Category Uncategorized

AC Milan are reportedly discussing a sensational return to San Siro for retired Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

Former frontman retired at the end of last seasonEnjoyed two memorable stints at San SiroCould fill post alongside coach PioliWHAT HAPPENED?

The enigmatic 41-year-old hung up his boots at the end of last season as injuries finally caught up with him. The curtain came down on his remarkable career while in Italy, with a second Serie A title-winning spell being enjoyed with the Rossoneri.

AdvertisementGOALTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Ibrahimovic was recently spotted back in Milan ahead of a Champions League clash with Newcastle, and reports that talks have been held between the former Sweden international and club owner Gerry Cardinale regarding a possible role for him.

DID YOU KNOW?

Milan are eager to bring Ibrahimovic’s experience and character on board – as someone that knows all about the pressures of performing under the brightest of spotlights and a figure capable of bridging the divide between the dressing room and dugout.

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

GettyWHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

There have been suggestions that – following the departure of club legend Paolo Maldini over the summer – Ibrahimovic could be handed a role as team manager, allowing him to work alongside head coach Stefano Pioli. Ibrahimovic will not be rushing into a decision, as he seeks greater clarity over the structure of the club and what his new role would entail, but further meetings are planned for either November or December.

New Birmingham City boss Wayne Rooney considered studying law after he became obsessed with the Wagatha Christie trial involving his wife Coleen.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

• Rooney was obsessed with case
• Considered studying law
• Suggested legal arguments for lawyers

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Rooney supported his wife throughout her defamation case against Rebekah Vardy and became intrigued by the law.

  The former Manchester United and England star attended daily briefings with lawyers and had many questions about the case, resulting in his interest in applying to law school.

Advertisement

• Getty
  

  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  The famous lawsuit, dubbed the Wagatha Christie, erupted after Coleen discovered one of her Instagram followers was leaking private information to the press and eventually identified the culprit as Rebekah Vardy, wife of Leicester star Jamie.

  Vardy launched a defamation suit and denied leaking any stories, but she lost the case, with the judge ruling that Rooney's claims were "substantially true".

• WHAT THEY SAID

  New Birmingham boss Rooney became obsessed with the case and even suggested arguments for the lawyers, resulting in his wife shutting him down. "Wayne shut up and let David [Hurworth] or Paul [Lunt] speak," she said during a newly released Disney+ documentary on the trial.

  Coleen later added: "He was then going to apply for law school and he had all these plans."

  Rooney himself also explained why he became so fascinated with the intricacies of the legal world. "Yeah, it was interesting because I do like crime documentaries and in particular the different techniques the two barristers used," he said.

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

• Getty
  

  WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

  Rooney, 37, appears to have dropped his desire to study law as he was recently appointed Birmingham City manager. His side will play their first game since his arrival on Saturday when they take on Middlesbrough.

Arsenal have been "informed" on the conditions of a potential deal to sign Galatasary defender Sacha Boey, namely that he is set to cost around £22 million this summer.

Who could Arsenal sign this summer?

The Gunners and manager Mikel Arteta are looking to shore up a number of key areas of the squad, coming after they missed out on their first Premier League title in nearly 20 years.

Arsenal had been in pole position for much of the 2022/2023 campaign but were eventually beaten to the punch by champions Man City, who are also on course to potentially clinch an historic treble.

It's back to the drawing board in north London with Arteta and sporting director already drawing up plans to make major signings this summer.

"Our planning has already been done," said sporting director Edu in April (ESPN via 90min)."It has already reached the owners. Now, we're taking things step by step. We're focused on how we will finish the season, but we've put in the planning and I'm very excited."

In terms of who Arsenal could sign, it is believed that the Gunners are targeting multiple midfield additions, with West Ham's Declan Rice and Brighton star Moises Caicedo attracting serious interest.

Defensive signings are also firmly on the agenda, especially at right-back, with Real Valladolid starlet Ivan Fresneda and Boey being linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium.

