MADRID: Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti was delighted with Kylian Mbappe’s display as the France forward struck twice in a 4-1 win over Las Palmas that lifted the champions to the top of La Liga.
The Italian manager said he never doubted the 26-year-old’s ability to play as the main striker even though Mbappe had a slow start in Madrid since arriving from Paris Saint-Germain.
“Mbappe is the best center forward in the world, there is no doubt about his ability to play in that position.
“He is a great striker who is very good in the middle (of attack), compared to the wings, because that way he can exploit his unique runs, with speed and technique,” said Ancelotti.
After a tough week that saw Real suffer a stifling 5-2 loss to Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup and a 5-2 extra-time win over Celta Vigo to reach the quarter-finals of the King of Spain’s Cup, Real were shocked with a 25-second goal by Las Palmas.
However, with Mbappe’s help, they recovered and took advantage of Atletico Madrid’s 1-0 defeat at Leganes on Saturday to return to the top of the league.
Real are now top of La Liga on 46 points, two ahead of neighbors Madrid, with Barcelona in third seven points behind after being tied 1-1 by Getafe.
JEDDAH: Barcelona came back from an early deficit to thrash Real Madrid 5-2 in the Spanish Super Cup final.
Hansi Flick’s side scored four goals in the first half and saw their goalkeeper sent off as they extended their record to a 15th title in the competition.
Lamine Yamal, Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha and Alejandro Balde found the target before the break, after French striker Kylian Mbappe put Real ahead in the fifth minute.
Raphinha completed Barca’s win in the second half as Rodrygo scored Real’s second.
It was Barcelona’s first trophy in more than a year, after failing to win any titles last season.
“The main goal of big clubs is to win titles, that’s why they work hard. But now we have to prove it in the next game.
“Real made a lot of mistakes, and we knew how to exploit them to dominate the game,” said Flick, who won his first trophy as Barcelona manager.
Barca denied Real from winning their third title of the season, after they won the European Super Cup against Atalanta and beat Mexican club Pachuca for the Intercontinental Cup last month.
“In the first half we didn’t play football, we made long passes and that wasn’t the plan.
“I told the players they can die, but not the way we played in the first half,” Real coach Carlo Ancelotti said.
RIYADH: Cristiano Ronaldo opened his scoring account for the year 2025 with a penalty kick in a 3-1 win with Al-Nassr early this morning.
The 39-year-old veteran striker and his teammates enjoyed a winter break and returned to action in the Saudi Pro League (SPL) as they look to close the gap on league leaders Al-Ittihad.
It took only 42 minutes for the former Real Madrid and Manchester United striker to score in his first match after the break.
Their opponents Al-Akhdoud, however, surprised them by taking the lead after six minutes before Al-Nassr responded through former Liverpool winger Sadio Mane, who then scored the third goal.
After Mane’s equaliser, Al-Nassr were awarded a penalty and Ronaldo calmly finished it, putting his team in front.
The Portuguese striker fired a powerful shot into the right corner of the goal before celebrating with his teammates.
By scoring that goal, it was the 24th consecutive year that Ronaldo has scored in professional football since his first in 2002.
Ronaldo was recently reported to have asked Al-Nassr to sign Casemiro from Manchester United in what is seen as a critical factor in determining his future.
The Portuguese icon is in the final six months of his £175 million-a-year contract with the SPL club and is considering a move to another club.
He and Casemiro won 12 trophies together at Real Madrid, including four Champions Leagues and two La Ligas, while they also teamed up at Manchester United under Erik ten Hag.
RIYADH: An extra-time goal from Tammy Abraham completed AC Milan’s comeback to win the Italian Super Cup after beating Inter Milan 3-2 in Riyadh.
Inter, who led by two goals early in the game, were denied the Super Cup for the fourth time in a row, allowing Milan to equal Inter’s eight titles in the competition.
The victory at the King Saud University Stadium saw new Milan manager Serge Conceicao lift the trophy in just his second match with the Serie A club.
Lautaro Martinez opened the scoring for Inter in the first half, followed by Mehdi Taremi’s goal two minutes after the break.
Conceicao brought on Rafael Leao who won a free kick and was converted by Theo Hernandez. Christian Pulisic equalised with 10 minutes remaining.
The match looked set to be decided on penalties but Abraham surprised Inter with the winning goal in extra time.
LIVERPOOL: Fans accused Liverpool of copying Arsenal’s tactics when taking corner kicks in the win over Leicester City.
The Reds widened the gap at the top of the Premier League after coming back to beat The Foxes 3-1 at Anfield.
Observers who watched the match claimed that Arne Slot’s team’s corner kick routine resembled Arsenal’s tactics coached by Mikel Arteta.
