Friday, August 26, 2016

All Premier League Summer Transfers so far...26th August 2016

ARSENAL
IN
Granit Xhaka (Borussia Monchengladbach, £35m)
Rob Holding (Bolton, £2m)
Takuma Asano (Sanfrecce Hiroshima, undisclosed)
OUT
Wojciech Szczesny (Roma, loan)
Isaac Hayden (Newcastle, undisclosed)
Jon Toral (Granada, loan)
Julio Pleguezuelo (Mallorca, loan)
Dan Crowley (Oxford United, loan)
Joel Campbell (Sporting Lisbon, loan)
Mikel Arteta (released)
Tomas Rosicky (released)
Mathieu Flamini (released)


BOURNEMOUTH
IN
Lewis Cook (Leeds United, £6m)
Lys Mousset (Le Havre, £5.4m)
Emerson Hyndman (Fulham, compensation)
Nathan Ake (Chelsea, loan)
Jordon Ibe (Liverpool, £15m)
Brad Smith (Liverpool, £3m rising to £6m)
OUT
Matt Ritchie (Newcastle United, £12m)
Tommy Elphick (Aston Villa, £3.6m)
Lee Tomlin (Bristol City, £2.75m)
Shaun Macdonald (Wigan Athletic, undisclosed)
Sylvain Distin (released)
Stephane Zubar (released)
Josh Carmichael (released)
Josh Wakefield (released)
Harry Cornick (Leyton Orient, loan)
Josh Carmichael (released)
Glenn Murray (Brighton & Hove Albion, loan)

BURNLEY
IN
Steven Defour (Anderlecht, £8m)
Johann Berg Gudmundsson (Charlton, £2.5m)
Nick Pope (Charlton, £1.1m)
Jon Flanagan (Liverpool, loan)
OUT
Daniel Nizic (Morecambe, free)
Josh Ginnelly (Walsall, loan)
Joey Barton (Rangers, free)
Matt Gilks (Rangers, free)
Matt Taylor (released)
Lloyd Dyer (released)

CHELSEA
IN
Michy Batshuayi (Marseille, £33m)
N'Golo Kante (Leicester, £30m)
OUT
Mohamed Salah (Roma, undisclosed)
Reece Mitchell (Chesterfield, free)
John Swift (Reading, free)
Mitchell Beeney (Crawley, loan)
Tomas Kalas (Fulham, loan)
Kasey Palmer (Huddersfield Town, loan)
Tammy Abraham (Bristol City, loan)
Radamel Falcao (end of loan)
Alexandre Pato (end of loan)
Nathan Ake (Bournemouth, loan)
Baba Rahman (Schalke, loan)
Papy Djilobodji (Sunderland, £8m)
Izzy Brown (Rotherham, loan)
Michael Hector (Eintracht Frankfurt, loan)
Marko Marin (Olympiakos, £2.6m)

CRYSTAL PALACE
IN
Christian Benteke (Crystal Palace, £27m rising to £32m)
Andros Townsend (Newcastle United, £13m)
James Tomkins (West Ham United, £10m)
Steve Mandanda (Marseille £1.5m)
OUT
Dwight Gayle (Newcastle United, £10m)
Alex McCarthy (Southampton, undisclosed)
Jake Gray (Luton, undisclosed)
Jermone Binnom-Williams (Peterborough, undisclosed)
Chris Kettings (Oldham, free)
Emmanuel Adebayor (released)
Marouane Chamakh (released)
Brede Hangeland (released - now retired)
Adrian Mariappa (released)
Paddy McCarthy (released)
Yannick Bolasie (Everton, £25m)
Mile Jedinak (Aston Villa, undisclosed)

EVERTON
IN
Maarten Stekelenburg (Fulham, undisclosed)
Idrissa Gueye (Aston Villa, £7.1m)
Ashley Williams (Swansea City, £12m)
Yannick Bolasie (Crystal Palace, £25m)
OUT
Russell Griffiths (Cheltenham, loan)
Conor Grant (Ipswich, loan)
Felipe Mattioni (released)
Tim Howard (Colorado, released)
Tony Hibbert (released)
Leon Osman (released)
Steven Pienaar (released)
John Stones (Manchester City, £47m)
Luke Garbutt (Wigan Athletic, loan)

