Jose Mourinho’s hopes to build a Chelsea dynasty have become outdated and irrelevant in modern football December 18, 2015 When Mourinho returned to Chelsea in the summer of 2013, the Portuguese cut a more compromising figure than the brash and arrogant figure who arrived at Stamford Bridge in 2004. He described himself as “the Happy One” and insisted he aimed to see out a four-year contract which was subsequently extended this summer to 2019. [...]
Jose Mourinho was sacked by Chelsea because there was “palpable discord” between him and players, technical director Michael Emenalo reveals December 17, 2015 Chelsea chiefs have confirmed that friction between manager and players led them to sack Jose Mourinho less than seven months after he steered them to the Premier League title. Technical director Michael Emenalo said owner Roman Abramovich had been forced to act by alarming results and “a palpable discord between manager and players”, adding: “This [...]
High-flying Hornets to be stung by Klopp’s Liverpool December 17, 2015 It must have been beyond a Watford fan’s wildest dreams to go into the week before Christmas ahead of Liverpool in the table. Remarkably, the Hornets go into Sunday’s match against the Reds one point and two places ahead of their illustrious rivals. Watford are only four points off the Champions League places. But for [...]
Next Chelsea manager candidates: Who could replace Jose Mourinho? Antonio Conte, Juande Ramos, Diego Simeone, Pep Guardiola and other candidates December 17, 2015 Roman Abramovich is searching for a new Chelsea manager after sacking Jose Mourinho following a disastrous start to the Premier League season. It is the 11th managerial change of the Abramovich era at Stamford Bridge and brings Mourinho's second spell in charge to an end after less than three seasons. Read more: Defeat to Foxes cranks [...]
Chelsea sack manager Jose Mourinho following disastrous start to the season December 17, 2015 Chelsea have sacked Jose Mourinho following a disastrous start to the Premier League season which has seen the defending champions lose nine of their 16 games so far. The Blues are currently just one point above the relegation zone following a 2-1 loss at league leaders Leicester City on Monday night. Read more: Who are [...]
Government reveals sport reforms in bid to reverse falling participation figures and save Olympic legacy December 17, 2015 The government has unveiled a new strategy for sport in the UK, designed to rescue stagnating participation numbers following the Olympics. Governing bodies such as the Football Association (FA), the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and the Rugby Football Union (RFU) will come under pressured to get more primary school children playing their sport. Sports minister [...]
Why Roman Abramovich and Chelsea will not be able to spend their way out of trouble December 17, 2015 There was a period when Chelsea had an obvious solution to the kind of loss in form which has so blighted them this season – Roman Abramovich's cheque book. Not so anymore. Chelsea will not be able to simply spend their way to salvation following a catastrophic start to the season which sees them teetering [...]
Countdown to Christmas 2015: Best meltdowns of the year December 17, 2015 Big, important news events often engenders spectacular meltdowns in response and 2015 certainly saw its fair share of strops. From politicians' car-crash interviews, political parties descending into civil war, the collapse of champions or assaults over a steak, there were plenty of run-for-the-hills type moments. And more than a few where we enjoyed the show. Here are some [...]
Carlo Ancelotti adds to Chelsea managerial uncertainty as Italian appears ready to replace Pep Guardiola at Bayern Munich December 16, 2015 Chelsea look set to spare manager Jose Mourinho the axe before Saturday’s match against Sunderland as the list of potential replacements for the under-fire Portuguese appears to dwindle. Mourinho took training as usual yesterday despite growing uncertainty over his position following Monday’s 2-1 defeat at Leicester, a result that left the struggling champions one point [...]
Over 70m tickets sold to UK sport events in 2015 thanks to Rugby World Cup boost December 16, 2015 More than 70m tickets to sports events in the UK were sold in 2015, representing a five per cent increase on last year, according to research from Deloitte's Sports Business Group. Only in 2012, when 75m tickets were sold as London hosted the Olympic Games, has the UK recorded higher sports attendances in a calendar [...]