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Lionel Messi says Barcelona continue to believe in themselves despite a run of three games without a victory. Jake Butt Jersey . Barcelona face Atletico Madrid in the Champions League quarter-final second leg on Wednesday, holding a 2-1 lead from the first leg.Recent defeats to to Real Sociedad and Real Madrid have cut Barcelonas lead at the top of La Liga to just three points ahead of second-placed Atletico but despite the scrutiny, Messi has backed his team-mates to emrge from their mini-slump. Our mentality is still the same, Messi said via his Facebook account.We work all season to give ourselves the best chance of reaching the final and winning titles. We continue to believe in ourselves. Barcelona manager Luis Enrique has played down the importance of the match Barcelona manager Luis Enrique has made light of the importance of the match, insisting that every game from now until the end of the season is equally important.Its an advantageous result, but the tie is open, he said in the pre-match press conference.I dont feel like this is the biggest game of the season. Its just as important as any other game and we wont speculate as to what the result will be. We will just try to play better than our opponents. Barcelonas Javier Mascherano is confident ahead of the Atletico Madrid game Barcelona remain on course to finish the season with five trophies and Javier Mascherano believes they need to stay fully focused on all fronts. We chose to go for all titles, Mascherano said. We are the league leaders although the gap has been narrowed. We know that we have a chance to win them all, and must get through our remaining games. Atletico Madrids Diego Simeone says his team enjoys being the underdogs Meanwhile, Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone said his side will benefit from being the underdogs despite holding home advantage.Barcelonas players wont be affected by the atmosphere at the Vincente Calderon, he said.Theyre used to it. It will be intense and physical. They will play their normal game, but our strength is knowing they are better than us.Follow Atletico Madrid v Barcelona with our live blog tonight on skysports.com and the Sky Sports apps. Also See: A Madrid v Barcelona preview Why have Barca stumbled? Neymars £153m buyout clause Charlies European predictions John Elway Jersey . Louis Blues and Buffalo Sabres came to an agreement on a big trade that may only offer incremental improvement to the Blues in their quest for a Stanley Cup. Shannon Sharpe Jersey . But qualifying for her first Scotties Tournament of Hearts after years of falling short in tough Manitoba provincial championships is as good as consolation prizes get for the 29-year-old from Winnipegs Fort Rouge Curling Club. http://www.thebroncosstoreonline.com/Youth-Trevor-...s-Jerse ys/ . However, it wasnt a problem on Monday night. Evgeni Nabokov made 23 saves for his 56th career shutout in the New York Islanders 3-0 win over the Detroit Red Wings on Monday night.BOSTON -- Jared Sullinger was at a loss to explain how his Boston Celtics could win while committing a season-high 28 turnovers. "I honestly dont know," he said. Try this: 20 points, nine assists and seven rebounds by Rajon Rondo, a 62-37 rebounding advantage by the Celtics and a horrible 4-for-30 shooting performance on 3-pointers by the Nets. The result was a 91-84 victory in which Brooklyn never led and had its four-game winning streak stopped Friday night. The rebounding "was obviously the difference in the game for us, from our standpoint. That, and they missed the 3s," Boston coach Brad Stevens said. "Id like to say that it was this outstanding 3-point defence, but I think when you re-watch it, its a lot of open 3s they missed." The Celtics scored the first five points and won for just the second time in nine games. And they held off Brooklyn after an 11-point run cut the lead to 70-68 with 2:02 left in the third quarter. The Celtics came back to take a 78-70 lead entering the final quarter and led by at least seven points the rest of the way. "We shared the ball pretty well with our team, and theirs," Stevens said after watching the Celtics commit twice as many turnovers as Brooklyn, "so, overall, it was at least a step in the right direction." The Nets were led by Joe Johnson with 21 points and Deron Williams with 20 as they fell back to .500 two days after going over the mark for the first time this season. The Celtics (21-41) were coming off a very poor performance in a 108-88 loss to Golden State on Wednesday night. "We need to keep working, keep grinding and understand we cant take anyone lightly," Nets coach Jason Kidd said. Jason Collins, the NBAs first openly gay player, did not play for the Nets for the first time in seven games since signing a 10-day contract Feb. 23. Collins, who played for the Celtics last season, signed a second 10-day contract Wednesday. The Celtics got 15 points from Jeff Green and 14 from Jerryd Bayless. Sullinger led all rebounders with 12. But Rondo was the key, despite his seven turnovers. Rondo missed tthe first 40 games recovering from off-season knee surgery and has shown an improved shooting touch recently. Tom Jackson Jersey . . He hit three of six 3-pointers Friday. "He did a tremendous job coming into the season working on his jumper constantly," Sullinger said. "Now hes starting to become the Rondo we all know every day." Paul Pierce scored 10 points in his second appearance in Boston since the blockbuster trade that sent him and Kevin Garnett to the Nets in the off-season. Pierce spent 15 seasons with the Celtics after they drafted him with the 10th pick in 1998. He received light applause when he was introduced with the other Nets starters. Garnett missed his fourth straight game with back spasms. "Every time I come into this gym, its going to be emotion. Not like last time, though," Pierce said. "We just didnt have any rhythm on offence or defence." Pierce and Garnett each scored six points in their first game in Boston this season, an 85-79 Brooklyn win Jan. 26. Both were emotional during and after video tributes on the video screen above centre court. On Friday, the Celtics led 53-41 at halftime -- after the Nets missed all 17 of their 3-pointers -- and 70-57 with four minutes left in the third quarter. Brooklyn scored the next 11 points with Shaun Livingston starting the spurt with two free throws and Andray Blatche following with a 3-pointer. Andrei Kirilenko made a three-point play, Marcus Thornton sank a layup and Johnson hit a free throw. Green ended the run with a three-point play, the Celtics led 78-70 entering the fourth quarter and stayed ahead by at least seven the rest of the way. Despite all those turnovers. "I remember Bobby Knight on ESPN said the team that had the most turnovers is going to lose," Sullinger said. "I guess we exceeded that expectation." NOTES: Celtics C Vitor Faverani will miss the rest of the season after having arthroscopic surgery on his left knee to repair a torn lateral meniscus on Friday. ... Pierce made four of 11 shots and is 6-for-24 with 20 points in three games against his former team. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '
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