Chelsea interested in £43m Antoine Griezmann.

Chelsea are monitoring Antoine Griezmann’s situation at Atletico Madrid because a buy-out clause of just £43m could leave the Spanish club helpless to stop him leaving.

The 24-year-old has had a record-breaking first season in Spain and coach Diego Simeone is adamant that the club do not sell their prize asset after just one season when he has a contract until to 2020.

But the buy-out clause blunder – set relatively low because no one at the club expected him to score 25 goals in his first season - has attracted attention from Chelsea and from Bayern Munich who see the player as a possible long-term replacement for Franck Ribery.

Insiders at Atletico Madrid have told Sportsmail that Griezmann has an excellent relationship with Simeone despite surprisingly being taken off in last week’s Champions League quarter-final defeat to Real Madrid by the Argentine coach.

And Simeone will urge the club to renegotiate his contract and increase his buy-out clause if that is what it takes to keep him. 

Atletico Madrid would risk the wrath not only of Simone but also of supporters who have taken to the young striker who this season has scored more goals in one season than any Frenchman in La Liga’s history.

Griezmann scored his 22nd league goal at the weekend beating the likes of Zinedine Zidane and Thierry Henry and the previous record held by Karim Benzema in the 2010-11 campaign.

Source:Dailymail.

FA Cup set to be renamed Emirates FA Cup.

The FA Cup, the oldest knockout football competition in the world, is set to be rebranded as the Emirates FA Cup in a new £30million sponsorship deal

In a move that will upset traditionalists, the FA are understood to have secured a three-year contract with Emirates Airlines.

The deal, due to be rubber-stamped by the FA board on Thursday, is believed to be worth at least £10million a year — but comes at a cost for lovers of the 144-year-old competition.

The new FA deal with Emirates will also allow for a further six subsidiary sponsors for the competition, with Budweiser, Nike and William Hill already signed up. And the ambition is for the whole FA Cup sponsorship portfolio to be worth £20m by 2018.

Source:Dailymail.

AC Milan reveal further details of ther new stadium.

Italian giants AC Milan have unveiled further details regarding their new stadium, which the club say would be one of the most innovative in the world.

Milan want to see the redevelopment of the Portello area of the city resulting in their own 48,000-seater stadium, and the club says the team behind the ideas have studied 70 different stadia acorss the world before producing these plans.

The Italian side explained that the new stadium will only have a minor impact on the aesthetics of the city with the building peaking at 30 metres in height, half the seize of the San Siro, with another 10 metres being underground.

Milan also claimed that state of the art sound-proof materials would result in minor noise disturbances throughout the city.

The club added that 'the project takes its inspiration from the English model: a stadium that can be reached by public transport and by doing so encouraging fans to be more environmentally aware.'

Milan also want the stadium to be built 'with particular attention towards families, with the latest comforts and the best in security.'

Source:Dailymail.

Giroud warns Chelsea that Arsenal will challenge for the Premier League next year .

Arsenal's slim hopes of Premier League glory were dashed after a 0-0 draw with Chelsea at the weekend but Olivier Giroud has warned Jose Mourinho's side they will be defending their trophy against a stronger Gunners outfit next season.

Sunday's goalless draw at The Emirates means Chelsea will secure the title if they follow up a potential victory against Leicester on Wednesday with three points at home to Crystal Palace on Sunday.

But Giroud believes Arsenal are improving at a rapid rate and will be able to contend for the league next year alongside their London rivals.

'If we keep our best players, this determination and team spirit, I'm sure we are going to join the championship race,' Giroud said. 

'Hopefully we will have less injuries and if we keep this group, with maybe one or two new players coming in, we can have a great season.' 

While the French striker is not expecting Chelsea to stumble as they hunt for two victories to win the league, he is still aiming for a strong end to the season with Arsenal and wants his team to win the FA Cup for the second consecutive year.

