Xavi fights all the way for Barcelona

Barcelona star Xavi does not believe his side’s Champions League semi-final mauling at the hands of Bayern Munich signals the end of an era for the Catalan club.

Barca established themselves as the world’s leading side during a stunning run of success that saw them win 14 trophies in four years under Pep Guardiola.



They are also poised to reclaim the La Liga title this season in Tito Vilanova’s first campaign in charge.



But after being humiliated 7-0 on aggregate by Bayern, Xavi said:

“There’s no need to be drastic. This team still have a future. We have competed very well up until now.



“I am always optimistic and this team have the desire. We have not been able to get through the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey and Champions League, but we have the team to carry on.



“On Sunday we have another competition.”

That is when Barca play against Real Betis which should see them replace Real Madrid as Spanish champions and heal those European wounds.



Midfielder Cesc Fabregas said: “The players are hurt. We have to react and win La Liga as soon as possible.”


-->

Papers Talk - 3 May 2013

• Jose Mourinho has agreed a return to Chelsea on a £10million-a-year package - but the move will not be officially announced until July 1.


• Real Madrid will demand Manchester United striker Javier Hernandez in any cash-plus-player deal for Cristiano Ronaldo.


• Arsenal are tracking Lyon's £10million-rated French defensive midfielder Max Gonalons.


• Winger Scott Sinclair, 24, can quit Manchester City if the right offer comes in after starting just three games this season.


• Stoke are planning a move for Crystal Palace's 28-year-old £2.5million-rated Australian midfielder Mile Jedinak.


• Everton are battling Stoke for Lazio's 22-year-old Belgian defender Luis Pedro Cavanda who could be allowed to leave for £2million.

• Manchester United want Borussia Dortmund boss Jurgen Klopp to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson when the 71-year-old manager decides to leave Old Trafford.


• Meanwhile, United are planning a summer move for Atletico Madrid's 18-year-old English defender Elliot Kebbie in a move that could see striker Javier Hernandez move in the opposite direction.


• Arsenal are chasing Lyon's £15million-rated captain Maxime Gonalons, 24, as a solution to his midfield problems.


• Manchester City are tracking Real Sociedad's highly-rated 21-year-old defender Inigo Martinez.


• Paul Dickov could replace Brian Flynn as manager of Doncaster - despite Flynn getting Rovers promoted to the Championship.

• Rafael Benitez will sign off his stint as Chelsea interim manager with the Europa Cup final against Benfica.


• Gareth Bale has given Spurs a huge boost after insisting he will stay at White Hart Lane even if they fail to make the Champions League.


• Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson will be handed a bumper £60million war chest to spend on new players this summer.

• Jose Mourinho will try to tempt Borussia Dortmund's 24-year-old striker Robert Lewandowski to join him at Chelsea if he returns to Stamford Bridge.


• Tottenham, Manchester City and Arsenal have been alerted after Real Madrid confirmed they will sell 25-year-old Argentina striker Gonzalo Higuain.


• Liverpool are watching Rennes' Ghana international utility player John Boye, 26, who can play centre-back, right-back and midfield.


• Arsenal will again send scouts to watch Lyon's £10million-rated French defensive midfielder Max Gonalons.


• West Ham are in talks with Beerschot over a deal for Belgium U21 right-back Alpaslan Ozturk, 19, and are also keen on Wigan's Maynor Figueroa.


• Stoke City are keen on Norwich City's 24-year-old winger Anthony Pilkington.

• Andre Villas-Boas admits he will be powerless to prevent Daniel Levy from selling Gareth Bale over his head if the price is too tempting this summer.


• Manchester United are trying to sign Borussia Dortmund's £17-million rated midfielder Ilkay Gundogan, 22, this summer.


• Turkish side Galatasaray are preparing a £12million offer for Arsenal forwards Lukas Podolski or Gervinho.


• Manager Michael Laudrup has opened the door for winger Scott Sinclair to rejoin Swansea from Manchester City.

• Manchester United will face competition from Real Madrid to sign Borussia Dortmund striker Robert Lewandowski.


• Aston Villa are set to offer rising stars Matthew Lowton and Ashley Westwood new contracts.


