..::Football III::..

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Benzema blow for Real Madrid

Real Madrid have confirmed that Karim Benzema has suffered a thigh injury - but it is not yet known how long the striker will be sidelined.

The France international was left out of Rafael Benitez's squad for this week's Audi Cup after breaking down in training ahead of the Blancos' departure for Munich.
Benzema now faces a race against time to be fit for the start of the capital club's Liga campaign, at Sporting Gijon on August 23.

"Following tests carried out on Karim Benzema by the Real Madrid Medical Services at the Sanitas La Moraleja Hospital today, he has been diagnosed with a muscular injury in his right thigh. His condition will be evaluated," read a statement released on the Blancos' official website.

Benzema has been heavily linked with a move to Arsenal before the close of the summer transfer window but Benitez stated on Monday that he expects the forward to remain at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The 27-year-old joined Madrid from Lyon in 2009 for an initial fee of €35 million and has since scored 87 times in 188 Liga appearances for the Spanish side.

 

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Di Maria passes Paris Saint-Germain medical

Angel Di Maria has passed a medical with Paris Saint-Germain ahead of his move from Manchester United.

The Argentine midfielder arrived in Doha on Monday but reports in France claimed that Di Maria was too tired to partake in an examination immediately following his transatlantic flight from his native country.

However, he arrived at the Aspetar hospital in the city on Tuesday to complete the assessment under the supervision of PSG doctor Eric Rolland, with his estimated €60 million (£44.5m) transfer set to be ratified before the club's opening Ligue 1 fixture at Lille on Friday.

Di Maria arrived at Manchester United in a British-record £59.7m deal in August 2014 but failed to settle in England and started only 20 league matches in his first season at Old Trafford.

After a delayed summer break following his spell at the Copa America with Argentina, the 27-year-old failed to report back for United's pre-season tour of the USA on July 25 as planned.

United boss Louis van Gaal admitted at the time that he had no idea where Di Maria was, while links to PSG were later admitted by the French champions' coach, Laurent Blanc.

 

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Real Madrid 2-0 Tottenham: James & Bale put Spurs to the sword

Real Madrid beat Tottenham 2-0 in their Audi Cup semi-final at the Allianz Arena, with Gareth Bale scoring against his old club.

The Welshman, who moved to the Spanish capital for a world-record fee two years ago, struck Madrid's second with 11 minutes to go, after James Rodriguez had opened the scoring in the first half.

Bale's celebrations were muted, as he and Luka Modric got one over on their old employers in Munich.

It was another defeat for Spurs, who lost 2-1 to an MLS All-Star team last week, while Los Blancos added Mauricio Pochettino's men to their list of pre-season scalps, alongside Manchester City, Inter and AC Milan, who have all been beaten by the 10-time European champions over the past fortnight.

Wednesday's third/fourth-place play-off against either Bayern Munich or Milan represents Spurs' final fixture before their Premier League campaign kicks off with a trip to Manchester United on Saturday.

The early exchanges were wide open, with both sides spurning excellent chances to take the lead inside the first five minutes.

Kyle Walker got free down the right and put in a low ball for Erik Lamela, who could only shoot over on the stretch from eight yards.

Real's response was immediate, Jese Rodriguez thumping a drive against the crossbar before seeing his curling effort tipped superbly round the post by Michel Vorm.

The Spurs goalkeeper produced another fine save 10 minutes prior to the interval, scrambling across his line to claw the ball away after Modric's shot had taken a wicked deflection off Kevin Wimmer, but Tottenham's respite was brief as James nodded in Isco's left-wing delivery a minute later.

The opening to the second period was less eventful than the first, Spurs substitute Nacer Chadli bringing a low save out of Kiko Casilla with the first action of note on the hour mark.

But any Tottenham hopes of a comeback were extinguished late on thanks to a former White Hart Lane favourite. Bale cut out a square ball and drove forward, before unleashing a shot from 25 yards which bounced just in front of Vorm, who was unable to prevent it skipping up off the turf and into the top-left corner.

 

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Rahman has agreed Chelsea terms - agent

Augsburg defender Baba Rahman is ready to join Chelsea, says his agent, with just a fee left to agree between the two clubs.

After the sale of Filipe Luis back to Atletico Madrid, the Blues are in the market for a left-back and have targeted the Ghana international.

With Rahman keen to get the deal over the line, his agent, Sascha Empacher, says that personal terms are all set as the teams continue to negotiate.

He told Sport Bild: "It is only the clubs that have to find an agreement. We on our side are agreed."

