Don’t let Wembley lose its lustre, pleads Rodgers
LIVERPOOL are one game away from playing at Wembley Stadium in the FA Cup – but their manager Brendan Rodgers rather wishes they were not. If Liverpool beat Blackburn Rovers in their quarter-final today, they will travel to London to play the semi-final at English football’s most famous stadium, but Rodgers believes only the final should be at the home of the national game.
“I wish semi-finals weren’t at Wembley, as I think it takes something away from it. Wembley should be for the final,” said Rodgers.
It is a sentiment which will gain much sympathy from English football fans who believe that the decision to hold the Cup semis at Wembley every year since 2008, after the new stadium was opened, has only served to remove some of the gloss from the old showpiece feel of the final.
Still, even if he would prefer the semi-final to be held elsewhere, Rodgers is confident his side are playing well enough not just to turn over second-tier side Blackburn at Anfield, but to go on to earn him his first trophy as Liverpool boss.
“The first year here was about integration, the second year objective was to get in the Champions League, and this season I felt we had depth to challenge for trophies,” said Rodgers, who has overseen a dramatic Liverpool surge since the New Year.
Assessed
“If we can finish in the top four and win a trophy, that will be success for us this season.”
Rodgers said the fitness of captain Steven Gerrard, who had been sidelined with a hamstring problem, would be assessed before today’s tie.
If he does not play, the in-form Jordan Henderson will continue with the captain’s armband, but Rodgers was keen to put a halt to any comparisons between the pair.
“There is no comparison,” said Rodgers. “People should stop trying to put pressure on a young player like Jordan.
“Just because Jordan takes corners doesn’t mean he’s the next Gerrard.
“Just because he shoots from outside box, doesn’t mean he’s the next Gerrard.”
Meanwhile it is an astonishing fact that Wayne Rooney has never won an FA Cup winner’s medal, and the Manchester United captain is desperate to get his hands on one, having fallen in love with the competition watching his team lose the final 20 years ago.
In a glittering 13-year career, the oldest cup competition in soccer remains the only major domestic trophy the England international has not lifted.
The 29-year-old has tasted defeat twice in the final with United, in a penalty shoot-out to Arsenal in 2005 and 1-0 to Chelsea in 2007.
With tomorrow’s quarter-final against Arsenal at Old Trafford looming, Rooney recalled the happy memory of seeing his former club, Everton, beat United 1-0 in the 1995 final.
“We haven’t been to a final for a few years, we want to try to win that game and we are looking forward to that,” Rooney said.
“Of course, I think it is a massive trophy.
“It is a trophy that, growing up as a youngster, I used to love watching, and I was fortunate enough to see Everton lift the FA Cup in 1995, when I was nine years old.
“It is something which I would love to do, and, hopefully, it can be this year.”
With United fourth in the league, 10 points adrift of leaders Chelsea, the FA Cup is manager Louis van Gaal’s only realistic chance of winning a trophy in his first season in charge.
Chelsea and champions Manchester City lost to lower league opposition in the fourth round, and the winners of tomorrow night’s game at Old Trafford will be installed as favourites.
The match sees Arsenal striker Danny Welbeck returning to his former club.
And Welbeck is playing an important role in the Gunners’ season despite being moved into an unpreferred wide role, manager Arsene Wenger says.
The England international is again likely to be shunted out to the flank, just as he often was during his time at Old Trafford.
After joining Arsenal for £16m (R250m) last year, his chances of play- ing in his preferred central position have been limited since Olivier Giroud returned from injury in November to score nine league goals in 15 matches.
“He’s (Welbeck) important, and has played many, many games since the start of the season,” Wenger said. “I think he’s played in nearly every single game. His position is one of the three up front – central, left or right. He can play anywhere.
“He’s one of the players who has played the most games for us, but not in the last couple of games. You have moments in the season where some players play a bit less.” Welbeck made a fast start to his career at the Emirates, but the 24-year-old has only bagged a mediocre seven goals in 26 games.
“Most of the time it’s up front, because not every single player can play every game in the biggest part of the season,” Wenger
said. “You have a player like Olivier Giroud who is playing at the moment, but he missed four months.
“During that period Welbeck played every single game.
“He plays very well for me and is an exceptional player who will have a great future here.
“I am very, very happy that I bought him,” Wenger added.
Martin Glenn had been appointed chief executive of the English Football Association, the ruling body has announced.
The 54-year-old United Biscuits chief executive, who will replace general secretary Alex Horne, starts work at Wembley on May 18 overseeing the development of English soccer from international to grassroots level.
Glenn, who is a qualified coach, has a season ticket at Championship (second-tier) club Wolverhampton Wanders and was a nonexecutive director of Leicester City from 2002-06.
Experience
“I hope this informs my work at The FA as we look to inspire everyone to be involved in what is the nation’s most watched and played team sport,” Glenn said. “I hope my personal experience of operating in highly competitive global markets will help The FA in its own drive to promote greater success for our all of our national teams in international tournaments.”
From a marketing background, Glenn came to prominence in 1992 when he enlisted former England striker Gary Lineker to promote the crisp company he was working for.
