Wednesday, July 20, 2016

All the very latest football news and gossip across Europe!




The European Championships are over.
Clubs across Europe are preparing for the start of the new season, which begins in just a couple of weeks! Some clubs are away on pre-season tours, others are preparing a little closer to home but every club is looking to strengthen their squads.

Here is a round up of all the latest football news/gossip across Europe today, which includes the likes of: The FALeicester City, Manchester City, Paul Pogba, Saido Berahino, Georginio Wijnaldum, Manchester United, Juventus, Crystal Palace, Diego Costa, Arda Turan, Alvaro Negredo, West Ham, Chelsea, Newcastle, Loic Remy and Robin Van Persie to name but a few!


Leicester City manager Claudio Ranieri says reigning PFA Players' Player of the Year Riyad Mahrez wants to remain with the Premier League champions - skysports.com

Manchester City will move for Leicester City and Algeria forward Riyad Mahrez, 25, if they fail to sign Schalke's 20 year-old Germany winger Leroy Sane - French Football News‎

It is no secret that Manchester United are interested in Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba and have Manchester United have had an £85m bid for the midfielder rejected by Turin club. An Italian newspaper have taken things one step further and say that he will be joining United, for a fee of €125m euros (£104.9m) - Corriere dello Sport (Italian newspaper)

In France they are saying a deal has been agreed for Paul Pogba to return to Manchester United from Juventus. Apparently negotiations will now be formalised over the final price and it is thought it could be €120m euros. It is suggested it could be completed in a ‘matter of days’ - L’Equipe (French daily newspaper)

Juventus want Chelsea’s Nemanja Matic and Newcastle’s Moussa Sissoko to replace Paul Pogba should he leave the club this summer. The Blues are not willing to part with the Serbia international Matic for anything less than €30m (£25.2m), while Newcastle want €41.7m (£35m) for France international Sissoko - Gazzetta dello Sport (Italian newspaper)

New Bayern Munich head coach Carlo Ancelotti says he will not allow striker Robert Lewandowski to leave for Real Madrid - Sportbild (German sports daily newspaper)

Talks are ongoing between Stoke and Liverpool with a £13 million fee agreed to take Joe Allen to the Britannia Stadium - skysports.com

Olivier Giroud is unlikely to leave Arsenal this summer, according to his agent Michael Manuello. Uncertainty has surrounded the 29-year-old's future, with reports suggesting he could be on his way to Napoli with Gonzalo Higuain potentially heading to the Emirates Stadium - Evening Standard

Atletico Madrid are the only club to have 'bid' for Arsenal target Gonzalo Higuain, according to Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis, although Italian champions Juventus Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain are all 'keen' on the striker - skysports.com

20 year-old defender Rob Holding's transfer from Bolton Wanderers to Arsenal will be completed in the next few days - skysports.com

Former Arsenal and Manchester United striker Robin van Persie has been heavily linked with a return to the Premier League this summer, after spending a year in Turkey with Fenerbache.
It is reported that Stoke and Middlesbrough are in pole position for the 32-year-old's signature, after West Ham turned down the opportunity to bring him back to London - The Mirror

Stoke City manager Mark Hughes has said that West Brom have rejected more than one offer for 22-year-old striker Saido Berahino, which reports suggest could have reached £20m. Crystal Palace and Watford are also interested in Berahino - skysports.com

Chelsea have emerged as favourites to sign Real Madrid forward Alvaro Morata - The Sun

Alvaro Negredo will join up with Aitor Karanka’s Middlesbrough squad in Spain today. The Valencia striker has agreed a one-year loan deal with an option for Boro to make the deal permanent next summer. The former Man City frontman will have his medical with the Middlesbrough doctors out in Marbella - skysports.com

However Middlesbrough's pursuit of Borussia Dortmund defender Neven Subotic has broken down, and the defender will travel back to Germany. Boro had agreed a fee of around £8m with Dortmund for the Serbia international and he was shown around the club's facilities nearly two weeks ago - skysports.com

Scans have revealed that Michael Dawson has sustained significant damage to the medial collateral ligament in his knee. The Hull City defender is expected to be out of action for three months - bbc.co.uk

