Predictions league hails the power of Drogba

February 9, 2010

Predictions league hails the power of Drogba
Didier Drogba’s second goal in Sunday’s 2-0 win over Arsenal was the epitome of the Chelsea striker’s immense power.

It’s hard to know how any defence can stop him, even Inter Milan’s…

Top Premier League strikers are certainly having the best of it at the moment with Manchester United talisman Wayne Rooney scoring another in the 5-0 thrashing of Portsmouth.

Constrast Drogba and Rooney with Barcelona’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who has scored once in his last 10 matches, and misfiring Juventus forward Alessandro Del Piero. His side have slid all the way to seventh in Serie A.

Talking of who is in or out of form, our Premier League predictions competition had one standout performer at the weekend — leader Paul Radford, who was spot on with Chelsea’s 2-0 win. Paul racked up four correct scores in all, bagging a maximum five points for each, while he picked up three singles for guessing the right result in three other games.

A midweek fixtures programme awaits and as many of our panel are away at the Winter Olympics, here is a perfect chance to sneak up on them while their minds are focused on luge and freestyle skiing.

If that doesn’t tempt you, any new entrants get double points for the rest of the season. Oh, and we trust you to total up your own points too.

Here’s the panel scores and the fixtures. Please play along in the comments.

Reuters Soccer blog panel: Paul Radford 221, Patrick Johnston 204, Neil Maidment 190, Mitch Phillips 189, Simon Evans 165, Kevin Fylan 162, Mark Meadows 162, Julien Pretot 143, Mike Collett 140, Asia Sports Desk 131, Martyn Herman 118, Miles Evans 108, Sonia Oxley 84

Tuesday
Fulham v Burnley
Man City v Bolton
Portsmouth v Sunderland
Wigan v Stoke

Wednesday
Arsenal v Liverpool
Aston Villa v Man Utd
Blackburn v Hull
Everton v Chelsea
West Ham v Birmingham
Wolverhampton v Tottenham

Source

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Hull apply the brakes to Chelsea title charge

February 3, 2010


Didier Drogba celebrated his return to Premier League duty with a first half equaliser at the KC Stadium to cancel out Stephen Mouyokolo’s earlier effort on a frustrating night for Carlo Ancelotti’s Chelsea.

Drogba struck his 20th goal of the season on 43 minutes to haul the Premier League leaders level after Hull defender Mouyokolo had headed Phil Brown’s Hull City side into a surprise lead with his first ever goal for the top flight strugglers.

But despite Drogba coming to the rescue it wasn’t enough to help Chelsea secure the win they so badly needed to restore their four point advantage over Manchester United at the top of the table.

The London club now have a lead of just two points and United manager Sir Alex Ferguson will be thankful to Hull for holding his great rivals to a draw to blow the title race wide open.

Ancelotti had the luxury of recalling Drogba for the first time since he departed for the African Cup of Nations over four weeks ago, while England internationals Joe Cole and Ashley Cole had to be content with a place on the bench.

John Terry also maintained his place in the side despite the on-going pressure on him to resign as England captain following his off-field problems while Deco was recalled to the starting line-up.

Brown, meanwhile, made just one change to the side which was held to a disappointing draw with Wolves last weekend, recalling Craig Fagan on the right wing in place of Bernard Mendy. The Hull manager resisted the temptation to hand a full debut to new loan signing Amr Zaki.

Hull had gone nine games without a victory and found themselves entrenched in the relegation zone. Considering Manchester City were the next visitors to the KC Stadium then the immediate future looked bleak.

But Chelsea struggled to find their rhythm from the start and seemed to make Hull’s evening easier than expected.

Frank Lampard worried Boaz Myhill with a swerving drive inside nine minutes which the Hull goalkeeper could only palm straight to Nicolas Anelka but the French striker stubbed his shot badly wide with the goal at his mercy.

