Milan eager for Chelsea to drop their asking price (Picture: Getty)
AC Milan are interested in signing Chelsea defender Fikayo Tomori on a permanent deal but insist they will try to negotiate a lower transfer fee for the player.
Tomori joined the Rossoneri on loan until the end of the season during the January transfer window after failing to secure regular first-team football at Stamford Bridge under Frank Lampard during the first-half of the campaign.
The England Under-21 international started against Roma on Sunday, his fourth Serie A start and fifth appearance overall since joining the club with club legend and current technical director Paolo Maldini pleased with his performances at the back.
Milan have an option to make the arrangement permanent at the end of the season for a fee believed to be roughly in the region of £26m.
The club however will try to get Chelsea to lower their asking price come the end of the season should they decide to extend the defender’s stay.
Tomori started for Milan on Sunday (Picture: Getty)
‘Tomori is a good talent and we have a buy-option clause,” Maldini told Sky in Italy.
‘The price is very high. AC Milan will decide at the end of this season and we will discuss it with Chelsea’s board.’
Tomori recently revealed he has had no contact with Thomas Tuchel, who arrived in west London to replace Lampard shortly after he sealed his move to Milan.
While admitting he has not had the time to think about the defender’s long-term future at the club, Tuchel insists the academy graduate has ‘high potential’ and has not ruled out the possibility of utilising him next season.
‘We will have this talk in the next weeks and months about all the guys who are on loan. But of course, I have a general impression of Tomori, which is that he has high, high potential, but I’m not into details right now. The time will come for that.’
Eintracht Frankfurt star Andre Silva has been heavily linked with Manchester United (Picture: Getty)
Andre Silva has brushed off speculation he could be set to join Manchester United but is flattered by such talk and believes rumours linking him with a big-money move are a good sign that he must be performing well with Eintracht Frankfurt.
The 25-year-old Portugal striker put pen to paper on a permanent three-year with Eintracht Frankfurt last September after impressing while on loan from AC Milan, where he had badly struggled to live up to expectations.
This season, only Robert Lewandowski (28) has scored more goals than Silva (19) in the Bundesliga and the forward’s barnstorming form has reportedly caught the attention of some of Europe’s biggest clubs, including United and Atletico Madrid.
The Sun reported last month that Silva’s agent, Jorge Mendes, will look to secure his client a summer switch to Old Trafford as a potential long-term replacement for Edinson Cavani if the Red Devils opt against renewing the veteran Uruguayan’s contract.
The report claimed United could agree a deal with Eintracht for a fee of around £30million, with the German outfit keen to raise funds in order to bring Luka Jovic back from Real Madrid.
‘I’ve heard rumours, but that is it. Rumours are rumours,’ Silva told Portuguese outlet O Jogo.
‘At the end of this season, it’s something that gives me more motivation to work.
‘It’s a sign that what I have accomplished has borne fruit and the path has been good.’
Silva intends to put speculation over his future to the back of his mind, with Eintracht currently flying high in the Bundesliga in fourth place thanks largely to his goalscoring exploits.
Asked how much he’s worth in today’s market, Silva joked: ‘Around 105 million?
‘I’m kidding. I think I heard 30 million and something somewhere… when we sell our merchandise we always increase the value a little bit [laughs].
‘Things are as they are and, whatever happens around us and the most important thing is to look at me and what I can do.’
Jamie Vardy is fit to face Burnley (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Brendan Rodgers is confident Leicester City forward Jamie Vardy will be fit to face Burnley but says James Maddison is likely to miss the trip to Turf Moor.
Maddison was unable to feature in the 3-1 defeat to Arsenal on Sunday, while Vardy played on through the pain barrier after sustaining an apparent groin injury in the game.
Leicester have a growing injury problem and the Foxes lost Harvey Barnes to a knee injury during the second half against the Gunners, with the midfielder set to miss the next six weeks of action.
While Barnes’ absence was expected, supporters had been hoping that Maddison would be fit but Rodgers says the midfielder needs more time, though Vardy will be fit to face the Clarets.
Barnes will miss the next six weeks (Photo by Rui Vieira – Pool/Getty Images)
Maddison is not fit yet (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
On Maddison, Rodgers said: ‘Nothing more. He’s feeling better, so we’re hopeful that later on in the week, he can get some movement out on the grass.’
On Vardy, the former Liverpool boss sounded confident the striker would be fit to start.
‘He just had a sharp reaction, but nothing more than that,’ said Rodgers.
