Football: Three things we learnt from the Europa League final

Football: Three things we learnt from the Europa League final

BAKU (AFP) - Chelsea thrashed Arsenal 4-1 in an all-English final in the Europa League on Wednesday (May 29).
Here AFP Sport looks at three things we learnt from the showpiece at Baku's Olympic Stadium:

1. Giroud makes most of European chance

Olivier Giroud has found opportunities difficult to come by in the Premier League following his January 2018 move from Arsenal, but the France striker again proved his worth in Chelsea's Europa League triumph as he finished the competition's top scorer with 11 goals, one above highly-rated Eintracht Frankfurt sharpshooter Luka Jovic.
Giroud has made just 13 league starts in 18 months at Stamford Bridge, scoring only twice in the top flight this season. He recently admitted his frustration at his bit-part role, but his displays on the continent have convinced the club's hierarchy to extend his deal for another season.
The former Gunners forward came back to haunt to his old side with a superb glancing header for the opening goal in Baku, and he also won a penalty that led to Chelsea's third goal and then teed up Eden Hazard to complete the rout.

2. Late season flourish boosts Sarri

Maurizio Sarri's future as Chelsea boss appeared bleak after goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga refused to be substituted during February's League Cup final defeat by Manchester City on penalties.
 
 
Already battling to avoid the sack, the Wembley mutiny further undermined the Italian's standing and left him apoplectic.
Yet Sarri, who has been heavily linked with a move to Juventus, oversaw a notable upturn in fortunes from that point forth, leading the Blues to a third-place finish in the league and a second Europa League crown in seven years.
Sarri had stolen the headlines 24 earlier when he angrily stormed off the pitch during a training session, but winning the final - his first title as a manager - transformed what he already claimed to be a "very good season" into a "wonderful" one.

3. Questions persist over Emery Unai

Emery's Europa League magic ran out in Baku, as he finished on the losing side for the first time in four finals.
A promising first 30 minutes from Arsenal quickly faded into a distant memory as Chelsea blew the Gunners away with a merciless second-half blitz that underlined the magnitude of the task Emery faces as the successor to Arsene Wenger.
In a time of transition, the Basque coach has done a steady if unspectacular job, but doubts remain over his ability to lead Arsenal back to past heights after they missed out on Champions League revenue for the third year in a row.

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Real fledglings face off against Ajax's talented young guns

Real fledglings face off against Ajax's talented young guns

AMSTERDAM • Real Madrid against Ajax would typically be a clash of stars against prodigies but, when they face each other in the first leg of the Champions League last-16 tie today, the difference will be harder to distinguish.
Ajax will parade their latest crop of young gems at the Johan Cruyff Arena, where Frenkie de Jong and Matthijs de Ligt will attempt to live up to already-swelling reputations while the likes of Donny van de Beek, Andre Onana and Kasper Dolberg could also enhance theirs.
For Real, Gareth Bale aside, the Galacticos are gone and are replaced by a handful of prospects trying to forge their way through.
Real coach Santiago Solari, whose predecessors Zinedine Zidane and Julen Lopetegui both used young players only when they had to, has made youth his first choice since being tasked with rejuvenating his team in November.
Vinicius Junior has had less playing time than Ajax's de Jong, with only six starts in LaLiga and one in the Champions League, but the Brazilian's impact has been arguably just as dramatic as the Dutchman.
Signed last summer for €45 million (S$69 million), Vinicius was supposed to spend his debut season settling in with the reserve side, a strategy adhered to perhaps too rigidly by Lopetegui.
Solari, in charge of Real Madrid B at the time, was the coach that received him, witnessing first-hand as the 18-year-old scored twice against Atletico B, curled in a free-kick against Unionistas and equalised against Celta Vigo B.
Vinicius was raw but, when Lopetegui was sacked, Solari had greater legitimacy to promote him.
He had faith too. Solari gave Vinicius 90 minutes in his first match in charge, more than Lopetegui had in all 14 of his.
Almost four months on, Vinicius has 22 appearances for the first team, the latest pair against Barcelona at the Nou Camp and Atletico Madrid at the Wanda Metropolitano. In both, he was Real's greatest threat, to the extent that even Bale's starting spot has been questioned.
"His adaptation has been very fast," Solari said. "He is 18 and he has adapted to a new country, a new culture, a different type of football. He has shown his talent, but we have to take care of him."
Vinicius is the poster boy of Solari's meritocracy, an approach that puts reputation far below humility and hard work.
Among the other fresh faces to come in are Spaniard Sergio Reguilon at left-back, Marcos Llorente in defensive midfield, and midfielder Dani Ceballos. Together, Vinicius, Reguilon, Llorente and Ceballos have played 64 games since Solari was appointed.
"They are the future of Real Madrid," Solari said. "Therefore, they have to be part of the present."
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Football: Brunei DPMM coach hails team's 'big hearts' as they hold Albirex 0-0 to extend unbeaten run

