Tuesday, December 26, 2017

Lazio vs Fiorentina
Competition: Coppa Italia
Date: 26 December 2017
 
 
Kick-off Time: 20:00 GMT
Venue: Stadio Olimpico, Roma
 
Lazio Rome played well this season as it reached the knockout phase of UEFA Europa League,ranked fifth in the Serie A table and is quarter-finalist in the Italian Cup. Lately, Lazio way of playing was changing, without longer series and instead victory comes after defeat, than the team drew and lose. After losing to Roma, Lazio drew with AC Fiorentina and won Sampdoria.
Than, unexpectedly, they lost to Torino at home after which it drew with Atalanta in Bergamo, while in the previous round they defeated Crotone by 4-0. In between, they made a victory in the round of 16 of the Italian Cup over Cittadelle and were defeated by Waregem in the UEFA Europa League, which didn’t cost them much. Coach, Inzaghi, constantly combines the starting line-up and is expected to make new changes even though there are no serious problems with injuries.
AC Fiorentina seems to be different now are very difficult to defeat. The last time they received a defeat was at the beginning of November, to Roma and after that they either win or draw, which is more often. Fiorentina has a six-match unbeaten streak in the league of two wins and four draws. Unlike Lazio Rome Fiorentina’s defence is much better and more solid and is conceded just 02 goals in those six rounds, while it received two goals in the duel with Sampdoria although Fiorentina scored 03 goals and won the match.
In the previous four rounds, Fiorentina kept their net clean and the best result is goalless away draw with Napoli. Coach, Pioli, had used different teams for both the league and Cup matches, but right now te team should be a combination.

Probable lineups Coppa Italia:
Lazio Rome: Starkosha – De Vrij, Patric, Wallace – F. Anderson, Murgia, Parolo, Lulic – Leiva, Milinkovic-Savic – Immobile
AC Fiorentina: Dragowski – B. Gaspar, Pezzella, Astori, Biraghi – Benassi, Veretout, Badelj – Chiesa, Simeone, Babacar



 
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Saturday, December 23, 2017

Real Madrid vs Barcelona
Competition: Spanish Primera Division
Date: 23 December 2017
Kick-off Time: 13:00 GMT
Venue: Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
This Clasico is very important to Real Madrid that in the case of a defeat, the team can surrender the trophy of the Spain’s champions to FC Barcelona to take it with them. Real Madrid is 11 points behind, or, to be realistic, eight, because it has one match less, but it will play away against Leganes.
Real Madrid failed to win the last two away derbies in their favour and they did not even scored Athletic Bilbao and Atletico Madrid, but at the same time the team is encouraged that only Malaga has managed to score against them in the previous five rounds. It is also encouraging that Real Madrid celebrated with a convincing 5-0 against Seville FC, and won the new title of the world club champion, and this is already a whole series of trophies in just over a year. It is also important that the team is complete and that it doesn't have any injured players.
Unlike Real Madrid, FC Barcelona could not have played more relaxed in El Clasico as they can now, before this holiday break. The team has made big advantage over their biggest rival but also over Atletico Madrid and Valencia so it is clear that they can get a lot from this match and not lose too much. The last defeats that FC Barcelona experienced were from Real Madrid in the Super Cup and it was when the Catalans did not seem to have anything to look for in the new season, but it all turned in the meantime and Barcelona is not losing in any of the 03 competitions they are playing.
Barcelona's players can only blame themselves for that home draw with Celta Vigo a few rounds ago, after which they made three wins, and routinely confirmed the 1st place in their group of the UEFA Champions League and they have not received any goals in the 03 mentioned games. Along with Atletico Madrid Barcelona has the best defence in the league and the most efficient attack, but unlike their host, they have some injuries in the team. For the time being, Umtiti’s absence was not felt much in its game, however, it could happen in this duel, while Deulofeu and P.Alcacer are out of action.

Probable Lineups for this EL Clasico:
Real Madrid: Navas – Carvajal, Varane, Ramos, Marcelo – T.Kroos, Casemiro, Modric, Isco – Ronaldo, Benzema
FC Barcelona: ter Stegen – S.Roberto, Pique, Vermaelen, J.Alba – Busquets, Iniesta, Rakitić, Paulinho – Messi, L.Suarez




 
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Monday, December 18, 2017

Everton vs Swansea City Premier League 18-12-2017

Everton vs Swansea City
Competition: Premier League
Date: 18 December 2017
Kick-off Time: 20:00 GMT
Venue: Goodison Park, Liverpool
 
The negative series of Everton in duels with Swansea were extended to four draws and three defeats, so, in this match, Everton certainly have a lot of motives to try to get all three points. Everton's way of playing improved considerably after the arrival of the new coach, Allardyce, so the team, in the last five matches, made four wins and one draw against their city rival Liverpool.
However, the 3-0 triumph against Apollon on the side had no significance because Everton had lost all the chances for placement in the knockout stage of the UEFA Europa League, but it is obvious that it is very welcome to restore their confidence. Otherwise, Everton has with these 10  points won took the 10th place in the first on the English Premier League table. Not counted for this match are the injured defenders Coleman, Funes Mori and Baines, midfielders McCarthy and Barkley and striker, Bolasie.

Results of Everton's last 5 matches:
29/11/17 Everton 4 – 0 West Ham
02/12/17 Everton 2 – 0 Huddersfield
07/12/17 Apollon 0 – 3 Everton
10/12/17 Liverpool 1 – 1 Everton
13/12/17 Newcastle 0 – 1 Everton

On the other side, the guests from Wales, are awaiting this duel at Goodison park Stadium after a convincing home defeat (0-4) from Manchester City, but before that with 1-0 Swansea City managed to defeat West Bromwich on their field, so now they are only two points behind Crystal Palace and West Ham. And since the other teams from the bottom of the table do not have a particularly high point advantage, then the last ranked Swansea City still has a real chance to survive in the elite rank.
However, for something like that , Swansea City urgently need to fix their game at home, where they have made five defeats, while they are now expecting a clash with a team that has prepared well, so it will be very interesting to see what tactics coach, Clement, will choose for Goodison.Tthe return of the experienced Fernandez in the last line as well as the young Abraham at the top of the attack is expected, while center-back, Bartley and wing striker Routledge will miss this match due to injuries.

Results of Swansea City last 5 matches:
25/11/17 Swansea City 0 – 0 Bournemouth
29/11/17 Chelsea 1 – 0 Swansea City
02/12/17 Stoke City 2 – 1 Swansea City
09/12/17 Swansea City 1 – 0 West Brom
13/12/17 Swansea City 0 – 4 Manchester City
 
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Monday, December 4, 2017

Benevento vs AC Milan
Competition: Italian Serie A
Date: 3 December 2017

AC Milan faced Benevento in a match that ended with a draw at Sadio Ciro Vigorito. The final score of the game was 2-2.
 Benevento 2-2 Milan (Serie A) 
38' Giacomo Bonaventura 0-1 // 50' George Puscas 1-1 // 57' Nikola Kalinic 1-2 // 90' Alberto Brignoli 2-2

 


Kick-off Time: 11:30 GMT
Venue: Stadio Ciro Vigorito, Benevento
 
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Friday, December 1, 2017

Juventus vs Napoli Italian Serie A 01-12-2017

 
Napoli vs Juventus
Competition: Italian Serie A
Date: 1 December 2017
Kick-off Time: 19:45 GMT
Venue: Stadio San Paolo, Napoli
 
