LIONEL MESSI scored a magical first goal for PSG against Man City in the Champions League last night.
The curling effort produced spectacular scenes at the Parc des Princes as the hosts ran out 2-0 winners.
Meanwhile on the transfer front, Chelsea and Liverpool are interested in Newcastle winger Allan Saint-Maximin, who has continued to impress this season.
While we’ve the very latest on Antonio Rudiger’s future.
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Stay up to date with all the latest from around the clubs with our live blog…
SEEING RED
Well it’s safe to say Donny van de Beek is NOT a happy man.
The Dutch midfielder – yet again overlooked for a place in the starting XI – was failed to be brought off the bench against Vaencia.
Instead, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer put Fred on instead of him, leaving Van de Beek visibly angry in the dugout as his team-mates held him back.
He then threw his chewing gum on the floor next to Solskjaer.
Watch the amazing clip below.
RESULTS
Here is the full rundown of the tonight’s Champions League matches.
And the big news is that holders Chelsea lost away at Juventus.
Meanwhile Cristiano Ronaldo scored a 95th winner for Manchester United against Villarreal.
BERN BRIDGES
Arsenal goalkeeper Bernd Leno claims manager Mikel Arteta has given him ‘no clear reason’ for being dropped.
The German stopper, 29, has not featured in the last three Premier League games for the Gunners and could be forced to move on.
Leno told German outlet Sport Bild: “There was no clear reason why I was out, just that it had nothing to do with my performance.
“He [Arteta] is the trainer, he decides. It’s difficult for me, of course.”
Summer signing Aaron Ramsdale, 23, has played in goal for Arsenal’s recent Prem fixtures against Norwich, Burnley and Tottenham.
Arteta hasn’t publicly confirmed Ramsdale as his first-choice stopper and Leno still has two years remaining on his Emirates deal.
KEL OF A BLOW
Kelechi Iheanacho has been forced to fly back to England after being refused entry to Poland for Leicester’s clash with Legia Warsaw.
Border guards spotted an error in the Nigeria striker’s documentation when the Foxes’ chartered flight arrived at Warsaw’s Chopin Airport on Wednesday afternoon.
Airport officials noticed a difference between Iheanacho’s official documentation and the visa he needed, as a Nigerian, to enter an EU country.
While the rest of his team-mates were allowed through, Iheanacho had to stay behind at the airport with a Foxes’ official as the club tried to get him back to England.
Brendan Rodgers said: “We’ve had an issue with Kelechi so his documentation coming into the country wouldn’t suffice.
“Unfortunately he’s not available to play, which is a shame because he would have played in the game.
“The paperwork didn’t allow him to enter the country, which is unfortunate. We’ll have to look at that when we get back.”
CAN’T HAK IT
Achraf Hakimi has trolled Manchester City star Jack Grealish with a photo he posted on his Instagram account.
The photo shows Hakimi, 22, standing over Grealish moments after the right-back had floored the England star.
Grealish’s face showed he had the wind knocked out of him on a tough evening at the Parc des Princes.
The winger, 26, scored on his first Champions League appearance against RB Leipzig earlier this month but he got little joy up against Hakimi.
The summer signing, who arrived at PSG for a reported fee of £59million, also thwarted the threat of Phil Foden after he replaced Grealish in the 68th minute.
And as if that was not enough, Hakimi has attempted to wind up Grealish one more time.
His caption read: “Big UCL night”, with Hakimi clearly proud at having flattened Grealish.
HAMMER TIME
Declan Rice says he has never been happier at West Ham – even though he has rejected two new contract offers from the club.
Asked if this is the happiest he has ever been at West Ham, he said: “Yes, I would 100 per cent say so because I’ve played in teams here that have fought relegation and been mid-table.
“But in the last two seasons, what the manager has built for us, and what we’ve bought into as players, has been amazing.
“It’s a place where you wake up in the morning and you look forward to going in and having breakfast with the lads.
“You look forward to having a laugh and you look forward to training. It’s like a big family. I think the gaffer said it before, we’re all like a bunch of kids.
“Honestly, it’s such a great place to be around at the moment. With the results and how well we’re doing makes it that bit more special.”
PELE UPDATE
Brazilian legend Pele is set to leave hospital as he continues his recovery from an operation to remove a tumour from his colon.
The three-time World Cup winner, 80, underwent surgery at the beginning of September after a tumour was discovered during tests.
According to Estado de Sao Paulo via Reuters, Pele will be discharged from the Albert Einstein Hospital in Sao Paulo, Brazil on Thursday.
And his daughter Kely Nascimento has also confirmed the iconic footballer is heading home after a worrying month for his family, friends and fans.
She wrote on Instagram: “Now that he’s stronger and leaving the hospital to continue recovering and treating himself at home, I’m going back home.”
NOU MONEY
Barcelona are battling to keep hold of the heir to Lionel Messi’s No10 shirt amid reports they have offered him a contract extension.
Ansu Fati inherited the iconic jersey when Messi headed to Paris this summer and has told his agent Jorge Mendes that he wants to stay at Barca.
