..::Football III::..

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Rooney wary of De Bruyne and Sterling ahead of Manchester derby


Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney says he is wary of the threat posed by City duo Kevin De Bruyne and Raheem Sterling ahead of Sunday’s derby at Old Trafford.

The duo moved to the Etihad Stadium over the summer and have made an instant impact at their new club, helping to fire Manuel Pellegrini’s men to the top of the Premier League table.

Sterling hit a hat-trick against Bournemouth last time out in the league and Rooney says the England international will ensure striker Sergio Aguero, absent through injury, is not missed.

“Nowadays the top teams have such good squads that they can cope with injuries,” he told the United Review.

“The players they brought in cost over £100 million in [Kevin] De Bruyne and [Raheem] Sterling, so they are two fantastic young players and we have to nullify their threats and take advantage of their flaws.
“Raheem is a fantastic player and a great lad as well, but he is still a young lad and still has a lot to learn.

“The good thing about Raheem is that he wants to learn. He has started his career at City really well, but hopefully we can slow him down a bit on Sunday and come out on top.”

Victory for United on Sunday would see them move above City in the table and Rooney is feeling confident ahead of the clash.

“Winning is top of our agenda, but you can’t say whichever team wins will go on to win the title,” he added.

"There is a lot of local pride, we want to win and it’s important that we go into the game confident. If we play the way we know we can, then we can certainly take the three points.”

 

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Juventus 'very likely' to sign Cuadrado permanently

Juventus director general Giuseppe Marotta has revealed the Serie A champions are confident of sealing a deal to sign Chelsea winger Juan Cuadrado on a permanent basis.

The Colombia international only spent six months at Stamford Bridge after signing from Fiorentina in January and joined Juve on loan for the 2015-16 campaign in August.

Cuadrado has made 10 appearances for Massimiliano Allegri's side since returning to Italy and Marotta has spoken of his confidence that a deal will be done to sign the 27-year-old, even though they do not have an automatic right to buy.

"We have no right of redemption, at Chelsea's request," he said at the club's shareholders meeting.

"Cuadrado has expressed his happiness at being here with us, as well as [his desire] to continue here in future.

"We will look at things with Chelsea at the appropriate time, but it is very likely that there will be a good conclusion."

Marotta also suggested that Domenico Berardi of Sassuolo could be a player who signs for Juventus in the future, despite the club selling their share of the 21-year-old forward's rights in the close-season.

"At the moment he is totally owned by Sassuolo," added the executive.

"We are monitoring him and we will have a consultation at the end of the season. We have an excellent relationship with Sassuolo."

 

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Luis Enrique: Neymar consistently great

Barcelona coach Luis Enrique has taken the time to praise Neymar ahead of Sunday's La Liga encounter with Eibar and feels the 23-year-old has consistently been great for the Catalans since joining them from Santos in 2013.

The Brazil international has been in sublime form in the past few weeks, netting four times in the 5-2 win over Rayo Vallecano last Saturday before setting up both of Barca's goals in their 2-0 Champions League victory against BATE, yet Luis Enrique is not surprised by his recent goalscoring exploits.

"Are we seeing the best Neymar since he joined Barcelona? No, I don't think so. He has always been a great player for us," the Barcelona coach said at a news conference.

"He is a very special player, a unique player. He has been great all these years.

"Obviously he is still developing, but he has been fantastic ever since he came to Barcelona.

"He scores goals, provides assists and can make the difference."

Sunday's encounter with Eibar comes one year after Luis Suarez made his official debut for Barca and Luis Enrique had words of encouragement for the Uruguay international, too.

"Suarez is as motivated as last year. It was a very special season for him because he came back from suspension. He is pretty much the same this year," Luis Enrique added.

 

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Allegri hits back at criticisms of Dybala management

Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri has hit back at suggestions he is compromising Paulo Dybala's talent.

The Argentine forward signed for Juve from Palermo ahead of the 2015-16 season for an initial fee of €32 million, but has completed 90 minutes just three times in 11 appearances for the Serie A champions.

His use of Dybala drew criticism from the Maurizio Zamparini - president of the striker's former club - but the Juve coach insisted he has a good track record of coaching young players.

"When I read that Dybala is not playing enough I started to laugh," Allegri said on Saturday.

"He has excellent qualities and will have a great future. Last season he was a leader at Palermo, but cannot have that same role at Juve yet.

