April is in the books. With captivating football from title races to European excellence, the Indian Cricket Premier League, Mercedes soaring in F1 and the NBA Playoffs, April has brought another big bulk of incredible sporting action.
In this article, take a comprehensive look back from the best and biggest sports stories of the month, including football around the World, the ins-and-outs from UFC’s Octagon, a perspective within the boundaries of cricket, the fast and furious Formula 1 and plenty more. Let’s get things rolling, then… Football: Bayern’s Bundesliga Success, Title Races, Champions League Knockouts Taking center stage was the Champions League, as Europe’s elite jockeyed for position in search to solidify footballing supremacy. Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester City kept up the tough race in the Premier League, while Atletico neared the La Liga title. Opening the month was the UEFA Champions League Quarter-Finals. Demba Ba triumphed at Stamford Bridge to sink PSG while at Old Trafford, Manchester United were able to test Bayern, though unable to get past them. Real Madrid held off Marco Reus’ incredible performance in the second leg to progress to the next round. Atletico Madrid made significant progress in the hot race for the coveted La Liga title, and exclaimed their dominance as they knocked Barcelona out of the Champions League. It was a dwindling month for the Catalans, who suffered knockouts from two competitions within one week that made them plummet from prosperity to dismay. In the Copa Del Rey Final, Gareth Bale blitzed past Barcelona to score an emphatic winner and overshadow the Spaniards with dismay. Problems would be looking even worse with Barca’s transfer ban, though it has been lifted for the upcoming Summer so they’ll have to get spending on key players, especially with centrepieces set to depart. READ: Crumbling Catalans: End of an Era for Barcelona? » Tito Vilanova died in April of lung cancer at the age of 45. The former Barca coach resigned last year when his illness got worse. One-minute silences were observed in the Champions League game. Hillsborough weekend was a special one for Liverpool. 25 years on from the tragic events that saw the deaths of 96 supporters, Liverpool stood strong in an inspired performance to thwart Manchester City at Anfield. Two weeks later, Liverpool lost to Chelsea at Anfield in a game that blew the title race wide open again. MORE: Premier League on TheSportMatrix » Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid set up for a Lisbon showdown after sending shockwaves through the footballing World. Cristiano Ronaldo blazed past Bayern Munich as Real Madrid put four goals past the Bundesliga Champions. Atletico halted Chelsea’s tactics to win 3 – 1, meaning their final in Lisbon will be the first time that two teams from the same city have faced off in a European final. MORE: Champions League on TheSportMatrix »
Bayern Munich’s form definitely dipped over the month – clinching the Bundesliga in impressive fashion made many think otherwise. They really failed up against a prolific Real Madrid and their bubble of invincibility deteriorated over the space of a fortnight. FEATURE: Bayern Suffering From Seemingly Harmless Complacency? » Manchester United parted ways with manager David Moyes over Easter, after his return to Goodison Park was spoiled as United were outclassed by Everton. Ryan Giggs took over management and his first result was positive, beating Norwich 4 – 0. MORE: Five Premier League Managers Who Didn’t Deserve the Sack » There was also the FA Cup semi-finals. Arsenal shone through in penalties to stop Wigan at Wembley, while Hull City fired past Sheffield United. The two FA Cup finalists, Arsenal and Hull, faced off on Easter Sunday, and the Gunners decimated Hull at the KC Stadium.
Formula 1: Hamilton Gets Back-to-Back Wins as Mercedes Soar Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg topped the rankings in an extraordinary month for Mercedes on the track. In Bahrain, Hamilton held off his teammate in a thrilling race for first, while in China, Hamilton eased past. Both broke onto the power rankings for a great month in Formula 1.
Cricket: Sri Lanka Thwart India, IPL Kicks Off The Twenty20 Cricket World Cup began in Bangladesh with a tournament that was well-served in its job of delivering plenty of pulsating drama across the pitch, and it continued that way in the early days of April. Sri Lanka prevailed in the Twenty20 World Cup Final after a subdued performance by the Indians. After looking dominant, Virat Kohli and others seemed to lapse, while Sangakaara bowed out with a superb knock. The Indian Premier League also began this month. Jacques Kallis got it going for Kolkota, while Mumbai suffered.
