Arjen Robben’s goal sparks Bayern Munich demolition of VfB Stuttgart

The Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich needed only one half to demolish VfB Stuttgart on Saturday as they increased their lead at the top of the league to eight points with another potent attacking performance and kept on course for a record fourth consecutive title.

Bayern, who drew 0-0 last week at Eintracht Frankfurt after 10 successive wins, hit top form once more and Arjen Robben and Douglas Costa put them 2-0 ahead after only 17 minutes.

Thomas Müller and the Bundesliga’s top scorer, Robert Lewandowski, added two more before the break to take their tally to 11 and 14 goals respectively as the hosts picked up where they had left off in midweek when they crushed Arsenal 5-1 in the Champions League.

Bayern stepped off the gas after the break but have now scored four or more goals in their last six home games in all competitions to move up to 34 points, eight ahead of second-placed Borussia Dortmund, who play Schalke on Sunday.

The Brazilian Costa was far too fast down the wings for the Stuttgart defenders and the visitors could not contain Bayern’s lethal attacking trio of Müller, Lewandowski and Robben as Bayern had a league record 23 shots on goal in the first half alone.

Cristiano Ronaldo: I want to retire with 'dignity', not in USA, Qatar or Dubai

Cristiano Ronaldo said Friday that he wants to end his career “with dignity” and not playing in “the United States, Qatar or Dubai”. The Real Madrid and Portugal star, the subject of a new documentary that premiered on Monday in London, said Thursday in an interview on ITV’s The Jonathan Ross Show that he expected to play six or seven more seasons and hoped to finish his career at the highest level. The remarks ostensibly referenced the recent wave of top players who have finished their careers outside of Europe’s top leagues, among them MLS imports Didier Drogba, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, Andrea Pirlo and David Villa, along with Xavi, the lifelong Barcelona midfielder who signed with Qatari club Al Sadd in May. “That does not mean it’s bad play in the leagues of the United States, Qatar or Dubai, but I do not see myself there,” Ronaldo said. Ronaldo, who turns 31 in February, became Real Madrid’s all-time leading goalscorer last month and has th...

Falkirk chairman calls for restructure of ‘outdated’ Scottish league

The format of the Scottish league is outdated and should be restructured with a 16-team Premiership to help boost football in the country, says the chairman of second-tier promotion-challengers Falkirk . Speaking at the club’s AGM, Doug Henderson said the slide of Scottish football, from falling attendances to the poor performance of the national side and their top clubs in Europe, would continue unless steps were taken to change the current system. Scotland were the only team from the British Isles not to qualify for next year’s European Championship and Celtic , Scottish champions for the past four seasons, regularly fail to make any impact in European competition. Scottish football’s top four tiers are currently organised into a 12-team Premiership with three lower divisions each containing 10 teams. “Reflecting economic reality and the need for premier division full-time football, I believe that we must put vested interest aside and reform our lea...

Young people to lose access to unemployment benefits as part of welfare reforms

YOUNG people will not be able to get unemployment benefits until they turn 25 under reforms introduced by the Turnbull Government today. The coalition has unveiled wide-ranging welfare reforms in parliament today, including changes to the Newstart program. It hopes to stop people aged 22 to 24 getting Newstart or the Sickness allowance, and they will instead be shifted to the Youth Allowance payment. This will reduce the amount of money that they will be able to get, costing a single person living away from home about $90 a fortnight. They will also be required to study in order to qualify for the payments. “The key aim of this measure is to provide incentives for young unemployed people to obtain the relevant education and training to increase employability,” according to an explanatory memorandum for the bill. However, it says Youth Allowance does allow students to earn a higher amount of money from part-time or casual work than Newstart, before this begins imp...

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