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Wednesday Evening Ticker: Valdes suffers torn ACL; Real Madrid falls again; and more

VictorValdesBarcelona1-AtleticoMadrid2014 (Getty)

By DAN KARELL

Victor Valdes’ may have just played his final game in a Barcelona uniform.

The Barcelona goalkeeper, who announced last year that he would be leaving the club at the end of his contract, was carted off the field after 24 minutes with a serious knee injury on Wednesday in Barcelona’s 3-0 victory against Celta de Vigo. Following the game, Barcelona confirmed on their official website that Valdes had suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee while making a save from a free kick.

Valdes is expected to undergo surgery in the coming days, likely when the swelling in the knee recedes.

The news surely ends Valdes’ hopes to be a part of the Spain squad at the 2014 World Cup, adding his name to the likes of Theo Walcott, Kevin Strootman, and Radamel Falcao, all players who have suffered torn ACLs in 2014.

Here are some more stories to catch you up around the world:

REAL MADRID LOSES SECOND STRAIGHT MATCH

Real Madrid are finding it harder than expected to forget about the El Clasico defeat last Sunday.

Los Blancos traveled to Sevilla on Wednesday and wound up losing, 2-1, dropping three points back of first place in La Liga behind Atletico Madrid and Barcelona. Cristiano Ronaldo gave Real Madrid the lead in the 14th minute off a deflected free kick but Carlos Bacca leveled the score five minutes later with a lunging toe-poke shot.

In the 72nd minute, Bacca scored his second on a strike that went between Real Madrid goalkeeper Diego Lopez’s legs and in the net.

Real Madrid’s city rivals Atletico defeated Granada, 1-0, at home to move back to sole possession of the La Liga table with 73 points. Barcelona sit one point back with 72 points.

LIVERPOOL WIN SEVENTH STRAIGHT EPL GAME

Liverpool are arguably the hottest team in England right now and it showed at Anfield on Wednesday evening.

The Reds took on Jozy Altidore and Sunderland and came away with a 2-1 victory thanks to goals from captain Steven Gerrard and forward Daniel Sturridge. Ki Sung-Yong scored for Sunderland in the 76th minute to cut the deficit in half but Sunderland didn’t test the Liverpool defense enough to find the equalizer.

With the win, Liverpool move back into second place in the English Premier League with 68 points, just one point behind first-place Chelsea.

Elsewhere in England, West Ham United took a 2-1 victory against Hull City to move up to 11th place in the standings, nine points clear of relegation.

QUICK KICKS

Like Bayern Munich did in Germany, Celtic FC clinched the Scottish Premier League title with a 5-1 win on Wednesday with seven matches remaining in the season. (REPORT)

Manchester City will offer Arsenal right back Bakary Sagna a three-year contract to move to the Etihad Stadium this summer. (REPORT)

Fulham have re-signed 32-year-old midfielder Mahamadou Diarra, formerly of Real Madrid. (REPORT)

The Italian Football Federation are reportedly looking into whether Brazilian-born Inter Milan right back Jonathan could pledge his international future to Italy. (REPORT)

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What do you think of these developments? Disappointed to hear about Valdes? How does this affect his future? Do you think Real Madrid can still win the title? How about Liverpool?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. I read on ESPN’s Boot Room that Altidore missed a tap-in on a cross from Johnson around the 90th minute/extra time that would have tied the match for Sunderland. Can anybody that watched the game tell me if this is true or not/exaggerated/or what exactly happened?

    Reply
  2. Jozy did… nothing to paint himself as being a better option than Wickham. Ki made an instant impact in the match.

    Liverpool have to be the title favorites if they can get the win against Man City.

    Reply

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