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United confident of De Gea staying

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Manchester United appear increasingly confident that they have won their battle to retain goalkeeper David De Gea's services for at least one more season.

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Manchester United appear increasingly confident that they have won their battle to retain goalkeeper David De Gea's services for at least one more season, despite the lack of a contract breakthrough which has raised the threat of him moving to Real Madrid.

United manager Louis van Gaal gave no signs of optimism last week that De Gea would be persuaded to stay, after his best season for the club in which he was shortlisted for Professional Footballers' Association Player of the Year.

But the prospects of him remaining at Old Trafford are understood to have improved and it is thought he is ready to stay until summer next year.

Though attempts to persuade him to resist the emotional draw of the Bernabeu may fail if Real seek his services then, an improved United contract this summer - in the region of £200,000 a week - strengthening the Old Trafford club's negotiating position next year is thought to be possible.

The pessimism surrounding De Gea has included the continued presence of his girlfriend in Madrid and her own recent unflattering comments about Manchester. Van Gaal's installation of Victor Valdes, whom he is acquainted with from his own time at Barcelona, is also seen as a protection against losing De Gea this summer, though there are other alternatives.

Chelsea's Petr Cech will be on the market and could be an attractive proposition at the age of 32 - relatively young for a goalkeeper.

But De Gea's role has been fundamental to United's recovery to a probable top-four berth in the Premier League this season and, with United in need of a central defender, central midfielder and striker to strengthen the squad for a renewed European campaign, Van Gaal does not want to lose the 24-year-old Spaniard.

The Real manager, Carlo Ancelotti, has said that if the Spanish club, who lie second in La Liga, acquired a better goalkeeper than Iker Casillas the Spain international would lose his place, though De Gea could face a fight for regular football at the Bernabeu, while he would be guaranteed a key role in United's campaign. Casillas is not expected to leave until summer next year.

Van Gaal wants security and continuity, at a time when he is looking to bolster his squad in other ways. He is interested in the PSV Eindhoven winger Memphis Depay and the Borussia Dortmund defender Mats Hummels, though United are not thought to have made a firm bid for Hummels yet. The Dortmund midfielder Ilkay Gündogan is also thought to be on the radar, as is Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski.

With Van Gaal accepting that Robin van Persie's most potent years are behind him, a goalscorer like Lewandowski is required for the rigours of a Premier League/Champions League campaign. – The Independent

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Double injury blow for Bayern

Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski is doubtful for the Champions League semi-final at Barcelona with a fractured cheek-bone.

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Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski is doubtful for the Champions League semi-final at Barcelona with a fractured cheek-bone from their cup defeat to Dortmund while Arjen Robben's season is over.

Lewandowski, who has scored 23 goals this season, spent the night in hospital with concussion after a goal-mouth collision with Borussia Dortmund's Australia goalkeeper Mitchell Langerak late in extra time of Tuesday's 2-0 German Cup semi-final home defeat on penalties.

“Luckily, he didnt break his jaw,” Lewandowski's agent Maik Barthel wrote on Twitter.

The 26-year-old could still line up against Barcelona at the Camp Nou on May 6 by wearing a special mask before the return leg in Munich on May 12.

Having missed the last five weeks with torn abdominal muscles, Dutch winger Robben, who has scored 19 goals this season, is now out for the rest of the season having lasted just 16 minutes in the second-half after coming off the bench as it finished 1-1 after extra-time in Munich.

The 31-year-old Dutchman limped on crutches from the stadium with a tear in his left calf and Bayern has confirmed his season is over.

He will be treated on Thursday in the practise of former Bayern doctor Hans-Wilhelm Mueller-Wohlfahrt, who quit the club earlier this month.

There was some good news for Bayern coach Pep Guardiola as midfielder Thiago Alcantara is not injured despite coming off in the second half with a bruised foot.

Their cup semi-final defeat shatters Bayern's dreams of repeating their 2013 treble of European, cup and league titles having won the Bundesliga title last Sunday.

Robben joins Franck Ribery, David Alaba and Holger Badstuber on Bayern's injury list. – AFP

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City set for upheaval

Proof of the struggles at Manchester City this season arrived when the Premier League’s team of the year was announced. Not one City player made it.

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Manchester, England — Proof of the struggles at Manchester City this season arrived when the Premier League’s team of the year was announced on Sunday.

Chelsea had six players included. Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham all had representatives.

City? Not one player.

Before the end of this season, the manager is under severe pressure and speculation is mounting that the best player could leave. Even the atmosphere inside the stadium is flat.

Just what has gone wrong at the soon-to-be-usurped English champions?

For the first time in five years, City is heading into May without any silverware to play for in the final month of the season. While Chelsea is preparing to hoist the Premier League trophy and Arsenal has an FA Cup final looming, all City has ahead is an offseason of major rebuilding work.

City manager Manuel Pellegrini finished last season by being thrown up in the air by his jubilant players after winning the Premier League title. Twelve months later and Pellegrini could be thrown out the door at Etihad Stadium.

Second — at best — in the league and the last 16 of the Champions League sounds like a pretty good season to City fans of a certain vintage, who recall the club’s slide to the third division in the mid-1990s. Not, though, to Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the member of Abu Dhabi’s ruling family who has invested more than $1.5 billion since his 2008 takeover.

