Manchester City vs AC Milan 27-07-2014 Friendly Highlights 5-1

AC Milan vs Manchester City
Competition: International Champions Cup
Match date: 27 July 2014
Kick Off Time: 21:00 BST
Venue: Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Jovetic scores twice as AC Milan are thrashed 5-1 by Manchester City in Pittsburgh.

AC Milan 1-5 Manchester City (Friendly):

12' 0-1 Stevan Jovetic // 14' 0-2 Scott Sinclair // 23' 0-3 Jesus Navas // 26' 0-4 Iheanacho // 42' Sulley Ali Muntari 1-4 // 53' 1-5 Stevan Jovetic

Man City starting lineup vs AC Milan 2014 International Champions Cup:- Caballero, Clichy, Kolarov, Boyata, Nastasic, Fernando, Navas, Zuculini, Sinclair, Jovetic, Iheanacho.

AC Milan starting XI vs MCFC Pittsburgh friendly 2014:- Agazzi, De Sciglio, Rami, Constant, Alex, Muntari, Poli, Cristante, Honda, Niang, El Shaarawy.

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Sydney FC vs Newcastle United 0-4 Highlights 22-07-2014 Friendly

Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin, NZ - 22 July, 2014 - Friendly - 08.30 UK KO

Sydney FC vs Newcastle United 0-4:

Newcastle United 0-1: Siem de Jong goal (18').
Newcastle United 0-2: Emmanuel Riviere goal (25').
Newcastle United 0-3: Mapou Yanga Mbiwa goal (33').
Newcastle United 0-4: Adam Amstrong goal (83'). 

Newcastle Utd picked up a convincing result on their latest pre-season friendly as they stormed passed Australian side Sydney FC 4-0. The Magpies put on an aggressive effort since kick off and after 18 minutes of play they already got in front thanks to a goal from their new signing Siem De Jong.

Alan Pardew's men continue to dominate proceedings as they eventually doubling their advantage on 25 minutes from Emmanuel Riviere.

Newcastle's aggressive approach was simply too much to handle for Sydney as the Australian outfit found themselves conceding a third goal when Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa scored on 33 minutes.

Already taking a comfortable 3-0 lead in the first period didn't stop Newcastle from pushing forward as they netted their fourth seven minutes from time through Adam Amstrong's effort.

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Dundee vs Manchester City 2014 Friendly Highlights 2-0

Dens Park, Dundee - International Friendly- 13 July, 2014 - 16.00 UK KO

Man City started their pre-season campaign in a disappointing fashion after losing their first match against Dundee. Still having several players out because of international duties, Man City put on a pretty solid squad for that game including two new players, Willy Cabellero along with Fernando.

However, lack of match fitness was shown from City as they found themselves struggling and eventually conceding a goal on 27 minutes from Gary Harkins' rebound effort.

The home team doubling their lead few minutes before half time break thanks to an own goal from Dedryk Boyata.

City tried to improve their game in the second period, but none of their efforts were able to get them back into that tie.

Dundee 1-0: Gary Harkins goal (27').
Dundee 2-0: Dedryk Boyata goal (38').

Dundee starting lineup vs MCFC 2014:- Adam, Irvine, McPake, Dyer, Konrad, Thomson, McBride, Harkins, McAlister, Cadogan, Tankulic.

Man City starting XI vs Dundee 2014:- Caballero, Kolarov, Boyata, Bossaerts, Denayer, Navas, Rodwell, Fernando, Jovetic, Guidetti, Huws.

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Germany vs Argentina FIFA World Cup Final - July 13, 2014

Germany vs Argentina - Competition: World Cup Final
 

Though it were some of the most astonishing moments in football history when Germany scored four goals within seven minutes against the five-times world champions on Tuesday, we should not overvalue them, as Brazil’s defence acted like amateurs. Still this unbelievable success will boost Germany’s confidence even more, if this is possible at all. They have already displayed an extreme confident body language when demolishing Portugal 4:0 in their first match, never left doubts that they want to lift the Cup this time. The Germans perform well structured, play quick and precisely, defend very organised and still have huge quality on their bench. With Thomas Müller (5 goals) and Miroslav Klose they are equipped with the top-scorers of the the last two World Cups and in goalkeeper Manuel Neuer and Mats Hummels they have the two probably best defensive players of the tournament available. The later got substituted in the Brazil match due to tendon problems, but should be fit for the final.

