..::Football III::..

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Neymar: Barcelona will only get better

Neymar says Barcelona will only further improve over the course of the season following their 3-2 away win over Valencia on Sunday.

A Lionel Messi hat-trick gifted the Catalans a three-goal lead before the break, but Helder Postiga netted twice in the closing stages of the first half to help Valencia back in the game.

Barcelona held on to record their third league win of the season, though, and Neymar believes they will only get better.

"I’m sure that the whole team will improve both physically and tactically throughout the season," the Brazil international was quoted as saying on the club's official website.

"Our intensity dropped a bit at the end of the first half and we conceded two goals. We have to correct that in the next match.

"I’m feeling better physically little by little, but I need to improve throughout the season."

Neymar has made three appearances in La Liga so far, but has yet to score his first league goal for Barca.

 

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Bayern bosses slam 'outrageous' Mourinho

Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness and chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge have slammed Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho in the wake of the Portuguese's comments about the referee during last week's Uefa Super Cup encounter.

Mourinho was quick to blame the official in charge for his side's defeat, Jonas Eriksson, whom he felt was wrong to dismiss Chelsea midfielder Ramires for a second yellow card folllowing a challenge on Mario Gotze.

Rummenigge, though, has stressed that the Brazilian's sending off was fully deserved and has hit out at Mourinho for his poor judgement of the situation.

"I thought Mourinho's statement was outrageous," Rummenigge told Bild.

"After a horrible tackle like this, Mario can consider himself lucky. The injury could have been much worse."

Hoeness, meanwhile, was equally surprised with Mourinho's criticism of the referee.

"That was the clearest red card ever," the Bayern president said.

"If a coach like Mourinho then starts talking about a wrong decision, I ask myself if he maybe attended the wrong game."

The Bundesliga representatives won 5-4 on penalties (2-2 AET) on Friday.

Meanwhile, Gotze will be out of action for at least three weeks because of the injury he sustained following Ramires' tackle.

 

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Bale will do well at Real Madrid, says Pique

Barcelona defender Gerard Pique has lauded new Real Madrid signing Gareth Bale, believing the Welshman will prove to be a fine addition for the Santiago Bernabeu side.

The 24-year-old signed a six-year deal with Madrid on Sunday to complete his world-record move from Tottenham to the Liga giants and Pique has little doubt that the winger will succeed at his new club.

"Bale has an extraordinary left foot. I have no doubt that he will do well at Real Madrid," Pique told Onda Cero.

"He has really grown a lot in the past few years. He has developed as a player and has gained a lot of experience.

"He has joined a big team that paid a lot of money for him. Time will tell whether he's worth his transfer fee."

Bale will be officially unveiled during a press conference at the Santiago Bernabeu on Monday at 13:00CET.

 

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West Brom complete loan deal for Amalfitano

West Brom have signed midfielder Morgan Amalfitano on loan from Marseille, the French club have confirmed.

The Ligue 1 side have announced the loan deal on their official website, adding that Steve Clarke's side have the option to sign the 28-year-old permanently at the end of the season.

“I’m delighted to welcome Morgan to the club," Clarke told West Brom's official website.

“He is predominantly a right-sided midfielder who can also operate in a number of other midfield and attacking positions.

"Morgan is a technical player with good quality on the ball. He also has fantastic work-rate and we believe his game is well suited to the Barclays Premier League.

"Morgan’s arrival will increase competition in midfield and add more quality and depth to the squad."

Amalfitano can play centrally or out wide and was awarded one international cap for France in 2012 after joining Marseille in 2011 from Lorient.

 

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Liverpool boss Rodgers cools title talk

Brendan Rodgers has played down talk of a title challenge at Liverpool following a perfect start to the Premier League season.

Victory over champions Manchester United on Sunday - sealed courtesy of Daniel Sturridge's first-half header - made it three wins from three for the Anfield club.

And with Liverpool boasting the only 100 per cent record in the Premier League and yet to concede, expectation levels are high on Merseyside - but boss Rodgers is only focused on securing Champions League qualification.