It wasn’t until the 24th minute that Chelsea threatened again when Branislav Ivanovic sent over an inch-perfect cross for the waiting Michael Ballack but all the German midfielder could do was power his diving header straight at Myhill from close range.

The longer the game went on the more Hull seemed to grow in confidence but it still came a surprise when they took the lead with their first real attack of the game.

Terry was nowhere to be seen as Stephen Hunt swung over a corner and Mouyokolo rose the highest to head past the helpless Petr Cech.

But Hull’s lead always looked fragile and it lasted just 13 minutes before Drogba levelled the scores with a powerful free kick into the bottom corner of Myhill’s goal.

Hull could have restored their lead on the stroke of half time when Tom Cairney’s free kick found the head of the unmarked Anthony Gardner, but the defender could only direct his effort over the crossbar.

Yet Chelsea always carried a threat and Myhill had to be at his best to keep the scores level with a fine double save just before the hour mark.

First he got down sharply to tip wide a skidding drive from Florent Malouda before producing an even better stop to keep out Drogba’s downward header from Malouda’s cross as Brown’s men hung on for a point that is of much more use to them than Chelsea.

HULL, England (AFP)

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Chelsea seek to avoid curse of Turf Moor

January 30, 2010


If Chelsea are to open up a lead at the summit of the Premier League this weekend, they must achieve a result that has proved beyond title rivals Manchester United and Arsenal.

Manager Carlo Ancelotti takes his side to Turf Moor to face Burnley, who have beaten Sir Alex Ferguson’s champions and held Arsene Wenger’s Gunners already this season.

Following on from an impressive 3-0 mid-week success against Birmingham, who had not lost for 15 matches ahead of their trip to Stamford Bridge, optimism will be high within Chelsea ranks that they can collect another three points.

However, this fixture will provide a test of character for the side and experienced players at the club will realise it requires as much concentration and focus as any encounter against one of the country’s bigger clubs.

The Blues have suffered two away defeats this term, at the hands of Manchester City and Aston Villa, and this latest game on the road is an opportunity to open the gap at the top of the league.

United and Arsenal face each other on Sunday, meaning a win at Burnley would leave Chelsea four points clear of Ferguson’s side, and five ahead of Wenger’s men.

“If we open up that gap again it’ll be great,” said midfielder Frank Lampard, who was an integral part of Chelsea’s two Premier League title successes (2004-05 and 2005-06) under Jose Mourinho.

“Those little mental things are great during the season.

“It’s a great to be back on top. We knew we had games in hand but we didn’t like to see ourselves down in third place. Arsenal were on a good run but it’s a marathon not a sprint.”

Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou are both available following their return from the African Nations Cup but the Ivory Coast duo have been given the weekend off to recover from their long trip back to London.

Chelsea’s ability to cope without Drogba’s goals was questioned before he flew off to Angola, but since then the London outfit have won all four fixtures they have played — scoring 17 goals along the way.

“We didn’t say we’d struggle this month, everyone else did,” Lampard added. “We have a lot of belief. I just think the loss of Didier was talked about too much. We’ve got the players who can come in. Maybe some needed to step up and everyone has done.

“We have gone up another gear this month. We had a bad run in December, dropped some points and we’ve worked hard to get that back.”

The last time these sides met was in August, and Chelsea ran out 3-0 winners courtesy of goals from Nicolas Anelka, Michael Ballack and Ashley Cole.

Since then Burnley have changed managers though, and Brian Laws has failed to pick up a win since taking over from Owen Coyle earlier in the month. In fact, Burnley have not even scored a goal since he arrived.

The former Sheffield Wednesday chief has lost all three matches so far, leaving the Clarets inside the bottom three. And they have injury problems to contend with too.

Versatile anchorman Graham Alexander and midfielder Chris McCann are almost certainly ruled out of the game, although Cameroon international Andre Bikey returns from international duty.

Defender Leon Cort and goalkeeper Nicky Weaver have been brought in this week in an attempt to add strength in depth to the squad.

