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SATURDAY, MAY 4, 2013 SPORTS German League Preview Relations cool as Euro finalists clash BERLIN: Borussia Dortmund CEO Hans- Joachim Watzke has admitted relations between his club and Bayern Munich are far from cordial as the Bundesliga rivals prepare to meet today in a dress rehearsal for the Champions League final. With Bayern having already won the league and Dortmund second in the table, today’s match at Borussia’s Signal Iduna Park stadium is no more than a warm-up for the Wembley final on May 25. But relations between Germany’s top two clubs are strained despite the promise of a first European Cup showpiece involving two German teams. “I have always spoken with a lot of respect and admiration for Bayern. But that has cooled. There are a few irritations now,” said Watzke after Borussia beat Real Madrid 4-3 on aggregate in their Champions League semi-final to reach the final itself. After news broke last Tuesday that 20-year-old Germany star Mario Goetze has actioned a release clause in his Borussia contract to join Bayern in July for a reported 37 million euros ($48.3m), there is little love lost between Dortmund and the Bavarians. Watzke insisted there is no animosity between the clubs, but the Bayern delegation have not been invited as usual to dine with their Dortmund counterparts, and will be greeted “with a handshake”. Certainly, Bayern have shown Dortmund little courtesy recently, especially since their 3-0 win at Barcelona on Wednesday gave them a 7-0 victory on aggregate in the other Champions League semi-final. “We’ve got an easy away game today, so let rip. We’re already German champions,” Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge told the team after the win in Barcelona as they prepare to face last season’s domestic double winners. Likewise, Bayern president Uli Hoeness stirred things up in February after Dortmund’s 1-0 defeat in the German Cup quarter-final at Munich’s Allianz Arena when he said: “The status quo in German football has clearly been restored”. But Dortmund coach Juergen Klopp said his side are looking forward to today’s match. “This won’t be a character test, it’s just a game we really, really want to play because we want to put on a great evening for our fans,” said the 45-year-old. THE BOYS WILL RUN LIKE HARES Dortmund will be without Goetze, who tore his left hamstring against Real on Tuesday, while Germany midfielder Sven Bender is out with damaged ankle ligaments. Meanwhile, Bayern coach Jupp Heynckes said he will not be fielding his top side in Dortmund. “I think both coaches will collect their flock together and see who has the gas, who has the energy. Because of that, today’s game has no significance,” said Heynckes. Today’s clash is certainly the battle of the Bundesliga giants. Dortmund have won all of their last six league games, and are one short of their own Bundesliga record, set in 2005, for the most consecutive league wins. Their current sequence is however bettered by Bayern, who have won 14 matches on the spin. Munich have lost four and drawn one of their last five league games against Borussia but, with 84 points, the Bavarians have already set a new record for the most points in a Bundesliga season. Dortmund were the previous record holders after registering 81 points a year ago. The top three places in the Bundesliga are virtually decided, with Bayer Leverkusen set to take the final automatic berth in next season’s Champions League. Beneath them, however, Schalke still have work to do to make sure of finishing fourth as they go to Borussia Moenchengladbach. While bottom side Greuther Fuerth have already been relegated, secondfrom-bottom Hoffenheim badly need a win at Werder Bremen, who themselves are just two points above the drop zone. Likewise, 16th-placed Augsburg need three points at Freiburg tomorrow with their hosts eager to hold onto sixth place and a Europa League berth. — AFP ITALIAN LEAGUE PREVIEW Juventus on verge of 29th Serie A title NAPLES: Juventus will secure their 29th Serie A title with a draw at home to relegation-threatened Palermo tomorrow as the battle for places in Europe, and to stay in Italy’s top flight, heats up. A draw for Juventus in Turin would give Antonio Conte’s champions an unassailable 12-point lead over Napoli with three games remaining after this weekend. All Walter Mazzarri’s Napoli’s side can realistically hope for is a win at home to Inter tomorrow in order to cement second place, which offers direct qualification for next season’s Champions League. AC Milan sit in third ahead of the visit of Torino to the San Siro tomorrow, but are still seven points behind