Premier League
ARSENAL AT WAR! EX-CAPTAIN OTHERS FUME OVER STAFF SACK & AUBAMEYANG PAY RISE
Arsenal are increasingly confident they are close to agreeing a bumper new deal with captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – just 24 hours after the club revealed plans to make 55 members of staff redundant.
Arsenal players have been left furious by the club’s controversial redundancy proposals which come as negotiations with Aubameyang over a new three-year contract worth at least £250,000-per-week head towards a successful conclusion.
Members of Mikel Arteta’s squad reacted with dismay to the job cuts announcement with sources telling Sportsmail that former captain Granit Xhaka was among the most vocal in discussions between the players that followed Wednesday’s news.
His upset was widely shared by his teammates, with the proposed job cull being revealed just four months after most of Arsenal’s players were encouraged to agree pay cuts in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
They had believed that by accepting a 12.5 per cent cut, reduced to 7.5 per cent after qualifying for the Europa League, they would protect the jobs of Arsenal staff.
So they were stunned to find out at the end of a conference call with head of football Raul Sanllehi and managing director Vinai Venkatesham, that a significant number would still be made redundant.
Manager Mikel Arteta had been informed earlier of the proposals recommended by Sanllehi, Venkatesham and Arsenal’s executive team, and approved by billionaire owner Stan Kroenke.
Gunners stars intend to speak to the club to raise their concerns. And though there is an acceptance that there may be little they can do they are still determined to make their displeasure known.
The pay cuts Arsenal’s players agreed and the support they offered were described as ‘massive’ and prevented the club having to take drastic action sooner.
But with Arsenal’s income continuing to be hit it was felt further action was required, though club chiefs hope the latest reorganisation will protect them from the future financial impact of the pandemic.
Arsenal’s plan has dented the feel-good factor following their morale-boosting FA Cup final triumph last weekend.
And club chiefs acknowledge that the decision to cut costs so they can continue to keep the club running sustainably but also invest in the team is a hard sell that leaves them in a ‘no-win’ situation.
A lucrative contract for captain Aubameyang is one such move that contrasts starkly with the slashing of jobs along with the proposed signing of Willian.
The Brazilian is close to joining on a free transfer from Chelsea on an initial three-year deal.
Aubameyang had a year left on his previous deal worth just under £200,000 per week and Arsenal have been in talks to convince their talisman to commit his future to the club and give him the assurances that he will be surrounded by sufficient quality if he does.
Arsenal’s optimism that Aubameyang would agree to stay has grown further since their Wembley win and the Gabon striker has indicated he is prepared to extend his stay until 2023. He wanted at least £250,000 per week and Arsenal have agreed to meet his demands for a wage increase, with further bonuses on top.
Club legend Ian Wright added his voice to the criticism, responding to Arsenal’s Twitter post about the plans: ‘Remember who you are, what you are and who you represent’ — a poignant quote often attributed to his good friend and late Arsenal legend David Rocastle.
Renowned scout Francis Cagigao, who unearthed Cesc Fabregas among others, head of UK scouting Peter Clark and recruitment chief Brian McDermott are among those told their jobs will go.
Following a previous stripping back of the academy scouting set-up, several European recruitment roles have also been affected along with departments including commercial and administration.
The 55 jobs represent just under 10 per cent of Arsenal’s 590-strong non-playing workforce and there will now be a month-long consultation which could result in the final number of redundancies changing. However, the final number following the consultation is not expected to differ too much from 55.
-DAILY MAIL
Liverpool beat Crystal Palace 1-0 to remain top of the Premier League as Arsenal and Manchester City came from behind to win on Saturday.
City were 3-2 victors over Fulham to stay one point behind Liverpool, alongside Arsenal who saw off Southampton 3-1.
Arne Slot has now won nine of his first 10 games since succeeding Jurgen Klopp as Liverpool manager, but was frustrated that the visitors invited a late onslaught from the winless Eagles.
Jota prodded the Reds into the lead from Cody Gakpo’s cross on nine minutes.
The Portuguese international was then guilty of missing two big chances to extend Liverpool’s advantage.
Palace failed to make them pay, but victory came at a cost for Slot as goalkeeper Alisson Becker limped off with a hamstring injury.
“If you score the second you break them mentally,” said Slot. “All the fans kept believing in a result because it was only 1-0, even though in my opinion we were the dominant team.”
Fresh from a dominant win over Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League, Arsenal were expected to sweep aside winless Southampton.
But the Saints shocked the Emirates 10 minutes into the second half when Cameron Archer fired in his first Premier League goal since a summer move from Aston Villa.
The lead only lasted three minutes before Kai Havertz scored for the seventh consecutive home game.
Gabriel Martinelli was introduced after an hour and took just eight minutes to make his mark with a finish on the volley from Bukayo Saka’s cross.
Having set up Arsenal’s first two goals, Saka pounced on a loose ball to score the third himself.
Fulham’s outrageous opener
Rodri’s season-long absence due to a serious knee injury is expected to be a major blow to City’s chances of retaining the title for a fifth consecutive season.
