Manchester United 1 Arsenal 1, match report: Theo Walcott gives Gunners advantage in race for third place

Premier League, Manchester United v Arsenal - Forward forces Tyler Blackett own goal as Arsene Wenger's men claim a draw at Old Trafford

Short of booking into a spa in Alsace with a box set of The Invincibles, Arsène Wenger could not have imagined a “more serene break” than the one all but guaranteed here.

Blessed with a superior goal difference of +7 over fourth-placed Manchester United, Arsenal now need only one point from home games against Sunderland and West Bromwich Albion to secure a place in the group stage of the Champions League, so saving a potentially jittery play-off in August.

It looks like United heading into the Aug 7 draw in Nyon and facing games on Aug 18-19 and 25-26, meaning a more intense start to pre-season training, bedding new players in earlier and the imperative of hitting the ground running.

^{Get in: Arsenal players congratulate Theo Walcott for his late equaliser against Man Utd}

Arsenal can be more relaxed, “more serene” to borrow Wenger’s phrase. They were anaemic initially here, failing to manage a shot on target in the first half, and deservedly falling behind to the excellent Ander Herrera, but they responded strongly after the break. They were more assertive, especially when Theo Walcott arrived to give more drive down the right.

•Manchester United v Arsenal: as it happened

Arsenal fans had been calling for Walcott, sensing that United’s back-line could be got at. Louis van Gaal’s decision to remove Marcos Rojo, who was doing well at left-back, was necessitated by the Argentine lacking match “rhythm” after injury, according to the United manager. Tyler Blackett came on and was immediately targeted by Walcott. The England flier kept running at Blackett, eventually forcing an own goal seven minutes from time.

•Five things we learnt: Arsenal need to tie down Walcott

Serenity ruled, especially with the exciting prospect of the FA Cup final to come.

Encouragingly for Arsenal, their comeback demonstrated that they may gradually be acquiring more mental resilience, one of their main flaws since The Invincibles. This was only their second point at Old Trafford from 24.

The draw was deeply frustrating for United but their main aim this season was getting back into Europe’s elite competition, even if they are likely to require a play-off. Van Gaal has United moving in the right direction, albeit slowly.

At the end, Van Gaal continued the manager’s tradition of taking the microphone and addressing the faithful. As Arsenal supporters sang loudly in the background about Wembley, Van Gaal delivered a short thank you speech to United’s fans – “you were amazing” – and has clearly been moved by the support offered him.

^{Van Gaal thanks the United fans}

Writing in the match-day programme, Van Gaal was more forthcoming, saying that the “biggest highlight” of the season had been “the support of the fans” that was so “unbelievable” and was “something I’ve not experienced at the other clubs I’ve managed”.

That was quite a statement, and quite a compliment to United fans. Given that the Dutchman guided Ajax to Champions League glory in May 1995 and then a remarkable 2-0 victory at the Bernabéu six months later, a performance he described as “perfect”, it is safe to say that he received impassioned backing from Ajax supporters that golden year.

^{Ashley Young on the rampage against Arsenal}

Yet the Stretford End has backed him emphatically, including “to my surprise” when Van Gaal walked along the touchline at Old Trafford at United’s first home game after the Capital One Cup embarrassment at MK Dons in September. The patience is there, partly because United fans understand that a manager with such a formidable aura and curriculum vitae deserves loyalty and also because an imbalanced squad needs extensive work.

Radamel Falcao’s waving to all parts of the ground as he was substituted on the hour contained a valedictory feel. He was replaced by Robin van Persie, the 31-year-old with a patchy injury record whose days look numbered. United could free up considerable wages if that pair moved on.

^{Radamel Falcao finds life difficult against Arsenal}

Far more alarming is the thought of David de Gea following them out of the door. United have conceded only 37 goals in 37 games and much of that miserliness has been down to their Spanish shot-stopper. One of his saves from Olivier Giroud at close range was another reminder of his mastery of the goalkeeping art. It triggered pleading chants of “Oh, David de Gea, we want you to stay”.

