September 2020 – Page 14 – Football Flame

Month: September 2020

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LALIGA

Report: Lionel Messi’s Dad Meets with Barcelona, Transfer Talks End in Stalemate

Lionel Messi of FC Barcelona Looks on during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 first leg match between SSC Napoli and FC Barcelona at Stadio San Paolo on February 25, 2020 in Naples, Italy. Lionel Messi still reportedly wants out of Barcelona. According to Rodrigo Faez and Moises Llorens of ESPN, "the face-to-face meeting between Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu and Jorge Messi ended in a stalemate on Wednesday as Lionel Messi continues to look for a way out of the club, sources told ESPN." Messi's father Jorge is also his representative.  And so the stalemate continues. Messi believes he should be allowed to leave on a free transfer after informing Barcelona he wants to leave, exercising a clause in his contract.  Essentially, every year Messi can leave ...
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TRANSFERS

Transfer News: Inter Milan Closing In On Arturo Vidal Capture

Arturo Vidal of FC Barcelona controls the ball during the Liga match between Real Madrid CF and FC Barcelona at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu on March 1, 2020 in Madrid, Spain. Inter Milan are reportedly set to sign Arturo Vidal from Barcelona in the summer transfer window, tying the Chilean to a two-year deal. According to reputed Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio, Arturo Vidal is one step closer to leaving Barcelona in the summer transfer window. The Chilean midfielder is closing in on a return to Serie A, with Inter Milan touted to secure his services on a two-year contract. Vidal joined Barcelona from Bayern Munich in the summer of 2018, in what came as a surprise back then. In the two seasons that followed, though, the 33-year-old ended up being a consistent performer for the B...
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NEWS

Phil Foden filled with positivity and pride as he joins up with England

Manchester Citys Phil Foden in action during the FA Cup Quarter Final match between Newcastle United and Manchester City at St. James Park on June 28, 2020 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. Phil Foden links up with England brimming with confidence after an impressive end to the season with Manchester City. The 20-year-old playmaker has picked up two Premier League titles, an FA Cup and three EFL Cup winners’ medals since starring in the Young Lions’ superb Under-17 World Cup triumph in 2017. Foden won the Golden Ball and BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year awards for those stunning displays in India, fuelling hype about a player that Pep Guardiola has praised to the hilt. The City boss knows a thing or two about talented players and the 20-year-old’s impressive, extended run ...
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PREMIER LEAGUE

Van de Beek honours Nouri with Man United number choice

Donny van de Beek riding on a bike before training session for the Dutch national team on September 1, 2020 in Zeist, The Netherlands. Van de Beek completed a transfer from the Dutch giants on Wednesday in a deal that could eventually cost United £39.1million (€44m). Soon after his move was confirmed, the Red Devils announced Van de Beek's choice of shirt number, as the 23-year-old made a classy gesture. Nouri, with whom Van de Beek came through the Ajax academy, had worn 34 during his time with the senior side before a tragedy cut short his burgeoning career in 2017. Then just 20, Nouri collapsed during a pre-season match and suffered a cardiac arrhythmia attack that left him with permanent brain damage and in a coma, from which he only awoke in March after nearly two years and ...
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NEWS

Nigeria: T.B Joshua Speaks On Lionel Messi’s Face-Off With Barcelona

Lionel Messi of FC Barcelona looks on prior to the Liga match between Real Madrid CF and FC Barcelona at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu on March 1, 2020 in Madrid, Spain. The founder of the Synagogue Church of All Nations, Temitope Joshua, has joined the growing debate around the impending exit of Lionel Messi from Spanish club, Barcelona. Multiple reports indicate that Messi has already communicated his decision to leave Barcelona after spending over 16 years at the Catalan club. His decision, many believe, is fuelled by the dwindling fortunes of Barcelona which culminated in their 8-2 annihilation in the Champions League by Bayern Munich; effectively ensuring Barca finished the season with no silverware. Although T.B Joshua is not advising Messi against leaving Barcelona, he does no...
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PREMIER LEAGUE