While the match between Brazil and Germany was pure excitement its counterpart between Argentina and the Netherlands was probably the most boring semi-final ever. Two extremely defensively-minded teams did not even try to score goals, so nobody was surprised when they found themselves in a penalty shoot-out which was finally won by the South Americans. It was not the first time the ‘Albiceleste’ played this destructive football in this tournament, they also played very defensively when beating Belgium and Switzerland both 1:0 before. However, besides a solid defence the Argentinians have an outstanding defensive midfielder in Javier Mascherano and they know how to slow down a match, which could effect the German game seriously. They will patiently wait for their chance and hope that the four times ‘World Player of the Year’ Lionel Messi will decide this final with his ingenuity. A creative player who could support Messi is Angel di Maria. The midfielder missed the match against the Dutch due to a thigh injury and his appearance in the final is not sure as well.

Germany last 5 matches:
21/06/14   Germany 2 – 2 Ghana
26/06/14   United States 0 – 1 Germany
30/06/14   Germany E 2 – 1 Algeria
04/07/14   France 0 – 1 Germany
08/07/14   Brazil 1 – 7 Germany

Argentina last 5 matches:
21/06/14   Argentina 1 – 0 Iran
25/06/14   Nigeria 2 – 3 Argentina
01/07/14   Argentina E 1 – 0 Switzerland
05/07/14   Argentina 1 – 0 Belgium
09/07/14   Netherlands 0 – 0 P Argentina

Match date: Sunday, 13 July 2014
Kick Off Time: 21:00 BST
Venue: Estadio do Maracana, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil

You can watch the match here: Link 1 , Link 2 [Live Scores]

 

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Brazil vs Netherlands World Cup 3rd Place - July 12, 2014

Brazil vs Netherlands - FIFA World Cup 2014 (Match For 3rd Place)

Match Date: Saturday, 12 July 2014 - Kick Off Time: 17:00 Local / 21:00 BST
Venue: Estadio Nacional Brasilia, Brasilia, Brazil

This match is probably one of these games that the Brazilian team never has wanted to play. Their only goal at the World Cup at home in 2014 was to win the title and to celebrate together with their fans. But after the dramatic defeat against the German team they know that their dream is over now. Without Neymar and their captain Thiago Silva they couldn’t do anything to stop the Germans. Receiving five goals in the first half was quite historical. Their second half was slightly stronger, but Germany probably wasn’t too motivated to give 100% anymore, after it was quite sure that the game was done. In another point of view this game against the Netherlands could be a blessing. They now have the chance to make reparation for their humiliation in the semi-final and to say thanks to their home crowd a last time, maybe with a win and the third place. It will be the 5 time to play against the Netherlands. Their last meeting 2010 ended with a 2:1 win for Oranje. In total there were 12 games against Holland. Both teams won three times and there were 5 draws. For Brazil it is the 4 third place game and they could win it already twice.

Everybody was expecting that Brazil will make it at least that far. But nobody really expected the Netherlands to reach the semi-finals. With a very young and inexperienced team it was probably manager Van Gaal who was the mastermind behind their success – and of course a fabulous performance by Arjen Robben and Van Persie. Their last game against Argentina in the semi-final was surprisingly defensive with their concentration on neutralizing the threat by Barcelona superstar and Argentinas captain: Messi. It was a rather poor game with few highlights. But what can you expect of a 0:0 draw after 120 minutes. At the penalty shoot-out Ron Vlaar had to make the first shoot and was the unlucky fellow who missed the first penalty. After two goals by Messi and Robben it was Sneijder who missed the next one. And that’s almost the end of the story. At the end Argentina deserved to reach the final and was the luckier team in the shoot-out. Oranje now has the chance for the third place. In 1998 they played against Croatia in their last third place play off and lost with 1:3.

Probable lineups Brazil: Julio Cesar – Dani Alves, Thiago Silva, David Luiz, Marcelo – Luiz Gustavo, Ramires – Bernard, Oscar, Willian – Jo.

Probable lineups Netherlands: Cilessen – Janmaat, de Vrij, Vlaar – Kuijt, Wijnaldum, Blind – Snejider, Robben – Huntelaar.

You can watch the match here: Link 1 , Link 2 [Live Scores]

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Netherlands vs Argentina FIFA WC semifinal - July 9, 2014

Netherlands vs Argentina - Competition: World Cup Semi-finals

Netherlands look to return to the World Cup final when they clash with Argentina on Wednesday at Arena Corinthians in São Paulo. 

