Pellegrini Fumes After Sloppy City Blow Lead
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TUESDAY, DECEMBER 30, 2014 SPORTS Ghana, South Africa keep squad options open JOHANNESBURG: Title favorites Algeria have Gourcuff included 18 of the 23 players who went to agreements with then-coach Kwesi Appiah. hence the bloated squad,” he said of a group from named a final squad for the 2015 Africa Cup of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil and took the North Veteran midfielder Michael Essien, who played which he must drop 11 players. Nations in Equatorial Guinea while Group C rivals African country to the knockout stage for the first under Grant at Chelsea, was another former star A surprise omission from the provisional group is Ghana and South Africa are undecided. time. The Desert Foxes bowed out in the second who failed to make the cut. Kaizer Chiefs centre-back Tefu Mashamaite, who New Ghana coach Avram Grant, who guided round after forcing eventual champions Germany There were recalls for DR Congo-based goal- started in a drawn final-round eliminator away to Chelsea in the 2008 Champions League final loss on into extra-time before suffering a 2-1 defeat. keeper Ernest Sowah, defender Samuel Inkoom defending champions Nigeria, who did not qualify. penalties to Manchester United, chose a 31-man Newcomers are goalkeeper Izzeddine Doukha, from American club Houston Dynamo and Italy- Probably the biggest concern for Mashaba is provisional squad. defender Mehdi Zeffane, midfielders Mehdi Abeid based midfielder Alfred Duncan. striker Tokelo Rantie from English second-tier And South Africa counterpart, Ephraim ‘Shakes’ and Foued Kadir, and striker Ishak Belfodil. Grant will rely heavily on striker Asamoah Gyan, league leaders Bournemouth, who hopes to recover Mashaba, called up 34 players for a post-Christmas They replace Cedric Si Mohamed, Liassine who plays for United Arab Emirates club Al Ain and from a shoulder injury. Johannesburg training camp. Cape Verde Islands, Cadamuro, Nabil Ghilas, Mehdi Mostefa and Hassan made the final five of the 2014 African Footballer of Angry ex-Newcastle and Chelsea striker Demba Gabon and Mali have also picked final squads for Yebda for a competition Algeria won in 1990 as the Year race before being eliminated. Ba took to Twitter after being left out of the provi- the biennial 16-nation African football showpiece at hosts. Their good World Cup showing lifted Algeria South Africa are back at the Cup of Nations as sional 28-man Senegal squad picked by coach and Equatoguinean venues Bata, Ebebiyin, Malabo and to No.1 on the African rankings, and a five-match qualifiers for the first time since 2008 and much of former France star Alain Giresse. Mongomo. Other contenders to select provisional winning streak in the 2015 qualifiers has confirmed the credit has been heaped on former Orlando “I cannot wait to hear the excuses of the coach squads of varying numbers include Burkina Faso, the Foxes as favorites. Grant omitted Kevin-Prince Pirates defender Mashaba. and then destroy them one by one,” tweeted the 29- Cameroon, Congo Brazzaville, Senegal, Tunisia and Boateng and Sulley Muntari, who were kicked out He has restored pride to a national team that year-old who has been scoring regularly for Besiktas Zambia. Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial of the World Cup squad in Brazil, after initially hint- steadily slumped after conquering Africa in 1996, in Turkey. Giresse has many proven goal poachers Guinea, Guinea and Ivory Coast have yet to reveal ing that he might recall the midfielders. and lifted morale when goalkeeper-captain Senzo to choose from, including Papiss Cisse of Newcastle their hands ahead of a January 7 deadline for final Muntari assaulted a Ghanaian official and Meyiwa was murdered during the qualifying cam- and Sadio Mane of Southampton, who scored in player lists. France-born Algeria coach Christian Boateng was sent home after training-ground dis- paign. “I want to give everyone a chance to impress, weekend English Premier League matches. — AFP Bournemouth stay top after Millwall stroll LONDON: Bournemouth surged four points up a tense finish. “It was a great game and it clear at the top of the Championship with a could have gone either way. But the thing clinical 2-0 win at Millwall on Sunday. that has improved for us after a very bad With second-placed Ipswich not in action November is our defending and we have until Tuesday, Eddie Howe’s team took been harder to beat and we have built off advantage to cement their position as sec- the confidence of that,” Jackett said. ond tier promotion pace setters heading “The goals