"Anyone saying that is wrong. We cannot put this amount of responsibility on Dybala's shoulders. History speaks clearly on my management of young players.

"By behaving this way it makes it difficult for the player too. He will be the future and is the present of Juventus.

"If, for one or two games, the coach decides to bench him there is a reason. I accept criticism, but only if I am attacked for something true.

"He needs to develop and must be treated like a normal player. He could start tomorrow's game."

Allegri revealed that he is likely to rest certain members of his squad for the visit of Atalanta on Sunday as part of a regular rotation system.

"For the first time this week we trained together. I'll have to give a few players a breather," the ex-Milan boss added.

"[Juan] Cuadrado won't start but will be on the bench. Either [Stefano] Sturaro or [Simone] Padoin will play at right-back, but we could keep faith with the same system, with [Roberto] Pereyra in place of Cuadrado.

"We are only missing Stephan Lichtsteiner and Martin Caceres.

"I have 22 high-quality players and 50 games to come, it's not possible that the same ones can always play."

 

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Ancelotti urges AC Milan to show patience with under-fire Mihajlovic

Carlo Ancelotti has called on AC Milan to show patience with Sinisa Mihajlovic despite a poor start to the season.

Mihajlovic is reportedly on the verge of being relieved of his duties just over four months after taking over from Filippo Inzaghi.

Milan are 13th in Serie A with just 10 points to their name, trailing leaders Fiorentina by eight points.

Yet Ancelotti, who won Serie A in 2004 and the Champions League twice in a eight-year spell in charge of Milan, told Gazetta dello Sport: "It requires patience, as there were so many changes and it takes time to settle everything down.

"The club invested a great deal and expected to start stronger, which is why Mihajlovic is now under pressure.

"I know only one medicine to heal this problem: hard work. Milan have quality from the midfield up, so should find a system that makes the most of their players' characteristics.

"With Riccardo Montolivo, Juraj Kucka and Andrea Bertolacci, they must try to keep possession and with Carlos Bacca finish chances.

"Of course, Mihajlovic already knows all of this perfectly well."

Ancelotti is out of work after being sacked by Real Madrid in May and refused to rule out a potential return to Milan.

"I'll return to football next season, if someone wants me," he added.

"It would definitely be for a club, as I love to work every day on the field and have contact with the players, so no to a national [team] bench.

"I'll be honest, if I did come back to Italy it would only be for Milan. Well, and Roma… In any case, I am above all thinking of going abroad now.

"I was very close to Milan this summer, but I wanted to take a sabbatical."

 

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Bayern Munich 4-0 Koln: Robben scores on return from injury

Arjen Robben opened the scoring and played a starring role on his return from injury as Bayern Munich eased to a 4-0 Bundesliga win over Cologne.

The Dutch winger was a surprise inclusion in Pep Guardiola's starting XI for a first appearance since suffering a thigh injury while playing for his country last month.

Having earlier tested Cologne goalkeeper Timo Horn, Robben put the defending champions in front in the 35th minute and Arturo Vidal made it 2-0 at half-time.

Robert Lewandowski continued his rich vein of goalscoring form by heading a third just after the hour, and a Thomas Muller penalty ensured Guardiola's team bounced back from the midweek Champions League defeat to Arsenal by emphatically keeping their 100 per cent league record intact.

Cologne crafted an early chance on the counter-attack, Simon Zoller drilling his shot too close to Manuel Neuer, before Robben almost crowned his return in the seventh minute.

Kingsley Coman - back in action himself following a thigh strain - picked out the Netherlands star at the near post, where he pivoted to send a left-footed volley towards the far corner.

Horn displayed fine reactions to save and the Cologne goalkeeper was also called upon to deny Muller in a one-on-one after Lewandowski unlocked the visiting defence.

Bayern had established a firm grip on the game by the time Douglas Costa's 16th-minute strike was deflected wide but had to wait until 10 minutes before half-time to break the deadlock.

Robben started and finished the move - cutting in from the right in trademark fashion before feeding Muller and picking up the scraps when Lewandowski was unable to flick the resulting cross goalwards.

There was still much to do for the 31-year-old, who nonchalantly rounded Dominic Maroh and Horn to slot home.

Coman was the provider when Guardiola's men doubled their advantage five minutes later, skipping past Frederik Sorensen and cutting back for Vidal to finish emphatically from the edge of the box.

