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Arsenal handed big boost in re-signing Martin Odegaard next season
Arsenal have been handed a boost in re-signing Martin Odegaard with the Real Madrid loanee telling those close to him that would like to stay with the Gunners, Football.London reports. Odegaard had an impressive loan stint with Real Sociedad last term, registering nine goals and seven assists in all competitions. As a result, his two-year loan deal was cut short early by Los Blancos, but he hardly played for them earlier this season. The 22-year-old was restricted to only 367 minutes of first-team football under manager Zinedine Zidane before he made the short-term loan move to the Gunners during the winter transfer window. Odegaard has since featured for the Gunners on 12 occasions and he has already made key contributions with goals against Olympiacos and Tottenham Hotspur while leading ...
‘Just a matter of time’: Fabrizio Romano provides contract update on Man City star
Manchester City are convinced that Kevin De Bruyne will put pen-to-paper on a new contract in the near future, reputed Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano claims. The Belgium international had a superb 2019/2020 campaign with the Cityzens with 16 goals and 23 assists as he was named the PFA Player of the Year. In the current season, he has been hampered by a couple of muscle injuries, but he has still excelled with seven goals and 16 assists from 31 outings. His contract with the Cityzens does not expire until June 2023, but the club are keen to reward him with an extension at the earliest possibility. Talks have been underway for a while and Romano has said that it is only a matter of time before he signs a fresh deal with the runaway Premier League leaders. Manchester City are convinced t...
The Longest Winning Streaks in Football History
Teams across the world dream of compiling the longest winning streak in football, but very few ever come close to topping the list. Manchester City’s bid to set a new record for consecutive victories was recently ended at the 21-game mark by Manchester United. The Red Devils triumphed 2-0 in the Premier League at the Etihad Stadium to leave City eight games short of the 29 successive victories set by Benfica between 1972 and 1973. Across the rest of Europe, Dinamo Zagreb (2007/08 – 28), Celtic (2003/04 – 25), Ferencvaros (1931/32 – 22) and PSV Eindhoven (1987/88 – 22) have also topped City’s 21-game run. In terms of Europe’s main five leagues, City rank third on the list behind Bayern Munich (2019/20 – 23) and Real Madrid (2014/15 -22). Longest Winning Streaks (Big Five Leagues) 1. Bayern ...
€180m striker could be Barcelona’s priority signing, if Lionel Messi leaves
Barcelona will prioritise a summer move for Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Braut Haaland if Lionel Messi leaves at the expiry of his contract, AS reports. Haaland is regarded as one of the world’s best strikers and he has been in sensational form for Dortmund this term with 33 goals and eight assists from just 31 outings. His progress has caught the eye of numerous elite clubs ahead of the summer, but Dortmund are likely to demand as much as €180m to sanction his sale. The Blaugrana are one of the clubs interested, but it is reported that the striker will be a transfer priority, only if Messi heads through the exit door. Messi’s contract expires at the end of June and the club’s hierarchy have yet to convince him to extend his two-decade long stay with a fresh renewal. There is stil...
Blow for England and Liverpool as inspirational leader faces more time out
Gareth Southgate has confirmed that he is unsure whether Jordan Henderson will be fit for the delayed 2020 European Championship tournament. The Liverpool captain suffered a serious groin injury in the Merseyside derby on February 20. Per Sky Sports, he was expected to be ruled out for a minimum of five weeks following surgery to fix the issue. However, his international coach has now hinted that he may be absent for much longer. Speaking ahead of the Three Lions’ game against Albania on Sunday, Southgate said: “We know it’s going to be close to the end of the season, and we will have to see how it goes. “In terms of promises, we can only say that Hendo himself is very optimistic about how the operation went. “There are a lot of things to take into consideration but, at the moment, that is...
Liverpool reportedly want to sign £42m Barcelona target this summer
Liverpool are reportedly interested in signing Udinese midfielder Rodrigo De Paul in the summer transfer window. According to reports from Italian news outlet Tutto Udinese, Liverpool and La Liga giants Barcelona are fighting for Rodrigo De Paul in the summer transfer window. The report claims that the Udinese skipper would cost in the region of €50 million (£42m), and both the clubs are a clear front runner for his signature. SL View De Paul, who was heavily linked with a move to Leeds United during the summer transfer window, has established himself as one of the best players in Serie A. The Udinese skipper has been brilliant in 2020/21, having managed six goals and seven assists in 29 games across all competitions. He has a contract at the club until 2024, and Udinese a...
