The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Barcelona

  • Bobby Adekanye to stay at PSV

    Bobby Adekanye to stay at PSV

    Barcelona loanee Bobby Adekanye will be with Dutch giants, PSV Eindhoven, for at least the next 12 months, sl10.ng reports.

    Reports that emanated from the Spanish press on Wednesday had suggested that the winger will cut short his loan spell at the Dutch club, and return to La Masia academy in February 2015.

    But Ademola Adekanye, who acts as agent for his son, has put to bed those arguments, insisting that a deal has already been struck for the player to remain in Holland until the end of this year.

    ”Bobby is not going back to Barcelona yet, and he is happy with PSV Eindhoven for now,” Adekanye told sl10.ng.

    ”Yes, I can confirm that he is not returning to Barcelona next month.”

    The highly rated starlet was allowed to leave Barcelona last year after FIFA sanctioned the club for violating the regulations on international transfers and registration of foreign young players.
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  • UCL: City to play Barcelona again

    UCL: City to play Barcelona again

    … Real Madrid hooks Schalke 04, Chelsea meets PSG

    Manchester City will play Barcelona in the Champions League last 16 for a second consecutive year.

    Chelsea battles Paris St-Germain, and Arsenal squares up against Monaco in ties to be played in February and March, the BBC reports.

    Champions Real Madrid will face Schalke, with last season’s beaten finalists Atletico Madrid taking on Bayer Leverkusen.

    Bayern Munich plays Shakhtar Donetsk, Juventus faces Borussia Dortmund and Basel tackles Porto.

    Manchester City narrowly qualified, needing a final-day win over Roma to progress, but finishing second to Bayern Munich in the group phase has seen the English champions come up against four-time European kings Barcelona.

    In last season’s first knockout game, the Catalans defeated Manchester City 4-1 on aggregate.

    Chelsea, who finished ahead of Schalke as group winners, will play Paris St-Germain for the second consecutive year, having beaten the French champions in dramatic circumstances in last year’s quarter-finals.

    There is added interest in that game as Chelsea sold defender David Luiz to PSG for a reported £40m in the summer.

    Arsenal, who finished below Borussia Dortmund in the group stage, comes up against a side handled by Gunners boss Arsene Wenger from 1987 to 1994.

    The pairings

    Manchester City vs Barcelona

    PSG vs Chelsea

    Schalke 04 vs Real Madrid

    Juventus vs Borussia Dortmund

    Bayer Leverkusen vs Atletico Madrid

    Arsenal vs Monaco

    Shakhtar Donesk vs Bayern Munich

    Basel vs Porto

     

  • Spain seeks to prevent spread of Ebola

    Spain seeks to prevent spread of Ebola

    BARCELONA, Spain — Spain intensified efforts on Tuesday to contain any spread of Ebola from an infected health worker as the government came under increased pressure from the political opposition and the European Union.

    The health worker, a nurse who has not been identified, was described as being in a stable condition. Her husband and two other people were quarantined, and monitoring was extended to another 50 who might have come into contact with her. The nurse contracted the illness while treating a Spanish missionary who was infected in Sierra Leone and flown to Carlos III Hospital in Madrid.

    The nurse’s husband has shown no signs of having the disease but was isolated as a precaution, said Dr. Francisco Arnalich, head of internal medicine at Carlos III Hospital.

     

  • Manchester City in tricky Euro group

    Manchester City in tricky Euro group

    … Meet Bayern Munich, Roma, CSKA Moscow

    .… Liverpool to play holders in Group B

    English champions Manchester City landed in a tough looking group in the 2014/2015 European Champions League draw conducted Thursday at the Grimaldi Forum, Monaco, France.

    The Manuel Pellegrini tutored team will have to navigate past Bayern Munich, Roma and CSKA Moscow to reach the knockout stage, Goal reports.

    Last season semi finalists Chelsea will face Schalke, Sporting Lisbon and Maribor.

    Arsenal overcame Besiktas in a nervy play-off clash thanks to Alexis Sanchez’s first goal for the club to reach the Champions League proper for the 17th consecutive season and will square up against Dortmund, Galatasaray and Anderlecht in Group D.

    Liverpool mark its return to the competition for the first time since 2009 with clashes against Real Madrid, Basel and Ludogorets in Group B.