Arsenal fans may be allowed to attend Sheffield United fixture in October

Players of Arsenal FC pose for a tea photot prior to the UEFA Europa League round of 32 second leg match between Arsenal FC and Olympiacos FC at Emirates Stadium on February 27, 2020 in London, United Kingdom. Arsenal fans could be allowed inside the Emirates Stadium for the Gunners’ Premier League fixture against Sheffield United on October 3. The club are hopeful that some fans will be allowed in on a reduced capacity basis and in line with UK government guidelines. To begin with, it is thought that only gold season ticket holders and premium members will get priority access to tickets. But the hope will be that if initial trial runs go as planned, then more fans will be allowed into matches as the months progress. Fans returned to football on Saturday when 2,500 attended th...
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LALIGA

Gareth Bale: Real Madrid forward would consider Premier League return if club let him leave

Gareth Bale of Real Madrid controls the ball during the UEFA Champions League round of 16 first leg match between Real Madrid and Manchester City at Bernabeu on February 26, 2020 in Madrid, Spain. Gareth Bale says he would consider a return to the Premier League if Real Madrid finally let him leave the club. Bale blames the Spanish club for not allowing him to leave sooner and says it is nice to feel "appreciated" when he joins up with the Wales squad. The 31-year-old almost left Real Madrid last summer for a move to China but it was blocked at the last minute. Since then, Bale has made just 20 appearances for the club and only two of those came after football's restart following lockdown. Speaking before Wales' UEFA Nations League fixtures with Finland and Bulgaria, Bale excl...
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PREMIER LEAGUE

Napoli want Arsenal defender Sokratis Papastathopoulos without paying transfer fee

Sokratis of Arsenal poses for photos with the trophy after the FA Cup Final match between Arsenal and Chelsea at Wembley Stadium on August 01, 2020 in London, England. Arsenal centre-back Sokratis is attracting interest from Napoli, according to reports in Italy.  The Greek defender has entered the final year of his contract and has fallen down the pecking order in Mikel Arteta’a side.  Sokratis didn’t feature once for the Gunners after the restart, with Arteta preferring to use David Luiz, Shkodran Mustafi and Kieran Tierney in a back three. With the arrival of Gabriel Magalhaes from Lille, the Gunners now have nine centre-backs on their books, including Konstantinos Mavropanos, who has been sent out on a season-long loan to VfB Stuttgart.  Arsenal may need to ...
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NEWS

L’Équipe: Neymar, Di Maria, Paredes of PSG test positive for COVID-19

NEYMAR Jr of Paris Saint Germain celebrates his goal with Leandro PAREDES of Paris Saint Germain and Angel DI MARIA of Paris Saint Germain during the French Cup Final soccer match between Paris Saint Germain and Saint Etienne at Stade de France on July 24, 2020 in Paris, France. Paris Saint-Germain of Ligue 1 on Tuesday announced that three of their players tested positive for COVID-19 but did not release their names. Later L'Équipe reported that the the three positive cases were Neymar, Angel Di Maria and Leandro Paredes. The French sports newspaper also said that all three took their vacations at Ibiza where the coronavirus was spreading fast. The 2019-20 season gave PSG mixed feelings. The French giants not only continued their domestic dominance by winning the championships of L...
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TRANSFERS

Juve sign Samuel Iling-Junior, 16, from Chelsea academy

Samuel Iling-Junior of U17 England shot a penalty during the International Friendly match between U17 England and U17 Germany at Pinatar Arena on October 10, 2019 in San Pedro del Pinatar, Spain. Juventus have confirmed the signing 16-year-old winger Samuel Iling-Junior from Chelsea. Iling-Junior contributed an assist in three UEFA Youth League appearances for Chelsea last term and is known for his speed on the wing. "Full of vast emotions," the England under-17 international wrote on Instagram. "Being at Chelsea from such a young age has truly built me. "Not only as a the player I am today but also as a person. It's been a blessed journey and I'm deeply thankful for all those in the academy. "From the groundsmen, education, kitchen, staff, players, coaches, the list goes on. ...
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PREMIER LEAGUE

