Ozil dilemma poses early test for Emery

Cardiff (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Unai Emery is just a handful of games into his reign at Arsenal, but already he is facing up to the problem that Arsene Wenger never satisfactorily resolved.

Mesut Ozil’s arrival at the Emirates Stadium from Real Madrid five years ago was meant to usher in a new era for Arsenal, yet Wenger spent more time than he would have liked rebutting criticism of the Germany midfielder’s contribution.

And just three weeks into the new season, Wenger’s replacement as Gunners manager has already discovered that getting the best out of Ozil could prove to be no easy task.

If Emery can do successfully do that, his task of securing a top-four finish and a Champions League place will become an awful lot easier.

Fail, and like Wenger before him, he will not be able to avoid continuing scrutiny of the player’s performances.

Wenger always defended the player, highlighting Ozil’s more understated qualities such as the timing and delivery of passes to team-mates.

The playmaker agreed a new, three-and-a-half year contract in January worth around £350,000 per week.

But Ozil’s Arsenal career remains unfulfilled and Wenger’s approach to getting the best out of a player who has rarely dominated games for his club in the way he has often done for his country has understandably been questioned.

Emery appears to have taken a different stance and has already been forced to deny any rift with Ozil after the German missed the home victory over West Ham because of an illness.

It was claimed Ozil had stormed out of a training session when Emery urged him to try harder to adapt to his high-tempo pressing game.

– Physicality –

But, with the player’s cold now over, Emery confirmed Ozil is back in contention to line-up at Cardiff on Sunday. 

“He’s training normally with the group, in every session this week,” Emery said.

“We started on Tuesday and every day he has been training with the group. He’s OK. Also I’m looking at him well every day.”

What is clear, however, was that Emery had wanted more from Ozil during the recent 3-2 defeat at Chelsea.

Having used Ozil in a wider position in the defeat to Manchester City, Emery moved the German inside into a more central role at Stamford Bridge before replacing him with Aaron Ramsey in the 68th minute.

Explaining the move after the game, Emery said: “I took him off to stop Chelsea progressing easily with the ball.”

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Gerrard’s impressive start restores Rangers’ Old Firm belief

Glasgow (AFP) – Steven Gerrard’s first foray into management under the spotlight at Rangers drew plenty of skepticism, but in his first three months in the Glasgow goldfish bowl, the former England captain has barely put a foot wrong.

Gerrard faces old Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers in his first experience of the ferocity of the Old Firm derby against Celtic on Sunday on the back of a 12-game unbeaten run to start his managerial career.

In doing so he has already restored some of the club’s lost prestige by ensuring progress to the group stages of a European competition, the Europa League, for the first time in eight years.

However, the ultimate test for how far Gerrard has brought Rangers in such a short period in charge will be if he can prevent Rodgers extending his unblemished record in Old Firm games to 12 at Celtic Park on Sunday.

In two years in Glasgow, Rodgers has rehabilitated a reputation damaged by his final days at Anfield by winning back-to-back domestic trebles.

On Rangers’ last visit to Celtic Park, the hosts romped to a 5-0 win that sealed a seventh straight Scottish title and took Rodgers’ personal record against Rangers to nine wins and two draws in 11 games with a 30-6 aggregate superiority.

At the time the chasm between the two sides seemed so great that few questioned whether Celtic would ease to a historic 10-in-a-row.

– Bold response –

Rangers’ response was immediate and bold. Gerrard was hired on a four-year contract within a week and has been backed with 14 new arrivals over the summer.

There have been a few bumps in the road. Last-minute equalisers for Aberdeen and Motherwell in Rangers’ first three league games mean Celtic have a one-point lead over their rivals heading into Sunday’s clash.

But in stark contrast to Celtic’s last seven years of dominance, it is the green-and-white half of Glasgow giving off the sense of a club lacking in unity and direction.

At their pre-match press conferences on Friday, Gerrard was allowed the chance to bask in the glory of reaching the Europa League group stages despite being reduced to nine men in the second leg of their playoff away to Russian side Ufa on Thursday night.

Rodgers, by contrast, was bombarded with questions on the actions of wantaway star striker Moussa Dembele, who was finally allowed to join Lyon after Celtic accepted a bid for the unsettled striker late on Friday.

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Under-fire Mourinho weighs up Martial gamble

Burnley (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Anthony Martial faces an anxious wait to discover if he still has a Manchester United future under beleaguered boss Jose Mourinho when his side face a crucial clash at Burnley on Sunday. 

Martial has seen his relationship with the United manager deteriorate since his agent declared the French forward wanted to leave Old Trafford to try and resurrect his international career.

