By Tim Stannard

1) “They booed me too” consolation from Coach Zizou to Ronaldo

The more sensationalist side of Sports Burst was tempted to report that Coach Zizou had slammed Real Madrid supporters on Tuesday like they were an Italian defender’s forehead in a World Cup final.

But the Frenchman is a mild-mannered fellow and merely noted with diplomacy that the Santiago Bernabeu crowd are a “special” bunch in their demands from their players. Especially Cristiano Ronaldo.

CR7 suffered a bit of a backlash in Real Madrid’s home for what was perceived as selfish, pouting behavior on Sunday in the win against Athletic Bilbao and Zidane was in reflective mood remembering his experiences in the same stadium as a footballer. “I don't understand the jeers for Ronaldo but at the same time, I look at it and note that it even happened to me,” recalled Zizou who was arguably one of the best on the planet at the time.

Cristiano Ronaldo along with Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema are missing from the Madrid squad that is travelling to take on Cultural Leonesa in Wednesday’s Copa del Rey clash which you can catch live on beIN CONNECT from 3:45PM ET / 12:45PM PT.

2) Mourinho takes on Rooney in Old Trafford tussle

It appears like Jose Mourinho's very keen sense of survival is going to surpass the Portuguese manager's need to keep Manchester United's skittish supporters on board.

As reported on Monday's XTRA on beIN SPORTS, club captain and all round cult figure for Shrek fans, Wayne Rooney, is set to be cast into the ether in fine Iker Casillas-style having being told that the forward can no longer be guaranteed a spot in the Manchester United side. 

Meanwhile, former Barcelona midfielder has stoked some flames on an already hot Manchester derby in the EFL Cup on Wednesday by saying that both coaches will be taking the match very seriously indeed.

3) Premier League’s hottest properties go head to head in Anfield

Jurgen Klopp and Mauricio Pochettino will have their serious faces on too in the EFL Cup as Liverpool and Tottenham teams rub up against each other in Anfield. The two beaten finalists of the last two League Cup finals are both having very happy-clappy seasons in the Premier League and are expected to carry that vim and figure into Tuesday’s game. Or there will be letters sent by beIN SPORTS.

It’s a clash that you can catch live on beIN SPORTS from 2PM ET / 11AM PT. All the highlights from Tuesday’s games that include Arsenal v Reading will be on a very special edition of the XTRA at 7PM ET / 4PM PT.  

4) Pedro confirms Barca contact in comeback talks

Chelsea forward, Pedro, have revealed that there was an informal chat with his former club, Barcelona, over a return to the Camp Nou last summer. Barca were on a somewhat troublesome hunt for a forward to complement the MSN and Pedro was apparently in the picture. "It was given more importance than the conversation merited," said Pedro on a chat with the Barcelona president.

Luckily, the Spaniard seems quite content at Stamford Bridge now having scored Chelsea's early opener against Manchester United at the weekend.

5) De Boer stands firm at helm of Inter

The rumor mill was in full effect on Monday that Inter coach, Frank de Boer, was about to be jettisoned from the Serie A side. But the Dutchman is still standing for at least one more match. Speaking ahead of Wednesday’s league clash against Torino, the former Ajax man pointed out not unreasonably that he did not have a huge amount of time to prepare for the new season, have taken over the club late doors from Roberto Mancini.

“What we should have tried in friendlies we’re trying in competitive games. Now we’re finding problems which otherwise we’d have found in pre-season,” argued the Inter boss.

The Serie A midweek action gets underway on Tuesday with the rejuvenated Milan looking to build on the weekend’s win against Juventus with a victory at Genoa. That will be live on beIN CONNECT from 2:30PM ET / 11:30AM PT.

WHAT IS SPORTS BURST?

The life philosophy of Sports Burst is that if you are not upsetting someone, then you are not trying hard enough. SB is a daily trawl and troll through the morning's sports news to bring you fact-nuggets to make you both smile and swear. Hopefully at the same time.