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After clinching the Premier League title last Friday night, Chelsea are in party mode – that party being a seven-goal thriller against Watford at Stamford Bridge. Blues fans and neutrals were treated to a real goal-fest on Monday evening, a rotated Chelsea side going 3-1 up before allowing Watford to level and eventually pushing themselves over the line via a late Cesc Fabregas winner.

At the heart of the action was attacking midfielder Willian, who has been forced to endure a reduced role in Chelsea’s title bid since Antonio Conte brought in his 3-4-3 system.

The industrious Brazilian has made just 14 Premier League starts this season, which has cast doubts over his future. The Independent recently described him as Jose Mourinho’s ideal winger signing for the summer, and The Sun claim the former Blues boss could look to lure him to Manchester United for 2017/18 with the promise of more first-team football.

“My future is here with Chelsea, I have a contract until 2020 and I’m happy. I know sometimes players always want to play but I understand why I’m not playing much.”

But Willian looked to quash such rumours before yesterday’s clash in west London and judging by his performance, the 28-year-old is determined to ensure he has a long-term future at Stamford Bridge, putting in an impeccable display against the Hornets.

Indeed, Willian finished up with the most chances created, successful dribbles, accurate crosses and touches of the ball of any Chelsea player and his immense contribution finally told at the end as he set up Fabregas for the 88th-minute winner.

It was a performance that not only highlighted the attacker’s clear commitment to the Blues, but also how influential he could be for them once again next season – especially considering Antonio Conte’s side will be battling it out in the Champions League as well.

Something tells us Manchester United will have a tough time convincing their Premier League rivals to sell.

By their own high expectations, West Ham certainly haven’t had the most ideal of starts in the Premier League season.

Despite winning their first home game of the campaign against Bournemouth, the Hammers have not settled in their new London Stadium home, and have been defending horrendously in the past few matches.

However, their torrid run of results finally came to end last weekend as they defeated Crystal Palace in a well-fought London Derby at Selhurst Park.

They rode their luck and were grateful that Eagles striker Christian Benteke missed a penalty on the stroke of half-time, but the three points at the end of the day is the all important statistic for the Hammers.

The victory moved the Irons out of the bottom three and they now sit in 15th with seven points. They have a great chance to continue their upward rise as bottom club Sunderland are the next visitors at the east end of the capital.

Quite frankly, the Black Cats have been a shambles this season but both clubs will see this as an opportunity to really get their campaigns going.

It’s shaping up to be a very intriguing match and we think this is how West Ham should line up.

Adrian

West Ham’s No.1 since Jussi Jaaskelainen was ousted. Adrian has been superb for a couple of seasons but is not having his greatest campaign this time around.

Winston Reid

Many a time Reid has been linked with a transfer to a big club but has stayed true to the Hammers and is one of their best defenders.

Cheikou Kouyate

Able to play in defence or midfield, Kouyate is strong and hard working.

Angelo Ogbonna

A lot was expected of Ogbonna after his arrival from Juventus but he hasn’t quite lived up to the billing. He’s a good player, though, and will continue to feature for the Hammers.

Alvaro Arbeloa

With Aaron Cresswell banned for his two yellow cards at Crystal Palace and options thin on the ground, experienced Spaniard Arbeloa will come back in. The ex-Liverpool and Real Madrid man may not offer much going forward, but he’s defensively adept.

Mark Noble

The Hammers captain is an Iron through and through and will want to ensure he leads them out of this tough time. He’s been relegated before with them and will want to avoid any threat of that, again.

Pedro Obiang

The Spaniard is a good, yet unspectacular footballer who always seems to do his job. He will continue to keep his place.

Michail Antonio

The winger has shone since moving slightly deeper and will offer the attacking threat Arbeloa on the other flank will not.

Manuel Lanzini

Lanzini is a nice and tidy footballer. He scored the winning goal against Crystal Palace on the weekend and was impressive throughout.

Dimitri Payet

Dimitri Payet is a phenomenal footballer. He was one of the players of the season last term, and impressed at the EUROs for France.

Simone Zaza

Zaza is famous for his awful penalty miss for Italy during the European Championship in their shootout defeat to Germany.

However, he was still talked about as a good player so West Ham signed him during their huge striker pursuit.

He’s yet to set the world alight yet, but we think he still needs time to settle.

Adin Ross has revealed that he was beaten to a luxurious Miami mansion by Lionel Messi following the Argentine’s stunning move to the United States.