SSC Napoli absolutely deserve their actual leading position on the Italian Serie A table, because the team has 12 wins and only two draws in 14 wins, while, together with Roma, so far received the least goals of all the teams in the Serie A league.
Nevertheless, these brilliant parties in the championship have left a mark on their UEFA Champions League appearances, with the proviso that after a domestic win of 3-0 over Shakhtar, and the team continues to be in the game for the finals, but for placement in the round of sixteen, but for something like that Napoli needs a victory over Feyenoord and for Shakhtar to lose over Manchester City at home. However, despite the fact that Napoli is against Juventus announcing maximal engagement in order to win new 03 points, especially because they are missing only the injured defender Ghoulam and striker Milik.
As for the actual champions, unlike Napoli, Juventus has already suffered two defeats in the Serie A this season, which is why the team, in this moment, occupy only the 3rd place on the table and have two points less than Inter Milan and four compared to the leading Napoli. That is why, Juventus is now announcing that they will do their best to stay undefeated in Napoli, while they will certainly try to get all the three points and thus come to one point difference from Napoli.
Otherwise, Juventus will, in the next week, have a very important performance in the UEFA Champions League, even though they themselves are deciding on their own destiny, and for placement in the finals, they need to defeat Olympiacos or that the team of Sporting does not celebrate over Barcelona at home. But the team is currently fully focused on this Serie A derby. Juventus has 03 injured strikers: Higuain, Bernardeschi and Pjaca.

 Probable Lineups:
Napoli: Reina – Maggio, Chiriches, Koulibaly, Hysaj – Allan, Jorginho, Hamsik – Callejon, Mertens, Insigne
Juventus: Buffon – Barzagli, Benatia, Chiellini – Cuadrado, Pjanic, Khedira, Alex Sandro – Dybala, Douglas Costa – Mandzukic

 
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Tuesday, November 28, 2017

Leicester City vs Tottenham
Competition: English Premier League
 
 
Date: 28 November 2017
Kick-off Time: 19:45 GMT
Venue: King Power Stadium, Leicester
 
Leicester City can boast with the fact that out of the last 3 away games with Tottenham, they won one and drew two, and now many in Leicester City think that the time has come to defeat them at home. However, if coach, Puel players,' want positive outcome of this game they have to play much better than in the previous rounds in which they won away Stoke and West Ham, and lost at home to leading Manchester City.
Right that duel with the Citizens should be the best example what they expect from the Spurs, especially as Tottenham need points to return in the very top of the English Premiership. Last weekend the Foxes met the Hammers away and they showed good defence but were not good in attack, for example scorer of the only goal was midfielder Albrighton. Players who will miss this match are: injured stopper Huth and midfielder James, and suspended midfielder Silva.
The guests from London, Tottenham, merely drew at home with West Bromwich 1-1 last weekend, which together with defeat in the previous round by the city rival, Arsenal, pulled them down for the first time in this season to the 5th place in the English Premier League table. Tottenham still have just 02 points fewer than leading Chelsea and are by that still in the race for the very top but only under the condition to start winning, which was the case at the beginning of this season.
It seems that all those great results made in the UEFA Champions League in which Tottenham reached the round of 16 after just five rounds as the first team in the group and ahead of Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund have exerted its toll on their ability to compete in the English Premier League and now against Leicester City, they definitely must play much better if they want to win all the three points. Currently out of action are only injured, stopper Alderweireld and midfielder Wanyama.

Leicester City results in the last 5 matches:
24/10/17 Leicester City 3 – 1 Leeds United
29/10/17 Leicester City 2 – 0 Everton
04/11/17 Stoke City 2 – 2 Leicester City
18/11/17 Leicester City 0 – 2 Manchester City
24/11/17 West Ham 1 – 1 Leicester City

Tottenham results in the last 5 matches:
01/11/17 Tottenham 3 – 1 Real Madrid
05/11/17 Tottenham 1 – 0 Crystal Palace
18/11/17 Arsenal 2 – 0 Tottenham
21/11/17 Borussia Dortmund 1 – 2 Tottenham
25/11/17 Tottenham 1 – 1 West Brom
 
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Monday, November 27, 2017

Monaco vs PSG
Competition: French League 1
Date: 26 November 2017
Kick-off Time: 20:00 GMT
Venue: Stade Louis II, Monaco 

Monaco 1-2 PSG (French League 1) 
19' Edinson Cavani 0-1 // 52' Neymar (pen.) 0-2 // 81' Joao Moutinho 1-2

Monaco lost to Paris Saint Germain by 1-2 in the French League match of yesterday night at Stade Louis. Both teams played well, but the final decision was to PSG.


11
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Thursday, November 23, 2017

Athletic Bilbao vs Hertha BSC
Competition: UEFA Europa League
Date: November,23rd, 2017
Kick-off Time: 18:00 GMT
Venue: San Mames Barria, Bilbao

Athletic Bilbao has many problems on, and today in the UEFA Europa league virtually everything depends on this match and they have to look for a win over Hertha, while a draw might also be good, depending on the outcome of the second match. In the last round, Athletic defeated Ostersund in their field with 1-0, so the team is hoping to win again, but that is why there is less hope that they will win placement on European scene through championship.
Athletic Bilbao have not won for four rounds yet, but after three defeats, at least they did in the last round. Their rival was, Villarreal, and the fact that they were playing in Bilbao was not a big advantage for Athletic. The guests have been running for a long time, and Arrizabalaga has also defended the penalty, and then, as usual, the rescuer was, Aduriz. Players, Benat and Munia will be absent due to injuries, and Nunez is suspended.
Hertha BSC also has problems and is in an even worse situation, because they are even closer to the relegation zone in the championship, especially after the defeat in the previous round, but they also earlier had major problems. Hertha was already eliminated from the Cup, and similar thing awaits them in the UEFA Europa League. So to prevent this from happening, they need to defeat Athletic Bilbao in this duel. One big question is whether Hertha can do it in a period when their form is desperately bad, especially away.
San Mames Stadium is definitely not a stadium where it is easy to make a situation when they are already shaken by the home defeat of Borussia M'gladbach. Hertha have experienced the crush already in the first 20 minutes when they received even three goals and then in the end it was all just an attempt to avoid defeat to which they did succeeded to some extent. After the draw in Wolfsburg, players, Pekarik and Lazaro ended up on the bench, while Stark was not in the team because of injury injury. He will not be present, the suspended Ibisevic, and of the previously injured Stocker and Darida.

