Football news

Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti is confident striker Didier Drogba will be back to his best when the champions resume their league campaign next weekend.

Drogba has struggled for consistency and fitness this season, but showed glimpses of his best in the 1-1 draw with Tottenham, even though he missed a last-gasp penalty.

Ancelotti said: “We need Drogba to come back to the performances he had last year and the goal against Tottenham was very good for him.

“Now his condition is better. He had a good reaction after coming on as a substitute in the last game, this is the important thing and following the goal against Tottenham he will show us a different Drogba in the next game.”

Big freeze puts SPL talks on hold

Discussions with leading clubs over reforms of the Scottish game will be deferred until the new year after the Scottish Premier League postponed a scheduled general meeting yesterday.

Proposals for a two-tier SPL, with 10 teams in each division, and changes to the calendar were set to be put to all 12 SPL clubs yesterday. However, the Arctic weather conditions which have decimated the fixture programme and disrupted travel across Scotland have caused the SPL to rearrange the meeting for January 4.

A strategic review group set up by the organisation concluded their eight-month schedule of meetings last week. All top-flight clubs have been involved in the 10 or so meetings at some stage, discussing how to overhaul the Scottish game.

Van Gaal rules out title challenge

Bayern Munich coach Louis van Gaal praised his side for their 5-3 win at Stuttgart on Sunday and then dismissed their chances of catching Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund.

Defending champions Bayern have been inconsistent over the first half of the season and, despite Sunday’s victory, remain 14 points behind Dortmund in fifth place.

Van Gaal believes that is too big a gap to make up and he has instead targeted a runners-up finish.

Van Gaal said: “Dortmund are a long way ahead, but we can make up a four-point gap to second place.”

Adriano will stay at Roma says Ranieri

Roma coach Claudio Ranieri insists Adriano will remain at the club despite speculation linking him with a move away from the Stadio Olimpico in January.

“Some players will leave in January but Adriano will remain at Roma,” said Ranieri.

“In order to compete on three fronts (Serie A, Coppa Italia and Champions League), we will need to use all of our players on our roster,” said Ranieri.

“All the players have to accept this situation which should be an added weapon for us instead of a problem.”

West Ham players behind Grant

West Ham midfielder Junior Stanislas insists under-pressure boss Avram Grant has the full support of the players.

“Everyone’s fully behind him,” said Stanislas, who grabbed West Ham’s late equaliser in Saturday’s 1-1 draw against Blackburn at Ewood Park.

“Everyone’s been pulling together. We’re just trying to stick together and get out of it. The belief is there.”

Grant’s side will be bottom of the table over Christmas, a position from which only one clubin the last 18 seasons has escaped relegation – West Brom in 2005.

Zamparini slates Palermo display

Palermo go into the Christmas break with club president Maurizio Zamparini’s criticism ringing in their ears. Sunday’s 1-1 draw against 10-man Bari, who sit bottom of Serie A, dropped Palermo to sixth in the standings.

Bari played with a man down for an hour but still managed to grab an equaliser through Andrea Masiello, after Josip Ilicic had given Palermo a first-half lead.

“I saw a horrible game by my team and a terrible approach by my coach,” Zamparini said.

“I am disappointed and bitter. I did not like the team’s display. This is not the way to go, we cannot think we can aim for great things this season if we play like this.”

Ferguson: no retirement plans

Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson says he has shelved all thoughts of retirement. On Sunday, Ferguson became the longest-serving manager in United’s history and on New Year’s Day will celebrate his 69th birthday.

It is almost nine years since he famously reversed a long-standing plan to quit.

Yet the fire still burns fiercely in the Scot’s soul and with his team now favourites to secure a record 19th league championship this season, Ferguson insists thoughts of walking away have long since been banished.

“The older you get the more worried you are about retiring,” he told MUTV.

“You start to realise that whilst you have got your health and good fitness, you should carry on in your job. All thoughts of retirement are in the back of my mind.”