Lionel Messi asked Santa for a 2011 Copa America win

With Christmas over and gifts unwrapped (and returned), Lionel Messi has revealed what he asked for this year. . 


















 

“In 2011, I want to win my first title with the national team, so I asked Father Christmas for the Copa America as a gift,” the 23-year-old said while in his hometown of Rosario, according to the AFP news agency.

“I will do everything to win. It's the gift that I want to give all Argentines. People in my country deserve a great year.”

I'd say he's only playing along with the tales of the season by telling the AFP that he asked Father Christmas for that Copa America trophy, but look at the childlike wonder on his face. That's the face of a man who knows the value of asking a fat guy in a red suit for what he wants most. It's also the face of a man who scores goals even when he doesn't particularly want to (for Barcelona, at least)

Madrid legend rates Ronaldo better than Messi

Madrid: Real Madrid's legendary figure Alfredo Di Stefano has chosen Cristiano Ronaldo over Lionel Messi, when asked which player he feels is the superior footballer.

The former Los Blancos genius was giving a lecture at an event in the capital on Wednesday evening, and when asked the questions as to which of the two superstars he preferred, he answered simply: "Messi or Cristiano,? For me Cristiano, because he is with us, at Real Madrid."

He also went on to discuss his opinion of the quality of the current Madrid team, and what they are capable of achieving this season.

He continued: "We have a great team. We need stability, and some confidence, but I am very happy with the players we have. We do not need to sign anyone in the winter market. We have a phenomenal team."

Singling out coach Jose Mourinho for individual praise, Di Stefano added: "He is a really good coach. The team has achieved safety, but also effectiveness."

He also spoke of his dream of seeing the team win the European Cup for the tenth occasion in their history, concluding: "We must have moral, and think that we can win. We have very good players, of course we can win it."

John Terry asks for the fans support.

The Chelsea captain has called on the club’s supporters to stay behind the team during the upcoming clash with Manchester United.
The current Premier League leaders visit Stamford Bridge on Sunday afternoon and the Blues need a good result to stay in the race for the Championship.
And Terry says that even if his team-mates are struggling during the game, the fans should not get on their backs and help them get a win instead.
“I’m hoping this is the end of it,” the defender told Chelsea TV.
“We’ve gone through a blip, as we’ve seen other teams do. We’ve got a massive home game and it’s important now the fans stay with us, even through a bad spell in the game of 10 or 15 minutes, because when you play against a quality side, they are bound to have a good spell of possession.
“As long as we stay solid on the pitch the fans stay with us, I’m sure playing like this, we’re going to be back.”
Chelsea have not won any of their last six league fixtures and now find themselves three points behind United, who also have a game in hand.

Barca look to deal with troublesome neighbours

A team from Barcelona have a 100 percent home record this season, matched only by Real Madrid, but they are not coached by Pep Guardiola.
Espanyol are riding high in fourth in La Liga with seven wins from seven at Cornella-El Prat, and when Guardiola's Barcelona visit on Saturday (1900 GMT) they have promised to give their neighbours a traditionally hostile reception.
"It's a game with a lot of rivalry and intensity from both sides," Espanyol's Argentine coach Mauricio Pochettino told reporters. "It will be disputed rather than aggressive. I believe in positive rather than negative aggression."
Espanyol have a good record of ruffling Barca's feathers and in the corresponding fixture back in April, Guardiola's team were uncharacteristically defensive in outlook.
Barca had Dani Alves sent off after an hour and were harried, hurried and ultimately held to a 0-0 draw by the hosts in a niggly encounter.
Barca, however, go into the derby in irresistible form and with 40 points from 15 games they are already 12 ahead of Espanyol.
Barcelona have a 100 percent away record with seven wins from seven, are unbeaten in 21 outings, have won nine in a row and scored 26 goals in their last six games without reply.
"The two sides are in great form, each with their own qualities," Barca captain Carles Puyol told reporters. "It will be very tough ... it is the most difficult away trip we have left this season."
Puyol's statement demonstrates the respect Barca have for Espanyol given that they still have to visit Real Madrid, who face Sevilla on Sunday (2000).
ENFORCED CHANGES
Jose Mourinho's side are two points behind leaders Barcelona in second, and have recovered from their mauling in the 'clasico' to win three in a row.
They will be forced into a number of changes with Marcelo and Xabi Alonso suspended, and Gonzalo Higuain and Sergio Ramos out injured, but Mourinho does not have as many problems as his counterpart Gregorio Manzano.
The former Real Mallorca boss has only been at Sevilla two months since replacing Antonio Alvarez, and he has seen his side's confidence ebb as they slipped to 11th.
A run of five consecutive defeats in all competitions ended with a 2-2 home draw against Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday, which saw them scrape through to the next round of the Europa League.
"It was important to savour something that felt like a victory again," Sevilla striker Frederic Kanoute told the club website (www.sevillafc.es).
"We have changed our mentality and this will help us with respect to other competitions."