“It is impossible for any club to progress always,” Pellegrini said after a last-gasp 3-2 win over relegation-threatened Aston Villa on Saturday. “We cannot win trophies every year.”

These comments are unlikely to go down well in Abu Dhabi, where Pellegrini faces a post-season debrief when his future will be decided.

Sustaining success in England’s top division has proved beyond every manager except Alex Ferguson, who retired in 2013 after winning 13 Premier League titles at Manchester United.

In 2012-13, City endured a slump in the season after winning the league title and it cost then-manager Roberto Mancini his job. The same has happened under Pellegrini.

City’s signings last year were strategic, intending to bolster areas of the squad that appeared light — like at goalkeeper, right back, centre half and defensive midfield. As Chelsea was signing Diego Costa, Arsenal was bringing in Alexis Sanchez and Manchester United was spending $250 million, Willy Caballero, Bacary Sagna, Eliaquim Mangala, Fernando and an aging Frank Lampard were arriving at City. Hardly names to set the pulse racing.

In fairness to City, the club was restricted to a net spend of 49 million pounds ($75 million) after breaking financial fair play rules, but it didn’t stop them from splashing out a reported 42 million pounds ($64 million) on Mangala, the France centre back who has failed to impress since joining from FC Porto.

Pellegrini said in a recent interview that his team needs a “crack” player that “gives you a kind of ascendancy, status.” Whether he’ll be around to see this happen is another question.

Some of City’s key players — like Pablo Zabaleta, Vincent Kompany and Yaya Toure — haven’t reached the level of last season in this post-World Cup campaign. The future of the 31-year-old Toure, who has been at the heart of City’s growth as a domestic force since 2010, is under particular scrutiny amid reported interest from Paris Saint-Germain and Inter Milan.

The average age of City’s squad is nearly 29, which reportedly is the highest in the Premier League and one of the highest in Europe. There is a general feeling it could do with an injection of youth.

“Now it seems like because we have not won something, it’s a disaster and we have to change seven or eight players, the manager,” Zabaleta said in quotes carried Tuesday in the British media. “That’s what people say.”

City has been linked with Belgium winger Kevin de Bruyne and Paul Pogba — the in-demand France midfielder who could be a like-for-like replacement for Toure — while Aleksandar Kolarov, Stevan Jovetic and Edin Dzeko are among the players expected to leave. Lampard is moving to Major League Soccer and the contract of versatile midfielder James Milner expires this season.

The biggest call City needs to make, though, is on Pellegrini, the Chilean who has brought serenity to the Etihad since replacing Mancini and has a playing philosophy that fits the holistic approach favoured by City’s Spanish executives, CEO Ferran Soraino and director of football Txiki Beguiristain.

But is Pellegrini’s laid-back style leaving players in the comfort zone? Is he tactically astute enough to go head-to-head with Jose Mourinho and Louis van Gaal next season?

Juergen Klopp will be available once he leaves Borussia Dortmund and has already been linked with City. Pep Guardiola appears City’s dream manager but has pledged his immediate future to Bayern Munich. Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti and Napoli coach Rafa Benitez have also been mentioned, while Patrick Vieira — City’s head of youth development — is also a possible option.

It’s set to be a busy, intriguing offseason at City. – AP-ANA

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Hull leaves Reds’ CL hopes in tatters

Hull destroyed Liverpool’s slim hopes of qualification for the Champions League after defeating Brendan Rodgers side.

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London - Hull City edged towards Premier League safety with a 1-0 win over Liverpool on Tuesday that moved them four points clear of the relegation zone and shredded the visitors' slim hopes of Champions League qualification.

Central defender Michael Dawson scored the only goal at the KC Stadium after 37 minutes, beating a hopeless Liverpool offside trap to head home and the hosts comfortably held on to record their second successive victory.

It moved them up to 15th place in the table with four games remaining, while Liverpool stayed fifth, seven points behind fourth-placed Manchester United who occupy the final Champions League qualifying spot.

It was the second successive game in which Liverpool have failed to score and heaped pressure on manager Brendan Rodgers, whose side have taken four points from their last five games.

Liverpool last won the English title 25 years ago to the day and their performance against Steve Bruce's strugglers made them look every inch a team in decline.

Although they had the upper hand in terms of possession, they created little going forward and looked frequently vulnerable at the back.

Hull seemed happy to concede the ball to the visitors in the early stages, safe in the knowledge that their infrequent forays forward and whipped crosses into the box regularly induced panic in the Liverpool ranks.

Sone Aluko should have put the hosts ahead after six minutes but headed straight at Simon Mignolet and Jake Livermore's header forced the Liverpool keeper to parry as Hull sensed blood.

Liverpool's only real effort on goal in the first half came when Philippe Coutinho's shot from a Jordan Henderson corner forced Hull keeper Steve Harper into a sharp block.

The hosts, however, looked the more threatening and went ahead when Dawson timed his run perfectly to beat the offside trap and head home a lofted ball from Ahmed Elmohamady.

