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Sheffield Wednesday fans have been reacting on Twitter after it was reported that star striker Steven Fletcher will miss Saturday’s Sky Bet Championship trip to Stoke City through injury.

The Sheffield Star claimed that the 32-year-old has been ruled out for the big clash after suffering a groin injury prior to the international break.

At the time of his knock, Fletcher had already pulled out of the Scotland squad for European qualifiers over concerns for his reoccurring knee injury and will now ironically miss at least one domestic game with a different problem.

Understandably Owls supporters were absolutely devastated by the news of their nine-goal forward not making the visit to the bet365 Stadium, as Steve Bruce’s men hunt for another three points in their play-off push.

One fan even offered out his ticket for the match in light of Fletcher’s absence, while others expressed their pure heartbreak and reacted angrily by calling Chris Sutton out on his controversial recent comments about the veteran.

Former Wigan & Fulham man, Jimmy Bullard recently showed that he’s still got it! Check out the video below…

Check out some of the best reactive Tweets from upset Wednesday supporters, below…

In what has been a season of complete and utter inconsistency, Roy Hodgson will be hoping he is entrusted to spend over the summer in order to improve his Crystal Palace team. While the Eagles may struggle to spend like some of the other teams in the Premier League, Steve Parish has proven he can let the purse strings loose before and his former England manager certainly has earned the right to ask. 

Indeed, their form promised to take a turn when they recruited well in the January transfer window and it sure did.

Michy Batshuayi was exactly the kind of striker fans and management were all craving and his goals and overall presence has improved the team. No longer do the fans reading this have to watch Christian Benteke lumber all over the pitch. That, alone, deserves an awful lot of praise.

But with his stay at Selhurst Park only being on a loan basis, Palace will eventually have to invest in another creative type in the summer to compensate for his omission.

With that in mind, not a striker, but certainly a creative star, Aston Villa’s Jack Grealish would be an amazing option for Roy Hodgson’s side.

Grealish, (who is valued at £18 million on Transfermarkt) is a terrific talent that has started to prove exactly why he has always been dubbed as someone who could make it far in the game. The 23-year-old has managed to bag four goals and four assists this season but his overall creative contribution is what will interest Crystal Palace the most.

Even if his name isn’t on the scoresheet, you can guarantee that Grealish would have been influential for his side, as he does so well to find space, make key passes and be a general nuisance for the opposition to try and defend against. With Villa under potential financial restraint if they don’t go up this season and the hype around Grealish to have died since his failed move to Tottenham, Palace must act.

It may sound a touch ambitious – we get that – but having signed the likes of Max Meyer and kept Wilfried Zaha, the Eagles have proven they can pull that sort of deal off before.

Crystal Palace could have the likes of Zaha and Andros Townsend beside him and what an attacking trio that would be, in-behind a forward. Outside of the top six, it’s hard to see a more exciting line-up.

Crystal Palace, do you think Steve Parish has it in him to make another ambitious signing? Join the discussion by commenting below… 

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Manuel Neuer was back between the sticks for Bayern Munich’s Bundesliga clash with Augsburg on Friday night, suggesting that he will be fit to face Liverpool in the Champions League next week.

Neuer had missed Bayern’s three matches in the lead-up to the Augsburg clash with a finger injury, and it had been claimed that he could be absent for his team’s last-16 Champions League first leg at Anfield.

However, the 32-year-old was back between the sticks on Friday night.

The Liverpool fans caught wind of the team news on social media, which led to a number commenting on Neuer, in addition to Bayern in general, ahead of what is promising to be a fascinating match next week.

Neuer’s powers are perhaps not what they once were, while Bayern have also had their issues this season, which has handed the Liverpool fans confidence.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

Xavi has been given the dreaded vote of confidence at Barcelona, with sporting director Deco saying the under-fire coach has “200%” backing.

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Argentine icon departed in 2021Domestic dominance restored last seasonSearching for consistency in 2023-24WHAT HAPPENED?

The legendary La Masia academy graduate, who captained the Catalan giants to domestic and continental honours during his playing days, returned to Camp Nou in a coaching capacity back in November 2021. He took over with the Blaugrana sat ninth in the table, and guided them to La Liga title glory in 2022-23.

