Cristiano Ronaldo, a player than Lionel Messi – Pedrag Mijatovic

A former star for Spanish giants Real Madrid ; Pedrag Mijatovic expressed his opinion on an issue that has been lingering in the midst of football lovers and pundits equally, who plays better complete football between Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi?
A number of prominent football names, including Brazilian Ronaldo, have had their say on the matter, but it is the Argentinean that has won the award three times to Ronaldo’s one – the last three in a row, in fact.
To Mijatovic, he thinks Portuguese international and Real Madrid striker Cristiano Ronaldo id more of a complete player than his fellow player Lionel Messi who plays for Argentina and Barcelona.
Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo is “a more complete player” than his Barcelona counterpart Lionel Messi, Pedrag Mijatovic said.
Giving his analysis, the former Los Blancos forward who during his days in the 90′s scored 29 goals in 90 league games during said the Portuguese forward’s ability to use both feet more comfortably and heading prowess made him a better player than the record goal scorer at Camp Nou.
Messi scored 73 in all competitions for Barcelona last season, but the Montenegrin was adamant that Jose Mourinho’s talisman should be the preference in any choice between the two players generally agreed to be the best in the world.
Though Mijatovic admitted that their movement and way of playing is totally different making them distinct players but for him, Cristiano is better than Messi as he is a more complete player, faster, more explosive with both feet as advantage also good with his head.
He said he sees Cristiano as not having any faults.
A touch of bias is being perceived here afterwards, as Mijatovic was director of football at the Bernabeu as recently as 2009.

Stanley Okoronkwo promises to shine against Liberia

With a late call-up by the Super Eagles coach Stephen Keshi, Sharks midfielder; Stanley Okoronkwo has promised to shine for the Super Eagles of Nigeria saying even though it was an unexpected invitation, he is going to take his chances with the National Team also.
The Sharks Midfielder said he was surprised by the call which came across Monday as he was in Enugu when he was called that he has been selected to join National Team (Super Eagles) and he was very elated with the news as he joined his teammates at the national team today towards the preparation to face Liberia in a 2013 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier on October 13.
Okoronkwo said his hard work has paid off because it I what he has long been praying for as he commented on the all-important match where by present standing Nigeria’s chances on claiming the ticket can go as low as playing a draw with Liberia.
The midfielder said the lone stars of Liberia are a good team judging by the score line of their last meet which is the first leg but he believes that Nigeria will claim the much desired ticket to proceed to the AFCON finals.
Nigeria will clash with the Lone Stars of Liberia on October 13 at the UJ Esuene Stadium, Calabar with a victory guaranteeing the Super Eagles a place at the 2013 African Cup of Nations as Okoronkwo concluded that the mission of the Super Eagles is to get a desired result which will make Nigerians happy and the Super Eagles will do their best to make that happen come October 13^th in Calabar.

Nordsjaelland 0 Chelsea 4: Mata at the double as late gains calm holders' jitters

The scoreboard may have read 4-0 to Chelsea but that was not the full story —and if the European champions knew little about Nordsjaelland before Tuesday night, they certainly do now.
The Danes made life hugely uncomfortable for Chelsea on a night when the visitors were expected to win comfortably. In the end they did so, thanks to a flurry of late goals from David Luiz, Juan Mata and Ramires.
But those strikes put gloss on  a less-than-emphatic Chelsea performance.

Mata of fact: The Spaniard scored two for Chelsea as the holders edged past the Danes

Match facts

FC Nordsjaelland: Hansen,Parkhurst, Okore, Runje, Mtiliga, Adu, Stokholm, Lorentzen (Laudrup 84), Nordstrand (Ticinovic 65), John, Beckmann (Christensen 75).
Subs not used: Villadsen, Christiansen, Gundelach, Petry Andersen.
Booked: Runje.
Chelsea: Cech, Ivanovic, Luiz, Cahill, Cole, Ramires, Lampard, Moses (Hazard 65), Oscar, Mata (Mikel 83), Torres.
Subs not used: Turnbull, Romeu, Terry, Azpilicueta, Bertrand.
Goals: Mata 33, 82; Luiz 79; Ramires 89.
Attendance: 42,000
Referee: Marijo Strahonja (Croatia).

