Serie A
Juventus’ hopes of bagging big target boosted as Milan sign 25-year-old
AC Milan’s acquisition of Mike Maignan from Lille ends a long-running saga over their goalkeeping situation. Maignan has signed a contract until June 2026 with the Serie A outfit, ending his six-year association with the newly crowned French champions. SL View Maignan had been strongly linked with Tottenham Hotspur over the past few weeks, with the club in the market for a replacement for Hugo Lloris. However, once Milan made their interest known, there was only ever likely to be one outcome. Maignan’s arrival in Milan coincides with Gianluigi Donnarumma’s departure this summer, with technical director Paolo Maldini confirming the news on the club’s Twitch channel. Donnarumma has made more than 250 appearances for Milan in all competitions, but his time at the club has been dogged by contr...
EPL-winning manager linked with Tottenham job has reportedly resigned, he recently won another title
Tottenham Hotspur reportedly want Italian manager Antonio Conte, with La Stampa claiming they have offered him a €20 million-a-year deal. The 51-year-old is said to have been promised quality recruitment if he joins Spurs, and he has now resigned as Inter Milan manager, according to Italian journalist Alfio Musmarra. Antonio Conte non è più l’allenatore dell’Inter. Grazie di tutto Mister. — Alfio Musmarra (@IlMusmy) May 26, 2021 While there is no official confirmation yet as at the time of this publication, Telefoot la chaine journalist Simone Rovera has vouched for his Italian counterpart, and it will be interesting to see whether it is indeed true. En attendant l’officialisation…c’est le bien informé @IlMusmy qui donne l’info : Antonio Conte n’est plus l’entraîneur de l’Inter…. https://t...
Manager Levy reportedly wants after leaving Spurs chief impressed has joined another club
Tottenham Hotspur managerial target Gennaro Gattuso left his role as Napoli manager on Sunday. The Italian’s resignation was supposed to be a huge boost for Spurs’ managerial search, with chairman Daniel Levy said to be keen on him. Tottenham reportedly have the 43-year-old on their list of managerial candidates to replace Jose Mourinho after he impressed their chief. Levy reportedly has seen several Napoli matches and watched Gattuso closely. The Spurs chairman is said to have been impressed with the quality of the games and the quality of the ideas displayed by Gattuso’s former team against AC Milan and Roma. It is unknown whether he has made any move to sign the Milan legend, but he now has to look elsewhere for the top manager he wants. According to Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano, ...
‘If an opportunity arrives’ – Director says €40m man who said ‘yes’ to Leeds move could leave
Udinese director Pierpaolo Marino has admitted that Argentine midfielder and Leeds United target Rodrigo De Paul is likely to leave the Serie A outfit this summer. The 26-year-old is also wanted by Italian clubs Inter Milan, Juventus, AC Milan, Roma and Napoli, and more suitors could emerge for his signature in the summer. Leeds wanted De Paul last summer, and the player was also keen on a move, dropping a huge hint on social media by saying “yes” to an Elland Road move. Udinese’s €40 million asking price proved too steep for Marcelo Bielsa’s side, but it appears that the club could finally allow him to leave should he insist on it. “Obviously, he is a player whose name is on everyone’s lips,” Marino told DAZN (via football.italia). “We have the desire and strength to keep him, but if an o...
Serie A: Jubilant Inter finish title-winning season with Udinese rout
Serie A champions Inter Milan ended their triumphant season with a 5-1 thrashing of Udinese on Sunday as thousands of fans gathered outside San Siro to celebrate. Antonio Conte’s side sealed their first league crown in 11 years with four games to spare on May 2, but had to wait until the final day of the season to lift the trophy. Ashley Young and Christian Eriksen were on target before the break and goals from Lautaro Martinez, Ivan Perisic and Romelu Lukaku completed the rout before Roberto Pereyra’s consolation penalty for the 14th-placed visitors. Inter finish the season with 91 points, passing the 90-point mark for the second time after earning 97 in 2006-07, and were able to celebrate the achievement in front of one thousand invited supporters at their home ground. A further 4,500 we...
Manchester United ‘ready to snap up Cristiano Ronaldo in stunning transfer’
Manchester United are ready to snap up Cristiano Ronaldo from Juventus this summer. And should the Portuguese icon be available, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer ‘would not hesitate’ in sanctioning a move for his former team-mate. Ronaldo, 36, is set to consider his options after Sunday’s Serie A final day, following a desperately disappointing season for the Old Lady. Juve currently sit fifth in the table, trailing the Champions League places by a point. But even if Andrea Pirlo’s side do clinch a top four berth, Ronaldo may opt to leave a year before his contract expires. And according to The Athletic, Man United chiefs are ‘monitoring’ their former No7’s situation with increasing interest. Solskjaer, 48, remains ‘in touch’ with Ronaldo, and even asked him for a character reference before signing Br...
