MATCH! -julkaisun 28 February 2023 -irtonumeron sisällysluettelo

Things are going to get messy in Spain over the next month! MATCH reveals all… El Clasico rivals BARCELONA and REAL MADRID face off three times in just over four weeks – twice in the Copa del Rey semi-finals and once in La Liga. They’re obviously all hugely important games! CLASICO SCHEDULE Real Madrid v Barcelona 2 March, Copa del Rey first leg Barcelona v Real Madrid 19 March, La Liga Barcelona v Real Madrid 5 April, Copa del Rey second leg THE LOWDOWN! Spain’s eternal rivals were drawn together in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey – the Spanish version of the FA Cup – with the first leg taking place in Madrid before the return at the Nou Camp. There’s a whole month between those two games…

SIZZLING SEASON! After a pretty barren loan spell at Middlesbrough in 2021-22, where he busted net just three times in 20 appearances, the 21-year-old has exploded at Reims! After 22 games he was the league’s top scorer with 15 goals – above Kylian Mappe and Neymar – and had hit his first-ever senior hat-trick! AWESOME ATTRIBUTES! If you haven’t seen much of Reims this season, listen up! Balogun loves making runs down the left channel and cutting back onto his stronger right foot. When he doesn’t have the ball he makes intelligent runs into the box, using his pace to get ahead of defenders, before applying the finishing touches from close range! SUMMER TARGET? Reims asked Arsenal if they could make their loan deal permanent in January but The Gunners…

ON THE ROAD AGAIN, AND AGAIN AND AGAIN! French second division side Rodez recently received a 22nd consecutive away tie in the Coupe de France quarter-final draw! How unlucky can you get?! SHOOTING BOOTS NEEDED! Feyenoord had a total of 50 shots in their 4-4 Dutch Cup draw with NEC Nijmegen, but didn’t score their opening goal until the 90th minute! They really need some shooting practice! SHOCKING STATISTIC! Sacked Saints boss Nathan Jones wasn’t very popular at St.Mary’s, and we’re not that surprised! Eleven Prem managers have got at least one point there this season – and he wasn’t one of them! SPANISH RAMS ON TOUR! Seven Spanish lads travelled 1,400 miles to watch League One club Derby after choosing them on FIFA because they liked the badge. Epic…

MIY FOOTBALL SHIN PAD! We’ve got five pairs of personalised shin pads to give away thanks to our mates at MIY Football. Get in there! To pick up your pair, visit miyfootball.com Winners can add their own name, number, team shield and photos to their shin guards! Tons of WSL players and members of the England Women’s team, as well as Chelsea player Trevoh Chalobah, own them! The lightweight shin pads have a tough outer shell and a soft padded EVA liner for protection and comfort! HOW TO ENTER! SHOP.KELSEY.CO.UK/PROMOTION/WIN Then click on the competition image and enter your details. Full T&Cs are available online.…

Scan the QR code to watch all of Kane’s goals for Tottenham! “NOT EXTINCT YET!” Footy gaffer Neil Warnock posted this LOL message after he surprisingly came out of retirement to take over at Huddersfield! PIGGYBACK RIDE! This might be the funniest yellow card you see all season! Sunderland’s Luke O’Nien literally jumped on Alex Scott’s back so he couldn’t continue his counter! WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN… A new wonderkid making waves at Liverpool is CM Stefan Bajcetic, but gossips reckon he almost signed for Man. United over The Reds in 2020!…

MISSING MESSI! LEWANDOWSKI SAYS: “Leo Messi is absolutely brilliant with the amazing passes he plays to the striker! He knows how to put the ball into the box, between the lines – he’s the best in the world at that. For a striker, it would be a dream to play with Messi!” BUNDESLIGA OR LA LIGA? LEWANDOWSKI SAYS: “Each league is different, for sure! In the Bundesliga, there are more teams that like to play defensively and wait to play on the counter-attack. I think the Bundesliga was perhaps more physical. May be after this season I will be able to tell you more about the differences!” JOINING BARCA! LEWANDOWSKI SAYS: “It was a very tough decision but I knew it was the right moment for me to leave Bayern.…

