Barcelona news: Lionel Messi STUNS team-mates with Ernesto Valverde agreement

LIONEL MESSI has reportedly stunned his Barcelona team-mates by announcing that he will take a step back from their La Liga campaign.

Messi bagged the only goal of the game as Barcelona beat title rivals Atletico Madrid at the Nou Camp yesterday to move eight points clear at the top of the table.

They look a sure-fire bet to win the league and, according to Spanish publication Diario Gol, the Argentina superstar will only feature in important games on all fronts until the end of the season.

Barcelona face Chelsea in the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie next week and will hope to go all the way in the competition.

The Blaugrana also face Sevilla in the Copa del Rey final next month.

Messi wants to secure the treble with Barcelona but is already focusing on this summer’s World Cup.

It is the only major trophy missing from his haul and he is determined to guide Argentina to glory in Russia.

Read More: https://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/927219/Barcelona-News-Lionel-Messi-Team-Mates-Ernesto-Valverde-Atletico-Madrid-Rumours-Gossip

Barcelona news: Lionel Messi reveals SECRET about Neymar and Real Madrid

LIONEL MESSI has reportedly told his Barcelona team-mates that Neymar WILL join Real Madrid next season on one condition.

Neymar left Barcelona last summer for a world record fee worth £198million to join Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain.

But there have been constant speculation suggesting the 25-year-old is unhappy with life in PSG.

Real president Florentino Perez is said to be strongly interested in bringing him back to Spain in a move that would rock La Liga.

Neymar was forced to tears on international duty earlier in the season to deny rumours about time at PSG.

However, Spanish outlet Mi Otra Liga claim Neymar has held conversations with Messi about what his next move will be.

And the Argentina international has relayed the message to his Barcelona team-mates.

Neymar reportedly told his friend he intends to join Los Blancos at the end of the season if PSG don’t make the Champions League final.

Read More: https://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/910950/Barcelona-news-Lionel-Messi-Neymar-transfer-Real-Madrid-PSG-gossip-rumours

Neymar to Real Madrid: PSG president offers HUGE transfer update

That’s according to club president Nasser Al-Khelaifi.

The Brazilian arrived in Ligue 1 from Barcelona last summer for a world-record fee of £198m.

But despite an impressive first half-season in Paris, in which he’s already bagged 26 goals, the 25-year-old reportedly wants to leave the club.

Neymar is believed to be unhappy following fallouts with manager Unai Emery and strike partner Edinson Cavani.

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has made it clear he wants to bring the forward to the Bernabeu and is willing to sacrifice star striker Cristiano Ronaldo to do so.

Reports this week suggested that Al-Khelaifi had promised Neymar he could go this summer if he helped the French club to Champions League glory.

But the Qatari has dismissed suggestions that his talisman is going to leave the club.

"When I listen [to the rumours], I smile because it is not true," he told L'Équipe.

"We have Neymar, he is very happy here, he is happy to score. We signed five years here. It's been four months. I do not think he wants to leave.

Read More: https://www.dailystar.co.uk/sport/football/677529/Neymar-transfer-update-Real-Madrid-PSG-Champions-League-Florentino-Perez?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+daily-star-football+%28Daily+Star+%3A%3A+Football+Feed%29

Cristiano Ronaldo to Manchester United transfer news: Real Madrid teammates ‘fed up’, injury latest

CRISTIANO Ronaldo was back in training and sporting a rather noticeable shiner after he copped a boot to the face against Deportivo La Coruna.
CR7 has been in poor form and linked with an exit from Real Madrid this season, and he’s even had to be defended by coach Zinedine Zidane for using the doctor’s phone to assess his injury on the field.

Ronaldo’s act was widely mocked, with photos later emerging to show the severity of the cut.

The Portuguese star took the blow from opposition defender Fabian Schar as he stooped to head in Madrid’s sixth goal - his second - in Real’s 7-1 La Liga win at the weekend.

The 32-year-old remained down and was immediately attended to by the club’s medical staff who escorted him off the pitch.

“We can’t control what people say. He just took the phone to have a look at what had happened, to see if it was a big or small cut - that’s all,” Zidane told a news conference.

“He wanted to know whether or not he could continue or not; that’s what he told us in the dressing room and for me that’s it. They stitched him up and now he’s coming back. The fact he’s training with his eye as it is shows just how important it is for him to play.”

The injury means Ronaldo will miss Real’s Copa del Rey quarter-final second leg at home to local rivals Leganes on Thursday morning AEDT, although the former Manchester United star had been rested throughout the competition.