Probable lineups for this match of the UEFA Europa League:
Athletic Bilbao: Herrerin – Boveda, Etxeita, Laporte, Balenziaga – San Jose, Vesga – Williams, Raul Garcia, Cordoba – Aduriz
Probable lineups Hertha BSC: Jarstein – Pekarik, S.Langkamp, Rekik, Plattenhardt – Lustenberger, Meier – Weiser, Skjelbred, Kalou – Selke


 
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Wednesday, November 8, 2017

Iceland vs Czech Republic
Competition: Friendly
Date: 8 November 2017
Kick-off Time: 14:45 GMT
Venue: Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Stadium

Iceland played well in qualifications and it won the first place in very demanding group shared with Croatia,  Turkey and Ukraine. At some point, Icelnad seemed that they cannot reach even the 2nd place as they allowed themselves a luxury to lose to Finland but, in the meantime, they defeated Ukraine and Turkey, which was the key moment, away by sound 3-0. At the end, the Icelanders defeated Kosovo and ended up at first place with three victories and clean sheet. This is the first historic qualification for the FIFA World Cup and it follows first participation at UEFA European championship last year.
Facing Czech Republic is a good starting preparation for the World Cup and it will also face Qatar. Coach, Hallgrimsson, has problems to gather the team and he invited several players later on as a plan B. Players, Sigurdarson and Saevarsson, haven’t recovered yet.
Czech Republic won the last two qualification matches, but didn’t bring any good to the Czechs since they ruined their chance to qualify for the FIFA World Cup much earlier. They might have done something close to the end if they defeated Norway and Northern Ireland away and Germany at home, but they won just one point from those three games. Czech Republic hoped after qualifying for the final tournament of European Championship, where they didn’t make a name for themselves, to repeat the success and qualify for another major competition.
Their qualifying group wasn’t too difficult and the second place seemed to be theirs but, unfortunately, they didn’t play well. Several older players left the national team after the European Championship in France, which was felt in the team’s performance. The Czechs want to keep a good record after victories over Azerbeijan and San Marino, but, coach Jarolim, doesn’t have at disposal all players that he would like to see in the team. There are no defenders Kaderabek and Gebre Selassie, and midfielder Darida, while Dockal, Krejci and Zmrhal are injured. Young forward player, Schick, is also out of action, so the starting line-up will be truly a mixed team.

Probable lineups:
Iceland: Halldorsson – Ingason, R. Sigurdsson, Arnason, Skulason – Sigurjonsson, Gunnarsson – Gudmundsson, Bjarnason, G. Sigurdsson – Finnbogason
Czech Republic: Pavlenka – Boril, Brabec, Suchy, Novak – Soucek, Jankto – Kopic, Barak, Husbauer – Krmencik



 
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Monday, November 6, 2017

Real Madrid vs Las Palmas
Competition: Spanish Primera Division
Date: 5 November 2017
Kick-off Time: 19:45 GMT
Venue: Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, Spain.

Easy win for Real Madrid at Bernabeu yesterday night over Las Palmas. Real Madrid kept their net clean and the game ended with the score 3-0.

Real Madrid 3-0 Las Palms /La Liga/:
41' Casemiro 1-0 // 56' Marco Asensio 2-0 // 74' Isco 3-0 





 
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Monday, October 23, 2017

Olympique Marseille OM vs PSG
Competition: French League 1
Date: 22 October 2017
Kick-off Time: 20:00 GMT
Venue: Stade Velodrome, Marseille 

The big match between Olympique Marseille and Paris Saint Germain at Stade Velodrome yesterday night ended with a draw. The final score of the watch was 2-2.

 Marseille 2-2 PSG French Ligue 1: 

16' Luiz Gustavo 1-0 // 33' Neymar 1-1 // 78' Florian Thauvin 2-1 // 90' Edinson Cavani 2-2

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Tuesday, October 17, 2017

AS Monaco vs Besiktas Champions League 17-10-2017

AS Monaco vs Besiktas
Competition: UEFA Champions League
Date: 17 October 2017
Kick-off Time: 19:45 GMT
Venue: Stade Louis II 

For AS Monaco, the match with Besiktas team comes in a bad moment, taking into account that they cannot reach the desired form and at the same time must win due to the situation in standings. AS Monaco, in first two rounds of the UEFA Champions League, have won just two points after away draw with Leipzig 1-1, while after that it lost at home to Porto by 3-0, and right now it has 02 points fewer than them and 05 less than leading Besiktas.
After the defeat by Porto, everything went downslope for AS Monaco in the French championship as it firstly drew at home with Montpellier, while last weekend the team was defeat away by Olympique Lyon 3-2. Even though, AS Monaco still occupies the second place in the French Ligue 1 but now it has even six points fewer than Paris Saint Germain, which is definitely not good for their self-confidence ahead of match with Besiktas. The suspended defender, Sidibe, and injured forward, Jovetic, are supposed to miss the game.
On the other side, reigning champion of Turkey, Besiktas, is under far lesser pressure ahead of the 3rd round of UEFA Champions League given it triumphed in the first two rounds and fully deservedly occupies leading position in the Group G at the moment. For sure, Besiktas away triumph over Porto 3-1 was a great result, while after it Besiktas routinely defeated at home debutant in the UEFA Champions League, Leipzig, by 2-0.
Besides that, problems in the Turkish championship are piling up and Besiktas won just 01 point from last three rounds when it drew at home with Trabzonspor, while it was defeated away by Fenerbahce and Genclerbirligi. All that led to Besiktas downfall at 6th place in the table, where they have eight points fewer than leading Galatasaray, but just two than second-placed Goztepe. Stopper Nukan and forward Tore will skip the match because of injuries, while defender Erkin is suspended.

Probable lineups:
AS Monaco: Subasic – Toure, Glik, Jemerson, Jorge – Lopes, Fabinho, Moutinho, Lemar – Falcao, Keita
Besiktas: Fabricio – Gonul, Pepe, Tosic, Adriano – Hutchinson, Ozyakup – Quaresma, Talisca, Babel – Tosun

AS Monaco last 5 matches:
16/09/17 Monaco 3 – 0 Strasbourg
22/09/17 Lille 0 – 4 Monaco
26/09/17 Monaco 0 – 3 Porto
29/09/17 Monaco 1 – 1 Montpellier
13/10/17 Lyon 3 – 2 Monaco

Besiktas last 5 matches:
18/09/17 Besiktas 2 – 0 Konyaspor
23/09/17 Fenerbahce 2 – 1 Besiktas
26/09/17 Besiktas 2 – 0 Leipzig
01/10/17 Besiktas 2 – 2 Trabzonspor
13/10/17 Genclerbirligi 2 – 1 Besiktas

 
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Saturday, October 14, 2017


Atletico Madrid vs Barcelona
Competition: Spanish Primera Division
Kick-off Time: 19:45 GMT 
Date: 14 October 2017
Venue: Estadio Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid 
Atletico Madrid has been defeated only once, however, the team cannot be satisfied at the beginning of the new season. There are too many draws in some of the games in which, the team was absolute favourit, such as the match with Girona in the first round and Leganes in the last round. A draw with Valencia is still acceptable, as well as the one in the UEFA Champions League when they played 0-0 with Roma.
The problem is that Atletico Madrid has been defeated at home by Chelsea and with one point in two rounds, the team is in a big trouble. Because of the construction of a new stadium, they were the hosts only twice in the Lioga BBVA, and they have resolved those duels in their favour and without any goals received, but now this effect will be endangered. Coach Simeone is not changing the starting lineup too much although they are playing on two fronts.
The best start of the season for FC Barcelona is still on going, with the proviso that this amazing performance will now probably be at great test. Barcelona has seven wins in the championship, but the looking at the names of their opponents, it can be seen how such an effect could be expected from one of the most serious candidates for the championship title. The most difficult opponents on the paper have been Betis and Espanyol so far, and Barcelona played against them at home. In the UEFA Champions League, Barcelona already had a serious rival, which is Juventus, but they also welcomed them at Nou Camp Stadium and defeated them with 3-0.
FC Barcelona also defeated Sporting in Lisbon with 1-0, so the team is doing good in the UEFA Champions League. Barcelona is certainly the most efficient in La Liga and with only 02 goals scored. Coach, Valverde, manages to rest players in some matches, so Rakitic, Iniesta, Semedo and Umtiti did not play against Las Palmas, and they still celebrated with 3-0.