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• World Cup winner now in the United States
• Family happily settled in Florida
• Argentine icon always gets what he wants

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The 2022 World Cup winner, who now has eight Ballons d’Or to his name, completed a switch to Inter Miami during the summer of 2023. Having bid farewell to Europe following spells at Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain, Messi needed a new base for his young family.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  He quickly identified a waterfront property in Florida, with a deal done there which left streaming star Ross – who shot to fame in 2019 playing NBA 2K on Twitch and now boasts a lucrative deal with Kick – left frustrated as he was outbid by a “very famous professional athlete.”

• WHAT THEY SAID

  Ross has said of missing out on a home that he also viewed before missing out to an all-time great from the sporting world: “It’s nothing about me being broken. I just couldn’t get to there in time. I saw the house, but they were already in talks and all that. The professional athlete is Messi.”

  Expanding on how he was left empty-handed, Ross added: “Messi’s parents, I think it was? I believe it was his grandparents, or I don’t know who the f*ck it was. Messi, they wanted a crib for their grandchildren or some sh*t, they were playing a game. I don’t even know, and they got it.”

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  WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

  Ross is reported to have a net worth of around $40 million (£32m), but Messi is said to come in at over $600m (£484m) and was always going to have the financial muscle required to prevail in any bidding war for a home that he intends to fill with more medals across an initial two-and-a-half-year contract with MLS side Inter Miami.

The Blues were toothless once again as they were bested by the struggling hosts in their first match under their new interim boss

Chelsea proved that they have plenty more problems to overcome since sacking coach Graham Potter as they went down 1-0 to Wolves on Saturday.

There was no new manager bounce in interim coach Frank Lampard's first game as the Blues were woeful and unable to threaten their hosts.

Kai Havertz disappointed up front once again alongside Raheem Sterling and Joao Felix, while the likes of Enzo Fernandez, Kalidou Koulibaly and Wesley Fofana put in decent performances to prevent things from getting worse.

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GOAL rates Chelsea's players from Molineux…

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  Goalkeeper & Defence

  Kepa Arrizabalaga (6/10):

  Beaten by an excellent shot in the first half but made some saves as the busier of the two goalkeepers.

  Reece James (6/10):

  Worked hard to get forward to whip the ball into the box but his crosses were poor. Still, it was one of his better performances since returning from injury.

  Wesley Fofana (7/10):

  Made an important tackle in the first half and looked good alongside Koulibaly.

  Kalidou Koulibaly (7/10):

  His header bounced perfectly for Matheus Nunes to fire in the opening goal but he did well defensively and was fine on the ball.

  Marc Cucurella (5/10):

  Put in a few good tackles but was at risk of being sent off with a yellow card early in the second half. Was sloppy in possession, too.

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  Midfield

  Conor Gallagher (6/10):

  Made nice runs into space around the Wolves defence as a threatening passing option but could not convert that into real danger.

  Enzo Fernandez (7/10):

  Saw a lot of the ball and made some good passes but unable to create any chances.

  Mateo Kovacic (4/10):

  Behind the pace of the game for large spells although he did play two dangerous balls. Very little fight for the ball in midfield.

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  Attack

  Kai Havertz (4/10):

  Not the right candidate to lead the Chelsea attack as he was barely involved in good positions and no threat at all.

  Joao Felix (6/10):

  Looked capable of creating something at times but nothing went in his favour.

  Raheem Sterling (5/10):

  Had a hard time getting involved as Chelsea struggled to build attacks in the first half. Only slightly better in the second and set up Gallagher with a cut back.

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  Subs & Manager

  Christian Pulisic (6/10):

  Came on for Havertz after the hour mark and held up the ball but was unable to offer much of a threat.

  Mykhailo Mudryk (5/10):

  Was easily snuffed out by the Wolves defence in his 22 minutes on the field.

  Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (6/10):

  Missed the target with a shot immediately after coming on and saw an effort blocked by Dawson late on.

  Ben Chilwell (6/10):

  Replaced Cucurella and was an improvement as Chelsea looked stronger down the left.

  Trevoh Chalobah (6/10):

  On for the last 10 minutes and played at the back. Was fine on the ball as Chelsea pushed forward.

  Frank Lampard (4/10):

  His team were second best for the entire first half and failed to create enough clear chances throughout. Some of his changes helped make them more threatening, but there were few positives to take from this game.

Two players each from Manchester City, Everton and Leicester help make up an evenly spread XI

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  1Bernard | Everton

  Bernard scored one and created two chances in Everton's away win at West Ham.

