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Thursday Kickoff: Man City thrash Sheffield Wednesday; Barcelona drop points; and more

Frank Lampard of Manchester City celebrates scoring his sides seventh goal. 7-0

Photo by ISIPhotos.com

By DAN KARELL

Manchester City quickly picked themselves up off the ground after their gritty 1-1 draw last Sunday against Chelsea.

The Sky Blues returned to action in the League Cup on Wednesday and completely dismantled Sheffield Wednesday, 7-0, with all seven goals coming in the second half. On-loan midfielder Frank Lampard opened the scoring from close range two minutes into the second stanza before goals from Edin Dzeko (two), Jesus Navas (one), Yaya Toure (one), and Jose Angel Pozo (one) put the game out of reach.

Lampard added one more for good measure in the 90th minute to complete the drubbing. The win advanced Man City to the League Cup fourth round, and after the draw took place Wednesday afternoon, Man City were drawn at home against Newcastle.

Following a 2-1 victory over Bolton, Chelsea were drawn at League Two side Shrewsbury Town, Liverpool were drawn with Swansea City, Tottenham were drawn with Brighton, Stoke City were drawn with Southampton, and West Bromwich Albion were drawn at Bournemouth.

Here are some more stories to kick off your Thursday:

BARCELONA FAIL TO REGISTER SHOT ON GOAL IN DRAW

Barcelona broke a long-standing record on Wednesday, one that is surely leaving coach Luis Enrique shaking his head in dismay.

For the first time in ten years, Barcelona failed to register a shot on goal, as they settled for a scoreless draw at Malaga. The draw ended Barcelona’s 100 percent record to start the season, and left many wondering how they couldn’t get a shot on target with a starting lineup featuring Lionel Messi, Neymar, Pedro, Ivan Rakitic, and Andres Iniesta.

Following the match, Iniesta blamed the scoreline on Malaga’s defensive formation and style of play.

“We tried to pick up the pace with the ball in order to get the upper hand, but Málaga had parked the bus. We tried to get through other ways, but it isn’t easy. We couldn’t finish off our moves,” Iniesta said. “It was an accumulation of circumstances. Málaga did a good job. We needed a touch more speed to get the points in the bag. We’ll have to face up to games like this again. It’s up to us, we need to be more agile, more precise. It’s never easy trying to get through a nine or ten-man defense.”

PSG LOSE LAVEZZI TO THIGH INJURY

Paris Saint-Germain will have to look to their bench with an injury to one of their starting wingers.

PSG kept pace with Marseille at the top of the Ligue 1 standings with a 2-0 victory against Caen but lost Ezequiel Lavezzi to an injury in the ninth minute of the game. Following the match, the PSG doctors have diagnosed the injury as a serious enough thigh problem to keep the Argentine winger out for three to six weeks.

Fellow injured players Zlatan Ibrahimovic (heel) and Thiago Silva (thigh) are making progress in their rehab but according to Le Parisien, only Ibrahimovic will return in time to face Barcelona on Sept. 30 in Champions League action.

Lavezzi has started two games so far this season, and has played in a total of six matches in all competitions for PSG, without scoring a goal.

LIVERPOOL UNDER INVESTIGATION FOR FFP BREACHES

Liverpool’s return to the UEFA Champions League this season could be more costly than they ever expected.

UEFA are expected to be investigating Liverpool’s financial figures over the next few weeks and months after the club submitted their financial figures to the Club Financial Control Body (CFCB). UEFA’s Financial Fair Play rules mandate that teams cannot post losses greater than £35.4m for two seasons, but Liverpool posted deficits of £49.8m in 2012-13 and £41m in 2011-12.

However, the club believe that their recent sponsorship deals will clear them from any potential financial irregularities and future charges, according to reports in England.

QUICK KICKS

20 players from a match in 2011 between Levante and Real Zaragoza have been called to testify to a national anti-corruption organization over reports of match fixing. (REPORT)

Luis Suarez scored twice for Barcelona’s reserves against the Indonesian U-19 National Team. (REPORT)

Both Juventus and AS Roma remained at the top of Serie A after recording wins during mid-week action. (REPORT)

Eintracht Frankfurt have signed veteran German goalkeeper Timo Hildebrand as cover for injured goalkeeper Kevin Trapp. (REPORT)

FIFA have extended worldwide sanctions on 15 soccer players, 13 from Estonia and two from Slovakia. (REPORT)

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What do you think of these reports? Impressed with Lampard and Man City’s performance? Do you see Barcelona rebounding this weekend? Who do you expect to take Lavezzi’s place in the PSG lineup.

Share your thoughts below.

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