Liverpool to fight Chelsea for fourth place while United hopes for some light.

Shifting back to the English Premier League, the final two games are going to be the most important of all. With just 2 points between leaders Chelsea and second placed Manchester United, it is anybody’s title of course the blues having the upper hand. This sunday half of it will be decided when Chelsea will be travelling to meet Liverpool at Anfield followed by Manchester United‘s match against Sunderland.

Its an important fixture at the top, for Chelsea it is about the titie while for Liverpool it is more important regarding the climbing up of places and securing themselves a place in Europe. Chelsea‘s body language was seen totally fired up with their 7-0 win against Stoke City last weekend. Chelsea will be banking on the experience of Frank Lampard to deliver while Didier Drogba has enjoyed a fantastic season and is closing in on Wayne Rooney as the Premier League’s top scorer. Skipper John Terry will return for Chelsea but Liverpool will be without striker Fernando Torres as they aim to keep alive their slim chances of a top-four finish.

Just after Chelsea‘s match all focus will be shifting on the Stadium of Light where the red devils will be playing. Man United will be having a close look on Darren Bent as he scored against them in the opening minutes the last time they met. Sunderland are on a good run, with three wins from their last four games. And they are unbeaten at home in their last nine League games. But positives for United is that they have the best away record in the league this season with 33 points. United will be banking on the lights of Berbatov in the front  with crucial passes from Nani and Giggs from the sides. But whatever it is, the EPL will go down to the wire this season.

The match timings are:

Saturday

Birmingham City Vs Burnley  12:45 Hours GMT

Manchester City  Vs Aston Villa  15:00 Hours GMT

Portsmouth Vs Wolverhampton Wanderers 15:00 Hours GMT

Stoke City  Vs Everton 15:00 Hours GMT

Tottenham Hotspur Vs Bolton Wanderers 15:00 Hours GMT

Sunday

Liverpool Vs Chelsea 13:30 Hours GMT

Fulham Vs West Ham United 15:00 Hours GMT

Sunderland Vs Manchester United 16:00 Hours GMT

Forlan’s goal takes Atletico a step ahead of Reds.

Diego Forlan‘s goal within the opening 10 minute handed the hosts Club Atlético de Madrid a 1-0 victory over Liverpool in the first leg of the UEFA Europa League while in the other semi final in Germany, both Hamburger SV and Fulham had to settle for a goal less draw.

                                                                                                                 Pic source: timesonlice.co.uk

In just the 9th minute of the game, Jurado made the ball for Forlan but he completely mistimed his header but the ball fell sweetly for him and he bundled it past the scrambling duo of keeper Pepe Reina and Jamie Carragher. Liverpool tried to get back in the game when Yossi Benayoun popped up in dangerous attacking positions and Steven Gerrard serving notice of his threat in the 19th minute as drove but could only hit the side netting. The scoreline stayed the same till the end with many other small chances for them. With this Atlético Madrid attempt to reach their first major European final since the 1985/86 UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup but the job is half done, with just a single goal lead over the reds and the next match at Anfield in a week’s time, the proceedings may may prove difficult for the visiting team.

Hamburger SV will be happy on the result at the Hambury Arena as they were sucessfull in holding the visiting team for a goal less draw which gives them a clear away goals rule advantage when the return leg will be played at the Creavan Cottage. And one can also say that their 15+ hours journey didnt tire them psycologically. The match saw both the teams concentrating on the defence. Fulham‘s Bobby Zamora and SV‘s van Nistelrooy were given very less room to break free. Nistelrooy came close for scoring in the final minutes of the first half but that was too easy to go past the net. Now all eyes will be at the return leg which will be like a Cup semi final.

Another nail to Portsmouth’s coffin…

Relegated Portsmouth‘s hopes of competing in next season’s Europa League after reaching the FA Cup final were dashed on Thursday when they were ruled out because they had not applied in time. The FA and Premier League said in a joint statement that they had told the club’s administrators they would “not consider any late application for granting of a UEFA Club Licence for the 2010-11 season.”Despite being 119 million pounds in debt and in administration, Portsmouth would have qualified for the Europa League by reaching the Cup final against Chelsea, who are sure to be in the Champions League. However, the south coast club cannot take up the place without a UEFA licence and the FA had set a March 1 deadline for clubs to apply for one.

