Football: No rest for Messi in record-breaking Argentina appearance

Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni considered resting Lionel Messi for Monday’s Copa America clash against Paraguay but in the end good sense prevailed as the Barcelona striker was once again a key man in their 1-0 win.

“The truth is that Messi has played in all our games and so it is very difficult not to rely on him,” Scaloni said after a hard-fought game in which Argentina scored early and then ceded more and more ground to a Paraguay side that could not turn their possession into goals.

“What worries me is the physical condition of the players,” the coach added. “The conditions were not great to play in.”

Messi has been one of Argentina’s most active players in their three Copa games so far.

He has played every minute and as usual never stopped looking for the ball. His 66 touches against Chile in their opener was a team high, as was his 78 against Uruguay along with Rodrigo De Paul.

Against Paraguay only defender Nahuel Molina touched the ball more.

The victory over Paraguay in Brasilia took Argentina through to the quarter-finals with a game to spare and Scaloni admitted the time might be right to rest his star man.

“It’s possible that we will rotate in the next game,” he said of next Monday’s final group game against Bolivia. “Having qualified gives us some peace of mind. Now we can recharge our batteries and our strength.”

RECORD CAP

Messi got his 147th cap against Paraguay, tying the record held by Javier Mascherano.

The recognition comes at the end of an eventful season for a man who will turn 34 on Thursday.

He began the season opting to stay at Barcelona after saying he wanted to leave.

Exactly where he will be next season is not certain but one thing that is not in doubt is his status at the national side.

Messi has spoken openly about wanting to win a title with Argentina and add an international honour to the myriad baubles he picked up with his club.

Argentina have not won a major title since lifting the Copa America in 1993 and it is the one blank page on his otherwise unblemished CV.

They may fear a resurgent Brazil but they are enjoying a good spell – Monday’s game was their 16th without defeat – and belief the drought may finally break is quietly building.

“We can see that the team is growing and taking shape,” said defender German Pezzella. “With the squad and the players we have we can be there or thereabouts.” (Reporting by Andrew Downie Editing by Robert Birsel)

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Football: Barca thrash Sociedad, Atletico edge past Alaves

MADRID, Spain -- Lionel Messi scored twice on Sunday as Barcelona trounced Real Sociedad 6-1 to keep the pressure on Atletico Madrid, who squeezed past Alaves thanks to a late penalty save from Jan Oblak.

Oblak's 86th-minute heroics ensured Luis Suarez's 500th career goal was enough for a 1-0 victory at the Wanda Metropolitano, meaning the gap at the top of La Liga remains at four points, with 10 games left to play.

But the contrast between Atletico's nervy win against 19th-placed Alaves and Barca's demolition of a Real Sociedad side with hopes of qualifying for Europe spoke volumes about where the momentum lies in the Spanish title race.

Atletico will hope Oblak's save can prove to be a turning point after a challenging few weeks, while the international break might offer Diego Simeone's side a chance to reset and refresh ahead of the run-in. 

"There are games where you suffer but that's what makes football beautiful," said Oblak.

Simeone said: "Like all great teams, there is always one that scores a lot of goals and one that makes a lot of saves. They are both decisive players who make the team stronger."

Barcelona have hit their stride, their six goals against Real Sociedad no less than they deserved for a scintillating attacking display, and perhaps their best since Ronald Koeman took charge.

"The team has improved a lot recently," said Koeman. "We've gone a lot of games without losing in the league, which was the only way to get back in the fight for th title.

"But we're still behind Atleti, Real Madrid are stronger. We have to keep going to the end."

- Messi breaks appearance record -

Messi scored his 11th and 12 goals in his last 10 games, and made it 16 in 12 this year. The 33-year-old has also now passed Xavi Hernandez's record of 767 Barcelona appearances, which he had equalled against Huesca on Monday.

Messi did not plough a lone furrow at the Reale Arena, where Sergino Dest scored twice either side of half-time after Antoine Griezmann slammed in the opener.

Ousmane Dembele and Real Sociedad's Ander Barrenetxea -- with arguably the goal of the night -- both registered between Messi's double in the second half.

For Barcelona, it is a ninth consecutive away win in the league, with a club record 10th within their grasp if they beat Real Madrid in the Clasico on April 10.

Real Sociedad next play Basque rivals Athletic Bilbao in the postponed Copa del Rey final from last year on April 3.

Dest had already hit the crossbar when Messi set Jordi Alba free down the left and while Dembele's finish was saved, Griezmann was on hand to convert the rebound.

Marc-Andre ter Stegen had to rectify his own poor clearance by getting down low to deny Alexander Isak but Real Sociedad's resistance was brief.