The Gunners are considered set piece experts when they scored 22 goals from corner kicks since the start of last season.
The north London club often places players in the back row of defense and starts taking their place in front of the goal when the kick is taken.
The situation was the same as what Liverpool did when they played against Leicester, but it didn’t produce results.
One Arsenal fan wrote on page X: “Liverpool fans criticize Arsenal’s corners every day, but end up trying to imitate them and making it impossible to score.”
Meanwhile Slot urged Liverpool to use Manchester City’s decline in performance as a warning that their comfortable position at the top of the league will be lost if they are not careful.
“If you’ve been in this game for a long time, you know that when a rival has 20 games remaining, you don’t look at the league standings.
“Just a month ago we were one eye behind City and look what’s happening now.
“It can happen to any team. It’s still too early to celebrate. You were with me in all the previous games and it wasn’t an easy win.
“He showed how difficult it is to win even if you have all the players. We just need to focus on one game at a time,” said Slot.
LONDON: Arne Slot urged “extraordinary” Liverpool not to let up on their challenge after the Premier League (EPL) leaders hammered Tottenham 6-3 to move four points clear at the top of the league.
Slot considered Liverpool’s big win in north London earlier this morning as their best performance on the opposing field since he arrived from Feyenoord to replace Jurgen Klopp at the end of last season.
Mohamed Salah was the instigator of the big win with two goals and two assists, while Luis Diaz also scored two goals in addition to goals from Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai.
The Slots have won 21 of their 25 matches in all competitions this season, an impressive run that sees them well placed to win the league championship for the first time since 2020, as well as competing in the Champions League, FA Cup and League Cup.
However, despite their impressive performance, Slot was disappointed when Liverpool scored two goals through goals from Dejan Kulusevski and Dominic Solanke, so asked his troops to remain focused until the last minute of each match.
“He was very good. Maybe he was our best performance away from home, although I also liked what I saw at Manchester United,” said Slot, referring to the 3-0 win at Old Trafford last September.
“Until the 60th minute to the 65th minute, I was really excited by what I saw. Of course we were very trapped when we made a move from the bottom and it led to a goal for Tottenham.
“I think if we go back to the dugout with a 2-1 lead, it wouldn’t do justice to the chances we had. That’s why I’m a bit happy with the fact we blew out a 3-1 lead.
“Then 4-1, 5-1, extraordinary performances, but then you also see, no matter how high quality you have, if they think they don’t need to run any further in this league and especially against Tottenham, because they are too good with the ball, they started creating chances.”
Liverpool’s position at the top of the league at Christmas was guaranteed before kick-off when second-placed Chelsea were tied pointless by Everton.
DOHA, Qatar: Real Madrid’s success in winning the Intercontinental Cup made Carlo Ancelotti the club’s most successful manager with 15 titles won.
After beating Mexican club Pachuca 3-0 in the final at Lusail Stadium, Ancelotti overcame Miguel Munoz, whose record of 14 titles was equaled by the Italian manager when he won the European Super Cup following his victory over Atalanta in August.
“Too many (titles)! I’m heartened, very happy… it’s a story of success. Today I really liked the attitude of the players.
“In the front line, they made an impact, Vinicius Jr played brilliantly. Our attack was very good.
“We have quality. Kylian also played well, Rodrygo scored the second goal. We are very happy to win the title away from home and in the middle of a busy season,” said Ancelotti.
The 65 year old Italian is one of the most successful managers in the world of football.
When he was offered to return to Madrid three years ago to replace Zinedine Zidane, he realized that his main mission was to add to the giant Spanish club’s championship collection.
Ancelotti became the first manager to win titles in Europe’s top five leagues – England, Spain, Germany, Italy and France – and guided Real to the La Liga and European Champions League double twice in three seasons.
Ancelotti’s trophy collection with Real Madrid is three European Champions League titles, two Club World Cups, three European Super Cups, two La Ligas, two Spanish Cups, two Spanish Super Cups and one Intercontinental Cup.
DOHA: Real Madrid striker Vinicius Junior won the men’s player of the year award at The Best FIFA ceremony in Doha early this morning, while Barcelona midfielder Aitana Bonmati won the women’s award for the second time.
The award comes two months after 24-year-old Vinicius finished second in the Ballon d’Or, with Real opting to boycott the ceremony when they learned in advance that Manchester City midfielder Rodri had won the trophy.
However, the Brazilian player this time was present to receive the award in Qatar with his club ahead of the Intercontinental Cup final against Mexican club Pachuca early tomorrow morning.
“Thank you so much. I don’t know where to start. It’s impossible to think I could get here. I grew up in a world of poverty, organized crime. It’s for all the children who grow up in that world. I thank everyone who voted for me,” Vinicius said on stage.
