Wenger hails FA Cup victory as Arsenal's most important trophy

Arsène Wenger described Arsenal's 3-2 victory over Hull City in the FA Cup final as a "big moment of happiness", and even went as far as to suggest that the club's first major piece of silverware in nine years was the most important in his time at the club.
Arsenal had to show all their fighting qualities on a sapping day at Wembley, after finding themselves 2-0 down inside eight first-half minutes, thanks to goals from James Chester and Curtis Davies. Wenger admitted feeling "shock" at the blistering start made by Steve Bruce's side and fearful that his "nervous" players would not overcome the setback.
However, Santi Cazorla's rasping free-kick after

Tearful Ashley Cole unsure of Chelsea future after Norwich draw

Ashley Cole broke down in tears as he, Frank Lampard and John Terry saluted the arena during the Chelsea players' end-of-season lap of appreciation, and José Mourinho confirmed the club intend to take stock over the next few weeks before determining whether the experienced trio are to prolong their careers at Stamford Bridge.
Talks have been continuing with the representatives of the England men, who have 1,609 appearances for Chelsea between them but are out of contract on 1 July, over new one-year deals. Yet while Terry and Lampard are expected to stay, albeit on reduced terms, Cole's future appears less certain, with the 33-year-old having started only 14 Premier League games this season after losing his place to César Azpilicueta. There is interest, too, in

Chelsea's José Mourinho: Eden Hazard does not sacrifice himself for the team

José Mourinho has lamented Eden Hazard's error in Chelsea's Champions League elimination but has no qualms with the Belgian's comments following the midweek exit to Atlético Madrid. Hazard, one of Chelsea's best players for much of the season, failed to track back to allow Atlético to equalise in Wednesday's Champions League semi-final second leg and later said the Blues are set up to counterattack, not to take the initiative in games.
The comments were interpreted as a slight on Mourinho's tactics, which have been criticised of late, and coming from a player linked with Paris Saint-Germain this summer led to speculation over his future.
"I listened to the interview," said Mourinho, whose side lost 3-1 to Atlético and play Norwich in the Premier League on Sunday. "There was nothing critical in

Gareth Bale hopes for Champions League glory after Bayern crushed

Gareth Bale helped Real Madrid to dismantle Bayern Munich in their own stadium, taking his club to a first Champions League final since 2002, and said that momentous nights such as these were the reason why he moved from Tottenham Hotspur for a world record £86m last summer.
Real won 4-0 at the Allianz Arena to advance 5-0 on aggregate and they will face either Chelsea or Atlético Madrid in the final in Lisbon. Carlo Ancelotti, the Real manager, said he would be happy to face Chelsea, who sacked him in 2011 while José Mourinho, the Stamford Bridge manager, would surely like to face Real, from where he departed last summer.
It was the sheer force of Real's first-half performance against the defending champions that took the breath away, with Sergio Ramos heading two

Terry, Eto'o and Hazard give Chelsea injury boost ahead of Atlético tie

Chelsea will have John Terry, Samuel Eto'o and Eden Hazard fit and available for the second leg of their Champions League semi-final against Atlético Madrid on Wednesday, with Petr Cech having also made a surprise appearance at training at Cobham on Tuesday morning.
The goalkeeper strode out into the Surrey drizzle with his team-mates just a week after dislocating his right shoulder during the goalless draw at Vicente Calderón in the first leg. The injury is still expected to rule Cech out for the remainder of the season – there remains the possibility he will undergo surgery – and he appeared to be

Chelsea critics are just jealous of José Mourinho, says André Schürrle

André Schürrle has claimed "everybody" at Chelsea believes they can win a Champions League and Premier League double, this season and critics of José Mourinho's tactics are simply jealous of his success.
Chelsea are two points behind the league leaders, Liverpool, following Sunday's 2-0 win at Anfield and take a goalless draw into the Champions League semi-final second leg against Atlético Madrid at Stamford Bridge. Mourinho, true to form, rubbished Chelsea's Premier League title prospects in the aftermath of their Liverpool victory but Schürrle suggested an opposing view is held inside the club's Cobham training ground. The Germany international also

Chelsea's Ramires accepts four-game ban and will miss title run-in

Ramires has accepted a four-game ban after being charged with violent conduct by the Football Association following an off-the-ball incident that was not seen by the match officials but caught on video.
The incident occurred during Chelsea's Premier League fixture against Sunderland at Stamford Bridge on Saturday 19 April. The ban includes three matches for this offence plus an additional game for his sending off at Villa Park last month.
The suspension means the midfielder will miss the

Sir Alex Ferguson will help to choose David Moyes's successor

Sir Alex Ferguson will be asked to take a prominent role in deciding Manchester United's next manager despite an acknowledgement within the club that he was responsible for choosing the wrong man last time.
United are deliberating between Louis van Gaal and Carlo Ancelotti to replace David Moyes after the former Everton manager was sacked in a 7.40am meeting with the club's chief executive, Ed Woodward. Diego Simeone, the Atlético Madrid coach, is also being considered but United are leaning towards a more experienced candidate and their initial discussions, involving Ferguson, have concluded that the job has come too early for Ryan Giggs, even if he exceeds expectations in his four games as interim manager.
Laurent Blanc has also been ruled out, despite Ferguson's close ties with the Paris Saint-Germain coach, and it has been made clear that the