La Liga:Racing Santander vs Zaragoza Preview

Racing Santander coach Miguel Angel Portugal is expecting a Zaragoza backlash when Jose Aurelio Gay's side visit El Sardinero.

Zaragoza lost 5-3 in an amazing match last weekend at home to Malaga, having been 5-0 down before half-time, and Portugal believes the Aragonese outfit will be looking for a positive reaction against his side.

"It hurts to lose like that and they will come here to restore some pride," he said.

"They will be fired up for it, so we will have to be ready, but we have been training well and I am confident."

Racing are even worse off than Zaragoza in terms of points, having lost both of their opening fixtures.

However, the Cantabrians can consider themselves unlucky not to have picked up anything at Mestalla last weekend, when they lost 1-0 to Valencia.

"We could have beaten Valencia - we're on the right track," Portugal said.

Midfielder Oscar Serrano remains sidelined with a long-term injury, while striker Markus Rosenberg is doubtful with a knee problem.

Zaragoza full-back Ivan Obradovic is expecting a better performance from his side tomorrow.

"The game against Malaga was just a bad day - it won't happen again," he said.

Leo Ponzio misses the trip to Santander through injury, while Marco Perez and Jorge Lopez are both doubtful.

Before losing at home to Malaga, Zaragoza drew 0-0 at Deportivo La Coruna on the opening weekend.

Racing lost 3-0 at home to Barcelona in their opening fixture.

Premier League:Is Hodgson the new Tinkerman?

Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson hopes a fully-refreshed Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard will provide the spearhead for victory against Manchester United at Old Trafford on Sunday.

Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson hopes a fully-refreshed Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard will provide the spearhead for victory against Manchester United at Old Trafford on Sunday.

The pair were left out of last night's Europa League 4-1 win over Steaua Bucharest along with a number of first-choice players as the Reds boss made eight changes in an attempt to give his side the best chance at Old Trafford.

Hodgson admits the match between the two north-west rivals has come earlier in the season than he would have wished but, by giving his star players maximum rest, the 62-year-old is confident they can put in a good performance.

But he maintains that will be down to the players on the day as despite all his preparation only they can affect the outcome on the pitch.

Most of the focus will be on Torres after his display in last Sunday's goalless draw at Birmingham was criticised in many quarters.

The Spain striker has enjoyed a fruitful time at Old Trafford in the past, scoring on his last three visits and terrorising centre-back Nemanja Vidic on a number of occasions.

However, Hodgson does not read too much into past results - which may be a good thing as his record against United with Fulham was not that good.

"I give it no credence, none at all," said Hodgson in response to Torres' record against United.

"But let's hope on Sunday we see a great performance from him. He is Fernando Torres - he is going to have bad games and wonder games.

"As far as I'm concerned you don't swing between wonder and hopeless. Either you are a good player or you are not and he is a very good player.

"But like all good players he will have games where people will say 'We expected more of you, we thought you could have done better' and that was probably the case against Birmingham.

"It will be the case again on many occasions this year but the point is he is a very good player and we are going to get an awful lot of benefit from his services because good players remain good players."

Hodgson admits he has no idea whether his decision to rest key players yesterday will pay off.

It did against Steaua but that provides no pointer to future success, as the manager has learned from experience.

"I did it once at Fulham last season when I rested virtually the whole team when we went to CSKA Sofia with a reserve team," he said.

"We came back and got beat by Wolves and I didn't think we looked very fresh or sharp.

"But you know you can't burn out players playing three matches a week, week after week, especially when some of those matches are after international trips.

"Don't forget Torres only came back from Argentina on Thursday to play on Sunday last week.

"You have to make decisions whereby you say 'I think it will be in this player's interest to rest' and 'This player will be fresher and better equipped to play on Sunday if he misses Thursday's game'.

"Now whether that actually happens or not who knows? We don't have a crystal ball and you make decisions on the basis of what should happen but it doesn't always happen."

Matches against United are always used as a barometer of how good the current Liverpool side are, considering they have not won a league championship since 1990 allowing their arch-rivals to draw level with their record tally of 18.

Hodgson, though, will not be judging his squad on the outcome of one game - no matter how big an occasion it is.

"It is a difficult encounter always but it is a game which has thrilled people throughout the years and let's hope it is no different at the weekend," he said.

"There is no point in me or Alex (Ferguson) trying to build up the game because it has been built up anyway; all we can do is get on with it and hope our teams are well prepared on the field and our players perform.

"The result will be very important. This is going to be an even league, more than half the table is currently separated by a point or two.

"But it is going to be a long haul for everyone this season before you get into a position where you hope you will end up.

