Arsenal vs Aston Villa FA Cup Starting line up.

Arsenal XI: Szczesny, Bellerin, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Monreal, Coquelin, Cazorla, Ramsey, Ozil, Sanchez, Walcott.

Subs: Gibbs, Gabriel, Wilshere, Giroud, Ospina, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Flamini.

Aston Villa XI: Given, Hutton, Okore, Vlaar, Richardson, Cleverley, Westwood, Delph, N'Zogbia, Benteke, Grealish.

Subs: Guzan, Baker, Bacuna, Sinclair, Agbonlahor, Cole, Sanchez.

Kick off: 5:30 pm.

Rio Ferdinand announces his retirement from football.

Former Manchester United and England defender Rio Ferdinand has announced his retirement from football following his release from Queens Park Rangers.

Ferdinand's decision to hang up his boots comes in the wake of his wife's sudden death at the beginning of May.

The 36-year-old, who announced his decision live on BT Sport, recently took to Twitter to thank those who wished him well after the passing of cancer sufferer Rebecca, who he has three children with.

Ferdinand, who made his senior debut at West Ham in May 1996, won six Barclays Premier League titles during his time at Manchester United.

Manchester United forked out £30million on Ferdinand in July 2002 to make him the most expensive British footballer in history at the time of his move from Leeds United.

The centre back struck up a formidable partnership with Nemanja Vidic under Sir Alex Ferguson during his peak years at Old Trafford.

Ferdinand captained Manchester United to a Champions League final win against Chelsea in 2008 and he had the honour of wearing the armband for his country.

He was capped 81 times by the England national team before his retirement from international football in May 2013. 

Queens Park Rangers signed Ferdinand on a free transfer last summer but he was unable to replicate the form he had previously shown at Manchester United before being hit with the tragic passing of his wife.  

Source:Dailymail.

FA Cup will be renamed the Emirates FA Cup from next season.

The FA Cup will be rebranded as The Emirates FA Cup after the Football Association announced a three-year sponsorship deal with Emirates Airline.

On the day of the FA Cup final, the Football Association announced Dubai-based Emirates had signed a deal to sponsor the oldest knock-out competition in football until 2018.

From next season the FA Cup will be known as The Emirates Cup.

The FA had been looking for a new sponsor for the FA Cup since Budweiser ended its three-year association with the 144-year-old tournament last year.

FA chairman Greg Dyke said: 'Emirates' commitment to our sport is evident and securing such an iconic and forward-thinking lead partner for the FA Cup is great news for us, the fans and for the whole game.

'The partnership will help take the tournament to new audiences, inspire interest in football from across the globe and allow us to continue our investment into the game at all levels.'

Source:Dailymail.

Radamel Falcao offered Chelsea lifeline.

Chelsea opened talks with Radamel Falcao and his representatives on Friday over the possibility of taking the Colombia striker to Stamford Bridge.

Falcao flopped during his season on loan at Manchester United from Monaco, scoring just four goals in 29 appearances before Louis van Gaal confirmed last weekend that he has decided not to go ahead with a permanent deal worth £44million.

The 29-year-old’s brief spell at Old Trafford is still believed to have cost United £40m, comprising his £285,000-a-week wages and a £6m loan fee, although it’s understood that Falcao is prepared to accept a significant pay cut to secure his next move. 

His agent Jorge Mendes has been offering the former Porto and Atletico Madrid striker around Europe and is said to be increasingly confident that a deal can be done with Chelsea.

Mendes is also Jose Mourinho’s agent and has worked closely in the past with those at Stamford Bridge, including Marina Granovskaia, who is the director responsible for all transfers.

An initial meeting took place which included representatives from Monaco, who are keen to move Falcao off their wage bill.

Chelsea are in the market for a striker after veteran Didier Drogba confirmed his decision to leave the club and continue his career elsewhere.

The Premier League champions need back-up for Diego Costa, who has missed a number of games this season due to his persistent hamstring problems, and Falcao’s camp are adamant that he can return to top form after the knee injury that ruled him out of the World Cup last summer.

Source:Dailymail.

