José Mourinho clear to rejoin Chelsea as Real Madrid confirm his exit

Chelsea will not have to pay compensation for José Mourinho after Real Madrid confirmed that the Portuguese manager will leave the Bernabéu at the end of the season by mutual consent.

Nothing now stands in the way of Chelsea and Mourinho formalising an agreement that was reached in principle months ago.

The 50-year-old, whose position at Madrid had become untenable, has long been preparing for next season at Stamford Bridge – preparations that include contacting potential signings.

Chelsea hope to confirm his reappointment in the middle of next month.Madrid's president, Florentino Pérez, called a meeting with Mourinho at the club's Valdebebas training ground on Monday morning during which the two agreed to bring an end to the coach's contract, which was due to expire in 2016, after the final game of the season on 1 June.

That decision was then ratified by the board in the afternoon and made public at a press conference at the Bernabéu at 8pm. Pérez said that no compensation would be payable either by coach or club.Madrid's president said: "No one has been sacked." He also said that he would have liked Mourinho to have continued but that the pressure at Real Madrid meant that the time had come to end the relationship.

Hmmmmmmmm!

Football: Mourinho drops huge hint he's leaving Real Madrid to be 'where people love him'

Jose Mourinho issued a come-and-get-me plea to Chelsea after Real Madrid were dumped out of the Champions League semi-finals by Borussia Dortmund.

Real won 2-0 on the night but lost 4-3 on aggregate to the Germans and when asked if he would be at the Bernabeu next season, the former Chelsea manager said: 'Maybe not.'

When asked to elaborate, Mourinho, who has had an uneasy three years in Spain, added: 'I want to be where people love me.'

Mourinho later admitted in his post-match press conference: 'I know in England I'm loved. I'm loved by the fans, I'm loved by the media that treats me in a fair way, criticising me but giving me credit when I deserve it.

'I know I'm loved by some clubs, especially one, and in Spain, the situation is a bit different because some people hate me. Many of you are in this room.'

Over to you, Chelsea or is it a sealed deal?

                        Casting his spell: Jose Mourinho's magic narrowly failed to propel Real Madrid to the Champions League final

Football: Arsenal prepare to give Man United a guard of honour

Manchester United are expected be given a guard of honour by Arsenal when they walk out at the Emirates on Sunday – but why? 

                                          Honoured: Manchester United saluted Arsenal's title winning side at Higbury in 1991

It is not compulsory for any club to provide a guard of honour if they face the newly crowned League champions but is a ceremony agreed between the two clubs.

It is understandable that Arsenal would put one on for United, who first celebrated the Gunners' 1991 league title win, giving them a guard of honour at Highbury.

The Manchester club have a history of respecting opponents and they also honoured Chelsea lifting the Premier League trophy in 2005. To reciprocate, Chelsea did the same for United two years later. Everton also celebrated United's title success on the last day of the season in 2003 at Goodison Park.

But it is not exclusive to the modern era, and occurred as far back as 1955 when United provided one for Chelsea. It is not just used for title winners either – a guard was formed in 2011 by United and Sunderland to celebrate Sir Alex Ferguson's 25 years in charge. Newcastle players also applauded Arsenal on to St James' Park in 1994 when they won the European Cup-Winners' Cup.

                                           Guard of Honour: United applaud Chelsea on to the Old Trafford pitch in May 2005

It is an act that demonstrates a huge level of respect, but one that jars with many players and fans alike. The show must go on however- Congratulations Manchester United

Mum blames Suarez after son is bitten by another child in 'copycat' incident

A mother from Wales believes Liverpool striker Luis Suarez is to blame after her son was bitten by another child at school this morning.

  Suarez was fined £300,000 by his club after digging his teeth into Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic. The Uruguayan striker escaped a red card at Anfield yesterday, allowing him to remain on the pitch to score the 97th-minute equaliser against the visiting Blues. Suarez will not face criminal charges for the incident but has since been charged with violent conduct by the FA. 

