AC Milan owner Silvio Berlusconi has hinted at signing Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo if his team wins the Serie A.With six league games remaining, Milan hold a three-point lead over Napoli with fierce cross-town rivals Inter a further two points back.
The Italian prime minister has declared his interest in the 26-year-old former Manchester United winger, even though Ronaldo has not indicated he wants to leave the Santiago Bernabeu.
“If we win the scudetto then the next transfer window will see us add one or two great players. One of those could be Ronaldo,” Berlusconi said.
“If we were able to add Ronaldo to our squad I think it would please everybody. Sometimes dreams come true.”
Sweden striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic joined the Italian giants at the start of this season, although disciplinary issues have reportedly left Berlusconi questioning his investment.
It would be the first time since 2004 that Milan have won the league title if they hold off the challenges of their rivals.
The current squad includes ageing pair Clarence Seedorf, 35, and Andrea Pirlo, 31, who are both coming off contract.
Manchester United's Serbia international central defender Nemanja Vidic has dismissed talk of him having considered quitting Old Trafford earlier this summer.
The 28-year-old was heavily linked with both Real Madrid and Barcelona, before signing a new long-term contract, a move which abruptly ended the unwanted speculation.
Vidic commented:"I don't know why people think it was a difficult decision. I always said I am happy here.
"I never spoke about my future. I know there was all this speculation but I never said I wanted to go.
"There was nothing new and I am very happy to be here."
Meanwhile, United strike ace Wayne Rooney has admitted that winning the Premier League title is getting harder every year.
He told the Premier League Season Review:"Since I signed for United I think the Premier League has got progressively harder to win.
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"I know it's a cliche, but there are no easy games in the Premier League. In previous seasons you might have had straightforward games where the top clubs could afford to rest players, but that's not the case anymore.
"Nowadays it's hard to leave players out because every game is competitive and difficult."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email
Bruno Fernandes is reportedly one of several Sporting CP players set to terminate his contract this week, so could he be the man to replace Manuel Lanzini at West Ham?
What’s the story?
Last week, West Ham fans were devastated by the news of Lanzini’s knee injury, with one inside source even claiming the Argentine could miss the entire 2018-19 season.
The injury is a huge loss for the Hammers and will certainly have a major effect on Manuel Pellegrini’s transfer plans.
The move for Lazio winger Felipe Anderson seems to be getting closer, but a creative number ten now has to be at the top of the shopping list.
According to Sky Sports, Fernandes has joined the likes of William Carvalho and Gelson Martins by asking to end his contract at Sporting, meaning he could be available for free this summer.
The Portuguese club is in meltdown after a gang of supporters attacked their first team in May, and Premier League clubs are on red alert over some potential bargains.
The 23 year-old will have plenty of clubs lining up for his signature, but the allure of working under an experienced coach like Pellegrini could lure him to East London.
The assist king?
The injury to Lanzini is a huge loss for West Ham in every conceivable way. The 25 year-old, who worked under Pellegrini as a youth player at River Plate, is probably the most technically gifted player in the squad, and is the only player outside of Marko Arnautovic that can create something out of nothing.
While Anderson should replace some of the pace and flair lost by the injury, the Hammers need a direct replacement for the creativity Lanzini brings, and that’s where Fernandes comes in.
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Playing mostly as a number ten, the 23 year-old grabbed an incredible 16 goals and 20 assists in all competitions last season, averaging over two key passes per game.
The Portuguese international, valued at £27m by Transfermarkt, is a set piece wizard, one of the best crossers in Europe, and always fancies his chances with a long distance effort.
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Fernandes is similar to Lanzini in that he will pop up in various positions to help make things happen, and could flourish in Pellegrini’s free flowing attack.
The young playmaker isn’t afraid to get stuck in either, averaging nearly two tackles per game in the league last season, so he shouldn’t have a problem adjusting to the physicality of the Premier League.
The Hammers will likely have to dish out some high wages to get a deal done, but it’s not every day a 23 year-old with 20 assists becomes available for free, so they should do whatever it takes to make it happen.
