MICHY BATSHUAYI has reportedly received permission from Belgium to fly into London and complete a £33.2million move to Chelsea. The 22-year-old looked to be on his way to Crystal Palace after they had a £31.6m bid accepted by Marseille on Monday. But the Blues have swooped in to beat their London rivals to the highly-rated striker. Batshuayi scored 17 goals in Ligue 1 last season and on Sunday he scored in his country’s 4-0 win over Hungary at Euro 2016. French outlet RMC Sport say he will arrive in the capital today to undergo a medical and sign a five-year deal. He will then return to Belgium to prepare for their quarter-final against Wales on Friday. Batshuayi will become the first signing of Antonio Conte’s tenure at the Bridge … [Read more...]
Pablo Zabaleta set for a move to Roma
Manchester City defender Pablo Zabaleta is close to completing a £2.5 million move to Roma, according to reports in Italy. The 31-year-old is entering the final 12 months of his contract at City but has been offered a longer deal with the Serie A club, according to reports. Zabaleta fell below right-back Bacary Sagna in the pecking order at the Etihad last season and, coupled with two major injury setbacks, he made just 12 starts in the Premier League. The Argentina international also had to have surgery on an ankle injury in May, which ruled him out of this summer's Copa America. Zabaleta admitted in April that he would consider his future in the summer and said he expected the squad to be overhauled when new manager Pep Guardiola takes over as the … [Read more...]
England willing to wait for Wenger
The FA have refused to rule out the possibility of waiting a year to appoint Arsene Wenger as Roy Hodgson’s successor, with chief executive Martin Glenn confident in the abilities of Gareth Southgate to hold the fort. Glenn was determined not to mention names in the immediate aftermath of Hodgson’s decision to quit following the embarrassing 2-1 defeat to Iceland in Nice. But even though there are only nine weeks until England’s opening World Cup qualifier against Slovakia, a three-man committee of Glenn, FA technical director Dan Ashworth and former Manchester United chief executive David Gill are prepared to wait if that is what it takes to get the best man. Wenger is out of contract at Arsenal next summer and Glenn said: “Yes, we would be willing to … [Read more...]
Premier League clubs on red alert as Marek Hamsik leaves door open
The Napoli star has been attracting interest from Liverpool, Manchester United and Chelsea in recent weeks following his impressive displays at Euro 2016 with Slovakia. Hamsik is under contract with Napoli until 2018, but when asked about his future in Italy he seemed unsure. “Will I renew with Napoli or leave? We'll see." “Now I want to rest, first and foremost. It's been a difficult year with a lot of games, I want to enjoy time with my family." The Napoli midfielder is under contract with the Italian outfit until 2018 but the Premier League trio are all chasing him. Liverpool are said to be showing the most interest with reports this month claiming they have tabled a €45million (£34.8m) bid for the Slovakian, with a four-year deal said to be on … [Read more...]
Liverpool keen on Ac Milan Mattia De Scigilio
The 23-year-old defender made 21 Serie A appearances as AC Milan finished seventh this season, And he is reportedly being lined up for a move to Anfield by Reds boss Jurgen Klopp. The German manager is set to remodel his squad this summer ahead of his first full Premier League campaign and a new left back is said to be one of his top priorities, a pursuit escalated by Alberto Moreno's disastrous Europa League final showing. However, Liverpool are seemingly not the only side keen on the Italy international. Speaking to Italian outlet SoccerWeb24 , De Sciglio's agent, Donato Orgnoni, claimed a handful of Serie A sides are tracking his client . "At this time a number of clubs have shown interest, however we have not discussed anything," he … [Read more...]
Barcelona linked with Man United defender as replacement for Dani Alves
After Dani Alves departed for Juventus , Barcelona are now eyeing a move for Manchester United’s Matteo Darmian to replace him. The former Torino man moved to Manchester United last summer, going on to make 28 appearances in the Premier League for Louis van Gaal’s side during his debut season. While he impressed enough in those chances to earn a call up to Antonio Conte’s Italy side for this summer’s European Championship, there is strong speculation that incoming United manager Jose Mourinho is interested in moving him on with the Blaugrana interested, according to a report in the Daily Star. With Alves having left the club after the conclusion of the La Liga campaign, Barcelona are anxious to find a suitable replacement for the iconic right-back. The … [Read more...]
Wayne Rooney not doing a Messi
While big changes are set to sweep the England football team following their embarrassing defeat to Iceland at Euro 2016, Wayne Rooney has vowed not to retire from the international game. Despite being overwhelming favourites in their first knockout round tie on Monday, the Three Lions lost 2-1 to a nation with a population of just over 300,000. Rooney, England’s all-time top scorer with 53 goals, gave them the lead with an early penalty but was one of the players to receive most of the criticism. The skipper, however, remained defiant. “As I said before the tournament, it is an honour to play for England,” he said to the press. “Whoever the next coach is, I’ll make my self available if chosen.” There’s a lot of excitement surrounding the … [Read more...]