Mandatory News

Sunday, May 29, 2016

Mexico vs. Paraguay: Marquez ready to make the most of "great opportunity"

MEXICO VS PARAGUAY 5/28/2016 GOL DE GUARDADO

Rafael Marquez is hoping Mexico can take advantage of the "great opportunity" ahead as El Tri step up preparations for the Copa America Centenario with a friendly versusParaguay.

Mexico is unbeaten in its last 17 games and will look to build momentum after receiving an invitationto the Copa America for the 10th straight tournament.

El Tri have reached the final in 1993 and 2001 and will be expected to progress from the group stage at the 100th anniversary tournament, having beendrawn alongside Uruguay, Venezuela and Jamaica in Group C.

Ahead of Saturday"s warm-up with 2011 runner-up Paraguay at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, captain Marquez believes Juan Carlos Osorio"s side has its best chance of winning the competition for the first time.

COPA AMERICA: Top 10 U-21 player to watch | Stars of each team | TV schedule

"We have a great opportunity [to win it], but we have to take it game by game," said Marquez, who has been capped 129 times by Mexico. "It is going to take a lot of work, because there are a lot of other national teams with a lot of quality. Within the team there is a commitment of wanting to win, to fight with everything and make the final of the competition."

Paraguay has been handed a tougher possible route through to the quarterfinals, with Ramon Diaz"s men pitted against the U.S., Colombia and Costa Rica in Group A.

Their recent record in the competition is impressive, following up on their run to the final five years ago when Paraguay was beaten 3-0 by Uruguay with a fourth-place finish in Chile last year.

With just one win in the last five games, Paraguay is not in the best vein of form. But winger Edgar Benitez is relishing the opportunity to impress at a major tournament and says the entire squad is ready to prove its worth on the international stage.

"There is not one player who wants to miss out on this tournament or who refuses to play for the national team," Benitez said. "In our country there are few opportunities to draw attention from abroad, and if we want a better way of life, we have to take advantage of the international spotlight."

Source: http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t&fd=R&ct2=us&usg=AFQjCNF39F1mFfHn8lFXQrF5YP_Mv9gezQ&clid=c3a7d30bb8a4878e06b80cf16b898331&ei=Q9ZLV-DNL5GS3QHzhIjIDg&url=https://uk.sports.yahoo.com/news/mexico-vs-paraguay-marquez-ready-100000995.html

French Open order of play, Day 9: Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams in action

Tennis Trick Shots ft. Serena Williams | Dude Perfect
MATCH OF THE DAY

David Ferrer takes on Tomas Berdych - Quite simply, this match has five epic sets written all over it. Ferrer and Berdych both have a chance to make the quarter-finals, but they are likely going to have to work extremely hard for the honour.

POTENTIAL UPSET OF THE DAY

Dominic Thiem could lose to Marcel Granollers - Thiem is the most exciting young player in men"s tennis right now and is seeded 13th for the tournament. However, this is his first time in the second week of a Grand Slam and Granollers is adept on clay.

BRITWATCH

Jamie Murray will be hoping to make his top seed status count for something as he and partner Hao-Ching Chan take on Andrea Hlavackova and Edouard Roger-Vasselin in the quarter-finals of the mixed doubles.

ORDER OF PLAY

Singles play starts at 10am (GMT)

Court Philippe Chatrier

David Goffin (BEL)[12] v Ernests Gulbis (LAT) 2.

Novak Djokovic (SRB)[1] v Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP)[14]

Serena Williams (USA)[1] v Elina Svitolina (UKR)[18]

Venus Williams (USA)[9] v Timea Bacsinszky (SUI)[8]

Court Suzanne Lenglen

Marcel Granollers (ESP) v Dominic Thiem (AUT)[13]

David Ferrer (ESP)[11] v Tomas Berdych (CZE)[7]

Carla Suarez Navarro (ESP)[12] v Yulia Putintseva (KAZ)

Kiki Bertens (NED) v Madison Keys (USA)[15]

Source: http://au.eurosport.com/tennis/french-open/2016/french-open-order-of-play-day-9-novak-djokovic-and-serena-williams-in-action_sto5627340/story.shtml

Monterrey vs. Pachuca will make for thrilling Liga MX final

Pachuca vs Monterrey 3-1 GOLES RESUMEN Jornada 4 Clausura 2016 Liga MX

The top two teams from the Liga MX Clausura have survived and will face off in a dream final.

