Jermain Defoe's 18th goal of the season lifted Sunderland out of the Premier League relegation zone as 10-man Chelsea twice squandered the lead on Wearside. Newcastle's failure to beat Aston Villa means the Wearside club will secure a 10th consecutive season of Premier League football if they beat Roberto Martinez side at the Stadium of Light on Wednesday. Anything less, and it will go to the final day, when they travel to Watford, Newcastle host Tottenham, and Norwich, who remain in with a chance of survival, face Everton. Defoe struck 20 minutes from time - his first at the Stadium of Light since January 2 - to settle a five-goal thriller after first Wahbi Khazri and then Fabio Borini had cancelled out efforts from Diego Costa and Nemanja Matic with Blues … [Read more...]
Daniel Sturridge not considering leaving
Daniel Sturridge is ready to achieve "something special" with Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp and insists he has never planned on leaving the club. The England striker responded with a match-winning contribution, playing a role in all three Liverpool goals. Scoring his fifth goal in seven games on Thursday night as the Reds booked their place in the Europa League final against Villarreal. “I’m happy,” said Sturridge. “I have never expressed not being happy here. I think it is everyone playing devil’s advocate. “They see that I have been left out sometimes and they think, ‘Maybe that means he is unhappy’, but the manager has got a job to do. He has got to pick the team that he feels is best on the day. And I have got a job to do, which is to perform when I am … [Read more...]
Manuel Pellegrini preaches focus as crucial week awaits Manchester City
Manuel Pellegrini tends to keep Manchester City's focus on their quest for points as they make the away trip to face Southampton on Sunday. The Premier League clash at St Mary's comes between the two legs of City's Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid, which is up for grabs after Tuesday's goalless affair at the Etihad Stadium. Pellegrini wants to see the same level of commitment that saw his side win their league games ahead of both quarter-final legs against Paris Saint-Germain and then thrash Stoke last weekend. City's gaffer said: "It was difficult when we played Paris Saint-Germain with Bournemouth and West Brom, and when we played last Saturday before Real Madrid, but we have two different competitions. "I always say if you want to be … [Read more...]
Manchester City to attack Arsenal from the blast of the whistle- Manuel Pellegrini
Manuel Pellegrini expects his Manchester City side to rediscover their attacking instinct against Arsenal on Sunday. City were disappointing in their Champions League semifinal against Real Madrid, struggling to create meaningful chances in either leg of an underwhelming tie. They went down with barely a whimper at the Bernabeu in midweek, with the 1-0 aggregate scoreline flattering Pellegrini's men. They have won just one of their last five games but Pellegrini wants that put right at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday. Victory over the Gunners would lift City back above Arsene Wenger's side into third in the Premier League. However, anything less than a victory and their place in the Champions League next season could be under threat. "I always visualise the … [Read more...]
Welbeck’s goal against Norwich lifts Arsenal to third despite fans protest
The victory moved Arsenal back into third place ahead of Manchester City's game at Southampton on Sunday, and while a top-four finish is looking more likely for the Gunners, Welbeck was left to rue a chance to finish atop the table. Before kick off the atmosphere inside the Emirates was more a low-level anxiety than anything more. There was a loud cheer for the return to the bench of Santi Cazorla, a classy influence who has been badly missed since his injury against the same opponents in November. Otherwise Arsenal lined up in the usual 4-2-3-1, with Olivier Giroud given another chance to continue his quest for a first league goal since January. The promise of protests had circled this game with various entities, including Red Action and the scary-sounding … [Read more...]
Victor Valdes returns to Manchester United after Standard Liege loan cut short
Victor Valdes is returning to Manchester United after Standard Liege decided to cut short the Spanish goalkeeper’s loan deal. Former Barcelona man Valdes joined Standard on a six-month loan deal in January and helped them win the Belgian Cup thanks to a 2-1 victory over favourites Club Brugge. But Standard have decided to give their younger players more gametime towards the end of the season and have cut Valdes’ loan short. A statement published on their official website standard.be, which also confirmed the early departure of Giannis Maniatis, read: “As we decided to give more playing time to the youth players at the end of the season and because they couldn’t be selected for medical reasons, the Spanish goalkeeper and the Greek midfielder have decided, in … [Read more...]
Klopp unapologetic for dropping Daniel Sturridge against Villareal
Jürgen Klopp has said he has no regrets about leaving Daniel Sturridge on the bench for their Europa League semi-final defeat in Villarreal and says he would do the same again. Sturridge, 26, signed for Liverpool from Chelsea in 2013 and he has since scored 43 Premier League goals from 67 appearances, although his time on Merseyside has been hampered by injuries. The England international was left on the bench for the Reds' 1-0 loss to Villarreal on Thursday, resurfacing doubts about his future. The decision generated thousands of posts on social media but Klopp shrugged off the talk and defended his tactics. “It is about finding a stability. With decisions like this it is always two questions,” he said. “Was it the right decision to choose this … [Read more...]