Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde has heaped praise on Lionel Messi's start to the Liga season after the Argentine bounced back from a disappointing World Cup with two goals against Alaves.
Messi sent an audacious second-half free-kick under the jumping wall and into the net for the opener, and Barca's 6,000th La Liga goal, at the Camp Nou on Saturday before slotting in his second in injury-time after Philippe Coutinho had also scored in the 3-0 win.
"With Messi, you can expect absolutely anything," Valverde said. "He sees things that others don't see on the pitch.
"Sometimes we get too used to seeing it, he does things like he did today and we want him to pull a rabbit of the hat every time.
"He's a genius and we're lucky to be able to see him play every day."
Messi has been left out of Argentina's squad for the first post-World Cup friendlies following reports that the five-time Ballon d'Or winner asked to be excused from the four games.
He was unable to prevent a shambolic Argentina side from being knocked out of the World Cup in the last 16 stage in a 4-3 defeat to eventual winners France.
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PARIS, France -- Barcelona and Chelsea progressed to the Champions League last 16 on Wednesday, but Jose Mourinho's Manchester United must wait to seal their spot after a last-gasp 1-0 defeat in Basel.
Barcelona coach Ernesto Valverde rested Argentina star Lionel Messi in Turin, later introducing him as a second-half substitute as a 0-0 draw against Juventus sent the five-time European champions through as winners of Group D.
Willian scored twice and won a pair of penalties as Chelsea thrashed 10-man Qarabag 4-0 in Baku to guarantee Antonio Conte's side a top-two finish in Group C.
First-half goals from Eden Hazard and Willian put Chelsea in control, with Cesc Fabregas adding a third before Willian netted again to cap the rout and knock Qarabag out of the competition.
"We did everything well. We should have scored more. It is easy to play with these good players," Hazard said.
Atletico Madrid, runners-up twice in the past four years, retained an outside chance of pipping Roma to a place in the knockout stage as Antoine Griezmann snapped an eight-match goal drought in a 2-0 win in Spain.
The French striker broke the deadlock with a spectacular acrobatic effort on 69 minutes, before compatriot Kevin Gameiro added a late second to seal a first win of the campaign for Atletico.
However, they must beat Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in their final game and hope Roma drop points at home to Qarabag to avoid parachuting into the Europa League.
United, who hit the woodwork twice in the first half through Marouane Fellaini and Marcos Rojo, looked on course to secure the point required to punch their ticket to the last 16 in Switzerland before Michael Lang popped up with an 89th-minute winner.
"It's like a dream. Right now I can't believe we won against such a strong team," Swiss international Lang told RTS.
"We always thought we could win this match and in the end it was a victory like I had never seen before."
Mourinho blamed United's inability to convert their first-half dominance into goals after watching his side lose their perfect record in the group.
"We lost because in the first half we should be 5-0 up but we could not score one goal after being so dominant," Mourinho said.
The result left United on 12 points, three ahead of both Basel and CSKA Moscow, and still almost certain of advancing, barring a huge defeat against the Russians at Old Trafford on December 5.
- PSG obliterate goals record -
Russia goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev recorded a first clean sheet in the group stage since 2006 -- ending a staggering run of 43 matches conceding a goal -- as CSKA condemned Benfica to a fifth straight loss in Group A.
Georgi Schennikov's cool finish steered CSKA into a 13th-minute lead in Moscow before the hosts grabbed a second through an own goal from Brazilian defender Jardel.
Paris Saint-Germain dismantled Celtic 7-1 as the French giants registered their biggest win in the competition, despite falling behind when Moussa Dembele scored inside the first minute at the Parc des Princes.
A brace from Neymar soon turned the game around, before Edinson Cavani and Kylian Mbappe added goals of their own before the interval.
Marco Verratti made it five with quarter of an hour left, before Cavani got his second and a sensational Dani Alves hit wrapped up a record-breaking night as PSG shattered the previous mark of 21 group-stage goals set last year by Borussia Dortmund.
Unai Emery's team have now scored 24 times in five matches and conceded just once, although they must avoid a heavy reverse at Bayern Munich next month to ensure they finish top of Group B.
