Didier Drogba Brace Destroys Arsenal

Arsenal 0-3 Chelsea

Chelsea proved exactly why they are considered the favourites for the title this season as they maintained their impressive recent record against Arsenal to claim a 2-0 win in the Premier League this evening.

Carlo Ancelotti's Blues poured on the misery for an Arsenal side that have only managed two wins from the last 15 encounters between the two London rivals as a Didier Drogba strike and an own goal from Thomas Vermaelen settled the match at the Emirates Stadium.

In a meeting between the Premier League's strongest attack and meanest defence, Arsenal had been on the front foot during the opening exchanges and had been taking the game to their west London counterparts.

It was Chelsea, however, who were presented with the first chance of the match after 18 minutes as Frank Lampard, passed fit to play despite concerns over a thigh injury, put Nicolas Anelka into the clear but Bacary Sagna tracked back to get in the vital challenge just as his international compatriot was about to pick his spot.

There were suspicions that Sagna had hauled Anelka to the ground in the process of making the crucial tackle although none of the Chelsea players appeared to appeal for the penalty as Lampard fired wide from the follow-up.

It would take 24 minutes before Arsenal created their first real opening as Samir Nasri drove forward before hitting a low shot from just outside the box. It was a decent effort from the 22-year-old but a lack of real power ensured Petr Cech made a comfortable save.

Despite a distinct lack of genuine efforts on goal, Chelsea grabbed the initiative when Drogba scored the opening goal of the game to continue his imperious record against Arsene Wenger’s side. A smart finish into the net via crossbar and post made it nine in his last nine outings against the Gunners following good work down the left from Ashley Cole.

Just two minutes later and the Blues had opened up a two goal lead as the unfortunate Vermaelen put through his own net. Ex-Gunner Cole was again the provider as his accurate cross was delivered into a really dangerous area and the Belgian international, undoubtedly worried by Drogba’s presence in the box, diverted the ball past Manuel Alumnia for 2-0 Chelsea.

Wenger made the decision to bring on Theo Walcott at half-time in an attempt to inject a bit of pace into his side and Arsenal were a little unlucky not to have reduced the arrears almost immediately after the break when Andrei Arshavin had a goal chalked off after an alleged foul by Eduardo on Cech.

The Czech Republic goalkeeper had initially saved well at the feet of Eduardo although as Cesc Fabregas played the ball back into the area, the Croatian forward was adjudged by referee Andre Marriner to have kicked the ball from Cech’s grasp before Arshavin slammed the ball into the net past a ruckus of Chelsea players on the line.

Chelsea nearly increased their lead with what would have proved a somewhat fortuitous goal on 64 minutes. Drogba got the ball onto his right foot before shooting from just outside the box although the former Marseille star’s effort was deflected first off William Gallas and then off Lampard’s chest to force Almunia into a smart save low down to his right.

Arsenal continued to press and probe for a way back into the match although Chelsea effectively put the game to bed with a terrific free-kick from Drogba.

The 31-year-old claimed his second of the match on 86 minutes as he dispatched a stunning strike into the corner of the net from around 25-yards out to increase Chelsea's lead at the top of the Premier League to five points ahead of Manchester United in second place.

All set for Fifa World Cup Draw

The glare of the global football world will be on the Cape Town International Convention Centre at 19h00 next Friday, December 4, when the 32 teams who made it through to Africa’s first Fifa World Cup and their legions of fans find out exactly where they will be playing - and who they will be playing against.
And when the Final Draw is beamed to millions of homes in more than 200 countries next week, a magnificent Draw Hall and stage fit for the magnitude of the occasion stands ready to play host to the dramatic proceedings.

It’s taken 3600 hours of manpower to set up the sprawling Draw Hall and 950 square metres of timber to construct the stunning African-inspired Draw stage – which already stands ready to host the eagerly anticipated event.

The 2010 FIFA World Cup Organising Committee South Africa’s Cape Town Venue Manager, Teral Cullen, has been the operational head of the mammoth operation that is the Final Draw – and as the excitement mounts and the event draws nearer, she’s confident things are well in hand.

