Manchester City will look to continue to draw etihad comfort from a poor season with a victory over FA Cup finalists Aston Villa on Saturday which would edge them closer to a top-four finish in the English Premier League. . With City 12 points adrift of leaders Chelsea, their focus now is on ensuring they qualify for next season’s Champions League by holding off the challenge from below of Liverpool in fifth and sixth-placed Tottenham, who they play on Sunday week. . The defending champions have struggled to regain last season’s form and focus which saw City win the Premier…
Author: David F.
Barcelona will be given the chance to avenge their 2013 humbling by Bayern Munich after being put up against the Germans again in the Champions League semifinal draw on Friday which also pitted holders Real Madrid against Juventus. . Bayern thrashed Barcelona 7-0 on aggregate two years ago before going on to beat Borussia Dortmund to win their fifth European Cup. . Former Barca coach Pep Guardiola was on a year’s sabbatical at the time but will doubtless enjoy the challenge of trying to repeat that achievement on his first return to the Nou Camp since taking over at Bayern.…
Juergen Klopp is being tipped as Manchester City’s next manager after announcing this week that he would be leaving Borussia Dortmund at the end of the season after seven years in charge. . With Manuel Pellegrini’s future at Man City under scrutiny after his side’s feeble defence of the Premier League title and another disappointing Champions League campaign, speculation is rife that Klopp will replace the Chilean. . Pellegrini has one more year left on his contract. . British bookmaker William Hill said Klopp, who captured two Bundesliga titles for Dortmund and reached the Champions League final, was 5-4 favourite…
When Jose Mourinho jumped to weak Louis van Gaal’s defence in February, sympathising that he should be given time to get used to English football, even he might have been surprised at just how quickly and speedily his mentor has since adapted. . At the time, Van Gaal’s Manchester United were pleasing nobody, stodgy and struggling, but a run of six straight, ever more convincing wins sees them march to Mourinho’s Chelsea stadium on Saturday with the master ready to beat his pupil for the very first time. . If Van Gaal could orchestrate Chelsea’s third league defeat of the…
Aaron Lennon has been the reason for Everton’s recent Premier League revival and the on-loan winger’s fantastic work rate is starting to rub off on his teammates, manager Roberto Martinez said on Thursday. . The 28-year-old Lennon, who joined on loan from Tottenham Hotspur in January until the end of the season, has scored twice in his last three games as 12th-placed Everton have gone unbeaten in their last four Premier League matches after a slump that had them hovering dangerously close to the relegation zone. . “The work rate Aaron Lennon has, has been a massive influence, along with…
Chelsea duo Diego Costa and Eden Hazard were named on Thursday on the shortlist for the Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) Player of the Year award. . The Premier League current leaders are the only club to have two players nominated for the end-of-season accolade. . Liverpool’s Philippe Coutinho, Manchester United keeper David de Gea, Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane and Arsenal forward Alexis Sanchez are also on the shortlist. . Brazilian-born Spain striker Costa is the league’s top scorer with 19 goals, having joined Jose Mourinho’s side from Atletico Madrid in the close season. . Belgian international Hazard has flourished…
Hopes of a suspense_filled end to the Premier League title race rest this weekend on Manchester United, who take their six-game winning streak to champions-elect Chelsea on Saturday. . Chelsea looked set to drop points at Queens Park Rangers last weekend, only for Cesc Fabregas’s 88th-minute goal to earn a 1-0 win that restored their seven-point lead over second-place Arsenal with a game in hand. . As things stand, Jose Mourinho’s side require only 12 points from their seven remaining matches to secure a first league title since 2010. . While a collapse seems unlikely, victory for United would present…
Four-time World Player of the Year and counting Lionel Messi has admitted that he struggled to overcome injuries in Barcelona’s first trophyless campaign for six years last season. . As well as the disappointment at club level, Messi suffered the devastation of losing the World Cup final with Argentina and saw Cristiano Ronaldo defeat him to win the World Player of the Year for a second consecutive year. . “Last season, I had an inconsistent season. I was out for a long time with injuries and I missed a lot of games,” Messi told Barcelona’s website. . “When I returned…
Barcelona have little or no time to relax after a stunning win over Paris Saint-Germain in midweek as the Catalans continue their quest for a treble continues when Valencia visit the Camp Nou on Saturday. . Luis Enrique’s men all but secured their place in the semifinals of the Champions League with a 3-1 dismantling of the French champions thanks to two wonderful goals from Luis Suarez. . However, a 2-2 draw away to Sevilla last weekend means should Barca suffer one more slip-up between now and the end of the league campaign, the destiny of the title will be…