Messi: I dedicate goals to grandma

 

Barcelona ace Lionel Messi has revealed that he dedicates every goal to his late grandmother.

The Argentinean, who points to the sky after every goal he scores, admitted that his grandmother has been instrumental in making him who the player he is today although she is not able to witness how far he has progressed.

""I am doing this because I dedicate my goals to my grandmother,"" Messi was quoted as saying by Marca.

""She took to me to football but now she can't see how far I have come.

""Nevertheless, she continues to help me and my family

Messi, who has been in scintillating form this season, revealed he is playing football not for the profession of the game, but the love and passion of it.

He added: ""I started playing football because I loved it. And now I do it not just because football is my profession, but because I get great pleasure from the sport. I continue to treat it as a game.""

The 23-year-old has dedicated 25 goals to his grandmother this season.

And by the rate Messi is scoring, she would be overwhelmed above.

Casillas: Messi best in the world

Real Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas is the latest to admit that Lionel Messi is the best player on the planet right now.

Messi has been nominated for the FIFA Ballon d'Or along with Barcelona teammates Xavi and Iniesta. The trio have formed the backbone of a Catalan outfit that has mesmerised the football world with its sumptuous play.
Xavi and Iniesta also played vital roles in Spain's World Cup triumph in South Africa in June.
Casillas, also a World Cup winner himself missed out on the final cut for the award.
Speaking to Marca he said: "I'm disappointed not to get into the finalists.
"They are great players and, in fairness, I hope Messi will understand, I opted for Xavi and Iniesta. Messi is the best in the world, but I prefer them."
The Spanish goal-keeper had to suffer the ignominy of having to pick out the ball from the back of the net five times as Barcelona thrashed their fierce rivals in the season's first El Clasico on November 29.
The Catalans currently lead the La Liga table with Real two points behind.

Messi has been nominated for the FIFA Ballon d'Or along with Barcelona teammates Xavi and Iniesta. The trio have formed the backbone of a Catalan outfit that has mesmerised the football world with its sumptuous play.
Xavi and Iniesta also played vital roles in Spain's World Cup triumph in South Africa in June.
Casillas, also a World Cup winner himself missed out on the final cut for the award.
Speaking to Marca he said: "I'm disappointed not to get into the finalists.
"They are great players and, in fairness, I hope Messi will understand, I opted for Xavi and Iniesta. Messi is the best in the world, but I prefer them."
The Spanish goal-keeper had to suffer the ignominy of having to pick out the ball from the back of the net five times as Barcelona thrashed their fierce rivals in the season's first El Clasico on November 29.
The Catalans currently lead the La Liga table with Real two points behind.

