Real Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane hailed the impact of Karim Benzema after his compatriot lifted the European champions from the early blow of conceding to beat SSC Napoli 3-1 on Wednesday.
Madrid are now on the brink of a seventh successive UEFA Champions League quarter-final as they aim to become the first team to retain the trophy in the Champions League era.
Lorenzo Insigne’s wonder strike after just eight minutes had given Napoli a shock lead at the Santiago Bernabeu, but Zidane was rewarded for keeping faith in Benzema, despite fierce criticism of late from the Spanish press as he headed home his 51st Champions League goal to equalize, before second-half strikes from Toni Kroos and Casemiro gave Madrid a commanding lead.
Photo: AFP
“I am always happy with him [Benzema],” Zidane said. “He needed that goal which lately he didin’t get, but I am happy not only for the goal, but also for how he played generally. He made the rest of the team play better and his movement is very good. The performances of Karim, Cristiano [Ronaldo], James [Rodriguez], they all made the rest of the team better.”
“It was a great night. We all played well, not just me,” Benzema told Spanish TV station MEGA.
“I am very happy and proud of my work. There are a lot of sacrifices, but now I feel good. I scored a goal and saw that the fans were with me, which is very good for my confidence,” he said.
Napoli coach Maurizio Sarri believes his side still have a chance of reaching the quarter-finals for the first time in their history.
“Clearly Madrid played their best game of the past three months and we didn’t play our best,” Sarri said. “If we manage to play at our best we are not that far away. We may lose [in the second leg], but we can go for it.”
“It is the first game we have lost in four months. We didn’t manage to express ourselves 100 percent, but we can’t lose our confidence because we have the return game and league games to come,” he said.
“We don’t have a great chance of turning it around, but we have a chance,” he added.
Even a pep talk from former Napoli great Diego Maradona could not inspire the Italian side to victory.
However, Sarri believes their fast start more than justified his decision to invite the Argentine superstar into the dressing room before kickoff.
“Diego spoke with us for 30 seconds, but he is a legend so clearly it had an impact. Our first 10, 15 minutes were our best,” Sarri said. “We were playing a very good team, the best team in the world.”
MARRED FINAL: As most of Senegalese players walked off the pitch after a controversial decision, some supporters threw objects and attempted to get onto the pitch Senegal on Sunday won the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) as Pape Gueye’s extra-time winner sunk hosts Morocco 1-0 after a chaotic final that saw the eventual champions storm off the pitch late in the game. Brahim Diaz could have won the trophy for Morocco with a controversial spot-kick in the 24th minute of added time at the end of normal time as ugly scenes broke out in the stands. However, Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy easily saved the weak attempted “Panenka” chip by the Real Madrid winger, who was clearly distracted by the long delay that followed the penalty award.
James Harden on Friday scored 31 points and came up big in overtime to help the Los Angeles Clippers erase a double-digit deficit on the way to a 121-117 NBA victory over the Toronto Raptors. Harden scored 16 points in the fourth quarter and overtime as the Clippers pushed their wining steak to five games despite the absence of star Kawhi Leonard with a sprained right ankle. The Clippers trailed by 11 entering the fourth quarter, but Harden drilled a pair of free-throws with 1:24 left in regulation to tie it and after misses from both teams, they went to
Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg on Wednesday was ruled out for the second half of their 118-109 loss to the Denver Nuggets after the No. 1 pick sprained his left ankle in the first half. Flagg was called for a foul while defending against Peyton Watson and turned the ankle as he fell to the floor with 6 minutes, 1 second left in the second quarter. Flagg limped to the bench and continued to the locker room, but returned for the final 2 minutes, 35 seconds before the break. The 19-year-old did not come out for the second half before the announcement that
Yassine Bounou on Wednesday saved two penalties, while Youssef en-Nesyri netted the decisive spot-kick as hosts Morocco secured a 4-2 shoot-out victory over Nigeria following a 0-0 draw in a tense Africa Cup of Nations semi-final in Rabat. Morocco, seeking their first continental title in 50 years, are to face 2021 winners Senegal in Sunday’s decider in Rabat, while Nigeria take on Egypt in the third-place playoff tomorrow. The 120 minutes before the shoot-out had few clear-cut chances for either side, but it was Morocco who created more opportunities, although they were denied by some fine saves from Nigeria goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali. Nigeria
RSS