Wenger will stay: Arsenal CEO
LONDON: Premier League leaders Arsenal expect manager Arsene Wenger to sign a new contract to stay with the club, chief executive Ivan Gazidis said on Monday. “We’ve always supported Arsene, the board has always been completely behind him as has (owner) Stan Kroenke,” Gazidis told a news conference when asked about the long-serving manager, whose contract expires at the end of the season. “We are comfortable in the position, relaxed about it. As I’ve said before, Arsene will be extending with us and at the right time we’ll make that announcement,” he added. Wenger has been Arsenal manager since 1996. (AFP)
Bale out of Cup game against Espanyol
MADRID: Real Madrid winger Gareth Bale will miss Tuesday’s King’s Cup quarterfinal second leg at home to Espanyol due to a problem with his left leg, coach Carlo Ancelotti said on Monday. The Welsh international’s season has been disrupted by several minor injuries since his world record move from Tottenham Hotspur last year and the latest occurred in Saturday’s 2-0 La Liga win over Granada at the Bernabeu. Bale took a painful kick to the groin early in the first half and played on until half time before being substituted. Ancelotti said he was unable to train with the rest of his team mates on Monday. “He has no problem with his genitals, he has recovered well from that,” the Italian joked. “But he’s not comfortable with his left leg and it’s affecting his balance a bit.” Bale missed several weeks after bruising his left calf in training at the end of last year and was also sidelined by a thigh strain in October. Real have a 1-0 advantage over Espanyol from the first leg in Barcelona. (Reuters)
Oscar puts Chelsea through in FA Cup
London: Oscar helped Chelsea draw a line beneath Juan Mata’s departure with a fine free-kick in a 1-0 win over Stoke City in the FA Cup fourth round on Sunday. The Brazilian had dislodged Mata from his position as Chelsea’s main playmaker, prompting the Spaniard to join Manchester United, and the quality of his goal demonstrated why manager Jose Mourinho rates him so highly. The Blues failed to add to Oscar’s first-half effort despite hitting the woodwork twice, although it was a largely comfortable victory, with Stoke rarely threatening to score an equaliser and force a replay. Chelsea’s reward is a mouthwatering fifth-round trip to Premier League rivals Manchester City. “We are playing well and the team is confident,” Mourinho said after the game. “One-nil is short for the way we played and controlled the game. But the important thing was to win and not replay, because we don’t need an extra match.” (AFP)
Lankan seamers rock B’desh in first Test
DHAKA: Seamers Shaminda Eranga and Suranga Lakmal shared seven Bangladesh wickets as Sri Lanka dominated the opening day of the first Test in Dhaka on Monday. Eranga finished with 4-49 and Lakmal claimed 3-66 to help bowl out Bangladesh for 232 after the tourists won the toss and chose to field at the Sher-e-Bangla stadium. Skipper Mushfiqur Rahim (61) and Shakib Al Hasan (55) were the only batsmen to resist the accurate Sri Lankan attack on an even-paced pitch. Sri Lanka made 60 for no loss in reply by stumps, with Dimuth Karunaratne unbeaten on 28 and Kaushal Silva on 30. They are now 172 runs behind with all 10 wickets in hand. (AFP)
Hope to see more Saina-Sindhu finals: Gopi
Lucknow: Chief national badminton coach Pullela Gopichand hopes his two most famous proteges – Olympic bronze medallist Saina Nehwal and World Championship bronze medallist PV Sindhu – play many more finals against each other like they did here at the India Grand Prix Gold. Gopichand was happy as Sindhu and Saina broke the Chinese domination at the India Grand Prix. Saina went on to win and end her 15-month title drought on Sunday night. “It was a good match. I hope Saina and Sindhu have many more matches like this where they play the finals against each other and it will be great to see that. Both of them played well and there were some really good rallies,” the former All-England champion told IANS Monday, a day after Saina came through in a hard fought 21-14, 21-17 victory. (IANS)