Celtic needed a late strike from Kris Commons to secure a 1-0 home win over Elfsborg in the first leg of their Champions League third qualifying round match on Wednesday. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
Kris Commons expects Celtic to show no mercy in the second leg of their Champions League qualifier against minnows Cliftonville at Parkhead on Tuesday. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
Tito Vilanova’s time in charge of Barcelona drew to a close after just 14 months on Friday when the 44-year-old stepped down as coach after suffering a relapse in his brave battle against cancer.
Vilanova first had a tumour removed from his throat in November 2011 whilst still working as an assistant to Pep Guardiola at the Spanish giants, but returned to coaching duties in March the following year.
He then went on to succeed Guardiola as head coach of the Catalans after the latter decided to step down at the end of the 2011/12 season.
However, after an amazing start to his first senior managerial role on the field as Barcelona made the best ever start to a Spanish league campaign, the club was rocked by the news in December last year that the cancer had reappeared.
Vilanova had surgery on a salivary gland and then spent two months in New York receiving chemotherapy treatment before returning to the touchline for Barca’s Champions League quarter-final tie against Paris Saint-Germain in March.
Having amassed a commanding lead in the first-half of the season, Barca comfortably went onto to seal their 22nd Spanish league title in May, but a draining season on and off the pitch seemed to have taken its toll on the squad when they were hammered 7-0 on aggregate by Bayern Munich in the Champions League semi-finals.
Despite that defeat Vilanova continually stressed that had the energy and determination needed to continue in the role for the upcoming season.
“I feel fine. I have the energy and the desire to continue at the head of the team next season,” he said.
But unfortunately his health once again failed him and he has now agreed to step aside to concentrate on his battle with cancer.
Like many of the world’s best coaches, Vilanova made it to the top despite not having a distinguished playing career himself.
He started off in Barcelona’s ranks as a youth player where he first met Guardiola, but moved on after failing to break into the first team and only very briefly featured in the top flight with Celta Vigo between 1992 and 1995.
After working as a coach and technical director respectively at Catalan sides FC Palafrugell and Terrassa though, Vilanova was called upon by his old friend Guardiola to form part of the coaching staff at Barcelona B after Guardiola had been appointed as manager in 2007.
After a season working with the club’s youngsters, Vilanova followed Guardiola as he graduated to first-team boss the next season and was a key part of the side that won 14 trophies over a remarkably successful four-year period.
“I am not looking to compare myself to anyone; I simply want to do my job,” said Vilanova when he was officially presented as the new Barca coach in July 2012.
Vilanova’s relationship with Guardiola appeared to have cooled since the latter’s decision to leave Barca last year.
The new Bayern Munich boss claimed last week that the current Barca board, led by president Sandro Rosell, had deliberately tried to Vilanova’s illness to …read more
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Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini could rejoin the squad in Hong Kong on Tuesday according to assistant manager Brian Kidd.
Pellegrini left City’s pre-season training camp in South Africa and returned to his homeland of Chile due to a personal issue, leaving Kidd in charge for Thursday’s 2-1 defeat in a pre-season friendly against AmaZula.
The reason for the former Malaga coach’s absence remains unclear but Kidd is hopeful that Pellegrini will be back with his players when they continue their tour in Asia.
“He had to go back to Chile for personal reasons and he will hopefully be in Hong Kong on Tuesday,” Kidd said.
“You want the boss here but he prepared the team well for this and (assistant manager) Reuben Cousillas and the coaches have been superb since they’ve been here. The attention to detail has been terrific.”
City are close to signing both Sevilla striker Alvaro Negredo, who had a medical on Thursday, and Montenegro forward Stevan Jovetic from Fiorentina, who claimed on Thursday that a fee had been agreed.
Kidd insisted no deals have been completed but admits that City require more attacking options after selling Mario Balotelli and Carlos Tevez to AC Milan and Juventus respectively since the turn of the year.
“I’m not quite sure how far we are down the road with Negredo. It’s quite close. We’ve not heard wither he’s definitely signed but we’re in the market for a couple of strikers,” Kidd said.
