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Chelsea have no interest in signing Angel Gomes despite reports linking the 19-year old with a move to Stamford Bridge, according to Blues boss, Frank Lampard. Gomes is out of contract at Manchester United after failing to sign a new deal and has been linked with a move to Chelsea. ‘I can elaborate to the point that it’s never been mentioned at my end,’ said Lampard when asked about Gomes’ availability in his pre-match press conference for the match at West Ham,  which takes place on Wednesday. Gomes reportedly rejected United’s offer of around £25,000 a week, and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had admitted that Gomes was set to leave United. The United manager said last week that he was hopeful of Gomes – United’s young player of the year in 2017 who has been training at the club since the age of six – would agree to stay. But asked on Monday morning if Gomes, a Golden Boy nominee, will leave, Solskjaer said: ‘To be honest, I’ve not heard from them last night or this morning so...

Barcelona new signing Miralem Pjanic is prepared run out at Camp Nou as he is set to join the Blaugrana for the next season campaign. The midfielder Bosnia and Herzegovina signed a four-year contract with the Spanish giant after spending four years with the Serie A Champions. “It was my dream that came true. I am happy and proud, not only for myself but also for my parents and for the whole of Bosnia and Herzegovina. I never forget where I came from. Barcelona is one of the biggest clubs in the world and being a part of this club is also the biggest step in football for every player. Success does not come by itself, but only with hard work, effort and faith that everything in life can be achieved. And this is proof. Now I have to do my job with Juventus, I am focused on that and then, I can’t wait to go out to Camp Nou”, said Miralem Pjanić. He played 92 games for the national team of Bosnia and Herzegovina and scored 15 goals

Mikel Arteta has made a decision on William Saliba and wants to see the defender stay at Saint-Etienne as he believes the teenager has “earned the right” to play in the Coupe de France final. Saliba signed for the Gunners last summer but was loaned straight back to Saint-Etienne to continue his development. The 19-year-old defender missed three months of the season with a broken foot as the Ligue 1 campaign was cut short due to the coronavirus pandemic. There have been no games in France since the beginning of March but Saint-Etienne will meet Paris Saint-Germain in the French cup final on July 24. Saliba’s initial loan deal only runs until June 30 but he would be unable to play for Arsenal should he return to the Emirates Stadium. betpayads Arteta is therefore keen for Saliba, who cost Arsenal a reported £27million last July, to stay put and take his place in the showpiece event. Analysis: An in-depth look at Saliba | Feature | News | Arsenal.com “I think he needs t...

Alamapasu was handed his maiden start of the season for Ventspils in their 3 – 1 win over FK Spartak in the Latvian Virsliga on Monday. Alampasu who emerged as the Golden Glove winner at the FIFA 2013 U-17 World Cup joined Ventspil aa couple of months back in a desperate move to revive his dwindling football career. The 23-year old had endured a disappointing five years adventure with the Portuguese side Feirense before opting for a new challenge albeit in a somewhat lesser league. Alampasu did give a good account of himself as he made some decent saves to help his team secured the vital away win and also a memorable debut for himself. See his reaction after the game: 💥Mačs kļuva īpašs nigēriešu vārtsargam Dele Alampasu, kurš debitēja @fkventspils_ - ar uzvaru debijā, Dele! 🤙🏿 #FKV #fkventspils #futbols #virsliga2020 #SPAvsVEN pic.twitter.com/SyOlDzl2P7 — FK Ventspils (@fkventspils_) June 29, 2020 Meanwhile, Alampasu’s compatriots Christian Pyagbara and Kazee...