"Games of this magnitude coming so early in our time here are not exactly ideal but I'm hoping we will give it our best shot and see what the game brings."

Premier League:Ancelotti: Chelsea are the best!

Chelsea coach Carlo Ancelotti insists they are top of the Barclays Premier League on merit.

Chelsea have scored 17 goals in the league this season and conceded just once in victories over West Brom, Wigan, Stoke, and West Ham.

The Blues face newly promoted Blackpool at Stamford Bridge on Sunday with fans expecting another goal feast.

Chelsea's first real test will come away at Manchester City at the end of this month but Ancelotti maintains his team are ready for anyone.

"It's an important moment now," said Ancelotti. "We have a lot of games and we don't have time to train properly, but we are ready to play against a strong team.

"We have more knowledge and for that reason, we are doing well. There's no fear, now, which is good. The players are all involved in the team and there's a good atmosphere. If we can maintain this atmosphere, I think we can have success this year.

"To think about the game against City is too far away. Blackpool are a good team and have won two away games, at Newcastle and Wigan, and are showing good skills in the Premier League.

"We have to pay attention. They are no easy games. Our moment is nice. It's good now, but we want it to continue.

"We have fantastic ability up front. We have to put a kind of football on the pitch to showcase this quality. Balance is important in football.

"If you have players with skill and ability, you can show this balance. You have to find that balance and be able to attack and defend."

Chelsea will be without England midfielder Frank Lampard on Sunday as he is yet to fully recover from his hernia surgery.

Ancelotti also wants to rest some of his first-team players with midfielder Ramires, right-back Paulo Ferreira and striker Salomon Kalou likely to be handed a first-team start.

"Lampard will be out," he added. "I don't think he'll be able to play on Sunday, but he will be ready to play in the Carling Cup next week.

"He's training but we don't want to take a risk. He has to put more power in his adductor, so he'll have to train again."

Two-goal Nicolas Anelka is likely to spearhead the attack alongside the returning Didier Drogba with Daniel Sturridge standing down.

Anelka scored twice in the midweek win over MSK Zilina in the Champions League although his 'handcuff' goal celebration got more column inches than is well-taken double.

Anelka was banned for 18 games by the French Federation for his part in the country's World Cup mutiny and the player then announced his retirement from international football.

But Ancelotti says Anelka got a raw deal from the French authorities.

"I spoke with Nicolas for him to explain to me the celebration," said Ancelotti.

"He said it was against the France Federation. I agree with him. I think he's had a bad deal. I don't know if he's upset, but he's putting in fantastic performances. Maybe, for this reason, he has more motivation to play well.

"Obviously, if he stays here to train he can maintain a good physical condition, but for a player it's better to play for a national team."

But Sturridge will think himself unlucky not to continue in attack, especially after scoring against Zilina in the 4-1 win in midweek.

However, Ancelotti has already told the 21-year-old that, despite his efforts on Wednesday, he needs to improve still further.

"He played an important game on Wednesday and scored," conceded Ancelotti. "It's not important for me if he's playing in the Champions League or the Premier.

"He's a Chelsea player with good quality. He could do better. I expected more of him on Wednesday and he knows this.

"He has fantastic ability, and I'd like to see these skills and ability more in a game. He scored with fantastic movement, but we need to see more of that."

Premier League:"Berbatov was affected by critics!"

Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed he had to step in and stop Dimitar Berbatov beating himself up about his performances.

Berbatov has been forced to endure as many brickbats as plaudits during his two seasons at Old Trafford.

Although the Bulgarian is undoubtedly a player of immense talent, there are many who do not appreciate his languid style and feel he does not put enough heart into his performances.

Comparisons with the obvious industry of Carlos Tevez, who was squeezed out by Berbatov's arrival and eventually opted to leave for Manchester City in a highly controversial move, have often not been favourable.

And it seems Berbatov has taken too much notice of the bad publicity as, ahead of Sunday's encounter with Liverpool, Ferguson has revealed he had to tell his club record £30.75million record signing to stop taking so much notice of the critics.

"Not everyone has questioned Dimitar," said Ferguson.

"He has a lot of admirers, particularly at this club.

"But when we buy a player for a lot of money, there is more focus on him. If they have an odd bad game there is a criticism which other players may not get.

"He worried about it himself, however, as I told him, he has to dismiss the press.

"Dimitar has had some terrific games for us. He is enjoying his football and he will play on Sunday."

Arguably, Berbatov has started the season in a more consistent vein of form than at any time since his big-money move to Old Trafford.

