Ronaldo, Benzema Fire Real to the Top
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Bayern kick off China’ Li grabs year with a win the Open title SUNDAY, JANUARY 26, 2014 19 18 United agree club record £37m deal for Mata Page 19 MADRID: Real Madrid’s Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo (center) kicks the ball during the Spanish league football match Real Madrid vs FC Granada at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium yesterday. (Inset) Ronaldo holds the Ballon díor trophy before the Spanish league football match yesterday. — AFP Ronaldo, Benzema fire Real to the top MADRID: Real Madrid moved clear at the top challenge from Jeison Murillo early on and was get on six minutes. Bale was then involved in an start, though, Madrid’s intensity dropped and it hour mark as Ronaldo worked space for himself of La Liga for the first time since May 2012 eventually substituted at half-time. Madrid lead unfortunate clash with Murillo as the wasn’t until first-half stoppage time that they inside the area before firing a low left-footed thanks to a 2-0 win over Granada at the Barcelona and Atletico Madrid by two points, Colombian clattered the Welshman between threatened again as Roberto made a brilliant shot beyond Roberto into the far corner. Santiago Bernabeu yesterday. Cristiano but both can move back to the top with wins the legs and was booked. Manuel Iturra nearly save to parry Ronaldo’s sweetly struck overhead Roberto did well to prevent Ronaldo doubling Ronaldo opened the scoring on 57 minutes, as over Malaga and Rayo Vallecano respectively gifted Madrid the opener moments later as he kick. Bale’s unfortunate day continued as he his tally with a low drive 10 minutes later and set up by Luka Modric, he rifled home his 31st today. deflected Dani Carvajal’s cross onto his own was replaced by Jese Rodriguez at half-time. the Portuguese then saw a deflected free-kick goal of the season. Karim Benzema sealed Los The afternoon started in celebratory mood crossbar. Madrid’s tempo was immediately lifted by the come back off the bar. Madrid finally got the Blancos’ ninth consecutive win 12 minutes from for the hosts as Ronaldo paraded the Ballon From the resulting corner, Sergio Ramos also Spanish under-21 international and Roberto breathing space they craved on 78 minutes time when he slotted home Marcelo’s low cross. d’Or in front of the home fans. Ronaldo nearly should have given Carlo Ancelotti’s men the had to be alert to deny early efforts from Di when a lovely move involving Ronaldo and However, it was not a great afternoon for got off to a blistering start as he cut inside onto lead as he headed over after Roberto had Maria and Modric. Marcelo was finished off by Benzema for his Gareth Bale as he was on the end of a rough his right foot and blasted a shot wide of the tar- flapped at Angel di Maria’s cross. After a bright The goal did finally arrive just before the fifth goal in his last six games. — AFP Leverkusen, Dortmund drop points BERLIN: Freiburg defeated Bayer Leverkusen 3-2 and Borussia Dortmund was held 2-2 at home by Augsburg as Bayern Munich’s main title rivals both faltered in the Bundesliga yesterday. Freiburg midfielder Felix Klaus scored in the last minute as his side twice came from behind to climb provisionally out of the relegation zone. Lars Bender scored with Leverkusen’s first shot in the fourth minute and Admir Mehmedi equalized with a fine strike in the 27th before Simon Rolfes restored the visi- tors’ lead eight minutes later. Jonathan Schmid’s free kick squeezed inside the near post in the 53rd, thanks to a light deflection from Leverkusen striker Stefan Kiessling on his 30th birthday, and Klaus scored the winning goal on a counter attack. Dortmund endured an afternoon to forget as the side’s bad luck with injuries continued. Poland midfielder MANCHESTER: Manchester City’s Argentinean striker Sergio Aguero (center) heads the ball towards goal during the English FA Cup fourth round football match between Jakub Blaszczykowski sustained suspected cruciate liga- Manchester City and Watford yesterday. — AFP ment damage to his right knee in the third minute. Sven Bender headed home side Dortmund in front in the fifth - one minute after his twin brother had opened the scoring for Leverkusen - but conceded an own goal Man City survive FA Cup