Sepp Blatter Wins FIFA Presidential Election.

The corruption crisis engulfing FIFA failed to topple Sepp Blatter on Friday as he was elected president for a fifth term.

The Swiss will continue to lead world football's governing body into his eighties after winning by a majority of 133 to 73 in the first round of the vote at the FIFA Congress in Zurich.

Blatter was just seven short of a majority and his opponent, Prince Ali bin al-Hussein decided to withdraw before the second round.  

Despite 73 member associations throwing their support behind Blatter's sole opponent, there will be no change at the top of the embattled organisation.

It means Blatter, 79, will remain at the helm as authorities in the United States lead an investigation into endemic racketeering, bribery and money laundering involving leading FIFA officials going back decades.

Source:Dailymail.

Arsenal players train as they prepare for FA Cup final.

Arsenal have been putting together their final plans as they prepare for their final game of the season against Aston Villa in the FA Cup final on Saturday.

Manager Arsene Wenger is left with a few key decisions still to make as he watched his squad train at their London Colney base in the rain on Friday morning.

Among those in action, Olivier Giroud is likely to spearhead the Gunners attack, despite Theo Walcott's superb hat-trick against West Brom last week. While Jack Wilshere is also set to start from the bench, despite his superb goal in their final Premier League game. 

One certain starter, Aaron Ramsey, who scored the winning goal as they beat Hull 3-2 in last season's final, is hopeful they can continue their run of silverware. 

'Hopefully we can win the FA Cup this year,' he said. 'Then that'll be two things in two years so hopefully we can just keep that run of winning things going.'

'Back-to-back finals are not an easy thing to achieve. In the second half of the season we have shown the form that we need throughout the season to win this league.

'We certainly showed that we are capable of going on these big runs and not losing too many games.

'If we can just show that consistency throughout the season then we'll be challenging for the Premier League, and that's what we'll be looking to do next year.' 

Arsenal will be playing in a record 19th FA Cup final on Saturday, one more than Manchester United, while victory will mean they also clinch their 12th Cup triumph, one more than United's 11.

Source:Dailymail.

Diego Costa hurt during Chelsea training in Bangkok.

Diego Costa's injury curse appeared to strike again as the 21-goal Chelsea striker was escorted off during training in Bangkok after a strong challenge from John Obi Mikel.

Costa fired his new club to the Barclays Premier League title after his £32million move from Atletico Madrid last summer, but his impact towards the end of the season was somewhat stunted by injury problems.

And having only returned to first-team action less than a fortnight ago, he has suffered another problem on the club's post-season tour ahead of their game against Thailand All-Stars on Saturday.

Nigerian midfielder Mikel apologised to Costa after his tackle brought the Spain international down at the Rajamangala Stadium on Friday, but the victim limped away without his boot and had to be escorted from the pitch.

Manager Jose Mourinho has spoken about his concerns for Costa's fitness for much of the season but it had been hoped this post-season period would allow him to play regularly and recover.

Fortunately, Costa was OK to sign autographs for hundreds of young fans waiting for the players at the end of the session alongside John Terry and other members of the first-team squad.

Source:Dailymail.

Szczesny slams dad.

Wojciech Szczesny has interrupted his FA Cup final preparations to distance himself from his father's latest "idiotic comments".
Szczesny's dad Maciej has been a vocal critic of Arsene Wenger in the past and this week renewed his attack on the Arsenal
manager.
His son, meanwhile, is waiting to discover if his recent role as the club's FA Cup goalkeeper will extend to this weekend's Wembley showdown with Aston Villa.
Wenger last season stuck with cup 'keeper Lukasz Fabianski at
Szczesny's expense, but the Frenchman said on Wednesday he
had yet to decide his team for the final.
In a message on his official Facebook page Szczesny said: "Really
shouldn't be dealing with this one day before the cup final but my father leaves me no choice.
"I have not spoken to him in more than two years and just like
everybody else I have had enough of his idiotic comments about
the football club and the manager I owe so much to!
"Therefore please do not consider his comments as my shared
view. Thank You for your understanding!"

Source:Skysports.

