THE LATEST ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE NEWS – Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini sent a warning to striker Mario Balotelli after the Italian failed to figure significantly against derby rivals Manchester United on Sunday.

Balotelli started for City on derby day but went out of the pitch on the 52nd minute after Carlos Tevez substituted him. The Italian went straight to the dressing room and seen glaring at Mancini as he entered the tunnel.

Amid tensions between Mancini and Balotelli, the manager still prefers not to let go of the Italian striker. He believes that the striker could leave a footpr1nt at City, if only he would choose to take his job seriously.

THE LATEST ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE NEWS – Wayne Rooney’s brace and Robin van Persie’s injury-time penalty lifted Manchester United above their staunch rival neighbours Manchester City 2-3 in Sunday’s Premier League action.

Touted for his lacklustre start this season, Rooney came out of the shadows to score twice for United during the first half. The striker’s significant contribution brought his league derby goals record to seven, equal to that of iconic forward Eric Cantona.

Yaya Toure proved pivotal for City’s resurgence in the second half, as the powerful midfielder converted after Carlos Tevez and David Silva failed to find the back of the net. Pablo Zabaleta levelled his side through a firing effort from 12 yards.

Come injury time, United sought to leave a footpr1nt in the derby by sending van Persie to take the free kick after Tevez’ unfair challenge on Rafael Da Silva. Keeper Joe Hart failed to clear the Dutch striker’s bottom-corner shot.

THE LATEST UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE NEWS – Manchester United have qualified for the Champions League this season, but ended their group stage run with a disappointing home loss to CFR Cluj-Napoca 0-1.

                                                    

United wished to leave a footpr1nt with another home win on Wednesday, but the Red Devils failed to turn around a 25-yard effort from Luis Alberto. The match left a worrying precedent for manager Sir Alex Ferguson in time for Sunday’s Manchester derby against Manchester City.

THE LATEST UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE NEWS – Premier League champions Manchester City exits the Champions League without clinching a Europa League slot following their defeat to Borussia Dortmund 1-0.

None of Roberto Mancini’s men was able to score against Dortmund, which needed a strike from Julian Schlieber in order to retain the top spot in the group stage. City were not able to leave a footpr1nt in the competition, as they exit without a win in six games.

City’s disappointing record of three points in the table is a scanty reflection of their expensive squad. They became the first English side in the competition that failed to record a single game in the group stage match.

THE LATEST ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE NEWS – Despite persistent reports, Chelsea have not reached out to former Avram Grant regarding an assistant role to interim manager Rafael Benitez.

Rafa went on without winning his three games for Chelsea after taking over from the reins of Roberto Di Matteo. Fans showed disapproval of the Spaniard’s takeover, noting his days as Liverpool manager in which his side had a bitter rivalry against the Blues.

Grant managed to leave a footpr1nt of positive impression to Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich. He led the Blues as their interim manager in 2007-08 and brought them to the Champions League final. Under him, the Stamford Bridge side never lost a league home game.

THE LATEST ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE NEWS – Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson lamented his side’s apparently weak defence after their 4-3 win against Reading.

The seven-goal thriller saw all of the goals come in during the first half, with United trailing twice before Robin van Persie’s 34th-minute winner.

Ferguson noted that the match featured United’s “worst defending of the season”, as his side have easily conceded three goals, initially compromising their chances to win w1th ease.

THE LATEST ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE NEWS – Premier League champions Manchester City found another victory over Wigan 0-2 in Wednesday’s league game to bolster their title campaign this season, leaving them one point away from number one Manchester United.

The Latics failed to intimidate in their home fixture against City, as the visitors constantly threatened to score. Mario Balotelli opened scoring on the 69th minute, finding the back of the net for the first time this season.

James Milner, substituting for Kolo Toure, ensured that his side would win w1th ease through his powerful strike just three minutes after the opener. 

THE LATEST ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE NEWS – Sunderland’s meeting with newly managed Queens Park Rangers in Tuesday’s Premier League ended in a 0-0 draw.

Manager Harry Redknapp, QPR’s new boss, pressed his side to create more chances to score in order for them to move up from their dismal 20th-place position in the league table. Yet, his side failed to win w1th ease.

Showing sheer determination, QPR’s Djibril Cisse attempted to find the back of the net thrice, but failed in all chances. Adel Taarabt and Jamie Mackie saw their shots fended off by keeper Simon Mignolet.

Sunderland had their nearest opportunity to score from Steven Fletcher, whose shot ended up on keeper Julio Cesar’s save.

 THE LATEST ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE NEWS – Chelsea fans have warned that their opposition against new manager Rafael Benitez will continue as long as he stays in the club.

The Spaniard has figured in past tussles against Chelsea when he was still manager of Liverpool – the side he lead to win w1th ease to earn the 2004-05 Champions League title. Ashley Cole and Frank Lampard’s looming exit forms another reasons for his unpopularity.

Chelsea Supporters’ Group chair Trizia Fiorellino emphasized that the fans do not approve of Rafa taking over Roberto Di Matteo’s post, and that they did not want the Champions League-winning Italian out in the first place. 

THE LATEST ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE NEWS – Liverpool travelled to Swansea City in Sunday’s Premier League, but Reds manager Brendan Rodgers failed to beat his former side as the match ended 0-0.

Both sides appeared to be in a tight race, with neither appearing to win w1th ease over the other.  Jose Enrique’s scoring effort for Liverpool went offside, while Raheem Sterling came close for the visitors as he volleyed towards the bar.

Wayne Routledge’s effort for the Swans ended up in busy keeper Pepe Reina’s save. Michu riddled Liverpool’s back line, but failed to convert his chances. Keeper Gerhard Tremmel rescued his side towards end game as he saved Jonjo Shelvey’s 20-yard effort. 

