latest football news: 2013-08-11

Saturday, August 17, 2013

Klose eager to end Juventus curse

The German believes the Supercoppa clash is the perfect stage to net his first goal against the Bianconeri, while Vladimir Petkovic has called for courage in Sunday's meeting

Lazio striker Miroslav Klose is eager to end his curse in front of goal against Juventus when the two sides clash in the Supercoppa on Sunday.

The veteran marksman has failed to net past Gianluigi Buffon since arriving in Serie A in 2011 but is relishing the chance to break his duck against the Italian champions - and seal the first trophy of the season in the process.

"I am sure that sooner or later I will score a

The Dutchman was thrilled his side were able to grind out a result after the tiring international break, although Toni Kroos feels they should have won more comfortably

Bayern Munich winger Arjen Robben admits his side struggled for top form during their 1-0 win over Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday.

Mario Mandzukic put the Bavarians in charge early on, but Pep Guardiola's men failed to build on their lead as they laboured in front of the opposition goal, and Robben believes the victory was crucial given the exploits of a number of players during the international break.

"The games when players come back from international duty are always difficult,"

The 22-year-old forward netted a double as well as Robin van Persie to ensure the Premier League champions got off to a perfect start under their new manager

David Moyes believes Danny Welbeck "deserves the headlines" after scoring twice in Manchester United's 4-1 victory over Swansea City.

The 22-year-old's double, along with two goals from Robin van Persie, secured three points for United in David Moyes' first Premier League game in charge since taking over from Sir Alex Ferguson.

"I think Danny Welbeck might deserve those headlines. He scored one goal last year and now he's got two right away, it'll do his confidence a lot of good. He got in a great position for the

The 51-year-old is fearful of a potential banana skin against Cittadella, especially given the international commitments of a number of players this week

Inter coach Walter Mazzarri has urged his side to be fully focused ahead of their Coppa Italia clash with Cittadella on Sunday.

The San Siro giants have been forced to contend in the third qualifying round of the tournament after stumbling to a ninth-place finish in Serie A last season, and although the Nerazzurri remain firm favourites for the encounter, Mazzarri is determined not to underestimate their opponents.

"Yes, that's absolutely true [the match is tricky] because it comes before the league has even kicked off and we haven't played a

The Frenchman insists the blame for his side's loss at the Emirates Stadium cannot be directed at a lack of signings this summer

Arsene Wenger insists Arsenal's lack of signings in the transfer market were not to blame for Saturday's 3-1 defeat to Aston Villa.

Arsenal have already failed in moves for Gonzalo Higuain, who moved to Napoli in July, and Luiz Gustavo, who secured a switch from Bayern Munich to Wolfsburg earlier this week. The club also look set to lose out on Luis Suarez as Liverpool continue to reiterate their no-sale stance when asked about the striker.

So far, Wenger has managed to

The new Blaugrana coach insists he will be "logical" with the Brazilian's deployment and has called on Alexis Sanchez to rediscover his best form

Barcelona boss Gerardo Martino has warned against putting too much pressure on €57 million signing Neymar at the start of the season.

Neymar's partnership with resident talisman Lionel Messi has hogged the headlines since the Brazilian's arrival from Santos, but Martino has stressed the need to be "logical" when deploying the 21-year-old in the Barca line-up.

"It's difficult to imagine someone as good as Neymar not being able to bring something to

The Italian coach insists the Spaniard must be given time to adjust to his new surroundings and feels there are no favourites for the Supercoppa against Lazio

Juventus coach Antonio Conte has defended summer signing Fernando Llorente following criticism of the striker's pre-season form.

The Bianconeri failed to secure a victory in their warm-up clashes despite the acquisitions of Llorente and Carlos Tevez, but Conte insists the Spain international needs time to adjust to his new surroundings.

"Targetting the difficulties of a single player is wrong as we play as a team. Llorente arrived three weeks ago and is working hard," the 44-year-old told reporters at a

The Red Devils picked up all three points in David Moyes' first Premier League game in charge with a comfortable 4-1 win at the Liberty Stadium against Micheal Laudrup's side

Manchester United began the defence of their Premier League under new manager David Moyes with a comfortable 4-1 against Swansea.

Two eye-catching goals from Robin van Persie, either side of an effort from Danny Welbeck, gave the Red Devils a commanding three-goal lead at the Liberty Stadium.