Gary Cahill becomes fastest player in Premier League history to win every major trophy.

In just over three years since his £7million move from Bolton, Chelsea defender Gary Cahill has won every possible honour.

The 29-year-old is the first player to earn a clean sweep in such a short space of time having won the FA Cup and Champions League in 2012, the Europa League in 2013, before a League Cup and Premier League double this year.

It's an impressive rate for a player who made such a huge step from fighting a relegation battle with Bolton in 2011 to becoming a key figure in Chelsea's historic Champions League run in 2012 which culminated in Cahill defending for his life with a hamstring injury against Bayern Munich.

And while John Terry has rightfully earned the plaudits for steering his side to a first Premier League title in five years, Cahill has worked tirelessly alongside the Blues captain and been a crucial quarter of Jose Mourinho's defence.

The England vice captain has played under four different managers during his three years in west London and has featured heavily for each of them from Andre Villas-Boas to Mourinho. 

Cahill showed his strength of character earlier in the season after being dropped for crucial games following Chelsea's shock 4-2 FA Cup defeat by Bradford City in January.

Cahill told the club's official website: ‘I never imagined it but I dreamed about it and hoped it would be possible.

'I don’t think you sit there as a young boy thinking you want a full set of medals, you just want to achieve something.

‘In football you go from hurdle to hurdle, there’s always something to motivate you, always something you want to get. I’ve been here three-and-a-half years and to do it so quickly is amazing.’

In the Premier League era, only former Chelsea duo Paulo Ferreira and Ricardo Carvalho rival the speed at which Cahill has collected medals in the Premier League era.

Source:Dailymail.

Chelsea are given traditional Thai welcome in Bangkok.

Jose Mourinho has set his sights on European glory next season after arriving in Bangkok ahead of Chelsea's friendly against Thailand All-Stars.

The Blues were given a traditional Thai welcome on Thursday at Don Muang International Airport as they touched down in the Far East ahead of their friendly on Saturday.

And upon arrival, Mourinho said he wants a better run in Europe next season after being knocked out of this season's Champions League by Paris Saint-Germain at the last-16 stage. 

'We are going to try next season to do better than this season in European football,' the Chelsea boss said after arriving in Bangkok.

Chelsea will take on the Thailand All-Stars on Saturday after a 12-hour flight to the Far East before heading down under for a game against Sydney FC on Tuesday.

Mourinho also reflected on Chelsea's Premier League success this season but admitted his side must improve to stay at the top of the tree next year.

The Portuguese manager said: 'It's very difficult to win the Premier League back-to-back. All the big clubs are not happy and will try to react. We are the team everybody wants to beat. 

'Nobody is better than us. We are the best team in the country. Other teams are going to improve and invest and not accept Chelsea is champion like this season with three matches to go.' 

Mourinho also revealed his plans in the transfer market this summer, saying that his emphasis would be on retaining his current squad.

'We like the players and we are happy with the players,' he said. 'Two or three are always coming to the club - that's normal - but the most important thing in the market is not to lose players.

'The players I am looking for are my players - the players I want to keep. Last season I had players I wanted to sell.

'How can I find a better striker than Diego Costa? A better midfielder than Matic? A better right-back than Ivanovic?

'Our squad this season was very good. We didn't have many injuries and had three players who played in all 38 matches in the Premier League. 

Source:Dailymail.

Swiss police arrest six FIFA executives.

At least six high-ranking FIFA executives including the vice-president were arrested this morning during a dramatic dawn raid at a five-star hotel in Switzerland over allegations of bribery totalling more than £60m over the past 25 years.

More than a dozen plain-clothed Swiss police officers arrived unannounced at the Baur au Lac hotel in Zurich at around 6am before storming the rooms where senior officials from the world football's governing body were staying. 

Members from the executive committee were then led away by police through the side exit of the hotel, with many using bedsheets to shield themselves from the public eye. 

The most significant arrest was that of Jeffrey Webb, the vice president of the executive committee, who has previously been hailed by Sepp Blatter as the potential successor to the position of FIFA president.

