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TUESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2015
S P ORTS
Squad depth pleases Mourinho after cup stroll
LONDON: Chelsea manager Jose
Mourinho said that his squad were capable of challenging for four different trophies after their 3-0 victory over secondtier Watford in the FA Cup third round.
Three goals in 14 second-half minutes from Willian, Loic Remy and Kurt
Zouma were enough to see Chelsea
comfortably through in Sunday’s game
at Stamford Bridge.
Mourinho was even afforded the luxury of resting some of his jaded firstteam players.
Winning four trophies in a season
remains a tall order, particularly as
Chelsea have seen their eight-point
advantage at the top of the Premier
League eroded away by Manchester City
in the last month.
The next month could decide their
fate, with six games still looming, but
Mourinho believes his side can manage
the heavy workload after backing his
second-string to help maintain their
challenge on four different fronts.
“I had to play with some of my fundamental players because we don’t want
to throw away any competition,” he said.
“We want to play every competition trying always to go to the next step. We
have to do what we did today (Sunday):
make some changes, keep some players
on the bench.
“This time it was (Cesc) Fabregas and
(Eden) Hazard I didn’t include. Maybe in
the next match Fabregas and Eden have
to play, like they did against Derby (in
the League Cup quarter-finals), and
leave somebody else out.
“But we are doing fine. Today I could
give total rest to some. I could leave on
the bench Nemanja Matic and Branislav
Ivanovic without playing one.
“I will do the same with the others.
Maybe next time Diego (Costa) is not
one who is not selected, or Gary Cahill.
So no problem. We are fine. No injuries.
Everyone is good.”
Schwarzer to leave
Mourinho had feared the demanding
mid-season fixture schedule could have
left his side vulnerable to an FA Cup
giant-killing.
But there was never the slightest hint
of an upset against Watford, which
served to underline the strength in
depth at his disposal. A welcome rest
now awaits before Chelsea return to
Premier League action against
Newcastle United and Mourinho is not
looking too far ahead.
“I’m confident we can win against
Newcastle next week,” said the
Portuguese, whose side had gone down
5-3 at Tottenham Hotspur in their previous game. “That is the only thing I’m fully confident over. We don’t go for four
competitions, we go for the next match.
And Newcastle is the next match. “After
that Swansea and we will be very confident there. After that, match by match.”
Mourinho confirmed that veteran
Australian goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer is
leaving, amid reports linking him to
Leicester City, meaning that Petr Cech
will remain at Stamford Bridge in
January. “There is no chance he will go,”
Mourinho said of Cech. “I will bring
Jamal
Blackman
back
from
Middlesbrough. He can stay with
Thibaut Courtois and Petr, which is a
good experience for him.”
Watford bowed out of the competition, but manager Slavisa Jokanovic has
bigger fish to fry as he aims for promotion to the Premier League.
“If we want to come back to a stadium like this, arrive at Stamford Bridge
again, we have a chance in front of us
and we must do everything to make
those steps,” said Jokanovic.
“The FA Cup is over for us. We must
focus on what is important now: the
Championship.” —AFP
Kuwait unshaken
by video nasty
SYDNEY: A row over the recording of an
Asian Cup warm-up game has affected
Kuwait’s preparations but the Gulf side still
feel they can upset hosts Australia in
Friday’s tournament opener.
Their friendly against the United Arab
Emirates at the weekend was abandoned
as the teams lined up in the tunnel, after
the UAE refused to allow Kuwait to record
the game.
Kuwait defender Khaled Ebrahim said
the UAE feared that Kuwait coach Nabil
Maaloul, who previously managed Qatari
club El Jaish, might forward the videotape
to the Emirates’ Group C rivals Qatar.
“Our coach used to be in Qatar,” Ebrahim
told reporters yesterday. “Qatar and the
UAE are in the same group and they think
our coach will give Qatar the video.”
Emirates officials insisted both sides had
agreed to play the match behind closed
doors without any recording or media presence, accusing Kuwait of using threats to
get their way.
“The Kuwaiti delegation has unfortu-
nately declined to adhere to the previous
agreement (which) clearly stipulated that
the match should not be telecast, recorded
or open for the media and the public,” the
UAE football association said in a statement. “But the Kuwaitis insisted on filming
the game. The Kuwaiti team manager escalated the situation and threatened that the
match could be cancelled unless their
requirement (was met).”
Despite the Gold Coast fiasco, Kuwait’s
players are ready to rumble when they face
the Socceroos in Melbourne, promising to
take the game to the home side.
“Kuwait are not scared of any team,” said
midfielder Abdullah Al Buraiki. “Kuwait
respect all teams that play against us.
Australia are a very good team (but) we will
do our best to win.”
Kuwait, ranked 124th in the world but
Asian Cup winners in 1980, have beaten
Australia in five of their previous 10 meetings, losing just three times with two
draws, the Socceroos last coming out on
top in 2006. —AFP
Poyet up for cup after
Sunderland sink Leeds
SUNDERLAND: Sunderland manager
Gus Poyet vowed to continue to respect
the cup competitions after his side beat
Leeds United in the FA Cup in their latest
knockout success under the Uruguayan.
