ARSENAL could decide to sanction the £100m sale of Bukayo Saka in order to raise transfer funds, according to reports.
Meanwhile, Lionel Messi could be offered a Barcelona contract that would see him continue to be paid by the club for the rest of his life.
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TEAM NEWS IS IN!
Everton take on Crystal Palace at Goodison Park at 6pm and the line ups have been confirmed.
The eighth placed Toffees are looking to keep their European hopes alive.
And Palace in 12th will move to 40 points to all but guarantee their Premier League status next season with a win.
RUD AWAKENING
Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger ‘showed Kepa who’s boss’ in their training-ground clash, it has been claimed.
The Blues duo had to be pulled apart during a fiery Easter Sunday session.
And The Athletic have reported further details on the pair’s showdown at Cobham. Kepa and Rudiger were playing in a small-sided game organised for the players who missed out on Saturday’s 5-2 thrashing by West Brom.
Spanish goalkeeper Kepa reportedly gave Rudiger ‘a few verbals as the match was going on’. The Athletic reported: “They then collided when going for the same ball and that sparked a physical confrontation with a lot of pushing and shoving.”
The report also quoted a source as saying: “Rudiger showed Kepa who’s boss.”
Thomas Tuchel’s men were still smarting from a harrowing defeat by West Brom at Stamford Bridge the day before. The Telegraph earlier reported that the argument was started in a small-sided game, in which defender Rudiger is said to have gone in late on Kepa.
HAARD SELL FOR PEP
Manchester City are proud of the fact that for all the money they have spent, their record signing is still Ruben Dias at £64million.
So suggestions they are about to pay way north of £100m on a player like Erling Haaland seem unlikely.
Asked about the fees being talked of, Guardiola said: “I don’t know, it’s a question for Dortmund, his agent, so I don’t know
“So far the club has decided not to spend close to £100m for a player, or more than £100m on a player.
“Maybe in the future it is going to happen if they decide it is necessary to improve the team for the next five, ten years, for many reasons.
“But so far the club, the organisation, the CEO, the sporting director decided not to do it and that’s why they didn’t do it. But maybe in the future – I don’t know.”
PEP ON HAALAND
After Erling Haaland arrived in Manchester with his Borussia Dortmund team-mates, Pep Guardiola said: “A player who can score this amount of goals at this age has not been easy to find in the past, honestly.
“He’s 20, the numbers speak for themselves. When that happens it’s because he can score right, left, counter-attacks, penalty box, headers.
“He’s a fantastic striker, everyone knows it. A blind guy can realise he’s a great striker, you don’t have to be a manager to realise it.
“The only thing I can say is that he is an exceptional striker. With his age, he is an exceptional striker.”
The Dortmund bus rolled into town as the Bundesliga boys checked in at The Lowry Hotel EYE FOR GOAL
Pep Guardiola says even a blind man would be able to see the quality of Borussia Dortmund forward Erling Haaland.
The Manchester City boss distanced himself from reports linking the club with the Norwegian last week.
But he will get a close-up look at the 20-year-old hotshot – who arrived in Manchester wearing a Sky Blue backpack – when the two teams go head-to-head at the Etihad on Tuesday night.
Haaland has already scored ten goals in the competition this season and is rated in the £150million bracket by his German club.
Guardiola insists City will not be paying that kind of money for anyone this summer – but knows all about his ability.
And he knows his team will have to be at their best to keep him out during the two legs of the Champions League quarter-final…
CAL ON ME
Juventus are in pole position to sign AC Milan star Hakan Calhanoglu, according to reports.
The 27-year-old is out of contract at the end of this season and negotiations with his current club are believed to have stalled.
According to Sky Sport in Italy, Calhanoglu may remain at Milan beyond this summer as the two parties are still discussing a new deal.
Journalist Manuele Baiocchini is suggesting the player is wanting €1million, or £850,000, more a year than the Rossoneri are currently offering.
Should talks end without a signature, Juventus are believed to be in pole position to sign Calhanoglu.
The Turkey international has previously been a target for Manchester United, with reports suggesting he was close to signing a pre-contract agreement in November.