Among the other FIFA members arrested in the dawn raid were Eugenio Figueredo, the Uruguayan football executive who was due to stand down from the world governing body after Friday's election.  

Other officials held by Swiss police include Eduardio Li, President of the Costa Rica Football Association.

Former vice-president Jack Warner was also arrested in relation to corruption in the bidding process for the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

Although Swiss authorities said six officials had been arrested, the New York Times reported that 14 officials had been charged on the U.S indictment.

Other suspects named include Julio Rocha, Costas Takkas, Rafael Esquivel, José Maria Marin and Nicolás Leoz. 

Source:Dailymail

Kolo Toure and Andre Wisdom sign new Liverpool deal.

Liverpool have confirmed that defensive pair Kolo Toure and Andre Wisdom have signed new contracts at Anfield.
Toure has signed a one-year extension to his contract, while
Wisdom has committed himself to a new long-term deal.
Centre-back Toure, 34, has clocked up 45 appearances for the
Reds since arriving at Anfield on a free transfer from Manchester City in 2013.
England U21 defender Wisdom started out as a trainee at Anfield
and was handed his debut by Brendan Rodgers in the Europa
League in 2012.
The 22-year-old has made 22 first-team appearances for the Reds
and spent last season on loan with West Brom where he played 24 times in the Premier League.


Source:Skysports.

West Ham qualify for Europa League.

West Ham will enter the Europa League qualifiers after finishing
top of the Premier League Fair Play League.
The Hammers, who sacked manager Sam Allardyce after a final-
day 2-0 defeat at Newcastle saw them finish 12th, will be among
104 teams whose European campaigns will begin with the first
qualifying round on July 2.
In a joint statement, co-chairmen David Sullivan and David Gold
welcomed the news and were enthusiastic over the possibility of
European football gracing Upton Park in its final season.
“We are delighted to have won a place in the UEFA Europa League as we want to ensure the Boleyn Ground the best send-off possible, and progress in this competition will certainly help with that," the statement read.
West Ham, who last qualified for Europe in 2006-2007 when they
were beaten FA Cup finalists, have three rounds to negotiate before August's play-off round determines the 22 teams advancing to the group stage.
And the Hammers will find out their opponents when the draw is made for the first and second qualifying rounds on June 22.

Source:Skysports.

Chelsea's trophy parade in pictures.

Ancelotti to learn fate.

Real Madrid are expected to confirm the future of manager Carlo
Ancelotti at a press conference on Monday night.
Ancelotti won the Champions League, Copa del Rey, UEFA Super
Cup and FIFA’s Club World Cup in his first season in charge at the Bernabeu.
However, Real failed to win any silverware this campaign and
finished two points behind La Liga champions Barcelona.
Ancelotti has received the support of Real’s leading players but
speculation is growing that his exit will be confirmed by Florentino Perez, with a press conference reportedly due to be held on Monday.
Ancelotti's agent is thought to have been told on Friday that the
Italian would not continue as manager.

Source:Skysports.

Angel di Maria could be set for PSG.

Paris Saint-Germain are reportedly closing in on a deal for Manchester United misfit Angel di Maria, having missed out on the midfielder last summer.

Louis van Gaal splashed out £60million to bring Di Maria in from Real Madrid, but he has struggled in his first season in the Premier League.

And now French publication l'Equipe claim that the 26-year-old has become a priority for PSG, who could offer Gregory van der Wiel to United as part of the deal.

The Ligue 1 champions reached an agreement with the Argentina international at the beginning of the season, only to pull the plug on the deal because of Financial Fair Play regulations.

Those restrictions are still in place, with the Qatari-funded club capped with a transfer budget of around £42.5m this summer.

But l'Equipe report that PSG will look to get around that by offering Van der Wiel to United, and have kept in contact with Di Maria, even failing with a bid in the January transfer window.

Van Gaal is on the lookout for a right back, with Nathaniel Clyne and Dani Alves also options, and fellow Dutchman Van der Wiel may fit the bill.