HULL CITY
IN
Will Mannion (AFC Wimbledon, compensation)
OUT
Mo Diame (Newcastle, £4.5m)
Sone Aluko (Fulham, free)
Ryan Taylor (released)

LEICESTER CITY
IN
Ahmed Musa (CSKA Moscow, £18m)
Nampalys Mendy (Nice, £13m)
Ron-Robert Zieler (Hannover 69, undisclosed)
Luis Hernandez (Sporting Gijon, undisclosed)
Raul Uche Rubio (Rayo Vallecano, undisclosed)
Bartosz Kapustka (Cracovia, undisclosed - reported £7.5m)
OUT
N'Golo Kante (Chelsea, £30m)
Andrej Kramaric (Hoffenheim, undisclosed)
Joe Dodoo (Rangers, undisclosed)
Liam Moore (Reading, undisclosed - reported £1.5m)
Callum Elder (Brentford, loan)
Michael Cain (Blackpool, loan)
Jacob Blyth (Motherwell, free)
Jonny Maddison (Yeovil, free)
Ryan Watson (Barnet, free)
Dean Hammond (released)
Paul Koncheskey (released)
Harry Panayiotou (released)
Mark Schwarzer (released)

LIVERPOOL
IN
Sadio Mane (Southampton, £30m)
Loris Karius (Mainz, £4.7m)
Joel Matip (Schalke, free)
Ragnar Klavan (Augsburg, £5m)
Alex Manninger (Augsburg, free)
Georginio Wijnaldum (Newcastle, £25m)
OUT
Christian Benteke (Crystal Palace, £27m rising to £32m)
​Jordon Ibe (Bournemouth, £15m)
Joe Allen (Stoke City, £13m)
Brad Smith (Bournemouth, £3m rising to £6m)
Martin Skrtel (Fenerbahce, undisclosed – reported £5.5m)
Jerome Sinclair (Watford, £4m)
Sergi Canos (Norwich, undisclosed - reported £2.5m)
Lawrence Vigouroux (Swindon Town, £400,000)
Jordan Rossiter (Rangers, £250,000)
Jon Flanagan (Burnley, loan)
Danny Ward (Huddersfield, loan)
Ryan Fulton (Chesterfield, loan)
Adam Bogdan (Wigan, loan)
Ryan Kent (Barnsley, loan)
Jack Dunn (Morecambe, loan)
Joao Carlos Teixeira (Porto, free)
Jose Enrique (released)
Kolo Toure (released)
Samed Yesil (released)

MANCHESTER CITY
IN
Ilkay Gundogan (Borussia Dortmund, £21m)
Nolito (Celta Vigo, £14m)
Oleksandr Zinchenko (Ufa, undisclosed)
Aaron Mooy (Melbourne City, swap deal)
Leroy Sane (Schalke, £37m)
Gabriel Jesus (Palmeiras, undisclosed - reported £27m)
Marlos Moreno (Atletico Nacional, £4.75m)
John Stones (Everton, £47m)
Pablo Mari (Gimnastic Tarragona, undisclosed)
Claudio Bravo (Barcelona, £17.1m)
OUT
Aaron Mooy (Huddersfield, loan)
Jack Byrne (Blackburn, loan)
Manu Garcia (Alaves, season-long loan)
Martin Demichelis (released)
Richard Wright (retired)

MANCHESTER UNITED
IN
Eric Bailly (Villarreal, £30m)
Henrikh Mkhitaryan (Borussia Dortmund, £26m)
Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Paris Saint-Germain, free)
Paul Pogba (Juventus, £89m)
OUT
Victor Valdes (Middlesbrough, free)
Ashley Fletcher (West Ham, free)
Tyler Reid (Swansea, undisclosed)
Joe Rothwell (Oxford, free)
Nick Powell (Wigan Athletic, free)
Guillermo Varela (Frankfurt, loan)
Paddy McNair (Sunderland, reported £5m)
Donald Love (Sunderland, reported £1m)
Adnan Januzaj (Sunderland, loan)
Tyler Blackett (Reading, undisclosed)