Liga MX is a league with a well-earned reputation for being wacky. Somehow, the 2016 Clausura has gone all chalk. The final will be the No. 1 team in the regular season against the No. 2 team, but fans are all the better for it.

It"s not that the Liguilla has been boring. On the contrary, the Clasicos of the quarterfinals and the heart-in-mouth moments of the semifinals provided more than enough drama. This final, between Monterrey and Pachuca, should provide more of the same.

The teams have their differences.Pachuca president Jesus Martinez labeled the series the "super wallet" against the "super homegrown" a bit of wordplay that is actually quite clever in Spanish (cartera vs. cantera). There"s some truth to that, but those generalizations don"t tell the whole story.

Monterrey has spent, and done so wisely. Carlos Sanchez was one of the best additions made this offseason and turned in a Man of the Match showing against America in the semifinal to ensure Los Rayados got to this point. It hasn"t all been about big spending. The emergence of Cesar Montes, a 19-year-old homegrown still stuck wearing No. 286, has bolstered Los Rayados" back line in a way other signings haven"t.

While Pachuca is built on a foundation of rising Mexican talent, playing more young domestic players than any team in the league save Mexican-only Chivas, the club also took the next step with a few additions in the offseason. Adding center backs Omar Gonzalez and Oscar Murillo and also gettingStefan Medina on loan from Monterrey transformed the Tuzos back line.

Those are exciting elements, but even more exciting for fans of soccer which if you"re reading this is a group you likely fall into is how the teams play. Both Monterrey under Antonio Mohamed and Diego Alonso"s Pachuca know no other way of playing than to attack. And when it comes off, it"s beautiful. Even when it"s not pulled off, it"s beautiful. Edwin Cardona had a chance for Monterrey in Saturday"s semifinal that went begging, while Erick Gutierrez blazed wide after a gorgeous Pachuca move Sunday. They were some of the best moves of the season, though they didn"t come off.

Watching these teams push forward and test the other"s defense will be thrilling. Unless there"s a dramatic shift from either manager, and neither has shown any signs of changing things up, we"ll see two of the best attacks in the Americas working to put together combinations. There will be moments of individual brilliance Hirving Lozano, Cardona, Rogelio Funes Mori, Sanchez,Jonathan Urretaviscaya all can provide but seeing the teams work together will bring joy.

Trying to stop them will be those bolstered attacks and two quality goalkeepers. Pachuca, in a quirky twist to its young player strategy, boasts 43-year-old Oscar Perez between the posts, while Jonathan Orozcoguards the Monterrey net. Both are capable. Both will be beaten.

The Liga MX final is the one that neutrals were hoping for. There will be thrilling matches, and perhaps we"ll see one more trademarkwacky twist in the Liga MX season.

Source: http://www.goal.com/en-ca/news/4209/mexico/2016/05/23/23846092/monterrey-vs-pachuca-will-make-for-thrilling-liga-mx-final

Monterrey vs. Pachuca 2016 Liga MX Final: Game time, TV schedule and live stream

Monterrey vs Pachuca 4-3 Jornada 4 Apertura 2015 Liga Bancomer MX - 11 de Agosto 2015

For all thenews surrounding Mexican futbol right now, there is still a final being played. A 1-0 win saw Pachuca outplay Monterrey in the first leg, and we are now potentially 90 minutes away from finding out who the next Liga MX champion will be.

For maybe the first time in this Liguilla, Monterrey will be at a disadvantage, and it"s something of an unfamiliar position to be in. After all, they finished the regular season at the top of the league table, and Antonio "Turco" Mohamed"s team is made up of stars like Edwin Cardona and Dorlan Pabon.

But in Monterrey, there is no question Rayados have enough to crash the Pachuca party. Like with Club America in the semifinals, you get the sense that Monterrey are not fazed by the occasion. Even with Carlos Sanchez missing, Monterrey seem to have that South American pedigree to pull out important victories.

For Pachuca, a league title here would be the culmination of a project that has been years in the making. With three gifted youngsters: Erick Gutierrez, Rodolfo Pizarro, and Hirving Lozano. They"ve won plenty of admirers, and they are determined to seize the stage with their attacking brand of futbol.