Cort, a 1.5-million-pound (1.7-million-euro) signing from Stoke, is set for his debut against Chelsea, while former Manchester City keeper Weaver, who joined as a free agent, has made it clear he is ready to challenge Brian Jensen for the number one spot.

He said: “The chance to come back into the Premier League was something I couldn?t turn down and hopefully it?s longer than just for a few months.

“There are 16 games left and a lot of points to play for and all the players will pull in the right direction to keep the club in the Premiership.”

BURNLEY, England (AFP)

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Rooney injury could shatter United´s title bid: Ancelotti

January 27, 2010


Carlo Ancelotti has warned Manchester United that an injury to Wayne Rooney could shatter their Premier League title challenge because they don’t have the same squad strength as Chelsea.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s pre-season move to Real Madrid has allowed United manager Sir Alex Ferguson to restore Rooney to his favoured central attacking role and the England forward has responded with a superb run of form.

He has already scored 20 goals in all competitions and emphasised his importance to United with the first four-goal haul of his career, against Hull on Saturday, to send the champions to the top of the table.

But Chelsea boss Ancelotti is convinced Rooney’s effervescent displays only serve to underline how much Ferguson’s team depend on the 24-year-old.

“Without Rooney it would be difficult (to win the league). He’s the best striker at Manchester United, one of the best strikers in the world,” Ancelotti said.

“Rooney, for me, is a fantastic player. He’s not only a striker because he’s not only a finisher, he’s a champion, a world-class player.

“He plays for the team. I saw him play left wing last year and coming back to help out the team defensively. He’s a football player. I’m a big fan of Rooney’s.

“He’s a very decisive player for United. We have a possibility without Didier because we can put Anelka on, another top striker in the world.”

Ancelotti feels United would struggle if Rooney was sidelined for a long period because, in contrast to his own squad, Ferguson has only the aging Michael Owen to turn to.

Although Chelsea have been without star striker Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou, one of his main understudies, over the last month due to the African Nations Cup, Ancelotti has been able to rely on Nicolas Anelka – who has five goals in four games – and highly-rated youngster Daniel Sturridge.

Even without Drogba, who is expected back for Saturday’s game at Burnley, Chelsea had scored 14 goals in three matches prior to Wednesday’s clash against Birmingham.

Ancelotti believes that is a tribute to the quality of Anelka and his squad’s impressive depth.

“Without Didier we have the possibility to put other strong, fantastic players in. Without Didier in the Champions League at the start of the season, Nicolas did very well,” he said.

“Now we have Nicolas and Sturridge doing very well in this month. So we had the possibility to play without Didier.

“We changed something on the pitch but if we have less strength in forward areas we can use other players.

“Our aim was to keep all the players in good condition because, if we stay without four players and we then have some injuries, it could have been a difficult period.

“We have those injuries but we can put Deco in because he’s in good condition. In training and work, the players have worked very hard in this period and we could do well without those (African) players.”

With the title race looking set to be a three-horse sprint between Chelsea, United and Arsenal, Ancelotti believes the team that keeps most of its’ star players fit during the run-in will lift the trophy.

“I think that, in this moment, to avoid injury is very important,” he said. “We have to control training and the players’ rest and we can do that because we have good facilities.

“We have to control the load of the matches and training. To have injuries now is very difficult. The risk is to arrive at the end of the season with a tired squad.”

COBHAM, England (AFP)

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Ancelotti expects Anelka to stay

January 26, 2010


Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti insists Nicolas Anelka is 100 percent committed to the Blues despite reports that talks over a new contract for the France striker have broken down.

Anelka has 18 months left on his current deal and Chelsea have been unable to tie him to a new contract during several months of negotiations.

The 30-year-old has proved his value to Ancelotti’s team this season with 11 goals, including five in his last four appearances, and his fine form has ensured Didier Drogba has hardly been missed during his time at the African Nations Cup.