MIDDLESBROUGH
IN
Marten De Roon (Atalanta, £12m)
Viktor Fischer (Ajax, £3.8m)
Victor Valdes (Manchester United, free)
Bernardo Espinosa (Sporting Gijon, free)
Jordan McGhee (Hearts, loan)
Antonio Barragan (Valencia, £3m)
Alvaro Negredo (Valencia, loan)
Brad Guzan (Middlesbrough, free)
Fabio Da Silva (Cardiff City, undisclosed)
OUT
Rhys Williams (Perth Glory, free)
Jordan Jones (Kilmarnock, free)
Jonathan Woodgate (released)
Damia Abella (released)
Connor Ripley (Oldham, loan)

SOUTHAMPTON
IN
Nathan Redmond (Norwich City, £11m)
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (Bayern Munich, £12m)
Alex McCarthy (Crystal Palace, undisclosed)
Jeremy Pied (Nice, free)
OUT
Sadio Mane (Liverpool, £30m)
Victor Wanyama (Tottenham Hotspur, £11m)
Juanmi (Real Sociedad, undisclosed - reported £3m)
Gaston Ramirez (Middlesbrough, free)
Kelvin Davis (retired)
Jason McCarthy (Walsall, loan)
Graziano Pelle (Shandong Luneng, £13m)
Paulo Gazzaniga (Rayo Vallecano, loan)

STOKE CITY
IN
Joe Allen (Liverpool, £13m)
Ramadan Sobhi (Al Ahly, fee rising to £5m)
Ryan Sweeney (AFC Wimbledon, undisclosed
OUT
Steve Sidwell (Brighton, free)
Peter Odemwingie (released)

SUNDERLAND
IN
Papy Djilobodji (Chelsea, £8m)
Paddy McNair (Manchester United, reported £5m)
Donald Love (Manchester United, reported £1m)
Steven Pienaar (Everton, free)
Javier Manquillo (Atletico Madrid, loan)
OUT
Younes Kaboul (Watford, reported £3.5m)
Emanuele Giaccherini (Napoli, £2m)
Danny Graham (Blackburn Rovers, free)
Santiago Vergini (Boca Juniors, undisclosed - reported £1.5m)
Steven Fletcher (Sheffield Wednesday, free)
Will Buckley (Sheffield Wednesday, loan)
Adam Matthews (Bristol City, loan)
Wes Brown (released)
Steve Harper (released)
Mikael Mandron (released)
Liam Agnew (released)

SWANSEA CITY
IN
Leroy Fer (QPR, £3.5m)
Mike van der Hoorn (Ajax, £2m)
Tyler Reid (Manchester United, undisclosed)
George Byers (Watford, free)
Fernando Llorente (Sevilla, undisclosed)
Borja Baston (Atletico Madrid, £15.5m)
OUT
Alberto Paloschi (Atalanta, £6m)
Eder (Lille, £4m)
Daniel Alfei (released)
Lee Lucas (released)
Bafetimbi Gomis (Marseille, loan)
Matt Grimes (Leeds United, loan)
Kyle Bartley (Leeds United, loan)
Liam Shephard (Yeovil Town, loan)
Ryan Hedges (Yeovil Town, loan)
Kenji Gorre (Northampton, loan)
Andre Ayew (West Ham, £20m)
Ashley Williams (Everton, £12m)

TOTTENHAM
IN
Victor Wanyama (Southampton, £11m)
Vincent Janssen (AZ Alkmaar, £18.5m)
OUT
Grant Ward (Ipswich Town, undisclosed)
Alex Pritchard (Norwich City, £8m)
Federico Fazio (Roma, loan)
DeAndre Yedlin (Newcastle, undisclosed)
Nabil Bentaleb (Schalke, loan)

WATFORD
IN
Isaac Success (Granada, £12m)
Daryl Janmaat (Newcastle United, £7.5m)
Christian Kabasele (Racing Genk, £5.8m)
Jerome Sinclair (Liverpool, £4m)
Juan Zuniga (Napoli, loan)
Brice Dja Djédjé (Marseille, £4m)
Younes Kaboul (Sunderland, reported £3.5m)
Roberto Pereyra (Juventus, undisclosed)
OUT
Gabriele Angella (Udinese, undisclosed)
Jurado (Espanyol, undisclosed)
Almen Abdi (Sheffield Wednesday, undisclosed)
Daniel Pudil (Sheffield Wednesday, undisclosed)
Steven Berghuis (Feyenoord, loan)
George Byers (Swansea, free)
Luke Simpson (York City, free)
Uche Ikpeazu (released)
Joel Ekstrand (released)
Josh Doherty (released)

