Manchester City duo Sergio Aguero and Pablo Zabaleta spent the weekend in Barcelona, visiting Argentine team-mate Lionel Messi. Just nine days before their meeting in the Champions League, Aguero and Zabaleta took full advantage of their weekend off by visiting Catalonia, where the latter used to play for Espanyol. Barca and City will go head-to-head on February 24th at the Etihad stadium as they battle it out for a place in the quarter-finals of European football’s top competition. The friendship between all three is well known in Spanish and English media, although reports in Catalan press are making the most…
Author: Staff Writer
Former Burnley forward Robbie Blake has told Danny Ings that he should turn down Real Sociedad and remain in the Premier League. The 22-year-old English striker flew out to Basque country to discuss terms over a potential summer move as his contract at Burnley expires in June. Sociedad boss David Moyes is keen to sign the striker as he looks to improve on a poor season. However, Blake believes that the striker should remain in the Premier League and sign for a club like Liverpool or Tottenham Hotspur. “Danny Ings was on fire last season in the Championship and people were…
Louis van Gaal has confirmed that Manchester United are looking at a number of midfield options as links to Atletico Madrid midfielder Koke continue. The Dutch boss has had to rely on Wayne Rooney to drop back and cover in midfield for a large part of season, whilst the likes of Michael Carrick and Daley Blind have struggled for fitness and form. United are said to be keen to improve every area of their outfield positions over the summer transfer window and Van Gaal has confirmed that he will be actively looking to find a suitable midfielder. The United boss…
Paris Saint Germain are considering a move for Manchester United midfielder Angel Di Maria, Football Express News understands. The Argentine forward has been a shadow of his form at Real Madrid last season, having struggled to break the language barrier, settle in Manchester and find his feet in Louis van Gaal’s side. Links to French side Paris Saint Germain have been maintained with a previous move to the Ligue 1 champions having come close whilst he played for Spanish side Real Madrid. The former Benfica man has recently discussed his future at Old Trafford, saying that United would be his…
Tommy Docherty has warned Louis van Gaal to find form with Manchester United or face a backlash from the club’s fans. While United sit third in the Premier League and look certain to qualify for Champions League football this season, the Old Trafford side have been unconvincing in their performances and were heavily criticised following last week’s 3-1 win over Burnley. Docherty, who helped United win the FA Cup in 1977 during his five year reign as United boss, has joined in with the criticism and said that Van Gaal is running out of time to impress the fans. “Once…
Ajax are considering a summer move for Hamburg midfielder Rafael van der Vaart,according to Ajax1. The 32-year-old former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder is out of contract in the summer and is currently toying with a number of offers from both the Premier League and Serie A. Having featured for Bundesliga side Hamburg this season on a more withdrawn basis, Van der Vaart has still managed to rack up five goals and is seen by Dutch side Ajax as a potential signing. Van der Vaart began his career with the Dutch champions back in 1999 and would openly return to the Amsterdam…
Barcelona star Ivan Rakitic rejected the chance to move to Manchester United and Arsenal in January, according to Daily Express. The Croatian midfielder moved to Barca in the summer from Sevilla but initially struggled to find his feet at Camp Nou as Luis Enrique continued to rotate his side. However, he has since impressed, alternating in games with Spanish midfielder Andres Iniesta. Reports in Spanish press over the January transfer window had linked Rakitic with a shock exit, but it is now confirmed that he did reject the advances of Arsenal and Man United. Rakitic is known to be happy…
Former Chelsea midfielder Lassana Diarra is confident he can force a move to West Ham United in the summer, after seeing his January move fail. The French midfielder has been without a club since leaving Russian side Lokomotiv Moscow in August and has not played a professional game in almost ten months. The 29-year-old has attracted a huge number of clubs but was reported to be on the verge of joining West Ham after talks were initiated in January. However, despite training with the club, boss Sam Allardyce confirmed a breakdown in talks: “I have to say we have waited…
Santi Cazorla has agreed a summer move to Atletico Madrid, with the personal terms agreed in principle, according to Cadena COPE. The 29-year-old had become unsettled in London following the World Cup in Brazil, after which he was used more as a substitute than a regular starter, although his improved form has now seen him become one of Arsene Wenger’s most reliable players. Spanish champions Atletico have maintained their interest, having made a January move, which was rejected by the Gunners. Cazorla, who joined Arsenal in 2012 from Malaga has less than 18 months remaining on his current deal at…
Arsenal were comfortable in victory as an Olivier Giroud brace knocked Aitor Karanka’s Middlesbrough out of the FA Cup. Arsenal looked positive and confident from the first whistle, Santi Cazorla testing former Real Madrid goalkeeper Mejias in the opening five minutes with a low strike. Arsenal controlled possession in the early stages of the game but didn’t have any clear cut chances until French striker Olivier Giroud broke the deadlock on 26 minutes. Cazorla with an excellent pass to Kieran Gibbs who made a darting run on the left hand side. Patrick Bamford didn’t track Gibbs’ run and the full…