Portsmouth administrator Andrew Andronikou had said earlier this month that the licence had not been applied for but the club intended to do so.The fifth to seventh placed clubs in the Premier League will now be eligible for the Europa Leaguee.They fought really hard to get to the final of the oldest event in English football but Europe is now outbounds for the Pompeys. There was also a strong feeling at the FA and the Premier League that one of the reasons the UEFA club licence was set up was to try to prevent clubs being run as badly as Portsmouth have been.The transfers also seems going against the Pompeys with the first of the lot exiting. 

British media widely reported that Portsmouth had agreed to sell Begovic to Tottenham and would be liable to make the payment if it subsequently sold him to another club. But Tottenham contends that it agreed to a combined transfer fee for Begovic and defender Younes Kaboul, paying Pompey 1 million pounds as a deposit on the goalkeeper on the understanding that it would be repaid if he moved elsewhere.Kaboul joined Spurs but Begovic instead moved to Stoke for 3.25 million pounds ($5 million) on Feb 1.”Portsmouth pressed for an immediate payment in order to alleviate their cash-flow situation,” Tottenham said in a statement. “We were assured that the transfer of Begovic would be completed before the end of the transfer window.”Our intention had been to assist a fellow club in financial difficulties.”

Liverpool, Fulham’s high hopes from Europa Cup. Journey may become a hurdle…

The much awaited Europa League semi final featuring two English premier league clubs Liverpool and Fulham will finally go underway tomorrow. The reds will be travelling to Madrid to face Atletico Madrid for the first leg while Fulham, which is three places below Liverpool in the domestic league, will be up against Hamburger SV at the Hamburg Arena, Germany.

Atletico Madrid have already won at Anfield this term as they claimed a 2-1 victory in a pre-season friendly but now the intensity is more with a 50-50 situation for both the teams. Big blow for the reds is that its Spanish striker Fernando Torres will not be part of home coming to his former club as he will be going for a second knee operation in four months which is going to keep him out for a minimum period of 5 weeks, which is likely to stall his appearance in the World Cup also. Other problem for Liverpool is to how players will respond after a prolonged journey to the Spanish capital as the volcanic ash has cancelled all flights across Europe. The team will be banking on the performance of Dirk Kuyt, Steven Gerrard for the match and hopefully the reds will be giving out there best as this is the only chance to make a mark this year.

Hamburger will be fired for tonight’s fixture as they know that a win in the semis will make their dream final at their home stadium. As repeatdly said, Fulham will be taking extra care of one name that is of former Manchester United striker Ruud Van Nistelrooy who had an excellent run against them when he player the premier league. He was transferred from Real Madrid where he was denied the first team place. Hamburger on the other hand will be hoping tp stop the fieryFulham‘s big man Bobby Zamora who has been responsible for terrorising the opponent’s defence on many occasion. The long by-road journey can also have an impact on their playing.

Both the matches will be starting at 2105 Hours CET.

Injury time winner put Man United back into the title race after Chelsea looses.

Come what may, the habits remains… Paul Scholes scored in the 92nd minute to give Manchester United a crucial 1-0 win against their city rivals Manchester City at the Eastlands on Saturday. City will be wondering what happens to them when they play against their neighbours. The last time they met at Old Trafford, Michael Owen’s 94th minute goal decided their fate. In the late kick-off, Chelsea lost 1-2 against Totttenham Hotspurs thus making the league further exciting with only a point separating the leaders.  Consolation for spurs for getting in the top and inching closer to the prized champions league qualification spot.  

The match started with many tensions around Manchester United as any loss of points may result in any chance of getting hold of the premier league trophy. Both sides started the game with evident intent to attack. Darren Fletcher fired a 25-yard effort inches wide of Shay Given‘s post, with the Irishman well beaten, before Carlos Tevez‘s top corner free-kick drew a fine full-length catch from Edwin van der Sar. But the defence on both the sides didn’t allow the ball to get past the net. The teams went into the break with goalless score line. 

 
In the second half, Sir Alex substituted Wayne Rooney with Dimitar Berbatov to get something out of the Bulgarian but the match seemed like going for a goal less draw with no real threat at both the ends. But that was not how it supposed to end. The match was in the 92 minute, Patrice Evra‘s superb cross was nicely headed by Paul Scholes, who recently signed a new one year contract with United, to the bottom right of Given to give the visitors a priceless lead and hence the winner.