Player power behind Ray Wilkins's Chelsea exit, says source

• Players unconvinced by coach's ability, claims source
• Wilkins seeking legal advice after losing his job

Ray Wilkins lost his job as Chelsea's assistant manager after some first-team players said they were unconvinced by his ability, according to a highly placed source at the club.
Wilkins, who said he had a "fantastic relationship" with the squad, was sacked 10 days ago, and stated yesterday that his removal represented an unfair dismissal. He is now taking legal advice.
Wilkins said: "I am very disappointed that the board decided that I had no further contribution to make ... The League Managers Association's legal advisers are assisting me in obtaining answers to a number of questions arising from my undoubtedly unfair dismissal."
Since Wilkins's removal the manager, Carlo Ancelotti, has distanced himself from the decision, and from the appointment of Michael Emenalo, the club's former opposition scout, in Wilkins's place. It is understood, though, that Ancelotti was aware of some of his players' concerns about Wilkins, and did not stand in the way of the dismissal.
Responding to Wilkins's statement, Chelsea insisted they hoped for an "amicable" deal on compensation. "Although the matter is confidential, we can say that we have told Ray and his advisers that we will honour the termination provisions in Ray's contract."

ANCELOTTI: ALEX PLUGGING THE GAP

Carlo Ancelotti has confirmed Alex and Ashley Cole will start but Yury Zhirkov misses out as we prepare to travel to Birmingham.
The manager gave an in-depth update on the club's injury situation prior to boarding the team coach at Cobham, with mixed news.
First there was confirmation that Alex will play, despite requiring surgery on his knee and missing last week's defeat to Sunderland.
'Tomorrow Alex will be available to play, this is good news, he trained well with the Brazilian team but we know that he needs to have surgery,' Ancelotti said. 'Now we are in the position that we can [delay] this, but we know he needs to have surgery. It's not a risk, but his knee needs to be cleaned up.
'Obviously Alex is a centre-back, he is used to playing there, but I don't want to say we lost the game because we put four full-backs in the back four. We lost the game because we played a poor game. I think it was the first time in my period here.
'We need to move on immediately and to have a reaction. It will not be because Alex is centre-back, it will be everyone working for the team and showing good mental attitude and fighting spirit.
'We want to forget Sunderland with a fantastic performance, we can play well and maintain the top of the table. The championship unfortunately does not finish tomorrow. If tomorrow was the last game then I think we would have a lot of possibility to win the title, but we have to play a lot of games again.
'Tomorrow we have a good squad,' he continued. 'We have Cech, we have Alex, Ivanovic, Ashley Cole, Malouda, Mikel, Ramires, Kalou, Drogba, Anelka. It is a good squad. There are 10 players in my list but we want to play with 11, I have to choose the right-back.
'I have to choose one of them, Bosingwa played 90 minutes against Spain, and Ferreira is fresh but Bosingwa had good recovery and I think he can play.
'We have a problem with Zhirkov because he played on the artificial pitch, he has tightness on his calf so he is not able to play tomorrow.'

MALOUDA: BACK TO BUSINESS

There was a spring in Florent Malouda's step when he returned to Cobham on Thursday following France's 2-1 win over England at Wembley.
The 30-year-old wide man put in an excellent display at the national stadium as an English side missing a number of important figures was easily outclassed. Reflecting at the club's training ground on Thursday, he attempted to play down the achievement, but could not prevent a smile creeping across his face.
'We didn't talk much about the game, my team-mates didn't play but I got congratulations from the staff and they are proud of the performance,' he said.
'In this period when you have friendly games you have injuries and leaders missing in the team, but you have to play them and it was a pleasure, I like Wembley!
'I think we made a big difference in the first half and were in control of the game. After that we scored again so the game was almost finished, we are really pleased because we have a young squad with no experience and it's a boost for our team. I know the expectations of the English fans and they are disappointed, but for us it was a great night. But now, that's it, we have a game coming on Saturday so we are already preparing for that.'
When he mentions England missing leaders on the field, Malouda could just as easily be referring to Chelsea, with English trio Ashley Cole, Frank Lampard and John Terry all on the treatment table, joined by Alex, while Michael Essien is suspended for tomorrow's trip to Birmingham.
The former Lyon man believes this is no excuse for below-par performances, and wants to remove from memory Sunday's home defeat to Sunderland at the earliest opportunity.
'We are missing players but it is not a problem. When you play for Chelsea and lose the way we've lost at home, you expect a reaction from our players,' he declared.
'We have great characters and this is an opportunity to show it again. We are first and we have to make sure we are first after this game. It is always difficult to go to Birmingham and get a good result but we will do it, we have to be confident.
'We have to analyse what was wrong against Sunderland but I think everybody did it already,' the winger said. 'Sunday stayed in the mind, the way we lost, you must think about it, even though you are on international duty. I think that's what everybody did, and now we have to correct things.'

