Italy will miss their second World Cup in a row after slumping to a shock 1-0 play-off semi-final defeat to North Macedonia on Thursday.

Aleksandar Trajkovski’s low drive in the second minute of stoppage time stunned the European champions in Palermo and set-up a qualifying final with Portugal in Porto on Tuesday for a chance to be in Qatar in November.

Roberto Mancini’s side were loudly booed off after a defeat which means Italy will have to wait until at least 2026 to see its national team at a World Cup.

By then it will have been 12 years since the Azzurri’s last participation in the world’s biggest football tournament after they failed to qualify for the 2018 edition, also crashing out in the play-offs on that occasion.

Italy as predicted dominated the play but as has been the case in recent matches struggled to break down a resolute away side and when presented with chances were not clinical enough to take them.

The hosts should have been ahead on the half-hour mark when Domenico Berardi was gifted the ball on the edge of the area by goalkeeper Stole Dimitrievski.

The Sassuolo winger, who has been in red-hot form this season for his club, took too long to shoot and hit his effort into Dimitrievski’s welcoming arms.

It was wave after wave of Italy attack but an initially vibrant crowd began to grow frustrated at their inability to carve out a clear opportunity to score, and it showed in a team which began to look desperate make the breakthrough.

Those fans were on their feet hailing an Italy hero seven minutes before the break, but it was for Alessandro Florenzi stopping Darko Churlinov from giving North Macedonia a shock lead after bursting through into a great scoring position.

Berardi looked Italy’s biggest threat and went close three times in the space of five five second-half minutes, first hitting a weak shot at Dimitrievski before curling another one just wide seconds later.

And the 27-year-old had his head in his hands in the 58th minute when after beautifully spinning into a shooting opportunity he smashed over with his weaker right foot.

He was frustrated again just after the hour, this time Ezgjan Alioski throwing himself into a fantastic block after Marco Verratti had clipped Berardi through with a typically classy ball.

Giacomo Raspadori then smashed a first-time shot over the bar from the edge of the box and Gianluca Mancini headed a corner over the bar as Italy continued to push without ever managing to break their opponents down.

And just as the match looked to be heading into a tense extra-time Trajkovski popped up to hit a perfect low strike past Gianluigi Donnarumma and cause another earthquake for Italian football.

Source: AFP

Manchester City have topped Deloitte’s Football Money League for the first time in their history after emerging from the coronavirus crisis in a stronger position than their rivals.

The Premier League champions, bankrolled by their Abu Dhabi owners, are only the fourth club to top the rankings after Real Madrid, Barcelona and Manchester United

City’s revenue of 644.9 million euros ($712 million, £541 million) in the 2020/21 season — up 17 percent — propelled them from sixth position to the top on the list of the 20 highest revenue-generating clubs in world football.

However, some of City’s commercial deals — which account for nearly half of revenue — are a source of controversy, with a number key partners such as shirt and stadium sponsor Etihad having links to the club’s owners.

The club were 4.2 million euros ahead of Spanish giants Real Madrid, with German champions Bayern Munich next followed by Barcelona and Manchester United.

A total of 11 English clubs were in the top 20, with Wolves making their first-ever appearance as the Premier League continued to flex its financial muscle.

Average revenue of the 20 clubs on the list was 409 million euros — a marginal increase on the 2019/20 season thanks to broadcast deferrals due to Covid disruption, but a 12 percent decrease on the 2018/19 season because of the absence of fans.

The clubs in the Money League have missed out on more than two billion euros of revenue over the 2019/20 and 2020/21 seasons as a result of the pandemic, the Deloitte report said.

Premier League clubs were more insulated due to the much larger television rights deals they enjoy compared with their competitors in the other top European leagues and the gap is likely to widen.

“Premier League broadcast rights values are set to pull further away from the other ‘big five’ European leagues from the 2022/23 season with the rollover of existing domestic arrangements on the same terms and the total value of international rights reportedly set to increase by 30 percent and exceed the value of domestic rights for the first time,” said Dan Jones, head of Deloitte’s Sports Business Group.

Source: AFP

Manchester United were established members of Europe’s elite a decade ago but they have been reduced to the status of also-rans in the Premier League and even in their own city.

Under Alex Ferguson, the club reached three Champions League finals in four years from 2008 to 2011. Since then they have won a meagre two knockout ties in the competition.

United’s limp 1-0 defeat against Atletico Madrid on Tuesday consigned them to a fifth consecutive trophyless season and suggested they are as far as ever from finding the key to success.

A return to the Champions League next year looks highly unlikely, with Arsenal in pole position to grab fourth spot in the Premier League after a strong run under Mikel Arteta.

