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      Mateo Kovacic a major doubt for Real Madrid clash as Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel confirms injury recovery setback

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      MATEO KOVACIC is a major doubt for the Real Madrid second leg after suffering a setback in his recovery from injury.The Chelsea and Croatia star, 26, has missed the last five games with a hamstring problem.
      Mateo Kovacic is an injury doubt to face Real Madrid after suffering a recovery setbackCredit: PA
      Blues boss Thomas Tuchel ruled his beloved midfielder out of the Fulham match tomorrow after a tweak in training.
      And Kovacic faces a race against time to face his former employers in the Champions League semi-finals.
      Antonio Rudiger is also out of the West London derby and therefore doubtful for the visit of Los Blancos.
      The German said: “Unfortunately Kovacic is still injured. 
      “He trained with us, but he’s still not fully confident, he felt something at the end of training. So he’s not available, unfortunately.
      “All the others are available except for Toni Rudiger, who got injured in the last minute of the Madrid game. Everybody else is available.
      “Before training today we thought that Kova had a big chance to join us latest for Madrid, maybe even for today. 
      “So now we have a little setback, not a big one, with him.
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      “I don’t want to be too negative, let’s see how he is tomorrow. For Toni, I’m quite positive for Wednesday.”
      Kovacic made 109 Real Madrid appearances before his Stamford Bridge switch, initially on loan.
      In 137 games in a Chelsea shirt, he has just two goals – including none in 39 this term.
      Tuchel’s side earned a 1-1 draw away in Madrid on Tuesday, with the tie evenly poised ahead of Wednesday’s return leg.
      N’Golo Kante put in a man-of-the-match performance alongside Jorginho.

      And Tuchel was asked if he may rest one or both central midfielders at home to the Cottagers with an eye on the Champions League – with Billy Gilmour an option.
      He added: “N’Golo feels very good, Jorgi looked very good and in training again today the guys are super professional, they know that we miss Kova a lot so I have the feeling Jorgi and N’Golo step up.
      “Gilmour looked very good today in training so I was quite impressed.
      “The last decision is made today so in the evening, the afternoon or maybe tomorrow morning, but Billy is in the squad, he was very close to playing the last games some minutes so he is in good shape.”
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      Billy Gilmour could make a rare start if Thomas Tuchel decides to rest N’Golo Kante or JorginhoCredit: Getty
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      Real Madrid will pay £17k for Marcelo to take private jet on day of Chelsea clash so he can monitor local election

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      REAL MADRID will pay £17,000 to fly Marcelo to London on a private jet next week after his appeal to avoid election duty was denied.The Brazilian has been randomly selected to monitor a polling station on Tuesday as the city’s voters pick their candidates for the assembly of Madrid.
      Marcelo took on Chelsea in Tuesday’s first-legCredit: Getty
      This will prevent him from travelling with his team-mates ahead of Wednesday’s crunch Champions League clash with Chelsea.
      Marcelo, 32, has been selected as a back-up – meaning he will only undertake the full role should anything happen to the other monitor.
      But the flying full-back will still have to report for duty at 8am, and it has been deemed too risky to fly him out straight away – in case he is in fact required.
      According to AS, Marcelo will train on his own at Valdebebas after his duties are wrapped up, before taking a £17,000 private jet to London on either Tuesday night or Wednesday morning.
      But Madrid are furious with the prospect of their player being put in contact with numerous members of the general public.
      Footballers have been living in specific bubbles this season, to try and avoid Covid-19 outbreaks within their clubs.
      And Madrid tried to use this as a primary reason for Marcelo to be given special dispensation to dodge his election commitment for work reasons.
      But their appeals were denied meaning that, if Marcelo is to have to step in for full monitor duty for any reason, his trip to England could still be in jeopardy.
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      The Brazilian is set to be jetted out to London on the day of the gameCredit: AFP or licensors
      Zinedine Zidane expects to have Marcelo availableCredit: Getty