But now a concerned parent believes her son was the victim of a 'copycat' incident after he was bitten on the elbow while at school.

I reserve my comments

Luis Suarez: The serious and the less serious

Luis Suarez's bite-attack on Chelsea rival Branislav Ivanovic may have rocked English football but it has also inspired many people to take a more light-hearted view of the scandal online. 

Photoshopped images of the Liverpool striker have gone viral, including one showing him as the blood-thirsty Count Dracula and more as killer shark Jaws, gobbling up victims.Others have compared him to a dangerous dog needing a muzzle or someone who is just very hungry. 

The Uruguayan was today offered anger management classes by the Professional Footballers' Association, allowing jokers to recreate the poster for Jack Nicholson's hit film, Anger Management.

These bite-inspired images have already become internet hits viewed by thousands around the world. Suarez earned the nickname 'The Cannibal of Ajax' and a seven-match ban in 2010 for drawing blood from the shoulder of PSV Eindhoven's Otman Bakkal while playing in Holland, allowing comparisons to Hannibel Lecter.

Liverpool's Managing Director Ian Ayre has confirmed that the Uruguayan has been fined for his latest misdemeanour  - believed to be between £200,000 to £400,000 – which go to the Hillsborough Family Support Group.

Champions League quarter-final draw: Barcelona to play Beckham's PSG

Madrid and Barcelona could still meet in the European Cup final for the first time in their history after the quarter-final draw kept the two Spanish giants apart and saw them avoid the German and Italian league leaders, Bayern Munich and Juventus, who will play each other in the tie of the round. They also missed out on facing Málaga, meaning that Spain could yet have three representatives in the semi-finals.

Certainly Spain's big two will be confident of reaching the last four, the draw for which, unlike in recent years, has not yet been made.There was also an unexpected match-up that emerged from the draw when Paris Saint-Germain's sporting director Leonardo asked his girlfriend, TV presenter Anna Billo, to marry him while giving his reaction to the draw that saw his team face Barcelona. From a the SKY Italia studio in Rome, Billo did not give an answer on air. Instead she told Leonardo, connected by satellite, that they would speak at home.

As well as Barcelona facing PSG, Madrid will play Galatasaray, while Málaga face Borussia Dortmund.PSG and Galatasaray were the sides that most Spanish teams wanted, although Madrid's assistant coach, Aitor Karanka, insisted "if we think that Galatasaray will be easy we are making a big mistake" and Barcelona's sporting director, Andoni Zubizarreta, called PSG a team of "great talent".There was, though, satisfaction at the Bernabeu and in Nyon, where Real's sporting director, Miguel Pardeza, greeted the draw with a smile. The draw will reunite Galatasaray's Didier Drogba and Wesley Sneijder with José Mourinho; Sneijder will face his former club for the first time since departing in 2009.

Paris Saint-Germain's Zlatan Ibrahimovic will return to the Camp Nou to face Barcelona, although he will miss the first leg through suspension.Madrid and Barcelona's opponents were less confident. Galatasaray's vice-president, Ali Durust, said: "Once you're in the quarter-finals all teams are strong but Real Madrid are above all teams. If you raise your targets high, then you need to rise to the challenge of such teams." Meanwhile, Paris Saint-Germain's sporting director, Leonardo, called Barcelona "the best side in the competition, not just for what they did last week [against Milan] but for what they have done over the last few years."For Málaga it was a different matter. Their coach Manuel Pellegrini has become the first to take two Champions league debutants into the quarter-finals. Now he will try to match his feat at Villarreal in 2006, when they reached the semi-final against Arsenal. Málaga had expressed a desire to avoid the Spanish teams, with their winger Joaquín insisting that playing a side from their own country would take some of the shine off being in the advanced stages of a European competition.That desire was met but they would have preferred to avoid Jürgen Klopp's impressive Borussia Dortmund side. "The way that Málaga knocked out Porto shows that they have quality," Klopp said. The coach also described them as the "surprises" of the tournament so far. But the sporting director, Michael Zorc, admitted: "We're satisfied with the draw: we're not complaining."The stand-out tie brings together Juventus and Bayern Munich.

