Juventus are set to up their efforts to sign Arsenal transfer target Fernando Llorente, according to The Daily Mail.
The Spain international forward is in the last year of his contract with Athletic Bilbao, and has signalled his intent to leave the San Mames club for a new challenge.
The Turin giants are in the market for a big-name striker, and are thought to highly-rate Llorente.
With his contract expiring, it is believed that the Serie A champions will offer the Spaniards £5 million in the January transfer window, and are ready to make him their highest paid player on £145,000 per week.
Arsenal are still in the market for a new frontman as a long-term replacement for Robin van Persie, who left the club to join Manchester United in the summer.
The Gunners did sign Olivier Giroud, but Arsene Wenger is eager to provide competition for a starting place for the France international and bolster his options in attack.
The Emirates Stadium outfit are also an admirer of Llorente, who they have had their eye on for some time.
Arsenal are hoping to take advantage of Llorente’s expiring contract, but now must fight the financial might of Juventus if they are to convince the targetman to move to north London.
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Llorente had a training ground bust-up with Bilbao boss Marcelo Bielsa earlier in the season, and it is believed that the Basque side are ready to cash in on him to avoid losing their star on a free transfer at the end of the campaign.
According to Italian media outlet Calciomercato, Southampton striker Manolo Gabbiadini is likely to leave the club and return to Serie A this summer, with a report by La Gazzetta dello Sport, via Calciomercato, saying that he would cost in the region of €15m (around £13m) this summer.
While it would be no surprise to see the Italy international depart St Mary’s in some ways given that he found first-team starts hard to come by during the 2017/18 campaign under Mauricio Pellegrino and then Mark Hughes, in others it would be confusing after he hinted previously that he would be keen to stay in the Premier League after helping Saints, who face a huge battle to sign an attacker who was once a £170,000-a-week Manchester United target, preserve their top flight status with a crucial winning goal against fellow strugglers Swansea City last month.
So, how would cashing in on the Italian truly impact Saints? Football FanCast take a look at the potential consequences of a summer sale of the 26-year-old…
Club regrets
If Southampton do end up cashing in on Gabbiadini this summer they will surely always be left thinking, what if?
The 26-year-old made a huge impact when he first joined the club in January 2017 – and was unfortunate not to score a hat-trick for them in the League Cup final defeat against Manchester United – but there is surely a feeling that they haven’t seen or got the best out of a player with such clever movement and natural finishing ability.
The Italian joined the south coast outfit at a time when they have been less attacking and lacked quality in the final third than in previous seasons, and the Saints board will know that things could have been very different.
Quincy Promes finally signs
Southampton didn’t meet Spartak Moscow’s price tag for the highly-rated Netherlands international at the end of the January transfer window, and it remains to be seen whether they will return to sign the 26-year-old this summer.
It would certainly make sense given they only scored 37 goals in their 38 Premier League matches as they narrowly avoided the drop however, with the winger scoring 21 goals and providing a further 10 assists in the same number of games for the Russian club in the 2017/18 campaign.
The extra money they get from selling Gabbiadini could be enough for them to meet Spartak’s asking price for the attacker, who would surely be a big success at St Mary’s and in the English top flight in general.
Sam Gallagher gets his chance
The big centre-forward is still only 22 years of age, but having made his first-team debut for Southampton when Mauricio Pochettino was still in charge at St Mary’s, he will have been disappointed that he hasn’t kicked on since then.
The striker returns to the south coast this summer following a largely successful season-long loan spell with Championship club Birmingham City – for whom he scored seven goals in 34 appearances in all competitions – last term, and he will hope to stake his claim for a spot in the starting XI under Mark Hughes.
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Gabbiadini leaving would certainly help him that respect as it would be one less player to get ahead of in the pecking order, and with Guido Carrillo also frozen out by Hughes at the end of the 2017/18 campaign he may find himself directly competing with the likes of Charlie Austin and Shane Long.
So, Southampton fans, should your club sell Gabbiadini? Let us know by voting below…
[brid autoplay=”true” video=”252976″ player=”12034″ title=”Watch 21 things that will definitely happen at the World Cup”]
According to Belgian media outlet L’Avenir, reported West Ham United target Leander Dendoncker could be available for just €15m (£13.3m) if he leaves Anderlecht before the January transfer window slams shut.
Another Belgian source DH reported on January 9 that the Irons were keen to bring the 22-year-old to the London Stadium this month as manager David Moyes is looking to sign a new central midfielder, with DH also saying in a separate story that the Belgium international would cost between €25-30m (£22-26.4m).
