Dusanna, the cat that purred itself to death!

2010-04-30T12:59:00.001+01:00

Atletico Madrid 1 Galatasaray 1, Vicente Calderon, Europa League, 18/Feb/10

2010-02-19T11:49:00.002Z

Los Colchoneros fielded their strongest possible eleven, with David De Gea keeping his place in goal, while Sergio Aguero and Diego Forlan started upfront.Galatasaray, meanwhile, had former Rojiblanco Leo Franco in goal, but were missing Harry Kewell.The match got off to a cagey start, with both sides struggling to hold on to the ball for any meaningful length of time. It took 12 minutes for the first effort on goal, when Arda Turan volleyed wide from inside the box. The Turk was looking lively, and he soon tested De Gea, but the young keeper was equal to his drive from outside the box. The home side were struggling to test their former 'keeper, but on 22 minutes, Jose Antonio Reyes pulled a rabbit out of the hat. Standing over a free kick from just outside the box, the winger let fly and saw his shot race into the top corner of the net, leaving Leo Franco with no chance. Set pieces were proving a constant threat for the visitors, and Forlan was soon testing Franco with another one on the half hour mark, which was tipped over the bar. With ten minutes left in the first half, Frank Rijkaard made a substitution, taking Caner Erkin off for Giovani Dos Santos. However, the action was still all at the other end, with Aguero seeing his toe-poke well parried by Franco. Los Rojiblancos continued to press, and Forlan soon saw his shot across goal go just the wrong side of the post. Soon after, Raul Garcia got his head onto a Reyes free kick, but sent it straight at the 'keeper. Finally, just before the break, Simao let fly with an audacious volley from outside the box, which bounced back off the post with Franco stranded. It looked as though the hosts would comfortably see out the rest of the half, but Mustafa Sarp provided a scare when he headed Elano's free kick goalwards, only for De Gea to pull off a stunning save. That was the final chance of the half, with all left to play for in the second. The second half started much like the first, with both sides taking a while to settle back into the intense rhythm they had previously established. It took ten minutes for the first shot on goal, when Kader Keita let fly from outside the box, requiring a smart save by De Gea. Just before the hour mark, Forlan was replaced by Jose Manuel Jurado, as Atleti looked to shore up their midfield. Aguero was still threatening though, and after going on a mazy run, it required a diving save from Franco to stop him grabbing the second. Then, Simao stood over another free kick and let fly, but again his ex team-mate came to the rescue. With 20 minutes remaining, Atleti received a blow as De Gea suffered an injury while taking a goal kick, requiring him to be replaced by Sergio Asenjo. The substitute nearly had a horrific introduction, when he was caught in no-man's land trying to stop Sarp's header, but Tomas Ujfalusi rescued the situation on the line. However, minutes later, the damage was done when Keita turned in Hakan Balta's cross at the near post, with Asenjo's positioning more than suspect. Both sides now seemed eager to find the winner, and Simao was thwarted by Leo Franco once more with ten minutes left. Soon, Reyes was substituted for Eduardo Salvio, and the Argentine nearly scored with his first touch in an Atleti shirt, but he turned Valera's cross wide. That proved to be the final chance of the match, as Galatasaray grabbed a crucial away goal, giving them the edge for the second leg.

Atletico Madrid 2 Barcelona 1, Vicente Calderon, La Liga, 14/Feb/10

2010-02-16T21:37:00.004Z

Atletico Madrid went into the game knowing that a win could move them well clear of the bottom of the table. For Barcelona, the chance was to create a five-point gap between themselves and Real Madrid at the top. An entertaining first half saw a sloppy Barcelona side quickly concede a two-goal lead. However, they managed to get a goal back, which meant that they were never out of the game. The second period of play was a lot grittier and took the pattern of Barcelona trying to get through an organised Atletico defence. Atletico could have got off to the worst possible start inside the second minute. Goalkeeper, De Gea, nearly fumbled a catch from a weak shot, which would have seen the ball fall right at the feet of Ibrahimovic.
Seydou Keita then had to be replaced just a minute later as he pulled up with what looked like a bad muscular injury. However, there was still enough experience in the away side to be able to dominate the midfield area. It was Atletico who looked the feistier of the two sides and this paid off quickly when Diego Forlan put the home side 1-0 up inside the first ten minutes. Joe Reyes made a neat little run from the left wing, beating a couple of players before Forlan tucked the ball past an on rushing Victor Valdes. Barcelona should have replied almost instantly through their big Swedish front man. Ibrahimovic controlled the ball brilliantly, created a little bit of space but was dispossessed just as he was about to pull the trigger. The La Liga leaders looked a little shell-shocked and Atletico should have doubled their lead through Sergio Aguero. Aguero timed a run superbly to beat the Barca offside trap but for some reason looked for another player when it seemed easier to score. The ball was cleared before the Argentine could think twice. A second goal came soon enough as Atletico continued their blistering start to the game. Simao curled the ball into the goal beautifully from a free kick on the left side of the area. Valdes watched helplessly as it flew in. Barcelona now had their work cut out. The La Liga and European champions showed their class and came back with an instant reply in the 27th minute, against the run of the game. Carles Puyol knocked the ball on from a corner and Ibrahimovic was on hand to volley the ball in at the back post. Ibrahimovic then rose above everyone else from another corner and connected well with a header. The ball bulleted towards the bottom left hand corner but De Gea got down at the last moment to smother the ball and prevent an equaliser.
Barcelona looked a completely different side as the game neared the half time mark. Lionel Messi combined well with Ibrahimovic before the Swede curled an effort at goal in the 34th minute. De Gea stretched out a hand to make a world class save but the tide was turning.
To their credit, Atletico dug deep and got stuck in. They kept the ball well in the Barcelona half and still looked good as they defended their lead into the break. Atletico started the second half slightly the better of the sides. They were keeping the ball a lot better, however, the general feeling of the game was that they would need another to hold Barcelona off for long enough.
Barca quickly found their second half feet, when Ibrahimovic found himself in another superb position. Perea rushed across to snuff out the danger when it seemed that the alarm bells were about to go off in the Atletico defence. Barcelona then tried to walk the ball into the net before the hour mark, but after a scramble or six, the ball was kicked away with some authority. The away team were going to have to find a little more precision to get level. Atletico kept chipping away and had a number of players who could hurt the Spanish champions. Aguero managed to tussle past the intimidating figure of Puyol before forcing Valdes to spread his arms and palm the ball wide. Aguero and Puyol tussled again in the 65th minute as the Barca captain slid in with an inch perfect tackle. Aguero was looking to nick the ball in front of him and the referee would have had no choice but to award a penalty. Barcelona were building wave after wave of attack as the last twenty minutes quickly took a familiar pattern. The Atletico defence was looking solid and well organised but just one mistake could mean disaster. Atletico were playing on the counter. Jose Reyes broke into space and was looking to cut inside before he was axed by Maxwell. Home players surrounded the referee as the Barca man had already been booked but he waved away protests. Atletico held back their three substitutions to eat away at time during the last ten minutes. A stadium full of Atletico fans were biting their fingernails, hoping that their team could hang on.

Atletico Madrid 2 Sevilla 1, Vicente Calderon, La Liga, 02/Jan/09

2010-01-03T02:39:00.004Z

A last gasp winner from Antonio Lopez was enough for Atletico Madrid to take all three points against the ten men of Sevilla in an encounter that both teams will probably want to forget.It was the away side who started slightly better and generated the first chance of any real note. Diego Perotti patrolled the left wing before getting a ball into the heart of the box, which Alvaro Negredo turned just wide of the target. Sevilla continued their glitzy and organised start to the game in both defence and attack. Diego Forlan, searching for confidence at Atletico Madrid was snuffed out by Ivica Dragutinovic in the 7th minute as the Uruguay looked set to lash the ball into the net. Madrid were starting to have a little spell of pressure and came more into the game just after the ten minute mark. Jose Reyes did well to find some space on the left but could not get his 11th minute effort on goal as the quality which has evaded the home side showed its face once again. The home crowd grew louder with frustrations becoming increasingly audible. Madrid were having plenty of the ball but just did not have the quality on the pitch to make it count. This was emphasised perfectly in the 18th minute when Diego Forlan ripped into Juan Valera for a floppy forward ball that the striker had no chance of controlling. Forlan was again in the play just minutes later when Perotti could not control a header. The ball fell to the Atletico front man who stormed forward only to find that he was the only player in a red and white shirt in any sight of the Sevilla goal. For a spell it seemed like Forlan was playing by himself. He drove forward again on 25 minutes and sent his effort just wide of the far post. Sevilla countered a little bit of Atletico pressure and had a chance to apply their own just after the half an hour mark. Romaric whipped in a good ball and it was the unlikely figure of Jose Reyes who stopped another Sevilla head from finding the ball as he did well to clear the danger. Perotti then broke with some good skill but was hampered by the linesman's flag as both sides searched for a genuine chance. The main problem for Atletico was what to do with the ball, which they were having plenty of. Reyes was drifting from wing to wing but had no delivery or killer pass. This was evident as the break approached when a Sevilla player ran from one side of the pitch to the other to tackle him and initiate a counter move. With both teams searching for ideas it was a defensive error from Abdoulay Konko who very nearly let in Reyes just before half time. The Sevilla player failed to control a rapid pass but recovered just in time to poke the ball out of Reyes' path when he would have been through on goal. Sevilla then pounced to punish Atletico for not making the most of when they had the ball earlier in the half. Renato drilled a header into the corner of the Madrid goal after a superb corner from Perotti. Ironically it was looking as though the only way either team would score, would be from a set piece. It was that goal that sparked the game into life and Atletico got back into the game with a little bit of luck immediately after the break. Ivica Dragutinovic nodded into his own net after a calamity of errors. Andres Palop rushed out to smother but the ball from the feet of Forlan but miscalculated and it bounced off of the defender and over the line. The own goal seemed to turn a light bulb on over Aletico heads. Forlan combined well with Simao in the 51st minute before smashing the ball off of Konko and winning a corner. The danger was subsequently lifted but the crowd started to roar like a toddler interrupted from sleep. Forlan shot just wide of Palop's far post two minutes later as it looked as though he could play for one million minutes and not be able to score a goal. Dragutinovic's misery was then confirmed when he was booked just shy of the hour mark for a push on Ibrahima Balde that came right out of the non-league book of defending. Madrid were beginning to prowl and looked as if they might form some sort of authority over the game. Good little passes and runs were being met with cynical fouls that prompted the introduction of Adriano by Sevilla to solidify proceedings. Reyes was axed down by Renato after the 60th minute, he was lucky not to go into the book and did well to evade the end of many pointing Atletico fingers. Sevilla tried to stretch the play and did well to break up the fluency that Madrid had built. Forlan still looked dangerous on the counter attack but Fernando Navarro and Romaric were drifting wide and having lots of space. Antonio Lopez gave away a bad free kick before the 70 mark but the away team left their set piece play back in Seville. The word scrappy must have been on the lips of thousands watching as neither side could dominate the second half. However, Sevilla gifted Atletico with another slight advantage when Aldo Duscher was sent off for a second yellow card after lunging with both feet showing at Simao. Atletico continued their frustrating build up play despite having a numerical advantage on the pitch. Sevilla sat back and took the pressure as the last ten minutes approached. Arouna Kone was looking quick and pacey on the counter but it was hard to see how a goal would come for the away side if they wanted to snatch all three points. It was in fact the away side who nearly stole a goal on one of those counter attacks. Jesus Navas burst into life on 80 minutes when he made a fantastic run, which was only ended by a perfectly timed tackle from Luis Perea. The home team continued to hustle and bustle with a lot of energy but the side just could not find a way through the determined Sevilla defence as it became obvious why Madrid were lurking near the bottom of the La Liga table. Antonio Lopez then stole all of the headlines when he won the match for his team with the last touch of the game. He guided his header superbly into the net after Simao had done well out on the wing to win a free kick.

Hartlepool 2 Oldham Ath 1, Victoria Park, League One, 02/Jan/09

2010-01-03T02:38:00.001Z

Tenerife 1 Atlético de Madrid 1, Heliodoro Rodríguez, La Liga, 20/Dec/09

2009-12-25T21:17:00.003Z

Atlético de Madrid took one point away from the Heliodoro Rodríguez in a game that became an uphill battle early on for Quique Sánchez Flores’ lads, who gave up a goal just three minutes in. A goal from Jurado and great saves from Asenjo keep the ‘rojiblanco’ squad alive as they say farewell to a forgettable year.The final week of the year pitted Tenerife against Atlético de Madrid in an encounter which would allow the winner some breathing room during the Christmas break. The threat of relegation spots has kept the visitors on tenterhooks until the final days of 2009. With both Sergio Agüero and José Antonio Reyes out, the side from Madrid was facing a direct rival in the table.In spite of the necessity and the desire to definitively take off by Quique Sánchez Flores’ men, things started very poorly for Atlético de Madrid, as they conceded a goal in the 3rd minute when Nino tapped in from inside the six-yard box after a set piece.After recovering from this early blow, Atlético tried over and over again from the ten minute mark, as they got attacks led by Maxi, Jurado and Forlán. The Uruguayan sent a distant shot just wide of the right post, and nobody was there to finish off the play. A great chance was thus wasted for the ‘rojiblanco’ squad, which stayed strong after the poor initial outlook.Their intentions took effect. In minute 22, the Tenerife defense lost a ball that ended up at Forlán’s feet, and the striker connected perfectly with Jurado, who opened the scoring for the ‘rojiblancos’. It was the fourth goal of the season for the midfielder, laying claim as a good substitution for the injured Agüero.Nino again gave warning at the half-hour mark, with a good play after a through ball from Mikel Alonso, but luckily the final shot went wide. Tenerife continued to insist, this time after an elaborate play which ended with former Sevilla player Alfaro’s off-target header.And then came a play which could have changed the game when Pérez Burrull deemed that Álvaro Domínguez had touched the ball with an arm inside the area. Nino took the ensuing spot kick, but Asenjo stretched out to save Atlético de Madrid.After the re-start, Atlético came out with the strength demanded by the ‘rojiblanco’ manager. A quick counter-attack several minutes in after Simão had stolen the ball could have been lethal, but Jurado lost the ball when the Portuguese winger was making a run all alone directly at the Tenerife goal.Shortly after that, Perea was fast to make a saving slide-tackle on a shot from point blank range after a nice play from the home side. The role of the Atleti netminder was also worth highlighting, as he was secure and made several brilliant saves which changed the course of the game. Another chance got away from Atlético with Forlán as the focus of attention, but the Tenerife defense shut him down in time. And then Sergio Asenjo was once again in fine form after a direct kick. Neither team was content to settle for the draw, as both created constant chances and the match became a back-and-forth battle.The ‘roijblanco’ squad almost came away with the three points in stoppage time when Sinama-Pongolle controlled a cross with his chest, and then sent in a low pass for Forlán that he was unable to get to by centimeters. But the danger then changed sides on a similar play, with another great stop from Asenjo off an overhead bicycle kick which saved a point for the visitors.
Atlético de Madrid: Asenjo; Ujfalusi, Juanito, Perea (Pablo, 86’), Domínguez; Assunçao, Cléber, Maxi Rodríguez (Raúl García, 71’), Simão; Jurado (Sinama-Pongolle, 80’) and Forlán.
Ref: Pérez Burrull.

Atletico Madrid 1 Villarreal 2, Vicente Calderon, La Liga, 13/Dec/09

2009-12-25T21:09:00.003Z

Atletico Madrid were brought back down to earth with a bump as they succumbed to a fightback from Villarreal at the Vicente Calderon. Simao found his opener cancelled out by David Fuster before Joseba Llorente buried the winner in the very last minute.That Atleti had that first goal in the first place was largely down tot he form of Sergio Asenjo, who was the key player on the pitch during the first half hour.Atletico's trademark suicidal defending saw the likes of Giuseppe Rossi gifted several opportunities due to the inept display from Juanito. Ruben Cani, too, came close, but was denied by the narrowest of margins.But after 36 minutes the hosts took the lead. It was a defence-splitting through ball of the best kind from Jose Antonio Reyes that caught the Yellow Submarine wanting as Simao cut in from the left and slipped it past Diego Lopez with his second touch.Following the break, though, Villarreal's pressure told. Joan Capdevila's deep cross from the left foxed Juanito; with Sergio Asenjo hesitating over whether or not to come out, David Fuster was left with an easy finish.Then followed a balanced period of play, but one in which a bit of quality told for the Yellow Submarine. Or, to put it another way, awful defending from Perea and Juanito allowed substitute Joseba Llorente in for an opportunistic finish right at the death as the long-suffering Atleti crowd saw the recent renaissance end in disaster.The Rojiblancos are, amazingly, just one point away from the relegation zone. Villarreal jump to 10th on 18 points.

Wycombe Wanderers 2 Oldham Ath 2, Adams Park, League One, 19/Dec/09

2009-12-25T20:54:00.008Z

Matt Harrold converted an 88th-minute penalty to earn 10-man Wycombe a point after an action-packed 2-2 draw at home to 10-man Oldham. Oldham had the perfect chance to take the lead after just six minutes when Dale Stephens was fouled in the box but Paul Heffernan's penalty was saved by goalkeeper Scott Shearer. The Latics were reeling three minutes later when John Akinde pounced on a loose ball after Darryl Flahavan saved from Kevin Betsy. But Akinde turned villain after 22 minutes when he was sent off following a raised arm against Oldham captain Sean Gregan. Oldham took advantage of Akinde's stupidity on the stroke of half-time when Danny Whitaker's 30-yard scorcher flew into the bottom corner. Reuben Hazell headed home Stephens' corner six minutes after the restart to put Oldham in front, but Wycombe were level when Scott Davies was brought down by Whitaker and Harrold held his nerve.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/o/oldham_athletic/default.stm

Oldham Ath 2 Exeter 0, Boundary Park, League One, 12/Dec/09

2009-12-25T20:48:00.003Z

Oldham picked up their first win in seven league games to leapfrog Exeter near the bottom of the table following a 2-0 win. Strike pairing Deane Smalley and Paul Heffernan bagged a second-half goal apiece as the Latics shrugged off their dismal run with a comfortable victory. Exeter could have taken an early lead when midfield man Bertie Cozic clipped the bar from fully 30 yards. Adam Stansfield was denied by home keeper Darryl Flahavan but Oldham took charge and Danny Whitaker went close on three occasions. The breakthrough came on 51 minutes as Dean Furman found Smalley who produced a crisp 12-yard finish inside the far post. And Oldham, who went into the game as the division's lowest scorers, made it two goals in seven minutes when Heffernan's deflected shot looped over keeper Andy Marriott. The on-loan Doncaster Rovers forward then teed up Whitaker for a drive which flew off target. Exeter had a good chance to pull one back just after the hour but Stansfield blazed wide from 14 yards, meaning the Grecians have now suffered three straight defeats without scoring.

Keep The Faith

2009-12-09T02:14:00.003Z

I know Latics are struggling just now, time will tell if Manager Dave Penney survives. One thing for sure it's a must win game v Exeter on Saturday....

Atletico Madrid 0 Porto 3, Vicente Calderon, Champions League, 08/Dec/09

2009-12-09T01:23:00.002Z

It was the away side who got off to the perfect start as a goal from Bruno Alves in the opening minutes of the game put them ahead. Alves rose from the second Porto corner of the match and headed the ball over Sergio Asenjo as Atletico were rocked in the opening stages. Porto then countered some Atletico pressure before Falcao put them 2-0 up inside the first 15 minutes as Sergio Asenjo failed to hold a long range shot. Diego Forlan and Simao had chances before the second goal went in, to put the home side back into some form of control but Helton made a couple of good saves to keep any pressure away from his side. Atletico came back with good spells of pressure as Simao and Sergio Aguero both went close. However, there was a clear lack of quality in the Madrid side and the organisation of Porto prevented any real threats from emerging within the first half an hour of the match. Forlan should have clawed a goal back for the home side as the half-time break approached but Helton pulled off another magnificent save as he looked to have rubbished the days when many were calling him hopeless in matches against a variety of English teams. He then put another wide as the only thing seemingly holding Atletico back from scoring was a poor standard of finishing. The second half started in much the same way as the first. Atletico had all of the running and two substitutions injected fresh energy into the side. However, Porto displayed their organisation and soaked up all of the pressure in dangerous areas of the field. Rodriguez missed a great chance to put his side 3-0 up just before the hour mark but could only watch tensely as his effort went marginally wide of the Atletico goal. It seemed that nothing the home side could do would break through the Porto defence and the away team were always a threat on the break. Juanito strained inside the Porto area as he missed a difficult header to put his side back in the match but Porto always looked comfortable and just waited for the break in order to try and extend their healthy advantage. Falcao should have put the match beyond all doubt as the game entered the last 20 minutes but Asenjo made up for his earlier error and got down well to keep out the shot that was going right into the bottom corner. Atletico substitute, Antonio Lopez, probably had the home side's best chance of the second half but he could not get his effort past Helton in the Porto goal who was probably having one of the best games of his life. However, all efforts were fruitless as Hulk scored Porto's third of the night and put the match to bed. The front man danced around the Madrid defence before unleashing a thunder bolt that rattled the bar and bounced into the net below. Porto saw out the match and capped off a brilliant group stage of the Champions League. They will be a team to keep an eye on when the draw for the next round is made.
Atletico Madrid go into the Europa League at the last 32 stage, I think they are very lucky to do so. Lets hope it's better performances than this.

http://www.uefa.com/competitions/ucl/fixturesresults/round=2000028/match=2000459/report=rp.html?vid=930948&autoplay=true

Xerez 0 Atletico Madrid 2, La Liga, 05/Dec/09

2009-12-09T01:16:00.004Z

Having given Barcelona plenty of trouble at Chapin on Wednesday, Xerez were looking to cause Atletico Madrid similar problems. But the capital side took just five minutes to carve open the Azulinos backline when Sergio Aguero drilled in a cross from the left for Diego Forlan, but the Uruguayan couldn’t finish with just Renan to beat. Five minutes later, the hosts’ rearguard was breached again, this time from the right as Jose Antonio Reyes’ deep cross bobbled towards the backpost but Aguero and Jurado got their signals crossed as they both went for the ball, only to end up leaving it for the other. ‘El Kun’ would not spurn a shooting chance moments later but his low drive from angle was saved by an alert Renan. Los Colchoneros continued to pile on incessant pressure and Reyes really should have given his team the lead on 17 minutes. Aguero, who had already been involved in almost every single attacking move, lofted in a perfectly weighted cross for Reyes to rifle in a low volley from 12 yards out, but Renan somehow miraculously turned it around the post with a reflex block. Xerez, who had their president, Carlos de Osma resign from his position on Thursday due to death threats, created plenty of openings against Barca in midweek, but they never had any answers against Atleti, who deservedly took the lead on 28 minutes. Reyes launched a lightning counter attack with a 40 yard through ball to Forlan, who pulled away from his marker and easily slotted past Renan.
Cuco Ziganda’s side had to wait until the 40th minute before even attempting a shot at Sergio Asenjo’s goal but Mario Bermejo’s left foot strike on the edge of the box flew over. Xerez did, however, end the half positively when Carlos Calvo curled in a gorgeous freekick from 25 yards out, but it was well saved by Asenjo. The Andalucian minnows picked up the second half where they had left off with Bermejo testing Asenjo with a cross-shot, before Sidi Keita headed over from a corner. Atletico, however, really should have buried the game in the 56th minute but Renan again pulled off an unbelievable point-blank save to deny Jurado’s close range header from Forlan’s cross. But Atletico ended all hopes of a brave Xerez fightback when they made it 2-0 on 65 minutes. Paulo Assuncao looped a beautiful long ball from inside his own half to Aguero, who brought it down and finished coolly with a clever chip over an advancing Renan.
With the insurance goal in the bag, Quique Sanchez Flores’ troops decided to take their foot off the pedal in the closing stages as Los Azulinos pressed forward and piled on the pressure. They were presented with a glimmer of hope in the 82nd minute when Atletico’s often wobbly backfour was reduced to three after Alvaro Dominguez was sent off. But it mattered little as Atletico held firm to claim a comfortable 2-0 victory to move up to mid-table.

