DIDIER DROGBA is braced for a potential five-game ban from European competition for his furious reaction to Chelsea’s Champions League exit to Barcelona this month after Uefa finally imposed improper conduct charges on the Premier League club and two of their players.
Chelsea face sanction for failing to control their players and their supporters, who allegedly threw missiles at the Norwegian referee Tom Henning Ovrebo, while Drogba and Jose Bosingwa are accused of insulting the official and making offensive remarks.
The striker, who came back on to the pitch at the end to confront Ovrebo, expects to receive a three-match ban with a further two games suspended, on top of which he is likely to be fined. Drogba, like Bosingwa who branded the referee “a thief” in comments to Portuguese television, has apologised for his actions.
It is unlikely that the European game’s governing body will seek to close sections of Stamford Bridge, or indeed demand Chelsea play a Champions League game behind closed doors next season, given their supporters’ relatively good reputation, leaving a fine as the anticipated sanction should the club be found guilty.
Meanwhile, Alex Ferguson has indicated he is likely to persist with Wayne Rooney on the left side of attack, starting with the Champions League final on Wednesday.
Rooney has made it clear he prefers a more central role but his performances over the past few weeks have encouraged Ferguson to persevere with him as a right-footed left-winger, the same role Thierry Henry plays for Barcelona, Manchester United’s opponents in Rome.
Other specialists include Robinho at Manchester City, and Zinedine Zidane also spent parts of his career drifting in from the left, and Ferguson is increasingly enamoured of the idea of a right-sided player operating on the “wrong” flank or, as in the case of Lionel Messi, a left-sided footballer being deployed on the right.
“When forwards attack from wide to inside, they are far more dangerous,” Ferguson explained. “It’s funny when I see centre-forwards starting off in the middle against their markers and then going away from goal. Strikers going inside are far more dangerous, I think.
“When Henry played as a striker, and sometimes when Wayne does, they try to escape and create space by drifting from the centre to wide positions, when that actually makes them less dangerous.”
Ferguson has relayed this criticism to Rooney, and believes the England international is starting to “enjoy” his new role even though it incorporates more defensive duties.
“That is the sacrifice he is making for the team,” Ferguson said. “He is willing to sacrifice the part of the game that every forward in the world wants to do – which is to attack.”
GuardianService