GUNNERS FAST FACTS… ✔ Even though they’ve only had to play twice to reach the final, The Gunners managed to do it without letting in a single goal. They beat Aston Villa 3-0 and then Man. City 1-0! ✔ Arsenal have reached a record ninth Women’s League Cup final, with their most recent coming in the 2020 defeat to Chelsea. This will be their second final v The Blues! ✔ The Gunners have also won the trophy a record five times, most recently in 2018, and are the only team in history to win it three times in a row from 2011 to 2013! TEAM NEWS & LIKELY LINE-UP Jonas Eidevall played a 3-5-2 formation in their semi-final win over Man. City and we think he could start like that…

MATCH’S TOP 20! Check out our league table after Gameweek 24! Is your team in it? TRANSFER IN… Here are our biggest signing tips ahead of this fortnight’s action! BEN MEE DF ★ BRENTFORD £5 MILLION The Bees have looked pretty solid in recent weeks and have some good fixtures after their recent blank, including DGW27! MARTIN ODEGAARD MF ★ ARSENAL £7 MILLION If you’re not part of the 37+%who own him already, make sure MO is in your side for the next month at least, as he’s ready to cook! KAORU MITOMA MF ★ BRIGHTON £5.4 MILLION Like Brentford and Southampton, The Seagulls also have that double GW27, and Mitoma has some really tasty fixtures in there! TRANSFER OUT… You should consider dropping these stars for this fortnight’s action!…

Messi masterpiece! Check out Clyde’s incredible drawing of Lionel Messi lifting the World Cup trophy! Around the grounds! Jonathan took MATCH to see his team Leicester play Fulham in January and had great fun waving the flag on his seat! Cool collection! Eddie has over 120 shirts in his collection and a lot of them are from his favourite team Man. United! Great gloves! Jack saw these goalie gloves in MATCH and decided to draw them for us! Thanks, mate! FUT fun! Jack designed this FUT card for one of his favourite players – Karim Benzema! Brilliant boots! Henry drew MATCH a pair of adidas Predator Edge boots. We'd love to cop those kicks! SEND YOUR PICTURES TO… Email: match.magazine@kelsey.co.uk Facebook: www.facebook.com/matchmagazine Twitter: www.twitter.com/matchmagazine…

Women’s CL Final Ball Ahead of March's Women’s Champions League quarter-finals, adidas have revealed the official match football that will be used in the upcoming games and the final in early June. The graphics on the footy represent landmarks around the Dutch city of Eindhoven – like the Eindhoven Stadium, where the final will be taking place! Price: £130 adidas.co.uk Puma Eclipse Pack Twice a year, Puma roll out an all-black Eclipse Pack for their Future Ultimate and Ultra Ultimate cleats – and these beauties are the first editions of 2023! In a world full of colour, MATCH actually thinks black boots are underrated – plus, they don’t look as bad after they’ve been covered in mud in winter months! Price: £200 each puma.com Nike Dream Speed Mercurials Feast your…

FLIP FOR IT! You’ve got a 50/50 chance of getting these mind-bogglers right. Tick the answer you think is correct! STAT ATTACK! Which player does this stat refer to? “THIS PLAYER HAS WON MORE DFB-POKAL MATCHES THAN ANYONE ELSE IN HISTORY!” A. Thomas Muller B. Robert Lewandowski C. Joshua Kimmich BARMY BARNET Which Premier League star has got a bonkers new haircut? FIVE-A-SIDE! Can you work out which players are in this classy five-a-side team? 1. French goalie nominated for the 2022 Ballon d’Or! 2. Irish defender who just joined Atletico Madrid! 3. Ex-Arsenal CM known for his long, frizzy locks! 4. Colombian trickster who plays with Mo Salah! 5. Werder striker who scored twice at the World Cup!…