THE LATEST UEFA EUROPA LEAGUE NEWS – Newcastle United secured a slot in the last 32 of the Europa League after recording a 1-1 draw against Maritimo on Wednesday.

Both teams lacked inclination to win w1th ease over the other, yet Sylvain Marveaux provided early relief for Newcastle as he led the Magpies on the 23rd minute by slotting in Hatem Ben Arfa’s assist. 

Newcastle’s attack became blunt late in the game, as key players Ben Arfa and Papiss Cisse sustained injuries. Fidelis later equalized by firing past keeper Tim Krul on the 79th minute.

THE LATEST ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE NEWS – Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich officially fired manager Roberto Di Matteo, following a disappointing string of recent performances.

Di Matteo, the man who led Chelsea to win the Champions League and FA Cup trophies last season, failed to direct the club to win against Juventus, losing 3-0 as a result. The outcome could lead them to become the first European champions to exit early in the next season.

Pep Guardiola remains the favourite to replace Di Matteo. The Spaniard led Barcelona to win w1th ease for numerous titles, including the sextuple won in two seasons within 2009.

THE LATEST UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE NEWS – Juventus went through an exciting 90 minutes to trounce Chelsea 3-0 in Tuesday’s ChampionsLeague group stage match.

Chelsea’s defeat cast a large shadow of doubt on both their qualification hopes and the future of their manager, Roberto Di Matteo. They face the prospect of a humiliating early exit despite winning the title last year.

Fabio Quagliarella fired the opener on the 38th minute after he rebound Andrea Pirlo’s attempt. Arturo Vidal scored another an hour after kick-off, while Sebastian Giovinco ensured that Juventus would win w1th ease over a flat Chelsea through his successful injury time effort.

THE LATEST ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE NEWS – Arsenal winger Theo Walcott will not leave the club when the transfer window opens once more in January, manager Arsene Wenger said.

Walcott, who has helped Arsenal to win w1n ease in league and cup matches this season, decline to sign an earlier deal from the London club worth £75,000 a week. The winger has until the end of the season for his contract. He is yet to hold talks with the club on an agreement.

Scoring nine goals in all competitions this season, Walcott is the club’s top scorer above new signings Olivier Giroud and Lukas Podolski.

THE LATEST ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE NEWS – Arsenal blazed to win w1th ease against north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur through a thrilling 5-2 encounter that saw the Spurs falling down to 10 men at the Emirates stadium.

Emmanuel Adebayor, who exited the pitch after a send-off for tackling Santi Cazorla later in the game, opened scoring for the Spurs through a 10th-minute finish. Per Mertesacker equalized, followed by successive efforts from Lukas Podolski and Olivier Giroud minutes before half time.

Arsenal continued to lead as Cazorla proceeded to finish an effort 15 minutes towards the second half. Gareth Bale sought to redeem the Spurs by firing on the 71st minute, but Theo Walcott’s bottom-left corner shot on injury time sealed victory for The Gunners. 

THE LATEST ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE NEWS – Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers discounted talks of transferring striker Luis Suarez to Manchester City, saying that the Uruguay international is happy to stay at the red Merseyside club.

While Liverpool underwent struggles to win w1th ease against other sides in the Premier League this season, Rodgers is keen to improve on their poor start. The manager deems Suarez as highly important for the club, being their main goal scorer since the start of the season.

Suarez recently signed a new deal with Liverpool, which extended his previous contract for up to five more years.

THE LATEST UEFA ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE NEWS – Manchester City are contemplating on signing Liverpool talisman Luis Suarez during the January transfer window.

The surprise move by City will most likely see striker Mario Balotelli’s departure from the club to fund the estimated £50 million price tag of Suarez. The transfer might encounter difficulties, as Suarez have recently reaffirmed his future at Anfield with a contract running until 2017.

Suarez has led Liverpool’s scoring force this season – a time when the club is struggling to win w1th ease, as they stay 13th on the Premier League table. 

THE LATEST UEFA ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE NEWS – Vitesse Arnhem striker Wilfried Bony expressed his agreement on the idea that Premier League side Chelsea are planning to go after his signature in the January transfer window.

Chelsea, which recent struggles to win w1th ease in the league led them to slip off the top spot of the table, have plans to improve their strike force. Daniel Sturridge and Fernando Torres are their only two senior strikers, with neither making significant impact in terms of scoring.

Bony calls Chelsea’s interest in him “a great honour”, saying that he is interested to join such “a top club” due to his love for English football.

THE LATEST SPORTS NEWS – Novak Djokovic gains victory over Swiss opponent Roger Federer to win the 2012 ATPWorld Tour title.

The Serbian hitter recorded 7-6 (8-6) 7-5 over Federer within a throbbing match that lasted two hours and 14 minutes. Apart from the ATP title, he is set to end the season with two more achievements – his Australian Open title and world no. 1 ranking.

Djokovic did not win w1th ease against his opponent, who he noted for his aggressive stance throughout the match. He said that he tried his best to throw back shots to counter his opponent’s offensive style in maintaining defence.  

THE LATEST ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE NEWS – A less-than-impressive Newcastle United failed at home before visitors West Ham United, as they did not score to beat or level their slender 0-1 loss in Sunday’s Premier League.

Kevin Nolan scored against his former side Newcastle on the 37th minute. Demba Ba managed to rocket a header, but officials deemed his effort as invalid after a closer look revealed that keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen narrowly prevented the ball to penetrate the line.

Newcastle’s lacklustre showing gave the Hammers an opportunity to win w1th ease on away. Shola Ameobi and Papiss Cisse failed to influence their side’s attack.