Manchester City ease past Blackburn 3-0

Manchester: Manchester City extended their lead at the top of the Premier League to a provisional five points, beating Blackburn 3-0 with an 18th consecutive league victory at home. Mario Balotelli opened the scoring with half an hour gone at the Etihad Stadium and Sergio Aguero added City's second shortly after halftime. Edin Dzeko headed a third in the 81st minute. The win equals Newcastle's Premier League record of winning their first 13 home league games this season and Roberto Mancini's team has not dropped any points in front of their own fans in 12 months. Mancini's side is now five points ahead of city rivals United, who play at Norwich on Sunday. Balotelli took just a minute to threaten Blackburn when he collected Adam Johnson's...

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Chelsea back in top 4 after beating Bolton 3-0

London: Chelsea ended a miserable run of five straight winless games by beating Bolton 3-0 in the English Premier League on Saturday, easing some pressure on under-fire manager Andre Villas-Boas. England midfielder Frank Lampard inspired Chelsea on his recall to the team, completing the scoring with a late volley to become the first player to net at least 10 Premier League goals in nine successive seasons. Brazil center back David Luiz and Ivory Coast striker Didier Drogba earlier scored after a goalless first half, lifting the London club provisionally into fourth place. "It was important to win after all the recent disappointments," said Villas-Boas, whose job may have been untenable had Chelsea lost to a team second from bottom. "We have...

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Liverpool can kickstart season at Wembley

London: Victory for Liverpool in Sunday's League Cup final against second tier Cardiff City could help turn a difficult season into a success story, manager Kenny Dalglish said on Friday. The Merseyside club started the campaign brimful of optimism, having invested heavily in a squad overhaul. That early-season confidence has diminished, however, as seventh-placed Liverpool's form has become marked by a failure to turn on-pitch dominance into the hard currency of Premier League points. One bright spot for disappointed fans over an indifferent few months has been the team's cup form. After ousting rivals Manchester United they are in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup, while dogged victories over Chelsea and Manchester City helped them to reach...

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Man Utd enter Europa last-16 despite defeat

Manchester: Manchester United went through to the last-16 of the Europa League on Thursday despite losing their first ever home game in the competition 2-1 to Ajax. Javier Hernandez stretched United's 2-0 first-leg advantage in the sixth minute before Aras Ozbiliz made it 1-1 with a well-taken half-volley on the night 31 minutes later. Toby Alderweireld scored with three minutes left but Ajax could do no more than scare United, who are in the second-tier tournament after they were eliminated from the Champions League group stages. The English powerhouses progressed to the next round 3-2 on aggregate. United will next face Atletic Bilbao in the round-of-16 after the Spanish side beat Lokomotiv Moscow 1-0 to advance on away goals. Valencia...

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Benitez's agent denies Chelsea approach

London: Rafael Benitez's agent has denied receiving an approach from Chelsea about replacing under-pressure manager Andre Villas-Boas. The former Liverpool boss has reportedly been targeted by the struggling west London outfit, who sit fifth in the Premier League and are on the brink of Champions League elimination. However, the 51-year-old manager's representative, Manuel Garcia Quilon, has moved quickly to deny such claims. "There is nothing official," told reporters. "It's only media speculation and we have not been approached by Chelsea. We would only evaluate that possibility once there is an offer." According to The Times, Benitez had received an approach from Chelsea amid concerns over dressing room unrest at the club, with many...

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Chelsea ready to sell Ashley Cole | report

London: 31-year-old England international Ashley Cole is prepared to leave Chelsea in the summer according the The Sun. It is reported that owner Roman Abramovich has grown tired of players, including Cole, criticising under-fire boss Andre Villas-Boas and is considering a clear-out. The Russian billionaire is "fed up with their [the players] moaning," and is willing to let them leave in order to prevent a dressing-room revolt according to sources. Cole had allegedly questioned Villas-Boas' tactics after a string of poor results including Tuesday's 3-1 Champions League defeat to Napoli. The Stepney-born defender, who moved across London from Arsenal in 2006, has played over 150 games for Chelsea and is currently one of the longest-serving...

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City knock holders Porto out of Europa League

Manchester: Manchester City eased past defending Europa League champion FC Porto on Wednesday, beating the Portuguese side 4-0 to wrap up a 6-1 aggregate win. Sergio Aguero opened the scoring after just 19 seconds to stretch City's 2-1 first-leg advantage but the English Premier League leaders then had to wait until the 76th minute for their second goal. Edin Dzeko, David Silva and David Pizarro completed the rout with goals in the last 14 minutes. Entered into the second-tier Europa League following their elimination from the elite Champions League, City advance to the round of 16 for a match against Legia Warsaw or Sporting Lisbon. Sporting host Legia on Thursday with the teams tied 2-2 from their first-leg match. Aguero opened the scoring...