Micheal Laudrup's men pulled a goal back through league debutant Wilfried Bony but Welbeck rounded off the win for the visitors with a well-taken second goal scooped over

Fabian Delph's shot came off the post and rolled along the line, prompting Anthony Taylor to use newly introduced Hawkeye system for the first time on the opening day of the season

The Premier League's new goal-line technology was called upon during Aston Villa’s 3-1 opening day win over Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.

The visitors had already cancelled out Olivier Giroud’s opening goal through Christian Benteke when Fabian Delph almost netted their second in the 52nd minute.

The midfielder beat goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny but saw his long-range effort strike the inside of the right-hand post and roll across the

The Roten coach was pleased with what he saw in Saturday's win over Frankfurt, while goalkeeper Manuel Neuer is happy despite admitting they were not at their best

Pep Guardiola believes that his Bayern Munich charges are continuing to get better following their 1-0 win at Eintracht Frankfurt.

The Roten coach, whose first away game in Bundesliga was decided by an early Mario Mandzukic volley, says he is completely satisfied with how his side performed, especially considering the game was on the back of an international window.

"Compared to last week, we are now controlling the

The Argentine defender, who says his focus is on Inter, refused to suggest that the Scudetto is a possibility for the Nerazzurri this season

Hugo Campagnaro has insisted that he does not regret leaving Champions League-chasing Napoli for Inter - who failed to qualify for Europe this season following a poor 2012-13 campaign.

The Partenopei have brought on board the likes of Gonzalo Higuain, Jose Callejon and Pepe Reina as Rafa Benitez looks to go one better than Walter Mazzarri did last season by winning the Scudetto, while Inter have struggled to attract top talent.

However, the

The 23-year-old striker scored the only goal of the game, while the Belgian goalkeeper saved a late Jonathan Walters penalty, to ensure the Reds started the season with a victory

Brendan Rodgers hailed Daniel Sturridge and Simon Mignolet for their match-winning performances in Liverpool's 1-0 win over Stoke City.

England international Sturridge grabbed the only goal of Saturday's Premier League opener at Anfield with a fierce 25-yard-drive that evaded man-of-the-match Asmir Begovic and nestled in the

Sam Allardyce's men claimed all three points against the newly-promoted side as the former Liverpool midfielder struck first before the skipper wrapped up the win

Goals from Joe Cole and Kevin Nolan ensured West Ham would start the new Premier League season with a 2-0 victory over newly-promoted Cardiff.

Former Liverpool midfielder Cole gave the hosts the lead after linking with Matt Jarvis before Nolan struck in the second half to wrap up all three points for Sam Allardyce's side.

Cardiff were without one close-season signing in the form of striker Andreas Cornelius, who missed out with an ankle injury, but fellow new-boys Gary Medel and

The Saints hitman followed a goal on his international debut with a late winner on the opening day of the season to give his side a perfect start to the new season at the Hawthorns

A late penalty from Rickie Lambert was enough for Southampton to earn a one-nil win at West Brom.

The 31-year old netted the winner for England against Scotland in his international debut in midweek, and was on hand to claim a win for his club three days later by coolly dispatching his spot-kick after Youssouf Mulumbu had fouled Luke Shaw in the area.

West Brom handed a debut to Nicolas Anelka, appearing for

Paul Lambert's men came from behind to earn a damaging opening day win against Arsene Wenger's side who also had to contend with Laurent Koscielny's sending off in the second half

Aston Villa came from behind to beat Arsenal 3-1 at the Emirates Stadium and increase the pressure to spend on Arsene Wenger.

Olivier Giroud had opening the scoring for the Gunners early in the first half but the Benteke levelled from the spot at the second time of asking following Wojciech Szczesny's foul on Gabriel Agbonlahor.

Laurent Koscielny then

The Italian is yet to name who will start in goal for Real Madrid in Sunday's Betis clash, but revealed Daniel Carvajal could play ahead of Alvaro Arbeloa

Carlo Ancelotti claims that he has not decided whether to play Iker Casillas or Diego Lopez in goal for Real Madrid's first game of La Liga.

The Blancos kick off their 2013-14 campaign against Betis and captain Casillas is widely expected to return having been ousted from the side by Lopez last season under former coach Jose Mourinho.

