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Van Persie unhappy after Palace snub

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Louis Van Gaal’s ruthless streak came to the fore again when he left Robin van Persie out of his squad for the game at Crystal Palace.

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Louis Van Gaal’s ruthless streak came to the fore again at the weekend when he left Robin van Persie out of his squad for the game at Crystal Palace despite the Dutch striker insisting he was fit and ready to play.

Manchester United manager Van Gaal didn’t include Van Persie in the 18-man squad that eventually prevailed 2-1 at Selhurst Park, saying he had been suffering from a virus.

However, Van Persie told friends on Saturday afternoon that he was ‘absolutely fine’ and was disappointed not to have played.

It is understood that Van Persie had indeed missed a day’s training earlier last week after picking up a bug that Van Gaal himself had been suffering from for a couple of days.

But the 31-year-old was fit enough to train fully on Friday and travelled to London that evening expecting to be involved the next day. When he wasn’t included, he was left bemused, according to those close to him.

Van Gaal’s decision provides more evidence of his absolute refusal to pick players if they haven’t had a full week’s training in the lead-up to a game. The United coach’s policy has left other players frustrated this season, with striker Radamel Falcao believing he has been fit to play on occasions when Van Gaal has decreed otherwise.

‘Being fit and being fit enough to play for me is not the same thing,’ Van Gaal said earlier this season.

The only player to be occasionally exempt from Van Gaal’s selection practices is Wayne Rooney. As Van Gaal’s captain, Rooney is an automatic pick for every Barclays Premier League game unless he is injured.

That apart, players must train regularly with the first-team squad if they are to play. That is the reason players such as Van Persie, Falcao, Luke Shaw, Jonny Evans and Michael Carrick have found themselves on Under 21 duty at times this season.

Nonetheless Van Persie is happy to stay at United next season, as recently revealed by Sportsmail.

The former Arsenal forward believes next season — the last on his contract — will be more productive than this one, given he has suffered injury over recent months, and that United’s return to European football will give him more opportunities to play. – Daily Mail

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Gomis sucker punch sinks Arsenal

Arsenal's hopes of catching Manchester City for second place in the Premier League suffered a setback after a late Bafetimbi Gomis header, handed Swansea City a 1-0 win at the Emirates.

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London - Arsenal's hopes of catching Manchester City for second place in the Premier League suffered a setback after a late Bafetimbi Gomis header, verified by goalline technology, handed Swansea City a 1-0 win at the Emirates.

Substitute Gomis struck five minutes from time, meeting Jefferson Montero's cross with a header that crossed the line before it was scooped out by keeper David Ospina, the goal confirmed almost immediately to the referee by the goalline technology system.

Frenchman Gomis also scored the winner when Swansea beat Arsenal 2-1 at home in November.

Arsenal, who have three games left to play, remain on 70 points, three points behind City who have two games left. Manchester United, in fourth, have 68 points with the top three securing automatic entry into the Champions League group stage.

United host Arsenal at Old Trafford on Sunday.

“We were a bit unlucky with the goal. There are a lot of positives. This kind of game you play 20 times and win 19 times,” Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger told Sky Sports.

“In patches our domination was top quality. You have to learn from defeat and we take encouragement from a defeat like that. Swansea deserve credit for their defensive display but they probably had the fewest passes in our half of any team here this season.”

Swansea goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski frustrated his former club, the Poland international making several good saves in the second half to thwart the home side.

Arsenal, unchanged for fifth successive game, had rarely tested Fabianski in a tepid opening half.

It took almost an hour for Arsenal to muster their first shot on target with Olivier Giroud shooting straight at Fabianski.

Arsenal pressed forward with greater urgency and Fabianski denied Alexis Sanchez and then Theo Walcott with a fine double save.

Swansea, who are in eighth place, are only the third team to beat Arsenal home and away in a league season in the Premier League era.

“We worked all week on our plan. The players were magnificent and carried it out to the letter,” said Swansea manager Garry Monk. – Reuters

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Real staring down the barrel

Real Madrid could see their last chance of silverware slip away if they are unable to overturn a 2-1 deficit in their Champions League semi-final, second leg at home to Juventus.

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Madrid - Stuttering holders Real Madrid could see their last chance of silverware slip away if they are unable to overturn a 2-1 deficit in Wednesday's Champions League semi-final, second leg at home to Juventus.