http://www.footytube.com/video/deportivo-xerez-atletico-madrid-dec05-28895

Atletico Madrid 4 Espanyol 0, Vicente Calderon, La Liga, 29/Nov/09

2009-12-09T01:07:00.005Z

Atletico Madrid secured their first Primera Liga win under Quique Flores and just their second league victory of the season with a facile four goal victory over Espanyol at the Vicente Calderon in Madrid.Jose Antonio Reyes, who is enjoying a new lease of life under Flores, was in fine form early on as Atletico started with real intent and twice tested Carlos Kameni in the visiting goal inside the first quarter of the game.A goal seemed imminent as the excellent Reyes released Sergio Aguero on a couple of occasions but fortunately for the Blanc I Blau the young Argentinian was flagged offside.Los Colchoneros were completely dominant and looked like a different team entirely and the breakthrough finally came after 27 minutes with Uruguayan striker Diego Forlan firing home past Kameni from inside the box to give the home side a well deserved lead.Espanyol had little to offer in response and Reyes almost doubled the lead moments before half time but his right footed drive missed the target, although the angle was against him.Mauricio Pochettino made a double substitution at the break with Coro forward replacing Jose Callejon and Ivan Pillud coming in for David Garcia but the change made little difference as his side put up a poor resistance to a rampant Atletico. The hosts continued to dominate and 20 minutes after the interval they were two in front when Aguero fired a free-kick to the bottom right hand corner to virtually assure the three points for Atleti.Raul Tamudo and Moises Hurtado had rare sights on goal for an out of sorts Espanyol side but Atletico maintained the upper hand and continued to press for a third goal.Aguero had a couple of decent chances to grab a second late on but managed to head wide from Maxi Rodriguez's cross and moments later hit the post from close range when a goal seemed certain. Facundo Roncaglia saw red after picking up his second yellow card and then the third goal finally came with five minutes remaining as the lively Aguero finally grabbed his second of the game firing home from close range after good work from Juanito.Maxi grabbed the fourth in the dying minutes as Aguero turned provider finding his fellow Argentinian in the box for a simple finish.The win lifts Los Colchoneros out of the relegation places and if they continue to play like this it's only a matter of time before Atleti put their poor start behind them and climb the league table.

http://www.footytube.com/video/atletico-madrid-espanyol-nov29-28517

Norwich City 2 Oldham Ath 0, Carrow Road, League One, 05/Dec/09

2009-12-09T00:08:00.003Z

Oldham Athletic made two changes to the side that lost 2-0 at home to Leeds in midweek, with first starts for two players. Joe Jacobson began a game for the first time alongside Sean Gregan at centre-half in place of the suspended Alex Marrow and a composed-looking Dale Stephens stiffened the midfield at the expense of Parker in a 4-5-1 formation, with Paul Heffernan ploughing a lone furrow up front. Norwich began at a furious pace, going close in the first minute when prolific Holt couldn’t quite get to a cross from marauding left-back Adam Drury. A quick free-kick caught Athletic napping after five minutes, Chris Martin only managing to hit his shot low and at Darryl Flahavan, before holding midfielder Darel Russell stung the visiting ‘keeper’s palm’s with a 30-yarder. Gregan put his body on the line to stop a fierce Drury drive and Hoolahan fired five yards over as the assault continued, with Dean Furman’s hurried shot — sliced wide enough to go out for a throw – Athletic’s only attempt in the opening stages. The opening goal after 21 minutes came from a free-kick awarded for offside against Deane Smalley. Russell Martin slid the ball down the right touchline and namesake Chris Martin’s whipped cross curled across to the far post, where Holt was able to stoop and head into the roof of the net, his 19th goal of a highly productive season. Hoolahan then had a header deflected no more than a foot wide but was bang on target with his next attempt. One of a series of raking cross-field passes from centre-back Gary Doherty found Holt in space on the left and he laid it back to Drury, whose deep cross was retrieved by Hoolahan. The Dublin-born midfielder cut inside Joe Colbeck on to his favoured left foot and smashed a superb shot into the top right-hand corner of Flahavan’s goal from the edge of the penalty area. Gregan got a head on the ball as it travelled goalwards but unable to stop its inevitable trajectory. A reshuffle saw Colbeck brought infield to try to stem the tide, the ineffective Danny Whitaker going out wide to the left, and the visitors — chasing shadows at times — managed to hold on grimly until half-time. Parker replaced dead leg victim Paul Heffernan early in the second half with Smalley pushed further upfield. Athletic improved. The substitute had a half-shout for a penalty as he turned and was seemingly felled in the corner of the area, but the better football still ca,e from Norwich and Holt may have done better than rolling the ball into Flahavan’s arms when offered a shooting chance. A retreating Parker seemed to strike Drury with a flailing elbow as the left-back ran towards the Athletic box but it was unseen by referee David Phillips. Then came the best chance for the visitors. Whitaker sent Parker away with a lobbed ball over the top and the Scot surged into the area before firing in a shot which hit Forster on the inner arm and trickled just wide of the near post. Arriving in the 71st minute, it was Athletic’s first goal-bound attempt in two matches. It was followed by another as the visitors relaxed and started to knock the ball around as the game closed out. Substitute Ryan Brooke headed down Kelvin Lomax’s right-wing cross right into the path of the arriving Whitaker, who flicked a shot with the outside of his right foot which produced an excellent instinctive save from the Norwich ’keeper.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_2/8398401.stm

Oldham Ath 0 Leeds Und 2, Boundary Park, League One, 01/Dec/09

2009-12-09T00:02:00.003Z

Leeds continued their march towards promotion with a well-deserved 2-0 victory over Oldham. Simon Grayson's side chalked up their fifth straight League One win, all without conceding a goal, thanks to strikes from Neil Kilkenny and substitute Luciano Becchio. Ex-Oldham favourite Kilkenny burst into the six-yard box to bundle in Max Gradel's cross from the left on 37 minutes. Leeds wasted several chances to increase their lead as Oldham keeper Darryl Flahavan had a fine game but Becchio sealed it eight minutes from time with his first goal since returning from injury. Oldham could have made an early breakthrough when Dean Furman headed wide and they were a match for the table-topping visitors until Kilkenny tipped the balance. Leeds, who left top scorer Jermaine Beckford on the bench, then made a string of openings only to be denied by Flahavan and poor finishing. On-loan Sam Vokes could have bagged a hat-trick and the lively Gradel was denied after going clean through. Oldham almost equalised midway through the second half when Paul Heffernan shot just off target but Leeds had their second when Gradel played an astute pass to Becchio, who finished neatly from 10 yards.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_2/8377323.stm

Walsall 3 Oldham Ath 0, Banks Stadium, League One, 24/Nov/09

2009-11-28T08:38:00.002Z

Former Oldham schoolboy Steve Jones steered Walsall to their third successive home win as the 10-man Latics were beaten 3-0 at the Banks's Stadium. The winger helped to create the opening goal for Troy Deeney in the 20th minute and was then scythed down by Oldham defender Lee Hills in the 43rd minute. Hills was sent off for the challenge and within two minutes Jones nipped on to a pass from Deeney to notch the second and his eighth goal of the season. Jones took the man-of-the-match award, and in the 20th minute his pass released Darren Byfield who, playing against his former club, crossed for Deeney to flick in his fifth of the season. Oldham had won on their four previous visits to Walsall but never looked like adding to that record, although their 10 men fought bravely in the second half. And 10 minutes from time, Deeney struck his sixth of the season from a long pass by Mark Bradley. Oldham, to their credit, continued to push forward but were denied a consolation goal when a header from Joe Colbeck came back off the bar after a good cross by Sean Gregan. Goals from link below:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_2/8379308.stm

Apoel Nicosia 1 Atletico Madrid 1, Champions League, 25/Nov/09

2009-11-28T08:17:00.004Z

The points were shared in Nicosia, as an unconvincing Atletico Madrid side stayed in third spot, heading into the final round of fixtures. Neither team stood a chance of qualifying ahead of this game, but there was still plenty on the line, with the winner likely to claim a Europa League place. Therefore, both sides put out their strongest possible line-ups. The match got off to an ominous start for the hosts, with Paulo Jorge picking up a booking after just 25 seconds for a foul on Sergio Aguero, just outside the box. However, things soon turned around for Apoel, as Nenad Mirosavljevic send the home crowd into raptures. Nectarios Alexandrou made light work of Tomas Ujfalusi on the left wing, and his cross was comfortably turned in by the striker, leaving Sergio Asenjo with no chance. Needing to chase the game, Atleti started to push forward, but both Simao and Cleber Santana were denied by routine saves from Dionisis Chiotis. Despite the frantic start, the match had lost some of its edge, with Los Rojiblancos dominating possession without doing too much with it. Despite the visitor's slight dominance, it was still Apoel who were creating the best chances, with Mirosavljevic in particular posing plenty of problems. He nearly combined with Alexandrou to devastating effect again on the stroke of half-time, but their one-two fell apart at the last second. The ref then blew the whistle for half-time, with Atleti needing a vast improvement in the second period to avoid another embarrassment. The second half started in a similar vein, with Mirosavljevic heavily involved, but lacking any type of support up front. On the hour mark, Alexandrou was released through on goal, but his weak effort was blocked. Jose Jurado then chipped a great ball through for Diego Forlan, but the Uruguayan dragged his shot wide. Just when it looked as though Atleti were destined not to find the net, they found an equaliser. Aguero played a great ball into the box which was stopped by the keeper, but it fell into the path of Simao, who smashed it home. Having scored the equaliser, the Rojiblancos began to cede possession to he hosts, but their attacking options looked limited. If a goal was to come, it would be from a defensive error, as both sides looked nervous and afraid of conceding a winner. The final ten minutes passed largely without incident, with only the substitute Maxi Rodriguez coming close with a weak shot in the box. Thus it ended 1-1, in a match that illustrated just why both these sides have been rooted to the foot of the Group D table.

Oldham Ath 2 Colchester Und 2, Boundary Park, League One, 21/Nov/09

2009-11-28T08:04:00.004Z

Marc Tierney was sent off and Colchester were punished as Oldham battled back to draw 2-2. Tierney's 56th-minute red card was the turning point as Oldham laid siege to the Colchester goal and equalised two minutes from time through Ryan Brooke. United took an early lead when David Fox drilled his shot inside the near post from 10 yards. Kayode Odejayi doubled his side's advantage with a deft header, but former Oldham defender Tierney was sent off five minutes later when he was shown a second yellow card for kicking the ball away. Chris Taylor pulled a goal back from the penalty spot after being fouled by Magnus Okuonghae and teenager Brooke completed the comeback with a diving header to convert Keigan Parker's cross. Danny Whitaker almost won it for the home side right at the death but Ben Williams produced a fine save to deny him. Goals from link below. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_2/8353365.stm

Deportivo la Coruna 2 Atletico Madrid 1, La Liga, 21/Nov/09

2009-11-28T07:52:00.002Z

A Sergio Aguero goal gave Atletico Madrid an early lead, but a first-half header from Diego Colotto and an injury time penalty from Jose Guardado earned Deportivo la Coruna a 2-1 win and the full three points.Atletico Madrid started out very well and broke the deadlock after only three minutes, when Sergio Aguero dispossessed Lopo near the edge of the box before sending a low drive into the far bottom corner.The home side responded well to the early deficit and managed to equalize in the 20th minute. A corner from the left was curled in to the near post, where a Depor man headed it across the face of the goal for Diego Colotto to head home. In the second half, the referee awarded a penalty in favor of Deportivo on 48 minutes but immediately reversed his decision after the linesman indicated there had been an offside.The hosts wasted a number of chances in the following minutes as they kept finding Sergio Asenjo in the way of the goal. In the 76th minute, a cross from the left fell to Lassad at the far post, and the striker's right-foot volley forced the Atletico keeper to pull off a good save to keep the scoreline level.Deportivo almost found the winning goal three minutes from stoppage time, when Andres Guardado tried to score from long range in what looked like a speculative shot, but Asenjo could not hold it, and Pablo Alvarez sent the rebound over the bar.The home side were awarded a penalty in the 92nd minute, after Pablo had brought down Lopo inside the box, and Guardado made no mistake from the spot, giving his side the victory.

Latest News From Vincente Calderon.....

2009-11-18T14:44:00.000Z

It was reported on Monday evening that Atletico Madrid coach Quique Sanchez Flores may have contracted swine flu, and recent tests have proved these reports to be correct.The former Benfica and Valencia coach was feeling unwell on Monday and was not present at training while tests were carried out to determine whether it was swine flu or just a common cold.According to the club's official website, tests confirmed that Sanchez Flores has succumbed to the virus and was absent from training as he follows the recommended treatment.As was the case yesterday, his assistant Fran Escriba took charge of today's sessions.The date of his return to los Rojiblancos' bench has not been suggested, but it is likely that Escriba will assume Sanchez Flores' responsibilities for Saturday's match against Deportivo La Coruna.

Atletico Madrid 6 Marbella 0, Vincente Calderon, Copa del Rey, 10/Nov/09

2009-11-18T14:37:00.002Z

Atletico Madrid thrashed Marbella at the Vicente Calderon to brighten their recent dark run of form and pass without incident to the Round of 16 in the Copa del Rey.Holding a 2-0 lead from the first leg in Andalucia, there was little for the hosts to fear, but they nonetheless got the ball rolling as Jose Manuel Jurado - who has just penned a new contract - scored after 11 minutes with a wonderful header.Five minutes later, Florent Sinama-Pongolle added a second as Jurado turned provider, and the Rojiblancos were four to the good before the interval as Maxi Rodriguez scored twice in ten minutes.The Argentine grabbed his hat-trick just after the restart with a fine effort from the edge of the area, and Jose Antonio Reyes almost made it six shortly afterwards as the pressure continued.But Maxi was again to star as he managed his fourth of the evening on the hour mark with a rolled finish after Reyes' pass.

Atletico Madrid 2 Real Madrid 3, Vincente Calderon, La Liga, 07/Nov/09

2009-11-18T14:30:00.003Z

Real Madrid suffered a late scare after being reduced to ten men, to claim an exciting victory in the Madrid derby. Sergio Aguero started from the bench, having not recovered completely from his knock. Meanwhile, Raul started on the bench for Real Madrid. Atletico had not beaten their rivals at the Vicente Calderon for ten years, and their nerves were evident from kick-off as Los Merengues poured forward. It was no surprise when the visitors took the lead after just five minutes, as Kaka unleashed an unstoppable shot from just outside the box, that flew into the top left hand corner. Los Colchoneros continued to struggle to maintain any rhythm, and it was the visitors who looked the most likely to score next. Their passes were finding team-mates, in contrast to the Rojiblancos, and Marcelo compounded the home fan's frustration on 24 minutes, smashing home a right-footed shot from a tight angle, having been set up by Karim Benzema. Sergio Asenjo might have done better, but it was a ferocious effort that illustrated the difference in confidence between the two sides. It took half an hour for Atleti to seriously threaten Iker Casillas, as a series of corners ended with Diego Forlan's shot being blocked from a tight angle. It was a mere flash in the pan though, as Madrid continued to dominate, with only Asenjo's outstretched fingers denying Benzema. Just when it looked as though the home side would be going into the break two goals behind, Simao broke free, only to see his shot well saved by Casillas, when a pass to Forlan might have been the better option. It was a minor note of optimism in an otherwise disastrous first half for Los Colchoneros, who left the field to the sound of whistles from their own fans. Unsurprisingly, Quique Sanchez Flores introduced Aguero at the start of the second half, taking Jose Jurado off. However, it was still the visitors making all the running, and Benzema could perhaps have done better with a header in the box, after confusion between Pablo and Asenjo allowed the ball to fall towards him. The French striker then thought he had scored just before the hour mark, but his acrobatic volley was correctly ruled out for offside. With 30 minutes remaining, the ineffective Jose Antonio Reyes was replaced by Maxi Rodriguez. However, it was Madrid who scored once more, with a goal that summed up Atleti's disastrous evening. Under minimal pressure from Gonzalo Higuain, Luis Perea inexplicably lost the ball, allowing 'El Pipita' to burst into the box and fire past Asenjo. That was the Argentine's last contribution, as he was subsequently replaced by Raul. Minutes later, Atleti finally caught a break, as Sergio Ramos was sent off for taking Aguero down from behind, just outside the box, when 'El Kun' was clean through on goal. Meanwhile, on the touchline, Manuel Pellegrini was in some discomfort, having apparently been struck by something thrown from the crowd. Simao struck the resulting free-kick with power, but it flew wide of the far post. Having been reduced to ten men, Pellegrini looked to shore things up by introducing Fernando Gago for Benzema. Cleber Santana then threatened with a rasping drive, but 'St. Iker' was equal to the task. Finally, with 12 minutes remaining, Forlan reduced the deficits after a neat finish from a cross from Tomas Ujfalusi. It seemed like just a consolation, but seconds later, the Calderon erupted as Aguero broke free of Pepe and finished perfectly into the bottom left hand corner, to reduce the gap to just one goal. With seven minutes to go, Pellegrini decided to replace Kaka with Rafael Van der Vaart. Seconds later, it seemed as though Atleti had completed an unlikely comeback, but Simao volleyed over from five yards out. Then, Maxi thought he had brought his side level, but his finish from an Ujfalusi cross was correctly ruled out for offside.Suddenly, Atleti were raining shots down on goal, and Forlan came close from distance. Flores then made his last change, replacing Pablo with Florent Sinama-Pongolle. As the clock touched 90 minutes, the fourth official announced that Atleti had four minutes to find an equalizer. On 91 minutes, the entire stadium thought that Aguero had completed the comeback, but he was denied by Casillas' outstretched leg. Then, Sinama-Pongolle headed Simao's free-kick over the bar. That proved to be the final chance of the match, as Real Madrid eventually claimed three points in what turned out to be one of the most eventful derbies in recent times.

Atletico Madrid 2 Chelsea 2, Vincente Calderon, Champions League, 03/Nov/09

2009-11-18T14:25:00.003Z

Atletico opened the game in a positive if slightly hesitant manner, passing the ball nicely and feeling their way into the game. On two minutes a foul on Jose Antonio Reyes by Ashley Cole gave the hosts a free kick on the right touchline. Simao floated the ball in, only for Chelsea to clear for a corner, from which nothing came.The first real attempt on goal of the game came in the fifth minute, when Diego Forlan sent a powerfully struck left-foot shot just wide of Cech's right-hand post from 25 yards.Chelsea began to look threatening in the eighth minute, with a slipping Didier Drogba putting a shot wide of the left hand post from inside the penalty area after the Blues had built pressure with some sharp and direct passing. Joe Cole began to become more prominent as the we approached the 15 minute mark, the point of Ancelotti's midfield diamond beginning to prick a little at the hosts' defence with his passing and vision. Overall though, Chelsea struggled for fluency in the early stages whilst Atleti looked unsurprisingly low on confidence after going six Champions League games without a win.Michael Essien was the first player into the book on 16 minutes after body-checking a counter-attacking Reyes - a challenge that left the Spaniard face down on the turf. Reyes almost exacted revenge on 20 minutes, swerving inside Essien in the inside right channel only to have his left-footed curler palmed away for a corner by Cech.Drogba continued to keep the home defenders honest though, working them hard with his hold up play. At the other end Terry and co looked solid, dealing with the occasional flurry from Simao, Forlan or Reyes with unfussy competence.Maybe it was frustration that saw Reyes booked for a needless challenge on Ashley Cole on the Chelsea penalty area on 26 minutes, although the forward was soon in the thick of things again as Atleti began to show some purpose. A passage of neat passing ended with Simao blazing a shot over from the left hand side, as coach Quique Sanchez Flores began to demand greater urgency with some passionate gesturing from the sideline.The first half drew to a close after rasping shot from Frank Lampard had flown wide, with the referee blowing the whistle on a somewhat scrappy affair that had shown some signs of coming to life at times.The second half started in much the same fashion though Drogba came close to breakingthe deadlock on 50 minutes, his long range driven free kick being tipped onto the post by Sergio Asenjo.The somewhat flat atmosphere at the Calderon then began to liven up a little, though the hosts still struggled to find any fluency in attack, despite occasional flickerings from Reyes and Florent Sinama-Pongolle, who made way for local hero Sergio Aguero on 53 minutes.The Argentine forced a save from Cech on 63 minutes, a well-struck free kick from 25 yards out on the right hand side of the penalty area sending the Blues keeper sprawling to his left to clutch the ball to his chest. And it was Aguero who volleyed the locals into a stunning lead on 66 minutes. A cross came over from the left seeking Diego Forlan, but the ball broke to the Argentine who struck it sweetly into the net from 12 yards out. Cech could do nothing.Ancelotti moved to remedy things on 69 minutes, making a double substitution. Nicolas Anleka replaced Salomon Kalou, whilst Deco came on for the fading Joe Cole. Atleti too made changes, with the hard-working Reyes ending his shift on 72 minutes, Maxi Rodriguez coming on.Deco sent a half chance wide after a cross from the left was palmed into his path in the penalty area by Asenjo, but Chelsea were starting to make the game look like hard work. Ancelotti stood watching, grim-faced and icily angry in his technical area.Unsurprisingly perhaps, it was that man Drogba who lifted the visitors' mood on 82 minutes. Malouda crossed from the left and the Ivorian leaped to head home in classic centre-forward fashion. Asenjo was a spectator as his net bulged.And Drogba almost won it for the Blues in the 87th minute. Ashley Cole played a through ball into the inside left channel. The Ivorian pounced on it 30 yards out and muscled his way past three despairing defenders before his shot was saved by Asenjo. The ball rebounded to his feet though and he made no mistake slotting the ball into the empty net from the edge of the area.Flores on the bench looked devastated, but it was his turn to be delighted once more on the stroke of 90 minutes when Aguero's fine free kick from 30 yards out found the top corner of Cech's net.There was more late drama as Drogba surged towards the Atleti penalty area and was brought down. The striker himself liined the free kick up from just inside the D. His effort was blocked as a game which had started with so little promise and blossomed into a thrilling draw ended soon afterwards.

Athletic Bilbao 1 Atletico Madrid 0, San Mames, La Liga, 31/Oct/09

2009-11-18T14:18:00.003Z

Athletic Bilbao ran out 1-0 winners in a highly entertaining fixture at the San Mames, with Atletico ruing their three shots which hit the woodwork.Both sides named their strongest sides for this match, with Toquero and Fernando Llorente leading the line for Bilbao, while Quique Sanchez Flores restored Sergio Asenjo's place in goal. The pressure on both sets of players was evident in the opening exchanges, with each side moving forward well, but failing to make anything of their advances. On twelve minutes, Atletico were inches away from taking the lead when Gorka Iraizoz dropped Diego Forlan's cross, but Maxi Rodriguez could only head onto the bar with the keeper stranded. Atletico's defence has come under intense scrutiny in recent weeks, and on 18 minutes, they showed their vulnerability once more. Pablo Orbaiz floated a free-kick in from the right, and Javi Martinez rose high to head into the bottom right hand corner, leaving Asenjo with no chance. It was a great header, but questions had to be asked as to how he was allowed to reach the ball in the first place. Sensing a weakness, the hosts poured forward in search of a second, and only a point blank save from Asenjo stopped Markel Susaeta from doubling the advantage almost instantly. The visitors were all over the shop, and it seemed only a matter of time before they full further behind. Susaeta and Asenjo seemed to be involved in a personal duel, with the keeper denying the midfielder once again after he had left the defence for dead to be clean through on goal.With ten minutes left in the first period, Susaeta almost turned provider, setting Toquero free, only for Asenjo to deny the striker at his feet, amid calls for a penalty from the home faithful. As the half drew to a close, Bilbao's only regret would have been that they had not increased their lead, and they suffered a setback on the stroke of half-time, with Igor Gabilondo replacing the injured Toquero. Still they pressed, and De Marcos should have done better than shoot straight at Asenjo after the keeper was caught out of position.Just when it seemed as though both sides were content to take this scoreline into the break, Atletico almost equalized with seconds remaining. Forlan played the ball across the box, and only a desperate challenge from Fernando Amorebieta stopped Sergio Aguero slotting home. That was the last action of an exciting first half, with both sides having it all to play for in the second. It only took 50 seconds for the first chance of the second half to occur, when Maxi shot just wide from outside the box, after being teed up by Forlan. The pair were combining well, and Maxi's next effort came even closer, smashing into the side netting. The visitors had taken control of the match, and were left wondering how Aguero failed to connect after being set up in the six yard box by some scintillating play from Simao on the left. On the hour mark, Flores withdrew Maxi , replacing him with Jose Jurado. The immediate action was at the other end though, as another free-kick caused trouble, with Asenjo saving well from Llorente. It was end to end stuff, as Simao cut inside down the other end, but shot straight at Gorka Iraizoz. Joaquin Caparros then made his first switch, replacing Pablo Orbaiz with Inigo Perez. Soon, he was forced into another change, as Susaeta picked up a slight knock, and was replaced by David Lopez. With fifteen minutes left, Atletico's season thus far was summed up in about thirty seconds. First, Forlan's strike from distance smacked against the far post, and then, from the resulting play, Aguero's rasping drive hit the crossbar. It just would not go in for Atleti, as more scintillating link-up play between Aguero and Forlan saw the Uruguayan's latest effort well saved by Iraizoz.With ten minutes left, Flores threw his dice for the final time, replacing Simao with Jose Antonio Reyes. However, Atleti had finally run out of steam, and the game ended with Javi Martinez's goal proving the difference, as Los Colchoneros' thoughts turned to a week which sees them take on Chelsea and Real Madrid.