Read More: https://www.foxsports.com.au/football/la-liga/cristiano-ronaldo-to-manchester-united-transfer-news-real-madrid-teammates-fed-up-injury-latest/news-story/4bfddb6da7457a65e5a2b44f538bd313

Real Madrid Transfer News: Marco Asensio Rumours, Kepa Arrizabalaga Comments

Marco Asensio could be included in an offer to tempt Eden Hazard away from Chelsea, with the forward consistently starting on the bench in La Liga.

Spanish outlet Diario Gol (h/t Jack Otway of the Daily Express) reported Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane is hesitant to include the winger in his first XI, forcing the Spain international to grow frustrated as a substitute.

Per Diario Gol, Zidane's future as coach will dictate what happens with Asensio, and he could be used as a makeweight to convince the Premier League champions to sell their best player.

Alvaro Morata recently exchanged life in the Spanish capital for a new adventure in west London, and he could form a devastating attack with his countryman if Hazard signs for Los Blancos.

Asensio remains one of Spain's premium young talents, and Madrid fans will not want to see another burgeoning superstar shown the door.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale continue to dominate the hearts and minds at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, and there is little room for developing forwards.

The 22-year-old has started only nine games in La Liga this season, rising from the bench on seven additional occasions.

The player has provided a disappointing total of four goals and three assists during the current campaign, with Madrid struggling to find the back of the net as a squad until recently.

Read More: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2755626-real-madrid-transfer-news-marco-asensio-rumours-kepa-arrizabalaga-comments

Cristiano Ronaldo's injury vs Deportivo La Coruna could have been worse: Real Madrid

Madrid: Cristiano Ronaldo's face cut could have been much worse, according to video released by his Real Madrid club on Monday.

Ronaldo was sliced extremely close to his left eye by a defender's boot while he was scoring in the Spanish league on Sunday. The club confirmed he needed a few stitches, and released video of the incident.

Ronaldo was diving to head in the ball from near the penalty spot for his second goal in minutes. Deportivo La Coruna defender Fabian Schar tried to hit the ball and ended up striking Ronaldo's face with his right boot.

Doctors attended to him but they could not contain the blood, and Ronaldo had to leave the game even though there were about five minutes left and Madrid had already made all three substitutions.

As he left the field and blood was spilling down his face and neck, he asked for the doctor's cell phone to look at the injury. Using the phone camera as a mirror, Ronaldo checked the damage and was not happy with what he saw, shaking his head briefly. While Madrid said the injury was not serious, it did not say if he was fit to play.

Read More: http://www.deccanchronicle.com/sports/cricket/230118/cristiano-ronaldos-injury-vs-deportivo-la-coruna-could-have-been-worse-real-madrid.html

Sevilla-Atlético Madrid: Time, TV, streaming and how to watch Copa del Rey 2018

It’s time to see what this Atlético Madrid side is made of.

(I hate ending a sentence with “of,” almost as much as I hate conceding sloppy away goals. But what am I to do?)

Atlético will be in Andalusia on Tuesday night for a tussle with Sevilla. The Pizjuán faithful are expecting their side to advance to a second semifinal in three seasons after a 2-1 win at the Wanda Metropolitano last week. However, Atleti have hyped up a remontada since Wednesday’s disaster and Diego Simeone tried to rest his key players on Saturday in anticipation of a rally.

However, the boss wasn’t entirely successful. Los colchoneros could only draw with Girona over the weekend and lost Diego Costa to an ever-so-familiar hamstring injury following that match. Filipe Luís is still absent with a heel injury and there is no timetable for his return.

Diego Godín will return from suspension though, and Gabi was rested Saturday with this match in mind. Also, Simeone confirmed Monday that cup keeper Miguel Ángel Moyá will retain his place between the sticks.

Finally, it’s worth noting Atlético have won twice by multiple goals at Sevilla since August 2013. They’ll need a two-goal win Tuesday in order to progress.

Possible XI
Moyá; Vrsaljko, Savić, Godín, Lucas; Correa, Koke, Gabi, Saúl; Griezmann, Gameiro.

Predicted scoreline
Sevilla 2-2 Atlético Madrid (4-3 aggregate).

How to watch
Date: Jan. 22, 2018

Location: Estadio Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán, Sevilla, Andalusia, Spain

Kickoff time: 21:30 CEST, 20:30 GMT/BST, 3:30 p.m. EST, 12:30 p.m. PST

SB Nation opposition blog: N/A

Available TV/streaming: beIN LaLiga, beIN Sports Connect España (Spain), beIN Sports en Español, beIN Sports USA, fuboTV (United States), beIN Sports 1 (France), DIRECTV Sports Argentina (Argentina)

Read More: https://www.intothecalderon.com/2018/1/23/16921876/sevilla-atletico-madrid-time-tv-streaming-how-to-watch-copa-del-rey-2018