Ending the season without winning the Champions League, the La Liga title or the Spanish Cup would be a disaster for the world's richest club by income but such a scenario is a real possibility for Carlo Ancelotti's men.

Saturday's 2-2 La Liga home draw with Valencia left them four points behind leaders Barcelona with two games left and they were dumped out of the King's Cup by Atletico, the team they beat 4-1 after extra time to secure a record-extending 10th European Cup last term.

Elimination from the latest edition could prompt drastic action from Real's notoriously impatient - and deep-pocketed - president Florentino Perez, who has rarely stuck by his coaches for long if they do not deliver trophies on a regular basis.

An exodus of players is also a possibility, with local media speculating that top scorer Cristiano Ronaldo and captain and goalkeeper Iker Casillas could be on their way.

Real's hopes of getting past Juventus into June's showpiece in Berlin hinge on cutting out the errors and inconsistency that have dogged them in recent weeks.

Injuries have also played their part and Ancelotti is hoping to have France striker Karim Benzema back for the clash at the Bernabeu, while a suspected injury to Germany midfielder Toni Kroos on Saturday looks to have been nothing more than a scare.

“Above all we need to keep a cool head, be patient, and not go crazy,” defender Dani Carvajal, who conceded the penalty Carlos Tevez converted to win the first leg, said on Real's website (www.realmadrid.es) on Monday.

“We have to try to make time go really slowly for Juve so that they suffer without the ball,” added the Spain international.

“They created danger when we lost the ball or because of our errors. I believe that if we stay calm, remain really patient and make them move then the game will go our way.”

The successful side is likely to meet Barca in the final after they thumped 2013 winners Bayern Munich 3-0 in their first leg last week, with the return in Munich on Tuesday. – Reuters

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Bayern can still win - Pep

Pep Guardiola believes Bayern Munich’s squad has the quality to overturn a three-goal deficit to shock Barcelona in the Champions League.

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Pep Guardiola believes Bayern Munich's star-studded squad has the quality to overturn a three-goal deficit to shock Barcelona in their Champions League semi-final, second-leg despite their four-match losing streak.

Bayern are chasing a miracle at the Allianz Arena after their humbling 3-0 first-leg defeat when Lionel Messi capped a dazzling display with two goals to sour Guardiola's return to Barcelona's Camp Nou.

No team has ever over-turned a three-goal deficit in a European semi-final.

With his side staring down the barrel of a semi-final exit for the second year running, Guardiola knows Bayern can ill afford to throw caution to the wind against a Barcelona attack boasting Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez.

But he believes they can shock the Spanish league leaders.

“Push forward, push forward? No! We have to defend well and control the game,” said the 44-year-old, who has denied rumours linking him to Manchester City for next season.

“There is no problem with this team's mentality.

“There are six or seven guys in the squad who have won the World Cup and they know what needs to be done.

“It's not enough to have the most possession and defend well, you also have to create chances against Barcelona.

“If we make a mistake, they will punish it.

“We have to take the chances we create, it won't be easy, but with the quality we have, we'll see what happens.”

One factor in Bayern's favour is that they emphatically turned their 3-1 quarter-final, first-leg defeat at Porto into a 6-1 rout in Munich with five goals in the opening 45 minutes.

But a fortnight on, Bayern are on a four-match losing streak, although Guardiola insists confidence is not a problem.

“The players have showed that they want this,” said the Spaniard.

“We turned around a 3-1 against Porto, but this is completely different.

“It's a huge challenge, but we will try.”

Barcelona arrive with a significant advantage in their bid for a first victory in the Bavarian capital.

Strangely, Barca couch Luis Enrique has insisted “it doesn't look good for us”, but Guardiola admits he would have said the same thing if the roles were reversed.

“As a coach, you don't know what will happen, I would have said the same in his position,” said Guardiola.

“We are Bayern Munich. I have never thought before a game that we have no chance.” – AFP

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Bafana Bafana readies for Cosafa Cup

Bafana Bafana have started preparations for the Cosafa Cup competition and had their first training session in Joburg.

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Johannesburg - Bafana Bafana have started preparations for the Cosafa Cup competition and had their first training session on Monday at the AW Muller Stadium at the University of Johannesburg.

