Football news

London «Arsenal» is negotiating to invite the head of the scouting department of the Italian «Napoli», Maurizio Micheli, reports Football Italia.

According to the source, based on the available information, the EPL club is interested in offering the 57-year-old Italian specialist a managerial position in their recruitment department. It is noted that the negotiation process between the parties is at its final stage.

Maurizio Micheli is known for his successes in discovering young talents. He is credited with finding such famous footballers as Marek Hamšík, Kim Min-jae, and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. Previously, this specialist had experience working as a scout at «Udinese», and also held the position of sports director at the «Brescia» club.

AC Milan forward Rafael Leao may continue his career in the English Premier League. Two leading London clubs are showing interest in the Portuguese footballer, according to Caught Offside.

London’s «Arsenal» is ready to initiate a transfer offer for the Portuguese player amounting to 85 million euros. «Chelsea»'s offer for the winter transfer window has not yet been formed, but it is known that last summer the club offered Leao a sum of 113 million.

PSG midfielder Vitinha has attracted interest from «Liverpool», reports Caught Offside.

According to the source, the Merseyside scouts believe that the 25-year-old Portuguese player will strengthen Arne Slot’s midfield line. The Parisians may start negotiations regarding Vitinha’s transfer if they receive an offer of 130 million euros.

This season, Vitinha played 16 matches for PSG in all competitions, scoring two goals and providing eight assists.

«Tottenham» is considering options to extend the contract with center-back Micky van de Ven.

Remaining a key player in defense, the Dutchman has suddenly started to showcase his goal-scoring talent. The 24-year-old player is the top scorer for the «Spurs» this season, having scored six goals in all competitions.

As reported by Sky Sports, several clubs in the Premier League and other top European leagues are keeping an eye on van de Ven. However, «Tottenham» is determined to keep Micky, planning to protect the player from the interest of other clubs with a new contract on improved terms.

Former England striker Gary Lineker commented on the title contenders in the current English championship campaign.

«This season, Arsenal doesn’t need to catch up with anyone. They are leading the table — and that will help them. In such a position, if you don’t lose, everything will be fine, and if no other team is extremely stable.

"Manchester City is, of course, gaining momentum, and Liverpool is playing very poorly. We thought Liverpool was returning to last season’s level after a few good matches, but they took a step back in the match against Manchester City. If I were an Arsenal fan, I would feel pretty good right now,» Goal quotes Lineker.

The head coach of the England national team, Thomas Tuchel, commented on Jude Bellingham’s return to the national team.

«I’m glad Bellingham is back. He returns as number 10. I think this is his best position. One of his strengths is being able to score from this position. He scores goals and makes sharp passes. It seems easy, but it’s difficult to be in the right place at the right time,» Tuchel is quoted by The Guardian.

The head of WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) Witold Bańka explained when we can expect a decision on the doping case of the midfielder of London’s Chelsea and the national team of Ukraine, Mykhailo Mudryk, which has been ongoing for a whole year.

«First of all, we are waiting for a disciplinary decision in his case (from the English Football Association, — ed.). As of today, we do not know when it will be.

Then, according to the anti-doping code, we will ask for the player’s documentation and then decide whether we agree with this disciplinary decision. We can appeal in two cases: if we think the decision is too severe or too lenient,» quotes Bańka Ukrinform.

Let us remind you, the football player was temporarily suspended last December after a positive doping test. In June, the English FA officially charged him with violating anti-doping rules. The player faces up to four years of disqualification.

Aston Villa announced on their official website the signing of a new contract with forward Morgan Rogers.

The new contract for the 23-year-old forward with the Birmingham club will be valid until June 2031. Rogers' previous contract was set to expire only in 2030, but the player’s rapid progress and interest from top clubs prompted the Villans to act.

Rogers has scored 18 goals and provided 20 assists in his 85 matches for Aston Villa since his transfer from Middlesbrough for 16 million pounds in February 2024.

«Manchester City» coach Josep Guardiola believes that with the victory over «Liverpool» (3:0) in the 11th round of the English championship, his team confirmed its readiness to compete for the title.

«Very good first half, but the opponent intensified in the second. We somewhat forgot about our game, especially in the first five to ten minutes after the break. Overall, the guys looked great: correct tempo in ball handling and high level of organization in defense.

Our defensive structure was very good, and in attack, especially in the first half, we interacted excellently with all players in the midfield.

Before the game, I told the players: 'Do this not because „Arsenal“ didn’t win yesterday. Do it because we believe in ourselves and believe that we can play against the English champions and show our readiness to compete with them this season.'

We did it, we proved it — especially in the first half,» — Guardiola is quoted by The Independent.

The head coach of the German national team, Julian Nagelsmann, spoke about the disappointing results of Liverpool, for which Florian Wirtz plays.

«Honestly, this whole situation doesn’t make life easier for him. The club itself hasn’t been stable this year. If you look at the game against City, Liverpool looked worse throughout the entire match.

Perhaps Liverpool could also help him by capitalizing on some of the opportunities that Florian creates,» Nagelsmann is quoted as saying by Sky Sports Germany.

Liverpool head coach Arne Slot criticized the referees after the overwhelming defeat by Manchester City (0:3) in the 11th round of the English Championship. The Merseyside coach believes that the disallowed goal of Virgil van Dijk due to offside was a key moment in the game.

’In my opinion, the decision was wrong. Robertson did not obstruct the goalkeeper at all. Right after the match, I was shown a goal that the same referee allowed for City against Wolverhampton last season — John Stones scored the winning goal at the end of the match, and offside was not flagged. This time the linesman raised the flag after 13 seconds. So this decision had a huge impact on the match. It does not mean we would definitely have had a positive result, but who knows how everything would have unfolded in the second half,' quoted Slot, as reported by Liverpool’s press service.

Napoli’s footballer Scott McTominay advised the team’s head coach Antonio Conte to sign Manchester United midfielder Kobbie Mainoo, reports The Sun.

According to sources, the Scottish player had a meeting with Conte during which he discussed Mainoo’s strengths. McTominay believes that the 20-year-old midfielder can strengthen Napoli, whether he is loaned or transferred on a permanent basis.

Mainoo and McTominay are graduates of the Red Devils' academy. The Scottish player left Manchester United in the summer of 2024. This season, Mainoo has participated in eight matches across all competitions, where he marked himself with an assist.