FOOTBALL NEWS

Guardiola praises Hull's Silva Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has declared his admiration for Hull City counterpart Marco Silva before the sides clash in the Premier League on Saturday. City's 2-1 defeat at Chelsea in midweek left them in fourth place, 14 points behind the league leaders with eight games to play, while Hull climbed out of the relegation zone with a 4-2 win over Middlesbrough. "I know this manager when he was in Greece (with Olympiakos) and playing Champions League football and I was in Bayern Munich," Guardiola told a news conference on Friday. "He is doing an outstanding job because it was absolutely at t...

Hazard key to Chelsea success - Courtois Thibaut Courtois believes keeping Eden Hazard is key to Chelsea hopes of building on this season's dominance of the Premier League title race. Hazard confirmed his importance to Antonio Conte's side with both goals in the 2-1 victory over Manchester City on Wednesday that moved Chelsea one step closer to the title ahead of Saturday's trip to Bournemouth. The Belgium forward has been linked with a move to Real Madrid, but Chelsea goalkeeper Courtois, Hazard's international teammate, is anxious to see the 26-year-old remain at Stamford Bridge and fire the west London club ...

‘Stoke will see Berahino's best next season’   Manager Mark Hughes said he does not expect Saido Berahino to produce his best football for Stoke City until next season as the striker is still finding his feet at the Premier League club. Berahino, who joined Stoke from West Bromwich Albion in January, has not scored a league goal in over a year, and had seen his career stall at his former club due to off-field incidents. The 23-year-old is yet to score in eight appearances for Stoke. "(Berahino) hasn't played a lot of football this year and he's still getting up to speed. These games are invaluable and I feel we will see a marked di...

Bournemouth ready for Chelsea test Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe believes his side have grown in confidence after battling back to draw with Liverpool at Anfield in midweek, and can take points off Chelsea when the league leaders visit the Vitality Stadium on Saturday. Bournemouth had a torrid start to the year, going nine games without a win in all competitions, but have rallied impressively up to 13th in the table and within touching distance of survival after a run of five games without defeat. The 2-2 draw at Anfield has lifted the mood at the Vitality Stadium, with Howe now confident his team can hold their own against the best in the league. "The mood right now is good. We've done well recently and we want to carry that on," Howe told a news conference on Friday. "We've been hard to break down in the las...

Kane nearing return - Pochettino Tottenham Hotspur's Harry Kane is set to make a swift return from an ankle injury as manager Mauricio Pochettino expects the prolific striker to be available for selection before the end of the season. Kane, the Premier League club's leading marksman with 24 goals, sustained the injury during Tottenham's FA Cup win over Millwall this month. The north London side refused to put a time scale on the 23-year-old's return but media reports had suggested he was set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines. "He will be fit before the end of the season and we believe he can be available i...

Guardiola needs Hull of a boost Manchester City's season has hit a bump at a bad time, and a victory at home to Hull City on Saturday will help bolster their bid to play Champions League football. City’s 2-1 defeat at leaders Chelsea on Wednesday means they have now gone more than a month without a Premier League victory. Successive league draws against Stoke, Liverpool and Arsenal, followed by the result at Stamford Bridge, have seen City manager Pep Guardiola’s team slip to fourth place in the standings. They were also eliminated from the Champions League by Monaco during that period, meaning that the City manager’s o...

Balotelli brace keeps Nice in title hunt Mario Balotelli scored a first-half double as Nice came from behind to win 2-1 at Lille on Friday and keep their unlikely bid for the French title alive. Ibrahim Amadou's early deflected strike had Lille in front at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy, but Balotelli quickly equalised with a sublime finish and then tapped in what proved to be the winner on the stroke of the interval. The goals took Balotelli's total in Ligue 1 this season to 13 in 19 appearances but, remarkably, they were the first of that tally he has scored away from home. Nice, who have already established a best-ever points ...

Barca's Rafinha to miss rest of the season Barcelona midfielder Rafinha's season was brought to a premature end after undergoing knee surgery on Friday, the club confirmed.  The Brazilian will be sidelined for four months ruling him out of Barca's push for a treble of La Liga, Champions League and Copa del Rey.  "Rafinha has had an arthroscopy in the right knee to solve an injury in the internal meniscus," Barca said in a statement.  "The estimated time out is four months."  Rafinha had to be replaced after just 17 minutes of Barca's 4-1 win at Granada on Sunday.  The 24-year-old had become a key player in Barca boss Luis Enrique's s...

Alexis wants to stay at Arsenal - Wenger     Alexis Sanchez wants to stay at Arsenal despite speculation that he is disillusioned by the club's failure to challenge for the Premier League title, manager Arsene Wenger said on Friday. Reports in British media say contract talks have been put on hold, but Wenger insists Sanchez, who has a year and a half left on his deal, will be at the club next season. "Basically, he (Sanchez) wants to stay at the club and it's down to finding an agreement with his agent," Wenger told reporters on Friday. "The players first have to see if they are happy at the club, then they have to find an agreement." Arsenal, fifth in the Premier League, are in danger of missing out on Champions League qualification and the 28-year-old Sanchez has been linked with a number of other clubs, including Chelsea, Manchester United and Paris St Germain. Wenger himself is out of c...