Liverpool magician Luis Suarez has Anfield spellbound again
Liverpool's principal owner John W Henry is by no means a prolific tweeter.
The last time he felt moved to comment publicly on Luis Suarez was on 24 July, three months and 44 tweets ago. On that occasion, after Arsenal's infamous £40,000,001 bid, he asked "what do you think they're smoking over there at Emirates?"
On Saturday, he tweeted about Suarez again.
This time, two words were all he needed. "Luis. Magician." It was hard to disagree.
The circumstances could not have been more different, as Suarez raced around Anfield with a smile as wide as the Mersey, scoring goals for fun and burying memories of an uncertain summer under an avalanche of brilliance.
This was his first hat-trick at Anfield and few who were there to witness it will forget it in a hurry. He could easily have scored five.When he left the field to a rapturous ovation with a minute of the match remaining, he turned to acknowledge all four corners of the ground as he went.
Liverpool fans may never have fallen completely out of love with Suarez but the attraction once again appeared mutual.
That Suarez is still at Anfield despite interest from Arsenal, owes much to the intransigence of Henry, who refused to entertain selling the Reds' prize asset.
Only a silly offer would have tempted him to sell and even then it would only ever have been to a foreign club. Henry knew that selling such an asset would affect Liverpool's prestige and he has never wanted Liverpool to be seen as a selling club.
At Anfield on Saturday, Suarez once again showed the world why Henry had fought so hard to keep him.
From the moment the Uruguayan appeared alongside Daniel Sturridge for the warm-up, he looked like a man with a point to prove.
But even before the goals started to go in, Suarez buzzed with exuberance and tore into the West Brom defence from the off.
There were moments of pure magic. The nutmeg on Jonas Olsson for his first goal was one, and there were tricks and flicks, as well as a moment of exasperation as he went down a little too easily in search of a first-half penalty
Barcelona coach Gerardo Martino says his side are not afraid of "violent play" from Real Madrid, claiming the referee will keep the game in check.
In the two league meetings between the teams last season, 16 yellow cards and one red card were handed out in two tightly-contested affairs.
Martino insists the violent play of los Blancos will not affect the outcome of the game, or help them slow down Blaugrana superstar Lionel Messi.
“Am I afraid of Madrid’s violent play? No, every team plays according to their possibilities and there’s a referee who should judge,” he told reporters.
“With Paraguay, I faced [Messi] three times and we could never stop him. It depends on him having his day.”
The former Newell’s Old Boys coach admits he has had his team picked for the game for a few days now, which will include Gerard Pique, whose slip up against Milan cost the team a win.
“I already had the line-up for tomorrow decided before the game against AC Milan. I would only have changed if something happened.
“[Andres] Iniesta, Cesc [Fabregas] and Xavi are all great and would play everywhere. By leaving players out I’m always close to committing an injustice.
“I’m at a club but sometimes feel like I’m coaching a national team because of all the quality players and the little time we get to prepare for games.”
Despite consecutive draws with Osasuna and Milan, Martino says he remains pleased with the efforts of his side, but admits their accuracy in front of goal needs some work.
“What Barcelona almost always do is play a good game, but we don’t always win," he explained.
“In the last two games we missed something I never thought we’d miss: capacity to finish chances."
And the 50-year-old concluded by revealing his excitement ahead of taking charge of Barca in his first Clasico.
“It’s the first time I’ll play such a big game in Europe. In that perspective, Ancelotti has more experience.
“You have ‘Clasicos’ everywhere, but this one is followed all around the world. I’m looking forward to it.
“I don’t think there's a favourite to win.”
In the two league meetings between the teams last season, 16 yellow cards and one red card were handed out in two tightly-contested affairs.
Martino insists the violent play of los Blancos will not affect the outcome of the game, or help them slow down Blaugrana superstar Lionel Messi.
“Am I afraid of Madrid’s violent play? No, every team plays according to their possibilities and there’s a referee who should judge,” he told reporters.
“With Paraguay, I faced [Messi] three times and we could never stop him. It depends on him having his day.”
The former Newell’s Old Boys coach admits he has had his team picked for the game for a few days now, which will include Gerard Pique, whose slip up against Milan cost the team a win.
“I already had the line-up for tomorrow decided before the game against AC Milan. I would only have changed if something happened.