Football: Brunei DPMM coach hails team's 'big hearts' as they hold Albirex 0-0 to extend unbeaten run

SINGAPORE - Singapore Premier League (SPL) leaders Brunei DPMM extended their unbeaten start to the season to 11 games after they held defending champions Albirex Niigata to a goal-less draw on Friday night (May 24).
With most of his players observing the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, DPMM coach Adrian Pennock was happy with the point at the White Swans' Jurong East Stadium home.
"It's a great point," said the former Stoke City assistant manager.
"To come here, fasting or not, is always difficult and we had to dig in. We didn't come here to draw but the (fatigue) caught up with us a bit. Our players showed they had big hearts."
The match pitted the two most in-form players against each other in midfield.
Albirex had skipper Kyoga Nakamura, the SPL's best young player last month, while DPMM boasted Australian midfielder Blake Ricciuto, who won the goal and player of the month awards.
But Ricciuto was unable to assert himself on the game because he had his hands full in midfield combating the pass-and-move style of the Japanese side.

 
As a result, DPMM's Belarusian striker Andrey Varankow - the SPL's leading scorer with 14 goals from 10 games - cut an isolated figure up front.
Nakamura, however, was able to show glimpses of his quality, and was involved in two of the game's brightest moments.
In the 29th minute, the 23-year-old shimmied past two players, before letting rip a fierce shot from outside the box which was tipped over the bar by DPMM goalkeeper Wardun Yussof.
Then, just seconds into the second half, the former Japan Under-17 player intercepted a loose pass in midfield, bore down on goal, and then set up teammate Hiroyoshi Kamata with a golden opportunity.
But Kamata inexplicably slid the ball into the side netting after rounding Wardun.
Albirex stayed in third place on 18 points from 10 games, nine points behind DPMM, who have played one game more.
Albirex coach Keiji Shigetomi rued the missed opportunity, saying: "Our players worked very hard, but we dropped two points tonight. Our accuracy was not good enough, and we need to do better."

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Football: New coach Zinedine Zidane leads first training session since return to Real Madrid 03/13/2019 Football' , La Liga , Real Madrid MADRID (AFP) - Zinedine Zidane's second spell as coach of Real Madrid got under way on Wednesday (March 13), as the Frenchman took his first session at the club's training ground in Valdebebas.
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Football: Luis Suarez says Barcelona 'looked like schoolboys' in Champions League loss

Football: Luis Suarez says Barcelona 'looked like schoolboys' in Champions League loss

