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Manchester United closed to within three points of Arsenal thanks to another impressive display in a 4-1 win over Bournemouth. Marcus Rashford and Paul Pogba were the stars of the show once again as they led the way in Manchester United's 4-1 win over Bournemouth, securing Ole Gunnar Solskjaer a third successive win since taking charge. United continued to play with the freedom and zip which has so far characterised the post-Jose Mourinho era, with Pogba and Rashford - who have impressed under caretaker boss Solskjaer - key components as the Red Devils wrapped up 2018 by closing to within three points of fifth-placed Arsenal. A moment of inspiration from Rashford saw Pogba open the scoring early on for the home side, and the pair added further first-half goals to put United in a commanding position. Nathan Ake decreased the deficit just before the break, but Romelu Lukaku - back from compassionate leave – marked his return by scoring in the second half, with the only disappo...

Pep Guardiola's side were much improved as they bounced back from consecutive defeats at Southampton, but they must do more ahead of Thursday's clash. The reports of Manchester City's demise are greatly exaggerated. Sure, Pep Guardiola's side were not quite at their brilliant best as they beat Southampton, but they showed more than enough to prove that there is plenty of life in them yet. Whether they have enough to win the Premier League title this season is another matter, however, and depends as much on Liverpool as it does City. And with the two sides set to face each other on Thursday night in what could be a pivotal match in the season, we are soon to learn exactly how well City have recovered from their two bruising defeats over Christmas. Compared to the performances against Crystal Palace and Leicester City, this was much, much better. In those defeats City looked starved of creativity in attack (by their high standards, anyway) and brittle at the back....

Chelsea midfielder N'Golo Kante is enjoying his most prolific season in a blue shirt and scored a fine winner against Crystal Palace. N'Golo Kante scored his third goal of the season to earn Chelsea a deserved 1-0 win at Crystal Palace that moves the Blues five points clear of fifth-placed Arsenal. David Luiz provided a rare assist from open play to allow Kante an opportunity that he pounced upon before scoring a goal that trebles his previous best tally in a Premier League season. Palace went into the game seeking to extend a three-match unbeaten streak that included a famous win over Manchester City before Christmas, but they struggled to prise the ball away from a Chelsea side determined to avoid a repeat of their Selhurst Park defeat last season. The result left Roy Hodgson's men just five points clear of the relegation zone, while fourth-placed Chelsea pulled away from Arsenal, who lost heavily at Liverpool on Saturday. Antonio Rudiger headed tamely into t...

The Spaniard has not been part of the last four Blues squads in the Premier League and has now been firmly replaced. Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri looks set to persist with Eden Hazard in a false nine role as the uncertainty over the future of Alvaro Morata grows. The Spaniard has not been included in his team's squad for their last four Premier League games, with that streak set to continue against Crystal Palace on Sunday. Hazard has been deployed as a centre-forward in the absence of a more reliable option, and has scored three times in those four appearances. Sarri has been so encouraged by the Belgian's displays that he feels he is starting to mirror Morata's best attributes - casting doubt over the Spaniard's long-term prospects. The Italian said: “We need to be balanced on the pitch and be more solid. "In the last matches I prefer this solution (Hazard at forward). For the future everything is open. “I think that Alvaro is better in the box and b...

Liverpool thrashed Arsenal at Anfield on Saturday, as Roberto Firmino scored his first Premier League hat-trick. Roberto Firmino was at his ruthless best as he scored his first Premier League hat-trick to inspire a 5-1 demolition of Arsenal at Anfield and put Liverpool nine points clear at the summit after Tottenham's defeat to Wolves. The visit of Unai Emery's men was seen as a potentially troublesome fixture, but the Reds made light work of them, with all of their revered front three finding the net in a devastating performance. A chaotic five-minute spell in the first half saw Ainsley Maitland-Niles put Arsenal ahead, before a quickfire Firmino brace turned the score around. Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah ensured a rampant Liverpool went into the break 4-1 up. Liverpool's pressure did not subside after half-time and Firmino completed his treble from the spot 25 minutes from time, rounding off a miserable day for the Gunners and increasing the heat on Manchester Cit...

