Edinson Cavani to miss PSG's trip to Leverkusen

The Uruguayan has been ruled out PSG's Champions League clash

Via Goal.com-

There's some bad news awaiting Paris Saint Germain fans around the world ,which states that star hitman Edinson Cavani will miss the Parisiens' much-anticipated Round of 16 clash with German giants Bayer Leverkusen.

The Uruguayan sustained a thigh injury in PSG's 2-0 win over Bordeaux 3 weeks ago and has not featured since.

PSG manager Laurent Blanc confirmed the bad news saying that Cavani will return after 2 games in Les Parisiens encounter with Toulouse on the 23rd of Feb.Although Swedish star Zlatan Ibrahimovic is also suffering from a slight niggle but he'll feature against Leverkusen at the BayArena,Germany.

Laurent Blanc stated that he'll look to reshuffle his side ahead of a tricky trip to Germany and is keen to stay focused on his side's title bid in Ligue 1.

"Zlatan Ibrahimovic has trained normally for two days without any problems," Blanc said. "He is fit to play and will probably play against Valenciennes. I think it will be a different team from the one that played Monaco. But to prepare for the Leverkusen match, it will not be a bad thing to play against Valenciennes on Friday.

"The second part of the season began in Brest [in the Coupe de France], it does not start against Leverkusen. The championship is important, we must win against Valenciennes tomorrow."

Know The Player 1-Pablo Piatti

Pablo Piatti , It's about time you know him...

An ordinary story of a Unique Talent from Argentina not known to many. The player who rejected the advances of Stade Rennes a year ago is finally finding his feet and flourishing into a star at the Mestalla.... 

Pablo Daniel Piatti , a youth product of  hometown club Estudiantes de La Plata, a small sized player (5ft 4inch)  having a rare flair , a great crosser of the ball with a sudden burst of pace and a Left Foot that can hurt any Defense . The native from La Carlota has many Characteristics quite similar to that of Leo Messi. Piatti has everything but a sincere recognition of his talent by the Football world....

It all Started....

A young Piatti had put in many good perfomances in Argentina to impress European Clubs. He was subject to a record undisclosed bid from spanish side UD Almeira which was later accepted. His coach at the time and Mentor Diego Simeone (present manager of Club Athletico de Madrid) was also certain that a new star was about to hatch.Piatti joined an Almeria side which had the likes of Alvaro Negredo playing for them. In the next three years he turned out to be the main man at Almeria and "Pablo Piatti" was the name to watchout for in the south of spain. His development had taken a huge leap. By then , Spanish Heavyweights Valencia were interested in him and saw him as a replacement for Joaquin , who had joined Malaga. The reported €8 million deal went through and Piatti was presented as a Valencia player in a fortnight.

Valencia CF

Piatti found it hard in his first few months at Valencia. The club wasn't having the best of times. Managers like Unaï Emery, Mauricio Pellegrino and Ernesto Valverde did not actually have the confidence in him. He was under the likes of Andres Guardado and Sergio Canales in the pecking order. Competition was tough , but Piatti never really gave up. In 2013, french club Stade Rennes made Valencia known of thier interest in Piatti. Piatti though , declined for a move as he wanted to fight for his place at Valencia. he always had the mind and will to do so.

Appointment of Argentinian coach Pizzi 

The sacking of  Djukic didn't come as a shock considering the embarrasing results Valencia had under him.

Juan Antonio Pizzi took over the role at Valencia. Under pizzi , Piatti has been a revelation so far in that young Valencia side. He's mainly played as a left winger, or in the no.10 role behind Paco Alcacer / Jonas.

Suddenly , Piatti has finally found a coach who has the confidence in him which others didn't have in the last three years. Is it the Argentinian connection ?? well , maybe . whatever it is , it's resulting in amazing perfomances from Piatti and the whole team.

Piatti is still 24 years old and has a bright future ahead of him. He has more than enough talent to be a star at the Mestalla in the coming years. So yes , It's about time you know this Little Genius....

Lukaku is keen on playing the Champions League

The Belgian has made his intentions clear to Chelsea

Romelu Lukaku has insisted that he is ready for a move to Chelsea in the summer and said that he deserves to play the UEFA Champions League. 

The Belgian star has been on loan at Everton and has impressed everyone in the Toffees outfit this season.