Van Gaal sounded determined to keep De Gea away from Real Madrid’s clutches but there was an element of realism in his wordswhen he began talking about “his girlfriend is ­Spanish” and that it was a “difficult” decision for De Gea. Madrid’s recruiting tactics are invariably persuasive.

^{De Gea limped off with injury}

As De Gea sustained a slight hamstring, United fans may have seen the last of him. Victor Valdes was given a huge reception when he replaced De  Gea.

Van Gaal’s post-match love-in with the fans was all very well but a club as large and ambitious as United should really be slightly sheepish about celebrating fourth (secured when fifth-placed Liverpool lost to Crystal Palace on Saturday).

“We’re happy to be in the top four but we are Manchester United and next season we must fight for every trophy,’’ Herrera told MUTV.

The nimble Spaniard shone, especially in the first half, while Ashley Young maintained the sort of vibrant form that will surely see his return to the England fold when Roy Hodgson names his squad on Thursday for the June internationals with the Republic of Ireland and Slovenia.

Young created Herrera’s goal on the half-hour. Again, Young was influential, whipping in a good cross from the left. Arsenal were fixated with Marouane Fellaini, focusing on the tall Belgian, and leaving Herrera unmarked towards the far-post. Herrera’s finish was crisp, giving David Ospina no chance.

^{Arsenal and Man Utd are both in hunt of third spot}

Herrera was a joy to watch, and must have been a shimmering nightmare to play against for an hour as when his quick feet steered the ball past Giroud and Aaron Ramsey, who ended up inspecting the turf. United were in charge. Fellaini was dealing well with Per Mertesacker at set-pieces. Daley Blind kept breaking up moves. Juan Mata kept driving the ball left to Young or linking with Herrera. The one disappointment was Falcao. Van Gaal set Arsenal another test on the hour by sending on Van  Persie for the ineffective Falcao.

^{Ander Herrara made the break through in the first half}

The focus then turned to De Gea, who made that fine save from Giroud, but was then caught out by Ramsey who ran on to Santi Cazorla’s pass and lifted the ball over the United keeper. Fortunately for the hosts, Rojo had covered back to clear. De Gea then departed injured, bringing in Valdes for his United debut and first game since Barcelona beat Celta Vigo 3-0 on March 26, 2014.

Valdes was warmly greeted and soon beaten. Walcott was twisting young Blackett this way and that before playing the ball across goal. It clipped Blackett and fell into the goal past the wrong-footed Valdes. As well as a reminder of Walcott’s enduring threat, it was deserved reward for Arsenal’s improved second-half performance which has surely booked Wenger that “serene break”.

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Historical nude pic of football legends Pelé & Franz Beckenbauer

A very rare historical nude picture of football legends King Pelé and Kaiser Franz Beckenbauer (both men pictured above) in what seems to be a locker room in the 60s has made its way to the internet. Pelé is full frontal nude in the photo, while Beckenbauer (younger him pictured right) is also nude but backing the camera.

Beckenbauer is generally regarded as one of the greatest German footballers of all time and one of the most decorated footballers in the history of the game and twice won European Footballer of the Year. He is 69 now. While Pelé is widely regarded as the greatest player of all time and has been named World Player of the Century by many groups. He is 74 now.

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Top 5 reasons why Chelsea won Premier League title

Important signings, a balanced squad, fitness, mental strength and, of course, the Special One - Matt Law looks at why Chelsea are worthy champions

Signings

^{Diego Costa has enjoyed a fine first season - especially the first half}

Chelsea comfortably did the best transfer business of the Premier League title challengers last summer and have reaped the benefit. Jose Mourinho identified the positions he needed to fill and the players he wanted, and the club moved quickly and decisively. Diego Costa and Cesc Fabregas have been crucial, particularly over the first half of the season, while Didier Drogba has helped Eden Hazard to move up a couple of levels and has chipped in with important goals himself. Bringing Thibaut Courtois back to the club and making him No 1 ahead of Petr Cech has also worked out well for Mourinho and Chelsea.