Marbella 0 Atletico Madrid 2, Copa del Rey, 27/Oct/09

2009-11-18T14:13:00.003Z

Quique Sanchez Flores took the reigns at the Atletico bench for the first time and he wasn’t about to let any upsets ruin his bow as he fielded an entire regular first team with the exception of forwards, Diego Forlan and Sergio Aguero. Asenjo, Ujfalusi, Pablo, Antonio Lopez, Assuncao, Maxi and Jose Antonio Reyes all took to the field against the reincarnation of ex-Atleti president, Jesus Gil’s other former club. But Los Colchoneros didn’t have it all their own way and they were fortunate to take the lead after 18 minutes through a Troyana own goal after he bundled the ball into his own net from an Ujfalusi cross. Maxi Rodriguez then hit the post just past the half-hour mark with a fierce drive just outside the area, but the Argentine finally netted the insurance goal in the 83rd minute when he got to the end of substitute, Simao’s through ball and finished with a clinical shot across goal.

Aftermath as Fans....Protest..

2009-11-18T14:08:00.000Z

Irate Atletico Madrid supporters have staged a protest outside the Vicente Calderon stadium following Los Colchoneros’ draw with Real Mallorca on Saturday evening.Quique Sanchez Flores replaced Abel Resino as coach this week after a string of poor results, but interim trainer, Santi Denia could not inspire his side to victory as a late Borja Valero strike gave the visitors a last-gasp point.AS reports that around 200 fans attempted to enter the stadium post-match, which led to police being called to avoid further incidents, and today a small gathering continued to show their discontent.Club captain Antonio Lopez left the clubs’ training session to speak to the followers and assure them that everything was being done to improve results on the pitch.It is thought that the gathering ensured Lopez that the players had the full backing of the supporters, and demanded that the dire situation be met with full commitment from everyone connected with the club.Atletico Madrid are currently in the bottom half of the Primera Division table as a result of just one win in eight matches, while they look set for a premature exit in the Champions League after picking up just one point from the first three rounds.

Atletico Madrid 1 Real Mallorca 1, Vincente Calderon, La Liga, 23/Oct/09

2009-11-18T13:28:00.002Z

A second-half penalty from Diego Forlan gave Atletico Madrid the lead, but Borja Valero's goal in extra time restored parity for Real Mallorca, who had been reduced to nine men early in the second period.The hosts could have got ahead on three minutes as Ramis brought down Diego Forlan in the area, but the referee failed to signal a penalty.Atletico were first to create danger, on five minutes, when Aguero chipped the ball into the six-yard box to Maxi Rodriguez, who had just Aouate to beat but he could not connect to it cleanly.Mallorca managed to respond to Atletico's good start, and had a chance on 24 minutes. Ujfalusi was dispossessed in his side's own half, allowing Castro to pick up the ball and pass it to Webo, whose shot went wide of the right post.Two minutes later, Mallorca were reduced to ten men as Josemi was shown his second yellow card for a hand ball inside the area. Forlan spurned the penalty opportunity as he missed his shot to the right.The first period ended with the score line untouched. Atletico, who had enjoyed 65 per cent of possession, could not make use of the opportunities they had created, the most important being the penalty.The second half began with another penalty for Atletico, as Ramis blocked Forlan's cross from the left side of the box with his hand, and was sent off. Forlan this time made no mistake and sent Aouate the wrong way from the spot.The home side almost doubled their lead in the 63rd minute, when Simao Sabrosa's cross from the left was aimed at Maxi Rodriguez, who was unmarked but he could not get his head to the ball.Atletico turned on the heat and had two good chances to score in the 76th minute. Simao's low shot from the right was denied by Aouate, while Reyes, who had been brought on just minutes before, saw his effort blocked by a defender before going over the bar.The hosts kept finding plenty of spaces as Mallorca went in search of the equaliser, but they could never apply the finishing touch. In the 85th minute, Antonio Lopez's cross from the left found Cleber, who jumped alone but his header went over the bar.Mallorca went close to levelling the match three minutes from stoppage time. Corrales crossed the ball from the left into the box, De Gea rushed out of his zone to get to it but Webo rose higher, only to see his header go slightly wide.And the visitors finally found the back of the net in the 90th minute. A free-kick from the right whipped into the box found Borja Valero at the far post, who chested it down and attempted to pass the ball across the face of the goal, De Gea tried to get his hands on the ball but he ended up putting it inside his own goal.It was a well-deserved point for Mallorca, who refused to lower their heads even when reduced to nine men. As for Atletico, new boss Quique Flores, who was on the stands, has certainly realised there is plenty of work to do.

Atletico name New Manager...............

2009-11-18T13:24:00.003Z

Quique Sanchez Flores will be named as the new coach of Atletico de Madrid on Friday, only hours after the club announced that Abel Resino had been relieved of his duties.The 44-year-old has accepted the job at Vicente Calderon after Michael Laudrup was unable to agree terms with Los Colchoneros, according to reports in the Spanish media.Atletico sacked Resino after the Champions League drubbing by Chelsea in midweek, which meant that they have won just once in ten games.Sanchez Flores is expected to land in the Spanish capital on Friday afternoon and be presented to the media at a second press conference of the day.Several names were linked with the club, but both Marca and AS have confirmed that the former Valencia and Real Madrid player has been given the task of rejuvenating Atletico.After winning promotion with Getafe and keeping them in the top flight for a season, Sanchez Flores took the reins at Valencia, where he spent two seasons until leaving in 2007.The following year he moved to Portugal to manage Benfica, whom he led to a third-place finish in the league and victory in the Portuguese Cup before being sacked in June.

Lastest From Boundary Park

2009-11-18T12:48:00.002Z

Oldham have completed the signings of Crystal Palace duo Darryl Flahavan and Lee Hills on month-long loan deals. Both players joined just before the Leeds game.

Gillingham 1 Oldham Ath 0, Priestfield Stadium, League One, 14/Nov/09

2009-11-18T12:13:00.008Z

Febian Brandy's fairytale Gillingham start continued as the Manchester United loanee was the star of the show once more as Oldham were beaten 1-0. Brandy bagged a goal and an assist on his debut last weekend and the 20-year-old was at it again against the Latics, winning the decisive penalty which Curtis Weston converted. He might have given the Gills a lead on 24 minutes but after good work from Andy Barcham his effort was blocked by Reuben Hazell. And Brandy was involved in the best effort of the half ten minutes later when his lay off was curled onto the crossbar by Weston. Brandy started where he left off after the break and when he was brought down by Sean Gregan, Weston made no mistake from the spot to break the deadlock after 61 minutes. Despite some late Oldham pressure, the Gills held on for their fifth home win of the season.
Oldham Ath 0 Leeds Und 2, Boundary Park, FA Cup 3rd Round, 07/Nov/09
Athletic made four changes to the side which had lost 1-0 at home to Huddersfield a week earlier. Darryl Flahavan and Lee Hills, both arriving on loan from Crystal Palace, started in goal and at left-back respectively in place of Dean Brill and Alan Sheehan. Chris Taylor — at the heart of most of Athletic’s attacks — came in on the left of midfield with Whitaker dropping to the bench and Alex Marrow was back to add bite in central midfield. Flahavan was called into action after 14 minutes when Reuben Hazell’s weak header back to him was pounced on by the lively Bradley Johnson. The goalkeeper did well to rush out and block the Leeds man’s effort. Michael Doyle then went close for Leeds, firing over and wide from the corner of the area after Johnson’s free-kick was charged down. Colbeck then fluffed his lines and the visitors took the lead nine minutes before half-time. Good work in the build-up from Robert Snodgrass enabled Howson to let fly with a let-footed drive from 30 yards out. The angled shot across Flahavan took a deflection off the unlucky Andy Holdsworth and flew into the net off the underside of the crossbar. Up to that point, the midfield battle was being won by Leeds, with ex-Athletic loan man Neil Kilkenny — booked for dissent in the second half — pulling the strings along with Michael Doyle. Things improved in that regard for Athletic in the second half, but efforts on goal continued to be at a premium. Taylor scuffed an effort tamely into the arms of Ankergren when it appeared to sit up prettily for the shot. From a similar position, the left winger made a far better connection after picking up a failed Kisnorbo clearance but the ’keeper was able to push the shot round his right-hand post. Penney brought on Ryan Brooke for the final stages and the striker looked lively, firing a shot wide three minutes from time and providing a much-needed focal point up front. But Leeds made sure of their progress deep into injury time. A floated Hills free-kick from deep was cleared and Snodgrass broke away before releasing substitute Aidan White down the right. His careful ball across goal was controlled by fellow replacement Grella, who neatly cut inside on to his right foot and fired into the roof of the net.
Oldham Ath: Flahavan; Holdsworth, Hazell, Gregan, Hills; Colbeck (Whitaker 37), Marrow, Furman (Brooke 80), Taylor; Smalley, Parker (Lee 72). Subs not used: Brill, Jacobson, Black, Eaves.
Ref: Mr Gavin Ward (Surrey)
Att: 5,552
Oldham Ath 0 Huddersfield T 1, Boundary Park, League One, 01/Nov/09
Huddersfield moved into the League One play-off places courtesy of a 1-0 victory over Oldham at Boundary Park. Full-back Robbie Williams sealed the points with a cunning free-kick which condemned the Latics to back-to-back home defeats. Huddersfield had the better of a wind-affected game and almost went ahead when top scorer Jordan Rhodes glanced against the bar from an Anthony Pilkington set piece. Oldham had a lucky escape when Sean Gregan appeared to handle a Gary Roberts cross, only for the referee to turn down penalty claims. But Huddersfield broke through after 59 minutes. Williams lined-up his free kick to the left of goal and, with keeper Dean Brill expecting a cross, he instead smashed it inside the near post.
Rhodes went close to doubling the lead and Michael Collins also wasted a chance before Oldham created their best opening after 78 minutes. Ex-Huddersfield striker Pawel Abbott cut into the box and was denied by Alex Smithies before the rebound flew off target via substitute Nick Blackman.
Brighton 0 Oldham Ath 2, Withdean Stadium, League One, 24/October/09
Second-half goals from Pawel Abbott and Reuben Hazell sealed a 2-0 Oldham win and sent Brighton diving to their fifth defeat in seven home games. Michel Kuipers did well to keep out a low shot from midfielder Joe Colbeck in the 26th minute before Andrew Crofts headed a Elliott Bennett corner narrowly over. Oldham striker Abbott curled a shot over shortly after the break following a defensive slip by Brighton skipper Adam Virgo. But Abbott broke the deadlock 12 minutes after the interval with a deflected shot from 20 yards which left keeper Kuipers wrong footed. Abbott's effort lacked pace but Kuipers could not recover after the ball came off Virgo.
Veteran striker Nicky Forster was twice off target for Brighton before defender Hazell's first goal of the season clinched the points for Oldham nine minutes from time. Hazell beat Kuipers with a side-foot finish as Brighton failed to deal with a free-kick into the six-yard box by Irishman Alan Sheehan. Welsh midfielder Andrew Crofts headed against the bar for the struggling Seagulls in stoppage time.

Atletico Sack Manager Abel Resino..

2009-10-23T23:01:00.003+01:00

Atletico Madrid have sacked coach Abel Resino, the club announced on their official website on Friday morning, after a poor start to the season.Los Colchoneros were widely tipped to act after losing 4-0 to Chelsea in the Champions League in midweek and have now made a decision to look for a new trainer."Abel Resino has left the post of coach of the Atletico de Madrid first team on Friday morning," the statement on the Atletico website read.The 49-year-old trainer has overseen just one win in ten games in all competitions this season and calls for his him to go began to increase before the recent international break.Having drawn with APOEL and lost to Porto and Chelsea the team's hopes of progressing in the Champions League are slim while in la Primera Atletico are 15th with just six points.Resino made 243 appearances as a goalkeeper for Los Colchoneros and had coaching experience at Ciudad Murcia, Levante and Castellon before being approached to return to the Vicente Calderon last season.When Mexican trainer Javier Aguirre was sacked in February he agreed to take the reins and had his short-term extended after Atletic qualified for the Champions League.Speculation has been increasing about Resino's position and after the dfeat against Chelsea both Marca and El Mundo Deportivo stated that Michael Laudfrup would take over.The Dane has failed to reach an agreement with the club however and while he coujld hold further talks Luciano Spalletti, Luis Aragones, Quique Sanchez Flores and Bernd Schuster have all been touted for the post.Atletico Madrid are set to hold a press conference to explain the reasons why they felt a change of coach was required on Friday morning.

Chelsea 4 Atletico Madrid 0, Stamford Bridge, Champions League, 22/Oct/09

2009-10-22T16:19:00.001+01:00

Chelsea made it three wins out of three in Group D, with a comfortable win over disappointing Spaniards Atletico Madrid.It was Salomon Kalou who was the Chelsea hero with two goals either side of the break, plus a first goal in ten matches for Frank Lampard and an Atletico own goal, that erased some of the woe from Saturday’s defeat at Villa Park and sees Chelsea top of their group, with one foot firmly in the next round. Chelsea made four changes from the side that lost to Aston Villa at the weekend, with Branislav Ivanovic, Juliano Belletti, Michael Ballack and Kalou coming in - Ricardo Carvalho, Florent Malouda, the injured Jose Bosingwa and the suspended Didier Drogba making way. Former Manchester United striker Diego Forlan returned to the Atletico Madrid side after being rested for the 3-0 loss against Osasuna. Raul Garcia started his first game since the opening day of the season, while Jose Antonio Reyes, formerly of Arsenal, and Florent Sinama-Pongolle - once of Liverpool and Blackburn - were on the bench. Both teams were looking forward to the break from domestic concerns and it was Chelsea who almost opened the scoring immediately. Juliano Belletti’s cross-cum-shot flashed across the penalty area, before Sergio Asenjo could gather. Atletico Madrid quickly replied with a header from Forlan that forced Petr Cech into a save and Aguero then shot wide despite appearing to be offside, in what was a bright opening exchange. On twelve minutes Chelsea had the ball in the back of the net. Frank Lampard’s floating free kick was misjudged by Asenjo and sailed into the net, but the goal was ruled out due to an offside against Kalou. Kalou then had a golden chance to put Chelsea ahead but somehow he could only drag his shot wide of the left-hand post after a neat move involving Michael Essien and Ballack. The Ivorian went close again just after the half hour, when a mix-up just outside the box saw Kalou in space in the edge of the area but his deflected shot was well saved by Asenjo. From the resulting corner John Terry rose highest but couldn’t find the target and Kalou once again failed to help it on its way. Five minutes before half-time, Kalou finally got his name on the score-sheet. Lampard fed Ashley Cole via a Belletti dummy on the left flank, and the England left-back’s ball across the six-yard box was slammed into the roof of the net by the persistent Kalou. Chelsea started the second period just as they had finished the first and doubled their lead within five minutes of the restart. Nicolas Anelka had already had a stinging shot saved by Asenjo, before another Chelsea corner was floated in by Lampard and Kalou was on hand to head the ball downwards and into the net for his second of the game. Aguero could have got Atletico back in it straight away but his delayed shot was too easy for Cech and from then on the visitors never looked like threatening and Chelsea wrapped up the game with 20 minutes to go. Essien played a neat one-two with Lampard on the edge of the box and the England man let fly with a shot from 20 yards that flew past Asenjo into the bottom corner. It was Lampard’s first goal since his strike against Sunderland on August 18. A minute before the end Chelsea added the fourth, when substitute Florent Malouda’s free-kick was headed into his own net by Colombian Luis Perea, summing up a disappointing night for the Spanish side.

ATLETICO MADRID: Sergio Asenjo, Ujfalusi, Perea, Dominguez, Antonio Lopez, Cleber Santana, Raul Garcia, Paulo Assuncao, Simao, Forlan, Aguero. Subs: De Gea, Jurado, Maxi, Sinama Pongolle, Juanito, Reyes, Pablo.
REF: F Meyer (Germany)

Osasuna 3 Atletico Madrid 0, Reyno de Navarra, La Liga, 18/October/09.

2009-10-18T23:20:00.001+01:00

Abel Resino's future as coach of Atletico de Madrid is in the balance after they suffered another embarrassing reverse against Osasuna with Chelsea waiting to further dent their Champions League ambitions in midweek.Walter Pandiani scored twice and Aranda added a third as the home side in the Reyno de Navarra scored all of their goals inside the first half an hour and left los Colchoneros with an impossible task.After securing their first win in their sixth league game two weeks ago, Atletico thought they had turned a corner but another inept display saw things worsen and the board will surely meet this week to discuss the trainer.Atletico had lost three times in their first six matches in la Primera and picked up just a point from two matches in Europe to lead to question marks about Resino's ability to see the team challenge for trophies.The absence of Diego Forlan in this encounter can be used as no excuse as it was the same story again at the back for the visitors as the hosts could have doubled their tally at least.In only the fourth minute Atletico's task became difficult as Javier Camuñas's cross from the left was met by the potent Pandiano to head home and lift that had previously recorded two wins from their opening six games.Sergio Aguero could have made things so different after ten minutes but spurned his opportunity before Sergio Asenjo proved why he is so highly rated at the other end by saving Luis Perea's and Juanito's blushes after their error allowed Pandiani in on goal.But the Uruguayan striker was not to be denied, after Cleber had gone close for Atletico, as he doubled Osasuna's lead in the 25th minute with yet another header that left the away team with a mountain to climb.Five minutes later and the outcome was all but decided as Juanfran's shot was palmed to the right by Asenjo, but the impressive Aranda stole in and prodded the ball in to the net.Atletico had fallen apart and Aranda caused more chaos which drew Asenjo and Osasuna could have gone four up if Juanfran had been able to remain calm when attempting to lift the ball back over the crowd and into the unguarded goal.Resino's half-time talk did see Los Colchoneros show more steel in the second period, but then the hosts had also tweaked their approach in order to ensure their opponents found no way back into the game.Cleber again had a chance to reduce arrears while at the other end Juanfran set up Aranda just after the hour mark and Camunas had a chance of his own and then created another for substitute Masoud.Aguero was tireless and did look to add at least a consolation for Atletico and on Wednesday he will face an even tougher task against Chelsea's rearguard, but it may well be a different coach watching him from the bench.

Oldham Ath 1 Southampton 3, Boundary Park, League One, 17/October/09

2009-10-18T22:54:00.004+01:00

Southampton continued their impressive run of form with a 3-1 victory over Oldham at Boundary Park. Dean Hammond put the Saints in front after 11 minutes when he punished slack marking to head home at the far post from a Lloyd James corner. Rickie Lambert doubled the lead midway through the first half as his long-range free kick squirmed through embarrassed Oldham keeper Dean Brill. Lambert clipped the bar with an audacious shot from the centre circle and Southampton missed chances through Adam Lallana and Morgan Schneiderlin. Oldham had shown little in terms of an attacking threat but halved the deficit after 66 minutes when Alex Marrow's powerful run ended with a shot against the post and an easy rebound for Pawel Abbott, who converted his fifth goal of the season. Saints went desperately close to a third when Lambert hit the bar with a free kick. But they sealed victory eight minutes from time when another Oldham mistake played in substitute David Connolly for a clinical finish.
Oldham: Brill, Hazell, Lomax, Gregan, Worthington, (Lee 15),Whitaker, Furman, Marrow, Colbeck (Blackman 56), Abbott, Parker. Subs: Ollerenshaw, Black, Lee, Rowney, McKerr, Brooke, Blackman.
Ref: Foster
Att: 5,341

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_2/8313580.stm

Charlton Ath 0 Oldham Ath 0, The Valley, League One, 10/October/09

2009-10-12T17:52:00.003+01:00

Charlton missed the chance to go level with Leeds at the top of League One as they were held to a goalless draw by Oldham. This was an opportunity to put pressure on their League One promotion rivals but manager Phil Parkinson was left frustrated as his side failed to score for the third game in succession. The Addicks started well and came close after 11 minutes as Nicky Bailey sent a shot just wide, before Miguel Angel Llera tested visiting goalkeeper Dean Brill with a long-range drive that was pushed wide. Dean Furman curled a shot wide from the edge of the penalty area for Oldham following a period of neat passing. Therry Racon had the first opportunity of the second half for Charlton as his shot was blocked at the near post, but Oldham then took the initiative. Striker Pawel Abbott had a goal ruled out after 52 minutes due to a foul in the build-up to his close-range tap-in, and then Keigan Parker sent a shot high and wide. Match highlights : http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_2/8301738.stm

Atletico Madrid 2 Real Zaragoza 1, Vicente Calderon, La Liga, 03/October/09

2009-10-03T23:18:00.004+01:00

Atletico Madrid edged out their first league victory of the season against a spirited Real Zaragoza side, but they will be grateful to some excellent goalkeeping from 18-year-old David De Gea. Jose Manuel Jurado put them into an early lead, which appeared to be safe when Antonio Lopez scored from a free kick. Ewerthon's penalty restored hope for the visitors, but Atleti closed out a vital victory.As expected, young De Gea started in goal for the hosts, while Antonio Lopez returned at left back. Luis Perea moved to centre back in place of Pablo. Los Blanquillos were unchanged from their 3-0 victory against Getafe last weekend.Los Colchoneros raced into the lead after just two minutes - Diego Forlan's low ball into the area broke to Jose Manuel Jurado, who side-footed into the bottom left hand corner.The visitors attempted to rally after the goal, committing men forward, but Atleti were defending adequately and always looked threatening when they ventured forward in the early stages.Matters should have been levelled when De Gea rashly brought down Jorge Lopez in the penalty area, earning him a yellow card. However, Marko Babic's spot kick was well saved by the 'keeper down to his left.Cleber Santana was then booked for a late tackle in the 22nd minute as los Rojiblancos demonstrated their physical approach, but they were giving away a number of free kicks in dangerous positions in their own half.The visitors' set pieces were disappointing for the most part, but Abel Aguilar then hit the post from a corner in the 25th minute as De Gea hesitated in his goal.Roberto Ayala very nearly headed into his own net after half an hour as he looked to intercept Diego Forlan's cross, but his defensive clearance went just wide of Juan Pablo Carrizo's right hand post.Javier Arizmendi flashed a shot wide from 20 yards in the 35th minute amid some slack defending from the hosts. Babic was forced off with an injury shortly thereafter, which brought Angel Lafita into the fray for his debut.With just over five minutes remaining in the first half, Forlan curled a long-range shot just wide of the post, but it was the visitors that were in the ascendancy as the half drew to a close.Lopez wasted a good opportunity just before half time as he picked up the ball on the byline as the ball broke loose from a corner, but instead of crossing for his team-mates the 31-year-old chose to shoot from a near-impossible angle. Los Blanquillos should have pulled level in the 50th minute, but former Real Madrid defender Francisco Pavon headed wide as he headed unchallenged at a corner.Sergio Aguero, hitherto anonymous, danced past a number of challenges before winning a free kick right on the edge of the box in the 64th minute. It was a chance for the mattress makers to give themselves a cushion, and they did just that. Antonio Lopez fired in a low, hard free kick into the bottom right hand corner, and the relief around the stadium was tangible.Minutes later, Tomas Ujfalusi brought down Arizmendi in the penalty area and the referee pointed to the spot for the second time in the match. This time the substitute Ewerthon sent De Gea the wrong way to half the deficit, although Atleti will feel aggrieved as Ujfalusi appeared to win the ball.Meanwhile, Jose Antonio Reyes had been brought on for Aguero and instantly started to create problems as he ran at the Zaragoza defence. While the visitors were still pressing forward and threatening to score the equaliser, Marcelino will be disappointed with the infrequency with which his side tested the young De Gea.The hosts were beginning to sit back as the game entered its final stages, with substitute Jermaine Pennant particularly prominent down the right hand side for Zaragoza. In the 85th minute, Ewerthon was adjudged to have been brought down on the edge of the area by Perea, although the Brazilian went to ground very easily.De Gea made an excellent save from the resulting free kick by Jorge Lopez, and moments later the hosts should have wrapped the game up on the counter attack when Maxi Rodriguez missed the target from close range.Carrizo pulled off a great save from a swerving Santana shot in stoppage time, but the hosts comfortably played out injury time. There was euphoria mixed with relief at the Vicente Calderon as the final whistle went, and los Colchoneros will be praying that this is a turning point in their season.