Atletico Madrid may turn their attention to Liverpool's Belgium striker Divock Origi, 21, if they fail to sign Spain international Diego Costa, from Chelsea - Bleacher Report

Newcastle may be interested in signing Liverpool's Brazil midfielder Lucas Leiva, 29, as part of a deal taking Georginio Wijnaldum to Anfield, with the Magpies valuing Wijnaldum at £27m - Daily Telegraph

In Holland it is being reported that Everton and Tottenham will both bid for Newcastle's 25-year-old Georginio Wijnaldum, sparking a bidding war - De Telegraaf (Dutch newspaper)

Tottenham have ended their interest in Newcastle midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum. Spurs were keen on the Dutch international but manager Mauricio Pochettino has decided he is too expensive, with the Magpies unwilling to budge on their £25m valuation - skysports.com

Chelsea and Everton will go head-to-head to sign Napoli and Senegal international defender Kalidou Koulibaly. Chelsea are understood to have had a £20m bid rejected by Napoli, but the London club are set to revise their offer.
Everton meanwhile, backed by new owner Farad Moshiri, are willing to spend £37m on Koulibaly as new boss Ronald Koeman aims to steer the club back into Europe - The Sun

Liverpool have confirmed the signing of 30-year-old Estonia centre-back Ragnar Klavan from FC Augsburg. Klavan, who has appeared 112 times for his country, is believed to have cost the club €5m (£4.2m), with reports suggesting he has signed a three-year deal - bbc.co.uk and skysports.com

Burnley and England international goalkeeper Tom Heaton has chosen to extend his stay at Turf Moor. Heaton, 30, joined Burnley from Bristol City in 2013, and was part of England's Euro 2016 squad has signed a new four-year deal - skysports.com and bbc.co.uk

Swansea are reportedly keen to sign Tottenham's Nacer Chadli. Spurs value the Belgian at around £15m, which would be a club-record fee for Swansea - Daily Mirror

Turkish side Besiktas will target Chelsea's France striker Loic Remy, 29, if they fail to agree a deal with Fiorentina for Germany international Mario Gomez - Evening Standard

Germany striker Mario Gomez says he will be leaving Besiktas because of the "political situation" in Turkey - skysports.com

Europa League champions Sevilla have completed the signing of Palermo midfielder Franco Vazquez. The 27-year-old has signed a five-year deal - skysports.com

Barcelona are willing to sell £20m-rated Turkey midfielder Arda Turan, 29, with Chelsea and Arsenal are both said to be interested in the Turkey international - Talksport

Barcelona pair Munir El Haddadi and Sergi Samper have signed contract extensions, the La Liga champions have confirmed. Both Munir and Samper have penned a three-year renewals that will see them remain at the Camp Nou until June 2019.
Munir has a €60m (£50.1m) release clause in his new contract, while Samper has had a €50m (£42m) clause inserted in his deal - skysports.com

Crystal Palace, Sunderland, Swansea and West Brom are interested in West Ham's £15m-rated Senegal striker Diafra Sakho. However Diafra Sakho will not be sold until West Ham find replacements, according to co-chairman David Sullivan - Daily Mirror and bbc.co.uk

Manchester City and Manchester United both want 17-year-old West Ham defender Reece Oxford, who is valued at £15m by his club - skysports.com

Manchester United are eyeing a £25m move for the Monaco and Brazil international full-back Fabinho - Daily Mail

Manchester City are close to signing 24 year-old Argentina goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli, for £4m from Real Sociedad - Guardian

Newcastle have agreed a fee with Blackburn Rovers for defender Grant Hanley. The Scotland international will travel to Tyneside for a medical today after a fee of £5.5m was agreed between the sides - skysports.com

Aston Villa 'keeper Brad Guzan could be set to leave the club on a free transfer, ahead of a switch to Middlesbrough. The Teeside club announced the signing of Spanish World Cup-winning goalkeeper Victor Valdes earlier this month - Telegraph.