The Netherlands are now happy to be in the semi-finals at the World Cup in Brazil. But it was a tough way to come so far. Especially in the quarter final against “los ticos” from Costa Rica. Now they know why Italy, England or Uruguay couldn’t defeat the Costa Rican team. The Netherlands took the control of the game but couldn’t create many chances or break through the Costa Rican defence. Despite the fact that Oranje started with their old 4-3-3 system with 3 strikers, it wasn’t an offensive spectacle. But as the time passed by the Netherlands became stronger and stronger but the massive Costa Rican defence prevented the leading goal for Oranje. Costa Rica almost totally gave up their efforts to score a goal. It seemed as they have always wanted to reach the penalty shoot-out. After a free kick Sneijder just hit the goal post and after 90 minutes plus 30 additional minutes the penalty shoot-out was needed to decide who should win this one. In the end it was a deserved victory for Oranje, they have been the better team over the 120 minutes, with the lack of scoring the needed goal. Against Argentina in the semi-final it will become a different game.

Argentina team was the third team to qualify for the semi-finals at the World Cup 2014. It was a highly awaited game in the quarter finals between Belgium and Messis – “albiceleste”. But it was a very poor and disappointing performance from both teams. Maybe it was because of the early goal in the 6 minute through Higuain. After the 1:0 Argentina stopped playing and Belgium seemed to be unable to create chances or to score the equalizer. You have to admit that with Garay and Demicheles the Argentinian defence worked pretty well. Belgium has a massive offence potential but wasn’t a threat for Argentina. Di Maria who assisted the leading goal had to be substituted after an injury in the first half. He was with Messi one of their best players so far at the World Cup and will now probably miss at least the semi-final against the Netherlands. It would be a big loss, especially after Agueros loss earlier in the tournament. At least Higuain could score his first World Cup goal and will now have more confidence for the next match.

Possible Lineups: 
Netherlands (3-5-2): Cillessen – de Vrij, Vlaar, Martins Indi – Kujt, Wijnaldum, Blind, De Guzman, Sneijder – van Persie, Robben.

Argentina (4-3-3): Romero – Zabaleta, Demichelis, Garay, Rojo – Biglia, Mascherano, M.Rodriguez – Messi, Aguero, Higuain.

Match Date: Wednesday, 9 July
Kick Off Time: 17:00 Local / 21:00 BST
Venue: Arena de Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil

You can watch the match here: Link 1 , Link 2 [Live Scores]

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Brazil vs Germany World Cup semi-final - July 8, 2014

Brazil vs Germany - Competition: World Cup Semi-finals

Brazil earned a 2-1 win over Colombia in the quarter finals. Thiago Silva opened the scoring in the 7th minute on a corner and David Luiz scored  an incredible free kick from far out. The hosts remain unbeaten having taken seven points from three group stage matches before edging Chile on spot kicks (1-1 90 minutes) in the Round of 16. The hosts also were unimpressively during the group stage agains Croatia, Mexico and Camerun.  

Neymar has been ruled out for the rest of the World Cup after suffering a fractured vertebra. Thiago Silva is also out after picking up his second yellow card in the QF’s. Bayern Munich's Dante is expected to come in alongside David Luiz at centre-back. Luiz Gustavo returns from suspension and should take Paulinho's place in midfield, while Bernard should start in the absence of Neymar.

Germany needed extra time to see off Algeria 2-1 (0-0 90 minutes) and then edged past France 1-0 in the quarter finals thanks to an early goal from Hummels. Joachim Loew’s team started fantastically with a 4-0 routing of Portugal. But Germany struggled to maintain that level of intensity, and in subsequent Group G games against Ghana – a 2-2 draw – and the USA – a 1-0 win, they didn’t look nearly as impressive. Joachim Löw will certainly implement some changes in his team, especially in the front, where Müller will probably occupy Klose’s place in the box and Mario Götze should again be part of the team’s starting line-up. Mustafi is injured and will miss out while Per Mertesacker has been laid low with flu, which affected a total of seven Germany players.
Brazil’s record on home soil is quite staggering, they have not lost a competitive home match since the mid 1970’s but despite making the semi-final they have not thrilled many with their performances in this World Cup. Brazil and Germany have only played once before at the World Cup, Brazil winning that one 2-0 in the 2002 Final. Since then, they have gone up against each other three times, resulting in one win for each and a draw. Germany did take a 3-2 win in the most recent meeting in 2011.

