Manchester City
MNC 5 - 0
NEW
-
STO 1 - 4
-
HUL
-
CHE 1 - 1
-
MID
Barcelona-
FCB 0 - 1
MAL
-
LEV
-
VIL
-
ATH 2 - 5
-
-
Tuesday, 24 February 2015
Last Five Matches For Manchester City and Barcelona
Manchester City
Monday, 23 February 2015
Juventus must find a way to cope with Dortmund's pressure
While Dortmund have been based around heavy, energetic pressing and
rapid transitions in recent years, Juventus are much more accustomed to a
slow, more languid style of play. Juve themselves play at a higher
tempo than the majority of Serie A sides, but Italy is nevertheless
still home to a much slower style of play than in Germany, Spain or
England.
There are many benefits to this: It means deep-lying playmakers like Andrea Pirlo, David Pizarro and Riccardo Montolivo have time to shine, while attackers like Francesco Totti and Antonio Di Natale can play well into their late 30s, because the game isn't so physically demanding and they can essentially play in bursts. "The pauses allow a player to display his technique," Gianluca Vialli once said.
The downside, however, is that when Italian sides face top-quality opposition in European competition, they often struggle with the pace of the game, which has been a major reason Serie A has dropped to only the fourth-best league in Europe according to UEFA's coefficients.
The most recent example of this problem was on Thursday night at White Hart Lane, where Fiorentina drew 1-1 with Tottenham. Vincenzo Montella's side were happy with that result, although the first half hour featured a Spurs onslaught. Mauricio Pochettino, a coach known primarily for the intense pressing style he's implemented at both Southampton and now Tottenham, told his team to play at a high tempo, close down in advanced positions, and make life uncomfortable for Fiorentina. Once they'd weathered the storm, the Italian side were fine. In truth, however, they could have been 3-0 down and out of the tie.
After the game, Montella responded to questions about these struggles in great detail, and it was fascinating to hear him discuss the issue in relation to Italy as a whole, rather than simply speaking about the contest between two sides.
"In the first 30 minutes we suffered because of the high-tempo, physical game, but we expected that and maybe [Tottenham] paid the price later," he said. "In Italy we play a more tactical game, the tempo is slow -- we [Italians] train at a high tempo, then don't play at high tempo on matchday. Really, we should be doing the opposite!"
There are many benefits to this: It means deep-lying playmakers like Andrea Pirlo, David Pizarro and Riccardo Montolivo have time to shine, while attackers like Francesco Totti and Antonio Di Natale can play well into their late 30s, because the game isn't so physically demanding and they can essentially play in bursts. "The pauses allow a player to display his technique," Gianluca Vialli once said.
The downside, however, is that when Italian sides face top-quality opposition in European competition, they often struggle with the pace of the game, which has been a major reason Serie A has dropped to only the fourth-best league in Europe according to UEFA's coefficients.
The most recent example of this problem was on Thursday night at White Hart Lane, where Fiorentina drew 1-1 with Tottenham. Vincenzo Montella's side were happy with that result, although the first half hour featured a Spurs onslaught. Mauricio Pochettino, a coach known primarily for the intense pressing style he's implemented at both Southampton and now Tottenham, told his team to play at a high tempo, close down in advanced positions, and make life uncomfortable for Fiorentina. Once they'd weathered the storm, the Italian side were fine. In truth, however, they could have been 3-0 down and out of the tie.
After the game, Montella responded to questions about these struggles in great detail, and it was fascinating to hear him discuss the issue in relation to Italy as a whole, rather than simply speaking about the contest between two sides.
"In the first 30 minutes we suffered because of the high-tempo, physical game, but we expected that and maybe [Tottenham] paid the price later," he said. "In Italy we play a more tactical game, the tempo is slow -- we [Italians] train at a high tempo, then don't play at high tempo on matchday. Really, we should be doing the opposite!"
Messi is from another galaxy, but Suarez and Neymar don't scare us - Nasri
The midfielder is adamant his team-mates have the
same level of quality as Tuesday's opponents, but acknowledged the
threat posed by Barcelona's talisman
City face Luis Enrique's side at the Etihad Stadium in the first leg of their round of 16 Champions League tie on Tuesday looking to avenge last season's defeat that saw the Premier League side crash out at the same stage 4-1 on aggregate.