Sharing an update on the latter target, reliable transfer journalist Fabrizio Romano has some news for supporters.

Speaking to GiveMeSport, Romano claims that Arsenal have been "informed" that they can sign Boey for around £22 million, but as of yet, there is yet to be any serious talks or contact with the player's agents.

"For Boey at the moment, I'm just told that they are informed on the conditions of the deal, €25m price tag."I'm not aware of any direct contract between Arsenal and his agent in terms of negotiations, so at the moment it's still a quiet situation."

Who is Sacha Boey?

The 22-year-old has been a key player for Galatasary, especially last season, with only Victor Nelsson and Fernando Muslera playing more league minutes (WhoScored).

Boey also averaged their joint-highest rate of tackles per 90 and second-highest number of interceptions domestically – emphasising his importance to the Turkish Super Lig side (WhoScored).

Former Gunners defender Bacary Sagna, commenting on the links to Boey recently, also believes that he would fit in "perfectly" under Arteta.

Arsenal's fine season came to a triumphant end on Sunday, as they blew away Wolverhampton Wanderers 5-0 in front of a gracious Emirates crowd. Many had turned out to deliver their thanks to Mikel Arteta and his playing staff, for staging the most unlikely title charge that fell just short.

Regardless of how it ended, it makes for a bright future in north London, where a few key additions could help them take that final step in the battle with Manchester City. Not only that, but they also now have Champions League football to look forward to once again.

This was particularly important given the pulling power such an attraction draws in the transfer market, affording them a head start over any club without European football, or in a lesser version of their competition.

It could also prove decisive in luring other talent from lower down the Premier League, with the promise of minutes in that elite competition sure to tempt many.

One such name that could be intrigued by such a prospect is Michael Olise, who reports are now linking with a €40m (£35m) Emirates switch.

How good is Michael Olise?

Although it might seem questionable to sign someone with such a similar profile to Bukayo Saka, as a tricky, dazzling and elegant right winger with a wicked left foot, the extent to which their England international has been worked is ludicrous.

Featuring in all 38 of their league games this season for the second term running, Arteta must be worrying about when his young superstar will burn out.

In an attempt to avoid such an occurrence, the acquisition of Olise could provide suitable competition without altering the makeup of the team much.

After all, Crystal Palace's mesmeric maestro has too enjoyed a fine campaign, scoring two goals and assisting a further 11 in the league.

Although a far cry from Saka's levels, who recorded 25 goal contributions this season, the gulf is not so big as to suggest that they could not battle for the spot. Additionally, a move up the table would surely see Olise's numbers improve too whilst supplying the likes of Martin Odegaard, Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli.

During that run of form in 2023 which rocketed the Eagles to comfortable safety, the 21-year-old was instrumental in such a turnaround. Statman Dave first branded the winger a "stunner" in January before pundit Clinton Morrison suggested he had been "outstanding" and a "joy to watch" in April.

Ironically enough, the two would come up against one another often at youth level, with Michael Richards, Olise's youth coach, emphasising their similarities and ability above everyone else: "It was basically the Michael and Bukayo show. You could see that both of them were exceptional, far above everyone else."

OneVersusOne serve to compliment this notion further, as the two are also similar in their crosses made per 90 (3.18 v 3.29), dribble success percentage (78.66% v 73.39%) and assists (0.24 v 0.31). Their shared creativity is arguably unparalleled.

If Edu is serious about affording Saka some much-needed rest midway through the season, there are arguably few better value-for-money signings on the market than Olise, who would allow the switch to be made with minimal fuss and maximum quality in the starter and the substitute.

Todd Boehly has shown that he has no problem with shelling out huge fees on new players as he looks to turn Chelsea into one of the top sides in Europe, but the American must avoid another transfer disaster with Joao Felix.

How has Felix performed at Chelsea so far?

Chelsea signed the Portugal international on loan from Atletico Madrid in the January transfer window, with the Blues paying a £10m loan fee as well as the forward's wages in order to bring him to Stamford Bridge.