Empacher had earlier confirmed on Friday that Chelsea had "made an attractive offer" to the 21-year-old.

Augsburg appeared to line up a replacement for Rahman on Tuesday, signing left-back Philipp Max from Karlsruhe.

 

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Bayern Munich 3-0 AC Milan: Bernat, Gotze and Lewandowski rattle Rossoneri

Pep Guardiola was involved in half-time spat with AC Milan’s Nigel de Jong as Bayern Munich ran out 3-0 winners in a heated Audi Cup clash.

The Bayern coach was infuriated by a first-half challenge from De Jong that prompted him to haul Joshua Kimmich off the field immediately, and Guardiola berated the Dutchman as the players left the pitch at the interval.

The spat overshadowed what was a brilliant Bayern performance, in which Douglas Costa showed exactly why Guardiola signed him as he inspired his new team in the first half.Costa provided an assist for Juan Bernat’s opening goal and went close to scoring on a number of occasions in an explosive 45-minute display.

Mario Gotze's second-half strike and Robert Lewandowski's late third confirmed the Bundesliga champions' place in the Audi Cup final, where they will face Real Madrid, but Guardiola will be hoping for a fixture with less needle than this one.

Guardiola gave a first Bayern start to Arturo Vidal and Milan found themselves under pressure within the first 10 minutes - Costa going within inches of a spectacular opener with a free kick that dipped just over the crossbar from 20 yards.

Milan angered Guardiola with a number of uncompromising challenges, before the Bayern coach pulled Kimmich off after 21 minutes, following a crunching challenge from De Jong.

Moments later, Bayern deservedly took the lead when a sweeping move ended with a shot from Bernat that deflected sharply off the foot of Cristian Zapata, leaving Milan goalkeeper Diego Lopez with no chance.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg should have doubled the lead just three minutes later when a Costa cross flashed across the face of Lopez’s goal, but the Dane’s attempt to score with his chest hit the post.

Costa then launched an audacious 30-yard shot over the crossbar, before another Bayern break put the him through for a one-on-one with Lopez, and the Milan keeper was only able to parry Costa’s shot, but his blushes were spared as the Brazilian fired the rebound over the bar.

Guardiola replaced Costa and Vidal with Thomas Muller and Lewandowski for the second half, protecting his new signings ahead of the new Bundesliga campaign.
Carlos Bacca missed Milan’s first real chance of the game early in the second half, shooting narrowly wide with the outside of his right foot from just inside the Bayern penalty area.De Jong almost enraged Guardiola further when he went close with a sweetly-struck volley from 30 yards, and at the other end Zapata came close to putting the ball in his own net as he flicked Rafinha’s cross out of play.

Bayern were right back on top in the final stages of the game, and they ensured that the result better reflected their dominance when Lewandowski linked up with Gotze, who applied a simple finish from 15 yards.

With five minutes left, Lewandowski was on hand to smash home from Muller's pass, following a defensive error by Alex that will have disappointed Mihajlovic.

 

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Bale: I want to play in the middle for Real Madrid

Real Madrid star Gareth Bale is keen to play more frequently through the middle this season after he was deployed there in Tuesday's 2-0 win over Tottenham.

The Welsh forward scored the second goal during his side's Audi Cup triumph against his former club at the Allianz Arena, playing in a No.10 role by new coach Rafa Benitez.

Madrid are spoilt for choice in that area, with the likes of Isco and James Rodriguez to call upon, but Bale is convinced that a central position makes for the best use of his talents.

"It's my best position," he told reporters. "When I played for Tottenham, I felt I played my best football there and, when I play for Wales, I play there and play my best football. For me, that's my position and it's where I want to play.

"I'm able to go out to the left and the right and it's what I was doing at Tottenham and what I do for Wales. It's great to have the support of the manager and the president [Florentino Perez] and, hopefully, I can repay them with some goals and trophies."

Bale admits that it was "a little bit weird" to play against his old side but enjoyed the lack of pressure on the encounter.

"When you play against your former team, it's always a little bit weird but it's a pre-season game and the main thing for us was fitness," he explained. "We only came back from Australia and China a few days ago and we had three days off so coming into this was a bit difficult but it was good to get the win and it was nice to score.

"There are some familiar faces in the Tottenham squad but there has also been a lot of change. I know a few of the players who are staying in the same hotel so it's been nice to catch up with everybody. Hopefully, they will do well this season.

"They play some great stuff. They are a bit weary. They have got their first Premier League game this weekend so they are preparing for that. Hopefully, they can do well and qualify for the Champions League."