Laurent Blanc's side may also raise funds by selling the likes of Yohan Cabaye, Ezequiel Lavezzi, Lucas Digne and Edinson Cavani, and are hoping to lure Di Maria to the Parc des Princes rather than the alternative, Wolfsburg's Kevin de Bruyne.

Source:Dailymail.

Starting line ups for the last round of games of the 2014/2015 Barclays Premier League season.

Everton: Howard, Coleman, Stones, Jagielka, Galloway, Barry, Mirallas, McCarthy, Barkley, Osman, Lukaku.
Subs: Robles, McGeady, Kone, Naismith, Distin, Besic, Atsu.

Tottenham Hotspur: Lloris, Dier, Fazio, Vertonghen, Lamela, Bentaleb, Mason, Chadli, Eriksen, Dembele, Kane.
Subs: Soldado, Yedlin, Vorm, Townsend, Stambouli, Winks, Onomah.

Newcastle: Krul, Janmaat, Williamson, Coloccini, Dummett, Colback, Anita, Riviere, Sissoko, Gutierrez, Cisse.
Subs: Ryan Taylor, De Jong, Gouffran, Perez, Cabella, Ameobi, Woodman.

West Ham: Adrian, Reid, Jenkinson, Burke, Cresswell, Song, Nolan, Valencia, Kouyate, Downing, Cole.
Subs: Tomkins, Jarvis, Nene, O'Brien, Amalfitano, Jaaskelainen, Lee.

Stoke: Begovic, Cameron, Shawcross, Muniesa, Pieters, Whelan, Nzonzi, Arnautovic, Adam, Diouf, Walters.
Subs: Ireland, Odemwingie, Wilson, Sidwell, Butland, Crouch, Wollscheid.

Liverpool: Mignolet, Can, Skrtel, Sakho, Moreno, Henderson, Lucas, Allen, Gerrard, Lallana, Coutinho.
Subs: Toure, Lovren, Lambert, Sterling, Ibe, Markovic, Ward.

Hull: Harper, Chester, Dawson, McShane, Elmohamady, Meyler, Huddlestone, Quinn, Brady, N'Doye, Jelavic. Subs: McGregor, Rosenior, Bruce, Hernandez, Sagbo, Aluko, Robertson.

Man Utd: Valdes, Valencia, Smalling, Jones, Rojo, Blind, Mata, Ander Herrera, Di Maria, Young, Rooney. Subs: Januzaj, Lindegaard, van Persie, Fellaini, McNair, Blackett, Wilson.

Leicester: Schmeichel, Wasilewski, Huth, Morgan, Albrighton, Cambiasso, King, Schlupp, Mahrez, Ulloa, Vardy. Subs: De Laet, Konchesky, Drinkwater, Hammond, Schwarzer, Wood, Kramaric.

QPR: McCarthy, Onuoha, Dunne, Hill, Yun, Phillips, Henry, Barton, Fer, Austin, Grego-Cox. Subs: Murphy, Hoilett, Doughty, Furlong, Comley, Petrasso, Kpekawa.

Chelsea: Cech, Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta, Mikel, Matic, Cuadrado, Willian, Hazard, Drogba.
Subs: Luis, Courtois, Remy, Costa, Christensen, Boga, Solanke.

Sunderland: Mannone, Jones, Coates, O'Shea, Van Aanholt, Johnson, Larsson, Rodwell, Wickham, Defoe, Fletcher.
Subs: Cattermole, Pickford, Reveillere, Graham, Giaccherini, Vergini, Buckley.

Man City: Hart, Zabaleta, Demichelis, Mangala, Kolarov, Fernandinho, Lampard, Milner, Toure, Silva, Aguero.
Subs: Sagna, Kompany, Dzeko, Caballero, Bony, Jesus Navas, Jovetic.

Southampton: Kelvin Davis, Clyne, Fonte, Alderweireld, Bertrand, Wanyama, Steven Davis, Long, Djuricic, Mane, Pelle.
Subs: Yoshida, Gardos, Ward-Prowse, Elia, Gazzaniga, Reed, Targett.