'We need to finish in second and win the FA Cup and then it will be a great season,' Giroud explained. 

If Arsene Wenger's side end the campaign as runners-up, it would be their highest finish since 2005.

Source:Dailymail.

Lukas Podolski wants to return to Arsenal after disappointing loan spell.

He may have struggled to get in their first team during the first half of this season, but Lukas Podolski still wants to return to Arsenal when his loan deal ends in the summer.

Podolski has been on loan at Inter Milan since January, but is failing to produce his best form, and is still without a goal in his 13 appearances for the Italian club.

And former Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini, now managing Inter, revealed that the 29-year-old wants to return to north London at the end of the season rather than staying in Milan.

Podolski failed to hold down a starting spot for the Gunners this season, and left the club to try and get more first team football. Since he left, Arsenal's form has drastically improved, briefly lifting them into the title race.

But Mancini has been forced to defend Podolski's poor form, and that of fellow January signing Xherdan Shaqiri, both of whom have come under pressure from fans at the San Siro.

Source:Dailymail.

Oscar available for Chelsea.

Oscar has recovered from a blow to the head and will be available for Chelsea's trip to Leicester, manager Jose Mourinho has confirmed.
The Brazilian attacker was withdrawn from Sunday's 0-0 draw at
Arsenal and taken straight to hospital with possible concussion
after a heavy collision with goalkeeper David Ospina.
Mourinho told Sky Sports after the game that they had been 'scared' for the 23-year-old and he would undergo a series of scans, but he was discharged from hospital and slept at home on Sunday night.
The Blues boss confirmed on Monday: "Oscar left the hospital and stayed at home last night. He should be here today. Everybody will travel to Leicester.
“I really don’t know if he will definitely play. His face was swelling and we did not want to go for any risk [in the second half against Arsenal].
“I know that for me the most important thing is that last night he
was not in hospital [overnight], he went to his house and slept at
home.” Mourinho could not confirm whether striker Diego Costa would be fit to return at the King Power Stadium on Wednesday night however. The 26-year-old has missed the last three matches with a recurring hamstring problem.
Mourinho said: “I have to think about if it deserves a gamble or we wait a few more days to be really sure.
“If he was playing without an injury history I would play him
tomorrow, but because he is a player with injury history I have to think about it."
Chelsea face a Leicester side on an upsurge in form, having lifted
themselves out of the bottom-three for the first since November
with a fourth straight victory on Saturday.
And Mourinho has admitted his options remain limited if Costa is not fit, insisting he will not call on the club's youth players, who contest the second leg of their FA Youth Cup final against
Manchester City, which they lead 3-1, on Monday night.
"Our squad isn't big enough to make many changes. We will leave the young players here to play the Youth Cup final," he said.

Source:Skysports.

Harry Kane named PFA Young Player of Year.

Tottenham striker Harry Kane has been named the PFA Young
Player of the Year.
Kane has enjoyed a superb breakthrough season at Spurs, scoring 30 goals in all competitions – more than any other player in English football this term – at only 21 years of age.
He has gone from strength to strength in Mauricio Pochettino’s
first season in charge at Tottenham, scoring his first Premier
League goal against Aston Villa on November 2 and his 20th just
23 games later against Newcastle on April 19.
His form, which has included a first Premier League hat-trick
against Leicester, earned him a first senior England call up and he scored on his international debut against Lithuania on March 27.
Kane, who came through Tottenham’s youth ranks and was
farmed out for loan stints at Leyton Orient, Millwall, Norwich and Leicester to gain first-team experience, was also named in the PFA Premier League Team of the Year.
"It is amazing. It is a very proud moment for myself and my family– hopefully the first of many to come," Kane said of his award which he picked up during a ceremony at the Grosvenor Hotel in London.
"I have got to keep working hard, but to be recognised by your
fellow players is something special and it is a night I won’t forget.
"It is incredible, an incredible feeling." Asked to sum up his season in one word, Kane went for: "Unreal."

