West Ham United are interested in signing Nikola Maksimovic from Napoli in the summer transfer window, according to . It has been reported that the Premier League club have made a bid of £14 million for the 28-year-old central defender, as Hammers aim to beat London rivals Fulham to his signature.
Napoli are open to selling Maksimovic this summer, with the Serbia international out of contract at the Italian club at the end of the season, according to the report, which has added that a deal is likely. West Ham need to sign a new centre-back, with David Moyes’s side having struggled defensively for a while.
Maksimovic has been on the books of Napoli since 2016, but the 28-year-old has not been a regular for the Italian club and was out on loan at Spartak Moscow in 2018…
Bayern Munich sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic has confirmed the club are keen to sign Schalke midfielder Leon Goretzka.
The Germany international is out of contract at the end of the season and has attracted significant interest from some of Europe s biggest clubs in recent weeks.
Barcelona, Juventus and Bayern are said to be the front-runners, with the Bundesliga champions firmly throwing their hat into the ring with Salihamidzic s latest comments.
Speaking to reporters at Bayern s training camp in Doha, Salihamidzic said: Leon Goretzka is a great player, that s clear.
But he is a Schalke player and we obviously respect that. But he is a Germany international and we can say that we are interested in him.
Salihamidzic s revelations come a…
Dominic Calvert-Lewin climbed off the bench to kick-start Everton’s season in a 3-1 win at Brentford.
The England striker grabbed his first goal of the campaign to wrap up a first Premier League win for Sean Dyche’s side.
James Tarkowski had headed the Toffees back into the lead against his old club after Mathias Jensen cancelled out Abdoulaye Doucoure’s opener.
FT. A big away win! COYB!!
— Everton (@Everton)
It was a vastly improved display by Everton, although the Bees were not at their best.
They were not helped by a late reshuffle after Kevin Schade limped off during the warm-up and was replaced by Keane Lewis-Potter.
Ashley Young immediately fell foul of a surging Lewis-Potter run, the 38-year-old’s tackle earning…
Zlatan Ibrahimovic could make a timely return from injury when Milan face fellow Serie A title contenders Napoli on Sunday.
The talismanic striker has been sidelined since damaging his Achilles in a goalless draw with Juventus on January 23.
Rossoneri head coach Stefano Pioli on Saturday revealed Ibrahimovic could feature in a huge battle between second and third at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, where Ante Rebic could also have a part to play.
Pioli told reporters: Ibrahimovic is doing better. He trained with the group both yesterday [Friday] and today and will probably travel with us tomorrow.
Rebic is doing fine physically and getting back to optimum condition. He needs to make the most of his opportunities.
I think it ll be important to st…
Italy s squad are well aware of the different task they will face in the Euro 2020 knockout stages, so says Roberto Mancini.
The Azzurri maintained their perfect start to the tournament with a 1-0 win over Wales in Rome on Sunday – Matteo Pessina s first-half goal proving the difference, while the visitors also had Ethan Ampadu sent off.
Italy are now unbeaten in 30 matches in all competitions (W25 D5) since losing against Portugal in September 2018, equalling the longest unbeaten run in their history, which was set between 1935 and 1939.
Mancini s team have won their past 11 games and kept a clean sheet in each match, only going on a longer run once before in their history – 12 games without conceding between 1972 and 1974.
With top spot in Group …
Barcelona full-back Dani Alves has revealed he will play in England next season.
Andoni Zubizarreta, Barca s sporting director, announced last month that Brazil international Dani Alves would be leaving Camp Nou after seven trophy-laden seasons when his contract expires next year.
The 31-year-old has long been linked with a move to the Premier League, and he has now confirmed that he will ply his trade in England from the beginning of the 2015-16 campaign.
I am moving to England next year, Dani Alves told Brazilian newspaper O Globo this week.
I am going to play in the home of football. This will be my last year at Barcelona.
Dani Alves has made over 300 appearances for Barca since joining from Sevilla in July 2008.
He has won four La L…
Robert Lewandowski is clear to face Espanyol in Saturday s derby after Barcelona secured a temporary injunction in a Madrid court, putting the striker s three-match ban on hold.
Poland international Lewandowski was shown two yellow cards in the first half of Barca s last match before the World Cup break – a 2-1 win at Osasuna on November 8.
The Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) issued Lewandowski with an extended three-game punishment due to an alleged gesture made towards referee Gil Manzano after being dismissed, although the player said it had been aimed at his own coach, Xavi.
Lewandowski has claimed the suspension is too much for what I did , and the former Bayern Munich man said it would be painful to sit out three games.
With 18 goals in 19 game…
Ralf Rangnick lamented another abject away showing from Manchester United at Crystal Palace, while he thanked Brighton and Hove Albion for helping the Red Devils to Europa League qualification.
United lost six consecutive away league matches for the first time since March 1981 after Wilfried Zaha s strike proved decisive in the 1-0 win for Crystal Palace on Sunday.
Erik ten Hag was in attendance at Selhurst Park and has much to ponder after United finished the Premier League season with a record-low points tally (58).
It was also the first time United did not end a league campaign with a positive goal difference (zero in 2021-22) for the first time since the 1989-90 season (minus-one).
However, Brighton came from behind to defeat top-six hopefuls Wes…
Juventus have dominated the league for half a decade now. / Image via maltatoday.com.mt
Juventus have dominated the Serie A for five years now, no side posing a viable threat to the Bianconeri s title run. Why can no one compete with La Vecchia Signora?
How much money?
Juventus have been building up their arsenal thanks to a generous sum invested in the transfer window by their owners, the Agnelli family. Funded partly by the selling of Pogba, Juventus dominated this summer s transfer window, making many signings such as top scorer Gonzalo Higuain, Miralem Pjanic, Dani Alves, and Mehdi Benatia. While other clubs such as Inter may have the same funds, if not more, Juventus are able to attract top-tier players thanks to their prestige and participation in European compet…
Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo has refused to rule out the possibility of a return to Manchester United.
Ronaldo, 29, spent five years at Old Trafford before making his then-world-record transfer to Real in 2009.
The FIFA Ballon d Or holder has since scored an incredible 177 La Liga goals in five seasons, and broke the record for the number of UEFA Champions League goals in a single campaign in leading the Spanish giants to success in Europe s premier club competition last term.
Despite his phenomenal record at the Bernabeu, Ronaldo has regularly been linked with a move back to United.
And ahead of Real s International Champions Cup meeting with United in Michigan on Saturday, a game the Portugal captain will miss as he continues to recover ahead…