GET IN MA-SON!
Bruno Fernandes hailed Mason Greenwood for his winner against Brighton but warned the forward he cannot just care about goals.
The Portugal international also explained Greenwood may find things more difficult as his reputation increases. Despite that, Fernandes is confident Greenwood will improve his goalscoring form but emphasised that he must get his temperament right.
Fernandes told MUTV: “Everyone has to know that Mason is a young player and now everyone is starting to know how Mason is, it will become more and more difficult for him.
“It is normal. It is part of the development for him and he will learn from here so it doesn’t matter how many goals he scores; the most important thing for us is that he still helps the team and he is doing his best.
“It is important for us as a team, it doesn’t matter who scores. If Mason scores for us or not, it is important if he can do other jobs, recover balls, pressing, defend when we need it, make assists, create danger.
“So it is not important for him to score. He has to understand, he is such a young lad. Of course, every striker wants to score but, anyway, he will score more and more goals as the seasons pass.”
OH MY ROD
James Rodriguez has admitted he wanted a move to Atletico Madrid but it was blocked by Real Madrid.
The Colombia star was denied the move to their rivals and ended up joining Everton. Rodriguez told ESPN: “I played very little in Madrid. Especially in my second spell.
“After leaving Bayern I had everything ready to join Atletico Madrid, but Real Madrid didn’t let me.”
The playmaker instead ended up joining Everton last summer and credits Carlo Ancelotti for convincing him to move to England.
Rodriguez said: “If it weren’t for Carlo, I wouldn’t have come [to Everton]. It’s the truth. Then, I started to get to know the club, the people, and I saw that everyone wanted to win, like me.
“But Carlo being here was fundamental. It hasn’t been easy for me due to physical problems, but I know that when I play well, the team play well. I’ve shown my strength at the club, and with my teammates. I want Everton to play good football.”
LUK AND LEARN
Romelu Lukaku surpassed Ronaldo’s Inter Milan goal record – with 13 games to spare.
The former Manchester United striker, 27, swapped Old Trafford for the San Siro in 2019 for £73million. And since then he has been in red-hot form.
In 86 appearances for Inter, Lukaku has a staggering 60 goals.
He managed 34 in 51 last term and his winning goal at Bologna on Saturday took his tally this season to 26 in 35. And that means the Belgian hitman is more prolific than the Brazilian icon.
The ‘original’ Ronaldo – nicknamed the Phenomenon – moved to Inter in 1997 after one staggering season with Barcelona where he scored 47 goals.
R9 managed 59 goals for the Serie A giants – but did so in 99 matches across five injury-hit years. Lukaku also has more assists than Ronaldo for Inter, with 13 to 12.
DOR CLOSED
Borussia Dortmund are determined to keep Erling Haaland this summer.
Club CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke told Goal: “We will discuss this with Erling, his father and his agent Mino Raiola.
“We also want him to be happy to stay with us, to score goals for BVB next year with conviction. There is no alternative plan.”
Dortmund insist they want to keep Haaland, 20 CHANGING OF THE GAARD
Martin Odegaard has reportedly been offered to THREE of Arsenal’s Premier League rivals with the ‘heartbroken’ ace facing a permanent Real Madrid exit.
The Norwegian, 22, joined Arsenal on loan from Los Blancos in January and the Gunners are keen to snap him up for good after a string of impressive performances.
And 90min reports Madrid have decided there is no room for Odegaard as they plan to rebuild the squad.
It is a decision which is said to have left the former teenage wonderkid ‘heartbroken’.
The report states Odegaard is upset after being told to find a new club but that he would favour a full-time move to the Premier League.
Arsenal could struggle to muster the £40million Madrid are looking to recoup.
The report suggests the Spanish side have already spoken with three of the Gunners’ Prem rivals as they look to get the best deal for their asset.
Arsenal loanee Martin Odegaard is set to be sold by Real Madrid this summer A TELL-TALE
Manchester United are ready to offer Alex Telles to Sporting Lisbon on loan in a player-plus-cash deal for Nuno Mendes, reports say.
Telles was signed from Sporting’s rivals Porto this summer for £15.3million to provide competition for Luke Shaw.