So, West Ham fans, would you back a swoop for Fernandes? Can Pellegrini convince him to join? Let us know by voting in the poll below…
Schalke 04 CEO Christian Heidel has revealed that Max Meyer will soon make a decision on his future amid suggestions of interest from Arsenal, as reported by Bild.
What’s the story?
Meyer, 22, will see his contract with Schalke expire at the end of the current season, and the versatile midfielder is yet to pen an extension with the Bundesliga club.
Heidel recently told reporters that the German ‘will be deciding shortly’ if he wants to sign a fresh deal or indeed seek pastures new at the end of the current season.
According to Bild, Arsenal are closely monitoring developments as head coach Arsene Wenger prepares to boost his midfield at the end of the current season.
Heidel claimed that Meyer is ‘very happy’ at Schalke, but it is thought that Arsenal are confident of turning his head with a contract offer over the next couple of weeks.
Would Meyer suit Arsenal?
In any market, signing a player of Meyer’s ability on a free transfer would be an incredible deal.
Not too many bargains exist anymore due to the state of the transfer market, but Meyer’s refusal to pen a new contract with Schalke means that he will be available for nothing in the summer.
The four-time Germany international, who is valued at £14.4m by transfermarkt.co.uk, has spent his entire professional career at Schalke – scoring 22 times in close to 200 appearances in all competitions.
His best scoring season came during the 2013-14 campaign when he managed seven goals in all competitions, whilst the midfielder has netted once in 21 appearances this term.
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Meyer’s ability to operate in a number of positions makes him an attractive proposition for Wenger, who was recently boosted by the news that Mesut Ozil has signed a new deal at the Emirates Stadium.
At 22, Meyer is the perfect age to develop, and he would boost an area of the field that Arsenal desperately need to address at the end of the campaign.
Tottenham manager Tim Sherwood has claimed that the attitude of his players in their Europa League draw against Benfica proves they have his back.
Spurs were knocked out of the tournament last-16 after a 2-2 draw at the Estadio da Luz, having lost the home leg 3-1 at White Hart Lane.
They were however close to a remarkable comeback when Nacer Chadli score two quick-fire goals after Ezequiel Garay’s header, as well as having a strong 88th minute penalty claim turned down.
Benfica eventually saw out the tie with a late penalty themselves, going into the quarter-final draw 5-3 on aggregate.
In the aftermath of Spurs’ 4-0 loss to Chelsea, Sherwood questioned his players’ character and attitude, but only saw positives on Thursday night.
“People speculated, didn’t they?” he was quoted by Sky Sports. “I read a lot of things saying now you need those players on your side.
“I think it’s evident they’re on my side and the side of the club. They fight for the cause and my little rant, if you want to call it one, has done them no harm.
“They have showed real character and real guts and they need to do that until the end of the season, because we’ve got some tough games ahead and I’m confident they will do that.”
Sherwood believed that with his second string side, his men had outplayed the Portuguese outfit and was disappointed that referee Damir Skomina didn’t award a spot-kick for Miralem Sulejmani’s tackle on Harry Kane.
“Sometimes you get them and sometimes you don’t and at the moment, we’re not getting them,” the Spurs boss said.
“We had them where we wanted them. They were running scared, weren’t they?
“It was good to see their manager sweating. I did not see a suave character on the side, I thought someone who was really flustered, which was good to see.
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“That is what we intended to do and that is what we achieved.
“Credit to Benfica, they go through over two legs. You have to say the one that scores the most goals deserves to go through.
“But for us, the 3,000 travelling fans from London must be proud of what they saw.
“The boys are very proud about what the fans have done for them tonight as they stuck behind them, travelling in numbers, and the boys have put on a performance which they can go and be proud of.”
England Manager Roy Hodgson is facing a fresh scandal concerning Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand after claiming his England career was over on a London tube train.
The former West Brom boss announced his squad at a press conference today and as expected, did not include the 33-year-old centre back.
The claim was made on a jubilee train as Hodgson was reported to have said that “it was the end of the road” for Rio, according to the Daily Mail.
This will come as another surprising snub to a defender who has been capped by his country 81 times and was hoping for a fresh opportunity to play for the national team, after John Terry recently retired from international football.