UFC: Jones Keeps Throne, Nelson Rocks Abu Dhabi, Werdum Withers Browne Four fight nights in April – Light Heavyweight Championship bout, battle for #1 Heavyweight contender-ship, a bitter feud between Bisping and Kennedy, and Roy Nelson putting Nogeuira to sleep. It started in Abu Dhabi, where Roy Nelson leveled Nogeuira in the main event. After stunning the Brazilian, it took a rattling overhand right to floor, and knock out, Nogueira. Five days later Tim Kennedy frustrated Michael Bisping to progress further up the rankings, while the Brit’s disappointing outing questions his ranking heights. MORE: Bisping Frustrates Kennedy in TUF Finale » A packed UFC on FOX card was headlined by a gigantic matchup between Fabricio Werdum and Travis Browne. The Hawaiian Browne was shut down on all fronts by Werdum in a classy performance that sets him up for a title with Cain Velasquez, when UFC takes to Mexican soil for the first time in history. MORE: Werdum Withers Browne to Seal Championship Match »
Then came Baltimore. A night of finishes ended with a star-studded performance by Jon Jones, dispatching tough Brazilian Glover Teixeira to keep his Light Heavyweight Championship record intact. FULL REPORT: UFC 172 »
Basketball: NBA Playoffs Intense, Huskies Win National Title
The NCAA title was secured by the Conneticut Huskies, coming through a bolstering March Madness schedule and coming out on top. The NBA Playoffs took centre stage and they got off to an incredible start. Donald Sterling’s racial comments resulted in him getting a lifetime ban from the NBA and $2.5 million fine. The Clippers owner sparked outrage across the league when his racial comments were exposed. Heat and Wizards made quick work of the Bobcats and Bulls respectively, while Grizzlies and Thunder were heated in a series that saw them go to overtime four times in a row. LaMarcus Aldridge exploded Portland ahead, and the Clippers triumphed in a celebratory night at the Staples Center. NBA Playoffs: COMPLETE Coverage Full recap, analysis, stats, info and more from every game from Round 1 of the 2014 NBA Playoffs in April: – Game 1 » – Game 2 » – Game 3 » – Game 4 » – Game 5 » Happy NBA playoffs! WWE: The Streak is OVER, WWE Honors Legend No one saw it coming. At WrestleMania 30, The Undertaker’s undefeated streak came to an end. Thousands were left shocked in New Orleans as The Undertaker, who had won 21 consecutive times at WrestleMania, lost at the hands of “The Beast” Brock Lesnar. MORE: Full WrestleMania 30 Coverage » John Cena, meanwhile, got caught up in the clutches of the Wyatt Family – prompting a lot of change from the CeNation Leader. FEATURE: Why John Cena’ Wont Turn Heel »
The Shield’s dominance brought about the reunion of Evolution, the formidable tandem of Randy Orton, Triple H and Batista, while Kane’s fury ran wild as he decimated new Champion, Daniel Bryan. In the month the WWE Universe were also hit with some tragic news. The Ultimate Warrior passed away instantly, 24 hours after appearing on RAW, and three days after being inducted into the Hall of Fame after rebuilding ties with the WWE.
We lost some sports stars. Sports memories were made. April closed out. As 2014 rolls on, proportions are poised to be epic. And TheSportMatrix will have it ALL covered. Onwards, upwards. Sports for the fans, by the fans. #JoinTheNewWay
Complete, comprehensive review of the sporting action from March 2014. From the Manchester Derby to Twenty20 World Cup, Six Nations and start of the F1 season, look back at it all here. Month In Review: March 2014
BY NISAR KHAN
As another month goes by, its another opportunity to digest some outstanding sport that has went by. Including the Six Nations, start of the F1 season, El Clasico and more, relive the best and biggest from Magnificent March.
In this article, take a comprehensive look back from the best and biggest sports stories of the month, including football around the World, the ins-and-outs from UFC’s Octagon, a perspective within the boundaries of cricket, the fast and furious Formula 1 and plenty more. Some big headlines from Magnificent March included the thrilling El Clasico matchup – part of a wonderful month of football where title races took shape, and on the contrary some titles were decided as Bayern Munich and Celtic put an exclamation mark on their dominance. There was also the Six Nations, as Ireland triumphed in the bowing-out of a legend, and the fastest sport in the World returned. Fights were plentiful, be it the wrestling ring, Octagon or boxing – and there was no shortage in basketball, either. With plenty of content from videos, photos, recaps and more, this is the ideal way to wrap up this month’s sports. For videos (embedded via YouTube), click the “Video” link on each video if you are unable to view it through the player, and you’ll be directed externally to YouTube.com. Let’s get things rolling, then… Football: Bayern’s Bundesliga Success, Title Races, Champions League Knockouts While title races took centre stage in Spain and England, with the inevitability of thrillers for glory becoming imminent, three dominating teams would emerge from their respective leagues – Olympiacos, Bayern Munich and Celtic, all three of whom embraced their league glory with plenty of games to spare.
El Clasico and Manchester United vs. Liverpool featured TURNER
Stoke City stunned the Gunners in what would be a month of downspirals for the North London occupants, although defeating Tottenham with an excellent Thomas Rosicky strike. Liverpool avenged their home loss to Southampton last year by thumping them 3 – 0 at St Mary’s, as the Reds made their title surge in a month of rampant victories for Brendan Rogers’ side. Another team that would find their stride were Chelsea – who thrashed Spurs and the Gunners to keep atop the table throughout March. However, they would suffer a setback a week after their Spurs’ win, as Fabian Delph’s lone goal stunned the league leaders at Villa Park. On that same weekend, Liverpool made a statement of mass magnitude, defeating Manchester United 3 – 0 in an Old Trafford domination.
Video: Manchester United 0 – 3 Liverpool highlights YOUTUBE
While Manchester United seemingly looked to bounce back, with wins over Olympiakos to keep their Champions League Quarter-Final hopes intact, and Wayne Rooney scoring one of the best goals in the month in the 2 – 0 win at West Ham, it would quickly unwind when they suffered another home embarrassment – Manchester City dominated them throughout the game, beating them 3 – 0.