Jose Mourinho

^{Nobody 'plays the game' better than Mourinho}

Love him or loathe him, there is no denying that Mourinho is the ultimate winner and has once against proved himself to be a better tactician than his rivals. Mourinho introduced a new attractive Chelsea team at the start of the season, but reacted when he sensed fatigue was catching up with his players and reverted to a more defensive style. When Mourinho feared an attack on his team, he created a siege mentality by claiming there was a “campaign” against the club. Rivals might not like his games, but nobody plays them better and nobody can question their effectiveness.

Mental strength

^{Chelsea have not dropped below first place this campaign}

Chelsea have topped the Premier League table since day one, re-establishing their lead every time Manchester City have got to within breathing distance of them. While City have faltered at vital moments, Arsenal made a slow start and Manchester United have stuttered their way through the season, Chelsea have managed to come through sticky patches of form unscathed. The ability of Mourinho’s team to grind out a result or find a vital late goal has been second to none. Chelsea have always bounced back from a bad result, never losing two games in succession in all competitions at any point during the season.

Fitness

^{Eden Hazard (right) is the most fouled in the Premier League}

A total of 13 Chelsea players have made 20 or more Premier League appearances this season, which highlights just how few members of his squad Mourinho has relied upon. Costa has struggled with hamstring injuries, but, otherwise, Chelsea have got through the season relatively unscathed in terms of injuries. Hazard is comfortably the most fouled player in the Premier League and yet the Belgian has managed to get up every time he has been hacked down. Mourinho has admitted that Chelsea’s impressive injury record is a mixture of good practice and good fortune.

Balance

^{Chelsea defend and attack well}

Too many Premier League teams either defend well or attack well, but do not do both. This has been the case with Chelsea’s rivals. Louis van Gaal managed to sure up Manchester United’s defence, but they have not scored enough goals. Manchester City have suffered problems in defence and Arsenal were still prone to the occasional blunder during the first half of the season. Chelsea, though, have managed to outscore their opponents and keep things tight at the back. Accusations of Mourinho’s team being boring are ridiculous, as Chelsea are the only side who can claim to have got it right at both ends of the pitch over the entire campaign.

How Chelsea won the Premier League title

How Chelsea won the Premier League title

12 June: Cesc Fabregas signs from Barcelona for £27m

A major transfer coup just before the start of the World Cup, as Chelsea secure the Spaniard’s signature and prevent him returning to rivals Arsenal.

15 July: Diego Costa signs from Atletico Madrid for £32m

The combative frontman’s long-mooted move to Stamford Bridge is finally completed and Chelsea’s shortage of striking options, which had cost them the previous season, is finally fixed.

18 August: Burnley 1 Chelsea 3

Their new star striker grabs a debut goal and Cesc Fabregas puts in a man-of-the-match performance, but the Blues have to come from behind before they can dispatch newcomers Burnley.

23 August: Chelsea 2 Leicester 0

Didier Drogba’s return to Stamford Bridge is marked with another hard-fought victory over another newly-promoted side. The heroics of Thibaut Courtois in goal twice deny Leicester from taking an unlikely lead.

30 August: Everton 3 Chelsea 6

Jose Mourinho bemoans his team’s defending despite coming out on top in a nine-goal thriller and maintaining their 100 per cent record. "It was wonderful for everyone watching, but not for me," he said.

21 September: Man City 1 Chelsea 1

Chelsea emerge from their first major test of the season unscathed but their winning streak was broken by a late strike from, of all people, Frank Lampard.

5 October: Chelsea 2 Arsenal 0

The two managers come to blows on the touchline but Jose Mourinho maintains his dominance over Arsene Wenger on the field in a convincing and comfortable win - sealed by another Costa goal.

18 October: Crystal Palace 1 Chelsea 2

A psychological boost. Defeat at Selhurst Park ended the club’s title aspirations in 2013/14, but victory there this season took them five points clear at the top.