Transfer news coming from Portugal, concerning two Benfica players, who could be coming to a Premier League club. Reports that Talisca, a 22-year-old Brazilian attacking midfielder, and Eduardo Salvio, 26, an Argentina international winger, could both be moving in a joint deal worth £50m (£41.9m). Where are they going? The paper doesn't say, but does add that club president Luis Felipe Vieira is negotiating a deal in London - A Bola (Portuguese newspaper)

Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho is willing to let defender Tyler Blackett, 22, and strikers Will Keane, 23, and James Wilson, 20, leave Old Trafford - Daily Telegraph

Fulham are hopeful of agreeing a loan deal for England Under-21 international James Wilson - The Sun

Liverpool goalkeeper Adam Bogdan has joined Wigan Athletic on a season-long loan - skysports.com

West Brom goalkeeper Boaz Myhill has signed a one-year contract extension to keep him at the club until 2018 - skysports.com

Real Madrid youngster Borja Mayoral will leave the club’s training camp in Montreal to finalise his loan move to Wolfsburg. The striker, 19, will head to Germany today to sign his season-long deal with Wolfsburg - Marca (Spanish newspaper)

Aston Villa say that Stiliyan Petrov will not be offered a playing contract, but will be offered a role at the club - skysports.com

Arsenal have signed 16-year-old Norway defender Erik Tobias Sandberg from Lillestrom SK - The Sun

Stoke City are keen on striker Jose Angulo, 21. He plays for Independiente del Valle in his native Ecuador - Guardian

Sheffield United have turned down a £1m bid from Birmingham City for their young striker Che Adams - skysports.com

Bury have completed the signing of 30 year-old defender Leon Barnett on a two-year deal after his release by Wigan Athletic - bbc.co.uk

Rotherham United have secured the signature of 22-year-old Brighton's Jake Forster-Caskey. The central midfielder has 12 England under-21 caps, and signs on a season-long loan - skysports.com and bbc.co.uk

Luton Town striker Jack Marriott has pledged his long-term future to the club by signing a new three-year contract - skysports.com

Port Vale have signed midfielder Sebastien Amoros on a one-year deal, with an option of a further year. The 21-year-old joins from Monaco, where he came up through academy - skysports.com

Burton Albion manager Nigel Clough is hoping to offer Irish teenager Ryan Delaney a permanent deal with the club. Defender Delaney, 19, currently with Wexford Youths, has impressed the Brewers boss while on trial - skysports.com

Chelsea youngster Alex Kiwomya has joined Crewe on loan until 9th January 2017 - skysports.com

Crawley Town have signed midfielder Billy Clifford on a one-year deal following a successful trial, the Sky Bet League Two club have announced - skysports.com

Hearts have signed striker Tony Watt on a season-long loan from Charlton - skysports.com


# New rules to stop "intolerable behaviour" by players and managers have been introduced in English football.
In a statement, the Premier League, English Football League and Football Association said poor conduct has reached "unacceptable levels."
Starting this season, red cards will be issued to players who confront match officials and use offensive language.
Behaviour within the technical areas will also be more rigorously enforced.




Monday, July 11, 2016

A statistical look back at UEFA Euro 2016


The following article outlines STATISTICS for the UEFA European Championships 2016, which took place in France from 10 June to 10 July 2016 inclusive.


Antoine Griezmann
Tournament Winners: Portugal
Tournament Runners-up: France


Most Goals Scored by a Team:

France 13
Wales 10
Belgium 9
Portugal 9
Iceland 8
Germany 7


Team With Most Goal Attempts:

Portugal 121
France 121
Germany 108
Belgium 98
England 83
Switzerland 71


Hit The Woodwork:

Ricardo Quaresma
France 6 times
Croatia 4
Germany 4
Portugal 3


Pass Completion (%):

Spain: 91% - 2340/2562
Switzerland: 91% - 1947/2154
Germany: 90%  - 3639/4020
France: 88% - 3112/3519
England: 88% - 1767/2001


Possession (%):

Germany - 63%
Spain - 61%
England - 59%
Switzerland - 58%
Ukraine - 56%


Top Individual Goalscorers:

Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale
6 goals

Antoine Griezmann - France

3 goals

Olivier Giroud - France
Dimitri Payet - France
Cristiano Ronaldo - Portugal
Nani - Portugal
Álvaro Morata - Spain
Gareth Bale - Wales


Top Goal Assists:

4 Assists

Eden Hazard - Belgium
Aaron Ramsey - Wales

3 Assists

Cristiano Ronaldo - Portugal


Overview:

Total Tournament Goals Scored:
108

Average Goals per match: 2.12
1 goal scored every 44 minutes

Most goals scored by a team: 13
France

Fewest goals scored by a team: 0
Ukraine

Most goals conceded by a team: 9
Iceland

Fewest goals conceded by a team: 2
Italy, Poland, Switzerland

Best goal difference: +8
France

Worst goal difference: –5
Ukraine

Most goals scored in a match by both teams: 7
France (5–2) Iceland

Biggest margin of victory: 4 goals
Hungary (0–4) Belgium

Fastest goal in a match from kick-off: 2nd minute (1m:40s)
Robert Lewandowski for Poland against Portugal

Fastest goal in a match after coming on as a substitute: 1 minute
Ondrej Duda for Slovakia against Wales (introduced in the 60th minute)

Latest goal in a match without extra time: 90+6th minute
Dimitri Payet for France against Albania and Niall McGinn for Northern Ireland against Ukraine

Latest goal in a match with extra time: 117th minute
Ricardo Quaresma for Portugal against Croatia

Latest winning goal in a match without extra time: 90+4th minute
Arnór Ingvi Traustason for Iceland against Austria

Latest winning goal in a match with extra time: 117th minute
Ricardo Quaresma for Portugal against Croatia

Oldest goal scorer: 37 years and 61 days
Zoltán Gera for Hungary against Portugal

Youngest goal scorer: 18 years and 317 days
Renato Sanches for Portugal against Poland

Hannes Halldorsson

Most Saves:

Hannes Halldorsson - Iceland 27
Thibaut Courtois - Belgium 20
Rui Patrício - Portugal 20
Łukasz Fabiański - Poland 19
Gábor Király - Hungary 17


Most Clean Sheets:

4 clean sheets

Manuel Neuer - Germany
Rui Patrício - Portugal

3 clean sheets

Thibaut Courtois - Belgium
Hugo Lloris - France
Gianluigi Buffon - Italy


Quickest Players:
Kingsley Coman

(Top speed km/h)

Kingsley Coman - France
32.8

Yannick Carrasco - Belgium
32.3

Erik Johansson - Sweden
32.1

Šime Vrsaljko - Croatia
31.9

Albin Ekdal - Sweden
31.9


Attendances:

Overall attendance: 2,427,303

Average attendance per match: 47,594

Highest attendance: 76,833 – France vs Iceland

Lowest attendance: 28,840 – Russia vs Wales


Discipline:

Total number of yellow cards: 205

Average yellow cards per match: 4.02

Total number of red cards: 3

Average red cards per match: 0.06

Most yellow cards (team): 18
Italy

Most red cards (team): 1
Albania, Austria and Republic of Ireland

Fewest yellow cards (team): 2
Russia

Most yellow cards (player): 3
William Carvalho (Portugal), N'Golo Kanté (France) and Bartosz Kapustka (Poland)

Most red cards (player): 1
Lorik Cana (Albania), Aleksandar Dragović (Austria) and Shane Duffy (Rep of Ireland)

Most yellow cards (match): 10
Portugal vs France

Most red cards (match): 1
Albania vs Switzerland, Austria vs Hungary, France vs Rep of Ireland



(Goals scored during penalty shoot-outs are not counted and matches decided by a penalty shoot-out are counted as draws.)

# Some data courtesy of uefa.com




Friday, July 01, 2016

Babes of the Month - Sexiest Fans at Euro 2016


The 2016 European Championships currently being held in France are not just about the game of football and the players, it is also about the fans! I am talking about the beautiful female fans showcasing the tournament - whether it’s the French girls, the Poles, the Russians, the Irish, the Portuguese or the Albanians girls - they have all created quite a hype on social media, so here are a few of them for you.