Chelsea’s Lampard says road to success paved with a ‘lot of failure’

Chelsea’s Lampard says road to success paved with a ‘lot of failure’
Chelsea's English interim manager Frank Lampard prior to the English Premier League football match between Bournemouth and Chelsea at the Vitality Stadium in Bournemouth, southern England on May 6, 2023. (AFP file photo)
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Updated 20 May 2023

Chelsea’s Lampard says road to success paved with a ‘lot of failure’

Chelsea’s Lampard says road to success paved with a ‘lot of failure’
  • Caretaker Chelsea manager Lampard said his side should take heart from City’s work ethic
  • Chelsea, once a challenger for major trophies, are currently languishing in 11th place

LONDON: Frank Lampard has urged his Chelsea players to learn from the example set by Manchester City’s treble challenge when the teams meet at the Etihad on Sunday.

City will retain the Premier League title and win the first of the three trophies they are chasing this season if they beat Chelsea, and could already be champions by the time they kick-off depending on Arsenal’s result on Saturday.

If City take the title, it will be the fifth time in six seasons that Pep Guardiola’s team have been crowned champions of England.

They then have a second Champions League final in three years to come against Italy’s Inter Milan plus the FA Cup final against local rivals Manchester United.

City’s brilliant form was there for all to see with a 4-0 humiliation of European champions Real Madrid on Wednesday, a 17th win in their last 19 games.

Chelsea, once a challenger for major trophies, are currently languishing in 11th place despite co-owner Todd Boehly splashing out some £600 million ($747 million) on transfers during the last 12 months,

Caretaker Chelsea manager Lampard, who may be replaced by Mauricio Pochettino should the former Tottenham supremo be confirmed as the Blues’ new permanent boss, said his side should take heart from City’s work ethic.

“The only inspiration the young players should need is what it’s taken Man City to get where they’ve got,” said Lampard.

“It’s not the moment of lifting the cup, it’s Kevin De Bruyne’s journey, and (Erling) Haaland’s journey, and (Ilkay) Gundogan’s journey, and John Stones’s journey.”

The former Chelsea and England midfielder added: “A player has to understand that the cup-lifting moments are because of all the work done over the years against the odds, whatever it is, how hard they work.

“That team clearly works hard and then when one has to stop working hard the next one steps in and works hard. That’s what the players have to understand.”

Lampard said he had watched the documentary series The Last Dance, about NBA side Chicago Bulls’ success in the 1990s, in preparation for Chelsea’s final games of the season.

The interim manager, who will stand down following the final game of the season against Newcastle on May 28, said the series had some valuable lessons for his squad.

“Any group that lifts trophies has to understand what standards are and how you push and what you do, and that the weekend is a culmination of everything you do through the week, from how you prepare, how you train, that you train at a level that then transfers onto the pitch,” said Lampard, a multiple medal-winner at Chelsea.

He added: “There’s a lot of failure on the way to success. I think that’s the thing that a player in the modern day has to listen to, not casually but to actually listen to it and act upon it.”


Karim Benzema presented in front of thousands of Al-Ittihad fans 

Karim Benzema presented in front of thousands of Al-Ittihad fans 
Updated 09 June 2023

Karim Benzema presented in front of thousands of Al-Ittihad fans 

Karim Benzema presented in front of thousands of Al-Ittihad fans 
  • 35-year-old striker was introduced amid enthusiastic chants from Al-Ittihad supporters

JEDDAH: Over 50,000 Al-Ittihad fans turned out to catch the first glimpse of Karim Benzema wearing his new black and yellow, number 9 jersey at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium on Thursday, as part of the Saudi League champions' official team presentation.

The former Real Madrid forward and Ballon d’Or holder signed for three seasons to play for Al-Ittihad, in a contract worth an estimated €200m a year.

The 35-year-old striker was introduced amid enthusiastic chants from Al-Ittihad supporters.

With fireworks exploding around him, Benzema emerged on the pitch to present fans with the moment they had been waiting for since the announcement was made on Tuesday.

The Frenchman lapped up the adulation of his new home – juggling a ball, waving hands, blowing kisses to fans and tossing balls into the crowd.

Expectations are high that, with the addition of Benzema, Al-Ittihad will have a shot at competing for both the Saudi Pro League and the Asian Champions League.

The player, who attended a press conference with Abdul Wahab Abid, the CEO of Al-Ittihad club to mark the unveiling ceremony, expressed his satisfaction with signing for Al-Ittihad club, appreciating the reception accorded to him.

