Month: June 2022

Former Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech is to leave his role as technical and performance advisor following the arrival of new owners at the club.

Cech spent 11 seasons as a player at Stamford Bridge before returning after a spell at Arsenal to take up his current role in 2019.

There have been a number of key changes following the takeover by the Todd Boehly-led consortium, which ended Roman Abramovich’s 19-year tenure following his sanctioning by the Government for his ties to Vladimir Putin after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Chelsea announced last week that chairman Bruce Buck would step down at the end of the month, taking up a position as senior advisor, while sporting director Marina Granovskaia is also moving on, although she too will remain in an advisory capacity for the duration of the transfer window.

Boehly has assumed interim sporting director duties until a full-time replacement can be found.

“It has been a huge privilege to perform this role at Chelsea for the past three years,” Cech said in a statement.

“With the club under new ownership, I feel now is the right time for me to step aside.

“I am pleased that the club is now in an excellent position with the new owners, and I am confident of its future success both on and off the pitch.”

Cech will leave his role on June 30 and Boehly, chairman and co-controlling owner, said: “Petr is an important member of the Chelsea family.

“We understand his decision to step away and thank him for his contributions as an advisor and his commitment to the club and to our community.

“We wish him the best.”

Arsenal have confirmed the signing of United States international goalkeeper Matt Turner from New England Revolution.

The 28-year-old was widely expected to complete the move after the Major League Soccer side announced an agreement with the Gunners as early as February.

Now the deal has been confirmed by Arsenal, with Turner becoming their third summer signing following moves for young Brazilian forward Marquinhos and Portugal Under-21 international Fabio Vieira.

“Matt is an experienced goalkeeper who will bring high quality to our squad,” said Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta.

“He has shown with his performances in recent years in both the MLS and at international level with the United States that he is a goalkeeper who will give us added strength going into next season.

“We welcome Matt and his family to the club and we look forward to working together in the years to come.”

Turner’s arrival casts further doubt over Bernd Leno’s future at the Emirates Stadium, the Germany international having lost the number-one spot to Aaron Ramsdale after his arrival from Sheffield United last summer.

Leno has been linked with newly-promoted Fulham, with Turner now expected to play the role of back-up to Ramsdale.

Turner joined the Revolution in 2016 and has made more then 100 appearances for the club, picking up 18 senior caps for the United States and playing his part in helping Gregg Berhalter’s side qualify for the 2022 World Cup, where they will face England and Wales in the group stages.

Arsenal’s summer business is likely to continue in the coming days, with Manchester City striker Gabriel Jesus reportedly closing in on a move to north London, while Leeds forward Raphina has also been linked.

Romelu Lukaku will return to Inter Milan on a one-year loan deal, the PA news agency understands.

Inter chiefs are thought to have struck an €8 million loan fee with the Blues, with Lukaku understood to have taken a pay cut to leave Stamford Bridge.

The Belgium striker only joined Chelsea in a club-record £98 million deal last summer, but a number of controversies strained relations with the Blues.

Chelsea’s new co-owner Todd Boehly has put an immediate stamp on his tenure by giving the green light for Lukaku’s return to Inter.

US magnate Boehly has backed manager Thomas Tuchel over the decision to let Lukaku return to Italy.

And once the 29-year-old’s Inter return is officially complete, the Blues will be able to turn attentions to wider transfer business.

Chelsea will set about seeking a replacement, with the club understood to remain keen on Robert Lewandowski despite the Poland hitman’s desire to swap Bayern Munich for Barcelona.

Catalan giants Barcelona’s continued financial issues could yet open the door for Chelsea to pounce on Lewandowski’s unsettled situation.

Lukaku’s impending departure could yet point manager Tuchel towards a more fluid approach without a clear focal-point striker.

Chelsea hold strong interest in Manchester City’s Raheem Sterling, with the England forward open to leaving the Etihad Stadium with just one year left on his contract.

Chelsea’s next order of business after settling the Lukaku situation could well be to complete the long-mooted transfer of Sevilla’s Jules Kounde.

The France defender has made it clear for some months now that he is ready for the Stamford Bridge switch, but the two clubs will need to thrash out a fee.

Lukaku might have ended this season as Chelsea’s top scorer with 15 goals, but the vastly-experienced Belgium striker failed to live up to top billing.

A disastrous interview with Italian TV in December led to an apology to both Chelsea and the club’s fans in early January, after he had revealed his unhappiness in west London.

Despite several glimpses of hitting top form that never materialised, a move away now appears to suit all parties.

Lukaku is thought to have pushed for the move back to Inter in the end, and new Chelsea supremo Boehly has opted to clear the air by granting that switch.

FIFA has confirmed it is reviewing its gender eligibility regulations as world sports governing bodies scramble to establish policies that will make their competitions fair and inclusive across the board.

The inadequacy or absence of existing gender policies was brought into sharp focus this week when swimming body FINA announced a ban on athletes who have gone through male puberty from competing in women’s events.

In addition, FINA announced it would work to establish a separate open category for swimmers whose gender identity is different from the sex they were assigned when they were born.