Oldham Ath 0 Yeovil Town 0, Boundary Park, League One, 03/October/09

2009-10-03T23:16:00.004+01:00

Oldham's bid for a fourth straight league victory was undone by wayward finishing as they played out a goalless draw with Yeovil. The Latics wasted a hat-trick of clear chances as the visitors frustrated them at Boundary Park and the worst miss came after half an hour when Keigan Parker went clean through on to Pawel Abbott's through ball but dragged his shot off target from inside the box. Ten minutes later Chris Taylor had an effort beaten away by keeper Alex McCarthy and could only lift the rebound over the bar.Parker was guilty for a second time after the break as he controlled a pass eight-yards out and fired across the face of goal with just McCarthy to beat. Yeovil offered little in attack apart from during the opening stages when Gavin Tomlin headed over and Ryan Mason drilled off target.
ATHLETIC: Brill, Lomax (Worthington 46), Sheehan, Hazell, Gregan, Whitaker, Furman (Colbeck 58), Marrow, Taylor (Brooke 65), Abbott, Parker. Subs (not used): Lee, Black, Ollerenshaw, McKerr.
Referee: Mr N S Miller (County Durham).
Attendance: 4,208.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_2/8289848.stm

FC Porto 2 Atletico Madrid 0, Champions League, 29/Sept/09

2009-10-02T17:51:00.002+01:00

Atletico Madrid were hoping that the Champions League would be kinder to them than their domestic fortunes, but they were sadly mistaken as a Radamel Falcao and Rolando’s late goals condemned Abel Resino to yet another miserable evening. The Spaniards have the most porous defence in La Liga and their frailties were exposed after just ten minutes when they struggled to clear their lines and Mariano Gonzalez hammered in a left foot shot on the edge of the box which just missed the target.The visitors responded just minutes later when Diego Forlan tried his luck from distance, but Porto goalkeeper, Helton comfortably welcomed the ball into his arms. Straight to the other end, Hulk was next to test Roberto in the Atleti goal, but his effort from 20 yards out sailed over the bar. Sergio Aguero then forced Helton into an excellent save with a low shot, but Los Colchoneros’ woes at the back worsened in the 25th minute when back-up shot-stopper, Roberto had to be replaced by young David De Gea after a full stretch jump to keep out Falcao’s looping header aggravated a muscle pull he had picked up just minutes earlier. The change somehow spurred Atleti to life as they started pelting Porto’s goal, with Jurado, Forlan and Pablo Ibanez all having a crack at breaking the deadlock, but none of their attempts troubled Helton. Meanwhile, Hulk continued to threaten for the Dragoes, but, not for the first time, he sent a free kick just outside the box flying well into the stands. What was a rather uneventful half came to a close with some excitement when Mariano Gonzalez had the ball in the back of the net before Raul Meireles rattled the woodwork, but they were flagged for offside on both counts. The second period began the same way the first half ended with Hulk sending out a warning shot but his effort was high and wide. Aguero thought he had earned his side a penalty on 48 minutes when he was taken down by Alvaro Pereira, but the referee was none too interested in the Argentine’s claims. 'El Kun' almost turned provider five minutes later when he released Tomas Ujfalusi down the right channel and the Czech defender drilled in a shot which Helton did well to parry away. From the ensuing corner, Juanito sent a bullet header over the bar from six yards out. The Portuguese outfit slowly drifted away from the game as the Spaniards began to take control of proceedings. But Bruno Alves did send the Dragao faithful to their feet on 63 minutes when he blasted in a free kick from all of 40 yards out and De Gea had to be alert to slap it away. The young goalkeeper was called into action again two minutes later to deny Fredy Guarin and Fernando Belluschi. Porto’s attacking persistence paid off in the 75th minute when Radamel Falcao skilfully flicked his side into the lead after Hulk had done the hard work with a low cross into the middle after his initial shot was blocked by De Gea. It was lights out for the Rojiblancos eight minutes from time as Jesualdo Ferreira’s men wrapped up the points when Rolando easily tapped in a rebound after Bruno Alves’ header came back off the post. Porto are now firmly back in contention to secure a top two finish in the group but for Atletico, their nightmare start to the campaign is showing no signs of coming to a halt.

Oldham Ath 2 MK Dons 1, Boundary Park, League One, 29/Sept/09

2009-10-02T17:40:00.004+01:00

Oldham Ath scored two stunning goals to earn their third consecutive victory in League One as MK Dons were beaten 2-1 at Boundary Park. Full-back Alan Sheehan and striker Keigan Parker were on target in an impressive Latics performance which condemned MK Dons to a first away defeat of the season. Sheehan, on loan from Leeds, made the breakthrough after eight minutes as he moved into space 30 yards out and smashed an unstoppable drive into the bottom corner. Pawel Abbott had an effort ruled out for offside and Dons goalkeeper Willy Gueret was forced into a save when Alex Marrow took aim from long range.The Dons had a handful of chances and Mathias Doumbe went closest but they were torn apart after 70 minutes as Oldham launched a flowing move and Danny Whitaker set up Parker, who curled into the far corner with the outside of his right boot.Gueret prevented Abbott adding a third before the visitors pulled one back after Richie Partridge's cross hit the far post and cannoned in off goalkeeper Dean Brill. The Dons staged a grandstand finish and there was a half chance for Dean Morgan, but Oldham deserved all three points. Match Action below: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_2/8283919.stm

Valencia 2 Atletico Madrid 2, Mestalla, La Liga, 26/Sept/09

2009-10-02T17:30:00.003+01:00

Maxi Rodriguez's late, late goal earned Atletico Madrid a point at the Mestalla. Both sides lined up largely as expected, with Pablo being preferred to Joaquin for Valencia, while Jose Jurado got the nod over Maxi for Atleti. With the attacking talent and dodgy defences on display from both sides, goals aplenty were expected at the Mestalla. The frantic opening was no surprise, and it only took seven minutes for the deadlock to be broken, when Aguero finished expertly after being found by Diego Forlan in the box. Minutes later, Los Che had a great chance to equalise, but David Silva's rasping drive went over the bar. The home side were causing plenty of problems, and Juan Mata soon saw his shot saved by Roberto at the near post. It was end to end stuff, and Aguero should have doubled his tally when he capitalised on a loss of concentration by Alexis and ran through on goal, before nudging his shot just wide of the far post. It would prove to be a costly miss, as Pablo levelled the scores in spectacular fashion. Found on the right by Ever Banega, he lobbed it around Antonio Lopez before firing in at the near post, making to 1-1.The drama had only just begun, and the tables turned further on 26 minutes, when Silva released Villa, who bore down on Roberto and slid the ball past him to make it 2-1, before the half-hour. Both sides looked likely to score every time they touched the ball, with only some poor finishing preventing them from doing so. Just before the break, Atleti suffered a blow as Juan Valera had to be withdrawn, to be replaced by Juanito.As it was, there were no further goals before the break, as the home side went in ahead, but still with plenty of work to do. The second half started in a similar vein, and on 52 minutes, Villa nearly scored with a spectacular back-heel, only to see it bounce off the post, after he had connected with a corner from Pablo. Soon after, another corner caused more mayhem, as Silva's volley was stopped by Roberto's feet.Atleti were still in the game as well, and Cleber Santana was unlucky not to equalise when his shot from distance flew into the side netting. Seconds later, Aguero was released by Forlan, but the Argentine took a touch too many, eventually taking the ball over the byline.As the defenders began to tire, yet more space began to open up, and Villa was once again denied by a reaction save from Roberto. Meanwhile, at the other end, Jose Antonio Reyes set Forlan up seconds after coming on, but the Uruguayan fired wide.Chances were now being created by the minute, and Maxi Rodriguez also saw his fierce shot fly the wrong side of the woodwork. He then squared the ball across the box, and would have set Reyes up if not for a last minute intervention from Bruno.Just as it looked as though Valencia had done enough to secure the win, Jeremy Mathieu fell asleep at the back, allowing Maxi to ghost in at the far post and volley past Moya, thus ensuring the match finished at 2-2.

Southend Und 0 Oldham Ath 1, Roots Hall, League One, 26/Sept/09

2009-10-02T17:21:00.003+01:00

Pawel Abbott's 76th-minute penalty saw Oldham make it back-to-back wins with a 1-0 victory at Southend. Referee Keith Hill awarded the spot-kick after United's George Friend brought down Keigan Parker and Abbott slotted it into the right corner, sending goalkeeper Steve Mildenhall the wrong way. Goalscoring chances had been at a premium although referee Hill had ruled out efforts by Parker for offside and Friend for a foul in the opening 45 minutes.A back-tracking Mildenhall turned over an Abbott chip and Latics keeper Dean Brill parried a close-range Roy O'Donovan shot in the opening period. After the break Mildenhall saved Danny Whittaker's scuffed effort, while Alan Sheehan was inches over the bar with a 20-yard strike and Shrimpers skipper Adam Barrett deflected Parker's shot over. Southend pushed forward looking for an equaliser and blew a great chance when Francis Laurent fired wide from close range.
Match Action :
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_2/8265488.stm

Barcelona 5 Atletico Madrid 2, Nou Camp, La Liga, 19/September/09.

2009-09-22T00:06:00.003+01:00

Barcelona crushed Atletico Madrid at the Camp Nou with a stunning first half performance to return to the top of the table. Although the visitors found a brace of goals from Sergio Aguero and Diego Forlan, the Blaugrana were always in control of the match thanks to goals by Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Lionel Messi, Dani Alves and Seydou Keita.Both sides were at full strength up front: Messi, Ibrahimovic and Thierry Henry formed the attacking trident for the hosts, while Aguero and Forlan lined up in attack for los Rojiblancos. Dmytro Chygrynskiy made his home debut for the Blaugrana.Barcelona stated their intent after just 55 seconds, when Henry turned on the edge of the box to fire a shot off the crossbar. Barely a minute later, Ibrahimovic found the back of the net. Sergio Busquets slid a superb ball through to the former Inter man, who chipped the ball exquisitely over Roberto.Antonio Lopez saved a certain goal after 13 minutes when he cut out Henry's cross just as Messi was preparing to tap home from a matter of yards, and los Rojiblancos were rocking.The scintillating Argentine was not to be denied three minutes later, however. Xavi played an excellent ball over the visitors' defence which Messi brought down with ease, dropped his shoulder to dummy Roberto before rolling the ball home.Los Colchoneros fashioned a good passage of play on 22 minutes after Maxwell needlessly gave the ball away in his own half, but Maxi Rodriguez was unable to capitalise on the final chance.Aguero then fed Maxi with a cute through ball, but the Argentine took too long to take his shot and could only find the side netting from a narrow angle. Moments later, Jose Manuel Jurado saw his shot blocked by Chygrynskiy after he briefly saw himself through on goal as los Colchoneros looked for a way back into the game.However, Barcelona cut any hopes short when Dani Alves lashed in a long range free kick that crashed in off the post after half an hour.The fourth goal came five minutes before half time at the end of another gorgeous move by the Blaugrana. A flick by Ibrahimovic set up Messi, who turned magnificently before rolling the ball across the goal for Keita to tap home.The hosts should have had a penalty just before the break when Ibrahimovic was felled in the box, before they conceded in the 45th minute, when Aguero picked up on Busquet's loose defensive header, raced away from Chygrynskiy and chipped over Victor Valdes.Mercurial Messi - The Argentine was in sparkling formBoth coaches resisted the idea of making changes at half time, but while the visitors began the half positively, their defenders resembled rabbits caught in headlights when faced with another incisive Blaugrana attack.10 minutes into the second half, Roberto was playing with fire as he firstly gave the ball away to Ibrahimovic before Messi rounded the visitors' keeper only for the ball to get caught up in the Argentine's feet.Atleti probed and searched for ways through the Blaugrana defence, and Pep Guardiola responded by bringing on Andres Iniesta for the ever impressive Xavi.The visitors continued to press forward, and Chygrynskiy was cautioned for a foul on Aguero as the Argentine forged his way towards the Blaugrana goal. Forlan struck just over the bar from 20 yards soon after, but Atleti were unable to really test Valdes.Further substitutions were made on both sides as the game entered its final stages. Barcelona had taken their foot off the pedal, quite happy to sit on their 4-1 lead and not expend any further energy with a busy fixture list ahead of them.It almost cost them in the 79th minute. Chygrynskiy was caught out by Sinama-Pongolle, who eventually fed the ball to Forlan. Unfortunately for the Uruguayan, he blasted his shot over with only Valdes in front of him.Forlan found his goal with 5 minutes to go with a powerful finish from 20 yards after Valdes gifted possession to the visitors, however, and the Barca keeper comfortably gathered a shot from Jurado as los Rojiblancos sought a third goal.Instead, it was Barcelona that found the game's seventh goal. Atleti were undone in the last few seconds of injury time, as Iniesta and Dani Alves linked up to provide Messi with the ball inside the area, and he swept home into the corner to wrap up a comprehensive win. I thought Atletico played quite well , but Barca on this form will take a bit of stopping.

Oldham Ath 2 Carlisle Und 0, Boundary Park, League One, 19/September/09.

2009-09-21T23:55:00.005+01:00

Oldham Athletic’s first home victory since Valentine’s Day was certainly one to savour. And, typical of Athletic, they secured it against a Carlisle United team undefeated on their travels this season. While Athletic produced a much-improved performance, they still lived dangerously on occasions before finally securing three valuable Coca-Cola League One points. There were times, in a roller-coaster opening period, when it looked as though there might be further heartbreak as Carlisle threatened to leave Boundary Park with a win under their belts. But rather like Athletic in previous matches this season, Carlisle lacked a cutting edge in front of goal while, for once, Dave Penney’s men took their chances. There was a lot of positives to take from the match — two goals, a clean sheet and some solid individual performances. Underfire ’keeper Dean Brill answered his critics in the best possible way with two brilliant saves in the opening period. They were to prove vital in the outcome. On-loan left-back Alan Sheehan was the best player on the park, providing assists for the goals and oozing class. He should be playing at a higher level. Kelvin Lomax came in for the injured Andy Holdsworth at right-back, and he must be the unluckiest player at Boundary Park when it comes to those unable to command a regular place. Reuben Hazell and Sean Gregan, playing while unwell, were solid at the heart of the defence while in midfield Chris Taylor looked far more like his old self on the left after an injury-plagued start to the season. And up front, Pawel Abbott and Keigan Parker both found the net — it was Parker’s first competitive goal for the club — and the strikes will lift their confidence. To say that Athletic were down to the bare bones was an understatement as Nick Blackman, Alex Marrow and Holdsworth all joined the casualty list from last week. They were so short on numbers that Kieran Lee was the only senior player on the bench. The remainder, all six of them, were all teenagers. It looked as though it might be another of those days as Carlisle should have been two goals to the good inside six minutes. Striker Richard Offiong, on debut, hesitated when clean through, which enabled Hazell to make a last-ditch challenge. Carlisle were denied again when Scott Dobie eluded the offside trap, only for Brill, diving low to his right, to keep out the goal-bound goal. Athletic made the most of lady luck as they stole ahead in the 13th minute. Sheehan, joining the attack, fired over a low cross from the left which Abbott slotted home from six yards for his third goal of the season. Athletic might have been awarded a penalty on another day when Taylor’s ball from the left looked to hit a Carlisle hand, while Abbott almost added a second but his acrobatic effort looped narrowly wide. Sheehan almost opened his scoring account for Athletic — but at the wrong end — as his miscued headed clearance forced Brill into a brilliant reflex save. Dobie was unlucky again, bursting on to Offiong’s through ball only to see his effort strike an upright when he looked certain to score. Yet in first-half stoppage time Danny Whitaker almost doubled Athletic’s lead when his long-range drive was kept out by a fabulous fingertip save from Lenny Pidgeley. The major surprise was that the entertaining and open first period only produced one goal. Athletic sealed victory early in the second half. Taylor released Sheehan on an overlap on the left, and Parker scrambled home his far-post cross from virtually on the goalline. That goal effectively killed of Carlisle, who visibly wilted from that moment. Athletic closed out the match in a highly disciplined way, learning from the defeat at Bristol Rovers when they were done at the death. Taylor might have added a third goal late on. First he cut in from the left and forced Pidgeley to make a super stop low down at his near post and from the resulting corner, he flashed a header narrowly wide. This was Taylor of old, and hopefully Athletic can look forward to more of the same from the tricky forward in the coming months. Game action from link below: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_2/8248465.stm

Atletico Madrid 0 APOEL Nicosia 0, Vincente Calderon, Champian League, 16/September/09

2009-09-16T17:06:00.004+01:00

Atletico Madrid found the going tough against an energetic APOEL Nicosia side in their Champians League group stage opener, being held to a draw by their Cypriot visitors.While the Rojiblancos had by far the better of the second period, they perhaps cannot complain about the outcome, given that the Nicosia outfit had previously spurned two superb chances.After just six minutes, in fact, Kosowski's low cross met Charalambides unmarked at the back post, but Sergio Asenjo got down low brilliantly to save, although the winger should have done better in the finish.Atleti were unable to truly come back after that - they did manage to solidify things at the back slightly, but nonetheless the likes of Sergio Aguero and Diego Forlan up front were having trouble creating chances.Not until the 28th minute did the former really have an opportunity when left unmarked in the box, but his first touch was poor and his shot balooned around the far post.It was not Aguero's night: two minutes later he dribbled his way magically into the box for a one-on-one but then contrived to shoot straight at Chiotis.That miss, though, paled in comparison to what was to come. Again Charalambides was the culprit - his positioning was brilliant as he raced in to the far post, but Poursaitidis' cross was wasted as he somehow contrived to tap the ball past the post with the goal at his mercy.After the break Atleti came out looking much stronger, tipping a Jose Jurado drive around the post and then tipping an awkward Forlan effort over the bar.Next up, Simao's cross was missed by Aguero before substitute Maxi Rodriguez drilled it across goal, albeit with no takers.The Rojiblancos went on to dominate possession for the remainder of the game, but only tested Chiotis on two more occasions, thus passing up the chance to get three points on the board. Match Highlights below:
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid29318049001?bctid=40305939001
Thanks to Sky Sports/Football.

Atletico Madrid 1 Racing Santander 1, Vicente Calderon, La Liga, 12/September/09.

2009-09-16T17:00:00.005+01:00

Atletico Madrid failed to take advantage of an entire half against ten men, as they were held to a 1-1 draw at the Vicente Calderon.Jose Jurado scored just before the break, but his effort was soon canceled out by Oscar Serrano, to earn Racing a point.Abel Resino decided to keep Maxi Rodriguez and Diego Forlan on the bench, after their exerting South American fixtures during the international break. Racing Santander, meanwhile, lined up as expected, with Alex Geijo partnering Pedro Munitis upfront. Both sides came into the game after disappointing three goal defeats on the opening day, and it was the home side who had the first chance, with Cleber Santana seeing his shot saved by Tono. The visitors were struggling to get into the game, but on 20 minutes, they almost broke the deadlock completely against the run of play, when Geijo shot straight at Sergio Asenjo with the rest of the goal gaping. With Forlan on the bench, Sergio Aguero was Atleti's main threat, and he gave Racing a warning with an attempted chip that Tono did well to hold on to. Los Colchoneros were the dominant force, and just as it looked like the first half would end goalless, Jurado broke the deadlock, unleashing an unstoppable drive from Simao's corner. However, Atleti do have a tendency to make things complicated, and they duly conceded an equaliser on the stroke of half-time. Receiving the ball in the box, Manuel Arana picked out Serrano, who made no mistake in slotting past Asenjo. Racing may have ended the first half on a high, but they began the second in disastrous fashion, as Jose Crespo was sent off for bringing down Simao, while adjudged to be the last man. Atleti were now dominating completely thanks to the man advantage, and Forlan, who had replaced Aguero at the break, was twice denied by Tono.Despite the advantage, Atleti looked strangely underwhelming, and while they continued to monopolize possession, they were hardly seriously threatening Tono's goal. It was a tame finish to the match, as Los Rojiblancos ultimately failed to make their advantage count. Both sides now have a point for the season, but Racing will certainly be the happier in the end.

Latest From Boundary Park

2009-09-16T16:49:00.002+01:00

Bristol Rovers 1 Oldham Ath 0, League One, 12/September/09
Jo-Kuffour's last-minute winner sank Oldham as Bristol Rovers climbed to third place in League One. Substitute Andy Williams teed up Kuffour and he beat Latics keeper Dean Brill with a cool finish from 10 yards. Defences had dominated up until then, with Rovers creating most of the few chances there were and Mark Wright slicing the best of them wide. Oldham's best opening fell to Nick Blackman but he shot straight at Mikkel Andersen from 10 yards.

Oldham Ath 0 Hartlepool Und 3, Boundary Park. League One, 04/September/09.
Goals from James Brown, Leon McSweeney and Denis Behan gave Hartlepool a comfortable victory over an Oldham side without a home win since February. Brown found the net from 20 yards and McSweeney doubled the lead with a close-range header after 37 minutes. Denis Behan wrapped up the three points with a stunning 30-yard free-kick into the top corner on the hour mark. Pawel Abbott and Jon Worthington went close for Oldham, who have now gone 10 home league games without a win.

Oldham Ath 1 Accrington Stanley 2, Boundary Park, JP Trophy,
League Two strugglers Accrington came from behind to win at League One Oldham in the first round of the Johnstone's Paint Trophy. Danny Whitaker brought down Pawel Abbott's cross and lashed into the roof of the net to give Oldham the lead. Accrington drew level when Oldham defender Sean Gregan sliced Michael Symes' cross into his own net. The visitors' winner was a well-worked set-piece which allowed full-back Phil Edwards to drill home from 14 yards.