“With Carlos and Mario going we’re two short and when you’re going for the Premier League and you’re in the Champions League you need four strikers.”
Pellegrini took charge of his players for the first time last Monday and Kidd, who worked under previous manager Roberto Mancini and had a spell in caretaker charge after the Italian was sacked, has been impressed by the Chilean.
“The boss has only been there two weeks but he’s worked tremendously,” Kidd said. “He takes all the sessions and has got a wonderful backroom staff with him.”
City’s defeat to AmaZulu followed the 2-0 loss to Supersport United on Sunday and they will hope for better results when they depart for Hong Kong on Sunday.
Argentina internationals Sergio Aguero and Pablo Zabaleta only linked up with the squad this week, while Spain’s David Silva and new signing Jesus Navas will not start training until next week after being given an extended break following the Confederations Cup.
Despite suffering two defeats from their two matches so far, Kidd feels City are on course for the start of the Premier League season.
“The boys have worked really well and the Premier League is what we’ve been building up to,” he said.
“We’ve had two good games against good opposition. The AmaZulu game was a terrific workout and the Premier League is the most important thing.
“It’s a work in progress but there’s been confidence every day in training and it’s been a good training camp and two excellent games.”
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
Celtic manager Neil Lennon admits his side are nowhere near their best as they prepare to take on Cliftonville in a vital Champions League qualifier in Belfast on Wednesday.
Lennon’s team have endured a far from ideal preparation for the crucial tie after conceding 12 goals in four friendly defeats on a pre-season tour of Germany disrupted by injuries and star sales.
The Scottish champions could be without a number of key players for the second qualifying round first leg match against the Northern Irish minnows.
Adam Matthews, Gary Hooper and Joe Ledley are all expected to be sidelined, while Kenya midfielder Victor Wanyama, a key figure last season, has been sold to Southampton.
And Lennon says starting their European campaign less than eight weeks since their Scottish Cup win over Hibernian at the end of last season is far from ideal.
“It’s so early, it’s a harsh reality of where we are,” Lennon said.
“We won the cup final at the end of May and we are back in on June 24.
“It’s been staggered and a bit disjointed because we have had a lot of injuries as well.
“I don’t even know what my best team is at the moment or which players I’ll have available to me.
“They are the ups and downs you have to cope with during pre-season, but I don’t think you’ll see us anywhere near our best for another two weeks or so.
“We know how difficult it’s going to be because these games are so early in the season.
“We’ll cover it as best we can but it won’t be easy for us.”
Despite the financial gulf that separates the two sides, Lennon has warned his players against complacency against the team of part-timers, whose tiny Solitude ground has been extended to allow a 5,000 capacity crowd.
“What we can’t get involved in is the party or the carnival atmosphere,” Lennon said. “We have to be professional and go there to do a job.”
One player desperate to play and make an impact at the Parkhead club is Australian international Tom Rogic
The midfielder, who helped the Socceroos book their slot in Brazil next summer with a 1-0 win over Iraq, missed out on Celtic’s run to the Champions League last 16 last season after only joining the club from A-League side Central Coast Mariners in January.
The Scottish champions’ task this season is even tougher as they face three qualifying rounds just to reach the money-spinning group stages of the competition, but Rogic can’t wait to get involved.
“The Champions League will be a new experience for me,” he said.
“It would be a great achievement if I could play a part in it and it would also be good for the club and our season if we could make it into the group stage again. We just have to do our best to make sure we get there.
“I’m sure we’ll be ready for Cliftonville on Wednesday night. The squad is more or less the same and we all know our jobs.
“We’re comfortable playing with each other. We’ve all …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
England international Wayne Rooney is apparently fuming with his Manchester United bosses over comments suggesting he would be back-up to Robin van Persie this season, according to reports.
Television station Sky Sports on Tuesday quoted a source claiming Rooney was “angry and confused” by quotes attributed to his manager David Moyes.
Although the former Everton boss previously said Rooney was not for sale, he was quoted Monday as suggesting the 27-year-old would be more of a replacement for van Persie than a foil.
“Overall my thought on Wayne is, if for any reason we had an injury to Robin van Persie, we’ll need him,” Moyes said during United’s pre-season tour of Asia and Australia.