 
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Tuesday, October 10, 2017

Netherlands vs Sweden
Competition: 2018 WC Qualification Europe.
Date: 10 October 2017
Kick-off Time: 19:45 GMT
Venue: Amsterdam ArenA
It was a very good start for Netherlands at the beginning of this qualification, but after eight rounds in which they won 05 matches and lost 03, Netherlands needs an incredible victory over the Sweden of seven goals given their much worse goal-difference. On the other hand, leading Franch team has already unreachable four points more, and they also inflicted to the Dutch two out of three so far suffered defeats.
The third one took place in Bulgaria, which was the key mishap in the Dutch misery. The team played a bit better in the last two games and defeated by 3-1 the Bulgarians at home and Belarus away three days ago. Right because of that, the Dutch stress that will give their best in order to defeat Sweden, regardless that their potential success will be most likely a Pyrrhic victory in the end. As a result, coac,h Advocaat, should send on the pitch almost the same team as he did against the Belarusians.


Unlike Netherlands, whixh has only a theoretical chance to reach the 2018 World Cup, Sweden had made probably the key step for retaining the 2nd place, when they defeated Luxembourg by 8-0. The second place will take the Swedes to the play-off although they still have chance to directly qualify for the World Cup in Russia as they have just one point fewer than leading France. Nevertheless, it is hard to expect that the Dutch will slip in the last round when they face already written-off Belarus at home, while on the other hand the Swedes have this difficult away match with Netherlands.
Despite that, as long as there is even a most miniscule hope, coach Andersson players will give their maximum in attempt to win all 03 points in Amsterdam, while they anyway cannot affect outcome of the match in Paris. Sweden right back player, Lustig, got injured in the match with Luxembourg and this time that position will be covered by player, young Krafth, while the rest of starting line-up should stay the same like three days ago in Stockholm.

Probable lineups:
Netherlands: Cillessen – Janmaat, van Dijk, Hoedt, Blind – Vilhena, Wijnaldum – Robben, Propper, Babel – Janssen
Sweden: Olsen – Krafth, Lindelof, Granqvist, Augustinsson – Claesson, Larsson, Johansson, Forsberg – Berg, Toivonen

Netherlands last 5 matches:
31/05/17 Morocco 1 – 2 Netherlands
04/06/17 Netherlands 5 – 0 Cote d’Ivoire
09/06/17 Netherlands 5 – 0 Luxembour
31/08/17 France 4 – 0 Netherlands
03/09/17 Netherlands 3 – 1 Bulgaria

Sweden last 5 matches:
28/03/17 Portugal 2 – 3 Sweden
09/06/17 Sweden 2 – 1 France
13/06/17 Norway 1 – 1 Sweden
31/08/17 Bulgaria 3 – 2 Sweden
03/09/17 Belarus 0 – 4 Sweden




 
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Monday, October 2, 2017

Real Madrid vs Espanyol
Competition: Spanish Primera Division 

Real Madrid faced Espanyol on Sunday, October, 1st, in the Spanish Primera Division, at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu. The match ended with a win for Real Madrid and the final score was 2-0.

Real Madrid 2-0 Espanyol "Spanish Primera Disision:" 
30' Isco 1-0 // 71' Isco 2-0


Date: 1 October 2017
Kick-off Time: 19:45 GMT
Venue: Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
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Wednesday, September 20, 2017

Juventus - Fiorentina Italian Serie A 20-09-2017

Juventus vs Fiorentina
Competition: Italian Serie A
Date: 20 September 2017   
Venue: Allianz Stadium, Torino 
Kick-off Time: 19:45 GMT
Juventus won the last three home matches with Fiorentina in the Serie A, and it is expected that it will get 3 new points from their match. Juventus triumphed in the first four rounds of the Serie A but was defeat at the very start of the new season by Lazio 3-2 in the Italian Super Cup. Juventus also lost away last week in the first round of the UEFA Champions League to Barcelona 3-0.
However, the team routinely did the job in next league game away with Sassuolo and due to goals scored by Dybala won by sound 3-1. Before that Juventus won Genoa away by 4-2, while they defeated at home by 3-0 Cagliari and Chievo, which altogether indicates that will play offensively against Fiorentina from the first minute with an objective to win three new points. Because of injuries still out of action are: defenders de Sciglio and Howedes, midfielders Khedir and Marchisio, and forward Pjaca.
On the other side, Fiorentina was defeated in the first two rounds, by Inter Milan away and Sampdoria at home, but in the next two matches, they won maximal six points, after winning away Verona by even 5-0 and Bologna at home 2-1. For sure, the atmosphere in the locker room is much better after the two last games. 
Fiorentina underwent numerous changes this summer, including new coach, Pioli.
Surely, that is one of the reasons why Fiorentina did play a bit weaker at the start of the new season but some things have obviously found their place later on. The team will probably play against Juventus in a similar way like in the two previous rounds and without much pressure. Regarding the team, not too many changes are expected compared to the two previous matches, especially as out of action is only from before: injured midfielder, Saponara.

Probable lineups:
Juventus: Buffon – Lichtsteiner, Barzagli, Benatia, Asamoah – Pjanic, Matuidi – Bernardeschi, Dybala, Douglas Costa – Higu
Fiorentina: Sportiello – Gaspar, Pezzella, Astori, Biraghi – Badelj, Veretout – Chiesa, Benassi, Dias – Simeone



 
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Monday, September 18, 2017

Manchester United vs Everton
Competition: Premier League 
Date: 17 September 2017
Kick-off Time: 16:00 GMT
Venue: Old Trafford, Manchester, England

It was a big defeat for Everton yesterday at Old Trafford, Manchester, when they faced Manchester United. Manchester United won by 4-0. 

Manchester United 4-0 Everton: "English Premier League":
4' Antonio Valencia 1-0 // 84' Henrik Mkhitaryan 2-0 // 90' Romelu Lukaku 3-0 // 90' Anthony Martial (pen.) 4-0

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Friday, September 15, 2017

Arsenal vs Koln
Competition: UEFA Europa League

Arsenal played a good match at Emirates Stadium, London, when it faced Koln. The match ended with the score  3-1 and Arsenal was the winner.

Arsenal 3-1 Koln (UEFA Europa League): 
9' Jhon Cordoba 0-1 // 49' Sead Kolasinac 1-1 // 67' Alexis Sanchez 2-1 // 82' Hector Bellerin 3-1 


Date: 14 September 2017
Kick-off Time: 20:05 GMT
Venue: Emirates Stadium, London, UK.
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Wednesday, September 13, 2017

PSG vs Celtic
Competition: UEFA Champions League
Date: 12 September 2017
Kick-off Time: 19:45 GMT 
Venue: Celtic Park, Glasgow 

Paris Saint Germain faced Celtic yesterday at Celtic Park Stadium, Glasgow. The UEFA Champions League match ended with a big win for PSG. The final score of the game was 5-0.