Arsenal ended there poor run of form after the resumption of  the premier league  due to covid 19 by defeating  Southampton. The London club are still hoping of having a place in the European competition next season t he chances are still slim, so they need to finish the season perfectly. Winning this match is necessary to keep those hopes alive. Norwich City are also playing with slim hopes, but their hopes are to stay in the Premier League. They are six points from safety and are competing with a handful of teams. They need to have a sudden uptick and it needs to start as soon as possible. TEAM NEWS Arsenal will be without Pablo Mari, Calum Chambers, Gabriel Martinelli and Bernd Leno, while Mesut Ozil, David Luiz, Lucas Torreira and Cedric Soares are all doubts, according to Premier Injuries.com. Norwich has issues as well with Grant Hanley, Christoph Zimmerman and Sam Byram missing through injury and Timm Klose suspended, according to PremierInjuries.com. ...

After helping Liverpool lift the premier league by defeating Manchester city  2-1, Chelsea will continue the quest for champions league spot as they take on west ham on London derby. The clash with West Ham has plenty of intriguing narratives surrounding it and here are the things to look out for: 1. Rotation After coming out victorious from a tough week, Chelsea’s next three games are easiest on paper. West Ham and Watford are locked in the relegation struggle while Crystal Palace has been mediocre at best this year. While no fixture must be taken lightly, Lampard must seize the opportunity to rotate his players as much as possible. Kante, Rudiger, Willian, Pulisic, Azpilicueta and Mount have taken part in all three games so far and the effects have begun to show. Mount and Kante were part of the midfield that was overrun by Leicester City and their fatigue was on display. Pulisic, while bright, came off with a minor injury, signaling that players are yet to reach opti...

FC Barcelona and Juventus have reached an agreement for the transfer of player Miralem Pjanić. The cost of the operation will be 60 million euros plus 5m in variables. The player will sign a contract with the club for the next four seasons, until the end of the 2023/24 season, with a buy out clause of 400 million euros. The player will remain with Juventus until the 2019/20 season is over.

Victor Moses has been granted an extended stay with Inter Milan until August 2020 FCNaija has gathered. This short extension is coming after the Serie A giants and Chelsea reached agreements regarding a two-month loan extension for the former Nigeria international. Moses joined Inter on a six-month loan deal in January which meant his deal would have run out in a few days’ time. However, with the complicated way the season has been, the Nerazzurri have been in talks with Chelsea and Manchester United in order to extend the loan deals of Moses and Chilean Alexis Sanchez. The duo were set to return to their parent clubs at the end of this month, but the coronavirus pandemic has forced the season to be extended until mid-August. Moses’ loan deal according to FCInterNews, will now last until the end of August. It is however understood that Inter are not planning to explore the option of keeping Moses beyond this season with the club reportedly on the verge of signing Achraf ...

Juventus is in contact with Arsenal striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang as they aim to replace ageing Gonzalo Higuain at Allianz Stadium. The report in RAI says Juventus chief Fabio Paratici has launched a fact-finding mission with the Gunners while registering their interest with Aubameyang’s management. The former Real Madrid and Chelsea striker is expected to leave Juventus at the end of the season and Paratici is in search replacement and the Gabon international has been identified as a replacement. Aubameyang is opened to a deal that would take him out of the Emirate Stadium this summer, he has a year left in his contract with the Gunners and he has refused to consider new contract talks with the Emirate outfit.

Few weeks after he was voted as the Player of the Season at Lille, Osimhen has gone a step further to the win the 2020 Marc-Vivien Foe prize. This feat makes Osimhen the best African player in Ligue 1 for the year under review. Emerging as the number one African player wasn’t s a stroll in the park for Osimhen who saw off competition from his compatriot and Nantes Player of the Year Moses Simon and eight other African stars to win this prestigious award. Algerian Islam Slimani (Monaco) and Morrocan Yunis Abdelhamid (Stade de Reims) had to settle for the second and third spots respectively behind Osimhen . Saint-Etienne’s Denis Bouanga, Montpellier’s Andy Delort, Rennes’ trio of Mbaye Niang, Hamari Traore and Edouard Mendy were also in the race for the top accolade. The 2020 Marc-Vivien Foe prize is the second individual for Osimhen, who was also voted Lille player of the season. The 21-year old scored 18 goals and recorded six assists in 38 appearances across all competi...