“[Andres] Iniesta, Cesc [Fabregas] and Xavi are all great and would play everywhere. By leaving players out I’m always close to committing an injustice.
“I’m at a club but sometimes feel like I’m coaching a national team because of all the quality players and the little time we get to prepare for games.”
Despite consecutive draws with Osasuna and Milan, Martino says he remains pleased with the efforts of his side, but admits their accuracy in front of goal needs some work.
“What Barcelona almost always do is play a good game, but we don’t always win," he explained.
“In the last two games we missed something I never thought we’d miss: capacity to finish chances."
And the 50-year-old concluded by revealing his excitement ahead of taking charge of Barca in his first Clasico.
“It’s the first time I’ll play such a big game in Europe. In that perspective, Ancelotti has more experience.
“You have ‘Clasicos’ everywhere, but this one is followed all around the world. I’m looking forward to it.
“I don’t think there's a favourite to win.”
England and Australia will kick off the 14th World Cup at the Millennium Stadium on Saturday in the first game of a double-header in Cardiff.
The Kangaroos suffered a shock defeat by New Zealand in 2008, and the Kiwis are one of 14 teams in the competition, alongside debutants Italy and the USA.
There will be 28 matches in England, Wales, Ireland and France with the final at Old Trafford on 30 November.
Wales take on Italy in Saturday's second game in Cardiff.
Co-hosts Wales are in Group C, while Italy are in Group D, with the two groups of weaker nations playing each other to produce two quarter-finalists - a format designed to ensure every team in the competition has a chance of scoring tries and winning a game.
Neymar, 21, could make his Clasico debut on Saturday and is likely to face the rugged centre-back, who he was up against in September's friendly between Brazil and Portugal, which the Selecao won 3-1.
But the attacker says he will not be "provoked" as he knows how to deal with the controversial Portuguese's style of play following a tape sent by the Brazil Football Confederation (CBF) before the friendly.
“They sent me a video and they also sent one to [fellow Brazil international] Thiago Silva so that we didn’t get provoked," he told Globo TV.
“It wasn’t just for my sake, it was for the sake of my team-mates too."
Neymar has scored two goals in eight league games for Barcelona this season.
But the attacker says he will not be "provoked" as he knows how to deal with the controversial Portuguese's style of play following a tape sent by the Brazil Football Confederation (CBF) before the friendly.
“They sent me a video and they also sent one to [fellow Brazil international] Thiago Silva so that we didn’t get provoked," he told Globo TV.
“It wasn’t just for my sake, it was for the sake of my team-mates too."
Neymar has scored two goals in eight league games for Barcelona this season.
professionalism since his arrival in Spain and says he prefers Angel Di Maria to Mesut Ozil
The Portuguese star has played second fiddle to Barcelona ace Messi since winning the prize for the first time back in 2008, with the Argentine claiming the last four titles in a row, but Ancelotti believes he deserves to win the latest crown for the all-round impact he has on the Spanish giants.
"It's Cristiano's moment to win it ahead of Messi and Ribery," Ancelotti told TV programme El Larguero. "He has surprised me the most with his professionalism. He's very serious, he has amazing attention to detail. It's that which helps us the most - he doesn't just score."
Ancelotti went on to explain his decision to allow Mesut Ozil to join Arsenal this summer, claiming he prefers Angel Di Maria for the balance he brings to the team alongside €100 million signing Gareth Bale.
"It was a technical decision [to sell Ozil]," he continued. "I prefer Di Maria for the balance of the team.
"He has less quality than Ozil but, for his character and the way he helps the team, I wanted him. With the arrival of Bale I thought it was more important to have Di Maria than Ozil.
"[Bale] wasn't cheap but that's the price of the market. It was the wish of the player that brought him here. Tottenham offered him more money."
Bale has struggled with injuries in recent weeks, but Ancelotti feels he is now fully fit and could start the Clasico against Barcelona this weekend.
"Since he's been here, he has not had a back problem. The problem was his physical condition, as he hadn't trained. Now he's good, he's ready to play from the start. He could start against Barcelona.
"I asked him and he told me he prefers to play from the right. I think he likes playing from the right so he can shoot from his left foot."
Iker Casillas started the Champions League win over Valencia, but Ancelotti hinted that Diego Lopez will keep his place for Saturday's clash - though he insisted the club captain does not want to leave the club in January.