Currently the Belgian star is injured but has scored nine goals for the Toffees  this season, and now he believes that this would be the perfect time for him to get a taste of competing in the grand European stage.

Another one of those Anderlecht youth products,Lukaku is a striker who has immaculate balance and strength which is required to shrug off defenders.His exploits for West Bromwich Albion have become renowned and he earned laurels and applauds for his showings at the West Midlands club. 

Lukaku to reporters-

"I am 21 now. I have spent five years on professional football. And it is time now."

"It's high time that I can play Champions League. This is the next step of my development and career. "

"Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney experienced the Champions League at the age of 23-24. I am 21, and I am ready for it. I would show the world that I am ready for it. "

He thinks that he would have a bright future with Mourinho's side as he is hoping to further impress the Portuguese

Arsenal play season defining game on Wednesday night: Preview

Arsenal welcome a struggling ManUtd to The Emirates on Wednesday night. Both teams come back off disappointing results. Gunners with a drubbing at Anfield and ManUtd dropping two points at old Trafford against Fulham in the last minute (since SAF retired, the opponents have benifitted from Fergie Time). Although, if the teams form is compared, Gunners have only lost 1 in 11 whereas ManUtd have suffered 5 defeats in their last 8. 

The two sides met in Manchester earlier in the season where Arsenal didn't turn up at all and were handed a 1-0 defeat via the Dutchman who went up the road two seasons ago (He's better off not being named after his celebration). 

This is the second of the four difficult matches and after what the first one went, Arsenal surely want to put things right and show it was just a blip. 

Predicted line up:

It's going to be a similar one to that at Liverpool apart from the fact that the OX or Özil could be dropped for Podolski or Rosicky. The £42 mil man hasn't been up to it recently and the fans have been calling to drop him or rest him. The other change might be that Wenger may opt for Gibbs for Monreal. The Englishman hasn't featured for quite some time as Wenger's been preferring the Spaniard over him. So here's how the line up might look like: 

W. Szczesny 

B. Sagna 

P. Mertesacker 

L. Koscielny

K. Gibbs 

M. Arteta

J. Wilshere

M. Özil 

S. Cazorla

L. Podolski  

O. Giroud 

It's been ages since Arsenal beat United and it seems the perfect opportunity to stamp their class on them. ManUtd are totally disjointed, and what better to respond from a poor defeat than to give your fierce rivals a hammering? It's going to be a tight encounter but if a Arsenal turn up with all gears up, they must win this easy. A win will take us back competing, but a loss may just shred our season apart.

My Prediction: 2-1 to Arsenal with Giroud and Wilshere scoring, Van Persie for them. 

COYG. 

- Via Itsallarsenalinhere 

AS Monaco vs PSG -Preview and Predictions

Berbatov looks to start his Monaco career with a bang

It's Psg vs Monaco at the Stade Louis II. The visitors would be eager to thrash the men in red and white by extending their lead to 8 points at the top. Parisens would be high on confidence heading into the marquee clash after they beat Nantes 2-1 in the Coupe de la Ligue semifinal.On the other hand Monaco were  sloppy against Lorient last week and they would love to stage a  come back against the men in dark blue in order to  keep their title race alive.

It will be a much anticipated clash between two of the magnificent striker strike forces of  Europe, Zlatan Ibrahimovic  against Dimitar Berbatov . One wishes to give his Monaco career a fresh start while other wants to continue his sensational  goal scoring ability.

Both the sides have shown some  dazzling   form in the ongoing season but there also have some big upsets they had to face against sides which are in the relegation zone.

In the reserve fixture  the match ended up being a draw 1-1 with Ibrahimovic scoring for the home side and Falcao scoring for the visitors.

This the match in which everyone of the 22 players on the field would dream to score to give his side the advantage

Berbatov said that "It's the best way possible (to start)." 

"You play against one of the biggest clubs in football, one of the best players in football, so what else can a player want?

"It's going to be a fantastic opportunity for me. It's perfect."

"I'm not here to take someone's place. I'm here to help the team as much as I can with my goals and my assists," added Berbatov.

Monaco's manager Ranieri said"This is like a training session for us mentally. It is a big match. It will allow us to see the difference that exists between us and the great PSG. 

"I have said to my players that the match is not a problem. The result will change nothing. The games against Nice (in the French Cup next Wednesday) and Bastia (next weekend) will be more important." 