Barca have an embarrassment of riches in attack but were beaten by Malaga at Camp Nou on Saturday and Nasri is adamant that only Messi is a level above City's own array of talent.
He told reporters: "Messi and [Cristiano] Ronaldo play in their own galaxy. But the rest, Suarez and Neymar, they are the same level as Sergio [Aguero]. We are not going to be scared."
Speaking about their defeat to the Catalans last season, he continued: "I think it was too much of a big game for us. We gave Barca too much respect last year. This year is different. We know what we're capable of.
"We want to beat Barcelona because we want to go as far as possible in the competition. Not because of revenge. We are better physically than last year, everything will be different this year. We respect them as a club but we are not going to be scared."
Nasri admitted it was time City made more of a splash in Europe's elite club competition given the lavish investment from their Middle Eastern owners.
He added: "We have had a lot of success in the Premier League in the last few years, and the fans are very passionate about the competition. In the Champions league we need to create our history - to build this special relationship with the fans."
Match Preview: Manchester City v FC Barcelona
Team news
Luis Enrique’s squad trained at the Etihad Stadium on Monday evening with all 21 players available having made the trip to England - only the injured Douglas and Thomas Vermaelen have stayed behind in Barcelona.For Manchester City, midfielder James Milner seems set to return to the squad after missing the 5-0 win at home against Newcastle United at the weekend due to injury. January signing Wilfred Bony should also be included in the squad after making his debut for the club in the league win on Saturday, coming on as a substitute in the second half. The striker signed from Swansea City in the winter transfer market only arrived in Manchester last Monday following the Ivory Coast’s victorious campaign in the African Cup of Nations in Equatorial Guinea. Bony’s international team mate and former Barça man Touré Yaya, however, misses the first leg against his former club due to suspension.
Coaches’ viewpoint
Barça boss Luis Enrique appeared before the press on Monday at the Etihad Stadium, revealing that playing, “in a country like England with a footballing tradition motivates the players, more so against a side who are candidates to win the competition.” For the visitors’ coach: “In this kind of tie with two teams looking to win the competition, there is no favourite.”Manchester City coach Manuel Pellegrini also spoke to the press ahead of the game on Tuesday. The Chilean was forthright in stating that his side would take a more positive approach than last season and he also added: “We cannot only focus on Leo Messi because they also have Luis Suárez, Neymar, Iniesta and many other great players.”
Form guide
The blaugranes’ run of 11 consecutive wins in all competitions came to an unexpected end on Saturday with a 1-0 home defeat in the league at the hands of Málaga. An early strike from Juanmi saw Luis Enrique’s team condemned to just their second defeat of 2015. Barça lost their first away game in the Champions League this season 3-2 at Paris Saint Germain but they recovered to record wins at Ajax and APOEL on their way to topping the group.Manchester City struggled initially in the group phase, taking only two points from their opening four matches. However, back to back wins over Roma and Bayern Munich saw them sneak into the last 16 in second place in the group behind the German champions. Domestically, Pellegini’s side went five games without a win in January and February before a 4-1 away win at Stoke City saw them back on the right track. A handsome home victory over Newcastle United at the weekend means they have cut Chelsea’s lead at the top of the Premier League back down to five points.
Ones to watch
Gerard Piqué spent four years across as a Manchester United player and admitted in the pre-game press conference that returning to the city was always special for him. Luis Suárez is another who knows the Etihad Stadium well after his three and a half seasons with Premier League club Liverpool. The Uruguayan scored twice past City keeper Joe Hart in last summer’s World Cup in his country’s 2-1 win over England in the group stage of the tournament.Sergio Agüero missed the first leg of the tie against Barça last season due to injury but this time around he seems certain to start after scoring three goals in his last two games for City. The Argentine, however, is one of four Manchester players who are just a booking away from missing the second leg, the others being Gael Clichy, Edin Dzeko and Pablo Zabaleta.
