Eden Hazard On his Way to Stamford Bridge

The Belgium Star Eden Hazard Is Rumoured To Go To Chelsea for £78m  As He Has Tweeted In Twitter That '' I will Join The Uefa Champions League Winner ''. Eden Hazard announced on Monday that he is joining Chelsea as Roman Abramovich took another decisive step in his rebuilding of the squad that won the Champions League.Chelsea have beaten off competition from Manchester City - who had been clear favourites to sign the exciting Belgium international but grew frustrated at the negotiations - Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur after becoming the only club who would go close to meeting the forward's demands.City are thought to have walked away from the deal last week with Spurs giving up some time ago. Hazard, currently on international duty and preparing to face England in a friendly this weekend, indicated to Chelsea on Saturday that he was set to accept their offer and yesterday took to the social media site Twitter to announce that he had "made up my mind", adding last night: "I'm signing for the Champions League winner."Chelsea will pay a fee of around euros 40?million (pounds 35.3?million) to Lille, with Hazard having demanded wages of pounds 4.6?million a year net of tax, so around pounds 9?million a year for his new employer. That averages out at pounds 170,000 a week.In addition his agent, John Bico, who has conducted an aggressive auction has made it clear that he wants a fee of pounds 6?million. If all the demands are met and with Hazard expected to agree a five-year deal, it means the overall cost of the signing, fees and contract will amount to around pounds 78 million which, even by Chelsea standards, is a substantial investment.Chelsea hijacked City's deal after receiving a call from Bico on the eve of the Champions League final with the agent telling them that he could persuade Hazard to join them if his demands were met. The 21 year-old can provide some of the width and creativity that Chelsea have lacked although where he fits in remains to be seen as he has suggested he wants to play as a classic 'No?10' - as does Juan Mata.The signing probably ends Chelsea's interest in the Brazil international Lucas Moura, a prime target for previous manager Andre Villas-Boas.Chelsea are without a permanent manager with interim head coach Roberto Di Matteo on holiday and not dealing with transfer targets and negotiations. Instead, technical director Michael Emenalo is working with Abramovich to conduct Chelsea's transfer business, which has so far included signing the German international wide midfielder Marko Marin for pounds 6.5?million from Werder Bremen and releasing Jose Bosingwa and Salomon Kalou, while Didier Drogba, also out of contract, is leaving having agreed a deal with the Chinese club Shanghai Shenhua.It can be expected that the signing of Hazard will hasten the departure of Florent Malouda, who has a year left on his contract and is considering a number of offers, including a lucrative deal from a Turkish club. Paulo Ferreira has also been told he can leave with Chelsea aiming to sign a new right-back. They have again been offered Ajax defender Gregory Van der Wiel, who was a target of former sporting director Frank Arnesen.Hazard becomes the fourth Belgian in the Chelsea squad but, unlike the other three - Romelu Lukaku, Kevin De Bruyne and goalkeeper Thibault Courtois - he will not be loaned out.Courtois spent a successful season with Atletico Madrid and is set to go back to Spain. It was announced yesterday that first-choice Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech, who recently turned 30, had signed a new four-year deal.Hazard has enjoyed a hugely successful season in France, where he was named Ligue 1 player of the year for the second season running after scoring 17 goals in 37 league games.City spent 15 months wooing Hazard, who was their guest at the recent Manchester derby, having also been shown houses in the area that afternoon. It had been claimed that Chelsea tried to sign Hazard in January but their interest is far more recent.Abramovich has already told his aides that he intends to create a young, hungry new team for next season. Chelsea also have a deal in place to sign Hulk from Porto, but that was negotiated by Villas-Boas.Hulk's agent, Teodoro Fonseca, has insisted Chelsea remain interested.Chelsea are also in the market for a top-class striker but matters are complicated by Fernando Torres's continued presence at the club and the claims that he has been guaranteed by Abramovich that he will have more opportunities next season.

Kolkata Knight Riders wins maiden IPL 5 Title

Kolkata Knight Riders Celebrating.

