West Ham manager Pellegrini mugged at gunpoint in Chile
West Ham's manager Manuel Pellegrini has been mugged at gunpoint in Chile. Pellegrini, 64, who won the Premier League with Manchester City in 2014, was on his way to a restaurant in Santiago with his wife and two friends when they were targeted by a gang. A spokesman for West Ham United said: "We are relieved to hear that Manuel and his wife were both unharmed." In a Tweet written in Spanish, Pellegrini thanked Chilean police for their "quick and courageous" response. An official told the newspaper the gang shot at police before driving away in a stolen Porsche. Another local news report said officers recovered the purse when they found the car abandoned. The former Manchester City and Real Madrid manager left his job with Hebei China Fortune last month.
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2018-06-05 02:00:00
Pep Guardiola: Yaya Toure says Man City boss 'often has problems with Africans'
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola "often has problems with Africans", says ex-Blues midfielder Yaya Toure. The Ivorian, who left City in May after eight years at the club, says he wants to "break the myth" about Guardiola, whom he describes as "jealous". "Maybe we Africans are not always treated by some in the same way as others," said Toure in an interview with France Football. Premier League champions City have declined to comment on Toure's views. Before his departure, the club named one of their training pitches after him and unveiled a mosaic of him at their training complex. This summer they are set to sign France-born Algeria international Riyad Mahrez from Leicester City. Toure, an Ivory Coast international, played for Guardiola at Barcelona for two seasons until he was sold to City in 2010 for
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2018-06-05 02:00:00
Alisson's Anfield audition - but will Liverpool move for a new No.1 this summer?
The Roma goalkeeper is admired by the Reds as doubts over Loris Karius's future persist following his Champions League nightmare It
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2018-06-04 02:00:00
Fekir agent calls for Liverpool to agree fee with Lyon as he confirms Reds interest
The Reds are interested in the France international but a deal has not yet been agreed with his current club, according to his representative Nabil Fekir's agent has confirmed Liverpool's interest in the Lyon captain but says a deal is yet to be struck for the France international. Fekir scored 18 league goals last season as Lyon finished third in Ligue 1 behind Monaco and runaway champions Paris Saint-Germain. Goal reported last week that Liverpool were ready to step up their pursuit of Fekir in a deal that could be worth
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2018-06-04 02:00:00
Marco Silva: Is Everton's new manager worth the hype?
Marco Silva's appointment as Everton manager is the latest indicator of another summer of upheaval at Goodison Park. Everton owner Farhad Moshiri has moved on to the 40-year-old Portuguese after sacking Ronald Koeman in October and successor Sam Allardyce at the end of the season. Silva has Premier League experience with Hull City, who were relegated, and Watford - where he made an outstanding start before Everton's approach for his services in November threw their season off track and led to his sacking in January. He has a burgeoning reputation and yet questions remain. Does he deserve the rave reviews he receives and what awaits him at Everton? Just how good is Silva? Silva's status has mostly survived intact despite failing to keep Hull in the Premier League in 2016-17, where he was given credit for rousing a team that looked doomed to relegation when he took over with them bottom of the table on 17 January. Hull went down after defeat by Crystal Palace on the final day but most observers accepted he had done well to keep them in contention until then. Silva's record, however, was lopsided. He won eight out of 12 home games in all competitions, including a 2-0 victory over Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool, but lost nine out of 11 away. The win ratio veered from 73% to 0%. He was immediately a target for Watford and, working within the club structure that played to his strengths on the training ground, got off to a flying start, guiding them into a comfortable eighth position after a 2-0 win against West Ham on 19 November 2017.
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2018-06-04 02:00:00
Manchester United: Shakhtar Donetsk midfielder Fred set for Old Trafford medical
Shakhtar Donetsk midfielder Fred is expected to finalise his move to Manchester United early this week. The Brazilian came on as a second-half substitute in his side's 2-0 win against Croatia at Anfield on Sunday. It is now anticipated 25-year-old Fred will have a medical at United before completing his switch to Old Trafford for a reported
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2018-06-04 02:00:00
Eden Hazard: Chelsea may have to sell forward - Steve Clarke
Chelsea may need to sell forward Eden Hazard "to help fund other transfers", says ex-assistant boss Steve Clarke. Hazard, 27, was the match-winner as the Blues beat Manchester United 1-0 in the FA Cup final at Wembley on Saturday. However, a fifth-placed finish in the Premier League means no Champions League football next season and Clarke told BBC Radio 5 live's Sportsweek the club must "rebuild" over the summer. Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has also urged the board to invest in the squad. "We'll see after the World Cup whether I am a Chelsea player for next year," said 26-year-old Belgium international Courtois, who is out of contract at Stamford Bridge next summer. "You see how Manchester City and Manchester United are spending and working. "If we want to aim for the top, we should do the same - obviously within the limits of what's possible. "We'll see what's going on and I am sure the board will do what needs to be done." Chelsea lifted the FA Cup for the eighth time on Saturday thanks to Belgium forward Hazard's first-half penalty, which he had won by being fouled by Phil Jones. Hazard, who has two years left on his contract, joined Chelsea from Lille in 2012 and won the Professional Footballers' Association Player of the Year award as they won the title in 2015. But Clarke, a former Chelsea defender and assistant manager between 2004 and 2008, thinks it is "possible" the Belgian will leave Stamford Bridge this summer. "You can always look to replace players," said Clarke, now manager of Scottish Premiership side Kilmarnock. "They come and go, they always move on. The club is the most important thing. "They have to rebuild that squad a little bit. It wasn't good enough to be in the top four. They have got a lot of work to do over the summer. "To help fund other transfers for the club this summer maybe they do have to sell Hazard."