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  2Marcus Rashford | Manchester United

  Rashford netted with his only shot on target against Watford, opening the scoring for the Red Devils.

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  3Bernardo Silva | Manchester City

  Bernardo Silva was directly involved in both of Man City's goals against Fulham, scoring one and assisting another.

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  4Abdoulaye Doucoure | Watford

  Doucoure made more passes (61) and more passes in the opposition half (45) than any Watford player at Old Trafford.

MatériaMais Notícias

A SPFCtv, canal oficial do São Paulo no Youtube, publicou na tarde deste domingo as imagens dos gols do jogo-treino desta manhã, em Cotia, em que a equipe venceu a Caldense por 6 a 1 (clique aqui e saiba todos os detalhes).

Os dois primeiros gols foram de Helinho após cruzamentos de Reinaldo. No primeiro, o atacante mandou de cabeça para as redes. No segundo, aproveitou uma rebatida do zagueiro e finalizou. Os dois também participaram do terceiro gol: Helinho tocou de calcanhar para Juanfran, que cruzou na cabeça de Reinaldo.

Vitor Bueno, com um bonito chute de fora da área após passe de Bruno Alves, e o próprio Bruno Alves, aproveitando cruzamento de Daniel Alves em cobrança de falta, fecharam o placar do primeiro tempo: 5 a 0.

O último gol saiu no segundo tempo, já com a equipe reserva. Foi o de jogada mais trabalhada: Léo tocou para Igor Vinícius, que deu a bola para Toró tabelar com Pato e cruzar para o mesmo Léo finalizar. Luan, de pênalti, foi quem marcou para a Caldense, que também mudou bastante a equipe no segundo tempo.

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MatériaMais Notícias

Precisando de qualquer maneira vencer para seguir com chances de sobrevivência na Série B do Brasileirão, o Criciúma fez sua parte batendo por 2 a 0 o Londrina no Heriberto Hulse.

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O placar teve suma importância ao elevar o patamar do Tigre para a condição de estar à quatro pontos atrás do primeiro time fora do Z4, o Figueirense (38 a 34). Por sua vez, o prejuízo do time paranaense foi notório já que fez com que a equipe entrasse na zona de rebaixamento com 35 unidades e em 17° lugar.

Depois de um começo de jogo mais “arrastado” por parte das duas equipes, na primeira boa trama elaborada pelo sistema ofensivo do Tigre, Andrew fez o papel de assistente e Léo Gamalho, no seu habitat, girou e bateu forte para abrir a contagem no interior de Santa Catarina.

O Londrina chegou a se mostrar disposto a buscar a igualdade necessária, mas parava na falta de inspiração e pouca capacidade de transformar o trabalho ofensivo em finalizações que fizessem Paulo Gianezini trabalhar.

Por outro lado, apesar da diminuição do ritmo, ainda chegou bem perto de ampliar a conta quando Daniel Costa bateu falta e viu sua cobrança carimbar o travessão antes de sair.

Na volta do intervalo, o time da casa foi quem conseguiu chegar de maneira mais insinuante usando a bola parada e sua maior organização no ataque. Além da batida de Daniel Costa onde César precisou evitar o tento olímpico, Foguinho chegou concluindo jogada trabalhada pela esquerda e viu ela passar perto da meta.

E, para fechar a conta, Andrew aproveitou a rápida puxada de contra-ataque esquematizada por Foguinho e bateu na saída de César, 2 a 0, placar final.

Just over 72 hours previously Jos Buttler had performed valiantly in England’s losing cause against New Zealand. On Friday evening he smote a stunning 71 not out off just 35 balls to take Lancashire to a win