Liverpool's lack of firepower in the absence of the injured Daniel Sturridge was evident and they struggled as the match wore on, although Henderson forced a smart save from Harper.

Liverpool threw bodies into the box and Hull retreated but Bruce's side looked comfortable as they followed up Saturday's 2-0 victory over Crystal Palace with another crucial three points. – Reuters

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Davids, Isaacs in the mix for Cup semi-final

Roger de Sa admits that team selection is giving him sleepless nights. Ajax Cape Town host SuperSport United in a Nedbank Cup semi-final tie at the Athlone Stadium tomorrow night (kick-off 8.15pm) and, with everybody available and pushing for a place in the starting side, Ajax coach De Sa is wrestling with his starting team.

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His headache has especially been compounded by the fact that two experienced veterans performed magnificently in a 1-0 league defeat to Free State Stars on Tuesday. With De Sa resting central defenders Rivaldo Coetzee and Abbubaker Mobara, and central midfielders Travis Graham and Granwald Scott both suspended for the midweek game, 32-year-old Dominic Isaacs and 30-year-old Lance Davids were given a run – and De Sa was blown away by their robust, influential display.

Now, in a Cup semi-final against a quality SuperSport team, where calm, mature heads may well be needed, the duo have given De Sa some food for thought.

“My job was made rather difficult after Tuesday’s game against Free State Stars,” said De Sa. “It was a difficult fixture against extremely physical opponents. But we did well and we could have sneaked a point, with a little bit of luck. We had chances, but missed them.

“A number of players, though, put their hands up for selection for the semi-final, especially Dominic (Isaacs) and Lance (Davids). Dominic won a number of aerial duels and was up for the Free State team’s aggressive approach. Lance also has the same steel and he got stuck in. It was good that we had the two of them on the pitch in such a physical match. Lance has done a fantastic job for us whenever needed. He is a great professional and I’m sure he will be ready if he is needed in the semi-final.

“But I can only start with 11 players… I wish I could start with 25. But I’ll look at previous form, current form, the nature of the opposition and the game plan I want to use before deciding on the starting team.”

The measure of a successful football team is a good balance between youth and experience. For most of this season, though, Ajax have made do with a special crop of talented youngsters. And, for De Sa, it would be a magnificent achievement if this bunch of kids can make it to the final.

“These young boys are winners,” said the Ajax coach. “Remember that, when they were juniors, they won many trophies at the club, not only in Cape Town but overseas as well. They know how to win…

“This, of course, is a different level, but they are growing, and they continue to grow and mature. They are not there yet, but this semi-final is an opportunity for them to gain more valuable experience, and give themselves a shot at a final.

“For me, as coach, there is nothing more exciting than working with such emerging footballers. Look at a player like Rivaldo (Coetzee)… I gave him his debut as a 17-year-old last year, now he is in the semi-final of a Cup competition, has a few Bafana Bafana caps to his name, and he gets better with every game. That alone is motivation for me.”

De Sa also revealed why the match is taking place at Athlone, the venue for their last two Cup games, and not Cape Town Stadium, which is usually Ajax’s home ground.

“When the draw was made and we were at home, I opened it up to the players to decide where they wanted to play,” said the coach. “I must say I was surprised that the majority opted for Athlone. But I guess it’s a ground with a lot of history for many in the squad, a stadium that’s close to their heart.

“It’ll be great to get to the final, not only for the club and the squad, but also for the city. It’s an opportunity to do the Cape proud. This a region that has produced so many good players and it would be fantastic to put the city on the football map again.”

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Maritzburg battle past Ajax

Mohau Mokate scored an injury time winner to help hosts Maritzburg United to a 1-0 victory over Ajax Cape Town in their Premiership match at Harry Gwala Stadium.

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Pietermaritzburg – Mohau Mokate scored an injury time winner to help hosts Maritzburg United to a 1-0 victory over Ajax Cape Town in their Premiership match at Harry Gwala Stadium in Pietermaritzburg.

With the game seemingly headed for a goalless draw, up stepped Mokate to head home the only goal of the evening with the cross coming in from Deolin Mekoa.

The win means Maritzburg rise to 36 points as they jump from eighth to seventh on the league table.

For Ajax, they remain on 37 points in sixth spot.

Just after the 20 minute mark, Ajax midfielder Keagan Dolly reeled off a shot but it was blocked by Maritzburg player Philani Zulu. Franklin Cale sent in the resultant corner and Ntuthuko Mabaso cleared the danger.

Moments later Ajax were on the prowl again. This time Abbubaker Mobara was on hand with the shot, but Maritzburg keeper Shuaib Walters was up to the task and tipped the ball away for a corner.

Dolly was involved again just before the half-hour mark with a shot, but Walters again had it covered as he made the save.

Yet another attempt followed in the 32nd minute for Dolly, but his effort was directed just wide of goal.

Five minutes later the energetic player threatened once more. Dolly showed some quick footwork to reel off the attempt but still could not find the back of the net.

Mosa Lebusa for Ajax had the next chance in the 42nd minute. His header from inside the area, like his teammate, was off target.

Minutes after the interval, Mohammed Anas had a chance for Maritzburg. With the shot coming in from Anas, Ajax player Travis Graham was able to get the block in to stamp out the threat.

