Ancelotti admits set pieces troubling Chelsea

February 3, 2010

The storm centred on John Terry’s future as England captain is not the only headache that Carlo Ancelotti has to deal with at the moment.

The Chelsea boss is also grappling with his team’s tendency to leak goals from set pieces amid fears it could cost them dear at the business end of the season.

The depth of Chelsea’s squad has seen them installed as favourites to reclaim the Premier League title from Manchester United.

But with United starting to hit form, Chelsea’s problems in defending corners and free-kicks have once again been put in the spotlight by the ease with which Steven Mouyokolo headed Hull into the lead in Tuesday’s 1-1 draw at the KC Stadium.

Didier Drogba cancelled out Mouyokolo’s strike but Hull might easily have claimed all three points if Anthony Gardner had not missed an excellent chance from Tom Cairney’s free-kick.

“I know very well how many goals we have conceded from set pieces,” said Ancelotti. “Every team here in England has a very good jumper and a very good striker and it can happen that you concede a goal.

“How we score, sometimes we can concede. I think we did our best but it was a tough game and Hull played well and put a lot of pressure on us.”

Hull boss Phil Brown admitted he had identified Chelsea’s weakness on set pieces as a potential key to the outcome of the match.

“It’s my job to investigate how to score goals against Chelsea and they’ve conceded something like nine out of 10 of their goals, or something like that, from set pieces,” Brown said.

“If that’s the Achilles heel for Chelsea then we have to exploit it.”

LONDON (AFP)

Tags: achilles heel, Anthony Gardner, Brown, business end, carlo ancelotti, CHELSEA, didier, England, england captain, fears, free kick, free kicks, headache, HULL, john terry, jumper, kc stadium, london, Manchester, match, phil brown, premier league, Steven Mouyokolo, striker, tendency, Tom Cairney

Mourinho job not dependent on European glory: Inter chief

December 18, 2009

Jose Mourinho does not have to win the Champions League to keep his job, Inter Milan administrative director Ernesto Paolillo says.

Prior to Inter’s last Champions League group game against Russian champions Rubin Kazan a week ago, the rumour mill had suggested that failure to reach the knockout stages would result in the former Chelsea boss’s departure at the season’s end.

Inter won that match 2-0 and secured second spot in the group behind title-holders Barcelona, but press speculation persists that Mourinho must lead the team into the latter stages of the competition or face the boot.

“I see no reason to change (coaches). We’re happy, we’re top of the league and just imagine if the coach’s job was still under question,” Paolillo told reporters.

“The Champions League is important but we know very well just how difficult it is to win.

“The one who wins it will come from among the best teams in Europe. Hence you can’t tie a coach’s future to winning that trophy, it’s everything together that counts.”

It is widely thought in Italy that Mourinho was brought to Inter to win the Champions League after his predecessor’s failure to shine in that competition.

Roberto Mancini was fired despite leading Inter to three successive Serie A titles because he could not guide the team to the business end of the Champions League.

ROME (AFP)

Tags: administrative director, Barcelona, business end, champions league group, CHELSEA, ernesto, Ernesto Paolillo, Europe, european glory, group game, inter milan, Italy, Jose, jose mourinho, knockout stages, latter stages, match 2, Milan, paolillo, predecessor, roberto mancini, ROME, rubin kazan, Rumour Mill, russian champions, speculation

Egypt hail historic Confed victory as Italy mourn

June 19, 2009

JOHANNESBURG (AFP) – Egypt hailed its shock victory over world champions Italy in the Confederations Cup as one of its best ever, but for Marcello Lippi’s men it was a disaster.

The African Nations Cup holders stunned the Italians 1-0 late on Thursday as they cracked under pressure to leave their tournament fate in limbo.

Mohamed Homos scored the only goal in the 40th minute to hand them a famous victory in front of 51,000 fans, but they also had goalkeeper Essam al-Hadary to thank for pulling off a string of fine saves.