Six players – Mondli Mpoto and Athenkosi Dlala (both from Supersport); Kwanda Mngonyama (Maritzburg United); Thapelo Morena (Bloemfontein Celtic); Thamsanqa Sangweni (Chippa United) and Phumelele Bhengu (Thanda Zulu Royals FC) – missed the morning training session.

“First day of training is normally a big challenge, more so because the season has just come to an end. Some of the players would first like to travel home and spend some time with their families before reporting for national team duty. That is normal and understandable.

“As for Dlala and Mpoto, they are still in school so we are trying to find a balance so they don’t suffer on their schoolwork. They both recently were with the U17 squad and lost a great bit of time of school,” said Mashaba.

The Bafana Bafana mentor said it was important for him and his technical team not to go for the tried and tested players for the Cosafa Cup but give a new group an opportunity.

“We have other leagues in this country and we have said if you have a SA ID book then you qualify to play for Bafana Bafana. We have to give other players a chance because if you look at the National First Division there is so much untapped talent there, and at the same time it gives us an opportunity to widen our pool of players.

“I am hopeful that three or four players will graduate from this squad into the one that will play the Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers. The main reason is that we have a busy schedule with the Cosafa CUP now, then the AFCON 2015 qualifiers and the CHAN 2016 qualifiers. It is important that we pick different players and hope that some of them graduate with us to the qualifiers so we don’t make too many changes going forward,” added Mashaba.

Meanwhile Daniel Cardoso (Free State Stars) and Mzikayise Mashaba (Mamelodi Sundowns) have not been registered for the Cosafa CUP tournament due to injuries and will not form part of the Cosafa CUP squad that gets underway from 17 – 30 May. Only 20 players are needed for the tournament.

South Africa will face Botswana in the quarterfinal of the competion on Sunday, 24 May at the Moruleng Stadium in the North West Province.

Kickoff is at 17h30.

On Wednesday, 13 May Bafana Bafana travels to Lesotho to play two training matches against the host nation on Thursday, 14 May and Saturday, 16 May.

South Africa is also scheduled to face Malawi in another training match on Friday, 22 May in Rustenburg.

ANA

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Depay’s classy farewell to PSV fans

Manchester United-bound Memphis Depay scored a stunning free kick as Dutch champions PSV Eindhoven beat Heracles.

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Amsterdam - Manchester United-bound Memphis Depay scored a stunning free kick as Dutch champions PSV Eindhoven beat Heracles 2-0 in the penultimate round of league matches on Sunday.

The 21-year-old, playing his final home match, extended his advantage at the top of the scorers list with an exquisite free kick for his 22nd league goal of the season .

It served as a perfect example of why United have agreed to pay a reported 30 million euros for his services from next season.

The victory, which moved PSV to 85 points from 33 matches, was made safe when fullback Jetro Willems doubled the lead mid-way through the second half.

Danish striker Viktor Fischer scored twice as Ajax Amsterdam, who have already secured second place, cruised past SC Cambuur 3-0, with Lasse Shoene grabbing a late third.

AZ Alkmaar kept their hopes of finishing third alive with a 3-2 win over NAC Breda that in turn consigned their opponents to the relegation playoffs.

The home side led early through Steven Berghuis, but two goals in four first-half minutes from Jeffrey Sarpong and Adnane Tighadouini looked like giving the visitors a precious win.

That was until Robert Muehren equalised six minutes from the end and Aron Johannsson grabbed a late winner.

AZ are level on 59 points with third-place Feyenoord, but have now played a game more.

Feyenoord's fixture against Vitesse Arnhem was moved to Monday after local police engaged in a wage dispute said they could not fully guarantee security on Sunday.

Go Ahead Eagles will also be in the relegation playoffs after they drew 1-1 at home to Heerenveen.

Both goals came in the final two minutes as Lerin Duarte looked to have won it for the visitors, but Wesley Verhoek equalised soon after.

PEC Zwolle ensured they would finish in the Europa League playoff positions with a 1-0 win over rivals Groningen as Czech forward Tomas Necid grabbed the only goal, revenge for losing to the same opposition in the Dutch Cup final last weekend.

Utrecht and Excelsior drew 2-2, while Samuel Armenteros scored the only goal as Willem II triumphed at home against ADO Den Haag.