However, L’Avenir suggest those figures have been lowered considerably and even though Anderlecht boss Hein Vanhaezebrouck has advised the Belgian to wait until the summer to leave, it seems as though the players wants out by January 31.
Meanwhile, Tottenham Hotspur are back in form in the Premier League following a disappointing spell and as well as looking to secure a third successive top-four finish, they are also face Juventus in the knockout stages of the Champions League next month.
Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino may well be keen to add to his squad in preparation for a big second-half of the campaign, and bringing Dendoncker to Wembley could prove to be a shrewd move.
Here are three reasons Tottenham must hijack West Ham’s bid to sign the highly-rated star…
Long-term Dembele replacement
Mousa Dembele’s injury problems in recent seasons prove that Tottenham need to start thinking about finding a long-term replacement for the 30-year-old, and his Belgian compatriot could be the answer.
Dendoncker is decent on the ball – according to WhoScored.com he had a passing accuracy of 89.6% in their six Champions League group matches this season – and successfully completed four of the five dribbles he attempted in Europe’s elite club competition, while he also made 15 interceptions.
The 22-year-old is also taller than Dembele and is similarly strong, and there is no doubt that he has huge potential and could bring something to the middle of the park for Spurs both now, and in the future.
Versatility
Dendoncker is a hugely versatile player, and he has demonstrated that for Anderlecht this season.
While his preferred position is understood to be as a defensive midfielder, he also has also played at centre-back on a number of occasions for the Belgian side this term – including in two of their six Champions League group matches.
That versatility will certainly impress Mauricio Pochettino, while the fact that he scored six goals in 57 appearances during the previous campaign show that he can be a threat at the other end of the pitch too.
Price tag
To put it simply if L’Avenir really are right and Dendoncker is available for £13.3m this month, then it he would be a complete bargain deal.
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The 22-year-old is a full Belgium international and has played more than 150 matches for Anderlecht – including in the Champions League – and he clearly has the ability to improve and go on and play at the highest level.
Tottenham love a good value for money signing themselves and if they can sign the midfielder for such a reasonable price this month, they would be mad to miss out – especially to one of their main local rivals in West Ham.
The winds of change were gusting hard last summer as Tottenham undertook what has got to be one of the more notable overhauls in recent years. Given the go ahead to spend the Bale millions, Baldini set about resurrecting the title ambitions of the Premier League club with an audacious summer spending spree.
The centrepiece of the revolution was arguably the acquisition of Valencia’s top marksmen Roberto Soldado in what was a then club record transfer of £26m. Up there with the best in Europe in terms of goals in recent years, there was a genuine hope that the Spaniard would hit the ground running.
Yet it hasn’t quite panned out like that. For one reason or another Soldado, along with many of his team mates, has struggled to adapt to the English game. We all know too well how finite a commodity patience is in football, so is it time to be concerned about Soldado’s form?
The Spaniard’s form has been patchy at best; just the sole goal from open play in the league against Villa and a handful of others coming in the Europa League. This certainly isn’t the clinical and potent striker we were promised in the summer.
In fact the difference between Soldado and Defoe last weekend was pretty stark; the latter playing with all the confidence and assurance of an in-form marksman and the latter seemingly unable to hit a barn door. To some the Defoe deal to Toronto looks like a transfer market gaffe from Spurs, clearly the better frontman of the two and a major asset lost going forward. I don’t doubt Defoe’s ability and eye for goal, but personally I think Spurs have got this right long term.
Soldado offers so much more to the club. Even when he isn’t scoring he is consistently looking to link up with and bring others into the game, a characteristic that is pretty alien to someone like Jermain Defoe. A lot of Soldado’s play in the final third is world class, some of the flicks and knock ons are just simply on a different level to the one that Spurs currently operate on. Rather than the monotonous midfield passing that many have criticised the club for, Soldado really tries to make things happen and naturally he will make a few mistakes at this stage. But given what a fledgling partnership this is with Adebayor, I think perseverance is the key.
Spurs fans though are right to be concerned. Spending £26m on a player who was meant to be a guaranteed success is always going to carry certain expectations. Clearly these aren’t being met, but really this is true of a lot of the new crop that have arrived at the club – people really need to lengthen their time horizon’s for this ‘project’.
The reassuring thing though is that Soldado will be given the time and opportunity to adapt and show off his very best. With Defoe an imminent departure and Sherwood looking to continue with an adventurous 4-4-2, Soldado will get plenty of game time.
This isn’t a question of making do with what Spurs have, Soldado’s contributions have still been marked. Spurs thought they had bought a goalscorer, but potentially they’ve got a lot more. Having topped the assists charts for the club most of the season it is clear that the Spaniard is a lot to a complete player – more than he is given credit for.