Egypt and Italy are now level on three points in Group B with the Pharoahs favourites to go through to the semi-finals.

They face the United States on Sunday while Italy must play Brazil, who have two wins out of two so far.

“We played better than them for the 90 minutes. This will go down in Egyptian history as they are the world champions,” said Egypt deputy coach Shawky Gharib.

“Playing them was a scary feeling at times but we controlled the match and excelled.

“We were playing in the name of African football because we represent Africa and we did Africa proud.”

Lippi put a brave face on their loss, but will be hugely disappointed knowing his team face an uphill task against Brazil to make the business end of the tournament.

“Egypt played two very good matches, a fantastic second half against Brazil and an excellent first half against us,” he said, referring to Egypt’s agonising 4-3 loss to the South Americans.

“We picked it up after half time and the players always have the will to react, but they didn’t make it because their goalie was fantastic.

“We almost got the ball in the net three or four times, I think we deserved at least one goal.”

Egypt made one change from their last match and it was an inspired move, with Homos replacing 35-year-old captain Ahmed Hassan.

Lippi welcomed back his captain Fabio Cannavaro, who missed their 3-1 win over the United States with a calf strain, and brought in Fabio Quagliarella and Giuseppe Rossi, their two-goal hero from Monday.

The game started quietly with AC Milan defender Gianluca Zambrotta having Italy’s first shot on goal after seven minutes, but it was a feeble effort that didn’t trouble El Hadary.

Villarreal’s American-born striker Rossi let rip with a left foot rocket soon after only to see it flash over the bar as Italy pressed the attack.

But Egypt also had their moments, with Mohamed Aboutrika causing problems in the Italian box.

It was Italy, though, who looked more likely to score with Juventus man Vincenzo Iaquinta and Rossi both forcing saves from Al-Hadary within the space of a minute midway through the half.

Not to be outdone, Egypt responded with a sustained period of pressure that ended with the goal from Homos who rose to meet a corner from Aboutrika and head the ball past Gianluigi Buffon.

The Italians had also gone one down against the United States and fought back to win, and they began the second half with a sense of urgency.

They should have equalised when Iaquinta found himself unmarked in the box but his control was poor and Al-Hadary scrambled the ball clear.

Lippi brought Luca Toni on and took Rossi off but Italy couldn’t find the breakthrough with Al-Hadary solid as a rock in the Egyptian goal, pulling off save after save to keep his team in front.

Italy had one last chance as the seconds ticked down but AC Milan’s Andrea Pirlo sent his freekick over the bar to end a miserable night for Italy and a memorable one for Egypt.

Tags: Africa, african football, african nations cup, Al-Hadary, andrea pirlo, brave face, brazil, business end, calf strain, captain Ahmed Hassan, captain Fabio Cannavaro, Egypt, egyptian history, essam, fabio cannavaro, Fabio Quagliarella, Giuseppe Rossi, goal hero, Goalkeeper, homos, Iaquinta, Italy, johannesburg, last match, marcello lippi, Milan, old captain, semi finals, Serie A, South Americans, team face, Toni, United States, uphill task, world champions, World Cup

Newcastle into AFC knockouts as Gamba lose

May 20, 2009

SINGAPORE (AFP) – Australia’s Newcastle Jets clinched a place in the knockout stages of the AFC Champions League Wednesday by edging Korea’s Ulsan Hyundai 1-0, as defending champions Gamba Osaka suffered a shock loss.

Just one final round of 16 spot is yet to be decided and it hinges on how China’s Shandong Luneng fare against small-fry Sriwijaya later Wednesday in Group F.

They must beat the Indonesians to secure second place in the group behind Japan’s Gamba, who had already qualified despite losing Wednesday.

If they do, Shandong and FC Seoul will both have 10 points but the Chinese champions will progress as they have a better head-to-head record against the Korean club.