History
FC Barcelona are looking to make an eighth successive appearance in the quarter-finals of the Champions League. The blaugranes met Manchester City in official competition for the first time last season, also in the last 16, Barça won 2-0 in England in the first leg before finishing off the job with a 2-1 win at Camp Nou in the return leg.Manchester City faced FC Barcelona in their very first game at the Etihad Stadium back in 2003, winning 2-1 in a pre-season friendly against a blaugrana side that featured Andrés Iniesta and Xavi Hernández.
Coverage
No matter where you are in the world we have you covered. And remember, you can enjoy live commentary in English on Radio Barça. The link will appear at fcbarcelona.com just before kick-off. Twitter users can follow @FCBarcelona for a live feed of all the action.Who will come out on top when Lionel Messi and Barcelona take on Manchester City and Sergio Aguero?
Here's a look at the best value bet for that match along with the other three fixtures taking place this week, including Juventus-Borussia Dortmund, Arsenal-Monaco and Bayer Leverkusen-Atletico Madrid.
Tuesday's fixtures
Manchester City (home) vs. Barcelona
Asian handicap: Man City +0.25 (+112) vs. Barcelona -0.25 (-120)3-way line: Man City +259 / Barcelona +111 / Draw +275
PickCenter public consensus moneyline pick: 61 percent Barcelona
Total: 2.75 (Over -101, Under -108)
If "form is temporary, class is permanent," how much should we read into what happened to these two sides at the weekend? A magnificent streak of results came to an end for Barcelona when they lost 1-0 at home to Malaga on Saturday afternoon, while Manchester City turned on the style a couple of hours later by beating Newcastle United 5-0 in one of their best performances of the season. Those results mean a few doubts have crept in about Barcelona's chances ahead of Tuesday night's fixture.
Sergio Aguero v Luis Suarez - did Barcelona sign the wrong man?
Ewan Roberts & Ben Hayward
They are two of the top centre forwards in world football at the moment. Barcelona bought one and have been long linked with the other. But should the Catalan club have signed Sergio Aguero instead of Luis Suarez?
The South American strikers prepare to do battle in the Champions League on Tuesday and Aguero will be key to the hopes of Manuel Pellegrini's side, who face Barca for a second season running. Suarez, meanwhile, is still finding his feet at Camp Nou following his summer switch from Liverpool.
Being a Barca striker can be a thankless task. Zlatan Ibrahimovic impressed initially but ultimately made way as Lionel Messi moved inside, while David Villa shone for a season but was forced to operate wide on the left.
Suarez, since returning from a four-month ban for biting Italy's Giorgio Chiellini at the World Cup, has racked up assists aplenty, but has hit just seven goals so far in his 22 appearances. Aguero, by way of comparison, has netted 22 in 28 games for City in 2014-15. So should Barca have signed Messi's mate or were they right to snub their long-time target and move for Suarez instead? Here, two Goal experts take up the debate ...
Aguero
Luis Suarez may have netted a record-equalling 31 goals last season but he still could not establish himself as a darling of the Premier League. Controversy made the Uruguayan hard to love, but English football has no trouble embracing another South American, Sergio Aguero.
The Argentine is many of the things Suarez is not: classy, subtle and completely removed from his counterpart’s antics. He fits the ‘Mes Que un Club’ motto, whereas Suarez is rarely more than his latest incident.
The Manchester City forward lets his football do the talking and again leads the Premier League’s scoring charts, level with Diego Costa on 17 goals and with over double the Chelsea frontman’s assists despite starting just 18 times. He even has a hat-trick against Bayern Munich.
Injury has again hampered his season – a sign of his enormous importance is that a team of City’s resources need to rush him back so quickly. Last season, before picking up a succession of calf and hamstring problems, he would finish the campaign with a better strike rate than Suarez, scoring five minutes more regularly.
Of players with 20 or more Premier League goals, none have recorded a goal or assist at a quicker rate than Aguero. Not just explosive, dynamic and deadly, but extremely consistent.
Suarez, as Barcelona are finding out, can be more erratic. There are 57 Liga players with a better strike rate than the £70 million man, whose form is more akin to when he first arrived in England in 2011. In his first half-season at Anfield he converted just 7.3 per cent of his shots, a third of the figure he would post last season. Currently he is scoring just 11.4% of his chances.