"I still haven't decided who will play in

The SPL champions lost their star striker to Norwich earlier this summer but confirmed they have made a bid for the Bundesliga forward as they search for a replacement

Celtic manager Neil Lennon believes Schalke striker Teemu Pukki could be the ideal replacement for Gary Hooper.

The Scottish champions are searching for reinforcements to their forward line after Hooper departed Celtic Park to join Premier League outfit Norwich City, and Lennon confirmed a bid had been lodged for Pukki's services.

Lennon watched the

Ahead of the Uefa Player of the Year award being handed out, the Bayern Munich winger has criticised Thomas Muller's absence and talked up his own chances of winning

Bayern Munich winger Franck Ribery has suggested that his treble success gives him the advantage over Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi for Uefa's Player of the Year award.

On August 29, during the Champions League group stage draw, one of the trio will be crowned the best player in Europe for the 2012-13 season.

Although Ronaldo impressed with his individual displays for Real Madrid and Messi broke numerous goal records en route to another Barcelona triumph in

The England frontman scored the first goal of the new Premier League season with a long-range effort that secured Brendan Rodgers' men all three points in a match they dominated

Liverpool began the new Premier League campaign with a win, as they overcame a resilient Stoke City side 1-0 at Anfield on Saturday afternoon courtesy of a lone Daniel Sturridge goal.

With suspended striker Luis Suarez in attendance, the England international gave the hosts the lead just before half-time, having seen an earlier effort disallowed for offside.

A penalty in the dying stages looked to have denied Liverpool the win, but debutant Simon Mignolet dived low to his right to claw away Jonathan Walters' effort to secure the

The forward looks set to feature in the Blaugrana's opening game of the Liga season having recovered from a thigh injury which forced him to withdraw from Argentina duty

Lionel Messi has overcome a thigh injury to be named in Barcelona's squad for Sunday's Liga opener against Levante.

The forward withdrew from Argentina's squad ahead of their 2-1 victory over Italy on Wednesday after picking up the muscular strain during the Blaugrana's pre-season tour of Asia.

Messi has focused on his rehabilitation with the club's medical staff during the week in order to be fit to feature at Camp Nou on Sunday, and new coach Gerardo Martino has

The Argentina international will continue his career at last year's Ligue 2 champions as Sampdoria have confirmed his departure

Monaco have signed Sergio Romero from Sampdoria on a one-year loan deal with an option to make the move permanent at the end of his temporary spell.

The ambitious Ligue 1 side were keen to add a new goalkeeper to their squad before the closure of the summer transfer window and had previously been linked with Barcelona's Victor Valdes.

They turned their attention to Romero after Valdes opted to

The full-back has set his sights on a move and will not be involved in Madrid's Liga opener against Betis, while Carlo Ancelotti says signing Gareth Bale would make his team better

Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti has revealed that Fabio Coentrao has requested to be allowed to leave the club this transfer window.

The Portugal international has struggled to nail down a regular first-team spot since arriving from Benfica in 2011 and has been linked with a move away from the Santiago Bernabeu side more than once this summer.

Coentrao has been mentioned as a potential makeweight in a move for Tottenham star Gareth Bale, but Ancelotti has now admitted that Coentrao looks set to depart Madrid regardless of their pursuit of

The Catalans made offers for both defenders earlier this summer, but Gerardo Martino has claimed they will no longer sign a centre-back

Gerardo Martino has stated that Barcelona no longer plan to sign a centre-back this summer after attempts to lure David Luiz and Daniel Agger away from Chelsea and Liverpool, respectively proved to be unsuccessful.

The Liga champions were prepared to pay €25 million for the Brazil international, but Chelsea were holding out for double that figure, while Barca's offer for Agger was deemed insufficient by Liverpool, prompting the Catalans to end their pursuit of a new defender.

"A new centre-back? I'm happy with the team I have. There's always the January window if we need anything. Last year's problems in defence were the result of injuries. We have

The Uruguayan's public attempts to engineer a move from Anfield appear to have failed and the chances of him remaining on Merseyside are increasing

Liverpool striker Luis Suarez is in attendance for the club's opening Premier League fixture against Stoke.

The Uruguayan has agitated for a move to a Champions League club for the duration of the summer, but having been pictured smiling as he walked into Anfield this afternoon, the chances of him leaving the club appear to have reduced.