Robert Lewandowski and Corentin Tolisso scored in Brussels as Bayern overcame Anderlecht 2-1 to retain their 100 percent record since 72-year-old Jupp Heynckes returned for a fourth spell at the club.
Two goals from Dutch striker Bas Dost propelled Sporting to a 3-1 victory over Olympiakos, but the Portuguese outfit must beat Barcelona at the Camp Nou in their final fixture to have a chance of overhauling Juventus for a last-16 berth.
source: news.abs-cbn.com
BARCELONA - Lionel Messi scored his 12th league goal of the season but Barcelona had to rely on exceptional saves from Marc-Andre ter Stegen as they rode their luck to win 2-0 at Athletic Bilbao on Saturday and stay four points clear at the top of La Liga.
Valencia posted a record start to a season as they battled to a 2-1 win at lowly Alaves for a sixth consecutive win while Atletico Madrid's inconsistent run continued as they drew 1-1 at home to Villarreal.
The Catalans lead the standings on 28 points, four clear of Valencia and eight above champions Real Madrid, who visit Girona on Sunday. Atletico are fourth with 20 points.
Barca withstood an early onslaught from their coach Ernesto Valverde's former side and German international Ter Stegen made two big saves to thwart veteran striker Aritz Aduriz.
With the game still goalless Messi missed a gilt-edged chance after dancing through the Bilbao defence, striking the near post with the goal gaping, but he made amends by breaking the deadlock in the 36th minute.
In the second half Athletic forward Inigo Cordoba whistled a shot over the bar and Aduriz was denied twice more by the commanding Ter Stegen, while Raul Garcia headed against the woodwork for the persistent hosts.
Brazilian midfielder Paulinho added a barely deserved second goal for Barca in stoppage time, tapping a parried shot from Luis Suarez into an empty net as Athletic were outnumbered on the counter-attack.
"We struggled a lot, especially in the second half," Barca midfielder Sergio Busquets told reporters.
"We were better in the first half and they took more risks after the break so they had more chances but in the end we have continued with our spectacular start and we won at a very difficult ground."
Simone Zaza opened the scoring for Valencia at Alaves in the 34th minute for Marcelino's high-flying side to grab his ninth strike of the campaign and score for the sixth game in a row.
EXCELLENT RUN
Their excellent run came under threat when veteran defender Alexis Ruano headed the hosts level soon after halftime.
Former Valencia loanee Munir El Haddadi nearly put Alaves in front but was denied by Brazilian goalkeeper Neto, and the visitors restored their lead in the 66th minute when Spain forward Rodrigo Moreno converted from the penalty spot, making it seven wins and three draws for Valencia.
"If you had told me when I took over in May that we would be in this position I wouldn't have believed it," Marcelino told reporters.
"We never imagined having this many points and being unbeaten after 10 games, especially when we saw the fixture list. We're in a situation we couldn't have predicted but which we deserve to be in."
In Madrid, Villarreal striker Carlos Bacca's towering header from a corner cancelled out Angel Correa's brilliant opener and boos rang around the Wanda Metropolitano stadium after another disappointing result from Diego Simeone's side, who have won one of their last seven games in all competitions.
Atletico were dominant and finally broke through in the 61st minute when Correa expertly controlled a pass from Antoine Griezmann and squeezed the ball inside the near post, but 20 minutes later Bacca outjumped Atletico's goalkeeper Jan Oblak to level.
"This was our best performance of the last few games, the point doesn't feel like much but I know the players are growing," Simeone said.
"If we keep playing like this we'll be closer to where we want to be."
(Reporting by Richard Martin,; Editing by Ed Osmond)
source: news.abs-cbn.com
MADRID, Spain -- Lionel Messi added four more goals to his soaring early season tally as a much-changed Barcelona maintained their 100 percent start to La Liga by routing Eibar 6-1 on Tuesday.
Paulinho and Denis Suarez also netted for the second consecutive game as Barca stretched their lead at the top of La Liga to seven points over Real Madrid, who host Real Betis on Wednesday.
"That Messi scored four goals now isn't news," said Barca boss Ernesto Valverde after the Argentine's 43rd career hat-trick.
"He has done it so many nights, in so many games. To keep repeating it is the most difficult thing.
"He is an extraordinary player. I have run out of words for him."
