League? Or Arsenal with Messi can win the Champions League? Or Chelsea with Messi can win the Champions League? Or Man United with Messi can win the Champions League? Don’t you think? I think.

"One thing is a team; another thing is a team with Messi. It is a different story.

"He played a Champions League final with [Pep] Guardiola, he is normally going to play in this season’s Champions League final with Luis Enrique,

"If, one day, he plays for Anthony, Anthony will go to a Champions League final with him. When people analyse teams, you have to remember that this boy makes everything different."

Guardiola insists that "no system can stop Messi" but Mourinho has rebuffed that suggestion, insisting that he knows how to shackle the Argentine.

"Every time I played against Messi, I spent hours studying and trying to stop him," he added. "Many times, we were successful. Other times, we were not successful. With Inter, we stopped him in both [semi-finals].

"The best way to do it is man-to-man because that is better than involving everyone. When you go man-to-man, you go with similar power - although man-to-man with him is an impossible job.

"Every time I was thinking about how best collectively - I am not saying stop him - to give him a difficult match. It is not about stopping him but giving him a difficult match. That is the best you do against him."

Mali were scared of Nigeria, says Onyedinma

Chairperson of the Nigeria Women's Premier League, Dilichukwu Onyedimma has expressed delight with the Mali women national team withdrawal from the final qualifying round of the Rio 2016 Olympics football event saying the development would help Edwin Okon Ladies prepare well for the 2015 Fifa Women’s World Cup in Canada.
The reigning African queens were expected to host Mali on Saturday, May 9 before playing the return leg a week later, sealed a spot to the next round without kicking the ball.

A delighted Onyedinma told Goal that the Fédération Malienne de Football took the decision to prevent their ladies from being humiliated against the red-hot Falcons.

“When I was asked last week on our readiness for the Malians, my reply was that we will beat them anytime and anytime. Their decision to pull out of this game has justified that we can beat them,” Onyedinma told Goal.

“Mali are scared we would beat them silly, moreover their officials feel it’s a waste of resources coming to Nigeria to concede eight goals or more.

“I’m happy we will have enough time to prepare for the Women’s World Cup in Canada. These Olympics and All African Games qualifiers have keep [the Falcons] in here, they ought to have travelled out for a training tour that has been arranged for them since.”

“Ideally, they ought to have been in camp at least six weeks before the commencement of the tournament but we had to wait to complete the assignment on the continent first. That was why we wrote to the Malienne Federation to allow us play them a week after the first leg so as to have enough time prepare,” she continued.

“When I meet with the NFF today [Friday], I will be able to know if we the plans we have are still intact.”

She concluded saying the Falcons are poised to challenge for the World Cup claiming Nigeria are not frightened by the presence of big names in the competition.

“All the participating team’s target is the cup and ours is not an exemption,” she added.

“We know there are tough teams in our group but this time around, we are not intimidated by any name because we believe we have the strength and will do our talking in the pitch. You never can tell, we may beat the team who feel they are favorites,” she concluded.

Nigeria had previously defeated the Malian women 9-1 on aggregate to seal a place at the 2015 All African Games.

Nobody can defend against Messi - Moyes

Real Sociedad head coach David Moyes has followed Pep Guardiola in claiming that it is impossible to defend against Lionel Messi .

The Argentina forward was at his stunning best on Wednesday, scoring twice in Barca's 3-0 success over Bayern Munich in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final.

That double included a wonderful individual goal that helped put his side on the verge of reaching the final, with Sociedad next up in La Liga on Saturday.

Moyes' side have already beaten Barca this term, but, as the Scot targets a famous double, he waxed lyrical about Messi's talents.

"No-one can defend against Messi," the former Manchester United boss said.

"He may have the odd off day, but he's one of the best players of all time. Teams try and stop him but he carries on, makes no fuss.

"I admire Messi for what he represents, his fantastic football and the fact that he doesn't dive or fake injury - things that repulse me in the world of football."

Barca lead rivals Real Madrid by two points at the summit going into the final three games of the campaign.

With Luis Enrique on course for a treble in his first season at the helm, Moyes added: "They have a great team aside from Messi and can call on the likes of Neymar, [Andres] Iniesta and Xavi.

"I have nothing but admiration for Iniesta and Xavi, two of the finest players in the past decade.

"But we will travel to Barcelona with that intention [of winning again] but we are also realistic enough to know that Barcelona are one of the best teams in the world.

"We hope to put on a good performance and hope to secure a positive result."