Premier League
Ndidi, Iheanacho on brink of Premier League exit after sorry season
After Paul Onuachu and Joe Aribo in Southampton, it appear it is the turn of another Super Eagles; duo to get into Premiership relegation with their club.
Seven years ago, Leicester lifted the Premier League trophy. Now they are on the brink of relegation from the top-flight after a miserable season.
The Foxes, who drew 0-0 at Newcastle on Monday, will only avoid relegation if they beat West Ham this weekend on the final day of the season and fourth bottom Everton drop points at home to Bournemouth.
Dean Smith adopted a safety-first approach against Newcastle and Leicester failed to muster a shot until stoppage-time, but they kept their first clean sheet in the league since November.
It is a far cry from the heady days of 2016, when Claudio Ranieri delivered a fairytale triumph for the ages, overcoming monumental odds to win the title after Leicester narrowly avoided relegation the previous year.
Despite that incredible success, the Italian did not last long at the King Power Stadium, but the arrival of Brendan Rodgers in 2019 gave fresh impetus to the Thai-owned club.
They finished fifth in the Premier League two years in a row — just missing out on Champions League qualification — and won the FA Cup for the first time in 2021.
Even last year the club ended a comfortable eighth and reached the semi-finals of the Europa Conference League.
But things began to unravel for Leicester in the first game of this season when they let a 2-0 lead slip to draw 2-2 with Brentford.
What followed was a horror show as they lost six straight league matches and despite sporadic mini revivals they have been unable to pull themselves clear of danger.
Leicester have scored more goals — 49 — than any other club in the bottom half of the table but their defensive problems have cost them dear.
Smith, who was appointed as interim manager after Rodgers left by mutual consent in April, was unapologetic after his side’s defensively minded performance against Newcastle.
“We haven’t kept a clean sheet for too long and the reason we are where we are is because of that in my opinion,” he said.
The former Aston Villa boss added: “If it’s too little, too late, who knows? But we’ve taken it to Sunday now.”
– Problems mount –
Leicester have long been a byword for canny recruitment with Jamie Vardy, Riyad Mahrez, N’Golo Kante and Kasper Schmeichel playing starring roles in their title-winning side.
They continued to recruit well, bringing in players of the calibre of Youri Tielemans, James Maddison and Wesley Fofana.
Fofana signed for Chelsea last year while Schmeichel left for Nice, depriving the club of leadership and experience on the pitch. Vardy is now a fading force.
Signings including Patson Daka, Boubakary Soumare, Jannik Vestergaard and Wout Faes have not made the desired impact.
Rodgers raised the alarm in the early weeks of the season, saying he had “not had the help in the market this team needed”.
“I came to Leicester to compete and initially I was able to do that,” he said in September. “You have to add quality but in the last two (transfer) windows we haven’t been able to do that.”
Two of Leicester’s star names — Tielemans and Maddison — are likely to leave the club if they go down.
Vardy, for so long the team’s talisman, is 36 and has had a peripheral role this term, while central defender Jonny Evans has only played 12 league games all season.
Dropping into the Championship is not the financial calamity it once was, with clubs cushioned by generous parachute payments for up to three years.
But losing their Premier League status for the first time in nine years will be a huge blow to the pride of a club who had experienced the unexpected thrill of winning silverware so recently.
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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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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