Rafael Benitez confirms contract talks have opened with Newcastle United

Newcastle United manager Rafael Benitez has acknowledged that the contract talks have opened between him and managing director Lee Charnley. The Spanish tactician currently has a contract with the Magpies until the end of the season and he has previously refused to provide any update on his future with the club.

However, speaking to Sky Sports News, he has now indicated that contract talks are underway with the Tyneside outfit and there has been no contact from any other side. He added that he is more concerned about the club’s bid to beat the drop before deciding on his future, he told: “No contact from other clubs. At the moment I can read like you what is going on in the press, but the situation is exactly the same. My priority is to keep talking with Newcastle United and see where we are, and that’s it. I’m not considering anything until we progress and know where we are. Have I started talks with Newcastle? I had some contact with Lee Charnley but at the moment it is too early. We have to concentrate on the games.”
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Ruben Loftus-Cheek speaks on Chelsea’s top-four prospects

Chelsea midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek has stressed that the Blues are still in the running for the top four despite suffering a setback at the hands of Wolverhampton Wanderers last weekend. The Blues were widely fancied to get the better of the Wolves at Stamford Bridge but that was not the case with the west Midlands side securing a hard-fought draw in the end.

As such, the Blues failed to pick up two additional points which would have enhanced their top four ambitions but Loftus-Cheek has stressed that the club have nothing to worry about as long as they return to winning ways, he told the Blues’ official website: “It’s still all to play for. It’s been up and down for us but we will keep going, keep working hard in training. The points gap is not too big, so we keep going and try to get these wins.We knew Wolves would come here and set up like that. It shows teams are threatened by our creativity and want to sit back and get us on the counter. We switched off and conceded.”
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Henry Onyekuru Happy with Life at Galatasaray

Henry Onyekuru has claimed that he is feeling extremely happy with life in Turkish club Galatasaray. The 21-year-old, who is on the books of Everton, moved to the Turk Telekom Stadium on a loan deal till the end of the campaign. He has failed to remain at Anderlecht even though the Belgian team did have an option of extending his stay beyond the 2017-18 campaign. The forward has been unable to get his football up and running after failing to a serious knee injury just before the World Cup. This injury kept him out of action for almost 5 months and it was a major factor behind the 21-year-old missing out on a place in the World Cup.

The 21-year-old has been quite impressive since making the Moto Galatasaray and he has come up with nine goals in just 18 league matches. A hat-trick againstAnkaragucu only recently helped him get his first career hat trick underaway. Onyekuru has admitted that he still desires to be part of the Premier League but is not concentrating on future prospects right now. Due to the issue about a work permit, it is still unclear ifOnyekuruwill be able to represent Everton in the near future. For the time being, he is extremely happy with life at the Galatasaray and he has even opened the possibility of staying at Galatasaray beyond the summer.
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Mauricio Pochettino remains upbeat despite the injury crisis

Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino remains optimistic about the club’s progress over the forthcoming months despite the recent injury crisis. The north London side recently witnessed an injury setback for Harry Kane and the concern has been added up with Dele Alli joining him on the sidelines while Heung-min Son is on international duty.

Both players are now unlikely to return to action until mid-March at the least but Pochettino has refused to delve into the troubles and concentrate with the options at hand, he said: “More problems, more positives, more optimism. In football, you cannot be affected by the things that happen. When the game finishes you can be disappointed and all the emotion arrives, but during the game the most important thing is that the team isn’t affected by that situation.”
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Carvalho on Manchester United

Former Chelsea player Ricardo Carvalho believes that Manchester United should keep faith in Jose Mourinho and give him more time to change things around. He believes that he is one of the best managers in the world and that he is the right man to bring success to the club.