AdvertisementGettyWHAT THEY SAID

That success was achieved despite “best player ever” Lionel Messi leaving a few months prior to his arrival, while other established stars headed for the exits over the summer – making it difficult for certain standards to be maintained. With that in mind, Deco has told : “We won the league after a period in which people said it would take years for Barca to win La Liga again. Do not forget, we also lost the best player ever. Leo is not here anymore and we thought it would be a big drama until we returned to winning [trophies]. A generation of players have left Barca, players like [Sergio Busquets]. I'd like to have another Busi. We had Jordi Alba, [Gerard] Pique, emblematic players…This whole process, for a coach, is difficult to manage. Xavi has achieved it. We have renewed his contract. The confidence in him is 100%, 200%.

“Now, do we want to improve? Do we want to play better? Of course. We can't hide that, we can't say that's not the case, that we don't want a more attractive team. It's another thing to know why we are not hitting that level. We know we've not had all the players [available]; little by little we have been getting them back. We speak every day. Xavi, more than anyone, wants to play better. We know the areas we have to improve, but we can't forget the good things, either, or who we are. That is important.”

THE BIGGER PICTURE

Defending champions Barca have already dropped points this season against Getafe, Mallorca and Granada, while defeats against Real Madrid and Shakhtar Donetsk in the club’s last four games have piled pressure on Xavi. Deco added to on having the right man for the job in place: “I have no doubt that Xavi is the best manager for Barca. He accepted the challenge of taking over at a difficult moment and he's the perfect coach to carry out the reconstruction we are undergoing.”

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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT?

Xavi is working on a contract through to the summer of 2025, but he has Barca sat third in the Liga table at present – four points adrift of surprise leaders Girona – while there is still work to be done in order to secure progress into the last-16 of the Champions League.

The two clubs are set to meet in continental competition for the first time since 2019 and history suggests there will be fireworks…

The inevitable happened following Manchester United's failure to finish top of Europa League Group E, with a heavyweight tie against Champions League dropouts Barcelona confirmed during Monday's knockout round play-off draw.

Two of the world's biggest clubs, who boast eight European Cup wins between them, will clash over two legs in February for a place in the last 16, with the winners already being touted as champions-elect.

Barca edge their head-to-record, having won six games to United's three, while four of their meetings have ended in draws, only one of which was a 0-0 stalemate.

Their upcoming meeting will be the first on a Europa League stage, which shows how far they have both fallen in recent years, but there will still be plenty of top talent on display and an intriguing touchline duel to keep an eye on between Erik ten Hag and Xavi.

The question is, will this United vs Barca tie be able to rival any of those from the past?

Below, GOAL provides a recap of their most memorable battles, from a classic at Old Trafford to a masterclass at Wembley from a certain Lionel Messi…

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  Man Utd 3-0 Barcelona | Cup Winners' Cup | 1984

  The memory of United overturning a two-goal semi-final deficit against Barca in the second leg of their 1983-84 Cup Winners' Cup campaign ranks among the fondest for the club's die-hard supporters, and for good reason.

  United stormed to a 3-0 win as they completely overwhelmed the Blaugrana at Old Trafford, with Bryan Robson scoring twice and Frank Stapleton also getting in on the act.

  Argentina legend Diego Maradona was essentially reduced to a spectator as Ron Atkinson's side executed the perfect gameplan, with Robson rightly grabbing most of the plaudits after a career-defining display.

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  Man Utd 2-1 Barcelona | Cup Winners’ Cup | 1991

  May 15, 1991 – the night Sir Alex Ferguson's technically inferior Manchester United side battled their way to a 2-1 victory over Barcelona's 'Dream Team' in Rotterdam to claim the Cup Winners' Cup.

  Then-Blaugrana boss Johan Cruyff famously argued the English outfit had "played the British game" to secure victory in his native Netherlands.

  But the Dutchman's bitter words only sweetened the success for Ferguson, who had secured a first European trophy for United in 23 years thanks to two goals from a former Barca player, Mark Hughes.

  Robson was the architect of both goals to cap another stellar all-round display as the underdogs held on for victory despite a late own goal from Les Sealey.

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  Barcelona 3-3 Man Utd | Champions League | 1998

  United were involved in a number of titanic tussles during their run to the treble in 1998-99, but few were more dramatic than their second 3-3 draw against Barca in the Champions League group stage.

