Real Madrid refuse to deliver in Santiago Bernabeu - Zidane Coach

Zinedine  Zidane accept  his faith as Real  Madrid was defeated by 3-0 goals by the king of Spain in their last game, which Barcelona were leading with 14point to top the La  Liga table.

“We are down because it is a defeat that hurts,” said Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane.

“Madrid never give up, whatever happens. It is a difficult moment because we’ve lost by three goals. I could say we don’t deserve it, but that is football.”

Defeat leaves Madrid still down in fourth with Barca now nine points clear of their closest challengers Atletico Madrid.

Zidane took the surprise decision to start Mateo Kovacic for the first time in La Liga this season to try negate the threat of Lionel Messi as the Croatian had so successfully when Real thrashed Barca 5-1 in the Spanish Super Cup on aggregate in August.

However, after Madrid missed a host of first-half chances, Kovacic was powerless to stop Messi wrestling control of the game as the Argentine netted from the penalty spot after Luis Suarez’s opener and then teed up Aleix Vidal for Barca’s third in stoppage time

“Tomorrow they are going to hammer me, that is football but it won’t change how I think or what I do,” added Zidane.

“I am the coach and I will continue like this as long as I am here.”

Any chance of a Real recovery after Suarez’s opener was dented as Dani Carvajal also saw a red card for punching the ball off the goal line before Messi’s spot-kick.

– Ronaldo miskick –

“The first goal comes from an error by us and the sending-off completely changes the complexion of the game,” added Zidane.

“Playing with 10 men 2-0 down is very difficult both mentally and physically.”

A 3-0 defeat is also Zidane’s heaviest since he took charge of Real nearly two years ago.

After a red card, Paul Pogba recived a long match ban

Paul Pogba, the Manchester United midfielder,  who made two assists to enhance Victoria of the game between Arsenal  versus Man Utd.

Moussa Dembele is a doubt for Anderlecth tie

Moussa Dembele is a doubt for Celtic's final Champions League group game against Anderlecht with an ankle injury, following a tackle by Motherwell's Cedric Kipre.

MAN CITY SHOWED CHIARACTER TO MATCH THEIR QUALITY AGAINST HUDDERSFIELD

Manchester City showed mettle to match their quality as they came from behind to beat Huddersfield 2-1 on Super Sunday.

JOSE MOURINHO PRAISES ROMELU LUKAKU'S 'FANTASTIC' ATTITUDE AT MANCHESTER UNITED

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho insists he does not care if Romelu Lukaku is struggling for goals as his relentless work rate makes up for it.

ANTONIO CONTE FEARS 'INCREDIBLE' MANCHESTER CITY MAY BECOME UNCATCHABLE FOR CHELSEA

Manchester City's "incredible" improvement this season could leave the rest of the Premier League title hopefuls having to spend big in January just to catch up, says Chelsea boss Antonio Conte.

LIONEL MESSI GOAL RULED OUT DESPITE BALL CLEARLY CROSSING LINE

• Squad

The lack of goal-line technology in La Liga cost Lionel Messi as he scored a 'goal' for Barcelona that clearly crossed the line against Valencia - but it did not stand.

AGENT WANTS MARKO GRUJIC OUT OF LIVERPOOL IN JANUARY AND LOAN AT ENGLISH CLUB

Marko Grujic needs to leave Liverpool on loan in January for another English club, according to his agent.

WILLIAN GRABS A POINT FOR CHEALSEA

Willian (C) celebrates after scoring Chelsea's first goal during the English Premier League football match between Liverpool and Chelsea

KOVALEV BACK WITH A BANG

   

Sergey Kovalev returned to winning ways in destructive fashion as he stopped Vyacheslav Shabranskyy inside two rounds in New York to recapture the WBO world title.

ARSENAL WENGER INSISTS MESUT OZIL HAS NOT AGREED TO JOIN BARCELONA NEXT SUMMER

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has denied Mesut Ozil has already agreed to move to Barcelona when his contract expires at the Emirates.

OZIL GETS STICK BECAUSE OF TALENT

      
     Mesut Ozil gets criticism for indifferent form because he can be one of the best in the Premier League, says Paul Merson

Paul Merson says Mesut Ozil receives criticism for his inconsistent form because he can be one of the best players in the Premier League.

The Arsenal midfielder picked up the man-of-the-match award in the impressive 2-0 win over Tottenham on Saturday, but has been criticised for below-par showings in previous big games since joining from Real Madrid in 2013.