Reports on Tuesday that there was only a small chance of a positive contract resolution raised the unwanted possibility of Chelsea having to sell Anelka in the close-season or risk losing him on a free transfer in a year.

But Ancelotti is adamant the former Real Madrid and Arsenal star wants to remain at the west London club and he expects a compromise to be reached.

Asked if he believed Anelka wanted to stay, Ancelotti said: “Yes. The same for Nicolas. He’s happy to work with me and I’m very happy to work with him. That’s a wedding, no? We don’t want to break up!

“I think that they are speaking with his agent and they will try to find the right solution for both the club and for him.

“I’m confident he’ll sign. Anelka is a top player and this club needs to have a lot of top players. There will be a resolution.”

After dropping to third place in the Premier League while on FA Cup duty at the weekend, Ancelotti’s side have a chance to regain top spot with a win over Birmingham at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday if Arsenal fail to defeat Aston Villa the same day.

Ancelotti knows in-form Birmingham will pose a tough test for his team after extending their unbeaten run in all competitions to 15 matches over the weekend.

But Chelsea have won 10 of their 11 home league games this season – scoring seven times in their last home match against Sunderland – and Ancelotti expects his players to rise to the challenge of ending Birmingham’s impressive streak.

“It’s not good (to be third). I think it is important to win on Wednesday because we need three more points. But it’ll be very difficult because everyone knows Birmingham’s quality,” he said.

“They haven’t lost for 15 games and are having an unbelievable season. They have done fantastically well.

“So it’s important for us to have a very good performance. The same as we did against Sunderland, we hope, because we play a very compact team.

“It’s important to move the ball quickly against them because they are able to stay compact for 90 minutes. If we do our best, I think we can win.”

Ancelotti expects United and Arsenal to push his side all the way in a title race shaping up to be a tense three-team scramble for the finish line.

“I think we have to keep in control of both teams. Both teams have enough quality to stay in the top until the end of the season,” he said.

“It’ll be a sprint to the final game. I think all three teams will be in it until the end.”

The Blues, who have two games in hand on current leaders United, will be bolstered by the return to training of Drogba and Salomon Kalou on Wednesday after Ivory Coast were knocked out of the African Nations Cup.

Neither will feature against Birmingham but the pair should be available for Saturday’s trip to Burnley.

“Drogba is an important player for us but we’ve played very well without him,” added Ancelotti.

“It’s important that he comes back here because we have a lot of games in this period and we need to have a lot of players able to play.”

However Juliano Belletti won’t be available for up to a month after a scan revealed the Brazilian defender suffered a knee injury during Saturday’s FA Cup win at Preston.

COBHAM, England (AFP)

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Magnificent seven boosts Chelsea title push

January 17, 2010


Chelsea reasserted their credentials as Premier League title favourites on Saturday with a 7-2 demolition of Sunderland that manager Carlo Ancelotti hailed as their best performance of the season.

Manchester United, who have played a game more than the leaders, remained one point off the pace after a 3-0 win over Burnley at Old Trafford.

But it was another frustrating day for Liverpool, who conceded a last-minute equaliser at Stoke and wasted an opportunity to close the gap on Manchester City and Tottenham in the battle for top-four places.

With City going down to a 2-0 defeat at Everton, their first loss since Roberto Mancini took over as manager last month, Spurs were able to edge them out of the Champions League qualifying places thanks to a goalless draw at home to Hull.

Chelsea were irresistible at Stamford Bridge, where Nicolas Anelka and Frank Lampard both scored twice on an afternoon when they might easily have reached doube figures.

Florent Malouda, Ashley Cole and Michael Ballack also found the net with Boudewijn Zenden and Darren Bent providing consolation efforts for Steve Bruce’s outclassed side.

Ancelotti was delighted to see his side prove they could thrive in the absence of Didier Drogba, Michael Essien, John Mikel Obi and Salomon Kalou, all of whom are away at the African Cup of Nations.

“I’ve always said we have a fantastic squad and today we have done a good job,” the Italian said.