• Stoke City are lining up a £3million bid for Crystal Palace winger Yannick Bolasie.

• Rafael Benitez will have a chance to mark his stormy tenure at Chelsea with a trophy after beating Basel 3-1 to reach the Europa League final last night.


• Barcelona are set to sign Brazil superstar Neymar from Santos for £50million.

-->

United post record turnover

Premier League champions Manchester United have revealed a record third-quarter turnover of £91.7m, with a 16 per cent decrease in debt.

In figures issued to the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday, the Premier League club revealed it is on course to generate more than £350m this season after posting record turnover figures in the three months up to March 31.

Along with a 52 per cent increase in sponsorship revenue, the figures also show a 28 per cent increase in commercial income to £114.5m over the full nine-month period.

And Premier League champions United, owned by the American Glazer family, has reduced its debt to £367.6m, a drop of 16 per cent in nine months.

Ed Woodward, the club's executive vice-chairman, said: "Each of our three primary sectors - commercial, broadcasting and matchday - delivered strong top-line gains and helped us achieve a record third quarter for both revenue and adjusted EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization)."

United's Premier League title triumph did come at a price, though, with a 25 per cent increase in wages to £44.9m through the signings of Robin van Persie and Shinji Kagawa, as well as renegotiated contracts and the growth of United's commercial team.

The figures issued on Thursday excluded the £120m eight-year deal with AON, which includes naming rights to their Carrington training complex and sponsorship of their training kit and overseas tours.

And it was also confirmed that completing the purchase of the club's own TV channel, MUTV, cost United £2.7m.

United have developed plans to open a commercial office in the US and are keen to make an impact in the Far East, where so much of their overseas support is based.
-->

AVB : Bale will stay

Andre Villas-Boas has been assured that Tottenham talisman Gareth Bale will be at White Hart Lane next season, regardless of whether Spurs qualify for the UEFA Champions League.

The Wales international forward, who added the Football Writers' Association award to his PFA double on Thursday, is one of the most sought-after players in world football having drawn interest from various clubs throughout Europe.

Villas-Boas sparked fears over his future last week as he claimed the Spurs superstar could leave the club this summer if they failed to make the top four.

But the Spurs boss back-tracked on Thursday, stating his comments had been misunderstood, and said he would be surprised if the 23-year-old left White Hart Lane.

Villas-Boas said:

"The information that I have from the club, which was mistakenly written about last week, is that the player is here to remain, independent of the objectives of Champions League qualification being achieved or not.

"I would be extremely surprised (if he left).

"In football anything can happen. It's impossible to predict, but this is the assurance I have had from the club.

"We understand that the more awards the more recognition the player will have, the more media attention, but the club has to move forward by holding onto its best players.

"With the recognition and the further experience that he has had from this year, next year for Tottenham he will be even more assertive."

Bale's progress this year has not gone unnoticed by Real Madrid, but Villas-Boas and chairman Daniel Levy are digging their heels in over the player's future.

Villas-Boas added:

"Whatever price tag the player has doesn't matter to us because he's our player.

"He's a player we have to hold onto for the remaining seasons to make sure that we reach our objectives and continue to progress as a club."

The Real hierarchy have always publicly remained coy on the prospect of adding Bale to their squad, but their sporting director Zinedine Zidane heaped praise on the Welshman this week, leading to speculation that a big-money bid could be on the cards.

Such words from a man of Zidane's standing will no doubt have caught Bale's eye, but Villas-Boas has no issue with the Frenchman's comments.

"It's fine, I have no problems with it," Villas-Boas said. "In the end it's great for a player of Zidane's dimension to be speaking about Gareth.

"It's good to have that public recognition from someone who has reached the biggest heights of the game."

-->

Rafa eyes Europa glory

Chelsea boss Rafa Benitez has urged his side to take their last opportunity to claim a trophy after reaching the Europa League final.



The Blues battled back from a goal behind to beat Swiss side FC Basel 3-1 at Stamford Bridge on Thursday and seal a 5-2 aggregate victory.

The London club will now face Portuguese side Benfica in the final at the Amsterdam Arena on May 15, their second successive European final.