Leicester City were denied after James Maddison's penalty was saved and Victor Camarasa scored a magnificent stoppage-time winner as Cardiff City earned a 1-0 Premier League win at Leicester City. Leicester thought they were set to celebrate another win – after the impressive triumphs over Chelsea and Manchester City – when Maddison stepped up from the spot with 15 minutes left, but goalkeeper Neil Etheridge made a vital save. That denied Leicester a third straight Premier League win and gave fuel to fans at the King Power Stadium who had booed regular penalty taker Jamie Vardy's second-half substitution when the game was in the balance. And it got worse for the hosts when Cardiff struck in the second minute of added time, Camarasa collecting Bobby Reid's pass and curling in a stunner from 20 yards. The visitors' Greg Cunningham was inches away from stabbing into his own goal in the fifth minute, before Ricardo Pereira's 20-yard strike forced a stop from Eth...

Wolves dealt a huge blow to Tottenham’s title aspirations with a shock 3-1 Premier League victory on Saturday. A 5-0 Boxing Day win over Bournemouth lifted Spurs above Manchester City into second but it was their failure to put this match to bed while they were on top that ultimately cost them at Wembley. Harry Kane gave the home side the lead with a wonderful strike midway through the first half and Spurs - after scoring 11 goals in their last two matches - might have expected to kick on and subject Wolves to another hammering. But the home side could not add to their tally despite dominating possession and Wolves produced a stunning second-half revival, with Raul Jimenez and Helder Costa finding the net after Willy Boly had equalised with the visitors’ first shot on target, ending Spurs' five-match winning run in the league. Pochettino's side have looked capable of scoring with every attack of late and, after Dele Alli sent an effort harmlessly over from the edge of t...

Cristiano Ronaldo's double saw Juventus edge past Sampdoria and finish the first half of the Serie A season unbeaten. Two goals from Cristiano Ronaldo and a dramatic late VAR call gave Juventus a 2-1 win over Sampdoria on Saturday that extends their lead at the top of Serie A. Having rescued their unbeaten start to the league season with the equaliser against Atalanta last time out, Ronaldo struck in each half to secure a 17th win in 19 games heading into the mid-season break. Sampdoria, who had levelled through Fabio Quagliarella's penalty and had an injury-time Riccardo Saponara strike disallowed by VAR, have now lost their last four away league games against Juve for the first time since 1968. The only negative for Juve was the loss of goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny to an apparent injury in the warm-up. Samp's resistance lasted less than two minutes, Ronaldo gathering Paulo Dybala's pass, cutting inside and firing right-footed through the grasp of Emil Audero....

Paul Pogba revealed his delight after scoring twice in Manchester United’s 3-1 win over Huddersfield Town at Old Trafford. Paul Pogba’s form under former boss Jose Mourinho was called into question, but the Frenchman has been outstanding in the team’s two matches since Ole Gunnar Solskjaer became interim manager The World Cup winner scored a double in United’s home success over Huddersfield on Wednesday before taking to Twitter to express his happiness. So happy for 3 points and 2 goals at home with our supporters and family there. Have great blessed holidays everyone, loads of love @ManUtd#mufc#heretocreatepic.twitter.com/R8gVwIxOzP — Paul Pogba (@paulpogba) December 26, 2018 Pogba has now scored seven times in 22 appearances for United in all competitions this season.

Chelsea star, Eden Hazard, has brushed off talk of an imminent move to Real Madrid, by insisting he wants to become a legend at Stamford Bridge. Hazard netted his 100th goal for the Blues, in their 2-1 victory at Watford on Boxing Day. The game was finely poised between the two London teams before Hazard burst clear, set on his way by Mateo Kovacic and he showed composure to round Watford goalkeeper Ben Foster to reach his century in a Chelsea shirt. The Belgian scored his 101st from the penalty spot in the second half, ensuring Roberto Pereyra’s strike was just a consolation. Speaking to Sky Sports, Hazard said: “(The 101 goals) mean a lot especially because we won today. “One-hundred-and-one goals with this amazing club is something I will never forget! “Now I think me, the fans and players want more. I want to score more goals for the club and want to be a legend like (Frank) Lampard, (Didier) Drogba and try to be my best. “My target is to score goals and try to win the g...

Eden Hazard's opener against Watford was his 100th goal for Chelsea in all competitions and it is another moment where the £32 million signing from Lille has written his name into the Stamford Bridge club's history. Latching on a Mateo Kovacic pass, Hazard's century for Chelsea was a trademark effort as he rounded Ben Foster and struck home into the empty net. The goal allowed a celebration of a six-and-a-half year love story between the Belgian and his fanbase in west London. Roberto Pereyra equalised with a wonderful first-time volley straight from a corner at Vicarage Road, but Hazard came out on top by winning and then scoring a penalty to reach 101 goals. He has gone from one of the world's most entertaining players to one of the world's most decisive players. His strike rate is massively up this season with 12 goals already this season. The numbers leave it very likely that we will see Hazard break the 20-goal mark for the first time in a single season a...