He currently tops the United scoring charts with four and Ferguson admitted he may have made an error leaving the 29-year-old out of his squad for Tuesday's Champions League stalemate with Rangers, when his invention could have been very useful.

As it turned out, aside from United's failure to overcome Rangers' smothering tactics, the game was most notable for Antonio Valencia's horrific ankle injury.

Immediately after the incident, the combination of a dislocation and a fracture left Ferguson to state his winger was out for the season.

But following an operation on Wednesday afternoon, it seems the damage is not quite that bad.

"You can never be 100% accurate in these situations and it is a bad injury, but we are looking at the end of February," said the United boss.

"The operation has been successful and the break was clean, which was the major concern for us at the time.

"He is a strong boy, who is very positive about it.

"Being positive helps you in these situations, so we are very hopeful we will get him back."

Ferguson, who has no other injury concerns ahead of Sunday's blockbuster duel with Liverpool at Old Trafford, accepts the loss of Valencia is a significant blow.

However, in Nani, Ryan Giggs and Park Ji-sung, plus to a lesser extent, Gabriel Obertan and new-boy Bebe, who made his reserve team debut last night, he feels United have the options to cope.

"Antonio had a great season last year," he said.

"He was a great signing for us. He is a young player who has been improving all the time.

"It is a blow losing good players but in the context of the kind of squad we have, we should be able to cope with it.

"You always fear when you have a good player out of your team it is going to be a loss.

"But having players like Nani, Ryan Giggs and Park Ji-sung, plus Gabriel Obertan and Bebe means we have options."

What will benefit Valencia as he begins the long fight for fitness is a positive mindset.

That was never better exemplified than by Alan Smith, who suffered similar misfortune during an FA Cup tie at Liverpool in 2006, but whose mental toughness astounded even Ferguson.

"There is a mental part to it," he said.

"Take the example of Alan Smith. When Alan got his bad injury in that cup-tie against Liverpool, he was so positive.

"He sat in that treatment room at Anfield so nonchalant and relaxed about it.

"Yet you look at his ankle and think 'God Almighty'.

"That attitude definitely helped him."

La Liga:Mourinho: Wrong time for Portugal job

Real Madrid boss Jose Mourinho has admitted it is unlikely he will take temporary charge of Portugal.

The Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) have earmarked Mourinho as the man they want to lead the national team for the Euro 2012 qualifiers against Denmark on October 8 and Iceland four days later while they go about appointing a full-time successor to Carlos Queiroz.

But in a press conference today, reported on www.marca.com, he said: "If it were not for Real Madrid I would do it for free.

"But if you ask me right now if I can go, I think not.

"I have a contract with Real Madrid.

"I do not say no, but in the natural way of things, I do not think this is the time."

Queiroz was sacked last week after being handed a six-month suspension for insulting anti-doping agents prior to the World Cup.

It has left Portugal in a difficult position, especially as they have taken just one point from their opening two Euro 2012 qualifiers with two more matches coming up next month.

The situation has left Mourinho, who only took charge at the Bernabeu at the end of last season, torn.

"Real Madrid have every right in the world to put an obstacle in the way," he said. "And if you put the slightest obstacle there, I can't go.

"To say no to Portugal is impossible because of my personal pride and my passion for Portugal, but at the moment I cannot say yes."

Mourinho was not a universally popular appointment with Madrid fans, who fear he will preside over a team playing unattractive football at the Bernabeu.

That was underlined as sections of fans jeered during Madrid's workmanlike 1-0 win over Osasuna at the weekend and those same supporters would almost certainly see it as a sign of disrespect should Mourinho split his time, even on a short-term basis, with Portugal.

Reports in Portugal yesterday claimed FPF president Gilberto Madail had travelled to Madrid to meet with Mourinho's agent, Jorge Mendes, in an attempt to broker a deal.

Former FPF president Joao Rodrigues has accompanied Madail on the trip, according to the reports, as he has good connections in Spain that could help secure Mourinho's short-term release.

Mourinho continued: "The FPF have not contacted Real and what the club knows is through me.

"Portugal wants me for those two games.

"They know I will not have any players to train, with the exception of three, during the international break, while if I went, I would be coaching three Real players in Cristiano Ronaldo, Pepe and Carvalho.

"They thought that Real would not lose out with my absence and that is why they want me for the national team.

"If I was a free agent, I would go tomorrow but I'm at Real and I cannot say yes because my duty is with them, but neither can I say openly no because that would be impossible."

Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas believes former Inter Milan, Chelsea and Porto boss Mourinho has enough on his plate at the Bernabeu.

He said: "I think it would give him too much.

