International Football
La Liga Title Race On Fast Lane
Sergio Ramos, skipper of Real Madrid is dismissing insinuations by Barcelona’s Gerard Pique that the league leaders are getting preferential treatment from Spanish referees.
Real Madrid will host Las Palmas in Tuesday’s La Liga while Barcelona, a point behind in second place, are at home to Sporting.
Chasing their first La Liga crown since 2012, Real Madrid are top after a Sunday that saw each of the rivals get late wins. Barca had moved top thanks to a late strike from Lionel Messi in their 2-1 victory at Atletico Madrid.
Real then moved back into first place after a 3-2 come-from-behind win at Villarreal. Cristiano Ronaldo converted a disputed penalty to equalise after Villarreal captain, Bruno Soriano handled following a ricochet in the area.
Villarreal coach Fran Escriba and substitute Roberto Soldado were both sent off from the dugout for protesting the decision.
Alvaro Morata then scored the winner in the 83rd minute.
Afterwards, Pique tweeted examples reported by the Spanish press that refereeing decisions were going in the league leaders’ favour and against his own team.
“I don’t believe that the referees attempt to give or take anything away from you, quite the opposite, they try to be fair,” Ramos told his club’s website.
Real gave away two early goals in a midweek defeat to Valencia.
“We’re focused on continuing to improve,” Ramos said. “We want to keep picking up three points in order to win the title.”
Las Palmas forward Jese Rodriguez will face his former club less than six months after leaving Real Madrid to join Paris St Germain.
He has not scored since joining Las Palmas on loan on January 31 and his side have lost all four games since his arrival.
Barcelona host coach Luis Enrique’s hometown club without the services of defender Mathieu, who sustained a sprained ankle against Atletico.
The defending champions have Messi in top form, with the Argentine forward having scored in his team’s last four league games. He has a league-best 20 goals.
Barcelona captain Andres Iniesta says the aim right now is to play well and keep the pressure on the leaders.
“We need to keep on winning for when they (Real) make mistakes,” Iniesta told reporters on Monday. “It’s good for them to notice that we are right there.
Opponents Sporting are in the relegation zone with 17 points from 24 games.
Third-place Sevilla are two points adrift of Barcelona and host Athletic Bilbao on Thursday.
Well-travelled Portuguese coach Paulo Duarte has been named as Guinea’s new coach, less than a month before their next round of World Cup qualifiers.
Duarte, 56, has twice previously coached Burkina Faso and taken charge of Gabon and Togo, while also coaching at clubs in Portugal, France, Tunisia, Angola and Saudi Arabia.
Guinea’s football federation gave no contract details when they made the announcement on Monday, but said they would be looking for Duarte to “restructure their national team”.
Guinea trail leaders Algeria by eight points in their World Cup qualifying group with four games remaining, leaving them with only a slim chance of qualification.
They play Somalia away on September 5 and then Algeria at home on September 8 in their next two qualifiers although a stadium ban means Guinea have moved their home game to Casablanca, Morocco.
-Reuters
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Veteran coach Louis van Gaal says he has been cured of cancer and is keen for a return to the higher levels of the game.
The 73-year-old announced three years ago that he was suffering from prostate cancer, but told a Dutch television talk show, “I’m no longer bothered by cancer.”
When he announced his illness, Van Gaal was the coach of the Dutch national team, but he has not worked since the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
“Two years ago, I had a few operations. It was all bad then. But it all worked out in the end. I have check-ups every few months, and that’s going well. I’m getting fitter and fitter,” he said.
Van Gaal, whose career has included stints at Ajax Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, reiterated a lack of interest in returning to club management but said becoming the national coach of a top-tier country could tempt him back.
He now serves as a special advisor to Ajax.
-Reuters
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In a compelling twist of football destiny, Davide Ancelotti is stepping into his own spotlight as he begins his first head coaching role at Brazilian club Botafogo—just months after parting ways with his legendary father, Carlo Ancelotti, at Real Madrid.
The 35-year-old has been appointed as Botafogo’s new manager, the club announced on Tuesday, following the sacking of Renato Paiva. Davide, who has spent the last decade working alongside his father at some of Europe’s top clubs—including Bayern Munich, Napoli, Everton, and Real Madrid—has signed a one-year deal with the Rio-based team.
This marks a significant milestone for the younger Ancelotti, whose career has long been shaped by his father’s influence, but who now faces the challenge of carving his own identity on the touchline.
The move comes shortly after both father and son departed Real Madrid at the end of last season, with Carlo taking over the Brazilian national team. Now, in a poetic alignment, father and son find themselves on different paths within Brazilian football—one leading the Seleção, the other steering the fortunes of a storied domestic club.
Botafogo’s decision to appoint Davide follows a controversial parting with Paiva, who was dismissed just days after their exit from the Club World Cup. Though he oversaw a stunning win over Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain, a 1-0 extra-time loss to Palmeiras in the round of 16 proved to be his final act after just four months in charge.
As Davide Ancelotti begins this new chapter, all eyes will be on whether the son of one of football’s most decorated managers can step out from his father’s shadow—and perhaps, in time, build a legacy of his own.
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