    The Anfield outfit has never lost to the Spanish giants in three previous meetings.

    The pairings:

    Group A: Atletico Madrid, Juventus, Olympiacos, Malmo

    Group B:  Real Madrid, FC Basel, Liverpool, Ludogorets Razgrard

    Group C: Benfica, Zenit St Petersburg, Bayer Leverkusen, Monaco

    Group D: Arsenal, Borussia Dortmund, Galatasary, Anderlecht

    Group E: Bayern Munich, Manchester City, CSKA Moscow, Roma

    Group F: Barcelona, Paris St-Germain, Ajax, Apoel

    Group G: Chelsea, Schalke, Sporting Lisbon, Maribor

    Group H: Porto, Shakhtar Donetsk, Athletic Bilbao, BATE Borisov

     

  • Barcelona coach offers hope to Elohor

    Nigeria youngster at Barcelona B team  Godswill Elohor and his teammates’ chances of breaking into the main team at Barcelona have been given a boost by new manager Luis Enrique. The Coach who was a former Coach at Barcelona B team confirmed he’s keen to bring through more youngsters from the B squad. “They are some top quality players there. It goes without saying that we’ll have to give them a hand,” Enrique told the club’s website. “I love using young players with talent and they are top rate, they are quite a few with quality.” The Nigerian, who is predominantly a right full back, captained the Barcelona Juvenile team to victory in the UEFA youth league last season and was promoted to the B team at the start of the season. So far he has settled down to life in his new surroundings, turning out impressive performances in their pre-season games as they get set for the start of the Spanish Segunda season. Last season the Nigerian sparingly trained with the main team alongside some of his colleagues from the Juvenile team.

  • Dani Alves: I want to stay at Barcelona

    Barcelona star Dani Alves has confirmed his desire to stay at the club and see out his contract amid speculation linking him with a move elsewhere.

    The 31-year-old is determined to bring “enjoyment” back to the Blaugrana and put a difficult 2013-14 season, in which they finished runners-up in both the league and Copa del Rey, behind them.

    Alves, who signed for Barcelona in 2008, has always been a first-team regular and will be looking to add to the four Primera Division trophies, two Copas del Rey and two Champions League titles that he has won since joining the club.

    “I want to fulfil the contract I signed. I am very happy at the club,” he told Marca. “I’ve had some wonderful years here – recently not so much but I want to help bring enjoyment back to this club.

    “When I return to Barcelona I will speak with the people at the club and see what they want. If they want me to go I will look for an exit. If they want me to stay, I will continue.

    “I have a contract with Barca and I have always given everything for the club, regardless of the results of the last [few] years. I want to stay but it does not just depend on me.”

  • Barcelona confirms offers for Sanchez

    Barcelona confirms offers for Sanchez

    The Chile star is a target for Arsene Wenger, with Manchester City, Manchester United and Liverpool also monitoring the situation, while Xavi’s future is also in doubt.

    Barcelona sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta has confirmed the club have received offers for Arsenal target Alexis Sanchez.

    Goal exclusively revealed on Saturday that Arsene Wenger was lining up a £32 million bid for the Chile star following talks with a mystery forward in May.

    Manchester City have since joined the race for Sanchez’s signature – with Manchester United and Liverpool also linked – and Zubizarreta is keen to find the “best solution” ahead of an expected sale.

    “Regarding Alexis, there have been offers. We will try and find a solution best for everyone,” Zubizarreta told reporters.

    Elsewhere, a host of clubs have been linked with a move for Xavi and the arrival of Ivan Rakitic from Sevilla has raised more questions over the playmaker’s future.

    Speaking at a press conference to introduce Rakitic as a Barca player, Zubizarreta revealed that he does not know whether Xavi will prolong his stay at the club and plans to hold talks with the midfielder.

    “We are talking permanently with Xavi, we spoke to him before he went to the World Cup. He also wants the time to think, that’s Xavi Hernandez, he’s got every right to analyse things as he wants to do,” Zubizarreta said.

    “He’s our player, when he comes back from his holidays we’ll sit down and we’ll talk again. Any news he gives us will be good.

    “If he decides to stay that will be fantastic news, if he decides that it might be the time to retire then we will treat that as well as we can.