You are not supposed to enjoy easy matches in the Champions League — but this visit to Copenhagen certainly seemed to offer that possibility.
This was only Nordsjaelland’s  second outing among Europe’s elite — their first ending in a 2-0 defeat by Shakhtar Donetsk.
Nordsjaelland, who were only founded in 1991, pay their players on average £150,000 a year — enough for seven days of service from  Chelsea skipper John Terry.
And Roberto Di Matteo saw fit to leave his captain out of his starting line-up as David Luiz and Gary Cahill began in the heart of defence, while Victor Moses was handed his Champions League debut in place of Eden Hazard.
Di Matteo knew only victory at Parken Stadium would be good enough, particularly after the 2-2 home draw against Juventus on match-day one. But a record of one win in eight away Champions League clashes must have been a worrying distraction for the  Chelsea manager.
The biggest night in Nordsjaelland’s history almost got off to the worst possible start as a sloppy throw-in from left back Patrick Mtilinga on three minutes handed the returning Frank Lampard space on the edge of the box to pick out Brazilian starlet Oscar.

Brace yourself: Mata scored two on the night as Chelsea secured their first win in the competition this year

He exchanged passes with Moses, then conjured a shot that trickled narrowly wide of Jesper Hansen’s far post.
Nordsjaelland were breathing another sigh of relief less than 60 seconds later as Moses somehow sent a header from three yards on to a post with the goal gaping after Oscar’s superb cross.
But in fairness to Hjulmand’s side, they did not let Chelsea’s promising start effect their passing philosophy and the Danes popped the ball about attractively.

Stunner: Luiz fired home this free-kick as the Blues turned on the style late in the first half

Nevertheless, Chelsea continued to press for an opener in the face of a suspect-looking back four, with Lampard firing over from outside the box after Mata’s surging run down the right in the 10th minute.
Despite three early scares, Nordsjaelland refused to throw the ball forward aimlessly. Their first chance arrived in the 15th minute, Joshua John — who had been pinpointed as one of Nordsjaelland’s dangermen — firing over from long range after some sloppy defending.
Without creating any clear-cut opportunities, there was a sense of the home side’s confidence growing with every passing minute.

Ram raid: The Brazilian got on the scoresheet late in the game

And Nordsjaelland would have been celebrating their first Champions League goal in the 21st minute had it not been for Ashley Cole, who produced a goal-saving challenge on Kasper Lorentzen deep inside the Chelsea area after John’s accurate low cross.
Paris St-Germain  manager Carlo Ancelotti has revealed his intention to sign Cole in January, branding him ‘the best left back  in the world’ —  and there was plenty of evidence to support the Italian’s assertion.
Torres was denied by an excellent Hansen save in the 22nd minute as the visitors tried to regain their early dominance. But while Nordsjaelland’s play was defined by neat passing, Chelsea’s was quite the opposite as they struggled to find any rhythm.

Cech mate: The Chelsea fans enjoyed their first win in the competition since winning it last May

Di Matteo would have been hugely relieved, then, when a Nordjaelland mistake led to his side taking an undeserved lead in the 33rd minute.Torres robbed Enoch Adu deep inside the Danes’ half and he slipped the ball inside to Lampard, whose pass set up Mata to coolly slot past Hansen.
Torres should have doubled the lead just before half-time after Oscar’s beautiful through pass — but with just the keeper to beat the No 9 fired straight at the keeper from 12 yards.
Chelsea had created enough clear-cut chances in the first half to be out of sight, while the hosts, who enjoyed 55 per cent of the ball in the opening period, would have felt they deserved more for their dominance in terms of possession.
And the impressive John came close to an equaliser in the 53rd minute, his drive from the edge of the area arrowing just wide of Petr Cech’s near post.

Four star performance: Chelsea were not the dominant side but finished the match as comfortable victors

Mikkel Beckman went close just before the hour, sending a looping header on to the roof of Cech’s goal after Adu’s searching cross, before Stokholm saw his long-range piledriver parried by the keeper.
Di Matteo sent on Hazard for the ineffective Moses in the 65th minute as he tried to inject some much-needed invention.
But Nordsjaelland could have pulled level in the 73rd minute when Cech tipped John’s curling effort on to a post before Cole blocked Beckman’s rebound.
Chelsea were rocking until Luiz struck a stunning free-kick inside Hansen’s near post on 79 minutes. Then Mata nudged home his second of the night after a dash into the box and Ramires tapped  in a minute from time as the floodgates finally opened.Whether Chelsea deserved their 4-0 win was another matter.

Barcelona hit by Puyol blow with injured captain to miss Real Madrid clash

Barcelona captain Carles Puyol is facing eight weeks on the sidelines after dislocating his left elbow in the Champions League win over Benfica on Tuesday night.
The 34-year-old defender, who had only just returned to the side from a hamstring problem, landed awkwardly 15 minutes from the end of the 2-0 victory and was carried off on a stretcher in obvious discomfort.

