Fabio Capello says Barcelona forward Lionel Messi is a bigger genius than Real Madrid attacker Cristiano Ronaldo and believes that the Camp Nou side should never sell the Argentine forward. Real Madrid’s Ronaldo secured his third Ballon d’Or title at the annual FIFA Gala on Monday evening and has been widely given plaudits for his accolades last year. Former England boss Capello has discussed the battle between Ronaldo and Barcelona’s Lionel Messi for the title, which has been shared between the two over the past seven years. “Can Ronaldo win more Ballons d’Or than Messi? It’s a very interesting battle.…
Author: Staff Writer
Celtic defender Virgil van Dijk has admitted that he is delighted to have been linked with Premier League side Arsenal in recent times. The Dutch defender has long been linked with a move from Scotland to England with Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger a keen admirer of his ability. The 23-year-old has also gained interest from the likes of Everton and Sunderland during the January transfer window, forcing Celtic to increase his asking price to £10m in a bid to beat off interest. “It’s [Van Dijk’s time at Celtic] gone awfully quickly,” he told De Telegraaf. “I have recently been thinking…
Former Brazil striker Ronaldo is toying with a return to football after purchasing 10% of Fort Lauderdale Strikers. Ronaldo was unveiled earlier this week as a new member of the Striker’s ownership group and has now taken a role with the United States’ second division National American Soccer League side. Whilst the 38-year-old retired from playing four years ago, the two-time World Cup winner has claimed that he could return and wear the famous red-and-yellow Strikers’ short for the 2015 season. “I will try to play some games,” he told Sports Illustrated. “This year I want to train a lot.…
Youcef Dahmani takes a look ahead to the 31st African Cup of Nations, hosted by Equatorial Guinea. Group A: Equatorial Guinea, host the tournament, but will find it tough to qualify for the knockout stages, being placed in a group that features Burkino Faso, Gabon and Congo. Over the past couple of years, Burkina Faso have improved dramatically, playing a good brand of football, as have Gabon, who made the quarter-final stage in 2012. Gabon have some well known players such as Pierre Emerick Aubamayang who currently plays for Borussia Dortmund and Levy Madinda of Celta Vigo in Spain. The last team in…
Tottenham are keeping tabs on Sevilla forward, Carlos Bacca, after scouts from the club visited Southern Spain last week to watch the Colombian in league action against Celta Vigo. Although aged 28, the striker has been a late developer being in form for both his current side and his previous one Club Bruges in Belgium. He has scored a goal in every other game in La Liga and Spurs would be open to a part-exchange deal involving Roberto Soldado. This would help provide support in Mauricio Pochettino’s squad as he attempts to push for a possible top 4 finish in…
Hamburg have joined the race to sign Legia Warsaw youngster Krystian Bielik. The 16-year-old youngster has emerged as one of the most promising midfielder’s in European football this season and has been often compared to former Arsenal midfielder Patrick Vieira. And, it was reported that Bielik will now follow Vieira’s similar career path by making a January move to Arsenal after the English club had a £3.5m deal accepted by the Polish club. Arsenal had been confident of reaching a deal with both club and player further more by the end of this week but interest from Bundesliga side Hamburg has…
Sporting Lisbon midfielder William Carvalho has issued a come and get me plea to interested Premier League clubs. The Portuguese international has been often linked with a move to England and has been subject to interest from the likes of Manchester United, Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal. The latter have been extremely keen with a reported £20m bid having been rejected following the World Cup in Brazil last summer. However, Carvalho is still keen on making that move to England a reality and has once again discussed his future. “My dream is to play in England,” he told Record.…
Former Poland keeper Jan Tomaszewski has told Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger to allow Wojciech Szczesny an exit from the club. The Pole was dropped from Arsenal’s last two games as a punishment for a smoking incident which took place in the showers at Southampton’s St Mary’s ground on New Year’s Day. Szczesny, who was fined £20,ooo for the incident is said to be frustrated at losing his place in the first team and Tomaszewski has called on the situation to be resolved. “I think the smoking in the showers incident was only an excuse to fine Wojciech,” he told reporters.…
Nicolas Anelka has been denied a move to the 13th club of his career because he is “too old”. The former Chelsea, Arsenal and Real Madrid hitman had agreed a move to join Algerian side Nasr Athletique d’Hussein-Dey (NAHD), but the move was blocked by the Algerian Football Federation. The president of the Algerian professional football league said “Only those aged under 27 and playing on the international level for their countries are allowed to sign up with our clubs. The rules concerning foreign players being allowed to play in the Algerian league are clear.” Anelka had been training with…
Radamel Falcao is uncertain of his future at Manchester United after being left out of the weekend defeat to Southampton. The Colombian striker, who joined the Red Devils from Monaco in the summer on a loan deal, was left out of United’s squad for the home tie against Ronald Koeman’s men. United boss Louis van Gaal confirmed prior to the 1-0 defeat that Falcao was left out for tactical reasons and not injury has now come under heavy critique for the decision. Falcao, himself, is thought to be confused over the situation, with some reports claiming that he left Old…