 

Penalty conversion by Jermain Defoe and a  strike by Gareth Bale in the opening half shocked leaders Chelsea with a 2-1 victory at the White Hart Lane. Chelsea got one back in the injury time of the match through Lampard but it was too late. Also a bad day for John Terry after he received a second yellow for an unwanted tackle. Spurs goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes did everything to stop the ball which resulted in a well deserved win for the home team. 

Other results of Saturday are:

Birmingham City 0-0 Hull City

Blackburn Rovers 2-3 Everton

Fulham 0-0 Wolves

Stoke 1-2  Bolton

Sunderland 2-1 Burnley

Benitez and the new reds owner. Lets see how it goes…

Rafael Benítez gave only a cautious welcome yesterday to Tom Hicks’s and George Gillett’s commitment to sell Liverpool as he admitted experience had taught him to be wary of the co-owners’ promises.Hicks and Gillett signalled the beginning of the end of their turbulent three-year reign by appointing the British Airways chairman, Martin Broughton, as Liverpool‘s new independent chairman with a brief to oversee the sale of their entire stake with immediate effect.

Broughton announced his arrival by pledging money for new players and support for Benítez, who has endured a troubled season at Liverpool but is coveted by other clubs. “Rafa is a good manager, we want him to stay and he’s under contract to stay,” said the Liverpool chairman.

Juventus have reportedly made Benítez their top target to take over as coach in the summer from Alberto Zaccheroni, who replaced Ciro Ferrara earlier in the year. The Spaniard’s representative Manuel Garcia Quillon was quoted on Thursday as suggesting he had met with Juve officials to discuss a possible deal for Benítez. Benítez‘s response was guarded, however.

The manager declined to commit his long-term future to Anfield and admitted his outlook has not altered since he claimed he had taken the club as far as he can – without new investment – before the Europa League defeat of Benfica.”You always have to be positive and believe things will improve, so it is good news and hopefully it will be true,” said Benítez. “My experience says it is better to wait and see what happens.” Asked if he felt more optimistic as a result of the co-owners’ intention to sell, he replied: “At this moment it is more or less the same [as before Benfica]. I have to be honest. My concern at the moment is whether Fernando Torres is fit or not and preparing the team for next week’s games against West Ham and Atlético Madrid.”.

Problems holding a determined Arsene Wenger.

Arsenal is a team  that has always been in contention to win the English Premier League but but but…  that is not what there management and fans want. There last big party blast was the premier league title in 2003/04 season and the FA Cup in 2005 and since then they are a title less team on paper no matter how hard they push and stop other to get there.  This year is no exception for them.

The big problem and the solution to it:

There are internal pressures on Arsenal’s manager Arsene Wenger to make the team reach that level and his stay is being questioned for the first time in 14 year of job at the Emirates by a small section at Emirates. But the veteran manager is determined with the side as he told to a leading English daily the Mail recently that “This summer or in the autumn we will talk. My personal future will depend on the capacity to win trophies but also on whether this team is improving year after year, because we are still very, very young. Ideally I would not want to leave without this generation winning a trophy.”

 

There are few great coaches and it is true that they need time to gel with the squad that is given to them. Wenger is famous for bringing in new players from any part of the world at making them famous at this stage. Sacking him can be a huge problem as many players may leave and side by side some from the management may also resign resulting in downfall of the club. So a fragile decision like this one should not be taken by the board and should be left to the ace coach to decide after all he knows what to do.

Rooney-less United to prove a point against Chelsea this weekend.

The stage is set for the biggest match of the season. It will be the clash of the titans as champions Manchester United will be hosting rivals Chelsea at Old Trafford as if not everything, allot depends upon the leader of the league after this match. The two have met in the Champions league, FA Cup and all loads of tournament and most of the time the result have always seen one team losing the trophy to other.

 

In other matches, Arsenal will be hosting Wolverhampton Wanderers and would be hoping to get back on track for the title while struggling Liverpool hope to get the fourth place when they face Birmingham City. Fourth placed Tottenham will be visiting the stadium of light to face Sunderland who had put up a decent show this season.