Horn plunged to his left to push a Robben strike clear in the 58th minute as Bayern continued to make hay down the Cologne left but it was set-piece defending that let the visitors down after the hour.

A cynical foul on Coman brought a booking for Matthias Lehmann and Lewandowski was allowed ample room to glance Costa's resulting free-kick into the net.

It was the Poland striker's 23rd goal in 18 appearances for club and country this season – a remarkable return he almost added to when Horn saved a close-range effort in the 70th minute.

Lewandowski had to settle for being bundled over by Maroh to win the 77th-minute spot-kick that Muller coolly converted to extend Bayern's lead over Borussia Dortmund at the summit to 10 points.

 

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Celtic Vigo 1-3 Real Madrid: Ronaldo on target as Los Blancos clear at the top

Real Madrid moved three points clear at the top of La Liga by winning an entertaining and controversial clash 3-1 at 10-man Celta Vigo on Saturday.

Cristiano Ronaldo gave the visitors an early lead with an accurate finish, before Danilo made it two midway through the first half, scoring his first goal for the club.

Keylor Navas made a string of stunning saves throughout the opening period to preserve his side's advantage, but the game looked to be over as a contest after the break when Gustavo Cabral received a controversial second yellow card for dissent.

Celta were not giving up though and former Barcelona man Nolito gave them hope by scoring with an excellent strike in the final minutes, but Rafael Benitez's men wrapped up the victory when Marcelo slotted home in stoppage time.

Madrid's victory in a classic encounter means they move three points clear of Celta and Barcelona – who play Eibar on Sunday – at the top of the table.

Benitez named a team still shorn of the injured Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema and James Rodriguez, but the league leaders were able to make the breakthrough after just eight minutes.

Ronaldo linked up with Lucas Vazquez, who sent a return pass across the face of goal that Jonny could not cut out, and the Portugal international directed an accurate shot in off Sergio Alvarez's near post.

Fabian Orellana then had two excellent attempts to equalise but was thwarted by Navas on each occasion.

First, Orellana's looping header was clawed out of the air by Navas, before the winger struck a left-footed half volley which the ex-Levante keeper tipped wide brilliantly after diving to his right.

Those saves proved even more important as Madrid doubled their lead on 23 minutes.

Jese turned well 20 yards from goal and slipped a pass to the onrushing Danilo in oceans of space on the right and the full-back sent a confident finish high past Sergio.

Navas had to be alert to get down and push away a long-range drive from Jonny and then comfortably dealt with a Daniel Wass free-kick.

Celta were having plenty of the game despite the scoreline and Navas was forced into another superb save.

Brilliant play from Nolito down the left saw him cruise past Danilo and find Iago Aspas.

 

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Aston Villa 1-2 Swansea: Ayew seals Swans comeback

Tim Sherwood appears on the brink at Aston Villa after Andre Ayew struck late to secure Swansea City a 2-1 win at Villa Park, inflicting the hosts to a a sixth successive league defeat.

Jordan Ayew scored his first Villa goal to put the hosts in front seconds after his brother Andre missed a fine opportunity at the other end, although the elder Ayew would make amends.

Villa's advantage lasted only six minutes before Gylfi Sigurdsson curled in a fine free-kick to level the scores.

The home side had the better opportunities in the first half with Rudy Gestede missing a handful of half-chances, but they were unable to record their first Premier League win since the opening day.

Swansea came into the contest in poor form but won on the road for the first time this season, although Bafetimbi Gomis' goalless run stretched to a sixth game.

But when Kyle Naughton raided forward at the death, Andre Ayew was on hand to slide home his cross for a goal that sealed Villa's sixth successive Premier League defeat.

Although Villa started strongly in the early exchanges, Sigurdsson had the first sight of goal, shooting wide with Brad Guzan scrambling to his left.

Jefferson Montero was giving Alan Hutton a test down Swansea's left flank in the early minutes and Federico Fernandez should have scored from one of many Swans corners won by the winger, but the defender sliced wildly over the bar from six yards.

With both teams struggling in the Premier League, tension threatened to boil over on the half-hour. Fernandez and Micah Richards clashed off the ball and Ashley Williams also got involved, with Williams and Richards booked by referee Neil Swarbrick following a melee.

Villa threatened either side of the interval, Gabby Agbonlahor curled wide before Gestede was caught on his heels from Leandro Bacuna's cross.

Jonjo Shelvey released Bafetimbi Gomis into the area, but the Frenchman could not break a five-game duck and fired wide of the far post.