"Over the last 10 days everyone involved has put in an enormous effort. They’ve really put their noses to the ground and worked flat out, with many late nights and early mornings. The Draw Hall and stage is complete and rehearsals have already started. And with a week to go we’re very confident with our preparations, we’re ahead of schedule and ready for this event," said Cullen.

She added that while the Final Draw is being delivered by a large team of 3 254 people in total, including security personnel, volunteers, event staff, contractors and entertainers, the co-operation between all parties has been outstanding.

"There has been tremendous teamwork and communication between the city and provincial authorities and Fifa and the Organising Committee. There’s been excellent communication in particular between ourselves and Fifa in terms of assessing the requirements for this event and delivering on it. All parties involved sense we’re building something special and we’re set for and working hard to deliver a spectacular event," said Cullen.

To date, 27 of the 32 coaches have confirmed their attendance, including well-known coaches such as Brazil’s Dunga, Portugal’s Carlos Queiroz, England’s Fabio Capello, Italy’s Marcello Lippi, Spain’s Vicente Del Bosque, Nigeria's Shuaibu Amodu and of course South Africa’s Carlos Alberto Parreira have confirmed their attendance for the Final Draw.

The Final Draw in Numbers:

* 3254 people involved in the operation of the Final Draw
* 1587 safety and security people including authorities and private security staff
* 400 Host City staff
* 80 entertainers
* 500 staff of contractors
* 380 Volunteers
* 110 Organising Committee staff
* 207 FIFA staff
* Nearly a year of preparations
* The set design and complete project folder for the draw project is 5Gb big
* Stage artwork alone amounts to 1.5Gb
* Printed material for the set is approx 1100 Sq meters
* Black reflective Vinyl flooring on the set is approx 500 Sq Meters.
* The set structure consumed around 6.5 tons of steel
* The four columns consist of around 1200 meters of 50mm round tubing
* The ceiling rings used around 1400 of 25 square tubing and 200sq meters of fabric
* Around 240 sheets of wood for custom stage levels
* Onset light boxes currently contains 500 fluorescent tubes
* Covering the stage light boxes is 800Kgs of tempered glass sheets
* Covering the front light boxes are 40 sheets of opal Perspex
* Most of the set was built, printed and finished in Cape Town, by Cape Town companies. Only the steel columns and parts of the headers were manufactured in Johannesburg by a specialist welder
* 5000 hours of production of the video material to be used during the show
* 18 live broadcast units to be used
* Live broadcast of the show to more than 200 countries and territories
* 3600 hours manpower to set-up the draw hall
* 950 sq meters timber
* 56 x 5 litre tins of paint used
* 1,2km steel handrails





Source: Colin Udoh kickoff.com

Frank Lampard set to lose £20,000 in bet if Chelsea fall to Arsenal defeat

Frank Lampard risks being £20,000 out of pocket if Chelsea lose to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium today.

The England midfielder fell in with 12-year-old Jake Peach at a recent awards ceremony and Peach, a leukemia survivor, former patient at Great Ormond Street Hospital and, more importantly, an Arsenal fan, was canny enough to suggest a unique wager to Lampard: the Chelsea player will donate a day's wages to the hospital, Arsenal's designated charity, if Arsenal win, while Peach has to wear a Chelsea shirt for the day if Lampard is the victor.
Hard to tell who got the worst end of the deal.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1231753/Frank-Lampard-set-lose-20-000-bet-Chelsea-fall-Arsenal-defeat.html#ixzz0YEzK2BMJ

HUGHES UNDER-PRESSURE

 HUGHES: Crucial week ahead 

MARK HUGHES is on borrowed time after chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak witnessed yet another dismal Manchester City display.

City's 1-1 draw with Hull - their seventh in a row - has left Hughes on the brink with Guus Hiddink, Roberto Mancini and Jose Mourinho all in the frame to replace him.
Hughes's position has been under threat since the 3-3 draw with Burnley earlier this month.
Al Mubarek flew in from Abu Dhabi yesterday morning and will report back to owner Sheikh Mansour.
Mansour will now make a decision on his manager's future, possibly at the end of a week in which they face Arsenal in the Carling Cup and Chelsea next Saturday.
They may only have lost once in the league this season - to Manchester United at Old Trafford - but City's recent run of results have left Hughes in jeopardy.
Draws against the likes of Fulham, Birmingham, Burnley and now Hull look to have sealed the manager's fate.
Russia's unexpected World Cup play-off exit has put former Chelsea boss, Hiddink, on the market and his presence casts a huge shadow over Hughes.
But chairman Khladoon is also friends with Italian Mancini and sources claim his track record at Inter Milan where he won Serie A three years in a row has left him as a serious contender for the City job.
Former Stamford Bridge boss Mourinho is also keen on a return to the Prem.
Hughes admitted he was under pressure to get results having spent £200million in the transfer market but claimed the club's Arab owners were willing to be patient.
That patience, however, is close to expiring and poor results against Arsenal in midweek and Chelsea next Saturday seem certain to seal his fate.