Ajax had the next chance in the 50th minute. Cecil Lolo had a dip at goal from a free kick, but again Walters made the save.

With five minutes left in the encounter, Thamsanqa Mkhize tried his luck for Maritzburg but goalkeeper Anssi Jaakkola had it covered in the Ajax goal. – ANA

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Barca give Getafe six of the best

Barcelona's Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar fired the La Liga leaders to a 6-0 rout of Getafe that stretched the gap over Real Madrid to five points.

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Barcelona - Barcelona's Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar motored past 100 goals for the season to fire the La Liga leaders to a 6-0 rout of Getafe that stretched the gap over Real Madrid to five points.

After Suarez was felled, Messi set treble-chasing Barca on their way with a dinked penalty in the ninth minute at the Nou Camp, the first time the Argentina forward has attempted a “Panenka” in 75 spot kicks for club and country.

Suarez clipped a volley into the net from Messi's floated pass in the 25th and Neymar weaved into space to fire low into the corner three minutes later, the 100th goal for Messi, Suarez and Neymar, known as 'MSN', in all competitions this term.

Messi is on 49 goals, Uruguay striker Suarez, whose ban for biting an opponent expired at the end of October, has 21 and Brazil forward Neymar 32.

Playmaker Xavi, making his 501st league appearance for the Catalan giants, curled a superb shot into the top corner on the half hour and Suarez netted his second after a flowing move five minutes before the break.

It was the first time Getafe, who are 13th, have conceded five goals in the first half of a La Liga match.

Messi took his league tally to 38 this term, one behind top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo of Real, with a whipped shot into the top corner two minutes after the break before Getafe managed to repel waves of attacks for the remainder of the game.

Barcelona have 84 points with four matches left, while second-placed Real can trim the gap back to two points if they win their game in hand at home to Almeria on Wednesday.

Champions Atletico Madrid are seven points adrift of Real in third ahead of their game at Villarreal on Wednesday.

Barcelona, and their formidable attack, look to be in ominous form before a crucial run of games over the next two weeks, including their Champions League semi-final tie against German champions Bayern Munich.

They are also through to next month's King's Cup final against Athletic Bilbao and thus have a chance of repeating 2009's historic treble of Champions League and Spanish league and Cup titles under current Bayern coach Pep Guardiola.

“The team is 100 percent committed, the fans, everyone,” Suarez told Spanish television.

“We have an obligation to achieve great things and we are facing the most important phase of the season,” added the 28-year-old, who joined Barca from Liverpool in July.

Bilbao missed a chance to climb above Malaga into seventh when they let slip a one-goal lead and were held to a 1-1 draw at home to 10-man Real Sociedad in the Basque derby.

Sociedad, who are 12th, had defender Mikel Gonzalez sent off when he conceded a penalty five minutes after halftime for a foul on Bilbao forward Aritz Aduriz.

Aduriz scored with the spot kick but Sociedad fullback Alberto De La Bella levelled with a powerful long-range strike into the top corner on the hour.

Bottom side Cordoba are on the brink of relegation after they were beaten 1-0 at fellow strugglers Levante. They are 11 points adrift of the safety zone with four games remaining. – Reuters

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Dortmund ruin Bayern’s treble hopes

Holders Bayern Munich slumped out of the German Cup semi-finals 2-0 on penalties to Borussia Dortmund after failing to score any of their spot kicks.

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Munich - Holders Bayern Munich slumped out of the German Cup semi-finals 2-0 on penalties to Borussia Dortmund after failing to score any of their spot kicks as their hopes of repeating their 2013 treble were dashed.

Bayern, who won the Bundesliga title on Sunday, had captain Philipp Lahm and Xabi Alonso slip as they sent their penalties into the stands as the Munich side missed all four of their efforts after a 1-1 draw following extra time.

Dortmund, beaten finalists last season, took revenge and maintained their hopes of a Europa League spot next term through the Cup competition after a disappointing Bundesliga campaign.

Unlucky Bayern will now focus on the Champions League where they face Barcelona in the last four next week.

“I did not expect such a game,” beaming Dortmund coach Juergen Klopp told reporters.

“I wanted us to play with more courage in the first half and I told my players that it is ok to lose here but not with this nonsense. Let's go down fighting,” added Klopp, who is leaving the club at the end of the season.

Yet it had all looked to be going in Bayern's favour with their former Dortmund striker Robert Lewandowski scoring for the third time against his old club when he drilled home on the rebound in the 30th minute.

The Poland international then hit the post in the second half as Bayern dominated and looked certain to enjoy more goals.

But a quick break sent Dortmund's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang through at the far post and the Gabon forward slid in for the equaliser in the 75th against the run of play.

It was the wake-up call Dortmund needed and twice they had the chance to score again as the game turned on its head but Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer's superb reflexes denied Marco Reus and Henrikh Mkhitaryan.

Bayern then lost winger Arjen Robben, who had come on as a substitute following a stomach muscle injury last month but lasted only 16 minutes.

“We played a great game and in the first half they had no chance,” Bayern coach Pep Guardiola said. “We had some problems for five or seven minutes. I am very proud of my team.