Twente Enschede beat already relegated Dordrecht 2-0 thanks to second-half strikes from Mexican Jesus Corona and Danish defender Andreas Bjelland. – Reuters

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It’s last chance for Sundowns

Mamelodi Sundowns will go all out to assault Ajax Cape Town in a quest to hoist high the Nedbank Cup trophy.

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With just one last chance to get some silverware from this season, Mamelodi Sundowns will go all out to beat Ajax Cape Town this coming weekend and win the Nedbank Cup.

After that there won’t be rest for Downs coach Pitso Mosimane. The former Bafana Bafana coach will be in the boardroom both off-loading and luring players to the club, as he puts together a team to challenge for the Absa Premiership title next season. Mosimane is also likely to send some players on loan, recall others from loan spells and make new additions to the side.

“We need to make some changes and we need to strengthen the team. I believe the team can be stronger. After Ajax we might make an announcement and do our post- season assessment and give other guys a chance to play if they didn’t manage to play. There’s no need to hold on to players if you haven’t given them a chance, especially if they have been at the club for more than two years,” said Mosimane.

Despite his side’s failure to win any trophies so far, Mosimane is of the view that Sundowns did well.

Mosimane will get a chance to redeem himself with a trophy against a youthful Ajax side at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on Saturday. But his counterpart Roger De Sa will not be on the bench after he was sent off during their 2-2 draw against Orlando Pirates on Saturday.

“The coach who is sent off has nothing to do with impact on the game. Stuart Baxter was out for two games and what happened? They won the two games. That’s nothing. The team is there, the system is there,” said Mosimane after his side beat the University of Pretoria 1-0 at the Lucas Moripe Stadium in Atteridgeville.

Tuks finished 13th on the table. Their coach Sammy Troughton says the team need to improve drastically if they want to keep up with the other sides next season.

Tuks have a big challenge to hold on to some of their key players – notably Geofrey Massa and Thabo Mnyamane who have attracted plenty of attention from other sides. -Star

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Chiefs’ record-breaking season

Kaizer Chiefs ended runaway Premiership winners with a PSL-era record tally of 69 points from their 30 games.

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Johannesburg – Kaizer Chiefs ended runaway Premiership winners with a PSL-era record tally of 69 points from their 30 games and were the dominant force in the local game in the 2014/2015 season.

Stuart Baxter’s men claimed the title with three games to spare and ended the season 12 points ahead of second-placed Mamelodi Sundowns who never really posed a realistic threat to the AmaKhosi’s title march. Chiefs also recorded a record number of wins with 21 and went unbeaten for 19 games during the season.

Interestingly, Chiefs did not boast the top goal scorers in the league. Instead, George Lebese who scored the most goals for the Naturena side with a tally of seven for the league did not even make it into the top 10 scorers list at the end of the season.

Instead Free State Stars striker Moeketsi Sekola won the golden boot award for the Premiership with his 14 goals for his side which finished ninth on the league table.

Baxter built up his title-winning outfit from the back, with the best defence in the league by some margin. Chiefs conceded 14 goals in the league, and were led by captain and heart of the defence Tefu Mashamaite. The central defender moved from Wits to hallowed grounds of Naturena in 2011, and in his side’s title-winning season has drawn comparisons between himself and Chelsea great John Terry.

At the other end of the scale, one player that has seemingly fallen out of favour is goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune. The former Bafana number-one shotstopper did not even make the matchday squad for Chief’s final match of the season, and his contract at the club expires at the end of June. Various reports speculate what his next move might be, but nothing official has been confirmed yet.

Maritzburg United midfielder Kurt Lentjies also has his contract expiring at his club at the end of May. Lentjies, however, said he aims to stay at the club who finished in the top eight for the first time in their history.

Mpumalanga Black Aces, meanwhile, are expected a to announce a new coach for next season after Clive Barker was demoted to the club’s development structures during their campaign where they finished 10th place on the table. – ANA

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Guardiola rules out City move

Bayern Munich coach Pep Guardiola shot down swirling rumours of a possible move to Manchester City next season.

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Munich - Bayern Munich coach Pep Guardiola shot down swirling rumours of a possible move to Manchester City next season, saying he would see out his contract at the German champions.

“Boys, I have said it 200 million times that I have one more year on my contract here,” the Spaniard told reporters ahead of Wednesday's Champions League semi-final, return leg against Barcelona in Munich.

