Everything went wrong for PSV in the first half - Cocu

Phillip Cocu was left to lament a game of two contrasting halves from his PSV Eindhoven team after they went down 3-2 in the Champions League to CSKA Moscow on Wednesday.

CSKA led 3-0 at the break with goals from Ahmed Musa and a Seydou Doumbia double, however, the Dutch side responded impressively in the second half with Maxime Lestienne bagging two goals in quick succession to raise the possibility of an unlikely comeback.

The Eredivisie champions, who were reduced to 10 men in the 80th minute following Santiago Arias' sending off, were unable to find the equaliser in Russia, to the annoyance of their head coach.

"Everything went wrong in the first half, the second half we showed our true face. So, my compliments for the second half," Cocu told PSV's official website.

"If you go in with a 3-0 deficit in the second half, then there is much to do.

"Even with ten men, you still get a chance to level the score, but unfortunately that did not happen."

Cocu was particularly disappointed that CSKA were allowed to get up a head of steam in an opening half that saw Doumbia miss a second penalty that would have put the hosts 4-0 ahead.

"The players were warned for the qualities of this team, so I find it a bit difficult to put this into perspective," he bemoaned.

"You should always ensure that you are ready for a competition.

"With the ball in the first half it was not so bad, but defensively and in the transition, it was anything but that."

Paris Saint-Germain deserved win over Shakhtar - Blanc

Laurent Blanc insisted there was nothing lucky about Paris Saint-Germain's performance and 3-0 win overShakhtar Donetsk that saw them keep pace at the top of Champions League Group A on Wednesday.

First-half goals from Serge Aurier and David Luiz had put the visitors 2-0 ahead in Lviv, and though Shakhtar pressed hard to pull one back after the interval, Darijo Srna's late own-goal put the result beyond all doubt.

And Blanc believes that the result was fully deserved, though he admitted the scoreline did not reflect a much-improved second-half display from the hosts, as they went close on multiple occasions.

"The score may be flattering, but the victory is well deserved," Blanc told Canal+. "The way we played was satisfactory, to get three points here is good.

"We said before the game that the opponent was quality, and they confirmed that. They had some interesting play that caused us problems in possession, so to not concede against a team like this means we defended very well.

"At 2-0 we felt the need to push for a third. It was slow, yes, but eventually we got it. Shakhtar always stuck to their philosophy and they gave us a good game."

"The score may be flattering, but the victory is well deserved," Blanc told Canal+. "The way we played was satisfactory, to get three points here is good.

"We said before the game that the opponent was quality, and they confirmed that. They had some interesting play that caused us problems in possession, so to not concede against a team like this means we defended very well.

"At 2-0 we felt the need to push for a third. It was slow, yes, but eventually we got it. Shakhtar always stuck to their philosophy and they gave us a good game."


At the heart of PSG's defence was captain Thiago Silva, and the Brazilian claims the Ligue 1 side are confident of overcoming Madrid in what he claims could be two decisive fixtures.

"We have to continue like this, but keep our feet on the ground," he said.

"We are not in the knockout phase yet, and the matches against Madrid will decide that. If we continue as well, we can win."

Ronaldo in spiky rant at world's press: I am not obliged to speak

Cristiano Ronaldo broke his own media ban to criticise the world’s press after bringing up 500 career goals with a brace in Real Madrid’s win over Malmo in the Champions League on Wednesday. 

The 30-year-old has not spoken publicly for nearly six months after growing tired of the way his comments and personal life were often reported. 

However, after bringing up even more goalscoring milestones, including moving level with Raul as Real's all-time top scorer with 323, he decided the time was right to end his silence. 

“When I don’t speak with the press it’s because something’s not going well,” he explained in an interview withEl Partido de las 12. 

“Everyone can think what they want. I don’t speak with the press more because the questions aren’t good, that’s why. Why do you ask about things that happened five or six months ago? 

“Ask me about today, not things from a while ago. Why do I always have to speak? I am not obliged to speak. If I don’t speak, another [player] does.”

