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It has been 10 tumultuous years, the greatest decade in Chelsea history. Three titles. Five Champions League semi-finals, capped by that night of glory in Munich last May. Four FA Cup triumphs. Two League Cup wins. Oh, and just the nine managers. But as Rafa Benitez sifted through the wreckage of his trip to the Etihad, the reality facing the Blues was stark. Locked into a fight to the finish for a top four slot, Chelsea now confront the most crucial three months since Roman Abramovich transformed the club into a global powerhouse. And if they do not win what Arsene Wenger controversially claimed as the "third trophy" then the entire future of the club will be changed. Benitez, confident in his own abilities, believed he was the man to transform Chelsea whenhe was parachuted into the seat still warm from Roberto Di Matteo's backside in November. Yet the results have not come. Where Di Matteo garnered 24 points from 12 Premier League games before being relieved of his comm...

He may have been catapulted to overnight stardom, but Raheem Sterling's twinkling feet remain firmly planted on the ground. And the England sensation insisted that means him accepting he still has the L- plates on at the Anfield club, where he is prepared to listen and learn as he carefully attempts to establish a long term first team berth. Sterling exploded onto the scene with Liverpool under new boss Brendan Rodgers, showing his class with some fine early season performances that earned rave reviews from even the likes of international coach Gary Neville, and ultimately his first England cap. Even now, the 18 year old has played more games for the Reds this season than every player bar Steven Gerrard and Luis Suarez, some going for a rookie teenager with a slight frame. More recently, following the arrival of Daniel Sturridge and Philippe Coutinho, he has been relegated to the bench, but Sterling is adamant there will be no diva tantrums after reaching for the stars, but instead...

Tottenham's matchwinner Gareth Bale refused to get too carried with his own performance after his late strike secured what could be a vital win for Tottenham against West Ham . The Welsh winger struck twice, while Gylfi Sigurdsson also scored for Spurs who came back from 2-1 down to take the three points. Bale put Spurs ahead before an Andy Carroll penalty and a Joe Cole strike put the Hammers ahead, but Spurs ran out victors with Bale's superb 90th.minute strike - his 15th Premier League goal of the season - securing a win which sees them jump above Chelsea and into third. "It was a massive victory," he said on Sky Sports 1. "We knew after the (Chelsea) result yesterday that we had a massive chance to get third spot. We deserved the victory. "We know what we are capable of. We have scored a lot of last minute winners. "We are confident that if we keep battling to the end we will score. "I'm just enjoying my football. The most important thing i...

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has overseen a huge rise in wages to an estimated £155million per year. It means the Gunners are the fourth highest payers in the Premier League behind the two Manchester clubs and Chelsea but shell out around £60m more than Tottenham. The shock figures come in Arsenal’s latest financial results which – as revealed in Mirror Sport on Saturday – show pre-tax profits of £17.8m and shows they have cash reserves of £123m. They prove that Wenger has big money to spend - with the £150m Emirates sponsorship cash still to be added on - and shatters the myth that Arsenal do not pay big wages. However, it suggests they are not getting value for money on their wage bill which rose from £142m last year. Wenger has proudly boasted the club is run on a socialist structure and Tim Payton, of the Arsenal Supporters’ Trust, said: “These figures contain few surprises. “They show that Arsenal yet again made a profit from the sale of their best players and that the club has larg...

Premier League fixtures Saturday, February 23 2013 Arsenal v Aston Villa Fulham v Stoke City Norwich City v Everton Queens Park Rangers v Manchester United Reading v Wigan Athletic West Bromwich Albion v Sunderland Sunday, February 24 2013 Manchester City v Chelsea Newcastle United v Southampton Monday, February 25 2013 West Ham United v Tottenham Hotspur Saturday, February 23 2013 Spain - La Liga Barcelona v Sevilla Deportivo La Coruña v Real Madrid Mallorca v Getafe Real Zaragoza v Valencia Italy - Serie A Palermo v Genoa France - Ligue 1 Ajaccio v Lille Evian TG v Montpellier Nancy v Saint-Étienne Rennes v Sochaux Troyes v Bastia Valenciennes v Toulouse Germany - Bundesliga Augsburg v Hoffenheim Bayern München v Werder Bremen Hannover 96 v Hamburger SV Mainz 05 v Wolfsburg Schalke 04 v Fortuna Düsseldorf Stuttgartv Nürnberg Netherlands - Eredivisie Groningen v PEC Zwolle Heerenveen v Twente Heracles v Vitesse VVV v RKC Waalwijk Portugal - Li...