against column has improved into the new year. and you could see our heart, spirit and Yann Kermorgant’s penalty broke the organisation. Our defending was very good deadlock at The Den in the 32nd minute and it needed to be.” and Harry Arter doubled Bournemouth’s Birmingham made it six wins from their lead before half-time, while the struggling last nine league matches with a 3-1 success Lions had Shaun Williams sent off late on. “It at Nottingham Forest. Clayton Donaldson was a very hostile atmosphere but we dealt bagged a brace after David Cotterill had well with the challenge that was posed and broken the deadlock, while Britt concentrated on the football which is the Assombalonga netted late on for the lack- most important thing for our perspective,” lustre hosts. Howe said. Bottom of the table Blackpool came from “We always felt if we could keep a clean behind to draw 1-1 with Rotherham at sheet we’d have a good chance to win the Bloomfield Road, with Dominic Telford game. We’ve been 2-0 ahead against equalising late on after Emmanuel Ledesma Millwall before and ended up drawing, so it had broken the deadlock. was a good test for us to learn from the pre- Adlene Guedioura bagged a brace and vious game.” Odion Ighalo and Gabriele Angella also net- LONDON: Burnley’s Ashley Barnes (centre left) celebrates after scoring during the English Premier League soccer match. — AP Middlesbrough moved up to third place, ted as Watford won 4-2 at Cardiff, with five points behind Bournemouth, after a Adam Le Fondre and Kenwyne Jones reply- goalless draw at Blackburn. Wolves contin- ing for the Bluebirds. Pellegrini fumes after ued their recent resurgence with a 2-1 Huddersfield recovered from conceding defeat of Brentford at Molineux. a first-minute Darren Pratley goal to beat Nouha Dicko put Kenny Jackett’s team Bolton 2-1 thanks to strikes from Jacob ahead in the seventh minute and James Butterfield and Nahki Wells. sloppy City blow lead Tarkowski’s 73rd minute own goal gave the Hal Robson-Kanu’s penalty and a Simon hosts breathing space, before Wolves mid- Cox effort helped Steve Clarke’s Reading fielder Kevin McDonald was dismissed and edge out Norwich 2-1, with Bradley Johnson MANCHESTER: Manuel Pellegrini accused his that we couldn’t keep the same intensity as we had in next face Sunderland on New Year’s Day. “It is very diffi- Danny Batth scored at the wrong end to set on target for the Canaries. — AFP Manchester City players of complacency after they the first half. “In the second half, they scored the early cult to know for now. He still has some problems in his allowed a two-goal lead to slip away in a costly 2-2 goal and that was very important for them. They grew a calf.” Pellegrini also blamed the fixture schedule, and draw against lowly Burnley. lot and had a lot of trust in what they could do.” the fact his players had to perform on a heavy, snow- The defending champions wasted the opportunity Pellegrini, who revealed he had left Yaya Toure out of bound pitch at West Brom on Boxing Day, for their poor to pull to within a point of Premier League leaders his squad as a precaution after the Ivory Coast interna- second half showing. Chelsea, who were held by Southampton earlier on tional reported a slight groin problem, remained defi- But opposite number Sean Dyche not only named Sunday, after first half goals from David Silva and ant about City’s title chances despite the setback. “Of the same starting line-up that lost to Liverpool on Fernandinho had put City well in control at Eastlands. course, this was a chance to have two points more, but Boxing Day but also resisted the temptation to make a An early second half effort from Burnley’s George not a chance for anything else,” he said. “We have to substitution during the 90 minutes at the Etihad. “I find Boyd was followed by a dramatic 82nd minute equalis- play the complete second round (of fixtures). We have it incredible people are making that point,” said Dyche. er from Ashley Barnes which ended City’s bid for a club finished the first round with 43 points, which is a good “When I was playing, we would put out the same team record 10th consecutive victory. “The way we’re playing, amount of points. “After leading 2-0, it’s more disap- if we were playing well. “I don’t over-think it. If the team we need to run a lot of metres,” said Pellegrini. “Maybe pointing to lose the two points but we have all the sec- is ready to play, we play and today the players were leading 2-0 we thought that the game was over but ond round to see who is the best team.” ready to deliver. “I keep reading about ‘struggling until the last whistle the game has never finished.