Kolkata Knight Riders thrashed the defending champions to grab their maiden IPL title in a nail biting finish on Sunday night.Riding high on Manvinder Bisla's 89 off 48 balls. The visitors acheived 191 runs target with five wickets and two balls to go.Earlier, while chasing 191 runs total, Kolkata Knight Riders suffered a big blow in the last ball of the first over when they lost their skipper Gautam Gambhir. Gambhir was bowled out by Ben Hilfenhaus at the score of two runs. After Gambhir's early departure, Manvinder Bisla took control of the chase and slammed 'quick' fifty off just 27 balls to resurrect KKR's chase. Bisla slammed three sixes and five boundaries to reach this milestone.Experienced Jacques Kallis and Bisla knitted precious partnership for KKR in sttering the team to a comfortable position in chase. Both of them built huge 136 runs partnership to steer out Kolkata to a commanding position in the game before Bisla was caught out after scoring 89 runs off just 48 balls. Bisla slammed five sixes and eight boundaries in his stupendous knock.However on the other hand Kallis was holding the fort; he went on to hit fifty in forty balls.KKR still in need of 39 runs when Bravo striked to scalp Laxmi Ratan Shukla at the score of three runs. He was soon followed by Pathan at the score of one run.With Kallis and Hasan on crease, Kolkata needed twenty runs in last two overs. The visitors suffered another blow in the penultimate over when Kallis was caught out at the score of 69 runs with KKR still 16 runs short of the target. But Shakib al Hasan and Manoj Tiwary steered Kolkata to their maiden IPL title.First it was Murali Vijay and then Suresh Raina and Michael Hussey who lead Chennai's attack against the visiting side in the 'grand finale' of the circketing extravagenza on Sunday night here. Murali Vijay (42 off 32), Raina (73 off 38) and David Hussey (54 off 43) powered Chennai Super Kings to 190 runs total against Kolkata Knight Riders.After electing to bat first, Chennai Super Kings started off strongly in their quest for third consecutive IPL title. Murali Vijay and Michael Hussey slammed KKR bowlers to collect quick runs across the ground. Chennai's first fifty came in just thirty five balls.Murali and Hussey added eighty seven runs for the first wicket before Vijay was dismmissed after a fantastic catch by Shakib Al Hasan. With one six and four boundaries, Vijay added 42 runs off 32 deliveries.Despite Murali Vijay's departure,  Michael Hussey continued to rain runs from the another end.  Hussey took 38 deliveries to slam fifty runs.Suresh Raina, who came in to bat at number two after Murali's departure, took control of the situation and continued the momentum to slam quick fifty of just 27 balls.Hussey was dismissed by Kallis after stupendous 54 off 43 balls in the eighteenth over.While attempting a big shot, Suresh Raina was caught out in the last over at boundary line. He was dismissed by Hasan after a superb 73 off just 38 balls.Skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni remained unbeaten at the score of fourteen runs. 

Barcelona beat Athletic Bilbao to win Copa Del Rey Final

Messi  Celebrating after winning Copa Del Ray Title.

Barcelona have collected a record 26th Copa Del Rey Title,defeating Athletic Bilbao 3-0 at the Vicente Calderon as Pep Guardiola's illustrious era came to a close.The Blaugrana were ahead after three minutes thanks to Pedro's opportunistic finish following a corner. Lionel Messi, and a second from Pedro, put Guardiola's side three up inside the opening half hour to all but confirm the 14th trophy of a phenomenal tenure. In a repeat of the 2009 final the opening goal came inside three minutes as Barcelona started at a breathtaking tempo.Messi gave Athletic a early warning as he was able to run at the opposition defence before putting his shot narrowly wide, before Adriano crossed for Pedro whose shot was deflected behind for a corner. The Catalans opted to swing the delivery in, and it reaped rewards when the ball fell to Pedro who reacted first to open the scoring.The Basques looked to retain possession in the hope of building a sustained period of pressure on Jose Pinto's goal, but despite the keepers nervous clearances Athletic never truly threatened.Barca continued to exploit the openness of Athletic's defence as Messi cut inside from the right before bending a goal-bound effort toward the top corner. But for Gorka Iraizoz's flying save, Marcelo Bielsa's side would have fallen further behind.The Argentine, however, was not to be denied a second time. Messi latched onto Andres Iniesta's perfectly weighted through ball, taking it into his path with the outside of his left foot before lifting it into the roof of the net with his right.And Barca extended their lead when Pedro curled a precise finish into the far corner, following Xavi's delicate lay off five minutes later.The third goal appeared to awaken Athletic Bilbao as they threatened immediately after the restart with Markel Susaeta forcing Pinto into a smart save.However, Bielsa's side could have conceded a fourth when Messi managed to evade the attentions of Fernando Amorebieta latching onto a long ball, the wily Argentine attempted a lob from inside the area but it lacked the sufficient height to beat Iraizoz.Fernando Llorente, who had cut a lonesome figure in the attacking third for Athletic, was finally offered some support as the Basques found their passing rhythm. Iker Munian slid a pass through to Athletic's talismanic striker who turned expertly beyond Gerard Pique before, with a clear sight of goal, falling to ground only to see his claims for a penalty waved away by the referee.Bielsa made two changes at the break in the hope of overturning the three goal deficit in the second half, the Argentine coach introducing Inigo Perez and Ander Herrera.The changes had an immediate impact on the game as the Basque began to prevent Barca from dominating possession and territory, and were even afforded the first chance of the second half. Substitute Herrera slid an inviting through ball to Ibai Gomez but his attempted lob over an onrushing Pinto dropped beyond the target.As the second half progressed the Catalans appeared to be content with their three goal lead as Athletic's chances were limited to set pieces.With the contest seemingly over Guardiola's side appeared to be content with their three-goal lead as Athletic failed to create an opening. In fact Barca continued to look the more likely as they broke away, with Pedro denied a hat-trick thanks to a last-ditch tackle.Messi then embarked on a typically magical run, evading the challenges of four Athletic defenders, only to be denied a second goal by Iraizoz's outstretched boot.Despite the substitution, Athletic were gifted a golden chance to register a goal when Jon Aurtenetxe was left unmarked at the far post only to direct his header wide of the target from point blank range.Xavi, one of the players to symbolise Barca as a club, was then given a resounding exit by Guardiola as the Catalan's looked to stroll to a comfortable finish.The win, a 14th trophy for Guardiola in four years, cemented his place as the most successful Barcelona coach as he brings his legacy to a close, leaving the reigns to Tito Vilanova.

