Jose Mourinho could be offered a return to management by struggling LaLiga giants Real Madrid, according to a sensational report. The Portuguese coach is without a job since being sacked by Manchester United on 18 December, but has been linked with a host of clubs. Latest reports suggested his former club Benfica are keen on the 55-year-old after sacking their coach Rui Vitoria. However, according to Portuguese publication record, Mourinho informed the club that he has not interested in returning at this point. Reports now claim that the outspoken manager could instead be snapped up by struggling Real Madrid, who…
Author: David Folami
If this is to be the first trophy of the Mauricio Pochettino era then the Carabao Cup will be hard-won indeed, starting with a semi-final second leg in two weeks’ time when his Tottenham Hotspur players will need to show their manager all over again if they can win the big matches. They go to Stamford Bridge with a one-goal lead from Harry Kane’s penalty, although it was a lead they clung to for the second half as if this were the latter stages of the tie itself rather than just the first leg in which they should have been…
Jurgen Klopp’s squad rotation for Liverpool’s 2-1 FA Cup defeat at Wolves was let down by players who “failed miserably”, according to former England captain Alan Shearer. Klopp made nine changes to his starting XI, which included two teenage debutants – and brought on a third after an early injury to Dejan Lovren. “When you rotate as he did you’re gambling,” Shearer told BBC Sport. “He’s looking to these guys to give him a performance – they failed miserably.” Shearer later tweeted: “I was brought up watching Liverpool trying to win every trophy. Why should that change?” Klopp’s potent attacking…
Pep Guardiola hopes Kevin De Bruyne has put his injury problems behind him and can have a big impact on Manchester City as they maintain their interest in four competitions. City breezed into the fourth round of the FA Cup with a 7-0 victory over Championship side Rotherham United with De Bruyne making just his fifth start of the season. Guardiola does not want to rush the Belgian midfielder back after two injuries disrupted his season but he showed his quality in the 66 minutes he played, with the City boss saying De Bruyne sees things that other players cannot.…
Manchester United are prepared to wait until the summer to sign Kalidou Koulibaly with hope diminishing that the defender will be allowed to leave Napoli in January, sources have said. The Senegal centre-back is on United’s list of options as they look to bolster their defence along with Inter’s Milan Skriniar, AC Milan’s Alessio Romagnoli and Leicester’s Harry Maguire. United had hoped Napoli’s exit from the Champions League would increase their chances of landing the 27-year-old this month. However, the Serie A side have so far refused to negotiate and United now believe a deal in the summer is more…
The brother of Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba has said former manager Jose Mourinho caused serious rifts inside the Old Trafford dressing room. Pogba endured a difficult relationship with his ex-boss, who was dismissed following a 3-1 defeat to Liverpool in December and replaced by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer with the club in sixth place in the Premier League. And Mathias Pogba said the former Chelsea and Real Madrid manager was the main culprit for the issues on and off the field. “The problem was Mourinho, period,” Mathias, who plays for French Ligue 2 side Tours, told RMC. “In the dressing…
Mohamed Salah has been named African Player of the Year for the second year running. Salah was crowned at the CAF Awards in Dakar, Senegal, on Tuesday night as he beat Liverpool teammate Sadio Mane and Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to the award. “I have dreamt of winning this award since I was a child and now I have done so twice in a row,” Salah said. The Liverpool forward become the fourth player to win back-to-back awards after El Hadji Diouf, Samuel Eto’o and Yaya Toure. The Egyptian enjoyed an incredible 2018 as he scored the most ever amount of…
Pep Guardiola has defended Manchester City’s youth record after academy product Brahim Diaz left for Real Madrid in a £21 million deal. The 19-year-old was highly rated by the club but has followed winger Jadon Sancho out of the Etihad after the England international left in the summer of 2017, going on to make a huge impact at Borussia Dortmund. Sources said that Brahim was frustrated by a lack of first-team opportunities but Guardiola said young players must be patient at leading clubs. “They win the opportunity [to play] on the field but you have to take a look at…
Gianluigi Buffon has said he battled with depression early in his career and once missed a match for Juventus due to a panic attack. Buffon has enjoyed an incredible career which has so far seen him win 23 major trophies — including a World Cup — and he is still fighting to win his first Champions League medal at the age of 40. But, despite enjoying success from an early age, there have been difficult moments for the ex-Italy international — in particular during his early period with Juve. “For a few months, everything just stopped making sense,” Buffon told…
Sophia Momodu, the mother of Davido’s first kid, Imade Adeleke, has reacted to the LifeTime documentary on R Kelly, ‘Surviving R Kelly’, which gave us all a glimpse into the terrible harm the RnB crooner allegedly performed upon several young women. She took to Snapchat after watching the docuseries and wrote; “I watched surviving R Kelly . If you think I am overly protective of my girl child ,I’ve got news for you..It just tripled.” Sophia Momodu is famous for being Dele Momodu’s cousin. On May 14, 2015, she gave birth to Davido’s first daughter, Aurora Imade Adeleke.
