Iran National Football Team is going to face Morocco in the Group B opener on Friday, June 15. It is Iran’s fifth World Cup appearance and the country with it indigenous masses are hoping to do better than the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Iran’s players are getting ready of the glory in Russia.

Meanwhile, Iran National Team is facing a famine as US Sportswear Company [NIKE] said it could not supply football cleats and shoes to the Iranian players due to US sanctions on the Iranian regime.

“US sanctions mean that, as a US company, Nike cannot supply shoes to players in the Iranian National team at this time,” Nike had said in a statement.

Carlos Queiroz the head coach of Iran’s National Team is asking for assistance from FIFA to try to force Nike’s hand. At the end of the day, it is all about players being comfortable in their own shoes.

“Players get used to their sports equipment and it’s not right to change them a week before such important matches.”Queiroz

The Nike controversy, over the supply of football equipment has put Iran in a tough spot. They are worried about their performance in the coming matches throughout the tournament.

“Nike is dragging politics back into the picture and souring what should be a global celebration. Nike was an outspoken opponent of Trump’s Muslim ban that targets Iranians, yet now here they are helping enforce this new shameful policy against Iranians.” National Iranian American Council had said in a statement to CNBC.

The Iranian Football Association has asked the football governing body FIFA to intervene.

Iranian players now have to find out a solution by their own in Russia and some Iranian footballers are players of European clubs have sought their help.

The team heads are looking for short-term solution but it is a real concern for them and the Iranian Football Association has to find solution to this problem.

This is hardly the first time political tensions have played out in the sports arena. During the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, Samsung, based in South Korea, declined to provide commemorative cell phones to North Korean and Iranian athletes, citing international sanctions on luxury goods going to either nation.

The 45-year-old international football legend from the past decided to quit at the top of his career, and said that that it was time for a change for himself and the club. He also admitted that he was not sure of his capabilities of sustaining the winning streak for the club, and would hate to watch Real Madrid’s success dwell under his presence.

Zinedine Zidane also made a point that there was no other club which may have influenced his decision, and has expressed that he is not seeking any other position at the moment.

“I have taken the decision to not continue next year as Real Madrid coach,” he said.

“This club deserves to continue to win and needs a change” he said, adding that he believed the “moment has come.”

“After three years the club needs another discourse, another method of working,” he added

This was very unexpected, however Zidane claimed that he was unsure of his ability to inspire the team to more victories.

“I don´t see myself continuing to win this year and I am a winner, I don´t like to lose,” added Zidane.

“I have thought a lot about this decision and I can´t go back on it.”

Real beat Liverpool 3-1 in the final in Kiev on Saturday, making Zidane the first coach in history to win three successive Champions League titles.

Zidane has now won nine trophies since replacing Rafael Benitez in the Santiago Bernabeu dugout in January 2016.

He said his decision had nothing to do with Real icon Cristiano Ronaldo hinting that he will also leave the club following the Champions League triumph on Saturday.

It is still unclear what the future holds for the football legend, however it is certain that Zidane’s journey and contribution to International football is yet to be over.

The European mega-tournament UEFA Champions League semi-final came to end on Wednesday as Liverpool won the match against their counterpart AS Roma with aggregate (7-6) and booked their place in Final of Champions League.

Real Madrid won their match against Bayern Munich with aggregate (4-3) and made their way to final stage of Champions League in Stadion NSK Olimpiyskiy, Kyiv.

In the final stage of Champions League, Real Madrid will play against Liverpool on Saturday, May 26, 2018.

Wednesday’s Result

As Roma 4-2 Liverpool

Tuesday’s Result

Real Madrid 2-2 Bayern Munich

Real Madrid in the second Leg of the match semifinal struggled during the second half of the match. Marcelo assist to Karim Benzema assured goal for Real Madrid that slowed down the pace of Bayern Munich. The notable Ronaldo during rest of the match was unable to put the ball into net but still his fans are expecting astonishing from him.

The super star player of Real Madrid Cristiano Ronaldo with 15 goals remains on top of the table of top scorers in Champions League. Mohamad Salah with his tremendous performance have succeed to put the ball for 10 times in the net to secure second position on the table. His teammate Roberto Firmino is on third position with 10 goals throughout the tournament.

Ronaldo has now scored against 34 different teams in the UEFA Champions League after scoring his first ever goal against Paris Saint-Germain.

Ronaldo equivalent Messi, meanwhile, has dropped out of the top marksmen in the competition this season after the lost to AS Roma in Quarterfinal game. Neymar due to injury was incompetent to continue in the tournament.

