Five games, zero goals - how has Simeone stopped Messi?

With Barcelona needing to score at the Calderon on Wednesday to stay in the Champions League, Goal takes a look at how their best player has been nullified by the Rojiblancos

ANALYSIS
By Ben Hayward | Spanish Football Writer

How do you stop Lionel Messi? Coaches all over the world have thought long and hard in an attempt to discover an antidote to the Argentine's brilliance, but very few have managed it. Thwarting the four-time Ballon d'Or winner is almost impossible, it seems, yet one man has done it five times in a row.

Diego Simeone has had some fortune on his side during that time, but the Argentine's remarkable record against his compatriot is much more than just luck and certainly no coincidence. So how has he done it?

Messi made hay against Atletico for many a year, netting 20 goals in his first 14 fixtures versus the Madrid side. But since Simeone's arrival, he has found himself halted and is now without a goal in his last five games against the Rojiblancos: 341 minutes in total.

The first of those was a 2-1 win for Barca at the Calderon in La Liga last season. Messi started, but barely threatened. One defence-splitting pass almost let in Cristian Tello, but Diego Godin was alert to cut out the danger, while Messi also sent a free kick straight at Thibaut Courtois before suffering a recurrence of his thigh problem and departing after 67 minutes. In his absence, Barca actually improved and turned the game around with only 10 men on the pitch as Alexis Sanchez levelled and Gabi scored an own goal.

The teams' next meeting was in the Spanish Supercopa, also at the Calderon. And as in the previous match, Messi was forced off with an injury - this time at the interval. While on the pitch, the Argentine played one clever pass through to Pedro and also fired a shot wide from the edge of the area. But that was about it. Neymar cancelled out David Villa's opener in the second half as the game ended 1-1.


Deep thinker | Simeone's side have halted Messi in five consecutive games
Eight days later, Barca and Atleti met again at Camp Nou and Messi made a return to the starting XI. The Argentine began brilliantly and was denied by Courtois early on after latching onto a pass from Sergio Busquets. But the 26-year-old was caught up in a physical battle and complained to the referee at half-time. Less impressive in the second period, Messi was unable to find a way through even after Filipe Luis was sent off and also blasted a late penalty against the bar. The game ended goalless, but Barca won the Supercopa thanks to Neymar's away strike in Madrid.

In January, Simeone's side then frustrated Barca once again in another goalless game at the Calderon. Messi, recently recovered from the thigh injury which had seen him sidelined for most of November and December, was left on the bench by Gerardo Martino and introduced at half-time in place of Andres Iniesta. Productive in his 45-minute cameo, Leo left empty-handed in large part due to Courtois. The Belgian goalkeeper deflected one dangerous cross out for a corner and made a stunning save to repel a left-footed drive late on. Messi also headed wide and sent one precise pass through to Cesc Fabregas, who was quickly crowded out by Godin, Joao Miranda and Filipe Luis.

And in last week's Champions League quarter-final first leg at Camp Nou, the forward could consider himself unlucky as he was frustrated again by Atletico and, in particular, Courtois. The Belgian brilliantly saved a first-half header from the Argentine and produced a stunning stop late in the game to keep out a goalbound free kick from the 26-year-old. Earlier on, Godin had timed a block to perfection after Messi found Iniesta all alone in the area, with the Spain midfielder looking odds on to score.

MESSI PROBLEMS AGAINST ATLETICO
Scoreline W 2-1 (A) D 1-1 (A) D 0-0 (H) D 0-0 (A) D 1-1 (H)	Date 12/05/13 21/08/13 29/08/13 11/01/14 1/04/14	Mins 67 45 90 45 90	Goals 0 0 0 0 0

hose moments, however, are few and far between against Atleti. Simeone's side have played all five games with the same back four - Godin, Miranda, Filipe Luis and Juanfran - and the quartet have developed an almost telepathic understanding.

"Simeone has got the players playing with such commitment - he has made the team much stronger," former Atleti player and youth coach Quique Estebaranz told Goal. "The defence is a very strong unit and that comes through hard work. Simeone, with the way he manages the dressing room, has got these players fired up and playing for each other - that's their big secret."

Defending deep with discipline, organisation, maximum commitment, courage and, when necessary, foul play, the back four are supported by a midfield that squeezes the spaces between the two lines to minimise the through-balls and defence-splitting passes made in La Masia.

"Pressing from midfield is important," Estebaranz added. "They work extremely hard to close the spaces available to Messi. It's not just the defence, but a team effort with help from the midfielders to drop into those spaces and crowd him out."