"It's a question for Iker, but I don't think he thinks like that," he said when asked if the Spain veteran would ask for a move.
"I have spoken with him to explain the situation. When he wants to talk to me, my door is always open. For a coach, to explain the situation is the most difficult.
"I already knew Diego Lopez. In 2006 I wanted to bring him to AC Milan… He started before the pre-season and was very strong. It wasn't an easy decision. Casillas gives me confidence and so I play him in the Champions League, these games are as important as La Liga.
"He is the captain, he has a lot of experience and he maintains the harmony in the team. Iker wants to stay at Madrid and this is good for us. But I've made my decision."
Finally, the former Paris Saint-Germain boss claims his side will face a tough challenge against a confident Barcelona side this weekend, and added that he is closer to Vicente del Bosque as a coach than Madrid predecessor Jose Mourinho.
"Barca play with a lot of confidence because they've changed practically nothing," he added. "When Mourinho was here there were problems but they played fantastically there [at Camp Nou]. I will try to play like the semi-final of the Copa del Rey last year, the 3-1, and not change anything.
High-flying Gunners primed to fire
Jack Wilshere is convinced Arsenal will bounce back from their European disappointment when the Premier League leaders bid to cement their position at the top against managerless Crystal Palace on Saturday.
Arsene Wenger's team suffered their first defeat in 13 matches in all competitions on Tuesday as Robert Lewandowski's late goal gave Borussia Dortmund a 2-1 Uefa Champions League group stage win at the Emirates Stadium.
But the Gunners, currently two points clear of second placed Chelsea, have a golden opportunity to erase the bitter memory of their first loss since the opening day of the season when they travel to face crisis club Palace at Selhurst Park.
Palace parted company with boss Ian Holloway in midweek following a 4-1 thrashing by Fulham that left the south London club second bottom of the table with seven defeats in their eight league matches.
Bayern Munich midfielder Thiago Alcantara has returned to light training following an ankle injury.
The 22-year-old Spain international suffered the injury in only his second match for the European champions following his £21.6m switch from Barcelona.
Manchester United had been heavily linked with Thiago but he opted to join former Barca boss Pep Guardiola instead.
No date has been set for his return.
A club statement read: "A surgical screw was removed from his right leg two weeks ago and the Spain international returned to the Sabener Strasse training ground on Thursday for a light shakedown.
"After a 15-minute jog, Thiago and sports rehab coach Thomas Wilhelmi returned to the performance centre for more exercise to stabilise and rebuild the player's right ankle muscles."
Meanwhile, Bayern striker Claudio Pizarro is out for four to six weeks after picking up a thigh injury in training on Thursday.
"If we aren't confident at the World Cup, coming to Russia, we don't come," the Ivorian midfielder was quoted as saying by the RIA Novosti news agency.
England's man of the moment Andros Townsend helped Tottenham bounce back from their shock home loss to West Ham United with a convincing win at Aston Villa.
Townsend, outstanding in England's victories against Montenegro and Poland that secured their place at next summer's World Cup in Brazil, broke the deadlock with a fortunate first-half goal as his cross floated beyond Villa goalkeeper Brad Guzan.
Sadly the goal was overshadowed by an ugly incident as referee's assistant David Bryan was struck by a smoking flare thrown by a celebrating Spurs fan - although he recovered to continue.Play me
As Aston Villa struggled to make on impact on Spurs' defence, manager Paul Lambert called on fit-again striker Christian Benteke as a substitute for the last 30 minutes but it was to no avail.
Roberto Soldado wrapped up the three points that takes Andre Villas-Boas' side up to fifth place in the Premier League when he rounded off a sweet passing move with a clinical finish after 69 minutes.
There will, however, be focus on that incident in which the referee's assistant could have been more seriously hurt - with the Football Association sure to want further details of events in the aftermath of Townsend's goal.
Man Utd: Are opponents sensing weakness?
It all comes as Moyes is attempting to impose his own identity on Manchester United and put his predecessor in the past. It is proving, as we always knew it would, easier said than done.
When Ferguson retired, United did not just lose a manager, they lost an aura, an air of invincibility.
Ferguson was at Old Trafford on Saturday to watch Southampton score the kind of late equaliser for which his sides were famed.
Two minutes before the goal came, Moyes had replaced Wayne Rooney with Chris Smalling. At the final whistle, some questioned whether Ferguson would have done the same, would have been as cautious.
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