“As for the penalties, this happens. Penalties are always about controlling emotions and maybe we were a bit tired.”

Dortmund were reduced to 10 men in extra time following the dismissal of Kevin Kampl but kept their cool and keeper Mitch Langerak made the save of the game by stopping Bastian Schweinsteiger's point-blank header.

They then converted two penalties, as Bayern's hopes were dashed when their first two takers missed after slipping before Mario Goetze's spot kick was saved and Neuer rattled the bar. – Reuters

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PSL race for second spot hots up

The fight for second spot in the PSL and entry into the Caf Champions league becomes the biggest prize up for grabs in the last few games of the season.

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Johannesburg – With the title race already decided, the fight for second spot and entry into the Caf Champions league becomes the biggest prize up for grabs in the last few games of the season.

Orlando Pirates occupy third place on the log with 45 points and three games remaining. Mamelodi Sundowns, meanwhile, are second with 48 points but still have four matches left.

The Buccaneers face SuperSport United at Orlando Stadium in one of the key encounters of the six matches on the evening.

Pirates midfielder Thandani Ntshumayelo believed second spot was still well within his team’s reach heading into the clash with their Pretoria-based opposition.

“We are still within reaching distance of that last Champions League spot,” said Ntshumayelo.

“We just have to make sure that we win all our remaining matches.”

The Soweto outfit, however, will also be duelling with Wits who are also on 45 points but crucially have a game in hand over the much-fancied Pirates.

“We need to focus on our games because we have control over that and avoid focusing on Sundowns and Wits. Hopefully they can drop points and allow us to sneak into number two.”

Caf success will still be on the minds of many of the Pirates players, as the team reached the final of the competition in 2013 under coach Roger de Sa where the South African side went down 3-1 over two legs to Al-Ahly of Egypt.

“We simply have to win all our remaining matches because our prevailing ambition as players and as a club is to play in the Champions League on a regular basis. We believe that we are good enough to compete with the best our continent has to offer,” said Ntshumayelo.

SuperSport, in contrast, were in the middle of a battle for a top eight finish on the log. With four matches left, Matsatsantsa were seventh on the table with 35 points, two ahead of both Maritzburg United and Polokwane City immediately below.

With much to play for in the clash, Ntshumayelo believed Pirates would be the team to come away with all three points.

“Despite all the problems we faced this season we came back and put up a good fight.

“For me that bears testament to the quality, character and spirit that is Orlando Pirates which is why I believe we can get the second spot starting with a victory over SuperSport United on Wednesday night.”

In the other matches on the evening, Sundowns host champions Kaizer Chiefs at Lucas Moripe Stadium. Free State Stars host Wits at Goble Park, AmaZulu take on Platinum Stars at Princess Magogo Stadium, Polokwane City welcome Black Aces to Old Peter Mokaba Stadium and Chippa United host Bloemfontein Celtic at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium. – ANA

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RVP keen on United stay

Robin van Persie has given Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal a boost by revealing he wishes to stay at Old Trafford.

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Robin van Persie has given Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal a boost by revealing he wishes to stay at Old Trafford beyond the summer.

Van Persie has played a bit-part role in United’s season this time around, with injury restricting him to 25 starts and 10 goals in all competitions.

The Dutch striker knows that his days as United’s premier centre forward may well have gone, with Wayne Rooney the club captain and Van Gaal on the lookout for another big-name scorer.

However, it is understood that Van Persie, who will be 32 before the start of the next campaign, is happy to stay at the club into the final year of his contract next season — if United still want him and he is guaranteed a decent amount of playing time.

Van Persie is happy in the north-west of England, with his children settled in a school in Cheshire. Van Gaal has not yet indicated what his plans are for him beyond the end of this season but last night a source close to the striker said: ‘Robin is in no rush to leave. He still thinks he can achieve things and contribute at Old Trafford.’

Van Persie returned from an ankle injury as a late substitute in United’s 3-0 defeat at Everton on Sunday and is in line to make a starting return to the team in the home game against West Brom this weekend.

He is likely to ease ahead of fellow striker Radamel Falcao, who made little impression when given 45 minutes at Goodison Park, while Wayne Rooney is awaiting the results of tests on a bang to his knee picked up on Merseyside.

United would not comment on Rooney’s fitness last night but it is understood that Van Gaal is not overly concerned.

Rooney was given permission to attend the PFA awards dinner in London after Sunday’s game and was seen walking without any problem at the event.

Van Persie enjoyed a sensational first season at United after signing from Arsenal in the summer of 2012. He was United’s top scorer as they won the Premier League title but has struggled to make the same impact since.

Still one of the club’s highest earners, Van Persie would nevertheless be an attractive proposition to other clubs in Europe.

He has only a year left on his contract and would therefore be available for a relatively low price if United did look to sell.

United certainly need to bounce back quickly after Sunday’s defeat and central defender Chris Smalling admitted yesterday that Van Gaal’s players let themselves down. Smalling said: ‘This was a massive wake-up call for us. Right from the first minute we were off the pace and they had a pressure that we usually have.

‘We haven’t been the second-best team in games, even when we’ve lost we’ve always had that aggression and those tackles but on Sunday we were far from it.