      A reflective Zinedine Zidane said: “It is what it is, he will fulfil his obligations. On Wednesday he will be with us, nothing changes.”
      Marcelo started Tuesday night’s 1-1 first-leg draw with Chelsea in the Spanish capital.
      But that was just his second Champions League outing of the season, with Ferland Mendy having more often been given the nod this term.
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      PSG star Kylian Mbappe a doubt for Man City Champions League semi-final second leg after suffering calf injury

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      MAURICIO POCHETTINO admits Paris Saint-Germain star Kylian Mbappe is a doubt for the Champions League clash with Manchester City.Mbappe has a calf issue and will not feature against Lens in Ligue 1 tomorrow so is in a race against time to be fit for Tuesday’s second leg.
      Kylian Mbappe is a doubt for the second leg of PSG’s Champions League semi-final with Manchester CityCredit: AFP
      PSG manager Pochettino said: “Kylian is suffering from a bit of pain in his right calf.
      “We hope it won’t be serious and that he can join up with us as soon as possible.
      “It’s obvious that he’s a very important player for us and when you don’t have a player like that it makes an impact.
      “But we have players in the squad who are very important and can play well to help us win against Lens.”
      Pochettino insists Mbappe, who was an injury concern before the first leg, has not been overplayed this season.
      He has featured 41 times for PSG, scoring 35 goals – plus another eight caps for France.
      The former Spurs boss, whose side lost 2-1 at home to City in the first leg, added: “Actually, we were talking with the medical staff and technical staff today about his performances, and at one point Kylian came to join in the meeting.
      “We spoke about how Kylian looked in such good shape against Metz last weekend and that his feet didn’t even touch the ground when he ran.
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      “We rested him in the Cup game against Angers so he could be fresh for Metz.
      “He took a knock at the end of the game against City, but that could have happened in the first minute.
      “When you’re on the pitch you know these things can happen.
      “The blow he took caused some form of compensation effect which led to his calf injury.”
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      The striker picked up the knock late on in the first leg at the Parc des PrincesCredit: EPA

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      Jose Mourinho claims Bayern loss while Real Madrid boss after Cristiano Ronaldo penalty miss was his saddest moment

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      JOSE MOURINHO once revealed the only time he shed tears after a defeat was when Real Madrid lost on penalties to Bayern Munich back in 2012.The Portuguese – who is part of SunSport’s coverage for this summer’s Euros – had already steered Los Blancos to a record-setting year in LaLiga.
      Jose Mourinho admitted he cried after Real Madrid crashed out of the Champions League against Bayern MunichCredit: Action Images – Reuters
      But he was denied the chance to make it a Champions League double against the Germans.
      Madrid were the heavy favourites for Europe’s top competition having overhauled Barcelona domestically with the most points, goals and home wins.
      But Mourinho, who had already lifted the Champions League twice with Porto and Inter Milan, missed out on a three-piece at the Bernabeu.
      The Special One saw Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka and Sergio Ramos miss from the spot as Madrid fell to Bayern on penalties in the 2012 semi-finals.
      He would have met his former side Chelsea in the final, who in turn, bested the Bundesliga side in a shootout to win their first-ever Champions League on penalties.
      That night is the only time in my career as a coach that I’ve cried after a defeat. It was very hard because we were the best that seasonJose Mourinho
      And speaking to Spanish outlet MARCA, Mourinho admitted he found it hard losing the chance to play for La Decima and was reduced to tears.
      He said: “Unfortunately, that’s football. Cristiano, Kaka, Sergio Ramos… three complete monsters of football, there’s no doubt about that, but they’re also human.
      “That night is the only time in my career as a coach that I’ve cried after a defeat. I remember it well… Aitor [Karanka] and I pulled up in front of my house, in the car, crying…
      “It was very hard because we were the best that season.”
      Cristiano Ronaldo was denied from the spot as Los Blancos suffered defeat at the BernabeuCredit: AFP
      Opening up about the incident further in an interview with Portuguese TV channel Sic, Mourinho admitted it was still the saddest moment of his career.
      He said: “If I have to choose the worst moment, it’s that elimination with Real Madrid.
      “We were the best team in Europe, without a doubt, we won LaLiga smashing all the records for points and goals and we would’ve won that final, I don’t have any doubt.
      “What was most cruel for me was that in the shoot-out we chose Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka and Sergio Ramos, they were dead certs from the penalty spot and the guys who missed were those who never miss, it sunk me.”