Messi is therefore forced to drop deep or out wide to look for the ball and here his participation is automatically reduced. The Barca midfield, meanwhile, is made to resort to sideways passes or more speculative searching balls which are often mopped up comfortably by the Atleti defence.

And if all else fails, there is a last line of defence in the commanding figure of Courtois. "He is enjoying a fantastic moment," Estebaranz enthused. "He has been in wonderful form for two or three years now and he makes such a big difference to this team - let's hope he can stay much longer at Atletico."

Barca have long looked less comfortable against defensive sides and never relish a physical battle. Atletico, in the image of Simeone as a player, are ultra-competitive, extremely fit, hugely passionate and sometimes cynical, stretching the rules to the limit in order to stop rival teams.

"Teamwork is the key," former Atletico forward Veljko Paunovic told Goal. "Inside Atletico, things are working well and that's evident. It's the fruit of hard work, planning and organisation over the last few years. Simeone is a great leader in charge of a great project."

He did warn his former club, however, that concentrating on Messi could hand opportunities to others, such as Neymar, who has scored both of Barca's goals against the capital club this term. "Messi hasn't been able to score because Atleti's defenders have been on top of him," he said. "But that reduces pressure and leaves spaces in other areas of the pitch for other Barcelona players to create dangerous situations and score - as Neymar has done."

So what will happen this time? "It's exciting to see what technical and tactical strategies both coaches come up with," Paunovic added, while Estebaranz said: "I'm expecting more of the same: a tight game just like the previous four. It's a clash of styles and it will be an incredible battle."

This time, though, with a place in the Champions League semi-finals at stake, one of the Argentines will have the last laugh. So will it be Simeone or will it be Messi? The game of chess continues.

Samsung profits slump on smartphone margins squeeze

Samsung expected its operating profit to fall 4.3 percent between January and March to reach 8.4 trillion won (5.7 billion euros, $8 billion), the South Korean electronics manufacturer announced late on Tuesday.

The year-on-year decline in the first quarter of 2014 marked the second consecutive quarter of retreating profit, the world's largest technology firm said, although compared with the previous quarter operating profit rose by about 1 percent.

The estimate was largely in line with analysts' expectations, who had predicted that Samsung's key smartphone business would slow as mature markets in North America and Europe near saturation.

'The operating profits fell as profit margins in smartphones were falling and the growth rate in smartphone sales was decreasing due to growing competition,' Young Park, analyst with Hyundai Securities, told the AFP news agency.

Technology market research firm IDC has recently estimated that the average selling price of smartphones would fall to $265 by 2017 from $337 in 2013 and $387 in 2012. Samsung, which manufactured more than 30 percent of all smartphones sold across the world last year, has priced the newest version of its flagship Galaxy S smartphone about 10 percent cheaper than its previous S4 model.

Samsung hopes its Galaxy S5 smartphone will cement the firm\'s leadership in the high-end mobile phone market, and help achieve a full-year operating profit of 37 trillion won in 2014

The marine riches of the Maldives

Project goal: the IUCN 'House Reef' program aims to enhance the resilience of coral reef ecosystems in the Maldives, especially the Ari atoll, to climate change

Duration: From 2012 to 2016

Size: Seven IUCN staff members are based in the Maldives. Five hotel resorts are currently involved in the project

Funding: 6.3 million Euros as part of the Blue Solutions Network by the International Climate Initiative, additional funding by Global travel company Kuoni, shopping giant Global Blue and USAID among others

Key species: Manta rays, whale sharks

Coral reefs contain a dazzling variety of species and are considered among the world’s most sensitive and valuable ecosystems. But in the Maldives in the Indian Ocean, the colorful underwater reefs have in some places been reduced to clumps of gray chalkstone. That’s bad news because the Maldives would not survive without intact reefs. They don’t just help to provide a natural barrier against high waves but also provide a crucial source of revenue for the country. Tourists from all over the world are drawn to the Maldives to dive and explore the underwater world of sharks, manta rays and endemic fish species. But tourism is also part of the problem with waste being dumped in the sea and some tourists breaking off corals to take home as a souvenir. It’s a vicious cycle - coral reef erosion means a loss of fish and without algae-eating fish, the corals are overtaken by water plants that squeeze off oxygen supply. Fishermen tend to accelerate the process by casting their nets directly near reefs. Coral reef expert Ameer Abdulla from the nature conservation organization IUCN wants all stakeholders to take responsibility for preserving the reefs. He’s set up the 'House Reef' project to convince hotel managers to set up private marine conservation zones with the help of marine biologists.

International Monetary Fund sees strengthening but uneven global growth

The International Monetary Fund has predicted the worldwide recovery will strengthen this year as output in richer nations picks up.