Boehly was desperate to add attacking quality at Chelsea given the likes of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Raheem Sterling had struggled for form in the first half of the season, with the two experienced attackers managing just five goals and two assists between them in the Premier League so far this campaign.

Felix arrived with a big reputation despite never really living up to his potential in Madrid, notching just 34 goals and 18 assists in 131 appearances following a £113m switch from Benfica in 2019.

Sadly, he has shown little to prove that he would be a worthwhile signing at Chelsea this summer, with the 23-year-old unable to turn the Blues' goalscoring woes around, with just two goals and zero assists in his 11 Premier League outings thus far.

WhoScored has awarded the versatile attacker a disappointing 6.68/10 rating for his performances in the top flight, and that sees him ranked as the 11th-best performer in Frank Lampard's squad, which again suggests that he would not be worth signing on a permanent basis this summer given his price tag.

It is perhaps understandable that Felix has struggled so much when you consider that the Blues have managed just 30 goals in 31 Premier League fixtures this season, but the former Benfica man has been one of the most culpable strikers, as he has averaged 3.3 shots per game – the most of anyone in Chelsea's squad.

Should Chelsea sign Felix permanently?

He has an expected goals ratio of 3.6 goals in the Premier League, which suggests that he is also guilty of missing big chances, and the Blues cannot afford to be so wasteful in front of goal again next season if they want to re-establish themselves as a top-four club.

Frank Leboeuf was less than impressed with the Portuguese forward's performance in the 2-0 defeat against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu when speaking on ESPN.

He said (via BeSoccer): "Some [Chelsea] players did well, but most of them switched off, I'd say. What happened to Joao Felix today? It was not a derby between Atletico and Real Madrid. It was Chelsea. Yet he disappeared."

Considering the 23-year-old could set Boehly back around a reported £125m this summer, we think the American must focus his attentions elsewhere and ensure that he spends his money wisely, or else risk another disastrous season.

Fans online have flocked to Twitter to praise Arsenal striker Gabriel Jesus after he delivered a stunning piece of skill in the club’s most recent game.

What’s the latest on Arsenal and Gabriel Jesus?

It was a huge outing in the Premier League on Easter Sunday for the Gunners as they made the trip to Anfield.

Indeed, with title rivals Manchester City already beating Southampton 4-1 the day before, Mikel Arteta’s men were under great pressure to win.

And things got off to a brilliant start as Arsenal took an early lead through Gabriel Martinelli and then doubled it before the 30-minute mark thanks to Jesus.

However, Liverpool ace Mohammed Salah pulled one back and then missed a second-half penalty as the Reds began to build up more and more momentum.

In the end, the pressure told as Roberto Firmino came off the bench to head in an 87th-minute equaliser.

Despite plenty more excitement at the death, the Gunners held on for a draw as the game finished 2-2, leaving Arteta and co now only six points clear at the top of the table.

In the midst of all the drama, however, Arsenal star Jesus pulled off a piece of trickery that has subsequently left fans drooling over his quality.

Indeed, as seen in this video, the Brazilian can be seen displaying his samba roots as he flicks the ball deftly over Thiago Alcantara’s head, before juggling it with a couple of sharp touches and then volleying a no-look pass through to Martinelli as the Gunners race off on a counter.

It’s safe to say, supporters looking on were more than impressed by this stunning bit of skill from the

£265k-p/w forward.

Here are some of the best reactions online…

The praise didn’t stop there…

He certainly got the better of Thiago.