Premier League fixtures Saturday, February 23 2013 Arsenal v Aston Villa Fulham v Stoke City Norwich City v Everton Queens Park Rangers v Manchester United Reading v Wigan Athletic West Bromwich Albion v Sunderland Sunday, February 24 2013 Manchester City v Chelsea Newcastle United v Southampton Monday, February 25 2013 West Ham United v Tottenham Hotspur Saturday, February 23 2013 Spain - La Liga Barcelona v Sevilla Deportivo La Coruña v Real Madrid Mallorca v Getafe Real Zaragoza v Valencia Italy - Serie A Palermo v Genoa France - Ligue 1 Ajaccio v Lille Evian TG v Montpellier Nancy v Saint-Étienne Rennes v Sochaux Troyes v Bastia Valenciennes v Toulouse Germany - Bundesliga Augsburg v Hoffenheim Bayern München v Werder Bremen Hannover 96 v Hamburger SV Mainz 05 v Wolfsburg Schalke 04 v Fortuna Düsseldorf Stuttgartv Nürnberg Netherlands - Eredivisie Groningen v PEC Zwolle Heerenveen v Twente Heracles v Vitesse VVV v RKC Waalwijk Portugal - Liga bwin Porto v Rio Av...

Emmanuel Adebayor is ready to pile the pressure on his old club Arsenal - by keeping them out of the Champions League. The Togo striker helped Spurs to a Europa League last-16 tie against Inter Milan with an aggregate win over Lyon on Thursday. Now, he is determined to clinch Tottenham a top-four finish in the Premier League, depriving troubled arch-rivals of a place in European football's elite competition for the first time in 17 years. Arsene Wenger's men staged a valiant rally to overhaul their neighbours from White Hart Lane in the final months of last season, and the two clubs clash next week in a match that could prove pivotal to the current campaign. Adebayor said: "For me, it's a big opportunity to show people I was right to leave Arsenal, which means finishing on top of them. "If that's with Tottenham then it's even better. Everybody knows there is a big rivalry between Arsenal and Tottenham. "When I was at Arsenal, my job was to score ...

Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini swore in front of reporters when asked about speculation over his future. City are 12 points behind leaders Manchester United, and Malaga coach Manuel Pellegrini is the latest name to be linked with Mancini's job. After a brief pause and a laugh, Mancini gave a more thorough response and said: "I cannot continue to answer about this every week. "We've another two months. You'll know then but I can't continue with this." Mancini replaced Mark Hughes at the City helm in December 2009. The Italian, who has also managed Lazio and Inter Milan, won the FA Cup in 2011 and guided City to their first top flight title for 44 years last season. Mancini signed a new five-year contract in July but this term his team again failed to progress beyond the group stages in the Champions League. City remain in the FA Cup, with a home quarter-final to come against Barnsley on 9 March, but lost at home to Aston Villa in the third round o...

Ghana international John Paintsil is in police custody in his homeland after being accused of assaulting his wife. The former West Ham and Fulham defender was taken to the Legon station in the capital Accra on Friday. "The information available to us is that he stabbed his wife in the upper eyelid, so we had to quickly rescue the wife and send her to hospital," said Accra police spokesman Freeman Tettey. "For now, he is in our custody and we are in the investigation process." "We are holding him for causing (bodily) harm to his wife and for assaulting his neighbour," he told BBC Sport. "The wife scaled a wall to a neighbour's house for protection and immediately, John Paintsil also pursued her, came to the neighbour's house, gave him some slaps and threatened to shoot him. "That scared the gentleman who rushed to the police to lodge a complaint." Tettey was unclear on the health of Paintsil's wife, Richlove, who is in hospital re...

Arsene Wenger opened the door to his possible exit from Arsenal after he claimed, "You will miss me when I'm gone", as his latest press conference appearance continued to create explosive headlines. Wenger caused a storm with his confrontational approach towards the broadcast media section of his press briefing for Tuesday's Champions League game against Bayern Munich and continued to shoot from the hip when he sat down with the written media moments later. After losing his temper with reporters who asked whether reports of him signing a new contract to extend his historic reign as Arsenal boss were true, his response to questions from newspaper reporters gave the broadest hint yet he will not stay at the club beyond the end of his current deal, which runs out next year. "I am sure you would miss me when I am gone," said a sarcastic Wenger. "When we lose to Blackburn at home, I am not sure that is your first worry. "My contract ends in 2014. I wil...