FC Seoul kept themselves in the hunt by upsetting Gamba in Japan, with a 90th minute goal from Kim Han-Yoon handing the visitors a shock 2-1 win, ending the J-League giants 16 game unbeaten run in the tournament.

Takashi Usmai gave Gamba the lead in the 62nd minute before Dejan Damjanovic pounced to level the game 11 minutes later. It looked headed for a draw before Kim silenced the home crowd with his last-minute strike.

So far, four teams from Japan and four from Saudi Arabia have made the grade, along with two each from Uzbekistan and South Korea and one apiece from Iran, Qatar and Australia.

Newcastle booked their place with a first-half glancing header by midfielder Jason Hoffman and a brilliant defensive display that kept a dangerous Ulsan side at bay.

The victory ensured they became only the second Australian side ever, behind Adelaide United, to progress to the business end of the tournament.

Newcastle will now return to Korea to face Group H winners Pohang Steelers with a quarter-final place at stake.

In the group’s other match, Nagoya Grampus drew 1-1 with Beijing Guoan and now play Korea’s Suwon Bluewings in the next round.

Wednesday’s west-zone matches will decide the first and second-placed sides in Groups A and B.

Al Hilal, the 2007-08 Saudi champions, host Uzbek heavyweights Pakhtakor in Riyadh to decide Group A’s top team, who will earn a home tie against Group C runner-up Umm-Salal of Qatar.

The Group A runners-up face a trip to Dammam to face Group D winners Ettifaq of Saudi Arabia.

In Group B, Iran’s Piroozi host Al Shabab in Tehran with victory securing them top spot due to a better head-to-head record against the Saudi side.

That clash is the only remaining Group B contest following the earlier withdrawal of Sharjah, who lost their first four matches and pulled out before matchday five to focus on avoiding relegation from UAE’s top flight.

West zone round of 16 games are played on May 27.

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Hiddink delighted with forward pair

March 11, 2009

TURIN, Italy (AFP) – Chelsea coach Guus Hiddink paid tribute to his forward pairing of Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka after the Londoners qualified for the Champions League quarter-finals by ousting Juventus.

Drogba and Michael Essien scored the goals in a 2-2 draw in Turin that gave Chelsea a 3-2 aggregate victory.

It meant that Hiddink lost his 100 percent record as boss of the Blues but the Dutchman, who is only in temporary charge as he is also the manager of the Russian national team, was more interested in how his players are all coming into form at the business end of the season.

Asked about Drogba’s return to goalscoring form — he has four goals in his last five matches — Hiddink said: "He’s very important with how he shows his commitment and how he’s always busy.

"He doesn’t give you an easy night as a central defender and when he scores, even better.

"He’s doing very well and for the second goal he got there just ahead of his marker and that’s a sign that he’s sharp."

While Drogba led the line with his power and determination, Anelka, the Premier League’s top goalscorer, spent most of the evening out on the left, but that too pleased Hiddink.

"Also Anelka, after not having trained so much, he did his job tactically very well.

"He was always occupying two defenders, the right back and one centre back but he also did well tactically defensively.

"He impressed me, he did a very good job towards the team’s discipline."

The other player to catch the Dutchman’s eye was Essien, who made his first start since September and scored his first goal since April.

"He’s fit, although not game fit. For 90 minutes at this high pace it’s tough.

"His contribution is good and not just because of the goal, on the team it is huge.

"We had to watch him carefully, when the fuel went out of tank after one hour."

"By playing this game he’s getting into his best shape to play 90 minutes."

Chelsea joined Liverpool in the last eight after the five-time European champions thrashed Real Madrid 4-0 at Anfield for a 5-0 aggregate victory.

It raises the possibility that all four English clubs make it through to the quarter-finals — Manchester United are playing Inter Milan and Arsenal come up against AS Roma on Wednesday — but Hiddink is not concerned about the possibility of meeting English opponents next.

"Liverpool are through as well so that’s good for English football. Our next confrontations will all be finals.