The striker was soon in again with a carbon-copy run and he picked out Andre Ayew, but Guzan was out rapidly to block the shot.

Villa opened the scoring seconds later on the break when Jordan Ayew was left unmarked to head Agbonlahor's cross beyond Lukasz Fabianski after a rapid break.

But Sherwood's side failed to hang on yet again, having spurned leads against Sunderland and Leicester City recently, and they were pegged back just six minutes later as Sigurdsson curled an inch-perfect free-kick over the wall and beyond Guzan

Jordan Ayew went close to snatching the win for Villa, but it was heartbreak for the home fans as the striker's brother Andre popped up at the opposite end, sliding in to convert Naughton's cross, leaving Sherwood to cut a forlorn figure as boos rang out around Villa Park upon the full-time whistle.

 

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Norwich 0-1 West Brom: Rondon lifts Baggies into top half

Salomon Rondon scored the only goal of the game as West Brom moved into the top eight of the Premier League by handing Norwich City a third straight defeat with a 1-0 win at Carrow Road.

Alex Neil's Norwich went into the match on the back of a 6-2 thrashing at the hands of Newcastle United and their slide continued on Saturday with another disappointing display.

Despite a host of first-half chances, Norwich were frustrated by a West Brom side that looks to have rediscovered the defensive solidity that is a trademark of Tony Pulis' teams.

Having previously shipped eight goals in three games in all competitions - including a 3-0 League Cup defeat at Norwich - Rondon's close-range header just after half-time made it back-to-back 1-0 victories after Pulis' side beat Sunderland by the same scoreline last weekend.

Following a busy opening 45 minutes, visiting goalkeeper Boaz Myhill was rarely tested in the second half as West Brom comfortably closed out the game.

The defeat makes it five league games without a win for Norwich, who are just three points above the relegation zone ahead of a daunting trip to face leaders Manchester City next weekend.

An open start saw both goalkeepers forced into fine early saves.

First West Brom's Chris Brunt drew John Ruddy into action by letting fly from 20 yards in the eighth minute before Nathan Redmond's effort across the face of goal from a tight angle was kept out by Myhill.

West Brom would have taken the lead in the 30th minute had Rondon been able to get a touch on Craig Dawson's teasing low cross from the right at the end of a well-worked free-kick routine.

And the visitors were almost punished eight minutes later when Redmond turned a whipped left-wing delivery from Matt Jarvis - who came into Norwich side as part of three changes by Neil - narrowly over.

Brunt forced Ruddy into action again with a deflected drive from range and Dawson went close with a point-blank header from a corner, with Rondon then meeting Brunt's cross with a header that just cleared the crossbar on the stroke of half-time shortly after Dieumerci Mbokani had been denied by Myhill at the other end.

But just a minute after the restart West Brom finally did break the deadlock as Rondon rose highest at the far post to power James McClean's left-wing cross beyond Ruddy, who then brilliantly turned a curling Brunt effort wide.

West Brom did not show much attacking ambition after Rondon's opener, and they held out with little difficulty on another testing day for Neil and Norwich.

 

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West Ham 2-1 Chelsea: Mourinho sent off as Carroll punishes 10-man Blues

Jose Mourinho and Nemanja Matic were sent-off as Chelsea's miserable Premier League campaign continued with a 2-1 defeat at West Ham on Saturday.

Mourinho was sent to the stands after an incident with the match officials in the tunnel at half-time, shortly after Matic had been shown a second yellow card.

At that point Chelsea were behind due to Mauro Zarate's 17th-minute opener, while Kurt Zouma had seen his header cleared off the line by Manuel Lanzini.

Despite playing with 10 men and Mourinho in the stand, Chelsea equalised though Gary Cahill but they could not hold on and Andy Carroll nodded home a 79th-minute winner for Slaven Bilic's high-flying side.

Dimitri Payet and Diego Costa fired early chances over the top but the Frenchman fared better with a 30-yard free-kick in the 17th minute that required Asmir Begovic to leap to his right and claw the ball behind for a corner.

Payet's delivery from the resultant set-piece was not cleared effectively by Costa and Zarate took full advantage, drilling a first-time shot into the back of the net from the edge of the area.

Chelsea dominated possession but struggled to create goalscoring opportunities, with Adrian not called upon until the 33rd minute when he had to parry Willian's free-kick away from the bottom corner.