‘You could see he went on and he played in the game. A little bit stiff… but I don’t think there’s anything more than just a bit of soreness.’
Leicester’s defeat has left the Foxes looking over their shoulder in the race for the top four, particularly given Liverpool’s win against Sheffield United.
The Premier League champions take on Chelsea on Thursday, meaning Leicester have the chance to capitalise on dropped points for at least one of their rivals.
Barnes has been in sensational form for the Foxes this term but Rodgers insists he won’t return until mid-April.
‘We’re hopeful that he’ll be going in for surgery tomorrow,’ said Rodgers.
‘Part of the patellar is separated in the knee, that’s come away, so it’s just a repair job there and hopefully he can be back in six weeks.’
The German coach was delighted with how his side nullified Manchester United (Picture: Chelsea TV)
Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel has praised N’Golo Kante for marking Manchester United danger man Bruno Fernandes out of Sunday’s game, while he also explained why he opted to restore Ben Chilwell to the starting XI.
The French World Cup winner was injured when the new manager first arrived in west London and had to wait until last week’s win over Southampton to start a match under Tuchel.
He was left out of the starting line-up that beat Atletico Madrid in mid-week but came back into the side against United in the goalless draw at Stamford Bridge, marking consecutive league starts for the first time since January 3.
Kante did a number on Fernandes, sticking to him like glue (Picture: Getty Images)
Tuchel has favoured a horses-for-course approach to his team selections since taking charge, giving every player a chance, and he felt Kante was the ideal man to stop Fernandes from exerting his usual influence – and he duly marked the playmaker out of the match.
‘N’Golo first of all deserved it,’ Tuchel told Chelsea TV when asked about his decision to start Kante in Sunday’s game.
‘And second of all it was his job to be around Fernandes and take him out of the game, which he did fantastically.’
Fernandes, usually so influential for United, only managed to set up one chance for his teammates and did not muster a single shot on target.
Elsewhere, left-back Chilwell was picked to start after being an unused substitute in Chelsea’s previous three outings – with Tuchel seeming to favour Marcos Alonso – and the German tactician was keen to take advantage of the younger full-back’s pace and athleticism as the Blues kept yet another clean sheet.
Tuchel continued: ‘With the back four, we chose Chilly because he’s a bit faster and a bit quicker in his movements than Marcos.
‘And we know that they have all the runs when they play their counter-attacking game, their transition game, so we went for that.
Chilwell was brought in to cancel out United’s rapid attacking options (Picture: Getty)
‘We defended first half in a back four, second half we switched to a back five with Reece [James] on the right side and then we attacked the half-field with [Cesar] Azpilicueta and Toni Rudiger.
‘Very, very brave. I was very happy with that attitude and that quality.
‘A bit unlucky [no to win] but on this level you need a bit of luck and sometimes you need maybe a shot from outside the box, or a deflected one, or a set-piece to open the game or maybe to decide it.
‘If you look at our goal against Atletico Madrid, it’s this one moment which can decide games and we didn’t have that today – or we had them but we couldn’t use them, so we have to live with it.’
Zlatan Ibrahimovic hopes to return for the second leg (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
AC Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic is set to be denied a return to Old Trafford as injury has ruled the Swede out of his side’s first leg Europa League clash against Manchester United.
The Serie A giants were drawn against Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side in the pick of the last-16 ties and the Italians travel to Old Trafford in ten days’ time for the first leg.
Ibrahimovic spent 18 months at the Theatre of Dreams, scoring 26 goals in an impressive debut season with the Red Devils.
The Swede tore his ACL towards the end of his first campaign and he joined LA Galaxy midway through the following season.
Ibrahimovic was looking forward to a return to the north-west but he’s suffered a thigh injury and is certainly ruled out of the first leg in England.
The veteran will now dedicate his recovery to return in time for the second leg at the San Siro, but he’s also doubtful for that.
Ibrahimovic spent 18 months at Old Trafford (Photo by John Peters/Manchester United via Getty Images)
Ibrahimovic was a popular figure with supporters and though spectators would not be at Old Trafford for the first leg, his return was seen as a way for fans to be given a proper goodbye to the Swede.
He last played for the club in December 2017 in a 2-2 draw against Burnley and he failed to play again before a move to the United States two months later.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer admitted after the draw that he was looking forward to playing against the Swedish legend.
‘We do have the tradition of making it hard for ourselves in draws,’ said Solskjaer.