 

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Di Maria excited by imminent Paris Saint-Germain switch

Angel Di Maria has confirmed that his time at Manchester United is coming to an end, declaring his excitement at his imminent transfer to Paris Saint-Germain.

The Argentina international passed a medical for the French champions in Qatar on Tuesday, with a €60 million (£44.5m) deal now expected to go through imminently.

Di Maria was unable to settle in his single season at Old Trafford, having become the most expensive player ever bought by a British club when he left Real Madrid last summer, but is keen to get down to business with his new team, eyeing Champions League progress.

"I am very happy to join Paris Saint-Germain," he told beIN Sports.

"What I know about PSG that they are a team who have won all possible titles in France last season. They're very important.

"I know too that they want to overcome the obstacle of the quarter-finals in the Champions League. I will try to bring my best to help the team. We'll try to go as far as possible in the Champions League."

 

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Guardiola rages at De Jong in tunnel row


Bayern Munich boss Pep Guardiola got into a raging half-time row with AC Milan's Nigel de Jong over his injury-inducing tackle on Joshua Kimmich in Tuesday's clash at the Allianz Arena.

Although pre-season friendlies are notoriously tame affairs, De Jong was his usually tough-tackling self when, 10 minutes in, he clattered into the 20-year-old German midfielder.

Guardiola was forced to withdraw Kimmich midway through the first half due to the knock he picked up from the Dutchman's tackle and the coach was still furious when the half-time whistle was blown in Munich.

The former Barcelona boss began ranting at De Jong inside the tunnel, gesturing wildly towards the defensive midfielder, who had to be refrained from charging towards Guardiola by his Rossoneri team-mates.

Guardiola refused to discuss the incident at length after the Bavarians finished 3-0 winners in the Audi Cup semi-final, but he did stress the dejection he felt on behalf of Kimmich, whom he lauded as one of the Bundesliga's top talents.

"I told De Jong that I was sad for Joshua," he told reporters. "He won't be able to play in the final [against Real Madrid] and perhaps he'll be out even longer than that. He certainly will become one of the best German players in the next 10 years."

Milan boss Sinisa Mihajlovic slammed his counterpart's reaction by highlighting the physical nature of the sport Bayern take part in, which he claims is nothing like the solitary and safe nature of ballet.

"We play football, this is no ballet and fouls are part of the game," the San Siro trainer added. "This is no friendly, this is a tournament to prepare for the season."

 

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Milan in pole position for Ibrahimovic - Galliani

AC Milan are in "pole position" to sign Zlatan Ibrahimovic should he choose to leave Paris Saint-Germain, according to Adriano Galliani.The Swede has one year left on his contract at Parc des Princes and has been heavily linked with a departure from the three-time French champions this summer.

Milan, whom Ibrahimovic departed for PSG in 2012, have been one of the clubs most strongly linked with purchasing the former Barcelona striker for a second stint in Rossoneri colours.

Although Galliani is pessimistic about the chances of the 33-year-old leaving Ligue 1, the Milan CEO firmly believes the Italian side have a better shot than anyone else at signing Ibrahimovic.

"Ibrahimovic is a difficult case," he told Mediaset Premium. "He's a player who is now under contract at PSG and the chance of him returning is minimal."He's almost certain to stay in Paris, but if he was to leave then we would be in pole position to sign him."

Ibrahimovic has been ruled out of PSG's season opener against Lille on Friday due to a knock picked up in the Trophee des Champions win over Lyon last Saturday.

Contrastingly, it's been a week of excellent news for his former club as Milan secured huge investment from Thai businessman Bee Taechaubol.

Roma centre-back Alessio Romagnoli is the next player in the club's sights and Galliani says the Italy Under-21 international's future now depends on whether his current club accept Milan's bid."It now depends on Roma," Gialliani added on the topic of Romagnoli. "We won't raise our offer by even a single Euro as what we're offering is already stratospheric."

Milan hired Sinisa Mihajlovic this summer in an attempt to turn around their fortunes, having finished 10th in Serie A last season under Filippo Inzaghi.

 

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Nobody is leaving Real Madrid - Benitez

Rafa Benitez has warned rival clubs that Real Madrid have no intention of selling any of their stars this summer.Centre-back Sergio Ramos has been heavily linked with Manchester United for weeks, while reports of Arsenal's interest in signing striker Karim Benzema have swelled in the last few days.