 But it warned that recovery is not evenly robust with rising risks in emerging economies. Global output is set to expand 3.6 percent this year, which is slightly lower than its forecast in January. It was 3.0 percent last year

. For 2015 the worldwide forecast is for 3.9 percent expansion. While less fiscal austerity should help unshackle growth in the United States and Europe, emerging markets are likely to grow more slowly than thought just a few months ago due to tighter financial conditions, the IMF said.

US growth should be 2.8 percent, the eurozone 1.2 percent , China 7.5 percent and Japan 1.4 percent. Next year it sees slight increases in the US – to 3.0 percent – and the eurozone – 1.5 percent. There are likely to be falls in China – to 7.3 percent and Japan to 1.0 percent. The Fund sharply raised its forecasts for British growth, to 2.9 percent this year, easing to 2.5 percent next year. That was up from previous forecasts of 2.4 and 2.2 percent. But for all of its pace since early 2013, Britain’s economy is only expected to get back to its pre-crisis size in the second quarter of this year, significantly lagging other economies such as the United States and Germany. In its twice-yearly ‘World Economic Outlook’, the IMF said politicians need to come up with more ideas to raise the world’s productive capacity and avoid a prolonged period of sluggish growth. It highlighted the eurozone and Japan as being at risk of stagnation without the right policy actions.

 Growth in the eurozone is expected for the first time in three years despite the region’s high unemployment, with even Spain’s economy due to expand by 0.9 percent this year. Among other major eurozone economies the IMF sees French growth reaching 1.0 percent with Germanys economy expected to gain 1.7 percent The IMF repeated its warnings about the very low level of inflation in the eurozone and called again for stimulus from the European Central Bank. Deflation is less of an immediate threat to Japan than it has been in the past, the IMF said, largely because a planned increase in the consumption tax will help support prices because the tax will have the effect of raising prices. But it said the tax hike would likely cut into Japan’s growth and warned of a one in five chance the world’s third-largest economy could slip into recession this year.

IMF cuts global growth outlook over aftermath of Ukraine crisis

The IMF said Tuesday the world's two largest economies, the US and China, could continue to expect growth of 3.6 percent this year and 3.9 percent in 2015. The figures were rolled back, though, by 0.1 percent from January's forecast.

The IMF's latest World Economic Outlookhad a slightly less optimistic tone as it was issued after the outbreak of the Ukraine crisis caused by an anti-government revolt and Russia\'s annexation of Crimea.

The crisis was found to have exacerbated Russia's sharp economic downturn, with the country grappling with sanctions from the West and the IMF worried about the impact spreading beyond the region.

Austerity versus stimulus

The report also addressed a sharp decline in economic momentum in other leading emerging countries such as Brazil, South Africa and Turkey, which were said to be a drag on global output.

The IMF noted those nations remained especially vulnerable to turbulence that started with the US Federal Reserve's slow tightening of monetary conditions, driving a rise in interest rates and pulling capital away from riskier markets.

The new figures also once again raised the sensitive issue of whether strained governments should forego deficit-slashing austerity programs and spend more to boost economies.

China ship detects ´pulse signal´ in Indian Ocean

PERTH: China´s official news agency says a Chinese ship that is part of the multinational search effort looking for the missing Malaysia Airlines plane has detected a "pulse signal" in southern Indian Ocean waters.

The report says a black box detector deployed by the vessel, Haixun 01, picked up a signal at 37.5Hz per second Saturday at around 25 degrees south latitude and 101 degrees east longitude.

The report said it was not established whether that the signal was related to the missing jet.

The Australian government agency coordinating the search would not immediately comment on the report.

China approves sale of Nokia handset business to Microsoft

Finnish telecommunications group Nokia said Tuesday it had cleared a big hurdle of the sale of its mobile devices business to Microsoft after securing approval from Chinese regulators.

China's Ministry of Commerce became the latest regulator to approve the deal after the European Commission and the US Justice Department had already given the green light.

The takeover was expected to be completed later this month, Nokia said, confirming the deal was worth 5.44 billion euros ($7.2 billion). It said it consisted of 3.79 billion euros for the company's devices and services division and another 1.65 billion euros for its patents.

Patents in focus

According to Bloomberg, China regulators took more time than expected to analyze the deal against rivals such as Samsung and Huawei, having voiced concerns about a drastic rise in Nokia patent licenses after the takeover.

But market experts said important licenses would not involve higher fees, with crucial patents not allowed to change hands for five years.

Nokia was once the world's leading mobile phone maker until smartphones from Apple and companies using Google's Android operating system overtook the Finnish firm.

After the planned sale of its handset business, Nokia will consist of its network infrastructure and services division (NSN) and its mapping services unit called HERE