Defending champions Al Ahli struck twice in eight second-half minutes to come from behind to defeat Japan's Vissel Kobe 2-1 on Monday and seal their place in a second successive Asian Champions League final.

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'What I witnessed I never want to see again': Rosenior rips Chelsea players after 'unacceptable' Brighton defeat originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.While Chelsea have not been involved in the Premier League title race for essentially the entire second half of the 202526 season, they have been in the mix for Champions League qualification, hoping to reinsert themselves into Europe's top competition after a Round of 16 exit at the hands of defending champions PSG.Yet as the end of the campaign draws closer, that prospect seems farther and farther from reality as the Blues tumble down the standings with a late-season tailspin of incredible proportions.Installed in January to replace Enzo Maresca, manager Liam Rosenior was hand-picked by owners BlueCo to lead the squad the rest of the season and beyond, signing a six-year contract that the club hoped would allow him to evolve into the next great Premier League manager.Instead, as Chelsea slumped to an embarrassing 30 defeat to Brighton on Tuesday with goals from Ferdi Kadioglu, Josh Hinshelwood, and Danny Welbeck, it would appear Rosenior is simply limping to the finish line in his debut campaign.The Sporting News brings you Rosenior's harsh comments for his Chelsea players after the Brighton defeat, what the defeat meant for the club, and how it could affect the manager's own position in charge.MORE:The latest Chelsea team news and injury updates ahead of their next matchLiam Rosenior blames Chelsea players for Brighton defeatLiam Rosenior went straight at the Chelsea players after the 3-0 defeat to Brighton at the Amex on Tuesday, holding no punches in his assessment of the match."It was unacceptable in every aspect," Rosenior said when asked to assess Chelsea's performance. "I keep coming out to defend the players, but that was indefensible tonight. Something needs to change drastically right now."Rosenior questioned his team's commitment on the pitch tonight, a relatively reasonable conclusion given how miserably bad they performed."We need to look in the mirror, I need to look in the mirror," Rosenior said. "The performance in terms of professionalism wasn't there. It's the most difficult night in my career. Some of the things I witnessed today I never want to see again."I'm hurting. I'm numb. Tonight doesn't represent me or the football club in any way."Later, in his post-match press conference, Rosenior echoed his earlier sentiments."I have my own ideas, I am not here to make excuses," Rosenior told the media after the match. "That was unacceptable from everyone involved with me at the head of it. That needs to change."It is accountability. I have defended the players at times when it was the correct thing but I cant defend that performance. It doesnt represent this football club, it doesnt represent anything I ask from the group and that has to change."I feel numb Im so angry. I always speak on what I see and that was unacceptable. The goals we conceded were unacceptable and that is something I have to hold my hands up to.I will look at the team, will look at individuals and I will look at a team I can trust to do the basics of football and we should not be talking about the basics of football at this level. It is something we have to adjust very quickly.Tonight was not [about] tactical. This was about desire, spirit, courage and I did not see enough of that tonight."VIDEO:Watch Liam Rosenior's rant in UKChelsea reach new low in Brighton defeatRosenior's comments come on the heels of a dismal 90-minute performance in which Chelsea had just two total shots worth 0.08 xG by the 70th minute, and they finished with just six on the evening without a single one finding the target.Meanwhile, the Blues were carved up on the other end, as they conceded 15 shots to Brighton, nine of which were on target. Chelsea looked listless on the ball, and failed to generate almost any meaningful attacking chances despite holding 54% possession throughout the game.The loss moved Chelsea to two ugly club milestones. The defeat was their 12th straight league match without a clean sheet, their longest such run since the 1996/97 season. Meanwhile, they reached five straight top division defeats without scoring a goal, the club's longest such streak since 1912, now well over seven hours of game time without finding the back of the net.In context of this season, the defeat saw Chelsea jumped by Brighton in the standings, dropping to seventh on 48 points, leaving them seven back of Liverpool in the fifth and final Champions League spot. Sixth could become a Champions League qualifying position, however, if Aston Villa win the Europa League, so every point is valuable the rest of the way.Given their position near the top of a crowded mid-table, it's entirely possible that Chelsea find themselves in the bottom half of the table before they take the field again in Premier League play on May 4 against Nottingham Forest.Will Liam Rosenior be sacked as Chelsea manager?Liam Rosenior's position was already in question coming into this match as the club continued to dig itself into a deeper and deeper hole in the race for European places, and his job security will have eroded further with this result.It's likely that Rosenior will get more leeway than most managers in a similar position at Chelsea. Since he joined the BlueCo-owned club Strasbourg, ownership has groomed him to be Chelsea manager, and there will be a bit of allowance for Rosenior to learn on the fly as ownership hopes he can be in his position for the long term. Sacking him, therefore, would bring with it a feeling of wasted resources should he fail to become the manager they have spent time and energy building up his career.Yet there are also short-term questions regarding how far Chelsea could fall in the table down the stretch of the Premier League season. Even if their race for Champions League qualification is run, ownership will not want to lose European football altogether next season, and that is absolutely a possibility should this abysmal run of form continue.It will be interesting how much longer Todd Boehly and the rest of Chelsea management will let this go before they pull the plug and hope to salvage some kind of European qualification for next season.

