Daily News Channel
Manchester United are waiting on the fitness of England international Rio Ferdinand ahead of their vital trip to Wigan Athletic on Wednesday night. Ferdinand missed Sunday’s 2-0 Manchester derby victory which left United needing just four points from their remaining three games to wrap up a third Premier League title in a row. He is battling a calf strain with his replacement against City, Jonny Evans, also carrying a hamstring problem
Chelsea and England captain John Terry is backing striker Didier Drogba even though the Ivorian striker is under-fire for his post-match confrontation with referee Tom Henning following Chelsea’s Champions League exit at the hands of Barcelona. Terry slammed the Norwegian referee and accused UEFA of making a mistake by appointing Henning to the semifinal second leg. Chelsea looked to have set-up a repeat of last year’s Champions League final against Manchester United when Michael Essien put them in front with a 20-yard volley in the ninth minute
A stunning last-gasp strike from Andres Iniesta put 10-man Barcelona in the Champions League final on the away goals rule, giving the Catalan giants a 1-1 draw at Chelsea on a night of high drama at Stamford Bridge. With the clock showing two minutes gone out of an extra four minutes at the end of the game, Spanish international Iniesta fired in a sublime shot from the edge of the area to break Chelsea’s hearts and take Pep Guardiola’s side through to a dream final against holders Manchester United in Rome on May 27. Following last week’s cagey goalless draw at the Nou Camp, all the talk before the match was whether Barca’s stunning attacking prowess could pierce Chelsea’s solid defense.
A triumphant Alex Ferguson had words of consolation for his old rival Arsene Wenger after his all-conquering Manchester United side left the Frenchman to reflect on another trophy-less season for Arsenal. “It is the most disappointing of nights,” Wenger told Press Association as his side slipped to a 3-1 second leg defeat at the Emirates, losing the Champions League semifinal 4-1 on aggregate
Holders Manchester United remain on course to become the first side to retain the Champions League, as two goals in the first 11 minutes saw them defeat Arsenal 3-1 for a 4-1 aggregate victory and a place in the final against either Chelsea or Barcelona in Rome. A carnival atmosphere at the Emirates Stadium saw the home fans optimistic that last week’s 1-0 defeat at Old Trafford could be overturned, but those hopes were cruelly dashed as two individual mistakes allowed United to take a foothold in the game — a position they never looked likely to relinquish. Arsenal went into the match unbeaten in their last 27 home matches in Europe, since Chelsea defeated them 2-1 at Highbury in 2004, and had yet to taste European defeat at the Emirates, but that proud record always looked in doubt from the moment United took an eighth-minute lead.
Manchester United’s manager Alex Ferguson was in confident mood ahead of the second leg of the Champions League semifinal against English rivals Arsenal. The 67-year-old’s side have a single-goal advantage from the first leg, after John O’Shea’s Old Trafford winner, and Ferguson feels this advantage could prove vital. “We’ve got a lead and that means we’re only one kick away from the (final) in Rome, so it’s a big incentive for us,” he said
Barcelona produced a dazzling display of attacking football to rout arch-rivals Real Madrid 6-2 in the Bernabeu and all but secure the Primera Liga title. Two goals apiece from Lionel Messi and Thierry Henry with defenders Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique also on target signaled an humiliating defeat for Real who went into ‘El Clasico’ with renewed hope of retaining the Spanish title. But a mixture of inspired play and comical defending undermined Juande Ramos’ men who had taken the lead as Gonzalo Higuain headed home after 14 minutes.
Arsenal’s Mexican striker Carlos Vela has been given the all-clear to join up with their squad for the Champions League semifinal against Manchester United after a swine flu scare. Vela had been visited by some Mexican friends last week and was told to stay away from training while he underwent urgent medical checks. Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger told Press Association: “It looked to be a massive problem because we were asked to keep him at home and not get him to the training ground
Chelsea’s grit and determination held off Barcelona’s attacking prowess, as the sides played out a 0-0 draw in their Champions League semifinal first leg clash at the Nou Camp on Tuesday.
The outbreak of swine flu, that has killed more than 150 people in Mexico, has also affected the football world with the semfinals and final of the CONCACAF section of the under-17 World Cup, scheduled for Wednesday and Saturday, having been cancelled — world governing body FIFA has confirmed on their official Web site. CONCACAF, the confederation that governs football in central and north America, has decided to follow the lead of the Mexican government in order to safeguard the health of players, fans and those involved in the staging of the competition