"Thirty five [Premier League games] to go, we won't be getting carried away, we've got a lot of work ahead of us," the Northern Irishman told reporters.

"The initial challenge is to get into top four and be in the conversation for that as long as we can, and I don't think we can look anything beyond that for a while yet."

New signings Mamadou Sakho and Tiago Ilori were in the stands to watch the United game and Rodgers is confident the duo can add depth to his squad.

He added: "We need that depth, they are quality players and they'll help us move forward."

Liverpool's win over their arch rivals was offset by injuries to both Sturridge (thigh) and Glen Johnson (ankle), with the club's medical team currently assessing the duo.

 

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Viviano to join Arsenal on loan after passing medical

Emiliano Viviano has passed a medical at Arsenal and agreed the terms of a season-long loan from Palermo.

The 27-year-old goalkeeper flew into London from Italy on Sunday night and headed straight for the first phase of medical tests at the Gunners’ London Colney training ground.

Goal understands the Italy international has now passed the medical despite a history of knee trouble.Viviano will join on a season-long loan, which gives Arsenal the option to buy him at the end of the campaign.

It is understood that the north Londoners will pay a substantial loan fee for the keeper, who became available after his club Palermo were relegated to Serie B.
Viviano spent last season on loan at Fiorentina but they have not taken up an option to buy him and he is expected to be registered with Arsenal before Monday night’s 11pm transfer deadline.Arsene Wenger turned his attention to Viviano after continually revising his list of goalkeeping targets during the summer.

Arsenal had made moves for a string of keepers, including QPR’s Julio Cesar, Valencia’s Vincent Guaita and Stoke City’s Asmir Begovic.

 

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Viviano to join Arsenal on loan after passing medical

Emiliano Viviano has passed a medical at Arsenal and agreed the terms of a season-long loan from Palermo.

The 27-year-old goalkeeper flew into London from Italy on Sunday night and headed straight for the first phase of medical tests at the Gunners’ London Colney training ground.

Goal understands the Italy international has now passed the medical despite a history of knee trouble.Viviano will join on a season-long loan, which gives Arsenal the option to buy him at the end of the campaign.

It is understood that the north Londoners will pay a substantial loan fee for the keeper, who became available after his club Palermo were relegated to Serie B.
Viviano spent last season on loan at Fiorentina but they have not taken up an option to buy him and he is expected to be registered with Arsenal before Monday night’s 11pm transfer deadline.Arsene Wenger turned his attention to Viviano after continually revising his list of goalkeeping targets during the summer.

Arsenal had made moves for a string of keepers, including QPR’s Julio Cesar, Valencia’s Vincent Guaita and Stoke City’s Asmir Begovic.

 

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Galatasaray open talks with Sporting over Bruma

Galatasaray have announced that they have opened formal talks with Sporting CP over the transfer of promising youngster Bruma.

The Turkish champions are keen to add some fresh blood to their attack before the summer transfer window closes on Wednesday and they see the 18-year-old Bruma as the ideal addition to their squad.

"Galatasaray announce that formal negotiations have been opened with Sporting CP over the transfer of Armindo Tue Na Bangna (Bruma)," a statement on Galatasaray's official website reads.

Bruma is a product of the renowned Sporting youth academy, producing players such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Nani, and made his official first team debut last term.

The winger was one of the stars of this summer's Under-20 World Cup, netting five goals in four games for Portugal.

His current contract with Sporting is due to expire in the summer of 2014.

 

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Sunderland to sign Liverpool forward Borini on loan

Fabio Borini is set to join Sunderland on a loan after Liverpool confirm the capture of Victor Moses, Goal understands.

Anfield manager Brendan Rodgers will allow the Italian forward to leave when the deal to sign Moses on loan from Chelsea is completed.

Moses’ arrival will push Borini down the pecking order and the Italian is likely to get more opportunities at Sunderland under his countryman Paolo Di Canio.

The 22-year-old Italy international had an injury-plagued debut campaign at Anfield after moving from Roma in the summer of 2012 and has failed to establish in the first team.

Moses was in the stands at Anfield on Sunday to watch Liverpool beat Manchester United 1-0 as the Merseysiders closed in on completing his loan from Stamford Bridge.