26 October: Man Utd 1 Chelsea 1

More frustration in Manchester. Branislav Ivanovic saw red late on and from the resulting free-kick, Robin van Persie lashed home a stoppage-time equaliser to deny Chelsea all three points.

8 November: Liverpool 1 Chelsea 2

Despite falling behind early on, Diego Costa’s winner saw the Blues emerge from Merseyside victorious. Gary Cahill was fortunate to not concede a late penalty after handling on the line.

29 November: Sunderland 0 Chelsea 0

Chelsea drop points against a team outside the top four and fail to score for the first time this season against former player Gus Poyet’s disciplined and determined Sunderland side.

3 December: Chelsea 3 Tottenham 0

A win inspired by Didier Drogba, who recaptures his form of old by setting up Eden Hazard’s opener and then finding the net himself. Victory stretched unbeaten run to 23 games in all competitions, equalling a club record.

6 December: Newcastle 2 Chelsea 1

The club’s aspirations of an invincible season go up in smoke a few days later as a Papiss Cisse brace consigns them to their first defeat of the season. The loss allowed Manchester City to cut the gap at the top to three points.

29 December: Southampton 1 Chelsea 1

The start of the infamous “campaign against Chelsea”. Jose Mourinho describes match official Anthony Taylor’s performance as a “scandal” and was later fined £25,000 for his comments regarding a referee conspiracy.

1 January: Tottenham 5 Chelsea 3

With Harry Kane’s stock on the rise, Chelsea faltered. They were destroyed by the young striker and, following the manic result, so was their lead at the top of the table. Only alphabetical order separated them from second-place Manchester City.

17 January: Swansea 0 Chelsea 5

A performance of champions, as the Blues begin to pull away from the chasing pack. Oscar and Diego Costa fill their boots, grabbing two goals each before the soon-to-depart Andre Schurrle adds a fifth.

30 January: Costa banned for three games after stamp on Can

After Chelsea’s 2-1 aggregate victory over Liverpool in Capital One Cup, FA slap a retrospective ban on Diego Costa for a nasty stamp on Emre Can. He misses three Premier League fixtures, but Chelsea’s strength in depth prevails as they win seven points out of nine.

31 January: Chelsea 1 Man City 1

Chelsea maintain five-point lead at the top of the table with a dull stalemate. Loïc Rémy opens the scoring in Costa’s absence, before Mourinho replaces him with Gary Cahill.

2 February: Juan Cuadrado signs

Wolfsburg-bound André Schürrle is replaced with Colombian winger Juan Cuadrado, in a deal which sees Mohamed Salah move the other way. He makes a rather inauspicious start to life at Stamford Bridge, but is promised time.

21 February: Chelsea 1 Burnley 1

On the same day that Man City annihilate Newcastle 5-0, Chelsea offer them some hope after Ben Mee grabs a late equaliser. Matic is sent off and banned for retaliating to Ashley Barnes’ studs-up lunge.

2 March: Capital One Cup winTottenham are successfully held at arm’s length for 90 minutes as Jose Mourinho wins his first trophy since returning to the Bridge without having to break a sweat.

11 March: Champions League: knocked out by PSG

The biggest disappointment of the season. Chelsea rue their conservatism as they gift PSG - and goalscoring David Luiz - a route to the quarter-finals.

15 March: Southampton 1 Chelsea 1

A Dustin Tadic penalty cancels out Costa’s headed opener, his 17th goal of the season. It's the faintest glimmer of hope for chasing Manchester City.

22 March: Hull 2 Chelsea 3

Despite throwing away an early two-goal advantage, Remy scores late on to return Chelsea to winning ways. Which no doubt pleases Thibaut Courtois, who gifted Hull a comic equaliser.

4 April: Diego Costa hamstring injury

Costa picks up recurrence of a muscular injury against Stoke, leaving Chelsea with a strikers crisis.