"I am sure he would like to coach Portugal but his head only thinks of Madrid.

"I don't think he will go. I have talked to him and his mind is set on Madrid."

Premier League:Fabregas demands error-free Arsenal

Cesc Fabregas has warned Arsenal cannot afford to make costly mistakes if the Gunners are to challenge for the title.

Arsene Wenger's side swept past Champions League new boys Braga 6-0 on Wednesday night, taking their goals tally to 16 in just three matches at the Emirates Stadium.

Arsenal head to Sunderland tomorrow, where they lost 1-0 last November, and are expected to face another stern test of their championship credentials.

While there is no doubt the Gunners are awesome in attack at their free-flowing best, question marks remain over consistency in defence.

With Thomas Vermaelen battling to recover from an Achilles problem which has seen him miss the last two matches, new recruits Laurent Koscielny and Sebastien Squillaci are likely again to be partnered in central defence.

The Frenchmen performed well under the stresses of Bolton's physical approach last week, but were caught out when a weak back header from Koscielny allowed the visitors to set up an equaliser.

While Arsenal went on to win the match comfortably, Fabregas knows it could have proved a costly error.

"We made a mistake at the back towards the end of the first half and were punished - we cannot afford to do that at this level, and it shows there are still things to improve on," said the Gunners captain.

"In our defending as a team, we will need to get a little better to be at the top."

Fabregas is looking back to his best after the World Cup, having netted a brace in a virtuoso display against Braga.

The Spain international, though, maintains it is the overall team display which always takes precedent.

"After being disappointed with my performance at Blackburn, I felt better on Saturday against Bolton," the 23-year-old said.

"Physically in terms of how I played, I was happier - but I would rather focus on the team, because the performance overall was a good one."

Arsenal reported no fresh injury problems following Wednesday night's comfortable victory.

However, Wenger is conscious of the demands on his players, and so could shuffle things around, as he did for the last league game against Bolton, so winger Tomas Rosicky and England full-back Kieran Gibbs could be involved having been unused substitutes in midweek, while Mexican forward Carlos Vela made an impression with a late brace after coming off the bench.

"It is important for our season that we are capable of going from Champions League to the Premier League," the Gunners boss said.

"From Wednesday night to Saturday afternoon it is short, but we can rotate a little bit."

Sunderland's £13million striker Asamoah Gyan looks set to lead the attack for the home side after scoring on his debut in the 1-1 draw against Wigan.

Wenger admits he was impressed by the efforts of the Ghana frontman in South Africa this summer.

"I looked at him especially during the World Cup," the Arsenal manager said.

"He had spells at Rennes last year where he didn't play and some periods where he was absolutely outstanding.

"When I saw him at the World Cup I found him extremely interesting and a good player, but at the time we already had our strikers so I was not looking for him."

Wenger had landed his main target before the World Cup, and Marouane Chamakh has impressed with three goals already.

Given Theo Walcott, Robin van Persie and Nicklas Bendtner are still sidelined, the Moroccan's quick transition has been most timely.

"I have settled in quickly and things couldn't have gone much better from that point of view," Chamakh said on www.fifa.com.

"I gave myself six months or maybe even a year to settle down here and I am ahead of schedule in that respect.

"I am delighted with how it is going, although training has been very tough for me.

"I don't think I have ever worked as hard as this physically, but here I am experiencing everything I had envisaged about Arsenal and the English league.

"The atmosphere in the stadiums, the open and attacking football and the standard of the team are just amazing.

"I am getting involved in the games and am scoring too.

"I just want to do my bit in each game and to help the team win."

"Ibrahimovic is a selfish player!"

Barcelona sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta has criticised AC Milan's Zlatan Ibrahimovic's 'selfish' playing style.

"If you see football in terms of individuals, or individual actions, Ibrahimovic belongs on that list," former Spain goalkeeper Zubizarreta told Barca TV.

"He is an extraordinary footballer but when I said the 'Ibra case' was a soccer issue it was because on the pitch you don't just play with the ball but also when you don't have the ball," he added.

"You have to give your team mates options and there is also a great deal of tactical work to do.

"And you have to be able to do both things very well: your own individual play but also your role within the team."

Ibrahimovic called Guardiola a "philosopher" and said that the coach is "the one who has the problem".

"When I enter a room Guardiola leaves, I don't know if he's scared of me or what. Speak to him, he's the one who has the problem. I don't know what it is," Ibrahimovic said before joining AC Milan this summer.

Zubizarreta added: "It is not the word, but how it was said. I think this is a reflection on his problems in life and in football. I do not think this of Pep, we are close friends."