RSS2012 Africa Cup of Nations: Focus on Group D
Key match-ups
Ghana vs Botswana
With their attainments in the last few years, Ghana’s young side have proved that they are not a side to underestimate. It will be interesting to see them battling Botswana, who are just making their first appearance in the Africa Cup of Nations tournament. But that surely does not mean that they are simply minnows. An impressive qualification run that saw them top Group K is just enough to send the Black Stars a strong warning.
Ghana vs Guinea
The two countries met in the opening match of the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations, when Ghana were then hosting the tournament. A 2-1 victory for the Black Stars threw the Guineans on the back foot after Day 1, but the story is likely to be different this time around. “Revenge” is not necessarily the keyword in this game; but in any case, the National Elephants have a realistic idea of how dangerous the Ghanaians can be. Thus, we could be in for a game of strategy and techniques.
Atalanta vs Juventus Preview
Serie A leaders Juventus are hoping to extend their impressive 18-game unbeaten run when they travel to Bergamo to take on Atalanta at the Atleti Azzurri d'Italia stadium on Saturday.Despite being held to a frustrating home draw by Cagliari last week, the Bianconeri still overtook Milan at the top of the league standings, after the Italian champions were edged out by city rivals Inter Milan at the San Siro on Sunday.
However, if Juventus intend to maintain league leadership they will have to be on top of their game against a difficult Atalanta side whose only home defeat of the season came against Milan a little less than a fortnight ago.
River Plate vs Racing Club Report
French striker David Trezeguet was on target in his River Plate debut to help Los Millonarios defeat Racing Club 2-1 to lift the Copa Cuidad de Mar del Plata at the Jose Maria Minella stadium on Thursday.River started the game in the best possible manner, as with just six minutes gone they went ahead when Rogelio Funes Mori bursted into the area and beat Racing goalkeeper Sebastian Saja with a superb lobbed effort.
Racing appeared to be shell-shocked after conceding the goal, and a pumped River would have capitalised on this if Saja hadn't kept out goal-bound efforts from Lucas Ocampos and Alejandro Dominguez.
Ten-man Nacional advance to the final of the Copa Antel after beating rivals Penarol
Uruguayan champions Nacional advanced to the final of the Copa Antel after edging arch-rivals Penarol 1-0 at the Centenario stadium in Montevideo on Thursday.The only goal of the match was converted by Nacional defender Jadson Viera, when he headed home a corner-kick delivered by Alvaro Recoba in the 56th minute.
With the win, Nacional avenged their penalty shoot-out defeat to Penarol in the Copa Bimbo last week.
Both teams fielded full-strength sides to confront the highly anticipated superclasico, the biggest game on the Uruguayan soccer calendar.
Internazionale vs Genoa Report
Inter Milan, the reigning champions of the Coppa Italia, defeated Genoa 2-1 at the San Siro stadium on Thursday to book their passage into the quarter-finals of the competition.The Nerazzurri didn't put on their finest display, but it was still enough for them to notch up their seventh consecutive victory in all competitions. Inter's goals were scored by Maicon and Andrea Poli, while Valter Birsa scored a late consolation goal for the visitors.
Inter controlled the early moments of the game, and just had to wait nine minutes before Maicon put them ahead with an unstoppable 27-metre missile that found itself in the top left-hand corner of the Genoa goal.
2012 Africa Cup of Nations team profiles: Focus on Zambia’s AFCON history
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The Chipolopolo are very familiar with Nations Cup football. CAN 2012 will mark their 15th appearance in the finals. Herve Renard possesses a healthy blend of young and old players. In his second stint at the head of Zambia’s national team, how inspiring will the Frenchman be?
Zambia’s Copper Bullets
Zambia have never tasted glory in the championship and they can count a total of three third-place triumphs and two sets of silver medals. The Copper Bullets have a number of memories to cherish. One of those comes from their 1982 AFCON campaign in Libya. The Zambians survived against the likes of Zimbabwe and Morocco in the qualifying stages to reach the final tournament.
2012 Africa Cup of Nations team profiles: Focus on Tunisia’s AFCON history
Will Sami Trabelsi enjoy success after seeing his team struggle to reach Gabon-Equatorial Guinea as runners-up behind surprise-package Botswana? Tunisia are among the few giants present at the 2012 AFCON. We take a look at the history in the Nations Cup.
