Premier League
ANOTHER DECEMBER SACK HITS JOSE MOURINHO
Exactly three years and a day after being sacked as the manager of Chelsea, Jose Mourinho has again been given the same bitter pills to swallow. Manchester United on Tuesday morning announced the sack of the Portuguese coach following a defeat at Liverpool on Sunday.
He was similarly sacked on December 17, 2015 and is experiencing it again on December 18, 2018. He has been known to have a third season syndrome in virtually all teams he had handled. Little wonder, another season syndrome has ended in catastrophe for him.
The sack, which has long been anticipated, ended a tenure that began in May 2016. He has had a very turbulent season at Manchester United since August. The otherwise usual title contenders are now 19 points behind Premier League leaders, Liverpool.
Manchester United have won only once in six league matches, drawing during that sequence with struggling Southampton and Crystal Palace.
The club issued a statement on Tuesday morning which read: “Manchester United announces that manager Jose Mourinho has left the club with immediate effect.
The club would like to thank Jose for his work during his time at Manchester United and to wish him success in the future.
A new caretaker manager will be appointed until the end of the current season, while the club conducts a thorough recruitment process for a new, full-time manager. “
Relations between the manager and the executive vice-chairman, Ed Woodward, also seemed strained after the club did not sign a central defender this summer. The club concluded that of the players in that position targeted by Mourinho whom they could potentially land, none was an upgrade on the existing squad.
A sense of disunity at United was encapsulated when Mourinho stripped Pogba of the vice-captaincy before a Carabao Cup defeat by Derby County and confronted him at training the following morning. The manager has criticised his players’ “mental approach”, attitude and quality.
Mourinho has seemed less than happy since the build-up to the season, when he described preparations as “very bad” because many of his senior players were resting after the World Cup.
The manager demanded “respect, respect, and respect” for his three Premier League titles following United’s 3-0 home defeat by Tottenham in late August but will not get a chance to add a fourth at Old Trafford.
In two full seasons at Old Trafford, Mourinho won the Europa League and League Cup (2016-17) before finishing second in the Premier League last season and reaching the FA Cup final. In that period since replacing Louis van Gaal, United’s spending stands at £364.3m on eight buys.
Zinedine Zidane, available following his surprise decision to resign his position at Real Madrid following their Champions League success over Liverpool in May, has been linked with the United job.
Premier League
Maguire handed suspended prison sentence for 2020 brawl

England and Manchester United defender Harry Maguire has been handed a 15-month suspended prison sentence by a Greek court over a 2020 incident in Mykonos, Sky Sports reported on Wednesday.
In 2020, Maguire was found guilty of repeated bodily harm, attempted bribery and violence against public employees after his arrest in a brawl in which two police officers were assaulted.
Maguire, who was detained for two days following the incident and denied any wrongdoing, was handed a suspended prison sentence of 21 months and 10 days but was granted a full retrial after appealing against Greek court convictions on multiple charges.
In accordance with the Greek judicial process, the filing nullified Maguire’s conviction before a full retrial in a more senior court. His retrial was postponed many times.
Maguire faced allegations of non-serious assault, resisting arrest and attempted bribery. The 32-year-old was convicted on all three counts but will face no prison time. His legal team will appeal against the guilty verdict, Sky Sports reported.
Maguire’s brother Joe and friend Christopher Sharman were also found guilty of offences related to the incident and received suspended prison sentences in 2020. They also denied any wrongdoing.
-Reuters
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Premier League
Timber header earns Arsenal crucial win over Chelsea

Arsenal maintained control of the Premier League title race as they chiselled out a nervy 2-1 win over London rivals Chelsea to open up a five-point lead at the top of the table on Sunday.
Jurrien Timber’s 66th-minute header from a Declan Rice corner ensured Arsenal took three precious points, but it was a nervy afternoon in north London.
Mikel Arteta’s side moved to 64 points from 29 games, with Manchester City, who have played a game fewer, on 59.

Arsenal’s Jurrien Timber celebrates scoring their second goal with Gabriel Magalhaes REUTERS/Jaimi Joy
Defender William Saliba had given Arsenal the lead in the 21st minute from a trademark corner routine.
But it had looked as though an own goal by Piero Hincapie just before halftime would prove costly for the hosts until Timber came to their rescue.
Chelsea, whose six-match unbeaten league sequence under new manager Liam Rosenior was halted, ended the match with 10 men after Pedro Neto was sent off for a second yellow card.
-Reuters
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Premier League
Manchester United climb to third in Premier League table with come-from-behind win over Palace

Manchester United produced a stirring second-half comeback to defeat Crystal Palace 2–1 at Old Trafford on Sunday, with captain Bruno Fernandes inspiring the turnaround that lifted the hosts into third place in the Premier League standings.
Trailing inside four minutes after a dominant start by Palace, United responded through a Fernandes penalty before his pinpoint free-kick was headed home by Benjamin Sesko to seal victory against the 10-man visitors.
The win extended interim manager Michael Carrick’s unbeaten run to seven matches since taking charge in mid-January. United now have 51 points from 28 games and are unbeaten since the January 5 dismissal of Ruben Amorim, climbing into third for the first time since May 2023. Palace remain 14th on 35 points.
“It feels like a big result, we were behind and had to show some character,” Fernandes told Sky Sports. “There are a lot of games to go still, and it is important that we don’t feel that we are in the position that we need to be. We need to make as many points as we can.”
Palace, under Oliver Glasner, were electric in the opening half hour, capitalising on sluggish United play. Defender Maxence Lacroix powered home a header from a corner after muscling past Leny Yoro, scoring the earliest goal United have conceded this season.
The visitors nearly doubled their advantage when Daniel Munoz latched onto an Ismaila Sarr through ball, but goalkeeper Senne Lammens produced a crucial save.
United gradually found their rhythm before the break. Sesko forced Dean Henderson into action with a header from a Fernandes cross, and the Palace keeper also tipped a Fernandes free kick over the bar.
The turning point arrived in the 57th minute when Fernandes converted from the penalty spot after Matheus Cunha was dragged down by Lacroix. Following a lengthy VAR review, Lacroix was shown a red card, reducing Palace to 10 men.
Eight minutes later, Fernandes’ delivery again proved decisive as Sesko rose highest to nod home the winning goal.
United pushed for a third, with Casemiro’s volley drawing a diving save from Henderson and substitute Amad Diallo testing the keeper from distance in stoppage time. Joshua Zirkzee saw efforts blocked, while Kobbie Mainoo’s fierce strike drifted narrowly wide.
Carrick praised his team’s resilience. “The biggest thing for us to take from the game is really the first time that we have been in that situation going in at halftime,” he said. “Being in that position and how we react and showing that personality and belief… to then come back as we did in the second half is the biggest thing for me today.”
Palace pressed late but could not find an equaliser. Glasner admitted his side had let the game slip. “It feels like there was more possible today. A great first 30 minutes, but the red card changed it completely. The second goal just happened too quickly.”
For United, the victory reinforces growing belief under Carrick that a top-four finish—and a return to Europe’s elite competition—is firmly within reach.
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