← Chelsea’s AVB commits ‘managerial suicide’

Man Utd close on Europa League last 16

Posted on February 22, 2012 by www.soccer - facebook.com

Manchester United‘s march towards the latter stages of the Europa League looks set to continue on Thursday when they line up against Ajax at Old Trafford leading 2-0 from the first leg in the round of 32.

United’s exit from the Champions League following a 2-1 defeat at FC Basel in December was a huge shock to the club’s fans and came barely seven months after defeat by Barcelona in the final of Europe’s premier club competition.

To their credit, Sir Alex Ferguson‘s side have put their full weight behind the Champions League’s poorer relation and, at this stage, must be considered among the favourites to reach the May 9 final.

United have yet to be beaten at home by a Dutch side and defender Chris Smalling, set to return to the starting 11 after sitting on the bench at the Amsterdam ArenA, says the players are committed to winning the competition.

“Obviously we’d still like to be in the Champions League but we’re looking at the Europa League as a second chance,” Smalling toldwww.manutd.com.

“We’re going to go out there and show Europe we can still perform and we can still win trophies.

“We want to reach the final, although we know it won’t be easy. All of the players will be going out on the pitch and giving our all to reach the final.”

United, however, could find the going tougher in the latter stages of the competition.

Atletico Madrid, who beat Fulham to the trophy in 2010, have been one of the tournament’s form sides and seem to have found fresh impetus since former Argentina international Diego Simeone took over as coach.

Atletico will be missing Brazilian midfielder Diego, due to a torn right thigh muscle, for their home game against Lazio.

But despite sitting in the comfort zone following a 3-1 first-leg win in Rome last week, they are taking nothing for granted against a team that striker Falcao, who scored goals in either half last week, describes as “highly dangerous”.

“Lazio are highly dangerous and we cannot go out there thinking we are safely through,” said Falcao, who scored a record 17 goals on the way to victory with FC Porto last season.

Sporting Lisbon, losing finalists in 2005 when the Portuguese fell 3-1 to CSKA Moscow, can take a step towards a last-16 encounter against Manchester City or Porto – who play on Wednesday – if they come through their tie against Legia Warsaw.

The Portuguese side twice fought back from a goal down in Poland last week to claim a precious 2-2 draw and will be demanding the same kind of commitment at the Jose Alvalade stadium.

FC Twente, meanwhile, hope their visit to Bucharest’s National Arena is a taster of things to come.

The Dutch team remain undefeated after a total of five games against Romanian sides and, with Bucharest hosting the final, Steve McClaren’s side will be looking to build on their 1-0 first-leg lead against the hosts.

Fellow Dutch outfit PSV Eindhoven, meanwhile, are at home to Trabzonspor and, after a 2-1 away win last week, they can book a last-16 clash against either Valencia or Stoke City if they prevail over two legs against the Turkish side.

← MESSI, PIQUE AND XAVI, GLOW IN THE DARK SIDE OF THE CHAMPIONS

Chelsea’s AVB commits ‘managerial suicide’

Posted on February 22, 2012 by www.soccer - facebook.com

Andres Villas-Boas is committing managerial suicide by attempting to take revenge on the Chelsea old guard which backfired spectacularly when they were beaten 3-1 by Naples in the Champions League last 16 first round clash on Tuesday.

When details of Chelsea’s team sheet were revealed there was widespread disbelief.

Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp said: “It has all the makings of managerial suicide.”

Graeme Souness added: “If Cole is 90 per cent, he’s still better than Bosingwa at 100 per cent.”

Chelsea players were up in arms against the young Portuguese manager even before their Naples defeat for relegating Ashley Cole, Frank Lampard and Michael Essien were dumped to the bench.

But it was a gamble which he may have to rue after having lost skipper John Terry for up to two months just hours before kick-off.

Villas-Boas was left clinging to his job desperately as Chelsea threw away the lead given them by Juan Mata to slip to a nightmare defeat.

Two goals from Ezequiel Lavezzi either side of an Edinson Cavani strike left Chelsea facing a second leg mountain to climb at Stamford Bridge next week but it was the selection decisions that put Villas-Boas under fire.