After defeats in the Club World Cup final, Community Shield and Super Cup this season, Benitez hopes his players can take their last chance to win silverware this campaign.

"We have one more opportunity to win a big title," he told ITV. "We have lost three finals this season.

"I am really pleased for them and everyone here. I think we have had a good atmosphere in the side. The players are working hard.

"To be fair we had two clear chances first half and we failed to take them. They then score and we had to react. Credit to the players in the second half. They were on top of them and we scored three goals. We controlled the game.

"At half-time we agreed about that. We showed the concentration and mentality at the start of the half. We killed off the game. We have to think of that for the future."

Looking towards the final, Benitez said: "It'll be tough because Benfica are a very, very dangerous team and hard to play against, but at least we are there.

"With the commitment and the quality, we'll have a chance for sure."

John Terry did not start the second-leg and Benitez would not be drawn on whether the defender would be in the starting line-up for the final, having been suspended for the Champions League decider in Munich last year.

"I don't know because we have too many games to play before," said Benitez.

"The main thing for me is to enjoy today and be ready for the challenge of Manchester United, and then Tottenham.

"One game at a time, and concentrate on the job in hand."

Basel boss Murat Yakin was impressed by Chelsea and thinks they can go on and win the final.

"They have the team," he said. "They're really clever, experienced, they know how to win things.

"I hope my team have given them really good preparation to go into that final and, hopefully, win it.

"Chelsea showed how clever they are, and it's the little details that catch you out.

"We need that bit more experience to make the step up. The little details make the difference."


-->

Wenger: Cazorla should have been in team of the year

Arsene Wenger believes Santi Cazorla deserved to be included in this season’s PFA Team of the Year.



Cazorla’s debut season with the Gunners has seen the Spaniard feature in every Premier League game, netting 12 times with seven assists, but he was overlooked for the Team of the Year.



Wenger was surprised the Spanish playmaker did not feature as he feels he fully deserved to be included.



“I am sure he must have been very close to be in there. In my opinion he deserved to be there based on the consistency and quality of his performances,” Wenger told Arsenal Player.



“And then there are the number of chances and assists he created. I think he deserved to be in there.”



Wenger has been impressed with Cazorla since his arrival from Malaga last summer but admits he has been amazed at his stamina during the season.



“I’ll tell you something – if you count the number of training sessions he has missed it will be similar to that [the games he has missed],” he said.



“I can’t remember the number of sessions where he had an injury. His consistency has been remarkable for the games and the training sessions. And one might explain the other one.



“I was not aware of it [Cazorla's stamina before he signed],” added Wenger. “I did check the number of games he played but I was not aware that he would have such stamina in the Premier League.



“I expected him to miss more games because the league is very tough physically. The duels are tough. It shows he has a remarkable body but it shows he is intelligent as well because he knows where to go [on the pitch].”

Mata: Benitez is a great manager

Chelsea playmaker Juan Mata has hailed Rafael Benitez, insisting his fellow Spaniard is a "great" manager.



The 53-year-old was appointed by the London club on an interim basis after UEFA Champions League-winning boss Roberto Di Matteo was relieved of his duties in November.



But his arrival was poorly received by a large section of the club's support, with the former Liverpool coach being roundly booed throughout his first few fixtures at the helm.



However, with Chelsea's bid for a top-four finish and UEFA Europa League glory having picked up pace of late, Mata believes his compatriot deserves praise.



"Rafa is a manager who has had great seasons at every club that he was at," he said. "And since he came he's just tried to do his best with the team, analysing the rivals, getting ready for every game and trying to do his best for the team.



"So for me and for the players I think he's a great manager. We are now at the end of the season trying to be in the third position so that's where we're aiming and having a chance to win a trophy so maybe the season at the end will be good for us and for Rafa as well and that will be because of his job."



The Spain international went on to lament his side's failure to progress beyond the group stages when defending their UEFA Champions League crown this term.



"We were out from the group and every time I watched a game on TV from the Champions League I think it's a shame," he added.



"But on the other hand, I would rather be positive and think we have a chance to win another trophy as we did last season.



"So obviously to get out in the first group was a disappointment for us and the club but suddenly we have a chance. So you never know until the end and you now have another chance to win a big trophy."