The 18-year-old’s deal at the Nou Camp runs until the end of the season and reports in Spain say Barca have already offered an extension.
Football director Mateu Alemany is set to meet Mendes to finalise the deal once the agent returns from holiday in Qatar.
But there are fears the proposal could unravel due to the shocking state of the Catalan giants’ finances.
And it has also been claimed that Pedri is reportedly willing to sign a new contract, according to Sky Sport Italia.
It is said that all parties have agreed on the majority of the deal’s terms and a final agreement is expected by the middle of next month.
MAJOR FLAW
PSG star Idrissa Gueye claimed it was ‘simple’ to deal with Manchester City due to the lack of pace in the Citizens’ team.
Gueye, 32, opened the scoring early on with a powerful effort and helped to nullify the City attack after that alongside Italian Marco Verratti.
He told RMC Sport: “The most important thing is to remain solid.
“It wasn’t an easy match and we were able to defend well, play on the counter and get opportunities. We were able to score, and now we need to concentrate on the next game.
“We had to stay compact in the middle and make the most of our counters to score. Today it was simple to defend because they didn’t have a lot of pace.
“The most important thing is the entire team’s performance. We had to win after the draw in Bruges. We attacked as a team, we defended as a team. Now we need to prepare the next match well.”
TEAM NEWS
Man Utd’s team to face Villarreal in the Champions League is out.
The Red Devils are looking to exact revenge on the Spanish side after losing to them in last season’s Europa League final.
And it should come as no surprise that Cristiano Ronaldo leads the line.
And Chelsea’s starting XI for their away fixture against Juventus has been announced.
Romelu Lukaku starts upfront for his return to Italy, with Kai Havertz and Hakim Ziyech slotting in behind.
HAA-VING A LAUGH
Borussia Dortmund chief Hans-Joachim Watzke has denied claims Erling Haaland will need to be sold next summer.
It had been reported that the German outfit need to offload their star striker in order to raise funds to pay back shareholders – since the club is listed on the stock exchange.
But Watzke revealed Haaland could end up staying at Signal Iduna Park, despite the transfer interest in him.
Watzke told Sport1: “It has not yet been decided whether he will really leave in the summer. We’ll just have a look.
“I heard someone say: “They have to sell Haaland because they are listed on the stock exchange.” This is all bulls**t.
“The decision whether someone is sold at our company is made by the management and only by the management.”
LOWER THE BAR
Barcelona must cut their wage bill to just £85million after Real Madrid were given the green light to spend SEVEN TIMES more.
The figure, which would not look out of place in the Championship, was calculated as part of LaLiga’s restrictions on spending.
League bosses announced the figures on Wednesday with Barcelona’s spending once again coming into focus after the exit of Lionel Messi.
The failure to keep the Argentine has also been questioned despite the club making a £400m loss last season, to rack up £1billion of debt.
The salary cap is calculated with each club’s profit and losses, leading to the Blaugrana’s dropping from £591m in 2019-20 to £330m last season – and now by a further £245m for 2021-22.
It is in stark contrast to Real Madrid, whose limit has risen from £404m to £638m – over £465m more than any other club.
SHER THE LOVE
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer needs to show Anthony Martial more love to get the best out of him, claims Teddy Sheringham.
He told The Mail: “It’s similar to Harry Kane and Tammy Abraham, centre-forwards need to be loved.
“If you’re not feeling loved and appreciated, if you feel you have one chance to do well in the Carabao Cup and if you don’t you’re not going to get anywhere near the Premier League games, it does put pressure on you.
“Tammy has gone to Roma and Jose Mourinho has said ‘go in there and if you miss chances, you’re not going to be out the team straight away’.
“It gives you a relaxed time. Footballers need to be relaxed and cool in front of goal, not snapping at chances.
“When you are loved by a manager, you have that feeling. Martial obviously isn’t getting that at the moment because there are other players at the club in front of him and you feel like you have to snatch chances when you can.”
DONE DEAL
Steven Nzonzi has joined Qatari side Al Rayyan on a free transfer from Roma.
The 32-year-old was unveiled by the Middle Eastern club yesterday, but the length of the midfielder’s contract is yet to be revealed, the News Observer reported.
Nzonzi is one of the stars Roma had to sell due to financial difficulties the club faced caused by Covid-19.
It had been reported earlier this summer that Jose Mourinho’s side were planning to offload 23 players to balance the books.
The Frenchman was joined by his father Fidele, Al Rayyan’s chairman Ali Bin Saud al-Thani, and new boss Laurent Blanc during his unveiling at the club’s headquarters in the Qatari capital Doha.
Also at the press conference, by Nzonzi’s side was ex-Everton star Tim Cahill, who is the chief sports officer for sports academy Aspire Academy in Qatar.
UNWELCOME MATT
Matteo Guendouzi is already falling out with his Marseille team-mates – just eight games into his loan spell with the Ligue 1 club, reports claim.
The 22-year-old is reported to have clashed with a number of players in the squad.
In the 3-2 home defeat to Lens at the weekend, L’Equipe claim Guendouzi asked team-mate Gerson ‘when he was going to start running,’ which didn’t go down well.