United, who drew 1-1 against Atletico in the first leg in Spain, started brightly at Old Trafford but were let down by familiar defensive lapses and a palpable lack of a cutting edge.

Cristiano Ronaldo did not have a shot on goal while substitutes Edinson Cavani, Paul Pogba and Marcus Rashford failed to make an impact against Diego Simeone’s well-drilled side.

Former United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel, who won a famous Treble under Ferguson in 1999, said United must do better but believes their current mess is an opportunity for root-and-branch reform.

“For a club that professes to be one of the biggest in the world, we have to do better than that,” he told the BBC.

“It’s been a long period of not being great and it’s very disappointing. But it’s also a time of opportunity and one we cannot miss.

“The club is under different leadership and wants to move in a different direction. It’s a chance to restructure the whole football department — how we recruit, how we scout, how we educate.”

Richard Arnold is the new man at the helm at Old Trafford after taking over from Ed Woodward as the club’s most senior executive.

Manager hunt

The chief executive has the unenviable task of finding a new manager — United’s fifth permanent boss since the departure of Ferguson as a Premier League champion in 2013.

Schmeichel said despite the malaise at Old Trafford, the best managers in the world would “relish” the chance of replacing interim boss Ralf Rangnick at the end of the season.

“They will see great potential here,” he said. “If they are the person to get it right, we’ve seen what that means. I think anyone who is not at Manchester City or Liverpool would take that opportunity if it was offered.”

Paris Saint-Germain manager Mauricio Pochettino and Ajax’s Erik ten Hag are both among the favourites to be the next manager even though their clubs also exited at the last 16 stage of the Champions League.

Chelsea’s Thomas Tuchel has been linked with the job because of the current turmoil at the Stamford Bridge club following the sanctioning of Russian owner Roman Abramovich over the Ukraine war.

Former midfielder Paul Scholes, who was part of Ferguson’s all-conquering side, said United needed to find an elite manager who “strikes fear into players”.

“This isn’t a terrible group of players,” he said on BT Sport. “I think if you give this group of players a structure and way of playing, there’s some real talent in the squad.

“The next man might not be the right man, but the people behind the scenes have to make sure he is the right man,” he added.

“Maybe they need a manager that they are going to be afraid of and that will scare them into performances.”

The problem facing United’s hierarchy is that there have been a number of chances to reset and rebuild since Ferguson brought down the curtain on the most successful spell in the club’s history.

United have not mounted a serious title challenge for nearly a decade, watching enviously as Manchester City and Liverpool have set standards they have been unable to match despite a huge outlay on players.

Few would bet that this time they will get it right.

Source: AFP

Joel Matip has become the first Cameroonian to win the Premier League’s player of the month award.

The centre-back played every minute as Liverpool won all four of their matches in February, conceding only one goal.

He scored in the 6-0 win over Leeds, as well as assisting Diogo Jota as the Reds beat Leicester.

Matip won the February award in front of Che Adams, Ryan Fraser, Harry Kane, Ben Mee and Wilfried Zaha.

The 31-year-old has not played for Cameroon since 2015 after becoming upset with the way the country’s football association ran the sport.

He has 27 caps for the Indomitable Lions, including playing at the 2010 and 2014 World Cups, and several coaches in recent years have unsuccessfully tried to persuade him to make a comeback.

Source: BBC

Thomas Tuchel has vowed Chelsea will not be destroyed by the sanctions on Blues owner Roman Abramovich that plunged the European champions into turmoil before their 3-1 win at Norwich on Thursday.

Abramovich was one of seven more oligarchs slapped with new British restrictions following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The Russian billionaire’s UK assets have been frozen, with strict restrictions placed on Chelsea, who are currently not allowed to sign new players, renew contracts or sell match tickets.

Even Chelsea’s club shop has been closed, while their main shirt sponsor, mobile phone company Three, responded to the sanctions by saying it was temporarily suspending the £40 million ($52 million) deal.

The sanctions have raised fears for Chelsea’s survival, but Blues boss Tuchel insisted after the Premier League victory against Norwich that his team would not be throwing in the towel.

“So far we can trust each other and this will not change. As long as we have enough shirts and a bus to drive to the games we will be there and will compete hard,” he said.

“Everybody can be very sure that we focus on us, to keep the attitude and the mentality right on the training ground and within the team.”

‘Happy to be here’

Reports on Thursday claimed sportswear giant Nike, which makes Chelsea’s kit, was also considering ending the £900 million, 15-year deal it signed with the club in 2016.

Car manufacturer Hyundai said it is “currently assessing” its contract with the Blues.