In the weekend before the Manchester derby, it was a sensational Saturday for the top three, most significantly from Chelsea, who thrashed Arsenal 6 – 0 in a Stamford Bridge statement of supremacy. Liverpool addressed their defensive errors over Cardiff with an affirmative 6 – 3 win, and Yaya Toure struck home a hat-trick as Fulham fell to Manchester City.
Video: Cardiff City 6 – 3 Liverpool highlights YOUTUBE
On that same weekend was a thrilling El Clasico matchup between Barcelona and Real Madrid at the Nou Camp. It was a match that epitomized the phrase ‘Seven Goal Thriller’ with Lionel Messi’s hat-trick, including an 84th minute penalty, deciding the game as Barcelona won 4 – 3. The game further exemplified the fact that it was going to be a very razor-close title race, with Real Madrid losing to Sevilla in the week too. As the month drew to a close, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Barcelona had played the same amount of games, and just three points split them up at the top.
Video: Highlights, goals from El Clasico as Barcelona defeated Real Madrid 4 – 3 YOUTUBE
Bayern Munich clinched the Bundesliga title with seven games to spare as they defeated Hertha Berlin 3 – 1 to show their dominance in German football. Their undefeated streak though would be threatened against Hoffenheim in the weekend as they were put to a 3 – 3 draw, keeping their year-plus undefeated streak intact. A win over Partick Thistle would see the same glory for Celtic, as they clinched their third title in a row. Olympiacos won their 41st title in history in the same week. Dominance in one part, but then there were incredibly close title races on the other. The Champions League knockout phase concluded in the month also, with the Quarter-Final draws following shortly after. Although scoring, Man City were really no match for Barcelona at the Nou Camp, Atletico thumped Milan to get to the next stage, setting up for an enticing Quarter-Final between Barcelona and Atletico Madrid, two of the challengers for the La Liga title. Meanwhile, PSG – who cruised past Leverkusen – and Chelsea, who saw off Galatasaray easily, where set to meet in the next phase. After easing past Arsenal, Bayern went on to face Manchester United who overturned a deficit as Robin van Persie’s hat-trick sent them through. The final tie pitted Dortmund and Real Madrid against one another.
Champions League Quarter-Final fixtures for April BBC SPORT
As for the Europa League, Tottenham being the only English side fell to Benfica, despite a 2 – 2 draw in the second leg. AZ Alkamaar vs. Benfica, Lyon vs. Juventus, Basel vs. Valencia and Porto vs. Sevilla were set for the quarter finals, with the Spanish clubs well in all the European competitions. Arsenal held on to grab a point on the final Saturday of March, drawing 1 – 1 with Manchester City. David Silva’s first-half goal was cancelled out by Flamini’s strike to blow the title race wide open again. Manchester United would respond to critics and show their support for manager David Moyes as they defeated Aston Villa 4 – 1 at Old Trafford. The “Moyes Out” plane that was flew over Old Trafford was booed by the fans. To further add to the growing conundrum of title opportunities, Crystal Palace stunned Chelsea with a 1 – 0 win at Selhurst Park. Liverpool finished the month at the top of the Premier League following a 4 – 0 thumping against Tottenham.
Rosicky equalized for the Gunners ARSENAL.COM
There was a key change to International football confirmed from 2018 as UEFA approved the ‘League of Nations’ tournament that would see most dates for International football friendlies replaced by a four different leagues of different teams based on their rankings. The years they would take place are on the odd years, when neither a World Cup or European Championship takes place. Learn more about the League of Nations with this guide »
Formula 1: Season Zooms To Dramatic Start, Mercedes Bathe In Glory The Formula 1 season began in March with two grand prix from Australia and Malaysia. A dramatic start would mark the return of the fastest sport on the planet.
Successful Start: Rosberg and Hamilton won a grand prix to start the season MIRROR
Video: Highlights from the Australian Grand Prix YOUTUBE
For Red Bull, a torrid month that seemed a fall from dominance would be capped off in preferable fashion as Sebastian Vettel finished third in the Malaysian Grand Prix. His teammate, Daniel Ricciardo was stripped of his second-place finish in Australia for over-consumption of fuel and retired in Malaysia after a problematic race where he was delayed by 10 seconds and his front wing slightly detached. New rules, new regulations, equals more drama – lesson learned. Mercedes’ zoomed to the top of the constructor’s Championship as they finished a 1-2 in Malaysia. Nico Rosberg was second while Lewis Hamilton lead from the front to win big in a Malaysian Masterclass. Formula 1 on Magnificent March – Australian Grand Prix 2014» – Malaysian Grand Prix 2014»
Cricket: Twenty20 World Cup Takes Shape The Twenty20 Cricket World Cup began in Bangladesh with a tournament that was well-served in its job of delivering plenty of pulsating drama across the pitch.