However he also added: “I want to be able to play the two of them, I want to use Danny Welbeck and Javier Hernandez as well. I want to give myself as many options as possible.”
According to the Sky Sports source, Rooney feels he is at the peak of his career and after nine years with United has no need to prove himself any more.
While van Persie plundered 30 league goals last season to finish Premier League top scorer for the second time in succession, Rooney found the net just 12 times.
He was also left out by then manager Alex Ferguson in some crucial matches, including the Champions League second round clash with Real Madrid.
He has won the Premier League five times, the Champions League in 2008 and two FA Cups during his time at Old Trafford.
He was voted Players’ Player of the Year in 2010 and Young Player of the Year in 2005 and 2006. He has scored 36 goals for England in 83 appearances.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
Celtic manager Neil Lennon admits star striker Gary Hooper could have played his last game for the Scottish champions.
Hooper has attracted recent bids from Premier League sides Norwich and Hull and has made it clear to Lennon that he is keen to return to England.
The 25-year-old, who has been struggling with a groin strain during pre-season, is out of contract at the end of the forthcoming campaign, making it likely Celtic will cash in now if they are convinced he won’t sign a new deal.
Hooper did not feature in Celtic’s 3-0 defeat against Union Berlin on Friday – their fourth friendly loss in Germany ahead of Wednesday’s Champions League qualifier against Cliftonville.
And Lennon told several national newspapers: “It will be difficult to convince Gary to stay. He has not featured much in pre-season and the games start in earnest for us on Wednesday night.
“So he’d have a bit of catching up to do and I don’t know where his mind is at the minute.
“Has he played his last game for Celtic? Never say never but it’s looking more and more that way.”
Lennon has already seen Kenya midfielder Victor Wanyama leave for Southampton in midweek and believes he needs further reinforcements after only bringing in Dutch defender Virgil van Dijk and Portuguese striker Amido Balde during the close-season.
“I haven’t spoken to (Celtic chief executive) Peter Lawwell yet about bringing someone in but we need two or three players if we’re going to get back into the Champions League,” Lennon added.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
Jose Mourinho has warned that he is returning to Chelsea as a much better manager as he bids to win back the Premier League trophy and secure an elusive Champions League title with the London club.
Mourinho, looking greyer and weightier than English fans will remember, said his experiences at Inter Milan and Real Madrid would put him in good stead in his second stint.
“I think some white hairs in my case is a good sign because it means that I’m better now than before,” he told journalists in Bangkok, where he will begin his new era with a pre-season friendly on Wednesday.
“I think I’m better now because my job is the kind of job where experience means a lot,” explained the Portuguese.
“Especially like in my case after my period with Chelsea I went around Europe, I had two years in Italy, three years in Spain, so I have more football culture than before.
“I have more experience than before so I think I’m in a better condition now than before. Because I think my job is about that, it’s about learning experiences.”
Mourinho, 50, is a good bet to return the Premier League trophy to Chelsea after winning back-to-back titles as well as two League Cups and the FA Cup during his first stint from 2004 to 2007.
At Inter Milan, he achieved the Italian treble of the Champions League, Serie A and the Coppa Italia in 2010 during another trophy-laden spell, and he also won La Liga during a more mixed time with Real Madrid.
Now Mourinho is hoping to build a lasting legacy at Chelsea and emulate his achievement at both Porto and Inter of winning the Champions League for the first time with the Blues.
Mourinho’s visit to Thailand nearly began in embarrassing fashion when, after performing a Thai bow for waiting media, he tripped on the steps to the press conference dais and almost crashed onto the stage.
But he quickly recovered his poise to speak about his enthusiasm for young signings Marco van Ginkel — “one of the best prospects in European football” — and Andre Schurrle, as well as veteran goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer.
Mourinho, who brashly announced himself as “the Special One” when he first arrived at Chelsea but now prefers “the Happy One”, admitted he would not be smiling when the team loses for the first time.
“Until the first defeat I’m very happy. When the first defeat comes I’m the same,” he said. “I’m very sad when my team doesn’t win. But it’s up to them to help me and to support me and try to get a good result every match for our club.”
