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Zidane delight for Benzema ahead of Liga title end game Madrid (AFP) – Zinedine Zidane expressed delight on Friday at his Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema’s France recall ahead of La Liga’s final round of matches with Real in contention to retain the title. Benzema’s form this season — he has netted 29 times passing 20 league goals in all three seasons since Cristiano Ronaldo left for Juventus in 2018 — has helped keep alive Real’s hopes of denying Atletico Madrid in Saturday’s final round of matches. If Real down Villarreal and Atletico lose or draw at Valladolid then the Liga trophy will remain on the Santiago Bernabeu sideboard. Benzema’s six-year exile with France over his alleged role in a sextape blackmail plot ended on Tuesday when he was named in Didier Deschamps’ squad for the delayed Euro 2020. Zidane, who had previously questioned Deschamps’ logic in snubbing Benzema, said: “I’m thrilled that Karim can return to the France team “It’s what he wanted. I’m thrilled because it was what he was hoping for.” When asked at the eve-of match press conference if he had any part in his player’s reintegration he replied: “No, I had no role at all in Karim’s return.” Zidane said Benzema had “always done everything” to be reunited with the World Cup winners. He urged the court of public opinion on social media scrutinising Benzema and France’s performance at the European Championships to hold fire on his best player. “I just hope that they will leave him alone. It’s not fair to say, ‘as we have the best player, if we win the European Championship he’s good, and then if we don’t win the European Championship, it will be because…’. “I hope that they will not go into this stuff. “I hope that we enjoy his football, and stop there, that’s enough.” For Real’s closing game on Saturday Zidane welcomes back captain Sergio Ramos from a hamstring injury that has kept him out of the last three games. But there is a question mark over Eden Hazard’s fitness after the Belgian attacker missed Friday training. “It’s nothing major but we don’t want to take any risks,” said Zidane, who denied media reports this week that he had told his players he would be stepping down from his second stint as boss of Real after Saturday’s finale.


Madrid (AFP) – Zinedine Zidane expressed delight on Friday at his Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema’s France recall ahead of La Liga’s final round of matches with Real in contention to retain the title.

Benzema’s form this season — he has netted 29 times passing 20 league goals in all three seasons since Cristiano Ronaldo left for Juventus in 2018 — has helped keep alive Real’s hopes of denying Atletico Madrid in Saturday’s final round of matches.

If Real down Villarreal and Atletico lose or draw at Valladolid then the Liga trophy will remain on the Santiago Bernabeu sideboard.

Benzema’s six-year exile with France over his alleged role in a sextape blackmail plot ended on Tuesday when he was named in Didier Deschamps’ squad for the delayed Euro 2020.

Zidane, who had previously questioned Deschamps’ logic in snubbing Benzema, said: “I’m thrilled that Karim can return to the France team

“It’s what he wanted. I’m thrilled because it was what he was hoping for.”

When asked at the eve-of match press conference if he had any part in his player’s reintegration he replied: “No, I had no role at all in Karim’s return.”

Zidane said Benzema had “always done everything” to be reunited with the World Cup winners.

He urged the court of public opinion on social media scrutinising Benzema and France’s performance at the European Championships to hold fire on his best player.

“I just hope that they will leave him alone. It’s not fair to say, ‘as we have the best player, if we win the European Championship he’s good, and then if we don’t win the European Championship, it will be because…’.

“I hope that they will not go into this stuff.

“I hope that we enjoy his football, and stop there, that’s enough.”

For Real’s closing game on Saturday Zidane welcomes back captain Sergio Ramos from a hamstring injury that has kept him out of the last three games.

But there is a question mark over Eden Hazard’s fitness after the Belgian attacker missed Friday training.

“It’s nothing major but we don’t want to take any risks,” said Zidane, who denied media reports this week that he had told his players he would be stepping down from his second stint as boss of Real after Saturday’s finale.



from World Soccer Talk https://ift.tt/3oJdJw7
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Barcelona (AFP) – Xavi Hernandez said he is prepared for the “biggest challenge of his career” before leaving Qatar for Spain on Saturday, as Barcelona’s legendary former midfielder returns home to take over as coach. Xavi’s appointment was confirmed by Barca in the early hours of Saturday morning and the 41-year-old will be presented to fans at Camp Nou on Monday. “I’m very happy as you can imagine, it’s the biggest challenge of my career,” Xavi told Spanish journalists at Doha airport. “I’m going home and I am very happy.” Xavi faces a huge challenge, with Barcelona adrift of La Liga’s top four, struggling to make the knock-out stages of the Champions League and grappling with debts of more than a billion euros. “I have also experienced bad situations,” Xavi said. “It’s not the best moment in the history of the club but I want to explain what my idea is and to work hard, to make a team. Obviously the first thing is to talk to the players to see how they are.” Xavi left...
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Berlin (AFP) – Defending champions Bayern Munich extended their lead at the top of the Bundesliga to six points on Saturday after coming from behind to seal a 2-1 home win against Mainz. Second-half goals by Kingsley Coman and 18-year-old Jamal Musiala sealed the victory behind closed doors at Munich’s Allianz Arena after Mainz had taken a shock lead. Bayern remain firmly on course to win the German league for the tenth straight season after stretching their lead at the top of the table as second-placed Dortmund were held 1-1 at Bochum.  from World Soccer Talk https://ift.tt/3lVLPNa
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Rangers brush aside title rivals Hearts Glasgow (AFP) – Alfredo Morelos and Joe Aribo fired Rangers to a 2-0 win at Hearts on Sunday as the Scottish Premiership leaders extended their strong start under new boss Giovanni van Bronckhorst. Van Bronckhorst has won four successive league games since replacing Steven Gerrard after his predecessor’s move to Aston Villa. Morelos and Aribo scored in the early stages at Tynecastle, giving Rangers six consecutive league victories encompassing the end of Gerrard’s reign. Hearts had Josh Ginnelly sent off late on as they squandered a chance to close the gap on the champions. Rangers are 12 points clear of third placed Hearts and seven ahead of second placed Celtic, who host Motherwell later on Sunday. Van Bronckhorst made six changes to the Rangers side that began Thursday’s 1-1 draw at Lyon in the Europa League. Liam Boyce had a great chance to open the scoring for Hearts in the third minute when he ran on to John Souttar’s clipped ball over the top, but the Northern Ireland striker saw his lob tipped over by Allan McGregor. It was Rangers who scored with their first chance of the match after nine minutes when Ryan Kent’s cross reached Fashion Sakala and the Zambian cut the ball back to Morelos, who fired home from six yards out. Sakala shot just wide from close range moments later before Morelos headed wide from James Tavernier’s corner. Rangers’ second goal came in the 13th minute when Aribo ran on to a brilliant long diagonal from Connor Goldson and fired an angled low shot beyond the exposed Craig Gordon. Gary Mackay-Steven saw his angled shot pushed behind by McGregor early in the second half. Rangers had a let-off in the 53rd minute when Calvin Bassey knocked a Ginnelly cross off the underside of his own crossbar. Rangers remained a threat, however, and Scott Arfield and Sakala were both denied by saves from Gordon. Boyce fired over from close range after being set up by Mackay-Steven before Stephen Kingsley cracked a free kick off the bar from 30 yards out. In the 80th minute, Ginnelly was sent off after being shown a second yellow card for squaring up to Borna Barisic.

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