MADRID CONTINUE TO STRUGGLE IN RONALDO’S ABSENCE

Cristiano Ronaldo

Real Madrid continue to struggle in the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo. The defending La Liga champs have made a poor start to the new term as they drop more points in the draw against Levante.


The Portuguese still has a game to serve to complete his five game match ban for his red card and referee push incident. Real Madrid play Real Sociedad on Sunday but afterwards the prolific goalscorer can then be available for selection.

Since the red card was for Spanish fixtures, the player would be available as Real play APOEL in the Champions League on Wednesday.

After winning their first game, Madrid have drawn their last two, leaving them four points adrift Barcelona early in the La Liga race. The latest was the stumble at the Bernabeu against Levante. The team has now lost KarimBenzemato injury. He could be out for one month, further limiting the goalscoring options at the club.

The bad news so far are in line with what analysts had predicted ahead following the sale of Alvaro Morata to Chelsea without a replacement of any sort. The lack of striking options has been revealed and it could get bad as Madrid are set to have a busy three weeks. Read More

Betting on Champions League final

Cristiano Ronaldo

It is expected that a record number of people will be placing bets on the Champions League final match between Juventus and Real Madrid.


It is believed that online betting will increase by more than 30% compared to that of the previous week.

Indeed the Champions League final is the most prestigious club competition and people from around the world will be following this match.

Betting companies are expecting a rise in the number of betting compared to last year given that there will be no major competition during the summer this time.

Online betting companies have tended to benefit from finals of a major cup competition. It is reported that for the FA Cup final game that saw Arsenal beat Chelsea the amount of online betting rose by 16%.

Elsewhere in South East Asia, illegal betting companies have also benefited from the increase activities for the Champions League final. Police report that they have arrested a number of people that were involved in illegal betting. Read More

WILL JAMES RODRIGUEZ THRIVE IN ENGLAND?

Cristiano Ronaldo

There are now strong indications that Real Madrid might release James Rodriguez this summer.


The Columbian is widely expected to complete the move to Old Trafford this summer if things go according to plan.

The player was hired by Florentino Perez after his brilliant display for his national team at the 2014 World Cup. In his three year stay at Santiago Bernabeu, he has scored 28 times with a min/goal average of 177.18. He has created at least 181 chances during that period, hitting 124 shots with conversion rate of 22.58. His passing accuracy is 87.61%. His stats show that he could be a better threat in the Red Devils set-up.

Coach Jose Mourinho is still working the team. After throwing big money in a quick fix attempt by luring Paul Pogba back to the Theatre of Dreamsand convincing Zlatan Ibrahimovic to exit PSG, Mourinho is now looking at specific needs of the team. Read More

Cristiano Ronaldo with Soft Heart

Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo may look like a tough fellow from outside, but, behind that tough exterior of the man is a real soft heart and we get to see the glimpse of that softness every now and then.


The winger is always interested in contributing to the charities in whichever way he can and recently also he has done something for which he can only be given tremendous amount of respect.

There is an organisation in Portugal which picks up stray dogs in bad condition of their health from different parts of the country and provides them the medical treatment to save their lives.

That organisation, of late, had been lacking funds to continue their services. So, they got in touch with Ronaldo through one of his acquaintances with a polite enquiry if he could do anything for them and to their delight, they got a positive response from the player and that too immediately. Read More

Zidane Happy with Performance Real Madrid Reach FIFA Club World Cup Final

Cristiano Ronaldo

Zinedine Zidane saw his Real Madrid outfit secure a 2-0 comfortable victory against Club America in the semi-final of the FIFA Club World Cup.


Real Madrid have entered into the competition as a representative from Europe after having won the Champions League last season. It was the first major honour for Zidane as the manager of the club after having taken over from Rafa Benitez midway through the campaign. There is no greater success in club football than lifting the FIFA Club World Cup and Zidane is now one step closer towards this achievement after reaching the final.

Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo scored the goals that were enough to see off the Mexican opponents. A first-half injury time goal from Benzema was a major factor in relieving the pressure off Real Madrid in the second half. The Spanish club were able to double their advantage in the second half through Ronaldo and this goal also made the game safe. Read More

WENGER AND FERGUSON CLASH OVER BALLON D’OR

Cristiano Ronaldo

Former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsenal’s current coach Arsene Wenger seem to disagree over who should win the Ballon d’Or going by their statements. Wenger is known not to be a fan of world football


Early this year, the French tactician said he considers himself an ‘enemy’ of the world football’s topmost prize. Last week, he spoke against those who praised personal successes of players over team effort.

“We have seen many people only thinking about themselves because they are obsessed by Ballon d’Or and not by the team performance,” said Wenger.

The Emirates boss added that he believes that the game is one that involves collective effort of the players.