Tunisia’s history in brief
At a number of occasions, Tunisia went very close to achieving their dream of conquering Africa. They finished third in 1962 and clinched silver medals twice; in 1965 and in 1996. But CAN 2004 produced Tunisia’s best memory in the history of the Nations Cup.
It was a host and win situation for the Eagles of Carthage. After successfully avoiding defeat against Guinea, Rwanda and Congo DR in the group stages, the Tunisians faced Senegal in the quarterfinals.
Did Dortmund make the right choice by purchasing Marco Reus?
According to Kicker magazine, Reus demanded a starting berth at Bayern. Bayern promised the attacker higher wages than Dortmund but was not willing to give the youngster a starting berth. As a result, Reus headed towards the club he represented as a youth player. His family lives there and this gave him yet another reason to head to the German Champions.Dortmund parted with a sum of 17.5 million euros to bring the player to the club. The signing of Reus can be thought of as a tug of war between Bayern and Dortmund that Dortmund won. Yet, despite winning the battle, Dortmund might not be able to win the war.
2012 Africa Cup of Nations team profiles: Focus on Sudan’s AFCON history
Gone are the days when Sudan were among world football’s top 40 teams. The Falcons of Jediane are currently in 113th position. Coach Mohamed Abdalla will lead the team during the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations in Gabon and in Equatorial Guinea.
Sudan's bright past
Sudan hlosted the first edition of the Nations Cup in 1957. However, they had no success as they lost 2-1 in the semi-finals to eventual champions Egypt. Two years later, the Falcons of Jediane had the opportunity to participate in the tournament again. They finished second behind the United Arab Republic.
Milan vs Novara Report
Italian champions AC Milan needed an extra-time winner to advance to the quarter-finals of the Coppa Italia at the expense of a stubborn Novara at the San Siro stadium on Wednesday.A first-half strike from youngster Stephan El Shaarawy appeared to be enough for Milan to go through, but with two minutes left in regulation time Ivan Radovanovic drew the visitors level to send the match into extra-time.
However, their joy was short-lived as substitute Alexandre Pato sent Milan into the quarter-finals of the competition with a 100th-minute winner.
Pepe-Messi controversy: Rooney slams “idiot” Pepe as incident rocks the media
It is natural for the Portguese defender to have issues concerning his discipline on the pitch. At the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday, he was involved in an ugly incident which apparently went unseen by the match’s officials.
Pepe was captured stamping on Lionel Messi’s hand. The Real Madrid defender escaped punishment but his behavior evidently drew reaction from El Clasico spectators. Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere instantly posted the following message on his Twitter account:
“Poor from Pepe!”
Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney also wrote:
“Pepe. What an idiot. Sometimes people wind u up.”
Mourinho takes Clasico loss blame as Pep switches focus on Barca’s La Liga hunt
“The responsibility is mine, especially when my team loses. Victory has many fathers; defeat only one. I've been in football a long time and I understand this,” Mourinho told reporters.“The [2011] cup final victory we all celebrated, but in defeat I am the only parent.
“We were winning 1-0 and that is a great result at home in a two-legged tie, but then we concede a goal from a dead ball and you cannot do that against a side with the quality of Barcelona,” Mourinho stated has he talked about Carles Puyol’s equalizer which Xavi branded as a “psychological goal”.
2012 Africa Cup of Nations team profiles: Focus on Senegal’s AFCON history
The Lions of Teranga (Les Lions de la Teranga in French) are potentially dangerous. They are among the world’s top 50 nations and 6th in Africa. They are coached by Amara Traore and captained by veteran striker Mamadou Niang. The book of the Senegalese national team’s AFCON adventures is eventful and full of historic moments. You just can’t disregard Senegal’s importance in the history of African football.
A colorful history
Senegal’s first taste of the Nations Cup was in 1965 when they finished fourth behind Ivory Coast. Their next best shot at the competition was in 1992 and in 1994 when they reached the quarterfinals.
Real Madrid vs Barcelona Report
REAL MADRID AND BARCELONA'S TEAM LINEUPJose Mourinho stunned the public with a risky 4-3-3 lineup which had Altintop at right-back and Pepe in midfield. Interestingly, Mourinho responded to the fans’ desire of starting with the Benzema-Higuain duo. Carvalho made a surprise comeback in Real Madrid’s first XI.