Source:Skysports.

Hazard named PFA player of the year.

Chelsea midfielder Eden Hazard has been named the PFA Player of the Year.
Hazard, 24 and last season’s Young Player of the Year, has scored
18 goals in 47 games for the Blues this season, inspiring the
current league leaders to the brink of a first Premier League title
since 2010.
Having impressed at the World Cup with Belgium, Hazard started the season strongly and then scored four vital goals in a bullish run of form through December.
More recently he has scored five goals in eight games, including
the winner in a thrilling 1-0 victory over Manchester United on April 18.
Hazard was rewarded for his sterling performances with the top
individual award of the night at the PFA's awards ceremony at the Grosvenor Hotel in London.
He said: "I'm very happy. One day I want to be the best and what I did this season is play very well, Chelsea played very well.
"I don't know if I deserve to win but it is good for me. It is good, it
is better to be voted by the players - they know everything about
football. This is good. I'm very happy.
"We are almost champions, maybe this is the key. Last season we
finished third and this season we have an opportunity to win the
league. This has changed from last season.
"I continue like I did last season - I try to be the same. I try to
score more goals than last season. Personally I have played a
good season, I have been there in the big games and I scored a lot
of important goals, this is why I'm better this season.
"I started the season not to be the PFA Player of the Year but it
was in my head - I want to be the best and I hope one day I can
win a lot of trophies.
"I just want to say thank you to the players who voted for me - it is always good to have an individual trophy but the most important thing is to win the league.
"I hope I can win a lot of trophies again - the most important is to
win the league, without my team-mates I would not be here.
"Jose (Mourinho) lets me play, we talk sometimes together and
when I'm on the pitch I know what I have to do, this is most
important."

Source:Skysports.

Bayern Munich secure 25th Bundesliga title.

Bayern Munich were crowned Bundesliga champions for the third year running without even kicking a ball on Sunday as their nearest rivals Wolfsburg went down to a 1-0 defeat at Borussia Monchengladbach.

Needing to win to keep the title race alive - at least mathematically - for another week, Wolfsburg rarely looked like succeeding as they were second best at the Borussia Park Stadion.

They resisted until the last minute of the game, though, when Max Kruse struck to earn the Foals a win which moves them up to third and secures their place in the Champions League next season. 

The result means Bayern, who beat Hertha Berlin 1-0 on Saturday to go 15 points clear, have taken the title for a record 25th time, while Pep Guardiola has his 19th major honour as a coach and fifth league title. Bayern have secured the title with four matches to spare.

However, the Champions League semi-finalists will have to wait to celebrate it with their fans as they travel to Bayer Leverkusen next week before hosting Augsburg on May 9th.

'Retaining the title is a magnificent achievement. All credit to the coach and the team,' Bayern president Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said on the club's website.

'They've been fantastic throughout, in a season following a World Cup where we had a host of players in action.'

Source:Dailymail.

Gerrard and Lampard given PFA Merit Award.

Former England midfielders Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard
were reunited as they shared the PFA Merit award on Sunday.
The veteran pair will leave the Premier League for Major League
Soccer in the summer, having left their mark on English football
since the turn of the century.
The midfield maestros were mainstays of England's much-
heralded 'golden generation' and collected 220 caps between them.

Jose Mourinho hits out at Arsenal after 'boring' criticism.

Jose Mourinho has launched a fresh verbal attack on Arsenal, branding their 11 year wait for the Premier League title as 'boring'.

Led by skipper John Terry - whose performance was described as his best ever by Mourinho - the Blues produced a defensive master class in a goalless draw at the Emirates Stadium to take a step closer to the championship.

Frustrated at what they perceived as the visitors' lack of attacking intent, home supporters chanted: 'Boring, boring Chelsea' throughout Sunday's clash.

Their views were shared by Arsene Wenger, who said Chelsea 'came to defend' after the final whistle.