Aston Villa: Steer, Bacuna, Vlaar, Baker, N'Zogbia, Cleverley, Westwood, Delph, Agbonlahor, Benteke, Grealish.
Subs: Guzan, Sinclair, Weimann, Hutton, Sanchez, Green, Robinson.

Burnley: Heaton, Trippier, Keane, Shackell, Mee, Boyd, Arfield, Jones, Ulvestad, Barnes, Ings. Subs: Duff, Vokes, Kightly, Taylor, Reid, Jutkiewicz, Gilks.

Arsenal: Ospina, Bellerin, Mertesacker, Gabriel, Gibbs, Cazorla, Coquelin, Wilshere, Ozil, Sanchez, Walcott. Subs: Szczesny, Koscielny, Giroud, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Ramsey, Monreal, Flamini.

West Brom: Myhill, Dawson, McAuley, Olsson, Lescott, Morrison, Yacob, Fletcher, McManaman, Berahino, Brunt. Subs: Baird, Gardner, Ideye, Anichebe, Gamboa, Roberts, Palmer.

Crystal Palace: Hennessey, Ward, Dann, Hangeland, Souare, Puncheon, Jedinak, McArthur, Zaha, Chamakh, Bolasie.
Subs: Speroni, Campbell, Murray, Mutch, Lee, Delaney, Kelly.

Swansea: Fabianski, Richards, Fernandez, Bartley, Naughton, Cork, Britton, Emnes, Dyer, Montero, Gomis.
Subs: Grimes, Rangel, Tremmel, Hanley, Fulton, Barrow, Gorre.

Kick off: 3:00 pm.

DROGBA QUITTING BLUES.

Chelsea have announced that striker Didier Drogba will be leaving the club at the end of the season. The Ivorian, 37, only returned to Stamford Bridge for a second spell in 2014.

.@didierdrogba has announced it will be his last game as a Chelsea player today...

Falcao told his Manchester United career is over.

Manchester United have told striker Radamel Falcao that his time at Old Trafford is over.

Falcao has now instructed his representatives to look for other clubs in the Barclays Premier League and is understood to be willing to take a drop in wages to find another English club. 

If possible, he would like to move to London. The Colombian international wanted to stay at United but Van Gaal told him that his record of four goals in 29 appearances during his season on loan from Monaco wasn't enough to justify his retention.

The 28-year-old - who seemed to wave goodbye to the crowd at Old Trafford after last Sunday's game against Arsenal - believed that he would be better next season if he was given a full pre-season to work on fitness.

However Falcao will now head off to the Copa America after today's final United league game at Hull knowing that his time at United is definitely at an end.

In meetings this week Van Gaal will also tell defenders Rafael and Jonny Evans that they are available for transfer this summer while winger Nani and goalkeeper Anderson Lindegaard also have no future at Old Trafford. 

Source:Dailymail.

Borussia Dortmund fans say goodbye to Jurgen Klopp.

Borussia Dortmund fans paid tribute to departing manager Jurgen Klopp with a spectacular display ahead of his final home match against Werder Bremen.

The 'Yellow Wall' at the Westfalenstadion unfurled an enormous tifo with an image of Klopp and the words 'Danke Jurgen' ('Thank you, Jurgen').

Klopp, who has been at the club since 2008, is overseeing his final Bundesliga match before leaving next month.

He still has an opportunity to leave Dortmund with a piece of silverware when they play Wolfsburg in the German Cup final in Berlin next Saturday.

Many supporters in the 80,000-strong crowd had created their own banners and placards thanking 'Kloppo' for his efforts during an eventful seven years.

In this time, the popular manager has led Dortmund to two Bundesliga titles, a German Cup win and the final of the Champions League in 2013.

He has been linked with the manager's position at Real Madrid, Liverpool and Fenerbahce among others.

Source:Dailymail.

Jose Mourinho named Barclays Manager of the Season as Chelsea star Eden Hazard receives best player award.

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has been named the Barclays Manager of the Season, with his star man Eden Hazard scooping the player award.

The Portuguese boss helped the Blues to their first Premier League title in five years after a dominant season which saw them top of the table for a record 274 days.