  German attacker Timo Werner has revealed why he chose Chelsea over other clubs, according to report in The Daily Star. The new Blues signing will arrive this summer but would not be allowed to play until the next season as the current season is yet to be concluded. Weber has been linked with a host of the club but he preferred a move to Chelsea and he has revealed why he join the Stamford Bridge outfit. “The discussions with those responsible at Chelsea were so good that I ended up choosing Chelsea. “The coach, in particular, was standing behind me and wanted me to know that I was going to Chelsea, so I can feel as comfortable as here. betpayads He also outlined that in talks Lampard “often emphasized how much he wanted me, how much he valued me as a person”. Chelsea defeated Leicester City on Sunday in the FA Cup to advance to the semi-finals where they will play Ole Gunnar Soldkjaer’s men.

Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane has reacted to Karim Benzema’s backheel against Espanyol in their 1-0 victory over the Catalan team in the La Liga. Casemiro benefited from the ‘Guti-like pass’ to score Los Blancos only goal of the game that saw Real Madrid move two points clear on the La Liga table. “I’m not surprised by anything Karim does,” Zidane said. “He’s a player who invents things on the pitch and the control, the backheel and the pass were great. “It could be one of the moments of the season.” This was Real Madrid’s fifth win in a row since LaLiga Santander returned to action in June. betpayads “I’m very happy with my players,” Zidane said. “Winning game after game isn’t easy. “I have to congratulate my players.” Real Madrid will host Getafe in their next La Liga game on Thursday.

London club Arsenal are reportedly interested in signing the unrest Chelsea forward Willian, who will be out of contract at the end of the season. Arsenal were reportedly prepared to hand Brazilian forward Willian a £250,000-a-week deal before the coronavirus outbreak earlier this year. Willian has agreed on a deal to remain with the West London club for the remainder of the 2019-20 season, but as it stands, he will become a free agent after the current campaign expires. Chelsea head-coach, Frank Lampard recently revealed that the two parties were in negotiations over a possible contract extension, although the South American’s future is still up in the air. According to The Mirror, the Gunners were willing to hand Brazilian forward a £250,000 per week contract to make the move to the Emirates Stadium before the coronavirus outbreak. The report, though, claims that the North London club could struggle to offer those terms in the current market due to the financial implicat...

The Chelsea star who will be out of contract when the season end has been in contract negotiation with his club over the length of year he want. After so many fans has come to agree that the Brazilian will be leaving, Willian has admitted he remains open to extending his stay at Chelsea past his short-term extension at the end of the season. There has been talk that he could be leaving at the end of the season as reports in the media have suggested that we may not be willing to offer him a new contract because of his age, and may be willing to let him leave the club on a free transfer, with the likes of Arsenal, Juventus and Barcelona eyeing up a possible deal However, there has been some reports in the media which have suggested that Arsenal with boss Mikel Arteta seeking to add a bit more quality and experience to his side during the busy transfer period. However, it seems that Willian still has a desire to stay at Stamford Bridge and has come out and told  fans that h...

118' Goal! Harry Maguire (Manchester United) fires the rebound into the bottom right corner after the ball breaks to him in the box. The score is 1:2. 114' That was a nice football moment. Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United) receives an amazing defence-splitting low pass on the edge of the box and blasts the ball towards the left post. Tim Krul guesses his intention and dives superbly to deny him with a remarkable save! Manchester Utd win a corner. 112' Harry Maguire (Manchester United) rises highest from the corner to head at goal, but his effort towards the right side of the goal is brilliantly kept out by the goalkeeper. 109' Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United) is booked after bringing down an opponent. Jonathan Moss had an easy-decision to make. 108' Marcus Rashford (Manchester United) misses a good chance to score. An inch-perfect cross into the box finds Marcus Rashford (Manchester United) who rises for a header, but sends the ball well over the bar...

Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane has announced clashed for the win clash against Catalan based team Espanyol in their upcoming match. Zinedine did not include Luka Modric and Ferland Mendy in the line up after the Croatian captain and the Frenchman were shown his fifth yellow card against Real Mallorca in their last outing. The likes of Lucas Vazquez and Luka Jovic were dropped due to injury. Goalkeepers: Courtois, Areola, Altube. Defenders: Carvajal, Militão, Ramos, Varane, Marcelo, Javi Hernández, Miguel Gutiérrez. Midfielders: Kroos, Casemiro, Valverde, James, Isco. Forwards: Hazard, Benzema, Bale, Asensio, Brahim, Mariano, Vinicius Jr., Rodrygo.

The coronavirus pandemic has made things that are as easy as flying from one place to the other now very difficult if not impossible. This situation is causing a lot of headaches and some Nigerian players are now holed up in the country despite activities resuming in their respective clubs. One of those that is still caught up in Nigeria several days after his club has resumed training is Victor Osimhen. Though frantic efforts are being made, Lille manager Christophe Galtier on Friday confirmed Osimhen is yet to return to the club for pre-season training as he is still holed up in Nigeria due to travel restrictions, Osimhen was granted compassionate leave by the club to attend his father’s funeral early this week. Victor Osimhen scored against Chelsea in the group stage of the UCL betpayads The 21-year-old was expected to rejoin his team-mates on Friday but could not secure a flight to France. “No, he did not come back from Nigeria. He was suppose to arrive today . Bu...

French defender Christophe Jallet, a two-time Ligue 1 champion with Paris Saint-Germain, announced his retirement on Friday at the age of 36. "All good things must come to an end and it's time for me to retire," said Jallet, an unused member of the France squad that finished runners-up at Euro 2016. Jallet spent five seasons with PSG after joining from Lorient in 2009, helping the club to the league title in 2013 and 2014. He also won the French Cup and League Cup. The right-back then played three seasons with Lyon (2014-2017) before a two-year spell at Nice. He spent this past campaign at Amiens who were relegated after finishing 19th when the season was ended early in April. Jallet earned 16 caps for France and was twice named in the Ligue 1 team of the year. ah/bde/mw/gj Agence France-Presse

by Kieran CANNING Liverpool's coronation as English champions for the first time in 30 years is the culmination of a dramatic journey since Jurgen Klopp's appointment as manager in 2015. Klopp is the charismatic face of Liverpool's transformation from top-four contenders to Champions League winners and now Premier League champions. However, the Reds' success on the pitch has been made possible by plenty of shrewd work on signings and sales behind the scenes. Of the 18-man squad named by Klopp in his first match in charge less than five years ago, only James Milner, Adam Lallana and Divock Origi have featured this season, in peripheral roles. The construction of Liverpool's title-winning squad has been a steady process. In Klopp's first summer transfer window, Sadio Mane and Georginio Wijnaldum arrived to help secure a return to the Champions League. The next year they were joined by Mohamed Salah, Andy Robertson and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. By...

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has admitted his side failed to match Liverpool’s desperation for the Premier League title after defeat at Chelsea confirmed his squad had been dethroned. Liverpool finally sealed their first top-flight crown since 1990 courtesy of Chelsea’s 2-1 victory over City at Stamford Bridge. Christian Pulisic’s smart finish and a cool Willian penalty subdued Guardiola’s men in west London, with Kevin De Bruyne’s fine free-kick in vain and captain Fernandinho sent off for handball. Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool can now toast their maiden Premier League triumph, with Guardiola conceding that City could not equal the Reds’ desire this term. ‘Maybe we didn’t arrive with the same passion; Liverpool played every single game like it was the last chance they have,’ said Guardiola. ‘And maybe we didn’t get that moment, especially the key moments in the first part of the season. ‘That is the reality, that we are so far behind. ‘We’ll have to recover for next...

