Xavi Hernandez has agreed a lucrative deal to sign with Qatari side Al Arabi and end his career with Barcelona. Romanian coach Dan Petrescu, who has been in charge of the Qatari club since he left Dynamo Moscow at the end of the season has confirmed that Xavi will be come an Al Arabi player next season, agreeing in principle a deal that will see the Spanish midfielder earn £6m per season. Xavi has just completed his 16th season with the Catalan club, in which he appeared a remarkable 723 times, helping them win the Champions League on three occasions…
Author: Staff Writer
Real Madrid and Portugal forward Cristiano Ronaldo has been told by doctors to take two months out of football or risk damaging his knee injury even more. The Ballon d’Or winner was a distant figure in his country’s 4-0 loss to Germany last week and has since been forced to take part in limited training with his national side, prompting further concerns about his troubling injuries. Recent MRI scans have shown that Ronaldo is putting serious pressure on his patellar tendon and the 29-year-old has been warned by experienced Portuguese doctor Jose Carlos Noronha to take a break or risk…
Mario Mandzukic returned to the Croatia starting eleven after his suspension and scored a superb brace to keep their hopes of qualifying alive, beating Cameroon 4-0 in Manuas on Wednesday night. The game started with both sides playing well, but it would be on the 10 minute mark that Niko Kovac’s side would take advantage when Ivan Olic was found at the back post to score his first goal of the tournament. Croatia could have doubled their lead minutes later had Ivan Perisic not send his close range effort wide, whilst down the other end Stephane Mbia blasted over the…
Spain have crashed out of the World Cup following a 2-0 defeat to Chile, sending shock waves across the World after years of dominance in international football. Spain started slow against Chile and that allowed Eduardo Vargas to test the quality of Iker Casillas, shooting from distance but his shot went wide of the Real Madrid keeper’s goal. Xabi Alonso came close for the reigning World champions but his poor effort was saved with ease by Claudio Bravo and that miss would prove costly just minutes later when Vargas opened the scoring with a superb finish. The lively Alexis Sanchez was causing big…
The Netherlands battled from behind to beat Australia 3-2 in a thrilling World Cup tie in Porto Alegre. The Aussies started the match well and came close as the experienced Mark Bresciano saw his effort go just wide of the post. Netherlands, who has started slowly, took that as a reminder of Australia’s talents and they produced a good save out of Matthew Ryan when Robin van Persie tested the Aussie number one. Louis van Gaal’s men opened the scoring with 19 minutes when Arjen Robben made a run from in the box, slotting past Ryan well. However, the Aussies…
Former Wales and Man United man Clayton Blackmore has lifted the lid on the challenges faced by the Welsh national team with key players skipping friendlies. In recent years, Wales have produced a smattering of world-class football talent including Manchester United legend Ryan Giggs and Real Madrid wideman Gareth Bale. Ex-Red Devils defender Blackmore says it is this calibre of player that the side relies on to win games and, using the run-up to this World Cup as an example, explains how injuries to key players massively impact the fate of the team when faced with international tournaments. “It’s a…
The early set of Premier League fixtures suits new Manchester United head coach Louis van Gaal, according to former Red Devils striker Michael Owen. Swansea City visit Old Trafford on the opening day of the 2014-15 campaign on August 16, followed by trips to Sunderland and newly-promoted Burnley later in the month. Another side to have escaped from the Championship, Queens Park Rangers, are the visitors on September 13 prior to the journey to fellow top-flight new boys Leicester City and a home clash with West Ham United. The initial run of games are in stark contrast to last term’s…
AC Milan’s pursuit of Liverpool target Adil Rami has reportedly hit a stumbling block. The Serie A giants are still hopeful of landing the Valencia centre-half, who spent most of last season on loan at the San Siro, but TuttoSport claims a takeover bid for ownership of the Spanish club is holding up the deal. Tycoon Peter Lim is, according to the report, still attempting to successfully engineer his arrival in La Liga and Milan chief executive Adriano Galliani is now prepared to wait until the takeover is official so he can talk directly to the entrepreneur. A source close…
Manchester United have moved a step closer to the signature of Benfica winger Nicolas Gaitan, according to fresh reports in the Porugese media. A Bola claims a deal could be close as Red Devils representatives continue to negotiate with the 26-year-old’s club. United’s lack of creativity was pinpointed as a major problem in their torrid 2013-14 campaign, which saw them finish seventh in the Premier League table and bow out of the domestic cup competitions prematurely. They also exited the Champions League at the quarter-final stage, ending the season without a trophy, and sacked manager David Moyes in April, less…
Inter Milan are reportedly on the verge of signing former Tottenham Hotspur target Yann M’Vila from Rubin Kazan. A source close to White Hart Lane told Football Express News the north London outfit were keen on the France international last year, only to see him leave Ligue 1 side Rennes for the Russian club. According to a fresh report from Italian source TuttoSport, he is almost certainly on the move again and is close to putting pen to paper on a four-year deal at Inter. He is said to have already travelled to Milan to undergo medical tests before the…