Two minutes later Chelsea came within millimetres of restoring parity when Zouma steered a Cesc Fabregas corner on target, only to see it cleared off the line by Lanzini. Goal-line technology showed that all but an eighth of the ball had crossed the line.

The Argentine nearly added to Chelsea's misery six minutes before the interval but, following a clever flick-on from Payet, his chip floated over the top.

The game did swing further away from Chelsea in the 44th minute, however, when Matic received a second yellow card for hauling Diafra Sakho to the ground, while John Terry and Fabregas were booked for their protests and goalkeeping coach Silvino Lauro was dismissed from the dugout by referee Jon Moss.

Moss issued another red to Mourinho during the interval with the Portuguese having to watch the second period from the stand.

But he will have been cheered 11 minutes after the restart as his side equalised. Willian's corner fell kindly for Cahill, who pounced to rifle the ball beyond Adrian and into the back of the net.

Chances became minimal for both sides as the visitors adopted a more defensive, patient style of play.

But in the 79th minute substitute Carroll – who replaced Zarate – looped a header beyond Begovic from Aaron Cresswell's lofted delivery from the left.

The victory was just West Ham's second in five home games this term, while Chelsea's troublesome start continues.

 

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Leicester 1-0 Crystal Palace: Seventh heaven for Vardy

Jamie Vardy scored for a seventh consecutive Premier League game as he fired Leicester City to a 1-0 win over Crystal Palace.

The striker scored a well placed first half effort to join the likes of Thierry Henry, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Alan Shearer in achieving the feat.

Leicester were significantly more lively than the visitors during the first 25 minutes and went agonisingly close early on, as Marc Albrighton struck the post and then saw Riyad Mahrez – in for Shinji Okazaki as their only change – scuff the rebound wide.Both teams contributed to a very open contest, though, that lent little to the amount of chances that were crafted for the remainder of the first period.

It came as little surprise to see the breakthrough come as the result of an error, with Brede Hangeland punished for a wayward pass as Premier League top-scorer Vardy netted for the 10th time this season just before the hour mark.

Palace upped the ante after falling behind and put Leicester under significant pressure for the final 15 minutes, but the hosts held on to get their first clean sheet, a feat Claudio Ranieri previously said he would reward with pizza.

Palace manager Alan Pardew had promised spectators a goal-laden encounter at the King Power Stadium and Leicester looked intent on proving his point right from the start, almost opening the scoring in the seventh minute.

Albrighton darted in from the right, gliding past two defenders in the process and struck the post from 25 yards, with Mahrez then slicing wide from the rebound.
Leicester continued to look the brighter going forward and Danny Drinkwater tested Wayne Hennessey 11 minutes later, but his fierce 25-yard drive was struck straight at the goalkeeper.

Albrighton looked threatening down the right for Leicester, but chances dried up at either end until Yohan Cabaye was presented with an opportunity in the 38th minute.Nevertheless, the France international's powerful drive from 30 yards was easy for Kasper Schmeichel to collect.

With the in-form Vardy leading the line for Leicester, the home side were always likely to get a presentable opening and the England international broke the deadlock in the 59th minute.

Mahrez intercepted Hangeland's dreadful pass in the Palace half and slipped a ball through to Vardy, who coolly knocked it over the onrushing Hennessey and then smashed in from close range.

Leicester looked rattled by Palace's increased intensity after Vardy's goal and Bakary Sako forced Schmeichel into a diving save with 20 minutes to go.

Palace's probing left Leicester hanging on and a crucial Robert Huth header after Schmeichel had been beaten denied Scott Dann an 82nd-minute equaliser, a few moments before Wilfried Zaha's desperate attempt to win a penalty resulted in a booking as the hosts successfully clung on.

 

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Vardy​

 

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Stoke 0-2 Watford: Potters stung by Hornets

Troy Deeney scored his first Premier League goal of the season as Watford stunned Stoke City 2-0 at the Britannia Stadium on Saturday.

The 27-year old was on hand two minutes before half-time to sweep home following some terrific work from Odion Ighalo on the edge of the area.Both players had previously been denied by the crossbar in the space of a few seconds midway through a first half that saw Stoke dominate possession.

But Deeney's opener saw the visitors grow in confidence and Quique Sanchez Flores' previously goal-shy side sealed a fine win on 69 minutes when Almen Abdi hammered home.The result will be seen as a missed opportunity for Stoke, who failed to truly test Watford goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes and saw a three-match winning streak come to an abrupt end.