“Thanks to my family, to the club, to my teammates, to Carletto (Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti), who often helps me.
“To everyone who helped make my dream come true. I hope to be in Madrid for many years, because it’s the best club in the world. To Flamengo (his first club in Brazil). To my teammates in the national team. Also to my country, which has always supported me in all my work.”
Vinicius replaced Lionel Messi as FIFA’s best men’s player after the Argentine star won the last two editions of the award.
The striker scored 24 goals and provided 11 assists in 39 appearances in all competitions as he guided Real to a La Liga and Champions League double last season.
After completing his third La Liga title in May, Vinicius secured the second Champions League trophy of his career when Real beat Borussia Dortmund 2-0 on June 1.
Vinicius was on the scoresheet at Wembley with a stunning finish in the final 10 minutes to ensure the title was within their grasp.
26-year-old Spaniard Bonmati won the FIFA Women’s Player of the Year award for the second year in a row, adding to her two previous Ballon d’Or trophies.
“I am grateful, I am proud to receive this award,” said Bonmati via video link from the Olympic Stadium, Barcelona.
Last season, Bonmati guided Barcelona to a historic treble and won the Nations League with his national team.
She won every trophy with her club in 2023-24 – the Spanish league, Copa de la Reina, Supercopa de Espana and the Women’s Champions League for the second time in a row.
Bonmati scored one goal and produced a man-of-the-match display as Barcelona beat Lyon 2-0 in the Champions League final to claim their third title in four seasons.
Manchester United’s Argentine striker Alejandro Garnacho has won the Puskas award for the best goal of the year following his scissor kick against Everton in the Premier League.
Ancelotti won the men’s coach of the year award, after the Italian guided his club to a league and Champions League double last season.
“I want to share this success with the club, with my president and players, the best club in the world,” Ancelotti said.
Emma Hayes won the women’s coach of the year award, after guiding the United States to gold at this year’s Olympics and guiding Chelsea to the WSL title last season, their fifth consecutive title with the club.
The men’s goalkeeper award was won by Argentina’s Aston Villa’s Emiliano Martinez while the women’s award was won by the US’s Alyssa Naeher and Chicago Red Stars’ AFP.
MANCHESTER: Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said he was responsible for his team’s 2-1 defeat to Manchester United in the Premier League at home.
City were ahead until the 88th minute when United were awarded a penalty which was converted by Bruno Fernandes and two minutes later Amad Diallo scored the winning goal.
“I have no excuses. I’m the boss. I’m the manager and I’m not good enough.
“I had to find a solution and I failed to do it. I didn’t do it well, that’s a fact,” Guardiola said.
City have only recorded one win from their last 11 matches in all competitions.
“Today we should have won the game because apart from Bruno Fernandes (a chance that the United captain failed to convert) nothing happened. So we wasted it again.
“I’m paid well to deal with this situation, to face press conferences, to take criticism, but I want to be honest, in one or two seasons, after a year, or a year and a half, we only lost eight games.
“I’m still here because of what I did before, otherwise a big club wouldn’t keep a manager like this.
“I knew it was going to be a tough season but I didn’t expect it to be this difficult. I’ll try to improve,” he said.
LONDON: Jamie Carragher has hit out at Liverpool fans on social media who criticised him for praising Chelsea’s Cole Palmer.
The centre-back played exclusively for Liverpool throughout his 17-year career, scoring five goals in 739 appearances for the club.
He often captained Liverpool in the absence of Steven Gerrard and lifted the European Champions League trophy in 2005, as well as two FA Cups and three League Cups.
Carragher is a well-known sports pundit on Sky Sports and was on duty during Chelsea’s 4-3 win at Spurs last Sunday.
But the 46-year-old was criticised by his former club’s fans when he said Palmer was the best player in the Premier League over the past 18 months, with many criticising his statement for forgetting to mention Reds star Mohamed Salah.
However, Carragher responded to the criticism on social media by asking those who disagreed with him to watch the full recording of his statement.
“He took the penalty and was involved in (Enzo) Fernandez’s goal, three or four players around him. That’s what great players do – you’re terrified when he gets the ball.
“I liked him last season and he’s started well this season. A few weeks ago I said, if you look at the last 18 months at Chelsea, I don’t think there’s a player in the Premier League who has performed better than him.
“And he’s not playing for the best team. They look like one of the best teams in the league right now.
“Before Chelsea had great players in attack like (Giafranco) Zola and (Eden) Hazard, I think he has done more than Zola in these 18 months.
“If he manages to lead Chelsea to the title this season or in the next two or three seasons, I believe he will be the club’s greatest player.
“He’s a very special player and not just in the Premier League, but Europe and the world,” said Carragher.