Ronaldo highlighted his latest goal scoring feats, claiming he never imagined he would match club legend Raul's record figure following his arrival from Manchester United in 2009. 

He added: “I’m really happy to become the [joint] record goalscorer in the history of Madrid — it’s not something I expected when I arrived. I am satisfied with the record and I’ve already spoken with Raul. He phoned to say congratulations.”

Finally, the Portuguese star stated that he is content in the Spanish capital, although he refused to rule out a possible move in the future. 

“I don’t know what can happen, but in this moment I am fine, I am happy here,” he responded to questions about one day leaving the Santiago Bernabeu. 

“My relationship with the manager [Rafa Benitez] and with the president [Florentino Perez] is good. I’ve always got on well with both of them. I’m good here, but I don’t know what can happen in the future. I don’t know.” 

Ronaldo's 501 goals: The numbers behind his amazing scoring record

Cristiano Ronaldo is now Real Madrid's joint-top goalscorer in their history

Cristiano Ronaldo's Champions League brace against Malmo took him to 501 goals for club and country and level with Raul as Real Madrid's all-time top scorer.

Ronaldo's remarkable goal haul has come in 753 appearances for Real Madrid, Manchester United, Sporting Lisbon and Portugal.

The records continue to tumble for the FIFA World Player of the Year, and here, with the help of our friends at Opta, we crunch the numbers behind his astonishing scoring feats…

Ronaldo celebrates after scoring his 500th career goal against Malmo

Ronaldo's recent scoring heroics have put him on 323 from 308 appearances for Madrid. His last-minute goal equalled Raul's tally despite the Spaniard having played over 400 fewer games.

His recent five-goal haul against Espanyol and his treble against Shakhtar took him to 37 hat-tricks for club and country, and he is also five goals clear of Lionel Messi in the Champions League, with 82 goals making him the competition's all-time leading scorer.

While the bulk of Ronaldo's 500 goals have come in a Real Madrid shirt, he also reached triple figures for Manchester United. In six seasons at Old Trafford Ronaldo smashed 118 goals, and he previously netted five times for Sporting Lisbon as a teenager. At international level, Ronaldo has 55 goals in 122 appearances for Portugal.

Ronaldo netted twice in Sweden to level Raul's Real Madrid record

Ronaldo's lethal right foot has accounted for 326 of his total, with 90 coming on his left and 83 with his head. The 30-year-old can score all kinds of goals from all kinds of angles. Eighty-three of his total have come from outside the box, and he has also scored 81 penalties and 45 direct free kicks.

Home advantage makes little difference to Ronaldo, whose 213 away goals account for 43 per cent of his total. He has scored 272 at home, with the final 16 coming in neutral locations.

The stats also show he is most dangerous between the 76th and 90th minute, a period in which he has scored 116 goals. His second-most prolific period is the 16th-30th minute, during which he has scored 87 times.

So who are Ronaldo's favoured opposition? Sevilla must be sick of the sight of him. The Portuguese powerhouse has scored 21 times against the Andalusian side, while he also enjoys playing against Getafe, against whom he has scored 18 goals.

Ronaldo also has a habit of scoring in El Clasico, with 15 goals against Barcelona putting them joint-third with Atletico Madrid in his list of favoured opposition. As for English teams, Ronaldo has been most prolific against Aston Villa (nine goals) and Tottenham (eight).

And what about top assist makers? Well, over the course of his career, no player has provided more goals for Ronaldo than Karim Benzema with 31. Arsenal's Mesut Ozil ranks second having made 27 assists to Ronaldo during their four-year spell at the Bernabeu together.

Scholes defends Rooney after 'bad night' against Wolfsburg

Paul Scholes has leapt to the defence of Wayne Rooney after the Manchester United captain's disappointing performance in Wednesday's 2-1 Champions League win over Wolfsburg.

He told BT Sport: "Who cares about social media? I don't.

"He didn't have his best night, we all saw that, but we know what Wayne's capable of, if he plays a full season he's going to score 20-25 goals.

"It probably wasn't his best night but he's the type of player that can have a bad night and then go and score two or three goals on Sunday - lets hope he does that."