Arsenal had a bid in excess of £40 million rejected for the controversial frontman earlier this summer but a further move from the Gunners has not been

The 35-year-old insists he had plenty of reason to stay at White Hart Lane for the coming campaign, despite reported interest from the likes of Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid

Tottenham boss Andre Villas-Boas says he rejected more than one job offer to stay at White Hart Lane this summer.

The 35-year-old enjoyed a promising debut campaign as Spurs manager last term, guiding his side to fifth-place in the Premier League, and reportedly attracted the interest of Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid during the close-season.

But Villas-Boas – who is yet to complete two consecutive seasons at the same club – has revealed that he preferred to stay at Tottenham to establish continuity rather than

The 40-year-old is refusing to hide behind the excuse that other clubs are in a stronger financial position than the Reds and is aiming solely for a place in the top four.

Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers has admitted that nothing less than Champions League qualification is acceptable for his Anfield side this season.

Rodgers' team achieved a disappointing seventh-placed finish in the Premier League in 2012/13, and last qualified for Europe's premier club competition in 2009.

However, the 40-year-old is refusing to hide behind the excuse that clubs like Manchester City have more financial muscle than Liverpool, and is aiming solely for a

The Portuguese manager believes no team is strong enough to "destroy the competition", but still believes his Stamford Bridge side have enough technical quality to lift the trophy

Jose Mourinho believes Chelsea can win the Premier League this year despite admitting that no team has enough quality to "destroy the competition".

The Portuguese manager is returning to Stamford Bridge for his second spell in charge after leaving the club in 2007 after falling out with owner Roman Abramovich.

During his six years away the 50-year-old has won Serie A and La Liga with Inter and Real Madrid respectively, while also lifting the Champions League with the

The Italian coach has set his sights on European success and believes Cristiano Ronaldo will have a superb season

Carlo Ancelotti has admitted that the Champions League is Real Madrid's main objective this season as they go in search of their 10th European Cup.

The Santiago Bernabeu side last won European club football's elite competition in 2001-02 when they beat Bayer Leverkusen 2-1 and Ancelotti is determined to help them to their long-awaited Decima.

"Everybody at Madrid is focused on winning the

The wing-back is keen to stay at his current club and expects to sign a new deal in the upcoming days

Juan Camilo Zuniga has revealed that he has no intention of leaving Napoli for Juventus as he has set his sights on a new contract with the Partenopei.

The Colombia international's current deal with Napoli is due to expire at the end of the 2013-14 campaign and clubs such as Juve and Inter are closely monitoring his situation at the Stadio San Paolo.

Zuniga is not thinking about a transfer, though, and insists he is happy with life at his

David Moyes admits it will be impossible for Manchester United to replace Sir Alex Ferguson, but insists he is ready for the challenge of defending the club's Premier League title in his first season in charge at Old Trafford.

The 71-year-old Scot departed the club this summer after collecting 38 trophies in 26 years at Old Trafford, including 13 Premier League titles and two Champions League successes.

Moyes made the move from Everton to Old Trafford this summer, and while the 50-year-old says he will call on Ferguson if he needs advice, he is ready to be his own man while trying to hold onto the club's 2012-13 title success.

"I'll not be

The former France boss is loving life at the reigning French champions, while Salvatore Sirigu has praised Edinson Cavani

Paris Saint-Germain trainer Laurent Blanc is not letting the pressure of coaching the big-spending Ligue 1 side affect his focus.

The French champions, who were held to a 1-1 draw at Montpellier in their opening Ligue 1 fixture of the 2013-14 campaign, spent over €100 million on the signings of Edinson Cavani, Lucas Digne and Marquinhos this summer, but Blanc is unfazed by the scrutiny of
managing the wealthy club.

"There's a lot of pressure on the shoulders of PSG's coach as it's one of the big French clubs but hey, I've asked for it, so I just have to

The 46-year-old coach has voiced his frustration with the absence of numerous first team players throughout the week

Borussia Dortmund boss Jurgen Klopp has hit out at the timing of this week's international fixtures after being left with a depleted squad ahead of this weekend's Bundesliga match against Eintracht Braunschweig.

The 46-year-old had just six first-team regulars at training this week, with most of his squad away on international duty, and Klopp is upset his side's preparations for Sunday's game have been so disjointed.

"The date of the international match was totally

The Gunners boss believes recent criticism of his management of the club is "unfair" but says he is only willing to bring in new players who he feels will strengthen his team

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has defended himself from criticism that he is reluctant to spend money in the transfer window.