“Next season I will be here and that's all there is to it,” said Guardiola, who won the domestic double last season and the league title in the current campaign.

But he has not enjoyed the European success he was hired to achieve back in 2013 and a 3-0 Champions League first leg defeat at Barcelona could spell the end of their run this season.

A 1-0 loss to Augsburg in the league on Saturday further fanned speculation about the Spaniard's stay in Munich after what was the fourth straight loss for Bayern in all competitions, something that had not happened since 1991.

Several media had reported on Sunday of a pre-agreement with City. – Reuters

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Arsenal will challenge next season

Arsène Wenger believes his Arsenal side have shown their potential for a Premier League title challenge in the second half of the season.

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Arsène Wenger believes his Arsenal side have shown their potential for a Premier League title challenge in the second half of the season after conceding the initiative to Chelsea in the opening months.

The Gunners' first league defeat of the campaign was to Chelsea in October, but they had already lost ground to the Blues by drawing four of their first six games. A late-season rally - nine wins in a 10-match unbeaten streak - has not been enough for them to catch Chelsea, but Arsenal will still aim to extend that run against Swansea City.

“There are many turning points,” Wenger said. “One of them was that we had some players back and defensively we were much stronger in the second part of the season than the first part. We still have room for improvement there. Maybe we have more stability and more balance in the team.

“We were not consistent enough. After eight games we were 11 points behind Chelsea. If we win our game in hand [against Sunderland on 20 May] we are 10 points behind Chelsea. That means in the first eight games we lost our championship and that's what we have to address next season and start strong.

“We feel we have made progress in our consistency, our quality and our stability.That is what we want to continue and I believe it is important to finish as close as possible to Chelsea and think we are ready to challenge next season.”

Swansea manager Garry Monk also sees Arsenal as likely challengers for the title next year. He said: “I expect they'll be a little bit disappointed they didn't start the season the way they're finishing it. Maybe they could have been a little bit closer to Chelsea. But they've had a fantastic season. There's a talented squad there, with real depth as well, especially the attacking options they have.

“People will talk about certain aspects of their play and what they need to improve but the squad Arsène is building is going to be a force in the next couple of years. They seem young enough and good enough players to make that next step and looking from the outside they seem a squad who could develop into title contenders.”

Arsenal need to win to keep the pressure on Manchester City in the race for second but Swansea head to North London in confident mood. Back-to-back wins over Newcastle United and Stoke City have consolidated eighth place and secured a club Premier League record of 53 points.

“You always expect them to be strong and their home record has been exceptional,” Monk said. “It's an arena which can be extremely tough and we expect that, but it's also one where we've done well in the past.

“I want my players to go to these type of arenas and play these sort of teams; it's a chance for them to express themselves. We've proven this season we can handle those situations and let's hope we can do it again.” – The Independent

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Gerrard has a dig at Chelsea fans

Steven Gerrard received a standing ovation from the home fans when he was substituted at Stamford Bridge.

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Steven Gerrard received a standing ovation from the home fans when he was substituted at Stamford Bridge, but said the gesture did not make up for being mercilessly taunted by the Chelsea support throughout the 1-1 draw.

The Liverpool captain slipped over in the game against Chelsea at Anfield last season - an act that all but ended Liverpool's title challenge - and yesterday the home fans reminded him of the fact repeatedly.

Gerrard, who will leave Anfield this summer to join Los Angeles Galaxy, was substituted with 11 minutes to go and was applauded off. However, he did not thank the Chelsea fans afterwards.

“I think Chelsea fans have showed respect for me for a couple of seconds but they have slaughtered me all game,” Gerrard said, before adding acerbically: “It was nice of them to turn up for once.”

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho led the standing ovation and afterwards told the Liverpool captain that Chelsea's “negative song” about him was a sign of respect.

Mourinho has been making clear for days just how much he respects Gerrard and last night, after the 1-1 draw, he did it again. He said he was “very happy” that the Chelsea fans had applauded Gerrard off and that their taunting him showed how much they admired him.

“The negative song only shows respect, nothing other than respect,” Mourinho said. “It is like a negative song, to a 'dear enemy'. The applause was special. Stamford Bridge was special. Steve gets that for almost two decades, every week when he plays at Anfield. To get that in an away stadium is a fantastic way for him to feel. Probably every club, every stadium respects him a lot.”

