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  • MADRID, Spain -- Barcelona and Real Madrid played out a thrilling 1-1 draw in their Copa del Rey semifinal at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium on Wednesday. Cheap NFL Jerseys USA . With Barcelona enjoying the majority of possession, the first-leg match grew in intensity with end-to-end play as both teams raced forward with fast-paced counterattacks. As goalkeeper Iker Casillas was injured, Diego Lopez played in goal for Madrid and Cristiano Ronaldo was captain. Lionel Messi intercepted a clearance, and passed to Cesc Fabregas, who opened the scoring in the 50th minute. "This is obviously a good result; we are in the Bernabeu, a very tough field, and we will have our own fans behind us for the return leg of the draw," Fabregas said. The 19-year-old Raphael Varane sealed an excellent match, heading an equalizer in the 81st having saved three clear Barcelona chances earlier. "Its like a dream come true, incredible to score a goal like that against Barcelona at just 19," Varane said. "The second leg will be evenly matched and were going to play a good match there to win." The second leg will be at the Camp Nou on Feb. 27. The match ended Messis prolific scoring streak in which he had found the back of the net in his previous 16 starts. Madrid began the match attacking, and Gerard Pique fouled a charging Ronaldo in the first minute to concede a free kick which the striker struck hard and head-high, but goalkeeper Jose Manuel Pinto saved. Barcelona had its first chance from a well-timed pass by Andres Iniesta that Jordi Alba ran onto, beating the offside trap, but he shot wide of the far post in the 13th. Xavi Hernandez struck a free kick that hit the crossbar in the 21st. "These matches are always difficult and I had said that in all probability the semifinals would likely be decided in Barcelona and thats exactly whats going to happen," said Barcelona deputy coach Jordi Roura, who was in charge as Tito Vilanova was in the United States undergoing medical tests. Defender Ricardo Carvalho nearly gifted Barcelona its first goal when he made a poor back-pass to Lopez which Fabregas intercepted and passed to Xavi Hernandez, who shot towards goal only to find that Varane had sprinted back to kick the ball out of the goalmouth in the 24th. The second half also began with Madrid attacking, but Karim Benzema shot high. Varane made his second vital interception to prevent Messis pass reaching an advancing Fabregas in the 56th. Madrid countered when Michael Essien crossed and Ronaldo reached forward to try and head the ball in, but he failed to make contact in the 61st. Madrid coach Jose Mourinho refreshed his midfield by bringing on Luka Modric for Jose Callejon and his attack with Gonzalo Higuain substituting Benzema three minutes later. "Im new here but I saw a very united and strong dressing room. Were conscious this is a very tough rival, but we came out and showed our best side and displayed good ball control." said Lopez, who was signed on Jan. 26 to provide cover for Casillas. Pique made an excellent tackle to divert a cross intended for Ronaldo from Essien three minutes later. With Barcelona dominating possession, Fabregas and Pedro Rodriguez came close to scoring midway through the second half. Madrids sustained pressure towards the end was thwarted when Dani Alves stopped Mesut Oezils ball reaching Ronaldo in the 84th. Cheap NFL Jerseys . The CFL club announced Wednesday that Meyer will be offensive co-ordinator while retaining responsibility of coaching one of the leagues best front fives. Cheap Jerseys China . MFC 33: Collision Course will air on TSN2 on Saturday, June 9 at 4:30pm et/1:30pm pt and is sure to be an unforgettable experience of world-class fighters who put everything theyve got on the line. http://www.stitchednflstore.com/ . (July 23, 2012) – Reeling off top-five finishes is good, but for Scott Steckly its not enough. Cheap NFL Jerseys Free Shipping . The Toronto Raptors held its annual media day Monday to kick off training camp in what the teams general manager called a "completely different atmosphere" from last season. Cheap NFL Jerseys China . The school announced Tuesday that the former Cyclones star and longtime NBA player has agreed to an eight-year deal worth an average of $1. HOUSTON -- The Houston Rockets will send Courtney Lee to the Boston Celtics as part of a multi-team, sign-and-trade deal, completed on Friday. The Rockets will receive a second-round pick in next years draft from Boston (a pick that originally owned by Charlotte), forward JaJuan Johnson, guard ETwaun Moore and forward/centre Sean Williams. Houston will also acquire the rights to guard Jon Diebler from Portland. The Celtics completed the deal by trading guard/forward Sasha Pavlovic to Portland. Houston previously withdrew a qualifying offer for Lee, which made him an unrestricted free agent. The 6-foot-5 Lee played two seasons in Houston, averaging 9.6 points and 2.6 rebounds in 139 games. Yahoo Sports reported that Lees deal is for four years and $21.5 million. Lee, a first-round draft pick by Orlando out of Western Kentucky in 2008, announced that he had signed on his Twitter account earlier Friday, before the teams wrapped up the other details of the deal. "Want to thank all the ppl in Houston friends and fans," Lee wrote. "Enjoyed my time. Also would like to thank all the Cs fans for the love." Lee is a 38.6 per cent career shooter from 3-point range and could fill the void left by Ray Allens departure. Allen, the NBAs career leader in 3-pointers made, bolted from Boston after five seasons to join Miami. The Celtics have also added guard Jason Terry and got Kevin Garnett back since losing to the Heat in the Eastern Conference finals. "We are very excited that we were able to acquire Courtney Lee," said Danny Ainge, the Celtics president of basketball operations. Cheap Jerseys. "Courtney brings a vast set of tools on both ends of the court and will be a great fit on our roster." The Rockets, meanwhile, continued to reshape their roster after introducing Jeremy Lin at a press conference on Thursday. Houston is also expected to sign Bulls centre Omer Asik to a three-year, $25 million offer sheet. The 6-foot-10 Johnson averaged 3.2 points and 1.6 rebounds in 36 games as a rookie for the Celtics last season. He was drafted 27th overall in the 2011 draft by New Jersey and was traded to Boston. Johnson ranks second in Purdue history in blocks (263), fifth in rebounds (854) and seventh in scoring (1,919 points). He was named the Big Tens top player and best defensive player as a senior in 2010-11, becoming only the third player in the conferences history to win both awards in the same season. The 6-4 Moore was Johnsons teammate at Purdue. He was chosen 55th overall by the Celtics in 2011. The 6-10 Williams has played for New Jersey, Dallas and Boston in 137 career NBA games. He was taken 17th overall by the Nets in the 2007 draft. Diebler, a 3-point specialist, was a second-round pick by Portland in 2011. The 6-6 guard played for the Greek team Panionios last year after setting the Big Ten record for 3-pointers made as a senior (114) at Ohio State. He also led the nation in 3-point shooting in 2010-11 (.502). ' ' '

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