Napoli and are under pressure for the third and final Champions League spot from Fiorentina, in fourth only one point adrift. Napoli midfielder Marek Hamsik has all but admitted his side’s title hopes are over, but the Slovakian admitted Juve had simply been better. “We’ve had a great season and only slipped up a few times. Unfortunately, Juventus did better,” Hamsik told Sky Sport Italia. “I can’t have any regrets. We’re improving as a team and you can’t turn your nose up at a second place finish.” Juventus have lost only four times this season and with 66 goals are second only to Roma for goals scored (68). In the absence of an out-andout striker, Juventus’s top scorer this campaign has been Chilean Arturo Vidal, who has scored nine in the league and 14 in all competitions. He is now just three short of becoming Juventus’s most prolific midfielder in a single Serie A season, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport. Any joy Napoli may garner from qualifying for Europe’s top table next season may be tempered by the expected sale of their top scorer, Edinson Cavani. The Uruguayan has scored a league-leading 23 goals, five more than Udinese marksman Antonio Di Natale, but is expected to be sold to either Real Madrid or Manchester City in the summer. Reports have also suggested Mazzarri could be enticed elsewhere. Hamsik, who has shone this season playing alongside Cavani and fellow forward Goran Pandev in Mazzarri’s 4-3-3 formation, signed a contract extension at Napoli despite several enticing offers from around Europe. He admitted: “I don’t have any regrets and I’m happy to be here. I hope Mazzarri and Cavani can stay here.” Milan, meanwhile, welcome a Torino side still hurting from last week’s 2-0 derby defeat to Juventus and will possibly be without influential midfielder Riccardo Montolivo after he suffered a knock in training on Thursday. Striker Giampaolo Pazzini, who scored twice in a crucial comefrom-behind 4-2 win over Catania, was also a concern although Milan said Montolivo “suffered from a muscular problem and will be evaluated over the next few days.” — AFP ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE Norwich v Aston Villa 17:00 Abu Dhabi Sports HD6 Swansea v Man City 17:00 Abu Dhabi Sports HD4 Fulham v Reading 17:00 Abu Dhabi Sports HD9 Tottenham v Southampton 17:00 Abu Dhabi Sports HD3 Abu Dhabi Sports HD5 West Ham v Newcastle 17:00 Abu Dhabi Sports HD8 West Brom v Wigan 17:00 Abu Dhabi Sports HD7 QPR v Arsenal 19:30 Abu Dhabi Sports HD3 Abu Dhabi Sports HD5 SPANISH LEAGUE Valencia v Osasuna 17:00 Al Jazeera Sport +2 Granada v Malaga 19:00 Al Jazeera Sport +5 Real Madrid v Valladolid 21:00 Al Jazeera Sport +2 Deportivo v <strong>At</strong>letico 23:00 Al Jazeera Sport +8 ITALIAN LEAGUE Chievo v Cagliari 19:00 Al Jazeera Sport +1 Matches on TV (Local Timings) Fiorentina v Roma 21:45 Al Jazeera Sport +1 GERMAN LEAGUE Werder v Hoffenheim 16:30 Dubai Sports Stuttgart v Greuther Furth 16:30 Dubai Sports Nuremberg v Leverkusen 16:30 Dubai Sports Frankfurt v Fortuna 16:30 Dubai Sports Hannover v Mainz 16:30 Dubai Sports Dortmund v Munich 19:30 Dubai Sports FRENCH LEAGUE Marseille v Bastia 18:00 Al Jazeera Sport +4 Toulouse v Lille 21:00 Al Jazeera Sport +8 Montpellier v Brest 21:00 Al Jazeera Sport +4 Sochaux v Lorient 21:00 Al Jazeera Sport +7 Troyes v Gaillard 21:00 Al Jazeera Sport +10
SATURDAY, MAY 4, 2013 LONDON: Chelsea’s Spanish interim manager Rafael Benitez shouts to his players during the Europa League semi-final second leg football match between Chelsea and FC Basel at Stamford Bridge in London on May 2, 2013.— AFP LONDON: Chants of “Jose Mourinho” rang around all four sides of Stamford Bridge. Fans sang loud and proud about club stalwarts Frank Lampard and John Terry, too. Still nothing, though, for the man who has defied debilitating circumstances to guide Chelsea to a second straight European final as well as the brink of a return to the Champions League. Rafa Benitez knows full well he’ll never be accepted by Chelsea supporters following his past comments about the club during his time as Liverpool manager, but it’s hard not to notice the grudging respect toward the Spaniard as his shortterm reign approaches its end. Once greeted with boos and jeers as he emerged from the tunnel before matches, now there is just a stony silence that will be music to the ears of Benitez. Fans on website forums and radio phoneins are even starting to credit the job he is doing, justifiably. Considering the team’s crazy fixture schedule - it’s 64 matches and counting this season - and the hostility he’s had to cope with since joining as interim manager in November, Benitez will leave Chelsea