But Shaw’s form has been so impressive, Telles has only played seven times in the league, with his other 14 appearances coming in cup competition.
It leaves his Old Trafford future up in the air, and according to Portuguese newspaper Record, United are willing to see the left-back leave.
They are understood to be plotting a deal for Telles, 28, to be used as ‘a bargaining chip’ to sign fellow full-back Mendes.
The offer could include a £33.9million fee for Sporting and a season-long loan of Telles.
United would still need to cover at least part of the Portugal international’s wages.
Man Utd are ready to offer Alex Telles on loan in a player-plus-cash deal for Nuno Mendes, reports say ZLAT’S THAT
Zlatan Ibrahimovic is set to sign a one-year contract extension at AC Milan, according to reports.
According to Sky Italia, Ibrahimovic will earned around £115,000-a-week at San Siro.
The Swede turns 40 in October.
NO GO KOKO
Youssoufa Moukoko has been ruled out for the rest of the season through injury.
The Borussia Dortmund wonderkid, 16, hurt his foot in training while on international duty with Germany Under-21s in March.
And the damage done is more significant than initially expected.
Germany U21 boss Stefan Kuntz said: “The injury is worse than initially feared.
“We have to let the healing process run its course.”
Dortmund tweeted: “Youssoufa Moukoko is out for the rest of the season with a ligament injury in his foot. Get well soon boy.”
Borussia Dortmund forward Youssoufa Moukoko is out for the rest of the season with a foot injury LUC WHO IT IS
Manchester United and Chelsea are set to do battle for Lucas Vazquez, according to reports.
The Spaniard is set to be out of contract in the summer, when his Real Madrid deal expires.
ACB claim that the right-sided player turned down Madrid’s latest offer, putting Premier League sides on red alert.
The 29-year-old has been playing as a wing-back of late, but made his name at Santiago Bernabeu as a winger.
Lucas Vazquez started Real Madrid’s win over Eibar at the weekendCredit: AFP
MORE ON DECLAN RICE
From SunSport’s Duncan Wright
Declan Rice will miss the majority of West Ham’s push for a top four finish – but does not need an operation which would rule him out of the Euros.
Rice has been wearing a brace on a knee injury suffered on England duty and the Hammers have already ruled him out for the next two matches, including tonight’s trip to Woves.
But SunSport understands the 22-year-old only expects to miss the next four-five weeks – and is already working in the gym maintaining his fitness levels.
The plan is to assess the injury again in a fortnight, when if all has healed as expected it will allow him to step up his comeback.
His injury is a nightmare for Hammers boss David Moyes, who has now lost his most influential player with a Champions League place up for grabs.
Rice is undergoing treatment with club medics and is positive he will be back for the final three matches of the season.
That would give him more than enough time to prove his fitness to be named in Gareth Southgate’s squad for the European Championship this summer.
Southgate already has a major fitness worry over Jordan Henderson, so for injury to strike the other proven option in the holding midfield position is a huge blow.
Declan Rice is expected to be integral for Gareth Southgate in the summerCredit: Alamy RAF AND READY
Ex-Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez wants a Premier League return.
The 60-year-old, who left Chinese Super League side Dalian Professional in January, has expressed his desire to manage in England again.
Speaking to Spanish newspaper Marca, the Benitez said: “I’ve already received more than one [job offer] in the last few months, but it wasn’t the right time or project. I needed to spend time with my family.
“My experiences with Liverpool, Chelsea and Newcastle have all been very enjoyable and for that reason my priority is the Premier League.
“My family are in England and it’s the most complete league, but I can’t rule out leaving. As I said, if there’s a well-defined project with objectives [I’ll be interested].”
Benitez wants a job in the Premier League WATZ THAT ALL ABOUT?
Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke has defiantly claimed that it will take an ‘exceptional offer’ for Man United target Jadon Sancho to leave the club this summer.
He told DAZN: “I’m not getting involved in probabilities, it’s no good. Jadon Sancho has been with us much longer than Erling Haaland.