Messi played in a more central role as Valverde heavily rotated his side for the first time since taking charge with Luis Suarez dropping to the bench among six changes from Saturday's hard-fought 2-1 win at Getafe.
And contrary to their fortunes last season, Barca's back-ups proved Valverde can take the luxury of resting some of his star names with Paulinho particularly impressive on his first start.
Messi opened the scoring in nonchalant fashion from the penalty spot on 21 minutes after Nelson Semedo had been felled by an ungainly challenge from Alejandro Galvez.
Paulinho's 40-million-euro ($48 million) signing from Chinese side Guangzhou Evergrande was one of a series of moves that drew stinging criticism for Barca's board following Neymar's world-record departure for Paris Saint-Germain.
However, after coming off the bench to score the winner at Getafe, Paulinho powered home his second Barca goal from Denis Suarez's corner seven minutes before half-time.
Paulinho also played his part in Barca's third with a cute dummy that freed Messi and, when his shot was parried by Marko Dmitrovic, Denis Suarez fired home the rebound.
Sergi Enrich reduced the arrears when he capitalised on some sloppy Barca defending to slot home David Junca's cross.
However, Messi quickly restored Barca's three-goal lead with a lovely measured finish from the edge of the box.
The five-time world player of the year completed his hat-trick just after the hour mark by prodding through Dmitrovic's legs from Paulinho's pass.
And he added his 12th goal in just eight games this season three minutes from time after a neat one-two with Aleix Vidal.
- Anger fuels Zaza -
Barca lead second-placed Sevilla, who host Las Palmas on Wednesday, by five points with Valencia now just a point further adrift as they moved up to third thanks to Simone Zaza's seven-minute hat-trick in a 5-0 thrashing of Malaga.
By contrast, a fifth straight defeat to start the season sees Malaga slip to bottom of the table and plunges coach Michel into further danger of becoming the second La Liga boss to be sacked this term.
"I am tremendously proud of the performance of the players. It is a joy to be able to enjoy it with our fans," said Valencia coach Marcelino.
Santi Mina got the rout started after just 17 minutes with a neat header from Carles Soler's cross.
Zaza then completed his first ever hat-trick with three clinical close-range finishes between the 55th and 62nd minute before substitute Rodrigo rounded off the scoring.
And the former Juventus striker shrugged off a bust-up with Marcelino after being dropped for Saturday's 1-1 draw at Levante.
"I didn't have anything to prove," Zaza told BeIN Sports Spain.
"What happened on Saturday is already forgotten, I think it is normal that a player is angry when he doesn't play."
source: news.abs-cbn.com
MADRID, Spain -- Lionel Messi's hat-trick saw Barcelona move four points clear of Real Madrid at the top of La Liga as Ousmane Dembele marked his debut with an assist in a 5-0 rout of local rivals Espanyol on Saturday.
Earlier, Madrid paid for the absence of the suspended Cristiano Ronaldo and a series of missed chances by Gareth Bale as they were held to a shock 1-1 home draw by newly-promoted Levante.
Barca made no such mistake as for all their early season off-field problems, Ernesto Valverde's men have taken maximum points from their opening three La Liga games.
Messi led the way with a virtuoso performance, but his opener also needed a huge slice of luck as he was wrongly not flagged offside from Ivan Rakitic's through ball before blasting into the top corner.
Barca's second arrived thanks to a counter-attack from an Espanyol corner led by Messi and Luis Suarez before Jordi Alba's low cross was slotted home at the near post by the Argentine.
"It is a privilege to play with the best player in the world," said Suarez.
"Game-by-game he keeps showing that Messi will be around for a long time to come."
Messi put the outcome beyond any doubt by rounding off his hat-trick with another sharp finish from Alba's cut-back.
Dembele has the unenviable task of replacing the departed Neymar and Barca's 105 million-euro man had to wait until 22 minutes from time for his debut as he replaced Gerard Deulofeu to a standing ovation.
He showed why Barca have made the 20-year-old the third most expensive player ever as his pinpoint cross was swept home by Suarez to round off the scoring after Gerard Pique had headed home Barca's fourth.