India went on a tear in the tournament AP
In the group stages, Bangladesh and Netherlands progressed to the elite ‘Super 10’ stage. The hosts cruised by their opposition, with their home fans roaring load and raucous on many occasions. Hong Kong and Nepal, two newcomers to cricket, would post one of the lowest Twenty20 scores in history with 69. However, that record would be broken when Netherlands posted a minuscule score of 39 against Sri Lanka – the lowest in Twenty20 history. India were first to qualify to the semi-finals with a win over the hosts. For England, their 2014 turmoil would continue as they lost to New Zealand, in spite of a spirited performance. Pakistan defeated Bangladesh too, in what would be a tale of triumph in the group stages to an unfortunate tale of punching above their weight and resulting in decimation. Cricket on Magnificent March – Full Coverage of Twenty20 World Cup» Rugby: Irish Six Nation Triumph Ireland were the victors as the Six Nations concluded emphatically. Brian O’Driscoll hung up his boots for Ireland and bowed out in victory.
Ireland lift the Six Nations
England were devastated late when after a big win over France, Ireland’s win in Rome secured a big Six Nations triumph.
Video: Six Nations highlight montage YOUTUBE / BBC
UFC: Hendricks Captures Vacated Welterweight Belt, Hendo Wins Shogun Rematch, Octagon Heads to London Four fight nights in four different continents – a vacated title on the line in Dallas in the States, a legendary rematch in Brazil, young Welterweight showdown in China and a wild night in London with TheSportMatrix’s correspondents in attendance.
Johnny Hendricks, Alexander Gustafsson and Dan Henderson were all victorious CBS / ESPN
Dong Hyun Kim made an early contender for Knockout of the Year as he put away John Hathaway with a fourth-round spinning elbow as part of an entertaining card in Macau, China. The Brit Hathaway, who put on a gutsy performance, was defeated in his return. While earlier on, Matt Mitrione was the victor from a Heavyweight scrap with Shawn Jordan. The Octagon then took center stage in London’s O2 Arena. Alexander Gustafsson scored a second-round knockout of hometown-fighter Jimi Manuwa to secure #1 contender-ship for the Light Heavyweight strap. Melvin Guillard, who was released by the organisation in the following weeks, lost to Michael Johnson in a co-main event that failed to live up to expectation. A raucous crowd in London, and expansion to primetime television was a key mark to the UFC’s progressively-global growth.
Video: Alexander Gustafsson’s post-fight interview YOUTUBE
Then came UFC 171. The AmericanAirlines Center in Dallas, TX, was packed to the rafters to witness a battle between two of the Welterweight Division’s hardest-hitters for the vacated Welterweight Championship. After a phenomenal five-round main event, Johnny Hendricks defeated Robbie Lawler by decision, in an early Fight of the Year contender. Earlier, Tyron Woodley continued his rise up the ranks as he stopped Carlos Condit in an interesting battle.
Video: Slow-motion highlights from UFC 171 YOUTUBE
An extraordinary fight card in Natal, Brazil played host to a historic main event from 2011’s Fight of the Year. Dan Henderson collated a marvelous comeback, having been knocked down twice in the rounds prior, and landed a huge right hand to ground Shogun, before the referee stopped the pounding. Aged 43, Henderson knocked out his respected rival Shogun Rua to culminate a terrific card of fights. It was truly a stacked month inside the Octagon, spanning across four continents. Plenty of great fights again headlined by Johnny Hendricks leading the way for a new era inside the Octagon. Hendo and Shogun were part of another superb fight. Although still making great progress in his workouts after a horrendous injury at UFC 168, Anderson Silva announced that he would not be fighting this year. Meanwhile, another legend currently on a hiatus, Georges St-Pierre, announced another torn ACL injury, the same injury that kept him out of action before returning at UFC 154. UFC 173 was given another main event between Renan Barao and TJ Dillishaw, after Chris Weidman’s injury delayed his title defense with Lyoto Machida. UFC On Magnificent March – Feature: UFC’s Vast Global Expansion » – News: Dan Henderson Challenges Lyoto Machida» Basketball: More Teams Seal NBA Playoff Fates, March Madness Its the one month in particular where College Basketball seems to overtake NBA in terms of popularity and mainstream intake. Although less in the spotlight, it was a month in the NBA where teams edged closer towards the playoffs, sealing their fate, while colleges busted brackets across the globe.
Madness Epitomised: ‘March Madness’ was thrilling for all NATIONAL POST
Kevin Durant kept up his race for MVP, while LeBron did the same, including a thrilling game-winner to seal the HEAT’s game with Trail Blazers in their favour. One of the biggest headlines of the month came not in the form of an exuberant run of wins, but an opposite, of losses. The Philadelphia 76ers were humiliated week in, week out, and would end up tying the record for most consecutive losses in the NBA (26). They would defeat the Detroit Pistons 123 – 98 to snap the loss streak and avoid making a new one. In the manner that they won, if you didn’t know better then you’d expect them to be another class. After an (unsurprisingly) bracket-busting March Madness, the Final Four would be set for the next month. Florida Gators, Conneticut Huskies, Wisconsin Badgers and Kentucky Wildcats made it past the tremendous series where College Hoops delivered plenty of drama, going down to the wire.