Meanwhile, a first win in four games boosts Watford and sees Flores' men leapfrog Saturday's opponents into 13th.

Stoke, unchanged from their win over Swansea, were dealt an early blow inside a tight opening 10 minutes as Geoff Cameron limped off with a suspected hamstring injury.The hosts, who enjoyed the lion's share of possession for much of the first half, looked the more likely to make a breakthrough in the opening exchanges.

Charlie Adam missed the target with a trademark drive on the edge of the box on 16 minutes, before seeing a 30-yard free-kick deflected wide 10 minutes later.
Marko Arnautovic should have broken the deadlock just before the half-hour, but could not keep his close-range header down from Xherdan Shaqiri's whipped cross.Ighalo had previously scored five of Watford's six league goals this season and came close to making Stoke pay for that miss, crashing a header onto the bar, which also denied Deeney's rebound.

But the visitors were not to be thwarted for long as Deeney redeemed himself by coolly slotting home following Ighalo's clever backheel on the edge of the box.

Ighalo then saw a penalty appeal waved away five minutes after the break as Watford looked increasingly confident, while Philipp Wollscheid produced a vital block to deny the Nigerian six minutes later.

Peter Crouch and Jonathan Walters were introduced on the hour as Stoke looked for some attacking potency, but Watford continued to threaten and doubled their lead nine minutes later.A mistake by substitute Marc Wilson allowed Ighalo to nip in on the left, setting up Abdi to thrash home his first Premier League goal.

It could have been worse for Stoke had Jack Butland not parried away substitute Juan Paredes' vicious 20-yard strike, but a disappointing attacking display meant the result was never in doubt on a difficult 100th game in charge for boss Mark Hughes.

 

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Mourinho reaching breaking point with Chelsea in disarray

A 2-1 defeat by West Ham is painful enough for Chelsea, leaving the reigning Premier League champions nine points behind the Hammers and rapidly running out of a time to make a charge towards the top four, but more worrying was the air of capitulation in a period of absolute disarray in the 10 minutes leading up to half-time.

That spell, from the 35th minute until the end of the period, presented Chelsea as a club at breaking point, with all the frustrations and annoyances of their poor start to the season bursting out into the open. By the time that they came out for the resumption, Jose Mourinho had been banished to the directors' box.

The Portuguese's position harked back to the end of his previous reign at Stamford Bridge and the chaos in which he left Real Madrid in 2013 before returning to the Blues. The first was a spiral of intrigue, frustration and whispers that saw Mourinho part company with Chelsea after an embarrassing Champions League match against Rosenborg.

At the Santiago Bernabeu, a succession of fallings-out with key players at the club, including a long-standing disagreement with Iker Casillas, pushed the 52-year-old towards the exit door. Recent issues with Eden Hazard and Nemanja Matic correspond to the enmity felt between Mourinho and a number of the players at Madrid, as does the fact that his whole team were so visibly wound up as soon as anything started going against them here.

The Portguese has never lasted more than three seasons at a club. His last spell at Stamford Bridge saw him flame out in late September. At this rate, with a paltry 11 points from 10 games, he looks increasingly like he will not last much longer into this season.

The catalyst for Saturday's furious mental collapse was a a Manuel Lanzini clearance off the line, with the Goal Decision System showing the ball millimetres from fully crossing the white chalk. Cesc Fabregas then had a goal disallowed for a tight offside but the real moment of turmoil came with Nemanja Matic being issued with a second yellow card for hauling down Diafra Sakho.

From that moment, Chelsea lost all mental control. Fabregas and John Terry lunged towards the referee, berating the decision to send the Serbian midfielder to an early bath. Both picked up yellow cards, with Fabregas dragged off at half-time, evidently deemed in danger of further losing his temper and turning a dire situation into an unrecoverable one.
But the lack of control also engulfed Mourinho and his coaching staff, illustrating the desperation in seeing yet another poor result for what is now a consistently below-par side. Assistant manager Silvino Loura was the first to lose his cool, with Moss sending him to the stands shortly after the Matic incident. Mourinho's dismissal took a little longer, with the Portuguese failing to appear on the manager's bench for the second half, instead taking a position in the directors' box.

Gary Cahill netted an equaliser shortly after half-time but the goal brought no smile to Mourinho's mouth, marooned in his position to the right of the press box, before an Andy Carroll header ended the contest. That emphatically taken winner had to it an air of inevitability, with Chelsea yet to regain control following their irate end to the first half.

