FA Cup: Leicester ousts Man United to join Chelsea in semis
Losing 3-1 at Leicester in the FA Cup quarterfinals on Sunday realistically leaves Ole Gunnar Solskjaer with only the Europa League to produce his first trophy as United manager. The other semifinal will pit Man City against Chelsea, which beat Sheffield United 2-0 in Sunday's other quarterfinal. “But the ambition is there to win titles and be competitive.”The FA Cup semifinals next month take place a week before the League Cup final between City and Tottenham. “But in the second half we played some of the best I have seen us play. Tottenham doubled its lead midway through the second half when Kane clinically scored from the penalty spot, having been fouled by Matty Cash.
Revamped Barcelona starts new season with spotlight on Messi
Barcelona's Lionel Messi, centre, in action during the pre-season friendly soccer match between Barcelona and Girona at the Johan Cruyff Stadium in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2020. (AP Photo/Joan Monfort)MADRID – Lionel Messi will be there when Barcelona starts its season on Sunday, just as he has been for the last two decades. After all, never before had Messi told the club that he wanted to leave, and never before had Messi been forced to stay. Some of those questions may start being answered on Sunday when Barcelona opens its Spanish league season against Villarreal at the Camp Nou. The result thrust Barcelona into one of its worst crises ever, and led Messi to make public his desire to leave.
Madrid beats Alavs 2-0 for 8th straight win in title march
(AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)BARCELONA Karim Benzema helped Real Madrid move one step closer to dethroning Lionel Messis Barcelona on Friday. Benzema scored one goal and set up another to lead Madrid to beating Alavs 2-0 and restoring a four-point lead over Barcelona in the Spanish league with only three rounds left. Benzema scored a penalty kick in the 11th minute and assisted Marco Asensio in the 50th to ensure an eighth straight victory since La Liga resumed play after stopping for three months due to the pandemic. His 18th league goal of the season is second only to Messis 22. Madrid took full control just after halftime when Benzema broke Alavs offside trap to reach Rodrygos through-ball.