12 April: QPR 0 Chelsea 1

Arsenal’s hope of stealing the title suffer mortal blow when Cesc Fàbregas, complete with knock-off Batman mask, strikes late to sink QPR. Chelsea have only one shot on goal to QPR’s 15: a different team entirely to the beginning of the season. Boring, even?

26 April: ‘Boring Boring Chelsea’ war of words

The last time Chelsea won by more than one goal was back in January, and soon every man and his dog are debating whether they’re a boring team or not. Wenger seems to think so, as do the Emirates crowd who sing ‘boring, boring Chelsea’. “Ten years without a title: that’s very boring”, a mischievous Mourinho retorts.

26 April: Eden Hazard win PFA Player of the Year

Amongst the furore of ‘boregate’, it’s easy to forget the thrilling football that won Chelsea their comfortable position atop the table in the first place. Hazard consistently proved himself as the club’s brightest star, capping off a season of increased maturity and productivity with the PFA Award.

28 April: Drogba videoDidier Drogba proves once and for all that people should think twice before deriding Chelsea as boring, by posting a video of half the squad thrillingly heading a football into a bin.

30 April: Leicester 1 Chelsea 3

An unstoppage second-half performance sees Mourinho's side fightback from a goal down to move to within three points of their first title since 2010.

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Nigeria target 2018 World Cup semi-finals

Nigeria aim to make history at the 2018 World Cup by becoming the first African team ever to reach the semi-finals

       The three-time African champions have reached the Round of 16 on three of their five World Cup appearances.

"All efforts we are building now are geared towards getting Nigeria to play the semi-finals in Russia," Amaju Pinnick, the Nigeria Football Federation president,

"We have the manpower to do that. The talent in Nigeria is amazing."

Pinnick's comments might come as a surprise given Nigeria failed to qualify for this year's Africa Cup of Nations in Equatorial Guinea.

Two years ago they won the title but their decline has been brought about by a mixture of turmoil within the NFF, the sacking and rehiring of coach Stephen Keshi and threats of Fifa bans for government interference in football matters.

Nonetheless, Pinnick, who assumed control of Nigerian football last September following protracted elections, lists a number of reasons why Africa's largest country - with a population of 170m people - can finally deliver at the World Cup.

Keshi (centre) is back in charge and must motivate the players after a disappointing spell

He believes technology, 'capacity-building' for coach Keshi, a better local league, the country's natural ability and enhanced administration can provide the platform for significant growth.

The NFF boss travelled to London this week with five staff to belatedly tap into long-standing technological applications.

"Our coaches can be technically sound but technologically they were inept, because football for me is driven more by technology than anything else," said Pinnick.

"We are in the process of acquiring match analysis software, so that when we go back home, we won't play our matches blindly. We are starting late but we are getting it right - that's the most important point.

"We now have the match analysis software that can analyse games for us and give us directions because normally we play matches without knowing our opponents nor their strengths and weaknesses.

"If we had used match analysis, we would have beaten France and got to the quarter-finals of the World Cup in 2014."

Continue reading the main story

“If we don't get to the World Cup semi-finals, we'll get very close I can assure you”

Amaju PinnickNFF president

Pinnick is now hoping another Frenchman, Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger, can push Keshi to greater heights.

"We've had a word and Arsene will be ready to take him in sometime in July," said Pinnick, who formerly headed up the regional Delta State Football Association.

"We are also looking at talking to other Premier League clubs and clubs in Germany to look at the various techniques - to see how we can grow and put these techniques into play whenever Keshi is playing a game."

The NFF's decision to reappoint Keshi as coach was a controversial one, with many fans having demanded his exit after South Africa and Congo qualified for the 2015 Nations Cup above them.

"Some guy called me and said 'we'll do this to you if you don't get Keshi out' while another guy said 'he's a hero and one of only two men to win the Nations Cup as a player and a coach," said Pinnick.

He also said a shortage of funds prevented Nigerian from aiming for a top-quality coach, with the NFF's long-term ambitions set very high.

"The truth is we don't live in the clouds. We are not just going to get any foreign manager - we're going to get a foreign manager in the mode of maybe a Wenger or a Jose Mourinho.