Messi slipped in Dest to fire in and then Alba pulled back from the other side for the American to make it three.

Messi snuck in behind early in the second half, poking in Sergio Busquets' ball over the top before Dembele was allowed to glide through unchallenged, and impressively drove into the far corner.

Barrenetxea put his side on the scoreboard, and brilliantly, by nipping inside Frenkie de Jong and thundering a shot into the top corner but Messi had the last word, a crisp finish curling inside the near post.

- Suarez strikes -

Messi stays ahead of Suarez in the La Liga scoring charts, despite the Uruguayan's excellent finish nine minutes into the second half against Alaves.

Thomas Lemar turned the ball around the corner to Marcos Llorente, who fed Kieran Trippier racing down the right, and he curled a cross in on the run to the near post, where Suarez headed in.

But without a second goal, Alaves always had a chance and they were given a golden one after Stefan Savic was judged to have put an arm across Luis Rioja just inside the penalty area.

Joselu stepped up and struck it well to his left but Oblak read it right and, with his left foot still pinned to the line, sprung out and pushed the ball away.

Agence France-Presse

Football: Messi hits goal 650 as Barca get revenge on Athletic

BARCELONA - Lionel Messi scored his 650th goal for Barcelona while Antoine Griezmann struck the winner in a 2-1 home success over Athletic Bilbao in La Liga on Sunday, avenging a defeat by the Basque side in the Spanish Super Cup final.

Messi curled in a stunning free kick after 20 minutes for his milestone goal on the same day the club pledged to sue Spanish newspaper El Mundo for publishing the full details of the Argentine's contract.

Ronald Koeman's side recorded a fifth straight Liga win and moved above Real Madrid into second on goal difference with 40 points, 10 behind Atletico Madrid who have a game in hand.

Messi had missed a gilt-edged chance at the start when he fired straight at keeper Unai Simon and Barca spurned several more opportunities to increase their lead before halftime.

Athletic, who had won their previous five matches in all competitions in a flying start under new coach Marcelino, failed to get going but levelled in the 49th thanks to an own goal.

Jordi Alba tried to prevent Athletic's Oscar de Marcos reaching a cross but instead prodded into the Barca net.

The hosts struggled to respond but finally restored their lead in the 74th when Griezmann, who had scored twice in the 3-2 Super Cup final defeat, arrived in the box to knock home a cross from defender Oscar Mingueza.

Griezmann paid tribute to Messi after the game when asked whether the Argentine, who tried to leave Barcelona in the close season, was being pushed further away from the club.

"We're all enjoying Messi, he's a legend and we hope he can continue to help the club to win," said the Frenchman.

Athletic defender Inigo Martinez said his side had the misfortune to face Messi when he seemed out to prove a point.

"We all know Messi's quality. When he's all fired up like he was today he scores goals like that and there's nothing you can do about it," he said.

(Reporting by Richard Martin; Editing by Ken Ferris)

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Football: Messi saves lackluster Barca, Sociedad reclaim top spot

MADRID, Spain -- Lionel Messi saved Barcelona from another embarrassing result by scoring the decisive goal in a 1-0 win over lowly Levante, while Real Sociedad returned top of La Liga on Sunday.

Messi struck with 14 minutes remaining of a lacklustre display from Barca at the Camp Nou which will do little to ease fan fears following their 3-0 hammering at the hands of Juventus midweek.

Ronald Koeman's side are still way off the pace in the title race, nine points behind Sociedad who reclaimed first place despite only drawing 1-1 with Eibar.

Barcelona do however have two games in hand on the Basque outfit.

Atletico are level on 26 points with Sociedad and also have two games in hand while Real Madrid are now just three points behind the leaders having played one less after beating their local rivals 2-0 on Saturday.

Villarreal are four points off the lead in fourth after drawing 1-1 at Real Betis, who are one point behind Barca in ninth.

"The team is working well, they gave the maximum," said Koeman.

"We still lack a little confidence in ourselves, in our game, but we had a lot of chances, and I have nothing to say about the attitude of the players in this match."

Barca managed to force several saves from Aitor Fernandez, with the Levante goalkeeper doing particularly well to push away a stinging shot from Martin Braithwaite in the 16th minute and Antoine Griezmann's header five minutes later.

However the best chance of the opening period fell to Jorge de Frutos in the 12th minute, the Spaniard somehow shooting straight at Marc-Andre ter Stegen after the ball broke kindly for him right in front of goal.

- Messi saves day -

Barca continued to dominate possession in the second half but if anything looked less threatening, with Fernandez being called into action largely for shots that were hit straight at him.

