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Football: Cup champs Atletico kick off busy Asian summer

Agence France-PresseMay 20, 2013 11:30
Atletico Madrid kicked off a busy summer of Asian tours by top European football clubs on Monday when they arrived in Singapore fresh from downing city rivals Real to win the Spanish Cup. Atletico, brandishing the trophy they won in dramatic fashion on Friday, are making a whistle-stop visit despite still being involved in Spain's La Liga, in which they will play their penultimate game this weekend. "The first thing to do is to rest and sleep," cautioned their manager Diego Simeone, at a packed press conference where he appeared next to the gleaming trophy.

Football: Napoli in London to meet Benitez

Agence France-PresseMay 20, 2013 10:45
Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis was in London Monday to meet Rafael Benitez in a bid to lure Chelsea's Spanish manager to the Serie A club, according to reports in Italy. Napoli's runner-up place to Juventus was confirmed when the season ended on Sunday, meaning the Neapolitans have qualified for next season's Champions League. Napoli's need to find a new coach is pressing as Walter Mazzarri confirmed on Sunday his departure from the club.

Football: I can only play for Barca, says Messi

Agence France-PresseMay 20, 2013 09:30
Argentine football star Lionel Messi said Monday he could not play for any team other than Barcelona, where he has been since the age of 13. "I cannot play with any team other than Barcelona," he told reporters in Qatar, where he took part in a charity event. But he added in answering a question about a possible transfer that he "did not know what the future hides." Messi joined Barcelona when he was still just 13 and climbed through the Catalans' ranks, making his first team debut at just 17.

Football: Rain kings Barca stay on course for 100 points

Agence France-PresseMay 19, 2013 21:01
Barcelona celebrated lifting the La Liga trophy for a 22nd time with a 2-1 win over Valladolid on Sunday at a rain-lashed Camp Nou. The wet conditions resulted in the lowest attendance for a Barca home league match this season as only 56,055 filled the 99,354 capacity ground. However, first-half goals from Pedro Rodriguez and into his own net from Marc Valiente were enough to keep the champions on track to match Real Madrid's league record of 100 points before Victor Perez's penalty halved the deficit a minute from time.

Football: Leading scorers in Spanish La Liga

Agence France-PresseMay 19, 2013 18:45
Leading scorers in Spain's La Liga after Sunday's matches: 46: Messi (Barcelona) 34: Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid) 28: Falcao (Atletico Madrid) 21: Soldado (Valencia) 20: Negredo (FC Sevilla) 17: Piti (Rayo Vallecano), Ruben Castro (Real Betis) 14: Agirretxe (Real Sociedad), Aritz Aduriz (Athletic Bilbao), Higuain (Real Madrid), Vela (Real Sociedad) 13: Jonas (Valencia), Postiga (Real Zaragoza), Riki (Deportivo La Coruna) 12: Oscar (Valladolid) afp

Football: Rain kings Barca stay on course for 100 points

Agence France-PresseMay 19, 2013 18:15
Barcelona celebrated lifting the La Liga trophy for a 22nd time with a 2-1 win over Valladolid on Sunday at a rain-lashed Camp Nou. The wet conditions resulted in the lowest attendance for a Barca home league match this season as only 56,055 filled the 99,354 capacity ground. However, first-half goals from Pedro Rodriguez and into his own net from Marc Valiente were enough to keep the champions on track to match Real Madrid's league record of 100 points before Victor Perez's penalty halved the deficit a minute from time.

Football: Valencia edge closer to Champions League

Agence France-PresseMay 18, 2013 19:15
Valencia took another significant step towards securing Champions League qualification for next season with a 1-0 win at Getafe. Jeremy Mathieu got the only goal of a disappointing game a minute before half-time as Ernesto Valverde's men made it three wins in a row. Roberto Soldado and Sofiane Feghouli missed good chances to double Valencia's advantage after the break, but Los Che held on to move three points clear of Real Sociedad in fourth with the Basques travelling to face Sevilla later on Saturday night.

Football: My worst ever season, says Mourinho

Agence France-PresseMay 17, 2013 21:30
Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho described his side's season as the worst of his trophy-laden, colourful career after Atletico Madrid edged a 2-1 extra-time Spanish Cup triumph. Real have already surrendered their La Liga title to Barcelona and were eliminated by Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League semi-finals, leaving the former Chelsea boss to lament a return of just the Spanish Supercup in terms of silverware.

Atletico Madrid wins Copa del Rey

Agencia EFEMay 17, 2013 20:48
Madrid, May 17 (EFE).- Atletico Madrid won its 10th Copa del Rey championship here Friday with a 2-1 upset victory in extra time over Real Madrid. Atletico's first triumph since 1999 over their wealthy, title-laden crosstown rivals came before a crowd of 85,000 at Real Madrid's Santiago Bernabeu stadium. The Blancos took a 1-0 lead with Cristiano Ronaldo's header off a corner kick in the 14th minute, but Atletico pulled even 21 minutes later thanks to a goal by Diego Costa.

Football: Mourinho, Ronaldo off as Atletico stun Real

Agence France-PresseMay 17, 2013 18:46
Atletico Madrid won their 10th Copa del Rey as goals from Diego Costa and Miranda saw them beat Real Madrid 2-1 in extra-time as both Jose Mourinho and Cristiano Ronaldo were sent-off. Real had been unbeaten in the previous 25 meetings between the two rivals dating back 14 years and Mourinho's men got off to the perfect start when Cristiano Ronaldo headed in Luka Modric's corner. However, Diego Costa levelled for Atletico 10 minutes before half-time and Los Rojiblancos then rode their luck as Mesut Ozil, Karim Benzema and Ronaldo all hit the post for Real.
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