Tag: Champions League

  • Champions League absence won’t cause Man Utd panic, says Solskjaer

    Champions League absence won’t cause Man Utd panic, says Solskjaer

    Failing to qualify for next season’s Champions League will not cause Manchester United to panic and alter their plans in the transfer market, manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said on Saturday.

    United are fifth in the Premier League standings with 58 points, one behind Leicester City, who occupy the final Champions League spot with four games to play.

    With second-placed Manchester City facing a European ban for breaching UEFA financial rules, fifth would guarantee qualification for the Champions League unless City win an appeal in the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

    “I don’t think the club will panic or go crazy with plans that we’ve already talked about for years to come.

    “You do have to have a long-term plan but short-term some decisions will be easier to make if you get the Champions League,”Solskjaer told reporters in a virtual news conference ahead of Monday’s Premier League home game against 12th-placed Southampton,” he said.

    United could also qualify for the Champions League by winning the Europa League, where they hold a 5-0 advantage over LASK heading into the second leg of their last-16 tie.

    United, who are on a 17-match unbeaten run in all competitions, have won each of their last four Premier League games by three goals and Solskjaer said attacking football was ingrained in the club.

    “It’s about winning, of course it is, but it’s also about our fans and the way we approach the game.

    ” You play with pace, power, you play with no fear, you take risks and you’ve got players who have got quality.

    “That’s just the DNA of the football club,”he said.

    Striker Mason Greenwood has had an impressive breakthrough campaign, scoring 16 goals in all competitions, and Solskjaer brushed off suggestions that the 18-year-old had exceeded expectations.

    “We know what he’s capable of and always trusted him to be a part of this squad and chip in with performances and goals, we’ve seen it every day,” he said.( Reuters/NAN)

  • UEFA postpone all Champions League, Europa League matches next week

    UEFA postpone all Champions League, Europa League matches next week

    All UEFA Champions League and Europa League matches scheduled to be played next week have been postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic, European football’s governing body said on Friday.  The move comes after two of next week’s four scheduled Champions League last 16, second legs — between Manchester City and Real Madrid, and between Juventus and Lyon — had already been called off on Thursday. “Further decisions on when these matches take place will be communicated in due course,” UEFA said in a statement.

  • Neymar set to play against Borussia Dortmund, PSG coach says

    Neymar set to play against Borussia Dortmund, PSG coach says

    Paris St-Germain (PSG) forward Neymar is expected to play on Tuesday against Borussia Dortmund in their UEFA Champions League last 16 first leg tie after overcoming a rib injury.

    PSG coach Thomas Tuchel disclosed this on Monday.

    The Brazilian did not play in the club’s 4-4 Ligue 1 draw at Amiens over the weekend when Tuchel rested some other players.

    “He is here (in Dortmund). He will train and if all goes well he will play tomorrow (Tuesday). Because for us it changes almost everything when he plays and I hope he will play,” said Tuchel.

    PSG have been knocked out at this stage in the past three seasons and are desperate to leave a mark on the competition.

    “(Neymar) changes everything because if he plays we have his quality and confidence and ability to do (the) decisive.

    “It changes everything… because if he does not play we have no other player with that quality to replace him.”

    Tuchel, who coached Borussia Dortmund for two seasons before going to Paris, will need to devise a plan to stop the Germans’ formidable attack.

    They have scored 22 goals in their five Bundesliga games this year.

    “It is absolutely necessary to play with a lot of confidence in this stadium with such fans and such an opponent. Otherwise, you cannot survive,” he added before the clash at Signal Iduna Park.

    “We have the team spirit to overcome difficult situations, adapt to different scenarios. That’s the key.”

    PSG are under extreme pressure to finally deliver in Europe after spending big money on players in the past few seasons to build a winning squad.

    They came agonisingly close to a quarter-final spot last year only to be eliminated by Manchester United with a stoppage-time penalty kick in the second leg.

    “If you lose in the round of 16 for three years and you arrive for a fourth time it is clear it is not the same situation,” Tuchel said.

    “Every year has its story and maybe we have to accept that it is sport. There are doctors, much more important professions, we play sports but it happens that you lose.

    “Maybe later we can breathe a bit easier. We are here and it is important to make the most of it.”(Reuters/NAN)