Friday, July 20, 2012

Zlatan makes a big impression after arriving in Paris

Zlatan Ibrahimovic's move to Paris Saint-Germain was confirmed on Wednesday, with the Sweden international arriving at Parc des Princes in a deal that, combined with Thiago Silva's switch, will see the French club pay AC Milan around £51.5 million.
The striker has claimed his move to the French capital from Serie A side AC Milan is "another dream come true", as he sealed his place in the record books as the most expensive player ever.

And with Zlatan fever set to take over in Paris, the 30-year-old is on course to make another big impression on one of Europe's top leagues...
 

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Wenger halts Van Persie's Great Escape

Robin van Persie may have declared his intention not to renew his current contract with Arsenal, but the Gunners have no plans to allow their captain to exit the Emirates Stadium this summer.
After a superb campaign in north London last year, the Dutchman is keen to ply his trade elsewhere, with speculation over a move to current Premier League champions Manchester City refusing to go away.

However, Arsene Wenger is prepared to play hard ball with Van Persie in order to keep his star striker for a final season…

Uefa stun the world with shock Best Player in Europe Award nominee

Things just keep getting better for Fernando Torres, with the Chelsea striker a shock member of Uefa's 32-man shortlist for the European Player of the Year Award.
After another campaign filled with stutters, the Spaniard rounded off the footballing year by enjoying Champions League glory with the Blues before helping Spain to Euro 2012 success, in turn grabbing the top goalscorer award in Poland and Ukraine.

Yet despite the 28-year-old's turnaround in form towards the end of the season, his inclusion amongst Europe’s top players comes as something of a surprise…

Monday, July 16, 2012

Can Totti's dog save Serie A?

Francesco Totti just can't do anything wrong - a skill that appears to have translated to his pets, past and present.

Ariel, a labrador whom Totti donated at a young age to be trained as a professional sea rescue dog, made headlines on Sunday when it emerged that she had saved an eight-year-old girl and 64-year-old man from drowning in the Sant'Agosto area.
With the animal's life-saving abilities now proven, the young mutt may now want to help by bailing out some of Italy's biggest clubs to help make a real game of it in Serie A...

Sunday, July 15, 2012

Happy Bastille Day as Thiago Silva continues French revolution

Paris Saint-Germain's summer revamp continued on Saturday after the Ligue 1 club confirmed the signing of AC Milan defender Thiago Silva.

The Brazil international moved to Carlo Ancelotti's side for a fee in the region of €42 million and penned a five-year deal with the French club.

With Ancelotti already having bolstered his attacking options with the signing of Ezequiel Lavezzi from Napoli this summer, the Italian is likely to strengthen his squad further by completing a move for Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

 

Carroll forced out by Borini and beaming Rodgers

Andy Carroll's future at Liverpool looks increasingly uncertain following the signing of Fabio Borini from Roma on Friday.

The England international's form improved towards the end of last season but new Reds boss Brendan Rodgers revealed earlier this week that he would consider sending the striker out on loan.

West Ham have already expressed an interest, while former club Newcastle United have been linked with a loan move, so could Borini's arrival force the £35 million man out of the Anfield exit door?

Money talks as Zlatan & Thiago head for Paris

The news that AC Milan have accepted a €60 million (£47m) offer from Paris Saint-Germain for star duo Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva sent eyebrows skyward this week.
Yet the Serie A giants' well-documented financial problems means that offloading the pair can save the club a sizeable chunk of money in salaries as well as wiping off a significant slice of the club's mounting debt.

With PSG now backed by big-spending Qatari owners, money appears to be no object for the Ligue 1 side, and simply irresistible for AC Milan.

And the Oscar goes to ... Chelsea!

Brazilian starlet Oscar is hot property at the moment and Chelsea look to have gazumped Premier League rivals Tottenham with a £20 million bid for the talented teenager, as exclusively revealed by Goal.com.
Andre Villas-Boas had hoped to tempt the Internacional man to White Hart Lane with a £15m bid but their London rivals are now in advanced negotiations with the South American side ahead of a summer move.

The youngster has already been likened to compatriot and Real Madrid man Kaka, a man who has often been linked with a move to Stamford Bridge, but this time it seems that the Blues have got their man

Russia manager candidates get all dolled up

Following Dick Advocaat's resignation from his post as coach after Euro 2012, Russia have revealed their short-list for his replacement with some familiar names at the top of the list.

Pep Guardiola, Fabio Capello and Harry Redknapp have all been tipped to take over the job and take charge of the side that failed to make it out of their group in Poland and Ukraine.

One man, who seems to have ruled himself out of the running though is Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini after he signed a new deal with the Premier League champions, leaving the path clear for the other contenders.