      SunSport previously revealed that it was the Chelsea dressing room who broke down in tears after Mourinho was sacked in 2007.
      Club captain John Terry said he and his team-mates were so devastated and shocked they approached the Blues board to reverse their decision.
      The former England skipper would be reunited Mourinho in 2013 with the pair winning the Premier League for a third time two years later.
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      Xabi Alonso on Liverpool’s ’embarrassing’ first-half in Istanbul vs AC Milan and Barcelona inflicting his ‘worst’ defeat

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      XABI ALONSO opened up on Liverpool’s ‘painful’ and ’embarrassing’ first-half in the 2005 Champions League final against AC Milan in Istanbul.The Spaniard revealed he was ‘angry with himself’ at half-time before the Reds’ iconic comeback.
      Xabi Alonso labelled Liverpool ’embarrassing’ in the first-half of the 2005 Champions League finalCredit: Getty
      Liverpool were 3-0 down to the Italian giants and seemed doomed at the break.
      But in one of the most historic comebacks in football, Steven Gerrard, Vladimir Smicer and Alonso himself scored in six second-half minutes to nick a 3-3 draw.
      The Merseysiders eventually won the penalty shootout but the 39-year-old admitted he couldn’t see it coming at half-time.
      He told team-mate on the night Jamie Carragher’s Greatest Game podcast: “I was angry at myself, thinking ‘we can’t throw it away so easily, this is a beautiful chance’.
      “I was kind of embarrassed with what we were doing.
      “More than thinking about the others it was painful, that was first (how I felt). Later, Rafa (Benitez) changed. I thought ‘let’s see how this works’.
      “To hear the boos from the fans was important because they didn’t want to kill us but we thought ‘let’s try and give them something to believe’, try to have some hope.”
      Alonso eventually left Anfield after five years with the club and joined Real Madrid in 2009.
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      The Spaniard also opened up on his worst defeat ever – a 5-0 drubbing by Barcelona when he was at Real MadridCredit: Getty

      And during his Los Blancos career he faced Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona team which is widely considered one of the greatest sides ever assembled.
      And one particular Clasico stuck in his mind for all the wrong reasons after Barca thrashed Jose Mourinho’s Real 5-0 in 2010-11.
      Having started the game alongside Sami Khedira, Alonso said: “We knew in that moment if we were too nice they were going to kill us.
      “The league game in the Nou Camp we lost 5-0 and that was the worst night I’ve ever lived on a football pitch.
      “After 20 minutes I wanted to leave, to go home, shower and to go home.
      “It was so painful. It gave us a big determination. We couldn’t be too nice or we wouldn’t have beaten them (the next season).”
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      Mbappe given just 3/10 by L’Equipe and NOBODY gets above a 7 as they lay into PSG striker’s ‘ghost’ display vs Man City

