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Tag: Chelsea

  • Chelsea fans boo Jorginho despite win over Malmo

    Chelsea fans continued to boo Jorginho throughout the club’s 3-0 Europa League second-leg win over Malmo on Thursday night at Stamford Bridge.

    The Blues cruised to a 5-1 aggregate victory over the Swedish side to advance to the last 16 of the Europa League courtesy of goals from Olivier Giroud, Ross Barkley and Callum Hudson-Odoi.

    However, the win wasn’t enough to calm supporters as pressure continues to mount on manager Maurizio Sarri as his main summer signing continues to struggle influence games.

    The midfielder joined the London club back in July from Napoli for a £57m (€65m/$86m) with the idea that the 27-year-old would become the main playmaker for the “Sarri-ball” style of football.

    This has struggled to work to it’s full potential this season, with pressure only increasing on the Chelsea manager following embarrasing defeats to both Manchester City and Bournemouth.

    And despite the club’s victory over Malmo, fans again opted to show their frustration at the style of football which revolves primarily around Jorginho.

  • Chelsea’s Zola in hospital after surgery complications

    Chelsea assistant manager Gianfranco Zola has been re-admitted to hospital after suffering complications from gallstone surgery.

    Zola initially had surgery last week and was not on the bench for Monday’s FA Cup fifth-round defeat at the hands of Manchester United.

    The Italian had been expected to return for Thursday’s Europa League last-32 second-leg clash with Malmo but that is now unlikely to be the case, Sky Sports report.

    The club is not putting a timescale on his return to training and Chelsea’s matchday staff.

    Chelsea face big games in two competitions in the next four days, first defending a 2-1 lead over their Swedish rivals at Stamford Bridge.

    They then face Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley on Sunday, looking for a first trophy under Sarri and revenge for the 6-0 defeat in the Premier League earlier this month.

  • Chelsea must stay calm to turn season around – Pedro

    Chelsea must stay calm to turn season around – Pedro

    Chelsea season hangs in the balance after Monday’s FA Cup exit but they must stay calm and recapture their best form in the next two games to turn things around, winger Pedro has said.

    The FA Cup holders were beaten 2-0 by Manchester United in the fifth round, piling the pressure on under-fire manager Maurizio Sarri.

    With a Europa League clash against Malmo and the League Cup final against Manchester City up next, there is no time to dwell on the disappointment, the Spaniard said.

    “The most important thing now is to stay calm, train really hard and recover our best football and our best feeling, because if not we are in trouble.

    “There is an important game in the Europa League for us, and after, the final against City,” Pedro told Chelsea’s website.

    Chelsea lead Malmo 2-1 from the first leg of their Europa last 32 tie and host the Swedes on Thursday in the return.

    Cesar Azpilicueta, who has captained the team in Gary Cahill’s absence, also called for calm.

    “At Chelsea we are used to winning a lot of trophies and we have been the most successful team in England for the last couple of years,” Azpilicueta said.

    “We know we have the Europa League game coming up on Thursday. We will then play a final… Hopefully we can keep calm from Thursday and then win that trophy on Sunday,” Azpilicueta said.

  • Confused Chelsea lose to Man Utd in FA Cup 5th round

    Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri said his team played “confused football” as Manchester United won at Stamford Bridge to reach the FA Cup quarter-finals.

    The result throws Sarri’s reign deeper into crisis, while United delivered the perfect response to their first defeat under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to set up a last-eight tie against Wolves.

    Ander Herrera converted Paul Pogba’s perfect cross to give United a 31st-minute lead, and Pogba doubled the advantage right on half-time when he dived to head Marcus Rashford’s delivery past Kepa Arrizabalaga, who should have done better.

    As Chelsea slumped tamely to another damaging defeat, their fans turned on Sarri. They jeered his substitutions, mocked his ‘Sarri-ball’ philosophy, demanded the return of Frank Lampard as manager, and joined United’s fans in chants of “you’re getting sacked in the morning”.

    “We played confused football in the second half but in the first half we played well,” said Sarri.

    “I’m worried about the result but not about the fans’ reaction because I understand the situation. I can understand our fans because the result wasn’t really good and we are out of the FA Cup.

    “I was really worried when I was in League Two in Italy, not now.”

    Solskjaer had no such problems as he took the loud acclaim of United’s supporters after adding another impressive victory to his collection, despite the absence of the injured Jesse Lingard and Anthony Martial.

    “The performance was fantastic, our tactics worked,” said United’s interim manager. “It’s a massive result.”

    The club’s fans, who loudly sang the Norwegian’s name, may not have the casting vote when the decision on the next manager is made, but they made their feelings about Solskjaer clear on another important night for the man who hopes to succeed Jose Mourinho on a permanent basis.

    BBC

  • FA Cup: Chelsea squad to face Man Utd revealed

    Chelsea have released their line-up that will tackle Manchester United in the FA Cup fixture on Monday night at Stamford Bridge.

    According to Goal, Chelsea manager, Maurizio Sarri released a list of 25 players.

    The players include: three goalkeepers, nine defenders, eleven midfielders and two forwards.

    Goalkeepers: Kepa, Caballero, Bulka

    Defenders: Rudiger, Alonso, Zappacosta, Cahill, Luiz, Christensen, Azpilicueta, Emerson, Ampadu

    Midfielders: Jorginho, Drinkwater, Kante, Barkley, Loftus-Cheek, Kovacic, McEachran, Hazard, Pedro, Willian, Hudson-Odoi

    Forwards: Higuain, Giroud

    The kick-off time for the match is 8:30 pm.

