Tottenham Manchester city preview

Mauricio Pochettino goes a long way back with Manuel Pellegrini. The Tottenham manager was a youth international for Argentina at the South America Under-20 Championship in 1991 when he remembers scoring the winning goal in a group phase tie against a Chile team managed by Pellegrini. What Pochettino would give for a repeat scoreline against Manchester City on Saturday. Tottenham are battling to ally fluency with results while City – and Sergio Agüero, in particular – have been their nemesis in recent times. David Hytner Kick-off Saturday 12.45pm Venue White Hart Lane Last season Tottenham Hotspur 0 Manchester City 1 Live BT Sport 1 Referee Mark Clattenburg This season G4, Y15, R1, 4.25 cards per game Odds H 3-1 A 10-11 D 11-4 Tottenham Hotspur Subs from Vorm, Trippier, Wimmer, Rose, Fazio, Carroll, Winks, Onomah, Chadli, Townsend, N’Jie, McGee Doubtful None Injured Dembélé (ankle, 3 Oct), Mason (knee, 3 Oct), Bentaleb (ankle, 17 Oct), Pritchard (ankle, unknown) Suspended None Form LDDDWW Discipline Y15 R0 Leading scorers Fernandinho, Kompany 2 Manchester City Subs from Caballero, Wright, Zabaleta, Fernando, Nasri, Demichelis, Zuculini, Roberts, Maffeo, Bossaerts Doubtful Zabaleta (knee) Injured Bony (knock, 3 Oct), Silva (calf, 3 Oct), Iheanacho (groin, 10 Oct), Clichy (ankle, 17 Oct), Mangala (groin, 17 Oct), Delph (hamstring, 31 Oct) Suspended None Form WWWWWL Discipline Y13 R0 Leading scorer Son 2

Mourinho lunches fresh attack on Wenger

José Mourinho’s deep-lying antipathy towards Arsène Wenger has surfaced yet again in the wake of the Frenchman’s post-match comments at Stamford Bridge last weekend, with the Chelsea manager suggesting his opposite number is subject to preferential treatment from the Football Association. The Portuguese was in a particularly spiky mood at his media briefing at Cobham on Friday before Saturday’s trip to Newcastle United. Mourinho claimed he could not answer questions on the three-match ban for violent conduct that has been imposed retrospectively on the striker Diego Costa in the wake of Saturday’s 2-0 win over Arsenal, for fear of incurring a touchline suspension. Indeed, he was reluctant to address the implications of that sanction. “I have no comment, and I’ll tell you why,” he said when asked if he was concerned Costa may attract more attention from referees after the punishment imposed this week. “In the rule book it says some managers can speak about the referees before and after games. Some others cannot. Then comes the list. I am in the list of those who are punished if they speak about the referees before the game. I have to stick to that rule book because I am in the list of those who cannot speak about the referees.” Asked to clarify, he added: “You know that some can [talk about referees]. It’s an imaginary list, but clearly [I am not on it].” Wenger had been highly critical of Mike Dean’s performance at Stamford Bridge in his immediate post-match press conference, and urged the official and the FA to scrutinise video footage of Costa’s conduct in the 43rd minute clash with Laurent Koscielny. The striker was subsequently charged over that incident. The conversation then moved on to Steve McClaren, a manager under pressure at Newcastle whom Chelsea confront on Saturday. “In this country, only one manager is not under pressure,” Mourinho said. “Every other manager is. I am under pressure, Steve is under pressure, [Manuel] Pellegrini is under pressure, Brendan [Rodgers] too. We cannot be below par. We have to meet the objectives. I have sympathy with all of them, because it’s a difficult job. There’s one outside that list, but good for him. I have sympathy for Steve.” Asked to be specific about which manager was outside the list, he said: “You know. The one who can speak about the referees before the game, after the game, can push people in the technical area [a reference to the pair’s clash in the technical area at Stamford Bridge in October 2014], can moan, can cry in the morning in the afternoon, and nothing happens. He can not achieve [success] and keep his job, still be the king. I say just one.” The tit-for-tit maintained a theme of animosity between the two, with Wenger having suggested earlier in the day in his own media briefing that Claudio Ranieri, whose Leicester team Arsenal play on Saturday, was responsible for laying many of the foundations for the success that Chelsea have enjoyed over the last decade. The implication was very much that Mourinho had inherited a side ready to dominate. “When Claudio left Chelsea he had built the team that was so successful at the start,” said Wenger. “I remember them finishing second in the league with Ranieri and the team was upcoming with young players like John Terry and Frank Lampard, who were the players that contributed to the success of Chelsea.” Mourinho declined to comment on that issue. Chelsea have yet to see the FA’s full written reasoning for the violent conduct charge imposed upon Costa, with Mourinho clearly frustrated that he was without the Spain forward at Walsall in midweek and on Tyneside tomorrow despite having yet to receive the precise details over why the charge was upheld. He reiterated his surprise that Gabriel, who had been sent off by Dean for flicking out his boot at Costa, had since seen the card rescinded despite Wenger having admitted his player’s conduct had warranted a dismissal. “One of the things that was clear in football was that, when a player reacts to something that happened before – like [Nemanja] Matic reacting last season after a criminal tackle … that retaliation was always punished in football,” added Mourinho. “Now we know it isn’t always. You can do that. You can do that.”

