Porto appoint Argentinian Anselmi as new coach
Jan 27 (Reuters) - Porto have appointed Martin Anselmi as their new coach on a two-and-a-half-year contract, the Portuguese club announced on Monday, a week after sacking Vitor Bruno following poor form in the Europa League and an exit from the League Cup semi-finals.
The Primeira Liga side are third in the domestic league, six points behind leaders Sporting. Porto are also 25th in the Europa League with only two wins from seven matches, one place below the cut-off for qualification to the next round.
Anselmi, 39, led Ecuadorian club Independiente del Valle to a Copa Sudamericana title in 2022, and reached the Mexican Liga MX final with Cruz Azul last year. Porto is the Argentine's first assignment in Europe.
"We have a lot of hope in you... we're sure you are the leader we needed," Porto president Andre Villas-Boas said at Anselmi's presentation.
Porto play their final league phase game of the Europa League against Maccabi Tel Aviv on Thursday.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
28 minutes ago
- BBC News
New signing Essugo ready to play Caicedo's understudy
Chelsea's new midfielder Dario Essugo knows what is in store for him at Stamford Bridge. The 20-year-old signed for £18.5million from Sporting in March but was officially unveiled as a Blues player last week. In discussion with the club's media channels, he highlighted how he is a similar style of "aggressive" defensive midfield player to Moises Caicedo and also picked the reigning winner of both of Chelsea's player of the season awards, as the person is he most looking forward to playing he also recognise that he will mostly be lining up with the Ecaudorian in training rather than in matches and will operate as his understudy. Essugo, a Portugal Under-21s international, could not be more similar to Caicedo in terms of style, operating as a mobile and powerful ball-winning option in midfield. After all, Chelsea ran the risk of breaking Caicedo last season when he started all 38 Premier League matches. He also started six further cup matches, although that was helped by Chelsea's heavy rotation in most Conference League games, and early exits from both domestic cups. Caicedo was also only substituted in four league matches. No-one played more minutes than the 3,815 played by Caicedo at Chelsea last season and, with Champions League qualification secured for next season, he needs a reliable deputy. Who is Essugo? In the midfielder's own words, he is also a "chill" character away from the pitch. He grew up in the Odivelas suburb of Lisbon, was a multi-sport athlete in his youth but took to football in the school playground. He first suffered a rejection from his mother's handball club at CAC da Pontinha Club but soon impressed UD Santa Maria Club, before ultimately ending up in Sporting's academy. Essugo achieved his goal of emulating his idol William Carvalho, now at Betis, by lining up for Sporting in midfield, aged just 16 and six days old. After becoming the youngest player to play for Sporting, he became the youngest Portuguese player to play in the Champions League, playing in a competition that other idols, Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, N'Golo Kante and Toni Kroos, all excelled in. Those idols showed Essugo looked towards La Liga and, after a loan spell at Portuguese second division Chaves, he played in Spain's top flight last season with Las relegated, Essugo played well enough to attract Chelsea and said of the spell at the island nation on his Instagram account: "It's been a season of personal growth, with highs and lows, but at all times I tried to leave it all on the field."But his post when leaving Sporting was more emotional, despite only making 25 appearances in the first team, he wrote: "I believe I left something worth keeping - a piece of my childhood, my youth, my soul."Essugo targets "playing as much as he can" despite being Caicedo's understudy in a competitive midfield space, featuring Enzo Fernandez, Romeo Lavia, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall - and returning loanee Andrey said: "I want to win as much as possible, as many titles as possible. Obviously, I want to win the Champions League, but also the Premier League because it's very difficult. I want to win titles, play as much as possible at Chelsea and be part of the club's history."The first time we will see Essugo is at the Club World Cup and he could make his debut for Chelsea against LAFC on Monday evening. Longer term, he will relieve the pressure on Caciedo as Chelsea embark of their return to the demanding Champions League after three seasons away.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Crystal Palace receive boost in bid to play in Europe next season as UEFA chiefs deliberate over decision amid questions over FA Cup winners' ownership structure
Crystal Palace 's hopes of staying in Europe have been given an apparent boost after UEFA bosses asked the club to submit more information. Officials in Switzerland are understood to have requested that Eagles bosses further outline the ownership and decision-making structure at Selhurst Park ahead of a decision over whether to expel them from next season's Europa League. Mail Sport revealed that delegates from Palace had to attend a high-stakes meeting at UEFA headquarters earlier this month, as they seek to avoid falling foul of rules on multi-club ownership. The FA Cup winners' historic place is at risk because John Textor, whose company owns 43 per cent of the club, is the majority owner at French side Lyon. Textor, Palace chairman Steve Parish and other execs told a panel that the American businessman was not in a position of influence and did not make decisions on behalf of the club, given his stake comes with just 25 per cent of voting rights. As such, they feel there is no breach of UEFA rules. Following the meeting, Textor told this newspaper that he had no control and that he was seeking to sell Eagle Football Holdings' stake in the club to ensure they could compete in the competition. Crystal Palace's Europa League hopes have been boosted amid concerns over breaches of multi-club ownership rules The FA Cup winners' spot is in doubt because John Textor, whose company owns 43 per cent of the club, also holds a majority stake in Lyon It is understood there are three interested parties – a consortium including NBA star Jimmy Butler, New York Jets owner and former US ambassador to the UK Woody Johnson and a third, previously unknown group, thought to be US-based, global and big players in the entertainment industry. Textor is thought to be willing to sell for £175m, which values the club at less than a previous offer from himself for total control. However, if Palace officials can persuade UEFA that Textor does not carry a key influence then there may well be no need for a sale. A decision is due later this month and those with knowledge of the situation believe UEFA are keen to find a solution. Should Palace prevail, there may well be a legal challenge from Nottingham Forest, who would be 'promoted' from the Europa Conference League to the Europa League if they were expelled.
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Viktor Gyökeres ready to snub Manchester United for ‘dream' Arsenal move
Manchester United's pursuit of Viktor Gyökeres appears doomed after the Sporting striker said signing for Arsenal would be a 'dream'. United held exploratory discussions about buying the 27-year-old, with Ruben Amorim intent on strengthening the position. But it is understood the player's representatives have told United he does not wish to join the club. Instead Gyökeres is understood to view Arsenal as his preferred option since they will play in the Champions League next season. United are in a state of rebuild and will not play in Europe next season after finishing 15th in the Premier League and losing the Europa League final. While they still hope to revive the transfer, it is an outside prospect. Sign up to Football Daily Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football after newsletter promotion Whether Mikel Arteta views the Swede as his first-choice centre-forward recruit is unclear as he is thought to prefer the 22-year-old Benjamin Sesko at RB Leipzig. Sporting value Gyökeres at about €80m (£68m).