WEST BROMWICH ALBION
IN
Matty Phillips (QPR, £5.5m)
OUT
James Chester (Aston Villa, undisclosed)
Anders Lindegaard (Preston North End, free)
Victor Anichebe (released)
Stephane Sessegnon (released)
Kyle Howkins (Mansfield, loan)

WEST HAM UNITED
IN
Toni Martinez (Valencia, £2.4m)
Sofiane Feghouli (Valencia, free)
Havard Nordtveit (Borussia Monchengladbach, free)
Gokhan Tore (Besiktas, loan)
Ashley Fletcher (Manchester United, free)
Domingos Quina (Chelsea, free)
Arthur Masuaku (Olympiakos, £6m)
Andre Ayew (Swansea City, £20m)
Jonathan Calleri (Deportivo Maldonado, season-long loan)
Edimilson Fernandez (FC Sion, £5.5m)
OUT
James Tomkins (Crystal Palace, £10m)
Elliot Lee (Barnsley, free)
Joey O'Brien (released)
Jordan Brown (released)
Leo Chambers (released)
Stephen Hendrie (Blackburn Rovers, loan)
Kyle Knoyle (Wigan Athletic, loan)
George Dobson (Walsall, loan)

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UEFA Champions League Group stage draw: Pep makes Camp Nou return as Wenger goes to Paris

Pep Guardiola enjoyed himself the last time Manchester City played Barcelona – as a spectator the then Bayern Munich coach was seen laughing uncontrollably as Lionel Messi ‘nutmegged’ James Milner in the last-16 tie in 2015 – but there will have been a wince at the looming prospect of another return to the Nou Camp.

Guardiola’s City were paired with Barcelona – along with Borussia Moenchengladbach and Brendan Rodgers’ Celtic – in one of the more intriguing and eye-catching groups as the Champions League draw was made in Monaco.

For Leicester City, in their first involvement in the competition, there was an attractive and manageable draw of facing Porto, Club Brugge and Copenhagen. It is far from inconceivable that Leicester will actually win Group G while their supporters will be pleased at the away trips they can plan at such attractive destinations.

Arsenal, in Group A, were drawn with seeded Paris St-Germain – the French club have strong links with Arsène Wenger and have, in the past, courted him as their manager – along with Basel and a first-ever trip to Bulgaria, albeit involving a 2,600-mile round trip, where they will face Ludogorets. They should go through although the fear, again, will be finishing as runners-up.


For Tottenham Hotspur, who will play their home matches at Wembley Stadium as White Hart Lane is slowly rebuilt, a return to the Champions League for the first time since 2010-2011, when they reached the last eight, delivered them a group they will be confident of negotiating.

GROUPS

GROUP A

ParisParis(FRA)
ArsenalArsenal(ENG)
BaselBasel(SUI)
LudogoretsLudogorets(BUL)

GROUP B

BenficaBenfica(POR)
NapoliNapoli(ITA)
Dynamo KyivDynamo Kyiv(UKR)
BeşiktaşBeşiktaş(TUR)

GROUP C

BarcelonaBarcelona(ESP)
Man. CityMan. City(ENG)
MönchengladbachMönchengladbach(GER)
CelticCeltic(SCO)

GROUP D

BayernBayern(GER)
AtléticoAtlético(ESP)
PSVPSV(NED)
RostovRostov(RUS)

GROUP E

CSKA MoskvaCSKA Moskva(RUS)
LeverkusenLeverkusen(GER)
TottenhamTottenham(ENG)
MonacoMonaco(FRA)

GROUP F

Real MadridReal Madrid(ESP)
DortmundDortmund(GER)
Sporting CPSporting CP(POR)
LegiaLegia(POL)

GROUP G

LeicesterLeicester(ENG)
PortoPorto(POR)
Club BruggeClub Brugge(BEL)
KøbenhavnKøbenhavn(DEN)

GROUP H

JuventusJuventus(ITA)
SevillaSevilla(ESP)
LyonLyon(FRA)
Dinamo ZagrebDinamo Zagreb(CRO)
As third seeds they could have fared a lot worse than the Russian champions CSKA Moscow, although that is never the easiest of trips, Bayer Leverkusen and Monaco although drawing the French club, who reached the group stages through the play-offs, out of pot four did deliver a sting in the tail.

