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      Arsenal chiefs ‘wondering how they let AC Milan star Ismael Bennacer go’ after amazing career breakthrough in Italy

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      ARSENAL chiefs have been left furious at their decision to let Ismael Bennacer leave in 2017.
      The midfielder had arrived in North London two years earlier as a prodigious 17-year-old from Arles.

      Bennacer has become a regular fixture in AC Milan’s midfieldCredit: AP:Associated Press

      But he was allowed to depart with just one first-team game under his belt.
      Following two years with Empoli, that included a Serie B title winner’s medal, Bennacer joined AC Milan for around £14million.
      This term the Algerian has stunned with his brilliant performances at the heart of Stefano Pioli’s table-topping midfield.
      And according to Calciomercato, Gunners chiefs ‘don’t understand how it was possible’ to let him go without bringing back from Empoli – as they’d had the option to do so.

      Bennacer’s one and only appearance came in a 3-0 League Cup defeat to Sheffield Wednesday in 2015.
      And he recently revealed that Arsene Wenger didn’t even play him in the right position.
      He told Sportweek: “I arrived in England in July. The first two months I stayed in the hotel because I didn’t want to go and live with a family I didn’t know.
      “I was 17, I wasn’t of age and couldn’t live alone, so my sister came to stay with me.

      The Algerian was predominantly limited to reserves football at ArsenalCredit: Getty – Contributor

      “Then I was joined by Chaines, with whom I had been engaged since school and who would become my wife in England.
      In September, finally, I played my first game. In the League Cup, against Sheffield Wednesday.
      “Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain got injured, Theo Walcott was brought on in his place and after two minutes he gets injured too, so Wenger throws me on.
      “The problem is that he puts me wide left in the front three, it’s a role I’ve never played before.
      “I felt a crazy pressure on me. I lost a few balls, but I recovered a few.”
      Bennacer, 23, then opened up on his eventual Gunners departure.

      I still had a four-year contract with Arsenal, but I went where they really wanted me
      Ismael Bennacer

      He continued: “After that I didn’t play anymore, but I have no regrets. I trained with important players like Mesut Ozil and Santi Cazorla.
      “I still had a four-year contract with Arsenal, but I went where they really wanted me.
      “I didn’t know Empoli but I accepted to go down from the Premier League to the Italian Serie B because that was the club that wanted me most of all.
      “The reason why I went to AC Milan, I chose them for their history, but even more because his project was the best for me.”
      ⚽ Read our Arsenal live blog for the latest news from The Emirates

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      Cristiano Ronaldo’s 750 goals broken down with Portuguese almost scoring as many at Juventus as he did at Man Utd

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      CRISTIANO RONALDO hit an incredible 750th career goal as Juventus beat Dynamo Kiev.
      The Portuguese superstar, 35, reached the landmark in his 1,026th professional game.

      Cristiano Ronaldo has to score 43 more goals for Juventus to match his United tally

      Of that tally, 75 have come for Juve, 450 for Real Madrid, 118 for Manchester United, five for Sporting Lisbon and 102 for his country.
      The Champions League’s record scorer made it 132 competition goals in 173 games by tapping in a rebound from close range.
      Ronaldo had to wait for VAR to rule out an offside, with Stephanie Frappart confirming the goal as she became the first female to referee a Champions League game.
      The goal counted, but he was accused of stealing the strike from team-mate Alvaro Morata.

      After the match, Ronaldo shared a lengthy message with his 243 millions on Instagram.
      He wrote: “750 goals, 750 happy moments, 750 smiles in the faces of our supporters.
      “Thank you to all the players and coaches that helped me reach this amazing number.
      “Thank you to all my loyal opponents that made me work harder and harder everyday.

      “But above all, thanks to my wonderful family, always present in my best and worst moments.
      “Next stop: 800 goals. Let’s go!”
      Ronaldo has to score 43 more goals for Juventus before he matches his Manchester United tally.
      It took him just 46 games to score his last 43 goals for the Serie A giants.
      And he is now just 17 off Pele’s all-time record of 767 career goals.
      But he has been linked with a move away from the Italian giants, who he joined in 2018.
      Reports have claimed he is looking to build bridges with Madrid ahead of a reutn to the Bernabeu.

      Cristiano Ronaldo found the net from close range in the 57th minuteCredit: EPA

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      Furious Dortmund boss Favre claims Milinkovic-Savic was ‘in swimming pool’ after outrageous dive to win Lazio penalty

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      BORUSSIA DORTMUND boss Lucien Favre was left fuming with a penalty awarded to Lazio midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic.
      The Serbian won a spot-kick to seal his team a point in Wednesday night’s Champions League clash.

      Nico Schulz did not make contact with the ball but appeared to have missed Sergej Milinkovic-SavicCredit: Getty Images – Getty

      The Lazio star dramatically tumbled over his rivalCredit: EPA

      Borussia defender Nico Schulz had arrived late to a loose ball on the edge of the area, with the score at 1-0 to the Germans.
      While Milinkovic-Savic did get a toe on it, he threw his legs away and tumbled to the ground with minimal contact from Schulz.
      Favre likened the dive to a ‘swimming pool’ display after the point nonetheless qualified Dortmund for the next round.
      The 63-year-old told reporters: “We only drew because the referee awarded a non-existent penalty.

      “Of course it was a dive, he looked like he was in a swimming pool.
      “It’s ridiculous, you cannot identify what foul Schulz has made there.

      Schulz waved away the claims as Milinkovic-Savic rolled aroundCredit: EPA

      Mateu Lahoz initially turned down the appeals before changing his mindCredit: AFP or licensors
      “In any case, we are through, and that’s that.”
      Both sides were left unhappy with Spanish referee Mateu Lahoz’s display at Signal Iduna Park.