The Juventus director Pavel Nedved said: "Bayern are one of the most difficult sides we could have got. I think Bayern are very similar to our team so this will make everything even more difficult for us."Jupp Heynckes, the Bayern coach, said: "I know Juventus very well. I have seen them a lot over the last two years. They are the best team in Italy at the moment and they have a great stadium. They are a very strong team tactically, defensively and offensively. I'm sure they will be two great football matches." The Bayern chairman, Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, admitted: "This was not the draw we dreamed of. Statistically, we do not have a good record against Juventus. We will need to play very well in both games.

"In the Europa League Chelsea, Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur all managed to avoid each other in the draw for the quarter-finals, where they will meet Rubin Kazan, Benfica and Basel respectively.

Rubin Kazan have already knocked out two Spanish sides in Atlético Madrid, the Europa League holders, and Levante. Moreover, Rubin were unbeaten in a tough group including Internazionale last autumn and, having conceded only three goals in 10 European games this season, are particularly strong defensively.Rafael Benítez will hope Chelsea can play the away leg in Moscow rather than Tatarstan. Rubin's base, the Russian republic of Tatarstan, is the furthest east of any European club left in the competition but they staged their last-16 home match against Levante at Moscow's Luzhniki Stadium due to problems with their pitch. It will be re-examined by Uefa inspectors early next week when a decision will be made about the tie's Russian venue.

Benfica arrived in the Europa League after finishing third in a Champions League group that included Barcelona and Celtic, and were able to produce a 0-0 at the Camp Nou. "I'm really pleased with the draw, it's fabulous," said Alan Pardew. "Benfica are top of the Portuguese League and have a fantastic history but playing the second leg at home gives us a slight advantage. My feeling is that I have a side that can beat anybody."On paper at least, André Villas-Boas's Spurs face the easiest of the three ties. Basel scraped into the quarter-finals only after Russia's Zenit St Petersburg missed a late penalty on Thursday night but Murat Yakin, the Swiss team's coach, seems undaunted by the prospect of facing Gareth Bale and friends. "We're extremely excited," said Yakin. "Tottenham Hotspur are a great team from a wonderful city and we have nothing to lose."

Full Champions League quarter-final draw

Málaga v Borussia Dortmund
Real Madrid v Galatasaray
Paris Saint-Germain v Barcelona
Bayern Munich v Juventus

Chelsea pegs Manchester United back to set up an FA cup replay

For a long time it had looked as though this could be added to the considerable list of indignities engulfing Rafael Benítez. It is not often the chants of "sacked in the morning" emanate from both sets of supporters and, at 2-0, it was shaping up to be the kind of result to accelerate the process of changing that word he dislikes so much. "Interim" might conceivably have become "former" if Chelsea had finished this match as they started.What happened instead can be partly attributed to the sapping effects a traumatic defeat to Real Madrid had had on Sir Alex Ferguson's players. They looked weary, mentally as well as physically, and were fading badly by the end. Yet those excuses only stretch so far and this still represents a victory of sorts for Benítez. There were cries of "You don't know what you're doing" from Chelsea's supporters when he took off Frank Lampard and Victor Moses early in the second half. He should cherish what followed because these kind of moments have been all too rare in his brief, often tumultuous spell in charge.

The transformation was remarkable bearing in mind the way they began the match, riddled with errors, looking short of confidence and perhaps suffering their own fatigue. Ferguson was entitled to blame tired legs and minds but Chelsea, lest it be forgotten, did not get back from their Europa League tie against Steaua Bucharest until the early hours of Friday.
It started with Hernadez in the 5th minute and the lead further increased by a free kick by Rooney but it was to be a game of two halves with Chelsea owning the second half equalising through goals from Hazard and Ramires.