Benitez hits out at Chelsea fans
Under-fire interim Chelsea manager Rafael Benitez confirmed that he will leave the club at the end of the season and has criticised fans for the negative impact they have had during his time at Stamford Bridge. When Benitez was appointed back in November, he never really stood much of a chance as he was greeted [...]
Bayern 17 points clear after draw Dortmund
BERLIN, Germany ● Defending champions Borussia Dortmund were held to a 1-1 draw at Borussia Moenchengladbach on Sunday as leaders Bayern Munich finished the weekend a massive 17 points clear at the top of the Bundesliga. Holders Dortmund take on Bayern on Wednesday in the quarter-finals of the German Cup, but Munich are running away [...]
Cazorla eases pressure on Wenger
LONDON, England ● Santi Cazorla eased the pressure on under-fire Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger as the Spanish midfielder’s double clinched a crucial 2-1 win over Aston Villa on Saturday. Wenger had faced renewed calls for his resignation after last weekend’s embarrassing FA Cup exit against second-tier Blackburn and the midweek Champions League defeat against Bayern [...]
Real salvage late draw
MADRID, Spain ● French youngster Raphael Varane headed in a late goal as Real Madrid salvaged a 1-1 draw against bitter rivals Barcelona in their Spanish Cup semi-final first-leg clash on Wednesday. Cesc Fabregas had given Barca the lead at the Santiago Bernabeu in a game his side looked to be running away with until [...]
Arsenal escapes Liverpool defeat
LONDON, England ● Two goals in the space of three minutes allowed Arsenal to share the points in a 2-2 Premier League draw with Liverpool at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday. Liverpool had appeared on course for a memorable victory after Luis Suarez and Jordan Henderson had both taken advantage of some terrible defending by [...]
Juve signs Anelka on 5-month deal
TURIN, Italy ● Former Arsenal, Real Madrid and Chelsea striker Nicolas Anelka has joined Juventus on a five-month deal from China’s Shanghai Shenhua, the Italian club said on Saturday. Juventus general manager Beppe Marotta told Sky Sport Italia that the 33-year-old ex-France international would help solve an “emergency” situation in attack. “It can be a [...]
Tunesia leave it very late
RUSTENBURG, South Africa ● Youssef Msakni struck in the final minute to hand Tunisia a 1-0 win over Algeria in a scrappy Maghreb derby here on Monday. Msakni, a recent $15 million (11,276 million euros) signing for Qatar club Lakhouya, lived up to his ‘Little Mozart’ nickname with a superb strike to settle a game [...]
Barca’s winning streak comes to an end
MADRID, Spain ● An injury-time strike from substitute Imanol Agirretxe condemned 10-man Barcelona to a 3-2 defeat at Real Sociedad on Saturday, their first of a record-breaking La Liga season. Lionel Messi matched another landmark by scoring in a 10th consecutive La Liga game to put Barca ahead after six minutes with Pedro Rodriguez doubling [...]