But it is Guardiola, City and Barcelona – and Celtic – which is the headline-grabber. Guardiola’s Bayern were beaten by a Messi-inspired Barcelona in the semi-finals in the same season that City were being schooled and the Spaniard, who won the European Cup as a player with Barca and twice as a coach, will know that the intense focus will be on him once more.

In his six campaigns as a manager, Guardiola has never failed to reach the semi-finals of Europe’s premier competition – the stage that City reached last season – and although he will be confident of progressing through this group there may be the prospect of doing so as runners-up to the club who means so much to him and moulded everything he does. City also face Barca in the pivotal middle fixtures.


City will also face the intensity and emotion of having to overcome Celtic and although Rodgers’s side are a pale shadow of the teams that have previously taken part in this competition – and famously beat Barcelona in a group match in Guardiola’s last season with the Catalan club in 2012 – it will be a raucous occasion in Glasgow.

It will also be an opportunity for Rodgers, the former Liverpool manager, whose side includes three former City players – Kolo Touré, Dedryck Boyata and Scott Sinclair – who will not be lacking in motivation and a fourth on-loan in Patrick Roberts although he may not be allowed to play.

City faced Moenchengladbach and beat them home and away in their group last season but, interestingly, André Schubert’s side took four points of Guardiola’s Bayern in the Bundesliga.

For Leicester – with the lowest coefficient of all 32 teams in the Champions League but seeded because they are Premier League champions – the reward was obvious even if, predictably, manager Claudio Ranieri once again claimed they were “underdogs”.

He added: “For this reason we must fight for everything. I want to see my players fight against the best in Europe. Every team in the competition will fight like champions. Last season was wonderful but I want more.”

Porto are seasoned Champions League campaigners but, having avoided the likes of Atlético Madrid and Borussia Dortmund, there is nothing for Leicester to fear beyond the nervousness of being in a new competition.


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Friday, August 19, 2016

Manchester United VS Southampton Preview


Manchester United are set to face Southampton in Jose Mourinho's first competitive home game as manager - so here's everything you need to know about the game.

Key statistics
Mourinho has always made his home ground a fortress and will hope to rebuild the defences that took a hammering during the difficult reigns of David Moyes and Louis van Gaal.

The Portuguese boss has lost just nine home league games during his entire 22-year managerial career, while Sir Alex Ferguson lost just 12 in his last eight years at United.

The club have matched that figure in the three years since his departure, a record Mourinho will be desperate to make the fans forget.


Puel will face Mourinho aiming for Saints' third straight win at Old Trafford
The Red Devils also used to boast a stellar record against Southampton, unbeaten at home against them for 27 years, until Dusan Tadic's goal in January 2015 sealed a 1-0 Saints win, a feat they would repeat by the same scoreline 12 months later.

Head-to-head record
All competitions: played 118, Manchester United 61, Southampton 28, drawn 29

Premier League: played 34, Manchester United 23 (73 goals), Southampton 7 (41 goals), drawn 4

What do the managers say?
United boss Jose Mourinho: "The team can [make Old Trafford a fortress again].

"The fans also help.


"Everything starts there: the relationship between team and fans.

"If there's a connection then the factor of being really strong at home has to come back.

"The way we play [helps] and if the fans play [their part] there'll be no chance for the opponent."

Saints manager Claude Puel: "I think Pogba is the price of my team or my squad.

"But I don't give an opinion on their squad.

"I don't prepare my team to play against one player.

"I prepare my team to play against players of United and every opponent we face this season.


"I want my team to make good decisions.

"It is not a good idea to prepare a team for just one player.

"It is important to bring a collective answer for their team."