 

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Kaka: I'm returning home to AC Milan

Kaka says he is delighted to return to AC Milan after reaching an agreement over a contract until June 2015 with the San Siro side on Sunday night.

The Brazilian midfielder left Milan for Real Madrid for €65 million in the summer of 2009, but now rejoins the Rossoneri on a free transfer after he was deemed surplus to requirements by the Santiago Bernabeu side.

"I am returning home again," Kaka told Sky Sport Italia following his confirmed move to Milan.

"I am very happy to be back at Milan. We have a great team. I can't wait to play at San Siro again and feel the same emotions from before.

"I will be wearing the No.22 jersey again."

The 31-year-old made nearly 200 Serie A appearances for Milan between 2003 and 2009, winning one league title in the process.

 

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Liverpool sign Moses from Chelsea on season-long loan

Liverpool have confirmed the signing of Chelsea forward Victor Moses on a season-long loan.

The 22-year-old passed a medical at Anfield on Monday and becomes the club's eighth signing of a busy summer of transfer activity for Brendan Rodgers' men.

The Nigeria international joins Mamadou Sakho and Tiago Ilori in joining Liverpool on deadline day, although Fabio Borini is close to leaving Merseyside for a loan move to Sunderland.

"First and foremost, I'm delighted to have made the loan from Chelsea to a big club like Liverpool," he told the club's official website.

"The most important thing is for me to be professional about it and I'm here to do a job for the club.

"The target is to get into the top four and for the club to compete in the Champions League - and I'm delighted to be here.

"The manager has done very well and the formation and players here will help me and I just want to gel in, get to know the players and play with them.

"There are a lot of quality players here - they're winning games and creating chances. It's a massive thing for me to be here."

Moses moved to Stamford Bridge from Wigan last summer, making 42 appearances and scoring 10 goals.

 

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Juventus sign wonderkid Berardi as Marrone leaves

Juventus have signed Domenico Berardi from Sassuolo while Luca Marrone moves in the opposite direction, both in co-ownership deals.

The Serie A champions had been keeping tabs on the 19-year-old for a while and have now purchased 50 per cent of the attacker's economical rights.

Berardi came through the ranks of the Sassuolo youth academy and had developed into a key player at the Serie A side since making his official first team debut.

He netted 11 goals in 37 appearances last term to help Sassuolo win promotion to Italy's top flight, thus attracting the interest of a number of clubs.

Manchester United had also been linked with the Italy Under-19 star, but Juventus have now won the race for his signature.

Meanwhile, the 23-year-old Marrone will continue his career at Sassuolo after failing to secure regular first-team action at Juve.

The holding midfielder, who can also feature in defence, made 10 league appearances last term, but he has moved away due to the stiff competition for places at the Bianconeri.

 

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Draxler set to stay at Schalke

Arsenal target Julian Draxler is to remain at Schalke until the end of the current season, Goal understands.

The Gunners made an audacious enquiry for the €47 million-rated Germany international on Friday before subsequently switching their attentions to Draxler’s international team-mate Mesut Ozil.

Draxler admitted last week he would be prepared to leave should his club receive a suitable offer but is now certain to stay until next summer at least.

The signing of Kevin-Prince Boateng, who arrived from AC Milan last week in a €11.7m deal, was designed to alleviate the growing burden on the 19-year-old’s shoulders after his indifferent start to the new season.

At the Ghanaian's unveiling, Schalke general manager Horst Heldt said that the club would be "schizo" to let Draxler leave, while the player himself has rejected approaches from Chelsea and Borussia Dortmund this summer.

Having missed out on Draxler, Arsenal are now close to finalising a €47m deal for Ozil who has been allowed to leave Real Madrid following confirmation of Gareth Bale’s move to the Santiago Bernabeu from Tottenham.

Ozil has agreed personal terms with Arsenal and is currently undergoing a medical in Germany ahead of his club-record move.

 

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Disappointed El Shaarawy rules out deadline day move

Stephen El Shaarawy has declared he will not seek a transfer despite having fallen out of favour at AC Milan.