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2018-05-21 02:00:00
Chelsea owner Abramovich experiences UK visa renewal 'delay'
Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich has faced delays in renewing his UK visa, the BBC understands. The Russian billionaire did not attend Saturday's FA Cup final at Wembley when the Blues beat Manchester United 1-0. A source close to the 51-year-old suggested he was in the process of renewing his visa, and said it was taking a little longer than usual. Asked about the visa, Security Minister Ben Wallace said: "We do not routinely comment on individual cases." Mr Abramovich's office said it does not discuss personal matters with the media. Reports suggest his investor visa expired three weeks ago. The delay comes amid increased diplomatic tensions between London and Moscow after the poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal in Salisbury. BBC home affairs correspondent, Daniel Sandford said Mr Abramovich appears to be able to run his businesses in Russia without significant interference from the Kremlin, suggesting that he is reasonably close to President Vladimir Putin. But he said it was not clear if the delay in renewing his visa is in any way linked to the deterioration in relations between the two countries. Mr Abramovich, who made his fortune in oil and gas in the 1990s, became owner of the companies that control Chelsea in 2003. According to the Sunday Times Rich List, he is Britain's 13th-richest man, with a net worth of
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2018-05-21 02:00:00
Antonio Conte: Why Chelsea FA Cup win will not save Blues manager
Chelsea manager Antonio Conte delivered a passionate defence of his style and successes while their supporters once more pledged loud allegiance to the Italian - but there was no escaping the sense of finality about this FA Cup victory. Conte's record in two seasons with the Blues is one Premier League title and one FA Cup win - the latter secured by Eden Hazard's first-half penalty at Wembley on Saturday. That record is more than respectable. It is more than most others have managed. Yet it will not, barring a currently unforeseeable and remarkable reversal, be enough to keep the 48-year-old in his job once the dust has settled on another season of uncertainty at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea's FA Cup win contained characteristics associated with Conte since his arrival in England after a spell in charge of Italy at Euro 2016. As they defended the lead Hazard had given them, the Blues were steely, organised, resilient and victorious. He had done to his adversary, Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho, what the Portuguese has done to so many others - and in a similar style. And yet Conte still faces the same exit as many of his predecessors, including Mourinho, from a club who live so often in a state of flux and yet seem to thrive on it. Chelsea's FA Cup win puts a final coat of gloss on a largely disappointing season in which their title defence has been flimsy - with not even a place in the top four to bolster it - and Champions League aspirations were snuffed out by Barcelona at the last-16 stage. Conte remains a hugely popular figure with fans, his name booming out as he bounded up the stairs to join his players as they prepared to lift the trophy. It would be enough for most managers to be able to prepare in security for next season - but not Conte. When the celebrations are finished and he has been allowed to enjoy his win, it seems inevitable his departure will be confirmed. Conte and Chelsea's season has bubbled away on a hob of discontent, the manager cutting a dissatisfied and occasionally disconnected figure, unhappy with his lot. He made it clear here at Wembley that he will not be adapting his style - and history tells us very clearly that Chelsea's hierarchy (and they have a track record of decision-making and successes to support their policy) will not be adopting theirs to suit him. Conte said: "To win in this way, this season, gives me more satisfaction than my wins in the past. "The club knows me very well. If they want to continue to work with me, they know me. I can't change. "My past is very clear as a player and manager. You can tell what you want - but I'm a serial winner. "I showed this in England in a difficult moment for the club, winning the Premier League after finishing in 10th place. I've showed this also today in the FA Cup final because we found the right way to win this trophy." Not quite "back me or sack me" but not far off and the defiance of a winner, someone confident he will always be in demand whether he is at Chelsea or not. Conte's problem is that for all the glory of this FA Cup final win, there are too many minuses in the ledger, such as the tame end to the season in the wretched defeat at Newcastle United that meant they gave themselves no chance of making a last-ditch bid for the Champions League had Liverpool slipped up at the same time at home to Brighton. Chelsea backed him in the transfer market by paying
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2018-05-21 02:00:00
Nemanja Matic: Man Utd 'can fight for Premier League & Champions League with right signings
Manchester United can "fight for the title and the Champions League" with the right signings this summer, says midfielder Nemanja Matic. United lost the FA Cup final 1-0 to Chelsea on Saturday and finished second in the Premier League, 19 points behind Manchester City. That came after spending