Chelsea move quickly to fire Ancelotti

Chelsea sacked manager Carlo Ancelotti on Sunday after a season in which they failed to win a trophy but just a year after the Italian led them to the double.

Chelsea lost 1-0 at Everton to finish nine points behind Manchester United in the Premier League and the axe swiftly fell on Ancelotti to leave Chelsea looking for their seventh manager since Russian Roman Abramovich took over the club in 2003.

More importantly for billionaire Abramovich, they fell short in the Champions League again after a quarter-final defeat by United, a loss that led to widespread speculation that Ancelotti would not see out the final season of his three-year contract.

"Chelsea Football Club can confirm that Carlo Ancelotti parted company with the club today," the club said in a statement on their website (www.chelseafc.com) two hours after the end of the match at Everton.

"The owner and board would like to thank Carlo for his contribution and achievements since taking over as manager in July 2009, which included winning the Double for the first time in the club's history.

"However, this season's performances have fallen short of expectations and the club feels the time is right to make this change ahead of next season's preparations.

"Chelsea's long-term football objectives and ambitions remain unchanged and we will now be concentrating all our efforts on identifying a new manager."

A year ago Italian Ancelotti signed off his first Premier League season in charge with an 8-0 thrashing of Wigan Athletic to clinch the title in style. Chelsea then added the FA Cup with a 1-0 final victory over Portsmouth.

They made a flying start this season, winning their first five league matches and scoring 21 goals in the process.

Things started go wrong in November with defeats by Liverpool, 3-0 at home to Sunderland and Birmingham City as well as a series of draws which left United in control of the title race.

Ancelotti, on an almost weekly basis, spoke of the club going through "a difficult moment" but it proved a long-lasting one as the poor results continued into the New Year.

The arrival of Spanish striker Fernando Torres for a record 50 million pounds ($81.16 million) in January failed to transform their fortunes.

When Chelsea faced United in March they were in fifth place, 15 points behind, and though they won that game at Stamford Bridge 2-1 and got to within three points of the top, a 2-1 loss at Old Trafford this month rubber-stamped United's title.

After April's Champions League defeat Ancelotti has had the air of a dead man walking, meeting the regular enquiries about his career prospects by saying he wanted to stay but would not lose any sleep if the club decided otherwise.

Twice a Champions League winner with AC Milan and recently linked with a return to Italy with AS Roma, the 51-year-old will not be short of job offers.

Andre Villas-Boas, who on Sunday led Porto to the Portuguese Cup to complete a treble after also winning the league and Europa League titles, was installed by British bookmakers as favourite to replace him with former boss Jose Mourinho also short odds to return.

United get second chance to pick Barcelona pocket

Barcelona must beware the artful dodgers of the Champions League in Saturday's final at Wembley where Manchester United will get a second chance to pick the pocket of Europe's classiest team.

United, who have snatched two Champions League final wins from what appeared to be certain defeats, were overwhelmed by Barca's precision passing game when the teams met in Rome in 2009, surrendering in a one-sided 2-0 defeat.

Two years on, the only certainty on the vast Wembley pitch is that the Spanish champions, boasting the world's best player in Lionel Messi, will again enjoy the bulk of possession.

But while Barcelona remain technically superior, no one could ever accuse wily United manager Alex Ferguson of failing to learn from his mistakes.

With England striker Wayne Rooney and the exciting Mexico forward Javier Hernandez among the talent at his disposal, an upset is far from beyond their grasp.

"We are not scared of Barcelona," South Korean midfielder Park Ji-sung, part of the team that lost to Barcelona two years ago, told reporters this week. "They are one of the best teams in the world, but we have our own quality."

United clearly do have quality but it will need temperament as well as talent to prevail in a battle between two clubs who each have three European Cup wins, and curiously enough won the first of them at the old Wembley Stadium.

Guardiola was part of the Barca side that triumphed at last in 1992, with a 1-0 victory over Sampdoria under the venue's famous Twin Towers.

It was back in 1968 when United won their first European Cup with a 4-1 Wembley victory, also in extra time, against Benfica.

The two subsequent wins for the English side have been a case of victories conjured from seemingly hopeless situations.

The first came at Barcelona's Nou Camp stadium in 1999, when two last-gasp goals earned them a sensational 2-1 win over Bayern Munich in a match that had appeared lost.

In 2008, they were staring at defeat again when Chelsea captain John Terry had a chance to win the title in a penalty shootout in Moscow only to slip, miss and gift United the opportunity to win their third European Cup.