The first loss is unlikely to come on Wednesday, when Chelsea take on the Singha All-Stars XI in Bangkok, a city plastered with giant images of their stars and where fans have turned out in force to greet them.
But goalkeeper Petr Cech dismissed notions that Chelsea held the edge over English champions Manchester United and Manchester City, who also have new managers, owing to their familiarity …read more
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By Bobby McMahon, Contributor Last Sunday, I had pretty much decided to write a piece on the approaching UEFA Champions League semi-finals. I even had the first paragraph done – “Just twelve months ago the accepted wisdom was we were getting set for a Champions League el clasico final. It didn’t happen but the bookmakers believe it will happen this time. Are we getting ahead of ourselves again?” Then Luis Suarez decided that Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic looked a bit tasty and decided to nibble on his arm. Out went the Champions League and in came Suarez and his chomp. At this time last week bookmakers had Barcelona (2/1) as favorites to lift the UEFA Champions League and Real Madrid was second favorite at 2.4/1. You could get odds of 3/1 against new Bundesliga Champions Bayern Munich going one step better than the runners-up spot they achieved last season and in 2010. Borussia Dortmund could be had at odds of 6.5/1. The point I thought worth making was not so much that the two Spanish clubs were somehow unworthy of their status as favorites but it had more to do with how easily the German sides’ hopes were being written off by so many. After all, Bayern Munich had beaten Real Madrid last season at semi-final stage on a penalty kicker decider. Further, Borussia Dortmund had already played Real Madrid twice this season in the initial group stage and had come within a minute or so of beating Real Madrid twice. The case against Barcelona moving on was a lot weaker with nothing but failure at this stage in 2012, 2010 and a struggle in 2009 to bolster thoughts of a surprise. There again it is one thing to counter caution but no one expected that Bayern and Dortmund would be taking 4-0 and 4-1 leads to Spain just a week later. One such result would have been a shock but two was unthinkable. Bayern’s performance was close to flawless. Barcelona never managed a shot on target while Bayern alternated between pressing Barcelona in possession and clogging the midfield and making it nigh impossible for Barcelona to establish any sort of passing rhythm. Bayern played to their strengths (size and mobility) which in turn exposed Barcelona’s weaknesses to a degree rarely seen. Any pleasure that Barcelona’s plight might have given Real Madrid supporters did not last long. Twenty-four later Real Madrid was on the receiving end of a battering from Borussia Dortmund. While Bayern’s win was a triumph of planning, tactics and execution Dortmund’s win had no such air. After conceding an undeserved equalizer right on half time Dortmund simply swarmed Real Madrid during the twenty-five minutes after half time. The drive, speed and hunger exhibited by Dortmund was something the Real Madrid defense could not cope with. Polish striker Robert Lewandowski scored all four goals for Dortmund and in the process he added close to eight figures to any transfer fee should he move this summer. So a
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest
If Manchester United beats Aston Villa on Monday night at Old Trafford it will be their 20th top flight championship and it will be secured with four games still remaining in the season. Given normal circumstances, the game tomorrow night would be the center of attention and then move quickly to the two Champions League semi-finals on Tuesday (Barcelona vs. Bayern Munich) and Wednesday (Borussia Dortmund vs. Real Madrid). Up until Sunday, the weekend’s Premier League action had been pretty routine. Sunderland had sprung a surprise by beating Everton thus relieving some of their relegation concerns. QPR and Reading both lost (Stoke and Norwich also easing their respective concerns) and when they play each other next week it will decide which side will be the first to be officially relegated. Arsenal made heavy weather in beating mid-table Fulham 1-0 even though Fulham had to play a man short for around 80 minutes. Even at half-time of the early game on Sunday between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City it was routine stuff. Over the last month or so Manchester City had found the form that won the Premier League title just 12 months ago and with a 1-0 lead they looked to be on the brink of cutting into Manchester United’s lead. What’s more Arsenal and Chelsea fans were gleefully rubbing their hands as City seemed set to administer another blow to Spurs hopes of a top four finish and a chance at Champions League football next season. But in the second half three critical substitutions from Spurs manager Andre Villas Boas and goals from American Clint Dempsey, Jermain Defoe and Gareth Bale in just 7 minutes turned the story upside down. Spurs sudden comeback and City’s collapse was to be the defining story from this weekend’s play. With Liverpool against Chelsea the only remaining fixture, surely nothing could detract from Spurs marvelous and