The unfortunate news of Oscar Murillo"s injury, however, has robbed Pachuca of one of their key defensive players. This is an area for which Pachuca deserves considerable praise for this season, and Omar Gonzalez and Aquivaldo Mosquera will have to be at their best if they want to be lifting the trophy at the end of the night.

In a day like this, the hope is the sport brings us joy. Here is to seeing an entertaining finale to another superb Liga MX season.

Match date/time: Sunday 9:30pm EST, 8:30pm local

Venue: Estadio BBVA Bancomer,Monterrey, Mexico

TV: Univision and Univision Deportes Network

Streaming: Univision Deportes En Vivo andfuboTV (Free trial + monthly subscription)

Listings via LiveSoccerTV.com.

Source: http://www.fmfstateofmind.com/2016/5/29/11808632/monterrey-vs-pachuca-2016-liga-mx-final-game-time-tv-schedule-and-live-stream

Casemiro put on a show for Real Madrid in the Champions League final

Real Madrid celebrate Champions League win with parade

Defensive midfielders aren"t sexy. It"s hard to appreciate what they do and many teams try to find reasons to leave them out of their teams. That"s doubly true at Real Madrid, where s*x appeal, big names and the desire to play with as many attacking players as possible trumps all. But as the Merengues celebrate their record 11th Champions League title, they have their defensive midfielder to thank for it.

Casemiro was magnificent in the final. And he"s been magnificent ever since Zinedine Zidane put him into the starting XI. Without him, Real Madrid aren"t the champions of Europe.

The Brazilian put on a masterclass with the entire world watching. Going up against an Atletico Madrid team that boasts one of the best counterattacks in the world, Casemiro was up to the task of slowing them down and he did it almost singlehandedly. No matter how many players the Merengues pushed forward, Casemiro was sitting in the midfield ready to turn back whatever came his way.

Sometimes he did it by winning the ball, like his inch-perfect tackle on Antoine Griezmann. Other times he simply redirected Atleti"s players to the wings, which allowed his teammates to recover. There were instances when his presence forced Atleti to play the ball back, neutering the threat, and sometimes he was so quick to take away passing options that Atleti couldn"t even get the counter going.

With Casemiro at the base of the midfield, Atleti had trouble hitting Real Madrid quickly. They had to be much more deliberate and the frantic pace that they excel in was missing. By the time they could get their attack going, Real Madrid had defenders back and the space was gone. Almost all of that was Casemiro"s doing.

It"s not as if Casemiro is the best defensive midfielder in the world either. He"s not close. He"s a nice one, who understand the needs from the position. It"s to read the game, cut out the counterattack, shield the back line and, when he"s on the ball, get it to better players as quickly as possible. Nobody would call that spectacular, but the difference it makes in the team is immense. Just look at Real Madrid before Casemiro became their out-and-out defensive midfielder.

When Rafa Benitez was the manager, Casemiro was used with some regularity, but he was expected to push forward more often. He was a central midfielder more than a defensive midfielder. Without a true defensive midfielder, teams torched them on the counterattack.

Real Madrid had played without a defensive midfielder for years. It was the result of president Florentino Perez"s bizarre transfer policy and while they did win the Champions League two years ago without anyone to break up play in the middle, that was largely due to Carlo Ancelotti"s brilliant tactics and Luka Modric"s passing, which kept them from being exploited too often defensively. But it wasn"t sustainable, and that was made evident by their play in La Liga, where they haven"t won the title in four years.

Their spectacular attacking talent could win them most matches, but they had a giant fault and that left them vulnerable. Teams like Real Madrid, who want to be the best and spend the type of money they spend, don"t have much of an excuse to be vulnerable.

One of the first changes Zidane made when he became manager in January was to insert Casemiro into the starting lineup. He knew the team needed a defensive midfielder and he tabbed Casemiro to play the role. The result was a defense that could stand up to most any team, and Real Madrid allowed just nine goals in 17 matches with Casemiro on the pitch under Zidane. Their attack was just as good too, knowing that they had more freedom to get forward without having to worry about getting burned on the counter for their forays forward.

Casemiro made all the difference for Real Madrid, as defensive midfielders usually do.