Mourinho's first spell at the club ended after a similarly hopeless game against Rosenborg. At this point in his second, the title can be all but written off and, nine points behind Slaven Bilic's side - who were comfortably the better team here - even making the top four is a monumental task. Whether or not the 'Special One', who has cut an increasingly frustrated figure, is close to the exit door, this defeat and the capitulation that went with it felt like a major marker in his reign.

 

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Mourinho swerves media after West Ham catastrophe


Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho swerved his media duties after being sent to the stands during his side's 2-1 defeat to West Ham.

Andy Carroll's header secured the three points for Slaven Bilic's side after Nemanja Matic was sent off for the Blues in the first half, with Mourinho visibly unhappy at referee Jon Moss.

Mourinho was subsequently sent off himself after an incident in the tunnel at half-time, and watched the second-half from the stands at Upton Park.
And the former Real Madrid boss then chose not to fulfill his post-match media duties as no member of Chelsea's staff spoke to the press at the Boleyn Ground.

Unverified reports suggested that Mourinho headed for the team bus immediately after full-time, with pressure beginning to mount over the Blues's poor start to the 2015-16 season.

Chelsea have taken 11 points from their opening 10 games of the season, winning just three times, and currently sit in 15th position in the Premier League, 10 points behind current leaders Manchester City, who can extend their lead with a win over Manchester United on Sunday.

 

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Ibrahimovic must do better - Blanc

Paris Saint-Germain coach Laurent Blanc has urged Zlatan Ibrahimovic to step up his game as he feels the experienced attacker has yet to hit top form this campaign.

The 34-year-old has netted six goals in 10 appearances in all competitions this term, yet turned in a disappointing performance against Real Madrid in Wednesday's 0-0 draw.

Blanc also took aim at a perceived selfishness from Angel Di Maria.

"Zlatan can do much better than he has been showing, but our attack is not all about Ibra," Blanc said at a news conference.

"Against Real Madrid, we made a lot of bad choices going forward. It was not good enough. Of course, Madrid have a good defence, but our attack was in poor form, including Ibra.

"I have spoken with Di Maria. He needs to help the team and take some of the pressure off. He must integrate into the team. He should not weaken the collective, which is what happened a bit against Real Madrid."

The PSG coach also had his say on the situation of Ezequiel Lavezzi, who has an expiring contract and is expected to leave the club at the end of the season.

"I have nothing bad to say about Lavezzi. He does not cause any problems within the group.

"Lavezzi is a great player. His contractual situation is not a favourable one for the club, but that is not a distraction. We were willing to allow him to leave in the summer, but he opted to stay put."

 

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Simeone demands better from Martinez and Torres

Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone is demanding more from mis-firing strikers Jackson Martinez and Fernando Torres.

Simeone's team entertain Valencia in La Liga on Sunday, with the hosts two points shy of the leaders in fifth amid a congested early season battle at the top of the table.

Atletico's title cause would be helped by a greater goal return from Martinez and Torres – the former Porto man scoring in the 4-0 win over Astana in midweek for the first time since August, while the last of Torres' two league goals this term came at Eibar in mid-September.

"Torres and Jackson have scored two goals each in all competitions. No doubt we and them expected more. But as soon as they get goals, they will grow in confidence," Simeone said.

Thankfully for Simeone, Antoine Griezmann has more than picked up the slack.

The France international scored a dazzling solo goal in last weekend's 2-0 win over his former employers Real Sociedad and has six goals in 11 appearances this term.

"Antoine [Griezmann] arrived here as a winger, but now he feels more comfortable in the centre," Simeone added.

"He will get better figures playing there. He can be first striker or second striker. He might play as a winger in some matches if necessary, but his position right now is in the centre."

Simeone anticipates a tricky encounter against Valencia, in keeping with an unpredictable season to date where he feels injuries have taken their toll on La Liga's big hitters.

“It will be a hard match, our opponents have a great team and they compete really well," he added.

"Valencia is a really dangerous rival with good individual talents.

“It’s clear that top teams are collecting fewer points this year but they are suffering important injuries. If others can take advantage of this, possibly La Liga will be more competitive.”

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Chelsea and Matic can have no complaints - Bilic


Chelsea midfielder Nemanja Matic can have "no complaints" following his red card at Upton Park on Saturday, according to West Ham boss Slaven Bilic.