Paul Edwards at Headingley05-Jun-2015
ScorecardJos Buttler, seen here for England, played a superb match-winning knock•AFPThere is more Anne Robinson than Emmott Robinson about a T20 Roses match at Headingley. Short-form floodlit cricket in front of 16,199 baying fans at Headingley is all about exposing your opponents’ weakest links and wishing them a brusque farewell. The 2015 edition of this quasi-tribal rivalry did nothing to crack the curse-littered mould, even though the presence of the England players and two of Australia’s World Cup winners suggested that any vulnerability would need all the finding.Ultimately it was a cricketer whose bat speed beggars belief who overshadowed both James Faulkner and Glenn Maxwell, well as those two Australians bowled. Just over 72 hours previously Jos Buttler had performed valiantly in England’s losing cause against New Zealand. On Friday evening, on a pitch just two away from the one on which he had made 73 in three hours, Buttler smote a stunning 71 not out off just 35 balls to take Lancashire to a win which the bookies had not predicted and which appeared unlikely even when Tim Bresnan began the final over of the game.At that point Lancashire were 169 for 6 and Bresnan is an experienced cricketer with plenty of medals on his chest. Buttler, though, hit his first ball over midwicket for six and drove two crisp fours into a couple of gaps in Andrew Gale’s carefully-set field. Three balls later the batsmen were embracing on the outfield after Maxwell’s throw from no more than a dozen yards to tie the game had missed the stumps and left Buttler and Arron Lilley to scurry home. Gale later criticised his bowlers’ failure to find their lengths under pressure and there was justice in his view but there are times when bowling to Buttler is as tough as English short-form cricket gets.Insights

Yorkshire have lost their last two matches and have arguably lost them both in the final five overs of their bowling performance. Last week they conceded 76-1 off the final five and against Lancashire they conceded 65-2 off the final five. Bresnan and Fisher are decent bowlers but Fisher is only 17 and perhaps both lack the speciality–the variations and subtlety–to succeed at the death where the emphasis seems heavily on yorkers. It is a glaring weakness and it needs to be stemmed.

Lancashire’s matchwinner had come to the wicket with the score on 82 for 2 in the eleventh over. His side needed another 104 off 56 balls. But such challenges are almost par for the T20 course these days, although it helps when you can hit sixes as smoothly as the England wicketkeeper. He coped with the loss of Ashwell Prince, who became Maxwell’s third victim when leg before for 32 attempting to sweep. Buttler then added 52 in barely four overs with his skipper, Steven Croft, who was caught at long-on by Rich Pyrah off Liam Plunkett for 15.When the penultimate over of the innings began, Lancashire needed 32 but Buttler lifted Matthew Fisher into the crowd for two sixes. The young seamer had struck a blow earlier in the over, though, by having Faulkner caught by Maxwell at long-on and he then had Alex Davies leg before first ball. All that activity left Lancashire needed 17 and Bresnan at the start of his run…The truth was that until the fourth ball of that final over Lancashire had not looked like winning the game. Both Joe Root, who made 54 off 39 balls, and Gary Ballance, whose 31 had included sixes off three successive balls had found the Lancashire bowlers offering balm for their Test match woes. Between them the pair had maintained Yorkshire’s progress at nine an over and apart from Faulkner, none of Croft’s attack found it easy to bowl to them.However, Faulkner showed why his talents were so highly prized during the World Cup by regularly changing his pace without sacrificing an ounce of control. Often bowling out of the back of his hand, he yorked Gale for 6, and later accounted for both Root and Jack Leaning in a four-over spell which cost just 27 runs. In short-form terms, it was almost miserly.Yet when the music blared out over Headingley at mid-innings there were not too many willing to bet against a home win. Indeed, the tone for the raucous occasion had seemed to be set when Maxwell reverse pulled Croft’s first ball of the game for six and took 18 off the opening over. That flurry delighted the home fans in their bizarre canary headgear and some thought it might have served to define events on the sort of intense, emotional evening when Blanche DuBois might have seen something in cricket..By half past nine the mood had changed markedly after a Roses game which Neville Cardus, that connoisseur of the rivalry, would have crossed the M62 to avoid. Anne Robinson, though, really would have loved it. For the brute conclusion was clear: Thanks to Buttler, Yorkshire were the weakest links. Goodbye.