Video: March Madness 2014 highlight video YOUTUBE / NCAA
Basketball in March was a manic tee-up to a big April as the NCAA Championship concludes, and the NBA Playoffs begin. Basketball on Magnificent March – Are Houston Rockets really a Championship team?» Boxing: Big Matches Made, Kell Brook & Danny Garcia Victorious With big matchmaking in the States and in Britain, the rest of the year’s boxing was anticipated with some interesting matchmaking. Meanwhile, Danny Garcia and Kell Brook were victorious in their respective bouts.
Kell Brook dispatched Alvaro Robles in Liverpool GETTY IMAGES
Kell Brook, who has been linked to an Amir Khan fight, won yet again, stopping Alvaro Robles in the eighth round to secure a title shot. On the same night, Danny Garcia defeated Mauricio Herrera in a debatable split decision.
Video: Kell Brook vs. Alvaro Robles full fight YOUTUBE / SKY SPORTS
Earlier on in the month, a showcase of fine British boxing saw Ricky Burns fall in defeat to Terence Crawford. Carl Froch vs. George Groves’ highly anticipated rematch was confirmed to take place at Wembley Stadium. 60,000 tickets sold out within an hour for the blockbuster fight dubbed as the biggest in British boxing history. Also, Floyd Mayweather snubbed Amir Khan and decided to face Marcos Maidana in May, despite Amir Khan winning a Twitter poll from the fans to decide Floyd’s next opponent. WWE: Final Steps Before WrestleMania There was some subdued anticipation, albeit entertaining, as the final wind-down to WrestleMania 30 ensued. Undertaker confronting Lesnar out of a coffin, Daniel Bryan holding an arena protest and The Shield’s turn for good justice were some of the highlights. There’s bits here and there, so we’ll just let WWE’s YouTube series “WWE in 5” – weekly recaps – take it away.
Playlist: Four “WWE in 5” recaps for March 2014 YOUTUBE/WWE
Another month goes, and another month well recapped by TheSportMatrix. As we look to grow more and more, April will have more coverage with sports from around the globe captivating millions. And that’s a wrap – for this month!
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There was plenty of wholesome sporting action in the month of February, including the Super Bowl, NBA All-Star weekend, Champions League and more. We look back at it all in this comprehensive monthly review.
In this article, we take a look back at the best news stories and biggest sporting events for the past month of February 2014, including the best football news, stories from American Football, wrestling, F1, UFC and many more. There was some blockbuster football action with big Premier League games including Arsenal vs. Manchester United, Liverpool vs. Arsenal and Manchester City vs. Chelsea, with the two latter games also being played in an entertaining FA Cup fifth round. As for football around Europe, the cups took shape along with a topsy-turvy spell at the top of La Liga – plus the return of the Champions League with some mouth-watering European ties. At the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, the Super Bowl culminated the NFL season in surprising fashion, with the Seattle Seahawks’ rout of the Denver Broncos. New Orleans played host to a fun weekend that would mark the halfway point of the NBA season. The East All-Star team would prevail in the highest-scoring All-Star game of all time in the 63rd annual edition of its kind. The Octagon was also catapulted into the spotlight featuring three title fights as the Bantamweight, Featherweight and Women’s Bantamweight Championships were defended across two PPV events along with another main event in Jaragua, Brazil. There was all that, and plenty more. Here’s an in-depth look at the best sporting action in February. Football: Champions League returns, title races, sackings and more
Manchester City’s impeccable home record was tarnished by Branislav Ivanovic’s lone goal of the game as Chelsea leapfrogged them and eventually would finish the month atop the Premier League. At Anfield, Liverpool sent shockwaves through the nation with a dominant 5 – 1 win over then-League-Leaders Arsenal – on that same weekend, TheSportMatrix team were in attendance for Aston Villa vs. West Ham – where the Hammers would triumph in one of four consecutive league wins as they bounced back. Fulham thwarted Manchester United’s hopes in a very turbulent month for the Champions. There would be two managerial-changes in the Premier League – Michael Laudrup (Swansea) and Rene Meulensteen (Fulham) were relieved of their duties. Another blockbuster game was featured at Old Trafford, although it was far from a good game, Arsenal drew goalless with Manchester United – while storms delayed two other games on the same night. In the final gameweek of the month, the top four would keep up the pressure on one another with wins at home – topped off with a thrilling 3 – 2 win for Liverpool over Swansea in the game of the month.
John Terry was imperative to a successful month for the Blues. IMAGE COURTESY: PremierLeague.com
It was a groudbreaking month of Spanish Football for TheSportMatrix.com, with correspondents in attendance for Real Madrid’s 4 – 2 win over Villareal, and Barcelona’s six-goal masterclass against Rayo Vallecano. The Copa Del Rey final was sealed for April, as two of the best in Spanish football secured a date with one another – Barcelona and Real Madrid were poised to face each other in the final on April 19. Real Sociedad would thwart Barcelona with a 3 – 1 win, while Real Madrid would take forward the momentum to top.
