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Real Madrid Vs Manchester United – Player Ratings + Highlights
FT: Manchester United 1-1 Real Madrid. The match that the whole world was waiting to watch, lived up to the expectation. Though it was a stalemate, Real Madrid and Manchester United played out an exciting game of football. Lack of coordination and accuracy among Madrid players led to the stalemate, but the credit goes to Sir Alex Ferguson and his men.
Manchester united looked comfortable throughout the game and had good spells of possession. They must feel unlucky not to have won the match, but nevertheless they have the all important away goal, which would be crucial when Madrid travel to Old Trafford.
Here are the player ratings:
Real Madrid:
Lopez – Was average and looked nervous throughout the game. Could have done better when Welbeck’s header was coming in. For a second choice keeper to fill in Casillas’ boots is always difficult and needs to improve before the second leg 6.5/10.
Arbeloa – Looked solid when defending, not so great when surging forward 6.5/10.
Ramos – Should be one of the worst matches he has played in his career. Looked clumsy and was all over the place when United attacked and though he managed to keep Van Persie quite for most part of the game, the Dutch man hit the post and was close to scoring 6/10.
Varane – Impressive again, the youngster has a real talent and a great future beholds the Frenchman. Hardly put a foot wrong other than the collision with Evra for which he could have been sent off. Other than that Varane had a memorable game 7/10.
Coentrao – Unlike his full back partner, The Portuguese star looked more menacing going forward and was denied a goal by a brilliant save by David De Gea. Decent in defending as well. 7/10
Alonso – As always, good at his job, a typical Alonso’s performance. Created a beautiful chance for Ozil (which was not converted) and kept himself busy until he was subbed in the 82nd minute. 7/10
Khedira – Strong, ugly, creative, everything that is needed out of a defensive midfielder. 7/10
Di Maria – Delivered a beautifully waited cross which was headed in by Ronaldo to make it 1-1. His crosses, dribbles and tracking back to help defenders everything was on par. Overall had a brilliant game 7.5/10
Ozil – Should be disappointed not to have been on the score sheet. His combinational play with Ronaldo was a treat to watch. 7.5/10
Ronaldo – It had to be Ronalodo, wasn’t ? Scored the equaliser for Real Madrid and went on to demonstrate why he is one of the best footballers in the planet. However was unable to single-handedly win the game for Madrid. 8/10
Benzema – Was substituted early in the second half. Another poor performance on a bigger stage from the French International. 5.5/10
Subs
Higuain – A better option to replace the out of sorts Benzema. Was decent during the time he was on the pitch. 6/10
Modric – Mourinho should seriously consider giving Modric a place in the starting line-up. Was impressive during the 15 minutes he was on the pitch. 7/10
Manchester United:
De Gea – Made a world class save, a string of decent saves and made a statement to his doubters. 7.5/10
Rafael – Struggled to cope up with the pace shown by Real Madrid players. Ronaldo in particular made life difficult for the youngster. 5/10
Ferdinand – Solid and comfortable at the back. Experience came handy to the England International. 7/10
Evans – To replace Vidic at the centre back at such a huge game, is not an easy job to do. But Evans did it with perfection. 7/10
Evra – Was caught out of position way too much and struggled throughout the match. 6/10
Jones – Did what he was asked to do. Was aggressive and ugly at handling things in the centre of the pitch. 7/10
Carrick – Though not his best performance, Carrick had a good game. His last ditch tackles made sure Real couldn’t get too many shots on target. 7/10
Kagawa – Unimpressive from the former Dortmund man. He was totally out of ideas and subbed off around the 60th minute. 6/10
Welbeck – Raised a few eye brows when Ferguson selected Welbeck, but lived up to his manager’s faith. Scored the first goal of the game and was threatening throughout the time he was on the pitch. 8/10
Rooney – Delivered the cross for the opening goal of the game but couldn’t contribute much after that. An off day for the England International. 6/10
Van Persie – As usual the Dutch man was a treat to watch. But was guilty of missing yet another easy chance. 6.5/10
Subs
Giggs – The veteran was needed to maintain composure to United’s midfield in the final stages of the game. Was guilty of missing an easy chance. 6.5/10
Here are the highlights of the game:
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Rangers complete the signing of Jon McLaughlin from Sunderland
Rangers have confirmed the signing of Scotland international goalkeeper Jon McLaughlin from English club Sunderland. The 32-year-old has penned a two-year deal with the Gers, the club has revealed.
McLaughlin has been with Sunderland for the past two seasons. However, with his contract expiring at the end of the month, he has made the move to Ibrox.
Jon McLaughlin to Rangers: Five things you need to know…
- McLaughlin started out at non-league English club Harrogate Town and has had stints at Bradford and Burton Albion.
- The 32-year-old spent a season with Scottish club Hearts, before joining Sunderland in 2018.
- He made 90 appearances for the League One side, keeping 27 clean sheets in the process.
- McLaughlin made his international debut for Scotland in 2018. While he has just two caps, he is a regular in the squad.