Champions League Top Scorers

1. Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid: 15
2. Mohamed Salah, Liverpool: 10
3. Roberto Firmino, Liverpool: 10
4. Sadio Mane, Liverpool: 9
5. EdinDzeko, Roma: 8
6. Wissam Ben Yedder, Sevilla: 8
7. EdinsonCavani, Paris Saint-Germain: 7
8. Harry Kane, Tottenham Hotspur: 7
9. Lionel Messi, Barcelona: 6
10. Neymar, Paris Saint-Germain: 6

The final match in Kiyv will decide who will become the top scorer of Champions League.

Liverpool coach Klopp is confident with his team; in the first leg. Last week, his team defeated A.S Roma with the aggregate of 5-2. Roma overturning three-goal deficit against LA LIGA champions Barcelona will wary Reds at Stadio Olimpico.

Meanwhile, the Italian adversaries are seeking their first-ever appearance in European football’s pinnacle event, having surprisingly reached the semifinal stage for the first time in their history.

Liverpool has shown astonishing performance during the tournament. The PFA Player of the year Mohamad Salah continued his great run of goalscoring form as he notched two goals in quick succession to fire the Reds into a two-goal lead at halftime.

However, Liverpool not for the first time this season took their eye off the ball defensively to allow Giallorossi back into the tie late on.

An error from Gejan Lovren allowed former Manchester City striker Edin to pull on back, James Milner’s inadvertent handball gave Diego Perotti the opportunity to slot home from the penalty spot, which he duly converted.

Liverpool has confirmed that its key players Emre Can, Joel Matip, Adam Lallana and Alex will not join their teammates for the trip to the Stadio Olimpico.

Roma also have few concerns to their own as they look to overturn their three-goal deficit in the second leg. The first-leg goal-scorer Diego Perotti is reportedly struggling.

Possible Roma Starting Lineup: Alisson, Florenzi, Kolarov, Manolas, Fazio, Nainggolan, De Rossi, Pellegrini, Schick, El Shaarawy, Džeko.

Possible Liverpool Starting Lineup: Karius, Alexander-Arnold, Robertson, Lovren, van Dijk, Henderson, Wijnaldum, Milner, Mane, Salah, Firmino.

During the press conference, following is what the Liverpool coach Klopp had to say

“We all have the same opinion, it’s a football game,” Klopp said. “The fight is only on the pitch. It should be like this.”

“Tomorrow, around the game in this wonderful city in good weather, people can walk to the stadium and look forward to a fantastic, intense football game. I really hope that will be possible.”

AS Roma coach, Di Francesco said Liverpool visit should be celebration and further he said the following during press conference

“Every fan base has bad elements. It’s always a minority of fans who do these awful things,” Di Francesco told the media.

“We stand shoulder to shoulder with Sean Cox and his family and we are against any form of violence.

“There are true passionate and decent fans in Rome, but a tiny minority, the same in England and all over the world. These are the people who can ruin a brilliant sport, and brilliant game, that we will have tomorrow.

“I take this opportunity to make an appeal [against violence]. I hope tomorrow will be a celebration, regardless of the result.”

Roma will need to pull off a second miracle in a matter of weeks if they are to progress to a historical first Champions League final.

There is ultimately a feeling of what might happen at the final whistle.

The Champions League quarterfinal match between Real Madrid and Juventus ended with the dramatic incident. The Goalkeeper of Italian football club Juventus (Buffon) protested against the decision of the referee. The professional Italian professional was booked by the red card. The contest between Real Madrid and Juventus ended with the aggregate of 4-3. The Spanish giant succeeded to secure their position in the semifinal of the Champions League.

Gianluigi Buffon, Juventus’s goalkeeper reaction was remarkable during the last minute of the match. It was one of the most dramatic events in his career. He was shown a red card for his aggressive protest on the penalty of Cristiano Ronaldo that allowed defending team to advance to the semifinals of the competition.

Buffon left the field under the applause of the Madrid crowd, the top scorer of Real Madrid Ronaldo had to wait for several minutes to take the penalty, while the teammates of Buffon surrounded the referee and argued for about the rejection.

Ronaldo hit the persevering shot past the Juventus replacement keeper, Wojciech Szczesny, and took off his shirt running towards the corner flag to celebrate. Ronaldo winning penalty was his 120th goal in the competition and made him the first player in 11 consecutive Champions League games.

The penalty was enough to ensure a 4-3 aggregate victory for Real Madrid over their Italian rival Juventus to keep alive their dream of a third consecutive Champions League trophy. On the other hand, for Buffon and his teammates was a heartbreaking end to a game and exit from Champions League.

Juventus team after arriving at the Bernabéu, Buffon, 40 said during the news conference on Tuesday that the idea of ending his Champions League career “was not a drama.” In fact, he added, “If that turned out to be the case, I would have signed as a child to be able to play my last game in the Bernabéu against Real Madrid.”

