The transfer window is a weird time to play football, when you think about it. Maybe the solution is to stop football for a week or so and let everyone get the transfer stuff out of their system, because otherwise we get a situation like this weekend, where the spectre of transfers hung over everyone.Some players might be moving, others don't know if they're staying, some play with the fear that they're about to be replaced, others with the indignation that they're about
Paris Saint-Germain coach Unai Emery bemoaned the first-half injury to Kylian Mbappe and the second half red card to Dani Alves as key moments in the Ligue 1 leaders 2-1 loss to Lyon on Sunday.Layvin Kurzawa cancelled out Nabil Fekir's opener in spectacular fashion in the first half but Memphis Depay crashed home the winner late in the second to cut PSG's lead at the summit of Le Championnat to eight points.'Kylian's injury and Dani's red card lost us control,' said Emery after
Gianluigi Buffon will no longer be able to match Paolo Maldini's Serie A appearances record if he retires at the end of the season after being ruled out of Juventus' game against Genoa on Monday.Buffon, 39, has made 629 appearances in Italy's top flight -- but with 17 games left after Monday he would only be able to reach 646 this season, one short of Maldini's record.A calf injury has kept Buffon out of action since Dec. 1, and the problem means he
Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale said it had been nice to be applauded off at the Bernabeu after his double strike in Sunday evening's 7-1 La Liga win against Deportivo La Coruna, joking that it made a nice change from being whistled.The Bernabeu was very restless early in the game when relegation threatened Depor went 1-0 up through Adrian Lopez, but defender Nacho soon equalised and Bale then put Madrid ahead with a trademark curling strike.The Welshman made it 3-1 early in the
Chelsea are considering a shock move for West Ham United forward Marko Arnautovic as they look to land a new striker before the transfer window closes, sources close to the London club have told ESPN FC.Chelsea boss Antonio Conte wants to bring in a 'target man' style forward this month and the Austria international is the latest player to emerge on Chelsea's radar.Arnautovic, 28, who joined West Ham last summer from Stoke for around £25 million, has scored six goals and created three
Eden Hazard said he had spoken to his father after he suggested the Chelsea star hoped to get an offer from Real Madrid.In an interview with Belgian newspaper Le Soir last month, Thierry Hazard said his son had rejected a contract offer from Chelsea and was keeping his options open with the aim of encouraging Madrid.The reigning European champions, known to be admirers of Hazard, are likely to revamp their squad in the summer if they cannot salvage a difficult season with further
Arsene Wenger has said he 'can't understand anybody wanting to leave Arsenal' ahead of Alexis Sanchez's move to Manchester United.Sanchez is heading to United in exchange for Henrikh Mkhitaryan in a deal that will reportedly make him the Premier League's highest-paid player.Wenger said Arsenal could not match United's offer, but told reporters: 'I cannot understand anybody wanting to leave Arsenal -- but in 30 years of doing transfers you learn a lot about human beings.'As a professional, it was perhaps his last contract
Chris Smalling says Manchester United are aiming to get close enough to Manchester City in the title race to make the next derby 'nervous' for Pep Guardiola's team.City maintained their 12-point lead at the top of the Premier League table with a 3-1 win over Newcastle on Saturday, just a few hours after United had beaten Burnley 1-0 at Turf Moor. The next derby is scheduled for April 7.And Smalling believes that if United can get to within touching distance before that game
Manchester City are considering a January move for Shakhtar Donetsk midfielder Fred in a bid to get a head start on their summer transfer business, sources have told ESPN FC.The Brazilian is the club's top target for the holding midfield role after being watched by City scouts and impressing manager Pep Guardiola when the two sides met in the Champions League.Fred, 24, is wanted to provide competition for Fernandinho, who last week signed a two-year contract extension, for next season. City's current alternative,
Manchester City are set to confirm that Kevin De Bruyne has signed a contract extension keeping him at the club until 2024, sources have told ESPN FC.De Bruyne's current deal is not due to expire until 2021 but City opened talks earlier in the season in a bid to secure his long-term future.The Belgium international midfielder is set to significantly improve his salary with reports suggesting the new deal could be worth around £260,000-a-week. De Bruyne, 26, has become a key figure since