Ahmed Musa inspires CSKA to victory against PSV

The Nigerian got his side’s curtain raiser as they marched past the canon in Wednesday's Champions League game at the Arena Khimki




Nigeria’s Ahmed Musa recorded his name on the scorers’ sheet in CSKA Moscow 3-2 defeat of PSV Eindhoven in a Uefa Champions League game played at the Arena Khimki on Wednesday night.

The game which was Leonid Slutsky side’s first win in the competition saw the former Kano Pillars forward net the first goal of the encounter in the eighth minute.

They fell behind in when Zoran Tosic's inswinging corner from the right was allowed to drop to the feet ofMusa, who turned the ball into the net after reacting faster than any of the PSV players around him.

CSKA doubled their advantage when Doumbia finished off Mario Fernandes' perfect right-wing cross, his looping header going up and over the outstretched right arm of Jeroen Zoet in the visiting goal.

Doumbia's second of the game came from the spot, Zoet being sent the wrong way after he had conceded the foul by halting Tosic's charge towards goal with an ill-timed lunge.

Nevertheless, Phillip Cocu's men very nearly turned the result around with a valiant second-half fightback led by Maxime Lestienne, who netted a pair of goals of his own.

The result, coupled with Manchester United triumphing 2-1 at home to Wolfsburg, means all four teams in Group B now have three points to their name.

CSKA Moscow host Manchester United in their next game of the competition.

Shakhtar Donetsk 0-3 Paris Saint-Germain: Solid Parisian showing enough to see off sorry Shakhtar

Goals scored in the first half were enough to see les Parisiens through in Ukraine, with the hosts now bottom of Group A

Paris Saint-Germain earned a 3-0 win at Shakhtar Donetsk on Wednesday to preserve their perfect start to the Champions League.

Serge Aurier got himself on the end of Maxwell's cross in the seventh minute to put Laurent Blanc's side in the lead, before being key to his side's second goal, flicking on a corner for David Luiz to double their advantage.

PSG were almost made to pay for the wastefulness of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Angel Di Maria in the second half, with Alex Teixeira being denied by both Kevin Trapp and the woodwork.

But they could not find a way through PSG's back line and Ibrahimovic ensured the result by forcing Darijo Srna into scoring an own-goal as the match approached stoppage time.

The Ligue 1 champions maintain their unbeaten start to the season in all competitions and keep pace with Real Madrid at the top of Group A.

The visitors made an excellent start, Aurier capitalising on poor defending from Taison to head home at the back post from fellow full-back Maxwell's floated cross.

Aurier should have had an assist to his name 10 minutes later, whipping in a delightful delivery from the right, yet Ibrahimovic somehow headed wide of an open goal.

PSG had a second soon after, although it came in a fortunate manner, the ball looping in under the bar off the thigh of Luiz after more poor marking from Shakhtar.

Di Maria should have done better shortly before the half-hour mark when, having beaten the offside trap, his tame dink was parried wide by Shakhtar stopper Andriy Pyatov.

For all PSG's domination, Shakhtar almost pulled one back on the stroke of half-time, Oleksandr Gladkiy twice missing from close range following good play from Teixeira, before Marlos fired over.

Taison went close to atoning for his earlier lapse in concentration five minutes after the restart, the midfielder curling a drilled strike just wide of the right-hand upright.

Marco Verratti, typically impressive in midfield, looked destined to net his first goal of the campaign with a sumptuous half-volley, but the shot was well blocked by Olexandr Kucher.

Despite Di Maria's earlier chance, Shakhtar continued to employ a high defensive line, and the Argentina winger found himself through on goal once again on the hour mark, but his chip landed on the roof of the net.

Mircea Lucescu introduced Bernard in place of Taison, and the diminutive playmaker soon made an impact, finding Gladkiy with a wonderful cross, but the forward was unable to direct his header on target.

Trapp had to be alert to deny Teixeira, who was then unfortunate not to snatch a deserved goal with a superb effort from distance that clipped off the top of the bar.

