Rodriguez excited by Falcao move
James Rodriguez says he is excited about teaming up with his Colombia international team-mate Radamel Falcao at Monaco.
GettyImages James Rodriguez has played with Radamel Falcao for Porto and Colombia
According to reports in both Spain and France, Falcao was due in Monaco on Tuesday to undergo a medical ahead of a €60 million transfer to the nouveau riche Ligue 1 side, where El Tigre will earn €10 million a year net.
However neither party confirmed these reports and on Monday evening Atletico Madrid president Enrique Cerezo was claiming the player could remain at the Estadio Vicente Calderon next season.
‘James’, who along with former Porto team-mate Joao Moutinho agreed to join Monaco for a combined £60 million last weekend, appeared to jump the gun by telling Colombian paper Tiempo on Monday night that he was looking forward to Falcao joining them too.
"Obviously it is good," Rodriguez said. "I have played with him before and now that we are going to be together it will be something nice too. I am full of pride to be with a friend and hopefully we can achieve big things."
With Monaco's Russian billionaire owner Dmitry Evgenevich Rybolovlev keen to quickly build an internationally competitive side, Falcao may not be the only big name moving from La Liga to the Stade Louis II.
Barcelona goalkeeper Victor Valdes was rumoured to also be due in Monaco on Tuesday, although these reports were denied to Mundo Deportivo by his agent Gines Carvajal.
AS say that Real Madrid centre-back Ricardo Carvalho is set to sign for the Principality club on a free transfer this summer, while Madrid are also considering an €18 million bid for left-back Fabio Coentrao. Both Carvalho and Coentrao are represented by Portuguese super-agent Jorge Mendes, who also looks after Falcao, Rodriguez and Moutinho.
Borussia Dortmund 1-2 Bayern Munich: Robben earns redemption with late winner
The Dutch winger shook off the horrors of his penalty miss in last season's showpiece to give the Bundesliga champion European glory in the most dramatic of circumstances
Arjen Robben buried the demons of finals past with a last-gasp goal to give Bayern Munich the 2012-13 Champions League title with a 2-1 victory over Borussia Dortmund in the final at Wembley on Saturday.
Dortmund was the superior side during a captivating yet goalless first half, forcing Manual Neuer into a succession of saves - though opposite number Roman Weidenfeller was also called into action more than once.
With an hour gone, Mario Mandzukic put the Bavarians ahead from close range, but a clumsy foul by Dante on Marco Reus allowed Ilkay Gundogan to level the scores from the penalty spot eight minutes later.
But with one minute remaining in regulation time, Arjen Robben stole in to squeeze the ball over the line, and ensure that Bayern Munich took home the trophy that eluded it in 2010 and 2012.
Dortmund was the superior side during a captivating yet goalless first half, forcing Manual Neuer into a succession of saves - though opposite number Roman Weidenfeller was also called into action more than once.
With an hour gone, Mario Mandzukic put the Bavarians ahead from close range, but a clumsy foul by Dante on Marco Reus allowed Ilkay Gundogan to level the scores from the penalty spot eight minutes later.
But with one minute remaining in regulation time, Arjen Robben stole in to squeeze the ball over the line, and ensure that Bayern Munich took home the trophy that eluded it in 2010 and 2012.
Mandzukic
shook off competition from Mario Gomez to lead the line for the
Bavarians, and in defense, Jerome Boateng edged out Daniel Van Buyten to
partner Dante.
With
Mario Gotze unable to face his future club due to a hamstring injury,
Kevin Grosskreutz began on the flanks for BVB, while Mats Hummels
recovered from a minor ankle complaint to start at the back.
Amid
an electric atmosphere, Dortmund bossed the opening exchanges, and with
11 minutes gone, Jakub ‘Kuba’ Blaszczykowski delivered a sign of things
to come with a half volley that flew off target.
Moments
later, Robert Lewandowski, after overrunning an earlier break, drew the
first save of the game from Manuel Neuer, who acrobatically yet
securely diverted his 20-yard piledriver over the bar.
Kuba
was quickly at it again, calling Neuer into action at his near post,
and the Bayern keeper’s reflexes were tested further when Reus and Sven
Bender angled low efforts on target in quick succession.
Dortmund
clearly had its Bundesliga rival on the ropes, but breathed a sigh of
relief itself 25 minutes in when Weidenfeller reacted splendidly to tip
away Mandzukic’s towering header.
And
the BVB No.1 did just as well to race off his line and deny Robben, who
broke clear but ignored his teammates to shave an attempt at goal.
Dante
then picked up the first booking of the game for bringing down Kuba,
but Franck Ribery would escape punishment for raising an arm to
Lewandowski.
Both
keepers remained in the spotlight for the remainder of the half, Neuer
denying Lewandowski from in close, before Robben botched another
one-on-one, firing right at Weidenfeller after a miscue by Hummels.
But
Dortmund struggled to match the heights of its enterprising first half,
as Bayern seemed a far more purposeful outfit after the break.
And
right on the hour mark, Mandzukic would come up with the goods. Robben
did the hard work, latching onto a smart Ribery feed to beat
Weidenfeller to the byline and square to the Croatian, who guided the
ball over the line.