PSG 5-0 Celtic: 
19' Neymar 0-1 // 34' Kylian Mbappe 0-2 // 40' Edinson Cavani (pen.) 0-3 // 83' Mikael Lustig (o.g.) 0-4 // 85' Edinson Cavani 0-5




 
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Tuesday, September 12, 2017

Manchester United vs FC Basel
Date: 12 September 2017
Competition: UEFA Champions League
Kick-off Time: 19:45 GMT
Venue: Old Trafford, Manchester.
The last two matches took place six years ago, also in the group phase of the UEFA Champions League, which resulted with ineligibility of Manchester United to pass in the knockout phase. That is definitely an additional motive for Man United to revenge to the guests from Switzerland, Basel. The fact that Manchester United started their new season with three consecutive victories shows that the home team is very much capable to win all three points in this match, although it drew away last weekend with Stoke 2-2.
However, ManchesterUnited was already thinking about Basel in that match which is why coach, Mourinho, sent on the pitch a combined team, which was especially visibly in attack, while in defence he gave chance to stopper’s duo Bailly-Jones, who cannot play in the UEFA Champions League due to suspension. Concerning problems with injuries, on the injured list are currently: defenders Rojo and Shaw; midfielder Fellaini and Young; and experienced forward Ibrahimovic.
Basel, on the other hand, are currently occupy only the 3rd place in the Swiss championship. The team won just two points in last three rounds, while before that they won four consecutive matches, three in the league and one in the cup. After that team led by coach, Wicky, who replaced Fischer this summer, had firstly drew at home with Lugano and Sion away, while last weekend the team lost at home by last positioned Lausanne 2-1.
This mishap was the last thing Basel need before the UEFA Champions League’s start, especially as they will face the biggest favourite in the Group A, Manchester United, right at the beginning of group phase. Later on Basel will meet Portugal Benica and CSKA Mosow. As a result of that it is expected from Basel players to not restrict themselves on defence at Old Trafford on Tuesday evening as they anyway have nothing to lose, taking into account that no player is injured comes handy to coach Wicky.

Probable lineups:
Manchester United: de Gea – Valencia, Smalling, Lindelof, Blind – Pogba, Matic – Mata, Mkhitaryan, Rashford – Lukaku
FC Basel: Vaclik – Lang, Suchy, Akanji, Riveros – Xhaka, Zuffi – Steffen, Elyounoussi, Bua – van Wolfswinkel

Manchester United last 5 matches results:
08/08/17 Real Madrid 2 – 1 Manchester United
13/08/17 Manchester United 4 – 0 West Ham
19/08/17 Swansea City 0 – 4 Manchester United
26/08/17 Manchester United 2 – 0 Leicester City
09/09/17 Stoke City 2 – 2 Manchester United

FC Basel last 5 matches results:
10/08/17 Basel 3 – 2 Grasshopper
13/08/17 Wettswil-Bonst… 0 – 2 Basel
20/08/17 Basel 1 – 1 Lugano
27/08/17 Sion 1 – 1 Basel
09/09/17 Basel 1 – 2 Lausanne Sport




 
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Saturday, September 9, 2017

FC Barcelona vs Espanyol La Liga 09-09-2017

FC Barcelona vs Espanyol
Competition: La Liga


Date: 9 September 2017
Kick-off Time: 19:45 GMT 
Venue: Camp Nou, Barcelona

Taking into account the two heavy strikes by their biggest opponent, Real Madrid, in two Super Cup competitions, FC Barcelona could be overwhelmed by the opening of La Liga. The team even feared from Betis and Deportivo Alaves with, whom they played, because they were shaky and incomplete, however, they celebrated with 2-0 in both duels and can be especially happy that their net is preserved intact. The team is no longer deadly in attack, which is again understandable, because Neymar has left FC Barcelona and player, L.Suarez, is injured.
Leonel Messi is all Barcelona has, and he has with two goals in the second half dropped Deportivo Alaves in the last round, while they defeated Betis with two goals in the first half. Center-back, Pique, has returned to the team, and striker L.Suarez is back as well, while the team, in the meantime, finally managed to engage player, Dembele, from Borussia Dortmund and now have three good strikers.
On the other hand, Espanyol has already proved a lot in the first round in a very unpleasant hosting at Sevilla, when they played a good match that ended with 1-1. The team has ruined it all in the upcoming duel when they welcomed Leganes and were a big favourite, however, the match was not very good and one goal scored meant a defeat. Coach Flores, was content after Sevilla, but he made one change in the game against Leganes and entered, Hernan Perez for the first minute instead of Diopa.
In the first minutes of the match, player, Javi Lopez, was injured and Granero came in, which has caused some other changes in the team, which obviously didn't end well. Some good news for Espanyol is the recoveries from the injuries of players: V.Sanchez and A.Vazquez. In a slightly more closed information, Diop will play again, and not H.Perez, because Duarte and Javi Lopez are injured. Players: S.Sanchez and midfielder Darder were brought in the meantime, but it is probably early for their appearance.

Probable lineups:
FC Barcelona: ter Stegen – Semedo, Pique, Umtiti, J.Alba – Busquets, S.Roberto, Iniesta – Messi, L.Suarez, Dembele
Espanyol: P.Lopez – V.Sanchez, Dav.Lopez, Naldo, Martin – Diop, J.Fuego, Jurado, Piatti – Baptistao, G.Moreno 

 
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Monday, September 4, 2017

France vs Luxembourg
Competition: WC Qualification Europe
Date: 3 September 2017
Kick-off Time: 19:45 GMT Venue: Stadium Municipal, Toulouse

France fail to defeat Luxembourg in the World Cup Qualification, who succeded in holding Les Bleus to a stalemate in one of the greatest results in their history. The match ended with a draw 0-0 and Luxembourg goalkeeper, Jonathan Joubert,was the star of the match.



 
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Wednesday, August 30, 2017

France vs Netherlands
Competition: World Cup Qualification Europe
Date: 31 August 2017
Kick-off Time: 19:45 GMT
Venue: Stade de France, Paris.


Winning in Amsterdam, Netherlands, might mean a direct qualification for the French team for Russia as their schedule by the end of qualifying cycle is far less demanding than of the Swedes, who are positioned above the Tricolours only due to having better goal difference. It is true that in the previous round the Swedes won at home coach Deschamps players by 2-1, which was their first defeat in this qualifications but in the meantime the French won too although it was a friendly match with England 3-2.
Of course, that should raise their self-confidence before continuation of the qualification especially as they have no more place for mistakes if they want to finish as the first in the group. Regarding the Tricolour team that will face the Netherlands, Deschamps cannot count on injured defenders: Varane and Mendy, and winger Payet, and besides he left out from the rooster midfielder: Bakayoko and Sissoko, forwards Martial and Dembele, as well as from before written off Benzema.

France last 5 matches:
25/03/17 Luxembourg 1 – 3 France
28/03/17 France 0 – 2 Spain
02/06/17 France 5 – 0 Paraguay
09/06/17 Sweden 2 – 1 France
13/06/17 France 3 – 2 England
The Dutch team has a fair deal of problems in this qualification and besides home defeat to France they lost to Bulgaria away two rounds ago, while out of four remaining games, they won three and drew away with Sweden. In the end that might not be enough to end up even on the 2nd place, which leads to the play-off, given they have three points fewer than the French and Swedes four rounds before the end.
On top of it, they have this difficult away match in Paris, although their self-confidence has increased a bit in the meantime after they won friendlies with:the Ivory Coast, Morocco and Luxembourg by high 5-0 in the previous qualifying round. Right because of that coach, Advocaat, has announced that will not make too many changes in the starting line-up, especially as defenders: Karsdorp, van Dijk and Bruma, and midfielder Klaassen are out of action because of injuries.