Fresh from Real Madrid beating Tottenham 2-0 on Tuesday, Benitez stressed any Santiago Bernabeu exits would be extremely unlikely."As I mentioned with Karim, there's a lot of speculation," he told reporters. "I don't care about any of it. I just want to concentrate on football, all of my players will be staying here."

Madrid have now won four pre-season matches in a row ahead of their Audi Cup final clash with Pep Guardiola's Bayern, who defeated AC Milan 3-0 after Madrid had beaten Spurs.

 

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Mertesacker defends Ozil from German fans

Arsenal defender Per Mertesacker has defended team-mate Mesut Ozil from criticism in their native Germany.

Though the midfielder has drawn excited comments from manager Arsene Wenger for his improvements, Ozil has struggled to justify his £42.5 million price tag since moving from Real Madrid in 2013.

But Mertesacker feels that the media in England have judged him unfairly, while fans back home may not have watched enough to appreciate how well his colleague is doing.

"In Germany there are often only small parts of our games aired on TV or the opinions of English journalists are simply accepted," he told transfermarkt.de of Ozil.

The centre-back has high hopes for the new campaign, having benefited from a longer rest with no major competition over the summer.

"For the first time in a long time, I had real holidays ahead of a season," he enthused. "That is great and increases the eagerness to start. The atmosphere is good."

Another German Gunner, Lukas Podolski, said goodbye to the club earlier this summer as he sealed a permanent transfer to Galatasaray, leaving Mertesacker a little disappointed.

"It is a shame to lose Lukas as a team-mate," the veteran continued. "His left foot is a weapon which I did not see with many players.

"On his day, he can still make the difference. I wish him good luck in Turkey."

 

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Gotze: Guardiola needs to talk to me more

Mario Gotze says his future at Bayern Munich depends on whether Pep Guardiola talks to him more often.

Last month Gotze hit the headlines for complimentary comments on Juventus, with whom he had been linked, but the Scudetto holders pursued a move for Schalke attacking midfielder Julian Draxler instead.

Those talks appear to have stalled due to Schalke's high pricetag, leading to suggestions Juve could rekindle their interest in Gotze, whose two years at the Allianz Arena have been a mixed bag.

The highlight of his time as a Bayern player was scoring the World Cup-winning goal last summer with Germany, whereas he rarely features prominently in crucial matches for the Bavarians.

Gotze, 23, admits that there have been plenty of frustrations since he joined from Borussia Dortmund in 2013 and opined he needs more of an open line of communication with his coach."The last two years were definitely not very simple," the German attacker told reporters following Bayern's 3-0 win over AC Milan on Tuesday. "We'll see what happens.

"It will work out if Guardiola talks to me more often. I'm going to let everything come to me. Anything beyond that, we'll see."Gotze, who has a contract in Munich until 2017, scored the second goal against Milan after coming off the bench in the Audi Cup semi-final victory as Bayern continued their pre-season preparations.

Bayern's win was overshadowed by Guardiola having a half-time row in the tunnel with Rossoneri midfielder Nigel de Jong, whose tackle on Joshua Kimmich forced the midfielder off injured.

 

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Clyne eyes Premier League title with Liverpool

Nathaniel Clyne has tipped Liverpool to mount a challenge for the Premier League title despite Brendan Rodgers' side finishing sixth last season.

Liverpool endured a miserable 2014-15 campaign and missed out on Champions League qualification, having only narrowly lost out on the title as runners-up to Manchester City the previous season.But England international full-back Clyne, who moved from Southampton to Anfield for £12.5 million during the off-season, believes the Merseyside club can end their 25-year drought for league success this term.

"Two seasons ago, Liverpool were pushing and nearly won the league, so we're not too far away and with the additions to the team this year, we are looking to push on again," Clyne said.

"Hopefully we can push for the title this season."You can see with the team and the quality that we have got that we can have a special season."

Liverpool begin their Premier League campaign at Stoke City on Sunday, having lost 6-1 at the Britannia Stadium on the final day of the 2014-15 campaign.

 

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Agent: Juventus target Mascherano wants Serie A switch

Barcelona ace Javier Mascherano has his heart set on a move to Italy, according to one of his advisers.

The Argentina international still has three years to run on his contract with the Blaugrana and has just been confirmed as fourth captain for the upcoming season.
However, the versatile midfielder is now being strongly linked with a move to Juventus, who have just lost new signing Sami Khedira to injury for two months.

Gustavo Mascardi, who works with Mascherano's agents, Walter Tamer and Adrian Alejandro Barbini, has now claimed the 31-year-old wants to ply his trade in Serie A before he retires.