Málaga 3 Atlético de Madrid 0, La Rosaleda, La Liga, 30/August/09

2009-08-31T16:32:00.008+01:00

Atlético de Madrid were unable to begin La Liga on the right foot. Abel Resino’s squad were lacking a bit of luck with their final shot and ended up losing to Málaga by a score of 3-0, as the home side were more effective than their adversary and came away with the three points at stake.Atlético took the pitch with the idea that their manager wants to implement this year: going out to win in all stadiums, regardless of the opponent or the play displayed. The opening minutes saw a side that wanted to keep the ball and control the match. They wanted to begin the league championship with a victory and didn’t sit back and wait for it.Málaga, with plenty of enthusiasm, thanks to the support that they received from their fans, watched the ‘rojiblancos’ move the ball around, but also wanted to play their part in the encounter. Just four minutes in they gave the first warning with an off-target shot. The response didn’t take long to come as Raúl García had a chance on a header.Atlético began to believe in their chances little-by-little. They put their opponent under pressure by getting plenty of touches on the ball. Kun Agüero was the player who finally got the ‘rojiblanco’ supporters out of their seats in minute 14. A great play from the Argentinean, who dribbled every opponent who stepped in his way, ended with his cross to the penalty spot being headed off the crossbar by Simao. The goal that the fans who had shown up at La Rosaleda were getting ready to celebrate had to wait. The subsequent corner kick was shot unsuccessfully by Ujfalusi.As the minutes passed, Málaga began to settle in on the playing field. They pushed forward with more heart than play, but they started to arrive at Asenjo’s area. The worst came in minute 27 on a silly play. A foul was called on Agüero and the Argentine continued the play and was booked. Abel criticized the referee’s decision and was sent off. Nerves began to take control of the visitors.Shortly thereafter a Málaga long pass from the midfield sent in strikers Baha and Duda, who had gotten behind the Atleti defence. The result: goal for the home squad. A real blow for Abel’s lads. The reaction wouldn’t come until the final play of the first half. Again Agüero marched in on Munúa, but the Uruguayan made a fine save to prevent the equaliser.In the second half Atlético de Madrid, aware that a draw wasn’t enough, went for it all by getting back to the way they had been playing at the start of the match. On the other hand, without changing up their play too much, Málaga began to give up space to their opponent.Abel Resino’s squad began to attack Munúa’s goal more frequently and with more clarity. The control in the midfield was now absolute for the ‘rojiblancos’, while López Muniz’s men sat back in their half.Cléber, from outside the area, sent a shot heading for the upper corner. But again Munúa was there to make the save and keep the visitors off the scoreboard.But it was clear that today wasn’t Atleti’s day. A hard tackle on Raúl García forced the player from Navarre to head for the dressing room. The place left by the director of the orchestra was taken by Jurado. Abel Resino, from the stands, wasn’t impressed by the play of his team and decided to give a fresh air to the wings and sent on Reyes. He had hardly been on the pitch for a few minutes when Málaga struck again.A loose ball in the area, off a corner kick, fell to the feet of Manu Torres, who knocked in the second goal. It was too much of a prize for their scarce play exhibited during the match. There were still plenty of minutes left to be played, and although they tried and had some chances, it was clear that today the coin didn’t fall on the side of the ‘rojiblancos’.Maxi, Kun and Forlán tried their best, but without any luck. With the passing of the minutes, Málaga played a practical football. Without great plays or many touches, but very effective. They tried to play in long balls behind the pushed up Atlético back line. A final attempt was had by sending on Sinama for Maxi on the wing, but the sought-after goals didn’t come, and Málaga was able to tally a third. It was a harsh punishment for Atlético de Madrid.
Atlético de Madrid: Sergio Asenjo; Heitinga, Juanito, Ujfalusi, Antonio López; Maxi Rodríguez (Sinama, 78’), Cléber Santana, Raúl García (Jurado, 56’), Simao (Reyes, 60’); Diego Forlán and Sergio Agüero.
Referee: Muñiz Fernández.
Att: 23,000

Match Mag From Valencia Game. 17/May/2009

2009-08-31T16:22:00.001+01:00

http://dusanna.blogspot.com/2009/05/atletico-madrid-1-valencia-0-vicente.html

Brendford 1 Oldham Ath 1, Griffen Park, League One, 29/August/09

2009-08-31T10:26:00.003+01:00

Nick Blackman's excellent strike sealed a point for Oldham in an ill-tempered 1-1 draw at Brentford. The Bees took the lead just before the break when Sam Saunders' mazy run was ended with a shove by Andy Holdsworth in the penalty area and Kevin O'Connor made no mistake from the spot. Oldham levelled seven minutes after the restart through a superb 25-yard curler from the edge of the box from the right foot of Blackman. The home side had the better of the second-half chances with Carl Cort seeing a header tipped over and Steve Kabba slicing wide when well placed. But the game was marred by a string of bizarre decisions against both sides from referee Grant Hegley. The closest the visitors came to snatching the points was when Pawel Abbott missed a glorious chance with 10 minutes to go when he headed wide with the goal gaping. Brentford midfielder David Hunt flashed a half-volley narrowly over in the closing minutes
Oldham: Brill, Hazell, Gilbert, Gregan, Whitaker, Furman, Holdsworth, Marrow, Parker, Abbott, Blackman Subs: Kazimierczak, Kalnoki-kis, Rowney, Bembo-Leta, McGrath, Lee.

Match Hightlights: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_2/8229707.stm

Atletico Madrid 2 Panathinaikos 0, Estadio Vicente Calderon, C L play-off 2nd Leg, 25/August/09.

2009-08-27T02:27:00.007+01:00

The first time that Atlético de Madrid approached Galinović’s goal they got the scoreboard moving. Heitinga sent in a cross to the far post, Forlán got a touch on it and Vintra ended up sending it into his own goal. The qualifying tie was all but over, barring a catastrophe. Panathinaikos, with plenty of enthusiasm, tried to impose a high-paced rhythm to the match in order to turn around such a devastating outlook. With Leto very active from the get-go, the Greek side didn’t lose any time and didn’t stop trying to get the ball close to Asenjo’s area. Even though they had no other option but to carry out a plan of those characteristics, Ten Cate’s team was almost forced to throw in the towel in minute 8, but Kun Agüero, after a great back-heel to get free, decided to look for Simão instead of shooting.The first half wasn’t brilliant, although it was very active due to the push from Panathinaikos. Atlético de Madrid needed to control the ball better and for more time, though it’s also true that they didn’t suffer too much in defence. A distant left-footed strike from Leto, which almost surprised Asenjo, and a shot from Cissé caused a bit of uncertainty in the ‘roijblanco’ side, although not excessively.The battle in the midfield was constant, with Raúl García appearing everywhere and an always attentive Paulo Assunção. Atlético’s play was a bit rushed, perhaps influenced by the style displayed by their opponent. At times the ‘rojiblanco’ pieces seemed to fit together better on the pitch, but not with the necessary constancy for good passes to arrive at the feet of Kun and Forlán.Panathinaikos, which seemed to threaten at the beginning, began to slowly lose gas, while at the same time the minutes were ticking down. Even so, the Greek squad could have gotten back into the encounter on the final play of the first half, but a Vintra, all alone, headed the ball over Asenjo’s goal when everyone watching expected something else to happen.In the second half the play of Panathinaikos, knowing that their options had completely gone up in smoke, began to dissolve little-by-little until it was left in nothing. On the other hand, without playing too brilliantly, Atlético de Madrid now controlled the match better, with a greater percentage of ball possession.Abel Resino’s squad began to attack Galinović’s goal more frequently and with more clarity. The control in the midfield was now complete for the home side, while Ten Cate’s men were already throwing up the white flag. From time-to-time they tried long balls, but Juanito and Ujfalusi were always there to cut down any potential danger.Raúl García and Antonio López tried their luck from outside the area, but both times their shots went just wide of the post. Atlético got down to the touchline with greater ease, while Panathinaikos decided start delivering kicks to the ankles in order to cover up their impotence. A solid handful of hard tackles earned several of Ten Cate’s lads the corresponding bookings. This started with one from Cissé, who ended up seeing red and heading directly for the dressing room.Atlético de Madrid, aware that they already had their objective in their pockets, decided not to expend excessive efforts as they thought about the kick-off to league play. They continued to look for the goal, but less intensely as the minutes passed. Forlán had a header after a great cross from Antonio Lópz, but the ball followed the same path as the team’s previous shots. Abel Resino’s team, fortunately, had already done their task and didn’t lament any of their missed chances.But Kun Agüero wanted to make sure that the fans went home with even bigger smiles on their faces and dribbled by a couple of defenders and slipped in the second goal with a shot from inside the area. It was a total ‘fiesta’ at the Vicente Calderón, which Asenjo joined shortly thereafter with a brilliant save off a shot from Hristodoulopoulos. Atlético will continue their run in Champions League to the joy of the Atlético supporters.

Atlético de Madrid: Asenjo; Heitinga, Ujfalusi, Juanito, Antonio López; Paulo Assunção, Raúl García (Cléber Santana, 60’), Simão (Reyes, 85’), Maxi; Forlán (Jurado, 81’) and Kun Agüero.

Ref: Pieter Vink (Holland).

Oldham Ath 2 Swindon Town 2, Boundary Park,League One, 22/August/09

2009-08-23T22:42:00.003+01:00

Oldham substitute Kieran Lee claimed a bizarre equaliser as the Latics earned a dramatic 2-2 draw with Swindon after a frantic finale. Almost five minutes of injury time had elapsed when Lee floated in a deep right-wing cross that hit the post before crossing the line. Swindon were kicking themselves as they had only just gone in front, hitting back with a dramatic double strike from Jon Paul McGovern and Billy Paynter. McGovern exploited a goalkeeping error to score from 30 yards after 83 minutes, and Paynter was gifted Swindon's second as he latched on to Reuben Hazell's woeful back-pass. Oldham had controlled the first half, wasting good chances when Keigan Parker missed his kick from the six yards and Chris Taylor fired off target.
Debutant Nick Blackman shot just wide before on-loan teenager Alex Marrow struck his first league goal by chasing Taylor's flick and just reaching the ball ahead of keeper David Lucas. Swindon came back into it after the break, and McGovern hit the post from distance before the late drama.

Oldham:Brill, Hazell, Gregan, Gilbert, Worthington,(Lee 82), Holdsworth, Taylor (Furman 80), Marrow, Abbott, Parker (Whitaker 62) Blackman. Subs: Kazimierczak, Lomax, Whitaker, Furman, Lee, Brooke, Byfield.

Ref: Haywood

Att: 4229

Match highlights below: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_2/8207696.stm

Panathinaikos 2 Atletico Madrid 3,Spyrous Louis Stadium, Champions League, 19/August/09.

2009-08-22T02:34:00.007+01:00

Atletico Madrid secured a wonderful victory in Athens tonight, seeing off Panathinaikos 3-2 in what was a thrilling contest to effecively book their place in the group stages of this season's Champions League. Maxi Rodriguez gave the Spaniards the lead, before the Greeks equalised through Salpingidis straight after half-time. However, Atletico established a two goal advantage through Diego Forlan and Sergio Aguero, before Sebastian Leto’s late reply gave the Shamrocks a glimmer of hope for the return match next week.The encounter began slowly, with Atletico looking to contain and frustrate the partisan home crowd, and Panathinaikos found it extremely difficult to create any clear-cut opportunities. New signing Djbril Cisse wasted a decent opening before Dimitrios Salpingidis was rightly flagged offside when he prodded home inside the six yard box.But the Spanish side weathered the storm, and in their first real attack of the match, they clinched a vital away goal. Uruguayan Forlan held the ball up, before slipping a neat pass to the feet of Maxi Rodriguez, and the Argentine deftly slipped the ball home to give Los Colchoneros the lead, albeit arguably against the flow of play in the first 45 minutes.But any hint of reserve was obliterated by a spree of attacking football in the second period that witnessed some truly stunning goals.Two minutes after the break, Salpingidis broke beyond a static Atletico back line to lob the ball over young goalkeeper Sergio Asenjo and throw the Greeks into the ascendancy.But with forward of the ability of Forlan and his partner-in-crime, Sergio Aguero, goals are never far way, and both of them ruthlessly put the Shamrocks to the sword.On 61 minutes, Maxi Rodriguez rattled a drive off the underside of the crossbar, and Forlan composed himself to drill home and put Abel Resino’s men back ahead. Aguero didn’t take long to get in on the act, though. The prodigious youngster showed all of his qualities to head down the right, and unleash a superb shot across goal and into the corner of the net. 3-1, and Atletico Madrid looked to be home and dry.But the scoring wasn’t over yet. Former Liverpool winger Sebastian Leto had arrived as a second-half substitute, and in the closing stages he rifled a vicious missile into the roof of the net, and give Henk Ten Cate’s men belief that they could salvage a draw.We were treated to the best and worst of Atletico this evening in equal measure; devastating in attack, but susceptible in defence, and although they managed to weather the late storm and secure a result that leaves them with one foot into the Champions League door, the Greeks will believe that there is still life in this tie yet. Three wonderful goals from Atleti, so much class about each of them.

Atlético de Madrid: Asenjo; Heitinga, Ujfalusi, Juanito, Antonio López; Paulo Assunção, Raúl García (Cléber Santana, 70’), Maxi (Sinama Pongolle, 85’), Simão; Forlán and Agüero (Jurado, 74’).

Referee: Félix Brych (Germany).
Att:65,000

Millwall 2 Oldham Ath 0, New Den, League One,

2009-08-22T01:54:00.004+01:00

Oldham Athletic slipped to their first defeat of the season in Coca-Cola League One. Millwall 's Neil Harris scored his fourth goal in as many games as Millwall recorded their first league win of the season. The hosts took the lead with their first meaningful attack, David Martin smashing in off the underside of the bar after Steve Morison's flick-on. Keeper David Forde kept his side ahead when he saved Pawel Abbott's penalty after Tony Craig was adjudged to have brought down Andy Holdsworth. Harris clinched the win in injury time when he headed in Jason Price's centre. There was seven players booked in what was a tough game. Next up is a home game v Swindon on Saturday. Match highlights below:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_2/8205251.stm

Leyton Orient 1 Oldham Ath 2, Matchroom Stadium, League One 15/August/09

2009-08-19T17:28:00.002+01:00

Pawel Abbott scored twice to earn Oldham a fine 2-1 away win against out-of-sorts Leyton Orient. The Latics striker was reunited with manager Dave Penney this summer following their time together at Darlington. And Penney's men took the lead with just 12 minutes on the clock when Abbott drilled home from the edge of the box after his first effort had been parried by Jamie Jones. Orient came back into the contest and levelled just after the half-hour mark, though, when Ryan Jarvis arrived at the near post to force home John Melligan's precise cross.
Abbott was to prove to be the match-winner after the break, converting from the penalty spot in the 59th minute after Sean Thornton hacked down Andy Holdsworth in the box. The goal crowned Penney's first win in charge of the Latics as they did not have to defend too much after regaining the lead, short of goalkeeper Dean Brill snuffing out Jarvis' break.

Match Highligts: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_2/8204237.stm

Deportivo 1 Atletico Madrid 1, (Atletico won 4-3 on pens) Estadio de Riazor, Teresa Herrera Trophy, 11/August/09

2009-08-13T21:02:00.005+01:00

Roberto was decisive by stopping two Deportivo penalties in the final of a Teresa Herrera match which will go to Madrid after an encounter which had ended one-all after goals from Iván Pérez, for the home side, and Jurado, from the penalty spot, for the visitors. Atlético won this prestigious summer trophy 23 years after their last title and has now won it six times.The ‘rojiblanco’ squad had control of the match in the first half and only in the second, with the entrance of Valerón and Iván Pérez, was the home team able to level out the play. However, after the goal from Jurado, the match went back to being in Atleti’s favour.Deportivo and Atlético de Madrid faced off in an enthralling match-up for the 64th edition of the Teresa Herrera Trophy, one of the most prestigious in the world of football, a complete summer classic. Deportivo, which has won 16 titles, nine of them consecutively this past decade, wanted to be able to offer a tenth to their supporters and, particularly, to the recently passed away Dani Jarque, in the cases of Miguel Ángel Lotina and Lopo. Both the Depor manager and player had shared a locker room with the fierce defender from Sant Boi de Llobregat and have been extremely affected by the loss.The ‘rojiblanco’, for their part, were playing their eighth match of the pre-season and, after a record of three wins against Colmenar, Benfica and Liverpool, two draws against Ajax and Paris Saint Germain, and two losses to Sunderland and Arsenal, wanted to continue with the play demonstrated against Liverpool this past Saturday during a week which will be crucial for their preparation for the Champions League qualifier. And the week couldn’t have started off any better, by conquering the Teresa Herera.The game between the Galician and Madrid sides was marked by absences of many players, as the ‘FIFA virus’, caused by national team commitments, had left the ‘blanquiazules’ without Filipe Luis and Guardado, while the ‘rojiblancos’ were without Maxi Rodríguez, Agüero, Heitinga, Perea and Simão. Furthermore, Lotina didn’t have Mista, Lassad or Antonio Tomás available, while Abel Resino was also without Forlán and Asenjo.The match got underway at a fast pace, with two teams that didn’t give up on any loose balls and pressuring all over the pitch. The ‘rojiblancos’, playing with a 4-2-3-1, had their back line pushing up, as has become normal for them, and took control of the ball to look for quick moves up the wings, especially down the left, where Reyes was very active.It was a move down from the player from Seville which ended in the first shot for Atlético as Cléber Santana tried his luck from outside the area, but Aranzubia saved the strike from the Brazilian. Deportivo didn’t want to be outclassed and one minute later, in the 15th, Roberto sent a shot from Adrián López wide for a corner kick.But that was an isolated chance for Lotina’s lads, who watched as Atlético began to gobble up space on the pitch thanks to the work of Cléber Santana, Paulo Assunção and Jurado, who led the ‘rojiblanco’ attack. Given the outlook, the Depor head coach decided to send on Lafita for Riki at the half-hour mark. The match had a clear red-and-white colour, although a goal was missing and right before the break Reyes had a left-footed strike from the top of the area which flew just over the crossbar.After the restart everything seemed to remain the same, although Deportivo, now with Valerón and Iván Pérez on the playing field, showed signs of a greater offense than in the first half. The Canarian midfielder was vital to the recovery of the home team and gave a warning by creating a play that Pablo Álvarez took charge of messing up in minute 48. Four minutes later Valerón did his part to carve out the first goal of the game, which was finished off by Iván Pérez.Atlético didn’t change their game plan and continued to control the ball and the match. They needed to come back from this deficit on the scoresheet and Abel Resino’s squad tried at all times, such as in minute 72, when Koke pounced on a rebound in front of the goal, but Aranzubia made the save. It was a warning of what was to come shortly thereafter, when Sinama Pongolle was brought down inside the area with a quarter hour to play. Jurado didn’t miss his spot kick and equalised.From there until the final whistle, Atlético was better and even had two later chances to grab the winner, but a header from Borja skimmed off a defender and went over and another shot from Keko was saved by Aranzubia. Then, in the penalty-kick shootout, Roberto emerged to bring the trophy back home to the Atlético de Madrid showcase.

Atlético de Madrid: Roberto; Valera, Pablo Ibáñez, Domínguez, Antonio López (Cabrera, 46’); Paulo Assunção (Koke, 46’), Cleber Santana (Raúl García, 83’); Pacheco (Borja, 46’), Jurado, Reyes (Keko, 83’); and Sinama Pongoalle.

Referee: González Vázquez.

Att:5,000

Carlisle 1 Oldham Ath 0, Brunton Park, Carling Cup, 11/August/09

2009-08-13T20:42:00.002+01:00

Carlisle United booked their place in the second round of the Carling Cup as they sneaked past Oldham courtesy of a late Scott Dobie header. On the balance of play the Cumbrians deserved their win having created more chances than the Latics who did not manage to test home keeper Lenny Pidgeley until the 82nd minute when Chris Taylor had their first on-target shot.
Dobie should have put Carlisle in front in the 13th minute when Matty Robson floated over a perfectly-placed cross which the striker headed straight at 'keeper Dean Brill from six yards.
Carlisle defender Richard Keogh came closest to breaking the deadlock in the 33rd minute when he smacked a header against the foot of the post from Graham Kavanagh's right-wing corner.
The home side continued to press after the break but spurned another golden opportunity when Danny Livesey burst onto Kavanagh's corner from the left but glanced his close-range header wide. Pidgeley was largely inactive until Taylor weaved his way into the box to force him to palm away his rising drive, but it was Dobie who had the last word with a thumping header from David Raven's cross two minutes from the end.

Liverpool 1 Atletico Madrid 2, Anfield, Friendly, 08/August/09

2009-08-13T13:06:00.005+01:00

Liverpool were defeated by Spanish side Atletico Madrid in their final pre-season game.
Kun Aguero kicked off the scoring in the 15minute before Diego Forlan extended Atletico's lead just after the half hour mark. Lucas Leiva grabbed a consolation 10 minutes from time for Liverpool. The first half saw Liverpool start brightly as Atletico keeper Sergio Asenjo had to claw a good effort by Dirk Kuyt wide, with Fernando Torres on hand to punish any mistake.
At the other end Kun Aguero looked dangerous as he turned and struck the ball in one motion, with Pepe Reina stretching to tip the ball over the crossbar. It was a good save but Aguero had already been flagged for offside. Liverpool didn't heed this warning and Aguero was the benefactor of some loose Liverpool defending. The Argentinian ghosted into the penalty area to head home Antonio Lopez's cross on the six yard line in the fifteenth minute. It went from bad to worse for Liverpool as defender Jamie Carragher went down injured after picking up a knock, he was treated on the sideline but couldn't continue and was replaced by Mikel San Jose. The home side were unlucky not to equalise when Javier Mascherano's forward pass was deflected into the path of Torres. The Spaniard loomed down on goal but the keeper came out quickly to deny the former Atletico striker. Minutes later and Torres was involved again, the ball was only half-cleared by Madrid and as Liverpool worked the ball back into the area El Nino appeared to be hauled down, but the referee waved away penalty claims. Atletico nearly extended their lead with a clinical counter-attack from a Liverpool corner. Aguero skipped beyond San Jose but was closed well by Reina who smothered the ball. When Madrid did extend their lead it came through former Manchester United player Diego Forlan. Simao broke forward down the left and back-heeled the ball to Forlan on the edge of the box, the Uruguayan took a touch and curled the ball beautifully into the top right-hand corner. Despite his past allegiances the Liverpool crowd broke into spontaneous applause, recognising the high quality of the finish. Liverpool had a few more chances but couldn't grab an equaliser, Torres hit the post with a vicious strike and Kuyt headed over the crossbar. The home side responded positively after the break with Yossi Benayoun taking a corner that was headed on by Lucas. The ball came to Torres but his aerial effort was well-saved by Asenjo. Liverpool came even closer in the 54th minute as Gerrard steering his shot inches wide following a Torres cross. Torres looked intent to score against his former club and was denied a wonder-goal in the 67th minute as the Spaniard went on a mazy run, beating three defenders, but was unable to produce a finish to match.
Reina then blocked Forlan's angled drive, with the visitors introducing Anfield old boy Florent Sinama-Pongolle into the action with 15 minutes left on the clock to a warm reception from the Kop. Some excellent defending from Juanito denied Benayoun from getting a clear strike on goal at point-blank range. Gerrard's threaded pass then picked out Lucas in the area and the Brazilian kept calm to smash a low effort into the bottom corner, providing a consolation in the 81st minute. The home team poured forward in search of an equaliser, spurred on by an enamoured support, and substitute David Ngog had a chance near the end. But the youngster was unable to get a clear shot away in the midst of a penalty area scramble.
Atlético de Madrid: Asenjo; Heitinga, Ujfalusi, Juanito, Antonio López; Paulo Assunção, Raúl García (Cléber Santana, 55’), Simão, Maxi (Sinama Pongolle, 75’); Forlán and Kun Agüero (Jurado, 81’).
Referee: P. Dowd Wiley (England).
Att: 44,102

Oldham Ath 0 Stockport 0, Boundary Park, League One, 08/August/09.

2009-08-12T23:48:00.003+01:00

Stockport goalkeeper Owain Fon Williams staged a heroic display to earn his side a 0-0 draw at Oldham. The home side created virtually all the chances against their north-west rivals but Fon Williams defied them with a string of saves. The Wales Under-21 international, who has been linked with moves to the Premier League, ensured honours were even at half-time when he dived full length to thwart Keigan Parker. And he was unbeatable after the break when Oldham, featuring eight debutants in their new-look team, did everything but grab a deserved winning goal.Fon Williams charged off his line to block Dean Furman's angled shot and then made a stunning stop as Furman's volley burst through a ruck of players. He also saved two Pawel Abbott efforts, included one in the fourth minute of stoppage time, and another from sub Darren Byfield. Stockport did not threaten the Oldham goal until the 90th minute when Greg Tansey blasted straight at Dean Brill from the edge of the box.