But PSG's victory was finally rounded off in the final minute of normal time, Ibrahimovic ghosting in behind Shakhtar's defence before his shot was diverted into Shakhtar's net by Srna.

Boateng to begin training with AC Milan

Kevin-Prince Boateng is set to start training with AC Milan until the end of 2015, paving the way for the Ghana international to return to the Serie A club permanently.

Boateng and team-mate Sidney Sam were indefinitely suspended by Schalke following their 2-0 Bundesliga defeat at Koln in May

A proposed switch to Sporting then broke down in August due to a disagreement over the player's image rights, with the 28-year-old now opting to train with the Italian club after having previously expressed his openness to return to the club he represented between 2010 and 2013.

A brief statement on Milan's official website on Wednesday read: "Kevin-Prince Boateng, from Thursday until December 31, will train with the first team at Milanello."

However, he would be unable to represent the Rossoneri competitively in this period given he is under contract at Schalke until the end of this season, and so is only expected to feature in friendly and reserve-team matches during his extended trial period.

The 28-year-old is the second controversial talent to return to Milanello under new coach Sinisa Mihajlovic's watch, with Mario Balotelli currently on a season-long loan at San Siro from Liverpool.

TEAM NEWS: Ronaldo & Benzema start but Modric rested ahead of Madrid derby

Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema both start for Real Madrid against Malmo although Rafael Benitez has decided to rest Luka Modric and Marcelo ahead of Sunday's meeting with Atletico Madrid.

The Blancos boss has opted for both Ronaldo and Benzema upfront at Swedbank Stadion as they seek to build on their opening day rout of Shakhtar Donetsk.

However, Benitez has opted to leave midfield regular Modric on the bench with an eye on the upcoming Madrid derby, while Alvaro Arbeloa will slot into defence in placed of Marcelo.

Real Madrid starting XI: Navas; Carvajal, Nacho, Varane, Arbeloa; Kovacic, Kroos, Casemiro; Isco, Benzema, Ronaldo.

Malmo starting XI: Willand; Tinnerholm, Arnason, Bengtsson, Yotun; Rodic, Lewicki, Adu, Berget; Djurdjic; Rosenberg.

Man Utd watching Sporting CP defender Paulo Oliveira

Manchester United are watching Sporting CP defender Paulo Oliveira.

Louis van Gaal sent scouts to watch the 23-year-old in action during Sporting's 2-1 win over Rio Ave earlier this month, according to the Daily Mirror.

He played the full 90 minutes and United are reportedly pondering whether to press ahead with a £6m bid for his services in the next transfer window.

Oliveira joined Portuguese giants Sporting from Primeira Liga rivals Vitoria de Guimaraes in 2014 for £1.2m.

He made 40 appearances in all competitions in his maiden season, scoring three goals.

Andre Andre slams Chelsea attitude: Porto wanted it more

Porto midfielder Andre Andre took a swipe at the attitude of Chelsea's players after last night's victory.

Andre struck in the surprise 2-1 win.

And he said at the final whistle: "More important than the goal was the victory of the team. We left everyone happy with this win.

"We played a great game and we are all to be congratulated. Now we have to enjoy this victory. I believe this has been the best performance of the season.

"We fought too, we had the passing, aggression and humility that was needed. We wanted to win more than Chelsea."

Napoli react to claims of Higuain mocking Real Madrid star Ronaldo

Napoli have denied critical comments of Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo attributed to Gonzalo Higuain.

Higuain, formerly of Real, was quoted by Don Balon slamming Ronaldo.

"He has a huge ego. If you do not tell him he's the best, you are not his friend. Cristiano feels the best, but he is over-rated. I shared a dressing room with (Lionel) Messi, one and the other have nothing to do with each other," Higuain is alleged to have said.

But Napoli released a statement yesterday: "About these statements attributed to Gonzalo Higuain in Don Balon magazine, Napoli and the Azzurri striker, categorically deny giving an interview to the publication . Thus, sentences attributed to Higuain should be considered as false and baseless."