Comprehensive Victory

There was no such escape against Barca in Rome the following year, as Guardiola capped a perfect first season in charge by masterminding a comprehensive win over United that completed a treble of league, cup and Champions League.

If Barcelona are to be denied a third European title in six seasons they also beat Arsenal in 2006 under Frank Rijkaard United will have to be ruthless when chances come their way.

The quality of midfielders Xavi and Andres Iniesta, the beating heart of the Spain team that won the World Cup in South Africa, ensures Barca rarely cede control.

With Messi marauding through the middle it is inconceivable that United's defenders will have a carefree night.

The English side will rely on a rearguard built around the formidable central defensive pairing of Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand, while 39-year-old Edwin van der Sar, who will retire after the match, will need to bow out on a high.

The Dutch keeper will certainly have work to do against a side that look irresistible in attack and reached the final via the toughest of routes, beating arch-rivals Real Madrid over two bruising semi-final legs while United strolled past Schalke 04.

Messi has scored 52 goals this season in all competitions and is top scorer in the Champions League with 11 in 12 games.

The Argentine maestro will play as part of a three-man attack alongside Pedro and David Villa, both members of the Spain team that enjoyed World Cup glory last year.

United's hopes of avenging the 2009 defeat will rest on their ability to pick holes in a Barcelona defence that does occasionally have a threadbare look about it.

Rooney has played himself into form following a very public wobble in his enthusiasm for playing for Manchester United and Hernandez, nicknamed 'Chicharito', or 'Little Pea', has enjoyed a superb first season at the Old Trafford club.

With Welsh midfielder Ryan Giggs playing as well as ever, despite the tide of newspaper stories about his private life, United will rightly feel from overwhelmed going into Saturday's rematch, where they enjoy home country advantage.

The winners will lift their fourth European Cup in total and join Real Madrid and AC Milan as three-times winners in the Champions League era starting in 1992-93.

A United victory would take Ferguson level with Bob Paisley of Liverpool as the only manager to win the competition three times.

For Guardiola, it would be a second Champions League title in just three seasons as a coach while confirming Barcelona as one of the great sides of this or any era.

Rooney admits saluting Barcelona

Rooney admits saluting Barcelona

Manchester United ace Wayne Rooney has admitted saluting Barcelona this season.

Rooney was watching Barcelona demolish Real Madrid 5-0 at the Nou Camp in La Liga.

“I was in my living room and I actually stood up and applauded what I was seeing. Coleen walked in and asked what I was doing!” The Sun quoted Rooney, as saying

“But it was the best performance I’ve ever seen, unbelievable. If you looked at the Real players’ faces, they were shell-shocked and didn’t know what to do with the ball,” he said.

“The way Barca played, it was so difficult for Real’s attacking players to get the ball or any possession,” Rooney added.

Mesmerising Messi sparks Barcelona triumph over United

Lionel Messi mesmerised Manchester United into submission on Saturday as his dazzling Barcelona team claimed an emphatic 3-1 win in the Champions League final to bag their third European crown in six seasons.

Barcelona comprehensively outplayed United throughout and took a deserved lead in the 27th minute when Pedro fired home after a brilliant pass from his captain Xavi.

Though Wayne Rooney equalised just seven minutes later on a rare United counter-attack, Barcelona underlined their supremacy in the second half, Messi firing home a sizzler in the 54th minute and then setting up David Villa for the third in the 69th after a typical jinking run into the box.

Messi amply lived up to his billing as the world's best player and Barcelona justified the widespread plaudits claiming them as one of the greatest club teams Europe has ever seen.

Blatter set for re-election, vows reform

FIFA president Sepp Blatter is set to be re-elected as head of world football here on Wednesday after attempts by English officials to force a postponement ended in a crushing defeat.

Blatter is poised to be returned to power for another four-year term in a vote by acclamation at around 4pm local time after an English motion to halt the ballot was dismissed by 172 votes to 17.

Addressing delegates, English FA chairman David Bernstein said proceeding with the election following the withdrawal of Blatter's scandal-hit rival Mohamed bin Hammam would provide a ‘flawed mandate.’

But FIFA delegates dismissed the motion by a landslide, leaving the way clear for Blatter to be re-elected as head of the organisation, which has been rocked by several weeks of damaging graft claims.

Speaking after the vote to reject a postponement, Blatter pledged to initiate wide-ranging reforms including an overhaul of the way in which future World Cup hosts were chosen.