But Mourinho, who started the game without a recognised centre-forward, hit back, insisting Arsenal's 11 years without winning the league is truly mundane.

'Boring, I think, is 10 years without a title. That's very boring,' said the Portuguese.

'You support the club and you're waiting, waiting, waiting for so many years without a Premier League title, so that's very boring.

'But maybe they weren't singing to us. Maybe, when you want to win a game and you're at home and you take your No 9 [Olivier Giroud] off, maybe the home fans want to see Danny Welbeck and Giroud up front.

'The boring team is the second team with most goals in the Premier League, the best goal difference. Only Manchester City have scored more goals than us.

'If you tell the truth, people will fall in love with it. But you have to tell the truth. If you say the truth, you will walk in the truth and people will blow kisses at you.'

'So I think we scored a lot of goals and, in a period where we don't have Diego Costa or Loic Remy and have only one striker, we need to work in a way where he can help ourselves with all the matches we are having.

'We changed a bit our dynamic and we are not scoring so many goals as before.

Mourinho, whose side need five points to secure the title, hasn't needed much encouragement in criticising the Gunners since arriving in England in 2004.

He labelled Arsene Wenger a 'voyeur' in 2005, before branding the Frenchman a 'specialist in failure' last season.

Source:Dailymail.

ARSENAL vs CHELSEA starting line up.

Chelsea XI: Courtois, Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry (c), Azpilicueta,
Matic, Fabregas, Ramires, Oscar, Willian, Hazard.

Subs: Cech, Filipe Luis, Zouma, Mikel, Loftus-Cheek,
Cuadrado, Drogba.


Arsenal XI: Ospina, Bellerin, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Monreal,
Coquelin, Cazorla, Ramsey, Ozil, Alexis, Giroud.

Subs: Szczesny, Debuchy, Gibbs, Wilshere, Walcott,
Flamini, Welbeck.

Kick off: 4:00 pm.

Everton vs Manchester United starting line up.

• Everton starting XI: Howard, Baines, Stones, Jagielka, Coleman, Barry, McCarthy, Osman, Barkley, Lennon, Lukaku
• Everton subs: Joel, Kone, Mirallas, Naismith, Besic, Garbutt, Alcaraz .
• Manchester United starting XI: De Gea, Valencia, Smalling, McNair, Shaw, Blind, Herrera, Mata, Fellaini, Young, Rooney 
• Man Utd subs: Valdes, Di Maria, Falcao, Januzaj, Van Persie, Blackett, Pereira 

Kick off:1:30 pm.

PFA Premier League Team of the Year announced.

Harry Kane, David de Gea, Eden Hazard were among those named as the Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) announced their 2014-2015 Premier League Team of the Year on Sunday.

Source:Dailymail.

Hazard going nowhere.

Eden Hazard sees his long-term future at Chelsea and says he
wants to bring the Champions League trophy back to Stamford
Bridge.
Speaking exclusively to Sky Sports in his first English interview, the Belgium star also revealed that he feels his game has improved under Jose Mourinho as he targets being the best player in the world.
Hazard has lit up the Premier League this season, leading to links
with Real Madrid as speculation mounts that Zinedine Zidane
could take over as manager in the summer.
But the former Lille winger insists he is enjoying life in London and isn’t angling after a move.
"Why not?" Hazard - speaking ahead of the Super Sunday
showdown between Arsenal and Chelsea - said when asked if saw his long-term future at the Bridge. "I am happy here.
"I play with big players and the most important thing is I want to
win trophies and with this club, it is possible."
One trophy that Hazard has his eyes on is the Champions League
and he says he is determined to play a key role in returning it to the Blues' boardroom.
"Champions League is difficult," he added. "We play against a big
team, but one day I hope I can win this trophy as it is the best. All
the big players have won the Champions League and I hope I can
bring, like Didier [Drogba] did, the Champions League to Stamford Bridge."
Hazard is hotly tipped to be crowned PFA Player of the Year on
Sunday, but he says that is only of minor interest in comparison to winning the league. However, he is keen to better Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo and be crowned the best player in the world.
"Messi, Ronaldo they are on another planet, but yeah why not?" he said. "I try to be one of the best, so if I can be why not?
"If I train every day, if I take pleasure every day, why not? I can
reach another level.
"(I'm) still young, but at 24 Messi had won two Ballon D'Or awards already. But I am still young and I can improve more."
Mourinho returned to Stamford Bridge as manager a year after
Hazard's arrival and the Belgian has enjoyed working with the 52-year-old.
"I train well with him, we work well," he revealed. "But the most
important thing for me is he let my play, he just asked me to be the best and he doesn’t give me pressure. So for the player we are free and this is good.
"Everybody knows I like to have the ball at my feet, but without the ball I try to give everything offensively, defensively. This is my job.
But for me, the most important thing is to create something, to
score for the team or create an assist."