During the press conference, Benzema said he is looking forward to a new challenge and that he felt very excited to add more titles with Al-Ittihad.

He said: "Being with such a great team makes me to work hard to put a smile to the huge fans of Al-Ittihad."

Asked why he chose Al-Ittihad, he added: " I am proud to be here in Saudi Arabia with such a team with great reputation," and affirmed that his family is very happy in Saudi Arabia.

The CEO of Al-Ittihad told the press that his club is proud to have such a legendary player in its squad for the next three years.

"I believe we are lucky to bring Benzema to Saudi Arabia to represent our club. We are looking forward to seeing him on the field with his teammates to bring more glory locally and internationally," he said.

Benzema won 25 trophies and scored 353 goals in 647 appearances to become Real’s second all-time top scorer after Cristiano Ronaldo.

His first appearance for Real Madrid in 2009 was against Al-Ittihad during the Friendly Peace Tournament held in Madrid.


Declan Rice set to leave West Ham after winning European trophy, club chairman says

Declan Rice set to leave West Ham after winning European trophy, club chairman says
Updated 08 June 2023

Declan Rice set to leave West Ham after winning European trophy, club chairman says

Declan Rice set to leave West Ham after winning European trophy, club chairman says
  • Rice, who captained West Ham in its victory over Fiorentina in the Europa Conference League final on Wednesday, has been promised he can leave the club and wants to go
  • Rice has been linked with some of Europe’s top teams, including Arsenal and Bayern Munich

LONDON: England midfielder Declan Rice looks to have played his final match for West Ham.
Rice, who captained West Ham in their victory over Fiorentina in the Europa Conference League final on Wednesday, has been promised he can leave the club and wants to go, chairman David Sullivan said.
“You can’t keep a player who doesn’t want to be there,” Sullivan told British radio station Talksport on Thursday.
Rice has been linked with some of Europe’s top teams, including Arsenal and Bayern Munich.
“It’s not something we want to happen,” Sullivan said. “We offered him 200,000 pounds ($250,000) a week 18 months ago. He turned it down.”
The 24-year-old Rice has played for West Ham since 2017. He said after Wednesday’s final that “it’s not a goodbye yet.”
“Obviously there’s loads of speculation, but nothing’s happened,” Rice said. “I’m a West Ham player, I’ve got two years left on my contract. I love every minute of it.”
Sullivan said West Ham has yet to receive an offer.
“But I think the offers will start to come today,” Sullivan said. “There are three or four clubs who have shown interest, but out of respect to West Ham, while we’re still playing, you don’t make offers for players.”


Real estate developer ROSHN becomes platinum sponsor of Saudi champions Al-Ittihad

Real estate developer ROSHN becomes platinum sponsor of Saudi champions Al-Ittihad
Updated 08 June 2023

Real estate developer ROSHN becomes platinum sponsor of Saudi champions Al-Ittihad

Real estate developer ROSHN becomes platinum sponsor of Saudi champions Al-Ittihad
  • Citing the recent signing of Benzema, ROSHN Group CEO highlighted club’s importance to Saudi sport

RIYADH: Real estate developer ROSHN has signed a three-year deal to become the platinum sponsor of Saudi Pro League champions Al-Ittihad.

This sponsorship is part of the Public Investment Fund-owned company’s support for the development of the Kingdom’s sports sector, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Thursday.

ROSHN Group CEO David Grover described Al-Ittihad as an important part of the Saudi sports scene, citing the team’s recent signing of French superstar striker Karim Benzema.

Abdulwahab Abed, the CEO of Al-Ittihad, said the sponsorship deal comes at the end of a successful season during which the club won the Saudi Super Cup and the Roshn Saudi League. The sponsorship will allow the team to expand and develop, he added, particularly as it prepares to play regionally and internationally next season.

ROSHN has previously sponsored the Formula 1 Grand Prix in Jeddah and the LIV Golf Invitational, also in Jeddah.
 