Obafemi martins highest earning African player in MLS

Nigeria striker, Obafemi Martins, has been ranked 11th among the highest-earning players in the MLS. The former Inter Milan and Newcastle player, has a basic take-home of three million dollars ($3,000,00) a year. Martins is the highest paid African player in the MLS, with Montreal Impact’s Didier Drogba in second place, with over two million dollar ($2,166,668). The top earner is Kaka of Orlando City FC, who rakes in $7,167,500 annually. Here is the list of top earners in the MLS: ORLANDO CITY SC: Kaká ($7,167,500) TORONTO FC: Sebastian Giovinco ($7,115,555.67) TORONTO FC: Michael Bradley ($6,500,000) LA GALAXY: Steven Gerrard ($6,332,504) NEW YORK CITY FC: Frank Lampard ($6,000,000) LA GALAXY: Giovani Dos Santos ($5,750,008) NEW YORK CITY FC: David Villa ($5,610,000) TORONTO FC Jozy Altidore ($4,750,000) SEATTLE SOUNDERS: Clint Dempsey ($4,605,941.50) LA GALAXY: Robbie Keane ($4,500,000) NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION: Jermaine Jones ($3,052,500) SEATTLE SOUNDERS: Obafemi Martins ($3,000,000) NEW YORK CITY FC: Andrea Pirlo ($2,315,694) MONTREAL IMPACT: Didier Drogba ($2,166,668) LA GALAXY: Omar Gonzalez ($1,450,000) VANCOUVER WHITECAPS: Pedro Morales ($1,410,900) SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES: Innocent Emeghara ($1,300,000) SEATTLE SOUNDERS: Nelson Valdez ($1,215,000) COLUMBUS CREW: Federico Higuain ($1,175,000) COLORADO RAPIDS: Kevin Doyle ($1,170,000) PORTLAND TIMBERS: Liam Ridgewell ($1,150,000) CHICAGO FIRE: Gilberto ($1,144,992) REAL SALT LAKE: Juan Manuel Martinez ($1,108,666.67)