"That costs money and right now, we don't have that kind of money."

Pinnick also pointed to Keshi's success with local players, six of whom formed part of the 2013 Nations Cup squad (the most in over two decades). One of them, Sunday Mba, scored the winner in the final itself.

"Keshi is an apostle of the local players so we decided to say 'ok, let's see how we can build his capacity and use the technical study group'."

Jay-Jay Okocha heads the technical study group, with Victor Ikpeba, Nwankwo Kanu and Taribo West also involved.

"These ex-players have played under some of the best coaches in the world. So if you put all this together with our technical committee and technical director, coupled with our match anaylsis technique, we don't think we'll go wrong," added Pinnick.

"We think the combination is better than any foreign coach. That doesn't mean that if he falters tomorrow, we aren't going to get a manager who can take us to our perceived El Dorado.

"If we don't get to the World Cup semi-finals, we'll get very close I can assure you."

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#AFCON2017: Nigeria To Play Egypt In Qualifier

The  2017 African Cup Of Nations, AFCON 2017, group qualifiers have been drawn  and Nigeria is set to play seven time winners Egypt in Group G.

Super Eagles as winners in 2013

Gabon has been confirmed as the host country for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations. Libya had been initially selected to stage the competition, but its hosting rights were withdrawn in August last year due to

the unstable security situation in the country.

2015 winners Ivory Coast will play Sudan in Group I. The draws were made in Cairo, Egypt on Wednesday. Nigeria failed to qualify for AFCON 2015 but won the previous edition in 2013.

The groups in full:

Group A: Liberia, Djibouti, Tunisia, Togo

Group B: CAR,  Madagascar, DRC, Angola

Group C: Benin, Mali, Equatorial Guinea, South Sudan

Group D: Botswana, , Burkina Faso, Uganda, Comoros Island , Comoros

Group E: Guinea Bissau, Kenya, Congo Brazzaville, Zambia

Group F: Sao Tome, Cape Verde, Morocco, Libya

Group G: Tanzania , Chad, Nigeria, Egypt

Group H: Rwanda, Mauritius, Mozambique, Ghana

Group I: Sierra Leone , Ivory Coast, Sudan, Gabon

Group J : Seychelles, Lesotho, Algeria, Ethiopia

Group K: Burundi, Namibia, Senegal, Namibia

Group L: Swaziland, Zimbabwe, Guinea, Malawi

Group M: Gambia, Mauritania, Cameroon, South Africa

Nigeria’s first match will be against Chad in Nigeria on 12th of June 2015.

Nigerians on social media have also reacted to Nigeria’s chances of qualitication. The general tone shows that the populace hope Nigeria can qualify from a relatively easy group with Egypt thought to be the only NAtion with a serious threat.

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Opara ends Kansas losing run

Ike Opara

Nigerian-American Ike Opara has ended a five-match losing run by MLS side Sporting Kansas City after he netted the match winner at New York City, AfricanFootball.com reports.

Sporting Kansas City, who have not won since last year, are now third on the league table with five points from four games

The defender scored the only goal on Saturday in the 13th minute of the encounter when he powered home a header off Matt Besler’s long throw-in.

Opara has now scored two goals this season.

His compatriot JalilAnibaba was also on from start to finish for Sporting Kansas City.

In a related vein, Nigeria striker FernadoAdi scored Portland Timbers consolation goal in their 2-1 loss to Whitecaps.

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Eagles happy with Bafana draw – Mashaba

 

South Africa coach Shakes Mashaba believes Nigeria left Sunday’s match venue the happier of the two sides.

Bongani Zungu’s stoppage time goal secured a 1-1 draw for Bafana Bafana at the Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit.

The hosts had dominated most of the game, but failed to take their chances with Andile Jali missing a penalty just after the hour mark.

Ahmed Musa opened the scoring with a spectacular effort with five minutes remaining before Zungu pounced.

