Former Manchester United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel believes Red Devils manager-in-waiting Louis van Gaal and hitman Robin van Persie will not taste World Cup glory in Brazil. Boss van Gaal is hoping his star striker shakes off fitness doubts to lead the line for Holland in tonight’s eagerly-anticipated semi-final showdown with Argentina. A place in Sunday’s showpiece final against Germany is the reward for the winners but ex-Denmark international Schmeichel feels the Dutch will fall short at the weekend even if they overcome Lionel Messi and co. The 50-year-old, who was part of United’s famous treble-winning team in 1999, thinks the…
Author: Staff Writer
AC Milan head coach Filippo Inzaghi’s proposed transformation of his under-performing squad has inspired a move for Manchester United winger Nani, Football Express News understands. A source close to Old Trafford told FEN the San Siro giants have expressed an interest in the Portugal international, who has become a peripheral figure at the Premier League club, and a bid could land on their table as early as tomorrow. Club president Silvio Berlusconi has held three meetings with the head coach in recent weeks and will arrive in Milan today to begin the process of making offers for key summer transfer…
Juventus will reportedly make an 11th hour attempt to halt Fiorentina winger Juan Cuadrado’s move to Barcelona. TuttoSport claims the Serie A champions are ready to firm up their long-standing interest by rivalling the La Liga giants’ £23.8million offer, which was revealed by Catalan publication Sport. Head coach Antonio Conte, who oversaw his side’s successful defence of their domestic title last term, hopes to convince the Colombia international to remain in Italy and lead Juve’s assault on the Champions League. Their best hope of doing so is to dwarf Barca’s bid with a bigger fee, as the Viola are holding…
Serie A outfit Cagliari will reportedly offer Liverpool target Davide Astori a new three-year contract in an attempt to keep him at the club. The Italy international is the subject of strong interest from the Reds and Lazio, who have also put a deal on the table which runs until 2017 according to Tutto Mercato Web. While the Rome side are still in pole position to land the coveted centre-half, a source close to Anfield told Football Express News they are not out of the running yet. There has been an acceptance on Merseyside in recent weeks that the 27-year-old…
Football Express News understands that Benfica’s Lazar Markovic will arrive in Liverpool later on Wednesday to formally complete a medical and his move to Anfield. The 20-year-old is set to join Brendan Rodgers’ side for a fee of £25m after both Liverpool and Benfica officials made a breakthrough in negotiations at the weekend and he is now set to arrive in Merseyside to complete a medical in the coming hours. The talented forward will join Liverpool’s summer signings – Emre Can, Rickie Lambert and Adam Lallana, who sealed their moves to the club last week. Meanwhile, Liverpool are also closing…
Napoli striker Gonzalo Higuain has played down talk of a move to Barcelona despite receiving glowing praise from Nou Camp talisman Lionel Messi. The two men are international team-mates with Argentina and have figured prominently in their side’s run to the World Cup semi-finals, in which they face Holland tonight. Messi has made no secret of the fact that he would like to see the former Real Madrid hitman return to La Liga with the Catalan giants, but Higuain remains coy about the prospect of leaving the Italians after only one full season. The 26-year-old, who was the subject of…
Football Express News understands that Alexis Sanchez has accepted a £150,000 per week contract with Arsenal and will join the Premier League club in the coming days. The Chilean winger was told towards the end of last season that his future at the Camp Nou was up for question, despite having a consistent season and an impressive World Cup campaign with his country. Sanchez, who joined the Catalan club from Udinese in Italy had initially been linked with a move back to Serie A with Juventus, but both Liverpool and Arsenal became front runners during the World Cup. And, it…
Manchester United are working hard behind the scenes to complete the signature of Juventus midfielder Arturo Vidal, according to fresh reports coming out of Italy this morning. TuttoSport claims the Red Devils are laying down the groundwork for the proposed £31million raid and hope to complete it by the end of July at the latest. They are said to be in a strong negotiating position due to the Serie A champions’ ongoing pursuit of United defender Patrice Evra, with the veteran left-back edging closer to his switch to Turin. While a disagreement over personal terms is the only hold-up in…
Liverpool midfielder Lucas Leiva has decided to leave the club for Serie A side Napoli, according to fresh reports in the Italian media. Il Mattino claims the Brazil international has already set his heart on a reunion with former Reds boss Rafael Benitez in Naples, despite the fact a deal is yet to be thrashed out. His representatives will fly to Rome before the end of the week in an attempt to agree personal terms, although the biggest stumbling block still awaits them. Premier League runners-up Liverpool are reluctant to see him go but would consider selling him if they…
Manchester United defender Patrice Evra’s proposed move to Juventus is reportedly being held up over a disagreement about money. TuttoSport claims the France international and his representatives are holding out for £3.1million per year, while the Turin giants have so far only offered £1.5m. As things stand a dialogue between the two parties will continue and there is no suggestion that they are close to walking away from the table. According to the report, the most likely scenario is that they will soon settle for a compromise of £2.7m, although the length of the contract is yet to be established.…