The Edgbaston pitch has been reported to the ECB over its indifferent bounce following the Specsavers County Championship match between Warwickshire and Somerset

ECB Reporters Network11-May-2016
ScorecardBowlers held sway at Edgbaston before the weather closed in•Getty Images

The Edgbaston pitch has been reported to the ECB over its indifferent bounce following the Specsavers County Championship match between Warwickshire and Somerset which ended in a draw when the final day was washed out.Eighteen wickets fell on the second day, after which rain prevented any further play, with numerous batsmen hit around the body and the surface was reported by the umpires to ECB liaison officer Tony Pigott. His findings will now be considered by an ECB disciplinary commission.”It was not the type of pitch we wanted,” admitted Warwickshire director of cricket Dougie Brown. “There were cracks but was it dangerous? No.”We all know here that Gary Barwell is the best groundsman in the country by a mile. He was preparing this pitch 14/16 days ahead, as always, and when he started it was in snow and ice. Then the weather flipped on its head and suddenly it was very hot, so the drying process was accelerated by the weather.”When the cricket liaison officer said the pitch had been reported we were incredibly surprised.”While Warwickshire await the commission’s findings, they will also wait to see whether captain Ian Bell’s injured hamstring will heal in time for him to play against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge on Sunday.Somerset, meanwhile, were left deeply frustrated. With Warwickshire on four without loss in pursuit of their target at the end of the second day, the visitors fancied their chances, only for heavy cloud and mist to take up residence over Birmingham for 48 hours.”It was very disappointing,” said captain Chris Rogers. “On a wicket that was getting harder to bat on, we felt 320 was definitely a winning total.”There were a few concerns about the pitch. The groundsman didn’t quite get it the way he wanted to, though I think had a similar-looking wicket for their first game that didn’t play anywhere near as badly.”I have played on some excellent wickets here so this was different, but fortunately there were no real incidents.”Despite the frustration of not being able to press home a victory, Rogers was pleased with his side’s performance. Having spent most of their first three drawn games on the back foot, this time they held the initiative.”The innings from Tom Abell and Peter Trego were outstanding,” he said. “They really gave us momentum and, particularly when you are playing a good side, if a couple of guys step up and lead from the front, it carries through the rest of the team.”I think we bowled really well, pitched the ball up and challenged the batsmen and got our rewards. Everyone who got the ball in their hand did a really good job.”

Arsenal are reportedly keeping a close eye on the development of Barcelona prodigy Ilias Akhomach, amid rumours of the Spanish winger's forthcoming departure from the prestigious LaLiga outfit.

What's the latest on Akhomach to Arsenal?

According to Spanish outlet Sport, the Gunners have joined fellow Premier League outfit Leeds United in the pursuit of the 18-year-old prospect, with previous reports from the same publication stating that the Whites were firmly in the lead for his signature.

Mikel Arteta's side have, however, held an interest in the ace for some time, with the north London outfit's manager crafting a youthful team capable of competing for major silverware across multiple fronts.

With AC Milan and Sevilla also considering a bid, Gunners sporting director Edu Gaspar must act swiftly if he is to secure the services of one of the most talented starlets in the game.

Who could Ilias Akhomach emulate at Arsenal?

Arsenal are flying this season, occupying the top spot in the English top-flight and indeed looking good for a gleaning of English gold at the end of the term, currently eight points ahead of holding champions Manchester City.

While the fortunes are flowing at present, the club's hierarchy will have one eye on cementing sustained success for the future, especially given that the bulk of the current success lies in the onus placed on youth.

Bukayo Saka, 22, and Gabriel Martinelli, 21, have forged a deadly and dynamic partnership on the offensive flanks, while the club's star centre-back William Saliba is only 22 years old and is playing his maiden year in English football, too.

Frankly, there's no better place to kickstart a career for an aspiring and talented phenom, and Akhomach, who has made 48 appearances for Barcelona's youth sides, as well as making three senior appearances, could well unlock his potential at the Emirates Stadium.

Hailed as a "novelty" by reporter Alfredo Martínez, Akhomach has made 11 outings for Spain's U19s, scoring three goals, and has already demonstrated his aptitude on the major stage with a starring performance for La Blaugrana last season.