Netherlands last 5 matches:
25/03/17 Bulgaria 2 – 0 Netherlands
28/03/17 Netherlands 1 – 2 Italy
31/05/17 Morocco 1 – 2 Netherlands
04/06/17 Netherlands 5 – 0 Cote d’Ivoire
09/06/17 Netherlands 5 – 0 Luxembourg


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Thursday, June 29, 2017

Germany vs Mexico 
Competition: Confederations Cup 
Venue: Olimpiyskiy Stadion Fisht, Sochi
Date: 29 June 2017
Kick-off Time: 19:00 GMT

Germany team started the Confederations Cup competition with a dramatic win over relative minnows Australia (3-2) but cruised through the group stage, only dropping points to Chile team in a 1-1 draw. By defeating Cameroon by a comfortable 3-1 margin in the third group stage match, Germany extended their unbeaten run in all competitions to 13 games with 10 wins and 3 draws. This is the 1st meeting between these two sides since 2005 when Germany beat Mexico 4-3 on penalties in the Confederations Cup.
Timo Werner bagged two goals last time out and should retain his starting berth as lone forward. The likes of Julian Draxler and Leon Goretzka should play just behind the RB Leipzig star, while Sebastian Rudy and Emre Can are likely to start in the middle of the park. Players, Jonas Hector and Joshua Kimmich, will play as wing backs with players, Antonio Rudiger, Shkodran Mustafi and Matthias Ginter, forming the three man backline. Coach, Joachim Low, is likely to rely on Marc Ter Stegen as first-choice goalkeeper.
Mexico, on the other side, have qualified as runners-up in Group A. The team was impressive in the 2-2 draw against Portugal on matchday 1 and fight back from a goal down to clinch a 2-1 win against  New Zealand in the second fixture. Mexico recorded back to back wins by overcaming Russia (2-1) in the third and final match. Mexico have lost just one of their last 16 matches. El Tri have scored two goals in each of the three games so far and could find the back of the net against Germany, that has conceded in all three matches so far.
Player, Carlos Salcedo, is ruled out for the remainder of the competition because of a shoulder injury while Chicharito Hernandez, Hector Moreno and Diego Reyes are all doubts for this match. Hirving Lozano is likely to make the starting XI once again with Marco Fabian and Raul Jimenez supporting Chicharito up front. Andres Guardado is banned for this match because he has two yellow cards. 
Germany vs Mexico probable lineups:
Germany: terStegen – Ginter, Mustafi, Rudiger – Kimmich, Rudy(Can), Goretzka, Draxler, J.Hector – Ti.Werner, Stindl
Mexico: Ochoa – Moreno, Araujo, Alanis – Damm, J.dos Santos, D.Reyes, Aquino – Fabian – Chicharito, R.Jimenez
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Monday, June 19, 2017

Germany vs Australia
Competition: Confederations Cup
Date: 19 June 2017


Kick-off Time: 16:00 GMT
Venue: Olimpiyskiy Stadion Fisht, Sochi 
Germany team, the current world champions, might be the biggest favourites in the Confederations Cup competition, but their coach, Low, still decided to rest almost all the stars and they have arrived in Russia with a combined composition and a lot of debutants. It would take a long time to mention all the players, who won't be part of this competition, so it is easier to mention who is present from those who have played a more significant role so far: center-back Mustafi, left back J.Hector, and midfielders Can and Draxler. In this new edition, Germany team has played two duels and in that friendly match with Denmark the result was 1-1, while they defeated San Marino with 7-0 in a qualifying match.
New striker, Wagner, has scored all 03 goals, although San Marino is not a measurable rival, either in strength or current form. Much better test was a duel with Denmark, and they were two minutes before the end saved by Kimmich's goal, although they dominated for the most part of the game. Pretty different teams have been playing in the 02 mentioned duels and therefore it is difficult to say which players will start this duel, but it is fairly certain that they will play with three center-backs and in a slightly different formation than usual when they are complete.

Germany last 5 matches:
15/11/16 Italy 0 – 0 Germany
22/03/17 Germany 1 – 0 England
26/03/17 Azerbaijan 1 – 4 Germany
06/06/17 Denmark 1 – 1 Germany
10/06/17 Germany 7 – 0 San Marino

Australia has a reputation of playing very good at the Confederations Cup in the past, but those were the years when Australia had a good team, while they are now of a pretty modest quality and they are the outsiders on this competition. Australia doesn't have great prospects even in this group with Germany and Chile, but they have the right to hope for some surprise. Much more important for Australia is what will happen in the last two qualifying rounds for World Cup, because they are now only 3rd in their group, and that position only takes them in the additional playoffs. It is also important to say that the second ranked, Saudi Arabia, has the same number of points, and leading Japan only one more, and a direct placement on the World Cup is also achievable for the Australia team.
Australia has not lost any games in the previous eight rounds, however, they have made four draws with four wins and this is a problem. In the previous two duels, they have celebrated two victories and particularly important is the one against their direct opponent of Saudi Arabia, that was defeated with 3-2 after a great fight. The problem is that they will play in Japan at the next round, and until then they remain in this competition, while they were defeated in the last game by Brazil with 4-0. They did not play in their strongest team, and the biggest problem is the injury of the midfielder, Jedinak.

Australia last 5 matches:
15/11/16 Thailand 2 – 2 Australia
23/03/17 Iraq 1 – 1 Australia
28/03/17 Australia 2 – 0 UAE
08/06/17 Australia 3 – 2 Saudi Arabia
13/06/17 Australia 0 – 4 Brazil

 
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Sunday, June 18, 2017

Portugal vs Mexico
Competition: Confederations Cup
Date: 18 June 2017
Kick-off Time: 16:00 GMT
Venue: Kazan Arena 
Portugal - Mexico probable lineups:
Portugal: Patricio – Semedo, Fonte, Pepe, Guerreiro – Moutinho, Carvalho – Quaresma, A.Gomes, Ronaldo – A.Silva
Mexico: Ochoa – Salcedo, D.Reyes, Moreno, Layun – Herrera, J.dos Santos – Fabian, G.dos Santos, Vela – Chicharito(Jimenez) 
Portugal team is coming to the Confederations Cup as European champions, and that very title itself is a great obligation to prove themselves in the prelude for the World Cup in Russia, and maybe even win a new trophy, which would not have been a surprise when looking at the composition with which they came to this competition. Interestingly, this is the 1st participation for Portugal in the Confederations Cup and perhaps this is an additional motive, but somehow it seems that they do not need special motive, because when the best footballer of the world Crisitano Ronaldo, after a very difficult season and winning two trophies with Real Madrid team, decided to help his national team instead of going to vacation, then the others should have to be maximally motivated to play at the highest level.
After winning the title of the UEFA European champions, Portugal team suffered an unpleasant defeat at the start of qualifiers from Switzerland and are now not sure they will win the first place and go directly to the World Cup, but they still have a chance for the 2nd  place, and the players are known to be masters when it comes to playoffs. In the meantime they lost a friendly match against Sweden, while they won the last two games without any goals received. They played a friendly match against Cyprus team in a combined team and they won with 4-0, while they played in a stronger composition against Latvia, and won with 3-0, with 2 goals by Cristiano Ronaldo. Coach, Santos, has not brought players: Joao Maria, Sanchez, and Rafa Silva from his standard players to this competition. The rest are there and are really among the first favourites.
Mexico team is doing considerably better than Portugal in the qualifiers and it can almost be said that they have secured a placement in the World Cup next year, though their job is still a little easier since the group of three teams goes directly to World Cup and Mexico surely holds first place, and no one has defeated them yet. It is clear that the job will be routinely finished and next summer they will be seen again in the World Cup of Russia, while now it remains to see what they can do in this kind of prelude for World Cup. Judging by the composition, they can do a lot, because they decided to give advantage to this competition instead of Gold Cup, which will start next month and it is certain that their big stars will not play in that competition as well.
They are practically the best here, although some are missing like: Hernandez, Gutierrez or Pineda. They took advantage of the fact that this contest merely adds to the qualifiers, because they had to be serious and strong in both games, so they defeated Honduras with 3-0, while USA was tougher opponent and they ended with 1-1. That point was sufficient enough but they still need only one win in the remaining four rounds. Mexico is also a record player with 5 appearances at Confederations Cup, and they also have one title and now want to repeat that all led by some great players such as: Chicharito, Herrera, Vela, Dos Santos and others.