The fifth round of the FA Cup would feature two block buster games with the Top Four in the League. Manchester City defeated Chelsea 2 – 0 to get vengeance on their defeat at the start of the month, while Arsenal would bounce back one week after their 5 – 1 loss, to beat Liverpool. It was a weekend that indeed restored the importance of the FA Cup – that many thought had faded. Once again, the pinnacle club football would return. The first legs of the knockout stage would start of at the Etihad Stadium, where Martin Demicheilis’ sending off proved costly for City as they lost by two goals. Paris Saint-Germain would further reinforce their European intents with a four-goal away rout of Bayer Leverkusen. It would be a phase of the tournament where none of the top four English clubs would win, Arsenal had nothing to show for their efforts against Bayern, and Olympiacos stunned a lackadaisical Manchester United. As for Chelsea, they drew 1 – 1 with Galatasaray. In a steam rolling month for the Berneabeu occupants, Real Madrid thrashed Schalke 6 – 1. Dortmund beat Zenit 4 – 2 and Milan drew 1 – 1 with Atletico in the other Champions League games.
Real Madrid thrashed Schalke 6 – 1. IMAGE COURTESY: GOAL.com
In the Europa League, the last sixteen line-up was completed. Tottenham were the only English club to progress, joining Sevilla, Juventus and others in the second knockout stage. Everything seemed to edge closer to importance in one of the cornerstone months of the season. Its safe to conclude that La Liga and Premier League title races will be close ones, and domestic tournaments would embark on a resurgence. In addition, the Champions League delivered more dramatic football.
Sochi 2014: Russia Puts On A Show at the Winter Olympics
Throughout February, the Winter Olympics took center stage providing some remarkable moments. Shaun White’s failure in the Snowboard Halfpipe paved the way for a new Champion, in one of the biggest stories of the games. Meanwhile, Canada’s triumph in the hockey and the rise of curling popularity was part of Russia’s show. There was plenty more, which are summed up perfectly in these videos
Tennis: Top Stars Look to Bounce Back in Minor Tournaments There was plenty of tennis dotted around the Globe in the February. Venus Williams won the title in Dubai to continue to state herself as the best, while Rafael Nadal’s return in Brazil was a successful one, defeating Alexandr Dolgopolov in his forty-third clay title win.
NFL: Seahawks Rout Broncos at MetLife MetLife Stadium was poised for a SuperBowl showdown between the #1 seeds in the NFL – Denver Broncos’ best offense went toe-to-toe with the Seahawks’ best defense – but it would be far from a close battle. Although doubts of poor weather pushing the date of the SuperBowl back because of snowstorms, the game would go ahead and would be a problematic outing for Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos – losing points on the first possession. For the first time in franchise history, the Seattle Seahawks would lift the Lombardi Trophy after a 43 – 8 win over the Denver Broncos. History was made.
NBA: Best of East & West Take to the Court for All-Star Weekend in New Orleans
New Orleans played host to the most anticipated weekend on the NBA Calendar, the 2014 All-Star weekend featured prime talent from the league including a record-breaking All-Star game. John Wall was the victor in the Dunk Contest on the Saturday night, which featured Chris Bosh solidify his second shooting stars’ title, Spurs’ Marco Belinelli win the Three Point shootout and Lillard & Burke won the skills challenge. However, this line up of events with changed formats was against the preference as many, with calls for them to be reverted to the more entertaining and original. East finally beat West in a record-breaking All-Star game. It was the highest-scoring game of all time with Cavaliers’ Kyrie Irving took home the MVP award, and there were plenty of extraordinary plays like we’d expect in a great game. There was a much bigger feel to it this time round, an excellent game to watch. On the first night of the month and on the last, Miami HEAT were victorious against the New York Knicks with convincing wins. LeBron James would break his nose in the same month against the Thunder, as he and Kevin Durant jockeyed for top spot in the MVP race. Russell Westbrook would make his return in the league also. The Trade Deadline would occur too, with rumors taking center stage although no ‘big’ ones came into fruition. UFC: Champions Shine With Three Title Defenses
Two major PPV events were featured in February in the Octagon, starting with Super Bowl weekend. Renan Barao and Jose Aldo were victorious at UFC 169 to defend their titles, defeating Urijah Faber and Ricardo Lamas respectively. In Jaragua, Brazil, Lyoto Machida – who now has a title shot against Chris Weidman in May – defeated Gegard Mousasi over five rounds. On February 22, Ronda Rousey kept hold of the Women’s Bantamweight strap after the quickest knockout in Women’s UFC, dispatching Sara McMann in just over one minute. Optimism was increased by tenfold when images emerged of Anderson Silva training after his severe leg injury at UFC 168.