Crucially, Blatter said World Cups in future would be selected in a vote by all 208 FIFA members, rather than the 24-strong executive committee, which has awarded hosting rights in the past.

Blatter, 75, had fought a vicious election battle against former ally bin Hammam, the Qatari head of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) who withdrew from the race on Sunday amid allegations of vote-buying.

Bin Hammam and influential FIFA vice-president Jack Warner were suspended by the organisation's ethics committee pending an investigation into claims they offered cash bribes in a bid to topple Blatter.

The revelations followed testimony in the British parliament last month that senior FIFA officials had sought cash and favours during the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

The decision to award the tiny oil-rich Gulf state of Qatar the 2022 tournament has met with widespread criticism and allegations of corruption.

Earlier Wednesday, the head of Germany's football federation, Theo Zwanziger, called for FIFA to re-examine Qatar's victory in the 2022 race.

"I think there is a significant degree of suspicion that one cannot just dismiss," Zwanziger told ZDF public television, when asked about calls for the sport's world governing body to take away the event from Qatar.

"And that is why I reckon that the awarding of this World Cup must be re-examined with regard to these concerns," he said.

Blatter's pledges for reform came after several key sponsors spoke out against the negative impact that recent corruption scandals were having on the organisation.

FIFA's sponsorship deals have helped to raise hundreds of millions of dollars for the organisation since Blatter took over in 1998, making FIFA the richest sports body on the planet with cash reserves of more than $1 billion.

"The current allegations being raised are distressing and bad for the sport," Coca-Cola spokesman Petro Kacur.

Meanwhile Zhang Jilong, the Chinese official appointed as interim head of the AFC following bin Hammam's suspension, said no mercy would be shown to officials found guilty of corruption.

"The Asian football environment is not that healthy," Zhang told Chinese state broadcaster CCTV. "We need, let's say, revolution. We need reform."

"Scandals such as bin Hammam's bribery allegations harm the sport's beauty. Anyone who does not show transparency should pay for it," he said in separate comments published on Chinese website Sina.com.

Hughes quits Fulham, denies Villa approach

Mark Hughes resigned as manager of Fulham on Thursday and immediately brushed off speculation linking him with the vacancy at Premier League rivals Aston Villa.

Birmingham club Villa were left without a manager after former France boss Gerard Houllier stepped down on Wednesday following a heart scare.

Fulham finished eighth, one place above Villa, last season and Hughes was immediately touted as the man to replace Houllier.

However the former Manchester United, Barcelona and Wales striker said in a statement: "I hope the supporters and all those connected with the club will understand I wish to move on to further my experiences.

"I would also like to take this opportunity to clarify that neither myself nor my representative have approached or have been approached by another club."

"This decision to leave Fulham has not been influenced by any outside party," added Hughes, who began his managerial career with Wales before spells with Premier League sides Blackburn Rovers and Manchester City.

However, it would be astonishing if Hughes had quit Fulham with absolutely no plans of any kind for another job.

The 47-year-old enjoyed a successful first season at Fulham that also saw the London club earn a return to Europe via the Fair Play League and was understood to have a good relationship with chairman Mohamed Al Fayed.

He said: "I would like to thank the chairman, directors, players and fans of Fulham Football Club for their support over the last 12 months and wish them every success in the future.

"I believe my management team and I have done a good job and the club has a strong foundation from which they can go forward.

"I have especially enjoyed our excellent relationship with the chairman and chief executive (Alastair Mackintosh).

"I sincerely wish Fulham a successful campaign in the Europa League next season and for their continued progress on and off the field."

A brief Fulham statement said: "Fulham Football Club can confirm that Mark Hughes has provided notice, under the terms of his contract, to leave the club at the end of June.

"After discussions with Mark the club has agreed to accept this notice."

Raina rejects reports of links with bookmaker

India's stand-in cricket captain Suresh Raina has rubbished reports linking him to an alleged bookmaker, saying getting photographed with somebody does not amount to knowing the person.

"There are so many people who get clicked with me," remarked Raina.

"I can't really be knowing about them," he asserted.

The controversy started after his visit to the Shirdi following India's triumph during the World Cup in April.

He was seen with people which television channels claimed were involved with the betting mafia.

But Raina rejected the speculation, saying that he went to Shirdi only in the company of his manager.

"All I can say is that I went with my manager to Shirdi and that's about it."

Raina is captaining a depleted Indian team in a one-off Twenty20 and five-match ODI series against the West Indies here after several senior players opted out of the tour.