Chelsea manager Frank Lampard has reacted to Christian Pulisic’s goal in the 2-1 win against Manchester City at the Stamford Bridge on Thursday evening. The former Borussia Dortmund star had a great game against the dethroned Premier League Champions, he scored the first goal against the Cityzens before Kelvin Bruyne scored the equalizer for the away team, but Wilian ensured that Chelsea claimed the three points with his goal from the spot-kick. And Lampard is pleased with how the youngster is improving. He told the club’s website: “Christian came in last summer, and he didn’t really get a break. “When he got in the team he was doing really well and then he got a really tough injury. “I wanted to protect him a bit against Villa and see if he could make an impact. He did that. “I always planned to start him against City because I know what he can bring in these sorts of games. “He brought it and did really well. “He’s a young player, he’s got so much talent, and he nee...

Irked by the possibility of losing Victor Moses at the end of the season, Inter managing director, Giuseppe Marotta has urged world soccer governing body FIFA to once again look into its transfer policy which prevents on loaned player from exercising their right to extend their loan deals. Tuttomecartowebb reported on Thursday that the Inter chieftain who expressed his frustration over their failed bid to retain their Nigerian import questioned FIFA decision to release loaned players to their clubs despite failure to complete their loan deal due to global lockdown. “We strongly wanted, like other Federations, to complete this season. We know there are contradictions, accidents, situations and laws that which happened this year which should give room for the regulation of some transfer rules for players on loan. “I refer to loans in or out, they have unequal intent from one club to another. We have two players like them from Chelsea and Manchester United and we are faced with r...

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has admitted that his team failed to matched Liverpool desperation for the Premier League title after the 2-1 defeat against Chelsea. The Blues defeat against Chelsea saw Liverpool crowned the English Champions for the first time since 1990, thanks to goals from Christian Pulisic and Willian. Guardiola in his post-match conference said ‘Maybe we didn’t arrive with the same passion; Liverpool played every single game like it was the last chance they have,’ said Guardiola. ‘And maybe we didn’t get that moment, especially the key moments in the first part of the season. ‘That is the reality, that we are so far behind. ‘Liverpool were fantastic in consistency throughout the whole season. ‘We dropped points at the beginning of the season, and Liverpool didn’t drop points. ‘We’ll have to recover for next season, to be more consistent, and recover the points we missed this season. ‘That’s the reality. Two years ago we were 25 points ahea...

The English FA came in for stinging criticism Friday after voting for Colombia to host the 2023 women's World Cup over Australia and New Zealand, with football bosses calling it "disrespectful". An historic joint bid by the trans-Tasman neighbours was the overwhelming favourite and won 22 of the 35 valid votes cast by FIFA Council members. But closer examination of the voting, which was made public after controversies over the awarding of previous World Cups, showed English Football Association chairman Greg Clarke siding with Colombia. This is despite Australia and New Zealand being old allies and their joint bid scoring far higher in the FIFA evaluation report than their South American rivals. Clarke also reportedly snubbed a phone call from New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern as she lobbied to get the bid over the line. "I actually don't find it very funny," Football Federation Australia chief executive James Johnson told Fox Sports of ...

Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson hailed manager Jurgen Klopp's transformational impact on the club to end a 30-year wait to win the Premier League title on Thursday. Klopp arrived at Anfield in 2015 with the Reds struggling just to qualify for the Champions League on a regular basis via a top four finish. The German led Liverpool to a sixth European Cup last season and has now ended an even longer wait to become champions of England. "I felt from day one when he came in the door he changed everything," said Henderson. "We followed him and believed him. It's been an amazing journey. I'm hoping there is more, we just keep hungry, keep wanting more and following him. "The biggest thing is no matter what we all follow him, believe in him and he's took us to this point. "This wouldn't be possible without him." Liverpool's coronation as champions came without even kicking a ball as Manchester City's 2-1 defeat at Ch...

