Arsenal and Chelsea have cooled their interest in AC Milan striker Mario Balotelli and Tottenham Hotspur cannot afford him, according to fresh reports in the Italian media. QS claims the ex-Manchester City hitman is ready to leave the San Siro but is rapidly running out of options following a typically enigmatic World Cup campaign for his national side. He got off to a good start by heading the winner in Italy’s 2-1 triumph over England, but cut a frustrated figure in successive 1-0 defeats at the hands of Costa Rica and Uruguay and was hauled off by head coach Cesare…
Author: Staff Writer
Juventus have reportedly made Manchester City defender Matija Nastasic one of their top summer transfer targets. According to Italian source TuttoSport, the Serie A champions are determined to strengthen the heart of their backline before the 2014-15 campaign gets started and have high hopes of luring the 21-year-old back to Italy. The Serbia international was one of Fiorentina’s stand-out performers before departing for City in 2012 as part of the deal which saw Stefan Savic move in the opposite direction. TuttoSport claims Juve are preparing a loan offer with a view to a permanent move at the end of next…
Manchester City are ready to firm up their interest in Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba with an official bid, according to fresh media reports in Italy. QS claims the Premier League champions are prepared to spend in excess of £45million to lure the former Manchester United prodigy back to the North-West of England. City, who also lifted the League Cup during a successful 2013-14 campaign, could also offer defender Matija Nastasic as part of the package, as they look to capitalise on the Turin giants’ interest in the centre-half. Nastasic fell out of favour at the Etihad Stadium last season, losing…
Manchester United are reportedly lining up a £34million bid for Juventus midfielder Arturo Vidal. According to Italian source QS, the Red Devils are keen to pair the highly-rated Chile international with Spanish youngster Ander Herrera, who joined from La Liga outfit Athletic Bilbao last week. Holland head coach Louis van Gaal, who officially takes charge at Old Trafford when the national side’s World Cup adventure comes to an end, has set his sights on building a new-look engine room following last season’s woes. The three-time European Cup winners finished seventh in the Premier League table, failed to lift a trophy…
Former Liverpool midfielder Dietmar Hamann claims full-back Luke Shaw’s £27million switch from Southampton to Manchester United is “ridiculous”. The 18-year-old England international completed the move just days after making his first competitive start for the Three Lions, in their final World Cup group game against Costa Rica. Their tournament ultimately ended in failure courtesy of successive 2-1 defeats to Italy and Uruguay and Shaw benefited from manager Roy Hodgson’s decision to name an inexperienced line-up in the last fixture. Despite winning rave reviews for his performances on the south coast throughout the 2013-14 campaign, Hamann feels the Red Devils have…
England have returned home from their woeful World Cup spectacle with their tails between their legs. With many contributing factors to consider in their failed campaign, the FA should concentrate on their manager selection blunder, according to Chelsea legend Ron Harris. Former Chelsea defender and captain Harris is Chelsea’s all-time highest featured player, having made a staggering 795 appearances for the west London club spanning 19 years. An avid watcher of the game and now working a football pundit and public speaker, Harris gives his forthright opinion on England’s overall performance in Brazil this World Cup. “England have been…
La Stampa have reported that Juventus will make a last minute bid for Bayern Munich forward Xherdan Shaqiri in an attempt to stop Liverpool’s proposed move. The Swiss forward has been in superb form at the World Cup in Brazil and delighted fans of his national side with a superb hat-trick against Honduras earlier this week. And it is those types of performances that have gained heavy interest from Premier League runners-up Liverpool, who were said to have all-but agreed a £15m deal. However, it is now being reported that Serie A champions Juventus will make a move in the…
The final group games gave us more to sink our teeth into. There was late drama as Greece made it through to the last-16, huge controversy around Luis Suarez and 42 goals to enjoy. Our writer Declan Olley (@declanolley) looks at the best and worst moments of the final group games and give his team of the round… Best game: Croatia 1-3 Mexico Mexican coach Miguel Herrera regarded this as one of the best days of his life and he certainly celebrated like it was. Three Mexican goals in 10 second-half minutes booked their place in the last-16 ahead of…
Italy legend Roberto Baggio has been backed to take over as the national side’s new head coach. Il Quotidiano Sportivo claims the former AC Milan and Juventus star could be the man to replace Cesare Prandelli, who has announced that he is to leave his post in the wake of a desperately disappointing World Cup campaign. Italy failed to make it past the group stage in Brazil after following up their 2-1 victory over England with successive 1-0 defeats at the hands of Costa Rica and Uruguay respectively. Their exit was overshadowed by Luis Suarez’s infamous bite on defender Giorgio…
Before this World Cup Brazil boss Luiz Felipe Scolari’s greatest fear was facing Chile in the last 16 and that will be the case when the two countries meet on Saturday in the Round of 16, writes Declan Olley (@declanolley). He told TV Globo’s Esporte Espectacular in December: “I hope Chile don’t qualify. I’d rather play any of the others. They’re a pain to play against. They’re well organized, they’re intelligent, they have a good side.” Scolari wasn’t wrong about Chile – they have turned out to be one of the teams of the tournament – but his worst nightmare…