Barcelona mauled by Manchester United

Santa Clara (USA): Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal hailed his new-look strikeforce on Saturday after the Premier League giants scored a morale-boosting 3-1 friendly victory over Barcelona.

Wayne Rooney scored the opening goal before second half strikes from Jesse Lingard and Adnan Januzaj settled an entertaining game in front of 68,416 at the Levi’s Stadium, home of the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers. A satisfied van Gaal hailed the burgeoning attacking partnership between Rooney and new signing Memphis Depay following the win.

“They have always a threat and that’s very important. I think Barcelona could not cope with the threat of Depay and Rooney,” van Gaal said. He also saluted the scoring cameo of young Belgian international Januzaj. “I have to say that Adnan was also a big threat to them in the 30 minutes that he played, so that’s good to see,” he said.

Thibaut Courtois saves Chelsea from blues
Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois made the difference Saturday, making two shoot-out saves and firing home the winner as the Blues downed Paris Saint Germain on penalties in another match.

Ninety minutes of action saw the teams level at 1-1 after a goal from Zlatan Ibrahimovic in the first half and Victor Moses in the second. Courtois saved the day for the Premier League champions, denying spot-kicks from Jean-Christophe Bahebeck and Thiago Silva before blasting the winner into the top corner for the 6-5 shoot-out triumph against the French champions.