Chelsea FC defender Alex will miss the remainder of the group stage after needing surgery on his right knee while captain John Terry will see specialists about nerve pain in his leg.

Alex will be out of action for up to eight weeks 

Chelsea lose Alex to knee surgery

Chelsea FC defender Alex will miss the remainder of the group stage after needing surgery on his right knee while captain John Terry will see specialists about nerve pain in his leg.

Chelsea FC defender Alex will miss the London club's two remaining UEFA Champions League group games after being forced to undergo knee surgery.
The 28-year-old was sidelined for Chelsea's recent Premier League matches against Fulham FC and Sunderland AFC, and has now pulled out of Brazil's squad for this week's friendly against Argentina. He will have an arthroscopic operation on his right knee to investigate the extent of his injury, a procedure that will keep him out of action for six to eight weeks.
Chelsea have also issued a statement on the fitness of captain and fellow centre-back John Terry after he also missed the Sunderland defeat and withdrew from England's squad to play France tomorrow. Terry, 29, will "continue seeing various specialists" after experiencing nerve pain in his right leg.
Alex partnered Terry for five of Chelsea's first seven league fixtures during which the Blues conceded just one goal. However, both were absent as Carlo Ancelotti's side lost 3-0 at home to Sunderland on Sunday. Chelsea are through to the UEFA Champions League knockout phase after winning all four of their Group F games and need a point against MŠK Žilina on 23 November to secure top spot.

ANCELOTTI: FRANK FRUSTRATION

Carlo Ancelotti's hopes of writing Frank Lampard's name on his teamsheet this weekend for the first time since August have been dashed by a new injury. The manager has expressed his disappointment.
It had been a week of good training for the Chelsea vice-captain but by the end of the session yesterday (Thursday) he had suffered a strain to an adductor muscle in the groin region. It is not related to the two conditions that have kept him out since the home game versus Stoke - a hernia-related operation and then a tendon injury.

'I think that he will be out again for two or three weeks,' reported Ancelotti on Friday afternoon.
'We are very disappointed because he was very close to coming back. I didn't joke in the last press conference when I said one week but he was unlucky.
'It is bad news, especially at this moment when Essien is suspended. It could have been a fantastic opportunity with Frank adding strength, experience and personality to the team but this is football and we will have to wait for him.'
The manager confirmed there will be no appeal over Michael Essien's red card on Wednesday so the Ghanaian will miss the next three domestic games. Alex too will be missing against Sunderland with a knee injury that will be scanned on Monday.
On the positive side, Nicolas Anelka is over the back problem that forced him to miss the Fulham game and is available again. Didier Drogba too will be involved despite the draining effects of malaria and 90 minutes of football on Wednesday.
'Next week will be important for Drogba because there are not games during the week and he needs the possibility to improve his condition, but we appreciate the fact he is playing and he is doing his best.
'It is not a risk to play him. He will be more tired after the game but we never take a risk on our players.'
As he looks closely at Sunday's game, Ancelotti is ordering his players to forget last season's 7-2 home win over the Wearside club.
'That was the past. It was a fantastic game but Sunderland have improved compared to last season and they play good football. They have good organisation and if we want to win we have to do our best.
'I am happy about the performance against Fulham, we had more continuity, we put more pressure on the opponents in their half and we have to repeat the same performance against Sunderland.'