Possible Lineups:
Brazil Starting XI (4-2-3-1): 12 Cesar, 23 Maicon, 16 Ramires, 4 David Luiz, 6 Marcelo, 5 Fernandinho, 8 Paulinho, 11 Oscar,15 Henrique, 7 Hulk, 9 Fred.
Germany Starting XI (4-5-1): 1 Neuer, 16 Lahm, 5 Hummels, 20 Boateng, 4 Howedes, 8 Ozil, 18 Kroos, 7 Schweinsteiger, 6 Khedira, 13 Muller, 11 Klose.

Brazil last 5 matches:
12/06/14   Brazil 3 – 1 Croatia
17/06/14   Brazil 0 – 0 Mexico
23/06/14   Cameroon 1 – 4 Brazil
28/06/14   Brazil P 1 – 1 Chile
04/07/14   Brazil 2 – 1 Colombia

Germany last 5 matches:
16/06/14   Germany 4 – 0 Portugal
21/06/14   Germany 2 – 2 Ghana
26/06/14   United States 0 – 1 Germany
30/06/14   Germany E 2 – 1 Algeria
04/07/14   France 0 – 1 Germany

Match Date: Tuesday, 8 July
Kick Off Time: 17:00 Local / 21:00 BST

Venue: Estadio Mineirao, Belo Horizonte, Brazil

You can watch the match here: Link 1 , Link 2 [Live Scores]

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Netherlands vs Costa Rica 2014 World Cup Highlights Penalties 4-3

Netherlands vs Costa Rica  

Competition: World Cup Quarter-finals
Match Date: Saturday, 5 July
Kick Off Time: 17:00 Local / 21:00 BST
Venue: Arena Fonte Nova, Salvador, Brazil

Netherlands vs Costa Rica 0-0 (AET)
Penalty shootout- Netherlands vs Costa Rica 4-3
Netherlands Costa Rica 0-1 Borges scores
Holland Costa Rica 1-1 Robin Van Persie scores
Netherlands Costa Rica 1-1 Ruiz misses
Netherlands Costa Rica 2-1 Arjen Robben scores
Netherlands Costa Rica 2-2 Gonzalez scores
Netherlands Costa Rica 3-2 Wesley Sneijder scores
Netherlands Costa Rica 3-3 Bolanos scores
Netherlands Costa Rica 4-3 Dirk Kuyt scores
Netherlands Costa Rica 4-3 Umana misses

 

Being the favorite side, Netherlands immediately took control of proceedings as they put on an attacking approach since kick off.
Creating many chances, luck doesn't seem to be going into Dutch's favor as they couldn't seem to put the ball into the net. Tight defense along with excellent goal keeping simply rescued Costa Rical couple of times as Louis Van Gaal's men finishing looked rather poor.
With no goals scored during the full 90 minutes, that game go into extra time with similar approach being made by both sides.
Continuously failing to finish off their goal scoring opportunities, Netherlands were settling to take that penalty challenge as Van Gaal made a special goal keeper change by putting in second goalie, Tim Krul.
Being known as a pretty good penalty stopper, Krul done his job well as he stopped two Costa Rica shooters making it 4-3 for Netherlands as Van Gaal's men didn't need to take their fifth taker.

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Germany vs Algeria 2-1 Highlights 30-06-2014 World Cup

Germany vs Algeria
Competition: World Cup – Round of 16
Match Date: Sunday, 30 June
Venue: Estadio Beira-Rio, Porto Alegre, Brazil

Germany 2-1 Algeria (Last 16):

92' Andre Schuerrle 1-0 // 119' Mesut Ozil 2-0 120' // 2-1 Abdelmoumene Djabou 120'

Der Panzer positive effort was not successful though as Algeria put on a solid display making things really difficult during the first 45 minutes.

Nothing change much after the break as both teams were still having problems in breaking each others defense forcing that game to go into an extra time.

During that extra time, Germany finally got things going as on 92 minutes Andre Schurrle opened the scoring with his close range finish.

Joachim Low's men looking more confident as they eventually doubling their lead through Mesut Ozil's effort.

Algeria made the final minutes looked tense though when just before the final whistle they pulled one goal back from Abdelmoumene Djabou's finish.

Germany starting XI v Algeria WC 2014:- Neuer, Mustafi, Mertesacker, Boateng, Howedes, Lahm, Ozil, Schweinsteiger, Kroos, Gotze, Muller.

Algeria starting lineup vs Germany World Cup 2014:- M’Bolhi, Mandi, Belkalem, Halliche, Ghoulam, Lacen, Mostefa, Feghouli, Soudani, Taider, Slimani.

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