Source:Skysports.

Watford seal EPL promotion.

Watford won promotion to the Premier League with a game to
spare as later results went their way following a 2-0 win at
Brighton in the early kick-off.
Middlesbrough slumped to a 4-3 defeat at Fulham and Norwich
could only draw 1-1 at Rotherham, sealing Watford's return to the
top flight after an eight-year absence.
The Hornets, who now boast five successive wins, ground out a
workmanlike success before a crowd of 28,841 at the Amex
Stadium.

Southampton vs Tottenham starting line up.

Southampton XI: Kelvin Davis, Clyne, Fonte, Yoshida, Bertrand, Schneiderlin, Alderweireld, Ward-Prowse, Mane, Steven Davis, Pelle.

Subs: Gardos, Long, Tadic, Elia, Gazzaniga, Reed, Targett

Tottenham Hotspur XI: Lloris, Dier, Fazio, Vertonghen, Davies, Mason, Bentaleb, Lamela, Eriksen, Chadli, Kane

Subs: Chiriches, Soldado, Yedlin, Vorm, Townsend, Dembele, Stambouli.

Kick off: 12:45 pm.

Jose hits back at Wenger.

Jose Mourinho has retaliated after Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger
questioned Chelsea's defensive approach.
Mourinho's side lead Arsenal by 10 points and could take a
significant step to winning the Premier League for the first time in five years with victory in the Super Sunday match at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers said defensive coaching was not
difficult after Chelsea's snatch-and-grab win at Anfield last season and this week Wenger said: "It is easy to defend."
Mourinho responded: "It's not easy. If it was easy, you wouldn't
lose 3-1 at home to Monaco. If he defends well he draws 0-0
against Monaco and wins in Monte Carlo. It's not easy to prepare
a team to defend."
Mourinho refused to budge from his view that Arsenal, Manchester United and Manchester City are in contention for the title.
He said: "I don't care about other things. We are the best team
since day one and we want to be the best team until the last day.
But, mathematically, they can still be champions. It matters what I feel, not what people feel, think or say," he said.
The change from the free-flowing attacking philosophy which had many pundits purring earlier in the season was prompted by injuries and suspensions to key personnel, including Diego Costa,Cesc Fabregas and Nemanja Matic.
Mourinho said: "We lost progressively the balance of our team.
When you lose crucial pieces, the team loses certain qualities. The switch in style was just a consequence of things.
"I hope to start next season the same way we started this season.
This is the way we want to play, this is the way we played during
the season, and the team we enjoy more.
"But it's (also) very enjoyable to deal with a difficult moment, to
deal in a strategic way. When you are in the sea and have no boat, you need something to survive. A raft. In football, team spirit and team ethics and strategy is this.
"If we manage to win the Premier League, we did everything right.
Looking at where Chelsea were in the last four or five years, in
terms of the Premier League, it means a lot. I think it's a great
achievement for us."

