MARSEILLE, France -- Top-seeded Richard Gasquet and defending champion Jo-Wilfried Tsonga both reached the Open 13 quarterfinals with straight-sets wins on Wednesday. After the second-seeded Tsonga beat Nikolay Davydenko 7-6 (4), 7-6 (8), his French countryman Gasquet followed up with a 6-3, 6-3 win against Slovenias Blaz Kavcic. Gasquet did not face a single break-point and took his opponents serve three times. Earlier, the second-seeded Tsonga, who had 19 aces, improved to 4-2 in career head-to-heads against the Russian who reached a career-high ranking of third. Davydenko saved one match point with a forehand pass down the line, but Tsonga clinched victory with the next when Davydenkos forehand hit the net. "Its never easy against him, hes a great player whos won a lot of titles," the 28-year-old Tsonga said. "Im trying to get my bearings again, which is why I was so happy to win." Tsonga next plays either sixth-seeded Edouard Roger-Vasselin of France or Ukraines Sergiy Stakhovsky, while Gasquets quarterfinal opponent is either fifth-seeded Ivan Dodig of Croatia or Germanys Tobias Kamke. "I didnt play well last time (in Rotterdam). But you shouldnt forget that, and use the experience," said Tsonga, referring to his straight-sets loss to Croat Marin Cilic in the second round of the ABN Amro tournament. "I absolutely must raise my level." In the remaining first-round matches on Wednesday, there were wins for seventh-seeded Julien Benneteau of France, No. 8 Nicolas Mahut of France, Spains Roberto Bautista Agut, Germanys Jan-Lennard Struff, Frenchman Michael Llodra and Ricardas Berankis of Lithuania. Benneteau of France won 6-1, 6-4 against Jesse Huta Galung; Mahut beat Kenny De Schepper 7-6 (2), 6-3; Struff beat David Guez 3-6, 6-1, 6-1; Bautista Agut won 7-5, 4-6, 6-3 against Dustin Brown; Llodra downed Lukas Lacko 6-3, 7-6 (2), and Berankis led 6-5 when Jan Hajek retired. Jerome Baker Dolphins Jersey .com) - Jahlil Okafor had 21 points, Tyus Jones scored 16 with 10 assists and No. Danny Amendola Dolphins Jersey . In the last race before the Sochi Olympics, Bjoergen followed up her win in the 10-kilometre classical race on Saturday by beating World Cup sprint leader Denise Herrmann of Germany by 0.43 seconds for her fifth victory of the season. http://www.shopdolphinsauthenticnfl.com/...i-Elite-Jersey/. Every once in awhile, it seems like life lets dreams become real - and that is a gift. Dan Marino Jersey .TV Series: Duck Dynasty. Jason Sanders Jersey . Philbin said Thursday he wants players to treat one another with civility and he wont tolerate anything less. In taking questions for the first time since Ted Wells released his report into the bullying scandal that rocked the league, Philbin made it clear things would be cleaned up.When Liverpool take on Watford on Super Sunday, memories of John Barnes will stir. Having made 296 appearances for the Hornets and played 403 times for the Reds, he is a legend at both clubs. Adam Bate spoke to former team-mates and coaches to assess just what made Barnes so special… Barry Endeans goal won Watford an FA Cup quarter-final against Bill Shanklys Liverpool in 1970. Tommy Mooneys winner gave Watford their first-ever points at Anfield in 1999. In the most recent meetings last season, both sides won their respective home encounters. But for many, Liverpool versus Watford means only one thing - the brilliance of John Barnes.Its not often that a player makes the all-time best XI at two different clubs but theres no disputing Barness status. He is widely regarded as the best player to pull on a Watford shirt and is in the reckoning for that title at Liverpool too. He came seventh in an internet poll looking at 100 players who shook the Kop but one Reds great ranks him rather higher than that. Jamie Carragher says Liverpool are the real deal this season Former Liverpool captain Phil Thompson was a coach at the club during Barness early years at Anfield and saw up close what the winger was capable of doing. Thompson tells Sky Sports: For me he was one of the best three players ever to play for Liverpool, with Kenny Dalglish and Steven Gerrard, which is high praise given the great players weve had. For me he was one of the best three players ever to play for Liverpool, with Kenny Dalglish and Steven Gerrard, which is high praise given the great players weve had. Phil Thompson on John Barnes Barness life began in Jamaica but it was in the less exotic environs of Watford that his journey to stardom began in earnest. Even before hed turned up for pre-season training in 1981, talk of his vast potential was spreading. Wed heard rumours of this kid that the club had acquired, remembers Luther Blissett, Watfords star striker then and the clubs all-time top scorer now.This skinny kid turned up for pre-season and soon showed us all what an athlete he was. There was nothing any of us could beat him at and this was a 17-year-old boy. He was exceptional in terms of fitness but we were all thinking, Lets see what he can do when the football comes out. As it turned out, there was pretty much nothing that he couldnt do with a football at his feet. Barnes debuted at Watford in 1981 and went on to appear almost 300 times