The Gunners have signed only Yaya Sanogo so far this summer and have seen two bids for Luis Suarez rejected by Liverpool.

Arsenal have also also missed out on several high-profile targets such as Luiz Gustavo who

The attacking midfielder has hailed the experienced goalkeeper, while also taking the time to praise Diego Lopez

New Real Madrid arrival Isco believes Iker Casillas is the best goalkeeper in the world, but has stressed that the Spain international faces stiff competition from Diego Lopez for the No.1 jersey.

Casillas lost his starting berth to Lopez last season after a hand injury, but is widely expected to return to the starting XI under Carlo Ancelotti.

However, even though Isco has

Youthful PSV will cause Milan problems - Van Bommel

The 36-year-old believes the Eredivisie outfit will be no pushovers for the Italian giants as the two teams vie for a place in the Champions League group stage.

Mark van Bommel insists PSV will cause AC Milan problems in their Champions League play-off clash first leg on Tuesday.

The retired midfielder, who represented both sides in an illustrious 20-year career, feels the Rossoneri will have their hands full coping with a youthful and vibrant Dutch attack - although he admits the tie is poised on a kinfe-edge.

“It will be a

The 28-year-old has his heart set on a move to Germany after a potential switch to Newcastle fell through

Bafetimbi Gomis hopes to continue his playing career in the Bundesliga, according to Olympique Lyonnais president Jean-Michel Aulas.

Newcastle have been at the front of the queue for his signature but stumbling blocks over the move - including the sale of Lisandro Lopez - mean the 28-year-old remains a Lyon player.

Aulas has confirmed the striker is yet to receive an offer he would be happy to

The player's representative has ruled out a move to Benfica but says he is in negotiations with the Turkish side after the full-back impressed in a pre-season friendly

Aleksandar Bursac, the agent of Manchester United defender Alexander Buttner, has revealed Besiktas are interested in signing the full-back.

The 24-year-old moved to Old Trafford from Vitesse in 2012 and made 13 appearances for the club in his first campaign in the Premier League.

However, Patrice Evra remains the club’s first choice left-back, and Bursac has revealed there is

The 26-year-old is full of praise for the Brazilian star and believes the battle for places in the Barcelona attack will pay dividends this season

Pedro is relishing the added competition for places at Barcelona following the summer signing of Neymar.

The Spanish giants splashed out €57 million for the Brazil international, who joins the likes of current attacking stars Lionel Messi, Alexis Sanchez, Cristiano Tello and Pedro at Camp Nou.

The likes of Ibrahim Afellay and Isaac Cuenca returned from

Laurent Blanc has confirmed the defender's desire to leave Parc des Princes this summer and is hopeful a resolution can be reached by September 2

Mamadou Sakho has asked to leave Paris-Saint Germain this summer, coach Laurent Blanc has confirmed.

Liverpool, AC Milan, Barcelona and Fiorentina are believed to be interested in the defender, with the 23-year-old admitting to being flattered with links to such prestigious clubs.

Blanc has now affirmed Sakho's desire to seek pastures new this summer and is hopeful of

The Tottenham manager has heaped praise on his new signing, who has indicated the Portuguese boss played a huge part in bringing him to Spurs from Corinthians this summer

Andre Villas-Boas has welcomed comparisons between Tottenham midfielder Paulinho and Frank Lampard, and backed the Brazilian to score goals for Spurs this season.

The 25-year-old is a new addition to a new-look midfield at White Hart Lane this summer, having secured a €20 million move from Corinthians at the start of July.

Paulinho expressed his delight at being likened to the Chelsea legend by fellow South American Juan Roman Riquelme, and the Portuguese feels Lampard is a fantastic role model on

The 24-year-old claims he is yet to hear of any official offers as Tottenham, Newcastle and Everton continue to be linked with a bid

Ajax defender Toby Alderweireld has confirmed he is eager to complete a move to the Premier League this summer.

The 24-year-old has been linked with the likes of Tottenham, Everton and Newcastle of late, while Norwich were also credited with an interest earlier in the close season.

Alderweireld says he has yet to be made aware of any offers from England's top flight, but admits a potential move would be tough to

Former Crystal Palace forward Mark Bright believes the 20-year-old is a true "gift" from Sir Alex Ferguson to David Moyes for the 2013-14 campaign

Manchester United winger Wilfried Zaha could be as good as Cristiano Ronaldo, according to former Crystal Palace striker Mark Bright.