Mourinho insisted there was no chance, though, of him finally signing Gerrard on loan next January. “He was clear, it would be impossible for him to score a goal against Liverpool. He was very clear.”

After an even game at Stamford Bridge, Mourinho was pleased with Chelsea's performance, especially that of 19-year-old Ruben Loftus-Cheek, making his first Premier League start.

“I think he did well,” said Mourinho, who replaced the teenager with Nemanja Matic after an hour. “But I also think it's better for him to play 60 minutes and leave the pitch in good condition than stay on when it would have been difficult for him to cope with the speed of the game in the second half. But a fantastic experience for him, to feel the intensity and the speed of the game.”

There was more promise for next season as Mourinho voiced his hope that Oscar could develop as much next year as Eden Hazard has this campaign. “Fundamental will be to keep my players and try and get the best out of them,” Mourinho said about his plans for the summer. “People like Oscar, who has never had a pre-season in his life, playing Olympic games or tournaments. Now he is not going to the Copa America and I have a feeling, next year, he could have the same evolution as Hazard had this season.”

Brendan Rodgers spoke of the importance of finding the “right acquisitions” for Liverpool this summer, especially with Gerrard leaving. “He is irreplaceable really, but we need to find a solution one way or the other,” Rodgers said. The manager praised his team, though, for an “outstanding” second-half performance and said that Cesc Fabregas should have been sent off in the first minute after a high, late tackle on Raheem Sterling.

“Out of control, diving, stretching. A poor challenge,” said Rodgers.– The Independent

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Truce marks Glazers’ 10th anniversary

An uneasy truce between Manchester United fans and the Glazer family who run the club is in place as the 10th anniversary of their ownership approaches.

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London - An uneasy truce between Manchester United fans and the Glazer family who run the famous Premier League club is in place as the 10th anniversary of their ownership approaches.

When the Glazers bought United it sparked a fans' revolt but the Americans are now reluctantly tolerated, a situation that will be helped by a return to the Champions League next season amid progress under Dutch coach Louis van Gaal.

Much of the deep hostility from the supporters towards the Glazers remains, although the fact that the club have generally enjoyed success since their arrival has quelled some of the more vehement opposition amongst the huge fanbase.

The owners have done themselves no harm this weekend, letting it be known they have no intention of selling the naming rights to the club's home ground at Old Trafford.

There has been speculation during the season that the Glazers would raise about 20 million pounds ($30.92 million) a year by allowing England's second-biggest stadium to be renamed.

While there has been no official club statement, British media reported on Sunday that this was now unlikely to happen.

If that is the case the Glazers will get the full backing of the United fans for once and more cordial relations with the supporters will continue at least for the time being.

A decade after their controversial leveraged takeover of United, which burdened the club with a debt of 525 million pounds in May 2005, the owners still maintain a low profile.

Many United fans vociferously opposed the takeover and a section formed their own semi-professional club, FC United of Manchester, playing in the sixth tier of English soccer.

The 'gold-and-green' campaign, with fans wearing scarves in the colours of the club's 19th century founding fathers, drew more than 150,000 members with some vowing never to return to Old Trafford while the Glazers were in charge.

Many still believe, rightly or wrongly, that the Glazers were using United's wealth to boost their U.S. finances at the expense of the club's appetite for success.

A recently published book “The Glazer Gatekeeper” by their former spokesman Tehsin Nayani gives the Glazers' side of the story, despite an opening sentence that reads: “The Glazers may not be the ideal owners of Manchester United.”

In the following 300-plus pages he attempts to argue why they are.

Even the Glazers' most die-hard opponents acknowledge that United have won silverware under their ownership, including five Premier League titles and a Champions League crown in 2008.

While they failed to keep Cristiano Ronaldo at Old Trafford after the Portugal forward joined Real Madrid in 2009 for a world record fee of 80 million pounds, the Glazers silenced some of their critics last summer when they splashed the cash for new coach Louis Van Gaal's dip in the transfer market.

They are also reportedly planning to make more investments for next season and started early by securing the 25 million-pound signing of highly-rated 21-year-old Dutch international striker Memphis Depay from PSV Eindhoven.