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Fans should be concerned, but not to the extent where they write off Soldado. Having had a difficult start both on and off the pitch, a bit of patience and faith are in order here.
Newcastle United centre back Steven Taylor is primed for another meeting with Sunderland at the Stadium of Light this Sunday.
Whilst his namesake Ryan Taylor is still held in high regard for getting his free kick ‘over the wall’ and in the back of the net, in a 1-0 victory at the Black Cats ground last season, the magpies central defender wants to make his own derby day history.
The ace has been kept out for the last few fixtures but is now back in full training alongside Coloccini and Tim Krul, who are both also recovering from injuries.
It is an encouraging sign that all 3 players took part in United’s latest training session at their Benton training centre. Their returns will be extremely well received ahead of such a crucial clash.
Newcastle’s hierarchy has been challenged in recent times for not adding more reinforcements to the squad in the summer, than just Vurnon Anita for £6.6million from Ajax.
Many fans hoped that qualification for the Europa League would mean that the club would open up its coffers to make some marquee signings, in order to push on towards the top 4.
Perch and Williamson though have performed admirably under the injury circumstances recently, with both having to play as part in Premier League and Europa league sides.
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Despite this, the fans will be delighted their defensive stars are in back in the first team fold. The spine of the team has returned at a perfect time for the Toon’s supporters. They will be hoping the players won’t be rusty first game back, with Tyne-Wear bragging rights at stake.
Manchester United have cooled their interest in Tottenham and England international left-back Danny Rose, according to the Sun.
What’s the story, then?
The report in the Sun claims that United, along with bitter rivals Manchester City have gone cold on the trail of the man who will travel to the World Cup this summer as part of Gareth Southgate’s England squad.
It goes on to say that could allow Everton to steal a march in the race for a man they claim the Toffees are prepared to pay £40m for this summer.
The report also claims that Juventus’ Alex Sandro, 27, is the left-back on the top of Mourinho’s summer shopping list, meaning Rose has slipped down the pecking order.
Rose showed a poor attitude
Rose threw Tottenham’s pre-season preparations into jeopardy with a bizarre rant about signings and investment in North London on the eve of the new campaign, which showed a selfishness that would not go down well with Mourinho.
He brazenly attempted to flirt with the Manchester clubs on that occasion and failed to rediscover the form that had made him an England regular, losing his spot to Ben Davies for the majority of the season.
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Inconsistent form and speaking out of turn that will not wash with the hardline Portuguese gaffer – in truth, it wouldn’t go down well with United fans either – and that is why Mourinho may be wise to give Rose the swerve in this transfer window.
It’s no great secret where Southampton have struggled most this season. Despite being 16th in the Premier League table, they’ve actually created the seventh-most chances of any side in the division yet averaged just one goal per game.
Indeed, Saints’ strike-force has struggled to find the net this term, barring a flurry from Charlie Austin earlier in the campaign, and bringing in another source of goals will surely be one of Mauricio Pellegrino’s priorities for the January transfer window.
For this weekend, however, Southampton’s current options in attack will have to do. 11-cap international Manolo Gabbiadini began the season in the starting XI, but in recent weeks has found himself playing second fiddle to Shane Long – who Transfermarkt value at just £7.2million.
The Irishman recently bagged his first goal of the campaign against Crystal Palace and started last time out against Watford, but is he the right man to lead the line when Tottenham Hotspur come to St. Mary’s this Sunday? Let us know who you’d start up front by voting below…
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PUMA yesterday kicked off its 2014 Nature of Believing campaign, with the launch of the revolutionary new evoPOWER football boot at a live event in Barcelona. PUMA Power players Cesc Fàbregas, Marco Reus and Mario Balotelli put their football skills to the test on the evoPOWER wall, the custom built football simulator that utilises Hawk Eye technology to measure players’ power and accuracy. evoPOWER was inspired by the freedom of movement of a bare foot – Fàbregas, Reus and Balotelli showcased their skills and the boots performance enhancing technology through four interactive challenges.
An audience of media and competition winners from around the world joined PUMA in Barcelona to test the new evoPOWER boot and see the live and interactive event. The launch was co-hosted by football legend and PUMA player Thierry Henry, who guided the players’ through the challenges and offered valuable insight into the design inspiration and product benefits.
evoPOWER is a new performance boot designed to enhance a player’s natural kicking ability, and optimise a player’s power and accuracy when striking the ball. Inspired by the power generated from the freedom of barefoot kicking, evoPOWER features the most advanced PUMA footwear technologies to date in its football category, and will be worn on pitch by Cesc Fàbregas, Marco Reus, Mario Balotelli, Yaya Touré, Nemanja Vidic, Dante and many others.