A FIFA spokesperson said it was not in a position to go public on prospective changes to its existing gender policy, but confirmed a review is currently taking place.

The spokesperson said: “FIFA is currently reviewing its gender eligibility regulations in consultation with expert stakeholders.

“FIFA thereby takes guidance from many stakeholders (medical, legal, scientific/performance and human rights) as well as the November 2021 IOC Framework on Fairness, Inclusion and Non-discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity and Sex Variations.

“Due to the ongoing nature of the process, FIFA is not in a position to comment on specifics of proposed amendments to the existing regulations.

“Should FIFA be asked to verify the eligibility of a player before the new regulations will be in place, any such case will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis, taking into account FIFA’s clear commitment to respect for human rights.”

FA chair Debbie Hewitt acknowledged the difficulties in establishing a policy which would ensure the sport remained fair and safe whilst also respecting the rights of all those who wish to compete.

“I think it is a really tricky subject,” said Hewitt.

“We talk about inclusive but it has to be inclusive for everybody and it has to be fair, that’s the line that any sports administrator has to think about – is the competition fair and are we making sure that it is inclusion on both sides?”

FA chief executive Mark Bullingham indicated that existing reviews may conclude in separate policies concerning the elite level of the game and the grassroots.

“We have our own policy with grassroots we are working on at the moment and FIFA is doing a consultation for the elite of the game,” said Bullingham.

“There might be a slightly different approach to grassroots than you would have for elite.”

Defender Nathan Collins scored a sensational solo goal as the Republic of Ireland emerged from their Nations League clash with Ukraine with a creditable draw.

The 21-year-old Burnley centre-half wove his way through the home side’s mesmerised ranks before firing past stranded goalkeeper Dmytro Riznyk with the outside of his right foot in front of a largely stunned crowd of 10,641 in the Polish city of Lodz.

Collins’ first senior international goal was ultimately only enough to claim a 1-1 draw against the Euro 2020 quarter-finalists, to whom they lost 1-0 at the Aviva Stadium last week, after Artem Dovbyk levelled to ensure his side will sit at the top of League B Group One when they return to action in September.

A largely inexperienced Ireland team – with the notable exception of James McClean, who won his 94th cap – performed admirably at the LKS Stadium, with Collins, Dara O’Shea, Josh Cullen and Jason Knight particularly impressive to provide manager Stephen Kenny with further vindication of his vision.

Kenny was forced into reshuffles at the back and in attack, with Shane Duffy, John Egan and Michael Obafemi unavailable, and that meant starts for O’Shea, Darragh Lenihan, making his competitive debut, and, for the first time since September 2019, Scott Hogan.

Captained by McClean, who had joked at the pre-match press conference that the team chef had more chance of getting the armband, the visitors started on the front foot. with Troy Parrott’s early cross causing problems for keeper Dmytro Riznyk.

Ukraine, who had lined up with three at the back in Dublin last Wednesday evening, opted for four this time around, and that allowed the dangerous Mykola Shaparenko to adopt a more advanced role, although it was Ruslan Malinovskyi who tested keeper Caoimhin Kelleher with an 11th-minute snapshot.

However, the visitors should have been in front within seven minutes when Knight took advantage of Illia Zabarnyi’s slip to cross to the unmarked Parrott, who powered his header back across Riznyk but wastefully wide of the far post.

Kelleher was in action once again when defender Mykola Matviyenko’s 22nd-minute ball over the top put Vitaliy Mykolenko in behind wing-back Alan Browne, the keeper blocking the defender’s initial effort before Browne recovered to repel his follow-up.

Malinovskyi’s premature departure through injury and Mykhailo Mudryk’s arrival as his replacement saw Shaparenko drop back into midfield alongside Serhiy Sydorchuk, restoring the partnership which had proved so successful at the Aviva.

However, it was the playmaker’s 31st-minute pass which was picked off by Collins, who strode forward and eluded challenges from Oleksandr Zinchenko, Sydorchuk and Zabarnyi before stabbing the ball expertly past the advancing Riznyk to open the scoring in stunning style.

Full-back Oleksandr Karavaev blazed over from a tight angle and skipper Andriy Yarmolenko saw penalty appeals waved away by Turkish referee Ali Palabiyik after going down under O’Shea’s challenge as the home side responded.

However, Knight had forced a save from Riznyk in the meantime and the half-time whistle arrived with Ireland’s lead intact.

It remained so, however, for less than two minutes after the restart when Yarmolenko found half a yard beyond McClean to cross low and hand Dovbyk the simplest of tasks to level.

Lenihan drilled over after Josh Cullen’s free-kick had dropped invitingly for him, but Ukraine had their tails up as the midfield battle became increasingly physical and Ireland were left clinging on for dear life.

To their credit, they eased their way back into the came and Parrott saw a powerfully-struck effort deflected into the side-netting before Knight sent Riznyk diving across his goal once again.

A hugely entertaining game remained on the boil until the final whistle, but neither side was able to fashion a decisive moment as the spoils were shared.