But it was the Spaniard’s deputy Mateo Kovacic who scored twice to turn the game around for the champions at the Etihad.
The visitors had not lost since the opening night of the season at Manchester United and led thanks to Andreas Pereira’s finish from an outrageous backheel assist by Raul Jimenez.
Kovacic’s deflected effort quickly brought City level before a cleaner strike less than two minutes into the second half made it 2-1.
Jeremy Doku then smashed into the top corner from outside the box to give City a two-goal cushion, which they needed.
Rodrigo Muniz gave Fulham hope on 88 minutes, but City held out for a 17th consecutive win against the Cottagers.
West Ham eased the pressure on new boss Julen Lopetegui by ending a run of three home defeats to start the new season.
Michail Antonio, Mohammed Kudus, Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paqueta struck for the Hammers in a 4-1 win over Ipswich, who are still waiting for their first Premier League win 22 years.
There were six goals before half-time as Brentford beat Wolves 5-3 to leave the visitors still rooted to the foot of the table.
Leicester secured their first league win of the season as Facundo Buonanotte’s strike beat Bournemouth 1-0.
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag faces a huge match if he is to remain in charge when the Red Devils visit Aston Villa in the pick of Sunday’s action.
-AFP
Premier League
Premier League rejects City request to delay next season’s games after Club World Cup
The Premier League has rejected Manchester City’s request to postpone the first two games of the 2025-26 season to help the players recover after their FIFA Club World Cup campaign in the U.S., the club’s manager Pep Guardiola said on Friday.
City and Chelsea are the two English clubs who have qualified for the expanded month-long Club World Cup set to start on June 15. The Premier League’s season will begin in August.
An increasingly packed soccer calendar has been a concern among a growing number of players and managers. A report by global players’ union FIFPRO said some players get only 12% of the year to rest.
The Premier League did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside regular business hours.
City midfielder Rodri said in September that players could be close to strike action over the time they are required to play. A knee ligament injury has since put him out for the season.
“I don’t know if we will play more games than the treble year (2022-23)… maybe we’ll play less games,” Guardiola told reporters.
“The Premier League has not allowed us to postpone the first two games for our recovery. Thank you so much. They don’t postpone these games so that will be the moment of, oh, what do we have to do?”
He said the Club World Cup will make it even more difficult for clubs to manage player workload.
-Reuters
Manchester United co-owner Jim Ratcliffe said a decision about under-fire manager Erik ten Hag is not his call, and was reticent about whether he still has faith in the team’s boss amid their worst start to the Premier League season since 1986-87.
“I don’t want to answer that question,” Ratcliffe told the BBC. “I like Erik. I think he’s a very good coach but at the end of the day it’s not my call, it’s the management team that’s running Manchester United that have to decide how we best run the team in many different respects.
“That team that’s running Manchester United has only been together since June or July. They weren’t there in January, February, March or April — Omar (Berrada, CEO), (Sporting Director) Dan Ashworth — they only arrived in July.
“They’ve only been there . . . you can count it in weeks almost — they’ve not been there a long time so they need to take stock and make some sensible decisions.”
Ten Hag’s job was the subject of speculation for much of last season en route to the team’s lowest Premier League finish of eighth. After an FA Cup final victory over Manchester City and an end-of-season review, however, Ten Hag signed a new contract to extend his stay at Old Trafford until 2026.
“Our objective is very clear, we want to take Manchester United back to where it should be, and it’s not there yet, obviously, that’s very clear,” Ratcliffe said.
Ten Hag continues to plead for patience from fans with the team languishing 13th in the Premier League table, having lost three of their six opening games. They were headed towards defeat by Porto in the Europa League on Thursday before Harry Maguire scored a last-gasp goal to salvage a 3-3 draw.
-Reuters
NFF Communication director unfolds 20 Points of a 20-hour ordeal on Libyan soil
African football legends, Adebayor and Aubameyang condemn Libya’s treatment of Super Eagles
BREAKING! CAF wades into the Libya-Nigeria Airport episode
Breaking! Uzoho suspended from Super Eagles’ next match with Sierra Leone
No longer Super League as CAF changes name of its new clubs competition
AIU releases its report on Tobi Amusan
-
Uncategorized1 week ago
Players boycott Libyan national team
-
AFCON4 days ago
Billiat’s penalty seals Zimbabwe’s 1-0 win over Namibia
-
AFCON1 week ago
Eguavoen unfolds Super Eagles’ squad for back-to-back duel with Libya
-
AFCON6 days ago
Facts & Figures as AFCON 2025 qualifiers enter Matchday 3
-
AFCON5 days ago
AFCON 2025 in Morocco: Everything you need to know
-
AFCON5 days ago
Libya’s captain, Faisal Al-Badri alleges poor treatment in Nigeria
-
Uncategorized6 days ago
CAF compels Kwasi Appiah to step down from Ghana FA
-
Uncategorized1 week ago
Fastest World Cup final scorer is dead!