The forward has been linked with a big-money move away from the Giuseppe Meazza this summer but, speaking in the aftermath of the Rossoneri's 3-1 home win against Cagliari on Sunday, El Shaarawy confirmed he would remain at San Siro.

"I am staying at Milan," El Shaarawy, 20, said. "My choice is clear and whatever offer arrives I want to stay."

After struggling in the latter half of 2012-13, head coach Massimiliano Allegri dropped El Shaarawy to the bench for Sunday's clash with Cagliari, but the player says that the snub has made him even more determined to succeed.

"I don't want to comment on the decision by Allegri to drop me, but I am going to have to accept it," he continued.

"I will adapt to the formation, even as a second striker. Now there is a lot of competition but there will be room for everyone."

El Shaarawy's committal makes it a very productive 24 hours for the Serie A giants following on from the news of Kaka's re-arrival.

The 31-year-old playmaker has ended his Real Madrid ordeal by returning to the club he spent six successful seasons with from 2003-2009 and the Brazilian's acquisition was also greeted warmly by El Shaarawy.

"The signing of Kaka is a dream come true for me because he is my idol," he told reporters.

 

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Bale: I want the Champions League with Madrid

Gareth Bale has made it clear that winning the Champions League with Real Madrid is one of his main objectives following his €100 million transfer from Tottenham.

The Santiago Bernabeu side last won European club football's elite competition in 2002 when they beat Bayer Leverkusen and have been chasing their 10th European Cup ever since.

That wait is soon to come to and end if it's up to Bale, though, as he's desperate for Champions League glory.

"Everybody knows that Real Madrid want to win everything. They’re known for that. It was a massive reason for coming here," the 24-year-old said at a press conference.

"I wanted to play Champions League football, we want to win Real Madrid's 10th European Cup. I want to win the Champions League here.

"It’s the biggest club in the world and we want to win the biggest trophies in the world. It’s a big reason I’m here.

"I remember [Zinedine] Zidane scoring the winning goal in the [2002] Champions League final. For me, Real Madrid have always been the best club."

The Welshman then revealed that former Spurs team-mate Luka Modric advised him to join Madrid, while adding that going to Manchester United was never an option.

"I've kept in touch with Modric since he left Spurs, he recommended that I come here. We both know what a big club this is.

"United? I was always set on Real Madrid."

 

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Chelsea demand £2m fee for Ba loan to Arsenal

Chelsea have slapped a £2 million-plus loan fee on Arsenal target Demba Ba.

The London rivals are in talks about the Senegal striker moving to the Emirates Stadium for the rest of the season on loan, having made an initial enquiry on Sunday.

Arsenal have earmarked a medical at their London Colney training headquarters on Monday evening if a deal can be closed.

The transfer is likely to hinge upon the Gunners' willingness to pay the loan fee that Chelsea are demanding for a player who has found himself out of favour under new manager Jose Mourinho.

However, Roma have cooled their interest in Ba and have now made a move for Juventus striker Fabio Quagliarella. Sources have told Goal that Roma sporting director Walter Sabatini has flown to Serie A's headquarters in Milan for talks about capturing the 30-year-old before Monday's transfer deadline.

This could give Arsenal a free run at landing Ba, who is their main striker focus in the final hours of the window.

The 28-year-old forward has not even made the bench for Chelsea's last two fixtures, despite being fully fit, and slipped even further down the pecking order when the Blues signed Samuel Eto'o.

With Fernando Torres and Romelu Lukaku also at Stamford Bridge, Ba is unlikely to feature much this season and Chelsea can trim their wage bill by loaning out the forward.

Arsenal had an interest in signing Ba permanently in January when he was at Newcastle but were concerned about his history of knee trouble.

Arsene Wenger wants proven backup for Olivier Giroud, who has begun the season in outstanding form.

The Arsenal manager has failed in a series of bids to land a new forward on a permanent deal this summer and has now adjusted his sights to a loan deal.

As revealed by Goal, the north Londoners have also agreed a €47m deal for Mesut Ozil and a season-long loan for goalkeeper Emiliano Viviano.