Was last year the real Suarez, or merely a player at an unsustainable peak, the focal point of free-scoring, momentum-driven Liverpool? Is Suarez suited to playing in the shadow of Lionel Messi and not as the main man? Certainly the chaos factor he relishes feels at odds with Barca’s more placid style.
Aguero has never had any problems playing with Messi for Argentina and would have been a quicker, slicker, sharper foil at club level. That said, it is impossible to escape the fact that City never would have allowed Aguero to leave no matter how hard Barca had tried – instead, the 26-year-old is playing a key role in their own charm offensive to lure Messi to Manchester.
By Ewan Roberts
Suarez
The 28-year-old is taking time to settle at the Catalan club, but was expected to hit the ground running following his four-month ban. That, perhaps, was too much to ask. Adjusting to Barca's playing style can be difficult, especially for foreign footballers, and Suarez must play a more sacrificial role alongside Messi.
He is doing that. His seven goals in 22 games is not the expected return, but it is not a disaster either. The goals will come when the confidence returns and there are signs of improvement, such as the stunning scissor kick in the recent 5-0 win at home to Levante.
"It was a beautiful goal, a great piece of play," Luis Enrique said afterwards. "He is a pure striker." But the Barca boss also added that he is happy with the forward's contribution even if he is not scoring.
That's understandable. While goals have been hard to come by for the former Liverpool man, Suarez has turned provider with 12 assists already for his new club. Such generosity was unexpected from a man many looked at as a single-minded, selfish striker who would supposedly compete with Messi for goals at Camp Nou and perhaps even upset the applecart with his uncompromising approach.
Far from it. The Uruguayan understands his role at the Catalan club and as soon as the goals start flowing, his importance will be duplicated.
Aguero, meanwhile, has more goals but less assists this term (six in total). The Argentine's scoring record in La Liga with Atletico Madrid was excellent of course, but where he has struggled at times is with his national team - alongside Messi.
The 26-year-old's undoubted quality means he would likely make it a success at Camp Nou, but Barca have no reason to regret signing Suarez last summer. The Uruguayan is proving he is more of an all-rounder than Aguero and, as soon as he starts scoring freely, there will be no debate.
By Ben Hayward
QUICKER, SLICKER AND SHARPER"
UEFA Champions League
| 20:45 |
Manchester City
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v
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Barcelona
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| Wednesday, March 18, 2015 | ||||
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| 20:45 |
Barcelona
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Manchester City
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Sunday, 22 February 2015
Crystal Palace 1-2 Arsenal: Giroud’s 50th Gunners goal seals three points
Arsenal moved into third in the Premier League as they saw off Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
The Gunners took an early lead through Santi Cazorla as the Spain midfielder slotted home from the penalty spot after Danny Welbeck was felled in the area.
And Olivier Giroud doubled the lead on the verge of half-time as he fired in his 50th goal for Arsene Wenger's side after Julian Speroni could only parry an effort from Welbeck.
Glen Murray pulled one back in stoppage time, but the visitors held on for the three points.
Arsenal - who were able to name Jack Wilshere in the squad for the first time since November after injury - were on the back foot early on as Palace threatened down the right through Wilfried Zaha.
They pressed Arsenal high up the pitch but sloppy play from Premier League debutant Pape Souare gifted the visitors an opportunity to lead.
Referee Mark Clattenburg felt the foul on Welbeck took place inside the box and, after the official had pointed to the spot, Cazorla expertly slotted home.
It proved the only real chance of the opening 20 minutes, with Alexis Sanchez almost forcing an opportunity soon afterwards as he pressured Scott Dann into losing possession, only for Speroni to come out and clear.
Palace, for all their promising spells of possession, struggled to test goalkeeper David Ospina and his defence before Arsenal made the most of their threat on the break when Giroud doubled their advantage.
A clever pass from Francis Coquelin found Welbeck and, when the England international's effort was saved, Giroud reacted quickest to register his 50th Arsenal goal in first-half stoppage time.
Mesut Ozil had Speroni worried with a looping header that flew over the crossbar early in the second half but, like in the first period, the game continued to see Palace have spells of possession against Arsenal's threat on the counter.