Juventus started the game with the score of Sami Khedira, carved open the Spanish defense with a cross for the unmarked Mario Mandzukic, who planted a firm header past Real Madrid goalkeeper Keylor Navas. The goal threatened the Real Madrid, midfielders struggle to keep possession on the ball and to slow down the pace of Juventus strikers. The lack of cohesion among midfielders of Real Madrid gave another similar chance to Mandzukic to score another goal after 37 minutes of the match.

The crowd chanted “Juve, Juve” from the top corner of the Stadium, occupied by the Italian club fans pressurized the Real Madrid goalkeeper, Navas, to blunder during the second half of the match. Navas dropped the cross from Costa and the ball went at the feet of Blaise Matuidi of Juventus, who slotted the ball into the net. The goals equalized the aggregate and the dream of winning the match was at risk for Real Madrid.

But then came the last-minute push on Lucas Vázquez that offered Ronaldo the chance to redeem himself and qualify Madrid with a textbook penalty kick.

All the football lovers are looking forward to the quarterfinal of Champions League between Barcelona and Roma.

Barcelona with 76 points has remained unbeatable in La Liga. Their last draw against Sevilla was somehow outrageous but the equalizer of Messi safeguarded their unbeaten status in the League. Barcelona will play with AS Roma in the first league of their UEFA Champions League. The hosting team Barcelona is a strong favorite to win.

Barcelona has strong midfielders and its game depends on midfielders. Sergio Busquet’s injury has affected the integration of the team in midfield. In this match, Messi’s role will be very crucial as he was on the rest during the International friendly matches.

Barcelona has won 5 times UEFA Champions League and commentators are expecting Barcelona to become champions of Europe for the 6th time.

Roma is still struggling in Serie A League. Somehow, Roma managed to take place in top three of the Serie A standing domestic League. Edin scored a goal at 76th  minute against Bologna. It is time for Italian club to show improvement in European Football Leagues.

Roma has not really won titles in Champions League; they have been around since 1927 and have just three Scudettis to their name; 1941-42, 1992-83 and 2000-01. Due to lack of success, Roma might face pressure in this match.

Barcelona and Roma have been head-to-head for three times in Champions League and Roma have not won any game in the past. Barcelona’s wonderful display against the Italian side in-group stage of UEFA Champions League of 2015-16 which finished at 6-1 with the score of their strikers Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi and Gerard Pique find the net to increase the number of goals for Catalans.

The statistics remain for Barcelona: possession 71% with 19 shots on goal, 12 on target and completed 775 passes during the match.

It is hard to anticipate the result of the match. Realistically, Barcelona is favorite for this match but in past few matches, things were not smooth for Barcelona. It is football anything can happen during 90 minutes on the ground.

Do you remember the last win of Barcelona against Paris in Champions League?

As you all know Barcelona is playing against Chelsea tonight, the suspense and thrill in the aura are bound to happen. Well, we’re expecting the same adrenaline rush tonight!

Recently, Barcelona squad revealed that Philippe is not playing the match. That calls for a bad taste among the fans of Pakistan and all over the world.

Here are a few insights that you might want to know about the Champions League Match tonight.

Barcelona flew to London on Monday morning ahead of their scheduled training session at Stamford Bridge.

2. Pique was spotted wearing a club hat as he made his way to the plane.  Here’s a big ‘woohoo’ for the fans.

3. Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and rest of the team are in high spirits as they travel to London from Barcelona Airport. Let’s see what the big match reveals tonight

4. Barcelona is headed into the crunch clash having only conceded one goal in their last five matches and this match is very crucial for Barcelona to revenge and strengthens their position in the Champions League.

5. Even without Philippe Barcelona is considered favorite and have a strong side in comparison with their rivals.

6. Real Madrid the historical rival of Barcelona is 17 points behind in fourth place in La Liga.

7. Manager Valverde will speak to the media alongside Ivan Rakitic at 6:15 pm on Monday evening ahead of the game against Chelsea.

8. The 2-0 victory over Eibar at the weekend saw them maintain a seven-point lead over Atletico Madrid at the top of the La Liga standings.

9. Umtiti and Dembele looked in high spirits when they boarded the plane. Aww…Say MashaAllah!

10. Ter Stegen is likely to start the game in goal for Barcelona.

11. Barca are flying high at the top of La Liga, while Antonio Conte’s Blues are struggling down in fourth place. The second leg at the Nou Camp takes place on Wednesday 14 March.

Eee, just can’t wait for tonight’s super dooper clash between the two clubs. Let us know your feedback on the match!