Premier League
CHELSEA HELD TO GOALLESS DRAW AT LEEDS
Thomas Tuchel remains unbeaten as Chelsea manager, but his side’s lack of firepower meant they had to settle for a goalless draw at Leeds United in the Premier League on Saturday (March 13).
The Blues missed a chance to cement their place in the Premier League’s top four and while they had plenty of chances, Tuchel’s men could not deliver the knockout blow in a hard-fought clash at Elland Road.
The Blues remain in fourth place and fifth-placed West Ham are just three points behind them with two games in hand as the race to qualify for the Champions League looks set to go down to the wire.
With clean sheets in their last five games, Chelsea have conceded only two goals in that period.
However, their goal-scoring issues under Tuchel resurfaced as opportunities came and went in the Yorkshire rain.
They have yet to score more than two goals in any match in the Tuchel era.
With clean sheets in their last five games, Chelsea have conceded only two goals in that period.
The poor quality of the Elland Road pitch was almost reminiscent of the battles on fields of mud that defined Chelsea’s encounters with Leeds in the 1970s.
Pulisic wasn’t fazed by the rutted surface as he scampered down the right and whipped over a low cross that Kai Havertz poked straight at Leeds keeper Illan Meslier.
Leeds launched a penetrating counter immediately after Havertz’s miss and Patrick Bamford’s cross was turned in by Tyler Roberts, only for the offside flag to come to Chelsea’s rescue.
If that was a stroke of luck for Chelsea, Leeds benefited from their own good fortune moments later when Diego Llorente whacked a clearance against team-mate Luke Ayling, with the ball looping onto the crossbar before falling into the grateful Meslier’s arms.
As ever with Leeds and their wide-open style, chances came thick and fast and Roberts was inches away from opening the scoring when Chelsea keeper Edouard Mendy tipped his curler onto the bar.
Chelsea defender Ben Chilwell fired just wide from the edge of the area before Mason Mount’s 25-yard drive was pushed out by Meslier.
Havertz finally delivered an influential display against Everton after a wretched first season with Chelsea.
But the Germany forward was back to his diffident worst here and shot tamely at Meslier from Hakim Ziyech’s pass.
Granted space by the statuesque Leeds defence, Havertz should have done better with a close-range blast that Meslier palmed over early in the second half.
Mendy saved well when his former Rennes team-mate Raphinha had a sight of goal from Rodrigo’s knock down.
Chilwell had a golden opportunity to break the deadlock, but he scuffed wide with just Meslier to beat after surging into the area.
Antonio Rudiger’s hopeful effort from 30 yards sent Meslier sprawling to save, while Callum Hudson-Odoi was denied by the keeper as Chelsea’s challenge petered out.
-AFP/Reuters
Thomas Partey, who formerly played for English Premier League soccer club Arsenal, has been charged with rape and sexual assault, London’s Metropolitan Police said on Friday.
Partey, a Ghana international, was charged with five counts of rape and one count of sexual assault, with the charges relating to three women and the offences reported to have taken place between 2021 and 2022, the statement said.
Partey’s management did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
He is due to appear at London’s Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Aug. 5.
Partey, 32, was signed by Arsenal from Atletico Madrid for 50 million euros ($59 million) in October 2020 and became a key member of Arsenal’s first team.
He was first arrested in July 2022, though he was not named at the time and continued to play for Arsenal while investigations were ongoing.
-Reuters
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Five players including England forward Marcus Rashford and Argentina winger Alejandro Garnacho have informed Manchester United that they wish to explore a future away from the Premier League side, a club source said on Friday.
Brazilian midfielder Antony, Dutch defender Tyrell Malacia and England international Jadon Sancho are also looking to leave the club, the source added.
Rashford, who has made more than 400 senior appearances for United, has fallen out of favour with manager Ruben Amorim, played for Aston Villa on loan while United had their worst-ever Premier League campaign, finishing 15th in the standings.
Amorim had called Rashford’s work rate into question, saying he would rather put a goalkeeper coach on the bench than a player not giving their all.
Rashford said he was feeling fitter and better since joining Villa, where he scored two goals in 10 league appearances.
United also failed to qualify for the Champions League as they lost the Europa League final 1-0 to Tottenham Hotspur. Garnacho, who was a late substitute in the final, voiced his displeasure on social media after the loss.
“Up until the final, I played every round helping the team, and today I play 20 minutes, I don’t know,” he wrote in a post . “The final will influence (my decision), but the whole season, the situation of the club.”
Sancho was on loan at Chelsea, where he made 31 league appearances last season. Antony, who joined United from Ajax Amsterdam in 2022 for a reported initial transfer fee of more than $100 million, scored five goals in 17 LaLiga appearances on loan at Real Betis.
Malacia joined Dutch side PSV Eindhoven on loan in February.
-Reuters
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Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes turned down the opportunity to join Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal in order to keep playing “at the highest level”, he said on Tuesday.
The Portuguese midfielder admitted that he had considered the move, which media reports said was worth four times his current salary, after being contacted by Al-Hilal’s president.
“There was that possibility, the president of Al-Hilal called me a month ago to ask me about it,” Fernandes, who is preparing to face Germany with Portugal, told reporters on Tuesday.
“It was a big offer, very ambitious. There was a waiting period for me to think about the future.”
Fernandes ultimately decided to stay at United and said he was motivated by his desire to continue playing at the top level and encouraged by his family and the club’s coach Ruben Amorim.
“I would be willing to do it if Manchester United thought so,” Fernandes added. “I spoke to the coach Ruben Amorim who really tried to talk me out of it. The club said they would not be willing to sell me, only if I wanted to leave.
“I spoke to my wife and family, and she asked me what my personal goals were in my career.
“It would have been easy to move there but I want to keep myself at the highest level, playing in the big competitions and I feel capable of it. I am happy with my decision.”
The 30-year-old Fernandes scored 19 goals and provided 19 assists in 57 appearances across all competitions for United last season, winning the club’s Player of the Year award for the fourth time.
However, it was a season to forget for the team, as they finished 15th in the Premier League, their lowest league finish in half a century, and lost the Europa League final to Tottenham Hotspur.
-Reuters
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