Andres Iniesta has rubbished suggestions he ever considered reuniting with Pep Guardiola at Manchester City.
The 34-year-old signed for J.League outfit Vissel Kobe in May after calling time on a long and decorated career at Barcelona.
Reports in England claimed former manager Guardiola would attempt to hijack the deal by taking him to Etihad Stadium in a player-coach capacity.
But the Spain international asserted he would not join a potential opponent of Barca and has now confirmed no discussions were ever held.
Zero. I have seen that in the press it emerged that there had been contact. I tell you that there were zero conversations in that sense, Iniesta told Spanish radio station Cadena COPE.
I left no room for doubt. I was leaving Barc…
Brazil travel to Merida to meet Venezuela on Tuesday for the 10th round of CONMEBOL World Cup qualification for Russia 2018.
Three consecutive victories under new coach Tite leaves the five-time world champions second in the continent’s 10-team group with 18 points, just one point off top spot.
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And with leaders Uruguay facing a tricky trip to Colombia, Tite’s Selecao will be hoping to end the international break on top of the group.
To do so they will likely need to complete a double over Venezuela, who were seen off 3-1 on Matchday 2 thanks to a starring performance from Willian in Fortaleza.
At the time it was a vital win f…
Newcastle United boss Eddie Howe says he has held really positive talks with the club amid uncertainty over his future.
While Howe has reiterated his commitment to Newcastle, the former Bournemouth boss did suggest there were some frustrations over the club s dealings and concerns about how he would fit into a new structure under sporting director Paul Mitchell.
At the end of June, Newcastle had to cash in on youngsters Elliot Anderson and Yankuba Minteh in order to comply with the Premier League s financial rules.
Howe, meanwhile, has also been touted as a possible replacement for Gareth Southgate, who resigned as England manager in the wake of the Three Lions loss to Spain in the final of Euro 2024.
But speaking after Newcastle s friendly win over Hull …
Neymar hailed the deserved choice of Karim Benzema as Ballon d Or winner, after the Real Madrid star claimed the prestigious honour for the first time on Monday.
But the Paris Saint-Germain attacker criticised the eighth-place finish for Benzema s Madrid team-mate Vinicius Junior, with the Brazil international declaring his fellow Selecao star should have finished in the top three at a minimum .
Benzema was crowned the world s greatest player for the 2021-22 season at a ceremony earlier this week, succeeding Neymar s PSG club-mate Lionel Messi while beating out Bayern Munich s Sadio Mane to top spot.
It came after a campaign that saw him lead Carlo Ancelotti s side to success in LaLiga and the Champions League, scoring 44 goals and adding 15 assists.
Neym…
Tottenham Hotspur striker Alejo Veliz is on the verge of joining Espanyol in the summer transfer window, according to Fabrizio Romano. The well-known and well-respected Italian journalist has claimed that Veliz will move to La Liga club Espanyol on loan for next season from Premier League outfit Tottenham.
Romano wrote on : “Tottenham are signing all docs for Alejo Véliz to join Espanyol on loan, NO buy option clause included. Back at Spurs in June.
“Next up: direct contact with AC Milan to seal Emerson Royal deal for €15m fee plus add-ons, almost there.”
Veliz joined Tottenham from Rosario Central in the summer of 2024. The 20-year-old striker moved to Spanish club Sevilla on a loan deal in the January transfer window and returned to the North Londo…
Aston Villa have announced the permanent signing of goalkeeper Robin Olsen from Roma for an undisclosed fee.
Olsen spent the second half of the 2021-22 season on loan at Villa Park, making just one appearance, the 3-2 defeat on the final day at Manchester City.
The Sweden international joined Roma from FC Copenhagen in 2018 as the replacement for Alisson, who left for Liverpool, though he was unable to properly establish himself at the Giallorossi, also being loaned out to Cagliari, Everton and Sheffield United.
He becomes the latest signing for Steven Gerrard s Villa, who have also agreed deals to add Boubacar Kamara from Marseille and Diego Carlos from Sevilla in recent weeks, as well as making Philippe Coutinho s loan move from Barcelona permanent.
Ibrahima Konate has cast fresh doubt on suggestions he will leave RB Leipzig to join Liverpool at the end of the season.
The 21-year-old French defender is said to have a €40million (£34.8m) release clause in his contract and reports have claimed the Reds may activate that.
However, Leipzig sporting director Markus Krosche last month told Stats Perform News the move was not an option for Konate to consider.
Now, Konate has spoken on the matter, telling German newspaper Bild: I have a contract until 2023. And contracts are there to be fulfilled.
There are often rumours in football and many believe them immediately. I or my agents did not get a call from Liverpool.
I also have big goals with RB Leipzig: to get the best possible result in the …
West Ham United have the signing of former Arsenal and Manchester City midfielder Samir Nasri.
Nasri spent four years with Olympique Marseille and the same amount of time at Arsenal, before joining Manchester City in 2011. He played a total of 171 games and scored 26 goals, and won the Premier League both in 2011/12 and 2013/14 with the current title holders. Following a loan spell at Sevilla and five games for Turkish side Antalyaspor, the 31-year-old was found guilty of using illegal substances and banned from football activities by UEFA.
With the ban set to expire with the arrival of 2019, Nasri has been training with the Hammers recently, hoping to prove his fitness to his former boss at City, Manuel Pellegrini, now in charge at West Ham. And it seems his endeavor …
Manchester United have made a shocking move just minutes before the end of the January transfer window with the signing of Nigeria international Odion Ighalo on loan until the remainder of the season.
The 30-year-old striker, who was playing in the Chinese Super League, will join the Old Trafford side on a season-long deal with no option to buy. This will be a short-lived four-month stretch where he will have one task, and one task only: to replace Marcus Rashford as the club’s main scoring threat.
Sure, Ighalo does not profile as a striker who will turn heads with his resume or his play. But we can’t deny he joins Manchester United in good form. He was the CSL’s second-highest scorer with 21 goals in 2018. Even though he was limited to 17 appearances in 2019, he …
Manchester City s appeal against their two-year ban from UEFA competitions will be heard by the Court of Arbitration for Sport this week.
The reigning Premier League champions were hit with the punishment in February after they were found to have committed serious breaches of UEFA s club licensing and financial fair play (FFP) regulations.
UEFA s independent Adjudicatory Chamber of its Club Financial Control Body (CFCB) also fined City €30million (£27.2m) after finding they had overstated sponsorship revenues in accounts submitted to European football s governing body between 2012 and 2016.
City have persistently denied wrongdoing in relation to the matter, which stemmed from a series of articles published by Der Spiegel in November 2018, drawing on informatio…