It was payback for criticising Villas-Boas who held a clear-the-air meeting on Sunday to get their honest opinions on their poor results.

Lampard and Essien were forthright in their views — but it was Cole who spoke out most strongly, according to The Sun.

The England left-back told AVB: “I came here to win medals and trophies, but I’m never going to do that with your tactics”.

Cole is also unhappy as he feels “like a robot” with Villas-Boas telling him exactly how to play, rather than giving him freedom.

Chelsea’s players were infuriated when their three team-mates were put on the bench for speaking out ahead of the Champions League clash.

The boss even told Cole “you made it personal”.

England star Cole was further angered when he saw his manager on TV claiming that he had been left out over concerns that he was not fully fit.

Cole insisted he was 100 per cent ready to play and has the last laugh when he was called into action after 12 minutes following an injury to Jose Bosigwa while Lampard came on late in the match.

Villas-Boas did not attempt to explain his team selection and insisted he would be in charge for the second leg.

“Whatever explanations I gave you would be fantastic if we’d won but are now useless given the result of the game, so there’s no point,” said the Chelsea manager.

“We wanted two hard-working midfielders sitting in front of the defence. That’s not to say that Lamps could not do it, for sure he could, but that was the decision we took.

“It was technical decisions. You can have your opinion but it was based on what was the best team in my thoughts.

“I had a conversation with Ashley and Frank. Normally, through the players that they are and the players with the experience they have, they felt they could have helped the team.

“That’s perfectly understandable. Of course, they were disappointed but they were decisions they have to accept and move on.”

Whether Lampard in particular will “accept and move on” remains to be seen.

Fergie: No more hairdryer treatment

Published on Tuesday 21 February 2012 11:24

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson insists the days of doling out his infamous “hairdryer treatment” to under-performing players are long gone.

The 70-year-old Scot, who believes he has another two or three years before retirement, said age and experience had mellowed him and he no longer went in for dressing room bust-ups.

Ferguson told Radio Five Live: “I don’t have any confrontations really, not nowadays, although maybe when I was younger I would have. If a player answered me back I would head straight for them, this is where the hairdryer treatment comes in. I didn’t allow a player to beat me in an argument.”

He added: “Now I am older and more experienced and because of that and my time at the club the players have more respect.”

That is not to say Ferguson has gone soft in his approach to the players, however, and he accepts he is prone to the odd outburst of frustration.

“There is nothing wrong with losing your temper if it is for the right reasons – sometimes you are better getting it out of your system,” he added.

“My normal pattern of management is to get it out of your system. I tell players after the game and that’s it finished – the next day to me is a new world.”

Ferguson insists stress remains an alien concept to him, although he accepts his love of horse racing affords him a valuable release from life at Old Trafford.

“I don’t feel stress, I must admit. I was more anxious watching Man City playing (Aston) Villa (earlier this month) than on my own game against Liverpool,” he said.

“I was getting to a point at United where I was obsessed with the thing (the club). It is a great club but you still need to release yourself from it and it (horse racing) has helped.”

Copyright PA Sport 2012, All Rights Reserved

Bartomeu – We Wont Break The Bank For Van Persie or Bale

Barcelona wont be breaking the bank to land North London pair Robin van Persie or Gareth Bale in the summer, according to ESPN.

The report claims that while van Persie and Bale have been linked with moves in the summer, neither Arsenal or Tottenham will let their player leave without a fight.

Arsenal’s situation with van Persie could be the most intriguing given that the striker will only have one year left on his contract come the summer and with the club struggling to compete for trophies once-again this season, the Dutchman may decide it’s time to move on.

However, the European Champions have no intention in spending over the odds to land their targets this summer, and when asked about their interest in Van Persie and Bale, Barca vice-president Josep Maria Bartomeu is quoted by ESPN as saying:

“Those players are very good, but we always need common sense in any negotiations. We will not enter the madness market but it is impossible for Barcelona to pay 40 or 50 million Euros for any player.

“This is a decision of the club. We can’t fight against every club. But we have an advantage in that players want to come and play for Barcelona.”