  The two teams somehow topped a thrilling first meeting at Old Trafford as they shared another six goals, with Barca crashing out of the competition despite the best efforts of a seemingly super-human Rivaldo.

  The Brazilian scored two equalisers, hit the bar from 30 yards and produced a superb near-assist for Giovanni late on in a performance for the ages, but United ultimately went through alongside Bayern and went on to lift the trophy with a famous final win over the Germans at Camp Nou.

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  Man Utd 1-0 Barcelona | Champions League | 2008

  United also met Barca on their way to their second European Cup success under Ferguson, but this time it was defence that trumped attack as Messi & Co were kept quiet over two legs.

  After earning a 0-0 draw at Camp Nou, the Red Devils took an early lead at home thanks to an absolutely sensational 25-yard strike from Paul Scholes that flew past Victor Valdes and into the top right corner of the net.

  Barca dominated possession thereafter, but could find no way past a stubborn United rear-guard marshalled brilliantly by Rio Ferdinand and Wes Brown, who gave a career-best performance after deputising for the injured Nemanja Vidic.

MatériaMais Notícias

O talento de Marta renderá samba na Série A (grupo de acesso) do Carnaval do Rio de Janeiro. A Inocentes de Belford Roxo reverenciará a dimensão da história de vida da “Rainha” no samba-enredo “Marta do Brasil – Chorar no Começo Para Sorrir no Fim”.

– O fator principal é que ela representa a garra e a força da mulher brasileira, que sonha com uma vida mais digna e com um futuro melhor. A vida dela é um.exemplo para todos os brasileiros. Lutou contra a pobreza, contra o preconceito e até contra as adversidades climáticas. Hoje é embaixadora da ONU Mulheres pelo seu engajamento na batalha contra as desigualdades. Eleita seis vezes pela Fifa a melhor jogadora do mundo. fez da sua chuteira e seu talento as suas principais armas – declarou Reginaldo Gomes, presidente da agremiação.

Carnavalesco da escola de samba localizada na Baixada Fluminense, Jorge Caribé não esconde seu entusiasmo em levar para a avenida a história da camisa 10.

– É uma grande felicidade para nós falarmos de uma mulher vencedora, contar sua trajetória desde o início de vida no Nordeste até a forma como Marta foi alcançando os degraus da fama. Vamos levar muitas coisas positivas para o nosso Carnaval deste ano – disse, ao LANCE!.

De acordo com Caribé, o desfile da Inocentes de Belford Roxo também abrirá espaço para as causas que Marta abraçou com o passar de sua carreira.

– A gente trará um setor homenageando a busca por uma igualdade salarial entre as mulheres e os homens no futebol. Outro setor dará espaço à sua luta contra a homofobia e o preconceito – detalhou.

O carnavalesco também confirmou que o desfile trará presenças ilustres na Marquês de Sapucaí:

– A Pia (Sundhage), técnica da Marta na Seleção, estará presente. E, claro, não poderiam faltar colegas da Marta que a acompanharam em todo este tempo no futebol.

Na véspera do desfile, a camisa 10 esteve no barracão da escola de samba, em Belford Roxo, e acompanhou os últimos preparativos da Inocentes antes do desfile. A relação de Marta com a escola já vem de longa data.

– Quando estava iniciando sua carreira no Vasco (em 2000), ela veio aqui várias vezes. Ao lado da colega de equipe Carol Carioca, jogava nos campos de várzea em Belford Roxo e sambava na Inocentes – disse o presidente da escola de samba, Reginaldo Gomes para, em seguida, ser categórico sobre a “Rainha”:

– Ela é a heroína dos novos tempos – completou.

A Inocentes de Belford Roxo será a segunda escola a desfilar na noite deste sábado na Marquês de Sapucaí. A segunda noite de desfiles da Série A será aberta pela Acadêmicos do Sossego.

‘QUANDO OUÇO O ENREDO, ME EMOCIONA’, DIZ MARTA

A visita de Marta ao barracão da Inocentes de Belford Roxo já deu o tom do que a jogadora espera. Enquanto observava as alegorias feitas pela escola, a “Rainha” contou o que deve sentir na Marquês de Sapucaí.

– Vou ficar desidratada de tanto chorar, porque toda vez que ouço o enredo me emociona – afirmou, ao “Extra”.