Cesc Fàbregas said, “I really enjoyed the experience; it was a great product launch. To unveil the new PUMA evoPOWER boot though a live demonstration and showcase the technology and benefits that the boot brings to a player was an excellent idea. The challenges were very competitive, seeing our power and accuracy score from each shot really was an incentive to try and beat those other guys.”
Marco Reus added, “I first saw an early version of evoPOWER boot some months ago and have been really impressed with the thinking behind its design. It was a fitting stage to launch the boot, there was an electric atmosphere and everyone in the room was clearly impressed by the evoPOWER wall and the technology of the boot. The challenges were designed to really put us all to the test and having some of the competition winners join us for the final breaking down the wall challenge was a nice touch. I always like to meet football fans and an experience like this event was a great thing to be a part of.”
Mario Balotelli commented, “The launch was great fun with all the guys together. Having only joined the PUMA family last month, it was a privilege to be able to take part in the event and join Cesc and Marco in launching the new evoPOWER boot. There’s been a lot of hype about this new boot over the last couple of weeks as we’ve been wearing a camouflage test version on pitch and in training. We finally revealed the proper boot and showed the world the impact the evoPOWER boot can have.”
Cesc Fàbregas, Marco Reus, Mario Balotelli and Thierry Henry feature in an exciting short film showcasing field tests conducted exploring the unbelievable power and accuracy of evoPOWER. Check it out below:
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The PUMA evoPOWER football boots are available from ProDirectSoccer.com from February 1st. Head to PUMAFootballClub.com to conquer unique challenges and get closer than ever to PUMA players.
Blackburn managing director Peter Shaw has stated that Alan Shearer is in consideration for the vacant manager’s position.
The Lancashire club sacked Steve Kean recently, and are currently looking for a replacement that can lead the side back to the Premier League.
Shearer fired Rovers to the Premier League title in 1995, and Shaw has admitted that the BBC pundit could well be in the frame.
“I’m sure it would be a popular appointment, but even more than getting fans excited we need a good manager who’ll get us to the Premier League and keep us in the Premier League,” Shaw told Sky Sports.
“Obviously someone with Alan’s football record, he’ll be on the list that we have a good look at.
“I wouldn’t confirm anything at this moment in time. There’s a number of names being put forward for our job, those names have been forwarded on to the owners with comments.
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“We’re possibly getting a little bit nearer the interviewing stage but there’s no one ruled in and no one ruled out at the moment, so I can’t really comment any further,” he concluded.
Roy Keane and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer are also names being speculated as candidates in the press.
Sran, 31, represented India in six ODIs and two T20Is between January and June 2016
ESPNcricinfo staff29-Aug-2024Barinder Sran, the left-arm fast bowler, has announced his retirement from international and domestic cricket. Sran, 31, represented India in six ODIs and two T20Is between January and June 2016, but had been out of the selection reckoning since then.”As I officially hang up my cricket boots, I look back at my journey with a heart full of gratitude,” Sran wrote on Instagram. “Cricket has gifted me innumerable and incredible experiences. Fast bowling soon became my lucky charm and opened doors to represent prestigious IPL franchises, ultimately culminating in the highest honor of representing India in 2016.”Even though my international career was brief, the memories created will be forever cherished. I am eternally grateful to the almighty for getting me the right coaches and management, who have supported me throughout my journey.”Sran, the son of a farmer, took to cricket after seeing a Kings XI Punjab advertisement calling youngsters to take part in a trial, having previously trained as a boxer at the Bhiwani Boxing Club in Haryana.He didn’t get an IPL contract, but a boy who had till then only played village cricket with a tennis ball got through to the Kings Cup and became one among the top 35-40 uncapped cricketers in Punjab. Eventually, he was picked up by Rajasthan Royals at the 2015 IPL auction, but his biggest highlight would come a year later, when he was picked for the Indian ODI team to play in Australia, with only eight List A matches under his belt at the time. He made his ODI debut under MS Dhoni’s captaincy on January 12, taking 3 for 56 in Perth.Sran was also selected in the squad for the white-ball tour of Zimbabwe in June 2016, where he made his T20I debut. He put in a Player-of-the-Match performance in the second game in Harare, taking 4 for 10.Overall, Sran played 18 first-class, 31 List-A, and 48 T20 matches between 2011 and 2021. In the IPL, he represented Royals, Kings XI, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Mumbai Indians, and was also a net bowler for Gujarat Titans.Sran last played a competitive match in February 2021, for Punjab in the Vijay Hazare Trophy against Madhya Pradesh.