Attacking-minded midfielders Kaka and Mesut Özil started El Clasico from the bench. Callejon received a call-up while Angel di Maria didn’t make the cut based on fitness worries. Pepe was supposed to lead Real Madrid’s planned approach from the midfield. Instead, the Portuguese defender eventually destroyed his team’s chances of winning as Barcelona carried the day yet again.
Can Valencia finish in the top two in La Liga this season?
Valencia was trailing Barcelona by just four points just two weeks ago. When they fell 0-1 to Real Sociedad last week, they allowed Barca to skip ahead and form a seven point bridge. One fact will give Valencia some hope. This season, Barca is dropping points quite often. They even squandered a 2-0 lead against Real Betis before going on to win 4-2.While Barca might have lost only once, they have dropped points in no less than six matches. Valencia has dropped points in eight matches which include four losses. When the two sides played each other, Valencia led 2-1 but had to be satisfied with a draw thanks to Cesc Fabregas. Valencia was the better team for the better part of that match and later rued missing so many opportunities.
Internazionale vs Genoa Preview
Fresh from their crucial victory over arch-rivals AC Milan on the weekend, Inter Milan kick-off their defense of the Coppa Italia at the round of 16 stage against Genoa at the San Siro stadium on Thursday.Inter come into the clash in sensational form, as their victory over Milan extended their winning streak to six matches, where they scored 14 goals and conceded only one. The Nerazzurri seem unstoppable at present and will hope to continue with their impressive run of results against a Genoa side which they eliminated at an identical stage of the tournament last year.
But Genoa are expected to give Inter a run for their money, after obtaining a dramatic 3-2 victory over high-flying Udinese on the weekend. If Genoa manage to demonstrate the same attacking prowess as they did against Udinese an upset could possibly be on the cards.
El Clasico 2012: 10 things to expect from Madrid-Barca clash in the Copa del Rey
1) A goal for Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi only came around the hour mark in the first leg of Barcelona’s match against Osasuna in the Copa del Rey, but he somehow managed to leave the field with a double that helped the Catalans triumph 6-1 on aggregate. He has long been a solid threat to Real Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas, and up until now, the Ballon d’Or 2011 winner has bagged 13 goals in El Clasico. With his personal duel with the Spanish goalie not ready to cool down, one could expect Messi to hit the back of the net yet again tonight.
2) A goal for Cristiano Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo might be a great attacker, but scoring against Barcelona is not something the winger does easily. In the 7 Clasicos that took place last year, Ronaldo only grabbed a single goal, but its importance was massive.
Boca Juniors vs San Lorenzo Report
Boca coach Julio Cesar Falcioni rested several of Boca's key players for the clash, including playmaker Juan Roman Riquelme. While San Lorenzo, who are coached by Leonardo Madelon, confronted the match with a full-strength squad.
San Lorenzo, who unveiled their latest reinforcement in former Boca striker Carlos Bueno, started the stronger of the two sides, and looked particularly dangerous in the attack, due to the aggressive-nature of their front-men.
Is Tottenham Hotspur a Title Contender?
A 1-1 draw against Wolves is not the result a champion achieves. However, Tottenham came from behind to take a point from this match. Coming from behind and picking up points is the mark of a champion. As a result, that draw can be considered a positive result.Spurs last week beat Everton 2-0. In that match, Tottenham showed signs of a title- winning side. The first goal scored by Aaron Lennon was a wonderful individual effort to give Spurs the lead. The second goal from Benoit Assou Ekoto was a brilliant effort despite the deflection that fooled Tim Howard.
Real Madrid vs Barcelona: Messi & Ronaldo’s impact, Mou’s respect & more in quotes
We bring you a preview of the pre-match preparations in quotes from the Catalans’ point of view. What do people think of Barcelona? What are they predicting concerning Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Psychologically, how do Pep Guardiola’s players regard the game?
1) Xavi – as quoted on Barcelona’s official website
The midfielder is naturally bold and hard to break in midfield. After experiencing so many unbelievable results against Real Madrid, Xavi’s desire to triumph still exists. The 2011 FIFA Ballon d’Or nominee has promised to give Los Blancos a tough time in the quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey.
“We'll play with our trademark style and philosophy, exciting, spectacular and looking for a goal – the more goals you score away from home, the better!”