 

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Fellaini delays Belgium arrival to complete Manchester United move

Marouane Fellaini has been given permission to delay meeting up with the Belgium national team in order to complete his proposed move to Manchester United.

The Everton midfielder was due to join up with his team-mates in Neerpede on Monday ahead of their clash with Scotland on Friday but has been granted dispensation to stay in England.

"Fellaini and Zakkaria Bakkali did not train today. Fellaini will join the group later," the Belgian FA wrote on Twitter on Monday afternoon.

As revealed by Goal, the Toffees have verbally agreed a £24 million (€28.3m) deal with United for the Belgian midfielder, who is expected to complete his move to Old Trafford before the midnight CET transfer deadline.

United are also hoping to secure a deal for Everton left-back Leighton Baines, however, the club have valued the 28-year-old at £20m (€23.6m) and are continuing to reject advances from the Premier League champions.

David Moyes is keen to add to his midfield options before the close of the transfer window and reports in Spain claim that United are willing to meet Ander Herrera's €36m (£30.5m) buyout clause, with the 24-year-old now set to undergo a medical ahead of a move from Athletic Bilbao.

Everton, meanwhile, have submitted an offer for Cagliari defender Davide Astori, while Roberto Martinez is also targeting moves for Manchester City duo Joleon Lescott and Gareth Barry, and Wigan Athletic's James McCarthy.

 

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'Khedira will remain at Madrid' - agent

Sami Khedira will remain at Real Madrid and not make a last-minute deadline day move, according to his agent Jorg Neubauer.

The Germany international faces tough competition for a position in the midfield with the likes of Asier Illarramendi, Casemiro, Luka Modric and Xabi Alonso at the Santiago Bernabeu.

However, his representative says Khedira, whose contract at the Spanish capital will expire in 2015, will stay with Carlo Ancelotti's side for now.

"Sami will remain at Real Madrid, just as we have always said," Neubauer told Bild.

"I have no idea who these people are that have fun straying those kind of rumours. It's simply annoying and doesn't do Sami any good."

Reports in Spain had previously suggested that the 26-year-old, who has recently been linked with Jose Mourinho's Chelsea as well as Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain, might be looking for a way out.

 

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Kaka eyes iconic Balotelli partnership

AC Milan returnee Kaka is hoping that teaming up with Mario Balotelli will enable him to forge a resemblance of his partnership with club legend Filippo Inzaghi.

The Brazil international completed his return to San Siro on a free transfer on Monday, after spending four largely unsuccessful years at Real Madrid.

Kaka believes he can help Balotelli score goals in the same way he linked with Rossoneri favourite Inzaghi between 2003 and 2009.

"Mario is a great player and I want to do well with him. I hope I can do with him what I used to do with Pippo Inzaghi," the 31-year-old told the club's official website.

"Four years have passed and now I’m back. It’s been two weeks that I thought if I could come back, a return to Milan would be ideal for me.

"In the last few days, I’ve been dreaming of hearing the fans sing my name in San Siro again."

The 31-year-old declared his intention to leave Real Madrid last week as he looks to win a place in Brazil's squad ahead of the World Cup in 2014.

"I have a lot of desire to play and it’s a very important year for me due to the World Cup," he added. "Right now I just want to do well for Milan, my team.

"I was very sad to leave this team and now it’s great to be back. I’m very happy."

Kaka has not featured for the Selecao since their 1-1 draw with Russia in March.

 

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Bale: I would have joined Madrid for a penny

Real Madrid's Gareth Bale has dismissed suggestions that he will be affected negatively by the huge sum his club spent to acquire him from Tottenham.

The attacker recently completed his switch to the Santiago Bernabeu in a record-breaking transfer worth €100 million.

However, he assured the exorbitant price-tag will not change his game whatsoever, as he feels he is professional enough to cope with the expectations that come with such a huge fee.

"I would have come here for a penny, for whatever," Bale told reporters. "The transfer fee is not something that affects me.

"It's something between Madrid and Spurs. It only brings extra pressure if I want it to."

Bale made 146 appearances for Tottenham since his arrival in 2007, in which he scored 42 goals.