I never spoke to Guardiola – Raiola rubbishes Pogba talk

Mino Raiola has denied offering Paul Pogba and Henrikh Mkhitaryan to Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola during the January transfer window.

Ahead of Saturday s derby the Catalan claimed Raiola had given City the chance to take two of his most high-profile clients from rivals Manchester United.

Two months ago [he] offered me Mkhitaryan and Pogba to play with us, Guardiola told a media conference on Friday.

It came as a surprise given a frosty relationship between the pair that is said to be down to Raiola believing Guardiola forced Zlatan Ibrahimovic out of Barcelona in 2010.

But Raiola has denied having any contact with the City boss over either Pogba or Mkhitaryan.

I never spoke to Pep Guardiola, he told BBC Sport. I would not speak to him abou…

Manninger on trial at Liverpool

Liverpool have handed a trial to former Arsenal goalkeeper Alex Manninger, .

The thirty-nine year old has most recently been with German side Ausburg, where he spent four years and racked thirty-four league appearances.

He left Arsenal fourteen years ago and has since had spells in Italy, Spain and his native Austria.

During his time with the Gunners, he played thirty times in the Premier League and was part of the squad that won the double in 1998 while he also won the Serie A title with Juventus in 2012.

He was capped thirty-three times for his country and was part of the squad that played at the 2008 European Championships in Austria and Switzerland.

Reds’ boss Jurgen Klopp is keen on bringing in further competition for Simon Mignolt a…

Juventus interested in Manolas

According to a recent report from Calciomercato, Juventus are considering the possibility of a deal involving Roma defender Kostas Manolas. The 27 year old has been with Roma since back in 2014, when he made the transition over from Olympiacos. Since then he’s made over 150 appearances for the Italian giants, solidifying his place as a fan favourite. However, if Juve are seriously interested in going after him, it’s going to cost them big money. They’ve already got a strong relationship with Mino Raiola who is his agent, but that doesn’t mean they won’t have to shell out the big bucks in order to lure him away from Roma.

Atletico Madrid are also in the running, but in terms of infrastructure, The Old Lady are much better equipped to make this sort of push.

Man…

Robert Lewandowski linked with Real Madrid move

Every summer Bayern Munich’s star striker Robert Lewandowski seems to be linked with moves to Spain and England’s top teams. According to AS, via , the Polish striker could well be heading to Spanish giants Real Madrid this summer. The 29-year-old star is believed to be highly interested in making the move, despite interest from Chelsea.

One of the best number nines in the world

Lewandowski is, without doubt, one of the best out-and-out number nines in the world game. The striker guarantees 20-plus goals a season. In fact, the Poland international has now scored 20-plus league goals in his last four seasons for Bayern.

His lowest league tally in the last seven years was back in season 2011/12, in his first season as a Bayern player when he scored a still respectabl…

Inter eye Zabeleta move

Inter Milan are lining up a move for Manchester City defender Pablo Zabaleta, .

The Serie A side deployed scouts to cast an eye over the Argentina international in Wednesday’s Champions League clash with Barcelona.

Zabeletta had the captains armband for the game but only lasted fifty-seven minutes of the 4-0 defeat before being taken off with injury.

The thirty-one year old is one of a number of City players who is out of contract at the end of this season and could be tempted to consider his options in the summer having just started three of the eight league games so far this season.

Since signing from Espanyol in the summer of 2008, Zabeletta has racked up over three hundred appearances in all competitions and has won a host of major honours incl…

De Gea scoops first Golden Glove award

David de Gea has won the Premier League s Golden Glove for the first time in his career.

The Manchester United goalkeeper is considered one of the finest in the world in his position, but the honour has eluded him since he joined from Atletico Madrid in 2011.

Thursday s 0-0 draw away to West Ham was De Gea s 18th clean sheet of the Premier League season, meaning he cannot be caught by Ederson of Manchester City, who has 16.

That means the team has defended well all year, and I m very happy for that. It was a really good season for me, said the Spain international.

De Gea s honour adds to the fourth Manchester United Player of the Year award he collected this month, eclipsing the club record previously held by Cristiano Ronaldo.

clean sheet No.18…

Ukraine 0-2 Argentina: Almada and Echeverri on target but Albiceleste forced to settle for second in

Thiago Almada and Claudio Echeverri helped Argentina secure a 2-0 win over Ukraine, but were forced to settle for second place in Group B at the Paris Olympics.

Argentina were among the pre-tournament favourites to win their third gold medal, and their individual quality in the final third ultimately shone through in Lyon.

In a first half that saw just two shots on target, Argentina struck just two minutes after the break as Almada sent a curling effort beyond the grasp of Kiril Fesiun.

Ukraine threatened to snatch a point in the closing stages, but Echeverri secured the win in the first minute of injury time as he was quickest to react to Kevin Zenon s spilled effort.

But in the other game in Group B, Morocco swept aside Iraq as they emerged 3-0 vict…

Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino aims to bring happiness back to Stamford Bridge

Former Tottenham boss Pochettino has now been tasked with bringing about an upturn in form and results and is ready for the challenge that lies ahead.

“I know very well that Chelsea is one of the greatest clubs in the world,” he said in an interview with his new club released on social media.

“Of course, it was easy for us (Pochettino and his backroom staff) to take the decision to move here.

“I think it’s exciting for us and of course what we want is to bring the happiness again to this great football club, working hard, playing in the way that the fans can enjoy football.”

Pochettino has yet to win silverware as a manager in England but did lift the Ligue 1 title as Paris St Germain coach in 2022 before being sacked weeks later.

“T…

Chelsea 0 Manchester City 2: Aguero reaches milestone in Community Shield triumph

Sergio Aguero finally reached 200 goals for Manchester City as his double saw Pep Guardiola s side overcome Chelsea 2-0 in the Community Shield at Wembley.

Argentina international Aguero had been stuck on 199 since he notched in the EFL Cup final victory over Arsenal on February 25, but he finally added to his tally in the first half to put Chelsea on the path to defeat in their first competitive match under Maurizio Sarri.

The 30-year-old looked sharp and slotted home his second after the restart to ensure the Premier League champions started the new season with silverware.

Aguero s movement enabled him to find gaps in Chelsea s defence, which has switched to a back four following Antonio Conte s departure, and served to highlight the Blues shortcomings in the…

This is not the circus – Evra defends Mourinho over Man Utd´s style of play

Patrice Evra has defended Manchester United s style of play under Jose Mourinho, insisting this is not the circus .

The Marseille star returned to Old Trafford, where he played for eight-and-a-half years earlier in his career, for Michael Carrick s testimonial on Sunday.

Evra, a Champions League winner with United in 2008, spoke of his continuing love for the club after the match and insisted critics should not be too negative about their current team.

Mourinho led United to the Europa League, sealing a return to the Champions League, as well as the EFL Cup in his first season as manager, but still saw his side s style questioned as they slumped to a sixth-place finish in the Premier League.

This year they qualified for the Champions League and some peop…