Premier League
Pulisic scores as leaders Chelsea stroll past Leicester
American forward Christian Pulisic was back among the goals as Premier League leaders Chelsea extended their advantage at the top of the table to six points with a comfortable 3-0 win at Leicester City on Saturday (Nov 20).
The visitors raced into a two-goal lead inside 28 minutes after Antonio Rudiger climbed highest from a corner to head home and N’Golo Kante arrowed in a rare goal.
Leicester improved after the break, but Chelsea remained in control and put the game to bed when Pulisic, who has endured a frustrating, injury-interrupted season, stepped off the bench and scored in the 71st minute.
The victory, Chelsea’s fifth from six away league games this season, moved the Blues onto 29 points, six clear of second-placed champions Manchester City, who play West Ham United on Sunday.
Thomas Tuchel’s side are unbeaten in their last nine games in all competitions after erasing the bitter taste of a frustrating 1-1 draw against lowly Burnley before the international break.
“It’s a good away game, an excellent result. We created a lot of chances,” the German manager said.
“We knew we needed to be strong from first to last minute. This is what we did.
“N’Golo is outstanding. He finds another gear on the pitch, when he plays with a free mind he can be the difference.”
Leicester, who have for so long been top-four challengers in the Premier League, are well off the pace in 12th after their fifth loss of the season.
Foxes boss Brendan Rodgers switched to a three-man central defence in a bid to shore up his leaky rearguard, but the Blues easily found holes in the formation.
Chelsea started brightly, with former Leicester full back Ben Chilwell denied by the crossbar early on.
The goal that gave the visitors the lead was always likely to come via one route though: Coming into the match, no side had scored Premier League goals with headers this season than Chelsea, and no team has conceded more via headers than Leicester. Sure enough, some slack Leicester marking allowed Rudiger in to head home.
It was a well-timed reminder of the German’s quality as Chelsea try to persuade the 28-year-old to sign an extension to a contract that runs out at the end of the season.
“Everybody wants him to stay. It’s pretty clear,” Tuchel said.
“Sometimes there’s a delay in these things, but he knows which club he plays for – a fantastic club in a fantastic league.
“We need a bit of patience and hopefully there will be a happy ending.”
It was all too easy for Chelsea thereafter, with Leicester, who beat the Blues in their previous two meetings – last season’s FA Cup final and a Premier League victory at the King Power in January – offering no response.
With Leicester also allowing far too much space ahead of them, Kante took advantage to make it two, given time to carry the ball to the edge of the home penalty area before firing in.
It took the hosts until the 58th minute to create a shot on or off target, with substitute James Maddison shooting straight at Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy, before Daniel Amartey did actually force Mendy into a fine stop.
Chelsea’s strength in depth was clear for all to see as two substitutes combined to put the game to bed, as Hakim Ziyech fed Pulisic, who scored his first Blues goal since August at the near post.
It could have been more, with Chelsea having three goals ruled out for offside, and would not have been undeserved, given their dominance at the King Power Stadium.
-Reuters/AFP
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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