Mashaba explained that to his mind Nigeria approached the game negatively, with the Super Eagles the happier of the two sides at the final whistle despite conceding a late equaliser.

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Former Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has lifted the lid on how he promised Cristiano Ronaldo his dream move to Real Madrid.

In Alex Ferguson: My Autobiography, which goes on general sale on Thursday, the Scot tells of how then Madrid president Ramon Calderon’s public overtures riled him to the extent that he refused to sanction a sale despite Ronaldo’s desire to move to Spain.

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Flying Eagles land Mbour for Cote d’ Ivoire

The bus ride was clocked at an hour and 25 minutes and the weather in Mbour is put at about 43 degrees

Nigeria’s Flying Eagles arrived a steaming hot Mbour in Senegal early afternoon on Friday by bus from Dakar ahead of Saturday’s final African Youth Championship Group A match against Cote d’Ivoire. 

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Cricket World Cup: Ireland's John Mooney bats in customised helmet

Pool B: Zimbabwe v Ireland
Venue: Hobart Date: Saturday, 7 March (0330 GMT)
Coverage: Live Test Match Special radio and text commentary on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra & BBC SPORTS, plus desktop, tablets, mobiles and app.

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Cricket World Cup 2015: Ireland deny Zimbabwe in thriller

World Cup, Pool B, Hobart:

Ireland 331-8 (50 overs): Joyce 112; Chatara 3-61

Zimbabwe 326 (49.3 overs): Taylor 121; Cusack 4-32

Ireland won by five runs

Scorecard. Tables

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Ashley Young saves Man U

The visitors threatened within the first 30 seconds as a slip from Mehdi Abeid allowed Wayne Rooney to slip Angel di Maria through on goal, but Fabricio Coloccini was able to get back and clear things up 

A late Ashley Young goal has given Manchester United a 1-0 win away at Newcastle United in Wednesday evening’s Premier League clash at St James’ Park. The visitors threatened within the first 30 seconds as a slip from Mehdi Abeid allowed Wayne Rooney to slip Angel di Maria through on goal, but Fabricio Coloccini was able to get back and clear things up. In the 10th minute, the Magpies had a penalty shout when Emmanuel Riviere appeared to be brought down by Chris Smalling in the Red Devils box, but referee Anthony Taylor waved away the appeals. Man United continued to push forward following that minor setback and, on the quarter-hour mark, saw Marouane Fellaini fire a shot into the Newcastle defence, with Ander Herrera’s follow-up flying narrowly wide. Rooney nearly opened the scoring in the 27th minute when he collected Ashley Young’s ball before lofting a chip over Tim Krul that floated wide of the post. Not long before the break, Papiss Cisse brought the ball down well before letting up from distance with a shot which flew a yard or so wide in the end. After the restart, Marcos Rojo struck a ferocious shot from the edge of the box, but the ball was off target by about four inches. Just two minutes later, David de Gea had to be at his best to deny Riviere after the Frenchman latched onto Coloccini’s headed flick-on. There was no let-up to the action as Krul pulled off a smart double save from Fellaini and Young, while just before the hour, Rooney had the ball in the back of the net, though it was disallowed for offside. In the 65th minute, St James’ Park erupted into applause as Jonas Gutierrez entered the pitch in a black-and-white shirt for the first time since beating testicular cancer. Both sides continued plugging away as Cisse made the most of Herrera’s hesitation to drag his shot wide of goal, while at the other end, Rooney tested Krul again. Just as it seemed like both sides would play out a goalless draw, Young made the most of Krul’s spilled ball in the 89th minute to poke home and give the visitors the win.

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Nigeria target African Under-20s Championship success

Nigeria's Under-20s have been challenged by the country's football federation to win the upcoming African Under-20 Championship in Senegal.

The bulk of the squad won the Under-17s World Cup two years ago.

Nigeria Football Federation deputy secretary general Emmanuel Ikpeme said: The target is for the team to win the AYC and confirm that winning the U17 World Cup was not a fluke."