All these top players are available for FREE in the summer, which ones would you like your club to sign? Full list: Here is a list of over 20 top players that will cost nothing in the summer! Miralem Sulejmani (Ajax) Andrey Arshavin (Arsenal) Richard Dunne (Aston Villa) Matthew Phillips (Blackpool) Stuart Holden (Bolton Wanderers) Frank Lampard (Chelsea) Florent Malouda (Chelsea) Sylvain Distin (Everton) Damien Duff (Fulham) Brede Hangeland (Fulham) Mladen Petric (Fulham) Joaquin (Malaga) Javier Saviola (Malaga) Kolo Toure (Manchester City) Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United) Danny Simpson (Newcastle United) Jason Puncheon (Southampton) Marco Estrada (Montpellier) Mathieu Flamini (Milan) Michael Owen (Stoke City) William Gallas (Tottenham Hotspur) Yossi Benayoun (Chelsea) Carlton Cole (West Ham United) Winston Reid (West Ham United) Maynor Figueroa (Wigan Atheltic) Walter Samuel (Inter Milan)

A summer target for Manchester City and Arsenal has signed a new deal with his current club. The man in question is AC Milan’s forward Stephan El Shaarawy who has signed a new deal with the San Siro club amidst the rumours that he could be set for a summer move. Manchester City and Arsenal will both now have to ascertain whether or not he has a release clause in his new contract and for how much before deciding if it’s worth their time pursuing this deal or not.

Nigeria National team coach Stephen Keshi withdraws his resignation letter after hours of Emergency with the Nations sports Minister and the team Captain Joseph Yobo. Keshi who tendered his resignation just 24hours after his team won the Nations Cup. He handed in his resignation letter after a fall out with the Nations FA.

Sunday Mba scored a magnificent winner as Nigeria won the Africa Cup of Nations for the third time. The dominant Super Eagles made the breakthrough just before half-time when Mba clipped the ball over Mohamed Koffi and then volleyed into the far corner. Burkina Faso almost equalised when Wilfried Sanou forced a fingertip save from goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama. Ahmed Musa slipped as he looked set to score and Victor Moses almost poked home as Nigeria eased to victory. It was a win that was fully deserved as Nigeria comfortably beat a tired-looking Burkina Faso, who struggled to make an impact in their maiden final appearance. And perhaps it was one game too many for the Burkinabe, who had failed to win a single game on foreign soil in the Nations Cup before this tournament but shocked many by going so far this time. However, credit must go to Nigeria and their coach Stephen Keshi, who captained the Super Eagles when they last won the title in 1994 and becomes only the second man to lift ...

Sir Alex Ferguson has slammed the Premier League and Sky Sports for undermining Manchester United’s Treble bid. Fergie claims United’s chances of beating Real Madrid on Wednesday in the first leg of a Champions League last 16 tie have been dented by the decision to schedule their televised game against Everton on Sunday and as a 4pm kick-off. Jose Mourinho’s Galacticos, in contrast, face Sevilla at the Bernabeu on Saturday night, and Ferguson claims that gives the Spanish champions a definite advantage going into the titanic Euro showdown. “There’s no fairness at all,” said the angry United boss. “It’s ridiculous to think that we play on the Sunday and Real Madrid play on the Saturday with that extra day’s rest. “We’re not giving our teams a chance to be successful in Europe. “It’s nothing to do with the FA, it’s the Premier League - they agreed a contract with TV and they’re in control. “Spain, Italy and Germany all help their clubs. France even more so - there they play on Friday nig...

Arsenal misfit Andre Santos is set to quit the Emirates – even if it leaves boss Arsene Wenger short of defensive options. Brazilian club Gremio have offered the 29-year-old left- back a return to his homeland on loan, after his Gunners career turned sour. Santos turned down a transfer- deadline move to Galatasaray, having previously played in Turkey for Fenerbahce. But he knows his days are numbered after Wenger splashed out £8million on Malaga’s Spain defender Nacho Monreal, rather than risk him as back-up for Kieran Gibbs, who has a thigh injury. The only stumbling block will be when Arsenal sanction any move. Gibbs is out for at least a month and Thomas Vermaelen – who can fill in at left-back – is sidelined by an ankle problem. However, Vermaelen hopes to be back next weekend after having an injection to speed up his recovery. Gremio president Fabio Koff tole Radio Gualba: "It has taken a lot of time to establish the conditions [of the deal]. "[Arsenal] is one of the big...