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Chelsea crashed to a dismal 3-0 defeat against Brighton on Tuesday, leaving their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League in tatters as pressure mounts on beleaguered boss Liam Rosenior.

Away supporters at the Amex made their feelings known on Chelsea's fortunes during the 3-0 defeat at the Amex Stadium, with chants aimed at the club's ownership and Rosenior.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's trophy haul keeps growing.Gilgeous-Alexander, the Oklahoma City guard who is the reigning MVP and NBA Finals MVP, was the overwhelming and nearly unanimous pick as the Clutch Player of the Year for this season, the NBA announced Tuesday.Its the first of what could be several awards for Gilgeous-Alexander in the coming weeks. He's the heavy favorite to win a second straight MVP trophy and because he's a finalist there, he's also a lock to make the All-NBA team for a fourth straight year.This award means a lot, Gilgeous-Alexander said on NBC Sports, which aired the award announcement. To get this award, you have to help your team win games late and what I'm about more than anything is winning games.Gilgeous-Alexander got 96 of a possible 100 first-place votes. Jamal Murray of Denver was second, one point ahead of Anthony Edwards of Minnesota.Edwards didnt reach the 65-game eligibility standard for most league awards like MVP and the All-NBA team and unsuccessfully appealed for a waiver that would have put him on those ballots but his candidacy for the clutch award wasnt affected by that rule.Instead, the finalists for the clutch award were decided by a survey of the leagues coaches. That whittled the group down to 14 names, which were then placed onto the ballot that a panel of 100 reporters and broadcasters who cover the league filled out last week to decide the various awards.Gilgeous-Alexander has been a contender for the clutch award since it was added to the league's slate of trophies; he was third last season, eighth in 2024 and seventh in 2023.And now, it's his.I'm proud I get to hoist it, Gilgeous-Alexander said. It means I'm effective out there.Gilgeous-Alexander becomes the fourth player to win the clutch award, which was added in tribute to Jerry West the inspiration for the NBAs logo and the player long known as Mr. Clutch as a nod to his exploits when the outcome of games was on the line.DeAaron Fox (then of Sacramento, now of San Antonio) was the first clutch award recipient in 2023, followed by Golden States Stephen Curry in 2024 and New Yorks Jalen Brunson last season. Brunson was a nominee again this year, finishing fifth.Detroit's Cade Cunningham was fourth, followed by Brunson, Denver's Nikola Jokic, Philadelphia's Tyrese Maxey, the Los Angeles Lakers' Luka Doncic, Houston's Kevin Durant and the Los Angeles Clippers' Kawhi Leonard.Gilgeous-Alexander, Brunson and Jokic are now the only players to get votes in the clutch balloting in all four seasons of the awards existence.Curry, Bostons Jayson Tatum and Dallas Kyrie Irving saw their three-year streaks as clutch vote-getters end because of injuries; Curry missed about half the season, Tatum missed most of the season and Irving was sidelined for the entire season.For a play to be considered clutch, by the NBAs definition, these are the criteria: The score differential has to be five points or less, and the game has to be in either the final five minutes of the fourth quarter or in overtime.All three of the leading vote-getters had compelling statistical arguments for the award: Gilgeous-Alexander led the league with 175 points in clutch times, plus was ninth with 21 assists in those situations. The Thunder went 20-7 in the 27 clutch games in which he played, and outscored opponents by 93 points in those clutch situations with him on the floor. Edwards shot 56.5% from the field in clutch moments, the best of any of the league's 19 players that had at least 85 clutch-time points this season. Murray was second in clutch points with 166 plus led the league with 30 clutch-time assists.The clutch award was the second to be handed out this season. San Antonio's Victor Wembanyama was the unanimous winner of Defensive Player of the Year, which was announced Monday.It's just very meaningful to me, Wembanyama said Tuesday about being the first unanimous winner of the DPOY trophy. It means that's there no place for debate. It means that everybody agrees upon something.On Wednesday, the Sixth Man of the Year winner either the Spurs' Keldon Johnson, the Nuggets' Tim Hardaway Jr. or Miami's Jaime Jaquez Jr. will be revealed. The league's Sportsmanship Award winner will be announced Thursday, followed by Most Improved Player on Friday.___AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's trophy haul keeps growing.Gilgeous-Alexander, the Oklahoma City guard who is the reigning MVP and NBA Finals MVP, was the overwhelming and nearly unanimous pick as the Clutch Player of the Year for this season, the NBA announced Tuesday.Its the first of what could be several awards for Gilgeous-Alexander in the coming weeks. He's the heavy favorite to win a second straight MVP trophy and because he's a finalist there, he's also a lock to make the All-NBA team for a fourth straight year.This award means a lot, Gilgeous-Alexander said on NBC Sports, which aired the award announcement. To get this award, you have to help your team win games late and what I'm about more than anything is winning games.Gilgeous-Alexander got 96 of a possible 100 first-place votes. Jamal Murray of Denver was second, one point ahead of Anthony Edwards of Minnesota.Edwards didnt reach the 65-game eligibility standard for most league awards like MVP and the All-NBA team and unsuccessfully appealed for a waiver that would have put him on those ballots but his candidacy for the clutch award wasnt affected by that rule.Instead, the finalists for the clutch award were decided by a survey of the leagues coaches. That whittled the group down to 14 names, which were then placed onto the ballot that a panel of 100 reporters and broadcasters who cover the league filled out last week to decide the various awards.Gilgeous-Alexander has been a contender for the clutch award since it was added to the league's slate of trophies; he was third last season, eighth in 2024 and seventh in 2023.And now, it's his.I'm proud I get to hoist it, Gilgeous-Alexander said. It means I'm effective out there.Gilgeous-Alexander becomes the fourth player to win the clutch award, which was added in tribute to Jerry West the inspiration for the NBAs logo and the player long known as Mr. Clutch as a nod to his exploits when the outcome of games was on the line.DeAaron Fox (then of Sacramento, now of San Antonio) was the first clutch award recipient in 2023, followed by Golden States Stephen Curry in 2024 and New Yorks Jalen Brunson last season. Brunson was a nominee again this year, finishing fifth.Detroit's Cade Cunningham was fourth, followed by Brunson, Denver's Nikola Jokic, Philadelphia's Tyrese Maxey, the Los Angeles Lakers' Luka Doncic, Houston's Kevin Durant and the Los Angeles Clippers' Kawhi Leonard.Gilgeous-Alexander, Brunson and Jokic are now the only players to get votes in the clutch balloting in all four seasons of the awards existence.Curry, Bostons Jayson Tatum and Dallas Kyrie Irving saw their three-year streaks as clutch vote-getters end because of injuries; Curry missed about half the season, Tatum missed most of the season and Irving was sidelined for the entire season.For a play to be considered clutch, by the NBAs definition, these are the criteria: The score differential has to be five points or less, and the game has to be in either the final five minutes of the fourth quarter or in overtime.All three of the leading vote-getters had compelling statistical arguments for the award: Gilgeous-Alexander led the league with 175 points in clutch times, plus was ninth with 21 assists in those situations. The Thunder went 20-7 in the 27 clutch games in which he played, and outscored opponents by 93 points in those clutch situations with him on the floor. Edwards shot 56.5% from the field in clutch moments, the best of any of the league's 19 players that had at least 85 clutch-time points this season. Murray was second in clutch points with 166 plus led the league with 30 clutch-time assists.The clutch award was the second to be handed out this season. San Antonio's Victor Wembanyama was the unanimous winner of Defensive Player of the Year, which was announced Monday.It's just very meaningful to me, Wembanyama said Tuesday about being the first unanimous winner of the DPOY trophy. It means that's there no place for debate. It means that everybody agrees upon something.On Wednesday, the Sixth Man of the Year winner either the Spurs' Keldon Johnson, the Nuggets' Tim Hardaway Jr. or Miami's Jaime Jaquez Jr. will be revealed. The league's Sportsmanship Award winner will be announced Thursday, followed by Most Improved Player on Friday.___AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola says his players can "celebrate however you want" in response to criticism for their reaction to beating Arsenal.