Davydenko down Federer to reach Final

Nikolay Davydenko has reached the final of the ATP World Tour Finals after edging out world number one Roger Federer.

The diminuitive Russian finally tasted success against his Swiss opponent as he came through an epic three-set clash with a 6-2 4-6 7-5 victory at the O2 Arena in London.
Davydenko, who produced some scintillating groundstrokes in the decider, broke Federer's serve in the 11th game of a tight final set before serving it out to earn his first win over the all-time leading Grand Slam champion at the 13th time of trying.
The sixth seed has now booked his place in Sunday's final - for the second successive year - where he will meet the victor of Robin Soderling and Juan Martin Del Potro's clash which will be played later on Saturday.
"I think I have waited a long time to beat once Federer," Davydenko said after his stunning victory. "After 12 times of losing and now here in London winning my first time against him it's amazing for me."

Faultless

Federer, who won the title four times in five attempts between 2003 and 2007, came into the last four in bullish mood considering his faultless record over Davydenko which also saw the Swiss win 22 of the last 23 sets against his opponent.
And the Russian's task was made even harder by the scheduling, which saw him take to the court less than 16 hours after beating Robin Soderling in his final round-robin match which was played into the late hours of Friday night.
But, after Federer won the first six points, it was Davydenko - beaten by Novak Djokovic in last year's final - who gained the ascendancy.
The world number one could not take advantage of two break points in the second game and then played a terrible game, serving two double faults and throwing in two more unforced errors to hand his opponent the first break.
Federer had lost the first set in all his group matches and found himself staring down the barrel again when another double fault and a netted forehand gave Davydenko a shock 4-1 lead.
The Swiss star recovered one of the breaks immediately, his forehand suddenly firing again, but the respite was only temporary and Davydenko made it three breaks in a row before sealing the first set.

Inevitable

It seemed inevitable Federer would improve - he could hardly get any worse - and he was certainly making fewer errors at the start of the second set.
He gradually began to look more like his old self, playing his best game to date to move 4-3 ahead with a series of winners.
And, after escaping a potentially sticky situation at 4-4, he claimed the crucial break to win the set, taking it on his second chance following one of the best rallies of the match.
Federer had the advantage of serving first in the decider and at 4-5 the match came alive.
A lucky net cord gave him the opening point and an outrageous shot off a Davydenko smash put Federer in sight of the final.
But he could not take his chance as Davydenko held his nerve to level at 5-5 before the Russian capitalised on break point in the next game, which he took with a stunning backhand return.
Two big serves took the world number seven to 30-0 but Federer was not finished, a brilliant rally resulting in a break point.
This time Davydenko excelled, though, blasting a forehand winner, and one big serve later he was at match point, which he took when Federer netted a forehand.

Davydenko overjoyed at finally beating Federer

Aguero not leaving Atletico Madrid

Reports on Friday suggested that Atletico Madrid striker Sergio Aguero had agreed to a lucrative transfer to Chelsea.

ESPN Soccernet claimed that the Argentine star had privately told Carlo Ancelotti's side that he was happy to make the move to London, and the transfer would be completed once both clubs had agreed on a fee.

However, the player has now denied the reports, insisting that he is only concerned about helping los Rojiblancos climb out of the relegation zone in the Primera Division.

"I'm not moving from Atletico," he stated to Marca.

"[My] commitment is to help the team get out of where we are."

Atletico face Espanyol on Sunday evening - a fixture that los Colchoneros have won on the last three occasions.

They will be hopeful of picking up another three points against los Periquitos, who have only won once in the last two months in all competitions.