Source:Skysports.

Manchester United offer David de Gea £200,000-a-week to try and keep him at Old Trafford.

Manchester United have offered to make David de Gea the world’s best-paid goalkeeper on £200,000-a-week to keep him at Old Trafford.

Fears are growing at United that De Gea will return to Spain and join Real Madrid on a free transfer when his contract runs out next summer.

So far there has been no breakthrough in negotiations and manager Louis Van Gaal admitted yesterday that the club have made De Gea a huge offer to persuade him to stay.

‘We have offered him a lot of money,’ said Van Gaal. ‘It takes a long time now. So it can always happen. I want him to stay but I am not the boss. The player is the boss, he can say yes or no. You will have to ask David De Gea not me. He has to sign.’

United’s offer of £180,000-a-week plus bonuses would eclipse the salaries of Manchester City’s England international Joe Hart, Gianluigi Buffon at Juventus, Bayern Munich keeper Manuel Neuer and Real Madrid’s Iker Casillas.

Source:Dailymail.

Manchester United close in on £20.5million deal to sign Germany international.

Manchester United have identified Borussia Dortmund midfielder Ilkay Gundogan as the leading contender to fill Michael Carrick's midfield role.

United are eyeing a £20.5million deal for the central midfielder, and reports emanating from Germany on Friday indicated a deal is now close - though those claims were later denied.

United will seek to sign Carrick's successor this summer as part of another huge spending frenzy.

Dortmund's ball-playing midfielder Gundogan has been watched extensively by United and has emerged as their primary target.

Van Gaal has an intrinsic knowledge of the Bundesliga and believes the 24-year-old has the ability to take over from Carrick on a long-term basis.

Carrick, who recently signed a new 12 month extension, will continue to be part of Van Gaal's plans next season - but the club are planning for life without him.

Van Gaal has been hugely impressed with Carrick's contribution at Old Trafford this season.

The England international's passing range and ability to dictate the pace of a match has been a key feature for United this season.

But at the age of 33, the Dutchman knows the midfielder is in the twilight of his career, while the amount of time Carrick has spent injured this season is also a worry. 

Source:Dailymail.

Manchester United had secret meeting with Memphis Depay.

Memphis Depay had a secret meeting with Manchester United on Wednesday as the club look to tie up a move for the PSV Eindhoven winger.

Depay, 21, jetted to England with representatives including his agent Kees Ploegsma for a summit with a United delegation led by manager Louis van Gaal.

United are leading the hunt for the pacy Holland international but face opposition from Paris Saint- Germain while Liverpool have also expressed an interest.

Van gall refused to squash the reports in his weekly media briefing. 

When asked about the Depay link, Van Gaal said: 'I don’t discuss it with the media, you know my answer.

'I have a lot of relationships with players. I cannot buy all the players I've coached already.'

Van Gaal, who worked with Depay at the World Cup, made inquiries over the player's availability last summer but decided to keep track of his progress rather than make a move.

That could prove to be a costly decision, with the Dutch club looking for around £25m for his services after he scored 20 goals in 28 games.

PSV coach Phillip Cocu was unaware of the meeting when asked on Friday.

He said: 'Van Gaal is a very good coach with whom I have worked and he was always very pleasant and the Premier League is a great league. 

'I have contact with Memphis on a daily basis about many things, but not on a specific club or league.'

United hold the upper hand in the hunt for Depay thanks to Van Gaal, who worked with the player during his stint in charge of Holland.

PSV appear to be resigned to losing their star man this summer. 

Source:Dailymail.

Cesc Fabregas chose Chelsea over Arsenal for trophies, says Jose Mourinho.

Jose Mourinho claimed Cesc Fabregas chose Chelsea above Arsenal because of the promise of winning trophies.

Fabregas returned to London from Barcelona last year, opting for Stamford Bridge above the Emirates Stadium, where he was Arsene Wenger's captain.