“We’ll have to speak to Jadon too. If there is an exceptional offer, we will discuss it with the player and the agent, as always. Nonetheless, I am very sure that the transfer market will only run to a very limited extent this summer.
“Especially at the very big clubs, you can see what kind of wounds coronavirus has inflicted – and they are not small ones that heal within two weeks.”
Jadon Sancho is a long-term Man United targetCredit: AFP WILL TO WIN
Newcastle’s on-loan Arsenal star Joe Willock is confident that his side have enough to beat the drop.
After netting yesterday’s late equaliser against lacklustre Spurs, the midfielder said: “We need to win games, we need to win football matches to stay in the league.
“I feel like we can. I’m so confident in the manager and everyone else is as well, so I feel we have enough to do it.
“If we continue to fight like we fought today, I feel like we can stay in this league easily.”
Willock bagged the Toon a point against SpursCredit: AP COLD AS RICE
Declan Rice will miss tonight’s West Ham clash with Wolves, according to reports.
talkSPORT claim that the England star has sustained a knee injury, and could be missing for a number of games.
The Hammers would rise above Chelsea into fourth, should they win tonight.
Declan Rice has been an integral figure for West Ham this seasonCredit: Reuters COMEBACK KINGS
Last night’s come-from-behind victory over Brighton made it 25 POINTS taken from losing positions this season for Manchester United.
You can never count Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men out.
FERN TACKLE
Bruno Fernandes says he missed Marcus Rashford’s equaliser against Brighton last night, despite being credited with the assist.
The Manchester United star was hacked down by Joel Veltman after playing the ball, but the defender didn’t receive a yellow card for the challenge.
Speaking to MUTV after the match, Fernandes said: “I didn’t see it because someone almost broke my ankle!
“But I’m happy for the team, I am happy for Marcus. It was a good effort because as everyone knows he has come back from injury and he’s helped us.
“This effort comes from everyone. The press for the first goal was good it made them do the wrong ball and I recovered the ball and passed to Marcus and he scores.
“Everyone is happy when we win and it doesn’t matter who scores.”
The 26-year-old claims he missed the goal after being fouled MUST GO
Ex-Arsenal defender Shkodran Mustafi’s future is in doubt after he was dropped from Schalke’s squad.
The 28-year-old missed Saturday’s defeat to Bayer Leverkusen and there are rumours his manager isn’t interested in playing him again.
According to German newspaper Bild, Schalke boss Dimitrios Grammozis feels let down by the experienced defender and he may not play again this season.
Mustafi was left out of the manager’s squad at the weekend for ‘sporting reasons’ – leading to huge speculation about his future.
Schalke sit bottom of the Bundesliga and are almost certain to be relegated.
Mustafi, 28, may not play again for Schalke NO MOR
Juventus have reportedly ruled out a permanent deal for Alvaro Morata.
The Italian giants cannot afford to sign the Atletico Madrid striker because of Cristiano Ronaldo’s huge £900,000-a-week contract.
Juve reportedly will not be able to sign the Spanish striker after his loan spell comes to an end.
Morata has been one of the few success stories this season for Juve after joining on loan from Atletico Madrid.
The former Chelsea striker has scored 16 goals in all competitions for Juve.
His form has impressed the Italians but they are not in a position to hold on to him.
A permanent deal is off the table because the Italians are struggling financially.
There is an option to buy Morata at the end of the season but this is not being considered and even another loan deal could prove too costly for them.
Juventus cannot afford to sign Alvaro Morata permanently due to Cristiano Ronaldo’s wages CITY CHASE
Manchester City are ahead of Paris Saint-Germain in the transfer race to land Lionel Messi, according to reports.
But the Argentine great could end up staying put at Barcelona after all.
According to Mundo Deportivo, the competitiveness of the Premier League is thought to be an appealing factor for Messi as he considers his next step.
Manchester City are on course to win their third title in four years but the strength of the league makes playing in it an exciting prospect.
PSG, meanwhile, may be struggling to win the Ligue 1 title this year but have won seven of the last eight campaigns.
The chance to play under Pep Guardiola again would also attract Messi to the Etihad.
Manchester City lead Paris Saint-Germain in the race to sign Lionel Messi this summer
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
