Friday’s soccer news starts with the Europa League knockout round playoff first-legs. James Sands subbed on in the 66th minute of Rangers’ 4-2 win at Gio Reyna’s Borussia Dortmund. Reyna subbed in at halftime. James Tavernier put Rangers up from the penalty spot in the 38th. Alfredo Morales doubled the lead in the 41st and John Lundstram scored in the 49th. Trialing 3-0, Dortmund’s Jude Bellingham pulled a goal back in the 51st. Rangers went up 4-1 from an own-goal in the 54th, with Raphael Guerreiro scoring for Dortmund in the 82nd minute.
“We watched a lot of games of Dortmund and we knew they were getting a lot of goals against them lately,” Rangers manager Giovanni van Bronckhorst said. “We were prepared technically, but more important mentally. We had the right attitude today to getting a good result. We are as one and we represent this beautiful club and we have to make sure we make our fans proud of the performances we put in and I think today we have done it.”
Sergino Dest subbed on in the 80th minute of Barcelona’s 1-1 home draw with Napoli. Trailing from the 29th minute, Barca’s Ferran Torres converted a penalty in the 59th. Tyler Adams subbed on at halftime for RB Leipzig in their 2-2 home draw with Real Sociedad. Down a goal from the 8th, Christopher equalized for Leipzig in the 30th. Real Sociedad went ahead from the penalty spot in the 64th with Emil Forsberg converting a Leipzig penalty in the 82nd minute.
“I think the 2-2 scoreline is fair,” RB Leipzig coach Domenico Tedesco said. “We’ve put ourselves in this position now. We were too slow in the first half, to begin with perhaps a little surprised that the opposition were defending so deeply with a back five. In the second half we were the exact opposite and were dynamic and quick. A draw is okay when you go behind twice. Emil Forsberg was really good, picking the ball up in deep areas and driving forward. Every substitution had a positive impact, which of course pleases us. Those are signs that the players are making.”
Moving to the Europa Conference League, Cameron Carter Vickers’s Celtic lost 3-1 at home to Bodo/Glimt. Down 2-0 from goals in the 6th and 55th, Celtic’s Daizen Maeda scored in the 79th minute. Bodo/Glimt added a goal in the 81st. Konrad De La Fuente subbed on in the 69th minute of Marseille’s 3-1 home win over Qarabag. Arkadiusz Milik scored for Marseille in the 41st and 44th. Qarabag pulled a goal back in the 85th with Marseille’s Dimitri Payet scoring in stoppage time. Richy Ledezma wasn’t in the squad for PSV’s 1-0 home win over Maccabi Tel-Aviv. Cody Gakpo scored in the 11th minute.
In the Concacaf Champions League round of 16 first-legs, Colorado lost 1-0 at Comunicaciones. Karel Espino scored in the 89th minute. Seattle drew 0-0 at Motagua, finishing with one shot on goal to Motagua’s four.
SI’s Brian Straus on USMNT and New England Revolution goalkeeper Matt Turner’s eventual move to Arsenal. MLssoccer’s Matthew Doyle works through his list of crucial MLS players. Football365’s Ian King on the Leeds – Manchester United rivalry. ESPN has Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel underlining his team’s position in the Premier League table.
WEEKEND SOCCER TV
Saturday has the Premier League on USA: Crystal Palace vs Chelsea at 10am and NBC: Manchester City vs Spurs at 12:30pm.
Ligue 1 on beIN Sport: Lens vs Lyon at 11am and Nantes vs PSG at 3pm. Primeira Liga on GolTV: Pacos de Ferreira vs Vizela at 1pm and Vitoria Guimaraes vs Arouca at 3:30pm. La Liga on ESPN Deportes: Real Madrid vs Alaves at 3pm.
Liga MX on TUDN: Queretaro vs Mazatlan at 6pm. Univision has Tigres vs San Luis at 8pm and Leon vs Chivas at 10pm.
Sunday has the USWNT vs New Zealand at 3pm on ABC. Premier League on USA: Leeds vs Manchester United at 9am and Wolverhampton vs Leicester City at 11:30am.
Scottish Premiership on CBS Sports: Dundee United vs Rangers at 7am. Ligue 1 on beIN Sport: Nice vs Angers at 7am, Rennes vs Troyes at 9am, Bordeaux vs Monaco at 11am, and Marseille vs Clermont at 2:45pm. beIN en Espanol has Lorient vs Montpellier at 9am. Primeira Liga on GolTV: Sporting vs Estoril at 1pm.
Liga MX on Univision: Club America vs Pachuca at 5pm. UniMas has Toluca vs Cruz Azul at 7pm. Atlas vs UNAM Pumas is on TUDN at 9pm.
Monday has the Super Lig on beIN Sport: Goztepe vs Galatasaray at 12pm. All Times Eastern
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Photo by Michael Titgemeyer – Action Press via ZUMA Press – ISIPhotos.com