I hope Jon Snow really is dead' - Anichebe hits out at Game of Thrones stars

The striker wanted to have his picture taken with two stars of the show, Kit Harrington and Rose Leslie, but was snubbed, leading to a Twitter rant from the West Brom striker


Victor Anichebe has vented his fury at Game of Thrones stars Kit Harrington and Rose Leslie on Twitter after they rejected his request for a picture.

Anichebe posted a series of tweets slamming Harrington – the actor who plays Jon Snow in the HBO series – and Leslie, who formerly played Ygritte, after bumping into the pair in his hotel.

Brother says Chelsea ace Diego Costa won't change: He'll always fight

The brother of Diego Costa isn't surprised seeing the Chelsea striker in suspension trouble in England.

Diego is serving a three-match retrospective ban after his clash with Arsenal defender Gabriel last week.

"This is not something new. It is always the same old story. It is difficult for Diego to change his lifestyle," Jair Costa told The Sun.

"He easily loses his temper and always ends up fighting when he plays football. As brothers, we have always been close, but we were fighting for football because we were both passionate and we were trying to be the best.

"He will never be beaten and as a child, when his team loses or he disagrees on a foul, it turns into an impossible rage ending with quarreling with his opponents."

Arsenal legend Wright: Why Mourinho resents Wenger

Arsenal legend Ian Wright believes he understands why Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho is resentful of Arsene Wenger.

Wright thinks Mourinho has the edge on Wenger when it comes to career success but the Arsenal legend blasted the Portuguese for his "obsession".

"I think his issue is that Arsene has not won as much or achieved as much as he has — yet still gets as many plaudits," he wrote in The Sun.

"It seems that, every opportunity he gets, he can't help but have a dig at Arsene.

"Mourinho got so much stick when Chelsea were having their recent blip and I think he feels he should get more respect for what he has done — even if his team are going through a bad period.

"He looks at Arsene and sees he has gone through years of being an also ran in the Champions League and the Premier League, and believes he gets away with far less criticism.

Carrick to miss Man Utd clash with Wolfsburg

Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal has confirmed Michael Carrick has been ruled out of the Champions League game against Wolfsburg and Antonio Valencia and Ander Herrera are doubts.

van Gaal confirmed Carrick will miss the game, saying: "[He] shall not play tomorrow."

Regarding Herrera and Valencia the Dutchman added: "They have minor injuries and I don't want to take any risks. We will have to wait and see.

"I don't want to take risks like we have done with Wayne Rooney because we have to play a full season and it's better to withdraw players for one match than for them to play and get injured."

Marcus Rojo, who has sat out the last two games with a hamstring problem, was also missing from the training session.

Mourinho blasts Chelsea's 'ridiculous' defensive errors

Jose Mourinho blasted his side's "two ridiculous mistakes" after watching Chelsea slip to a 2-1 defeat at Porto in the Champions League.

The Blues' miserable start to the season continued with Andre Andre giving the hosts the lead before Maicon secured the victory after Willian's equaliser.

"I think it was a good performance with two ridiculous mistakes. Sometimes you make them and are not punished. We were punished," he told reporters.

"We watch dozens of repetitions of Porto taking corners. We were completely ready for that."

"We had another mistake similar when they hit the post. Apart from that the performance was balanced. The players reacted in a positive way and tried to play in a positive way.

"It's a difficult opponent, a difficult place to play. Champions League brings a different emotion to matches."

Messi thanks well-wishers after injury

The Argentine could be out for up to two months, but sent a message to fans via social media to express his gratitude for the support he has received

Lionel Messi has thanked well-wishers for their support after the Barcelona star was struck down for up to eight weeks with a knee injury.

Messi was forced off after just four minutes during his side's 2-1 La Liga win over Las Palmas on Saturday, with the club later confirming that he sustained ligament damage.

And the Argentina captain took to social media on Monday to express his gratitude to fans who have sent him their regards.

"Thank you all for your supportive messages. For anyone who loves football, the hardest thing is not to be on the pitch. Now it's time to recover properly to come back. A big hug," Messi wrote on his official Facebook page.

As well as missing several key fixtures in club colours, the Argentina captain is also set to sit out the nation's first four World Cup qualifiers.