The Flying Eagles begin their campaign against the hosts on Sunday 8 March.

Ikpeme told the team: "Do not expect it to be an easy match but we believe you are up to the task going by what you showed in your recent test matches in Ghana.

"We should not take any match or opponent for granted and so you should resolve as a team to make Nigeria happy and proud in Senegal."

Coach Manu Garba assured the NFF the team are fired up for glory in Senegal.

"We as a team always want to win every game we play and that is the attitude we will take to the AYC," Manu said. "We will not underrate any team in Senegal, but we are confident we will do the nation proud."

Eight teams will take part in the tournament, to be played between, 8 and 22 March, with the semi-finalists qualifying for the 2015 U-20 World Cup
.

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Jose Mourinho claimed his first trophy since returning for his second spell as Chelsea manager with a comfortable Capital One Cup final victory over Tottenham at Wembley.

By Phil McNultyChief football writer at Wembley

John Terry and Diego Costa did the damage - both with the aid of deflections - either side of the interval as Spurs' hopes of repeating their success over Chelsea in this competition seven years ago never got off the ground.

The win gave Mourinho his first silverware since La Liga success with Real Madrid in 2012 and Chelsea their first since the Europa League final victory against Benfica in Amsterdam a year later.

Despite a career laden with trophies, Mourinho claimed this was the most important final of his time in the game and Chelsea were never seriously troubled once Christian Eriksen's early free-kick rebounded to safety off the woodwork.

Mourinho's mastery of the big selection decision was also demonstrated once more by his deployment of Kurt Zouma, a central defender by trade, in midfield to fulfil the role left behind by the suspended Nemanja Matic to outstanding effect.

Chelsea skipper John Terry put the Blues ahead with his side's first shot on target

Spurs, for all their endeavour, never looked close to repeating that convincing victory over Chelsea on New Year's Day, when Mourinho's side were beaten 5-3 at White Hart Lane.

And with Chelsea's closest Premier League title rivals Manchester City losing 2-1 at Liverpool even before this final kicked off - leaving his side with a five-point advantage with a game in hand - this just about added up to Mourinho's perfect day.

Tottenham had the exertions of a Europa League tie - and painful exit - against Fiorentina in Italy on Thursday, and while this may have taken its toll, they never looked like rescuing the situation once Chelsea took the lead right on half-time.

Diego Costa has scored 17 goals this season - but Chelsea's second went down as an own goal

Tottenham's usual suspects created early optimism for their fans as Eriksen bounced a 20-yard free-kick off the bar, although Petr Cech - preferred in goal to Thibaut Courtois - looked to have the situation under control, and Harry Kane ended a fine run with a low shot that was comfortably saved by Chelsea's keeper.

As usual, Costa was keeping Spurs fully occupied in the physical exchanges, angering Nabil Bentaleb with a hand-off, squaring up to Kyle Walker and getting involved in a running battle with Eric Dier that ended with the defender picking up a yellow card for a foul.

As the first 45 minutes looked to be drawing to a subdued conclusion, Chelsea pounced on a moment of defensive confusion to take the lead.

Willian's free-kick was deflected out of a cluster of bodies to the feet of Terry, whose shot took a crucial touch off Kane to defeat Hugo Lloris, who was given the nod by Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino ahead of regular League Cup choice Michel Vorm.

And it was another deflection that was a key element as Chelsea doubled their lead 11 minutes after the break. Cesc Fabregas, who had seen an ambitious overhead kick well saved by Lloris, found Costa, whose shot was directed across the face of goal until it took a deflection off Walker to beat Lloris inside his near post.

This was effectively the end of the contest, with barely a blow traded between the sides before Chelsea captain Terry lifted the trophy.

Spurs fans were hoping their side would lift silverware for the first time since the 2008 League Cup final

Both managers had registered one victory against the other this season ahead of the final

Eriksen's free-kick hit the bar as the sides managed just one shot on target in the opening half hour

Chelsea skipper John Terry has won 15 trophies during his 17 seasons at the club.

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