It is the third time Mourinho has been awarded the Manager of the Season accolade - the others also came after Premier League title triumphs in 2004-05 and 2005-06.

Mourinho has won the award despite not winning a Manager of the Month prize all season. Indeed, he has only won a monthly honour three times during his two spells at the club. 

Belgium international Hazard, 24, has enjoyed a sensational season, scoring 14 Premier League goals and contributing nine assists.He has played in all 37 of Chelsea's league matches.

The duo were selected from the Barclays Panel that included a group of former players, journalists and football stakeholders. Mourinho was chosen from a 
five-strong list of candidates drawn up by the Premier League, the others being Ronald Koeman, GarryMonk, Nigel Pearson and Arsene Wenger.
Meanwhile, four Chelsea players were among the list of eight from which Hazard was chosen. The others were John Terry, Cesc Fabregas and Nemanja Matic but the Belgian international made it a personal treble having already claimed the PFA and Writers awards. The other four in contention were Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero, goalkeeper David de Gea of Manchester United, Tottenham's PFA Young Player of the Year Harry Kane and Alexis Sanchez of Arsenal.

XAVI ANNOUNCES BARCA DEPARTURE.

Barcelona midfielder Xavi will join Qatari side Al Sadd in the summer after 17 years with the La Liga club.
Xavi, 35, announced in a press conference on Thursday that he had been offered a new contract at Barcelona, but admitted it was time to leave the club he had been with since his
youth.
His final league game for the La Liga champions will be against Deportivo on Saturday, with the Copa del Rey against Athletic Bilbao and Champions League final against Juventus to
come.
Xavi has won eight titles with Barcelona and three Champions League trophies, as well as picking up 133 caps for Spain.


Source:Skysports.

Rafa Benitez in running to replace Carlo Ancelotti at Real Madrid.

Rafa Benitez has emerged as a surprise candidate to replace CarIo Ancelotti as the Italian is expected to leave Real Madrid next week with AC Milan waiting in the wings.

Madrid's hierarchy met this week and are understood to be ready to relieve the 55-year-old of his duties with one year remaining on his current contract.

Napoli coach and West Ham target Benitez has emerged as one of the candidates to replace him due to his success in La Liga with Valencia.

Diego Simeone, the Atletico Madrid coach, has offered support to Ancelotti saying he was 'angry' at his rival's treatment.

'We coaches are in a difficult situation because we have a lot of pressure, jealousy,' Simeone told El Confidencial.

'I always listen to Ancelotti because in victory or defeat he always maintains his composure. He is someone to look up to, the coach of the Champions League winners, and the players that have followed him have won the Club World Cup. 

'But the situation he is in makes me angry - and I’m not even his agent!'

Madrid face Getafe at the Bernabeu this weekend but will end the season without a trophy.

Source:Dailymail.

Juve win Coppa Italia.

Juventus won the Coppa Italia for the first time in 20 years thanks to Alessandro Matri's extra-time strike which secured
a 2-1 victory over Lazio, keeping the Turin giants' hopes of an historic treble alive.
Stefan Radu gave Lazio the lead in the fourth minute, but Juventus hit back six minutes later through Giorgio Chiellini’s clever finish from six yards.
Just moments after substitute Filip Djordjevic had hit both posts
for Lazio, Matri saw his shot squirm under Etrit Berisha from 12
yards for the winner in Lazio’s own backyard at the Stadio
Olimpico.
With the Serie A league title secured and a Champions League final date with Barcelona to come in Berlin, Juve went with No 2
goalkeeper Marco Storari instead of Gianluigi Buffon, while Claudio Marchisio and Alvaro Morata were suspended.
Juventus are now on course for a first-ever club treble after
claiming their first Coppa Italia crown in 20 years.

Source:Skysports.

Arsenal vs Sunderland starting line up.

Arsenal: Ospina, Bellerin, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Gibbs, Wilshere, Cazorla, Ramsey, Ozil, Sanchez, Giroud.

Subs: Szczesny, Gabriel, Rosicky, Walcott, Monreal, Flamini, Coquelin.