“The FA appointment of Martin Glenn is an inspired choice. Genuine football fan, terrific leader, great bloke. Gets things done!” Lineker tweeted on Friday.
Among former FA chief executives were Graham Kelly, Adam Crozier, David Davies, Mark Palios and Brian Barwick. ENGLISH FA CUP
Sixth round Bradford City . . . 0 Reading ..........0 Aston Villa . . . . . . 2 West Brom . . . . . . . . 0
Today Liverpool . . . . . . . v Blackburn
Tomorrow . . . . . . . v Arsenal . . . . . . 9.45pm
Man Utd ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE . . . . . . . . . . 1 Tottenham Hotspur . . 2
PWD L F A Pts Chelsea . . . . . .27 19 6 2 57 22 63 Man City . . . . .28 17 7 4 59 27 58 Arsenal . . . . . .28 16 6 6 53 30 54 Man Utd . . . . .28 15 8 5 47 26 53 Liverpool . . . . .28 15 6 7 42 30 51 Tottenham . . . .28 15 5 8 46 39 50 Southampton .28 15 4 9 39 20 49 Stoke . . . . . . . .28 12 6 10 33 34 42 Swansea . . . . .28 11 7 10 33 37 40 West Ham . . . .28 10 9 9 39 34 39 Newcastle . . . .28 9 8 11 32 43 35 Palace . . . . . . .28 7 9 12 31 39 30 West Brom . . .28 7 9 12 26 36 30 Everton . . . . . .28 6 10 12 33 41 28 Hull City . . . . . .28 6 9 13 26 37 27 Sunderland . . .28 4 14 10 23 39 26 Aston Villa . . . .28 6 7 15 15 38 25 QPR . . . . . . . .28 6 4 18 29 49 22 Burnley . . . . . .28 4 10 14 25 47 22 Leicester . . . . .27 4 6 17 24 44 18
QPR
ENGLISH CHAMPIONSHIP Blackpool . . . . . . .0 Sheffield Wed . . . . . . .1 Cardiff City . . . . . .1 Charlton Athletic . . . . .2 Derby County . . .2 Birmingham City . . . . .2 Huddersfield . . . .0 Rotherham Utd . . . . . .2 Ipswich Town . . . .1 Brentford . . . . . . . . . . .1 Millwall . . . . . . . . .1 Norwich City . . . . . . . .4 Nottm Forest . . . . 2 Middlesbrough . . . . . .1 Wigan Athletic . . .0 Leeds United . . . . . . .1 Wolves . . . . . . . . .2 Watford . . . . . . . . . . . .2 Fulham . . . . . . . . .1 Bournemouth . . . . . . .5
PWD L F A Pts Bournemouth .36 19 9 8 74 39 66 Derby . . . . . . . .36 19 9 8 68 39 66 Watford . . . . . .36 20 6 10 72 44 66 Middlesbrough 36 19 9 8 54 26 66 Norwich . . . . . .36 19 8 9 70 39 65 Brentford . . . . .36 19 5 12 58 46 62 Ipswich . . . . . .36 17 10 9 56 39 61 Wolves . . . . . .36 16 10 10 50 44 58 Nottm Forest . .36 14 11 11 59 51 53 Sheff Wed . . . .36 12 13 11 32 34 49 Blackburn . . . .35 12 12 11 45 45 48 Charlton . . . . .36 11 15 10 41 45 48 Leeds . . . . . . .36 13 8 15 39 46 47 Birmingham . .36 11 13 12 42 52 46 Cardiff . . . . . . .36 11 11 14 43 48 44 Huddersfield . .36 11 9 16 45 62 42 Bolton . . . . . . .35 11 8 16 43 54 41 Reading . . . . . .35 11 8 16 37 53 41 B&H Albion . . .35 9 13 13 40 43 40 Rotherham . . .36 9 13 14 37 53 40 Fulham . . . . . .36 11 6 19 47 64 39 Wigan . . . . . . .36 7 10 19 32 48 31 Millwall . . . . . . .36 7 10 19 31 60 31 Blackpool . . . .36 4 10 22 29 70 22
ABSA PREMIERSHIP Chiefs . . . . . . . . . 0 Pirates ...........0 SuperSport . . . . . 1 Ajax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Aces . . . . . . . . . . L AmaZulu . . . . . . . . . . L Free State . . . . . . L Sundowns ........L
Today Pta Univ . . . . . . . .v Maritzburg . . . .3.30pm Platinum Stars . . .v Swallows . . . . .3.30pm