However with Levante looking more comfortable than a side of their level should at the Camp Nou, Messi saved his team with a clinical finish off the post after collecting Frenkie de Jong's pass.

It was hardly the sort of display to honour Sergio Busquets' 593rd appearance for the club, which takes him level at fourth of all time for matches played for Barca alongside Carles Puyol.

However the three points are a boost ahead of the visit of Sociedad on Wednesday, which is then followed up by another home clash with Valencia on Saturday.

Earlier Ander Barrenetxea gave Real Sociedad the lead in San Sebastian with a thumping strike in the 20th minute, but Sergi Enrich turned home with 25 minutes remaining to send his team 10th on 15 points.

Sociedad would have had a bigger gap between them and Atletico had Igor Zubeldia's 80th-minute tap-in not been ruled out by VAR for an extremely tight offside.

Sunday's draw was Sociedad's sixth in as many games in all competitions, and came after another 1-1 draw at Napoli on Thursday which saw them squeeze into the last 32 of the Europa League.

Granada won 1-0 at Elche in Sunday's other match, a win that keeps them one point ahead of Barcelona.

Agence France-Presse

Football: Barca ponder Messi rest as Madrid continue to wait on Hazard

Barcelona must weigh up the decision whether to rest Lionel Messi for Saturday's trip to Getafe ahead of a congested run of fixtures, while Real Madrid are still waiting on the return of Eden Hazard from injury.

Messi played the full 90 minutes in Argentina's World Cup qualifiers against Ecuador and Bolivia during the international break, the second of which was played at altitude in La Paz.

The Barca captain has not missed a single minute for his club since football resumed in June following the coronavirus shutdown.

However, with seven games in the space of 21 days awaiting Barca, coach Ronald Koeman could elect to give Messi a breather before the start of the team's Champions League campaign.

Barca host Hungarian side Ferencvaros on Tuesday and then face sworn enemies Real Madrid four days later behind closed doors at the Camp Nou.

The Catalan club head to Italy for a Champions League clash with Juventus on October 28 before games against Alaves and Real Betis either side of the visit of Dynamo Kiev.

Leaders Madrid are unbeaten in La Liga since March, winning 13 of their past 15 games, and welcome Cadiz to the capital this weekend.

Zinedine Zidane could also opt to rotate some players but Thibaut Courtois, Karim Benzema and Vinicius Junior are in line to play after resting while others were away on international duty.

Courtois left the Belgium squad with a back injury and while he is fit to return, compatriot Hazard is not yet ready for action.

The 29-year-old has yet to feature this season having picked up a muscle injury as he worked his way back from an ankle problem.

He is also expected to miss next weekend's Clasico, but Courtois believes Hazard will come good after scoring just once in an injury-plagued first season in Spain.

"I have no doubt we are going to see the best of Hazard," Courtois told Cadena Ser radio.

"He is more desperate than anyone to show it. He's coming along well and hopefully soon he can prove it.

He added: "I am sure that in no time he will explode and will give many joys to the team."

Atletico Madrid visit Celta Vigo in their first game since the sale of Ghana midfielder Thomas Partey to Arsenal on transfer deadline day.

Partey made 188 appearances for the Atletico and was part of the sides that reached the 2016 Champions League final and beat Arsenal on the way to winning the Europa League in 2018.

One to watch: Oussama Idrissi

The Dutch-born Morocco international could make his Sevilla debut at Granada after joining the club on a five-year deal from AZ Alkmaar.

Idrissi, 24, scored 13 goals in 25 games in the Eredivisie last season before it was declared over in March due to the Covid-19 outbreak.

Julen Lopetegui's Europa League winners are one of four undefeated teams in La Liga this term, with seven points from their first three matches.

Key stats

12 - goals scored by Sergio Ramos since the start of the 2019/20 season, more than any other defender in Europe's top five leagues.

250 - goals scored by Karim Benzema for Real Madrid. The Frenchman is only the fifth player to reach the mark in club history

Fixtures

Saturday (all times GMT)

Granada v Sevilla (1100), Celta Vigo v Atletico Madrid (1400), Real Madrid v Cadiz (1630), Getafe v Barcelona (1900)

Sunday

Eibar v Osasuna (1000), Athletic Bilbao v Levante (1200), Villarreal v Valencia (1400), Alaves v Elche (1630), Huesca v Real Valladolid (1630), Real Betis v Real Sociedad (1900)

Agence France-Presse

Football: Messi has given maximum since ending transfer saga, says Barca coach Koeman

BARCELONA - Barcelona coach Ronald Koeman says Lionel Messi has been the ideal captain and an example to the rest of the team for the way he has applied himself since deciding to stay at the club this season.