LIVERPOOL (Reuters) - Barcelona forward Luis Suarez said his teammates defended like children for the fourth goal they conceded in a shock 4-0 defeat at Liverpool on Tuesday (May 7) which sent them crashing out of the Champions League 4-3 on aggregate.
Liverpool forward Divock Origi got the decisive goal that completed a remarkable turnaround from Juergen Klopp's side, netting a low pass from Trent Alexander-Arnold after the defender flummoxed the visitors by taking a quick corner.
"For their fourth goal we looked like schoolboys, we have to be ready for all the criticism that is going to rain down on us now," Suarez told reporters after a miserable return to his former club, where he spent three years before joining Barca.
"We are very sad, we are in a lot of pain, we feel this pain even though we are professionals."
Spanish champions Barca were the only unbeaten side left in the competition but found themselves overwhelmed by Liverpool, sinking to a second straight shocking Champions League exit after last season's 3-0 defeat at AS Roma in the last eight.
The Catalans won the first leg of that tie 4-1 and Uruguay international the 32-year-old Suarez admonished his team for letting a huge lead slip away from them once again.
"We have to do a lot of self criticism because this is the second time that the same thing has happened to us. We cannot commit the same mistake two years in a row, there are many things we need to consider and think about," Suarez added.
"They (Liverpool) did what they wanted to do, which was to score early. They believed from the first minute to the last."
Barca coach Ernesto Valverde fielded the same starting lineup at Anfield as he had played in the first leg - just as he had done in the fateful second leg away to Roma.
But Suarez insisted the coach, who has led Barca to two successive LaLiga titles and taken them to the King's Cup final, should not face criticism for another European meltdown.
"We are the ones that played the game," Suarez said.
"The boss used the same tactics as in the first leg and he tried to do the same thing here. You have to say sorry for the attitude and the things that everyone saw today."

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Luis Suarez says Barcelona "looked like schoolboys" defending Divock Origi's winning goal for Liverpool in the Champions League semi-final second leg. Trent Alexander-Arnold's quick corner found
We Looked Like Schoolboys: Luis Suarez after Barcelona

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Champions League news: "Our defence looked like schoolboys against Liverpool", says Barcelona star Luis Suarez

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Football > Champions League. VIDEO - Luis Suarez: Barcelona 'looked like schoolboys' Luis Suarez said his team mates defended like children for the fourth goal they conceded in a shock 4-0
'We looked like schoolboys', says Luis Suarez after Barcelona

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We Looked Like Schoolboys: Luis Suarez after Barcelona Crumble Again in Champions League UEFA Champions League: Barcelona blew up a 3-0 lead in the semi-final tie to lose 4-3 on aggregate and get knocked out.
VIDEO - Luis Suarez: Barcelona 'looked like schoolboys

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Football: Luis Suarez says Barcelona 'looked like schoolboys

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Soccer Football - Champions League - FC Barcelona Press Conference - Anfield, Liverpool, Britain - May 6, 2019 FC Barcelona's Luis Suarez during the press conference Action Images via Reuters/Lee
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Football: Luis Suarez says Barcelona 'looked like schoolboys' in Champions League loss. Barcelona player Luis Suarez during the UEFA Champions League semi final 2nd leg match between Liverpool and
Barcelona defence looked like schoolboys against Liverpool

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Barcelona's defence were completely caught out by Divock Origi's winner as Liverpool went through 4-3 on aggregate Barcelona striker Luis Suarez said his side "looked like schoolboys" for
Luis Suarez says Barcelona 'looked like schoolboys' defending

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Barcelona striker Luis Suarez said his side "looked like schoolboys" for Liverpool's winning goal in the Champions League semi-final second leg.
'We looked like schoolboys', says Suarez after Barca crumble

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'We looked like schoolboys', says Suarez after Barca crumble again at Liverpool on Tuesday which sent them crashing out of the Champions League 4-3 on aggregate. Luis Suarez: Barcelona
'We looked like schoolboys', says Suarez after Barca crumble

Solskjaer wins first game as full-time Manchester United boss

Solskjaer wins first game as full-time Manchester United boss

Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford celebrating scoring the opening goal, while Watford goalkeeper Ben Foster vents his frustration in United's 2-1 Premier League win yesterday - Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's first since being appointed as permanent manager. A glorious pass from his own half by United defender Luke Shaw after Troy Deeney lost possession carved open Watford's defence in the 28th minute and found Rashford, who timed his run to perfection before producing the coolest of finishes. United doubled their lead against the run of play in the 72nd minute when Jesse Lingard found Anthony Martial, whose effort cannoned off Foster. But the Frenchman picked up the pieces to scoop into an empty net. Abdoulaye Doucoure scored a consolation goal for Watford in the 90th minute. With the win, United leapfrogged Arsenal into fourth place on 61 points.

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