Rampant Rossi trips up Old Lady

Juventus may have thought they had another Serie A victory in the bag when 2-0 up against Fiorentina with 25 minutes remaining. But oh no.

A Giuseppe Rossi hat-trick and a further strike from Joaquin handed the Viola a famous and much-celebrated win against one of their most hated foes.

It is a remarkable return from Rossi, who missed over a year with serious knee problems. The Italy striker has scored eight goals in as many matches and looks set to play a major role in his team's fortunes this season.

Monday, October 21, 2013 12:00

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Moyes keen to grab Fabregas after failed Thiago pursuit

 

After spending much of the summer chasing unsettled Barcelona starlet Thiago only to be trumped by Bayern Munich and Pep Guardiola's sudden charm offensive, Manchester United need a transfer rethink.

A midfield playmaker remains a priority and Cesc Fabregas, Thiago's former team-mate at Camp Nou and another long-term United target, has risen to the top of the wanted list.

Barcelona are currently considering a £25.9 million bid from the Red Devils and, while it is unlikely to be accepted, it surely signals just the start of David Moyes' formal pursuit of the disillusioned Catalan.

There are, however, numerous obstacles to a deal. The Spanish champions are unlikely to simply jettison a player they fought so hard to prise from Arsenal, while the Gunners enjoy first option on any move.

Tito Vilanova revealed on Tuesday that Fabregas is happy at the Camp Nou, leaving United facing another difficult - and possibly fruitless - battle in the transfer market. 
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Bayern men show their mettle to crush Juventus

 

Bayern Munich further displayed their Champions League credentials with a 2-0 win over Juventus on Tuesday night.

David Alaba and Thomas Muller were the Bayern superheroes, scoring in the first and 63rd minute as the home fans marvelled over the performance at the Allianz Arena.

With Juventus needing to score three unanswered goals in the return leg to progress, it looks as though the Bayern men are ready to march on into the semi-final. 

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Champions League elite prepare for quarter-final battle

Friday's Champions League quarter-final draw served up four intriguing clashes as Europe's elite continue their hunt for a place at Wembley in May.

Barcelona have been paired with Paris Saint-Germain, which will see Zlatan Ibrahimovic face his former club, although the Swede is suspended for the first leg.

Last season's beaten finalists Bayern Munich face a tricky tie against Serie A champions and current leaders Juventus.

Jose Mourinho will be reunited with two of his former players in Didier Drogba and Wesley Sneijder as Real Madrid take on Galatasaray.

While in the final tie of the round, Malaga will be in action against German champions Borussia Dortmund. 
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Celtic cry foul over Juventus' rough & tumble

 

Celtic huffed and puffed on Tuesday evening but Neil Lennon's men were eventually punished for failing to take their chances as Juventus escaped with a 3-0 victory in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie.

After the defeat, Lennon blasted the performance of referee, Alberto Undiano Mallenco, after replays highlighted Juventus players grappling with Celtic's Gary Hooper in the visitors' penalty box before several corners.

"It's not rugby we're playing, it's soccer," said Lennon.

"They were being fouled, manhandled. Every time one of my players tried to move he was held. He should have given a penalty on at least two occasions.

"I'd like to know what the interpretation of the rules are in Italy or Spain, because it's blatantly different to what they are in Britain from what I've seen tonight.

"They were fouling on every opportunity and he was staring right at it. 

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Last 16 hopefuls eye Champions League glory

 

The Champions League round-of-16 stage commences on Tuesday as Europe's elite attempt to forge a path to the final at Wembley.

The standout tie this week sees Cristiano Ronaldo come up against his former club for the first time as Real Madrid host Manchester United on Wednesday evening.

Elsewhere, Serie A champions Juventus are in action against Celtic, Valencia play Paris Saint-Germain, while two sides who impressed in the group stage, Shakhtar Donetsk and Borussia Dortmund, square off at the Donbass Arena on Wednesday. 
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Pogba the Torpedo

 

The French midfielder struck twice to cap off a marvellous personal display against Udinese, and staked another claim for a regular spot in the Bianconeri XI

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Walcott hat-trick leaves Wenger fending off buyers

 

As trump cards in contract negotiations go, Theo Walcott played his ace on Saturday evening as his hat-trick inspired Arsenal to a 7-3 victory over Newcastle United.

The England international is yet to sign a new deal with Arsene Wenger's side and with his contract expiring next summer, clubs will begin to step up their interest next month.

Walcott has confirmed talks with Arsenal are ongoing but his recent displays in a striking role could result in better offers elsewhere.
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Bonucci, Sergio Busquets' horrible student

 

Juventus striker, on loan from Arsenal's Nicklas Bendtner mocked his teammate Leonardo Bonucci, after the later tried to playfully dive, in order to get a penalty.

Danish international on his own account on Twitter joked "who fired on Bonucci? Haha :)"

It seems that Bonucci was a failure to learn scuba diving ...
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Sour grapes for Zlatan over Messi nomination

 

Paris Saint-Germain's outspoken centre-forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic courted controversy once more last week by stating that Barcelona striker Lionel Messi shouldn't pick up the Ballon d'Or award this year.