‘It’s one of the those draws again that you feel could be a Champions League game. It’s good for us to have these games to look forward to. This team needs challenges and we enjoy challenges and we embrace them.
‘The tradition and history of AC Milan, it’s a great club that we welcome and it’s a great stadium that we go to there, and we’re looking forward to it.
‘Zlatan, of course, I’ve been so impressed, I’ve got to say, by how his career has gone. He had a career-threatening injury when he was here but came back from that and went to [the] MLS, then came back to Milan and has really lifted them.
‘They’re on the up and have done really well this season. I’ve been so impressed by him.’
Salah still on Real Madrid’s transfer list, says Calderon (Picture: Getty)
Real Madrid remain eager to sign Mohamed Salah but cannot afford the fee needed to bring the Liverpool forward to the Bernabeu, according to former club president Ramon Calderon.
Salah, 28, fuelled speculation of a switch to La Liga in December when he gave an interview with Spanish publication AS suggesting he was open to the idea of playing for either Barcelona or Real Madrid in the future.
However, the Egypt international, whose contract at Anfield expires in 2023, has since admitted that he is happy to stay at the Merseyside club ‘as long’ as he can.
Calderon believes Real are still keen to bring the forward to the Spanish capital but doubts his former club, who have been hit hard by the financial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, will not be in any position to meet Liverpool’s demands for the player if they choose to cash in.
Calderon told ON Time Sports: ‘He is a great player and a goalscorer.
Salah remains the league’s top scorer this season. (Picture: Getty)
‘He helped Liverpool by giving his best, but I don’t think they will let him go.
‘It is expected that, if they were to think about it, they would only let him go for a lot of money.
‘Salah is wanted, of course, by Real Madrid, but Liverpool would ask for a lot of money and, if that deal were to be completed, it would be crucial.
‘Salah is a great player with fantastic potential, and any club wishes to acquire such talents, but for Real Madrid I do not think they have the financial means to sign Salah.’
Rene Meulensteen, right, has revealed where Manchester United need to strengthen (Picture: Getty)
Rene Meulensteen has urged Manchester United to hand Edinson Cavani a new contract but says the Red Devils still need to sign another striker for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer this summer.
Solskjaer’s side climbed to the top of the Premier League table in early January, but less than two months later they find themselves 12 points behind a Manchester City side who have won 20 matches in a row.
With the title seemingly beyond United – but a top-four spot on the cards – Meulensteen has looked ahead to next season and says the club he coached between 2007 and 2013 need another striker.
Solskjaer signed Edinson Cavani on a free transfer last summer and the Uruguay legend has done enough to earn a contract extension, according to Meulensteen.
But Sir Alex Ferguson’s former coach says Solskjaer should still attempt to bolster his attacking options in the summer transfer window as Cavani, 34, is unlikely to play more than 40 games next season.
‘For me, Edinson Cavani has done enough to warrant another year,’ Meulensteen told Stadium Astro. ‘He’s a top, top professional and very fit.
Meulensteen believes Edinson Cavani will need some support next season (Picture: Getty)
‘But they need to look beyond Cavani. He’s not going to play 40 games a season so they need to look into that and strengthen that.’
Meulensteen was speaking after Manchester United’s goalless draw with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, in which Red Devils midfielder Bruno Fernandes again failed to make a significant impact in a match against a fellow top-six club.
‘When he influences games, he’s on the ball and drifts everywhere,’ Meulensteen added. ‘His passing today was a little bit off. That’s unlike him.
‘When you play against those bigger teams, they know if they can stop Fernandes, you basically stop Manchester United from creating anything.
‘You could see he was getting frustrated and that’s because he didn’t get a grip of the game.’
Manchester United face struggling Crystal Palace on Wednesday evening before visiting arch-rivals Man City next weekend.
Luiz scored a superb header off the training ground against Leicester (Picture: Getty)
Ian Wright has hailed Mikel Arteta’s decision to bring in a specialised set piece coach at Arsenal, insisting work on the training pitch is now paying off.
Arsenal fell behind early on against Leicester on Sunday but launched a superb comeback to leave 3-1 winners courtesy of goals from David Luiz, Alexandre Lacazette and Nicolas Pepe.
Luiz’s header six minutes from half-time got the Gunners on their way with Arsenal unlocking the hosts with a superb set play, delivered by Willian and wonderfully headed home by his countryman.