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Rio Ferdinand himself, recently mentioned that he was aiming to play at least 35 games competitively this season after having his last few seasons hampered with injury. He will be expected to be starting in the Premier League game on Sunday against Newcastle United.
Andre Villas-Boas will not go down in Tottenham Hotspur history as one of their great managers; in fact most fans tend to poke fun at the Portuguese coach.
On paper, though, it is rather odd that the fanbase have such a disliking for the 40-year-old given that under his leadership the team set a then-club record of 72 points in the Premier League during the 2012-13 campaign.
Things started to go downhill in the following season after Gareth Bale was sold to Real Madrid and Spurs spent the money on array of new faces rather than a statement signing.
Villas-Boas lasted until December 2013 before he was given his marching orders, and since then, the former Chelsea coach has been in charge of Zenit St Petersburg and Shanghai SIPG.
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Surprisingly, the Portuguese coach switched focus to motorsport last year, but there are rumblings that he plans to return to football.
Real Madrid are looking for a new manager following Zinedine Zidane’s departure, and according to RMC Sport, Los Blancos have made contact with Villas-Boas regarding his availability.
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The report claims that the ex-Premier League boss is being considered due to his relationship with Gareth Bale, who soared for Spurs under Villas-Boas before departing for the Bernabeu.
The majority of Tottenham fans are not taking the reports too seriously; in fact they have been left tickled by them.
According to reports in Spanish media outlet El Confidencial, Newcastle United have joined Premier League rivals West Ham United in the race to sign Real Betis midfielder Fabian Ruiz, who has a release clause of €15m (£13.1m) and is also admired by Barcelona.
What’s the word, then?
Soccer Football – La Liga Santander – Real Betis vs FC Barcelona – Estadio Benito Villamarin, Seville, Spain – January 21, 2018 Barcelona’s Lionel Messi in action with Real Betis’ Fabian REUTERS/Jon Nazca
Well, The Telegraph reported on Tuesday that the Irons are considering making a bid for the highly-rated 21-year-old after David Moyes watched him in action against Barcelona at the weekend.
However, El Confidencial now reports that Newcastle, along with English top flight rivals Arsenal, Chelsea and Everton, have also scouted the Spain U21 international, who has enjoyed an impressive campaign for Betis.
How has Ruiz done this season?
He has become a regular for the La Liga outfit following the departure of Dani Ceballos to Real Madrid during the summer, making 17 appearances in all competitions, scoring two goals and providing a further two assists.
The 21-year-old has primarily played in a central midfield role, but he is also able to play in a more advanced position in the middle, while he scored one and assisted another as a left winger in the 4-0 success against Levante in September.
According to WhoScored.com, the 6ft 3in Spanish starlet’s main strengths are his long shots, dribbling, passing and ability to make key passes, and he has an overall passing accuracy of 87.4% in 16 La Liga appearances this season, while he has made 10 key passes and successfully completed 28 of the 37 take-ons he has attempted.
Would he be a good signing for Newcastle?
He certainly would be.
The 21-year-old looks to have a huge future ahead of him, but it remains to be seen whether the Magpies need to add another central midfielder to their ranks this month unless Jonjo Shelvey leaves.
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That said, the chance to potentially bring a player of Fabian Ruiz’s potential and quality to St James’ Park for around £13m could be too much of an opportunity for Rafa Benitez to ignore as he looks to ensure the Tyneside outfit retain their Premier League status.
It says a lot that Shinji Kagawa is completely absent from discussion during Manchester United’s nadir, one characterised by dull, uninspired football.
Kagawa was out of favour immediately following the appointment of David Moyes, with the new manager preferring Wayne Rooney in the No.10 role, for obvious reasons, and Danny Welbeck on the flank, under less clear motives. The arrival of Juan Mata has been seen to be the final nail in the coffin for the former Borussia Dortmund midfielder.
It’s been a fall from a great height for Kagawa over these past two seasons in English football. After making a name for himself in Germany with two excellent seasons at Dortmund (or one and a half due to injury), the move to Manchester United seemed the logical step for a player of his class. It also went some way to addressing the club’s long-standing problem of the absence of creativity in the midfield.