Benzema happy to be in ‘beloved and beautiful’ Saudi Arabia and ready to push his limits

Karim Benzema signs for Saudi club Al Ittihad. (Supplied/Al-Ittihad)
Karim Benzema signs for Saudi club Al Ittihad. (Supplied/Al-Ittihad)
Updated 08 June 2023

Benzema happy to be in ‘beloved and beautiful’ Saudi Arabia and ready to push his limits

Karim Benzema signs for Saudi club Al Ittihad. (Supplied/Al-Ittihad)
  • New Al-Ittihad star is looking forward to playing against former Real Madrid team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo
  • Benzema eager to encourage more youngsters and females to enjoy football

JEDDAH: New Al Ittihad signing Karim Benzema is looking forward to getting results in front of the ‘passionate’ Saudi fans and delivering trophies to his “legendary” new club in a competitive league which he believes is improving year on year.

The current holder of the Ballon d’or signed for the Jeddah based club following 14 seasons of domestic and European glory with Spanish giants Real Madrid and is hoping that his experience can bring plenty of honours for his new club, the recently crowned Saudi Pro League champions.

Speaking on an exclusive interview published on the club Twitter and Instagram and Saudi Pro League channels, he said: “I hope for my new club, what I’ll be able to bring is my football and most importantly to be able to win titles. It’s a new chapter for me and I would like to further advance the club. It’s a club with a lot of passion. I would like the fans to find themselves in me. I would like to leave a lasting legacy, because I love football. I always have this competitiveness to push my limits and go even higher. That’s why I’m going to be well prepared to give them and show them my talent.”

When asked why came to Saudi Arabia, he stated: “Well because I am Muslim and it’s a Muslim country. I’ve always wanted to live there. I’ve already been to Saudi Arabia and I feel good about it. Most importantly it’s a Muslim country, it’s beloved and it’s beautiful. When I had a conversation with my family I was signing with Saudi Arabia, they were all very happy and here i am, to me it’s where I want to be.”

Speaking about the footballing standards of the players in the Saudi Pro League, he added: “I heard a lot of things, it’s a good championship and there are many good players… each year they take go a level higher. I saw the World Cup, they (Saudi Arabia) played a good game, great matches, especially against (eventual World Cup champions) Argentina. Obviously, they have very good players.”

Benzema famously created a potent attacking threat alongside Cristiano Ronaldo during a highly successful spell at Real Madrid, and he will be lining up against his former Bernabeu team-mate next season, after the Portuguese sensation joined Al-Nassr in Riyadh last term.

Benzema admits that his former team-mate is playing an important role in elevating the standard and profile of Saudi football.

“It’s important also that Cristiano Ronaldo is in Saudi Arabia, because he’s a very big player. He brings a lot to the game in this country and that will further elevate their playing level,” he said. “So it’s important to show that Saudi football can have a global impact because it’s not about playing in Saudi Arabia or not performing. No, on the contrary I have to push and show all that I was able to do in Europe and and bring it back with me to Saudi Arabia.

The lure of playing for Al-Ittihad, the oldest sports club in Saudi Arabia, was strong for Benzema. Explaining his decision to swap life in Madrid for Jeddah, he said: “It’s one of the top clubs in Saudi Arabia. It’s a club that sees a lot of passion from its fan and has many trophies.

“I would really like to further elevate the club. The stadium is exceptional, and as I said and will repeat; there’s so much passion - a good team always needs fans. The fans are very important, and with that passion, it gives us the motivation to be best on the field.”

Benzema’s signing is part of a new phase in brand-building for the SPL, aimed at generating greater global awareness, engaging more Saudi football fans across society, and encouraging greater community participation in sports, as part of Vision2030, the ambitious transformational plan. Over the last season of the Saudi Pro League, Al-Ittihad Club welcomed over 600,000 fans, more than any other club in the league and was watched from 48 different channels and platforms across 170 countries.   

The striker hopes it will have an impact on football fans all over the country. He said: “The message for all the young people who play football, who love football is to build their dreams, to work hard, to respect the rules of the game, which means respecting the human being, and to always have pleasure in playing football. And never give up; we can always achieve when we put in the work.”

On whether his high-profile signing will encourage more women to participate in football, he added: “Football is important for everyone - for women, for men and we see it even in Europe, they have female teams including the Champions League. It’s important to be supportive, and therefore whether it’s men or women, we are here to support. For women, I’m happy to be part of this family.”

Aside from football, Benzema admitted he had other reasons for moving to Saudi Arabia, stating his Muslim faith as playing a big part in the decision.

“I feel people already like me. And it will allow me to have a new life,” he said. “I would like to learn Arabic and speak fluently, it’s important for me. I’ve already been to Saudi Arabia, Mecca is very close (to Jeddah) and as a believer it’s important for me, this is where I will feel at my best and in my element.