He will return to play at Arsenal for the first time since he left with Chelsea closing in on the Barclays Premier League title.

'I know why he chose Chelsea,' Mourinho said. 'I don't know why he didn't choose Arsenal. I only know what we promised him and what he promised us. 

'I can't talk about why he left Arsenal, why he didn't go back. I don't know if it was his decision or the manager's decision. We promised him a team built in the style to suit his play. 

'Normally good projects go in hand with titles and he was looking for that.'

Fabregas is sure to face a red-hot reception at his former stomping ground, but Mourinho believes there is no reason why the former Gunners skipper shouldn't face the same adulation that greeted Frank Lampard at Stamford Bridge earlier this year.

Mourinho said: 'I'm not worried about that. Frank Lampard played at Stamford Bridge without any problem and with a good reception. 

'I don't see a reason for Fabregas not to have the same at the Emirates. But he is more than ready if he has a bad reaction. He played at Barcelona in an Arsenal shirt.' 

Wenger has not beaten a team managed by Mourinho in 12 meetings and the Portuguese appeared to take a swipe at the Frenchman by claiming he does not regard him as a significant rival.

'For me he's not my rival. I don't feel that. He's the manager of a big club in the same city where I work and live. 

'It's a big club with the same objectives. Because of that always comes a bit of rivalry. But for me no different when I was Inter manager or at Real with Atletico manager or Porto with Benfica managers.

'For me achievement is win tomorrow. Not the other 12 matches we played against Arsenal. I don't look to numbers. I don't look at what I did against this manager or that club. It's not a problem for me. 

'I don't think the players even know. Unless they watched TV or read every paper. I don't think players look to these details. Each match has no relation to the previous one. I don't think they care.'

Source:Dailymail.

Jose to decide on Costa’s fitness.

Jose Mourinho says he make a decision on Diego Costa tomorrow
ahead of his side's clash with Arsenal.
Costa will be available for his side's Premier League clash on
Wednesday, even if he is not fit on Sunday.
The Chelsea boss revealed Didier Drogba is fit but Loic Remy
remains a doubt, and said everyone else is fit for the Premier
League title clash.
Dominic Solanke did not play for the Under-21s yesterday and
Mourinho added he will be called upon if needed.
Cesc Fabregas returns to face his former side on Sunday. His
manager is not expecting there to be any problems, and has no
worries about his midfielder dealing with a possible bad reception.
Mourinho is not focussing upon his impressive record against
Arsene Wenger and says it will be an achievement to win at the
Emirates.
He hailed the strength of Arsenal's squad but is confident his team will do enough to win.
The 52-year-old was adamant the Blues have not won anything yet and knows every club has pushed Chelsea hard in recent weeks.
Mourinho said: "Good projects end with titles. Cesc was looking for that."

Source:Skysports.

Champions League semi-final draw.

Champions League semi-final draw:

Barcelona v Bayern Munich

Juventus v Real Madrid

Ties to be played may 5/6 and May 12/13.

PFA to honour Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard for contribution to English football.

Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard will be awarded with prestigious special merit awards by the PFA on Sunday as the curtain falls on their illustrious Premier League careers.

The footballers' union will pay tribute to the duo's outstanding contribution to English football at their annual awards ceremony this weekend.

The pair's careers in England are drawing to a close with Gerrard and Lampard leaving for America at the end of the season.

Liverpool captain Gerrard is joining LA Galaxy, while Lampard will meet up with new MLS franchise New York City FC.

And the PFA will acknowledge their exceptional careers on the same night they reveal the player and young player of the season.

The pair have won 19 major trophies between them - including two Champions League and two UEFA Cup/Europa League victories.

A rarity in modern day football, Gerrard and Lampard clinched those titles with one club, Liverpool and Chelsea, respectively - though the latter has also played for West Ham and Manchester City.

Both players amassed a total of 220 England appearances, many of them playing together in central midfield. 

