Translated material
Grant from Abramovich
Chelsea owner promises new head coach a gift
After an intense run-up to the Big Five football championships, it's time for the first series of defining matches. In Spain, Barcelona put Seville in their place, in Italy, Roma reminded Juventus what Serie A is, in Germany, Werder took revenge on champion Stuttgart, and in France, the upstarts took advantage of Lyon's traditional autumn sleepiness " But the main events took place in England: in Manchester, Sir Alex Ferguson examined the new Chelsea coach Abraham Grant.“I respect our fans and I like them. I also respect Jose Mourinho. Coaches come and go, but the fans always remain. The club needs their support especially now, when we have not achieved good results for the last month,” Abraham Grant addressed Chelsea fans before the match. But the fiery speech before the battle did not help: the Israeli specialist failed the first exam. The Blues lost to their main rival in recent years - 0:2.
The new head coach of Chelsea, however, has excuses for the debut defeat - Didier Drogba and Frank Lampard were unable to take part in the match against Manchester United. Moreover, at the 33rd minute. Mikel was sent off from the match. The aristocrats had little chance of surviving at Old Trafford with ten men. They became theoretical when Tevez opened the scoring in added time to the first half. But they finally disappeared only in the 90th minute, when Saha converted a dubious penalty.
Abraham Grant had questions for the referees regarding all three key moments of the match. Mikel's violation, according to the coach, did not warrant a red card, and the first goal was scored in the third compensated minute of the first half, although the referee added only two. In addition, the replay showed that the penalty was indeed a fake. “Alex Ferguson can be very happy with his job as a referee today,” Abraham Grant allowed himself irony, promising in response to the complaint of his colleague from Manchester United that after Mourinho’s dismissal he would have no one to share a bottle of wine with or have a drink with Ferguson Later.
They might have to bottle it for three. Grant may have good company at Chelsea in the near future: according to some local press reports, London is allegedly considering the appointment of Guus Hiddink as a consultant, who will be able to work at the club without interrupting his work in the Russian national team.
Grant should also have reasons to celebrate. Rumors are actively circulating in the English media that Roman Abramovich promised the new Chelsea coach a large gift. We are talking about some expensive acquisition, and the candidacy of Ronaldinho is most often mentioned.
If you think about it, the Barcelona leader's move to Chelsea doesn't look so fantastic. In Catalonia, lately they believe that the Brazilian has lost motivation and is no longer the same as before. And the fact that Barca can win without Ronaldinho, who has recently been in conflict with team coach Frank Rijkaard, was proven last weekend by beating the bronze medalist of the last championship, Seville, 2:1. Both goals were scored by Barcelona's new idol Lionel Messi. The Argentine celebrated his first goal in the same way as Ronaldinho does, making it clear that he supported his partner.
Rijkaard appreciated the performance. “I really liked that after the goal he remembered his teammate. This shows that he never loses his head. Usually, when you score, you only think about how to celebrate a goal,” the Dutch coach praised Messi, noting in passing that Ronaldinho’s absence does not bother him, but Sevilla’s return goal was scored in the 90th minute. forced his team to “spent the end of the match in anxiety.” Barça would have had to worry longer if the judges had counted the goal of substitute Alexander Kerzhakov. However, a moment before the Russian hit, the referees saw a violation of the rules on the part of his partner.
Ronaldinho's move to Milan was also considered this summer. The Brazilian would clearly not be in the way of the Rossoneri, who were hit by the draw's virus. Already in the third match out of four, Carlo Ancelotti’s team concludes a peace treaty with their rivals, and in Italy they are increasingly talking about the possible arrival of the unemployed Mourinho. So far, Milan is in no hurry to interfere in the dispute between Juventus, Inter and Roma for leadership, which the Roman club is winning so far. And if not for the goal missed in the 87th minute. from Iaquinta, Roma would have a more significant points advantage over their competitors.