There were no such fireworks at Old Trafford, where the Manchester United faithful had to wait until the 56th minute before Dimitar Berbatov broke Burnley’s resistance.

Wayne Rooney’s 16th goal of the season and substitute Mame Biram Diouf’s first for the club made sure that Brian Laws’s first match in charge of Burnley ended in defeat.

Ferguson praised Senegalese striker Diouf, who joined from Norwegian club FC Molde.

“He’s got great spring, he’s quick and he looks to run behind the defenders all the time and he’s very good in the air,” said the United boss.

A second-half goal from Sotirios Kyrgiakos had looked like it would be enough to ease the pressure on Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez following the club’s FA Cup exit to Championship side Reading earlier in the week.

But the defensive frailty that has hampered Liverpool throughout the campaign was exposed again in the 90th minute when Robert Huth scrambled in an equaliser after the visitors had failed to clear a corner.

Having been denied what appeared to be a clear penalty in the first half, Liverpool suffered further frustration when Dirk Kuyt headed against the post in the fifth minute of injury time.

“It feels like a defeat,” admitted Kuyt. “We aren’t playing the best football at the moment, but I thought we fought really hard for this result, and to concede in the last minute and even miss a great chance in the last minute is unbelievable.”

The draw left Liverpool languishing in seventh place, although the failure of Tottenham and Manchester City to win limited the damage for Benitez’s men.

City had begun life under Mancini with four straight wins but they flunked their first serious test at Goodison Park.

A Steven Pienaar free-kick and a Louis Saha penalty earned Everton a thoroughly deserved victory and lifted David Moyes’s side into the top half of the table for the first time this season.

Wigan pulled away from the relegation zone with a 2-0 win at fellow strugglers Wolves in a match both teams ended with ten men.

Wolves defender Richard Stearman received a second yellow card when he conceded a first-half penalty. Marcus Hahnemann saved Hugo Rodallega’s spot-kick but Wigan made their numerical advantage count though James McCarthy on the hour.

The numbers were evened up when Wigan midfielder Hendry Thomas was ordered off shortly afterwards but Charles N’Zogbia made sure of the points for the visitors.

LONDON (AFP)

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Wary favourites I.Coast launch Nations Cup campaign

January 10, 2010


Title favourites Ivory Coast launch their 2010 African Nations Cup campaign on Monday against Burkina Faso in the Cabinda enclave where the Togo squad were attacked by separatists in a terror attack.

Togo had decided to withdraw late on Saturday but early Sunday the players opted to stay and play, one of them Thomas Dossevi told AFP.

The ‘Elephants’ finished second and fourth in the last two editions of the biennial African football showcase and the media jury have reached a unanimous verdict that they will go all the way this time in Angola.

A glance at the 23-strong squad reveals why the burden of favouritism must be carried by a team containing stars from some of the strongest and wealthiest European clubs.

Defensive general Kolo Toure receives his pay slip from super-rich Manchester City, midfielder Yaya Toure lines up with European and world champions Barcelona, and striker Didier Drogba plays for mighty Chelsea.

All the other players under the charge of Bosnian coach Vahid Halilhodzic are with European clubs bar third-choice goalkeeper Vincent de Paul Angban of perennial domestic champions ASEC Mimosas.

Burkina Faso, defeated 3-2 at home and 5-0 away by the Ivorians in the 2010 qualifying competition, have little to offer in return with only striker Moumouni Dagano creating international headlines last year.

He overshadowed Drogba and fellow African superstars Samuel Eto’o of Cameroon, Michael Essien of Ghana and Frederic Kanoute of Mali by finishing leading scorer with 12 goals in the Nations Cup qualifiers.

But captain Drogba has warned his team-mates to be vigilant, claiming over confidence contributed heavily to a stunning 4-1 semi-final drubbing by Egypt in Ghana two years ago.