United's quarterly accounts, published in February, showed the debt was down to 380 million pounds and results due to be released on Thursday will provide the latest figures. – Reuters

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‘Chelsea competed with dignity’

It was not a vintage Chelsea performance but manager Jose Mourinho said his newly-crowned champions competed for the dignity of the Premier League in their 1-1 draw against Liverpool.

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London - It was not a vintage Chelsea performance but manager Jose Mourinho said his newly-crowned champions competed for the dignity of the Premier League in their 1-1 draw against Liverpool on Sunday.

The visitors welcomed Chelsea on to the pitch with a guard of honour at Stamford Bridge and the hosts responded by taking the lead after five minutes when John Terry headed in from a corner.

Visiting captain Steven Gerrard capitalised on some slack defending to nod home the equaliser just before halftime but neither side could make the decisive breakthrough in the second half.

“It was a proper game. It was not a pre-season game. Both teams were trying to get a result. Were Chelsea at their top? No. But were we at a level where we show we want to compete? Clearly,” Mourinho told the BBC.

“It's normal, people like Jon Mikel Obi, Loic Remy, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, many weeks without playing, in the second half they felt it.

“The second half was a bit difficult for us but we competed for what we have to compete for, the dignity of the Premier League.”

Gerrard, teased by Chelsea fans about his slip last season which allowed Demba Ba to score at Anfield and undermined their title hopes, got a standing ovation when he was substituted as he prepares to join LA Galaxy at the end of the season.

Mourinho was delighted Gerrard, a player he tried to sign for Chelsea, Inter Milan and Real Madrid, was given a warm send off by the home crowd.

“I'm so happy with that. The negative song Chelsea fans sing for him is respect for an old, dear enemy that fought so much against us in every competition,” the Portuguese coach said.

“After that, the standing applause is amazing. To get it at Anfield he gets it week in week out, year after year but away from home it shows a lot.

“Moments like that and when Crystal Palace come here and fight and win, Burnley fight like lions, us losing at home to a League One team in Bradford, moments like that make this country special.”

Chelsea have 84 points from 36 games, 11 more than second-placed Manchester City, and visit West Bromwich Albion and host Sunderland in their final two matches of the season. – Reuters

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QPR relegated after mauling

It’s relegation from the Premier League for QPR after a crushing 6-0 defeat to Manchester City on Sunday.

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London – Queens Park Rangers were relegated from the Premier League on Sunday after Manchester City’s Sergio Aguero scored a hat-trick in a crushing 6-0 defeat that sent them down after just one season in the top flight.

QPR needed to win their remaining three fixtures to stand any chance of survival but defeat at the Etihad Stadium means the west London club are nine points adrift of 17th-placed Newcastle United with two games remaining.

Second place City have now booked their place in next season’s Champions League.

QPR, who will join Burnley in the Championship, have won just seven away points this season and were behind in the fourth minute when Aguero dinked over Robert Green before Aleksander Kolarov’s free kick doubled their lead in the 32nd minute.

Aguero completed his hat-trick with further goals in the 50th and 65th minutes before James Milner added a fifth four minutes later and David Silva completed the rout with three minutes remaining.

QPR announced massive losses in March and could face heavy fines, points deductions and transfer embargoes under the Football League’s Financial Fair Play rules.

City have 73 points from 36 games and trail Champions Chelsea by 10 points ahead of the Blues’ fixture against Liverpool at Stamford Bridge later on Sunday. – Reuters

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Beckford lob ends Preston’s jinx

Preston’s Jermaine Beckford scored with a 60m lob to round off a 3-0 win over Chesterfield on Sunday.

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London – Preston North End’s cc

Preston, haunted by nine successive playoff failures, completed a 4-0 aggregate success with a comfortable victory in the second leg at Deepdale.

The final flourish came in the 87th minute when former Everton striker Beckford spotted Chesterfield keeper Joe Murphy off his line and took aim from inside his own half to send a shot arcing perfectly into the net.

Beckford, who netted the only goal in the first leg, also opened the scoring in the return when he rolled a defender to fire home in the 38th minute.

Joe Garner added a second goal from the penalty spot in the second half after Murphy rushed off his line to bring down Daniel Johnson.

Preston, who had exited at the semi-final stage of the playoffs six times since 1989, will face the winners of Sheffield United’s clash with Swindon Town in the final on May 24 for a place in the Championship (second tier). – Reuters

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