Blissett, now 58, has seen a thing or two in the game. Ask him to think of the best players of his era and there are mentions for England team-mates Glenn Hoddle and Bryan Robson. Michel Platini springs to mind, an opponent during Blissetts time with AC Milan. But it all comes back to Barnes. You always think people are exaggerating but he really was that good, he tells Sky Sports.I remember one of Johns first games. It was against Norwich. He picked the ball up on the left side and went at the full-back. He rolled the ball towards him with the sole of his foot and then rolled it back the other way and went past him. It was one of those moments where you just thought, Wow, did I just see that? To do that to an experienced pro at that age… Barness trickery on the wing helped Watford to the 1984 FA Cup final Watford were already on a roll having come up from the fourth tier under Graham Taylor, but in Blissetts words, it was Barnes who added something extra that the team was missing. They won promotion to the top flight as runners-up in the youngsters first season and beat Manchester United on their way to a League Cup quarter-final too.United boss Ron Atkinson was impressed and immediately tipped them to go all the way to Wembley. It would take a couple more years before they made it there, but what was a memorable cup scalp for the club at the time would become common-place before long. In 1982/83, Watfords first ever season of top-flight football, they stunned everyone by finishing second behind Liverpool.Barnes was immense. Still only a teenager, he scored 10 league goals of his own that season but created many more. We already had Nigel Callaghan on one wing and with John on the other there wasnt another team in the country that had two players like that in wide areas, says Blissett. For a striker, it meant opportunities. He took 27 of them to finish as the top scorer in all four divisions. Barnes in action against USSR in 1984 - the year of his famous Maracana goal Blissett promptly moved to Milan but it was Barnes who went global. He might not have been the first black player to play for England but he remains the best and his slaloming goal against Brazil in the Maracana in 1984 is arguably the finest of them all. He just got better and better, says Blissett. In 1987, just days after Taylor left for Aston Villa, Barnes agreed a £900,000 move to Liverpool.It was the right move at the right time. The beauty about John going to Liverpool at that time was that he had the experience, adds Blissett. John was pretty rounded by the time he left. He was quick and had great endurance but by then he had strength and power too. Everything about him improved, so when he went to Liverpool that is what elevated him above everyone else.It just exploded for him. Rather than playing with three or four very good players, he was now playing with three or four world-class players and a whole team of very good players. It was frightening and John just fitted in. It was like he was brought up to play in that team. The first two or three years there were just phenomenal. Barnes was the outstanding player in English football in the late 1980s Already a top team, Barnes made them better. English clubs might have been banned from Europe but that Liverpool side would surely have been a match for the continents best. John Aldridge stepped up following Ian Rushs brief departure and the signings of Peter Beardsley and Ray Houghton added a new dimension. And yet, Barnes still stood out.I was reserve-team coach when John was at Liverpool, recalls Thompsson.dddddddddddd I remember going down to Coventrys old ground Highfield Road when he and Beardsley were in their pomp and saying to Kenny Dalglish after the game that I would have paid to watch him. I would have happily paid at the turnstiles and sat in the stands drooling with the other fans.He was one of those players that just excited you every time he got the ball. He had the ability to pick out a pass, a great first touch and could obviously dribble. There was something Brazilian in the way he played the game, like a downhill skier, the way he glided in and out of defenders. Liverpool won the league in his first season, with Barnes picking up the PFA and FWA awards. Barnes won the league title in 1987/88 - his first season at Liverpool The devastation of Hillsborough overshadowed his second season, one that looked to be on course for a double, and subsequent events had given rise to the view that things were unravelling for the club. The next league title, picked up in 1989/90, remains Liverpools last. It was the end of their era of dominance. But it didnt feel that way at the time. Barnes, in particular, was better than ever.This was the season of the 9-0 win over Crystal Palace. But there was also an 8-0 FA Cup win over Swansea. Home and away, the Reds put nine past Chelsea and seven past Manchester City. Everton were beaten at Anfield and Goodison Park with Barnes scoring in both games. Indeed, he was Liverpools top scorer that season - finishing second only to Gary Lineker in the country.Once again, Barnes was honoured by the Football Writers Association. Take a look at the other players to pick up that award