gutsy resurgence and City’s flaccid second half effort? Sure, unpopular Chelsea boss Rafa Benitez was returning to the more friendly confines of Anfield where he managed successfully from 2004 to 2010. And Fernando Torres would be along as well after his $80M move from Liverpool to Chelsea in January 2011. Chelsea led 1-0 at half time in a game that stammered and stuttered for the first 45 minutes. There was nothing to prepare us for the next 45 minutes which will be remembered as the most controversial of halves this season. The game finished 2-2 with Luis Suarez equalizing with the last attacking touch of the game and in the process Liverpool whisked two very valuable points out from under the nose of Chelsea. Rafa Benitez wondered why over six minutes of additional time had been played and his Liverpool counterpart Brendan Rodgers mused over a stray elbow from Torres on Liverpool center back Jamie Carragher. But both managers were clearly grasping for any straw in order to avoid the issue – what did they think of Liverpool’s Luis Suárez’s munch on Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic?
Bayer Leverkusen, who are on course to return to the Champions League next season, unveiled plans on Tuesday to turn their ground into a high-tech friendly “Stadium of the Future” for football fans.
A glance at some sporting events and teams that have been affected by attacks and threats:
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Sept. 5-6, 1972 — Palestinians going by the name of “Black September” kill 11 Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics.
April 21, 1987 — A car bomb kills more than 100 people at a bus station in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The blast came during a tour of the country by the New Zealand cricket team. The three-Test tour was cut to one.
Feb. 11, 1996 — Cricket teams from australia and the West Indies refuse to play preliminary World Cup matches in Sri Lanka a week after a huge bomb blast in Colombo killed 80 people and injures 1,200.
July 27, 1996 — Centennial Park bombing at Atlanta Olympics. The attack took place during a nighttime music concert at the Centennial Olympic Park. The explosion killed one person and injured over 100 others.
April 5, 1997 — The Grand National, the most famous horse race in England, was abandoned after two coded bomb threats were reportedly received from the IRA. Sixty-thousand spectators (including Princess Anne), jockeys, race personnel and local residents were evacuated, and the course was secured by police. The race was run two days later.
May 1, 2002 — Hours before the Champions League semifinal between Real Madrid and Barcelona, a car bomb was detonated near Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid. Seventeen people were injured. UEFA made security checks before going ahead with the match.
May 8, 2002 — A suicide bomber killed 14 people outside the hotel where the New Zealand cricket team was staying in Karachi, Pakistan. Fourteen people died in the attack and the New Zealand team returned home.
2006 — Iraqi sportsmen and women were targeted three times. On May 17, 15 athletes and officials of the Iraqi taekwondo team were kidnapped as they headed to Jordan for a training camp. None of the athletes were seen alive again. On May 26, gunmen shot and killed the Iraqi tennis coach and two of his players. The final attack on July 16 involved 50 gunmen who attacked a sports conference in Baghdad. They kidnapped 30 athletes and officials, including the head of Iraq’s Olympic Committee, Ahmed
From: http://feeds.foxnews.com/~r/foxnews/national/~3/SGc8jxGiuKE/
It is something that most North American sports fans just cannot fathom. The idea that their team might be demoted to a lesser league based on poor performance is incomprehensible. Instead the home of capitalism rewards failure by offering a helping hand to under-performers by allowing them the pick of the next generation of superstars. For the rest of the world and in particular the soccer world, relegation and promotion is a life-source for the game. Play well and you get rewarded; play poorly and you are punished. Darwinism at its most basic and most beautiful. With most teams only having six games left in the Barclay’s Premier League and Manchester United ahead by 15 points going into Monday’s match against second place Manchester City, attention is focused on the fight for Champions League places (two from Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal and a now slightly drifting Everton) and the battle to avoid the drop. Each season three teams are relegated to the Championship and replaced by three teams going in the opposite direction. At the moment Cardiff and Hull look likely to move up while one other will be decided through a four-team play-off. Next season competing in the Premier League alone will be worth close to $100M with more money available to the more successful and TV-popular clubs. Teams that are relegated this season will receive parachute payments of around $75M over four seasons to cushion the blow of relegation. A potential of $400M+ versus $75M – it seems more like a whoopee cushion than a parachute. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest
By The Huffington Post News Editors
Xavi Hernández has fulfilled his promise to a sick child.