Sunderland booked a place in
Monday’s fourth-round draw as Patrick
van Aanholt’s first-half goal on Sunday
produced a repeat of the 1-0 scoreline
from their celebrated Wembley victory
over Leeds in the 1973 final.
Last season, Sunderland reached the
final of the League Cup, where they lost
to Manchester City, and the quarterfinals of the FA Cup, and Poyet is determined to maintain his policy of sending
out his strongest available side, despite
rival top-flight managers doing otherwise. The Wearside club are just three
points above the bottom three in the
Premier League, but Poyet-who spent 12
months as assistant to former Leeds
manager Dennis Wise in 2006 and 2007
— insists that will not deflect him from
taking the cup seriously.
“We made a few changes from the
other day, but we put a good team out,”
he said.
“We needed to win at home. It’s been
quite embarrassing that we’ve played at
home for four months this season, but
won only once before this, so it helps
with confidence for our next game
against Liverpool.
“I love this competition, and if you can
progress to the later stages, then it can
bring you together and be a real benefit.
I don’t think it’s a distraction, playing
football.
“If someone thinks it’s a distraction,
playing football mid-week or whenever,
then he should go to the casino, or to the
cinema instead.”
Leeds, who are without a win in six
games, did almost enough to reward
their 5,200 travelling fans with a replay
after a much-improved second-half display, with defender Liam Cooper’s lastminute header hitting the woodwork.
The reign of manager Neil Redfearn’s
predecessor, Darko Milanic, ended after
only 32 says due to a run of six winless
games, but Redfearn said he does not
feel under pressure despite having overseen only two victories in 11 matches
since stepping up from his caretaker role
in November.
‘New faces’
“I thought we played really well and
were the better side by quite a stretch in
the second half,” said the 49-year-old.
“We should have had a second-half
penalty and if we’d scored we’d have
gone on to win it.”
The Championship strugglers face an
uncertain future, with the club’s owner,
Massimo Cellino, set to have his appeal
against his disqualification by the
Football League heard on January 15.
The League claimed the 58-year-old
breached its ‘fit and proper’ ownership
test after being found guilty of tax evasion in his native Italy.
Cellino would have been banned until
March 18 if he had not appealed, but
that date will be pushed back if he fails
to overturn his disqualification.
Cellino was fined £500,000 ($766,000,
639,000 euros) in March after being
found guilty of failing to pay import duty
on his yacht.
The League subsequently blocked his
deal to take over at Elland Road, but an
independent QC overturned the decision
on appeal in April, allowing the takeover
to go through.
Leeds, three-time English champions,
are currently under a transfer embargo
under Financial Fair Play regulations, but
they are able to add free transfer acquisitions to their squad.
“I’d like to think we’ll have some new
faces in soon,” said Redfearn, whose side
are currently a point above the
Championship relegation zone. “We
need two or three, so hopefully we’ll
bring the right type of players in.” — AFP
PENAFIEL: Benfica’s forward Ola John controls the ball past Penafiel’s midfielder Joao
Martins during the Portuguese league football match FC Penafiel v SL Benfica at the
25th of April stadium in Penafiel. — AFP
SAN SEBASTIAN: Barcelona’s Munir El Haddadi, left, duels for the ball with Real Sociedad’s Alberto De La Bella, during their La Liga soccer
match, at Anoeta stadium in San Sebastian, northern Spain, Sunday. — AP
Real’s Moyes hails Barca
conquest his ‘happiest night’
MADRIDL: Real Sociedad’s David Moyes lauded
the heroic effor ts of his players who beat
Barcelona 1-0 on Sunday thanks to a Jordi Alba
own goal in a day of shocks in La Liga.
Earlier, Real Madrid’s 22-game winning streak
was ended by a 2-1 defeat to Valencia meaning
both giants of the Spanish game were beaten
on the same day for the first time since April 30,
2011.
However, despite their lowly league position
of 13th, Sociedad have shown themselves well
capable of upsetting the odds having now
defeated Barca, Real and champions Atletico
Madrid at home under three different coaches.
And Moyes believes his challenge now is to
draw that level of performance out of his players on a more consistent basis. “It is the happiest
night since I arrived in San Sebastian. We
worked very hard. The players showed courage
and defended incredibly,” said the Scot.
“This team has shown it is capable in the big
games against the best teams in the league and
now we must show the same capability to win
the other games. At home, for example, we
have let a lot of points slip away.
“We defended well tonight and that is what
we have to do in all the games, but in other
games when we don’t have to defend so much
we also have to pass the ball and attack better.”
Barca boss Luis Enrique paid a heavy price
for leaving both Lionel Messi and Neymar
amongst nearly 300 million euros of talent on
the bench.
Both South American stars only arrived back
in Spain on Friday after an extended Christmas
break and Moyes defended his counterpart’s
decision to only introduce them after the break.
