Premier League
Chelsea not in English Premier League title race, says Enzo Maresca
Enzo Maresca does not believe his Chelsea side are in the English Premier League title race, despite an impressive start to the season in his first campaign at Stamford Bridge.
Victory over Aston Villa at home on Dec 1 would be a seventh win in 13 league games under the Italian, who was appointed as Mauricio Pochettino’s successor in June.
Ahead of the clash, Chelsea were fourth in the table, level on 22 points with Arsenal, who could leapfrog them should they beat West Ham United on Nov 30. The result of that match was unavailable at press time.
The Blues are a point behind Manchester City and Brighton & Hove Albion, and nine points adrift of leaders Liverpool.
Chelsea are in the hunt to return to the Champions League after two seasons away and Maresca has fashioned an effective team from a bloated squad.
But the 44-year-old Italian was keen to play down suggestions that his side could be the one to end City’s four-year title streak this season.
“No,” he said, when asked whether they were in the title race.
“I said many times I didn’t like the pressure. I don’t like to say ‘Yes we are there’ but we are not there.
“Arsenal are ahead of us, City is ahead of us, Liverpool showing they are ahead of us. The important thing is we improve game after game and then we will see.
“For me, it is not about points or the table, it is about the process. Five years together (Arsenal), nine together (City). Liverpool is different but they didn’t make too many changes from before. It’s not about the points difference on the table, it is about the time together.”
Liverpool and City are meeting on Dec 1, giving Chelsea the chance to make up ground on the teams above them but Maresca also urged caution.
“You have to be realistic. You can see the difference between us and the rest in this moment. It doesn’t mean we are not going to compete and win games. We will do that to the end. The main focus has to be the feeling we are improving game after game,” he added.
Maresca played for Sevilla from 2005 to 2009, about four years before current Villa boss Unai Emery took charge of the La Liga club and led them to three Europa League titles.
He heaped praise on the Spaniard, who was appointed by Villa in October 2022 and helped the Birmingham-based side qualify for the Champions League by finishing fourth in the Premier League last season.
“Villa have a top manager, they are doing fantastic. I know Emery from Sevilla and I know how intense they are. They are showing fantastic things with very good players. It will be a tough game,” he said.
Villa, three points back, are winless in seven consecutive matches in all competitions and Emery has urged his side to “keep going”.
“Now, we are going to face Chelsea. Of course, difficult, and those three points will be very important,” the 53-year-old said.
“The most important thing is to try to build our team, to feel comfortable and strong and try to correct some mistakes we are doing.”
-AFP/Reuters
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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