Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Big baby Abramovich throws away another toy

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich is on the hunt for his eighth permanent manager at Stamford Bridge after sacking Andre Villas-Boas on Sunday. 

The dismissal came as little surprise following the Blues' 1-0 defeat to West Brom which further extended a miserable run of form for the west London club. 

The 34-year-old is the latest in a long line of coaches to have been shown the door by the Russian billionaire, with the likes of Jose Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti having already been dumped at the club after relatively short tenures. 

The only question that remains is who would dare take the role on next?

Amman Streets and The Snow

Van Persie is Arsenal's one-man team

Arsenal boosted their prospects of qualifying for the Champions League again next season with a somewhat fortuitous 2-1 victory over Liverpool on Saturday afternoon

After spending nearly the entire game under the cosh, they stole three crucial points in injury time. The reason? Robin van Persie, who clinically finished the only two chances which came his way during the 90 minutes. 

The Dutchman has now scored 31 goals in all competitions this season, seemingly single-handedly keeping his colleagues in with a shout of the top four ...

Sunday, March 4, 2012

Benitez on the hunt for a new job

With two La Liga titles, one Uefa Cup, a Champions League triumph and an FA Cup medal in his trophy cabinet, Rafa Benitez comes with a sparkling track record of success.

However, the Spanish coach has been out of a job since he was dismissed by Inter back in December 2010, and may be getting desperate to get back to work - perhaps talk of two unsettled Portuguese will have got him interested ...

Friday, March 2, 2012

Sahin desperate to catch Mourinho's eye

Nuri Sahin played 90 minutes for Turkey in midweek and despite a lack of match sharpness, he still showed some good passing range, leading his national team coach Abdullah Avci to voice his confidence that the midfielder will still be a success with Real Madrid 

However, after nine months and only a handful of appearances to his name under Jose Mourinho, the 23-year-old must be wondering what he must do to get a start in the Spanish capital.

Messi king of the hill

Lionel Messi went some way to banishing his Argentina demons on Wednesday night after putting on a virtuoso display to inspire his country to a 3-1 victory against Switzerland in Bern. His well-taken hat-trick also took his international goal tally to 22, surpassing legendary striker Mario Kempes and capping off a memorable night for the 24-year-old.

The fleet-footed attacker has been continually criticised by many for failing to replicate his form with Barcelona on the international stage, but his latest performance should see Portuguese counterpart Cristiano Ronaldo look on in envy following the Seleccao's latest disappointing result - a 0-0 draw in Poland.

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Pick on someone your own size!

Goalkeeper Joe Hart might be England's last man standing by the time Wednesday night's international friendly against Netherlands at Wembley kicks off, given the rate of withdrawals from the Three Lions' squad.  
Glen Johnson became the fifth player to pull out, joining Darren Bent, Wayne Rooney, Tom Cleverley and Kyle Walker on the injured list..... 

Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Could 'The Tinkerman' soon be out in the cold at Inter?

Inter president Massimo Moratti has admitted that he is considering the future of current coach Claudio Ranieri but insisted there is a chance the 60-year-old could remain at San Siro. 

With the Nerazzurri on a run of five straight defeats in all competitions, Ranieri's position has come under intense scrutiny of late. 

Moratti will evaluate the current state of affairs at Inter before making a decision as to whether Ranieri will suffer a similar fate to previous trainers Rafael Benitez, Leonardo and Gian Piero Gasperini.

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Adam and Liverpool reach for the sky

Despite Charlie Adam and Steven Gerrard's best efforts, Liverpool finally ended six years of hurt on Sunday as Kenny Dalglish's side lifted the League Cup with a 3-2 penalty shoot-out win over Cardiff City. A goal from Martin Skrtel in normal time and another from Dirk Kuyt in extra time earned the Reds the chance to contest the shoot-out, and luckily for Adam, Gerrard and Co. Cardiff's penalties were even shoddier

Monday, February 27, 2012

Conte and Allegri in linesman tug-of-war

Controversial decisions from the officials in the clash between Serie A's top two, AC Milan and Juventus, contributed to the game ending in a 1-1 draw, as Sulley Muntari's header and an incorrect offside decision against Alessandro Matri saw the spoils shared.
The officiating was much to the dislike of both Antonio Conte and Massimiliano Allegri, who were ready to do all in their power to influence the linesmen's decisions