Premier League fixtures Saturday, February 09 2013 Chelsea v Wigan Athletic Norwich City v Fulham Southampton v Manchester City Stoke City v Reading Sunderland v Arsenal Swansea City v Queens Park Rangers Tottenham Hotspur v Newcastle United Sunday, February 10 2013 Aston Villa v West Ham United Manchester United v Everton Monday, February 11 2013 Liverpool v West Bromwich Albion Spain - La Liga fixtures Saturday, February 09 2013 Celta de Vigo v Valencia Deportivo La Coruña v Granada Levante v Málaga Mallorca v Osasuna Real Madrid v Sevilla Sunday, February 10 2013 Athletic Club v Espanyol Barcelona v Getafe Rayo Vallecano v Atlético Madrid Real Zaragoza v Real Sociedad Monday, February 11 2013 Real Betis v Real Valladolid Italy - Serie A fixtures Saturday, February 09 2013 Juventus v Fiorentina Lazio v Napoli Sunday, February 10 2013 Atalanta v Catania Bologna v Siena Cagliari v Milan Internazionale v Chievo Palermo v Pescara Parma v Genoa Sampdoria v Roma Udinese v...

Frank Lampard is hoping Chelsea will complete a dramatic U-turn by offering him a new deal following his Wembley heroics against Brazil. Lampard is ready to turn his back on a mega-money move abroad to keep his World Cup dream alive. And despite contract offers of £8million from LA Galaxy and one for £6m in China, he has stalled on signing a pre-contract with a foreign club because he wants to stay in England, with Chelsea now considering tabling a 12- month extension. Lampard’s camp insisted on Thursday that formal talks had NOT begun with the Blues. Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson is keen on taking him to Old Trafford when he becomes a free agent this summer. England midfielder Lampard, who won his 94th cap as a match- winning, goal-scoring sub against Brazil on Wednesday, was warned after the game by Three Lions boss Roy Hodgson that going to Major League Soccer with the Galaxy could jeopardise his international career and World Cup chances. Lampard says he can almost smell...

A Manchester City footballer could be jailed for up to five years for killing a brother and sister in a crash while speeding in his Mercedes. Courtney Meppen-Walter, 18, was driving at nearly twice the 30mph limit when he ploughed into a Nissan Micra as it pulled out of a side street. Driver Kulwant Singh, 32, and sister Ravel Kaur, 37, who was sat in the front, died in the impact. Widow Ravel’s sons, Amjid and Parveen, 16 and 17, had to be cut free from the back. They recovered from serious injuries but have been left orphaned. Police probed whether Meppen- Walter was racing a friend in Cheetham Hill, Manchester, but ruled it out. Yesterday the £1,000-a-week star, of nearby Blackley, admitted two counts of causing death by careless driving. Prosecutor Mark Kellet said: “The aggravating features are that there was more than one person killed and that he seriously injured more than one young person. “He was driving almost twice the speed limit in a built-up area, his driving falls below...

Arsene Wenger is ready to ditch his plans for a Spanish Villa - and go shopping in Italy this summer instead. Wenger has moved Fiorentina forward Stevan Jovetic to the top of his transfer hit-list after missing out on Barcelona's Spain striker David Villa in January. The Gunners tried on several occasions to land Villa, and the 31-year-old was understood to be very keen to move to the Premier League. But Wenger has now decided to move on from Villa, with Arsenal - who have big money to spend in the close-season - keen to look long-term. Montenegro international Jovetic has been on Arsenal's radar for some time. The 23-year-old was on a list of forwards under consideration in January which also included Newcastle's Demba Ba, who instead moved to Chelsea, and Adrian Lopez of Atletico Madrid. Wenger also admitted his admiration for Napoli goal- machine Edinson Cavani . They have been watching Jovetic and been impressed and will have money to spend this summer to try and rebui...

Peter Odemwingie has had peace talks with West Brom. His advisers met with club officials following the row over his hoped-for deadline day move to Queens Park Rangers fell through. It still seems unlikely that there will be any way back at the Baggies for Odemwingie after he drove to Loftus Road to try to force through a last-minute £5million move . There was a difference of opinion between player and club over whether he had been given permission to head to London and he was refused entry to the Rs' offices. The disgraced striker is at least hoping the club will allow him to leave and also harbours hopes they will consider him for the squad until he moves on. Crystal Palace boss Ian Holloway has admitted his Championship promotion chasers have had an approach from an agent to take him to Selhurst Park on an emergency loan. The Russian transfer window remains open so that could also allow the former Lokomotiv Moscow hitman Odemwingie an escape route.

Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi has signed a new contract that ties him to the club until 2018. The 25-year-old has put pen-to- paper on a deal that includes a €250m buyout clause and an after- tax, net salary of €11m – which if you include the Catalonian tax rate of 56 per cent for top earners, equates €36m or just under €600,000 per week. A statement on the club's official website read: “After Puyol and Xavi, this afternoon it has been Leo Messi's turn. “The Argentinian star, accompanied by his father, has signed an extension to his contract with the club until June 30, 2018. “The contract was signed in the Barcelona offices with the President Sandro Rosell, vice- President Josep Maria Bartomeu and sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta.”