Mauricio Pochettino has warned Tottenham's best academy players that it has never been harder for them to break into his first team.Since moving to Southampton five years ago this week, Pochettino has established himself as a champion of youth but he believes Spurs' youngsters need to be 10 or 15 percent better now than when he joined the club from St. Mary's in May 2014.The Argentine put faith in Harry Kane, Ryan Mason and Andros Townsend during his first season at Spurs but,
Brighton have completed the club-record signing of striker Jurgen Locadia from PSV Eindhoven.The 24-year-old has signed a deal until June 2022 after Albion reportedly paid £14 million to end Chris Hughton's search for a new forward.Locadia nearly joined Wolves in August only for PSV to pull the plug after changing their minds.Manager Chris Hughton told Brighton's official website: 'We are delighted to have signed Jurgen, and pleased to welcome him to the club.'He is a player we have been aware of for some
Burnley have agreed a deal for Everton midfielder Aaron Lennon, according to multiple reports.Lennon, 30, could find first-team opportunities with the Toffees limited following Theo Walcott's arrival from Arsenal and the return of Yannick Bolaise, with sources telling ESPN FC that Newcastle were considering a move for the ex-England man.However, outlets say Burnley have agreed to personal terms with Lennon just a day after announcing forward Jon Walters could be out for up to eight weeks after undergoing surgery on his knee.Lennon, who
Tottenham have developed a habit of clicking into top gear at this time of year under Mauricio Pochettino, and so it is proving again.The north Londoners have won eight of their last 10 games and one of the other two matches, where they fell short, was against Manchester City at the Etihad -- the toughest league fixture of the season.With the exception of that 4-1 defeat back in mid-December, and this month's frustrating 1-1 draw against West Ham, there has been plenty to
The mentality of Manchester City fans is something that could fascinate psychologists for eternity. Growing up following a club that is so adept at bounding down the most nonsensical path imaginable, not only not trying to stop it but actively steering the car over the cliff edge, has led to the sort of conditioning that makes some worry their lead at the top of the Premier League might not be enough.Only the sort of fans who watched their club waste time to secure
In the most optimistic minds at Old Trafford, Alexis Sanchez will play for Manchester United at Burnley on Saturday. To do so, he'd have to complete his transfer from Arsenal by noon in the UK on Friday -- and the club's fax machine would have to be in working order.Fans appear almost unanimous that this would be a positive signing. Sanchez is fast, strong, versatile and will boost a squad with some deficiencies. United chased him as long ago as 2011 and were
The careers of many legendary footballers have been effectively defined by World Cup years: Think Pele, Diego Maradona, Ronaldo or Zinedine Zidane.Theo Walcott has not attained the status of the aforementioned quartet, but Everton's new signing is another whose career has worked in this manner. The exception is that the 28-year-old never actually played a minute at the World Cup, yet the key watersheds in his career have nevertheless been 2006, 2010, 2014 and, now, 2018.2006-10It goes without saying that Walcott's career has
They tore the shirt from his back, a gaping hole exposing his torso, which was tighter now than ever before, but he kept on. Not without complaint, of course, but he did. Besides, it was better this way, his kind of thing: There's not much he enjoys more than a bit of a rumble, and even the moaning comes with a glint in the eye. Life's boring without a battle, so he battled and bumped and crashed into people, scowling on the outside
Chelsea chase Roma pairDespite reports that Roma are reluctant to discuss a deal for Edin Dzeko, Chelsea remain keen on the striker as well as his teammate Emerson Palmieri, the Telegraph reports.Blues boss Antonio Conte is eager to recruit a target man this month to provide a Plan B in attack, with Peter Crouch and Christian Benteke also in the frame after an ankle injury ruled out West Ham's Andy Carroll.Given Crouch turns 37 later this month, Dzeko may be viewed as a
Shinji Kagawa rescued a point for Borussia Dortmund as they were held to a 1-1 draw at Hertha Berlin.The former Manchester United forward cancelled out Davie Selke's early second-half opener on Friday.Dortmund moved up to third in the Bundesliga but are still 14 points behind leaders Bayern Munich while Hertha remain 11th.Dortmund left Arsenal target Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang out of their squad again.Without him Dortmund struggled to create chances even if Kagawa headed over while off balance during a forgettable first half.Hertha also failed