FOOTBALL

EPL Predictions: Chelsea vs Manchester United

Published

2 years ago

October 21, 2022

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After a convincing win at home against Spurs, Manchester United will attempt to leapfrog Chelsea and claim the fourth place in the table when they travel to Stamford Bridge for a Saturday evening Premier League kick-off.

Chelsea can’t draw inspiration from their last match’s performance, unlike their guests. In a goalless affair, the Blues had to share the spoils with Brentford at the Gtech Community Stadium on Wednesday night.

Kepa Arrizabalaga continued his redemption arc under Graham Potter with a string of saves against Brentford.

The Andalusian keeper was ridiculed for his hefty pricetag and his early-day struggles. But he has turned around the narrative with regular top-notch performances.

After saving the day against Aston Villa, Kepa made sure his team did not drop all points in midweek. Édouard Mendy might find it difficult to reclaim his spot as Chelsea’s number one goalkeeper.

Potter will be happy with the defensive resilience his team has shown at the Gtech Community Park. But he will be asking his forwards for a more clinical display against a Manchester United side that have found defensive solidity with their new centre-back pairing Raphaël Varane and Lisandro Martínez.

Securing a point against the Red Devils will be enough for Chelsea to keep hold of their fourth spot.

But a defeat will displace them from the Champions League places and push them down to the fifth position. But Chelsea have plenty of reasons to feel optimistic ahead of their Saturday challenge.

Since Graham Potter came in as the new Chelsea manager, the West Londoners have conceded only twice in all competitions. Opponents failed to score against then in the last five ocassions. On top of that, they are still undefeated this season at home.

However, Manchester United have shown that they have the capability to defeat the best teams in the division.

They got the better of Liverpool, Arsenal, and Tottenham at home. That said their only visit to a big six arena so far ended in a 6-3 defeat.

Erik Ten Hag’s side will enter the fray on the back of their emphatic win against top-four contenders Tottenham.

The Lillywhites managed to keep the score level at the interval, thanks to a brilliant first-half display from Hugo Lloris.

The hosts broke the deadlock through Fred in the 47th minute before Bruno Fernandes added a second.It was undoubdtedly the best performance Manchester United have had under Ten Hag. So, they will be keen on building on that when they travel to the English capital.

Team News

Thiago Silva and Hakim Ziyech could not make it to the starting XI against Brentford. But, they were fit enough to make the bench. Potter might bring in one of them or both to the first XI against Manchester United.

However, Reece James, Wesley Fofana, and N’Golo Kante will not be available anytime soon.

Conor Gallagher could clock only 15 minutes against Brentford before he had to come off feeling sick. The Chelsea medical team will assess him ahead of the match to make a final decision.

Erik ten Hag has announced that Cristiano Ronaldo will not be a part of the squad for the Chelsea trip. The 37-year-old made a scene when he went down the tunnel before the final whistle went off against Tottenham on Wednesday night.

But the Portugal captain will not be the only absentee in the team.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Harry Maguire, Anthony Martial, Brandon Williams, Axel Tuanzebe, and Donny van de Beek all remain out of the picture with their respective injury setbacks.

It seems unlikely that we will see goals galore when these two teams meet, given their recent defensive records. So, we will predict this tie to end in a goalless draw.

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WATCH: Georgina Rodriguez makes huge claim on Cristiano Ronaldo’s retirement in Football

Published

2 months ago

March 3, 2024

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Georgina Rodriguez made a huge claim on the future of her husband and star player, Cristiano Ronaldo, in Football. In a brief interaction with a host recently, Rodriguez was asked about the time left for Cristiano to make an impact at the highest level. Georgina looked honest in her approach to the question of the host and claimed something the fans would not love to hear.

Georgina claimed that the Portugal star has maybe one year more from him at the highest level. She felt that Ronaldo might play two more years before retiring and not more than that. She was however not sure if he would play for just one or two years and added that the Al Nassr star could also play more than that.

Watch the video of Georgina Rodriguez here –

🚨🎙️| Georgina Rodriguez on Cristiano Ronaldo’s future at Paris Fashion Week yesterday:

“Cristiano one more year, then it’s over. Maybe two, I don’t know.”

(via @ArobaseGiovanny)pic.twitter.com/4dxw2j5DuC

— Pubity Sport (@pubitysport) March 3, 2024

“Cristiano one more year, then it’s over. Maybe two, I don’t know,” said Rodriguez in the little chat she had with the host. The video has gone viral on X and the fans have started sharing it on different platforms. Some of the fans feel that Georgina might be right, while others feel that she could be wrong, given the fitness and longevity of the star player.