In a bid to get back in the game, home boss Alan Pardew introduced Yannick Bolasie from the bench for his 100th Palace appearance but, alongside the likes of Zaha, Jason Puncheon and Dwight Gayle, he failed to unlock the Arsenal defence.
Gayle could only angle Souare's header over the crossbar with 20 minutes left before Puncheon flashed a free-kick wide.
Substitute Murray - on as a 79th-minute replacement for Gayle - then almost single-handedly gained Palace a point, as he first poked home a shot inside the area before hitting the post with a diving header deep into stoppage time.
However, it proved a frustrating day for Pardew
Elche 0-2 Real Madrid: Benzema & Ronaldo fire Blancos four points clear of Barcelona
Carlo Ancelotti celebrated his 100th game in charge of Real Madrid by moving four points clear at La Liga's summit courtesy of a 2-0 win at Elche.
Barcelona's surprise 1-0 home reverse at the hands of Malaga on Saturday gave Real the chance to extend their advantage at the top 24 hours later, and they overcame a profligate first half to seal maximum points.
After seeing an acrobatic effort wrongly ruled out for offside before the break, Karim Benzema struck from close range 11 minutes after the interval for his 18th goal of the season in all competitions.
Cristiano Ronaldo had endured a frustrating first half that saw him hit the woodwork and miss two presentable opportunities, but the Portuguese netted his 38th goal of the campaign with a trademark header midway through the second period.
It was Ronaldo's seventh in just three appearances against Elche, who failed to seriously trouble Iker Casillas - making his 500th La Liga appearance - in the Real goal.
Victory sees Ancelotti's side put further daylight between themselves and the chasing duo of Barca and Atletico Madrid, while defeat for Elche leaves them 17th in the table, four points clear of the bottom three.
Ronaldo, fresh from ending a three-game scoreless run against Schalke in midweek, went close to the opener in the fourth minute when he curled a superb effort against the outside of the post.
The visitors threatened again seven minutes later, but Elche goalkeeper Przemyslaw Tyton was able to smother Gareth Bale's effort from close range.
Tyton had to be alert to save from Ronaldo again soon afterwards as Real continued to dominate, and the Portuguese uncharacteristically made a mess of Bale's square pass when it seemed he would tap home from six yards.
Real ought to have been in front five minutes prior to the interval when Benzema produced a superb overhead finish to convert Bale's centre, but the assistant referee incorrectly ruled the Frenchman to have been offside.
After a first half that saw one-way traffic towards the Elche goal, Casillas was tested for the first time two minutes into the second period when he got down to keep out Aaron Niguez's low drive.
Niguez was then perhaps fortunate to only receive a yellow card for a studs-up challenge on Bale, before Real finally took the lead through Benzema in the 56th minute.
Ronaldo broke away down the left and delivered a low ball into the box, where David Lomban's attempted clearance ricocheted kindly off Tyton into the path of Benzema, who could not miss from a yard out.
And that advantage was doubled 13 minutes later as Isco got to the byline and dug out a cross from the left, which Ronaldo planted into the top left-hand corner with a powerful header from 12 yards.
The remainder of the game proved to be largely uneventful, as Real took full advantage of Barca's unexpected slip-up.