The Hammers edged out Chelsea 2-1 on a controversial afternoon with Matic collecting two yellow cards before the break and Jose Mourinho then seeing red for an incident with the match officials at half-time.

Gary Cahill cancelled out Mauro Zarate's opener but Andy Carroll won the game with a header, despite Cesc Fabregas later seeing a goal ruled out for offside, condemning the Blues to their fifth defeat in 10 games.

Bilic claimed not to have seen that incident but thought referee Jon Moss was correct with the Matic decision, although does have sympathy for his opposing manager.

He told a press conference: "If you ask me about Mourinho, I feel for him. A lot of decisions from his point of view have gone against Chelsea.

"I can defend those decisions if I was a referee or the West Ham manager. They weren’t mistakes."
The win was just West Ham's second in five home games this season and Bilic was pleased to have given the fans what he felt was a "deserved" win against the defending Premier League champions.

He said: "I’m very proud of my team and the whole club to win against the champions at our home ground in front of our crowd. It is unbelievable.

"There’s nothing wrong to admit that we are playing good, that we are doing well and that we deserved to win today.

"We are happy that we are winning, of course we are happy. The crowd was expecting us, because Chelsea were playing with one man down that we are gonna be all over them.

"Don’t get me wrong, it [Matic's sending off] is going to have a major impact on the game but with Chelsea’s individual class it makes no difference if they have one less man."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Ranieri marvels at Vardy streak


Claudio Ranieri joked that he would give Jamie Vardy an extra slice of post-match pizza after he scored for a seventh consecutive game in Leicester City's 1-0 win over Crystal Palace.

The 28-year-old became the eighth player - and just the fifth Englishman - to achieve that feat, after he fired home his 10th league goal of the season to see off Alan Pardew's men.
Alan Shearer, Ian Wright, Mark Stein, Daniel Sturridge, Thierry Henry, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Alan Shearer are the only other men who hold that record.

The match also saw Leicester pick up their first clean sheet of the season, an achievement which Ranieri had previously promised would be rewarded with pizza and the Italian suggested Vardy could be in for a bigger share.

"It is a big achievement for him, a big achievement for us, for everybody," Ranieri told reporters. "It is also big for our fans, who will enjoy that a lot. Maybe he will get one and a half [slices].
It is difficult to say why it [such goal-scoring streaks] happens sometimes. But often there is a reason for a record.
"It is good, he is in great form, he believes that. It is important now but it is important later that if he doesn't score, he remains calm and continues to fight as he did.

"He believes every ball can be good. Every ball could suddenly create something good. It's important for him, important for all his team-mates and is dangerous for opponents."

Ranieri riled Alan Pardew for apparently "goading" the Palace players by picking the ball up on the touchline and then he neglected to shake his counterpart's hand at full-time.

The former Chelsea tactician was apologetic in his media conference for seemingly forgetting to shake hands, but he was adamant that he did no wrong with regards to the perceived goading.

"It was our throw-in," Ranieri said. "I took the ball and I awaited my players.

"[But] it's true [that he did not shake hands]. I was just so glad to go and shake the hands of my players. I am so sorry to him.

"I think now he will come to my dressing room for some wine. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I was too concentrated with my players."

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Guardiola proud of Bayern landmark

Pep Guardiola spoke with pride after steering Bayern Munich to a 4-0 win over Koln - the 1000th Bundesliga victory in the club's illustrious history.

Guardiola welcomed Arjen Robben back into his starting line-up after almost two months on the sidelines with a thigh problem and the Netherlands winger made an ideal return, opening the scoring in the 35th minute.

Arturo Vidal doubled the advantage five minutes later and Robert Lewandowski continued his sensational scoring form by adding a third, before winning a penalty for Thomas Muller to complete the rout.

"One thousand victories is outstanding for everyone - coaches, fans, players, employees," Guardiola told a news conference.

"I am very proud to be coach of Bayern Munich."

The result maintained Bayern's 100 per cent record in the Bundesliga this season, providing a pleasing response to their midweek Champions League loss at Arsenal.

"The game was hard, we had hardly any space," Guardiola added.

"No one can imagine how difficult it is every weekend to be mentally strong and to win every game."

Koln coach Peter Stoger congratulated Bayern on a result he conceded did not come as a surprise.

"The better team deserved to win," he said.

"I had a congratulatory letter prepared for 1000 wins but hoped that we could send it out next week."