Mikel Arteta insists Arsenal still have the pulling power to attract the world s biggest names, but refused to be drawn on speculation linking his side with Fiorentina striker Dusan Vlahovic.
The Gunners have been tipped to move for the in-demand Serbia international, who matched Cristiano Ronaldo s 21st century record for the most Serie A goals in a single calendar year in 2021 with 33.
Vlahovic has also been touted as a target for Juventus, Manchester City and Manchester United, though Arsenal are said to be willing to spend big to land the 21-year-old, who has 18 months to run on his contract.
However, according to fresh reports on Wednesday, Vlahovic will only consider joining the north London club should they qualify for next season s Champions League after…
Manuel Pellegrini and Pep Guardiola will renew their rivalry when Bayern Munich meet Manchester City in Wednesday s UEFA Champions League tie.
Pellegrini will be hoping for a change of fortunes when the defending champions visit the Etihad Stadium, having never beaten Guardiola as manager of Villarreal, Malaga or Real Madrid when Guardiola was in charge of Barcelona.
Both sides enjoyed comfortable 3-0 victories in their opening group D games, Bayern overcoming CSKA Moscow at home, while City got the better of Czech side Viktoria Plzen.
The two clubs were drawn in the same group two years ago, with Bayern winning 2-0 in the Allianz Arena before City triumphed by the same score on the final matchday, a result that was not enough to prevent their elimination.
The ho…
England continue their quest to qualify for Euro 2024 when they travel to face Ukraine in the Polish city of Wroclaw.
Gareth Southgate’s side have won all four Group C qualifiers to date and can take a big step towards Germany next summer if they extend that run.
Here, the PA news agency takes a look at the major talking points ahead of the fixture.
Ukraine on the road again
The location of Friday’s qualifier was not confirmed until July 11 with Ukraine continuing to play their de facto home matches on neutral ground.
Since the Russian invasion last year, Ukraine have played ‘home’ games in the Polish cities of Lodz and Krakow as well as Trnava in Slovakia.
Now managed by Sergei Rebrov and with fit-again Arsenal defender Oleksandr Zinchen…
Tottenham Hotspur F.C. have confirmed they have reached an agreement with Valencia CF, subject to medical, for the transfer of Spain international striker Roberto Soldado, according to the .
Soldado, who joined Valencia from Getafe for €10 million in the summer of 2010, will reportedly put pen to paper on a four-year deal after completing a medical on Friday.
The Spain international, 28, will become Spurs third summer signing with Nacer Chadli and Paulinho having already moved to White Hart Lane from FC Twente and Corinthians, respectively after the North London club agreed a club record fee of £26 million for the former Real Madrid youngster.
We are delighted to announce that we have reached agreement with Valencia for the transfer of Roberto So…
Norwich City have confirmed the signing of Jonas Gutierrez from Newcastle United on loan until June 30.
The Argentina international had fallen out of favour at St James Park this season after suffering a number of injuries, making just two appearances.
However, he will link up with former Newcastle manager Chris Hughton at Carrow Road, as he seeks to help 15th-place Norwich climb the table.
He is in line to make his debut for the club against Hull City in the Premier League on Saturday.
Gutierrez told Norwich s official website: I m happy to be here. It s an opportunity for me to get back in the game and to try and do my best for the team.
Personally I want to do the right things on the pitch and win my place, and then for the team we want to finish as high…
Mattia De Sciglio insists AC Milan are fully focused on sealing a European return through their Serie A league position, rather than depending on beating Juventus in the Coppa Italia final.
Milan travel to Bologna on Saturday having won only one of their last nine matches and slipped to seventh in the table, a point behind Sassuolo, with only two games to play before the end of the season.
Cristian Brocchi s side will qualify for the Europa League if they defeat Serie A champions Juventus in the Coppa Italia showpiece.
However, if Milan lose, that place will go to whichever team finishes sixth in the league, with De Sciglio keen to get the job done at the first attempt.
There is great desire, the defender told Milan Channel. We can t afford to risk th…
Paris Saint-Germain welcome Toulouse to the Parc des Princes knowing that they can go top of the Ligue 1 table with a win.
The defending champions have yet to lose so far this season, although they produced a below-par display in a slender 1-0 victory at Valenciennes on Wednesday, Edinson Cavani scoring his third goal for the club since joining from Napoli.
That victory made it 18 games without defeat for PSG in Ligue 1, a run that stretches back to the beginning of March, but they will need to be in good form to maintain that streak against a Toulouse outfit that has experienced a recent upturn in fortunes.
The capital club can overtake Monaco who travel to Reims on Sunday with a victory, and they will need no further incentive ahead of the visit of Alain Casanova s …
The Daily Star understand that Everton will not rekindle their interest in signing Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud when the transfer window reopens in January.
The Merseyside outfit were linked with a move for the France international during the summer, when the Gunners laid out a club record fee for fellow countryman Alexandre Lacazette.
However, the thirty year old remained at the Emirates Stadium and has made ten appearances in all competitions so far this season with his goal in the 4-2 Europa League victory over BATE Borisov on Thursday evening his one hundredth for the club.
In total he has played two hundred and thirty-seven times for Arsene Wenger’s side since signing from Montpellier in the summer of 2012.
The Toffees will be looking to bri…
Russian daily newspaper that Zenit winger Vladimir Bystrov will be leaving the club in January.
The 29-year-old has struggled for playing time this season due to a fierce competition for places and it appears he will be leaving his current employers in the near future.
Bystrov has a contract until the end of the season at Stadion Petrovskij, but the club chiefs will not be offering him a new deal.
Even if boss Luciano Spalletti rates the player highly, everything suggests the experienced midfielder is set to quit Zenit in the January transfer window.
According to Izvestia, Dinamo Moscow and FK Krasnodar are leading the race for Bystrov s signature.
Vladimir Bystrov left Zenit to join bitter rivals Spartak Moscow in the summer of 2005, and despit…
Atletico Madrid have a rich tradition of producing world class strikers. Throughout the last decade, some great strikers have played for the club and the Rojiblancos have always managed to (thanks to their excellent scouting system and transfer strategy) replace one top striker with another.
Image Courtesy: www.collectivepicks.com
When Fernando Torres left Atletico to join Liverpool, he was replaced by former Manchester United striker Diego Forlan. And the Uruguayan turned into a huge hit. The likes of Sergio Aguero, David Villa, Radamel Falcao, Diego Costa, Mario Mandzukic and Antoine Griezmann have all graced the green blades of Calderon in the past 10 years.
It is hardly a surprise that Diego Simeone is now looking to sign a top striker this summer. Torres is…