Matuidi may replace mikel at Chelsea

You are here : Home » Sports » Matuidi may replace Mikel Obi September 23, 2015 at 10:11 pm in Sports FacebookTwitterSMSWhatsApp Chelsea are ready to splash as much as 30 million pounds to sign Blaise Matuidi from PSG as replacement for Nigeria star Mikel Obi. Blaise Matuidi Mikel’s future at Stamford Bridge has remained a source of speculations even after he chose to stay put at ‘The Blues’ this season. Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho is reportedly ready to axe the Nigeria international, and it is claimed that the French midfielder is ear marked to fill the void Nigerian fans will remember Matuidi from last year’s World Cup when he kicked out Ogenyi Onazi out of the second round match against France in Brazil. Matuidi, 28, is contracted to PSG until 2018, and would command a fee upwards of £30m. Manchester United and Chelsea were both linked with the player over the summer, but neither ramped up initial interest in his services. Matuidi has been with the French champions since a 2011 move from St-Etienne.

Blatter must come clean - pele

Sepp Blatter Pele has urged Sepp Blatter to give an honest account of his time in charge of FIFA following a string of corruption claims, Goal reports. Blatter was re-elected as FIFA president in May against the backdrop of nine past and present officials being indicted for racketeering conspiracy and corruption under an investigation by US and Swiss authorities. The 79-year-old subsequently announced his resignation and he will leave his post later this year. Three-time World Cup winner Pele is a special advisor for FIFA’s Football Committee and the slew of negative stories surrounding the global game has upset the three-time World Cup winner. “I was invited to help FIFA, with Franz Beckenbauer, and we worked together for two or three years, so it is very sad when you see what has happened,” Pele told Sky Sports. “I don’t know exactly what happened, you hear but you do not know, but after what has happened in the last two years, Blatter deserves to be honest and say the truth of what he has seen.” Small manhood and premature ejaculation made me stay away from love making for 4 yrs... But these simple solutions WORKED! Click Here to see my breakthrough. 4 years ago my wife told me she was leaving me because I was too weak in bed, but today she calls me bed champion. Click here to know a natural solution that forces women to ask for more. Are you a ONE MINUTE Man? Forget Viagra: Use these to increase your manhood size and last more than 30 minutes. 100 percent natural with no side effects. Click here if you are interested. Small manhood and premature ejaculation made me stay away from love making for 4 yrs... But these simple solutions WORKED! Click Here to see my breakthrough. 4 years ago my wife told me she was leaving me because I was too weak in bed, but today she calls me bed champion. Click here to know a natural solution that forces women to ask for more. Are you a ONE MINUTE Man? Forget Viagra: Use these to increase your manhood size and last more than 30 minutes. 100 percent natural with no side effects. Click here if you are interested.

Chinese players gave us a hard time. Aruna Quadri

Nigeria table tennis star, Aruna Quadri, has described the just-concluded Brazzaville 2015 All Africa Games as a difficult one for him and the Nigerian team. The 27-year-old won gold in the men’s team event and silver in the men’s singles. Quadri said winning medals in the competition was made difficult by the presence of Chinese players recruited by Congo. “The 2015 All Africa Games were the most difficult for me and the team so far,” the France-based ping ponger told our correspondent online on Wednesday. “The Chinese players, who represented Congo, gave us a tough time in the singles and doubles events. “Although, we were able to win the team events, the quality of the Chinese players is not the same as our African opponents. “The competition was also difficult because the level of table tennis is getting higher on the continent. The countries that were regarded as easy opponents are now coming up to challenge the established ones in the sport. “But we tried our best to get the medals we got and I am grateful to God for the success we achieved.” The former GD Toledos of Portugal player said he has started preparations for the 2016 Olympics, adding that his target remains getting an Olympic gold medal. He said, “Preparations for the Olympics have started and I will work hard towards realising my dream of getting an Olympic gold medal. “It will not be easy but with adequate preparations, we will get there.”

CAPITAL ONE CUP FORTH ROUND DRAW

Fourth-round draw Everton v Norwich City Hull City v Leicester City Liverpool v Bournemouth Manchester City v Crystal Palace Manchester United v Middlesbrough Sheffield Wednesday v Arsenal Southampton v Aston Villa Stoke City v Chelsea