New Mikel Arteta signing Gabriel explains why he admires Arsenal star David Luiz ‘very much’

Gabriel dos Santos Magalhaes of Lille during the Ligue 1 match between Lille OSC (LOSC) and Olympique Lyonnais (Lyon, OL) at Stade Pierre Mauroy on March 8, 2020 in Villeneuve d'Ascq near Lille, France. Mikel Arteta’s latest signing Gabriel has revealed his admiration for new Arsenal team-mate David Luiz and says it is a ‘dream come true’ to join his compatriot at the Emirates.  Arsenal officially confirmed the transfer of Lille defender Gabriel on Tuesday, with the 22-year-old completing a £27million move to the Emirates and signing a long-term deal with the club.  The Gunners beat off competition from the likes of Manchester United and Napoli to sign the centre-back, who started all six of Lille’s Champions League games last season.  Gabriel became Arteta’s secon...
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LALIGA

Casemiro: “We’ve started at full speed”

Carlos H. Casemiro of Real Madrid controls the ball during the Liga match between Real Madrid CF and Deportivo Alaves at Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano on July 10, 2020 in Madrid, Spain. The start of the 2020-2021 La Liga season is right around the corner, with Real Madrid’s season opener scheduled for September 20th against Real Sociedad.  Los Blancos returned to training this past Monday and Casemiro was the first player to address the media and share his thoughts about what’s to come. “We’ve started at full speed, doing the different exercises in training. We’re already thinking about our first game in La Liga, because we want to start on the right foot.  Everyone is working well, the atmosphere is good and we’re all excited about working again, so the first days are ver...
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LALIGA

Lionel Messi’s father, Jorge, arrives in Barcelona for crunch transfer talks amid Manchester City links

Jorge Messi, father and agent of Lionel Messi arrives at his apartment in Barcelona on September 02, 2020. Lionel Messi's father and agent, Jorge, has landed in Barcelona ahead of crunch talks with the club over his son's future. Messi rocked Barcelona last month when his lawyers told the club he wanted to activate a clause in his contract that would allow him to leave for free before the 2020-21 season. The club disputed the claim saying the clause expired on June 10, though LaLiga then sided with the club by releasing a statement saying his contract was still valid, meaning paying his €700million (£632m) release clause is the only way to trigger a transfer. Jorge Messi, boarded a private plan in Rosario bound for Barcelona and a meeting with club president Josep Maria Bartomeu....
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PREMIER LEAGUE

Arsenal executive director Friar steps down from board after 70 years

Arsenal Director Ken Friar who joined the club 70 years ago to the day before the FA Cup Final match between Arsenal and Chelsea at Wembley Stadium on August 01, 2020 in London, England. Arsenal's executive director Ken Friar has stepped down from the board after 70 years at the club. Friar, 86, joined Arsenal in 1950 working in the club's box office before progressing to become managing director and played a key role in helping them move from Highbury to the Emirates Stadium. "Society, football and the club have all changed radically over the years but Arsenal has remained a constant force," he told the club's official website on Tuesday. "We've won and lost many football matches but we have always recognised that as a club we play a really important role in our local community ...
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PREMIER LEAGUE

Manchester United won’t give up on £100m Sancho

Jadon Sancho of Borussia Dortmund controls the ball during the Bundesliga match between Borussia Moenchengladbach and Borussia Dortmund at Borussia-Park on March 7, 2020 in Moenchengladbach, Germany. Manchester United will not give up on Jadon Sancho until the England star publicly admits he wants to stay at Borussia Dortmund. Sancho, 20, has remained tight-lipped about his future while Dortmund chiefs have insisted he will spend this season in Germany. United had put all their efforts into landing Sancho this summer with an offer of £70million up front rising to £110m. Personal wage demands had been sorted and the player was ready to make the move back to Manchester where he started his career at The Etihad with City. But the Bundesliga side wanted more money up front and Uni...
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Brandon Borrello seals loan move to Fortuna Dusseldorf