Barcelona midfield maestro Andres Iniesta could miss Saturday’s La Liga game at home to Valencia after tests on Thursday showed he suffered a bruised pelvis in Wednesday’s 3-1 Champions League win at Paris St Germain. . Iniesta had to be taken off for Xavi eight minutes into the second half of the quarterfinal, first leg at the Parc des Princes after tangling with PSG midfielder Javier Pastore. . “According to the club’s medical staff, tests conducted on Thursday … confirmed heavy bruising in the sacroiliac joint,” Barca said on their website (www.fcbarcelona.es). . The La Liga leaders did not say…
Luis Suare, recently ‘ the disgraced one’ after the World Cup biting incident when Barcelona paid 81 million euros to buy him from Liverpool last July and a slow start in Spain prompted many to question the wisdom of the deal. . Nine months after and Suarez has silenced the doubters with a run of scoring in crucial games that has helped ensured the Catalan giants stay firmly on course for a repeat of their 2009 treble of Champions League and Spanish League and Cup titles. . The Uruguay forward scored both goals in Barca’s 2-1 win at Manchester City…
If Szczesny was still Arsenal’s 1st choice goalkeeper he would be sitting on the bench watching Saturday’s FA Cup semifinal against Reading rather than featuring in it, said manager Arsene Wenger. . But unlike last year’s semifinal when he was among the substitutes watching fellow Polish international Lukasz Fabianski featuring against Wigan Athletic, Szczesny will man the post while Colombia keeper David Ospina has the afternoon off. . It might also be one of Szczesny’s last appearances for the club after nine years in north London as Wenger could not say for certain that the Pole would be content to…
Jose Mourinho’s table-toppers are currently 7 points in front of second-placed Arsenal, who are involved in FA Cup semifinal action against Reading this weekend. . Third-placed Man United are a point further back, having played a game more than CFC, but Louis van Gaal’s men will arrive in London on a run of six consecutive victories. . Chelsea need just twelve points from their seven remaining matches to win their first league title since 2010 and while a defeat on Saturday wouldn’t spell the end of their challenge, it would give the chasing pack a glimmer of hope. . The…
Porto have one foot in the Champions League’s semifinals after their shock 3-1 win at home over Bayern Munich in Wednesday’s Champions League quarterfinal, first leg. . Porto carry a weighty advantage to Munich for Tuesday’s return leg at the Allianz Arena while Bayern have a glimmer of hope after their away goal, but still need to score at least twice at home. . “That result is a surprise and we knew it wouldn’t be easy against a side who control possession,” said Porto captain and goal-scorer Jackson Martinez. . “But we took our chances and proved that we can…
Luis Suarez scored a fantastic 2nd-half double as Barca appeared to crush Paris Saint-Germain’s Champions League dream for another year with a 3-1 quarterfinal, first leg win at the Parc des Princes on Wednesday. . The visitors’ star-studed attack made their class count as Neymar solemlly converted from a Lionel Messi assist in the 18th minute to put Luis Enrique’s men in control, before Suarez produced two sublime finishes in the final quarter of the game. . PSG scored one in the 92nd minute from what was credited as a Jeremy Mathieu own-goal from a Gregory van der Wiel shot,…
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Sevilla resurrected from 2-0 down to make the La Liga title something to watch out for with a 2-2 draw against leaders Barcelona on Saturday. . Fantastic finishes from Lionel Messi and Neymar inside the first 45 minutes was set to seal Barca’s victory. . However, Ever Banega pulled a goal back before halftime thanks to an error from Claudio Bravo and the hosts improved display after the break was handsomely rewarded when Kevin Gameiro slotted home Aleix Vidal’s cross in the 93rd minute. . Real Madrid’s 3-0 win over Eibar earlier in the day means the European champions are…
Suspicious calm yesterday, took over Bayelsa, yenegoa to be precise in Nigeria, as the presidential results were announced late in the evening, revealing to Nigerians that APC candidate, Mohammadu Buhari was visibly in the lead. . Most of the country’s commercial banks were closed before noon as results were about to be announced to Nigerians. . The move, Theinfostrides learnt was a safety measure in case of violent attacks that might occur after the result announcement. . A source in one of the banks said to us: “It was a precautionary measure taken due to the tension in the air…
R&B sensation, Praiz has brought the date of his UK promo tour forward. The tour was earlier scheduled to start this week in London. The X3M Music act made this known by releasing an apology to his dear fans on Instagram, saying that a new date will be known to Nigerians soon. . His statement read thus: ‘I regretfully wish to inform all my fans and supporters that due to unforeseen circumstances that are beyond our control, I will not be able to carry out my UK Promo tour as earlier announce. Apologies to all the fans for inconvenience caused.…
Fans will protest against the price of match tickets by staging a demonstration outside a meeting of Premier League club executives. . Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore is to present a letter to shareholders during their scheduled summit at a central London hotel. . He will do so on behalf of the Football Supporters’ Federation (FSF) and fan groups from all 20 top-flight clubs. . The letter renews a demand for away tickets to be capped at £20. . In addition, fans are also calling for: Every Premier League club to set aside £1m per season, primarily to subsidise…