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Ayew strike helps Marseille beat Inter Milan

Marseille: Andre Ayew headed home a corner deep into injury time Wednesday as Marseille beat Inter Milan 1-0 in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 matchup to pile even more pressure on beleaguered coach Claudio Ranieri. Inter's defeat was their sixth in seven games. The 2010 champion improved in the second half, but struggled to carve out clear chances against a well-organized Marseille team that lacked invention and a cutting edge up front. Ranieri's team looked to have done enough to secure a draw, but Ayew timed his run perfectly in the third minute of added time to head the ball firmly past goalkeeper Julio Cesar's outstretched hand. "Nothing's done yet. I'm happy and proud because the players believed in themselves until...

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Mata suffers suspected broken finger

London: Chelsea playmaker Juan Mata has suffered a suspected broken finger in the Champions League defeat to Napoli, adding further woes to the west London side. The Spaniard collided with defender Salavtore Aronica in the build-up to the game's opening goal and is now a doubt for Saturday's visit of Bolton. Boss Andre Villas-Boas has already had captain John Terry ruled out for up to two months with a knee injury, so the news of the influential midfielder’s possible absence will be a bitter pill to swallow. Mata told reporters regarding his finger: "We have to check it. Maybe it is broken." The defeat in Naples leaves Chelsea's Champions League dream hanging by a thread. Although, with the Blues having secured a potentially crucial away...

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Rooney out of Ajax clash with bad throat

Manchester: Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney will miss Thursday's Europa League match against Ajax with a throat infection. The Red Devils secured a 2-0 win against the Dutch outfit at the Amsterdam ArenA last week, a game in which the 26-year-old played the full 90 minutes. Sir Alex Ferguson is hopeful that the England star will recover in time to feature at Carrow Road on Sunday for his side's trip to Norwich City. "Rooney's out for Thursday. He has a bad throat," the Scot told reporters. "There were traces of it in Amsterdam last Thursday and he's been in bed for a lot of the weekend." Rooney had picked up an assist for Javier Hernandez's second goal in the first leg of the club's round-of-32 cla...

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Bologna beat 10-man Fiorentina 2-0 in Serie A

Milan: Struggling Bologna beat 10-man Fiorentina 2-0 on Tuesday to boost their chances of Serie A survival. Bologna were clinical in the first half, with Alessandro Diamanti and Gaston Ramirez scoring to establish a solid half-time lead. Fiorentina had several opportunities but a combination of wasteful finishing and strong goalkeeping by Bologna's Jean-Francois Gillet kept them from scoring. Any hopes they had of getting back in the game all but evaporated five minutes into the second half as Ruben Olivera was sent off for a serious foul on Diamanti. Bologna are now level with 12th-placed Fiorentina and seven points above the relegation zone. Fiorentina started brightly and could have taken the lead in the opening five minutes when Stevan...

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Tevez apologizes to Manchester City after five-month feud

London: Carlos Tevez finally apologized to Manchester City on Tuesday following a five-month feud that has cost him close to 10 million Pounds, and could soon return to action for the club after withdrawing an appeal against his latest fines. The Argentina striker has not played for the Premier League leaders since September when he refused to warm up during a Champions League match and only returned last week from a three-month unauthorized absence at home. City coach Roberto Mancini had initially told Tevez he would never play for City again after his act of public insubordination, but later softened his stance and only asked for an apology. That came on Tuesday, with City announcing that Tevez has "apologized to all concerned for his...

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Napoli punish sloppy Chelsea in 3-1 victory

Naples: Chelsea's troubles worsened after sloppy defending led to a 3-1 loss at Napoli in the last-16 of the Champions League on Tuesday, with Ezequiel Lavezzi and Edinson Cavani again dampening English hopes in an entertaining first leg. Cavani, who struck a brace against Manchester City to eliminate the Premier League leaders in the group stages, was again in inspirational form as he raced past a ball-watching Branislav Ivanovic and gave Napoli the lead at half-time, before setting up Lavezzi's second in the 65th minute. Lavezzi had earlier scored with a curling shot to equalize after Juan Mata gave Chelsea a surprise lead following a mistake by Napoli captain Paolo Cannavaro. This was Chelsea's fifth match without a win and means there...

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It's clear Chelsea are in trouble | Mancini

Manchester: Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini believes that Chelsea are "in trouble" and that they could face problems in their Champions League clash with Napoli. Mancini, who saw his own team knocked out in the group stages of Europe's elite competition, believes that the Stamford Bridge club could be there for the taking ahead of Tuesday's last 16 clash at San Paolo. The Blues have gone four games without a win, including Saturday's home draw with Birmingham in the FA Cup, and Mancini is adamant that Chelsea "have problems". He told Il Mattino: "They have problems, have not won a game for some time and it is clear that they are in trouble. But I would not put too much trust [in their supposed crisis]. "It is true that Napoli are...