"In the last few weeks, I've spoken with Mascherano and Tamer, one of his agents," Mascardi told Gazzetta dello Sport.

"They asked me to try to find a great Serie A team for him because Javier would like to finish his European career winning something with an Italian club.

"There are no problems with Barcelona. Indeed, there, he's a leader.

"Simply, Mascherano, like many Argentines of his age, grew up following the Italian league and having played in England and won everything in Spain, now he is drawn to an Italian adventure.

"It's not a question of money. He has already rejected big offers from the Premier League and Ligue 1.

"Javier has a great relationship with the president of Barcelona [Josep Maria Bartomeu] and he has great faith that, given everything he has given for the Blaugrana jersey, there would be no obstacles put in his way if there was a big offer from Serie A.

"But if not, he will continue to fight, like always, for Barcelona."

 

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'Klopp 100 per cent suited to Bayern job' - Watzke

Borussia Dortmund's CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke believes the club's former coach Jurgen Klopp would be perfectly suited to the Bayern Munich job.

Klopp spent seven seasons at the helm at Signal Iduna Park, during which time he won back-to-back Bundesliga titles in 2011 and 2012.

The 48-year-old often spoke critically of Bayern, who caused consternation in Dortmund by signing two of their most valued players, Mario Gotze and Robert Lewandowski.

However, with current Bayern boss Pep Guardiola being linked with a move to Manchester City when his current contract expires in 2016, Watzke says Klopp would be the perfect replacement.

"Jurgen Klopp is a candidate for every top club," he told the Rheinische Post. "Klopp and Bayern would be 100 per cent suitable.

"Besides, you can't do much wrong at Bayern anyway - they win the Bundesliga whatever happens. Our friendship would not suffer."

Just like Klopp, Watzke has openly criticised Bayern for their pursuit of Dortmund players and was particularly upset by Uli Hoeness publicly commenting on Marco Reus' contractual situation at Dortmund.

However, the BVB chief insists he has always maintained a healthy working relationship with the Bavarians' general manager, who is currently in prison for tax evasion.

"Basically, I have always been good at arguing the point with him," Watzke added.

"That was probably very entertaining for many but when we met, it was always with respect and a clear understanding."

 

[rcccc]

Barca players elect Iniesta as new captain

 

[Wolverine GTR]

Arsenal not ready to give up on Benzema

Arsenal have not given up on signing Karim Benzema despite Real Madrid’s insistence that the striker will not be sold this summer.

Real Madrid manager Rafael Benitez said this week that he has “no reason” to believe Benzema will leave the club this summer as the Gunners attempt to bring him to north London.

But Arsenal still believe a deal may be possible towards the end of the transfer window after initial contact with Benzema’s camp and Real Madrid executives.

Real Madrid’s public stance is that Benzema is not for sale, while his agent Karim Djaziri said last month that his star client will “1,000 per cent” play for the Spanish giants in the new season.

Arsenal have targeted Benzema as manager Arsene Wenger looks to add a top quality forward to his squad to boost his side’s chances of winning a first Premier League title since 2004.

Wenger has said that he is happy with his squad and will only move in the transfer market if an “exceptional” player becomes available before the window closes.

Benzema, 27, fits the bill and Arsenal have tried to sign him on several occasions in the past. The hope in north London is that they can clinch a deal for the Frenchman in a similar manner to the £42.5 million signing of Mesut Ozil from Real Madrid on the final day of the transfer window in 2013.

Benzema is currently recovering from a hamstring injury which has ruled him out of Real Madrid’s participation in the Audi Cup in Munich this week.

Speaking on Monday, Benitez played down the prospect of Real Madrid selling Benzema this summer.

"Benzema, I think, is going to stay with us," Benitez told reporters. "I am very happy with him. I have no reason to think he will go."

Arsenal accept that a deal is unlikely, but the talk in Spain is that Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale have both been pencilled in to play in more central positions by Benitez.

Benzema is known as a favourite of Madrid president Florentino Perez but could look to move if he finds himself out of the side in the early part of the season.
His departure would depend on the 10-time European champions finding a suitable replacement. They have been linked with the likes of Marco Reus and Sergio Aguero as stellar attacking targets.

Wenger wants to add a top quality forward to his squad and has allowed alternatives to join other clubs this summer in the hope that Benzema will become available towards the end of August.

Arsenal are prepared to spend up to £40m on Benzema as they look to make the former Lyon man their marquee summer signing following the arrivals of Ozil and Alexis Sanchez in the last two years.