this summer with his reputation enhanced and possibly another trophy on his impressive CV. “With all the circumstances that were around at the beginning - the situation with the squad, being without (January signing) Demba Ba, a team in transition - we’ve done a good job,” Benitez said on Thursday after Chelsea’s 3-1 win over Basel that set up a Europa League final against Benfica on May 15. “We were professional trying to improve things without much time, because we’ve been playing twice a week, and we did well. Hopefully we can finish even better.” His famous outburst after an FA Cup win at Middlesbrough in February could go down as a turning point in Chelsea’s season. Benitez stated in a feisty post-match news conference that he would definitely be leaving the club at the end of his interim stay, before criticizing fans for not getting behind him and the club’s hierarchy for giving him the “interim” tag. There have been few murmurs since, helped by the fact that Chelsea has lost only four of its 16 matches in the past two months - two of those defeats coming in away legs in the Europa League. Chelsea has won all eight of its home games in that period. “I think what’s key is that the fans have settled down a bit,” Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson, a longtime foe of Benitez’s, said on Friday. “They have left him alone and he’s gone on doing his job, because it can’t be easy listening to criticism from fans all the time.” “They’ve eased off on him,” added Ferguson, who will renew his touchline rivalry with the Spaniard in a Premier League game on Sunday, “and it’s allowed him to relax himself. He has produced some good results and he has picked the right teams in the right games. He has rested and brought in certain players. It’s been a good period for him.” Faced with a game every three or four days since the start of February, Benitez has to be given credit for the way he has rotated his squad to deal with the demands of a punishing, unprecedented sports Benitez gaining grudging respect at Chelsea Old rivalry renewed as Liverpool face Everton LONDON: Out of contention for a place in the European positions, Liverpool has a new target for the remainder of the English Premier League season - finishing above local rival Everton. The neighbors meet at Anfield tomorrow, with sixthplace Everton five points ahead of seventh-place Liverpool and knowing a win will guarantee its status as the top club on Merseyside for a second straight season. Outdoing Liverpool two years in succession has not happened for more than 50 years, however, and the job is far from done for Everton, with Liverpool holding an impressive home record against its oldest foe and buoyant after a 6-0 win at Newcastle last weekend. Everton has not won at Anfield since 1999, while manager David Moyes has led his team to victory against Liverpool only three times in his 21 attempts. “The fact that they haven’t won at Anfield for so long has to play on their minds,” Liverpool midfielder Stewart Downing said. “I am sure David Moyes will get right amongst them. He must be desperate to beat Liverpool. But we don’t want that record to end. We did really well against Everton in the three games last season. “We have to be ready and make sure we start well. It will be a good test for us and it will be tight with battles all over the pitch, but we’re confident we can get another win.” Liverpool will look to close the gap to two points with two games to play but is without star striker Luis Suarez, who recently started a 10-match ban for biting an opponent. “Derbies mean a lot and we know what’s at stake,” Everton midfielder Steven Pienaar said. “For the people of the city and the pride of the club, it’s one of those games you don’t want to lose. “We will give everything to make sure we come away from Anfield with three points because it has been a long while since we won there.” A victory would not only give Everton the bragging rights for another season - it would also keep the club’s faint hopes alive of qualifying for next season’s Champions League as it bids to chase down Tottenham, Arsenal and Chelsea. Thirdplace Chelsea qualified for the Europa League final by beating FC Basel on Thursday but finishing in the league’s top four remains the priority and it faces a tough match against already crowned champion Manchester United tomorrow. Chelsea manager Rafa Benitez has rotated the squad to keep his players as fresh as possible in the two competitions, with the team embarking on a hectic run-in that sees it play five games in 15 days. —AP MANCHESTER: Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson is resorting to light-hearted bribery