In a groundbreaking month for WWE, The Undertaker and Hulk Hogan made their profound returns gearing up for WrestleMania 30, along with the Elimination Chamber PPV in February. Randy Orton would be victorious in the Elimination Chamber, and the Wyatt Family defeated The Shield in an epic tag team match. The launch of the WWE Network brought in great vibes for the company, with The Undertaker returning to conclude a phenomenal episode of Monday Night RAW on February 24, where he set a match with Brock Lesnar for WrestleMania 30. On that same night, Hulk Hogan returned, and prepared for his job as WrestleMania host. Former WWE King of the Ring, Nelson Frazier Jr. (also known as Big Daddy V, Viscera or Mabel) passed away at the age of 43, with an outpour of tributes for WWE’s larger-than-life superstar. Extras: F1 News, Cricket, Boxing Bernie Ecclestone was in the news for his F1 doings, as the rules, regulations and practice were hotly contested in the month preparing for the start of the season.
In cricket, Kevin Pietersen’s England career was ended, as the turnaround for England’s cricketing future continued. There was plenty of matchmaking in boxing too, with Amir Khan missing out on a chance to face Floyd Mayweather, while Froch vs. Groves II was set – possibly the biggest rematch ever seen in British boxing.
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It was a jam-packed month of sporting action that was great to watch. Look back for plenty more articles related to this in our archive. Well that is all for February in the sporting World. Keep checking TheSportMatrix for plenty more sporting coverage, reports, analysis, opinion and much more.
From more manic footballing transfers, to cricketing meltdowns, playoffs and more, its been a fitting month to kick-off 2014 in sport.
In this article, we take a look back at the best news stories and biggest sporting events for the past month of January 2014, including the best football news, stories from cricket, American Football, Basketball, Wrestling, Mixed Martial Arts and Formula One. Football: Transfer Window, Premier League, Ballan d’Or and more
Football in January was one heck of a way to start the year.
From the first game of the year between Manchester City and Swansea on New Year’s Day, it really set the tone for a great month of football. It was a table-topping month in the Premier League. Arsenal, Manchester City and Chelsea emerged as the real frontrunners in the title race, taking advantage of some bad results on each other’s parts along with the teams battling for European competition, if not higher.
Chelsea beat Liverpool by a goal in a tight game where refereeing could have played a pivotal role in the outcome, before the Reds went on undefeated for the rest of the month, along with a thrilling 5 – 3 win over Stoke City, and a demolition at the Merseyside Derby, defeating Everton 4 – 0.
Meanwhile, Manchester United had an apparent answer to their woes over the New Year, acquiring Juan Mata from Chelsea for a near-£40m deal. The Spaniard would get an assist in his first game for the Champions. The deal was made over a week after Chelsea dominated Manchester City in a 3 – 1 victory. Manchester City finished the month on top of the table, taking advantage of Arsenal’s draw with Southampton, and beating Tottenham 5 – 1 to reach the summit of the league. A few days into the month and Cristiano Ronaldo won the FIFA Ballan d’Or Player of the Year award, seeing off Franck Ribery and Lionel Messi for the prestigious award. Earlier on, an emotional Pele accepted a monumental award, the Ballan d’Or Prix d’Honneur. In the Capital One Cup, two finalists in Manchester City and Sunderland would emerge. Manchester City eased their way past the Hammers with a 9 – 0 victory on aggregate. Sunderland would stun Manchester United in a game going down to the wire, and then to a very lackluster (and that’s putting it nicely) penalty shootout, where the Black Cats sealed the date with Manchester City in the final at Wembley.
Meanwhile, the League Cup picked up steam with the bigger clubs being introduced. With Manchester United eliminated, Man City, Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea were some of the big clubs to go through, with them surprisingly to be pitted against each other in the next round. In the rest of the football, controversy about Neymar’s transfer to Barcelona would shadow the Spaniard’s football over the month, La Liga’s title race would finish with a point between the top three teams and we geared up for a big year of football.
IMAGE COURTESY: CNN.com
Cricket: England’s Problematic Australia Tour Concludes Things got worse for England in January’s cricket, as their problematic Australia tour stole many-a-headline. Coach Andy Flower would resign after the humiliating defeat down under, with Alistair Cook’s captaincy also being brought into question. England showed glimpses of their original quality, but remained far from it. As Andy Flower said, England really do need a “fresh start”. India also battled New Zealand while Bangladesh and Sri Lanka squared off in International cricket series as the team prepared for the year of the Cricket World Cup. F1: Michael Schumacher Injury, Teams Get Practicing With Drastic Changes This month, we got our first look at the new F1 cars and saw them in action. With an aim of making the sport safer and more “greener”, cars were made more efficient and in practice questions were surrounding a debacle of a very open season come March.
“Not only is the sport adopting new 1.6-litre turbocharged V6 engines, there are also tweaks to the rules concerning aerodynamics and a far greater emphasis on energy recovery systems.” – F1.com
Last season’s Champions Red Bull had a troublesome start to their practice, with a crash in their first session along with Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton also getting his car wrecked. It’s clear. F1 changes will take a lot of getting used to. Also, Formula One fans were keeping track of Michael Schumacher’s condition following his Skiing accident at the end of last year. Doctors were slowly taking him out of his coma as the month came to an end.