  • Zidane sets conditions to become Chelsea manager

    Zidane sets conditions to become Chelsea manager

    Former Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane will only agree to take charge at Chelsea and replace under-fire Maurizio Sarri only if he is given £200m for transfers, Sun reports.

    The Frenchman also urged the London club to hand Belgium playmaker Eden Hazard, 28, a new contract.

    Current manager Sarri is running out of support after the 6-0 drubbing at the hands of Manchester City as the Blues dropped to sixth in the Premier League.

    Zidane’s incredible Champions League credentials, winning it three times in three years as manager of Real Madrid, are a huge draw for the Blues board.

    The 46-year-old is currently not in management and is understood to be very keen on a job in the Premier League.

    A move for the legendary French player, who won the World Cup with Les Bleus, would be encouragement for Hazard to sign a new deal.

  • EPL: Gonzalo Higuain looks set to quit Chelsea

    Gonzalo Higuain is ready to quit Chelsea at the end of this season, if the club sacks Maurizio Sarri as manager, Daily Mail reports.

    Higuain only arrived at Stamford Bridge in January and has scored two goals in his first three Premier League matches.

    Chelsea have the option to extend his initial six-month loan deal to another season-long loan for £15.6million at the end of the season, or they can buy him outright for £31.3m.

    However, the 31-year-old is concerned over Sarri’s future at the club and would be set to follow him out the door, should the axe fall on the manager.

    Sarri worked with Higuain at Napoli, but his Chelsea future remains in major doubt, after a string of disappointing results left Chelsea in sixth place in the Premier League.

  • EPL: We believe in Sarri vision – David Luiz

    EPL: We believe in Sarri vision – David Luiz

    Chelsea defender, David Luiz, insists there have been no dissenting voices among the Chelsea squad despite troubling results under head coach, Maurizio Sarri.

    Sarri’s position as head coach is under scrutiny, with Chelsea facing a crucial run of fixtures.

    Monday’s FA Cup tie with Manchester United is followed by Thursday’s Europa League last-32 second leg with Malmo and the February 24 Carabao Cup final with Manchester City.

    It was City who inflicted Chelsea’s worst defeat in 28 years, the 6-0 reverse following another humiliation, a 4-0 loss at Bournemouth which was the Blues’ heaviest in 22 years.

    An hour-long post-mortem followed the City loss on Monday – 10 minutes longer than the dressing-room inquest at Bournemouth – yet Luiz says no one has raised objections to Sarri’s possession-based tactics, which have yielded mixed results.

    “We have had many meetings already asking if someone doesn’t believe,” Luiz said.

    http://thenewsguru.ng/sports/football/article/chelsea-opt-for-zidane-to-replace-under-fire-maurizio-sarri/

    “They can say. Nobody said anything. It’s because everyone believes [in it].”

    Chelsea slipped out of the Premier League’s top four as a result of the loss at City, responding with a 2-1 first-leg win at Malmo on Thursday night.

  • Hazard at Real Madrid would be fun – Courtois

    Former Chelsea goalkeeper, Thibaut Courtois is hoping his fellow Belgian player Eden Hazard can follow in his footsteps by leaving Stamford Bridge to join Real Madrid this summer.

    Hazard, who is out of contract at Chelsea after next season, has made no secret of his admiration for Real and admitted he considered moving after last summer’s World Cup, before being persuaded to stay.

    Courtois was in a similar contractual situation to Hazard last summer – he had one year left on his contract on Chelsea – when he managed to force a £35m move to Real.

    “It would be nice of course [if Hazard joined Real], but I cannot say much about it,” Courtois told VTM Nieuws.

    “That is something he has to decide and Madrid must decide if they want him, because I do not know that either.

    “But Eden is a top player and also my buddy, so if he came here it would be fun, but he has to make his choices.”

    Asked whether he had spoken to Hazard about the possibility of a move, Courtois added: “No, occasionally we laugh at the fact that we like to play football together but that is something I do not interfere in.

    “We will see at the end of the season what can happen but Eden is a fantastic football player.”

     

  • Chelsea boss Sarri wants immediate reaction after City thrashing

    Chelsea boss Sarri wants immediate reaction after City thrashing

    Chelsea must show an immediate reaction to their 6-0 Premier League drubbing at Manchester City, manager Maurizio Sarri has said.

    He said, “I have held an hour-long discussion with the players to dissect the loss.”

    Chelsea’s capitulation at the Etihad Stadium was their worst defeat in Premier League history and the London club have dropped to sixth in the standings.

    The pressure has since mounted on Sarri, who conducted a similar hour-long inquest in the dressing room after their 4-0 league defeat at Bournemouth.

    Sarri told reporters ahead of Thursday’s Europa League last 32 clash at Swedish side, Malmo.

    “We talked all together for one hour the day after the match. I think that it is better to work, better to react on the pitch.

    “The last game was not a problem of motivation. We were not able to react to the first difficulty during the match because we started well. Then, after the first goal, we could not react.

    “So, the problem is different. But it is always a mind problem, a mental problem. And we need to solve them.

    “Malmo, who does not start their Swedish league season until April, is playing their first game of the year but Sarri believes their defensive shape will cause Chelsea problems.

    “They are compact, they are solid. They usually have a very good defensive phase, so it will not be easy. But we want to win and react immediately.”