The matter reached its low point during United’s pre-season tour of the United States when Martial left to return to Europe for the birth of his child and then reportedly refused to re-join the team in America.

That stand-off resulted in Martial being fined by the club – the only time that has happened in Mourinho’s reign, according to the manager himself – and his involvement during United’s difficult start to their Premier League campaign has, so far, been limited.

An unused substitute for the opening day win over Leicester, Martial started in the disappointing loss at Brighton, only to be replaced after an hour, and was not even named on the bench for Monday’s home defeat by Tottenham.

But while it was widely accepted that Mourinho would have been prepared to allow Martial to leave Old Trafford this summer for the right price, his employers did not share his opinion.

United’s owners, having paid Monaco £36 million ($46 million) for a player who is still only 22, seemed keen to keep the striker at the club in the hopes that he could develop and rediscover the form he showed in an electrifying start to his United career in 2015.

To that end, United reportedly opened discussions with Martial this week designed to tie him to a new, long-term deal.

Martial has less than 12 months remaining on his base deal but, as is common practice with United contracts, the club can, and will, exercise an option that extends until the summer of 2020 and avoids him leaving for free at the end of the current season.

– Increasing scrutiny –

However, United are understood to be talking to Martial’s representatives about a new, five-year contract extension, a development with which Mourinho is in full agreement, according to reports.

Mourinho would not discuss the contract situation before the game although he appeared to confirm that contract talks are progressing and, possibly, close to a resolution. 

“We have to wait for this to be official because at the moment it is not official,” he said.

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Give Mourinho respect, insists old foe Guardiola

Manchester (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Pep Guardiola say his old rival Jose Mourinho deserves respect despite Manchester United’s troubled start to the Premier League season.

Mourinho is under pressure following consecutive Premier League defeats to Brighton and Tottenham, with speculation mounting about his future at the club.

The United manager demanded respect from journalists following the 3-0 loss to Tottenham, pointing to his success with Chelsea, Inter Milan and Real Madrid.

Guardiola was involved in a series of spats with Mourinho when he was in charge of Barcelona.

But, asked about Mourinho’s problems, Manchester City boss Guardiola said: “The history, the way Jose did in all the places he was – it’s hat’s off. There is no doubts about his quality.

“You need players, good clubs that sustain you and support you, patience.

“Our position is results. Every manager what he believes, what he likes, tries to get results in his own style and the way he trains. We are judged on the results we get.

“Only the players know exactly how you are as a manager because they know you and see you every day. They have more information than the rest of the world – the fans, the media, everybody.

“Only the players know exactly who we are and normally even then we are judged – if they play, the manager is good, if they don’t play the manager is not good.”

– Magic Mahrez –

Meanwhile, Guardiola has spoken glowingly of pre-season signing Riyad Mahrez.

The Algeria winger joined City from Leicester for a club record £60 million ($77 million) and has settled well, according to his manager.

“He is one of the most technical players I’ve ever seen, the skills and everything,” Guardiola said. 

“Of course there’s a lot of information – the way we want to play, the way we want to do things, the corrections after the games that we have to do, in all things, defensive and offensive set-pieces.

“But he settled good. He has respect in the locker room and that is the most important thing.”

Speaking ahead of City’s weekend Premier League clash with Newcastle, Guardiola appeared relaxed about the challenge of winning back-to-back titles.

Asked if this season will pose of tougher challenge for the champions, he said: “It will be quite similar, I would say.

“New managers are here – Marco Silva at Everton, Maurizio Sarri at Chelsea – new managers, new clubs. Javi Gracia at Watford is doing amazingly. But I think it’s too early.

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Late Cutrone winner seals AC Milan win over Roma at San Siro

Milan (AFP) – Substitute Patrick Cutrone scored a last-gasp winner to give AC Milan their first win of the season at their San Siro stadium with a 2-1 victory over Roma.

Franck Kessie had gotten AC Milan off the mark after 40 minutes with Cutrone sealing victory five minutes into injury time to hand Roma their first defeat in over three years at the San Siro.

Defender Federico Fazio had pulled Roma level 1-1 on the hour mark.

Roma’s World Cup winner Steven Nzonzi and AC Milan’s Argentine striker Gonzalo Higuain both had goals disallowed.

Both sides had been looking to put stuttering starts to the season behind them with Gennaro Gattuso’s Milan losing 3-2 at Napoli last week despite leading by two goals.

Milan’s opening game against Genoa at the San Siro had been postponed because of the bridge disaster in the western port city.