Ozil's contract at Arsenal runs out at the end of the season, but his future, alongside that of Alexis Sanchez, is unknown, and former Arsenal player Merson believes that having seen the World Cup winner's potential, the criticism is often warranted.


"Against Spurs he was unbelievable. Different class. He's a Rolls Royce player, and that's why we all get the hump. You know that on his day he is one of the best players in the Premier League. That's why he gets so much stick.

"A player from other mid-table teams won't get stick for underperforming because they're not world class players. But Ozil can be a world class player.

"This is a World Cup winner, a player that strolls into Germany's team, who are one of the favourites to win the World Cup.
Highlights: Arsenal 2-0 Tottenham

"I'd go as far as saying he's one of the first names on the team sheet for Germany. How can he not turn up and be eight out of 10 in the Premier League every week?"

Ozil's inconsistency has mirrored Arsenal's over previous seasons, with the win over Tottenham coming after mixed bag of results throughout October and November.

Arsenal now go to Burnley on Sunday, and Merson hopes the win over Tottenham has instilled desire in players to repeat their efforts against mid-table sides.

"If Arsenal match Burnley's enthusiasm early on, I can see them winning," said Merson. "These are the type of games where Arsenal prove themselves. Man City go and wipe the floor with these teams, but you just don't know what will happen with Arsenal.


"If Arsene Wenger's side don't turn up, they won't grind out a 1-0 win. It's all about consistency with Arsenal, the magic one.

"The win over Spurs should change the attitude of some of players, you'd like to think so, but you can't find two games that are more chalk and cheese; home to Tottenham and away at Burnley.

"The fans were up for it, under pressure to perform, they rub their faces in it. Now it's Burnley, who won't leave anything on that pitch. Spurs did, big players didn't turn up."
Also See:

PLAYERS ARE NOT TO BE BLAME : JOSE MOURINHO

           
    
Jose Mourinho refused to blame his Manchester United players for their surprising 1-0 away defeat at Basel on Wednesday night.

Michael Lang's late winner ended United's 100 per cent record in the group stages, meaning United still need to get a point in their final group game against CSKA Moscow.

Anthony Martial and Marcos Rojo hit the frame of the goal for United but Lang's strike gave the Swiss side a deserved win.


Mourinho was left confused by the permutations for the group, but they only need to avoid defeat against the Russians at Old Trafford in order to progress.

A draw in Basel would have secured top spot, but United appeared to be caught in two minds about whether to stick and secure a point or twist in a bid to win.
Nemanja Matic, Ander Herrera and Chris Smalling show their disappointment after Basel's goal
Nemanja Matic, Ander Herrera and Chris Smalling show their disappointment after Basel's goal

"We played against a team that played with five defenders," Mourinho said. "We knew that.

"We tried to play with three attacking players and that worked in the first half because they couldn't handle us.

"We didn't score in the second half probably [because of] the fact that we know one point is enough.

"Probably [when] at 75 minutes, 80 minutes we didn't score, so it is not time to try to win, it is now time to try control and in the end we lost.

"So it's hard for me to be upset with the players. The first half the attitude was good, the football was good.

ENGLAND CHECKED AFTER VINCE KNOCK

James Vince hit his maiden Test fifty as England made steady progress on day one

BLUES INTO CHAMPIONS LEAGUE LAST 16 WITH EASY VICTORY - QARABAG 0-4 CHEALSEA

Chelsea secured their spot in the last 16 of the Champions League as they cruised to a 4-0 victory against 10-man Qarabag on Wednesday.

LIONEL MESSI A SURPRISE SUBSTITUTE HELPS BARCELONA PROGRESS

Lionel Messi started on the bench as Barcelona qualified for the last 16 of the Champions League despite their second successive 0-0 draw in the group stage.

Paris Saint-Germain 7-1 Celtic: Champions League favourites break group-stage goalscoring record

Paris Saint-Germain recovered from a goal down to secure an emphatic 7-1 victory over Celtic and break a Champions League goalscoring record in the process.

Juventus 0-0 Barcelona: Catalans confirm qualification

 

Juventus were left frustrated by Barcelona as they played out an engrossing 0-0 draw in Turin on Wednesday night.

FC Basel 1-0 Manchester United: Michael Lang strikes as United stumble

Manchester United were denied passage into the Champions League knockout phase as Michael Lang's 89th-minute strike snatched a dramatic 1-0 victory for Basel at St. Jakob-Park.

Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho says his side should have been five or six goals ahead by half-time of their Champions League defeat by Basel.

United dominated the first half of their penultimate group game, with Marouane Fellaini and Marcos Rojo hitting the woodwork.