• De Bruyne will join Chelsea at the start of next season
• Has played Chelsea twice in this year’s Champions League

Chelsea have completed the signing of highly-rated midfielder Kevin de Bruyne from Genk, the Belgian club have announced.

The 20-year-old has signed a five-and-a-half-year deal but will remain at the Belgian champions on loan until the end of the season.

De Bruyne, who is predominantly a left-sided player, has been on Chelsea’s radar for some time and has played twice against the London club in this year’s Champions League group stages.

A statement on Genk’s website said: “The transfer of Kevin De Bruyne to Chelsea has been completed. He has signed for five and a half seasons and will continue [playing with] Genk until June.

“His signature was confirmed at 0.30am last night [Monday]. De Bruyne and his agent will return back today from London, along with general director Dirk Degraen.

“Genk will hold a press conference with [director] Jacob Gunther and Dirk Degraen in which they will clarify the transfer policy.

“Afterwards, Kevin De Bruyne will also give an explanation about his transfer to the English club.”

ChelseaTransfer windowGenk
guardian.co.uk

• Fan appears to make monkey signs
• Photograph is circulated on Twitter

Liverpool knocked Manchester United out of the FA Cup but were put on the defensive when the question of racism again raised its head at Anfield. An image of a Liverpool fan appearing to make an offensive monkey gesture in the direction of Patrice Evra was circulated on Twitter, prompting Merseyside police to investigate.

Patrice Evra, who became embroiled in a row that led to Luis Suárez being found guilty of racially abusing the United defender in the 1-1 draw on 15 October, was booed loudly every time he touched the ball during the Cup tie, which Liverpool won 2–1.

“This matter is now under investigation by specialist hate crime detectives and we are working with Liverpool Football Club to identify the man in question,” said the match commander, Ch Supt Jon Ward, while Liverpool asked supporters who may be able to help to contact the club.

When Kenny Dalglish was asked what he thought of Evra’s every touch being booed, the Liverpool manager responded: “Are you winding me up?” He added: “Why would I be disappointed for Patrice Evra? I can’t believe you have asked that question before anything else. Have you ever played football? I used to get booed.

“The media has played its part this week in trying to maintain dignity and respect on the pitch and to concentrate on the game. The behaviour of both sets of players on the pitch was a credit to the game. There was banter between the two sets of fans but it was friendly. There may not have been a lot of respect, but both sets of supporters were brilliant. I don’t think there was anything there that was untoward.”

The Kop joined in several choruses of “There’s only one lying bastard”, putting into words what appeared to be the underlying theme of Liverpool’s defence of Suárez.

Queens Park Rangers players took a collective decision to back Anton Ferdinand by not shaking hands with their opponents before their Cup tie with Chelsea at Loftus Road, which they lost 1–0. However, the Football Association chose to discard the usual pre-match convention. The issue was a concern due to John Terry being accused of making a racially abusive slur at Ferdinand in October. Terry will answer the charge, which he denies, at West London magistrates’ court on

• Four clubs to remind squads of their responsibilities
• Police numbers boosted for west London derby

The Football Association has spoken with Queens Park Rangers, Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool and requested they remind players and staff of their responsibilities ahead of Saturday’s potentially explosive FA Cup collisions between the teams.

The ties at Loftus Road and Anfield will be overshadowed by the incidents that marred the league meetings between the teams in October. Luis Suárez will miss Saturday’s fixture as the penultimate match of an eight-game ban, having been found guilty of racially abusing United’s Patrice Evra in the 1-1 draw on 15 October, and John Terry is due to attend west London magistrates court next Wednesday charged with a racially aggravated public order offence that allegedly occurred during an altercation with QPR’s Anton Ferdinand on 23 October. The Chelsea captain denies the charge.

Tensions have been heightened by these incidents ahead of fixtures that have traditionally been fractious. Although the game’s governing body was already aware of the measures being taken involving the planning and preparation for the two matches, the FA has now issued joint requests, in partnership with the Metropolitan police and Merseyside police, for the clubs to remind their players and staff before kick-off of the particular sensitivities surrounding the games in an effort to avoid any behaviour that could be deemed to be inflammatory.

FA officials have been present at strategy and planning meetings held by the clubs and have spoken at length to the police forces involved. They have drawn huge encouragement from the very clear levels of co-operation between Liverpool and United around the planning of their fixture, and by the joint statement issued by the QPR chairman, Tony Fernandes, and his counterpart at Chelsea, Bruce Buck, this week calling for calm in their west London derby. The chairmen asked for the game to be remembered merely as a “celebration of football”, with the FA impressed by the proactive measures taken by all parties in a bid to defuse ill-feeling between sets of fans.

There will be FA crowd control advisers at both games, with QPR having chosen to remind their supporters on Thursday of the need for good behaviour via their official website. “Racial, homophobic or discriminatory abuse, chanting or harassment is strictly forbidden and will result in arrest and/or ejection from the ground,” read their statement.

“In addition, the club will impose a ban for one or more matches. QPR will not tolerate sexual or racially based harassment, or other discriminatory behaviour, whether physical or verbal and where required we will work in full co-operation with the Metropolitan police to provide CCTV footage and staff statements to ensure prosecution.

“Queens Park Rangers Football Club is committed to confronting and eliminating discrimination, whether by reason of race, colour, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, age, ethnic and national origin, disability, nationality, religion or belief or gender reassignment. The club is proud of the atmosphere we have at Loftus Road and by working together we can stop any discrimination or behaviour that has no place in football. Loftus Road is governed by ground regulations and we would like to remind all visitors that by entering the ground they are agreeing to abide by these rules.”

The derby at Loftus Road – which will be officiated by the experienced Mike Dean – has yet to sell out, with tickets available in most of the home sections, though there will be an increased police presence for a game that has been brought forward to a midday kick-off time on the Met’s advice.

It remains to be seen whether Ferdinand and Terry are selected for the fixture but the QPR defender, if he is picked, is thought to be reluctant to shake hands with his opponent during the pre-match formalities between the teams.

André Villas-Boas, the Chelsea manager, has consistently said he would have no qualms about selecting his captain for the game despite the furore that erupted after their last visit to Loftus Road.

Didier Drogba and José Bosingwa were sent off in that fixture as the hosts prevailed 1-0.

The FAQPRChelseaLiverpoolManchester UnitedFA Cup 2011-12FA CupDominic Fifield
guardian.co.uk