Roma counterpart Eusebio Di Francesco made several changes from the side that drew 3-3 with Atalanta in Rome last Monday.

The hosts dominated the first half, with Kessie opening the scoring under the driving rain after Ricardo Rodriguez whipped a low ball towards the back post where the Ivorian had an easy tap in.

Davide Calabria had a chance for a second but fired over from an angle with Roma goalkeeper Robin Olsen clearing a Higuain effort.

But Fazio broke through for the equaliser on the hour mark, the Argentinian poking home his fifth goal for Roma from close range after he pounced on a poor Calabria clearance.

Higuain looked to have scored his maiden Milan goal since his loan move from Juventus this summer just minutes later, but it was ruled offside after consultation with VAR.

Nzonzi thought he had scored after a corner, but it was disallowed for a handling offence by the former Sevilla midfielder.

But in a frantic finale Higuain found a way through for substitute Cutrone, who finished off to the delight of the 60,000 fans in Milan.

Roma — third in Serie A last season — have just four points from three games and risk losing ground on champions Juventus and runners-up Napoli, who both have maximum six points from two games.

Juventus play at Parma on Saturday with Cristiano Ronaldo looking to opening his scoring account in Serie A while Napoli play Sampdoria in Genoa on Sunday.

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Dembele to join Lyon after Celtic accept bid for unsettled striker

Glasgow (AFP) – Celtic’s Moussa Dembele is set to join French side Lyon after the Scottish champions accepted an offer for the unsettled striker.

Hoops manager Brendan Rodgers had insisted the former France Under-21 international would not be sold during the transfer window

But Dembele arrived for training on Friday after spending much of the morning on social media outlining his frustration at Celtic denying his wish to join Lyon.

The 22-year-old walked off the field after about 15 minutes following a discussion with Rodgers, just 24 hours after sitting out Thursday’s Europa League win over Suduva following negotiations between the clubs.

Aware that they were in danger of being stuck with an unhappy player as the Scottish transfer window drew to a close, Celtic finally decided to accept Lyon’s reported £18 million offer late on Friday.

“Every decision we make at Celtic will always be in the best interests of the Club and our supporters,” Rodgers said in a statement on Celtic’s website. 

“It is vital to make clear that we have never promised any player that he can leave the Club at a particular time. It has never happened. 

“In fact, we have said all along that we did not wish to sell Moussa, given the circumstances within the transfer window and that is why we rejected a significant offer yesterday.    

“However, this particular decision to accept this offer has been taken in order to serve the best interests of the first-team squad, my coaching team and the culture and environment we have created in these last two seasons.

“The Board and myself are united and they have been very supportive to me on this issue.

“Finally, I would like to thank Moussa for his contribution in our last two seasons and want to wish him well in his new adventure at Lyon.”

Celtic, who have failed to qualify for this season’s Champions League group stage, will start life without Dembele on Sunday when they face arch rivals Rangers in the first Old Firm derby of the season.

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Dortmund held on way to first scoreless draw of Bundesliga season

Berlin (AFP) – Borussia Dortmund twice hit the woodwork but couldn’t find a winner on Friday as they were forced to share the points with Hanover 96 in the first goalless Bundesliga draw of the season.

After an opening 25 minutes largely contested in midfield, Maximilian Philipp had the ball in the net, only for it to be correctly ruled out after Marius Wolf was spotted offside.

Towards the end of an even first half, Dortmund burst into life.

Marco Reus saw an effort headed for the far corner pushed wide by Hanover goalkeeper Michael Esser’s outstretched toe, and less than a minute later, Reus rattled the bar after a superb pass by Mahmoud Dahoud.

“I had to score one of them,” Marco Reus told Eurosport afterwards. “I can only apologise to my teammates.”

Although Hanover’s only attack of note ended with teenage winger Linton Maina’s shot being blocked, the home side had been strong defensively.

In the second half, more of the same followed as Dortmund were kept at bay by a disciplined and well positioned Hanover side.

Maximilian Philipp nearly found an opening when he sent a header goalwards, but the forward was left disappointed when his header clipped the post and hurt after clashing heads with Hanover captain Waldemar Anton in the process.

Anton nearly turned hero at the other end as well, having been found in the box from a corner, but he flashed his effort narrowly wide.

American striker Bobby Wood, making his Bundesliga debut for Hanover, stumbled before he could get his shot away.

For Dortmund, the result was in stark contrast to the storming 4-1 win over RB Leipzig on the opening weekend and Lucien Favre’s side will be hoping to fare better when they host Eintracht Frankfurt after the international break.

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