Andreas Georgson was one of a number of coaching appointments made by Arteta during the summer with the Swede brought in following a successful spell a Brentford as Head of Set Pieces and Individual Development.
And Wright believes there has been huge improvement from Arsenal in that department.
Arsenal’s equaliser on Sunday (Picture: Getty)
‘It’s no secret Arsenal have a set piece coach,’ Wright told Premier League Productions on Sunday.
‘When you look at how that [Luiz’s goal] was worked, it was worked brilliantly, you can see that Lacazette was there to clear out the space and pin their best header of the ball which is Jonny Evans.
‘And that is the space where you see David Luiz definitely waiting for the space to be cleared. The ball has to be pinpoint and it’s fantastic.
‘That’s why you get a set piece coach, to get those things working on the training pitch.’
Victory at Leicester moves Arsenal up to 10th, just six points behind sixth place Liverpool. Arteta’s side are next in action away to Burnley next Saturday.
John Higgins claimed the Players Championship in supreme style (Picture: WST)
John Higgins is setting his sights on plenty more big titles after his stunning Players Championship victory over Ronnie O’Sullivan on Sunday evening.
The Wizard of Wishaw dominated the tournament in Milton Keynes, seeing off Jordan Brown, Mark Selby and Kyren Wilson to reach the final, dropping just one frame along the way.
The Rocket looked likely to present a sterner test to him, but it only barely proved to be the case as Higgins strolled to a 10-3 victory over the world champion.
One of the finest players the sport has ever seen, it is no surprise to see the 45-year-old play well, but it was something of a shock to see him turn it on to that extent and absolutely decimate competition of the highest level.
The four-time world champion had not won a ranking event for three years, but after getting his hands on the trophy in such spectacular fashion on Sunday night, the Wizard fancies adding plenty more silverware to his already vast collection in the near future.
‘Amazing, if somebody had said to me that I was going to win it, I’d have thought it would be tough,’ Higgins told a press conference after lifting the title.
‘But the way I felt all week, the way I was in control, I’m thinking I can go on and win more now. It’s a funny feeling. I’ve got that monkey off my back of the last three years so now I can try and push on and add more titles if I’m feeling like this.
‘Throughout my career there’s been peaks and troughs but right now there’s no better feeling than sitting here. It’ just a shame your family and your friends are not here and the crowd’s not in. That’s the only downside.
‘I was coming here trying to get into the Tour Championship so I’ve managed to do that. This opens things up, gets me in the Champion of Champions, gets my ranking up there for the following year. You don’t want to lose touch with the top boys. It gives you a boost knowing that I’m going to be there for a couple of years now.’
Higgins will not play the Gibraltar Open this week but returns for the Tour Championship at Celtic Manor later this month and then attention will turn to Sheffield and the World Championship in April.
If the Wizard can conjure up more form like he did last week then he will be extremely hard to stop in South Yorkshire.
He feels that he has just produced the tournament of his life at the Players Championship, but is aiming to top it at the biggest event of all.
‘This is the best week so far in my career, but to win the Worlds for a fifth time, that would obviously top it,’ he said. ‘It’s going to be really difficult but listen, I’m going there now in a better frame of mind than I’ve done in previous years, so that’s a good thing.
‘I think it must have [sent a message]. I was maybe a player in the last couple of years that the top boys would come against thinking “well if he plays well he’s got a chance but if he doesn’t play well I can knock him over pretty easy.” So this must let everybody know that I’m still a contender.’
Ronnie O’Sullivan will certainly consider Higgins a contender for the World Championship after being on the wrong end of the one-sided scoreline on Sunday night.
The Rocket was not playing his best stuff and took on some fairly reckless shots at times, but was full of admiration for his conqueror at the conclusion of the contest.
‘John was just unbelievable, I’ve been watching his games all week. John was solid, scored well today and was just too good,’ O’Sullivan said on ITV.
O’Sullivan has now lost four ranking event finals this season (Picture: VCG via Getty Images)
‘John was strong, I knew I had to play well today and maybe I put a little bit of pressure on myself thinking that I had to play as well as I could to have a chance.
‘Once you don’t punish John when he’s playing as well as he is, you do a lot of sitting in your chair.
‘There’s not a lot you can do sometimes when someone’s as good as John and he’s tying you up in knots and making hundreds, you just have to sit it out and wait for an early night.
‘John was unbelievable this week fantastic, masterclass tonight and it’s great to see such a good player back winning. It’s good for snooker because that you don’t see very often. So I’m happy for John and his family.’