However, even a fine display didn't dissuade the bad feeling towards Barca's under-fire board after a chaotic summer in the transfer market and splits between the boardroom and the dressing room, with Messi and Andres Iniesta yet to sign extensions to their contracts which expire in 2018.
Suarez's fifth goal was met with chants for president Josep Maria Bartomeu to reign.
- Much-changed Madrid held -
At the Santiago Bernabeu, a much-changed Madrid paid a heavy price for a slow start as they dropped points at home for the second consecutive game.
A Levante long-throw from the right was allowed to bounce inside Madrid's six-yard box before Ivi Lopez spun and fired across Kiko Casilla into the far corner after just 12 minutes.
"We can't be happy with our performance, above all in the first half," said Real boss Zinedine Zidane.
"We don't need to go crazy. We need to have patience and think about the next game, which is just around the corner."
The hosts were dealt another blow midway through the first half as Karim Benzema limped off and with no other natural striker on the bench, Bale was forced to play as an auxiliary centre-forward.
Madrid levelled nine minutes before half-time when Sergio Ramos's towering header was parried by Raul Fernandez, but Lucas Vazquez bundled home the rebound.
Bale then had a huge chance to turn the game around, but was denied by a smart stop from the Levante keeper as he tried to curl the ball home with the outside of his left foot.
Marcelo saw a fierce effort from the edge of the box turned behind by Fernandez, but the Brazilian appeared to kick out at Jefferson Lerma as he hit the ground and was shown a straight red card.
Despite their numerical disadvantage, Madrid still nearly grabbed all three points as Toni Kroos's effort from the edge of the area clipped the outside of the post.
Atletico Madrid also trail Barca by four points as without the suspended Antoine Griezmann they drew a blank in an intense 0-0 draw at Valencia.
Sevilla moved up to second, just two points behind the leaders, as goals from Paulo Henrique Ganso, Wissam Ben Yedder and Nolito secured a 3-0 win over Eibar.
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Barcelona drew first blood against Real Madrid ahead of the new season with a 3-2 victory in a pulsating Clasico friendly on Saturday in Miami.
The historic rivals will meet again twice in August in the Spanish Super Cup and this International Champions Cup match set the entertainment bar high, with Barcelona maintaining their 100 per cent record in pre-season.
"Physically we are in good shape, the team is winning, we just have to correct our errors," Barcelona midfielder Sergio Busquets told Premier Sports.
"We're happy for the win, it was a lot of fun for the fans because there were a lot of chances, although the players suffered in the heat and humidity."
While Barcelona beat Juventus and Manchester United, Madrid's defeat means they end their pre-season tour of the United States without a victory.
"I don't care much about the defeat, it always hurts but right now it's not the important thing," said Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane.
"It's pre-season. The results haven't gone as hoped for but it will not change anything. The important thing is to be ready for Aug. 8 (when Madrid face Manchester United in the European Super Cup)."
Madrid were missing Cristiano Ronaldo, still on holiday, but both teams were close to full strength.
Ernesto Valverde, getting a taste of Clasico drama early in his career as Barcelona manager, selected Neymar despite speculation swirling over the Brazilian's future at the club.
However, it was stalwart Lionel Messi who opened the scoring after just three minutes, firing home with the help of a deflection, before Ivan Rakitic doubled the lead with a powerful drive from Neymar's low pass.
The sell-out crowd at the Hard Rock Stadium were in for a thrilling night and Madrid fought their way back into the game with Mateo Kovacic drilling home expertly, before Marco Asensio equalised in the 36th minute after a lightning break.
After a prolonged halftime break with music, lights and fireworks shows more akin to the Super Bowl, the game restarted at the same hectic pace.
Gerard Pique sent Barcelona ahead again in the 50th minute by flicking home Neymar's curling free-kick, and it proved to be the match-winning goal.
It was the first time the teams met in a friendly since 1991 and only the second time outside of Spain. Given its success, the spectacle is likely to be repeated.
Barcelona lifted a trophy after the game but Valverde will be focused on ensuring they can impose themselves in the same way when these teams meet in two weeks at Camp Nou, this time with real silverware at stake.
(Reporting by Rik Sharma; Editing by Ian Ransom/Sudipto Ganguly)
source: news.abs-cbn.com