On Tuesday night’s Champions League quarter-final in Paris, the midfielder scored Barcelona’s second goal of the evening, bringing the score to 1-2 — and sparking an extra-special celebration, according to EuroSport.com. Following the point, he touched his head in tribute to Miquel, a 10-year-old soccer fan with leukemia.
Xavi, 33, learned about Miquel on a radio program about cancer, according to Sports Mole. He has fought the disease since age three and dreamed of meeting Xavi.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Huffington Post
The UEFA Champions League returns Tuesday night after a three-week break, with Bayern Munich vs. Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain vs. Barcelona kicking off the tournament’s quarterfinal round. Matches between Real Madrid vs. Galatasaray and Malaga vs. Borussia Dortmund provide a second helping of quarterfinal action on Wednesday evening. These games kick off a sprint of four matches over two rounds in the next month that will determine which two teams will face each other in the championship match in London’s Wembley Stadium at the end of May. Familiar names like Barcelona and Real Madrid must be favored as the eventual winners of the tournament, but by how much? Statistics from the Euro Club Index (ECI) provide a projection of just how favored each team is to win this year’s Champions League tournament (click here for more detail on their methodology). The table below summarizes each club’s Champions League title likelihood per the ECI’s “League Odds” view as of Monday evening. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest
It has not been a good week for Manchester United. Leading 2-1 on aggregate against Real Madrid in the second half of the second leg of the Champions League at Old Trafford, United seemed well in control and positioned to move into the last eight of the competition. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest
By The Huffington Post News Editors
If England’s emergency line had a penalty system, one overzealous soccer fan might be dealt his own red card.
A Manchester United loyalist dialed the British version of 911 because he felt it was a crime that soccer star Nani received a red card during Man U’s 2-1 loss to Real Madrid on Tuesday in a Champions League match, the BBC reported.
The 18-year-old from Bingham, Nottinghamshire, later said he was sorry, and no charges were filed. Chief Inspector Ted Antill reminded the public that while these types of incidents are amusing, they distract from real emergencies.
Read More…
More on Stupid 911 Calls
Fancy yourself as a bit of a PES specialist? Think you have the skills to take down the opposition?
Well, Konami is offering the chance for boasters to prove their worth in a competition, with tickets for this year’s Champions League Final on Saturday, 25th May up for grabs.
The competitions is open only to PS3 players. All you need to do is head over to www.peschampionsfestival.com, enter your home country, PSN ID and contact details, and that’s it. From now on, every game you play online will count towards your overall league placing in the table.
6 tournaments will run during a Champions League week (from 00:01 on the Monday right through to 23:59 on Sunday). The dates are as follows:
This Sunday Arsenal will travel four miles up the A503 and A10 to White Hart Lane and play Tottenham Hotspur for the 174th time in the what is known as the North London Derby. A competition that dates back over 125 years, has had its fair share of important games, and even a few players that have changed sides over the years doesn’t need the hype of a title race or a trophy to make every meeting between the two clubs an intense battle. This season, however, the battle for fourth place in the league and the riches that come with it via next year’s Champions League competition have added to the weight of this weekend’s match. After the dust settles early Sunday evening there will still be ten matches left in the Premier League season, but the results of this weekend’s match will go a long way towards determining who may be representing North London in UEFA’s premier competition next season and who may be heading to the less lucrative and less presitgious Europa League. The stakes couldn’t be higher for both the clubs and their managers. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest
By The Huffington Post News Editors
The Gunners were dumped out of the cup by Championship side Blackburn on Saturday, and will have to be in better form if they are to deny last season’s Champions League finalist.