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      KYLIAN MBAPPE became the latest victim of L’Equipe’s notoriously tough player ratings for his ‘ghostly’ performance on Wednesday night.In Paris Saint-Germain’s Champions League semi-final first leg against Manchester City, the Frenchman was unable to hit the back of the net.
      Kylian Mbappe could not produce his trademark excellence against Man CityCredit: Reuters
      In fact, he failed to fire off a single shot while tallying the fewest passes (19) and touches (26) of any outfield player who started the game.
      Mbappe also earned just the one foul, compared to Neymar’s five, and won two of his five duels, which fared poorly up against Riyad Mahrez winning eight of his 13 and Bernardo Silva five of his seven.
      The performance led to French daily L’Equipe dishing out a devastating 3/10 player rating to the 22-year-old.
      Their evaluation described his outing as ‘ghostly’ and stated: “He did not take advantage of the space and did not punish City’s slowness. He made a bad choice in the 85th minute in a clear counter-attack.”
      Only goalscoring defender Marquinhos earned a 7/10 for PSG while Neymar, dismissed midfielder Idrissa Gueye, Leandro Paredes and boss Mauricio Pochettino were all handed 4/10s.
      PSG shot out the traps at Parc des Princes and led early on, before goals from Kevin De Bruyne and Mahrez turned the tide.
      How L’Equipe rated the players in Wednesday’s gameCredit: L’Équipe
      The French daily’s headline criticised the winning goal – ‘At the foot of the wall’
      Mbappe’s brightest moment could have made it 2-0, when he dazzled the City defence and fired in a great cross that Marco Verratti perhaps should have met.
      The striker will be relying on another man of the match performance to knock out the Premier League club.
      He has already produced magnificent displays away to Barcelona and Bayern Munich earlier in the competition.
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      While many viewers felt Wednesday’s game was a classic to-and-fro Champions League affair, L’Equipe’s ratings told a different story.
      Even City’s stars were marked down with Kyle Walker a 4/10 and 7/10s awarded to only De Bruyne and Mahrez.
      Only a handful of players have ever been awarded a perfect 10/10 by the newspaper, including Robert Lewandowski, Neymar and Lionel Messi.
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      Arsene Wenger slams ‘stupid’ PSG for ‘mental collapse’ in 2-1 Man City loss More

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      Arsene Wenger slams ‘stupid’ PSG for ‘mental collapse’ in 2-1 Man City loss after becoming ’emotionally aggressive’

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      ARSENE WENGER has lambasted Paris Saint-Germain for being ‘stupid’ and ’emotionally aggressive’ as they lost 2-1 to Manchester City.Les Parisiens finished the Champions League semi-final first leg tie with ten men as the Citizens came back from behind to score two vital away goals.

      Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Idrissa Gueye was sent off during the 2-1 defeat against Manchester CityCredit: Alamy
      Brazilian defender Marquinhos put the home side in front in the 15th minute, before Kevin De Bruyne and Riyad Mahrez scored after the break.
      The Algerian’s winner was easily avoidable as his free-kick somehow went straight through the wall which caught out goalkeeper Keylor Navas.
      And things got worse for Mauricio Pochettino’s men after Idrissa Gueye was sent off for a nasty tackle on Ilkay Gundogan with PSG chasing the game.
      Former Arsenal boss Wenger believes that the Ligue 1 giants lost the game due to their poor discipline as they ‘mentally collapsed’ in the second half.
      Speaking on beIN SPORTS, the Frenchman, 71, said: “From the defenders turning their back, it’s between [Leandro] Paredes and [Presnel] Kimpembe.
      “Why do you lie a guy on the ground if the guys in the wall open the wall? 
      “I personally believe that the second goal is not acceptable for that level. It’s not the first time we see players turning their back and City took advantage of that.
      “But I must say in the second half PSG were protective and not progressive any more. Is it because they were not physically capable?
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      Arsene Wenger has slammed PSG for how they collapsed in the second half against the CitizensCredit: beIN Sports

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      “After the 1-1, they collapsed completely. They become emotional and aggressive in a stupid way.”
      Wenger has also stated that PSG’s second half shocker could be due to them being second in the French top-flight, with the club losing eight league games this term.
      He added: “What was very interesting tonight is that you could see that when it was 1-1, PSG mentally collapsed.
      “This is as well the consequence of this team losing eight games in the league. This has an impact in this kind of situation. 
      “When it’s 1-1 the team knows they have lost many games, they carry that. It’s not like the season before when they were unbeatable in the league. 
      “You could see the confidence dropped considerably and the mental impact when Man City equalised, for the semi-final of a Champions League, was too big.”
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