      Borussia felt Jude Bellingham had been unfairly felled earlier on in the game as he bore down on goal.
      A sweet move from the Bundesliga outfit then set up Raphael Guerreiro for the opener.

      But Lazio were allowed back into the match when Milinkovic-Savic made the most of a collision with Schulz.
      Lahoz initially appeared uninterested in the claim and was walking away from the scene before suddenly performing a U-turn.
      Ciro Immobile netted the penalty against his old team before Lazio wanted a penalty in stoppage time for a handball by Axel Witsel.
      That was waved away and Dortmund sealed their passage from Group F – with Lazio facing a showdown against Club Brugge.

      Lucien Favre was not happy with the penalty decisionCredit: EPA

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      Zlatan Ibrahimovic is on Marco van Basten’s level, says AC Milan legend and chief Paolo Maldini

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      ZLATAN IBRAHIMOVIC is on the same level as AC Milan legend Marco van Basten.
      That’s according to San Siro chief and club icon Paolo Maldini, who adds that bringing the high-flying veteran back to Milan a year ago was a ‘risk’ at the time.

      Paolo Maldini says Zlatan Ibrahimovic is on a par with AC Milan legend Marco van BastenCredit: AFP

      Van Basten won three titles with Milan while Ibrahimovic is hoping for a secondCredit: PA:Empics Sport

      Ibrahimovic, 39, has been in spectacular form this season, scoring ten goals in just six Serie A games to send his team top of the table by five points.
      Many believe Milan can finally end Juventus’ dominance in Italian football.
      And after leading the club to their last title in 2011, Ibrahimovic is at the forefront of their push for the top prize once again.
      He now has 78 goals in just 115 games across his two spells at Milan.

      And that has seen comparisons made with San Siro legend Van Basten, who scored 125 goals in 201 games while winning four titles and three Champions Leagues.
      Maldini, who is arguably Milan’s greatest-ever player, now serves as technical director at the club.
      And he reckons Ibrahimovic is on a par with the Dutch icon, who was forced to retire at 31 in 1995 due to injury.
      However, Maldini concedes Ibrahimovic’s return to Milan at the start of 2020, having spent the last few years with MLS outfit LA Galaxy, represented a big risk for the Italians.

      Maldini is now Milan technical director and believes Ibrahimovic is doing wonders for his ageCredit: Getty Images – Getty

      And the veteran himself acknowledged that too, rejecting an 18-month contract for a six-month deal until he had proven himself worthy of a longer stay.
      Maldini told DAZN: “[Ibrahimovic and Van Basten] are two super champions. Ranking them is difficult.
      “[Franco] Baresi and Van Basten were the ones who had something more than the others.
      “Marco unfortunately had to stop in his best moment. Ibra, for what he has done and what is doing, is undoubtedly at that level too.
      “[Last year] Ibra was the right man to make that mix between youth and experience. But it was a risk for sure.
      “He came from two years in the MLS, Serie A is a completely different thing.
      “When we proposed an 18-month contract, he told us: ‘Let’s do six months because I don’t know what I can give you’.”

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      Cristiano Ronaldo wins notoriously tough Golden Foot award – a gong Lionel Messi still hasn’t received

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      JUVENTUS star Cristiano Ronaldo has fended off competition from Lionel Messi and Robert Lewandowski to win the 2020 Golden Foot award. The 35-year-old has been named as the 18th recipient of the prestigious trophy that can only be won once during a player’s career. To be in contention for the award – that was introduced in […] More

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      How Juventus could line up with Giroud, Alaba and Rodrigo De Paul part of Pirlo’s new-look side after transfer splurge

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      JUVENTUS boss Andrea Pirlo is only four months into his managerial career, but is already set for more upheaval in Turin. The Old Lady have experienced a stuttering start to the Serie A campaign, winning only four of their opening nine games. But Pirlo, 41, appears to have his eyes on players that could help […] More

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      Leon Bailey denies naming son after Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo and says name ‘nothing to do with football’

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      BAYER LEVERKUSEN winger Leon Bailey says his new son Leo Cristiano is not named after Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo
      The Jamaican claims the baby’s name is ‘nothing to do with football’ despite the obvious similarities.

      Leon Bailey says his and partner Stephanie’s son Leo Cristiano is not named after Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi

      The winger has faced questions because of the obvious similarity between the namesCredit: AP:Associated Press

      Leon and long-term partner Stephanie celebrated the birth of their first child in June.
      And having called the little lad Leo Cristiano, he has obviously faced a lot of questions.
      But the 23-year-old has quashed such suggestions, insisting it was a personal choice.
      He told German outlet Bild: “It has nothing to do with football, but with me and my name. 

      “Leo is an abbreviation of Leon. And Leo is the lion – I am a lion. 
      “I believe that my son will also grow up with the mentality of being a fighter and a leader. 
      “And Cristiano is a lovely name that goes well with Leo.”
      Jamaica international Bailey is also close friends with Raheem Sterling and Usain Bolt.

      The forward attended Manchester City ace Sterling’s Great Gatsby themed 25th birthday last December.
      And he was also at Bolt’s surprise birthday bash in August which drew criticism in Germany because the sprint legend was forced to isolate the day afterwards.
      But Bailey does not regret the decision to celebrate with his good pal.
      He added: “Usain has been a very good and close friend of mine for years.
      “When in Jamaica I would never turn down an invitation from him.
      “He’s a kind of mentor for me, was always there for me in good and bad days.”

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