Brandon Borrello of SC Freiburg controls the ball during the Bundesliga match between FC Schalke 04 and Sport-Club Freiburg at Veltins-Arena on December 21, 2019 in Gelsenkirchen, Germany. Socceroos winger Brandon Borrello has joined Bundesliga 2 outfit Fortuna Dusseldorf on loan for the 2020/21 season from SC Freiburg. The 25-year-old has been at Freiburg since 2018 and has made just eight appearances for the first team in that time. The ex-Brisbane Roar winger is no stranger to the Bundesliga 2 competition, having scored three goals and mustered up eight assists in his 19 matches for FC Kaiserslautern over the course of the 2017/18 campaign. “I'm really looking forward to playing for Fortuna in the coming season. I know the 2. Bundesliga and know that Fortuna is a large and tra...
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TRANSFERS

Luis Suarez agrees personal terms with Juventus – report

Luis Suarez of FC Barcelona looks on during the LaLiga match between Getafe CF and FC Barcelona at Coliseum Alfonso Perez on September 28, 2019 in Getafe, Spain. Luis Suarez and Juventus have reached an agreement on personal terms, according to Italian transfer expert Gianluca Di Marzio.  While the deal is not fully done, it is understood that the two sides have already agreed on the basics and it’s now mainly a matter of finding an agreement with Barcelona. Suarez is under contract still, although it is known that Ronald Koeman does not want him this season.  The question is whether he would be allowed to leave for free, or whether Barcelona will demand a fee.  The forward can also demand Barcelona pay the outstanding money in his contract before they try to ge...
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SERIE A

Inter talk Lionel Messi, Lautaro Martinez and Arturo Vidal rumors

Lionel Messi of FC Barcelona controls the ball during the Liga match between Real Madrid CF and FC Barcelona at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu on March 1, 2020 in Madrid, Spain. Inter sporting director Piero Ausilio has been talking about the latest rumors and says his team aren’t interested in Lionel Messi and believes there’s nothing happening with Lautaro Martinez either. The Nerazzurri are one of several clubs to have been linked with Messi since the Barcelona captain told the Catalan giants he wanted to leave. A move to the San Siro always looked unlikely, and Ausilio now admits it really isn’t happening. “There’s nothing about Messi, I don’t even know where these ideas come from,” he told Sky Sport Italia. “There’s no one in football who wouldn’t want Messi. But then ther...
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LALIGA

Zidane: “Kroos will be remembered as one of the all-time greats in his position”

Toni Kroos of Real Madrid, coach Zinedine Zidane of Real Madrid during the La Liga Santander match between Real Madrid v Real Valladolid at the Santiago Bernabeu on August 24, 2019 in Madrid Spain. Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane talked about Toni Kroos in an interview published on Real France, where he praised the midfielder and revealed his attitude inside the dressing room. “Everything in his life is about football and family, nothing else matters. He will be remembered as a spectacular player, one of the all-time greats in his position,” revealed Zidane. The coach was asked about what qualities make Kroos one of the best midfielders in the world. “He’s so good that he can play as a number 6, as a central midfielder or also as an attacking midfielder. He is always calm and t...
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SERIE A

Bayern Munich offer Inter Milan £11m for Ivan Perisic to make his stay in Germany permanent after starring on one-year loan deal

Ivan Perisic of Bayern Muenchen looks on during a training session at Saebener Strasse training ground on July 26, 2020 in Munich, Germany. Bayern Munich have offered Inter Milan £11million for Ivan Perisic after he impressed at the Allianz Arena on loan this season. The Bavarian giants previously moved for Perisic, spending £4.6m on his loan deal, after failing to seal transfers for top targets Callum Hudson-Odoi and Leroy Sane.  The European champions now want to sign the 31-year-old permanently this summer but the Italian giants are likely to reject their offer as it is believed they are demanding at least £13m for the Croatia International.   According to Sky Sport Italia, an initial £11m deal has been tabled as Karl-Heinz Rummenigge leads the negotiations. ...
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