more than once and its a clue to his level. Sir Tom Finney, Sir Stanley Matthews, Danny Blanchflower and Dalglish were the only men to do it before Barnes. Lineker, Thierry Henry and Cristiano Ronaldo are the only ones who have done it since. Barnes on Italia 90 John Barnes discusses his memories of the 1990 World Cup. If there was a disappointment, it was at international level. His involvement at the 1986 World Cup was restricted to just 16 minutes of the quarter-final against Argentina, during which time he still came close to upstaging Diego Maradona, laying on a goal for Lineker and almost setting up another. The subsequent European Championship was a failure as England lost all three games.Barnes finally got his chance to impress at a World Cup in 1990 but had a goal wrongly disallowed against Belgium and was injured by the time of Englands semi-final penalty exit. By 1995, hed picked up 79 caps and was being viewed as no more than a qualified success - a victim of both scandalous racism and the ludicrous expectations that followed his first international goal.It was a big burden for him to carry after scoring that goal against Brazil in Maracana but he carried it gracefully, adds Thompson. That was the most impressive thing about the man, he was so humble and always played the game with a smile on his face. Barnes adapted his game in later years to become an effective holding midfielder In his later career, Barness good character assumed greater significance as he was asked to take on a senior role at the club. He eventually inherited the captaincy from Rush but not before inspiring a new generation. He played alongside Steve McManaman and Robbie Fowler, while Michael Owens first start also happened to be Barness last game for Liverpool.Jamie Redknapp scored in that game at Sheffield Wednesday in May 1997 and got to play in midfield with Barnes on almost 200 occasions. He remains grateful for the support he received during his formative years. When I signed for Liverpool they were the dominant force in football so there were obviously some strong characters in that dressing room, Redknapp tells Sky Sports.As a 17-year-old boy, youre wide eyed and extremely nervous. Youre looking for a bit of support and for people to take you under their wing. Thats exactly what John did. Ill never forget how much guidance he gave me. He was just a classy guy. They say never to meet your heroes but it was the complete opposite with John. He was the one I really wanted to meet and he was brilliant with me. He was the hero of that era. The best player in the country and one of the best players in the world. Jamie Redknapp on John Barnes When I was about 21, I started to get some real belief in what I was doing. Wed just beaten Blackburn and Id scored. We were sat in the bath afterwards and he just turned to me and said Id play for England soon. It hadnt crossed my mind that I was anywhere near that level. But he just told me to keep going. A few weeks later I was picked in the squad. He just knew football.If you did something good hed be the first to tell you that youd done well, but if you didnt then hed let you know as well. It fulfilled a dream in playing alongside him. I cant lie, I had pictures of John Barnes all over my wall when I was a kid. He was the player that I loved watching. He was the hero of that era. The best player in the country and one of the best players in the world.With a 10-year age gap between them, that era was coming to an end by the time that Redknapp was involved. Barnes had to convert from dazzling dribbler to holding midfielder. I dont think it was what he wanted because he was so good going forward, says Redknapp. But you cant be that marauding winger forever. You have to change your game and the Achilles injury had affected him. Liverpool vs Watford November 6, 2016, 1:30pm Live on Get Sky Sports Get a Sky Sports pass It stopped him being explosive. But he was so good tactically, it was easy for him to make the change. I think I can count on two hands the amount of times he gave the ball away in the four or five years that I played alongside him. I used to love it. It was an education really. He perhaps wasnt at his absolute peak, but the way he used to move the ball never changed. He was so skilful.He was a good reader of the game too. He could intercept passes and was spot on tactically. He was also very good in the air. He was just the complete footballer. It was all so natural. There wasnt really a weakness. He could even tackle. Jamie Carragher also claimed that he was the best finisher hed seen. He used to just caress the ball into the corners, says Redknapp. It was a gift.It was a gift. That just about sums it up. So where does Barnes rank? He was the best that I played with and I didnt play with him at his peak, says Redknapp. Id still say that he was my favourite Liverpool player. When Liverpool host Watford on Sunday, therell be many more at Anfield who share that opinion. Also See: Ings out for the season Key battle: Firmino v Kaboul Cheap Jerseys Store Jerseys NFL Cheap Cheap NFL Black Jerseys China Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Wholesale Wholesale Jerseys Camo China NFL Jerseys ' ' '