Fans celebrate Liverpool winning the championship title of the English Premier League following Chelsea's 2-1 victory over Manchester City, outside Anfield stadium in Liverpool, north-west England on June 25, 2020. Liverpool has crowned Premier League champions without kicking a ball on Thursday as Chelsea's 2-1 win over Manchester City ended the Reds' 30-year wait to win the English title. Oli SCARFF / AFP

by Emmeline MOORE Cristiano Ronaldo's Juventus host struggling Lecce on Friday looking to take advantage of a midweek slip-up by nearest challengers Lazio and move seven points clear at the top of Serie A. The eight-time reigning champions bounced back from their Italian Cup final defeat at the hands of Napoli and were the only one of the top three in Italy to win in the league this week with their 2-0 victory in Bologna on Monday. Fabio Liverani's Lecce held Juventus to a 1-1 draw in the reverse fixture at home in the boot of Italy in October, and shocked Napoli 3-2 in the San Paolo in February. But the southerners, who lie in the relegation zone, lost 7-2 to Atalanta just before the coronavirus lockdown in March and returned with a 4-1 thumping by AC Milan on Monday. A return to Serie B looks likely on this form. Lazio host Fiorentina on Saturday filled with regret after losing their first league game in nine months, falling 3-2 at Atalanta on Wednesday after sur...

The delay to Liverpool's title celebrations caused by the coronavirus was just the latest twist in the tale of the Reds' 30-year wait to be crowned champions of England. A stunning run of 26 wins and one draw from their opening 27 games of the Premier League season ensured Jurgen Klopp's men were champions-elect long before football was shut down in March. Despite some self-interested calls to "null and void" the season by those closer to the bottom of the table, UEFA's insistence that any leagues not completed on the pitch should be decided on "sporting merit" meant Liverpool would not be denied their title. The return of the Premier League even allowed them to seal it themselves rather than by votes via video conference. Liverpool were crowned champions on Thursday after Manchester City fell 2-1 at Chelsea. It is not the way fans would have chosen to seal the deal and there will be no celebrations to match those following Liverpool...

by Oli SCARFF Liverpool were crowned Premier League champions without kicking a ball on Thursday as Chelsea's 2-1 win over Manchester City ended the Reds' 30-year wait to win the English title. Jurgen Klopp's men sealed a 19th league title for the club with a record seven games left to play after second placed City's defeat left them 23 points adrift. Liverpool had moved within two points of the title with a 4-0 demolition of Crystal Palace at Anfield on Wednesday. Their 28th win in 31 league games this season prompted Liverpool star Mohamed Salah to declare "now is our time to win the league" and 24 hours later his wish was granted. Liverpool got the favour they wanted from Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. Willian's 78th minute penalty, awarded for a handball by Fernandinho, ended City's two-year reign as champions after Kevin De Bruyne had cancelled out Christian Pulisic's opener. Liverpool have clinched the title earlier than any oth...

It took almost a decade but it happened on Wednesday evening at an empty Old Trafford as Anthony Martial became the first Manchester United player to score a hat-trick for the club in seven years since Robin Van Persie did against Aston Villa in 2013. And following the feat, the former United striker has congratulated Martial for becoming the first Manchester United player to do that since Sir Alex Ferguson retired as manager seven years ago. Martial netted a treble in Wednesday evening’s 3-0 win over Sheffield United and it was the club’s first since Van Persie’s hat-trick helped them secure their record 20th Premier League title against Aston Villa back in April 2013. Van Persie was effectively replaced by Martial after leaving Old Trafford in the summer of 2015 but acknowledged the Frenchman’s feat on Twitter following the Red Devils’ curiously long wait for a hat-trick. ‘It took a while.. but happy that someone has taken the baton after seven years Congratulations on the...