But
the lead would not last long. Dante caught Reus in the stomach with his
leg inside the area, leaving the referee with little choice but to
award a penalty – though the Brazilin was lucky not to see a second
yellow card.
Lewandowski,
who missed a penalty in the last meeting between these two sides, took a
backseat to Gundogan, who drilled confidently into the bottom corner,
sending Neuer the wrong way.
It
should have been 2-1 to Bayern in the 71st minute after a nifty move
and cross by Thomas Muller found Robben waiting to tap into an empty net
at the far post, but somehow, Neven Subotic kept up to slide the ball
away magnificently.
The
title was there for the taking as the match entered its closing stages,
and Weidenfeller had to remain on his toes twice to beat away
long-range efforts from David Alaba and Bastian Schweinsteiger.
And
in the 89th minute, Robben did just that, breaking the offside trap to
beat Weidenfeller with a weak shot, and finally send the trophy back
again to the Allianz Arena.
Torres revealed to Goal that he expects to see new
additions at the striker position but insists he's prepared and happy at
Chelsea.
BRONX, N.Y. -- Chelsea striker Fernando Torres fully expects the
Blues to recruit more strikers this summer but insists that he's ready
for the challenge. The Spanish striker scored 23 goals for Chelsea across all competitions last season. However, after the arrival of Demba Ba in the January transfer window, Torres only scored once in the Premier League, on the last day of the season.
So does the possibility of the Blues recruiting more strikers this summer concern Torres?
"No. It's Chelsea," Torres told Goal. "Obviously, big players are linked with the club. It's normal, especially in this period of the year with the summer. The places and names of players that every year [are linked] - we'll see what happens."
Atletico Madrid's Radamel Falcao, Napoli's Edinson Cavani and Aston Villa's Christian Benteke have been linked with the club. England's summer transfer window opens on June 9. Still, Torres isn't focused on incoming competition at his position
He hopes that he and his Chelsea teammates can continue the improved form that they showed toward the end of the season. Torres scored the game-winning goal that secured Chelsea its first ever Europa League title against Benfica. The 29-year-old also scored the goal against Everton which secured third in the Premier League.
"There's no doubt about it [that I showed improvement towards the end of the season]," Torres said. "When the team improves and wins trophies, everyone individually improves. That's the case with this team, not just me. Many of the other players at the end of the season reached a very good level. So that's building towards next season."
Torres believes that Chelsea isn't too far from reaching its lofty ambitions for next season and believes that if the team can buy reinforcements for weak areas and build team chemistry, it can bring more trophies to the Stamford Bridge faithful.
"As always, you need new players and a new challenge. Keep on playing together. Training and training together as much as we can," Torres explained. "The team is going to improve, we have enough talent individually to win games."
Torres captained Chelsea in its 5-3 defeat to Manchester City on Saturday and despite losing to the Premier League runner-up, he insists that he enjoyed his first time playing at Yankee Stadium.
"Very good experience - it's a lovely stadium and thanks to the supporters for being amazing since the first day we got here in New York," Torres said. "All together, I think they enjoyed the game."
Finally, Torres was adamant that he is happy at Chelsea despite rumors linking with a move away from London.
"I signed a five-and-half year contract, so hopefully I'll stay at Chelsea for at least five-and-half years," Torres told reporters. "Maybe more, who knows."
Both the club and the Brazilian forward himself have
confirmed he will formally put pen to paper on Monday and join the Camp
Nou giants this summer
Barcelona has officially confirmed it has reached a deal with
Santos to sign Brazilian star Neymar, who will sign a five-year contract
with the club on Monday.The forward himself also broke the news through his Instagram and Facebook accounts and revealed his appearance against Flamengo on Sunday would be his last for his boyhood club.
"FC Barcelona and Santos have agreed to terms for Neymar da Silva Santos Junior. The Brazilian forward will don the Blaugrana strip for the next five seasons," a Barcelona statement read.
The transfer deal for Neymar, who opted to join Barca over Real Madrid, will be worth around 28 million euros, with the player's deal tying him to the Camp Nou club until the summer of 2018.
The Brazil international will earn around 7m euros a year at Barcelona, which has also agreed to play two friendly matches against Santos - one at home and another away - as part of the deal.
"It is not going to hold out until Monday. My family and friends already know my decision. On Monday, I will sign a contract with Barcelona," Neymar said on Instagram.
"I want to thank the fans of Santos for these incredible nine years. My feeling for the club and the fans will never change. It is eternal! Only a club like Santos FC could give me everything I experienced on and off the field. I thank the wonderful Peixe fans who supported me even in the most difficult moments.
“I insisted on playing my last match, tomorrow, in Brasília. I want to have the chance to walk into the pitch once more, wearing this shirt and hearing the fans sing my name. Titles, goals, dribbling, celebrations and songs that fans created for me will be forever in my heart. This is a different moment for me. I'm sad (because of the goodbye) and happy (to have a new challenge).”
Neymar's contract with Santos had been due to run until next summer's World Cup but he was always widely expected to move to La Liga this year so the club could secure a transfer fee for his services.
The 21-year-old has been named in the Brazil squad for the Confederations Cup tournament in June, after which he will link up with his new Barca teammates ahead of next season.
Man Utd plot Fabregas raid
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