Krakow Zoo's Elephant to Predict Euro 2012

Krakow Zoo's Elephant Citta To predict Euro 2012 Tournament As He also Predicted Chelsea To win Final Of Uefa Champions League.The South African 2010 World Cup had Paul the Octopus to predict the scores, But this Time Meet Citta.The 33 year-old Citta, Krakow Zoo’s largest inhabitant, will now be applying her wisdom in predicting the results of the forthcoming Euro 2012 football tournament, which begins in Poland and Ukraine on 8 June.“Elephants have great intuition and I am confident that Citta will correctly indicate the favourite,” said zoo director Jozef Skotnicki during a press conference on Monday.Citta beat off competition from two other Krakow Zoo residents, a parrot and a donkey, by correctly predicting that Chelsea would win the European Champions League final in Munich last weekend.As Euro 2012 draws near, Citta will be offered fruit emblazoned with the flags of competing teams, and her instinctive choices will have bookmakers on tenterhooks.

Community Shield: Chelsea Vs Man City : Uefa Super Cup:Chelsea Vs Athletico Madrid:

Kolkata Knight Riders beat Dehli Daredevils to reach Final of IPL

Knight Riders' bowlers put in a tidy performance to help their side beat Daredevils by 18 runs and seal their spot in the IPL final.

Kolkata Knight Riders brazed into the final  Indian Premier League after scoring a thumping 18-run win over Delhi Daredevils in the first Qualifier on Tuesday.It was an interesting clash between the two IPL heavyweights but Kolkata emerged winner as they bowled with more discipline with each and every bowler taking at least one wicket.Kolkata Knight Riders recovered from regular blows to post a fighting 162 for four after electing to bat and then stopped Delhi to 144 for eight at Subrata Roy Sahara stadium.It is for the first time that KKR have made it to the summit clash in five editions of the league so far.Yusuf Pathan, who was going through a lean patch so far, struck form just at the right time for Kolkata as his uneaten 40 and a crucial 56-run stand with Laxmi Shukla (24 off 11) in just four overs helped his side cross 150-run mark.The top three KKR batsmen -- Gautam Gambhir (32), Brendon McCullum (31) and Jacques Kallis (30) batted well but could not convert the starts into big knocks.Delhi too paid the price of not having big partnerships as they lost wickets intermittently. Pressure gradually grew and the lower-order batsmen failed to soak in that.Mahela Jayawardene top scored for them with his 40 and for Kolkata Jacques Kallis (2/24) and Sunil Narine (2/24) shared four wickets between them.Delhi still have a chance to make the final as they will play in second Qualifier on May 25 against the winner of the Eliminator, which will be plyed between Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings.For Delhi it was a forgettable start to the chase with both the openers -- Virender Sehwag (7) and David Warner (10) were dismissed within 13 balls.Warner was bamboozled by a turning ball from Shakib Al Hasan which hit his pads before landing in gloves of McCullum. However umpire Billy Doctrove held the appeal.Sehwag was out next ball when he chased a widish Balaji delivery and just managed an edge into the gloves of McCullum.Jayawardene (40) and Ojha (29) added 59 for the third wicket to not let Kolkata build on the momentum. The Sri Lankan hit some majectic shots and Ojha too was impressive with his shots.Rajat Bhatia broke the partnership by having Ojha caught at point and Iqbal Abdulla had Jayawardene stumped as the match again shifted in Kolkata's over.Delhi surprisingly kept Ross Taylor behind in the line-up and sent Venugopal Rao ahead of him. Delhi needed 54 off the last five overs and Venugopal did not help their cause by taking 22 balls for his 13.Taylor struck a towering six off Sunil Narine and now everything depended on him as Delhi required 33 from 12 balls.However, the Kiwi fell while going for a big shot off Kallis. Negi and Mokel were out in the last over, in which they required 26 runs and it was all over for Delhi in this contest.