Oldham: Brill, Hazell, Gregan, Marrow, Gilbert, Worthington, Holdsworth (Alessandra ) 86 Furman, Taylor (Whitaker 68) Abbott, Parker (Byfield 69) Subs: Kazimierczak, Lomax, Whitaker, Lee, O'Grady, Alessandra, Byfield
Ref: Langford
Att: 6918

Link to match highlights... http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_2/8192197.stm

Lastest From Boundary Park

2009-08-08T07:58:00.006+01:00

Eardley Joins Blackpool..
LATICS spent most of the summer denying that fullback Neal Eardley was leaving the club. But on the eve of the new season, the Welsh international has today signed for Championship club Blackpool, for an undisclosed fee. There had been reports that Eardley had a knee problem but that he had hopefully recovered in time to be considered for selection for Athletic's opening game tomorrow against struggling neighbours Stockport County. However, he will instead be with the Tangerines. The product of the successful Boundary Park youth system, Eardley made his debut three years ago and played over 100 times scoring ten goals while playing at both fullback and in midfield. Many Latics watchers have been predicting an Eardley departure as boss Dave Penney has built-up cover through summer signings. Rumours say £350,000 not enough in my view.

Four players arrive on eve of new season.
Oldham Athletic have completed the captures of four players in a busy day of transfer activity at Boundary Park. Manager Dave Penney’s preparations for the new campaign, which kicks off tomorrow with a local derby against Stockport County, moved into overdrive. Athletic signed versatile Blackburn Rovers player Alex Marrow, former Sheffield Wednesday left-back Peter Gilbert, trialist striker Darren Byfield and ex-Darlington ’keeper Przemyslaw Kazimierczak. The four have all arrived at Boundary Park either on loan or short-term contracts. The day began with the signing of 19-year-old Marrow, who can play right back, centre-back and midfield. He began his playing days at non-league Ashton Athletic, but is so highly regarded by Blackburn that he penned a new deal in January which doesn’t expire until the summer of 2011. Free-agent Gilbert was the second to sign and he will provide cover at left-back for the injured Joe Jacobson. Former Wales under-21 international Gilbert (26) has played league football for Plymouth, Leicester City and Sheffield Wednesday, who terminated his contract in April. He has had trials pre-season at Coventry and Southend, but Athletic have offered him a route back into football. Striker Byfield is no stranger to Boundary Park, having had a loan spell with Athletic last season. Released by Doncaster Rovers at the end of last season, the 32-year-old has been training with Athletic for a couple of weeks. The final new arrival is Kazimierczak, who worked with Penney at Darlington last season and who will provide cover for No. 1 Dean Brill. Kazimierczak (21) spent four years at Bolton Wanderers during which he made his league debut on loan at Accrington Stanley. He joined Darlington from Bolton in January, 2008, and went on to play nine league games for the Quakers before returning to Poland at the end of last season.

Champions League Draw..........

2009-08-08T07:19:00.002+01:00

Atlético de Madrid will face off against Panathinaikos in the Champions League Play-Off Round, as decided in the draw held in Nyon on Friday morning 7 August. The ‘rojiblanco’ institution was represented by Jesús García Pitarch (Sports Director) and Fernando Fariza (Director of the Social Department). The first leg match will be played on 19 August in Athens and the return leg on 25 August in Madrid. Both matches will kick off at 8:45 pm.In the event that Atlético de Madrid gets past this stage, they will play in the Champions League group stage for the second consecutive year. The draw for this stage of the competition will be held in Monaco on 27 August, coinciding with the playing of the European Super Cup. The first matchday will be played on 15/16 September and the final one on 8/9 December. The match-ups of this Play-Off Round are the following: Lyon-Anderlecht. Celtic-Arsenal.Timisoara-Stuttgart.Sporting Lisbon-Fiorentina.Panathinaikos-Atlético de Madrid.

Atletico Madrid 1 Paris St Germain 1, Emirates Cup, 02/August/09.

2009-08-03T02:01:00.004+01:00

A late equaliser gave 10-man Paris St Germain a 1-1 draw with Atletico Madrid on day two of the Emirates Cup. PSG defender Albert Baning was sent off in the 41st minute after bringing down Sergio Aguero and the Atletico striker stepped up to convert the penalty. But Ludovic Giuly struck with 19 minutes left to ensure it ended honours even in the pre-season competition at the Emirates Stadium in London. PSG had lost 1-0 to Rangers on day one while Atletico were beaten 2-1 by hosts Arsenal. Atletico started well and hit the bar through Cleber before referee Alan Wiley showed Baning a straight red card. Aguero then dusted himself down to take the spot-kick and give the Spanish side the lead. That looked destined to decide the contest until Giuly popped up late on, with the former Barcelona forward levelling matters following a fine run and cross by Stephane Sessegnon But it was not enough to save the French outfit from the wooden spoon as Atletico claimed third place on goals scored, with Arsenal and Rangers contesting Sunday's final.

Oldham Ath 2 Blackpool 4, Boundary Park, Friendly, 01/August/09.

2009-08-03T02:00:00.001+01:00

The match will be remembered for its explosive opening as three of the goals came in a dramatic first seven minutes. Athletic made a breakthrough inside 90 seconds when former Blackpool player Parker provided a pinpoint cross from the right for Abbott to head into the roof of the net. Blackpool snatched the initiative by scoring twice in little over 60 seconds through Ben Burgess, a former Athletic loan player, and Keith Southern. Burgess slotted home after a cut-back from David Vaughan while Southern headed home a cross from Gary Taylor-Fletcher. Athletic made it 2-2 when Abbott struck for a second time in the 19th minute after Dean Furman’s long-range drive deflected off Smalley into the path of Abbott. He ought to have completed a first-half hat-trick but blazed over after being set up by Parker. The second half failed to achieve the heights of the opening period, the spate of substitutions from both teams obviously having a disruptive effect. Blackpool secured victory through two late goals from substitute Brett Ormerod, the same player who failed to find the net during his loan spell with Athletic last season. Ormerod was lurking at the far post to convert a 72nd minute left-wing cross Taylor-Fletcher and then with four minutes remaining struck again on the break after being played onside by substitute Rene Steer.

Arsenal 2 Atletico Madrid 1, Emirates Cup, 01/August/09.

2009-08-03T01:56:00.006+01:00

Russian star Andrey Arshavin emerged off the bench to score twice as Arsenal secured a late 2-1 success over Atletico Madrid in the Emirates Cup. Arshavin looked to have won the game when he guided home with five minutes remaining, although their Spanish counterparts replied immediately though German Pacheco. Just when it looked like being a frustrating day's work for Arsene Wenger's men at the Emirates Arshavin squeezed the ball home from a virtually impossible angle to snatch the victory. The opening exchanges breezed by without incident or goal-mouth action with the only source of enthusiasm coming from Arsenal fans' willingness to boo Jose Antonio Reyes. Arsene Wenger's troops came close to breaking the deadlock in the 19th minute when Robib van Persie sent a left-footer bouncing just wide of the far post after good work by Aaron Ramsey. Atletico caused problems of their own, but as Gunners fans will testify Reyes' right foot is nowhere near as strong as his left and he sent an effort well wide with his weaker foot. Arsenal carved out their best chance of the half on the stroke of half-time when Van Persie picked out the marauding Emmanuel Eboue, only for summer signing Sergio Asenjo to save his right-footed blast. The home side made three changes during the interval, although that did not preventing The Gunners looking like the more likely side to break the deadlock.Had it not been for a great piece of defending from Johnny Heitinga, Van Persie's clever flick would have rolled into the unguarded visitors' net from Bacary Sagna's teasing cross.Arsenal continued to press with Nicklas Bendtner firing over from a tight angle, while Vito Mannone was finally called into action on the hour mark to keep out Maxi Rodriguez's long-range effort. Asenjo continued to impress after keeping out Ramsey's well-struck effort after he was teed up by Jack Wilshere while substitute Fran Merida sent a close-range effort wide.Atletico twice came close to opening the scoring with Maxi Rodriguez sending a right-footed effort just wide before Mannone did just enough to halt Sergio Aguero's long-range blast.The deadlock was finally broken when Arshavin slid the ball home at the back post from Cesc Fabregas' cross, although their joy proved short-lived as German Pacheco broke the offside trap and making no mistake with the finish. However, Arsenal had the final say with Arshavin bagging his second of the game with the last kick of the game after nodding past Asenjo before tucking home from a near impossible angle.

Oldham Ath 2 Middlesboro 2, Boundary Park, Friendly, 29/July/09.

2009-07-30T14:12:00.003+01:00

Oldham Ath made a dream start, taking the lead in the sixth minute when Abbott’s flick released Chris Taylor who burst through the middle of the Boro defence to slot the ball low past keeper Danny Coyne. Abbott had a chance to double the lead but Coyne just managed to deflect his close-range effort into the side netting in an opening half in which Athletic keeper Dean Brill didn’t have a shot to save. Abbott had another clear-cut opening early in the second half, but blazed over and Boro made a breakthrough just short of the hour when Athletic failed to clear a Mark Yeates corner, allowing right-back Rhys Williams to head home. Midway through the second period Boro stole ahead with Huth this time heading home from a Yeates corner, a bullet from 12 yards into the roof of the net. Athletic displayed resolve and drew level within two minutes when Parker looped in a free kick from 30 yards off the underside of the crossbar. Brill made a couple of decent saves late on to deny Williams and Gary Martin, but Athletic were never seriously threatened on a night when their pre-season preparations moved up several gears.

Oldham Ath: Brill; Eardley (Lomax 46), Hazell, Gregan, Jacobson (Whitaker 50); Holdsworth, Furman (Rowney 86), Worthington, Taylor; Abbott (O’Grady 77), Byfield (Parker 59). Subs (not used): Alessandra, Lee, Ollerenshaw, Steer.

Atletico Madrid 0 Sunderland 2, Amsterdam Areana, Friendly, 26/July/09

2009-07-26T22:32:00.004+01:00

Oldham Ath 1 Sunderland 2, Boundary Park, Friendly, 25/July/09.

2009-07-26T22:30:00.003+01:00

Oldham Athletic, who were without the injured Dean Furman, Deane Smalley and Rob Purdie, had newly-signed Rene Steer making his debut at left-back while right-back Andy Holdsworth and striker Keigan Parker, both acquired during the week, also started. Steer burst through on goal after a neat build-up and took the ball wide of keeper Michal Misiewicz, but was unable to convert. Athletic were undone by two bizarre goals in the space of four minutes midway through the opening period. Holdsworth, on the half-way line, played a short pass backwards to Reuben Hazell who slipped, enabling Adam Reed to race clear and round keeper Dean Brill to score easily. The second was equally bad as Hazell scuffed a sideways pass to Sean Gregan enabling David Dowson to seize on the error to run through on goal to score a gift goal. It might have got even worse as Hazell and Gregan got into another muddle, but Dowson’s goalbound effort was spectacularly cleared off the line by Joe Jacobson. Andrew Galer and Robbie Weir also went close and Athletic were lucky only to be 2-0 down at the break. Penney brought on Eardley and Kelvin Lomax at full-back, pushing Holdsworth into midfield as Steer and Jacobson came off at the break. Chris Taylor and Parker had decent attempts at goal before Athletic finally made a breakthrough midway through the second period when Sunderland defender Jean Y’ves M’voto needlessly hauled back Parker. After deliberations involving Eardley, Parker and Abbott it was Abbott who scored from the spot, though he only just managed to squeeze his shot past keeper Misiewicz. Parker, Taylor, Holdsworth and substitute Chris O’Grady all had chances in the final quarter to make it 2-2, though Sunderland could have won by a wider margin as the dangerous Dowson was denied by an upright.

Oldham Sign Keigan Parker

2009-07-26T22:25:00.002+01:00

Oldham Athletic are set to sign striker Keigan Parker from Huddersfield Town. The 27-year-old, who is still under contract with the Latics' League One rivals, has agreed a two-year deal with the Boundary Park club. Parker was part of the Blackpool squad which was promoted to the Championship after beating the Latics in the play-offs two seasons ago. The Scottish forward began his career at St Johnstone and had a loan spell at Hartlepool last season.

Ajax 3 Atletico Madrid 3, Amsterdam Tourament, 24/July/09.

2009-07-25T01:25:00.005+01:00

A last-minute penalty from Luis Suarez gave Ajax a share of the spoils against Atletico Madrid in this Amsterdam Tournament friendly.Cvitanich opened the scoring early on, but Simao and Sergio Aguero each netted before half time to give their side the lead.Dennis Rommedahl restored parity twenty minutes from time, and although Maxi Rodriguez's goal six minutes later appeared to have provided Atleti with the win, up stepped Suarez to level it at the death.

Bury 0 Oldham Ath 0, Friendly, 18/July/09.

2009-07-20T23:21:00.008+01:00

Oldham Athletic's goalless draw at League Two neighbours Bury hardly set the pulse racing, but it was another useful step along the way to the start of the season on August 8. Manager Dave Penney fielded a stronger starting line-up than had been the case for the disappointing midweek 2-1 defeat at FC Halifax – and Athletic certainly had a more solid look about them. But chances were at a premium in a dour, gritty battle in which both sides defended well, had some neat moments in build-up play, but overall lacked an incisive thrust. Athletic had the best opportunities, but Chris Taylor fired over the bar from inside the box after good work by Pawel Abbott, while Chris O’Grady drilled a shot into the side netting from a tight angle. At the opposite end, goalkeeper Dean Brill was largely unemployed as centre-backs Sean Gregan and Rueben Hazell formed a solid barrier in front of him. Brill did have to react quickly to dash from his line and boot clear after Gregan’s under-hit back pass threatened to let in the busy Danny Carlton. Carlton was booked by referee Lee Mason for a challenge on Gregan, whose centre-back partner Hazell was also cautioned for wrestling Domaine Rouse to the ground. There was a competitive edge to proceedings but the game was not over-blessed with flowing football, despite the promptings of Dean Furman and Jon Worthington as they develop their partnership at the heart of Athletic’s midfield. As is normally the case in these pre-season affairs, both managers made wholesale changes in the second half. Athletic withdrew O’Grady, Abbott, Dean Smalley, Neal Eardley and Worthington, sending on Lewis Alessandra, Danny Whittaker, Kelvin Lomax, Ryan Brooke and Chris Rowney. And Taylor had a chance to pinch victory after 70 minutes when the glanced a header wide from Joe Jacobson’s corner kick. The one downside for Athletic was an injury to a trialist striker who suffered suspected knee ligament damage in a pile-up with goalkeeper Wayne Brown and defender Ryan Cresswell.

Athletic: Brill, Eardley, Jacobson, Worthington, Gregan, Hazell, Smalley, Furman, Abbott, O,Grady, Taylor. Subs: Lomax, Spencer, Haining, Whittaker, Alessandra, Brooke, Rowney, Trialist, Trialist.

FC Halifax Town 2, Oldham Athletic 1

Though five senior players were given a night off, Athletic ought still to have had enough to defeat opponents five divisions below them in the footballing pyramid. And the loss confirmed that a number of the players on view, especially the trialists, simply aren’t good enough for Coca-Cola League One. Athletic lacked the defensive stability that Sean Gregan and Reuben Hazell provide, as well as the forward thrust of Chris Taylor, Deane Smalley and Pawel Abbott. In the opening half Chris O’Grady scored a peach of a goal to give Athletic an early lead. He showed occasional flashes, but ought to have terrorised a UniBond League division one north defence. Right-back Neal Eardley made some probing runs down the right, while Will Haining was solid at the back and Dean Furman busy and industrious in midfield alongside the hard-working Jon Worthinton. But with eight changes made at the break, the second half proved a disjointed affair as Athletic lost their way. Only first-year professional Chris Rowney displayed any desire and passion in what was a miserable 45 minutes. When O’Grady thundered home a spectacular shot from outside the box into the top corner after only five minutes, Athletic must have looked on it as a launchpad for a comfortable victory. Eardley and Ryan Brooke both went close to doubling the advantage before Athletic were stunned by a Town equaliser on the half-hour when the ball was fired in low from the left and the defence failed to clear the danger, allowing Mark Peers fired home a low, angled drive. Town, whose side included former Boundary Park pair Ryan Sugden and Mark Hotte, snatched victory with seven minutes left when Athletic’s offside trap was breached and substitute Marvin McDonald ran through to fire low past keeper Dean Brill.

Athletic: Brill, Eardley, Trialist, Worthington, Haining, Trialist (sub Trialist 40), Lee, Furman, O’Grady, Brooke, Trialist. Second half: Brill, Lomax, Trialist, Haining, Jacobson, Lee (Trialist 63), Rowney, Whitaker, Black, Trialist, Alessandra.

Hyde United 0, Oldham Athletic 2,

Manager Dave Penney may be creating a new-look Athletic team, but it was two survivors from last season who secured last night’s victory at Hyde United in their opening pre-season friendly. Goals from Danny Whitaker and Lewis Alessandra earned Athletic a win at Blue Square North side Hyde which ought to have been far more emphatic than the scoreline suggests. They were denied three times by the crossbar and, together with other openings, they could have triumphed by a far wider margin in what proved a satisfactory workout. There will be far more rigorous challenges further down the line in pre-season, but there was little which could be faulted from this encouraging display. The one irritating part of the night was the presence of un-named trialists in the Athletic line-up which turns reporting the facts of the match into a farce. Surely if players, some of whom were foreign, appear in a competitive fixture in front of paying customers, the fans have a right to know who they are watching. Apart from trialist keeper James Spencer, the former Stockport and Rochdale shot-stopper, Athletic fielded a completely different line-up in each half as new-boy Dean Brill was made to wait for his debut. Spencer did not have a shot to save so it was almost impossible to evaluate him. Penney’s line-up for the opening half was far stronger than the one used for the second period when Spencer and Will Haining were among five trialists used, the other three remaining anonymous. You would imagine seven or eight members of the first-half side will be starting the season’s opening fixture against Stockport County. Of the new players, Dean Furman caught the eye in the opening half as he relished the role of ball-playing midfielder. He sprays passes around with ease and was likened in style to former Latics favourite Neil Kilkenny. New signings Joe Jacobson and Pawel Abbott also starred in the opening half, while Jon Worthington beefed up the midfield in the second period when Athletic fielded a far less experienced side. Athletic opened the scoring in the 12th minute when Chris Taylor provided the assist for Whitaker to confidently cut back from his right to left foot before curling an exquisite shot into the top corner from outside the penalty area. Abbott provided a delightful touch to create an opening for himself as he fired against a post when he ought to have been celebrating. Athletic added a second goal shortly before half time when keeper Josh Ollerenshaw, who Athletic loaned to Hyde for the opening period, failed to gather a long punt forward and Alessandra had a relatively easy finish. It was all change in the second period in which Athletic must still be wondering how they failed to increase their goal return. First-year professional Chris Rowney, a midfield player in the Nick Henry/Mike Milligan mould, forced a decent save from Hyde keeper Michael Jones. Athletic’s unknown giant trialist central defender, who is believed to be from London, saw a terrific shot strike the crossbar and at the death he was denied by a super stop by Jones. Striker Chris O’Grady, back from the wilderness after three spells out on loan last season, also made an impact in the second period when he was denied by the crossbar, a fine save from Jones and a goalline clearance.

Athletic: (4-4-2): Spencer; Lomax, Hazell, Gregan, Jacobson; Smalley, Whitaker, Furman, Taylor; Abbott, Alessandra. SECOND HALF (4-4-2): Spencer; Eardley (Trialist 68), Trialist, Haining, Black; Lee, Worthington, Rowney, Trialist; O’Grady, Wolfenden.

Greg Fleming has left Athletic on a season-long loan to Dunfermline Athletic. The move followed an enquiry from the Scottish Division One side to Athletic about the availability of the 22-year-old Edinburgh-born player. Fleming, who last season made 21 first-team appearances, has agreed to the switch, though there is a clause which states he can be recalled in the January transfer window. In the event of Brill being injured, Athletic would still have the option of signing a keeper on an emergency loan as they did last season when they brought in Jan Budtz and Shane Supple. Athletic, acting on police advice, have allocated Stockport County the large 3,000 capacity section of the Leesfield Developments Rochdale Road Stand for their opening league game of the campaign on Saturday, August 8. It is a repeat of last season so Athletic season-ticket holders will have to relocate to either the small adjoining section or switch to another part of the ground before the day of the game. They are requested to bring their season tickets for each seat so the applicable voucher can be removed.

Atletico Madrid 3 Colmenar Viejo 0, Friendly, 18/July/09

2009-07-20T23:11:00.002+01:00

Atletico de Madrid fielded a second-string side for their opening game, but the players still had points to prove. Jose Manuel Jurado stood out as he aimed to show coach Abel Resino what he is capable of in Atletico de Madrid's 3-0 victory against lowly Colmenar Viejo on Saturday evening.The midfielder was one of a number of players keen to prove that they deserve a place in the trainer's plans for next season after returning to the club having being out on loan. Playing fifth-tier local neighbours Colmenar, Jurado shone in the centre as he controlled matters while Jose Antonio Reyes, Juan Valera and Cleber Santana also appeared.All four players are playing for their futures with Atletico and did themselves no harm with a confident display in a game that saw the top flight outfit field few first choice stars.Cleber nodded home a Juan Valera cross early on and in the second half Alvaro Dominguez headed in the second and Pacheco added a third from outside the area to complete the scoring.Colmenar Viejo play in Spain's Preferente, which is one below la Tercera, and they provided stout resistance for Los Colchneros in their first pre-season friendly.Stiffer tests lie ahead as Atletico take on Benfica on Tuesday, before going to Amsterdam where they play Ajax and either Liverpool or Arsenal before going into the Champions League qualifiers.

New Signings For Atleti

2009-07-20T22:53:00.007+01:00

The Spanish club have completed the signing of the highly-rated Under-21 international Sergio Asenjo for an undisclosed fee. Atletico Madrid have been looking for a new goalkeeper since Leo Franco and Gregory Coupet both decided to leave the club at the end of the season.Asenjo, who reportedly rejected offers from Barcelona and Fiorentina to have regular first-team action in a Champions League side, will sign a four-year contract with the Spanish capital club.The 20-year-old keeper will be presented at the Vicente Calderon on Monday at 1300 CET after completing a medical with the club.Meanwhile, Atletico have confirmed that striker Diego da Silva Costa will play at Valladolid next season on loan as part of the deal for Asenjo.

Juanito has joined Atletico Madrid on a free transfer, Atletico Madrid have signed Juanito on a free transfer after his contract with Real Betis ran out on June 30, an announcement on their official website stated.The move for the central defender has been no secret, but was confirmed on Wednesday after the player agreed a two-year deal with los Colchoneros.Despite qualifying for the Champions League for the upcoming season, Atletico's defence has always raised doubts and the club have moved to bolster the backline this summer.

Lastest News From Boundary Park...

2009-07-02T00:55:00.007+01:00

Oldham Athletic have completed the signing of goalkeeper Dean Brill on a two-year contract. The 23-year-old shot-stopper was released by Luton Town at the end of May after making 81 appearances for the Kenilworth Road outfit. Brill, who also had a spell on loan at Gillingham, played for the Hatters in last season’s Johnstone’s Paint Trophy final victory over Scunthorpe United at Wembley. Athletic boss Dave Penney earmarked a new ’keeper to provide competition for Greg Fleming.
Dean Furman has rejected the offer of a new contract with Rangers and signed for Oldham Athletic. The 21-year-old South African midfielder had impressed while on loan to Bradford City last season. But, despite being told he was still wanted at Ibrox, he decided to sign a two-year contract with Oldham in search of regular first-team football. The League One outfit have agreed a compensation package with Rangers, for whom he made one first-team appearance.
Oldham Athletic have boosted their strikeforce by signing Pawel Abbott on a two-year contract. Speculation had been rife for weeks that the 27-year-old striker was a prime target for new boss Dave Penney - and so it proved. The pair worked together at the manager’s former club, Darlington, who paid Swansea £100,000 for his services in January, 2007. Abbott, born to a Polish mother and English father, had earlier made 105 league appearances for Huddersfield, scoring 44 goals and it was that record which prompted Swansea to fork out £150,000 for him. However, his stay with the Swans lasted only six months. Abbott’s league career kicked off at Preston and he later had loan spells at Bury (twice) and Huddersfield. His career record now stands at 77 league goals in 213 appearances.
ATHLETIC have today made a major U-turn in re-signing club captain Sean Gregan. The 35-year-old central defender was released at the end of the season, thought to be the club's top earner, and one of several to leave Boundary Park. Now manager Dave Penney has decided to take the experienced Gregan back on a one-year deal. When Gregan was released Penney paid tribute to the player's professionalism but said he wanted to put his own stamp on the team and was looking for young, hungry, fit and athletic players. Six weeks later Gregan is back in the fold as Penney's search to strengthen the squad ahead of getting back into training next week goes on.