    “We are not talking any old player, we’re talking about somebody who is very special. We’ve been very open with Xavi in our conversations recently, we’ve been very transparent about things.

    “If Xavi stays here he’ll be competing with others for a place in the team, but if Xavi decides to explore other options we will respect that”.

  • Barcelona’s transfer ban suspended

    Barcelona’s transfer ban suspended

    Spanish giants Barcelona’s transfer ban has been suspended until a final decision on the club’s appeal against the ban has been taken

    FIFA has announced that Catalan giants will be able to sign players in the summer transfer window after deciding to suspend the Camp Nou side’s transfer ban following appeal against the punishment, Goal reports.

    The Catalans were initially banned from signing players for the next two transfer windows for breaches relating to the international transfer and registration of players under the age of 18, but the suspension has now been put on hold until a final decision on their appeal has been taken.

    “The club Barcelona has lodged an appeal before the FIFA Appeal Committee against the decision of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee that sanctioned the club for breaches relating to the international transfer and registration of players under the age of 18. Together with the appeal, the club requested that its appeal be granted suspensive effect,” an official statement reads.

    “In this respect, the chairman of the FIFA Appeal Committee, Larry Mussenden, took into consideration the sanctions imposed against the club, the complexity of the matter, the start date of the next registration period – 1 July 2014 – and the fact that the FIFA Appeal Committee does not seem in a position to take a decision on the main issue early enough so that an eventual appeal of the club against its decision before the Court of Arbitration for Sport would still be decided before the beginning of the next registration period.

    “Consequently, the chairman of the FIFA Appeal Committee considered that the appeal lodged by the club is to be granted suspensive effect.”

     

  • UEFA Champions League: Tough Man City test for Barcelona

    UEFA Champions League: Tough Man City test for Barcelona

    … Arsenal tackles Bayern Munich

    …  Chelsea plays Galatasaray

     

    Manchester City against Barcelona is the pick of the ties to emerge from Monday’s Champions League Round of 16 draw in Nyon.

    Goal.com reports that the Spanish champions will face Manuel Pellegrini’s free-scoring side after being drawn first out of the pot in the proceedings.

    Jose Mourinho faces another reunion with former striker Didier Drogba after his Chelsea side was drawn against Galatasaray, who edged out Juventus last week.

    Arsenal will face Bayern Munich, meanwhile, in a repeat of last season second round encounter, while fellow Bundesliga outfit Schalke meets nine-time champions Real Madrid.

    Elsewhere, Manchester United will face Greek champions Olympiakos, while Paris Saint-Germain takes on Bundesliga high-flyers Bayer Leverkusen.

    AC Milan’s reward for edging into the last 16 is Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid. Finally, Borussia Dortmund – beaten finalists last season, confronts Russian giants Zenit St Petersburg.

    The sides who finished as group runners-up will host the first leg encounters on the February 18/19 and 25/26, while the second legs take place on March 11/12 and 18/19.

    The pairings:

    Manchester City vs Barcelona

    Olympiakos vs Manchester Utd

    AC Milan vs Atletico Madrid

    Bayer Leverkusen vs Paris Saint-Germain

    Galatasaray vs Chelsea

    Schalke vs Real Madrid

    Zenit St Petersburg vs Borussia Dortmund

    Arsenal vs Bayern Munich

     

     

     

  • Vilanova resigns as Barcelona manager

    Barcelona have confirmed that head coach Tito Vilanova has stepped down with immediate effect as he continues his battle against cancer.
    Club president Sandro Rosell and director of football Andoni Zubizarreta called a press conference at Camp Nou on Friday evening, where they confirmed Vilanova must undergo further cancer treatment which would make it “impossible” for him to continue in his role.
    The Barcelona squad, including Lionel Messi, were present in the front two rows of seats of the press conference as Rosell delivered the news.
    “After looking at routine tests, there is [now] an option to continue treating his disease which means it will be impossible for him to continue as first-team coach of FC Barcelona,” Rosell told reporters. “I want to ask for the maximum respect for him and his family.
    “We have got together with all of the players and the coaching staff and we have decided not to play tomorrow in Poland [in a friendly against Lechia Gdansk].
    “It is a very big blow, a huge blow. But Barcelona has overcome many obstacles in its history and this will be no exception.”