Chelsea, no longer allowed to spend more than £20,000 on away travel, will continue to receive TV broadcast payments and prize money, but this is set to be frozen.

They have been given a special license to continue playing, but Chelsea officials were holding talks with the government on Thursday to discuss the scope of that arrangement.

Abramovich had already announced he was willing to sell Chelsea, with a host of potential buyers declaring their interest in a club which has won 19 major trophies since the Russian bought them in 2003.

Tuchel has no idea which direction the club will head once Abramovich is gone, but he will not worry about problems he cannot control.

“I didn’t see that coming yesterday and I don’t know what is coming tomorrow,” Tuchel said.

“The level of impact it has, the news of today is big, in time we don’t know how big. We cannot influence it.”

There has been speculation Tuchel might quit Chelsea given their suddenly turbulent situation.

But the German, who has won the Champions League and Club World Cup since he was hired by Abramovich in January 2021, remains happy at the west London club.

“I am still happy to be here and still happy to be manager of a strong team,” he said.

Chelsea are third in the Premier League after easing past lowly Norwich to move nine points clear of fifth-placed Manchester United in the race for a top-four finish.

They are also still in contention in the Champions League last 16 and FA Cup quarter-finals.

Cesar Azpilicueta, Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen are all out of contract this summer and could be forgiven for letting the uncertainty affect their play.

Tuchel will use Chelsea’s top-four and trophy targets to keep his players focused amid the mayhem, but he conceded he was concerned they might be distracted before the Norwich game.

“It would be a lie if I said we I had no doubts but I also had a lot of trust,” he said.

“In difficult circumstances we produced a lot of results and good performances so we can trust in our mentality and the culture in the club. We allowed ourselves to focus on the football.”

Mason Mount, one of Chelsea’s scorers at Norwich, added: “You can’t really avoid it as there’s a lot going on.

“We have to focus on what we do on the pitch. You try not to look too much into it.”

Source: AFP

Munir El Haddadi’s sweet half-volley put Sevilla in sight of the Europa League quarter-finals on Thursday after a narrow 1-0 victory over West Ham.

El Haddadi’s second-half strike at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan means Sevilla have a slim but deserved advantage ahead of the second leg at the London Stadium next week.

The win gives West Ham work to do although David Moyes’ side might not be too unhappy with the result either.

They remain in touch with the six-time champions and will now hope to turn the result around in front of their own fans in London.

Sevilla and West Ham had never met before in a UEFA competition but both teams are among the favourites in this year’s knock-out stages.

After winning the Europa League four times since 2014, Sevilla are arguably the team to beat but West Ham sit sixth in the Premier League and, until recently, were in the driving seat to finish in the top four.

The fact this season’s final will be at Sevilla’s very own Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, where the Spanish club have lost only two of their last 35 European games, has only served to heighten expectations.

They have not lost at home to a foreign team in Europe since 2011.

With that in mind, a narrow defeat is far from disastrous for West Ham, who could have claimed a draw had Nicola Vlasic scored with an excellent headed chance early on.

Michail Antonio also fired into the side-netting while Sevilla went close when El Haddadi headed wide and Youssef En-Nesyri saw his finish well blocked.

The decisive moment came on the hour after Lucas Ocampos was quicker to a loose ball out on the right and went down over the outstretched leg of Kurt Zouma.

Marcos Acuna shaped to curl into the box but instead floated straight and to the back post, where El Haddadi had peeled free.

The forward timed his run perfectly and his finish was even better, a guided effort off the bounce sending the ball directly into the corner.

Tempers flared late on when West Ham’s Declan Rice tried to hoist up the floored En-Nesyri and Ocampos picked up a yellow card in the confrontations, meaning he will now miss the return game next week.

Source: AFP

Real Madrid pulled off one of the great Champions League comebacks on Wednesday as Karim Benzema scored a breath-taking hat-trick to upstage Kylian Mbappe and dump Paris Saint-Germain out in the last 16.

Madrid were set to be the latest victims of another Mbappe masterclass at the Santiago Bernabeu after the 23-year-old ran them ragged for the best part of an hour and fired in to put PSG 1-0 up on the night, 2-0 ahead on aggregate.

But Madrid came storming back as Benzema capitalised on a mistake by PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma and then scored an incredible double in two minutes, the third coming just eight seconds after PSG had kicked off.

When the full-time whistle confirmed their 3-2 aggregate victory, many of Madrid’s players dropped to their knees and looked up to the sky, as much perhaps in disbelief as joy, after completing one of the most memorable turnarounds in the club’s recent history.

All eyes were on Mbappe, who was the only player to be cheered by Madrid’s fans before the game as they were gifted an up-close preview of the player they hope will be theirs this summer.

