The International Champions Cup match between Premier League rivals Manchester United and Man City has been canceled after recent extreme weather made the playing surface at Beijing's National Stadium unfit for play. Organizers say the decision to call off Monday's match was made in the interests of player safety, and in conjunction with both clubs, the China Football Association and management of the stadium, which was the main venue for the 2008 Olympics. In a statement, International Champions Cup organizers said that ''due to international travel schedules and planned sporting commitments, the match cancellation is definitive and the match will not be re-scheduled.'' … [Read more...]
Liverpool and Sevilla fined for fans behavior in Europa League final
UEFA has fined Liverpool and Sevilla €16,000 and €17,000 respectively as a result of incidents which marred the Europa League final. Liverpool and Sevilla have been hit with UEFA fines as a result of incidents that took place at the Europa League final on May 18. Jurgen Klopp's side have been fined €16,000 for an "illicit banner and the setting off of fireworks", European football's governing body said in a statement. Sevilla, who triumphed 3-1 at St. Jakob Park to claim a third title in three years, were slapped with a €17,000 fine for crowd disturbances and throwing objects. Liverpool had also been charged with crowd disturbances after fans clashed in the stands, though UEFA's sanction appears not to apply to that offence. Police were forced to … [Read more...]
Nolito: choosing Man City over Barcelona was the best decision
Nolito has revealed he turned down the chance to re-join Spanish champions Barcelona because of his desire to play for Pep Guardiola at Manchester City. The Spain winger signed for City last month after the club activated the £13.8 million release clause in his contract with Celta Vigo. Nolito played just five senior games for Barcelona under Guardiola between 2008 and 2011 before being sold to Benfica. But the 29-year-old insisted the prospect of working for the Catalan again was too good to pass up and said he was keener to do that than play with Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Neymar and company. Asked if it had been a straight choice between City and Barcelona, Nolito said: "Yes. It’s something I spoke about with my family and my management. I thought it … [Read more...]
Ranieri: Leicester City are crying over Kante departure
Claudio Ranieri has admitted that defending Premier League champions Leicester City are “crying” over the loss of N’Golo Kante to Chelsea. Kante, who was one of the standout players on their way to winning the Premier League last season, moved to the Blues for a fee believed to be in the region of £30million last Saturday. Ranieri is convinced Leicester can cope without the French international but admits the club have lost a good player. “Last season we lost Esteban Cambiasso and everybody was crying,” he told reporters after the Foxes penalty shootout victory over Celtic in the International Champions Cup. “Now we are crying because we lost Kante. But don’t worry, football in Leicester will keep going.” … [Read more...]
Michy Batshuayi happy to play for Chelsea
Chelsea's drive for success was obvious from the first training session, new signing Michy Batshuayi has said. Chelsea forward Michy Batshuayi admits he has been buoyed by the winning mentality at his new club. The Belgium international joined the London club from Marseille this month on a five-year deal for a reported fee of €33.1million, and scored twice in a behind-closed-doors friendly with Atus Ferlach this week. Chelsea endured a dismal campaign in 2015-16, failing to win a major trophy and finishing 10th in the Premier League, just a year after winning the competition under Jose Mourinho. But Batshuayi is in no doubt that belief is growing over their prospects of a title tilt under new manager Antonio Conte. It ended 8-0 to the Blues, with … [Read more...]
Anthony Martial unhappy with United after shirt change decision
Anthony Martial is unhappy with Manchester United’s decision to take his No. 9 shirt and give it to new signing Zlatan Ibrahimovic, according to reports in France. The Frenchman is attempting to build an AM9 brand, with his official website, Twitter and Facebook pages adorned with that logo – but those plans appear to have suffered a huge dent after Ibrahimovic was given the No 9 shirt at Old Trafford. RMC’s Mohamed Bouhafsi – who broke the news of Martial’s Manchester United transfer last summer – claims that he was not consulted about his switch to the No. 11 shirt to pander to Ibrahimovic. Manchester United gave Zlatan Ibrahimovic the #9 shirt without informing Anthony Martial that they were taking it away from him ! 8:06 PM - 23 Jul … [Read more...]
Jose Mourinho: Derby match result not important
Jose Mourinho says there is nothing to be gained from Monday’s Manchester derby in Beijing except the health of his players. The Manchester United manager held a press conference at the Bird’s Nest Stadium – where the pitch is very, very shoddy – and suggested that the result of the clash is utterly unimportant. “The condition of my players is more important than the results in pre-season. I have only one goal from tomorrow’s match, take the players home safe,” said Mourinho. “We cannot just run away and disappear and not play, so we have to play and try to be lucky. “Normally when we say lucky we say lucky because we want a good result. The result I want tomorrow is to go home without injuries. “Manchester City have all of their players, we have … [Read more...]