Primera División
Show tables for
Primera División
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | GS | GA | +/- | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
|
Real Madrid | 24 | 20 | 0 | 4 | 74 | 22 | +52 | 60 |
| 2 |
|
Barcelona | 24 | 18 | 2 | 4 | 67 | 14 | +53 | 56 |
| 3 |
|
Atlético Madrid | 24 | 17 | 2 | 5 | 50 | 22 | +28 | 53 |
| 4 |
|
Valencia | 24 | 15 | 5 | 4 | 43 | 21 | +22 | 50 |
| 5 |
|
Sevilla | 24 | 14 | 3 | 7 | 42 | 30 | +12 | 45 |
| 6 |
|
Villarreal | 24 | 13 | 5 | 6 | 38 | 22 | +16 | 44 |
| 7 |
|
Málaga | 24 | 11 | 5 | 8 | 26 | 27 | -1 | 38 |
| 8 |
|
Celta de Vigo | 24 | 8 | 7 | 9 | 25 | 24 | +1 | 31 |
| 9 |
|
Espanyol | 24 | 8 | 5 | 11 | 31 | 36 | -5 | 29 |
| 10 |
|
Real Sociedad | 24 | 6 | 9 | 9 | 28 | 34 | -6 | 27 |
| 11 |
|
Eibar | 24 | 7 | 6 | 11 | 25 | 33 | -8 | 27 |
| 12 |
|
Athletic Club | 24 | 7 | 6 | 11 | 21 | 31 | -10 | 27 |
| 13 |
|
Getafe | 24 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 20 | 32 | -12 | 26 |
| 14 |
|
Rayo Vallecan0 | 24 | 8 | 2 | 14 | 24 | 41 | -17 | 26 |
| 15 |
|
Deportivo La Coruña | 24 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 20 | 38 | -18 | 24 |
| 16 |
|
Almería | 24 | 6 | 5 | 13 | 22 | 39 | -17 | 23 |
| 17 |
|
Elche | 24 | 6 | 5 | 13 | 21 | 44 | -23 | 23 |
| 18 |
|
Granada | 23 | 3 | 10 | 10 | 14 | 35 | -21 | 19 |
| 19 |
|
Levante | 23 | 4 | 7 | 12 | 17 | 43 | -26 | 19 |
| 20 |
|
Córdoba | 24 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 18 | 38 | -20 | 18 |
| Last Updated: Sunday, February 22, 2015 |
Ancelotti: I was surprised to see Barcelona lose
Malaga but still expects the Liga title race to continue until the last day of the season.
Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti has admitted that he was shocked by Barcelona's 1-0 loss at home to The Catalans had been on an 11-game winning streak in all competitions before succumbing to an early goal from Juanmi at Camp Nou on Saturday.
Madrid then triumphed 2-0 at Elche 24 hours later - courtesy of goals from Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo - to pull four points clear of Barca, much to the delight of Ancelotti.
"It was an important game after what happened to our rivals on Saturday and above all to take a bigger lead over Barcelona," the Italian told reporters.
"It is clear that their defeat surprised everyone, as Barca had been in very good form, playing very well.
"We do have a lead now, but as I have said many times this title will be decided on the last day of the season."
Madrid were rocked by a 4-0 derby defeat at Atletico on February 7 but have since responded with three consecutive 2-0 wins in all competetions.
Ancelott was thus particularly pleased to see his players keep their clean sheet record going at Elche, in what was his 100th game in charge of the club.
"These 100 games with Real Madrid have gone well," the former Chelsea boss added.
"But I hope to improve in the next 100 and with the attitude of this game we will win many more. We have been focused and everyone has worked very well.
"After Atletico we have improved on our defensive work. Elche's players have got great quality, but we have not allowed them to prove it. I had no doubts that we would win this game."
Ruthless Ronaldo closes on Raul in night of Real landmarks
It is only a matter of time. Cristiano Ronaldo's header in the 2-0 win at Elche on Sunday saw the three-time Ballon d'Or winner draw level with Santillana on 290 goals for Real Madrid. The Portuguese now has just two players ahead of him on the scoring charts for Los Blancos: Alfredo Di Stefano and Raul.
Raul, now playing for New York Cosmos in the United States, believes Ronaldo will reach his record of 323 goals sooner rather than later.
"I’m certain he’ll break my record, just like he broke the Champions League record," Raul told Goal. "The way he’s playing at Real Madrid right now, it’s just a question of time.
"Whether it’s one year, two years, three or four, surely he’ll do it. We’re talking about one of the best players in the history of football. There’s a big difference between Ronaldo and (Lionel Messi) and everyone else in the world."
While Messi had a bad day at the office as Barcelona lost to Malaga, Ronaldo was clearly in the mood after ending his recent mini-drought with a goal against Schalke in the Champions League. He hit the post with a curler early on, forced Elche goalkeeper Tyton into a smart save soon afterwards and was a constant threat for Carlo Ancelotti's side.
Madrid went in on level terms at the break despite their first-half dominance in which Karim Benzema had been unfortunate to see his overhead kick ruled out for offside. But the Frenchman took advantage of a fortuitous rebound to tap Real in front in the second half after Cristiano's centre. The Portuguese headed home a superb cross from Isco to take his goal tally up another notch.