Goal understands Wenger has told confidants that, if he cannot land Benzema, he is happy to continue with Olivier Giroud, Sanchez, Theo Walcott and Danny Welbeck as his central striker options.

Arsenal have also been linked with a move for Napoli forward Gonzalo Higuain, but Wenger has made it clear that he believes Benzema is the player that can fire Arsenal to their first Premier League title since 2004.

Benzema joined Real Madrid from Lyon in 2009 and has won one La Liga title and the Champions League since his arrival. Last season, he scored 22 goals in 46 appearances for the club in all competitions.

 

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Costa: Neymar texted me about Bayern

Douglas Costa has revealed Brazil team-mate Neymar congratulated him on his move to Bayern Munich via text and told him the Bundesliga champions were the perfect club for him.Costa joined the Bavarians from Shakhtar Donetsk on July 1 for €30 million, with the former Gremio ace signing a five-year contract with Pep Guardiola's side.

The winger turned down Manchester United and Chelsea before moving to Ukraine in 2010, but says he now feels capable of making the grade at a top European club.

"The Bundesliga is well respected in Brazil, especially after the World Cup," Costa told Bild, alluding to the Selecao's 7-1 semi-final defeat at last year's World Cup.
"Neymar Whatsapped me just after the transfer was announced: 'Congratulations, Bayern are a top club; that's perfect for you."I'm happy for you, hopefully we meet in the Champions League!'

"I would have had no place [at Chelsea or United in 2010]. I didn't want to watch the stars; they had lots of better players than me during that time."I knew that if I wanted to make the breakthrough in Europe, I needed a club to develop at first."

Costa never scored more than six league goals during his time in Ukraine but acknowledges that much more will be expected of him at the Allianz Arena from an offensive perspective."At Shakthar, I also had some defensive roles, for example, as a right-back," he added.

"But Pep is not planning on using me as a defender. I will be playing near the opposition box."So, six goals per season will definitely not be enough for me at Bayern."

 

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Mourinho: My transfer window is over

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho claims the Blues are not looking to sign any new players before the close of the transfer window.Goal understands Chelsea have had two bids rejected by Everton for defender John Stones, with the Toffees determined to keep hold of the 21-year-old.

The Blues view Stones as the long-term heir to John Terry, but Mourinho has poured doubt on the England international moving to Stamford Bridge this summer.
“I repeat the same thing every season. For me, the transfer window is over,” he told talkSPORT.

“I don’t like the transfer window when competition starts."I know it is open and my club is able to buy or sell, but I don’t like that feeling.“As a football coach I am now thinking about my players, about my squad and I don’t want to think about the transfer window.”

Chelsea are also reportedly close to signing Augsburg defender Baba Rahman after his agent claimed terms had been agreed with the Blues.The Premier League champions are short of left-backs having seen Filipe Luis leave for Atletico Madrid, but Mourinho insists he is not thinking about transfers.

“What happens happens, but I’m not going to lose one minute of my time thinking about the transfer window and I’ll try to get the best out of my players,” he added.
“These are the rules and I have to adapt but I don't think about it.”

 

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Eriksson: Ibrahimovic is tied to AC Milan

Sven-Goran Eriksson believes Paris Saint-Germain striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic will rejoin AC Milan before the close of the summer transfer window.

The Sweden international left San Siro for the Parc des Princes in 2012, joining the Ligue 1 outfit for a fee of €20 million and on a three-year contract contract.

The forward subsquently signed an extension until 2016 and recently stated that he is happy in the French capital.

However, Milan CEO Adriano Galliani and coach Sinisa Mihajlovic have made no secret of their desire to persuade the 33-year-old to move back to the Giuseppe Meazza and Eriksson believes that a return would also appeal to his compatriot.

"Ibra remains tied to Milan," the Swedish coach told the Gazzetta dello Sport.

"His return to Milan would be useful for both him and the Rossoneri."

Mihajlovic has stated his belief Ibrahimovic would transform Milan into title contenders.

However, Eriksson, who lifted the Scudetto with Lazio in 2001, believes the Rossoneri will be contenders this year regardless.

"I think that Inter and Milan have closed the gap that has separated them from the Bianconeri in recent seasons," he added. "In my opinion, they can go for the Scudetto."

Milan finished 10th in Serie A last season but have already splashed out on Luiz Adriano, Carlos Bacca and Andrea Bertolacci this summer.

Inter also have high hopes for the new season after acquiring the likes of Geoffrey Kondogbia, Miranda and Stevan Jovetic.