Blancos record-breaking 16th consecutive win for Real madrid

Cristiano Ronaldo made both goals at the
Rosaleda, setting the France forward up for a
tap-in before putting the Welshman clean
through on goal late on with a flick-on Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale got the goals
as Real Madrid made it a club-record 16 wins
in a row by defeating Malaga 2-1 on Saturday
night.
Coach Carlo Ancelotti had found his future
called into question after Los Blancos lost
consecutive Liga games to Real Sociedad and
Atletico Madrid in September.
But the European champions have been
irresistible since then, winning every game the
have played in all competitions and netting an
incredible 59 goals in the process.
Karim Benzema opened the scoring early on at
La Rosaleda after fine work by Cristiano
Ronaldo, before Gareth Bale grabbed the
crucial second late on with an excellent finish
after latching on to Ronaldo's flicked header.
Former Malaga playmaker Isco was then
harshly sent off for a second booking, before
Roque Santa Cruz ensured Real would face a
nervy last minute or so when he nodded home
in stoppage time.
However, Ancelotti's side held on for a
deserved three points that ensures they will
end the weekend top of La Liga.
The two sides contested a lively opening to the
game, with both goalkeepers forced into
important saves inside the first quarter of an
hour.
Ronaldo was the first to go close in the 12th
minute as the Portuguese star fired straight at
the outstanding Carlos Kameni from nine yard
after a clever pass from Bale.
Malaga caught Madrid on the counter almost
immediately after that chance, and their move
ended with Iker Casillas tipping a Santa Cruz
header on to the roof of the net.
The open nature of the match suited Real,
though, and they eventually went ahead in the
18th minute, as Ronaldo exploded past Robert
Rosales down the left and saw his cross
instinctively steered in by Benzema.
The shaky Casillas almost handed Malaga an
equaliser shortly after, but the Madrid
captain's blushes were spared by the post afte
he spilled Sergi Darder's long-range effort.
Bale should have doubled Real's lead in the
40th minute as he raced on to a Ronaldo
throughball, but he could only shoot straight
at the onrushing Kameni.
And the frailty of the visitors' advantage was
highlighted shortly before the break as Duda
struck the crossbar with an audacious 35-yard
free-kick.
Real looked threatening again at the start of
the second half, and Ronaldo almost doubled
their advantage in spectacular style in the 54t
minute, narrowly missing the target with an
acrobatic scissor-kick.
The Ballon d'Or holder - who has scored 20
Liga goals this term - should have made sure
of the points with 13 minutes to go but
Kameni produced a stunning save to palm
away his low drive after he had capitalised on
a mix-up between Marcos Angeleri and
Weligton.
Malaga almost made the most of that let-off a
Santa Cruz tested the unconvincing Casillas
from the edge of the area, but Bale raced on
to Ronaldo's flick-on and fired home in the
83rd minute to make the points safe.
A harsh second yellow for Isco, who was given
a rousing reception from the home fans as he
left the pitch, and Santa Cruz 's excellent
header made it a tense ending, but the Madri
juggernaut rolls on.

A expensive win for manchester united

Everything was going well at Old Trafford Till Di maria's injury.
The Argentine limped off with a thigh injury inside 15 minutes at Old Trafford, and was replaced with Ander Herrera after a chat with
the United physio which confiremd that di maria cant continue and might as well miss the next match.

It still continued very well as the Red Devils quickly went a goal up and two more after.before Wayne Rooney went down injured later in the
half, with the United physio again called into
action, but got back to his feet and continued till full time leaving a big question what will be the fate of united without Di maria and Rooney in the next match?

Chelsea 's first goalless match

Chelsea failed to score for the first time this
season as they were held to a goalless draw by
Sunderland on Saturday Night Football .
Both sides hit the woodwork in the first half as
Willian struck the post with a low shot and
Santiago Vergini saw an effort bounce off the
bar.
Sunderland continued to frustrate the Premier
League leaders after the break and held firm to
record their third draw in a row.
The stalemate sees Chelsea extend their
advantage at the top to seven points while
Sunderland move up to 13th.
The Black Cats were fully deserving of their
point too after an impressive defensive display
at the Stadium of Light.
While they invited pressure by sitting deep in
their own box at times, they always made life
difficult for Chelsea and presented them with
very few clear chances on goal.
The only time they were nearly caught out in the
first half was when Chelsea broke swiftly from a
free-kick and Willian struck a low shot against
the post from just outside the box.
Wilian was involved in another decent chance on
the half-hour mark after linking up with
Branislav Ivanovic on the right. The defender
continued his run into the box but saw his effort
deflected over the bar by Costel Pantilimon.
That, though, was to be Chelsea’s best opening
of the half as Sunderland continued to make it
difficult for the visitors and started to grow in
belief and confidence themselves.
Just moments after Ivanovic’s shot was saved,
the hosts spurned a great chance to take the
lead when Lee Cattermole's cross from the right
was deflected into the box and into the path of
Vergini, who hooked the ball over Thibaut
Courtouis but on to the bar.
The Black Cats continued to hold firm in the
second half and perhaps even had the better
chances to break the deadlock as Chelsea attacks
repeatedly broke down on the edge of the
Sunderland box.
Connor Wickham nearly caught Courtouis by
surprise with a snap shot before Adam Johnson
dragged an effort wide on his wrong foot when
he should have at least hit the target from
inside the area.
The visitors, who saw Diego Costa pick up a
booking that will keep him out of the midweek
match against Tottenham Hotspur, were largely
restricted to long-range shots, but none really
tested Pantilimon.
Jose Mourinho threw on Loic Remy and Didier
Drogba in a bid to force a late winner but
Sunderland were still able to snuff out all of
Chelsea’s attacks and hold on for a well deserved
draw.

Drogba's duels

Didier Drogba has had some memorably tough
tussles in his time.
A strong and powerful centre-forward who has
scored freely on the domestic, European and
international stages, the Ivorian has grown
accustomed to the physical attentions of some of the
world’s best defenders over the years.
He was recently asked who it was that had given him
the hardest games during his time at the top of the
game, and picked out two recently retired players he
had seen plenty of during Champions League ties in
his first spell at Stamford Bridge.
‘It’s difficult but I would say Jamie Carragher was the
most difficult one in terms of aggression, but he was
always fair,’ the 36-year-old said.
‘Then there was Carles Puyol, he was a strong
defender, tough, but always respectful, and a
gentleman really.’
Former Liverpool defender Carragher has not been
shy in praising the Chelsea man either. Recently
picking an all-time foreign Premier League XI, he
described Drogba as the ‘best big game player I can
remember’, adding: ‘Drogba did what all strikers
should do and that is score in the biggest games. He
scored three winners in the FA Cup final, got the
crucial goals in two League Cup finals and who
could forget what he did in Munich in the
Champions League final? At his best, he was
unplayable.’