FA Cups
Arsenal sack U23 coach after 30 years at the club
Arsenal have sacked U23 coach Steve Bould, ending his 30-year association with the club. The 58-year-old former defender has held various coaching positions at Arsenal since retiring in 2000. An official announcement is still to come from the club but he will leave the Gunners in the coming days. Bould led Arsenal’s U18 side to Premier Academy League titles in 2009 and 2010 as well as the FA Youth Cup in the 2008/09 season. He was then promoted to become assistant to former manager Arsene Wenger in 2012, a role he served for seven years before he was reassigned as U23 coach in 2019. Arsenal’s U23 side only finished 10th in the Premier League 2 this season under Bould, but the team has produced Bukayo Saka and Emile Smith-Rowe, who have emerged as highly influential members of Mikel Arteta’...
Mikel Obi wants to be father figure at Stoke City
Stoke City new signing John Mikel Obi hopes to help instil a long-lost winning mentality at the club and also help the Potters push for promotion to the Premier League next season. Mikel penned a one-year contract with Stoke City on Monday becoming the club’s fourth signing of the summer. The experienced midfielder spent 11 years at Chelsea helping the Blues land the Premier League title twice, as well as three FA Cups, the Champions League and Europa League. The former Super Eagles captain has also played in China and Turkey, with a brief stint at Championship club Stoke City. Mikel is determined to become a mentor to his new team-mates and help them at difficult times. “It is good when you come into a football club having won so much in the game,” he told the club’s official website. “Th...
Mikel Arteta admits ‘refreshing’ advice, support from Arsene Wenger
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has revealed that former boss Arsene Wenger has been in touch over the past months, supporting and advising our new inexperienced coach. The Frenchman was of course the manager of the famous Invincibles side of 2004, and led the team to three Premier League titles and seven FA Cups over a 22-year period, and was even coached our new boss at Arsenal during 2011-16. The pair build up a strong relationship at the club, with the Spaniard emerging as captain during his time at the club, and the two remain in contact to this day Mikel confirmed. “I’ve been in touch over the last few months a few times with him but not before the final,” Arteta told the official Arsenal FC website. “It’s a private conversation. It’s great to have him on board and he gives me great adv...
Kevin De Bruyne: David Silva one of the best Premier League imports
David Silva is one of the finest imports to have ever graced the Premier League, says Kevin De Bruyne, with another of Manchester City’s midfield stars hoping to establish the same consistency in his game as the Spanish World Cup winner has enjoyed. After 10 memorable years at the Etihad Stadium, Silva will be dropping into the free agent pool when their 2019-20 campaign comes to a close. The 34-year-old will walk away with over 430 appearances, four Premier League titles, two FA Cups and five League Cups to his name – with a Champions League crown still up for grabs. He has been a model of consistency throughout his time in Manchester, with the diminutive playmaker proving that the physicality of life in the Premier League can be mastered through talent and hard work. Silva has been showe...
Vincent Kompany turns down offer to be Pep Guardiola’s assistant
Vincent Kompany has turned down an offer from Manchester City to become Pep Guardiola’s assistant coach, according to various Belgian media reports on Friday. The former City captain is under contract as player-manager of Anderlecht until 2022, having left the Etihad Stadium last year following a trophy-laden 11-year spell in England. Kompany, who has never concealed his desire to one day be City manager, said he wanted to stay at Anderlecht. On Thursday, Belgium’s most successful club responded to recent financial difficulties as Wouter Vandenhaute took over from Marc Coucke as president. Anderlecht finished only eighth in the Belgian league season, which was curtailed by the coronavirus pandemic, their worst post-war position. City boss Guardiola has been looking for a new assistant sinc...
Didier Drogba beats Zlatan Ibrahimovic as best Ligue 1 striker in last two decades
Former Marseille and Guingamp star Didier Drogba has been crowned Ligue 1’s greatest striker of the past 20 years, ahead of PSG legend Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Drogba was recognised by Ligue 1 on Saturday after collecting 51 per cent of the 40,094 votes cast by fans on social media. He spent two-and-a-half years in the French top-flight and played for Guingamp between 2001 and 2003 before moving to Marseille where he spent a season. The two-time African Player of the Year scored 39 goals in 81 Ligue 1 games – 20 goals at Guingamp and 19 efforts at Marseille while Ibrahimovic scored 113 goals in 122 Ligue 1 matches between 2012 and 2016 at PSG. On his run to the final stage, Drogba saw off competition from Fernando Morientes, Alexander Frei, Karim Benzema and Pauleta. The former Ivory Coast forw...