"(Against Juventus) it also could have been a semi-final or final in terms of the potential (of the two teams).

"Now we play only finals, the games are so tight that they can go either way.

"When you play from now on you play finals and you can play English teams as well but I have no particular preference."

Written by: AFP

Tags: aggregate victory, arsenal, boss, business end, central defender, champions league, CHELSEA, didier drogba, discipline, dutchman, English Premier League, Essien, good job, Italy, juventus, Liverpool, londoners, Manchester, marker, Michael Essien, Milan, Nicolas Anelka, pace, premier league, quarter finals, Roma, russian national team, Serie A, turin, turin italy, UEFA Champions League

Liverpool can maintain pace, Benitez warns Chelsea, United

January 10, 2009

LONDON (AFP) – Manchester United head into their summit meeting with Chelsea this weekend with a warning from Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez ringing in their ears.

The two sides who contested last season’s Champions League final kicked off this campaign as joint favourites for the 2008/09 Premier League title.

But it is Benitez’s Liverpool who enter the business end of the season at the top of the table and the Spaniard is confident his side have the necessary reserves to keep their noses in front of rivals with deeper resources all the way to the end of the season.

Benitez will be in the dugout at Stoke on Saturday for the first time since undergoing surgery to remove kidney stones last month and he is looking forward to seeing how his side respond to the return of both Fernando Torres and Martin Skrtel following their recovery from, respectively, hamstring and knee injuries.

"We can still improve," Benitez stressed, playing down suggestions that Liverpool’s lack of real strength in depth could prove their undoing.

"Skrtel has not been playing, Javier Mascherano has been playing much better in the last few games, Steven Gerrard is improving and Torres is coming back now.

"So I think we will have more options and more competition for places, which can be important. Clearly we are in a much better position than in previous seasons although we know that a mistake now can be massive."

With United entertaining Chelsea at Old Trafford on Sunday, Liverpool can pull six points clear of the Londoners with a win at Stoke on Saturday, although Benitez will be mindful of how effectively the Premiership newcomers frustrated his side to earn a point at Anfield earlier in the season.

United’s build-up to the meeting with Chelsea has been far from ideal with Sir Alex Ferguson’s side having suffered a surprise 1-0 defeat by Derby in the League Cup semi-final first leg in midweek.

Then, in the early hours of Thursday, United superstar Cristiano Ronaldo escaped unhurt from a spectacular car crash near Manchester airport in which his Ferrari was written off.

Serbian centreback Nemanja Vidic played down the significance of United’s first defeat in 15 matches.

"Maybe in the back of our minds we always recognised we would have a second chance (in the second leg)," he said. "Maybe that is why we didn’t perform as we can and Derby took advantage of the fact we played badly.

"But the Premier League is different. We know what it means for both teams and we are looking forward to it."

Despite Arsene Wenger’s defiantly bullish tone, the focus of Arsenal’s season must now be ensuring a top-four finish.

Wenger’s men are unbeaten in six matches but remain three points adrift of Aston Villa, the side currently occupying the final qualifying spot for next season’s Champions League.

Injuries to experienced defenders Mikael Silvestre and William Gallas, both of whom are facing three-week lay-offs, have not helped the cause of the Gunners, who will face a testing examination when Bolton visit the Emirates on Saturday.

On form, Villa would be expected to claim all three points at home to bottom side West Brom but the local rivalry that forms the backdrop to that encounter makes it a harder one to call.

Fixtures (1500 GMT unless stated)

Arsenal v Bolton, Aston Villa v West Brom (1245 GMT), Everton v Hull City, Fulham v Blackburn, Middlesbrough v Sunderland, Newcastle v West Ham, Portsmouth v Manchester City, Stoke City v Liverpool (1730 GMT)

Sunday

Manchester Utd v Chelsea (1600 GMT), Wigan v Tottenham (1330 GMT)

Written by: AFP