Of course, finding capable defensive midfielders isn"t always so easy. The combination of mobility, strength and, most importantly, reading of the game is not something that most players have. It takes so much discipline, on top of all that, and a willingness to never be the star. There are only a handful who can do the job at a high level, which is why you teams like Manchester United and Arsenal have struggled to fill the role for years. But Real Madrid found theirs in Casemiro and he was on full display in the final.

Sergio Ramos scored Real Madrid"s goal, Cristiano Ronaldo got the winning penalty, Gareth Bale was a menace all night and Modric"s passing was second-to-none. But while they all did the things most people notice, Casemiro was bossing the center of the pitch and neutering one of the best counterattacks in the world.

Casemiro was the key to Real Madrid"s Champions League title, sexy or not.

NASCAR Sprint Cup-Coca-Cola 600 Results

2000 Coca Cola 600 At Lowe"s Motor Speedway Charlotte
By The Associated PressSundayAt Charlotte Motor SpeedwayConcord, N.C.Lap length: 1.5 miles(Start position in parentheses)

1. (1) Martin Truex Jr., Toyota, 400.

2. (8) Kevin Harvick, Chevrolet, 400.

3. (7) Jimmie Johnson, Chevrolet, 400.

4. (4) Denny Hamlin, Toyota, 400.

5. (5) Brad Keselowski, Ford, 400.

6. (13) Kurt Busch, Chevrolet, 400.

7. (27) Matt Kenseth, Toyota, 400.

8. (12) Chase Elliott, Chevrolet, 400.

9. (2) Joey Logano, Ford, 400.

10. (14) Ryan Newman, Chevrolet, 400.

11. (6) Greg Biffle, Ford, 400.

12. (28) Austin Dillon, Chevrolet, 400.

13. (24) Kyle Larson, Chevrolet, 400.

14. (25) Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chevrolet, 400.

15. (3) Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Ford, 400.

16. (15) AJ Allmendinger, Chevrolet, 399.

17. (11) Paul Menard, Chevrolet, 399.

18. (9) Carl Edwards, Toyota, 399.

19. (23) Jamie McMurray, Chevrolet, 399.

20. (18) Ryan Blaney, Ford, 397.

21. (19) Danica Patrick, Chevrolet, 396.

22. (29) Kasey Kahne, Chevrolet, 395.

23. (26) Clint Bowyer, Chevrolet, 395.

24. (21) Tony Stewart, Chevrolet, 395.

25. (10) Trevor Bayne, Ford, 395.

26. (20) Aric Almirola, Ford, 395.

27. (33) Landon Cassill, Ford, 395.

28. (31) Regan Smith, Chevrolet, 395.

29. (30) Brian Scott, Ford, 394.

30. (17) Casey Mears, Chevrolet, 394.

31. (35) David Ragan, Toyota, 393.

32. (34) Matt DiBenedetto, Toyota, 393.

33. (16) Kyle Busch, Toyota, Accident, 392.

34. (32) Michael McDowell, Chevrolet, 391.

35. (36) Cole Whitt, Chevrolet, 391.

36. (38) Michael Annett, Chevrolet, 390.

37. (22) Chris Buescher, Ford, 388.

38. (37) Josh Wise, Chevrolet, 387.

39. (39) Jeffrey Earnhardt, Ford, 382.

40. (40) Reed Sorenson, Chevrolet, Clutch, 200.

___

Average Speed of Race Winner: 160.655 mph.

Time of Race: 3 Hours, 44 Minutes, 5 Seconds.

Margin of Victory: 2.572 Seconds.

Caution Flags: 4 for 19 laps.

Lead Changes: 9 among 4 drivers.

Lap Leaders: M. Truex Jr. 1-77; J. Johnson 78-79; M. Truex Jr. 80-164; J. Johnson 165; J. Logano 166; M. Truex Jr. 167-298; P. Menard 299-300; M. Truex Jr. 301-343; J. Johnson 344-345; M. Truex Jr. 346-400.

Leaders Summary (Driver, Times Lead, Laps Led): M. Truex Jr. 5 times for 392 laps; J. Johnson 3 times for 5 laps; P. Menard 1 time for 2 laps; J. Logano 1 time for 1 lap.