Pep Guardiola Reveals Lionel Messi Had To Play For The Fans

Lionel Messi     Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola admitted he had to bring on Lionel Messi in the second-half for the fans. The Blaugrana cruised to a 5-1 victory over Ceuta in the Copa del Rey to progress to the next phase of the tournament. "Messi had to play for three reasons. He had not trained, firstly. Messi also wanted to play and thirdly, because of the people that came to watch us," Guardiola told AS post-match. "It was a cold night, and there wasn't a better time than a Wednesday night to see the best. "I wanted the fans to also enjoy it. Guardiola also spoke about Bojan Krkic finding the back of the bet, and the penalty he missed. "The goal was easy, and he had to score," the coach said. "After Ceuta saved the penalty, I was glad my team didn't collapse. I'm glad that he did score. The tactician's only negative "was the injury to [Gabriel] Milito". "These have been some of the best 180 minutes we have played, but congratulations to Ceuta. We are very satisfied," he concluded.

NINE AND COUNTING

By shutting out the Fulham attack on Wednesday night, Chelsea equalled the club's record for successive home clean sheets in the league.
Nine games without a goal have now passed in the Barclays Premier League. Jon Carew for Aston Villa in March was the last to find the net at the Bridge in the competition.
The previous nine in succession was in 1927 but that was in the old Second Division.
Although Petr Cech's two saves in the second half against Fulham caught the eye, Carlo Ancelotti paid tribute to his team acting as a unit.
'It is important to keep a clean sheet and defensively we did well,' said the Italian after the game.
'Compared to the other recent games we put more pressure on in the opponents' half. The players are working to put more pressure on and the midfielders worked hard together. It was a fantastic performance from Yury Zhirkov and Mikel.'

NOT LEAVING MILAN

Ronaldinho     Related Stories   Milan CEO Adriano Galliani has addressed the futures of Ronaldinho and Filippo Inzaghi with the promise of new deals. The Brazilian has been waiting on a new deal, whereas Inzaghi put his future in doubt when he said "two offers" were on his table. "No one will leave in January," Galliani told La Repubblica. "We will think about it in the spring or at the end of winter for the contracts [which expire] next year." Galliani also blamed Inter, and Italy's failures at the World Cup for the distinct absence of Italian players in the Ballon D'Or shortlist. "This was because of the bad results at the World Cup and the lack of Italian players in the team that won the Champions League." 

Source: Goal

Carlo Rules Out Torres Move

Carlo Rules Out Torres Move  (Sky Sports)

Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti has ruled out making a move for Liverpool star Fernando Torres as he is happy with his squad.

The Blues have been linked with a move for Torres with the West London outfit holding a long-term interest in the Spaniard.

Torres' future has been the subject of conjecture again as a result of Liverpool's poor start to the season and his own failure to recapture his best form at Anfield this term.

However, Ancelotti insists he has no plans to move for Torres and he has ruled out bringing in any new players in the January transfer window unless injuries force him to bring in reinforcements.

Not our aim

"I always said that Torres is not our aim for the future because we have trust in a lot of young players," said Ancelotti.

"We also have fantastic strikers in Didier Drogba, Nicolas Anelka and Salomon Kalou. We also have fantastic young players like Daniel Sturridge and Gael Kakuta.

"So, in this moment, we don't really need to have a striker, a fantastic striker, like Fernando Torres.

"We can be competitive in all competitions with this squad. The most important thing is to avoid injury, when possible.

"We have to maintain the squad with all the players fit. This is the most difficult thing to do, but we're trying and working hard to do this, to control the recovery of the players.

"I want to be sure that the players who will be involved in the game tomorrow will be fresh. If everyone stays fit we won't need anyone else. I think we have a fantastic squad."

Lampard To Face Reds

 

Lampard To Face Reds  (Sky Sports)

Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti expects Frank Lampard to be available for their weekend clash with Liverpool.

The influential 32-year-old England international has missed the club's last 11 matches with a groin injury.

The Blues have maintained their fine form even without Lampard, but they have now received a shot in the arm ahead of Sunday's mouth-watering trip to Anfield.