A escolha de Marta como enredo da escola da Baixada Fluminense partiu de Carol Carioca, ex-colega de clube da “Rainha”. A Inocentes começou a planejar o tema para o Carnaval deste ano a partir do segundo semestre de 2019.

‘RAINHA’ REPRESENTADA EM OUTRA ESCOLA

A homenagem a Marta não ficou restrita à Inocentes de Belford Roxo. Última escola a desfilar na noite da sexta-feira passada, o Império Serrano dedicou uma ala à “Rainha”. A agremiação leva para a Marquês de Sapucaí o enredo “Lugar de Mulher É Onde Ela Quiser”.

O carnavalesco Júnior Pernambucano destacou o que foi crucial para colocar a jogadora de futebol no desfile da escola de Madureira.

– Marta traz a imagem de uma mulher empoderada. Ela superou desafios, alcançou o sucesso no futebol, conseguiu superar preconceitos e, hoje, é reconhecida no mundo todo. Sem dúvida, é um grande exemplo tanto para as mulheres quanto para todos nós – declarou, ao LANCE!, antes do desfile.

O Império Serrano passou pela avenida marcado por uma sucessão de falhas. Em sua ala, as baianas desfilaram sem saias. A presidente da escola,Vera Lúcia Corrêa, deixou a Marquês de Sapucaí antes do fim do desfile e anunciou que deixará a Imperio.

Sunil Narine will rejoin Kolkata Knight Riders on Tuesday evening after a brief visit back home to Trinidad and Tobago following the death of his father. Narine will be available for selection for Knight Riders’ second fixture on Wednesday, against Mumbai Indians at Eden Gardens.Narine, who opted out of the 2016 World Twenty20 to work on his remodelled action, underwent testing at the ICC-accredited centre in Chennai before joining his IPL team-mates in Kolkata, but had to rush back home on April 3. His action was deemed legal by the ICC on April 7, two days before the start of this year’s IPL.Brad Hogg, Knight Riders’ other lead spinner, who addressed the pre-match press conference on Tuesday, insisted a change in action has had little impact on Narine’s control and mastery. “It is good having Sunil V 2.0,” Hogg said. “It is just a confidence thing with Sunil. I remember taking some balls from him.”I struggled to pick it from the hand. He was bowling the or I thought it was going the other way and I looked like a complete idiot as the ball went to the boundary past me,” Hogg said rolling his eyes to the left to indicate the ball sliding down the leg side. “His action was perfect. And he was still bowling the balls we see out in the middle. We know that he can do it legitimately.”Hogg, who took three wickets in Knight Riders’ nine-wicket win in their tournament opener against Delhi Daredevils, said Narine’s return would mean a tussle for spots, but insisted it was a healthy rivalry.”We put pressure on each other with the ball. It is competitive and respectful competition between us,” he said. “He is a class bowler. He has been sorely missed. As individuals we train hard. We want to be able to be on the park. But it is a team. If I am not playing and he takes my spot, I have to create the energy which I quite have in the change room to make sure everyone is up for the challenge.”

Hayley Matthews’ all-round performance led West Indies women to a nine-wicket win against Sri Lanka in Colombo, to wrap up the three-match T20 series 2-1

ESPNcricinfo staff26-May-2015
ScorecardHayley Matthews took 4 for 10 and scored an unbeaten 32•Cricket Australia

A splendid all-round performance by Hayley Matthews helped West Indies women wrap up the three-match T20 series 2-1, after they had lost the first game. Matthews’ 4 for 10 helped restrict Sri Lanka to 74, before she scored an unbeaten 32 to ensure a nine-wicket win in the series decider in Colombo.Sri Lanka struggled from the start, losing wickets at regular intervals. Anisa Mohammed started the slide with two wickets in consecutive balls in the second over. Only Chamari Atapattu, who top-scored with 43, and Chathurani Gunawardene(10) reached double figures.In the chase, West Indies lost only one wicket as they hunted down the target of 75 with 52 balls to spare. Stafanie Taylor and Matthews put on 74 for the first wicket, before Taylor was caught for 38. Seven bowlers were used by Sri Lanka in 11.2 overs, with only Inoka Ranaweera taking a wicket.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