Top-flight clubs will face a points deduction if they breach new spending controls , Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore has confirmed. The 20 club chairmen agreed to two significant controls - to limit players' wage bills from next season, and longer-term measures that will restrict the amount of losses clubs can make to £105m over three years. Clubs whose total wage bill is more than £52m will only be allowed to increase their wages by £4m per season for the next three years, though that cap does not cover extra money coming in from increases in commercial or matchday income. The effect of the financial controls should prevent hugely wealthy owners achieving the almost-overnigh t success of Chelsea and Manchester City. Any club breaching the rules will face tough sanctions - and Scudamore said they would be pushing for points deductions. Scudamore told reporters: "As all things in our rulebook you will subject to a disciplinary commission. The clubs understand t...

Burkina Faso have lodged an appeal to the Confederation of African Football against the red card picked up by Jonathan Pitriopa in their semi final triumph over Ghana on Wednesday night at Orange Africa Cup of Nations. The Rennes winger appeared to have been fouled by a Ghanaian defender in the box but was brandished a second yellow card for simulation and eventually sent off by Tunisian referee Slim Jedidi. Burkina Faso’s team director, Gualbert Kabore confirmed they have lodged the appeal to Caf and hope the player would play in next Sunday’s final against Nigeria. “We lodged an appeal immediately after the match(against Ghana). “Our FA’s secretary general sent a fax to Caf within two hours after the game according to the regulations. The referee’s decision was outrageous. We are confident of a favourable outcome and Pitroipa would be able to play the final,”Kabore said. “We will fight and do everything within the rules and regulations to bring justice.” Burkina Faso will face Nigeri...

Inquiry started 18 months ago. Initially involved Germany, Finland and Hungary, before being extended to Slovenia and Austria. Ended up looking at 680 matches in 30 countries. 13,000 emails were analysed. A total of 425 suspects were identified. 50 people have been arrested. 80 search warrants obtained. A number of criminal investigations now taking place. Analysis "These gambling rings are basically having to bribe people to play badly or to fix results and then they are wagering large amounts of money, often in Asia, on the outcome of games knowing that they can cheat the bookmakers because they have inside information. "It's easy to imagine how you can fix something when it is one person against another. When it's two teams of 11 it is more difficult and presumably you need collusion from more than one person. Referees can give penalties and things can be ruled offside when they are not, but you would imagine they need several people to be sure." How 'mat...

1) Title beckons for relentless United "We have a winning mentality," said Patrice Evra. "This is the Manchester United spirit, the strength of the boss. It is what he instils in us every year." All of which pretty much summed up the leaders' victory on the banks of the Thames . United have been more ruthless at times this season, running up cricket scores against cowed opponents, but this was the type of win that suggests the title is en route back to Old Trafford: a tight contest, marked by some fine saves from David de Gea and timely interventions by everyone from Rio Ferdinand to Rafael da Silva, and a winning goal plucked from the ether. Their forward line boasts such depth – far more so than either of the clubs closest to them – that they seem relentless. Indeed, if Manchester City or Chelsea boasted either a Robin van Persie or a Wayne Rooney, or even a Javier Hernández, the competition at the top might be far tighter. As it is, it would take an implosio...

English fixtures Saturday, February 02 2013 Premier League Arsenal v Stoke City Everton v Aston Villa Fulham v Manchester United Newcastle United v Chelsea Queens Park Rangers v Norwich City Reading v Sunderland West Ham United v Swansea City Wigan Athletic v Southampton Sunday, February 03 2013 Premier League Manchester City v Liverpool West Bromwich Albion v Tottenham Hotspur Spain - La Liga fixtures Saturday, February 02 2013 Espanyol v Levante Getafe v Deportivo La Coruña Granada v Real Madrid Osasuna v Celta de Vigo Sunday, February 03 2013 Atlético Madrid v Real Betis Málaga v Real Zaragoza Real Sociedad v Mallorca Sevilla v Rayo Vallecano Valencia v Barcelona Italy - Serie A fixtures Saturday, February 02 2013 Napoli v Catania Torino v Sampdoria Sunday, February 03 2013 Chievo v Juventus Fiorentina v Parma Genoa v Lazio Milan v Udinese Palermo v Atalanta Pescara v Bologna Siena v Internazionale France - Ligue 1 fixtures Saturday, February 02 2013 Bastia v Evian ...