On the mend: Carles Puyol tweeted this picture from his hospital bed

He was allowed to fly back to Barcelona with his team-mates following initial treatment before spending the night in a local hospital, where tests carried out this morning confirmed the dislocation.
A statement on www.fcbarcelona.com read: 'The club captain will undergo conservative treatment and is expected to be out for about eight weeks.'
Puyol was discharged from hospital on Wednesday following visits from club president Sandro Rosell and sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta.
Before his release, the player sent a message of gratitude to fans and medics from his Twitter account.
'We are back in Barcelona,' Puyol said.
'I want to thank everyone who looked after me in Portugal. I'll soon be back to my best again! Thank you for all your messages - a big hug to all of you.'

Agony: Carles Puyol after dislocating his elbow

Barcelona player Carles Puyol

Despite Puyol's optimism, the news of his eight-week lay-off comes as a blow to coach Tito Vilanova, who is already without fellow defender Gerard Pique because of a foot injury.
With Barca facing Real Madrid in 'El Clasico' this weekend, Puyol's injury could not have come at a worse time although Vilanova is hopeful the team can patch up the gaps in their back-line.
'I've always said it, we've always had problems with our central defenders, but we'll move forward,' he said.
'It's not just that we've lost Puyol for the Clasico on Sunday, but we've lost him for other matches as well.
'The injuries mean we will have to play players in positions that aren't their own, but we'll use our youth players [to cover the absences], that's why we have them.'
Puyol is likely to be out of action until December at the earliest and as well as missing several Primera Division matches, he could also sit out the rest of Barca's Champions League Group G campaign including the upcoming double header against Celtic.

Nigeria vs Venezuela friendly confirmed by NFF

It has been confirmed by the Nigeria Football Federation that the Super Eagles of Nigeria will be playing Venezuela in a friendly match ahead of the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations even though the deciding match is yet to be played.
The Friendly match which will be played in November is said to be part of the preparation for the Nations cup which is holding in South Africa.
Ademola Olajire who is the spokesperson for the NFF who confirmed that the friendly has been approved said the Nigeria is confident that Liberia will be beaten in the match that will decide who picks the ticket and that is why the Nigeria Football Federation went ahead to confirm the friendly with Venezuela and it will be holding in Miami, in the United States of America.

Messi doesn't deserve to win World Player of the Year award, claims Ibrahimovic

Lionel Messi does not deserve to win the next FIFA Ballon d'Or as he has only won one minor trophy this year, according to former Barcelona team-mate Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
The Swede had one indifferent year playing alongside Messi in La Liga before returning to Milan where he won the Serie A title.

Not enough: Lionel Messi doesn't deserve the Balon d'Or this year, apparently

Ibrahimovic, now at Paris St Germain, hailed Messi's personal achievements - he scored 68 goals in all competitions - but insisted the fact he only won the Copa del Rey should be taken into account.
'Messi had a fantastic season but he has not won that much and he has already won the Ballon d'Or three times,' the striker said. 'It depends whether you reward an individual or a collective work.

Sour grapes? Zlatan Ibrahimovic was overshadowed by Messi in his time in Spain

'Xavi is still playing at a high level, Iniesta also had a great season, they won the Euro while Messi has not won anything, just the King's Cup. Messi has won the Ballon d'Or three times, it's now someone else's turn to win it.'
The Ballon d'Or, which was merged with the World Player of the Year award in 2010, will be awarded on January 7, 2013.

Nations Cup 2013: Nigeria will qualifiy – Fmr. NFA Chairman

To further boost the morale of the Super Eagles ahead of their qualification match for the 2013 African Nations Cup in South Africa, the former football association boss; Nigeria Football Association (NFA) Alhaji Ibrahim Galadima has thrown his weight behind the Super Eagles of Nigeria will surely secure a ticket for the South Africa 2013 Nations Cup.
The former NFA boss who is presently on pilgrimage spoke from his pilgrimage base to Ben Alaiya who is the Media Officer for the Super Eagles saying the Super Eagles definitely make to South Africa.
He said it will be a great shock for Nigeria to be absent from African Nations Cup 2013 holding in South Africa as it is the next Africa’s biggest football fiesta.
The Super Eagles will take on Liberia in the second leg of the final round of qualifiers for the championship in Calabar in two weeks’ time, having held their West African counterparts to a 1:1 draw in the first leg.
Going Nigeria’s exit from the Equatorial Guinea-Gabon Nations Cup championship in the last edition due to the lacklustre performance of the squad, the Super Eagles will leave no stone unturned to ensure the Super Eagles get a place on the African Nations Cup final.
Galadima who is presently in Saudi Arabia with his wife said they have both been praying for the success of the national team in the holy land.