Sunderland: Pantilimon, Jones, Coates, O'Shea, Van Aanholt, Larsson, Cattermole, Johnson, Defoe, Wickham, Graham.

Subs: Rodwell, Fletcher, Reveillere, Giaccherini, Mannone, Vergini, Buckley.

Kick off: 7:45 pm.

FA reduce Cesc Fabregas ban to just one Premier League match.

Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas will miss just one Barclays Premier League match following his bizarre sending off against West Brom on Monday night.

It was originally thought that Fabregas would miss three games following his dismissal, however the Football Association have decided to reduce the Chelsea star's ban. 

Fabregas will miss Chelsea's last match of the season against Sunderland on Sunday but will be able to start the opening game of the 2015-16 campaign.  

A statement from Chelsea read: 'The standard sanction would have been a three-match suspension.

'However, following an Independent Regulatory Commission hearing, the club's claim that a three-match suspension is excessive was successful.

'Fabregas will therefore now only miss our final game of the season against Sunderland on Sunday and will be available for selection from the start of the 2015/16 campaign.'

Fabregas was dismissed in the first half of Chelsea's defeat at The Hawthorns after hitting Brunt on the head from 20 yards while referee Mike Jones spoke to Gareth McAuley and Diego Costa after they grappled in the area.

Source:Dailymail.

Robert Lewandowski and Jerome Boateng engage in furious training ground bust-up.

Robert Lewandowski and Jerome Boateng had to be separated by team-mates after clashing during Bayern Munich training on Wednesday.  

Boateng was unhappy with a robust challenge from Lewandowski and squared up to the Polish striker.  

Lewandowski stood his ground when confronted by Boateng and Rafinha, Mehdi Benatia and Bayern captain Philipp Lahm had to step in and separate the pair.  

Unimpressed by what he had seen, Bayern boss Pep Guardiola sent the feuding pair back to the changing rooms. 

The spat comes 10 days after Guardiola and striker Thomas Muller clashed on the touchline during the 3-0 Champions League semi-final first leg defeat to Barcelona. 

Muller's bust-up with Guardiola sparked speculation that he would leave Bayern in the summer, with Louis van Gaal - who gave the German his debut at the club - reportedly ready to offer £40million to bring the 25 year old to Manchester United.

Source:Dailymail.

Radamel Falcao offered to Chelsea.

Radamel Falcao has been offered to Barclays Premier League champions Chelsea as Monaco prepare to send the forward out on loan again next season.

The Manchester United striker appeared to be saying his farewells to the Stretford End following last Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Arsenal at Old Trafford.

Mourinho, whose side were beaten 3-0 at West Brom on Monday evening, is considering his striking options for next season ahead of a decision on Didier Drogba.

Chelsea’s board are due to meet shortly to discuss whether to offer the Ivorian another one-year deal as Diego Costa’s back-up in the squad.

Costa’s temperament and the ongoing problems with his hamstrings mean Chelsea want to sign a proven scorer as support for the Spanish striker ahead of their title defence.

Cech prepared to leave Chelsea.

Petr Cech is prepared to leave Chelsea for a Premier League rival
this summer, according to the goalkeeper's agent.
After a decade as No 1 at Stamford Bridge, Cech, who is 33 on
Wednesday, has found himself second choice behind Thibaut
Courtois this season.
Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United are among the clubs -
along with Paris St Germain and Real Madrid - reportedly
monitoring his situation after he hinted at his wish to move on this summer, despite still having a year to run on his contract.
The Czech Republic international's agent Viktor Kolar told the
London Evening Standard: "Arsenal, United or PSG are all top clubs and Petr would like to join one of them, definitely.
"Petr expects that Roman Abramovich, not Jose Mourinho, will
decide about his future, based on their mutual agreement from last year."
Cech signed from Rennes in 2004 before playing a major role in
winning every major club trophy with the Londoners.
Chelsea manager Mourinho expressed a reluctance for Cech to
move to a rival club while insisting it would take 'big money' to
prise him away from the newly-crowned Premier League
champions.
But the club are understood to be prepared to take the player's
wishes into consideration on deciding whether or not he can leave,and his next destination.

Source:Skysports.