Messi then faces a race against time to be fit for the first Clasico of the season, with Barca travelling to the Santiago Bernabeu to face Real Madrid on November 22.

Roberto Martinez hails 'incredible' Everton character

The Toffees boss lavished praise on his side after they produced a remarkable second-half comeback to beat West Brom 3-2 in the Premier League

Everton manager Roberto Martinez hailed his side's "incredible character" after watching them come from two goals down to claim a 3-2 Premier League win at West Brom on Monday.

Goals from Saido Berahino and Craig Dawson put West Brom in command after 54 minutes, but Romelu Lukaku inspired a superb second-half turnaround.

The Belgian striker headed in a Gerard Deulofeu cross immediately after Dawson's goal and then set up Arouna Kone for the equaliser before settling the clash six minutes from time with his second of the match.

Everton are now fifth in the table, which gives Martinez's side momentum ahead of Sunday's Merseyside derby with Liverpool.

"[We showed] incredible character to come back and get a win. After conceding two goals we had to show a lot of character a lot of desire to improve," Martinez told Sky Sports.

"We never gave up. To score three goals from open play against West Brom speaks volumes of the quality [in our side].

"We knew it was a real good test, to be able to break them [West Brom] down and get the three points you have to put a lot of things together."

John Stones was not risked for the game due to a knee injury and Seamus Coleman again missed out because of a hamstring problem.

Asked about their status for Liverpool's visit to Goodison Park, Martinez said: "John and Seamus both wanted to be available and play, but we had to be very cautious.

"They're very close, but over the next two or three days we'll have a clear idea."

Sturridge can be decisive in Champions League push - Rodgers

The forward's injury may have cost Liverpool a place in the Europe's premier competition last season and his manager hopes he can be key

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers believes Daniel Sturridge can "make the difference" for his team as they bid to return to the Champions League.

Sturridge struck a brace in Liverpool's 3-2 win over Aston Villa on Saturday in what was just his second outing of the season.

Rodgers hopes the injury-prone forward can stay fit and be decisive for his team, who sit ninth in the Premier League.

"Players like that make the difference," Rodgers said.

"We haven’t scored three goals since he last started a game [against Tottenham in February].

"He gives you a big opportunity to win games and compete at the top end of the table. He is a fantastic talent and now the job is hopefully he can stay fit."

Sturridge hardly featured last season due to various injuries, and his absence was felt keenly by Rodgers' side.

Liverpool finished sixth and Rodgers believes the England striker's absence may have cost his team a Champions League place.

"Yes, because he is in that elite band of player that we’ve seen here," he added.

"We've seen here the brand of football we can create when we have that talent available.

"He played a massive part in that, so if he stays fit and others come into the reckoning we can piece together an exciting team again.

"Those players make the difference."

Lahm: I thought Arsenal losing to Dinamo was mistake!

Ahead of Bayern Munich's clash with the Croatian side, their skipper has aired his surprise at the Gunners having lost their group stage opener to them

Philipp Lahm has revealed how he originally thought he had misread that Arsenal lost their Champions League group stage opener to Dinamo Zagreb.

The Gunners were widely expected to bag three points visiting the Croatian champions a fortnight ago but – down to 10 men following an Olivier Giroud red card – they lost 2-1 at the Stadion Maksimir.

Dinamo's next opponents in Europe are Bayern Munich, and the Bundesliga champions' captain Lahm admitted his shock that the Balkan team were able to defeat Arsene Wenger's men.

"Dinamo are very comfortable at home," the utility defensive veteran told Jutarnji List. "They have a good group of fans, they're difficult to defeat.

"The defeat of Arsenal in Zagreb really surprised me. At first I thought it was a mistake!

"Dinamo will play extremely defensively, the defensive wall will be stronger than when you play a typical game. Dinamo will try to play on the counterattack."

Pep Guardiola's men have won all seven games in the Bundesliga season by a cumulative scoreline of 21-3 and are four points clear of second-placed Borussia Dortmund.

Similarly, Dinamo Zagreb are undefeated at the top of the Croatian top flight after 11 games.