Ancelotti is ruling Lampard out of featuring in Wednesday's UEFA Champions League clash with Spartak Moscow as the fixture is too soon.

The Italian is relishing having the creative midfielder back among his ranks, stating he is likely to come straight into his starting XI.

Training

"Lampard started training with the team last week," explained Ancelotti.

"I don't think he will be ready for Wednesday but for the next game in the Premier League against Liverpool.

"I hope he will come back quickly because we need to have this kind of player - he is a fantastic player.

"Now the team without Lampard is doing very well. But when he comes back I think we will have him straight into the team.

"We have a lot of games, we have a game every three days and all the players will be involved."

Despite boasting a 100% record in UEFA Champions League Group F, Florent Malouda says Chelsea FC "still have a lot of things to improve" for FC Spartak Moskva's visit to London.

by Richard Aikman

from London

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Accumulated statistics

ChelseaSpartak Moskva

Goals scored	8		4
Yellow cards	2		2
Red cards	0		0
Attempts on target	14		20
Attempts wide	22		15
Corners	11		19
Fouls committed	43		42

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Matches

2 November 2010

D		Rubin	18:30	Panathinaikos
A		Tottenham	20:45	Internazionale
B		Benfica	20:45	Lyon
C		Valencia	20:45	Rangers
D		København	20:45	Barcelona
A		Bremen	20:45	Twente
B		H. Tel-Aviv	20:45	Schalke
C		Bursaspor	20:45	Man. United

3 November 2010

E		Basel	20:45	Roma
E		CFR Cluj	20:45	Bayern
F		Chelsea	20:45	Spartak Moskva
F		Žilina	20:45	Marseille
G		Auxerre	20:45	Ajax
G		Milan	20:45	Real Madrid
H		Partizan	20:45	Braga
H		Shakhtar Donetsk	20:45	Arsenal

Malouda's high-flying Chelsea aim even higher

Despite boasting a 100% record in UEFA Champions League Group F, Florent Malouda says Chelsea FC "still have a lot of things to improve" for FC Spartak Moskva's visit to London.

Florent Malouda says Chelsea FC are "really happy" with their flying start to the season but, ahead of his side's UEFA Champions League encounter with FC Spartak Moskva, the winger has stressed the importance of maintaining their impressive form.
Carlo Ancelotti's team are sitting pretty on top of the Premier League and have won all three Group F games to date. However, with second-placed Spartak three points behind the Blues and seeking revenge for their 2-0 defeat at the Luzhniki Stadion two weeks ago, Malouda is warning against complacency seeping into the hosts' camp.
"We want to finish first in the group," Malouda told UEFA.com. "It's important for the [round of 16] draw, and then we want to keep going because for confidence it's really important to get results. Even though we have won the first three matches we still have a lot of things to improve because we know in the knockout stage it's important to be ready and to work on every detail.
"I was really impressed by the quality of Spartak," he continued. "Technically they were really good, they have powerful strikers, and we had a few problems preserving a clean sheet. They will come here to get a result because it's so important for them, for second place. We have a good home record at Stamford Bridge in the Champions League so it's going to be an interesting game."
If Malouda has anything to do with it, it certainly should be. The French international has flourished under the guidance of Ancelotti, becoming a major figure in last term's Premier League and FA Cup double success with 15 goals and as many assists in 50 appearances. He has already managed seven strikes this season in the English top flight, a return he attributes to his manager.
"Last year with Ancelotti we had a discussion about my position and then he changed, he made some adjustments," said the 30-year-old. "He has really helped me improve my statistics by scoring goals or providing assists. I have developed his calmness, the way he tries to be in control, analyse things and stay calm even under pressure.
"He is really close to the players, there is a lot of communication. He is working on the confidence, you can feel it when you speak with him. He trusts his players, he would do anything for his players, and we can feel that on the pitch. So we try to pay him back. He is a good technician and tactician. In terms of motivation, he has won so many titles, the Champions League as a player and coach. We are trying to learn every day from him."