“… we live already in a world where everything is individualized. We want to respect what football is about, first and foremost about the team effort,” he said. The manager seems not to be impressed with the fact that Mesut Ozil missed out of the 30-man shortlist, but congratulated the player for his nomination for the France Football award.
On the other hand, Sir Alex Ferguson backed Cristiano Ronaldo to win the award this year. Read More

CRISTIANO RONALDO SAYS PLAYING ENGLAND WILL BE VERY EMOTIONAL FOR HIM

Cristiano Ronaldo

Former Manchester United forward, Cristiano Ronaldo says playing England will be very emotional for him, after playing in England for years before joining Spanish giant, Real Madrid.

Ronaldo admits playing against Wayne Rooney at Euro 2016 after playing five years together at Old Trafford between 2004 and 2009 will bring back memories.

The pair played together winning a glut of trophies including the Premier League and Champions League. They have also met twice before on the international stage at major tournaments in two fiery encounters between England and Portugal. They played at the continental championship in 2004 before meeting again in 2006 at the World Cup in Germany.

In 2004, Portugal defeated England at the quarter-final stage in a match which saw Rooney suffer a broken foot.  At the World Cup two years later, Rooney was shown a straight red card for a stamp on Ricardo Carvalho. Ronaldo pressured the referee to give the Three Lions forward a tough punishment as the referee was yet to decide and Rooney pushed Ronaldo off in anger. Ronaldo was famously caught on camera winking to the touchline as Rooney made his way off the pitch. England later lost out on penalties.   Read More

FORBES: CRISTIANO RONALDO WAS THE HIGHEST PAID FOOTBALLER LAST YEAR

Cristiano Ronaldo

US business magazine Forbes says Portuguese super star, Cristiano Ronaldo was the highest paid footballer last year in their new report.

Forbes added that the forward was also the highest-paid team athlete last year. Real Madrid star Ronaldo was said to have earned a total of $82 million (£56.7m), with an annual salary of $53m (£36.7m) and $29m (£20m) in endorsements.


The 31-year-old Portugal captain, who became the world’s most expensive player when he joined Madrid from Manchester United for a record fee of £80m in 2009, signed a lucrative new five-year contract at the Bernabeu in 2013. Forbes, which also ranked Real Madrid as football’s most valuable club, said Ronaldo, a three-time FIFA Ballon d’Or winner, is now the best-paid team athlete across all sport.

Barcelona forward Lionel Messi, the 2015 FIFA Ballon d’Or winner, was second in the list on $77m (£53.3m), with the 28-year-old’s $51m (£35.3m) salary augmented by $26m (£18m) in endorsements. The Argentina captain renewed his Barca contract in 2014. Ronaldo and Messi, who have been the only Ballon d’Or winners since Kaka’s 2007 success, are some distance ahead of Paris Saint-Germain star Zlatan Ibrahimovic in third. Read More

CRISTIANO RONALDO SAYS “ALL GOOD”

Cristiano Ronaldo

Real Madrid Superstar, Cristiano Ronaldo has allayed the concerns that his impressive season for the Spanish giant, Real Madrid, might come to a much earlier end. The Portuguese sustained a late injury in Real Madrid’s victory over Villarreal in La Liga.

The talented winger raised concerns when he limped off in the final minutes in the game against the Spanish side. He caused a scare that he had picked up an apparent muscle injury in his right leg. Though he walked off the field by himself at the Santiago Bernabeu at the 3-0 triumph, he left his team mates and fans worried.

The player has netted 31 goals in the La Liga just this season that sets him top in the goal scorers’ chart. The three-time Ballon d’Or winner posted on popular social media app, Instagram, that he doing fine. The intent was to reassure fans.

“All good. Thanks for your support,” he posted.

However, the Spanish side has come out in line with the fears to posit that the star player is expected to have medical tests as a precaution. Madrid are a point behind fierce rivals, Barcelona. The face local rivals Rayo Vallecano on Saturday in their next La Liga title chase. They also have Champions League semi-finals matches where they face a two-legged affair with English side, Manchester City. Read More

Memphis Depay scored his first goal for Manchester United

Cristiano Ronaldo

Memphis Depay arrived to Old Trafford on July 10 of the current year and the Dutchman has kicked of his career with the Premier League club on a positive note as the recent signing scored his first goal in an official match with the Premier League club.

On July 22nd, Manchester United faced off with San Jose Earthquakes at the Memorial Stadium in California and won their International Champions Cup match with a comfortable 3-1 victory.

Juan Mata scored the opening goal of the match at the 32nd minute; Memphis Depay extended the lead to 2 goals but FataiAlashe cut down that lead as he scored the only goal of the entire match for San Jose Earthquakes before the first half had reached it’s end.

Andreas Pereira turned the match beyond the reach of the MLS team as he scored the last goal of the game as Manchester United won the game without facing much difficulty.

This match was planned to take place at the Memorial Stadium in the University of California campus in Berkeley but the location of the game was decided to be modified as a way to benefit Manchester United as the Premier League club was already staying in San Jose as they trained at the Earthquakes’ facilities in that period of time. Read More