Neymar dazzles as Barca down Juventus
EAST RUTHERFORD: Neymar gave Barcelona fans a dazzling reminder of what they could be about to lose on Saturday, scoring twice as the Spanish giants defeated Juventus 2-1 in a pre-season friendly.
The 25-year-old Brazilian superstar is at the centre of frenzied speculation linking him to a gargantuan, world record 222-million-euro ( 256.8 million) transfer to Paris Saint- Germain.
Neymar had kept the guessing game about his future bubbling away after posting a picture of himself looking pensive on Instagram on Friday.
But there was little to suggest that the charismatic striker is overwhelmed by the transfer saga as he produced a bewitching performance in front of a sell-out 82,104 crowd at the Metlife Stadium in New Jersey.
The Brazilian broke clear after only four minutes but saw a tame shot from near the edge of the area drift away from the goal. Barcelona, with Lionel Messi starting, looked by far the more threatening of the two teams
Neymar grabbed his second, picking his way through a static Juventus defence before burying a low shot beyond Buffon once more
with Aleix Vidal and Messi both drawing early blocks from the Juventus defence.
At the other end, Mario Mandzukic might have given Juve the lead on 14 minutes but his header from a Stefano Sturaro cross went wide. The Italians were made to rue Mandzukic’s profligacy a minute later when Neymar fired the Catalans into the lead, playing a clever one-two with Paco Alcacer and drilling his finish past Gianluigi Buffon. Nine minutes later and Neymar grabbed his second, picking his way through a static Juventus defence before burying a low shot beyond Buffon once more. Neymar might have had a hat-trick three minutes from half-time, when Messi floated a delightful pass in behind the Juve defence for the Brazilian.
Buffon on this occasion was equal to the challenge however and blocked safely. Barcelona rang the changes at half-time, withdrawing all but two of their starting line-up, Neymar exiting for Sergi Roberto and Arda Turan replacing Messi.
Juventus also made a raft of substitutions which led to the introduction of Paulo Dybala, Gonzalo Higuain and Douglas Costa amongst others.
The changes immediately gave Juve a sharper attacking edge and Dybala was quick to test Adria Ortola with a rasping shot on 62 minutes that was turned around for a corner.
From the ensuing setpiece, Giorgio Chiellini nodded home Dybala’s cross to make it 2-1. However it was Barcelona who finished the stronger of the two sides, with Luis Suarez repeatedly threatening to extend the Spanish side’s lead. MANCHESTER: Manchester United’s first-choice goalkeeper David De Gea will stay with the club despite the club giving him choice to decide his future, coach Jose Mourinho said on Sunday.
“I can guarantee that he’s not going this season -- that I can,” Mourinho was quoted saying by the Independent.
The 26-year-old having made 200 appearances for the English Premier League (EPL) giants helped the side secure EPL title, English Football Cup (EFL) and FA Cup once each since 2011.
Mourinho said he believes it is better to keep it up to the players to make their choice rather forcing them to stay.
“He was contacted for a long time, the club was closed, then we open because I always have this feeling of when a player has a desire to go, I don’t like to stop players to go because in the end you don’t get from them what you expect from them if they want to move and they don’t move,” the United coach said.
“So we open it and then they decide to close, and I don’t think the feeling for him is very good,” he added.
De Gea is heavily linked with his birth city-club Real Madrid, the United coach claimed the goalkeeper is happy with Manchester United despite interest from the Champions League title holders. “I see him really happy and focused and working better than ever, so for me 100 per cent he stays with us, David is much better now than before and he has amazing conditions to impress,” Mourinho said.
The Portugese also said he does not see any chance of Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale returning to the EPL this summer. “It’s the same (as Ronaldo). You have contacts, you have feelings. I think it is clear Bale likes Madrid, the challenge, the situation. He is at a club in a very good situation. I never felt a desire from him to leave so why lose time and energy,” Mourinho said.