As per Sofascore, Akhomach recorded an impressive 7.7 rating against Mallorca in last season's LaLiga edition, completing 88% of his passes and making three key passes, creating one big chance and also winning five of his ten ground duels – evidently a player with a "lot of talent", in the words of one ESPN correspondent.

The "wonderkid", as proclaimed by Goal, could emulate the success of the aforementioned Martinelli in north London, who Edu snagged for just £6m from homeland outfit Ituano in 2019, when the Brazilian gem was 18 years old himself.

Martinelli has been incredible this season, scoring 13 goals and providing two assists from 27 Premier League starts, creating 1.5 key passes per match and completing an assured 83% of his passes, as per Sofascore.

Perhaps more of a natural finisher than his Spanish younger, Martinelli has made the increments to his game over the years spent at the club, and Akhomach should definitely take note and craft his own fruitful fortunes at a club renowned for developing and nurturing first-rate talent into players of world-class calibre.

It proved to be a summer of change for Tottenham Hotspur, with the most notable departure having been the sale of club record goalscorer, Harry Kane, following the Englishman's £100m move to Bayern Munich.

The 30-year-old goal machine was followed out the door by fellow academy graduate Harry Winks who sealed a £10m switch to Championship side, Leicester City, while Davinson Sanchez was another remnant of the Mauricio Pochettino era to have moved on permanently, joining Galatasaray for a reported fee of £12.8m.

Aside from a raft of further loan departures – including Djed Spence following Joe Rodon to Leeds United – the north Londoners also saw diminutive forward, Lucas Moura move on to pastures new after just over five years on the books at N17.

The experienced Brazilian had originally been snapped up from Paris Saint-Germain back in January 2018, although the 31-year-old was sent packing this summer with chairman Daniel Levy making a sizeable loss on his initial investment.

How much did Tottenham pay for Lucas Moura?

The fleet-footed speedster had caught the attention of Levy and Pochettino following his standout form in France at the Parc des Princes, having racked up 94 goals and assists in 229 games in all competitions for the Ligue 1 giants.

That impressive, trophy-laden spell in Paris persuaded Spurs to fork out around £23m in order to bring the winger to England, with the winter arrival tasked with providing further firepower alongside the likes of Harry Kane and Heung-min Son.

While not always a regular fixture of the side over the next few years, Moura did cement his "cult hero" status – as per pundit Paul Robinson – following his remarkable hat-trick against Ajax to fire the club to a maiden Champions League final in 2019.

That stellar showing came as a significant high point in an otherwise mixed spell in north London for the 5 foot 8 enigma, as he was never able to truly kick on from that thrilling night in Amsterdam.

How much did Tottenham sell Moura for?

On reflection, it would appear that the 2018/19 season was as good as it got for the 35-cap international in a Tottenham jersey, as he scored 15 goals in all competitions, including bagging ten goals in 32 league appearances.

Following on from that standout season, Moura would remarkably score just ten top-flight goals across the next four seasons combined, having perhaps suffered as a result of the sacking of Pochettino in November 2019.

The winger's woes were particularly evident in his final season at the club as he failed to start a single league game under Antonio Conte and co, with it somewhat perplexing that Levy did not agree to sanction his departure last summer – amid reported interest from the likes of Newcastle United and Aston Villa.

As it proved, the Lilywhites ultimately allowed the misfiring marksman to leave at the end of his contract back in June, with the club unable to recoup any of their initial investment in the former PSG man.

There may be those who believe that the forgotten figure should have been allowed to depart far sooner amid his slide down the pecking order, with the 2018 transfer having perhaps not quite gone as expected, despite Moura's haul of 39 goals and 27 assists in 221 games in all competitions.

Tottenham fans are tonight calling on the club to sack Thomas Frank following another shambolic display in Sunday's 3-0 loss at Nottingham Forest. The defeat leaves the north London side in the bottom half of the table with supporters angry after yet another sub-par display that means Spurs have now won only one of their last seven league matches to leave their top-four hopes in tatters.