 
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Tuesday, June 13, 2017

Mexico vs United States
Competition: WC Qualification CONCACAF
Date: 12 June 2017
Venue: Estadio Azteca
Kick-off Time: 01:30 GMT 


Mexico 1-1 United States (World Cup Qualification CONCACAF.) 
6' Michael Bradley 0-1 // 23' Carlos Vela 1-1

Mexico faced the United States in the WQ Qualification CONCACAF at Estadion Azteca, and the final score of the game was 1-1.




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Sunday, June 4, 2017

Juventus vs Real Madrid - Competition: UEFA Champions League Final
Date: 3 June 2017
Kick-off Time: 19:45 GMT
Venue: National Stadium, Cardiff

Real Madrid could defend  its UEFA Champions League title, as they defeated Juventus in the Champions League final. Real Madrid scored 4 goals, while Juventus only one single goal. The match ended with the score 4-1.

Juventus (1-4) Real Madrid (Champions League Final)
20' Cristiano Ronaldo 0-1 // 27' Mario Mandzukic 1-1 // 61' Casemiro 1-2 // 64' Cristiano Ronaldo 1-3 // 90' Marco Asensio 1-4 

 
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Saturday, June 3, 2017

Real Madrid vs Juventus
Competition: UEFA Champions League Final


Date: 3 June 2017
Kick-off Time: 19:45 GMT
Venue: National Stadium, Cardiff

Real Madrid might be still under the pressure of the UEFA Champions League finale, for the simple reason that the team has been the best in Europe for the past 11 times, and in the previous three seasons the team won the title of the champion of Europe, so they have just admitted that the Spanish championship is their priority this season and the trophy in La Liga. The team was under great pressure untill the very end there because of Barcelona, ​​and pressure was also present because it has been waiting for this trophy since 2012. They endured all pressures and became the champions, but this does not mean that they do not want a new European title, since they are already in the finals.
Real Madrid had even the toughest path than their opponents because they eliminated: Atletico Madrid, Bayern Munich and Napoli in the semi-finals, which is the only team that managed to defeat them this season in the UEFA Champions League. Real Madrid's defence is not the strongest part of the team, but the attack has scored in all matches not only in the UEFA Champions League but also in other competitions and they have already set the new record there. There is also a special motive in this duel because of the elimination in the semi-finals two seasons ago when Juventus defeated them in two duels. The Coach, Zidane, is not having big problems with absences, although it is questionable whether players: Carvajal and Pepe will play, while the recovered Bale will probably stay on the bench.
For many years, Juventus has no real competitor in Italy and they are mainly routinely coming to the title for six years in a row, but this season, they have only confirmed the first place, which they were actually holding for almost the entire championship. The team is not so dominant in the Cup, it is also the best three seasons in a row, so it has only one more thing to win, which is the title of the champions of Europe for which it is waiting for a long time. Juventus played the finals two seasons ago, and they were not able to parry Barcelona, so they were defeated, so the elimination of Barcelona in the 1/4 finals this season was a sort of revenge. Last season, they were eliminated in the round of sixteen, but they did not have the luck because their rival was Bayern Munich.
This season, apart from Barcelona, Juvnetus was better in the knockout stages. Was better than Porto and Monaco in the semi-finals, and what is certainly worth mentioning is that it received only one goal in the six games of the knockout stage, while it received only two goals in the six rounds of the group stage. Overall, Juventus has not lost any games in the UEFA Champions League and has only played three draws. They relaxed a little bit in the finish of Serie A, but not so much to endanger the title. To build their confidence, Juventus team celebrated in the last two matches and since they were able to rest the players, they are entering pretty fresh in the finals in which coach, Allegri, had virtually the strongest forces at his disposal except for the young midfielder, Pjaca.

Real Madrid - Juventus probable lineups: 
Real Madrid (4-3-3): Navas; Marcelo, Danilo, Varane, Ramos; Modric, Casemiro, Kroos; Isco, Benzema, Ronaldo
Juventus (4-2-3-1): Buffon; Barzagli, Bonucci, Chiellini, Alex Sandro; Khedira, Pjanic; Dani Alves, Dybala, Mandzukic; Higuain

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Sunday, May 28, 2017

PSG - Angers
Competition: Coupe de France

Paris Saint Germain made a great success as they defeated Angers and became the Champion in the Coupe de France final at Stade de France. The match ended with the score 1-0. 

PSG 1-0 Angers (Coupe de France Final)
90' Issa Cissokho (o.g.) 0-1


Date: 27 May 2017
Kick-off Time: 20:00 GMT
Venue: Stade de France, Paris
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Barcelona vs Deportivo Alaves // Competition: Copa del Rey Final
Date: 27 May 2017
Kick-off Time: 20:30 GMT
Venue: Estadio Vicente Calderon, Madrid.

At Estadio Vicente Calderon, Madrid, was the Copa del Rey Final bewteen Barcelona and Deportivo Alaves. The match was difficult for Alaves and they lost the game. The final score was 3-1.

Barcelona 3-1 Deportivo Alaves:
30' Lionel Messi 1-0 // 33' Theo Hernandez 1-1 // 45' Neymar 2-1 // 45' Francisco Alcacer 3-1

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Saturday, May 27, 2017

Arsenal vs Chelsea 
Competition: English FA Cup Final

Arsenal FC team won at the beginning of the season, when they were at the top of Premier League, but, later on, they paid a high price for playing in Europe. On top of it came already traditional problems with injuries and at one point it was questionable whether Arsenal FC will play in Europe next year or not. However, Arsenal kicked into higher gear in the finish of the season when the team won five matches in a row, but it was too late to reach some of the positions that lead to the UEFA Champions League and they reached just the Europe League being the fifth in the table.
Arsenal have ended the season having just one point fewer than fourth-placed Liverpool so they definitely have something to be sorry about, especially as everyone got used to see them in the group phase of the UEFA Champions League. However, coach, Wenger, players must leave all that behind themselves as they have to focus on the final of FA Cup, where will face Chelsea team. In the semi-final, Arsenal eliminated Manchester City after extra time. Let’s add that Saturday’s match will skip suspended stopper Koscielny, while besides injured Paulista, Cazorla and Perez, who will not play for sure. And for midfielder Oxlade-Chamerlain is questionable as he hasn’t fully recovered.
Unlike Arsenal FC for which the FA Cup is in fact the only chance to save the season, their city rival Chelsea team, will try to verify its dominance from the English Premier League on Saturday in the FA Cup, especially as they have no problems with injuries before the final match at Wembley Stadium, London.  Besides, Chelsea’s winning streak is longer than of Arsenal, it is seven-game long, six in the league and one in the FA Cup semi-final over another city rival, Tottenham.
In the end of season, the Spurs, were their only rivals in the race to the title of English Champion, but, coach Conte's players, were maximally focused in each and every game and didn’t care too much about reputation of their opponents. In the last two rounds, regardless of having no result imperative, they won Watford and Sunderland and scored nine goals in the process. Those are all good news for Conte ahead of this face-off with Arsenal’s very vulnerable defence.

