Bournemouth blast Football Association after Tyrone Mings receives five-match ban for ‘stamp’ on Zlatan Ibrahimovic March 8, 2017 Bournemouth chiefs have criticised a Football Association (FA) decision to ban defender Tyrone Mings for five games for stamping on Zlatan Ibrahimovic, calling it “extraordinary”. The FA’s disciplinary commission found Mings guilty of violent conduct in relation to the incident during Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Manchester United, which was missed by match officials but reviewed [...]
Jens Lehmann: Arsene Wenger deserves one or two seasons to turn it around, the players have let the club down March 8, 2017 Former Arsenal goalkeeper Jens Lehmann believes manager Arsene Wenger should be given the chance to turn the club’s fortunes around, insisting the Gunners’ current crisis is the fault of the players. The pressure on Lehmann’s former boss has increased after Arsenal were blown apart by Bayern Munich on Wednesday night and dumped out of the [...]
Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho criticises Rostov pitch and accuses Uefa of dismissing his complaints March 8, 2017 Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has accused European officials of making light of his concerns over the state of the pitch for their match against Rostov on Thursday. Mourinho criticised the patchy surface at the Olimp-2 stadium after arriving in Russia on Wednesday, insisting that it was not fit to stage the Europa League last [...]
Could Arsenal survive outside the Champions League in a post-Arsene Wenger future? March 8, 2017 Season after season, Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke has been able to bank on Champions League income boosting the club's bottom line thanks to manager Arsene Wenger reliably delivering top four finishes. Yet with speculation surrounding the Frenchman’s position reaching fever pitch since a 10-2 aggregate hammering to Bayern Munich in the last 16 of this year's [...]
Sir Dave Brailsford admits Team Sky errors but denies anti-doping violation March 8, 2017 Under-fire Team Sky boss Sir Dave Brailsford has conceded that mistakes were made in relation to testing practices but has denied any anti-doping rules were broken. Team Sky have failed to substantiate their assertion that a mystery package sent to Sir Bradley Wiggins at the 2011 Criterium du Dauphine contained a legal medicine. MPs [...]
Arsenal 1, Bayern Munich 5 (Agg: 2-10): Humiliated Arsene Wenger sinks to all-time low March 8, 2017 Under-fire Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger claimed the Gunners were in rude health despite them sinking to new depths after an embarrassing Champions League demise at the hands of Bayern Munich. Bayern cut Arsenal to shreds after Robert Lewandowski cancelled out Theo Walcott’s opener with a penalty which saw Gunners skipper Laurent Koscielny controversially sent off. [...]
Billy Vunipola set to go straight into England XV to face Scotland in Six Nations March 7, 2017 Saracens powerhouse Billy Vunipola is set to earn an immediate international recall during England’s crunch Six Nations showdown with Scotland at Twickenham on Saturday. Whiteboards positioned at the side of the pitch at England’s Pennyhill Park training base yesterday appeared to suggest Vunipola is pencilled in to replace Nathan Hughes at No8. Scrum-half Ben Youngs, [...]
Leicester City expected to hand caretaker Craig Shakespeare manager’s job until end of season March 7, 2017 Defending Premier League champions Leicester City are expected to hand caretaker boss Craig Shakespeare the manager’s job until the end of the season following a successful stint in temporary charge. Shakespeare was given the reins following Claudio Ranieri’s sacking last month and has guided the Foxes to back-to-back league victories which have eased the club’s [...]
Sendings-off approved by lawmakers as cricket moves to oust misconduct March 7, 2017 Cricketers run the risk of being sent from the field of play under new rules, approved by the game’s lawmakers the MCC yesterday, which are aimed at removing poor behaviour from the sport. Player offences will be measured across four levels; the lowest being for indiscretions such as excessive appealing or showing dissent at an [...]
Pep Guardiola wants an English core at Manchester City – if the price is right March 7, 2017 Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola insists he wants to rebuild his ageing squad around a core of English players. Guardiola favours an indigenous bedrock, as he did at Barcelona and Bayern Munich, although he has warned that he may be priced out of repeating that approach at City, who have been linked with Arsenal midfielder [...]