‘Yes please, ‘Sign him’: Some Liverpool fans react to reports linking with ‘class’ player
Liverpool fans have taken to Twitter to express their reaction to reports linking the club with a move for Udinese midfielder Rodrigo De Paul. According to Tutto Udinese, Liverpool and Barcelona are leading the race to sign the Argentine midfielder in the summer. De Paul has a contract at the Italian club until 2024, and many Liverpool fans feel that he would be a great signing for them. The Argentine was heavily linked with a move to Leeds United during last summer transfer window, but the Whites failed to clinch a deal for him. De Paul has been superb for Udinese since joining the club in 2016 from Valencia. The Udinese skipper has bagged six goals and seven assists in 29 games across all competitions and would cost in the region of €50 million (£42m). Where are Barc...
Manchester United must pay £103m to sign 26-year-old with 19 goal contributions
Atletico Madrid have made it clear that Manchester United or any other club must trigger the £103 million release clause in Marcos Llorente’s contract to sign him this summer, Marca reports. Llorente is currently in his second season with the Spanish giants and has been in fine form with 10 goals and nine assists from 36 appearances across all competitions. It was recently reported that the Red Devils had tabled a £68.5m offer for the midfielder, which had made Atletico contemplate over a possible summer sale. However, this has been dismissed by Marca, who also claim that the La Liga leaders have no plans of selling him for anything less than his £103m buy-out clause. Thomas Partey, Lucas Hernandez, Rodri Hernandez and Antoine Griezmann were all sold only after their release clau...
Paul Merson says Bayern Munich star ‘not as good as’ Tottenham player
Popular football pundit Paul Merson has claimed that Bayern Munich star Robert Lewandowski is not as good as Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane. There is a general perception among football fans that Lewandowski is the best conventional forward in the world. The Polish striker has scored over 40 goals in each of his last six seasons, including a remarkable 55 goals for Bayern last season as they ended up winning the historic treble. The 32-year-old striker has been simply superb this season, scoring 42 goals in all competitions. He was named The Best FIFA Men’s Player for 2020. However, Merson feels Kane has the edge over Lewandowski. “Robert Lewandowski won the award for the best player in the world last year – but he’s not as good as Harry Kane,” Merson wrote in the Daily Sta...
Arsenal could be handed big boost in re-signing Martin Odegaard if this happens
Arsenal have a good chance of re-signing Martin Odegaard next season, should Zinedine Zidane remain the manager of Real Madrid, Football Insider reports. The Norwegian had an impressive loan stint with Real Sociedad last term, registering seven goals and nine assists from 36 appearances in all competitions. He was reintegrated into the first-team plans at Los Blancos this season but played just 367 minutes before he was loaned out to the Gunners in January. Odegaard made a slow start to his Gunners career, but he stepped up before the international break with several standout displays. While he has netted just twice in his 12 appearances, he has been hugely influential in the build-up of several other goals for the north London side. It is now reported that the Gunners have a good chance o...
Spurs reportedly join the race to sign in-demand Everton target, club ready to offload him this summer
Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly joined the race to sign former Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey in the summer transfer window. According to reports from Italian media outlet Tuttomercatoweb, Juventus are looking to offload a few players in the summer to free up the space for new additions and could sell Ramsey this summer. Ramsey joined the Old Lady on a free transfer after leaving Arsenal. He is reportedly on £225k-a-week wages in Turin, and Juventus will look to tie down the likes of Paulo Dybala and Cristiano Ronaldo on lucrative deals by getting Ramsey off the wage bill. The 61-times capped Wales international has been in and out of the team since moving to Italy. This season, he has made 12 Serie A starts, and a further six appearances have come from the ben...
Lucas Torreira open to playing for Arsenal again on one condition
Uruguayan midfielder Lucas Torreira would be open to playing for Arsenal next season if he is assured regular playing time by manager Mikel Arteta, The Athletic reports. The 25-year-old fell out-of-favour under Arteta following the project restart last term, and he was loaned out to Atletico Madrid before the summer transfer deadline. His time with the Madrid giants has been a frustrating one with just 629 minutes of playing time, and they are unlikely to consider the option to buy him this summer. It is now reported that Torreira is open to re-establishing himself within the Gunners ranks next term, but he will want the assurance of regular game time. Sportslens view: Arteta has shown that he is prepared to hand opportunities to fringe players, and Mohamed Elneny has been a prime example ...