Legacy of Cristiano Ronaldo

On the 5th of February, Ronaldo celebrated his 39th birthday. He is currently one of the oldest players in the world. In the past, players at this age would have retired way back. But the fitness and consistency of Ronaldo make him play the sport as long as he wishes. In his career so far, Ronaldo has won many major leagues for Portugal and league teams like Real Madrid, Al Nassr, and Manchester United.

With United, Portugal won some major leagues like the FA Cup and the Champions League. With Real Madrid, the 39-year-old won the leagues like the UCL, Copa Del Rey and La Liga. He won it three consecutive times for Real Madrid. For Portugal, Cristiano had a huge contribution to Portugal. He has the most number of appearances and goals for an international team and won the Euro 2016 with Portugal.

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Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham slapped with Red Card as he argued with referee

Published

2 months ago

March 3, 2024

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Jude Bellingham shown Red Card (Image Credit: Twitter)

England and Real Madrid player Jude Bellingham was slapped with a Red Card during the La Liga game against Valencia. In the game, the home team, Valencia was leading by 2-0 after 30 minutes before Madrid scored in the injury time of the first half. Vinicius Junior opened the scoring for Madrid while Hugo Duro (27′) and Roman Yaremchuk (30′) scored a goal each.

In the 76th minute, Junior scored an equalizer to keep the team in the game. However, in the injury time of the second half, Bellingham was given a red card as he argued with the referee against calling it a full-time before he could score. In reply, the match official decided to slap the England international with a Red Card. The team coach Carlo Ancelotti wasn’t happy with the verdict as the Three Lions player was making a pass at the time.

Jude Bellingham verbally abusing officials and other footballers at the slightest provocation needs to be talked about more. It’s embarrassing he gets applauded by Real Madrid Fans.

Mason Greenwood should’ve allowed La Liga to deal with this simp. pic.twitter.com/ixYSw6YxaC

— Herman Facundo© (@hermanfacundo_7) March 3, 2024

“I think what’s just happened is unprecedented. It’s never happened to me,” Ancelotti told reporters.

“We had possession of the ball and the match should have been finished when Valencia had the ball.

“What bothers us is the red card for Bellingham because he didn’t say anything insulting. He was frustrated of course,” said Ancelotti, adding that Bellingham had used a common English swearword when telling the referee it was a goal.

We are annoyed with Jude Bellingham’s Red Card: Carlo Ancelotti

“We were annoyed with Bellingham’s red card. He didn’t say any insults. He said in English ‘it’s a f—ing goal,’ but he was just saying what we were all thinking … [The referee] allowed play to continue. I think he made a mistake.”

“[Bellingham] was clear in what he said,” Ancelotti added. “He was quite vehement [in his reaction] but that’s normal, after what happened. It wasn’t an insult, not at all.”

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PL 2023-24: MCFC vs MUFC Dream11 Prediction, Playing XI, Fantasy League Today’s Captain, Vice-Captain, and more for Manchester derby

Published

2 months ago

March 2, 2024

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Super Sunday is set to witness the Manchester Derby in the Premier League 2023-24. The match between Manchester City (MCFC) and Manchester United (MUFC) is set to take place in Etihad Stadium, the home ground of Manchester City. The two teams have had a contrasting journey in the league till now. The fortunes of City changed ever since Pep Guardiola took over the club as the manager.

While the home side are placed in the second position in the points table currently, United are in the sixth place in the points table. In their previous encounter, City hammered Luton Town by 6-2 in the FA Cup. United have shown massive improvements in the last few weeks after not having a good start to their campaign. United were involved in a thrilling game where they beat Nottingham Forrest by 1-0 in their last game.

Both teams feature some of the best players in the world. The likes of Julian Alvarez, Erling Haaland, Marcus Rashford, Kevin De Bruyne, Bruno Fernandes, Casemiro, and others would be taking part in the match. Manchester City will start the match as the favourites, given their record in the ongoing league so far and the match taking place in their home. United with their improved record can challenge the home side.

MCFC vs MUFC – Match Details

Match – Manchester City (MCFC) vs Manchester United (MUFC), Premier League 2023-24

Venue – Etihad Stadium, Manchester

Date and Time – 3^rd March 2024, 21:00 IST

Live Coverage – Star Sports Network and Disney plus Hot Star

MCFC vs MUFC – Head-to-Head

Both the teams from Manchester have a rich history in the sport. they have been up against each other in 191 instances. In as many games, Manchester United have been historically the better side with 78 wins to their name. City have managed to win 60 wins, as 53 games ended in a draw. In the last five games between the two sides in the Premier League, City have won four of the five games.