The 20-year-old picked up his first winner's medal with the Red Devils on his competitive debut as they saw off Wigan to claim a 2-0 victory in the Community Shield last Sunday.

Bright – who spent six years with Palace – says the former Eagles winger can provide the sort of excitement fans at Old Trafford were used to seeing with Ronaldo.

"I've seen a lot of Zaha because of my

It has been repeatedly reported that the Nerazzurri could sell the versatile midfielder in order to free up funds to strengthen elsewhere

Fredy Guarin has revealed that he is desperate to stay at Inter, amidst ongoing speculation that the club might yet cash in on the Colombian before the close of the transfer window.

The versatile midfielder has excelled since arriving at San Siro from Porto last year, but he has been repeatedly linked with a transfer this summer, with the club said to be considering sacrificing the 27-year-old in order to strengthen elsewhere.

Guarin, for his part, is praying that there is no truth in the rumours, as he is desperate to

The holding midfielder has opted against a move to Arsenal and will continue his career at the 2008-09 Bundesliga champions

Wolfsburg have announced they have secured the services of Luiz Gustavo from Bayern Munich for an undisclosed fee, beating Arsenal to the signature of the Brazil international.

The 26-year-old has signed a five-year deal with the 2008-09 Bundesliga champions and will be officially presented later on Friday.

Gustavo was keen to leave Bayern after he was deemed surplus to requirements by head coach Pep Guardiola following the arrival of

The Argentina international sought advice from his former Chelsea team-mate before agreeing a three-year deal with the Bundesliga outfit

Franco Di Santo has revealed he sought guidance from Bayern Munich striker Claudio Pizarro before signing for Werder Bremen.

The 24-year-old was a free agent after leaving Wigan Athletic and completed his move to the Bundesliga outfit on Wednesday.

And the Argentina international revealed that

The Internacional boss was livid after his side's visit to the Estadio Olimpico, claiming that the home team's ball boys had gone missing while his side were pressing late on

Internacional boss Dunga launched a stinging attack on Botafogo's ball boys after the two sides' 3-3 draw at the Estadio Olimpico on Thursday.

The Colorado actually snatched a draw in Rio de Janeiro courtesy of an injury-time strike from Fabricio but the former Brazil boss was less than impressed with the way in which he felt that ball boys had gone missing during the closing stages of the game when his players were

Although Manchester United have insisted that the striker is not for sale at any price, the former Real Madrid manager has admitted that he only has eyes for the England man

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has reiterated his admiration for Samuel Eto'o but insists the Blues only want to bring in one player - Wayne Rooney.

Manchester United have rejected two bids for the wantaway striker this summer and continue to insist that he will not be sold.

But Mourinho still publicly declared his

The Germany international made his return from a thigh injury in a friendly last weekend and could make his competitive debut for die Roten at the Commerzbank-Arena

Bayern Munich boss Pep Guardiola has revealed that summer signing Mario Gotze will be included in the squad for Saturday's Bundesliga clash with Eintracht Frankfurt.

The former Borussia Dortmund playmaker missed the Bavarians' pre-season campaign on account of the thigh injury that ruled him out of last season's Champions League final but he made his first appearance for die Roten last weekend, scoring twice in a

The Spaniard says that los Blancos would welcome the Wales winger with open arms at the Santiago Bernabeu, saying he would give their Italian coach a welcome selection headache

Isco says that there is no doubt that the arrival of Gareth Bale at Real Madrid would give coach Carlo Ancelotti a problem, but a "blessed" one.

Los Blancos have already confirmed their interest in the Tottenham winger, but have thus far refused to meet the Premier League outfit's asking price of €114 million.

There has been also been some debate over whether Madrid actually need Bale, but Isco feels that the Welshman would represent a most welcome selection headache for

The 29-year-old admitted he was "surprised" to see an offer accepted after being told by the manager that he was wanted at the club, indicating he was also more than happy to stay

New West Ham signing Stewart Downing admits he was disappointed to hear Liverpool had accepted an offer for him after manager Brendan Rodgers gave him assurances about his future at Anfield.

The winger endured a difficult two years on Merseyside after making a £20 million move from Aston Villa in 2011 and was never able to recapture the form that prompted the Reds to pay such a hefty price tag.

But the England international had featured regularly in

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