• AFP
  

  Forest ease past sorry Spurs

  Spurs fell behind midway through the first half at the City Ground as Ibrahim Sangare capitalised upon a mixup between Archie Gray and Guglielmo Vicario to ultimately present Callum Hudson-Odoi with an easy finish. And Forest were two goals to the good shortly after the restart as the duo linked up once more, with Hudson-Odoi getting the better of Vicario, whose performance was widely criticised by fans, with a cross-cum-shot.

  The roles were reversed for Forest's third as Hudson-Odoi turned provider for Sangare to compound a miserable afternoon for Spurs. Frank's side had enjoyed a mini-revival in recent outings, following up a 2-2 draw at Newcastle with successive home wins over Brentford and Slavia Prague in the Premier League and Champions League, respectively.

  However, Spurs reverted to type in the Midlands on Sunday afternoon with a number of supporters now calling for Frank to be shown the exit just six months after he succeeded Ange Postecoglou at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium helm.

Advertisement

• 'Dyche ball shi**ing all over Frank'

  Spurs fans took to social media following the 3-0 loss to Nottingham Forest to demand that the club call time on Frank's disappointing spell in charge of the Europa League champions.

  "Football and subs awful, embarrassing again. The Frank saga will probably drag out longer than necessary because of our woeful record of hiring and firing managers the last 6 yrs but everyone can see he’s not the answer," @gemben82 posted on X.

  "Time is up for me. Frank out. I don’t know how we come back from a loss like this, and we seriously show no signs of improvement. Move on," @HeardFromSpurs added.

  Another fan account,@Spurs_Zone, commented that the Dane has failed to sort the club's defensive issues, stating: "Unfortunately, the experiment has gone wrong. Sorry it didn’t work out but it’s time for Frank to leave. Attacking isn’t a problem, Ange proved it last season, scoring was never an issue. The defending was, and Frank just completely failed in diagnosing the problem."

  "It’s safe to say we’ve made a massive mistake in hiring this fool. Frank has served up some of the worst football I’ve ever seen. This can’t continue. Its over. He’s done," @SeanOR7 wrote.

  @_iamchrisf went a little more in depth with his reasoning, posting: "Get Frank out!!! I said on Tuesday: 'The next 3 league games will give us a clearer picture and perhaps my belief and optimism reinstalled in Frank again but let’s see' And today’s performance/result has shown why I still have my doubts. For me he’s failing to get the bare minimum out of this team and that’s unacceptable. Forest only had 4 wins in the league before this game. Dyche ball shi**ing all over Frank"

• AFP
  

  Frank bemoans 'bad performance' at City Ground

  After Sunday's game, Frank was asked whether the result and performance was a real disappointment, to which he replied: "Yeah, it was. It’s hugely disappointing. That was a bad performance, especially first half. I think overall, especially after the 1-0 goal, we looked disjointed.

  "Also after the second goal, it looked disjointed after that; didn’t win enough duels; and we couldn’t hit each other – it seems like we gave the ball away every single time we won it back throughout the game. That doesn’t help to win a football match.

  "On paper, black and white, we lose 3-0 here. That is disappointing. The better team won today. When things go against us, we have to keep doing the right thing and keep our cool heads."

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

• Spurs are 'not a quick fix'

  Frank may be under a lot of scrutiny for the performance levels his Spurs side are producing, but the Danish coach remains bullish that he is the right man for the job and believes he can turn the mounting tide of hapless displays. Asked whether he will be given time to improve recent results, Frank claimed he did not see any reason why he would face the sack.

  "I think it's pretty evident that if no one gets the time, no one can turn this around. This is not a quick fix," he said. "I'm very honest about where we are as well. I was also very honest, today was a very bad performance, no two ways about that.

  "But I also know that to change this will take some time. No one will want to hear about that. It's just reality.

  "I think the ones who have followed the club and the team, I think it's fair to say there's been a few not too consistent performances and that's the thing. We are working very hard."