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Players desperate for Guardiola to stay | Messi

Barcelona: Barcelona forward Lionel Messi has revealed that he and his colleagues have made it clear to coach Pep Guardiola that they want him to sign a new deal with the club. Guardiola's current contract expires at the end of the season and the former Spain international has yet to give any indication as to whether he will sign an extension. Messi, though, remains optimistic that the Barcelona boss will soon commit his future to the club as he retains the full support of the Catalans' squad. "He knows what we think and he will make the decision when he sees fit," the Argentina international was quoted as saying by AS. "We want him to continue. He means a lot to us and to this club." Meanwhile, after scoring four goals in a stunning 5-1...

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We don't deserve to be 10 points behind | Guardiola

Barcelona: Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola hailed his players as a credit to the game after Sunday night's 5-1 demolition of Valencia in La Liga, and argued that his side do not deserve to be 10 points behind La Liga leaders Real Madrid at this point in the season. The Catalans, who have won 13 titles since Guardiola took charge in 2008, fell behind to an early goal from Pablo Piatti at Camp Nou but came storming back to win courtesy of four goals from Lionel Messi and one from Xavi. Guardiola insisted after the game that this current Barca squad, who travelled to Japan in December to claim the Club World Cup, had again underlined why some pundits believe them to be the best side ever assembled. "We played very well this evening," the former...

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Milan beat Cesena to go top in Serie A

Milan: Sulley Muntari scored on his AC Milan debut in a 3-1 victory at struggling Cesena on Sunday, taking his new team back to the top of Serie A. Muntari opened the scoring in the 29th minute and Urby Emanuelson doubled Milan's lead two minutes later. Robinho added a third 10 minutes into the second half. Daniel Pudil grabbed a consolation for Cesena, who remain seven points adrift of safety after Siena lost 4-1 to Lecce in a relegation battle. Milan are a point above Juventus, who have a game in hand. The two teams meet in a mouthwatering clash next weekend. "Up until 3-0 today the boys played a great game," Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri said. "Then we gave Cesena too much initiative and we sat back too much. We didn't push forward...

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Messi sparkles in Barca's demolition of Valencia

Madrid: Lionel Messi's sublime chip capped a four-goal performance as the three-time Ballon d'Or winner moved past the 40-goal mark for a third straight season in mesmerizing fashion to lead Barcelona's 5-1 thrashing of Valencia on Sunday. Barcelona had to come from behind to stay within 10 points of Real Madrid, easily answering the Spanish leader's 4-0 rout of Racing Santander one night earlier with a pure display of the football that has crowned them the world's best team. The undoubted star was Messi, who chipped goalkeeper Diego Alves after being put through by Sergio Busquets for his 27th league goal, 42nd in all competitions and 146th for Barcelona — and in his 200th appearance for the club. "The team played an incredible game. Some...

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Liverpool rout Brighton 6-1 to enter FA Cup quarters

Liverpool: Liverpool thoroughly outclassed Championship outfit Brighton 6-1 in the FA Cup on Sunday to progress to the sixth round, with three own goals from the visitors helping the hosts on their way. The home side set up another Cup tie at Anfield against fellow Premier League side Stoke City and continued on their way to a second final at Wembley. Three own goals certainly helped the score-line rise throughout the game, but it was Martin Skrtel who opened the scoring, heading in from a Steven Gerrard corner. A fabulous free kick from Kazenga LuaLua stunned the hosts before the Reds restored their lead just before the break with Liam Bridcutt helping Glen Johnson’s header on its way into the net. Another Bridcutt own goal and one from...

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Tottenham held to FA Cup draw by third-tier Stevenage

London: Premier League title contenders Tottenham were held to a 0-0 draw in the FA Cup by third-tier side Stevenage on Sunday, when Stoke advanced to the quarter-finals with a 2-0 win at Crawley. Spurs had a first-half goal by Louis Saha ruled out because of offside but were largely frustrated by an organized Stevenage team containing former Tottenham fringe players Chris Day and Ronnie Henry. The hosts held firm against a strong Spurs line-up to guarantee a dream fifth-round replay tie in London at White Hart Lane, and even caused several moments of concern for Harry Redknapp's side. Big chances were few and far between but Louis Saha saw his second-half strike chalked off after his effort went in off Scott Parker, who was standing in...