IMAGE COURTESY: GETTY IMAGES
Tennis: Wawrinka Wins US Open, Davis Cup Begins In their 33rd encounter, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer battled in the US Open Semi-Final, with the Spaniard Nadal defeating his Swiss rival. However, Stanilas Wawrinka would triumph by defeating the Spaniard in a great final. An ‘exhausted’ Wawrinka would next win in the Davis Cup First Round tie. NFL: Road to SuperBowl Concludes With Dramatic Playoffs Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks sealed their date at MetLife Stadium for the SuperBowl as they prevailed in the Playoffs. San Fransisco 49ers would blaze their way through to the Divisonal Championships, only to crumble in the Fourth Quarter to the Seattle Seahawks, the #1 seed in the conference, as they secured their place in SuperBowl 48. Peyton Manning lead the charge for the Denver Broncos as they saw off the Chargers and Patriots to get to the SuperBowl. In what could have been the coldest SuperBowl in history, the two #1 seeds were poised to battle it out, amid talk all week long of the possible date of the game being moved. NBA: Pacers, Thunder Lead East & West Conferences to End Month, Forwards Break Into Scoring Form In a month where the NBA regular season passed it’s midpoint, Carmelo Anthony would score sixty-two points in a game, Kevin Durant would state his intent for MVP, NBA Commissioner David Stern stepped down and there were plenty of big games. Brooklyn Nets saw off last season’s Champions Miami HEAT, and also went on a five-game winning streak after a routing the Atlanta Hawks when the NBA featured a regular season game in London.
IMAGE COURTESY: ESPN
Carmelo Anthony set a franchise record for most points in a single-game when he scored sixty-two points in a blowout against the Charlotte Bobcats, as the Knicks looked to get back on track after a recent slump on form that also featured a heavy loss on NBA’s special games lineup for MLK Day. On that day, Hawks also defeated the HEAT and Taj Gibson’s overtime buzzer-beating game winner saw off the Bulls at the United Center. In NBA’s first Sunday showcase of the season, Carmelo Anthony would put up thirty-five points as the Knicks saw off Lakers. Earlier, the HEAT dispatched NBA Finals’ opponents San Antonio Spurs with a third quarter runaway and standout performance by Chris Bosh. Rajon Rondo returned for the Boston Celtics just a week-shy of one year from his injury, where he tore his ACL. Rondo and the Celtics took time to get back to winning ways following the departure of key stars. It was a TD Garden reunion on GRAMMY Sunday, as Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce made an emotional return to the Celtics’ arena with their team defeating Boston 85 – 79. Oklahoma City Thunder would indeed extinguish the HEAT, taking the Champions by storm in a 112 – 95 victory, as Kevin Durant made his statement for MVP where he outclassed LeBron in the game. Other notables included Terrance Ross’ 51-point game for the Raptors, and huge trade rumours, only to be replaced by not so big trades in the month. Oh, and not to mention, Paul George’s INSANE dunk… UFC: Three Fight Cards from Singapore to Atlanta as the Octagon Starts the Year Slowly
January featured three fight cards in the UFC, starting with Singapore’s fights headlined by Saffiedine and Lim. A gutsy performance from Lim would go the distance, almost on one leg at times, but Saffiedine would triumphantly be raised the victor. Luke Rockhold reminisced of his Strikeforce days of dominance with a first round TKO of Costa Phillipou in the UFC’s Wednesday night fights in Atlanta. Rockhold landed a body-kick that would ground the Brazillian before Rockhold one with the referee’s stoppage. Benson Henderson won in controversial circumstances against Josh Thomson with the UFC taking over Chicago. Conflicting whether it was a good call or not, Henderson took one step towards another shot at the Gold. There were encouraging updates on Anderson Silva, as Dana White stated that Silva could be fighting by the end of the year and was healing well. UFC’s SuperBowl weekend card was set to go with two title fights to start the month.
WWE: Road to WrestleMania Begins, Batista Returns, CM Punk Leaves WWE? Its the time where the WWE really kicks off. Royal Rumble 2014 saw Batista – who returned a week prior – see off a record-breaking Roman Reigns in his final elimination to secure a WrestleMania 30 Championship match. The tag team Championships also changed hands to the New Age Outlaws, who lived out a resurgence with the Authority. Brock Lesnar ran riot through WWE, demolishing The Big Show and boldly claiming his contender-ship for the WWE strap. Old School Raw took place with many WWE Legends returning, most memorably Jake “The Snake Roberts”. WWE paid tribute to one pioneer in wrestling, Mae Young, who wrestled in eight different decades, passed away in January. One of the WWE’s biggest announcements, the launch of the WWE Network had critics sounding off about their groundbreaking initiative, with it set to launch in February, the WWE Network will provide unprecedented wrestling content for the WWE Universe. Other storyline features from the WWE were the Wyatt Family ruining John Cena’s opportunity, Kaitlyn leaving WWE and things being put in place for WrestleMania. Possibly the biggest and most overshadowing story in the WWE was the alleged departure of CM Punk from the WWE. Numerous reports stated that the former WWE Champion walked out following the Royal Rumble as he was frustrated at WWE’s creative choices and screwing out the hard workers. Whether this is a work, or actual real, time will tell.
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Well that is all for January in the sporting World. Keep checking TheSportMatrix for plenty more sporting coverage, reports, analysis, opinion and much more.
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