How quickly affections can switch in soccer. Where once they would serenade coach Jose Mourinho at Stamford Bridge with an operatic flourish, now Chelsea fans have fallen headlong for another man driving them inexorably to the Premier League title.
The north-east rivals played out a tame goalless Premier League draw at St James' Park on Wednesday.
The former Manchester United midfielder, who was an integral part of Alex Ferguson's dominant United teams for almost two decades, said there is a "lack of creativity and risk" in Van Gaal's team.
England and Sunderland footballer Adam Johnson has admitted one count of sexual activity with a 15-year-old school girl and one of grooming at Bradford crown court on Wednesday.
Chelsea maintained their stranglehold on the Premier League by beating Sunderland 1-0 on Wednesday to register their 10th successive win and move six points clear at the top of the table.
Rediff.com brings you the previews of the main matches scheduled for this weekend in the English Premier League.
Manager Arsene Wenger has urged in-form Arsenal to stay vigilant against complacency, with the Frenchman saying his years spent in England have taught him not to take the "jungle" that is the Premier League for granted.
I-League new entrants JSW Sports have bolstered their squad with the signing of two England-based defenders John Johnson and Curtis Osano.
Chelsea's 3-0 win over Middlesbrough on Monday moved them seven points clear at the top with three games left and a win at West Brom will make them champions.
Rafael Benitez is well-known for his 'Rafa rants' and his latest tirade against employers Chelsea could further damage his reputation and chances of finding another job.
In a bitter outburst at the fans who have barracked him relentlessly and an angry swipe at the club's board for only appointing him 'interim' manager, Rafael Benitez said on Wednesday he will leave Chelsea at the end of the season.
Substitute Nani reminded manager Alex Ferguson of his qualities by inspiring Manchester United to a laboured 2-1 home win over Reading in the FA Cup fifth round on Monday.
Blackburn Rovers sacked Henning Berg on Thursday after only 57 days and 10 games in charge, becoming the second manager to depart a foreign-owned English Championship (second division) club in the space of a few hours.
Second-half goals from Ramires and Victor Moses secured FA Cup holders Chelsea a 2-0 fifth round win at second tier Middlesbrough on Wednesday and set up a mouthwatering quarter-final away at Manchester United.
The points table of the English Premier League 2016-17 season.
Footage showed the Leeds players in an open-top double-decker bus, surrounded by a swarming mass of chanting fans enveloped in smoke from flares and fireworks.
Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy will serve a three-match suspension after the club's appeal against his dismissal during Saturday's 2-2 Premier League draw with Stoke City was rejected, the Football Association (FA) said on Tuesday.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Friday.
Ryan Giggs will captain Britain's football team at the London Olympics, head coach Stuart Pearce said on Sunday.
Second-placed Tottenham Hotspur kept up the distant chase of Premier League leaders Chelsea with a hard-earned 2-1 victory over Southampton to cut the gap to 10 points on Sunday.
Arsenal scored three goals in a seven-minute burst after halftime against visitors Aston Villa, including two penalties from Robin van Persie, as they staged a dramatic comeback to win 3-2 and reach the FA Cup fifth round on Sunday.
Norwich City will return to the Premier League next season for the first time since 2005 after clinching promotion Monday.
Manchester City made sure of third place in the Premier League when they romped to a 5-0 win at Watford on Sunday to ensure a Champions League berth for next season.
With less than a month of the Premier League season left it remains Chelsea's title to lose but Tottenham Hotspur defiantly stayed in contention by grinding out a 1-0 victory at Crystal Palace on Wednesday.
Campaigners from Hamburg-based (Germany) think-tank World Future Council, along with British charity ActionAid, protested against the Church of England and Middlesbrough Borough Council on Monday for investing their pension funds in UK-based metals and mining company Vedanta Resources Plc (with an $8-billion group turnover), whose reputation for trampling human rights and alleged unclean mining practices has been questioned before.
The Polish keeper's future in doubt as David Ospina impressive for Gunners in front of goal this season
Australia goalkeeper Brad Jones is joining Liverpool for 2.3 million pounds ($3.59 million) from Middlesbrough after the clubs agreed a fee on Monday.
The British police continued investigations into the death Indian-born Labour member of Parliament, Ashok Kumar, treating it as "unexplained" as Prime Minister Gordon Brown patted his contribution to the country.
Everton manager Ronald Koeman is not one to get carried away so it was unsurprising that he reacted to their best ever start to a Premier League season by focusing on where they needed to improve. Everton made light work of promoted Middlesbrough on Saturday, fighting back from going behind to win 3-1, with midfielder Gareth Barry marking his 600th Premier League appearance with a goal. Further efforts from Seamus Coleman and Romelu Lukaku wrapped up a victory that lifted unbeaten Everton back into second in the table after five games.
This and more from the happenings in the world of football
Scott McDonald was one of three players cut from Australia's preliminary World Cup squad by coach Pim Verbeek on Tuesday.
The much-anticipated clash between Liverpool and ManchesterCity at Anfield on Saturday looks like a knockout to determine who can challenge Chelsea for the Premier League title.
A makeshift England side beat Romania 1-0 in their final Euro 2020 warm-up game, while Belgium's Romelu Lukaku underlined his status as one of the world's top strikers with his 60th international goal to secure a 1-0 win over Croatia.
FA Cup added another incredible chapter to its proud heritage on Saturday as Chelsea and Manchester City were humbled by supposed inferiors.
Arsenal striker Robin van Persie will miss the first leg of their Champions League semi-final against Manchester United with a groin strain.
Liverpool's lingering Premier League title hopes virtually disappeared on Saturday when they lost 2-0 at Middlesbrough as the home side secured their first league win in 15 matches.
Dimitar Berbatov dozed through 69 minutes of Manchester United's home game with Middlesbrough on Monday before scoring the only goal to keep the champions in touch with the Premier League leaders. The Bulgarian striker appeared an uninterested observer for much of a freezing night at Old Trafford but when the visiting defence failed to properly clear a Michael Carrick cross he was well placed near the penalty spot to steer it back past Ross Turnbull for the decisive goal.
Gareth Southgate insists Middlesbrough will fight on after their Premier League future was left hanging by a thread following a damaging 3-1 defeat by relegation rivals Newcastle United.
Johnson will be only the second British leader since Indian independence to attend the annual Republic Day parade in New Delhi as Guest of Honour, after former prime minister John Major in 1993.