“We will be treating every team coming our way in Angola with respect, humility and seriousness. There is no room for complacency as in Ghana. No match is won in advance,” warned Drogba in Abidjan.

“From the bottom of my heart I desire to return home with a glorious result which will give joy to the Ivorian people. My team-mates and I will be sweating it out as much as we can.”

Halilhodzic, who fears failure to win the Nations Cup will trigger calls for his dismissal five months before Ivory Coast go to the World Cup in South Africa, worries about the readiness of stars like Drogba for steamy Angola.

“We are concerned about all our players’ fitness, especially those like Drogba who are involved in so many matches,” he told the Daily News in Tanzania, where the Ivorians held a pre-tournament camp.

“Didier is a human being. he is not a machine. Even a machine needs to rest if it is to run effectively and efficiently. It is unrealistic to play two (English Premiership) matches within three days.”

Although Ivory Coast have played 68 matches in 17 Nations Cup appearances, it will be the first time they face the Burkinabe Stallions, whose best showing was fourth place under French coach Philippe Troussier as 1998 hosts.

LUANDA (AFP)

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Nations Cup throws spotlight on Cabinda´s troubled past

January 7, 2010


The Angolan enclave of Cabinda is expected to deploy heavy security at its Chiazi stadium, when the country hosts the 2010 edition of the African Nations Cup starting Sunday.

Chelsea teammates Michael Essien and Didier Drogba will play the group stages there, one of four Cup venues in the country, but not all the security will be for the Premier League stars.

Oil-rich Cabinda, separated from the rest of Angola by the Democratic Republic of Congo, has been embroiled in a long-running independence struggle but will host the seven Nations Cup matches this month.

The conflict officially ended in a 2006 deal with the Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda (FLEC).

FLEC however has made several media claims in recent months about attacks on the military and foreign construction and oil workers based in the province.

According to Agostinho Chicaia of Mapablanda, Cabinda’s only human rights organisation, things have only gotten worse since the deal.

“Cabinda continues to be unstable, there is no peace,” he told AFP, saying the fighting has eased, but human rights abuses and arrests on security charges were increasing.

“The true peace is that which is born first in the hearts of people and in their consciences, and it’s a peace based on justice,” he said.

“The (agreement) has done nothing for justice, so now there is only a heightened tension.”

Mapablanda as well as US-based Human Rights Watch have documented abuses, including the case of Fernando Lelo, a former Voice of America journalist who last year was sentenced to 12 years in prison for national security offences.

Lelo spent two years behind bars but was later acquitted.

“Cabinda is still living in a state of war today,” he told AFP. “The fact that we present ourselves as defenders of human rights… we’ve been targeted for arbitrary detentions and persecutions.”

Antonio Bento Bembe, the former FLEC leader who signed the peace deal that has now made him a government minister, disputes the claims of abuses.

“What these people are saying is not true,” said Bento Bembe, a minister without portfolio in charge of human rights. “These people are just using Human Rights Watch to get publicity.

“It would be good to recognise the efforts being made by the government, not only to speak critically.”

The one-time rebel bush fighter has also dismissed concerns that Cabinda was not a good location for the Nations Cup, which runs to January 31 with games also taking place in the capital Luanda, Benguela and Luango provinces.

“Cabinda is safe and security there is guaranteed,” he said. “The Cup of Nations is an opportunity for Cabinda to receive visitors and it will bring money and investment to the province.”

The minister denied tensions in the enclave, but the December arrests there of a French and an Angolan journalist doing a story about the tournament has re-stoked concerns.

According to Human Rights Watch, the pair were detained because one took a photograph of the new Chinese-built football stadium, and they were taken to several military and police garrisons where they were questioned and then released without charge five hours later.

“The Africa Cup of Nations is an opportunity for Angola to showcase its progress after years of debilitating civil war,” said Georgette Gagnon, Africa director at Human Rights Watch.

“But by arbitrarily arresting and intimidating journalists, Angolan officials draw attention to how far the country still has to go.”