shock in the 56th, when he deflected Andre Hahn’s cross into his own net. Nuri Sahin restored Dortmund’s lead from a free kick in the 66th, only for South Korea midfielder Ji LONDON: Sergio Aguero scored a hat-trick as Manchester The Argentine striker polished off a cross from Kolarov and “When you have a team that want to play football, they are Dong-won, who will join Dortmund next season, to City escaped a huge FA Cup upset by coming from behind to in the 79th minute he plundered an equalizer, slipping the the most courageous players on the field,” he said. “It is easy to score Augsburg’s equalizer in the 72nd just two minutes win 4-2 at home to second-tier Watford yesterday. Beaten ball onto his left foot and curling home his 24th goal of the coach a team to sit back, not want the ball and defend, and after coming on as a substitute. Bayern now leads sec- Championship play-off finalists last season, Watford went 2-0 campaign. Watford were still within sight of a money-spin- then just wait for a hump up the pitch. Bournemouth are a ond-place Leverkusen by 10 points with a game in hand, up inside 30 minutes through Fernando Forestieri and Troy ning replay, but with three minutes remaining Kolarov very good side and I give credit to them first of all. Eddie is while Dortmund is another four points off the pace. Deeney to leave free-scoring City at risk of a shock defeat. deceived visiting goalkeeper Jonathan Bond from 40 yards to similar to myself in terms of the philosophy of football.” Elsewhere, Nuremberg defeated Hoffenheim 4-0 for However, Aguero struck three times in the last half an hour, make it 3-2 before Aguero completed his treble at the death. Premier League Crystal Palace were the day’s biggest casual- its first win of the season, Hannover won 3-1 at with Aleksandar Kolarov also on target, to send last season’s Liverpool also avoided a potential banana skin by winning 2-0 ties, losing 2-1 at holders Wigan, who were relegated to the Wolfsburg for its first away win, and Mainz earned a 2-1 beaten finalists into the fifth round. at second-tier Bournemouth. Championship after stunning City 1-0 in last season’s final. win at Stuttgart. Eintracht Frankfurt hosted Hertha With Watford 15th in the Championship, they were given Beneath bright winter sunshine on the English south Ben Watson, who scored the winning goal at Wembley, set Berlin later. Nuremberg coach Gertjan Verbeek had little chance of pulling off an upset at the Etihad Stadium, but coast, Liverpool withstood an enterprising start from their Wigan on their way in the 36th minute, with James McClean vowed not to shave until his side finally won in the they took the lead in the 21st minute when Forestieri beat Championship hosts before taking the lead in the 26th netting a 78th-minute winner after Aaron Wilbraham drew league. United States international Timmy Chandler Costel Pantilimon. It was a reward for the visitors’ bold start to minute through Victor Moses. Daniel Sturridge made it 2-0 Palace level. Sunderland followed up their mid-week success opened the scoring with a deflected shot in the 24th, the game and nine minutes later they made it 2-0, with with half an hour remaining, running onto Suarez’s dinked against Manchester United in the League Cup semi-finals by before two goals from Josip Drmic and another from Deeney finishing off a sweeping move involving Sean Murray pass and tucking the ball past goalkeeper Lee Camp in front toiling to overcome non-league Kidderminster Harriers 1-0, Daniel Ginczek gave Nuremberg its first Bundesliga vic- and Ikechi Anya. City manager Manuel Pellegrini sent on of watching England manager Roy Hodgson. Liverpool man- with Charis Mavrias scoring the only goal in the fifth minute. tory at the 18th attempt this season. Belgian midfielder defenders Vincent Kompany and Pablo Zabaleta for the sec- ager Brendan Rodgers praised his opposite number Eddie Swansea City, Cardiff City, Southampton and Hull City also Kevin de Bruyne made his debut for Wolfsburg follow- ond half and with half an hour remaining the hosts pulled a Howe for the way that Bournemouth had approached the overcame lower-league opposition, while Everton were due ing his switch from Chelsea for a reported 22 million goal back through Aguero. game. to visit third-tier Stevenage in the late game. — AFP euros ($30 million). — AP.