Top 16 in Points: K. Harvick 457; Kurt Busch 421; J. Johnson 409; Kyle Busch 405; C. Edwards 404; B. Keselowski 404; M. Truex Jr. 381; C. Elliott 374; J. Logano 373; M. Kenseth 347; D. Hamlin 345; A. Dillon 344; D. Earnhardt Jr. 341; J. Mcmurray 318; . Blaney 309; R. Newman 309.

Source: http://wtop.com/motorsports/2016/05/nascar-sprint-cup-coca-cola-600-results-3/

For an Alicia Keys Video, Choreographing Spontaneity

Alicia Keys - Girl On Fire
Photo Some of the dancers in Alicia Keyss new video for In Common. Credit David Moriya

How do you plan a spontaneous-looking dance party? That was one task facing the choreographer Celia Rowlson-Hall on the Brooklyn set of the music video for In Common, the nonchalantly danceable new single from Alicia Keys. Directed by Pierre Debusschere in high-definition black and white, the video features about a dozen dancers for whom the term backup doesnt apply. They are front and center.

As Ms. Keys sings from her perch on a free-standing fire escape, intimate duets, seductive solos and euphoric jam sessions unfold on an abstracted city street below. Two wiry men Khalil Williams and Xavier D, who excel in the contortionist street-dance style called bone-breaking twist their arms behind their backs, reaching for each others hands. The formidable Niv Acosta, best known in the New York downtown dance and theater scene, floats toward the camera, vogueing with a sultry stare.

If you could love somebody like me, you must be messed up, too, Ms. Keys sings, taking comfort in shared imperfections. For their own bodies and for one another, the dancers seem to feel unconditional love.

Alicia Keys - In Common Video by aliciakeysVEVO

Ms. Rowlson-Hall, who also directs her own music videos and movement-based films, jokes about being a glorified cheerleader on the set. But rising to a directors call for beautiful lines and the illusion of spontaneity takes choreographic chops. In a recent phone interview, she spoke about casting choices, improvisational hugging and choreographing to a song without the song. These are edited excerpts from that conversation.

What kind of direction did you get from the creative team?

They wanted the video to be diverse and super relatable. They wanted dance, but not, you know, 5-6-7-8 and everyone goes into a routine more of an improvised feeling. One of the big things was casting. They were talking to various choreographers, and when I gave my two cents about people I wanted to pull into the mix, like Niv and X[avier], I think Pierre was very interested in that.

What were you looking for in the casting process?

We didnt want just one style or look or gender. We were looking for great dancers with great looks that you dont see every day. The people we chose have a lot going on [in their careers], and I think thats why they stood out in the audition, because theyre not just waiting to be formed into the directors idea. Their attitude is more: Heres what I do. What do you think of it?

What was the concept for the choreography?

With Pierres images in general, theres a lot of negative space, and its all about line. He wanted beautiful lines. For the duets, I worked with specific points of embrace and breaking out of those to find new points of embrace. So, finding your chin resting on your partners lower rib, and how to get into that position naturally something more than a standard hug. With Stephanie [Crousillat] and Pierce [Cady], I gave them an opening moment, then directed their movement as they improvised. With Khalil and X, I had them do their bone crushing while staying connected the whole time. They had never done that before.

What about the group sections?

I gave each person a starting point and then asked different people to play with levels [like reaching up or crouching down]. So they were doing their own thing, but the space wasnt blocked with everyone dancing at midlevel. Somebody was always moving to another point, and somebody was always high and low.

Youre also a director. Is it ever challenging to choreograph and not direct?

Not at all. Because I do both, Im actually overly sensitive in never wanting to step over the boundaries. But I do give, through my choreography, things I know Id want, like points for cutting in and out of movement, because I know how to cut dance. So Im secretly infusing my choreography with what Id do as a director.

Did you choreograph to the music? Did the lyrics influence you?

Even as a choreographer, I wasnt given the song. I listened to it in a meeting, and that was it. She [Alicia Keys] performed it on the set, but because we were shooting at 48 frames per second, she had to sing twice as fast as the actual tempo. I only really listened to the lyrics a few days ago, and I was like, Wait, this is what she was saying the whole time?

Continue reading the main story

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/30/arts/dance/for-an-alicia-keys-video-choreographing-spontaneity.html