Drogba Set To Leave Chelsea

Didier Drogba The Striker Of Chelsea Is Set to leave Chelsea After Long Spell Of 8 Years.The 34-year-old, who scored a late equaliser and the decisive penalty in the shoot-out win over Bayern Munich on Saturday, is reported to have told team-mates his decision during Sunday's trophy parade.Members of the triumphant Blues squad chanted for Drogba to stay in front of his adoring fans but the Ivory Coast international appears to have decided his eight-year spell at Stamford Bridge is up."We will not be together next season," Drogba told France Football magazine."As I have decided to leave, I wanted to tell them (my team-mates) straight to their faces."Except that I could not do it. They made me break down."Even though it's been three years since I said I wanted to leave, I found it hard to admit that it was finished with me and the club."But I don't envisage sitting on the bench watching others play at a time when the club is looking at putting together a new team."So there we go, I am readying myself for a great leap into the unknown. It will be another adventure."Drogba has been linked with a lucrative move to Chinese side Shanghai Shenhuan, where his former Chelsea team-mate Nicolas Anelka is now a player-coach.

England Victorious Over West-Indies In the 1st Test.

In The 1st test of England vs West-Indies the match looked like West-indian will seal the victory even though West-Indies Gave The Target Of 191 but due to the fall of Quick Wickets England were no way In But Bell and Cook Guided Them To Win.Alastair Cook and Ian Bell made composed fifties to guide England to a comfortable five-wicket win over West Indies in the first test at Lord’s on Monday.The hosts had crumbled to 57 for four chasing 191 for victory on a chilly morning but Cook and Bell steadied the ship with a fifth-wicket partnership of 132.Cook was out for 79 just before the end but Bell steered England home, clipping Marlon Samuels for four through mid-wicket to seal victory and finish on 63 not out.Cook was out for 79 just before the end. “There’s always a bit of pressure when you’re chasing a score but we always had faith the wicket was going to stay very flat,” England captain Andrew Strauss told a news conference.“It was an outstanding performance from Cook and Bell, they played in a very professional way and showed their class.“We had to work very hard for this victory and it certainly wasn’t a formality to wrap it up today.”After resuming on 10 for two, Jonathan Trott became Kemar Roach’s third victim of the innings when he nicked a rapid seaming delivery to Darren Sammy at slip before Kevin Pietersen edged a catch to wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin trying to pull a short ball from Shannon Gabriel.That left West Indies scenting an unlikely victory against the world’s top-ranked team.The touring side have won only one of their last 18 tests in England and trailed the hosts by 155 runs on first innings but a battling 345 second time round kept them in the match.Cook and Bell displayed exemplary calmness in a tense atmosphere, however, rotating the strike neatly and hitting bad balls to the boundary to steer England to 131 for four at lunch.Cook got to his fifty just before the interval with a late cut for four off spinner Samuels, the left-hander reaching the milestone off 78 balls having hit eight boundaries.Bell passed fifty for the second time in the match midway through the afternoon session and the pair strolled through the final overs picking up runs at will before Cook was caught at gully by Kirk Edwards off Sammy with just two runs needed.“We are quite pleased with the way we played, we took the game to the fifth day,” Sammy said. “There were good performances by some of our players when nobody gave us a chance.“We kept coming back and that shows a good team spirit.”The second test in the three-match series starts at Trent Bridge on Friday.