A round-up of the National Cricket League matches which ended on March 5, 2015

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Mar-2015At the BKSP-2 ground, Rajshahi Division chased down a target of 353 in the final hour of play to beat Barisal Division by four wickets. Touhid Tareq was adjudged Man of the Match for hitting fifties in both innings including a 95-ball 77 that helped keep up with a required rate nearly four in the final innings.Rajshahi needed the 353 runs in a minimum of 91 overs, but they lost opener Mizanur Rahman and Junaid to become 76 for 2 in the 22nd. The other opener Maisuqur Rahman, who made 80 off 141 balls with eleven fours and a six, added 83 runs for the third wicket with Mohimenul Islam who chipped in with 49.Mohimenul added 105 runs for the fourth wicket with Tareq, but both batsmen were dismissed in the space of five deliveries to leave Rajshahi at 266 for 5 in the 80th over. With 87 needed off 69 balls, Farhad Reza bashed 50 off 32 balls with four boundaries and three sixes, before Muktar Ali guided them home with an unbeaten 31.If anything, Barisal would have rued their first innings when they were bowled out for 235. Sohag Gazi top-scoring with 59 as left-arm spinner Saqlain Sajib took five wickets for Rajshahi, who then took a 12-run lead in the first innings. Gazi shot back with a five-wicket haul and medium-pacer Kamrul Islam Rabbi took three wickets. Junaid Siddique made 58 while Tareq was unbeaten on 65 off 157 balls.Barisal replied better in their second innings, making 364 in 83.5 overs with fifties from Fazle Mahmud (75), Mosaddek Hossain (88) and Al-Amin (70). Left-arm spinner Sanjamul Islam took five wickets.Khulna Division continued to lead the NCL points table after they dominated their drawn sixth-round game against Dhaka Metropolis in BKSP-3 ground. They are now on 90 points, ahead of second placed Dhaka Division by just two points.Khulna made 416 having chosen to bat, with 20-year old Mahedi Hasan scoring his maiden ton in his third first-class match. He made 140 off 205 balls with 20 fours and two sixes while Tushar Imran (69) and Ziaur Rahman (79) also struck fifties. Offspinner Sharifullah took three wickets.Dhaka Metro were then bowled out for 341 with fifties from Saikat Ali (61), Shamsur Rahman (64), Mehrab Hossain jnr (81) and Sharifullah (57). Left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak took 5 for 135 while Al-Amin Hossain, sent home from the World Cup, took 1 for 52.Khulna extended their 75-run lead by 331 runs on the final day, but their declaration came with an hour left for close of play on the final day, and both captains were happy to accept a draw after part-timer Shamsur took his maiden five-wicket haul.Dhaka Division were held to a draw by Rangpur Division in Mirpur.Dhaka, having chosen to bat, were bowled out for 335 with Raqibul Hasan making 130 during an innings that lasted six hours and included 13 fours and two sixes. He added 137 runs with Jony Talukdar, who struck 90 off 149 balls with 13 fours. Seamer Subashis Roy took 4 for 61.Rangpur fell behind by 29 runs after they were bowled out for 306. Seamers Shahadat Hossain and Mohammad Sharif took four wickets each while Dhiman Ghosh (81) and Ariful Haque (68) hit fifties.Dhaka were then bowled out for 259 runs in the second innings and left Rangpur one hour of play on the fourth day, who batted out the 18.3 overs without much difficulty.Sylhet Division and Chittagong Division played out a draw in Fatullah.Sylhet consumed 159 overs to amass 507 for 8 after opting to bat with Alok Kapali reaching his maiden double-hundred. He was unbeaten on 211 after seven and a half hours at the crease. He struck 18 fours and three sixes and added 191 runs for the fourth wicket with Rajin Saleh, who made 111 off 265 balls. Left-arm spinner Mohammad Younus took three wickets.Chittagong meandered to 332 runs in 124.3 overs with Iftekhar Sajjad hitting his maiden first-class ton. He made 126 with 16 fours and three sixes. Pacer Abul Hasan and offspiner Sadiqur Rahman took three wickets each. Sylhet managed to bat out an hour and 38 minutes before play was called off by mutual consent.

أعلن نادي برشلونة في بيان رسمي، اليوم الجمعة، إصابة أحد لاعبيه خلال تواجده في معسكر منتخب إسبانيا في فترة التوقف الدولي الحالي.

وحسبما جاء في بيان برشلونة، فإن اللاعب أليخاندرو بالدي يعاني من إصابة ستجعله بعيدًا عن الملاعب.

وقال برشلونة في بيانه: “أكد الفحص الذي أجري يوم الجمعة على الظهير أليخاندرو بالدي أنه يعاني من إصابة في إحدى أوتار الركبة”.

اقرأ أيضًا | برشلونة يعلن راتب جواو فيليكس المنخفض.. وزيادة تنتظره بنسبة 900%

وأضاف حامل اللقب في بيانه: “وهذا يعني أنه لن يكون متاحًا للمشاركة حتى يتم تعافيه”.

يأتي هذا في ظل كثرة الإصابات في صفوف برشلونة، حيث هناك كل من روبرت ليفاندوفسكي، رافينها، فرينكي دي يونج، جافي ولامين يامال.

ويقترب برشلونة من خوض مباراة الكلاسيكو ضد ريال مدريد والتي ستكون يوم 28 أكتوبر الحالي.