Tottenham Hotspur are interested in signing Watford midfielder Abdoulaye Doucoure, according to the Mirror.
The North London outfit are on the lookout for a potential replacement for Victor Wanyama, whose future at the club is unclear.
Liverpool, Arsenal and Paris Saint Germain are also interested in signing the Frenchman, who is valued at around £35m though Spurs are keen to steal a march on their rivals.
Doucoure moved to Vicarage Road from Rennes in the summer of 2016 and has since racked up sixty-three appearances in all competitions, scoring eight goals – seven of which came last term.
That form saw him named as the club’s Player of the Season though he has not yet been recognised at senior international level having represented his countr…
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger questioned Chelsea s style as Antonio Conte s men close in on the Premier League title.
Wenger s teams have been renowned for playing possession-based games, but Chelsea are sixth in that statistic this season with 54.2 per cent.
That follows on from Leicester City s remarkable title-winning campaign of 2015-16, when they ranked 18th with just 42.4.
Wenger pointed to the trend of the Premier League s top teams, and said a lack of European football also helped.
Over the last two seasons, teams who have not big possession have won the league, he told UK newspapers.
And, as well, teams who were not involved in Europe, at all, won the league.
Because the league is so physically difficult, maybe it is very diffi…
Ronald Koeman s first season in charge at Barcelona was less than convincing, creating doubts about his future.
Koeman guided Barcelona to third place in La Liga in 2020-21, as well as lifting the Copa del Rey, but they bowed out of the Champions League in the last 16.
It was a season of change at Barcelona, with Joan Laporta taking over as president in March and recently stating they will undergo an off-season renovation and that their cycle has ended .
TOP STORY KOEMAN SET FOR BARCA SHOWDOWN TALKS
Ronald Koeman will sit down with Barcelona president Joan Laporta this week for showdown talks about his future, claims Diario Sport.
Koeman was appointed by previous president Josep Maria Bartomeu on a two-year deal in August last year.
Tite has dismissed Lionel Messi s credentials as the greatest footballer of all time after insisting comparisons between him and phenomenal Brazil legend Pele have no credibility.
The Brazil coach and Messi exchanged words in Friday s game against Argentina, with Tite claiming the Barcelona forward told him to shut up during the friendly defeat in Riyadh.
Tuesday marks the 50th anniversary of Brazil legend Pele scoring his 1,000th goal and, speaking ahead of his side s clash against South Korea in Abu Dhabi the same day, Tite says three-time World Cup winner Pele remains out in front when it comes to the question of whether he or Messi is best.
He said: Pelé is incomparable. Anybody who wants to compare Pelé to any other athlete do you know wh…
Cameroon midfielder Alex Song spared Arsenal s blushes with a late English Premiership winner over bottom-of-the-table West Ham United at the weekend.
Gunners boss Arsene Wegner says the fitness of Song has improved thanks to extra sweat at the training ground and he has struck three goals in as many games.
On a fruitful Premiership weekend for Africans, Zimbabwean Benjamin Benjani Mwaruwari, Nigerian Ayegbeni Yakubu and Togolese Emmanuel Adebayor also netted.
ENGLAND
ALEX SONG (Arsenal)
Cameroon midfielder popped up with an 88th-minute header as Arsenal downed West Ham 1-0 to maintain pressure on leaders Chelsea. The goal was Song s third in consecutive games, a match-winning performance that Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger attributes to an improv…
FC Barcelona says it has attracted over seven million fans on Facebook, making it the most popular sports club on the social networking site ahead of Real Madrid and Manchester United.
Real Madrid, the team s arch rivals in the Spanish league, are the second most popular club on the site with just over six million fans while Manchester United, which has yet to get five million fans, is in third place, Barcelona said in a statement posted on its web site.
This is further evidence that FC Barcelona is the most supported club in the world, way ahead of the opposition, it said.
Spain has the most FC Barcelona Facebook fans, followed by Indonesia, Turkey, France and the United States.
More than 80 percent of the club s fans on the site are males under 35 yea…
Manchester United F.C. have completed the signing of midfielder Ander Herrera from Athletic Bilbao on a four-year deal.
The former Spain youth international, 24, joined Bilbao from Real Zaragoza for €7.5 million in 2011 and has since gone on to establish himself as one the best midfielders in Spanish football.
Herrera, who has been capped by Spain at Under-20, Under-21 and Under-23 levels, netted 11 goals in 128 appearances in all competitions for Los Leones.
He is Louis van Gaal s first signing as manager of United.
Manchester United assistant manager Ryan Giggs told the club s official website, : Ander is a fantastic young player, with great energy and creativity.
We believe him to be one of the brightest young prospects in Sp…
Borussia Dortmund midfielder Ilkay Gundogan is unsure when he can step up his rehabilitation as he returns to light training.
The Germany international was limited to just three appearances last season due to a back injury, an issue that ruled him out of the FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
Gundogan, who moved to Signal Iduna Park from Nuremberg in 2011, underwent surgery on his troublesome back in June and targeted a return in September.
The 23-year-old has travelled to Kirchberg, Austria, where Dortmund are partaking in a pre-season training camp.
And though he is not yet ready to return to competitive action, Gundogan is delighted to be back among the group.
Finally I am back. I am very happy, he told Bild.
Even if I can not work with the te…
According to reports in England, AC Milan are not willing to pay £31 million in order to secure the services of Tiemoue Bakayoko on a permanent deal. The midfielder, who only arrived at Stamford Bridge back in 2017 from Monaco, has been deemed surplus to requirements with the Blues and was sent out on a season long loan to the San Siro back in the summer.
Alas, despite having some success there, it doesn’t seem as if Bakayoko will be making Italy his home on a permanent basis – at least, not with Milan. While there’s always the possibility of them coming to a lower price tag Chelsea seem set in their ways with the figure they have suggested, although it’ll be interesting to see whether or not they budge as the weeks go on.
AC are attempting to climb back toward…
Newcastle United recorded a third consecutive Premier League win with a 2-1 victory at Burnley despite Matt Ritchie missing an open goal from close range.
Rafael Benitez s side led 2-0 thanks to a Ben Mee own goal and Ciaran Clark s header, but Sam Vokes hit back for the hosts before half-time.
Ritchie looked set to make sure of the points early in the second half but the winger, who had set up Clark s goal, bizarrely slotted wide at the back post after DeAndre Yedlin beat Charlie Taylor for pace.
But Newcastle held on for their first top-flight win over Burnley since 1975 to move up to 13th in the table, while a fourth loss in five league games leaves the Clarets still a point and a place above the relegation zone.
Kick-off was delayed for half an ho…