AC Milan striker, Gonzalo Higuain, has stated that he has no plan of leaving San Siro in the coming months amid speculations that Chelsea are preparing a bid for him. The Argentine international, who signed a season-long loan deal with Milan from Juventus in the summer, has repeatedly been linked with a move to the West London club. The 30-year-old has scored seven goals in 13 appearances so far for Milan this campaign. But despite the speculation, Higuain has insisted that his future still remains with the Seria A club. Speaking about Chelsea’s interest in him, Higuain was quoted by Metro UK as saying: “I’ve read many things. “I am not angry or upset. I am happy at Milan and the same goes for the club. That’s all that matters.” Milan will tackle Dudelange in the Europa League fixture on Thursday night. Higuain added: “We need a win and a good performance to progress in Europa League. “I want to play and prove that AC Milan didn’t make a mistake in signing me.”

Juve's star man Cristiano Ronaldo started on the bench for the first time this season, with Douglas Costa preferred. As one of two defensive changes, Bryan Djimsiti miscued Costa's low cross into his own net under just two minutes to give the Bianconneri the ideal start. Atalanta were under the ropes from this point, as Rodrigo Bentancur's shot from outside the box was tipped onto the crossbar by Martin Berisha three minutes later. Veteran defender Girogio Chiellini clashed with teammate Mario Mandzukic whilst trying to head at the back post from a corner later on. The hosts responded after 25 minutes as Duvan Zapata spinned around his marker to find the bottom corner from a left-footed strike. Juve aimed for an immediate reply, but Costa's shot from an acute angle could only found the side-netting after 33 minutes. Atalanta were having a full go at the champions, with Zapata the main individual causing all the havoc. Five minutes from the break, Papu Go...

The English Premier League champions, Manchester City, lost their third match in four games as they were defeated by Leicester City on Wednesday. City scored first through Bernado Silva before Marc Albrighton equalised and Ricardo Pereira scored the winning goal. Fabian Delph was sent off for the champions in the 89th minute. The loss means City drop to the third position on the table, seven behind league leaders, Liverpool. Super Eagles star, Wilfred Ndidi, was in action from start to finish as the Foxes secured the big win over Pep Guardiola’s men. Kelechi Iheanacho was, however, missing in action In other matches played on Wednesday, Liverpool secured a comfortable 4-0 home win over Newcastle United. At Old Trafford, Manchester United continued their resurgence under their new caretaker manager as they beat Huddersfield Town 3-1. Paul Pogba scored two goals for United in the Boxing Day clash. Elsewhere Tottenham Hotspur continued their blistering form with a 5-0 demolition ...

Legendary Manchester United manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, was called in by the club’s executive vice-chairman, Ed Woodward, to help with a replacement after Jose Mourinho was sacked last Tuesday. According to the UK Sun, Ferguson brokered the deal for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, to make a sensational return as interim boss. The Scot also pulled the strings behind the scenes, for the return of his former assistant Mike Phelan, 56, as Solskjaer’s No 2. Woodward was desperate to get it right following the failures of David Moyes, Louis van Gaal and Mourinho. So he turned to Ferguson, who has been a club director since retiring in 2013, as he prepared to sack Mourinho in the wake of the 3-1 loss at Liverpool. And he made sure that Solskjaer was ready to arrive on a six month loan from Norwegian club Molde, while Phelan was drafted in from Australian side Central Coast Mariners.

Modric, 32, admits the exits of Ronaldo and Zidane in the off-season took everyone associated to Real by surprise after their integral roles in the hattrick of UEFA Champions League titles. "I didn't expect it for either of them [to leave]," Modric told France Football. "I didn't think Zidane was going to leave, same thing for Ronaldo. "Actually, when the rumour about Cristiano came out, we made bets between us in the dressing room and we were convinced that he would stay in the end. But everyone makes their own choices in life." On his chances of breaking the Ballon d'Or monopoly of the Portugal captain and FC Barcelona's Lionel Messi, the Croatian playmaker refused to claim he 'deserves' the most coveted individual honour in European football. "Truth be told, I don't like that way of talking and saying: 'Yes, it's me who deserves the Ballon d'Or'," he said. "The important thing for me is to be ...