Serie A Finale: All eyes on Juventus and Milan in tight Champions League race
The 2020/21 Serie A season rounds off this weekend and sub-plots abound as the crucial set of fixtures approach. Atalanta have already joined newly-crowned champions Inter Milan in a top-four finish, with the remaining two spots being contested between three powerhouses. Serie A Champions League Race AC Milan, Napoli and Juventus are embroiled in a three-horse race for the remaining Champions League slots, making this season finale one of the most exciting in recent years. Winless in their last three Serie A meetings with Atalanta, the Rossoneri make the trip to Bergamo, pursuing all three points that would render goings-on involving the rest of their top-four buddies irrelevant. With Gennaro Gattuso’s future at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona hanging up in the air, the Partenopei welcom...
Barcelona linked with Alvaro Morata as Juventus future uncertain
Barcelona have been linked with a move for Juventus loanee Alvaro Morata, as his future in Serie A has not been resolved yet. Morata came to Juventus for a second spell last summer on loan from Atletico Madrid, with the option to make the deal permanent for €45 million. He has been the club’s second top goalscorer behind star man Cristiano Ronaldo, hitting 18 in all competitions. Morata has struck 18 times this season However, it’s been a disappointing season for the Old Lady. After winning nine successive league titles, they were comfortably beaten to the prize by Inter Milan and go into the final day knowing that Champions League qualification is out of their hands. Additionally, they were knocked out of Europe by underdogs Porto in the round of 16. Although, they have enjoyed some succe...
Juventus reportedly join 13-time UCL winners in the race for Everton man
Transfer market agent and intermediary Ivan Reggiani has told Calciomercato that Juventus are weighing up appointing Everton manager Carlo Ancelotti as their next boss. While he led the Serie A giants to the Coppa Italia prize last night, missing out on a top-four finish could cost manager Andrea Pirlo his job. Juventus have not particularly impressed under the 42-year-old, and it appears that they are looking at potential replacements ahead of next season. Ancelotti was in charge of the Old Lady between 1999 and 2001, and it seems they are looking to bring him back for the tough task ahead. The Everton boss has also been linked with a return to Real Madrid, with Los Blancos boss Zinedine Zidane tipped to leave the Santiago Bernabeu at the end of the season. The 13-time Champions League wi...
Crystal Palace plan loan bid for Serie A centre-back, who Chelsea wanted to sign
Crystal Palace will propose to sign Juventus centre-back Radu Dragusin on a season-long loan this summer, The Sun reports. The 19-year-old’s previous contract was due to expire in June, and the Eagles were eager to land him on a free transfer. However, their plans were dashed last month as the Romanian was convinced to sign a fresh four-year deal with the Bianconeri. It is now reported that the south London outfit will look to pursue his signature on loan for the 2021/22 campaign. The Bianconeri are open to the defender’s temporary exit such that he can be guaranteed regular first-team football. Sportslens view: The Eagles currently have 16 players in their first-team squad whose contracts expire at the end of next month. The list includes centre-backs Gary Cahill, Mamadou Sakho and Scott ...
Serie A: Juventus v Milan the headline fixture and can Ronaldo get 30+ league goals this season?
Serie A is back in action with another round of fixtures this weekend as four sides battle it out for the remaining three top-four spots. Apart from Inter Milan, who have already won the Serie A title, Atalanta, AC Milan, Napoli and dethroned Juventus are embroiled in a tense top-four race. There are only six points left to play for, while only three currently separate the teams in the Serie A table, with Cristiano Ronaldo and co arguably in the worst position heading into the season finale. Will Inter inflict further damage on Juventus? Inter may not settle for just stealing the Serie A title away from Juventus as they have the opportunity to harm their chances of landing a top-four finish. Andrea Pirlo’s future in Turin is hanging in the balance as the newly-crowned champions arrive at t...
Jorge Mendes rubbishes Cristiano Ronaldo’s Sporting Lisbon return links
Former Real Madrid superstar Cristiano Ronaldo will not be returning to Sporting Lisbon this summer. The Portuguese international has been linked with a fairy tale return to his boyhood club ahead of the 2021/22 season after enduring a mixed campaign with Serie A giants Juventus. Ronaldo’s mother Dolores Aveiro also fuelled speculation over him going back to Lisbon by claiming she would ‘talk to her son about a return’. However, despite speculation over the 36-year old’s next move, as he enters the final year over his contract in Turin, his agent Jorge Mendes has confirmed there will be no move this summer. “Cristiano is proud of the title won by Sporting (this season), as he has publicly demonstrated,” Mendes told an interview with Portuguese outlet Record. “But at the moment his career p...