‘I think we’ll see a different Manchester United against West Bromwich Albion. The fans deserve better.’

United will today confirm details of their summer tour of the USA. The trip will be confined to the west coast, with a base in Seattle and four matches.

Meanwhile, PSV Eindhoven winger Memphis Depay has said it would be a dream come true to move to the Premier League this summer. United and Liverpool are interested in signing the 21-year-old who looks certain to leave Holland at the end of the season.

Depay has scored 21 goals for the runaway Eredivisie leaders — 27 in all competitions — and admits he dreams of making a high-profile transfer this summer.

When asked about a possible move, Depay, who is the division’s top scorer, said: ‘If that would become reality, it would be fantastic. It is a dream to make a transfer with such a big impact.

‘But I already said there is a lot of speculation and a lot of stories, but I don’t know how things will work out, so let’s wait and see.

‘It would be great to go to one of the big competitions this summer but for now I don’t want to speak about that.’ – Daily Mail

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Time for Walcott to leave Arsenal?

Another season at Arsenal after this will see Theo Walcott break 10 years at the club. But, will he see that day?

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When Theo Walcott signed for Arsenal, the club were still playing home games at Highbury; Ashley Cole was the first-choice left-back and Stan Kroenke was yet to own a single share in that venerable institution he now controls from afar.

The world for Arsenal has changed in the intervening nine years and yet, like so many child prodigies, it can be hard to imagine Walcott as anything other than the 16-year-old boy who was deemed too young even to attend the press conference to announce his arrival from Southampton.

He is only 26, although in football years it feels like Walcott has had an entire career already, ripe to regale his younger team-mates with tales of a bygone era when a footballer with a tattoo was considered edgy, the only person who took pictures in the dressing room was the club photographer and an England international had to be alive 24-7 to the perils of being merked by Rio Ferdinand.

For Walcott, however, the eternal boy-man of English football, a decision looms on the horizon over his future with Arsenal and on Sunday, when he started on the bench, it looked again like he is slipping further from his manager Arsène Wenger's thoughts. Against Chelsea, it was not until the 84th minute that Wenger eventually elected to send on Walcott, although that is nothing new.

There was the same reluctance from Wenger to use his winger until relatively late when goals were required against both Monaco in the second leg of the Champions League tie and Reading in the FA Cup semi-final. Walcott has started just three league games since his full return from that career-interrupting cruciate ligament injury against Tottenham Hotspur in January last year and its consequences.

With one further season left on Walcott's contract after the summer, it begs the question whether contract politics are coming into play again.

Is Wenger simply unwilling to make changes to a team that has won 24 games in 30 or does his coolness over Walcott have its roots in what he perceives as a reluctance from the player to commit, with no negotiations over a new deal having started yet?

And, in turn, what effect will that have on Walcott's confidence, as he decides where to spend what should be the best years of his career?

What is certain is that neither side has forgotten the last contract negotiations, which reached deadlock in the summer of 2012.

It took Walcott's best-ever season in 2012-13, with 21 goals, to force the hand of Wenger, who had frozen him out in the early part of the campaign. In the end, Walcott made himself undroppable and in January 2013 the club backed down and gave him the £100 000-a-week deal he had sought. He started the next season as a regular, if less prolific goalscorer, and then came that injury.

Walcott is fond of Arsenal, where he has spent more than a third of his life, but you wonder if the club ever forgave him for winning the battle last time.

He was not an academy boy at the club, but he joined so young he can be perceived that way and football clubs often resent paying top whack to their own. As the games run out this season, and with a pivotal summer ahead, Walcott has to ask himself whether he can afford to wait for the weather to change.

Arsenal have developed a healthier competition for places than they had pre-January 2014 but, at 26, Walcott is unlikely to settle for a place as an impact substitute behind an out-of-position Aaron Ramsey or being picked behind Danny Welbeck.

If he is being punished for taking his time over signing a contract in January 2013, he might wish to point out that, in the interim, Wenger himself left it a matter of days before the expiration of his previous deal before he re-signed last May.

But if that relationship has been damaged for good and Walcott is to remain at Arsenal to come off the bench rather than starting games like the one on Sunday, he will know that his future is better served playing elsewhere.

No player leaves a club like Arsenal lightly, but then it is also about knowing when a change of scene will benefit him.

His marginalisation with his club would have an effect on his career for England, where a new generation of Raheem Sterling, Ross Barkley and Harry Kane has emerged, not to mention Walcott's injured Arsenal team-mate Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain - and there are more coming.

These should be the best days for Walcott with England, when seniority and experience kick-in, but there has been little straightforward about his international career encompassing three World Cup finals at which, for various reasons, he has not played a single game.

Another season at Arsenal after this will see Walcott break 10 years at the club and, with Abou Diaby's departure this summer, he will be the longest-serving player in the squad. He is young enough to be an attractive prospect to Liverpool if they were to lose Sterling or to Manchester City and their depleted reserves of home-grown players, in a summer when they are expected to rebuild. The question for Walcott is what he wants from what should be the best days of his life as a professional footballer.