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Embattled Wenger backs Arsenal to fight back

London: Arsene Wenger is looking for Arsenal to “show internal strength and resilience” to bounce back against Tottenham after a 2-0 defeat away to Sunderland dumped the Gunners out of the FA Cup. Following their 4-0 midweek mauling by AC Milan in the Champions League, the north Londoners had a tough time at the Stadium of Light as Kieran Richardson and an Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain own goal condemned them to elimination and the prospect of another trophyless season. “I feel we had a committed performance and we gave absolutely everything that was left in our legs. It was a very difficult game,” Wenger admitted in the post-match press conference. “We had three away games in a week on three very difficult pitches. It was a very unfortunate schedule....

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Di Maria to miss Madrid Champions League game

Madrid: Angel di Maria has been left out of Real Madrid's squad for Tuesday's Champions League match at CSKA Moscow after apparently aggravating a leg muscle injury. The Argentina international made his first appearance of 2012 in Saturday's 4-0 league win over Racing Santander, and scored the Spanish leaders' third goal 10 minutes after coming on in the 63rd. But Di Maria went down awkwardly near the end of the match, appearing to injure the same right leg that had kept him sidelined since December. Madrid say Di Maria, Lassana Diarra and Hamit Altintop were not included in Sunday's 21-man squad for the first leg of the last-16 match due to injuries, while fullback Alvaro Arbeloa does retu...

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Current Arsenal team is the worst I've seen - Roy Keane

London: Roy Keane has piled more criticism on Arsenal by claiming their current side is the worst he has seen since he started watching the club play. The Gunners followed up a 4-0 defeat to AC Milan in the Champions League on Wednesday by being knocked out of the FA Cup with a 2-0 loss away to Sunderland. The Irishman's comments came during half-time at the Stadium of Light, when Arsene Wenger's side were trailing 1-0, and he believes it is the players who are letting the manager and fans down. He told ITV: "You're on about trying to do well for your manager and once again they're letting him down. This is probably the worst Arsenal team I've seen in all my time of watching football." Keane also criticised the decision of most of the Arsenal...

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I may work with Guardiola again - Ibrahimovic

Milan: Zlatan Ibrahimovic says that he is open to the possibility of working with Pep Guardiola once more despite the clashes between the two which resulted in the Swede leaving Barcelona in 2010. The AC Milan striker, speaking exclusively to Goal.com, explained that he would be happy to work with the man who he voted for as the best coach in the world, but would want the Spaniard to explain what brought about his decision to freeze him out of the Barcelona set-up before his cut-price move to Milanello. "As it is now, no, [I wouldn't work with Guardiola], because I don't have answers about what happened," Ibrahimovic explained. "But what I think about him is nothing personal and it doesn't mean that I think he's a bad coach, because when...

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Pirlo leads Juventus to top of Serie A

Juventus: Juventus eased to a 3-1 win at home to 10-man Catania to regain first place in the Serie A standings, despite having gone behind early on at Juventus Stadium. Pablo Barrientos shocked the Bianconeri with an early strike, but shortly after Andrea Pirlo drew the game level with a fine free-kick from just outside the box. The former AC Milan man stepped up his game even further in the second period as he provided assists for Giorgio Chiellini and Fabio Quagliarella after the visitors had had Marco Motta sent off. Catania made a brilliant start to the match as in the fourth minute Motta, on loan at the Sicilians from Juventus, picked out Barrientos outside the box, and the Argentine took a few steps before firing a precise shot into...

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Real Madrid thrash Santander to extend La Liga lead

Madrid: Real Madrid earned another comfortable La Liga victory as they defeated 10-man Racing Santander 4-0 at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday to move one step closer to the league title. Los Blancos were ahead in the sixth minute through Cristiano Ronaldo's header before Racing went down to 10 men after the referee awarded Domingo Cisma a second yellow card. Madrid were 2-0 up at the break when Benzema netted in injury time. Angel Di Maria marked his return from injury with a superb strike in the 73rd minute, before Benzema added his second and Madrid's fourth in the 89th minute to put the icing on the cake for the home side ahead of Tuesday's clash at CSKA Moscow in the Champions League. The win gives Jose Mourinho's men a 13-point cushion...

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Arsenal woes grow with FA Cup loss to Sunderland

London: Arsenal suffered an ignominious exit from the fifth round of the FA Cup as they slumped to a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Sunderland on Saturday. The Gunners lost Francis Coquelin to injury within 10 minutes before Kieran Richardson put an end to a frustrating half with a left-footed shot that deflected off the Frenchman's replacement, Sebastien Squillaci, into the net. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was then unfortunate late in the second half to divert Craig Gardner's cutback into his own net and confirm his side's exit. Sunderland made only one change, Sebastian Larsson coming in for Fraizer Campbell on the right of midfield, while Arsene Wenger made five changes from Arsenal’s 4-0 mid-week mauling at AC Milan. Theo Walcott was dropped...

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