to keep his Premier League winners focused on tomorrow’s match against Chelsea by telling them they will only be allowed a day at the races if they win. His players sealed a 20th league title last week and there has been a party mood around the club since, Ferguson even sharing champagne with reporters at yesterday’s news conference. “I never took into account all the (celebration-type) things that happen,” he said. “The PFA award, our own Player of Year awards, the parade and then (Nemanja) Vidic came to me last week and asked if the team could go to Chester races on Wednesday. “And I said without thinking “Yeah, of course” but then when you put all these things together you think ‘what the hell!’. “I hope they don’t forget there’s a game of football to be played, now if they don’t win I think that would be cancelled.” The incentives do not end there. “In actual fact, I think I’ve got two horses running on Wednesday so I’ll give them a tip if they win,” he added. Having travelled to Arsenal last weekend and hosting Chelsea this weekend, Ferguson has spoken of his duty to put out strong sides against teams whose seasons are far from over as they chase Champions League spots. They might put out their best team but there is no pressure. “It’s time for us to play with good enthusiasm, enjoyment and relax and play good football and express ourselves, that’s what I expect to see,” said Ferguson as he sipped his bubbly from a plastic cup. BENITEZ DIG Third-placed Chelsea are 20 points behind the champions in the standings with 65 points from 34 games and after a stuttering season have found some form over recent weeks, reaching the Europa League final on Thursday. Ferguson said inconsistency had been the London side’s problem in a season where they dismissed manager Roberto Di Matteo in November and appointed Rafael Benitez until the end of the campaign. “When they sacked Roberto Di Matteo that maybe knocked them back a bit, it took them a long time to schedule. Terry and Lampard, fans’ favorites in southwest London, have had to be content with playing every other week, often in the less important games. That policy did not work for former manager Andre Villas-Boas but Benitez has emerged the better for it. Playing David Luiz - a central defender - as a center midfielder at times has been a masterstroke while playmakers Juan Mata and Eden Hazard look to have been given the right amount of game time to keep them in good shape for the final month of the season. “I was helping the team,” Benitez said. “As a manager you have to do your job.” For a person who’s never shy of talking up his own achievements as a coach - Champions League and UEFA Cup titles, a Spanish league championship, a Club World Cup - Benitez will be desperate to finish his time at Chelsea with the Europa League won and a top-four place in the Premier League secured. Chelsea is third with four games left. “He is very concerned about his CV. He refers to it quite a lot,” Ferguson said mockingly, before adding: “But you can’t dispute the fact he has done a good job.” After his recent comments, Mourinho is the man most likely to succeed Benitez this summer although the manner of the Portuguese coach’s departure from Stamford Bridge in 2007 must still rankle with owner Roman Abramovich. “I have not made any decision about whether I will stay or go,” Mourinho said on Friday about his future at Real Madrid. The hardto-please Abramovich could do worse than stick with Benitez.— AP Ferguson resorting to light-hearted bribery Day at the races rests on United beating Chelsea get going again. It’s only in the last few weeks that they’ve got any consistency again,” he said. Ferguson praised Benitez for good recent results, helped in part he believes by an easing in hostility from fans towards the Spaniard. But he could not resist a little dig at a man with whom he has often had a fractious relationship. “I think he’s very concerned about his CV, he refers to it quite a lot,” he said. Ferguson has not got any major injury concerns before tomorrow’s game at Old Trafford (1500 GMT) although striker Danny Welbeck has been ruled out and midfielder Paul Scholes is likely to be on the bench as he returns from injury. The United manager said he was not planning wholesale changes to his squad during the close season, saying “tweaking” was the right word for what he had in mind. “We’ll maybe look at one or two bodies to come in but you’ve got to remember we’ve got a lot of young players we expect to improve, we’ve got to take that into consideration,” he said. “In the main group, we know where we are, we are comfortable.”— Reuters
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