Luciano Spalletti said Napoli will never stop thanking Kalidou Koulibaly should he depart for Chelsea, as reports suggested the Senegal captain was edging closer to a move.
Koulibaly has made 236 Serie A appearances since joining Napoli from Belgian outfit Genk in 2014, including 27 as the Partenopei finished third last season.
Napoli vice president Edoardo De Laurentiis admitted he was unsure why Koulibaly was yet to extend his contract with the club last week, and reports on Tuesday suggested he could be set for a move to the Premier League.
Chelsea are reportedly locked in negotiations to seal a €40million (£33.7m) move for the 31-year-old, who has just one year remaining on his deal in Naples, and Spalletti says he will harbour no ill-will towards the d…
Romelu Lukaku feels happy and blessed after sealing a return to Chelsea, a club that has always remained close to his heart.
Lukaku led Inter to their first Serie A title in over a decade last season, scoring 30 goals and providing 11 assists across all competitions for Antonio Conte s team.
Conte had wanted to bring the powerful forward back to Chelsea – who sold him to Everton in 2014 – during his time in charge, but Lukaku instead moved to Manchester United.
Now 28, Lukaku is back at Stamford Bridge following a transfer reportedly worth £97.5million, a club record and just shy of the British record Manchester City paid Aston Villa for Jack Grealish.
I m happy and blessed to be back at this wonderful club, Lukaku, who joined Chelsea from Anderle…
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In a real heavyweight showdown on Sunday afternoon, a struggling Chelsea will welcome Manchester City to an empty Stamford Bridge this weekend.
Chelsea
Starting with the hosts, while Chelsea might have enjoyed what was a hugely impressive run of form throughout November and at the start of December, the Blues are a side desperately seeking a New Year s bounce. Despite breaking the bank over the summer and bringing in a host of new faces, it appears that there are signs of pressure on Frank Lampard s shoulders. Despite managing to book their spot in the knockout stage of this year s Champions League in routine fashion last month, the former England skipper saw his side put in another lackluster display earlier in the week. Throwing aw…
Gonzalo Higuain will retire from professional football at the end of the 2022 MLS season, he announced on Monday.
The veteran striker, a 75-cap former Argentina international who was a member of the squad that came second at the 2014 World Cup, will bring the curtain down on a glittering 17-year career.
Higuain played over 100 games for each of Real Madrid, Napoli and Juventus, having began his playing days with River Plate, while he also had brief spells with Milan and Chelsea before joining Inter Miami.
A six-time domestic league champion – with three LaLiga crowns and three Serie A triumphs – he signed for the MLS club in September 2020.
Higuain has been in top form for Miami in the second half of this season, scoring 12 goals and assisting a furth…
Graham Potter has praised Edouard Mendy s professionalism, with the Chelsea goalkeeper set to reclaim his starting spot against Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League.
Mendy has been kept out of the starting line-up under Potter by Kepa Arrizabalaga, having struggled with an injury following the new coach s arrival from Brighton and Hove Albion.
With an impressive run of form since, Kepa has kept his place, restricting Mendy to no game-time until last weekend, when he replaced his injured team-mate in a 4-1 loss to Potter s former side.
Potter, however, has been impressed by the patience Mendy has shown, and says the Senegal shot-stopper will get his chance to recover his first-choice status while Kepa is out, starting on Wednesday.
I ve had some good cha…
As is always the case when Barcelona fall short in the Champions League, the local media reaction was unforgiving.
On the brink of disaster, screamed the Diario AS front page. Barcelona were hurtling towards the abyss , according to L Esportiu.
Robert Lewandowski s 92nd-minute equaliser may have rescued a point in a 3-3 draw with Inter last time out in the competition, but it was not enough.
Having suffered a 1-0 defeat at San Siro one week earlier, the result left the Blaugrana staring at an early Champions League exit.
Xavi acknowledged Barca did not deserve to progress following their madcap draw with the Nerazzurri, but that will be no consolation to their hierarchy should they bow out of the competition on Wednesday.
As Barca – just a fe…
Aston Villa have tied down Jhon Duran to a new contract after the Colombian s fantastic start to the campaign.
Duran has netted four times in the Premier League this term, with all of those goals coming from the bench.
Last week, he grabbed his first Champions League goal, converting with an audacious lob over Manuel Neuer to hand Villa a memorable 1-0 win over Bayern Munich.
No player to have scored at least three goals in the Premier League this season has a better minutes-per-goal ratio than Duran (46), who has also overperformed his 2.06 expected goals (xG).
JD9
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial)
Duran was on the verge of leaving Villa over the summer, with both Chelsea and West Ham interested, but he ultimately stayed put.
The …
Stoke City are interested in signing Eric Bocat from Sint-Truiden in the summer transfer window, according to . The report has claimed that Bocat is in talks with Stoke and has been at the Championship club’s training ground this week to finalise the move.
Bocat has been on the books of Sint-Truiden since 2022. The former Lille prospect is regarded as one of the best left-backs in the Belgian Pro League. The 24-year-old made 28 starts and one substitute appearance in the Jupiler Pro League last season, scoring one goal and providing three assists in the process.
Stoke were once playing in the Premier League, but they now make up the numbers in the second tier of English football. The Potters ended the 2023-24 campaign as low as 17th in the Championship table. It will …
Brighton are optimistic Scotland midfielder Billy Gilmour will return to action before the end of the Premier League season, the PA news agency understands.
Seagulls boss Roberto De Zerbi said in a media briefing on Saturday afternoon ahead of his team’s trip to Liverpool the 22-year-old had returned from international duty with a knee injury and indicated he would be out for several weeks.
“Unfortunately Billy Gilmour can’t play for a lot of time,” said the Italian.
With the opening game of Euro 2024 a little over two months away, Gilmour sparked concern among Scotland supporters when he subsequently posted a picture of himself in front of his television wearing a knee brace as he prepared to watch his club-mates play at Anfield on Sunday.
Bright…
Fernando Santos has left his role as head coach of Portugal, bringing an end to a reign which saw him become the most successful boss in the team s history.
The 68-year-old departs in the wake of a World Cup quarter-final defeat to Morocco, a frustrating end to a terrific spell in charge that saw him lead Portugal to Euro 2016 and Nations League title triumphs.
His departure was confirmed by the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF), which said in a statement: The FPF and Fernando Santos agreed to end the highly successful journey that began in September 2014.
After one of the best participations ever by the national team in the final stages of the World Cup, in Qatar, FPF and Fernando Santos understand that this is the right moment to start a new cycle.
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