Messi gave an outstanding performance in Barca's 3-0 win over Celta Vigo on Thursday after playing the whole second half with 10 men, crushing any fears that the Argentine might lack commitment after the club refused to let him leave.

"From day one Leo has trained and played well and has given the maximum for the club, for his team and for his team mates and I have had no complaints about him on any day," Koeman said ahead of Barca's La Liga game at home to Sevilla on Sunday.

"He proved himself once again the other day against Celta, he pulled his weight as a captain, he helped the team play the ball out from the back because it's so important to keep the ball when you have one less player.

"There's no debate, for me he has always been the best player in the world, I thought that before from the outside and I think it even more now I'm working with him. He's fully committed, he's an example to everyone as a captain should be."

Koeman also praised the form of Philippe Coutinho, who has thrived since returning from a loan spell at Bayern Munich, having flopped in his first two seasons with the Catalans after a club record move from Liverpool in 2018.

"Coutinho is a very good player, he has learned a lot in England and with Bayern and my job as a coach is to get the best out of each player and find their best role," he said.

"A coach can help but it all starts with the quality of a player and Coutinho is a great footballer."

The Dutchman also said Barca want to sign a striker and a centre back before the transfer window shuts, confirming their interest in Manchester City defender Eric Garcia.

"We would like to sign this player, we have four centre backs and we are short there. We know it's difficult financially but I hope we can get it done," Koeman said. (Reporting by Richard Martin Editing by Christian Radnedge)

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Suarez treble and Messi double lift six-goal Barca

BARCELONA - Luis Suarez grabbed a hat-trick and Lionel Messi bagged two goals as Barcelona began their quest for a third straight La Liga title with a 6-2 rout of Real Betis on Saturday.

Arda Turan, whose two goals against Sevilla helped Barca lift the Spanish Super Cup on Wednesday, gave them an early lead at the Nou Camp before Ruben Castro equalised in the 21st minute.

Barca went back in front thanks to a trademark 37th-minute goal from Messi before Suarez La Liga's top scorer last season, made it 3-1 before halftime.

Messi set up Suarez for the Uruguayan's second in the 56th minute before the Argentine netted again a minute later with a left-foot drive from outside the area.

Suarez then completed his treble with a 25-metre free kick in the 82nd minute.

Betis scored again six minutes from time after Castro struck a right-foot shot beyond goalkeeper Claudio Bravo.

Barca were without several injured players including captain Andres Iniesta and forward Neymar, who is playing for Brazil at the Rio Olympics.

Chile captain Bravo, linked with a move to Manchester City by media reports, started in goal with Marc-Andre ter Stegen out injured.

Barca coach Luis Enrique handed new signings Samuel Umtiti and Lucas Digne their league debuts.

The hosts went in front when Messi's diagonal pass found Jordi Alba and he cut a pass back to Turan who beat Betis keeper Antonio Adan from six metres.

Betis equalised when Bravo got a touch to Castro's powerful free kick but could not prevent the ball going in.

Messi then hit the bar before making amends minutes later when he pounced on Denis Suarez's pass before shooting with venom into the bottom corner of the net.

He carved the Betis defence wide open in the 42nd minute with a pass to Sergio Roberto and he set up Luis Suarez who finished clinically.

Betis, under new coach Gus Poyet, struggled to keep up with Barca in the second half.

Messi and Suarez combined before the Uruguayan beat Adan with an easy tap-in.

The dynamic Messi then found the corner of the net again before Suarez added Barca's sixth goal.

Zinedine Zidane's Real Madrid get their campaign underway on Sunday when they visit Real Sociedad.

(Reporting by Adriana Garcia; Editing by Tony Jimenez)

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Barcelona soccer star Messi sentenced to 21 months in prison

MADRID - Barcelona soccer star Lionel Messi has been sentenced to 21 months in prison after a court in Barcelona found him guilty of three counts of tax fraud, a statement from the court said on Wednesday.

The court also sentenced the Argentine soccer player's father, Jorge, to 21 months in prison for the same three crimes. The sentence can be appealed through the Spanish supreme court, the statement said.

However, under Spanish law a prison sentence under two years can be served under probation, meaning Messi and his father are unlikely to go to jail.

The court ordered Messi to pay a fine of around 2 million euros ($2.21 million) and his father to pay 1.5 million euros for the crimes. (Reporting by Madrid newsroom; Writing by Angus Berwick; Editing by Sonya Dowsett)

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com