 | English Premier League: The whole team is frustrated, says Mancini
25 September 2012
|
| 
MANCHESTER: Roberto Mancini played down talk of another altercation with his volatile Italian forward Mario Balotelli as Manchester City’s frustrating start to their Premier League title defence continued with a 1-1 draw at home against Arsenal.
After the final whistle, Balotelli was pushed down the tunnel by City manager Mancini after shouting in his direction as he left the field, presumably discussing why he had played just the final six minutes of the game.
“I don’t know what happened, but it’s not important,” said Mancini, understandably concentrating more on the loss of two points.
“We have this problem, we don’t close the game and after that it’s clear we don’t take our chances. We had the game under control, only for the last 10 or 15 minutes. We were too deep. The point is that we need to close the game when we have the chance to score.
“I am frustrated but also the players are frustrated because if you want to win, clean sheets are important.”
There was little doubt that Arsenal manager Wenger could take far greater satisfaction from a performance that maintained the Gunners’ unbeaten start to the season.
“It’s frustrating though because we had room to do more,” said Wenger. “We had early chances, late chances, I think of the one from Gervinho from the edge of the box. But, overall, I hope the game will reinforce our belief and our confidence and re-assure us about our potential in this league.
“I believe Laurent Koscielny had a great game and stepped in very well. For me, we have three classy centre-backs and it’s a very difficult choice now.
“Koscielny,(Per) Mertesacker, Vermaelen — no matter who is left out can feel it is not right. So we will take them and choose a little bit considering the strikers we are playing against.”
Spurs boss hails Defoe
Meanwhile, Andre Villas-Boas revelled in his first home win as Tottenham manager, but was quick to praise the goal-scoring knack and consistency of England striker Jermain Defoe.
Spurs came back from a goal down to defeat London rivals QPR 2-1 at White Hart Lane through an Alejandro Faurlin own-goal and a Defoe strike from close-range.
“Defoe is performing at the top level,” said Villas-Boas of a player whose future at the club has been a source of constant speculation. “He has had his opportunities this season and he is taking them tremendously.”
In other matches, Brendan Rodgers has been hailed as one of the most innovative young managers in the Premier League. But he reached for the old explanations of wishing for a change of luck after a 2-1 defeat by Manchester United.
“I remember last year Arsenal didn’t get off to a great start,” said Rodgers. “We are seeing some positive moments. I have got great confidence, the group have been absolutely fantastic. We are all behind it. Very soon our luck will change.” | | See Also in Sports News
|
|  Cricket: Scotland-Pakistan ODI washed out
20 May 2013
The second and final One-Day International (ODI) between Scotland and Pakistan was abandoned without a ball being bowled due to a damp pitch at the Raeburns Place in Edinburgh, according to information on the ESPNcricinfo website.
The umpires carried out several inspections and were left with the no choice but to call off the match, resulting in Pakistan taking the series 1-0 courtesy their 96-run win in the first ODI on Friday.
Pakistan are warming up for the ICC Champions Trophy tournament ... Full Story |  A job well done by Benitez
20 May 2013
LONDON, May 19, 2013 (AFP) - Fernando Torres ensured Rafael Benitez's troubled reign at Chelsea ended with a third place finish, striking a 76th-minute winner to secure a 2-1 over Everton at Stamford Bridge on the final day of the Premier League season on Sunday.
But while Benitez could reflect on a successful end to his six-month spell at interim manager, Everton's David Moyes experienced defeat in his final game in charge of the Merseyside club before leaving to succeed Alex Ferguson at ... Full Story |  I want to leave PSG, says Madrid target Ancelotti
20 May 2013
PARIS: Carlo Ancelotti confirmed Sunday that he wants to quit French champions Paris Saint-Germain to take over at Real Madrid. "My wish is to leave the club," said the Italian after meeting president Naser al-Khelaifi. "I have asked the club to leave. We are going to wait for a response from the club who are going to take a few days to decide."
Ancelotti is widely expected to replace Jose Mourinho at Real Madrid in the summer with the Portuguese tipped for a return to Chelsea. "We met with the ... Full Story | Broad bowls England to win
20 May 2013
LONDON -Stuart Broad bowled England to victory in the first Test as New Zealand suffered a dramatic fourth-day collapse at Lord's on Sunday. New Zealand, chasing 239 for victory, ... Full Story | Zaka refuses to comment on IPL fixing
20 May 2013
KARACHI - Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief Zaka Ashraf has refused to comment on the spot-fixing scandal that has hit the Indian Premier League, referring to it as an internal ... Full Story | Ireland willing to tour Pakistan when appropriate
20 May 2013
DUBLIN - Pakistan are heading to Ireland to play two internationals, but the benighted land of Pakistan has little to cheer about these days.
Since the attack on Sri Lankan team ... Full Story | Indian police say more players involved in fixin
20 May 2013
NEW DELHI - Indian police said Sunday they had widened their probe into cricket spot-fixing after the arrest of three players and 11 bookmakers, warning that more teams were under ... Full Story | Nadal hammers Federer
20 May 2013
ROME - Spain’s Rafael Nadal dominated his 30th meeting with Swiss rival Roger Federer to secure his seventh title in nine years at the Rome Masters on Sunday. Nadal’s 6-1, 6-3 ... Full Story |
| |
|
|
|
|
