It was not a vintage Chelsea performance but manager Jose Mourinho said his newly-crowned champions competed for the dignity of the Premier League in their 1-1 draw against Liverpool on Sunday. . The visitors welcomed Chelsea on to the pitch with a guard of honour at Stamford Bridge and the hosts responded by taking the lead after five minutes when John Terry headed in from a corner. . Visiting captain Steven Gerrard capitalised on some slack defending to nod home the equaliser just before halftime but neither side could make the decisive breakthrough in the second half. . “It was…
Author: David F.
Arsenal all but sealed Champions League qualification for an 18th successive season after they breezed past relegation-threatened Hull City 3-1 in the Premier League on Monday. . Alexis Sanchez’s deflected free-kick wrong-footed stranded keeper Steve Harper to hand Arsenal a 28th-minute opener before Aaron Ramsey doubled the advantage four minutes later when his shot was diverted into the net via a Hull defender. . Sanchez rounded Harper to add his second in first half stoppage time and, though they improved after the break, Hull’s solitary response came from Stephen Quinn’s 56th minute header. . Arsenal, in third, have 70 points…
Sergio Aguero lifted Manchester City’s spirits as the Argentine’s brilliant finish clinched a 1-0 win at Tottenham on the day his side’s reign as Premier League champions came to an end. . Manuel Pellegrini’s team kicked off just half an hour after Chelsea were crowned champions with a victory over Crystal Palace and, given the lacklustre nature of their title defence, it would have been little surprise to see City turn in a disinterested display at White Hart Lane. . But Aguero’s predatory instincts came to the rescue as he netted the first half winner that kept City in second…
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho said his side had won the toughest league in world football after a 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace on Sunday saw them crowned English champions. . Eden Hazard’s goal on the stroke of halftime gave the Blues a 1-0 win in front of their own fans at Stamford Bridge and an unassailable 16-point lead at the top of the Premier League table. . Chelsea have now won the title three times under Mourinho but this is the first since the Portuguese manager returned to the London club for a second spell in charge in 2013. .…
Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini has stepped up his war of words with Jose Mourinho by claiming he would never be satisfied to win the Premier League playing in the cautious and careful style of newly crowned champions Chelsea. . Pellegrini’s side saw their reign as champions officially ended on Sunday when Chelsea beat Crystal Palace to secure the points they needed to take the title away from Eastlands. . But, in the latest verbal jousting between two old rivals, Pellegrini refused to accept that Chelsea’s achievement was worthy of much praise because of the ultra-conservative tactics adopted by Blues…
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger expects Hull City to secure Barclays Premier League safety after “two amazing results” and has warned his side of the challenge they battle in their visit to the KC Stadium on Monday. . Hull climbed out of the relegation places following back-to-back victories against Crystal Palace and Liverpool, leaving them two places and one point above the drop zone going into the encounter with Arsenal. . Dame N’Doye’s double wrapped up Hull’s 2-0 success at Selhurst Park before Michael Dawson’s header downed Liverpool on Tuesday, and Wenger is wary of the threat the Tigers pose to…
After a slow start at Barcelona, Luis Suarez now has a strike rate comparable to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, while his selfless style has also helped instill a spirit of camaraderie within their deadly attack. . In recent seasons, Barca’s play was emphasised by their short-passing football but now it is the ruthlessness of their forward trio that is propelling the club towards a second treble in six years. . Messi, Suarez and Neymar have amassed 108 goals between them and have the Spanish record of 118 goals scored by Real Madrid trio Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Gonzalo Higuain…
AC Milan will keep faith with under-fire manager Filippo Inzaghi until the end of the season despite a 3-0 defeat by Napoli on Sunday, Italian media has reported. . “Pippo Inzaghi will remain Milan coach until the end of the season,” the Gazzetta Dello Sport reported the club as saying immediately after the defeat. . Inzaghi looked to have been on the verge of the sack after Wednesday’s 3-1 home defeat to Genoa. . But with the club in the middle of buyout negotiations, the former Milan striker is safe until the end of the campaign. . “I have a…
Bayern Munich are expected to name a weakened line-up for Saturday’s clash at Bayer Leverkusen with the newly-crowned Bundesliga champions pre-occupied by Wednesday’s Champions League semifinal at Barcelona. . Pep Guardiola has fresh injury concerns with both his top scorers Robert Lewandowski, who has 23 goals this season, and Arjen Robben, who’s scored 19, injured while Leverkusen are unbeaten in their last nine league games. . Lewandowski fractured his cheekbone and suffered concussion in Tuesday’s German Cup semifinal defeat to Borussia Dortmund while Robben’s season is over after lasting 16 minutes of his comeback before tearing his left calf. .…
Newcastle’s under-fire interim manager John Carver will remain in charge of the struggling Premier League club for the final three games of the season after surviving crisis talks on Monday. . Carver was expected to be sacked after Newcastle’s eighth successive defeat, at relegation rivals Leicester on Saturday, left them just two points above the bottom three. . With Newcastle firmly in the relegation dogfight after looking safe in mid-table just weeks ago, Carver has endured strong criticism from Magpies fans, who refused to applaud their team following the lacklustre 3-0 loss at Leicester. . Carver, who took over when…
Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal accepts that finding a remedy for his side’s misfiring forward line will be essential if they are to challenge for the Premier League title next season. . United’s steady improvement under the Dutchman has come to a grinding halt with consecutive defeats against Chelsea, Everton and West Bromwich Albion, undermining their hopes of sealing a top-four finish without undue anxiety. . They failed to score in any of those three games, a first since 2007, and while Van Gaal complained that West Brom “parked the bus” in their 1-0 win at Old Trafford on…
Before the last strands of blue ticker tape were being swept from the Stamford Bridge pitch on Sunday, Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho would have cast his mind forward to the task of retaining the Premier League title. . Even the club’s most blinkered critics could not argue that Mourinho’s side were unworthy champions. . The 1-0 win over Crystal Palace secured Mourinho’s third league title for Chelsea, following the back-to-back triumphs he masterminded during his first spell in charge of the west Londoners when his tactical nous and owner Roman Abramovich’s money proved an irresistible mix. . In 2004-5, he…
Jose Mourinho has insisted he cannot equal former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson’s record of 13 Premier League titles, saying it would be “impossible”. . Chelsea boss Mourinho guided the Blues to the English title on Sunday following a 1-0 victory at home to London rivals Crystal Palace. . It was the third time the 52-year-old Mourinho, now in his second spell as Chelsea manager, has brought the Premier League title to Stamford Bridge following the 2004/05 and 2005/06 triumphs the Portuguese boss enjoyed during his initial period in charge. . Ferguson was 51 when he guided United to…
Juventus won the Italian title for the 31st time on Saturday after Arturo Vidal’s first half strike saw Massimiliano Allegri’s side defeat Sampdoria 1-0. . It was Juventus’ fourth league title in a row with as many games to spare this season and set them up perfectly for their upcoming Champions League semifinal duel with Real Madrid. . Chilean midfielder Vidal met Stephan Lichtsteiner’s deep floated cross with a perfectly placed header in the 32nd minute to put Juventus 17 points ahead of second-placed Lazio. . The Rome side travel to relegation-threatened Atalanta on Sunday with only 15 points available…
Bayer Leverkusen fired two goals past Germany’s World Cup hero Manuel Neuer on Saturday to stop the goalkeeper claiming a slice of Bayern Munich history and boost their Champions League hopes. . Neuer went into the game seeking one more clean sheet to beat Oliver Kahn’s record of 19 Bayern games in a season without conceding a goal. But Bayern soon regretted fielding a weakened side as they prepare for a Champions League semifinal on Wednesday against Barcelona. . Leverkusen’s Turkish international Hakan Calhanoglu fired a direct free kick from 25 metres through the Bayern wall and past Neuer. .…
A Cristiano Ronaldo hat-trick maintained Real Madrid’s La Liga title aspirations as they ended Sevilla’s 34-game unbeaten run at home with a 3-2 win on Saturday. . Victory kept the European champions just two points behind Barcelona with three games to play after Luis Suarez scored his first hat-trick for the Catalans in a 8-0 humiliation of relegated Cordoba. . “It was not easy to win here and we have managed it. We are very happy and we keep fighting,” said Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti. . “It is not by coincidence that they haven’t lost for 34 games at…
Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal showed the world a frustrated figure after his team lost 1-0 at home to West Bromwich Albion on Saturday, their third successive defeat in the Premier League. . The optimism engendered by victories over Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool and Manchester City has been dispelled by defeats to Chelsea, Everton and West Brom and United’s hopes of finishing fourth are again hanging in the balance. . “We knew in advance that they’d park the bus, we have to deal with that,” Van Gaal told the BBC. . “In the second half we had enough chances, you…
Barcelona legend Lionel Messi announced on Thursday he is to be a father again by posting a picture of his pregnant partner on social media. . The four-time Ballon d’Or, 27, took to Instagram to post a picture of his son, Thiago, kissing Antonella Roccuzzo’s stomach with the message: “Can’t wait to welcome you into our world!!! We love you! Thiagui, mum and dad.” . Local press in Argentina had been speculating about Messi’s future fatherhood since February with newspaper Clarin saying the couple already knew they were due to have a baby boy who would be named Benjamin. .…
Time is elapsing but Queens Park Rangers manager Chris Ramsey remains sure his relegation-threatened side can revive their fortunes, starting with a Premier League victory over Liverpool at Anfield on Saturday. . QPR, in 19th place, have four games remaining to avoid the trapdoor to the Championship but travel to Anfield having not won there in the league since a 3-1 victory in 1991. . “We know it’s going to be difficult but we’re all up for it,” Ramsey told a news conference on Thursday. . “The players were a bit deflated at the start of the week because they…
The tight battle to avoid relegation from the Premier League is set for a feisty finish with Leicester City, Burnley and Queens Park Rangers hoping to avoid becoming the first promoted sides in 17 years to all go down. . The only time since the Premier League’s inception in 1992 that all three sides who came up from the second tier were immediately relegated was in the 1997-98 campaign when Barnsley, Bolton Wanderers and Crystal Palace all failed to beat the drop. . Bottom side Burnley have won just one of their last 13 league fixtures, but despite their struggles…