He understands that there is some frustration from fans as Manchester United has been inconsistent this season and struggled in the league. He believes that Jose Mourinho should be given more time to build a team that can challenge for the title.
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Chelsea’s Eden Hazard hints at possibility of summer exit

Chelsea attacker Eden Hazard has hinted that he could part ways with the club next summer but also refused to rule out the possibility of seeing out the remainder of his career with the west London giants. The Belgium international has been the Blues’ standout performer during the first half of the campaign and he is currently leading their scoring charts with eight goals across all competitions.

Speaking to Canal +, Hazard acknowledged that he would have just one year remaining on his contract next summer, if he declines an extension and this may witness him pursue a fresh challenge with Real Madrid said to be his preferred destination. However, he also suggested the option of seeing out the rest of his career with the Blues, who have helped him gain reputation over the years, he said: “I have one year left in June. If I don’t extend, it (a move) is possible. I can’t see myself leaving in January. I wouldn’t do that to the club, the fans. Next summer it’s a possibility, but it’s also possible that I spend the rest of my career at Chelsea.”
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Sky Sports pundit hopeful of Arsenal’s chances of a top-four finish

Former Arsenal star Charlie Nicholas believes the Gunners have a reasonable chance of finishing in the top four this season after building up a four-match winning streak. The north Londoners begun the season in the worst possible way after back-to-back losses at the hands of Manchester City and Chelsea but they have since been propping up the table with four successive victories.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Nicholas admitted that he did not see the Gunners making the top four at the beginning but their fortunes could change over the course of the season with Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur not replicating the form from the previous campaign, he said: “At the moment I am pleased with the response from the first two defeats, everybody can see we have a real problem trying to adjust to the new manager’s policy defensively. My prediction at the start of the season was that Arsenal and Chelsea were going to be the two to miss out because there was too much toing and froing. I think that gap has closed for them because Man United are average and Spurs are struggling a little bit.”
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Paul Scholes speaks about Manchester United’s title prospects

Manchester United legend-turned-pundit Paul Scholes does not see the Red Devils competing for the Premier League title this season. United made good progress under Jose Mourinho last term as they secured the runner-up spot for the first time since the Alex Ferguson era but Scholes feels there is more work to do before they can close the gap on reigning champions Manchester City.

Speaking to Sky Sports News, he said: “I just don’t see United getting closer to City. City are a really good side, great manager, some great players, a way of playing that they all know about and Manchester United seem to be not too sure what’s going on.When you look at Manchester City, possibly Liverpool, I don’t think they [Man Utd] have the quality of those two teams at the minute.”
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LVG optimistic after defeating Manchester City

Manchester United claimed a 1-0 triumph over their rivals Manchester City and this was a huge victory for Louis van Gaal and his team as they are in need of every point that they can get in order to have any chance of finishing this season of the Premier League in a top 4 spot, which is the main objective that the Dutch coach wants to accomplish in this campaign.

 

If Manchester United does manage to secure a top 4 position in the Premier League, it will allow the club to compete in the Champions League of the upcoming season and this is the major reason of why Louis van Gaal is hoping that he can at least seal the 4th spot of the top tier English League.

 

After his team claimed a 1-0 victory over Manchester City, the Dutch coach spoke about the performance of Manchester United and voiced his thoughts about the chances that his team has to snatch a Champions League spot.

 

“I have said that we must win this game and we have done it so I am very happy because otherwise the gap was too big if they won, or a draw and the gap was still four points then it is very difficult. Now it is in our hands. We have to win our games. We have more home matches than away matches. We don’t lose often at Old Trafford.’’

 

“I have seen the dressing room after the match and it was fantastic, the happiness. I don’t think we have had a lot of luck this season and now we have a big result against Man City at the Etihad Stadium.’’ Manchester United’s Louis van Gaal said.

 

Depending on the results that Louis van Gaal manages to make from this point on this will play a major role in the future of the Dutch coach as he is constantly being linked with a departure from Old Trafford and there are even a number of managers who are being short-listed, one of the coaches who is rumored of turning into the new coach of Manchester United is Jose Mourinho. Lucky Lane Podcast: Ep. IX – iDebit Casinos Guide