Premier League
Man United candidate Rodgers keeps focus on Europa League
Leicester City boss Brendan Rodgers will put aside speculation linking him with the vacancy at Manchester United to focus on beating Legia Warsaw on Thursday (Nov 25). This is to ensure the Foxes keep their hopes of automatic qualification to the Europa League knockout stages alive.
The 48-year-old Northern Irishman has been among those linked with the United role after Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was sacked last Sunday.
It comes, though, at a time when Rodgers is encountering his rockiest patch since he took over in 2019.
The Foxes have for the past two campaigns been right in the mix challenging for a Champions League spot.
However, this term they are 12th in the English Premier League table, eight points off a Champions League spot with almost a third of the season gone.
An illustration of how much their form has dropped off was the easy manner in which Chelsea, the team they defeated in May’s FA Cup final, beat them 3-0 last Saturday.
Rodgers needs a quick pick me up against the Polish side, who beat them 1-0 in Warsaw in their earlier group-stage meeting.
Leicester are third in the group, two points off leaders Napoli and one adrift of Thursday’s opponents.
Victory over Legia would keep them in the hunt with one match to play to top the group and progress to the knockout stages.
The runners-up would be consigned to a play-off which also features the eight third-placed Champions League group teams.
Napoli are away to bottom side Spartak Moscow, who need to win to stay in the race themselves on Wednesday.
A win for Rodgers’ side could set up a winner-takes-all trip to Napoli in their final match.
Leicester winger Ademola Lookman – on loan from Bundesliga outfit RB Leipzig – is predicting a tough encounter with Legia.
“Whenever you’re playing in Europe, you’re coming up against a good team,” he told the Leicester website.
“Unfortunately, we lost to them over there, but we will be looking to use that experience to win our game here.
“In that game over there, they were very intense, they fought a lot and they made it difficult for us.
“We couldn’t get a victory out of the game, but hopefully this game will enable us to force ourselves on them, take the fight to them and show our true qualities.”
‘All Bravado’
Celtic, where Rodgers re-established his managerial credentials after a sour end to his term at Liverpool, are also battling to book their ticket into the next stage.
Celtic can still qualify automatically and could take a huge step in doing that if they beat table-topping Bayer Leverkusen in Germany.
Victory would leave them one point off Leverkusen and with a final home game against Real Betis.
“I feel we are in a good place to have a go at them,” said Celtic’s Australian manager Ange Postecoglou.
“Can we take the game to them and come away with a result?
“Otherwise it’s all bravado without any substance.
“The reason we play as we do is because that is the kind of team we want to be.
“If we fall short we fall short. We get back up and go again.”
Jose Mourinho’s ‘Special One’ status has taken a battering in recent years and his spell with AS Roma is showing few signs of it being revived.
Way off the pace for the Serie A title, they are also second in their third-tier Europa Conference League group a point behind Norwegian outfit Bodo/Glimt.
Mourinho’s side realistically need to beat third-placed Zarya Luhansk in Rome if they are to entertain hopes of finishing top, as Bodo/Glimt host bottom side CSKA Sofia.
Tottenham – the latest club where Mourinho failed to deliver – are also second in their Europa Conference group but should have little trouble in beating point-less NS Mura.
That should set up Antonio Conte’s team with a winner takes all clash against French table-toppers Rennes in London on Dec 9.
-AFP
Premier League
Manchester United tighten hold on third in the Premier League with win over Aston Villa
Manchester United’s Matheus Cunha buried a second‑half strike off a pinpoint through ball from Bruno Fernandes for a club-record 16th Premier League assist in a season to lift the hosts to a 3-1 victory over Aston Villa on Sunday.
Casemiro and substitute Benjamin Sesko scored United’s other goals in a result that tightened United’s grip on third place in the standings on 54 points after 30 games, while fourth-placed Villa have 51 points.
United, who were playing their first game in 11 days, were keen for a victory after interim boss Michael Carrick’s seven-game unbeaten run ended in a 2-1 loss to 10-man Newcastle United on March 4.
With 22 points from a possible 27 under Carrick’s leadership, Sunday’s win will invariably lead to more questions about his chances of becoming United’s permanent manager.
“It was a slightly different game today going into it being so close in the league and making the small jump we could if we won, off the back of a defeat,” Carrick said. “It was a small test and we haven’t really had that.
“The boys dealt with it really well, had a really good week and applied themselves well. Everything is so so encouraging. We’ve got a lot to play for.”
The game looked headed for a draw before Cunha scored from the left side of the box in the 71st minute, with Fernandes recording his 100th assist for the club across all competitions.
With eight games left, Fernandes is also four shy of matching the Premier League record for assists in one season of 20 held by Thierry Henry (2002-03) and Kevin de Bruyne (2019-20).
“He’s had so many big moments, to score a goal, to make a pass,” Carrick said of Fernandes. “Training or games, he’s always there. Really good with the corner. The pass to Matheus was fantastic to cap off a good performance all around.”
Sesko put the game out of reach 10 minutes later with a blistering shot from the centre of the box.
Casemiro put United ahead in the 53rd minute with a glancing header from a Fernandes corner.
Ross Barkley levelled in the 64th with a shot from the middle of the area. After a lengthy VAR check to determine whether the ball glanced off an offside Amadou Onana, the goal stood.
A better second half salvaged a decent game after a dreary first 45 minutes plagued by errant passes and slipping players.
United did have some decent first-half chances including a header from Amad Diallo that goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez stretched backwards to keep out of the net. Diogo Dalot had a terrific chance inside the box that he launched over the bar.
Leny Yoro’s block spoiled one of Villa’s best chances and led to a long-range shot from Fernandes at the other end that he sent just wide of the post.
Villa have not won a league game since February 11, and an animated manager Unai Emery spent much of the afternoon stomping his feet and waving his arms in frustration.
“How we are progressing after we did fantastic months in October, November, December, the last two months we are struggling,” Emery said. “It’s Manchester United here at home, and they are now in good moment. And of course, they played a very intelligent match.
“I think we can get better. The result at the end was a bad result for us. We must accept it and try to analyse now to get better for the next challenge.”
-Reuters
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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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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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