A double-century in a one-day international is not quite passé, but has become more common than ever seemed possible. A double-century in a World Cup quarter-final? is something truly special. Martin Guptill’s unbeaten 237 was the highest World Cup score of all time and the second-highest in all ODIs, but most importantly it ensured New Zealand’s progression to the World Cup semi-finals for the seventh time.Nobody in the partisan crowd in Wellington will ever forget Guptill’s innings. Nor will Marlon Samuels, who in the first over of the match grassed Guptill at square leg. It is hard to imagine a costlier one-day drop, for Guptill went on to score 60% of New Zealand’s 393 for 6. To add to the hurt, Samuels later fell to the most brilliant of catches, when a backpedalling Daniel Vettori at third man leapt and pinched a one-hander above his head that would have gone for six.It was that sort of day for New Zealand. Buoyed by the home support, they did just about everything right. West Indies kept up with the run-rate, just not the preservation rate required. They limped past Guptill’s individual tally at nine wickets down, and were bowled out for 250 in the 31st over. Trent Boult had done the damage by claiming four wickets in his opening spell.Chris Gayle pummelled 61 off 33 balls and provided some evening entertainment. Stiff with a bad back, Gayle dealt almost exclusively in boundaries. He struck eight sixes and two fours, and his innings was the most one-sided thing in a one-sided game: only one of his runs came through off. But he was bowled by Adam Milne for what was but a cameo compared to Guptill.Guptill had faced the first ball of New Zealand’s innings and the last. He played proper cricket shots, premeditating little but punishing the West Indies bowlers when they offered up half-volleys. He saw off 65 dot balls, respecting the good ones and making the most of the others. He brought up his 200 with a powerful crunch down the ground for four off Andre Russell from his 152nd delivery.It was fitting, for throughout his innings Guptill’s straight driving was so impressive you’d think he’d just had a wheel alignment. Guptill basked in the standing ovation, knowing that this was a once-in-a-lifetime moment. When he had moved past 171, he had the highest World Cup score by a New Zealander, beating Glenn Turner’s effort in their very first World Cup match back in 1975.Guptill’s 163-ball innings featured 24 fours and 11 sixes, and he alone scored 92 of New Zealand’s 153 in the final ten overs. In the 50th over he even launched a six onto the roof. New Zealand knew they had the ingredients for a show-stopping product: a huge home crowd, a good pitch, a toss won, a shaky opposition attack. But Guptill cooked up something that spilled out of the Cake Tin entirely.He scored freely throughout his innings but not surprisingly the flow of runs became an inexorable current during the late stages. His first half-century came off 64 balls and his hundred from 111. Do the maths and you’ll realise that means his second hundred came from 41 deliveries. Wherever West Indies pitched it in the final ten over, Guptill had a six waiting for them.This was a man at the peak of his powers: his 105 against Bangladesh in the previous game was just a warm-up. And though he scored 195 more than his nearest team-mate, he had plenty of support. The most prolific partnership was his 143-run stand with Ross Taylor for the third wicket; Taylor scored only 42 of those runs as he nudged the ball around for ones and twos.In fact, the run out of Taylor arguably came at the perfect time for New Zealand, as it allowed Corey Anderson and then Grant Elliott to come in and find the boundary. Elliott’s 27 off 11 balls was a fine cameo and his half-century partnership with Guptill came from only 15 legal balls. Jerome Taylor got rid of Elliott and Luke Ronchi at the end, but Elliott and Ronchi were not the problem.The West Indian effort in the field was listless. Samuels’ dropped chance was the stand-out, but the first ball of the game was ominous: Jason Holder and Sulieman Benn both lethargically pursued Guptill’s straight drive. They could have saved the boundary, but didn’t. West Indies became more disheartened as the innings wore on, and more mistakes were made.Really, they’d have needed to do everything right after losing the toss. The first wicket was encouraging, as Holder lived up to his name by running away with the flight from mid-off and clinging on to a super catch to get rid of Brendon McCullum for 12. New Zealand were 27 for 1, but from there not much went West Indies’ way.Guptill and Kane Williamson put on 62 for the second wicket before Williamson drove Russell’s slower ball to a juggling Gayle at cover for 33. But as long as Guptill was there West Indies – and a whole bunch of ODI and World Cup records – were anything but safe.The result means New Zealand will host South Africa at Eden Park on Tuesday, a meeting that guarantees a first-time finalist at this World Cup. New Zealand have reached semi-finals at six previous World Cups but have yet to emerge from one victorious. In form and at home, they may never have a better chance.