But United was never Kagawa’s team in the way Dortmund were, and that has largely been his downfall. Injuries have played an important part in hacking away at the confidence and consistency of one of Europe’s most promising young players, limiting how often he saw a full ninety minutes to just six in his first season in England. But it also seems that Kagawa was bought for little purpose other than to bolster a squad’s numbers, and not to be brought in as a decisive figure in the midfield.
For now, Rooney and Mata will head the discussion as to who should be playing just behind Robin van Persie. Provided they’re all fit, those three names will start most games for United from now until the end of the season, probably all, meaning Kagawa has absolutely no use at the club and no opportunity to prove that he does hold some value long term.
Kagawa needs a team who are built around him. It’s not a flaw, it’s simply the way playmakers should be used. It’s no different to Mata, who hasn’t really hit the ground running since signing for United, limited in what he can do by starting games on the flank. But no one in England is going to see the Kagawa of Dortmund while the best he can hope for is a spot on the left of a system that is more 4-4-2 than anything else.
Among the clear out this summer should be the Japanese international. It will be two years in England which he’ll want to forget and move away from, probably for good. A return to Dortmund is a possibility and one that has been discussed in the recent past. Jurgen Klopp’s team will continue to be dismantled this summer, with Robert Lewandowski confirming his move to Bayern Munich, and Ilkay Gundogan and Marco Reus’ futures still yet to be resolved.
Klopp has already brought back one of his former star players, signing Nuri Sahin on an 18-month loan deal from Real Madrid that is widely expected to be made permanent this summer. Like Sahin, Kagawa very much needs to feel like he’s valued and wanted. Klopp, having already publically expressed how troubled he was at United’s treatment of Kagawa, would surely welcome the chance to reunite with the midfielder.
But Dortmund are holding their cards close to their chest in terms of big moves and Kagawa may not be desired at all if both the money isn’t right and new signing Milos Jojic makes a good impression. The Japanese midfielder, too, may wish to start completely anew and seek out options elsewhere in Europe.
Atletico Madrid have notably been without a strong creative presence in their midfield, and while the re-signing of Diego Ribas from Wolfsburg is an excellent acquisition, the club would be the perfect environment for Kagawa.
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What is absolutely certain now is that Kagawa has little hope of succeeding at Manchester United. It would take more than just one factor to fall into place for him, and yet even if something dramatic like a change in manager does occur, bringing in an individual who will play to Kagawa’s strengths, the midfielder may still want to put the bleak episode of United behind him for good.
Pressure, what pressure? Andre Villas-Boas certainly isn’t feeling the heat any more after guiding Spurs to three wins in their last four games. The Portuguese tactician is really starting to grow into his role at White Hart Lane and the players look to be responding to the methods that irked the established order down the road in West London and ultimately cost him his job. That being said there is still a lot of work to do, as evidenced by the cheap goal they gave away at QPR last week, and it will be interesting to see how Villas-Boas handles a significant downturn in form as the club battles to muscle their way in to the Premier League top-four party. Whether he can maintain that challenge and manage an exhaustive European schedule remains to be seen but there is genuine cause to be optimistic for supporters.
This week on FFC can Gareth Bale transform himself to suit Spurs’ new tactical framework and which Spanish midfield star are they hoping to sign in January for a cut-price fee?
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Best of WEB
Hugo first? Battle of the keepers. – Spurs musings from Jimmy G2
What Were Villas-Boas And Steffen Freund Thinking? – Harry Hotspur
The minority report – Dear Mr Levy
Tottenham’s Back Four Could Hold The Key – At Long Last – Transfer Tavern
Premature Announcement Revealed. – Spurs musings from Jimmy G2
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Off he goes – Dear Mr Levy
Capital Idea – Harry Hotspur
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Quote of the Week
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“That is the way I like my teams to play. We obviously know that it is extremely difficult there, but that doesn’t mean that you might not be given a chance when you play that (attacking) way. In the end it’s about taking your opportunities. Had (Chelsea) scored then maybe the result would have been different, so to try to get a result against United will be excellent for us.”AVB says he wants his Spurs team to continue ‘attacking’.