Sunday, 24 January 2016

Wenger run will be Unique - Hiddink

Chelsea interim boss Guus Hiddink thinks no Premier League manager will be given the same amount of time that Arsene Wenger has had at Arsenal.

Wenger, 66, has been in charge of the Gunners for nearly 20 years and has won the Premier League title three times.

However, the Frenchman went eight seasons without a trophy before lifting the FA Cup in both the last two years.

"He might be one of the last to sit on the chair that long," said Hiddink, who is in his second spell at Chelsea.

"Him being in charge in those years without a title means there is a lot of confidence from the board. It's always good to have men who have a long period at a club."

In the 19-and-a-half years Wenger has been at Arsenal, Chelsea have changed their manager 12 times - and won the Premier League title on four occasions.

Asked why Wenger's longevity might be a thing of the past, Hiddink, who replaced Jose Mourinho after he was sacked in December, added: "I don't know why. Maybe the instant result is required.

"It depends on the club, on the philosophy and the calmness of a club."

Arsenal entertain Chelsea on Sunday and will return to the top of the Premier League with a win, although the Gunners have not beaten the Blues in eight Premier League games, a run stretching back to October 2011.

But Wenger is still talking down their chances of winning the league for the first time since 2003-04.

"Sixteen games to go is a long way. Sixteen games in some countries is the championship," said Wenger.

"I believe we have a strong spirit but spirit is a bit like the weather in England. It can change very quickly. And we have to take care of that."




With BBC

Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) pointed Nigerians in the wrong direction - Audu Ogbe


The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr Audu Ogbeh, has blamed the poor run of Nigeria’s economy on the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) introduced by former Head of State, General Ibrahim Babangida according to Channel Television.

He disclosed this during an interview in Otukpo, Benue State, at the flag off of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Benue South Senatorial re-run election campaign for its candidate, Mr Daniel Onjeh.

The Agric and Rural Development Minister, who blamed Nigeria’s over-reliance on crude oil, claimed that the Structural Adjustment Programme pointed Nigerians in the wrong direction.

He advised Nigerian youths to take advantage of the oil crisis in other to diversify into Agriculture and non-oil sectors.


Ogbeh also expressed concern over the high rate of unemployment among Nigerian youths with the advice that they take up opportunities being created in the agric-sector, in other to earn themselves legitimate sources of livelihood.

Deadly snowstorm buries much of US East Coast

The massive winter storm that's clobbered the East Coast is heading out to the Atlantic, but the problems it caused aren't over.
Crews are scrambling to clear the roads before the work week starts.
But while the sun and rising temperatures expected in some areas Sunday may help cleanup efforts, meteorologists are worried about ice, which could make roads more hazardous.
And on the New Jersey coast, flooding is a major concern as residents keep a wary eye on rising waters.
The storm has brought more than 3 feet of snow to some areas, killed 14 people, grounded thousands of flights and shut down travel in the nation's largest city.
    But snowfall in most of the major cities affected will likely finish early Sunday morning, except for some isolated flurries, CNN meteorologist Sean Morris said.
    Jason Pellegrini woke up Saturday morning at his home in Sea Isle City, New Jersey, expecting to see flooding. But when he looked outside, he saw none.
    "Then no more than 15 minutes later, I heard commotion out my window and I looked and I saw the raging water," he said. " It came in to the low-lying areas and it rushed fast, and it was like a tsunami."
    The restaurant Pellegrini owns was damaged during Hurricane Sandy in 2012, but he says this surge came from the back bay and bodies of water to Sea Isle's west rather than from the ocean.
    "It was overwhelming," Pellegrini said. "I rushed to move my car to higher ground, and by the time I got back I was in waist-deep water."
    Coastal flooding remains a big concern for much of New Jersey due to the timing of the storm.
    It hit during a full moon, which means high and low tides will reach their zenith and nadir for the month. Two high tides have come and gone, but a third is coming Sunday morning, during which forecasters predict more widespread flooding will occur.
    After that, Pellegrini said, "I expect our town to be under considerable water."
    The National Weather Service has issued a warning for the New Jersey coast until noon Sunday.
    "Unfortunately we went through this a few years ago with Sandy," Pellegrini said. "I think now I'm just becoming accustomed to it."
    After Sandy, sand dune walls were built to help keep water from flooding ashore.
    They worked well during this storm, helping to push back waves that were as high as 20 feet, said Vincent Jones with the Atlantic County Office of Emergency Preparedness.
    "They are basically the first line of defense," he said.
    Margate City, just down the coast from Atlantic City, was also affected.
    "In a lot of our business areas and our back bay areas, water is coming over the bulkhead in a lot of the same areas as Hurricane Sandy hit," Lt. Matt Hankinson of the Margate City Police Department said. "Some areas I would say it's thigh- to waist-deep."
    Farther south in North Wildwood, the high tide was much higher than anticipated and caught many of the town's 5,000 year-round residents off guard -- with flooding levels that actually exceeded those during Hurricane Sandy, said Patrick Rosenello, the city's mayor.
    "We had a lot of evacuations, a lot of people who had stayed in their homes not anticipating this, needing to be rescued," Rosenello said.
    Most of the city was without electricity, he said, and the phones at the emergency dispatch center were jammed all day.
    The National Weather Service said "significant" beach erosion was likely. Rosenello said Saturday's flooding "devastated" the dune system.
    "There's going to be major cleanup. There's going to have to be major renovations," Rosenello said.
    At least 14 people have died as a result of the storm -- six in North Carolina, three in Virginia, one in Kentucky, three in New York City and one in Maryland.
    And New York's Central Park, Baltimore's Thurgood Marshall International Airport and both major airports in Washington all broke daily snowfall records Saturday, according to the National Weather Service.
    New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said the blizzard will almost certainly rank among New York City's "top five snowstorms" in recorded history in terms of snow accumulation.
    "I've never seen snow like this," said Luis Abraham Garcia, a doctoral student from Mexico City, as he trudged along snowy sidewalks with his suitcase.