Kick-Off time 19/08/2016 20:00HRS


Manchester United team news
After serving a suspension on Sunday which stopped him from completing his United return against Bournemouth, Paul Pogba could be in the starting line-up for the first time since his world record return, although he is expected to come off the bench.

Chris Smalling also returns from suspension and Jesse Lingard returns after missing the opening day through injury.

Squad: De Gea, Shaw, Valencia, Bailly, Smalling, Blind, Carrick, Herrera, Lingard, Pogba, Rooney, Martial, Ibrahimovic, Mkhitaryan, Romero, Rojo, Rashford, Schneiderlin, Fellaini, Mata, Depay, Jones.

Southampton team news
Captain Jose Fonte, understood to be a target for United, could return to the Saints team after missing the 1-1 draw with Watford.

However, Ryan Bertrand has not recovered meaning 20-year-old Matt Targett will continue to deputise at left-back.

Squad: Forster, Martina, Van Dijk, Fonte, Yoshida, Soares, Bertrand, Targett, Clasie, Davis, Ward-Prowse, Romeu, Tadic, Long, Austin, Juanmi, McCarthy, Redmond.

Match officials
Referee: Anthony Taylor

Assistants: Richard West, Adrian Holmes

Fourth official: Andre Marriner
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Tuesday, August 09, 2016

Nigeria appoint former Burkina Faso boss as Super Eagles head coach

Reports from the  NFF secretariat has revealed that the Nigeria Football Federation has announced the appointment of Gernot Rohr as coach of the Super Eagles after failing to reach an agreement with Frenchman Paul Le Guen.


Based on the agreement reached between the parties, Rohr’s contract with the Nigerian Federation will run out immediately after the 2018 Fifa World Cup, if the Super Eagles qualify for the tournament.

“ Mr. Gernot Rohr signs two-year contract to work with the NFF as Technical Adviser of the Super Eagles, ” the NFF stated.

Born in Mannheim, Germany, the 63-year-old Rohr represented Bayern Munich, SV Waldhof Mannheim, Kickers Offenbach and Bordeuax before drawing the curtains on his career in 1989.

He has managed Bordeuax, Nice, Young Boys and the national teams of Niger, Gabon and Burkina Faso in the past.

Gernot Rohr will be in the dugout when the Super Eagles trade tackles with Tanzania in an African Cup of Nations qualifier next month.
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Friday, August 05, 2016

Jose at it already: Manchester United boss blasts Wenger and Klopp

Wenger and Klopp have slammed United's £100m move for Pogba but the Portuguese has claimed their comments are "not ethical"

Jose Mourinho has branded rivals Arsene Wenger and Jurgen Klopp “not ethical” for criticising his £100m pursuit of Paul Pogba.
The Manchester United chief wasted no time in launching a season opening skirmish with the Arsenal and Liverpool chiefs.
Mourinho hit out today after Wenger claimed it was “completely crazy” to spend a world record fee on the Juventus star.
And Klopp said of the proposed deal that “the day this is football, I'm not in a job anymore.”
Mourinho expects the transfer of Pogba to complete his squad next week before their Premier League opener.

Mourinho who leads his side in the Charity Shield against Leicester on Sunday, is fuming that two top rivals have commented on his club's business.
He said: “I only speak about us. I heard already two of my colleagues from other clubs speaking about us. I do not like that. It is not ethical.
“There are things that when I do are not ethical and when others do it everything is normal, nobody says that. I do not speak about the others. They can do what they want. Our market was good.
"We made decisions, decide to bring four players not 10, that are Manchester United level. Four that we think can really improve the squad and not just be one more. This is the profile of our market.

A young defender that needs time to be a top one but who has top potential.

“A creative player that we know the quality, a super striker, and we are going to get a very good midfielder. We try for balance. I am happy with my squad. I am happy with the effort of the club. The others it is their problem.”

Asked if fans could expect Pogba to arrive in the coming days Mourinho said: “I am very pragmatic on this. All that matters is what happens in my house and not in my neighbours’ house. Paul Pogba is a Juve player until he isn’t, officially, so we stay like this.

I don’t like to speak about other clubs or players from other clubs. Other managers like to do that, they like to speak about my club and my players.

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