Paul Pogba has flown to Dubai to join up with the Manchester United squad at their warm weather training base. Pogba missed the FA Cup third round win over Reading on Saturday through injury and was not among the travelling squad which flew to Dubai immediately after the game. United clarified on Sunday Pogba would link up with his teammates after undergoing treatment at their Carrington training base. The 25-year-old was pictured at Manchester Airport on Monday and could train with the rest of the United squad on Tuesday. United underwent their first session at the Nad Al Sheba Sports…
Eden Hazard has urged Chelsea and Tottenham fans to show each other respect during Tuesday’s League Cup semi-final and set an example to the rest of the world. Chelsea take on Spurs in the first leg at Wembley with the behaviour of both sets of supporters under intense scrutiny. The Blues are taking more stewards than normal to monitor travelling fans numbering just under 5,000. One of their duties will be to guard against anti-Semitic chants. It is believed supporters’ groups from each side have held discussions about various matters in the build-up to the tie. The Metropolitan Police were…
The Blues have invested heavily in the United States international, but he is considered to boast all of the attributes required to star in England. Christian Pulisic boasts the ability and “typically American self-confidence” to be a £58 million ($74m) star for Chelsea, says Borussia Dortmund director Michael Zorc. The 20-year-old playmaker has a deal in place to take him to Stamford Bridge at the end of the season. An agreement has been reached at this stage as Chelsea were eager to fend off rival interest and secure the services of a much sought-after talent. He will be on their…
Romelu Lukaku has said life at Manchester United is “totally different” under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer after the caretaker manager collected his fourth Premier League win in a row. Solsjkaer maintained his 100 per cent record as United boss after two late goals helped his side to a 2-0 win over Newcastle at St James’ Park on Wednesday night. Substitute Lukaku broke the deadlock after 65 minutes with his first touch of the game, reacting superbly after Newcastle goalkeeper Martin Dubravka had fumbled Marcus Rashford’s free-kick. Lukaku was also involved in the second goal 10 minutes from time as Rashford produced…
Chelsea are looking at Cagliari midfielder Nicolo Barella as a possible replacement for Cesc Fabregas. While a deal to take Fabregas to Monaco is not done, it is very close to being completed, by Sky Sports and other sources. And the English outlet suggests that Barella is the man the Blues want to replace Fabregas. He would cost the club roughly £45 million. The 21-year-old Italy international is highly rated in Europe. Chelsea boss Maurizio Sarri had said earlier that if Fabregas were sold, another midfielder would arrive.
Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Adrien Rabiot has agreed terms with Barcelona ahead of a future move but a January transfer is not likely, reports have said. Rabiot’s mother and agent, Veronique, has been in talks with Barca since the start of this month — the beginning of the final six months of the 23-year-old’s PSG contract. Barca have denied that an agreement has been reached, but the source said they were offering a basic annual salary of €10 million and a €10m signing-on fee as part of a bonus-heavy contract at least four years long. PSG believe the agreement predates Rabiot…
Manchester United striker Romelu Lukaku has revealed how a one-to-one meeting with caretaker boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has helped rediscover his goal-scoring touch. The Belgian has scored three goals in his last three games including the second in the 2-0 FA Cup third round win over Reading on Saturday. It is the 25-year-old’s best run in a United shirt since March after struggling for goals in the final months of Jose Mourinho’s reign. “He [Solskjaer] knows the type of striker that I am and I think from the first day when I came back in, he did a total analysis…
Manchester United booked their place in the fourth round of the FA Cup with a comfortable, if lacklustre, 2-0 win over Championship strugglers Reading. United were not at their best, but Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side they were never seriously troubled against a team without a win since November as the Norwegian extended his winning start as caretaker manager to five games. Juan Mata scored the first with a penalty after 22 minutes before Romelu Lukaku scored just before half-time to find the net for the third time in as many games. Reading had more possession and more shots but United…
Maurizio Sarri wants Cesc Fabregas to make a January move from Chelsea to Monaco because it will make the midfielder happy. Fabregas left the Stamford Bridge pitch in tears after waving goodbye to Chelsea fans at the end of Saturday’s 2-0 FA Cup win over Nottingham Forest, although all parties have said a deal is not yet over the line. Sarri — who said last month that Chelsea’s policy of offering only one-year extensions to players over 30 was a sticking point in talks with Fabregas and David Luiz — believes Fabregas should accept a two-and-a-half-year contract at Monaco. “I…
Christian Pulisic has admitted the fee Chelsea paid to sign him from Borussia Dortmund has him excited about moving to Stamford Bridge, and says it shows how much the Premier League giants want him at the club. Last week, the 20-year-old midfielder completed a €64 million (£57.6m, $73.1m) deal to join the Blues in what was a record transaction for an American player. “For them to do this and to want me this much I think yeah they must like me, at least a little bit,” Pulisic said. Per the terms of the agreement, Pulisic won’t join Chelsea until the…