Spanish Championship. 4th round. “Valladolid” – “Real” – 1:1, “Atlético” – “Racing” – 4:0, “Zaragoza” – “Osasuna” – 2:1, “Levante” – “Athletic” -- 1:2, "Villarreal" -- "Murcia" -- 2:0, "Almeria" -- "Mallorca" -- 1:1, "Betis" -- "Valencia" -- 1:2, "Getafe" "- Deportivo - 0:0, Barcelona - Sevilla - 2:1, Recreativo - Espanyol - 2:1. The leaders are: Real Madrid - 10 points, Villarreal, Valencia - 9 each, Barcelona - 8.
German Championship. 6th round. "Hannover" - "Bayer" - 0:3, "Karlsruhe" - "Bayern" - 1:4, "Bochum" - "Eintracht" - 0:0, "Schalke" - "Arminia" -- 3:0, Werder -- Stuttgart -- 4:1, Hamburg -- Nuremberg -- 1:0, Hertha -- Borussia D -- 3:2, " Energi - Wolfsburg - 1:2, Hansa - Duisburg - 2:0. The leaders are: Bayern - 14 points, Hertha - 12, Bayer, Eintracht - 11 each.
Italian Championship. 4th round. “Sampdoria” – “Genoa” – 0:0, “Atalanta” – “Lazio” – 2:1, “Cagliari” – “Palermo” – 0:1, “Catania” – “Fiorentina” -- 0:1, "Empoli" -- "Napoli" -- 0:0, "Livorno" -- "Inter" -- 2:2, "Roma" -- "Juventus" -- 2:2, "Torino" "- "Siena" - 1:1, "Milan" - "Parma" - 1:1, "Udinese" - "Regina" - 2:0. The leaders are: Roma - 10 points, Inter, Atalanta, Fiorentina - 8 each.
French Championship . 9th round. "Lyon" - "Lille" - 1:1, "PSG" - "Bordeaux" - 0:2, "Rennes" - "Sochaux" - 0:2, "Auxerre" - "Marseille" -- 2:0, "Caen" -- "Metz" -- 1:2, "Nancy" -- "Lorient" -- 2:0, "Nice" -- "Saint-Etienne" -- 3:0, Strasbourg - Le Mans - 0:1, Toulouse - Lens - 1:1, Valenciennes - Monaco - 1:0. Leading: Nancy - 19 points, Bordeaux - 18, Valenciennes - 17.
English Championship. 7th round. Manchester United - Chelsea - 2:0, Newcastle - West Ham - 3:1, Aston Villa - Everton - 2:0, Blackburn - Portsmouth - 0:1, Bolton - Tottenham - 1:1, Fulham - Manchester City - 3:3, Middlesbrough - Sunderland - 2: 2, Reading - Wigan - 2:1, Arsenal - Derby County - 5:0, Liverpool - Birmingham - 0:0.
English Championship
| 1. Arsenal | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 15--4 | 16 |
| 2. Manchester United | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 6--2 | 14 |
| 3. Manchester City | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 8--5 | 13 |
| 4. Liverpool | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 11--2 | 12 |
| 5. Newcastle | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 9--5 | 11 |
| 6. Chelsea | 7 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 7--8 | 11 |
| 7. West Ham | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 9--6 | 10 |
| 8. Aston Villa | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 7--6 | 10 |
| 9. Everton | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 8--8 | 10 |
| 10. Blackburn | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 5--4 | 9 |
| 11. Portsmouth | 7 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 8--8 | 9 |
| 12. Wigan | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 8--7 | 8 |
| 13. Middlesbrough | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 9--11 | 8 |
| 14. Birmingham | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 7--9 | 8 |
| 15. Sunderland | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 7--11 | 8 |
| 16. Reading | 7 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 5--11 | 7 |
| 17. Fulham | 7 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 12--14 | 6 |
| 18. Tottenham | 7 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 10--12 | 5 |
| 19. Bolton | 7 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 8--12 | 4 |
| 20. Derby County | 7 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 4--20 | 4 |