    With CNN

    Manchester United job: Former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho has written a six-page letter to the United board

    Jose Mourinho has written to Manchester United to state his case to become the club's next manager, according to a report in the Independent on Sunday.
    The newspaper states that former Chelsea manager Mourinho has sent United a six-page letter in which he outlines why he would be a suitable fit for the position, which is currently occupied by under-pressure Dutchman Louis van Gaal.
    United declined to comment on the report when contacted.

    Mourinho left Chelsea in December after a poor start to the season, despite his team winning the Barclays Premier League in the previous campaign.

    According to the report, Mourinho explains in the letter how he would be prepared to adapt his style of management to suit the demands at Old Trafford, and how he would seek to overhaul the squad.

    The 52-year-old Portuguese's fondness for United is well known and he has been linked with the job before, but United chose David Moyes to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson in 2013 and Van Gaal to come in a year later.

    As well as two spells at Chelsea, Mourinho has previously bossed Porto, Inter Milan and Real Madrid.

    After he departed Chelsea before Christmas, Blues coach Steve Holland predicted Mourinho would want to soon be back involved in the game at the highest level.

    'He's a guy who needs and wants football,' said Holland. 'There will be clubs and big clubs who will want him.

    'And he's not in my opinion the sort of guy who's going to spend six, seven, eight months sitting at home doing nothing in particular.'

    Pressure mounted on Van Gaal after United's 1-0 defeat to Southampton on Saturday, which left the Red Devils five points adrift of fourth-placed Tottenham.




    With Mailonline

    Villagers discover 'plane debris' washed up on Thailand beach

    Discovery: The large piece of curved metal (pictured) washed ashore in Nakhon Si Thammarat province, according to a local officia
    A piece of suspected plane wreckage has been found on a beach in southern Thailand, prompting speculation it might belong to the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370.

    The large piece of curved metal washed ashore in Nakhon Si Thammarat province, according to a local official. 

    Villagers discovered the piece of metal and reported it to the authorities to help identify it, said Tanyapat Patthikongpan, head of Pak Phanang district.

    'Villagers found the wreckage, measuring about 2metres wide and 3metres long (6.6 by 9.8 feet),' he said.
    Flight: The find has sparked speculation in the Thai media that the debris could belong to MH370, which disappeared with 239 people on board during a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing in March 2014. Pictured, Malaysian Airlines Boeing 777 at Kuala Lumpur International Airport
    The find has sparked speculation in the Thai media that the debris could belong to MH370, which disappeared with 239 people on board during a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing in March 2014.

    There has been no official confirmation that the wreckage belongs to a plane. 

    The barnacle-covered piece of metal has some identifying features, which should help narrow down whether or not it came from a plane.

    The number ‘323’ is printed near its ragged edge, as pointed out by the villagers. Elsewhere, the numbers ‘307’ and ‘308’ are printed.

    On the reverse side of the shard, a red wire can be seen dangling over what appears to be a serial number ‘SG5773-1’.

    The edges of the piece of metal appear to reveal a 'honeycomb' structure, which is widely used in aircraft and rockets due to its light weight. 

    According to Patthikongpan, local fishermen said it could have been under the sea for no more than a year, judging by the barnacles on it.

    Investigators believe someone may have deliberately switched off MH370's transponder before diverting it thousands of miles off course.

    Most of those on board the fated flight were Chinese. Beijing said it was following developments closely. 

    Lingering uncertainty surrounding the fate of the plane has tormented the families of those on board. Some have said even the discovery of debris would still not solve the mystery. 
    It is the second wave of speculation about the missing passenger jet this month, after search teams mistook a 200-year-old shipwreck in the Indian Ocean for the plane wreckage. 

    The Joint Agency Coordination Centre (JACC), based in western Australia, located the large metal object, which looked eerily similar to the fuselage of a plane, using an underwater sonar vessel. 

    The search for the plane is due to end in June this year, despite the Chinese relatives pleading for it to be expanded.

    Elsewhere, French prosecutors confirmed ‘with certainty’ in September that a wing part found on a remote Indian Ocean island was from missing flight MH370.

    Tests were carried out on the flaperon, which was found on La Reunion in July, by the French body responsible for civil aviation accident investigations.

    At the time of the discovery on the French territory last month, Malaysian officials said it was 'almost certain' the wing flap came from a Boeing 777 – the same model as the Malaysian airlines jet.

    The 6ft-long wing flap washed up 3,500 miles from the doomed jet's last-known location, fuelling hopes across the world that one of aviation's greatest mysteries could finally be solved.  

    Some families have previously said that they do not necessarily believe their family members have died. Rather, they said, they believed the passengers were being held prisoner somewhere for an unknown reason.




    With daily mail