The French star touched down at Jeddah’s King Abdulaziz International Airport late Wednesday, June 7 ahead of his official unveiling in Saudi Arabia.


Man City and Inter target Champions League glory in Istanbul final

Man City and Inter target Champions League glory in Istanbul final
Updated 08 June 2023

Man City and Inter target Champions League glory in Istanbul final

Man City and Inter target Champions League glory in Istanbul final
  • A victory for City will see them complete the treble after they claimed a fifth Premier League title in six seasons
  • Inter Milan have won the European Cup twice in the 1960s and this is their sixth final altogether

ISTANBUL, Turkiye: Manchester City are hoping to get their hands on the Champions League trophy at last, and complete a historic treble, when Pep Guardiola’s team face outsiders Inter Milan in Saturday’s final in Istanbul.

City have been building toward winning Europe’s elite club competition since the Abu Dhabi-backed takeover of 2008 which transformed them and helped reshape the sport on the continent.
They came agonizingly close to Champions League glory in 2021, losing narrowly to Chelsea in the final, before being denied in last year’s semifinals by a remarkable Real Madrid comeback.
Having exacted revenge on Madrid, the holders, in this season’s last four with a 5-1 aggregate triumph, they are now expected to complete the job at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium.
“We have all been working for this for a long time,” City goalkeeper Ederson, at the club since 2017, said this week.
“The whole team have seen a lot of victories but also defeats as well. The players who have been here for five or six years who have seen these sorts of defeats, we have learnt from them so that helps us to grow as a team.”

The Champions League trophy is shown at Besiktas' Vodafone park stadium in Istanbul, Turkey, on June 6, 2023. (AP)

A victory for City will see them complete the treble after they claimed a fifth Premier League title in six seasons and then lifted the FA Cup last weekend, beating Manchester United 2-1 in the final.
United were the last English club to achieve the treble, in 1999.
Ilkay Gundogan was City’s goal hero in the FA Cup final, as Erling Haaland drew a rare blank, but the Norwegian has scored 52 times for his club this season.
His goals appear to have taken City to another level, and Guardiola seems poised to finally win a third Champions League, 12 years after claiming a second in three seasons with Barcelona.
“If we want to make a definitive step as a big club, we must win in Europe,” Guardiola, who joined City in 2016, told UEFA.com.
“We have to win the Champions (League). That’s something you can’t avoid.”

Simone Inzaghi’s Inter may have something to say about that, however, and perhaps being the underdog will suit the Nerazzurri.
They are one of Europe’s grand old names, having won the European Cup twice in the 1960s.
This is their sixth final altogether, and first since Jose Mourinho’s team triumphed in 2010, completing a treble of their own.
No Italian club has lifted the trophy since.
Money talks more than ever in football, and City topped this year’s Deloitte Football Money League with revenue of over 700 million euros ($749m).
Their revenue was more than double that of Inter, a club swimming in enormous debts. Nevertheless, their proud history means Inter will be in Saturday’s final to win it.
“We are a big club and we have a lot of expectation,” said goalkeeper Andre Onana.
“When Inter gets into a final they have to win. We’re all big players, we know how to play finals.”
Inter, who finished third in Serie A and won the Coppa Italia, could have had a harder run to this stage, beating Porto, Benfica and neighbors AC Milan in the knockout rounds.
However, they did qualify from a difficult group ahead of Barcelona.

Curiously, City’s first ever appearance in the old European Cup came against Istanbul club Fenerbahce in the 1968/69 first round, and ended in a 2-1 defeat.
That team, featuring Francis Lee, Colin Bell and Mike Summerbee, was City’s last great side before Abu Dhabi’s arrival.
City did not return to Europe’s top table until 2011, by which time former Inter coach Roberto Mancini was at the helm.
The Ataturk Olympic Stadium has hosted a Champions League final between English and Italian clubs before.
This year’s match will need to go a long way to equal the drama of 2005, when Rafa Benitez’s Liverpool recovered from a three-goal half-time deficit to draw 3-3 with Carlo Ancelotti’s Milan before winning on penalties.
The 72,000-seat stadium, located around 25 kilometers west of central Istanbul, now finally gets the chance to stage the showpiece game again.
It was supposed to be the venue for the 2020 final, only for the pandemic to force UEFA to move the latter stages of the competition to Lisbon.
Plans to hold the final there in 2021 again had to be changed, with the match between City and Chelsea eventually taking place in the Portuguese city of Porto.