MATCH ANALYSIS December 12, 2011 KEY MOMENT Manchester City’s early dominance was hardly reflected by a 1-0 scoreline handed to them by Mario Balotelli’s second minute strike and a famous Chelsea comeback may never have materialised had referee Mark Clattenburg spotted Jose Bosingwa’s trip on David Silva inside the penalty area in the 14th minute. Only after super-slow-motion replays was [...]
Arsenal to conquer new frontier with pre-season tour of Nigeria December 12, 2011 ARSENAL chiefs are planning to take the club into new territory next summer by embarking on a pre-season tour to Africa. The Gunners are in talks about playing a number of matches in Nigeria next summer, before the 2012-13 campaign gets underway. Other tours are also being discussed and it is understood Arsenal could schedule [...]
Defeat City and we’re back in the race, says Cech December 11, 2011 CHELSEA vs MANCHESTER CITY CHELSEA goalkeeper Petr Cech insists victory over Manchester City in this evening’s heavyweight Premier League clash will catapult his side back into title contention. City have set a ferocious early season pace and have failed to win just two of their 14 league games, but Wednesday’s demoralising elimination from the Champions [...]
Mancini sets a new trophy target for City December 8, 2011 MANCHESTER CITY manager Roberto Mancini admits his side will need to end the season with two trophies if they are to compensate for the shattering blow of exiting the Champions League on Wednesday night. Having invested heavily over the summer in experienced Champions League campaigners such as Sergio Aguero, Gael Clichy and Samir Nasri, City [...]
Euro exit will test Ferguson’s powers of recovery December 8, 2011 THE BIGGER they come the harder they fall, and after Wednesday’s double Champions League knockout blow, the destiny of the Premier League title could well be determined by which Manchester heavyweight is able to rise from the canvas first. While United, the seasoned, battle-scarred campaigners are famed for their powers of recovery, City represent the [...]
Tuesday option for Manchester’s Europa clashes December 8, 2011 MANCHESTER rivals City and United face a fresh dent to their pride with the grim prospect of having their home Europa League fixtures shunted to a Tuesday afternoon a distinct possibility. Uefa regulations prevent teams from the same city playing on the same day and with both teams guaranteed a home second leg by virtue [...]
City to take big step towards title December 8, 2011 IT has been a rollercoaster couple of weeks for Andre Villas-Boas, but he will be delighted with consecutive 3-0 victories against Newcastle and Valencia. Consistency has been a major issue for Chelsea, though, and they face a stern test at home on Monday night against Manchester City. The West London side have lost a disappointing [...]
Mancini admits his new kids on the block must improve to compete with Champions League elite December 7, 2011 MANCHESTER CITY 2 vs BAYERN MUNICH 0 MANCHESTER CITY manager Roberto Mancini admitted his team must learn from their mistakes if they are to avoid a repeat of their embarrassing Champions League group stage exit next season. The Premier League leaders comfortably overcame an under-strength Bayern Munich last night thanks to goals either side of [...]
Win leaves AVB tactical quandary December 7, 2011 CHELSEA manager Andre Villas-Boas may have delighted in muting his critics by reaching the last 16 of the Champions League, but Tuesday’s 3-0 win over Valencia raised just as many questions as it answered. Villas-Boas ditched his previously stubborn adherence to playing a high line, instead telling his back four to sit deeper. He also [...]
Blues manager has Roman’s trust December 6, 2011 HE’S FAR from out of the woods yet, but emerging from such a high-stakes match is a monumental boost to Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas. Elimination at the group stage would have represented the club’s worst ever Champions League performance, and would only have amplified calls for the Portuguese rookie to go sooner rather than later. [...]