Athletic Bilbao goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga has said he strongly considered a move to Real Madrid during the January transfer window.
The 23-year-old came close to joining the European champions before eventually settling on a seven-and-a-half-year contract extension at San Mames, with a release clause of €80million.
Already a senior Spain international, Kepa has racked up 44 top-flight appearances since his 2016 debut.
But the highly-rated shot-stopper says the offer from Madrid was not the right choice for his future.
66.7% Kepa Arrizabalaga has saved two of the three penalties he has faced in La Liga. Rescuer.
— OptaJose (@OptaJose)
It was a time of much reflection and the decision was one that would have shaped the directi…
Borussia Dortmund chief executive Hans-Joachim Watzke has agreed a three-year contract extension with the Bundesliga giants.
Watzke s previous deal was due to expire in December 2016, but he has now penned fresh terms until 2019.
The 55-year-old originally worked together with Dortmund president Reinhard Rauball to help save the club from insolvency in 2005.
Since then, Dortmund have won the Bundesliga twice, the DFB-Pokal in 2012 and reached the final of the UEFA Champions League in 2013.
Watzke told the club s official website: We maintain a trusting relationship at BVB.
Borussia Dortmund has developed economically [and is] one of the healthiest representatives of European football at the top level.
I am convinced that we are not yet a…
Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness has lavished praise upon departing coach Jupp Heynckes following the club s historic 2012/13 campaign.
Borussia Dortmund had beaten Bayern to the two previous Bundesliga titles but Heynckes, who took over in 2011, ended his third spell in charge of the club by claiming an unprecedented treble of league, cup and UEFA Champions League.
He will be replaced by former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola but Hoeness said the veteran s contribution will be remembered.
Jupp did a sensational job, Hoeness told Kicker.
If I had painted a picture of this club 20 years ago, I d have painted it exactly how Bayern present themselves today.
We re at the top now, the trick will be to stay there.
Heynckes has been strongly…
Nigeria have replaced injured Everton defender Joseph Yobo with Sochaux s Rabiu Afolabi for their 2010 World Cup qualifier against Mozambique on March 29, officials revealed on Friday.
A spokesman for the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF), Ademola Olajire, told reporters that Yobo suffered a hamstring injury while training with his English club and as such will miss Nigeria s qualifier in Maputo.
Afolabi has therefore been called up as a replacement.
The central defender last featured for the Super Eagles at the 2008 African Nations Cup in Ghana, but has yet to play for Nigeria under coach Shaibu Amodu, who took charge of the team last April.
Tunisia and Kenya are the other teams in their qualifying group, with the overall group winner making it to the …
A brilliant acrobatic equaliser by Emmanuel Adebayor earned Arsenal a 1-1 draw and a crucial away goal in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final against Villarreal here on Tuesday.
Spain s Euro 2008 victor Marcos Senna had put Villarreal into a 10th minute lead with an unstoppable swerving shot but Adebayor levelled on 65 minutes with his fourth Champions League goal and it was one to remember.
The Togo striker controlled a superb pass from Cesc Fabregas on his chest before volleying home with an acrobatic scissors kick.
The away goal makes Arsenal favourites for the tie going into the return leg at their Emirates Stadium on April 15.
Adebayor was delighted to have made an impact after returning from injury.
I wanted to do somethi…
Maurizio Sarri responded to Massimiliano Allegri s claims that tactical systems are irrelevant by joking he hopes Juventus president Andrea Agnelli did not read the interview.
Allegri this week said the tactics that dominate Italian football are bull**** and the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Paulo Dybala should be given a free licence to do as they wish.
But Sarri, who replaced Allegri as Bianconeri coach in June, insisted the role of a coach is to get the best out of the squad at his disposal.
I hope the president didn t see that or our wages will suffer a lot, he said at Saturday s news conference.
I agree that a coach doesn t need to transform players, but he must have an affect on a team while respecting the characteristics of individual playe…
Manchester United have already completed the signing of winger Jadon Sancho from Borussia Dortmund and are on the verge of completing the deal to bring in Real Madrid defender Raphael Varane. However, following the two high-profile incoming transfers, further signings will depend on sales over the remaining part of the transfer window, according to .
Most notably, United have been credited with strong interest in Atletico Madrid s Kieran Trippier as manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaers seeks to provide genuine competition to Aaron Wan-Bissaka on the right defensive flank, but their plan for this window is to achieve a net spend set between £75m and £100m. The purchases of Sancho and Varane have already taken their spending over the top limit of the span, and any move for Trippier wi…
Gelson Martins has completed a permanent switch to Monaco after spending the second half of 2018-19 on loan from Atletico Madrid.
Winger Gelson only joined Atleti in July 2018, but the former Sporting CP star failed to establish himself under Diego Simeone.
The Portugal international subsequently joined Ligue 1 strugglers Monaco in January, scoring four goals in 16 appearances.
And Gelson has now made his switch to Monaco permanent, signing a five-year contract.
AS Monaco is thrilled to announce the signing of . Originally on-loan from Atlético Madrid, the attacking midfielder has put pen to paper on a five-year permanent deal .
— AS Monaco EN (@AS_Monaco_EN)
I am very happy to be able to join Monaco in time and I am now very much l…
As for the visitors, while Brighton s new style of play under Graham Potter may have impressed many across the Premier League, the South Coast outfit are having trouble seeing off fixtures. Hit with a 1-0 defeat at home against Sheffield United over the weekend and lucky to have just shipped a single strike, the former Swansea boss has seen his new side record just a single victory in any of their previous seven appearances, a run that stems back to the 2nd of November. Although the Seagulls might hold a five-point buffer over the drop zone when opening Christmas Day, they have continued to show some worrying inconsistencies on the road. Aside from picking up a 2-1 win away at a struggling Arsenal earlier in the month, that is Brighton s only Premier League victory away from the Amex si…
After making his debut in Swansea City s friendly against Rennes, new signing Fernando Llorente is relishing a change of environment in the Premier League.
The 31-year-old Spanish forward completed his transfer from Sevilla prior to Saturday s 1-0 win, signing a two-year deal with Swansea, and he is hoping it can bolster his chances of a call-up from new Spain coach Julen Lopetegui.
This team wanted me a lot and I want to be here. I want to play in the Premier League and know the Premier League. This [Swansea] is a good team to play in, in the Premier League, he said post-match after completing 58 minutes on the weekend.
Llorente has scored seven goals in 24 appearances for Spain, but has not featured since his omission from the 2014 World Cup squad.
A…