Mbappe delivered, scoring a superb goal, not to mention a spellbinding second that was disallowed for offside when he bamboozled Thibaut Courtois with a magical dummy-finish.

To think he might not even have been 100 per cent here after a knock in training on Monday temporarily put his involvement in doubt.

But what looked set to become an exhibition of the world’s deadliest player instead became another remarkable European night for Real Madrid, who showed again why they consider this to be their competition.

Madrid clearly wanted to hit PSG hard form the start, with Dani Carvajal leaping and waving his hands at the crowd in an attempt to generate a wave of noise.

For a while, it worked, Vinicius Junior tearing down the left and Fede Valverde bulldozing through Mbappe, but the surge was brief. PSG killed Madrid’s momentum, pushed them back and took complete control.

Mbappe sped clear for the first time in the eighth minute, Neymar curling a ball into the space on the left. The stadium held its breath, Mbappe made space but this time hit Courtois.

Madrid dropped off but ceded control. Mbappe nipped past Eder Militao and Courtois saved. A lovely interchange between Lionel Messi and Marco Verratti gave Neymar a sight of goal but Courtois was there again.

PSG were comfortable now, dictating the play and sensing the trepidation. Madrid had openings, Benzema curling just wide, but all over the pitch they looked slower, heavier, more cumbersome.

Modric shines

Messi skipped through and scooped wide before Mbappe had his first of two goals ruled out, driving into the corner only to see the flag raised.

The goal, though, felt inevitable and in the 39th minute, it came. Carvajal lost the ball upfield and with Madrid committed, Neymar arced another brilliant pass over the top.

By the time he reached it, Mbappe only had David Alaba in front of him and as he shaped to bend into the far corner he instead fired early, whipping a deadly shot past Courtois and inside the near post.

Madrid tried to reset at half-time but Mbappe carried on where he left off with a brilliant, but disallowed, goal.

He fooled Courtois with an astonishing dummy shot, beating the Belgian without even touching the ball and slammed in. The flag went up but the stadium was astounded.

The game was becoming less a contest, more an Mbappe exhibition but then Benzema, out of nowhere, dragged Madrid back into the tie.

He chased Nuno Mendes’ backpass to Donnarumma, who skewed under pressure. Vinicius was able to collect and cut back to Benzema, who slotted home.

Suddenly, there was hope again, the crowd on their feet roaring Madrid on. Vinicius shot over when the ball cannoned kindly to him in the box. Luka Modric tracked Messi and slid him into touch.

It was Modric who inspired Madrid’s second too, a scintillating run through midfield allowing Vinicius to race clear down the left. He scooped back inside to Modric, whose exquisite reverse pass found Benzema, who finished.

Madrid were level on aggregate, the goal confirmed after a check from VAR. Then eight seconds later, incredibly, they were ahead. PSG squandered possession from kick-off, Rodrygo released Vinicius and Marquinhos’ attempted clearance found Benzema, who steered into the corner.

“This is how Madrid win,” the fans began to sing. They fell quiet when Messi stood over a free-kick in injury time but the ball curled over and the cheers began again.

Source: AFP

Barcelona and a rejuvenated Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Europa League specialists Sevilla will spearhead Spain’s challenge in the last 16 of the competition on Thursday.

Sevilla host English side West Ham in the first leg while Barcelona take on Turkish club Galatasaray at the Camp Nou, in two of the most attractive ties of the round.

Five-time European champions Barcelona are still adjusting to the unfamiliar surroundings of the continent’s secondary competition after crashing out of the Champions League in the group stage for the first time in 18 years.

They face Galatasaray at Camp Nou on the back of their best run of the season after four victories in a row, including an impressive 4-2 win away at Napoli in the previous round.

They sit third in La Liga and have not lost in the league since December, boosted by a busy January transfer window in which they signed Aubameyang from Arsenal as well as Ferran Torres and Adama Traore.

Aubameyang and Torres have scored seven goals between them in Barca’s last five games.

“We have four wins in a row and this hasn’t happened for a long time,” said coach Xavi Hernandez on Sunday. “The players believe in what we are doing. We are on the right path.”

The Europa League is still Barcelona’s only realistic hope of winning a trophy this season and there remains a defensive fragility that will offer opponents encouragement.

But Barca will be heavy favourites against a Galatasaray side that have struggled recently, winning only twice in their last 15 matches.

Europa League kings

Sevilla, who have won the Europa League four times in the last eight seasons, will face a West Ham side who are battling for a trophy.

The Hammers’ chances of finishing in the top four of the Premier League are slipping away, with Arsenal now firm favourites to secure the final Champions League spot and Tottenham and United still battling too.