Gerson had to be held back by team-mates as Guendouzi walked away, with captain Dimitri Payet stepping in to try and calm him down.
The incident came after Lens’ second goal, with Guendouzi running up to the Brazilian before confronting him and allegedly accusing him of not running.
LACAZETTE SWAP
Arsenal are considering a swap deal involving Alexandre Lacazette in January.
According to La Razon, the Gunners would be open to exchanging Lacazette for Sevilla ace Youssef En-Nesyri.
The north Londoners are not at all keen to let the France international go for free.
The centre-forward’s contract with Arsenal expires in June and the two sides have yet to reach a new deal
MARTIAL PLAN
Borussia Dortmund are interested in signing Manchester United ace Anthony Martial.
That is according to Marca, who hinted that this sort of move could lead to Dortmund superstar Erling Haaland going the other way.
The same report also suggests United could seek a player-plus-cash type of deal that would involve star striker Haaland.
But the Red Devils could still get embroiled in a transfer war with other suitors, such as Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Chelsea and Real Madrid, who are also keeping tabs on the Norway international
DAN AND DUSTED
Liverpool will be watching Villarreal ace Arnaut Danjuma in action tonight against Manchester United.
That is according to Voetbal International, who claim that the Reds will have scouts watching Danjuma in the Champions League.
The Merseysiders are reportedly monitoring the winger “closely” as they consider their options ahead of the January transfer window.
The Netherlands international joined the Yellow Submarine from Bournemouth earlier this year
PAUL-ING TOGETHER
Manchester United have received a significant boost in their bid to keep Paul Pogba at Old Trafford.
Pogba’s contract with United expires in June and his future appears to be uncertain as some of Europe’s biggest hitters are circling in hoping for a free transfer.
According to Sport, Barcelona are among the star midfielder’s suitors and have been monitoring him for a long time.
However, the France international would be forced to take a significant pay cut if he agreed to move to the Nou Camp.
The Blaugrana have endured a major economic fallout during the COVID-19 pandemic and struggled to meet LaLiga’s new salary cap rules
GETTY IMAGES LENO UPDATE
Inter Milan are not interested in signing Arsenal star Bernd Leno during the January transfer window.
That is according to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, who claims Inter are close to landing Ajax star Andre Onana instead.
That means the reigning Italian champions are not going to move for Leno, whose future at the Gunners is now uncertain.
The Germany international has been linked with a move away while battling to become the north Londoners’ No1 with fellow keeper Aaron Ramsdale
BONUCCI WARNING
Juventus star Leonardo Bonucci has suggested he knows how to handle Chelsea ace Romelu Lukaku ahead of tonight’s Champions League clash between the two clubs in Turin.
Bonucci told The Athletic: “Romelu Lukaku has proven himself to be a complete striker.
“He can win games on his own. When you come up against him you have to be switched on for 100 minutes a game.
“You must never engage Lukaku in a physical battle or play touch-tight. Instead, be ready to drop off because when his team has the ball, he will try to run in behind.
“In the box, he’s great at playing man-to-man so you need to be on the front foot, try to read the game and play hard”
LENO STATEMENT
Arsenal goalkeeper Bernd Leno insists he is “comfortable” at the Emirates despite reports suggesting he will leave during the January transfer window.
Leno told BILD: “London is very nice; Milan is not bad either and closer to my home Stuttgart.
“But I’m not seriously thinking about that yet. I feel comfortable at Arsenal and in London.
“Only if nothing changes in my situation by winter would I have to think about things: what option do I have, how can I continue?
“But I’m concentrating on my work in training; I can’t commit to anything else at the moment”
KLOPP ON CITY
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp insists the Reds’ 5-1 victory at Porto can only help them so much against Manchester City, whom they face on Sunday at Anfield.
Klopp said: “[It] always helps [momentum] but against City it doesn’t help at all.
“We need much more things than just momentum and we need to play better than we did tonight but that’s clear anyway.
“It will be a different game, I only heard the result now from the PSG-City game so City will and want to strike back.
“We are back at home after a few games without our crowd so let’s give it a go”
GETTY IMAGES ON THE LUKE OUT
Manchester United ace Luke Shaw could play against Villarreal tonight at Old Trafford.
Shaw didn’t train with the rest of the squad ahead of the upcoming Champions League encounter.
But Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will “give him a chance to be involved” against the Yellow Submarine.
Solskjaer said: “Luke has been in today so I’ll give him a chance to be involved, he didn’t train with the team”
PEP TALK
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola issued a message of defiance following the Premier League title-holders’ Champions League loss to Paris Saint-Germain.
Guardiola told BT Sport: “Now we’re going to eat good tonight, we’re going to drink a glass of wine, we’re going to recover and prepare for the game on Sunday [against Liverpool].
“At the end, yeah, the last 10 minutes were better, good performance we did everything we couldn’t score.
“We defend well, they defend deep and of course the counter attack of them is always dangerous with the quality they had but we controlled them unfortunately we couldn’t score but that’s football.
“Nothing to say more than my biggest compliment for the team”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