After their champions league defeat in the hands of Bayern, Manchester United will be hoping to have a positive result out of this one. Big blow for the red devils is the injury to Wayne Rooney which he received in the midweek loss.Although it is not a fracture but a ligament tear will also take a minimum of two weeks to heal as a result he may miss the return leg against Bayern Munich at Old Trafford. Other than that Manchester United will going with their usual side with Ryan Giggs, Valencia in the wing and Berbatov up front.

Knowing the intensity, the blues are all fired up to get this one away that to in front of the devils crowd. After their exit from Europe they will be hoping to lead the table after the match. With Drogba fit and Lampard providing the breakthroughs, Carlo Ancelotti’s men has no doubt to get this one.

The match timings are:

Saturday:

Manchester United vs Chelsea 12:45 Hours GMT

Arsenal vs Wolverhampton Wanderers 15:00 Hours GMT 

Bolton Wanderers vs Aston Villa 15:00 Hours GMT
Portsmouth vs Blackburn Rovers 15:00 Hours GMT
Stoke City vs Hull City 15:00 Hours GMT
Sunderland vs Tottenham Hotspur 15:00 Hours GMT
Burnley vs Manchester City 17:30 Hours GMT

Sunday:
Birmingham City vs Liverpool 15:00 Hours GMT
Fulham vs Wigan Athletic 15:00 Hours GMT
Everton vs West Ham United 16:00 Hours GMT

Injuries and fatigue factor may spoil the world cup.

Sir Alex Ferguson was fuming over England’ manager Fabio Capello for makingWayne Rooney play for 90 minutes in the friendly over Egypt as a result he was over exerted and could not play the subsequent league match. Recently Franck Ribery was caught in a similar situation when he was reported to aggravated an existing problem by playing with an ankle injury in France’s friendly against Spain. Bayern’s management was reportedly to be furious over the matter and has complained to FIFA over the same.

 

In this ever going was between club and country the players will suffer and in the
end the fatigue may be visible in the World Cup. Nobody wants that but the we
are heading into that direction.

Given an example, in cricket last year when most of the players were playing in the
Indian Premier League (a cricket venture by the Indian Cricket Board) in
different clubs on the lines of football leagues they gave their best and the
tournament went with the same hopes in the T20 World Cup which was to be followed
in june in England. The things went in the wrong direction where defending
champion India bowed out of the tournament in the quarter finals which nobody
expected. The post defeat analysis showed the fatigue factor in the team
and also the carry forward injuries which they suffered during the IPL.
Pakistan on the other hand won the tournament because they were not allowed
to play in the IPL and concentrated fully on the World Cup.

Coming back to football, if more casualties follow the World Cup in South Africa can be a problem which may result to a flop show. Many in Europe thinks the World Cup is now second to club football because all the money and fame is in Champions League and top domestic league were they reside.

In the end I hope that the above is proved wrong and the country’s spirit remains at
the top. A win by a new country, Asian or an African nation will definitely
impact and change the thinking for the future.

Off the field trouble for Pompey’s.

More trouble has hit the bottom club in the premiership Portsmouth after they were docked with 9 points following the financial administrative problems. For a team that is struggling
to stay in the top flight, this has made life further miserable as now they are
left with only 10 points in 29 matches. With this they are trailing with 14
points of their nearest rivals Hull City and Burnley who are currently at 24
points.

The problem started after Pompey‘s accumulated debts of $130 million (£85 million) which ran themselves into financial administrative troubles. The Premier League applied the sporting
sanction, rule C.60, which stipulates that nine points is deducted from
any club that suffers an event of insolvency. This is one of several Premier League rules determining how clubs run themselves and conduct their financial
affairs.

Further, “Following the High Court’s decision that Portsmouth FC’s administration is valid, the Premier Leagueboard convened today to apply the league’s rules and policies in relation to a member club suffering an event of insolvency,” the Premier
League said in a statement.

The League regularly updates its
rulebook to reflect and adapt to an ever changing economic and regulatory
environment, which helps enable clubs to operate their business and sporting
models in a sustainable manner.

Britain’s customs and revenue service had been pursuing a winding-up order after questioning the validity of Andrew Andronikou being appointed the administrator, but will now allow him to restructure the
club’s finances and save the club. Andronikou,
who last week announced 85 redundancies at the club which is bottom of the Premier League, said the winding up order would be removed once the club came
out of administration.

So now with a elusive task of staying in the premier league, Pompey’s need to look for option and further the price thing will be to retain the players at the moment.