Atleti Sign Cabrera..............

2009-06-23T00:15:00.001+01:00

The Spanish side have made their first acqusition of the summer, landing one of Uruguayan football's hottest properties. Atletico Madrid have secured the signing of Leandro Cabrera from Uruguayan side Defensor Sporting for a fee in the region of €1.5 million, to become Los Colchoneros first signing of the close season.Marca reports that the player's representative, former Uruguayan striker Daniel Fonseca, agreed to sell 50% ownership of the defender to the Madrid club. In a situation similar to Carlos Tevez and Kia Joorabchian, Fonseca has ownership of the player and not his club, meaning Sporting will not receive any compensation for the loss of one of their emerging talents.Cabrera caught the attention of a number of Spanish sides with his commanding displays in the South American U-20 championship, and Atletico moved quickly to secure his services.The 18-year old is expected to arrive in Spain later this week to complete his medical, before returning to his former club to play in their final league match of the season on July 5.Sporting chairman Dante Prato confirmed the switch today as Atletico look to build for the future and also to deal with the exertions of competing in both the Primera Division and Champions League, and Cabrera is unlikely to be the last addition to Abel Resino’s squad at the Vicente Calderon this summer.

Latics Sign Jacobson...

2009-06-19T14:48:00.008+01:00

Oldham Athletic have made former Bristol Rovers player Joe Jacobson their third summer signing. Jacobson joined Cardiff as a nine-year-old and eventually made two senior appearances for the Bluebirds. After loan spells at Accrington Stanley and Bristol Rovers, he signed a full-time contract for the latter in the summer of 2007. Jacobson made a total of 83 first-team appearances for Rovers, with his one goal ironically coming against Athletic. It was the winner at Boundary Park in a 1-0 victory in August 2007. But injury restricted him to 22 games during a frustrating 2008/09 season. Neal Eardley played a big part on Joe joining the club, as they are both in the Wales under-21s setup. In fact Joe has captained the team. He has signed a 2 year contract.

Goals From Last Night's Game.....

2009-05-31T13:41:00.002+01:00

Atletico Madrid 3 UD Almeria 0, Vicente Calderon, La Liga, 30/May/09

2009-05-30T20:50:00.006+01:00

Atletico Madrid sealed the last Champions League place in emphatic fashion, demolishing Almeria at the Vicente Calderon.Goals from Kun Aguero, Raul Garcia, and Diego Forlan were enough to earn Atleti the victory, as they clinched fourth spot, and a place in the Champions League qualifying round.Atletico Madrid needed a win to ensure fourth place, and they started brightly, with Diego Forlan, almost scoring off a deflection from Soriano. Almeria then had a chance of their own, when Leo Franco, playing his last game for Atletico, made a hash of a cross, but Johnny Heitinga cleared before Crusat could strike home. Atleti were certainly the dominant side, and Sergio Aguero was combining well with Forlan. A goal seemed imminent, and it duly arrived on 19 minutes, in spectacular fashion. Receiving the ball on the right edge of the box, Aguero turned Pellerano twice, before unleashing an unstoppable shot into the net off the bottom of the crossbar, leaving Diego Alves with no chance. Aguero had a golden opportunity to add a second soon after, but he shot wide with just Alves to beat. Atleti had taken complete control of the match, and it was no surprise when Raul Garcia scored the second on 27 minutes. Maxi Rodriguez got a cross in from the left, and the midfielder was left completely open to head the second home. The game settled down somewhat after the goal, with Atletico content just to keep possession, and Almeria failing to offer any sort of threat. Just before the break, however, Forlan almost added another spectacular goal to his collection, but his attempted chilena deflected wide off Pellerano. There was still time for one more chance before the break, but Alvaro Negredo, almost certainly playing his last game for Almeria missed uncharacteristically with just Leo Franco to beat. Thus Atletico went into the break with one hand on the last Champions League place.Atletico Madrid have an unfortunate history of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, but there was to be no repeat here, as a Forlan goal shortly after the break sealed the deal. Receiving the ball from Sinama, the Uruguayan unleashed an unstoppable left footed shot into the bottom right hand corner, thus scoring his 32nd goal of the season, and well and truly sealing the pichichi race. Almeria were mere passengers, and they almost went further behind when Maxi was through on goal, only for Diego Alves to pull off a smart save. The game then calmed down somewhat, with both sides seemingly content to settle for the result. Diego Forlan, however, was still hungry for more goals, and he came close on 77 minutes, but he headed just over the bar. Diego Alves was the only man keeping the margin at three goals, as he pulled off another great save from Aguero. With minutes remaining, Abel Resino withdrew Forlan for Camacho, allowing the striker to receive a well deserved standing ovation. Thus Atletico Madrid finish the season in fourth place, and they now have an enticing Champions League qualifying round to look forward to. Almeria, meanwhile, will be disappointed with this performance, but their season overall has still been a relative success.
Atlético: Leo Franco; Heitinga, Pablo, Ujfalusi, Pernía; P. Assuncao; Maxi, R. García, Sinama-Pongolle; Agüero & Forlán Subs: Coupet, Perea, Domínguez, A. López, Camacho, L. García, Miguel

Photos From Madrid Trip...

2009-05-29T20:08:00.002+01:00

Poor photo from the game v Valencia.

The Casa Angel our Local for the weekend..

The Club Shop....

In side the main stand, where the teams come out....

Photos From Madrid..

2009-05-29T19:44:00.004+01:00

In the Dugout..

On the Pitch..

Half asleep, well is was so Hot...

In the press room....

The Trophy room......

Photos From Madrid

2009-05-29T19:36:00.002+01:00

Dougie, myself and Gordon

Myself and Gordon on way to the Vicente Calderon.

Goals From Bilboa Game...

2009-05-27T12:53:00.003+01:00

Athletic Bilbao 1 Atletico Madrid 4, San Mames, La Liga, 23/May/09.

2009-05-27T10:30:00.004+01:00

Atletico Madrid are just one point away from reaching the Champions League after beating Athletic Bilbao at San Mames this evening.In what started as an even contest, the visitors took the lead thanks to a stunning volley by Raul Garcia on the edge of the box but were soon pegged back as Xabier Etxeita headed home from a corner.As has been the case so many times this season though, Atletico were rescued by Diego Forlan, who scored a hat-trick to put the game beyond doubt and become the top scorer in La Primera.First the Uruguayan capitalised on a loose ball on the edge of the box to score past Gorka Iraizoz, then he expertly drilled across goal on the counter to seal the three points, and he added the icing to the cake with a penalty late on.With Atletico knowing they needed a positive result from the off, they very nearly got the perfect start, but Johnny Heitinga headed a corner wide of the post from close-range. At the other end, the main threats for Athletic were from high balls into the box, with Javi Martinez missing a decent opportunity from a right-wing cross early on.As the half grew, the visitors began to improve and Sergio Aguero should have converted one of two chances he had within the space of ten minutes; the first one he shot wide of the goal and the second he missed with his head from in the six-yard box.The Argentine did show flashes of his pace and trickery to beat the Athletic defence on a couple of occasions but the Basques held firm, not giving the Atletico attack too many chances and ended the half without conceding.After the interval the game came to life though as the home start started to dominating, creating some superb chances to take the lead. First Leo Franco saved well from Llorente and then the striker inexplicably missed from just six yards out when he was totally unmarked in the centre of goal.The misses were to prove costly for Athletic too as, with 15 minutes gone in the half, Atletico took the lead thanks to a superb goal by Raul Garcia. The midfielder received the ball on the edge of the box and struck a sweet first-time volley that sailed past Gorka and into the back of the net.The goal was totally against the run of play and minutes after Llorente was yet again denied by Leo Franco, before Etxeita did eventually score for the Basques, heading home at the near post from a corner. That was to be the high point for Athletic though as Forlan scored three times in the last twenty minutes to make the scoreline flattering for Atletico.First he placed a shot past Gorka from the edge of the box after the ball fortunately broke to him and then he finished off a counter-attack with a wonderful left footed drive across goal, to move level with Samuel Eto'o in the Pichichi. He then took the outright lead in the scoring table late on as he won a penalty and stepped up to convert it, moving Atletico closer to the Champions League. Diego Forlan is now La Liga's top goalscorer this season.

Oldham Sign Purdie and Worthington.

2009-05-27T10:14:00.004+01:00

Oldham Athletic manager Dave Penney has returned to former-club Darlington to make his first signing. Versatile Rob Purdie,(left) who played in six different positions for Darlington, has agreed a two-year contract. Purdie (26) kicked off his career at home-city Leicester and also had five seasons at Hereford before joining Darlington in the summer of 2007.
ATHLETIC have completed their second signing of the summer by agreeing a two-year contract with 26-year-old former Huddersfield Town midfield man Jonathan Worthington.

Highlights From Sunday's Game...............

2009-05-19T09:56:00.000+01:00

Atletico Madrid 1 Valencia 0, Vicente Calderon, La Liga, 17/May/09

2009-05-19T09:55:00.006+01:00

My ticket from the game, which was really a wonderful ending to a great weekend in Madrid. And with Atleti jumping into the Champions League place was a big bonus.

Abel Resino's side now have their Champions League fate in their own hands following tonight's hard-fought 1-0 win. A Diego Forlan penalty proved the difference as Atletico Madrid recorded a crucial win over Champions League rivals Valencia at the Vicente Calderon. Sergio Aguero was controversially brought down by Cesar in the first half, and the prolific Uruguayan striker scored to give Atletico the advantage going into the final fixtures of the season.First Half Abel Resino opted for the tried and tested pairing of Aguero and Forlan in attack, while David Villa shrugged off a knock to start the match for the visitors.Atletico, buoyed by the partisan home support, took the game by the scruff of the neck in the early stages, and there was a sense of urgency that on occasion can be missing from Los Colchoneros’ displays.In what was a wide open contest that was played with a cup final mentality, it was the home side who had the best of the first half, creating clear opportunities. Fifteen minutes in, Aguero should have opened the scoring but could only scoop the ball over the crossbar from close range after an error by Cesar.However, it was Aguero’s quick thinking and pace that led to the opening goal. He found himself clean through on goal on the edge of the 18-yard line, and upon dancing around Cesar, the goalkeeper pulled him down unceremoniously and the referee correctly pointed to the spot. Diego Forlan stepped up to confidently to roll home the spot kick for his 28th league goal of the season and give Atletico a lead that was well deserved on the balance of play.Valencia, missing the creativity of David Silva, were slightly overawed by the intensity of the Atletico display, but just before half-time, Juan Mata could and perhaps should have drawn them level. He burst in on goal on the left hand side of the area, but could only shoot straight at Leo Franco, and Atletico went into the interval with a one goal advantage.Second Half Literally seconds had been played after the restart when Simao was given the freedom of Valencia’s half to bear down on goal, but as Cesar advanced the Portuguese blasted the ball at his chest and Maduro mopped up the loose ball. Aguero was causing major problems to the Valencia back line, and with Atletico dominant he missed a golden opportunity to tie up the match.Perea swung in a teasing delivery from the left, perfectly into the path of the Argentine, who sent a bullet header goalwards but agonisingly on the wrong side of the post.The supporters were growing restless that their side could not put the match to bed, and Valencia were always dangerous on the counter attack. Aguero was yellow carded for a theatrical lunge inside the area, then the same player slipped Forlan through, but Cesar stopped instinctively with his legs and still the match hung in the balance. However, Valencia lacked the spark in the final third to give the notoriously fragile Atletico back four any real test, with David Villa in particular off colour, and gave the home side the opportunity to see the match out in relative comfort.Forlan drilled a spectacular volley wide in the dying moments, but a jaded Valencia never looked like scoring and Atletico secured a priceless victory in the battle for fourth place.Resino’s side sit on 61 points, two points clear of Valencia and Villarreal with just two Primera Division fixtures remaining.
ATLETICO MADRID: Leo Franco,Ujfalusi, Pernia, Pablo, Dominguez, Assuncao, Raul Garcia, Simao, Maxi, Aguero, Forlan, Subs: Sinama Pongolle, De Las Cuevas, Camacho. Att:53,000

Goals v Numancia 18/April/09

2009-05-12T10:24:00.002+01:00

Goals from Sundays Game...............

2009-05-11T16:30:00.001+01:00

Atletico Madrid 3 Espanyol 2, Vicente Calderon, La Liga, 10/May/09.

2009-05-11T07:18:00.003+01:00

Atletico Madrid maintained their Champions League hopes as they produced a second half comeback to beat Espanyol with ten men.Diego Forlan score twice in the second half to help Atletico Madrid come from two goals down to beat Espanyol and keep their top four aspirations alive after Luis Perea was sent off.Los Colchoneros needed to win after Valencia's victory against Real Madrid the evening before, but they made hard work of seeing off a spirited and contradictory Espanyol side.Nene put Espanyol ahead from the penalty spot and Daniel Jarque put them two up soon atfer as Atletico looked to be set for a surprise reverse in the Vicente Calderon.When Perea was sent off for an horrendous foul on Javi Chica, they seemed to have a mountain to climb, but Forlan inspired a stunning comeback after the break.Atletico knew that nothing less than all three points would suffice after seeing those above them win this weekend and Villarreal pick up an unexpected point against Barcelona at Camp Nou.But as is so typical of Abel Resino's team they made hard work of securing the win and looked like being in with no chance at all in a disastrous first half display.Raul Tamudo limped out of the action after 22 minutes and was missed later in the game, while Ivan de la Pena going off just after the hour mark also caused the visitors to lose their creative spark.Atletico had their chances in the opening period when Sergio Aguero and Forlan looked to test Carlos Kameni, while John Heitinga also spurned a chance when he shot wide.Just after the half-hour mark, the game looked to have swung in the visitors' favour when the referee did well to spot Perea's forearm smash on Chica that left the Espanyol defender needing stitches above his eye and swelling across his cheek.The home fans may have jeered the red card, but they knew that something bad had happened given the state of the Espanyol player's face and they were able to whistle even louder soon after.Within minutes, Atletico's problems mounted when Mariano Pernia brought down Ivan Alonso in the area and Nene stepped up to hammer home the spot-kick from 12 yards.Five minutes before the break and Mauricio Pochettino's half-time team talk became even easier when Raul Garcia flicked on Nene's free kick and Jarque ran unmarked at beat Leo Franco by guiding the ball home with his thigh.Nene could have concluded a great first half for him as he rounded the keeper, but the linesman flag went up and became a predominant feature in the second half.Eight minutes after the restart, the hosts gave themselves hope of salvaging something from the game as Forlan picked up a pass from Aguero and hammered a stunning shot past Kameni from distance.The tide was turning and after Simao had gone close the hosts drew level when Pernia's low drive into the area went past everyone except Aguero who met it at the far post and nudged it into the bottom corner.Espanyol had taken their foot off the pedal and it was difficult to understand why they so frequently were unable to make their numerical superiority tell, although an over zealous linesman raised his flag erroneously on occasion to stop them having a goalscoring chance.After all their hard work and a man of the match performance from Forlan it was always on the cards that they would clinch a winner and the striker deserved to be the scorer.In the 93rd minute Simao cut in from the right and stroked a ball into the near post where Forlan ran in to control and then clip it over Kameni before wheeling away to celebrate.

Real Betis Goals....................

2009-05-07T23:09:00.002+01:00

Walsall 1 Oldham Ath 2, Banks Stadium, League One, 02/May/09

2009-05-07T23:04:00.003+01:00

Seventeen-year-old substitute Ryan Brooke scored Oldham's winner with his first touch in league football. Troy Deeney had headed Walsall into the lead after just 30 seconds before hitting the bar with a 25-yard strike. But Deane Smalley drove in a loose ball from Ian Westlake's header to level the scores as half-time approached. Brooke then drilled in from Smalley's pass to ensure that manager Joe Royle finished his second spell as Latics boss with his first win in nine games.
Oldham: Fleming, Lomax, Hazell, Gregan, Black (Eardley 46), Lee (Wolfenden 67), Allott, Maher, Westlake, Whitaker (Brooke 71), Smalley. Subs Not Used: Crossley.
Goals: Smalley 44, Brooke 74.
Att: 4,807
Ref: Colin Webster (Tyne & Wear).

Round-up with Oldham................

2009-05-07T23:03:00.006+01:00

League One side Oldham have confirmed Darlington boss Dave Penney as their new manager on a two-year deal. Penney replaces Joe Royle, who took temporary charge of the Latics in March after the departure of John Sheridan. On Tuesday, former Everton boss Royle announced he was to leave Boundary Park after failing to win in eight games in his second spell in charge of the club. Penney resigned as Quakers boss earlier on Thursday after almost three years in charge of the administration-hit club. The Latics will not owe Darlington any compensation because of the League Two's side's financial situation. Penney guided Doncaster from the Conference to League One, the club's highest league position for 50 years. He left in August 2006 and was appointed Darlington boss two months later. Penney's Darlington have faced an uncertain future since the club went into administration and had 10 points deducted in February. The Quakers were in contention for a promotion place this season before having their points taken away.
Southend United 1 Oldham Ath 1, Roots Hall, League One, 28/April/09.
Southend's slim mathematical chances of making the League One play-offs were ended by a draw with Oldham. Latics' Kevin Maher struck the post before Deane Smalley was brought down in the box by Southend defender Peter Clarke to win a penalty. Neil Eardley fired the penalty under keeper Steve Mildenhall but Oldham's lead lasted less then 10 minutes. Theo Robinson set up substitute Lee Barnard to score from close range but the draw was not enough for Southend.
Oldham: Crossley, Eardley, Hazell, Gregan, Jones, Lee (Wolfenden 62), Allott, Maher, Westlake, Smalley, Alessandra (Whitaker 61).
Att: 4,830.
Referee: Craig Pawson (Sheffield).

Brighton 3 Oldham Ath 1, League One, 18/April/09.
Lloyd Owusu scored in either half as ten-man Brighton kept alive their survival hopes by beating Oldham. Albion winger Dean Cox broke the deadlock by heading in an Owusu cross at the far post before Owusu doubled the lead with a misdirected header. Oldham substitute Lewis Alessandra fired home in the second half to give Oldham some hope of a result. But Owusu slotted home his second to seal the points before Andy Whing was sent off late on for the Seagulls.
Oldham: Crossley, Eardley, Stam (Whitaker 39), Allott, Hazell, Gregan, Wolfenden (Alessandra 46), Taylor, Lee, Jones, Smalley. Subs Not Used: Fleming, Maher, Black.
Att: 6,618
Ref: Steve Cook (Surrey).

Oldham Ath 1 Crewe Alex 1, Boundary Park, League One, 13/April/09.
Byron Moore equalised two minutes from time as Joe Royle was kept waiting for his first win since rejoining Oldham. Royle's men had early chances as Reuben Hazell blazed over and both Chris Taylor and Danny Whitaker went close. Hazell opened the scoring, however, when he headed home Deane Smalley's right-wing cross, but Oldham sat back and Crewe dominated after the break. Calvin Zola missed a sitter, but Moore seized on poor defending to calmly slot inside the far post from 12 yards.
Oldham: Fleming, Eardley, Hazell, Gregan, Stam, Lee (Maher 68), Allott, Whitaker (Black 78), Taylor, Kabba (Wolfenden 65), Smalley.
Att: 4,334
Ref: Neil Swarbrick (Lancashire).

Carlisle Und 1 Oldham Ath 1, League One, 10/April/09
Athletic produced a battling performance to earn a draw at Carlisle United, where once again their achievements were overshadowed by a match official, Referee Kevin Wright harshly sent off Daniel Jones after he brought down Cleveland Taylor. Wright deemed the on-loan Wolves player had denied Taylor a goalscoring opportunity, although the incident took place wide on the right hand side of the penalty area. To compound Athletic’s agony, Michael Bridges stroked home the penalty. Just six minutes earlier, Carlisle were fortunate not to have a player sent off themselves. Steven Kabba burst clean through on goal, but was hauled back just outside the centre circle by Richard Keogh, who escaped with a yellow card. Bridges’ spot kick separated the two teams at the break, although Chris Taylor should have given Athletic, who gave a full debut to 19-year-old left-back Paul Black, the lead when he headed against an upright. Athletic were forced to take risks in the second period in pursuit of an equaliser. They switched from 4-4-1 to 3-5-1 for the final 20 minutes, and were finally rewarded for their efforts in the 89th minute when Neal Eardley’s free-kick ripped through the defensive wall and underneath ’keeper Ben Williams for his first goal of the season.

Oldham Ath 1 Peterbrough Und 2, Boundary Park, League One, 04/April/09.
ATHLETIC were able to take heart from Saturday’s home Coca-Cola League One defeat by Peterborough United. Sometimes you have to look at the bigger picture, and this was one of those occasions. Athletic more than matched opponents who appear destined to achieve back-to-back promotions. They played with spirit and endeavour and, but for a dreadful defensive error late on, they would have surely prevented Posh from recording their seventh straight league victory. Manager Joe Royle could only watch in anguish as Neal Eardley headed the ball past on-rushing ’keeper Shane Supple, leaving Posh top-scorer Craig Mackail-Smith to complete a simple tap-in. Erase that moment from the memory bank and it is clear Royle is getting his message across. However, he is still searching for that elusive first victory following his return four matches ago. Unfortunately for Athletic fans, there will be no quick fix as was hoped following his much-trumpeted return. Royle rightly points out the malaise began long before his appointment last month, with Athletic’s form since the end of January that of a team battling relegation. Two wins in 14 league matches is a damning statistic which tells its own story. Eardley and Kevin Maher returned in place of Stefan Stam and the injured Deane Smalley, the two changes from the defeat at Leyton Orient where Athletic suffered another hard-luck story. Sadly they are becoming an all-too-frequent occurrence. Royle kicked off with a 4-3-3 line up with Lewis Alessandra flanked by Chris Taylor and Danny Whitaker out wide. In the second half he switched to 4-4-2 with Taylor pushed up alongside Alessandra, with Whitaker playing on the right flank. Posh made the brighter start and Aaron McLean missed the target when he should have done better. It was no surprise when they went ahead. A right-wing cross from Paul Coutts was not cleared and Mackail-Smith found the net with a neat shot on the turn. Athletic could have fallen further behind before Taylor gave them an unexpected toe hold back into the game shortly before half-time. Eardley floated a delightful free-kick into the box and Taylor got in front of his marker to glance a header high into the net. In a remarkable turnaround in their fortunes, Athletic could so easily have finished the half in front. Whitaker picked out Alessandra with a terrific crossfield pass, and the young striker kept his cool to slot the ball beyond ’keeper Joe Lewis. But referee Graham Salisbury ruled it out for a nudge by Alessandra on left-back Tom Williams, which hardly anybody else in Boundary Park spotted. There were no concerted appeals from the Posh players. Taylor had a couple of decent efforts early in the second half and Whitaker also went close as confidence and self-belief seeped through the Athletic players veins. Suddenly Posh were on the back foot, but they should have retaken the lead before the hour mark. Mackail-Smith got himself into a good position inside the six-yard box, but somehow headed wide. It was a bad miss. Athletic perhaps should have had a second themselves with 10 minutes left when Whitaker squared the ball to Taylor, who scuffed his shot straight to ’keeper Lewis. The game seemed destined to finish honours even, but then came that moment of defensive madness when Posh snatched victory in the 87th minute with a goal out of the blue. The ball was hoisted over the Athletic defence and Eardley decided to head it back to ball to Supple. However, he did not realise how far the ’keeper, who had anticipated the danger, had come off his line to collect the long punt forward. The ball sailed over the head of Supple, leaving Mackail-Smith to score his 24th goal of the season. It brought joyous scenes from the 977 Posh fans behind the goal and anguish for the home supporters.