Despite having fallen behind in the title race to Liverpool, the Catalan still believes his side are showing improvements on the pitch. Manchester City may have won the Premier League title with 100 points last season, but Pep Guardiola believes they are even better this time around. The Catalan's second campaign at the Etihad Stadium also delivered the Carabao Cup as City finished a record 19 points clear of nearest challengers and neighbours Manchester United. City lost just two league matches in 2017-18 - to Liverpool and United - but defeats to Chelsea and Crystal Palace this month mean they have already equalled that tally before the halfway stage of the season. Nevertheless, Guardiola feels his side look stronger as they aim to achieve what no City team has done and win back-to-back Premier League crowns. "In little details we are better than last season, which is normal because we have more time together," he told  Sky Sports . "Our process, our bui...

Manchester United midfielder, Nemanja Matic has blamed his fellow team-mates for the sack of manager, Jose Mourinho. Mourinho was dismissed by United last week Tuesday following the club’s poor form this season. The Portuguese gaffer was replaced by former Red Devils player, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. But reacting to the sack of Mourinho, Matic stated that United players were responsible. Asked whether his team-mates should take responsibility for Jose Mourinho’s sack, Matic was quoted by FourFourTwo as saying: “Of course. “I said this also after the Liverpool game, that we have to take responsibility and do our best to play better and to win games. “I don’t know [what changed at Cardiff]. This is the question no-one has an answer to but we are sure this is the way to continue, to fight and we will try to do it. “This is football. In football this happens. We know also it’s not only the manager’s fault when the results are not good. “But this is football and we have to carry on, ...

One outstanding candidate for the Old Trafford hotseat has emerged since Mourinho's sacking but Pochettino is at the right club to kick on and succeed. Much of the week’s Premier League chat has been focussed on Manchester United and Jose Mourinho. No sooner had the unshaven Portuguese been driven out of Carrington had speculation begun over who would replace him and the weekend's festive football programme was a bit overlooked in the midst of it all. It didn’t take long for much of the media to alight on the name of Mauricio Pochettino, notwithstanding the fact that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was hired to keep the hotseat warm until the end of the season. The Norwegian did well in his opening game against Cardiff City  but he won't be there long. Besides, what United do is pretty inconsequential between now and May. The teams who will matter are Liverpool, Manchester City and Chelsea. While Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola have spent heavily to get their teams into content...

Harry Kane and Son Heung-min starred in a remarkable and breathless 6-2 Tottenham win at Everton on Sunday. Tottenham produced a devastating display of attacking football as Son Heung-min and Harry Kane inspired the 6-2 hammering of Everton in a Premier League Christmas cracker, moving Spurs to within two points of Manchester City. The past week had been dominated by speculation linking Mauricio Pochettino with the Manchester United manager's job, and Spurs' attack-minded showing at Goodison Park showed exactly why the Argentinian is a front-runner.

Paul Pogba says Jose Mourinho improved him as a player and a person and thanked the former Manchester United manager, for the success they shared at Old Trafford. The Frenchman stopped to make a statement in the mixed zone, following the 5-1 win over Cardiff City on Saturday, after taking criticism for what some supporters have perceived to be a role in Mourinho’s sacking. “I know you’re waiting for something about Jose, about the result today. “Obviously, we are very happy with the result. We played well, the performance of the team was great and I know you want to ask me but, ‘Oh yeah with Jose.’ “With Jose, we won trophies and I want to thank him for that. Not everything worked well but things went well, we won trophies. “Winning trophies makes you improve as a person as well and that’s it. That’s the past. I want to thank him for that. “I’m sure all the players are now looking to the next game, the points, and we have to go back into and we want to go back to the top...

The Blues suffered a shock 1-0 home to defeat to Leicester on Saturday to leave them 11 points adrift of Jurgen Klopp's Premier League leaders. Maurizio Sarri has thrown in the Premier League title towel, with the Chelsea boss considering it to be “impossible” for his side to catch Liverpool. The Blues suffered a shock 1-0 home defeat to Leicester on Saturday to leave them a long way off the pace. An 11-point gap to Jurgen Klopp’s table-toppers would need to be bridged in order for Sarri’s side to get back into the race. The Italian cannot see that happening and admits his debut campaign at Stamford Bridge is set to see him finish without the English top-flight crown. “It was impossible from the beginning of the season,” Sarri told BBC Sport. “As I said at the beginning of the Premier League it is impossible to catch Liverpool and Manchester City, we have to be careful to stay close to the first four positions.” Chelsea remain inside the top four for now, but have Londo...

