Manchester United can effectively wrap up a third consecutive English Premier League title by beating Liverpool in today’s eagerly anticipated lunchtime clash at Old Trafford.
Victory would send the Red Devils 10 points clear of both Liverpool and Chelsea and it is inconceivable that Sir Alex Ferguson’s men would let that kind of advantage slip over the course of their 10 remaining fixtures.
Even if Liverpool can perform as vibrantly as they did in Tuesday night’s 4-0 hammering of Real Madrid and secure all three points, United would remain short-odds favorites to bounce back and win the league.
PHOTO: AP
But a Liverpool win would, at least, offer a glimmer of hope to both Rafael Benitez’s men and a revitalized Chelsea, who will be seeking to extend their unbeaten run under temporary manager Guus Hiddink to seven matches when Manchester City visit Stamford Bridge tomorrow.
The problem for the chasing pair is that United have yet to show anything approaching a whiff of a suggestion that they are about to start dropping points carelessly.
The high number of chances Inter managed to create at Old Trafford in midweek may have offered encouragement to Fernando Torres and his teammates, who emerged as winners when the two sides met at Anfield earlier in the season.
Since then however, United have slipped seamlessly through several changes of gear and they will approach today’s match seeking a 12th consecutive win in the league.
Wayne Rooney believes the pressure on Liverpool to get all three points will ensure an open game, to United’s benefit.
“I think coming to Old Trafford, it will be a difficult game for them,” the England striker said. “They know they need to win, they need the three points. I’m sure they will be up for it and we certainly will be, but they know if we beat them it will probably end their chances of winning the league.”
Both sides will be close to full strength, although Liverpool will have the advantage of 24 hours additional recovery time from their midweek exertions.
The recovery factor could be an issue for Arsenal, who only arrived back in England in the small hours of Thursday morning following their wearying penalty shoot-out victory over Roma.
Arsene Wenger will be relieved today’s fixture is at the Emirates, but the visit of a Blackburn Rovers side that is both desperate for points and on a bit of a run will not be one the Gunners boss anticipates with great relish.
Blackburn are looking significantly better organized under Sam Allardyce and, after taking seven points from their last three matches, have escaped from the drop zone.
Arsenal are unbeaten in 18 matches, but they still have a three-point deficit to make up on Aston Villa, their rivals for the fourth Champions League qualifying spot.
Wenger remains confident that the gap can be bridged and was bolstered in his optimism by the nature of Wednesday night’s victory.
“We showed tremendous mental strength in Rome and that makes me so proud, because it is a quality that has been questioned this season. It will give us more confidence,” Wenger said.
Villa, who have not played since March 4, have to wait until tomorrow, when they entertain Tottenham Hotspur, to see if their sunshine break in Dubai has had the hoped-for rejuvenating effect.
Martin O’Neill’s side have taken just one point from their last three league matches, while Tottenham will be desperate to keep their heads above the relegation quagmire.
Today could be a hugely significant day in the battle for survival, with Newcastle United traveling to Hull City and Middlesbrough, currently second from bottom, entertaining the team immediately above them, Portsmouth.
Newcastle will be bolstered by the return of Michael Owen from his latest injury, an ankle problem that has kept him sidelined for the last six weeks.
US national team star Folarin Balogun was among the scorers as AS Monaco on Friday won 3-1 at Paris Saint-Germain, dealing a blow to the side from the French capital before they face Chelsea in a crunch UEFA Champions League round-of-16 tie. Maghnes Akliouche gave Monaco a first-half lead at the Parc des Princes, and Aleksandr Golovin doubled their advantage early in the second half of the French Ligue 1 clash. Bradley Barcola pulled one back for the reigning European champions, but Balogun struck shortly after with a fifth goal in his last five games as Monaco claimed a precious
Teenage star Lamine Yamal’s superbly-taken goal on Saturday earned Barcelona a 1-0 win at Athletic Bilbao in Spanish La Liga. The champions restored their four-point lead over second-placed Real Madrid, who had on Friday temporarily closed the gap by beating Celta Vigo. Atletico Madrid tightened their grip on third with an entertaining 3-2 win over Real Sociedad. Yamal, 18, curled into the top corner after 68 minutes to split the sides at Athletic’s San Mames stadium. “We’re already seeing what Lamine can do — he puts it right in the top corner, and there’s nothing the keeper can do,” Barca
CHANCE TO QUALIFY: Both teams now have three points from two games, and Taiwan sit ahead of Vietnam and behind Japan, who last night beat India 11-0 Taiwan yesterday defeated Vietnam 1-0 to move into second place in Group C at the AFC Women’s Asian Cup with one match remaining. Su Yu-hsuan scored the decisive goal in the 26th minute after Taiwan midfielder Saki Matsunaga’s shot hit the crossbar, leaving Su to nod the rebound into an empty net for the team which won the last of their three Asian Cup titles in 1981. It was a deserved victory for Taiwan, 2-0 losers to Japan on Wednesday, who created several chances to extend their lead. Vietnam, the 2022 quarter-finalist, beat India in their opener, but struggled to
Thousands of Taiwanese fans yesterday descended on the Tokyo Dome for the World Baseball Classic (WBC) opener, displaying banners proclaiming “Team Taiwan” as opposed to their official designation in the tournament, Chinese Taipei. Taiwan has long competed in international sport as “Chinese Taipei” to avoid objections from China. Outside the Tokyo Dome, self-described “fan activists” clad in the red, white and blue of Taiwan’s flag led chants of “Go Taiwan” in Mandarin and “Team Taiwan” in English. “Of course we hope to compete under the name Taiwan, so that in the future there will no longer be a ‘Chinese Taipei’ anymore — it
RSS