Since he was overtaken by Messi on goals scored this season, Ronaldo has responded again as the two finest footballers in the world inspire each other to even greater heights. And Cristiano is now back in front: 38-37.
Messi may catch and overtake Ronaldo yet this term, but nobody at Madrid will come close. Providing he stays at the club beyond the summer, Cristiano is set to obliterate Real's all-time record for goals scored as he closes in on legends Di Stefano (308 goals) and Raul (323). In fact, he may even achieve it in 2014-15.
Ancelotti also reached a landmark as he took charge of his 100th Madrid match. The Italian has won 78 of those and his win percentage is the finest in the club's history, one better than the 77 managed by previous boss Jose Mourinho.
"We have done well in these 100 games," the 55-year-old said afterwards. "Now I hope we will do even better in the next 100!"
And between the sticks, goalkeeper Iker Casillas was appearing in his 500th Liga game for Real. Solid and dependable on Sunday following his shaky showing in the recent derby defeat at Atletico, the club captain's legend status at the Santiago Bernabeu is beyond question, even if his short-term future is.
"I'm grateful to Real Madrid for these 500 games," the Spain skipper said after the game. "I'm really happy to keep playing games and I hope there are many more to come."
"I'm surprised Barcelona lost," Ancelotti added afterwards. "They were playing well. But this league will be decided on the last day of the season."
However, he added: "With this attitude, we are going to win a lot of games. The team understood that this was an important one."
So after some troubled times of late, it was not only a day of milestones for Real Madrid, but perhaps a landmark victory as well. Back on track.
Panathinaikos fans attempt to attack Olympiakos players
A group of supporters charged onto the pitch while the Greek league leaders were warming up at the Stadio Apostolos Nikolaidis
Sunday's Athens derby was delayed after several Panathinaikos fans invaded the field to try and attack the Olympiakos players.The fixture - known as the derby of eternal enemies - has a long history of violent clashes between the two sets of supporters.
And as Olympiakos players warmed up ahead of the game at the Stadio Apostolos Nikolaidis, home fans invaded the playing area and tried to assault them.
Police eventually were able to restore order, though, and the match kicked off around 15 minutes later than originally scheduled.
However, Olympiakos midfielder Pajtim Kasami was struck on the shoulder by a flare just before the start of the second half, resulting in another delay as the Swiss received treatment.
In addition, Olympiakos coach Vítor Pereira had a lucky escape when he managed to get out of the way of a chair thrown in his direction by another Panathainaikos supporter.
Panathinaikos went on to win 2-1 to move within three points of their arch-rivals at the top of the Super League.
Victor Moses salutes Stoke comeback spirit
The Nigerian forward has thumbed up his side for their impressive win against the Villans despite going one goal down
The hosts drew the first blood through Scott Sinclair before the Potters equalized through Mama Diouf’s header before Moses got an injury time winner from the penalty spot.
According to the Chelsea loanee, the victory was a perfect timing for the team to bounce back following their painful exit from the FA Cup versus Blackburn Rovers.
"We showed tremendous spirit to come back into the game after going behind," Moses told Stoke City Player.
"With the ability of players we have in the squad, we always knew we had the capabilities to get something from the game.
"It was a good result for us today, especially as we had to deal with the hype of them having a new manager which will have given them a boost.
"It was perfect timing for us to bounce back as well, especially after the disappointment of last weekend.
"We picked ourselves up straight away and hopefully with this result we can move on and look ahead to the rest of the season."
Moses' winner was his third in Potters colours and admitted afterwards he never had any doubt in taking the spot-kick despite regular penalty taker Jonathan Walters being on the pitch.
"As soon as I won the penalty, I wanted to take it," he added.
"I was comfortable about taking it. I was looking at the 'keeper as I stepped up and I never had any doubt I was going to score.
"It's not the first time I have taken a penalty, I take them regularly at international level and I am very happy to have got on the scoresheet.
"That's nice personally, but the main thing is that we all dug out after a difficult period and gained the three points,” he concluded.
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