PWD L F A Pts Chiefs . . . . . . .22 15 6 1 28 10 51 Wits . . . . . . . . .22 12 4 6 25 17 40 Sundowns . . . .20 10 7 3 27 14 37 Pirates . . . . . . .22 10 7 5 32 19 37 Ajax . . . . . . . . .22 8 7 7 22 25 31 Celtic . . . . . . . .21 8 6 7 22 15 30 Polokwane . . .21 8 5 8 31 38 29 SuperSport . . .21 8 3 10 28 30 27 Pta Univ . . . . .20 6 8 6 23 20 26 Maritzburg . . . .20 5 9 6 22 18 24 Chippa . . . . . . .21 6 6 9 19 24 24 Aces . . . . . . . .20 5 7 8 21 25 22 Free State . . . .21 5 7 9 23 30 22 Swallows . . . . .20 5 4 11 22 35 19 Platinum . . . . .19 4 6 9 17 27 18 AmaZulu . . . . .20 2 6 12 19 34 12 POWER HORSE BEACH SOCCER AFRICAN TROPHY DURBAN 2015
Play-offs Seychelles . . . . . 0 Morocco . . . . . . . . . . 6 Mozambique . . . . 2 Ghana . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Semi-finals Senegal . . . . . . . .6 Nigeria . . . . . . . . . . . .5 South Africa . . . . 1 Ivory Coast . . . . . . . . 9
SCOTTISH PREMIER LEAGUE Motherwell . . . . . .1 Kilmarnock . . . . . . . . .1 Ross County . . . .1 Partick Thistle . . . . . . .0
PWD L F A Pts Celtic . . . . . . . .27 20 3 4 56 14 63 Aberdeen . . . .27 18 3 6 47 25 57 Inverness CT .28 16 5 7 42 29 53 Dundee Utd . . .27 14 4 9 49 38 46 Hamilton Aca .29 12 5 12 39 40 41 St Johnstone . .28 12 5 11 25 27 41 Dundee . . . . . .28 10 9 9 39 39 39 Kilmarnock . . .28 9 8 11 30 36 35 Partick T . . . . .28 7 7 14 35 36 28 Ross County . .28 6 6 16 29 52 24 Motherwell . . . .28 6 4 18 21 52 22 St Mirren . . . . .28 6 3 19 22 46 21
SCOTTISH CHAMPIONSHIP Cowdenbeath . . .0 Rangers . . . . . . . . . . .0 Dumbarton . . . . .1 Alloa Athletic . . . . . . .0
GERMAN BUNDESLIGA Augsburg . . . . . . .1 Wolfsburg . . . . . . . . . .0 Hamburg . . . . . . .0 Borussia Dortmund . .0 Hanover . . . . . . . .1 Bayern Munich . . . . . .3 Freiburg . . . . . . . .0 Werder Bremen . . . . .1 Schalke . . . . . . . .3 Hoffenheim . . . . . . . . .1 Stuttgart . . . . . . . .0 Hertha Berlin . . . . . . .0
PWD L F A Pts Bayern . . . . . . .24 19 4 1 66 11 61 Wolfsburg . . . .24 15 5 4 53 28 50 M’gladbach . . .23 11 7 5 31 18 40 Schalke . . . . . .24 11 5 8 35 28 38 Augsburg . . . . .24 12 2 10 33 30 38 Leverkusen . . .23 9 9 5 37 29 36 Hoffenheim . . .24 9 6 9 37 38 33 Bremen . . . . . .24 9 6 9 40 49 33 Frankfurt . . . . .23 8 7 8 42 45 31 Dortmund . . . .24 8 5 11 31 31 29 Hanover . . . . . .24 7 6 11 27 37 27 Mainz . . . . . . . .23 5 10 8 30 33 25 Cologne . . . . . .23 6 7 10 21 29 25 Hertha . . . . . . .24 7 4 13 28 42 25 Hamburg . . . . .24 6 7 11 16 33 25 Paderborn . . . .23 5 8 10 23 43 23 Freiburg . . . . . .24 4 10 10 24 33 22 Stuttgart . . . . .24 4 8 12 24 41 20
SPANISH LA LIGA Deportivo . . . . . . .3 Sevilla . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 Athletic Bilbao . . .1 Real Madrid . . . . . . . .0
PWD L F A Pts Madrid . . . . . . .26 20 1 5 75 24 61 Barcelona . . . .25 19 2 4 70 15 59 Atletico . . . . . .25 17 3 5 50 22 54 Valencia . . . . . .25 16 5 4 45 21 53 Sevilla . . . . . . .26 15 4 7 46 33 49 Villarreal . . . . .25 13 6 6 39 23 45 Malaga . . . . . .25 12 5 8 29 29 41 Athletic Bilbao .26 9 6 11 23 31 33 Celta Vigo . . . .25 8 8 9 26 25 32 Espanyol . . . . .25 9 5 11 32 36 32 Vallecano . . . .25 9 2 14 28 43 29 Sociedad . . . . .25 6 9 10 28 36 27 Eibar . . . . . . . .26 7 6 13 26 36 27 Getafe . . . . . . .25 7 5 13 22 35 26 Deportivo . . . . .26 6 7 13 23 42 25 Levante . . . . . .26 6 7 13 23 49 25 Almeria . . . . . .25 6 6 13 22 39 24 Elche . . . . . . . .25 6 6 13 22 45 24 Granada . . . . .25 3 10 12 16 40 19 Cordoba . . . . .25 3 9 13 18 39 18
Paris SG
. . . . . . 6pm
FRENCH LIGUE 1 . . . . . . .4 Lens . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
GREEK SUPER LEAGUE Veria . . . . . . . . . . .0 Ergotelis . . . . . . . . . . .1 Asteras Tripolis . .1 Atromitos Athinon . . . .0