The 20,000-seat Chiazi stadium will host Group B – Ghana, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso and Togo – in the tournament.

The Nations Cup is seen as the starter to a 2010 African football feast whose main course comes in June with the World Cup in South Africa — the first time international football’s biggest competition has ever been held on the continent.

LUANDA (AFP)

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Chelsea´s Ancelotti shrugs off talent drain

January 3, 2010


Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti shrugged off losing Didier Drogba, John Mikel Obi, Michael Essien and Salomon Kalou to the African Nations Cup, claiming the tournament may have come at the right time.

The Premier League leaders tackle Watford in the FA Cup third round on Sunday before games against Hull, Sunderland, Birmingham and Burnley during January when the African event takes place in Angola.

Despite the three-week Nations Cup, Ancelotti said he would not be put off signing another African player in the future.

He said: “I think that when they have to play for their national team, it’s not a problem. It’s like the European players.

“Every top player can go to the national team. It’s not a problem for the Africans. It’ll be a great opportunity for the young players now to show their quality. I hope they will do a very good job because I trust in these players.”

Ancelotti will have his first taste of FA Cup football this weekend and the Italian is already aware it has a markedly different flavour in England compared to his homeland.

There, domestic knockout competitions are all but ignored, with even clubs like AC Milan and Juventus, who have both had spells with Ancelotti at the helm, going through the motions in front of sparse crowds.

Many believe the FA Cup no longer has the place in English hearts it once enjoyed but, nonetheless, Ancelotti knows the famous trophy remains worth fighting for, as Chelsea proved last season when they came back from behind to beat Everton in the final.

“It is a very important competition in England,” Ancelotti said. “In Italy, the Italian Cup is not so important.

“We want to do our best and it is one of our objectives, our aim, to win it. Last year we won it. We want to do the best again this year.”

Championship side Watford are the visitors to Stamford Bridge on Sunday and Ancelotti will not need reminding that a stumble at this hurdle precipitated former Chelsea boss Luiz Felipe Scolari’s exit almost a year ago.

Chelsea were held at home by Southend United, a third tier, League One, team and although the replay was negotiated successfully the Brazilian was dismissed in February, just a month later.

Ancelotti admitted he knew little of Watford save he is a big fan of their former chairman, pop star Elton John, but promised he would step up the research soon.

“Watford are a good team,” he said. “I don’t know them very well but I have an opportunity to watch a DVD. Every team can give you problems if you don’t stay focused.”

Watford, whose manager Malky Mackay became a permanent appointment before the season started when former Chelsea Academy coach Brendan Rodgers left for an ill-fated spell at Reading, are mid-table in the Championship.

But as well as hoping to cause an upset they will also be using the fixture as an opportunity to bring in much-needed funds after the club almost went into administration earlier in December.

This was avoided when former chairman Jimmy Russo and his brother Vince received a repayment of a loan of almost five million pounds.

LONDON (AFP)

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I´ll fit in nicely at Chelsea, insists Aguero

December 18, 2009


Argentina striker Sergio Aguero insisted Friday he would fit in nicely at Premier League side Chelsea.

The 21-year-old Atletico Madrid player has been linked with a move to Stamford Bridge in the January transfer window.

After initially appearing keen to stay in Spain, Aguero now appears to see Chelsea as a good next step for him.

“Chelsea are interested in me because they think I can play an important role for the team,” Aguero told the Sun.

“And I think I fit with their style of play.

“Of course I watch the Premier League on TV and I think it is the best league in the world, along with the Spanish league.”

Aguero’s possible arrival would help to cover for the absence of Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou on African Nations Cup duty with Ivory Coast, and the former is a player Aguero rates very highly indeed.

“There are a lot of very good players but, right now, the top striker in the Premier League is without doubt, Drogba,” he said.

“After comes Fernando Torres, but Drogba is the best.”

Aguero has scored seven goals in 13 games in La Liga so far this season.

LONDON (AFP)

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