- The Scotsman has penned a two-year contract with Rangers.
Rangers were in need of bolstering their goalkeeping department after releasing both Wes Foderingham and Jak Alnwick.
McLaughlin arrives as competition for first-choice shot-stopper Allan McGregor, who turned 38 in January. Speaking to the club’s website after his arrival, McLaughlin said:
“It’s a very proud moment for myself and for the family. It is great to be back up here in Scotland and we are very proud to have made the deal happen.”
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- Rangers boss Steven Gerrard hints at more incomings at Ibrox
- Rangers interested in signing Manchester United academy man Dion McGhee
Manager Steven Gerrard also expressed his delight at having completed the signing. He claimed that McLaughlin’s vast experience would add more strength and depth to the Gers squad.
Rangers have been very active in the transfer market already. McLaughlin joins Calvin Bassey as the latest arrival at Ibrox, while both Ianis Hagi and Jermain Defoe have made their transfers permanent as well.
Craig Gordon hits out at Celtic over dragged-out contract negotiations
As reported by the Daily Record, Craig Gordon has hit out at Scottish champions Celtic over ongoing contract negotiations.
The 37-year-old Gordon’s contract with the Hoops ran out at the end of last month. They remain intent on re-signing him though, and negotiations over a new deal have been ongoing. But the two parties haven’t been able to arrive at an agreement yet. (h/t Daily Record)
Craig Gordon at Celtic: Five things you need to know…
- Gordon has been with Celtic since the summer of 2014.
- To date, the 37-year-old has racked up 242 appearances for the club, keeping 121 clean sheets.
- The former Scotland international won five Premiership titles, four Scottish FA Cups and five Scottish League Cups with the Hoops.
- Having been a certain starter for years, Gordon lost his place to Fraser Forster in 2019/20.
- Gordon’s contract with Celtic ran out last month. Negotiations over a new deal haven’t gone well. There are other clubs interested in signing the veteran.
Opening up on ongoing talks over a new deal, Gordon hit out at Celtic, claiming that the negotiations could have been handled a lot better. (h/t Daily Record)
“They did speak about it a few weeks ago. The negotiations haven’t been particularly good, I’ve got to be honest. It has dragged out and I feel it could have been handled an awful lot better.”
Gordon also went on to reveal that the new offer that Celtic had tabled required him to take a massive wage cut, which he refused. He further added the Scottish champions were yet to come back with an improved offer. (h/t Daily Record)
Also read:
- Wolfsberger manager hints at Shon Weissman exit amid Celtic interest
- Rangers interested in signing former Manchester United academy man Dion McGhee
Gordon, who has rejected an approach from St. Mirren, also claimed that he would be open to returning to boyhood club Hearts, even if it meant playing in the Championship next season. (h/t Daily Record)
With Celtic trying to re-sign Fraser Forster from Southampton, it remains to be seen if they go back with an improved contract offer for Gordon in the coming days.
Celtic star Odsonne Edouard would be a great fit at Arsenal, Tottenham reckons Kris Boyd
Former Rangers striker Kris Boyd has backed Celtic striker Odsonne Edouard to succeed in the Premier League, amid interest from Arsenal (h/t The Scottish Sun).
The 22-year-old has been a prime asset for Celtic since arriving from PSG three years ago. He has grown into one of the most prolific marksmen and has attracted interest from Premier League clubs and sport bets odds for the striker has grown three folds since his debut for the Glasgow club.
Odsonne Edouard at Celtic: Five things you need to know…
- Edouard joined Celtic from PSG initially on loan in 2017
- The Bhoys signed him on a permanent basis for a club-record fee of £10m in 2018.
- The French goalscorer has made 126 appearances so far, scoring 60 goals.
- Edouard has won two Scottish Premiership titles with Celtic, along with other domestic honours.
- The 22-year-old has been in prolific form in 2019/20, bagging 27 goals and 19 assists.
With Arsenal facing the prospect of losing captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang this summer, Edouard is being lined up as a potential replacement for the 30-year-old
And, former Rangers ace Kris Boyd has backed the Frenchman to come good in the Premier League.
Writing his column for The Scottish Sun, Boyd claims that the Frenchman’s all-round ability would make him a fine addition at Arsenal or even their North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur.
“I honestly believe Edouard could go all the way. There’s no doubt he could walk into the Arsenal team — and their North London rivals Tottenham would also be a great fit for him.”
Boyd further adds that given how successfully Edouard had linked up with Leigh Griffiths at Celtic, he would form a dangerous strike partnership with Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane.
Also Read:
- Is Football’s Engine Starting To Rev Once More?
- Christopher Jullien insists Odsonne Edouard will stay at Celtic
- Five soccer predictions from the experts that could not have been more wrong
The former Scotland international also insists that Celtic are under no pressure to sell their ace striker. But should his head turn due to the attention, like Moussa Dembele’s did a couple of years ago, then they will be powerless to stop him.
Edouard still has two years left on his current contract with Celtic. As far as a summer move is concerned, the ball lies in his court.
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