His strength has been the attitude shown in times of adversity. The philosophical response to that 2010 World Cup England squad omission; the quiet confidence in the face of some studs-up criticism from the ranks of the ex-pros; even the 2-0 scoreline on his fingers in January 2014 as he was ferried in stately fashion past the Spurs supporters. A cheerful boy, grateful for the good life conferred on him by playing in English football's days of plenty.

The lowest points of the last 15 months - another lost World Cup finals, missing out on the first Arsenal trophy of his career - have been beyond his control. At his age Wayne Rooney already had 73 caps for England to Walcott's 38. But 10 years into his career, at the age of 26, Walcott is embarking on the second half with a chance to seize back control of his destiny. It might take a brave decision this summer to do so.– The Independent

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Real’s Chicharito dilemma

Real Madrid have a tough decision to make in the next few days as the club decides whether or not to take up the option to buy Mexican international striker, Javier Hernandez.

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Madrid — Real Madrid have a tough decision to make in the next few days as the club decides whether or not to take up the option to buy Mexican international striker, Javier Hernandez.

Hernandez, whose nickname ‘Chicharito’ means ‘little pea’ (because of his green eyes) joined Real Madrid on loan from Manchester United at the end of August with an option for the Spanish side to make the move permanent for a price fixed at 20 million Euros (around 22 million US dollars).

Despite Chicharito scoring two goals away to Deportivo la Coruna early in the season, for most of the campaign it has looked unlikely that Real Madrid would be tempted as coach Carlo Ancelotti played his “unnegotiable” starting trio of Gareth Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema.

Hernandez had played less than 400 minutes in all competitions and during the March international break complained that all he wanted was a chance to show what he could do.

That chance came with injuries to Bale and Benzema and Hernandez has responded in the best way possible.

Last Wednesday he scored an 88th minute winner against Atletico Madrid to qualify Real Madrid for the Champions League semi-finals and on Sunday he netted a brace to help Real to a vital 4-2 win in Vigo.

Hernandez has now scored 6 goals in 510 minutes football, one every 85 minutes, and that has caused a rethink at the Santiago Bernabeu. There are still barriers to overcome, with Benzema expected to be fit in a fortnight will he be able to convince Ancelotti he deserves to be first choice and will he settle for returning to the subs’ bench after his recent displays?

Real Madrid could try and use the fact that Hernandez is out of contract with Manchester United in 2016 to try and lower the asking price, but his recent goals mean there will be no shortage of clubs in Europe vying for his signature and that could keep the price higher than Real Madrid want.

In the striker’s favour are his goals: one goal every 85 minutes is good for anyone in the top flight and can they afford to let a player who works hard, is ambitious and has shown his worth to simply walk away? – Xinhua

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Footballer critical after collapsing

Belgian footballer Gregory Mertens was in a critical state in hospital after suffering a heart-attack playing for Lokeren reserves.

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Belgian footballer Gregory Mertens was in a critical state in hospital after suffering a heart-attack playing for Lokeren reserves the previous night, press reports said.

The 24-year-old defender collapsed on the field 20 minutes into the game against Genk and was given emergency treatment before being rushed to hospital.

The reports said that Mertens had been placed in an induced coma in an effort to save his life.

“Sporting Lokeren sympathises with the family and hopes for a positive outcome,” his club said in a statement.

Mertens began his career in Brussels with Anderlecht, but moved to Bruges in 2011 before transferring to Lokeren in January, 2014. He was capped several times for Belgian national youth sides. – AFP

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Pitso bemoans venue for cup final

Pitso Mosimane is not happy having to face Ajax Cape Town in the final of the Nedbank Cup at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.

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Mamelodi Sundowns coach Pitso Mosimane, you can be sure, will speak his mind no matter the occasion.

The temperamental and loquacious coach was at it once again after his side reached the final of the Nedbank Cup courtesy of Mzikayise Mashaba’s wonder strike that ensured victory over Vasco Da Gama at the Lucas Moripe Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

From expressing displeasure at the venue for the final – Port Elizabeth, calling himself a “crazy coach” to poetically vowing to come back stronger next season, Mosimane was in his element.

Though treading carefully the coach was not happy with the choice of facing Ajax Cape Town in the final of the Nedbank Cup at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in PE.

“The venue is out of our hands. We don’t control that. Whether we like it or not, we will go. If you ask my opinion, I would not like to go to Port Elizabeth but I have to go.

“I would like to go to Durban, I think PE suits Ajax better. That’s my opinion. But I must be careful of what I say. It’s difficult for our people to get there. It’s difficult for Sundowns. I don’t know the decisions, who makes them? It’s not for me,” said Mosimane.

With the disappointment of losing the Absa Premiership title this season to Kaizer Chiefs, Mosimane vowed to fight with his all to win it and also called himself a crazy coach who can win everything on offer next season. In a typical politician’s style, Mosimane rendered a rhetoric.

“Anything is possible. I am a crazy coach. I believe that we can win everything next year. I mean, why not?

“If I went to the semi-finals of the Telkom Knockout, I can go to the final. If I made the final of the Nedbank Cup, I believe I can win the Nedbank Cup. If I came second, I believe I can take it one notch up and win the league. If I lost 3-2 on aggregate to TP Mazempe, I believe I can score one goal to take me through.