Leyton Orient 2 Oldham Ath 1, League One, 28/March/09.
A super Jason Demetriou strike six minutes from time helped Leyton Orient grab a vital victory in their bid to beat the drop.Oldham looked to be heading to their first win under new boss Joe Royle when they led 1-0 at half-time thanks to an excellent goal by Danny Whittaker.But the visitors saw their outside hopes of the play-offs all but disappear after the break as Scott McGleish levelled with a penalty before Demetriou grabbed the later winner.Oldham, who had started brightly, almost grabbed the lead when Lewis Alessandra went close with an audacious chip that just cleared the Orient bar.Little was seen of the home side as an attacking force in the first half as visiting keeper Shane Supple was a virtual spectator.As Oldham continued to press skipper Sean Gregan forced home goalkeeper Jamie Jones to parry the ball away after he fired in a 20-yard shot, following Whittaker's free-kick.Oldham gained their reward 11 minutes before the break when Whittaker broke the deadlock with a stunning strike.He picked up a pass from Chris Taylor and ran 20 yards before unleashing a fearsome shot from the edge of the area that flew past Jones and into the top left-hand corner of the net.Orient's one and only effort of the first half came just before the break when Paul Terry fired just wide.O's manager Geraint Williams threw substitute Dean Morgan into the action at the start of the second half and Orient looked a different side.Morgan twice went close before Orient levelled on the hour, thanks to a contentious penalty award.Morgan ran into Oldham defender Reuben Hazell, but referee Iain Williamson pointed to the spot and McGleish stepped up to fire the ball home as keeper Supple went the wrong way.It looked as if Oldham had weathered the storm until Charlie Daniels played in a ball to Demetriou, who sent a 20-yard shot crashing into the net via a post as Orient recorded only their fifth home win of the season.

Real Betis 0 At.Madrid 2, La Liga, 03/May/09

2009-05-07T22:03:00.003+01:00

Atletico de Madrid left Real Betis with four weeks in which to save themselves from the drop after they secured a win that moves los Colchoneros to within a point of fourth...Diego Forlan ensured that Atletico Madrid kept their Champions League hopes for next term alive with a brace against a hapless Real Betis side that remain deep in trouble near the bottom three.The Uruguayan striker netted early in the game to put the visitors in the Ruiz de Lopera ahead before he added a second shortly before the end to complete a good night for him.Betis huffed and puffed, but the faces of their fans said it all as they were left wondering where the inspiration and desire, let alone the ability, to pull their team out of the mire will come from.Atletico have been hit and miss in recent weeks, but they were able to keep their hosts out and create chances that could have made the winning margin even greater than it turned out to be.With Valencia losing to Espanyol, it was paramount that los Colchoneros won to move to within a point of los Che while Betis are now three points from the relegation zone.While Betis may have started well enough, they were behind after just 12 minutes when a flowing move from Atleti saw them open up the home team's defence with a sublime finish to break the deadlock.Raul Garcia found Maxi down the left of the area and as Forlan took a step back to create space for himself, he was picked out with a low cross which he hit first time to beat Ricardo.The game was being played at a hectic pace and Mariano Pernia thumped a shot just over shortly before Ricardo Oliveira's header was off target soon after.Mark Gonzalez had Betis' best chance of the first half when he was put through on goal and as Leo Franco came out to reduce the angle, he scooped the ball over the bar.An attacking substitution after the break saw Atletico commit to winning the game as Florent Sinama-Pongolle replaced Ever Banega, but it was los Verdiblancos that were looking for the next goal soon after.Gonzalez went down in the area and he appealed for a penalty in the belief that he had been pulled back by Luis Perea, but the referee was not impressed and waved away his protests.Betis may have lacked some finesse and have run short of ideas in and around their opponents area, but they did show signs that they could forge an equaliser.Juanito and Edu both looked to test Leo Franco before Raul Garcia and Forlan ensured that their hosts had to stay alert at the other end.With five minutes remaining Ricardo Oliveira could have made himself a hero when he met Gonzalez's cross with his head, but Los Colchoneros' keeper showed good reactions to keep his side in front as he palmed the ball away.That save proved to be even more valuable moments later when Luis Garcia sought to impress after coming on as a substitute and did just that as he back-heeled the ball into Forlan's path and the striker took a touch and steered the ball inside the near post.In the closing moments Forlan could have had his hat-trick when he flashed a shot wide of the far post, but that would have been harsh on Betis and their suffering supporters who were streaming out of the stadium by then.

At.Madrid 3 Sporting Gijon 1,Vicente Calderon, La Liga, 26/April/09

2009-05-07T21:50:00.007+01:00

Atleti shrugged off their embarrassing midweek loss to beat Sporting to remain in contention for a berth to Europe next season. First Half The furious and disappointed Atletico Madrid fans left the Vicente Calderon littered with empty seats and Los Colchoneros, despite dominating the opening exchanges, did little to inspire those who were present in the stands. The first real shot at goal didn’t arrive until the 15th minute when Sergio Aguero pummelled in a piledriver from 20 yards out and Cuellar had to make a full-stretch dive to tip it away. Two minutes later, Atleti wasted a decent free kick chance right on the edge of the box as they tried to improvise but flopped miserably when Simao rolled the ball forward short to Diego Forlan, who laid it off for Aguero but the Sporting defence read the attempt and intercepted easily. Atletico continued to struggle for any creative inspiration but on 26 minutes, completely against the run of play, Diego Forlan rifled his side into the lead. Picking up a loose ball from 25 yards out, he unleashed a stinging shot and the ball looped into the top of the goal after taking a wicked deflection off Neru’s back. Sporting almost equalised immediately when Mate Bilic rose high inside the box to meet Diego Castro’s cross from the left but he thumped his effort just over the bar. Defender Neru then had the next best chance when Leo Franco spilled a free kick cross from Pedro but the centre-back’s ambitious acrobatic scissor-kick sailed over the bar. Abel Resino’s men responded and they came close to a second goal when Aguero drilled a low volley inside the box just wide after he was involved with a brilliant build-up to carve open the Sporting backline. But on 40 minutes, Simao made no mistakes when he careened down the left channel and cut into the box after a one-two with Forlan before coolly slotting his shot underneath Cuellar. The hosts almost netted a third in first half injury time Maxi’s free header from an Antonio Lopez corner was spilled by Cuellar, but the goalkeeper recovered just before ‘El Kun’ could lunge forward and connect with the follow through. Second Half Whatever the two coaches said to their troops in the dressing room during the break had its desired effect. Atleti came out all guns blazing and Aguero made it 3-0 just one minute into the restart. Forlan provided his second assist of the night, threading a delicate through ball to Kun and the diminutive Argentine waited for Cuellar to step off his line before side-footing his shot into the bottom corner. But 60 seconds later, the visitors pulled one back. Diego Castro checked past Luis Perea on the right channel before squaring to Bilic, who easily tapped the ball into the empty net unchallenged. Assuncao then almost got on the score-sheet when he ghosted in behind the Sporting rear-guard to meet Maxi’s cleverly disguised low cross from the right, but Cuellar bravely darted off his line to smother the ball. The mattress-men didn’t look too convincing themselves at the back when they failed to clear Diego Castro’s cross from the left and Lora saw his header bobble just inches wide of Leo Franco’s right post. It was a frantic battle after that as both sides traded blows from one end to the other but neither could create any clear cut chances. It wasn’t until the 78th minute before Manolo Preciado’s side threatened again when Carmelo’s low drive on the left side almost caught Leo Franco offguard as the Argentine shot-stopper spilled the shot at his near post but Bilic wasn’t able to capitalise on the rebound as John Heitinga stepped in to clear the danger. There was to be late drama with five minutes to go when Simao was given his marching orders after picking up two yellow cards within a minute; the first for a foul on Carmelo and the second for blocking the ensuing free kick with his hands. Sporting, however, were unable to pull off a late comeback as they failed to make use of the numerical advantage. Atleti held on to a comfortable win in the end to remain in sixth place, four points behind the Champions League qualifying zone. For the Asturianos, meanwhile, the defeat sends them tumbling into the bottom-three, one point away from safety.
Atletico Madrid (4-4-2): Leo Franco – Heitinga, Ujfalusi, Perea, Antonio Lopez (Pernia, 61’) – Maxi, Raul Garcia (Nacho Camacho, 71’), Assuncao, Simao – Forlan (Banega, 81’), Aguero
Unused subs: Sinama-Pongolle, Miguel, Pablo, Coupet

Racing Santander 5 At.Madrid1, La Liga, 23/April/09

2009-05-07T21:43:00.004+01:00

Racing Santander put Atletico Madrid under pressure from the first minute at El Sardinero and got their just reward as they ran out comfortable winners...Racing Santander hammered Atletico Madrid this evening to all but secure their Primera status this season and put a huge dent in the Champions League hopes of Abel Resino's men in the process.Despite coming into the match in the better form, Atletico were second best for the whole encounter and only Leo Franco prevented the scoreline from being even more lopsided than it was.The Argentine made good saves to deny both the Racing strikers throughout the course of the match but could do nothing to prevent Cristian heading in from close range with just ten minutes gone.Ezequiel Gary made it two with a header from a free kick soon after and then before the break, Mohammed Tchite capitalised on some comical defending to grab a third.Even though Diego Forlan scored from the spot to give Atletico a lifeline, Pedro Munitis soon got a fourth with a sublime chip over Leo Franco from the edge of the box.As injury time approached, Zigic then grabbed his second of the match and Racing's fifth as he latched onto a cross from Colsa to head into an empty net, and humiliate Atletico even further.With all the teams around them winning before kick-off, Atletico knew coming into the match that only a victory would do, but from the outset they looked nervy and uncomfortable. Racing began to pile on the pressure and with just ten minutes gone it paid off, as they took the lead from Cristian, with Zigic unsurprisingly involved in the air.The big Serb won the initial header from a free-kick, forcing Leo Franco to tip onto the bar, and Cristian beat the defence to head home from close range. It was the perfect start for Racing and they continued to launch balls into the box, causing the Atletico defenders trouble time and time again.The visiting side could hardly get the ball and even though Leo Franco made a decent save to deny a Zigic volley, Racing doubled their lead with less than 20 minutes gone. Again the move started from a set piece on the left that was whipped into the box with pace, and this time Garay headed back across goal and into the back of the net to send El Sardinero into ecstasy.It was no more than Racing deserved and Leo Franco was forced to make more good saves to deny Tchite and Toni Moral as Atletico struggled to get the ball out of their own half. With the interval approaching things got even worse for the visitors too as they conceded a third goal thanks to some comical defending.First Antonio Lopez was shrugged off by Tchite and then, when it looked as though Tomas Ujfalusi had the situation under control, he managed to gift the ball back to the Racing striker, who poked through the legs of the goalkeeper to make it three. The goal summed up a truly miserable half for the visitors and it was only thanks to some good saves from Leo Franco that they did not trail by more at the break.After the break it was very much the same story too as Racing continued to look dangerous, with Jose Moraton driving his shot just wide of goal from the edge of the box. The introduction of Ever Banega did help Atletico as they finally managed to control the ball in midfield but they still could not create any early opportunities. Indeed, when they finally did manage to get back into the match it was from the penalty spot, as Forlan smashed home from 12 yards after Gonzalo Colsa had cleared hauled down Sergio Aguero in the box. The goal seemed to spark some life into Atleti but just a few minutes later, Munitis killed of any hopes they might have had of getting back into the game.The experienced forward was given too much time on the edge of the box and he expertly chipped over Leo Franco to make it four for Racing. Things got even worse for Atletico too as, with just a few minutes left in the match, Colsa drilled a ball across goal for Zigic to head home, completely unmarked. The Serbian striker received a standing ovation for his contribution as Atletico held on without conceding again.

At.Madrid 3 Numancia 0, Vicente Calderon, La Liga, 18/April/09

2009-05-07T19:41:00.003+01:00

Atleti left it late to consign Numancia to a heavy away defeat at the Vicente Calderon.Following a goalless first half, the opening goal came on the hour mark. Ever Banega did the honours after being left unmarked outside the box to get on the end of a Diego Forlan cut-back, dribble through the defence, and net past Juan Pablo. Ten minutes from time Forlan himself added a second with a neat finish after losing Domingo Cisma to meet Simao's cross.Finally Simao scored right at the death with a solo effort that left Sergio Ortega standing.

Deportivo La Coruna 1 At.Madrid 2,The Riazor, La Liga, 12/April/09

2009-05-07T19:31:00.004+01:00

Atletico Madrid enhanced their Champions League hopes by defeating Deportivo La Coruna 2-1, but they were made to sweat...Goals from Sergio Aguero and Simao either side of the break handed Atletico Madrid a morale-boosting 2-1 victory this evening over Deportivo La Coruna at The Riazor.In what was a match low on incident and quality, Atletico produced a solid if unspectacular display against a poor Deportivo side to move into 6th position in the table and close in on fourth-placed Valencia. First Half Atletico Madrid were looking to take advantage on Villarreal’s slip up on Saturday evening where they lost to Malaga, and close the gap to the coveted Champions League qualifying position. Coach Abel Resino opted for his first-choice strike pairing of Sergio Aguero and Diego Forlan to fire them to victory. Deportivo coach Miguel Angel Lotina believed his side were still in with a chance of landing fourth spot too, and continued with Frenchman Lassad Nouioui as his lone striker, with Lafita and the veteran Juan Carlos Valeron operating just behind him. Despite both sides’ European aspirations and the attacking talent on show, the first 45 minutes was a complete non-event as defences emerged most definitely on top. That was until right on half-time, when Atletico stole the lead thanks to a Sergio Aguero goal that was scarcely deserved but most definitely welcome for the visitors.
In such a drab and disappointing half, it was a goal that lit up the contest. Aguero played a perfect one-two with striker partner Forlan, and when bearing down on goal nonchalantly chipped the ball past Aranzubia into the corner for his 14th league goal of the season and Los Colchoneros had a crucial lead.There had been a nervousness about the match, with both sets of players sensing that defeat would all but end their hopes of landing that coveted fourth place, and a cagey affair had developed, but Aguero’s lovely finish meant that Deportivo would have to rethink their offensive strategy if they were to find a way back into the match. Second Half And the home side did emerge with a improved verve, but still couldn’t manage to fashion an opening, and Atletico’s normally fragile back four were relatively comfortable as Deportivo huffed and puffed, but ultimately got nowhere close to Leo Franco’s goal.The visitors soaked up the brief spell of pressure, and the proceeded to seal the win with a killer second goal.Raul Garcia burst through the centre and slipped the ball wide to Simao, who showed great acceleration and control to cut across the box and curl the ball low into the corner to all but end Deportivo’s chances of taking anything from the contest.But Miguel Angel Lotina’s side eventually threatened in the closing stages, and Leo Franco had to look sharp to deny firstly Pablo Alvarez and then to beat Juan Rodriguez’s curling shot to safety.Bodipo then managed to find the net in the dying seconds, heading home from close range to set up a grandstand finish, and then in injury time Rodriguez hit the post as Atletico threatened to capitulate under heavy pressure.But in the end Deportivo ran out of time, and perhaps if they had mounted their onslaught sooner, they have managed to salvage something from the match.For Abel Resino, however, a crucial three points was secured that keeps Atletico in touch with the sides jostling for position on the periphery of the Primera Division’s top four.

Atletico Madrid 2 Osasuna 4, Vicente Calderon, La Liga, 05/April/09

2009-05-07T19:06:00.004+01:00

The Pamplona strugglers stunned the Vicente Calderon crowd with a wonderful win that boosts their survival hopes...Osasuna pulled off an astonishing win in the Vicente Calderon this afternoon, seeing off Atletico Madrid 4-2 with a superb display of attacking football.Goals from Walter Pandiani, Krisztian Vadocz, and a double from Masoud Shojaei helped the Pamplona side to a vital three points, and left Atletico Madrid helpless. First Half This match was vital for both sides – Atletico Madrid sensed an opportunity to close the gap on the Champions League positions after Villarreal’s shock defeat to Almeria last night, while Osasuna need every point they can find if they are to make their great escape from relegation. The match started with a couple of quick-fire goals. Evergreen forward Walter Pandiani has pitched in with more than his fair share of vital goals for the Pamplona side this season, and on 8 minutes he popped up to get his head to a Masoud Shojaei cross to give the away side an unexpected lead in the Vicente Calderon. However, Osasuna are yet to pick up a win on the road in the Primera Division, and true to form they were pegged back almost instantly thanks to another Diego Forlan master-class in finishing. The Uruguayan shimmied one way then the other at the edge of the area before rifling the ball home for his 22nd goal of the season and parity was restored.But Osasuna felt that they could take advantage of an inconsistent Atletico side, and had the clearer chances before regaining the lead right on half-time. Krisztian Vadocz swept the ball into the net following a scramble in the area and Jose Antonio Camacho’s men found themselves just 45 minutes away from notching a maiden away win. Abel Resino would have been looking for a positive response from his star-studded side, but instead Atletico shot themselves in the foot once again by conceding a third just five minutes into the second period. Sergio Aguero brought a save from Roberto at one end, but Osasuna immediately broke away and Masoud Shojaei struck home with his right foot past a demoralised Leo Franco to leave the visitors in dreamland.The expected onslaught from Atletico never materialised. Pablo and Florent Sinima-Pongolle both headed wide of the target, but Osasuna were equally dangerous, and indeed with twenty minutes to go they extended their lead to leave Los Colchoneros suitably embarrassed. Shojaei grabbed his second of the match, firing the ball into the top corner from inside the area, and the home fans had seen enough. Pablo Ibanez pulled a goal back three minutes later to make the scoreline slightly more respectable, scrambling the ball home from close range, but in truth it was a shocking display by Abel Resino’s men who got exactly what they deserved from the match, and let Villarreal off the hook in the race for Europe.For Osasuna meanwhile, it was a crucial three points that means the relegation battle has the potential to go all the way to the final day of the season.

Mallorca 2 Atletico Madrid 0, La Liga, 22/March/09

2009-03-27T15:06:00.009Z

Atletico Madrid’s hopes of finishing in the top four suffered a massive blow as they put on an impotent display to crash to a spirited Mallorca side. First Half Mallorca came charging out of the blocks and immediately put the visitors on the back foot, attacking down both flanks with Juan Arango and Jurado looking especially menacing. Atletico could barely get the ball anywhere near the Mallorca box in the opening stages, and it didn’t help that they were forced into an early substitution when left-back, Antonio Lopez, had to limp off the pitch after just 12 minutes with what looked like a hamstring pull. Despite the home side’s utter domination, they rarely tested Leo Franco in the Atleti goal but on 15 minutes, Aritz Aduriz danced past Pablo down the left and skipped into the box before squaring the ball to Cleber Santana, whose first time shot forced the Rojiblancos shot-stopper to make a hasty save. But Mallorca’s early pressure paid off and they took the lead in the 23rd minute. Arango flicked a subtle lob over the static Atleti backline for Aduriz, who beat the offside trap and coolly looped the ball over a hapless Leo Franco into the back of the net. That goal stunned Atletico into action and four minutes after, Los Colchoneros had their first chance of any sort when they were awarded a free kick right on the edge of the area dead-centre but Simao could only crash his shot against the wall. Moments later, Simao threatened again through a free kick when his diagonal deliver into the box found an unmarked Sergio Aguero, but the Argentine sent his glancing header just inches wide. Aguero had another excellent chance five minutes before the break when Forlan released him through on goal with a lovely through ball but 'El Kun' completely snatched his shot and drilled in well wide from 20 yards. A horror clash of heads between John Heitinga and David Navarro brought the half to a close as the Dutch defender was stretchered off with a neck brace. And Resino would be forced into a second defensive shuffle for the start of the second half. Second Half Florent Sinama-Pongolle was brought on to cover at right-back with Seitaridis pushed to the left and Mallorca wasted little time to expose the right flank when four minutes into the restart, Arango ran onto Marti’s through ball and slotted it past Leo Franco but the goal was cancelled as the Venezuelan had narrowly drifted offside. Moments later, Varela dribbled his way past three players into the box but pulled his shot wide with the outside of his right foot from six yards out. Atletico came close to drawing level on 56 minutes when Forlan teed-up Maxi for a shot from six yards out but the captain saw his ferocious thunderbolt back off the crossbar. As the Balearic Islanders started to pull men back, the capital club found chances hard to come by and they were restricted to long-range attempts, and both Forlan and Raul Garcia tried their luck from distance but neither were anywhere near the target. In fact, it was Gregorio Manzano’s men who looked likelier to score in the remainder of the game as they looked dangerous on the counter. And they indeed killed off the contest on the 89 minutes when Aduriz initiated the breakaway with a through ball to substitute, Gonzalo Castro and the Uruguayan easily rounded the out-of-position Leo Franco before rolling the ball into the empty net. Atleti stay fifth in the table despite the loss but they are now five points behind Villarreal in the final Champions League-qualifying spot. But the precious three points for Mallorca, who are now unbeaten in eight competitive games, launched them from 18th at the start of the game all the way up to 12th.

Atletico Madrid : Leo Franco – Heitinga (Sinama-Pongolle, 46’), Pablo, Ujfalusi, Antonio Lopez (Seitaridis, 12’) – Maxi, Raul Garcia, Camacho (Banega, 57’), Simao – Aguero, Forlan
Unused subs: Miguel, Luis Garcia, Dominguez, Coupet

Cheltenham Town 1 Oldham Ath 1, League One, 24/March/09

2009-03-27T15:06:00.007Z

A last-minute goal from Danny Whitaker gave manager Joe Royle his first point since returning to Oldham at bottom club Cheltenham. The Robins had taken a 31st minute lead when Leon Constantine played a one-two with Frankie Artus and cooly fired past Oldham keeper Shane Supple. Oldham piled on the pressure with Fabio Ferreira, Lewis Alessandra and Reuben Hazell going close for the visitors. And with time running out Whitaker punished some tired defending to level.
Oldham: Supple, Lomax, Hazell, Gregan, Jones, Smalley (Ferreira 66), Maher (Whitaker 59), Allott, Taylor, Kabba, Hughes (Alessandra 59). Subs Not Used: Fleming, Eardley.
Att: 2,992
Ref: Clive Penton (Sussex).

Oldham Ath 0 Tranmere Rovers 2, Boundary Park, League One, 21/March/09

2009-03-27T15:02:00.003Z

Joe Royle was denied a fairytale return to Boundary Park as play-off rivals Tranmere ran out comfortable winners. Royle, back after a 15-year break, saw Lee Hughes hit the post from a tight angle in the first half. But Tranmere also wasted openings through Ian Moore, Ed Sonko and Bas Savage before Charlie Barnett's 10-yard volley put them ahead after the break.
Barnett was then tripped by Stefan Stam, who received his second booking, and Moore tucked away the penalty.
Oldham: Supple, Eardley, Gregan, Stam, Jones, Whitaker (Kabba 56), Allott, Westlake, Smalley, Hughes, Taylor (Golbourne 83).Subs Not Used: Fleming, Liddell, Maher.
Sent Off: Stam (74).
Att: 7,489
Ref: Graham Laws (Tyne & Wear).

Lastest From Boundary Park...

2009-03-19T21:57:00.004Z

Ipswich Town goalkeeper Shane Supple has joined League One side Oldham Athletic on a one-month loan deal. The Republic of Ireland Under-21 international will team up with former manager Joe Royle at Boundary Park.

Oldham Ath have completed the loan signing of Cheltenham Town midfield player Ian Westlake for the remainder of the season. The 25-year-old left Gloucestershire at 6am today to drive to Boundary Park to complete the formalities. Westlake played a starring role for Cheltenham — bottom of Coca-Cola League One — in Tuesday’s surprise win against promotion-chasing Tranmere, a game watched by manager Joe Royle. Royle handed the Clacton-born player his league debut when he managed Ipswich Town. He joined Leeds United in 2006 and played two seasons at Elland Road — during which he scored a dramatic 94th-minute winner for them in last season’s victory at Boundary Park. He moved to Cheltenham in October. Westlake becomes Athletic’s second recruit of the week, following Royle’s introduction of Eire under-21 keeper Shane Supple from Ipswich Town. Chris Taylor, meanwhile, has signed a new contract which commits him to the club until the summer of 2012. The 22-year-old Taylor’s existing deal expires in 15 months and the new package is a measure of Athletic’s determination to hold on to their prized asset. They say they have already rejected one “substantial” bid for Taylor who has scored 10 goals this season. Taylor, a product of the club’s youth system, has no burning desire to leave the club he has supported since he was a boy. He said: “I would have signed for longer if I could. Everyone knows Oldham is where I want to be. “I love playing for this club, and I want to help us into the championship.”