The 31-year-old Sweden international believes that after having already won it three times in a row, that the Blaugrana genius would be far from a deserving winner and that it should be shared around more.

With Fifa whittling it down to just a three-man shortlist, and Messi competing alongside team-mate Andres Iniesta and Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo, Ibrahimovic may have to wait a little while longer to get his wish, with the Argentine the current front-runner and overwhelming favourite.

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Shock Juventus defeat blows Serie A title race wide open

 

Robinho's penalty on Sunday evening secured a 1-0 victory for AC Milan over reigning champions Juventus to blow the Serie A title race wide open.

The Bianconeri still lead by four points ahead of second-placed Fiorentina, but both Inter and Napoli have a game in hand and could begin to make life difficult for Antonio Conte's side.

Earlier this month, Juve saw their 49-game unbeaten streak in Serie A end after a 3-1 defeat at home to Inter. Is November the start of a shift in power among Italy's elite?
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Juventus ruin Chelsea's big Oscar night

 

It was a performance worthy of an award, but not quite enough for three points - Oscar dazzled fans at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday night with two first-half goals to give Chelsea a commanding lead over Juventus.

But the Italian side would soon pull the red carpet out from underneath the Blues as Arturo Vidal struck before the interval.

And, 10 minutes from time, Fabio Quagliarella clinched a valuable Champions League point to put a dampener on what would have been a perfect night for the competition holders.
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My Football cartoons Beginnings

 

Many of my followers asked me when did I start drawing football cartoons, well I always thought it happened recently, a year or less from my beginning with Goal.com.
But one of my friends at school; Rajy, surprised me lately with these two illustrations of  Del Piero and Peruzzi the Juventus players, these were in the 1998 -1999 season, referring to their jersey that they are wearing in these two pics.
My freind as well is a Juve fan, and I made these two illustrations back in my high school days for him as a humble gift from me to him.

 

I wonder if back then if somebody told me that am going to start that as a career later, what would be my reaction?

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Liverpool miss out as Juve's favourite son heads down under

Juventus legend Alessandro Del Piero confirmed his move to Sydney FC on Wednesday, penning a two-year deal.

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However, the 37-year-old claimed that Liverpool showed a late interest in signing him ahead of his switch to the Australia A-League outfit.

"They were one of the clubs, amongst the non-Italian sides [interested], and I was surprised to be contacted by them," he said his first Sydney FC unveiling.

But Brendan Rodgers' supposed approach was, evidently, in vain and could only watch on as The Old Lady handed her favourite son to Australian football.
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Llorente outgrows Athletic Bilbao as Europe's hawks wait to pounce

 

Fernando Llorente has long been attracting glances of admiration from across Europe, as the Athletic Bilbao striker played a prominent role in the club's assault on the Europa League.

Some star turns, including a fabulously taken goal against Manchester United, have in turn attracted the biggest clubs, and the Basque striker looks set to leave the club after it was revealed he would not be extending his current deal.

So, which one of the hawks circling will be on hand to pounce for the big striker who looks to have outgrown his current club?

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Juve in disarray as Conte faces 10 months off the sidelines

 

While Juventus duo Leonardo Bonucci and Simone Pepe were acquitted in the Scommessopoli scandal on Friday due to a lack of evidence, there was bad news for coach Antonio Conte.
The 43-year-old was found guilty of failing to report attempts to influence the outcome of two Serie B matches while he was at Siena, and has been handed a 10-month ban from the dugout.

Without their coach for the first time against Napoli in the Supercoppa Italiana on Saturday, and with uncertainty over who will take charge after assistant Angelo Alessio's eight-month suspension, how will the Serie A champions fare?
 

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Zlatanocchio

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The Old Lady fails to woo Van Persie

 

The Netherlands international, who unfortunately had an eye-catching Euro 2012 campaign for the wrong reasons despite scoring against Germany, has just one year left on his current contract with the Gunners and finds himself in a similar situation to Samir Nasri last summer.
Manchester City have also been linked with the 28-year-old, but it appears a move to the Serie A champions is not on the card after The Old Lady failed to lure the hitman to Turin...
 

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Arrivederci Del Piero

 

Sunday's Coppa Italia final marked the end of Alessandro Del Piero's 19-year stay with Italian giants Juventus.

The 37-year-old bowed out following his side's 2-0 loss to Napoli, a defeat which will do little to mar a remarkable career with the Old Lady and the Italian national team.
Six Serie A titles, one Champions League victory and a World Cup win mean that Del Piero will always enjoy the respect of his peers, whatever his next move.
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Juventus emerge from dark days of 2006

 

Juventus finally secured the Serie A title on Sunday with a victory over Cagliari, as AC Milan stuttered to defeat against rivals Inter.
The championship is the Turin side's first since their demotion to Serie B in 2006, owing to their involvement in the Calciopoli scandal.

It has been a long road back for the Old Lady, who can finally claim to be among Italy's finest once again, if they manage to avoid defeat in their final game of the season, they will have gone the entire league season unbeaten.

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