“That’s the reality, it’s not dreams or emotions. The team is improving all the time,” said Mosimane.

Against Vasco, Sundowns battled until Mashaba unleashed a 25-yard thunderbolt to break the deadlock.

Tomorrow Mosimane will be hoping his men can put one over Kaizer Chiefs in a quest to regain some pride.

“Before the tussle, Sundowns will give Chiefs a guard of honour to salute them for winning the championship this season. After that it will be war as Sundowns fight for pride and a better position.

“We didn’t just drop the ball. We gave our best to try and win the league but circumstances were difficult for us.

“The team is improving. We are trying to fight for the CAF Confederation Cup if we win the cup. We are trying in our next two games to give us a position in the CAF Champions League. It’s not easy games – Chiefs and Platinum Stars.

“So we still have to fight hard,” said Mosimane. - The Star

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Jose hits back at Chelsea critics

Jose Mourinho pointed to fabulous goals and individual heroics, aghast that anyone would dare to criticise the style of Chelsea.

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Jose Mourinho gazed into his crystal ball and predicted football’s future might as well be played on the moon without goalposts if Chelsea are to be branded boring champions.

Mourinho pointed to fabulous goals and individual heroics, aghast that anyone would dare to criticise the style of a team clearly the best in the Barclays Premier League.

Football’s priorities were muddled, he said, but at least Roman Abramovich is enjoying the game again — and a happy billionaire owner makes for a happy Chelsea manager.

Mourinho can relax so long as the Russian is not bored, and Abramovich has attended the last three matches to see his club zero in on their first title since 2009-10. ‘He is happy, very happy,’ said Mourinho. ‘I saw him hugging players in the dressing room. Every Chelsea fan is happy if we win the title.’

Two more wins will wrap up Chelsea’s fourth Premier League title, but Arsenal fans hit a nerve when they sang: ‘Boring, boring Chelsea’ near the end of the goalless draw at the Emirates.

Mourinho hit back, teasing Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger in his post-match press conference. ‘Boring is no title in 10 years,’ he sniped. ‘Boring is when you want to win at home and take off your No 9.’

He added: ‘I met this morning a gentleman who lives almost next door to me, an Arsenal fan of more than 50 years, and he congratulated me for my press conference, saying I was spot on.’

The Chelsea manager is shocked that some critics question the entertainment value of a team that has scored 65 goals in 33 games.

‘Maybe the future of football is a beautiful, green grass carpet without goals,’ said Mourinho. ‘And on that beautiful pitch, the team with more ball possession wins.

‘Because everyone speaks about teams playing fantastically well: “My team had great ball possession” and “Oh, we build very well”. Good. It looks like the goals aren’t there.

‘You conclude a team that scores as many as us is boring, but a team that has 70 per cent of the ball and doesn’t score isn’t.

‘Maybe when I am a grandad, football will be without goals and we will just enjoy people passing the ball. Maybe putting the ball in the net is not the objective, and stopping the ball from going in your own goal doesn’t matter.

‘When football started centuries ago there was one objective and now it looks like there’s another. Football is about putting the ball in your opponents’ net and keeping it out of your own.’

The debate will go on but Abramovich was suckered in last time, when he tired of winning the Mourinho way and sacked him in 2007 in search of something more.

For six years, Chelsea tried to win with flair but found that it was not easy. Aspiring to recreate Barcelona under Pep Guardiola has proved impossible. Wenger can vouch for that.

‘Barcelona, beautiful every week?’ scoffed Mourinho. And, when it was put to him that at their peak they were exactly that, the former Real Madrid boss replied: ‘When was their peak? When Real Madrid were champions?

‘For me, the beautiful game is to know exactly the way you have to play and what you have to do. At Arsenal, we were brilliant. We were brilliant from the first minute.

‘Style and flair, what is it? The way people analyse style and flair is to take the goals from the pitch. It is the football they play on the moon — and the surface is not good. Some holes. But no goals.

‘It comes from you (the media) or from some managers who can only teach their guys to keep the ball.

‘Who scored the most beautiful goals? Is that a criterion? If so, Chelsea did it collectively with the beauty of some of the goals we scored. Or you go to Charlie Adam, and that is obviously the goal of the season.

‘If the number of goals decides if a team is good, bad or boring, Manchester City scored more, but 18 scored fewer. Then, we have 18 teams more boring than us.

‘If it is the team with more points we are the best. If it is the team with most victories we are the best. If the best team has the fewest defeats, we are the best.

‘If the best team are the champions, not yet, but the team that leads, we are the best team. If the best team has the fewest goals conceded, we are the second best team. In any point of analysis, any criteria, we are the best team or the second best team.’

Mourinho insists all that matters is winning, but he would like the recognition along the way, be it from those paid to assess Chelsea’s performances or from players who voted six of his team into the PFA’s Premier League team of the year.

‘There should have been more,’ he sighed. ‘Just as an example, for Cesc Fabregas not to be there after the season he has had is strange.That team would not win (the title). It is without balance. It is missing a midfielder, and that midfielder should be Fabregas.

‘But I look now as a fan, not a manager. It looks like I’m in a pub discussing things that aren’t important. The important thing is to be champions.’ – Daily Mail

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