Probable lineups:
Arsenal FC: Cech – Holding, Mustafi, Monreal – Bellerin, Ramsey, Xhaka, Gibbs – Ozil, Sanchez – Welbeck
Chelsea: Courtois – Azpilicueta, Luiz, Cahill – Moses, Matic, Kante, Alonso – Pedro, Costa, Hazard

Date: 27 May 2017
Kick-off Time: 17:30 GMT
Venue: Wembley Stadium, London.

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Thursday, May 11, 2017

Olympique Lyon vs Ajax Amsterdam
Competition: UEFA Europa League
Date: 11 May 2017
Kick-off Time: 20:05 GMT
Venue: Parc Olympique Lyonnais


Because the second leg will be played in Lyon, it was a reason for high hopes in Olympique Lyon ranks, however, they played so badly in the first game in Amsterdam that the second one is almost a formality. For sure, it is not impossible annul three-goal advantage especially as they scored away but Olympique Lyon still needs a victory of 3-0 or higher, which will not be an easy thing to do against Ajax Amsterdam team. Even if the opponent, Ajax, is a weaker it would be very hard to achieve something like that. The first leg showed that Ajax Amsterdam team is in great shape, and capable to win even in Lyon.
Followers will agree that cause for heavy defeat in the first leg was fact that the coach, Genesio, had left on the bench the team’s first scorer, Lacazette, who was not fully recovered, but it could be seen last weekend when Olympique Lyon faced Nantes in the French Ligue 1, that he is not in particularly good shape. Player, Cornet, scored two out of Lyon’s three goals, who is Lacazette’s replacement, and Valbuena came off the bench. There were many other changes, while now some other players are questionable because of injuries. However, all of them will probably be in the team as they secured a place in the UEFA Europa League next season through the French championship and this is the last important match of the season, unless a miracle happens and they reach the final.
Ajax Amsterdam team is on verge to reach the final of the UEFA Europa League and suddenly is in the race for the title in the Dutch championship, although they don’t decide alone about their fate. It can turn out in the end that 2016/2017 is a super successful season for the team if they win both titles, however, it will not be that easy to win either of them. Ajax Amsterdam had already dropped from the race to the title but last weekend they outclassed at home Go Ahead Eagles by 4-0 despite playing with reserve team, and leading Feyenoord team lost away to Excelsior, so Ajax Amsterdam backlog now is just one point.
However, just one round is left and Feyenoord team plays at home where it must lose or draw, while Ajax team must win Willem II in order to dethrone Feyenoord. It is not impossible but it is not probably either, just like it is not impossible to drop such huge advantage against Olympique Lyon. 1/4 final match against Schalke team 04 should be a warning as they nearly dropped advantage of 2-0 from the first leg. They know better now and have three goals more. On top of it, the team is complete compared to the first match as players Veltman and Viergever are back in the line-up

Probable lineups: 
Olympique Lyon: Lopes – Jallet, Mammana, Diakhaby, Morel – Tousard, Gonalons – Cornet, Tolisso, Valbuena – Lacazette (Fekir)
Ajax Amsterdam:  Onana – Veltman, Sanchez, Viergever, Riedewald – Schone, Klaassen, Ziyech – B. Traore, Dolberg, Younes

Olympique Lyon last 5 matches results:
20/04/17 Besiktas 2 – 1 P Lyon
23/04/17 Lyon 1 – 2 Monaco
28/04/17 Angers SCO 1 – 2 Lyon
03/05/17 Ajax 4 – 1 Lyon
07/05/17 Lyon – Nantes
  
Ajax Amsterdam last 5 matches results:
16/04/17 Ajax 5 – 1 Heerenveen
20/04/17 Schalke E 3 – 2 Ajax
23/04/17 PSV 1 – 0 Ajax
03/05/17 Ajax 4 – 1 Lyon
07/05/17 Ajax – Go Ahead Eagles

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Real Madrid vs Atletico Madrid - Competition: UEFA Champions League
Date: 10 May 2017
Kick-off Time: 19:45 GMT
Venue: Estadio Vicente Calderon, Madrid, Spain.

Atletico Madrid played very well against Real Madrid and they won the game 2-1. However, it was Real Madrid that qualified for the final of the UEFA Champions League.

Real Madrid 01-02 Atletico Madrid: 
12' Saul Niguez 1-0 // 16' Antoine Griezmann (pen.) 2-0 // 42' Isco 2-1

 
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Tuesday, May 9, 2017

Monacovs Juventus
Competition: UEFA Champions League
Date: 9 May 2017
Kick-off Time: 19:45 GMT
Stadium: Juventus Stadium, Torino


The first semi-final match between the AS Monaco FC and Juventus FC, that was played six days ago had ended with a win for Juventus 2-0, which means that Juventus has an easy job in its attempt to again eliminate Monaco from the UEFA Champions League. On top of it, Juventus FC plays much better at home this season than away and it has practically secured its 6th consecutive title of Italian champion given that 03 rounds before the end Juventus has even 07 points more than second-placed Roma, that will meet next weekend in Rome.
Right because of that advantage Juventus FC played more easily 02 last rounds and it should be surprising that it drew with the teams: Atalanta and Torino. On the other hand they were up to the task in Monaco, where they made huge advantage due to goals of Higuain prior to the second-leg. However, their coach Allegri, is still cautions as he is well aware that his players shouldn’t relax yet and consequently he plans to send the same team on the pitch like he did in the first-leg. Only in the midfield returnee, Khedir should get advantage over Marchisi, while regarding problems with absences out of action are only injured stopper Rugani and forward Pjaca.
Unlike Juventus FC, which did a great job six days ago, AS Monaco FC team practically has mission impossible in Turin given that it needs victory of three goals or at least to win by 2-0 and take the match into the extra time. To do something like that coach, Jardim, must play much better primarily in attack, and especially in the finish of it, while at the same time the defence shouldn’t make mistakes like it did in the first semi-final match with Juvenuts FC, when it conceded even two goals.
AS Monaco FC is on the best path to finally dethrone so far untouchable PSG team in the French Ligue 1, as two rounds before the end of season it has 03 points more than they and have played one match fewer than PSG, so they shouldn’t have too much trouble to keep the leading positing by the end of season. Before that Monaco will give its best in this semi-final match of the Champions League and we expect now their far more aggressive and offensive approach than six days ago as they have nothing to lose. Out of action for this game are: defenders Toure and Mendy, and midfielder Boschilia.

Probable lineups:
AS Monaco FC: (4-4-2): Subasic; Dirar, Sidibe, Glik, Jemerson; Bakayoko, Fabinho, Lemar, B. Silva; Mbappe, Falcao
Juventus FC:  (4-2-3-1): Buffon; Alex Sandro, Dani Alves, Bonucci, Chiellini; Khedira, Pjanic; Dybala, Mandzukic, Cuadrado; Higuain
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