"PSG are extraterrestrials. They can only lose the title. And they would need to make a lot of errors to do so. Because, even with their second team, they would win the title," he added.

Psg's midfielder Yohan Cabaye said"It won't be over, there are still 14 matches to play. But a win would bring us closer to the title".

Defender Gregory Van Der Wiel said "We want to win. We feel strong. It's never over while there are still points to play for but we would be even further ahead."

Psg's manager Laurent Blanc said "We come into the game with five points more. I think we are in a better situation than Monaco. 

"It is a huge match against a direct rival for the title. Monaco are having a great season, and they took a point off us at the Parc des Princes," he added.

Team News

Psg will be without their spearhead Edinson Cavani who is also expected to miss the match against Leverkusen in the Champions League.

Psg midfielder Adrien Rabiot is out  due to a knee injury and defender Jallet is having a back problem.

Yohan Cabaye is expected to start for the first time since his arrival in Paris.

Monaco would be without their star striker Falcao who scored in the Reverse fixture and has scored 9 goals this season and will most probably be out for the remaining season with a knee injury.

While,the arrival of Berabatov would revitalize the team.

Expected Line-ups

Psg(4-4-2):Sirigu;Thiago Silva,Alex,Van Der  Wiel,Maxwell;Thiago Motta,Matuidi,Cabaye,Verratti;Ibrahimovic,Lavezzi.

AS Monaco(4-4-2):Subasic; Fabinho, Kurzawa, Abidal, Raggi; Moutinho, Rodriguez, Obbadi, Kondogbia;Berbatov, Riviere.

Prediction

It's going to be a thrilling encounter with both the sides evenly poised and by seeing the form of both the teams it becomes even more harder to say anything regarding this match. The midfield performance  by both the teams would be a key factor that will decide the outcome of this match as both the teams have tremendously talented and experienced midfielders which can change the complexion of this match.The outcome of this match will also depend on the factor which team can survive the battle of nerves.

We'll predict a 2-2 draw.But one who even does a small mistake on the field will have to pay the price.  

Liverpool vs Arsenal - Previews and Predictions

It's an epic clash at Anfield,Liverpool

Liverpool's 1-1 draw at West Brom on Sunday left hem just 2 points adrift of Merseyside rivals Everton and 8 points adrift of league leaders Arsenal. Liverpool suffered a 2-0 reverse at Arsenal in November, but Wenger believes Brendan Rodgers' side are a different proposition now.  "We need to dominate the game in order to keep [Luis] Suarez and [Daniel] Sturridge quiet," he said. "We must control possession."We had some good wins at Anfield. I have a lot of respect for the fans there, they know their football. I think Liverpool are strong offensively with Sturridge, Suarez, [Philippe] Coutinho, [Raheem] Sterling and [Steven] Gerrard.Wenger's side hold a two-point lead at the top of the table after they beat Crystal Palace 2-0 last weekend.

Team News

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers is still waiting for the return of his injured players and will select from the same squad as last weekend for Saturday's visit of Arsenal.Defenders Daniel Agger (calf) and Glen Johnson (ankle) should be back in training next week but Mamadou Sakho is still short of fitness.Left-back Jose Enrique's recovery from a knee operation is taking longer than required and he may not be available for another month. On the other hand for Arsenal Jack Wilshere will be back from an ankle problem while Midfielder Matthieu Flamini is still suspended while Aaron Ramsey (thigh) and deadline-day loan signing Kim Kallstrom (back) are not fit, along with defender Thomas Vermaelen (calf) wil be out for the game.

Expected Lineups

Liverpool : Mignolet, Flanagan, Skrtel, Toure, Cissokho, Gerrard, Henderson, Sterling, Coutinho, Sturridge, Suarez

Arsenal : Szczesny, Sagna, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Gibbs, Podolski, Arteta, Wilshere, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Ozil, Giroud

My Prediction

Liverpool 1 : 2 Arsenal - Liverpool's recent record against Gunners hasn't been good so we can see the gunners taking this one.

3 of the best Nemanja Vidic replacements

Nemanja Vidic has confirmed his departure from England

The 32 year old Serbian has now officially procliamed that he'll leave ManUtd this coming summer.To check out the 3 of the best replacements for Vidic,Click here-http://www.ftbpro.com/posts/kaustubh.pandey/684826/3-of-the-best-nemanja-vidic-replacements