West Ham captain Mark Noble said his team’s fighting performance in the 1-0 defeat to Liverpool last Saturday would restore belief after a rocky patch in which they were also knocked out of the FA Cup.

“That performance will give us a lot of belief and hopefully we can take that into the Europa League now,” Noble said on the club’s website.

“It’s exciting and hopefully we can perform like that because Sevilla are a top team and we are going to need to perform well.”

The shadow of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will hang over Thursday’s matches with the tie between Spartak Moscow and RB Leipzig cancelled, although the Football Union of Russia lodged an appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport on Tuesday seeking to overturn UEFA’s ban on its club playing in European competition.

Wednesday (1745 GMT unless stated)

FC Porto (POR) v Lyon (FRA)

Real Betis (ESP) v Eintracht Frankfurt (GER)

Thursday

RB Leipzig (GER) v Spartak Moscow (RUS) – cancelled

Sevilla (ESP) v West Ham (ENG)

All at 2000 GMT

Atalanta (ITA) v Bayer Leverkusen (GER)

Barcelona (ESP) v Galatasaray (TUR)

Rangers (SCO) v Red Star Belgrade (SRB)

Sporting Braga (POR) Monaco (FRA)

Source: AFP

Chelsea’s Russian owner Roman Abramovich on Wednesday confirmed he is to sell the Premier League club, pledging that proceeds will go to victims of the war in Ukraine.

The billionaire believes it is in the “best interest” of the Champions League holders if he parts ways with the club he has transformed since his purchase in 2003.

“As I have stated before, I have always taken decisions with the club’s best interest at heart,” Abramovich said in a statement.

“In the current situation, I have therefore taken the decision to sell the club, as I believe this is in the best interest of the club, the fans, the employees, as well as the club’s sponsors and partners.”

It is a seismic moment for English football after nearly two decades of Abramovich’s team consistently challenging for the sport’s top honours.

Chelsea have won 19 major trophies in the Abramovich era, including their first two Champions League crowns and five Premier League titles.

But the 55-year-old’s reign will come to an end in the the fall-out from the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The British government have yet to order sanctions against Abramovich, who is said to be close to Russian President Vladimir Putin, but the Chelsea owner’s concern about potential seizing of assets is understood to have sparked his move to off-load the Blues.

Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wyss and USA investor Todd Boehly, a co-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team, are reported to be two of the parties now preparing a joint bid for Chelsea.

Wyss, 86, told Swiss newspaper Blick he had been offered the chance to buy the London club because Abramovich wanted “to get rid of Chelsea quickly” before potential political sanctions took hold.

It is believed Abramovich’s asking price for Chelsea will be around £3 billion ($4 billion), with American bank the Raine Group reported to have been asked to handle the sale.

– Privilege of a lifetime’

Chelsea’s debt to Abramovich currently stands at around £1.5 billion but he will not ask for loans to be repaid, while he is also said to be set to sell his London property portfolio.

Abramovich, who made a rare appearance to watch Chelsea win the Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi recently, has pledged to donate any net proceeds from the sale to help victims of the war in Ukraine.

“The sale of the club will not be fast-tracked but will follow due process,” Abramovich said.

“I will not be asking for any loans to be repaid. This has never been about business nor money for me, but about pure passion for the game and club.

“Moreover, I have instructed my team to set up a charitable foundation where all net proceeds from the sale will be donated.

“The foundation will be for the benefit of all victims of the war in Ukraine. This includes providing critical funds towards the urgent and immediate needs of victims, as well as supporting the long-term work of recovery.”

Abramovich paid £140 million to buy Chelsea from Ken Bates, using his vast wealth and the shrewd appointment of Jose Mourinho as manager to shatter Manchester United and Arsenal’s stranglehold on the Premier League.

As well as Premier League and Champions League glory, Chelsea won the FA Cup five times, the Europa League twice and the League Cup three times under Abramovich.

Abramovich, who announced the impending sale less than an hour before Chelsea’s FA Cup fifth-round tie at Luton, admitted relinquishing ownership was a painful decision.

He hopes to make one more visit to Stamford Bridge before the curtain falls on his 19-year reign.

“Please know that this has been an incredibly difficult decision to make, and it pains me to part with the club in this manner,” Abramovich said.

“However, I do believe this is in the best interest of the club.

“I hope that I will be able to visit Stamford Bridge one last time to say goodbye to all of you in person.

“It has been a privilege of a lifetime to be part of Chelsea FC and I am proud of all our joint achievements. Chelsea Football Club and its supporters will always be in my heart.”

Source: AFP