Source:Dailymail.

Bayern target Ivanovic.

Bayern Munich have an interest in Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic but are unlikely to make a move until January.

The 31-year-old Serbia captain has yet to open talks over a new contract at Chelsea and his current deal runs out in 2016. 

Bayern like Ivanovic but don't expect Chelsea to sell yet they know he will be free to talk to foreign clubs from January. 

Qatar launch stunning Al Rayyan stadium design for World Cup 2022.

Qatar have unveiled the design for their fifth World Cup stadium, a 40,000-seater ground built in 'the gateway to the desert' and featuring air conditioning for the comfort of players and fans.

The Al Rayyan Stadium is inspired by sand dunes and its design has been produced by UK-based architecture firms Ramboll and Pattern.

Fans in the stands will sit in a comfortable 24-28 degrees Celsius, while paths and walkways leading to the stadium will also be cooled.

Al Rayyan will hold matches up to the quarter-final stage of the 2022 tournament and after the World Cup its capacity will be almost halved to 21,000 seats, with the removable upper tier sent to developing nations.

The new stadium, set to be completed in the early months of 2019, now has a more traditional look than the previously-mooted design which featured a huge screen referred to as a 'digital skin'.

Hassan Al Thawadi, Secretary General of the Supreme Committee, said: 'Unveiling the design of Al Rayyan stadium is another important step forward in our preparations to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

'We will continue to work tirelessly as our vision for the tournament takes shape on the ground.

'As one of the most successful and widely-supported clubs in Qatar, Al Rayyan has always played an important part in our hosting plans.

'We are very confident that this impressively designed stadium and precinct will become a landmark for the Al Rayyan area and benefit the entire community.'

Qatar's original World Cup bid featured 12 stadiums, but that figure is expected to be dropped to the minimum requirement of eight with a final decision to be made by FIFA this year.

Plans for four other stadiums have been revealed so far: in Al Khor, Al Wakrah, the Aspire Zone and Qatar Foundation. 

Source:Dailymail.

Wenger hoping to stop Jose's record.

Arsene Wenger says Arsenal's poor recent run against Jose
Mourinho's Chelsea will have little bearing on this weekend's Super Sunday clash.
Chelsea travel to the Emirates 10 points clear of Arsenal and, with just six games left in the season, are close to securing their first title since 2010.
Wenger is yet to beat Mourinho in 12 attempts but the Frenchman is confident of changing that following Arsenal’s excellent recent run of form that has yielded eight straight league wins.
Asked about poor results against Mourinho in past seasons, and
this weekend’s match in general, Wenger said: “I am not a great
believer in history. We have not always lost in 12 attempts and a
few times have been close to beating them.
“But, having said that, the result on Sunday will be just down to the performance on the day.
“We’re on a good run and from a good run of form you get good
belief. We have a strong solidarity too.
“We know we have passed many tests. We’ve beaten Manchester
City away from home and we have another test on Sunday that we want to pass.
“What we require is to nullify Chelsea’s strengths. If you look at
the numbers they have been very efficient on counter-attacks, very efficient on set-pieces.”
And Wenger believes Chelsea’s Eden Hazard and his own Alexis
Sanchez have been the leading stars of the 2014/15 season.
He went on: "It's either Alexis Sanchez or Eden Hazard for Player
of the Year. Alexis has come into English football and has adapted very well.
"It's his first season so he will compete very closely with Hazard
for Player of the Year.
"Everybody would agree that he's (Hazard) had a great season.
He's found maturity that he didn't have before."
And if Arsenal do reduce the gap on leaders Chelsea to seven
points, can the Gunners still win the title?
Wenger said: “Mathematically possible. But Chelsea have the
championship in their hands but what we can do is get closer to
them.
“We have an opportunity to do that at home and we want to take it. We want to strengthen our position in second because it’s far from being done.”

Source:Skysports.