“The best players can’t always play at their
best level in every match. The biggest games for
Barcelona are still to come and in that sense I
think Luis Enrique made the right decision.
“I was hoping this would happen, that some
of their most important players wouldn’t start
and we were prepared for that.”
Enrique also refused to accept that he had
made an error with his starting line-up as Barca
had more than 70 percent of possession and 17
efforts on goal, but failed to take their chances.
“To feel sorry afterwards doesn’t help anyone. I took the decision to avoid risks with players that made a long journey only a few days
ago.
“I thought it was better not to risk it and we
will never know if things would have been different if I had made a different decision.
“I can only remember the goal and then us
dominating. There weren’t that many chances,
but I think we deserved more. We didn’t have
the luck or the clarity we needed in front of
goal.” A third league defeat of the season means
Barca remain a point behind leaders Real
Madrid having also played a game more than
the European champions. —AFP
Manager Van Gaal reflects
on happy United Christmas
YEOVIL: Manchester United manager Louis van
Gaal said the Christmas period had been a triumph for his team after they beat Yeovil Town to
reach the FA Cup fourth round.
While Sunday’s 2-0 win against third-tier
opponents who sat 65 places below them in the
league ladder was to be expected, Van Gaal was
pleased to achieve it, despite picking up two
more injured defenders along the way.
Right-back Rafael da Silva suffered a possible
fractured cheekbone, while left-back Luke Shaw
picked up an ankle problem. Both were substituted at half-time.
“I’m very happy that we have survived this festive period because I don’t have a big squad
because of all the injuries. I had a small squad,”
Van Gaal said after the match.
“I could not change much and in spite of that
we have regained ground on Chelsea by one
point (in the Premier League) after the festive
period and we are in the fourth round of the FA
Cup. What more can a manager wish for?
“I have heard from my fantastic assistant manager (Ryan Giggs) that Man United have not won
the FA Cup for 10 years and maybe we can do
that this year. But it is a very long way.”
Rafael left Yeovil’s Huish Park stadium early to
have his injury assessed and Van Gaal praised the
Brazilian for his commitment while sympathising
with his misfortune in getting injured.
“He played through (the pain) because the
last few weeks he didn’t play and now he is
injured,” said the Dutchman. “He has a fantastic
mentality, it’s unbelievable.”
Ander Herrera’s superb 64th-minute strike
from outside the penalty area put United ahead
before a calm finish from substitute Angel di
Maria sealed United’s progress in the final minute
of the match.
On Herrera’s strike, Van Gaal said: “It’s his class.
It’s not his first goal from outside the box and it
was a fantastic goal. There was a little bit of luck,
but you need that and I was very happy with
him.”
‘Gave them a fright’
Robin van Persie was rested for the game so
James Wilson came into the side to start in attack
alongside Radamel Falcao, with Wayne Rooney
playing in midfield.
United failed to create a decent chance in the
first half, but improved after the break.
Van Gaal was ultimately pleased with how his
side went about their business, and that Di Maria
got some time on the pitch after missing the last
two weeks with hamstring and pelvic problems.
“We didn’t have the patience in the first half,”
he said. “We wanted to make the first goal too
much and I changed the shape. We had a man
more in midfield then and we kept the ball better.
“We have a lot of pace in our attack and that is
why I selected Wilson and later I gave Di Maria 30
minutes, because he needs to build up his match
rhythm.
“It’s not a matter of how far below us they
were because when you see the performance of
Yeovil Town and how they press the ball, the ball
was always under pressure and you can do that
with an amateur team also.”
Gary Johnson, the Yeovil manager, had
warned his players not to ask for ‘selfies’ with
Rooney and his illustrious team-mates before the
match, but he was proud of their performance
on the day.
“I wanted to make sure we gave them a fright
and we did that,” Johnson said. “When the boys
get home, they’ll realise what they’ve done here.
I don’t think there was £159 million ($244 million,
203 million euros) between the sides.” —AFP
Matches on TV
(Local Timings)
England FA Cup
Everton v West Ham
22:45
beIN SPORTS 11 HD
Scunthorpe v Chesterfield 22:45
beIN SPORTS 1 HD
Spain Copa del Rey
Celta de Vigo v Bilbao
beIN SPORTS 2 HD
Malaga v Levante
beIN SPORTS 2 HD
19:00
21:00
Italian Calcio League
Udinese Calcio v AS Roma
beIN SPORTS 3 HD
beIN SPORTS 2 HD
Chievo Verona v Torino
beIN SPORTS 1 HD
AC Milan v Sassuolo
beIN SPORTS 3 HD
beIN SPORTS 2 HD
Empoli v Hellas Verona
beIN SPORTS 8 HD
Citta v Cagliari
beIN SPORTS 6 HD
Genoa CFC v Atalanta
beIN SPORTS 4 HD
Parma FC v Fiorentina
beIN SPORTS 9 HD
Cesena v SSC Napoli
beIN SPORTS 3 HD
Juventus v Inter
beIN SPORTS 3 HD
14:30
17:00
17:00
17:00
17:00
17:00
17:00
20:00
23 :00