Real Madrid players celebrating their victory Santiago Solari celebrated his first trophy as Real Madrid's coach with a 4-1 defeat of Al Ain in the Club World Cup final. Luka Modric's wonderful goal helped seal Club World Cup history as Real Madrid beat Al Ain 4-1 to become the first team to win the tournament three years in a row. Santiago Solari's first silverware since being appointed as Julen Lopetegui's successor was set up by Modric's first-half strike as Madrid comfortably triumphed in Abu Dhabi on Saturday, moving past rivals Barcelona with their fourth title in the competition.

Pep Guardiola’s side could get away with the odd poor performance for the final six months of last season but this time around it is a different story. There are a couple of reasons to be optimistic for Manchester City on Saturday, amid the doom and gloom of an unexpected and thoroughly deserved defeat against Crystal Palace at the Etihad Stadium. One is that the Premier League title is still handed out in May. The other is that the last time a team top of the table at Christmas didn’t go on to win the league was Liverpool five years ago. In fact, only twice in the past 10 seasons has a team not lifted the title after being top on December 25 and both times it has been Liverpool. So that’s something to cling to as the bones are picked out of an uncharacteristically poor performance from the champions. Manchester City's coach, Pep Gurdiola The performance was indeed so disjointed there will be a forensic analysis of what went wrong. Especially set against the b...

For the first time since 2000, Leicester City can celebrate a Premier League win at Chelsea, who slipped to a 1-0 defeat. Jamie Vardy scored on his 250th Leicester City appearance as the Foxes ended an 18-year wait for a Premier League win at Chelsea in a 1-0 triumph. The former England striker had been starved of service until clinically finishing a brilliant Leicester counter early in the second half, which ultimately proved enough to clinch a first win at Stamford Bridge since 2000. This is actually a big blow for the blues after Crystal Palace defeated Manchester City in another premier league match. A win for Chelsea would have reduced the point margin among the top four clubs.

Jose Mourinho has broken his silence after being sacked by Manchester United, insisting he will be back in football and refused to blame anybody for his failure. The Portuguese’s time at Old Trafford was cut short after two and a half years, despite penning a new contract in January. Mourinho, 55, splashed out close to £400m on 11 players during his time at the club, but results and the style of play were deemed unsatisfactory. A day after he was sacked the former United boss issued a statement which read: "I have been immensely proud to wear the badge of Manchester United since the first day I arrived, and I believe all United supporters recognise this. "Just as was the case with my previous clubs, I have worked with some wonderful people and I believe that some will be my friends for life. "I know that you are all aware of my professional principles. Each time a chapter is closed I show my deepest respect and I don't make any comments about my former coll...

Michael Carrick reportedly clashed with Paul Pogba on the training ground, following Jose Mourinho’s sack at Manchester United. Mourinho was fired on Tuesday, just 11 months after signing a new deal at Old Trafford. Pogba, who had been dropped by Mourinho for his last match against Liverpool, was slammed after a post emerged on his social media account shortly after the Portuguese’s dismissal. It is understood that the Frenchman was also high-fiving his teammates when news of Mourinho’s sack broke. Now fresh reports have suggested Pogba was mocking Mourinho during the session on Tuesday, before being reprimanded by Carrick, who took charge immediately after the decision to pull the trigger. The UK Sun claims Pogba shouted “He f***** with the wrong baller” during the session at Carrington. But Carrick, who will remain part of the coaching team under interim boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, confronted him immediately. It is alleged he told the World Cup winner that United are bigger...

Jesse Lingard has become the first Manchester United player, to break their social media silence, since the sacking of Jose Mourinho. The England midfielder, who scored United’s final goal under Mourinho in the 3-1 defeat to Liverpool on Sunday, posted on his Instagram Story on Wednesday. Lingard wrote: “Thank you for the wisdom,” along with a picture of Mourinho giving him instructions from the touchline. No United player posted anything on social media relating to the sacking on Tuesday, when the squad all headed to Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital to hand out Christmas presents to local children. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was confirmed as United’s new interim manager on Wednesday, signing a deal until the end of the season.