Done deals:
– Palermo have signed midfielder Bryan Cristante on loan from Benfica.
– Granada have completed the signing of Sergei Guardiola.
– Norwich have signed Portuguese right-back Ivo Pinto from Dinamo Zagreb.
– Boca Juniors have completed the signing of Dani Osvaldo from Porto.
– Dundee Utd sign forward Riku Riski in loan deal from Rosenborg.
– Sunderland have completed the signing of Jan Kirchhoff from Bayern Munich.
– Angers have completed the loan signing of Saïd Benrahma from OGC Nice.
Today’s reports and rumours:
– Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger hopes Mohamed Elneny’s transfer from Basel will be completed in the “next two or three days.
– According to Le Progrès, St Étienne are closing in on a fee agreement with Heracles for Oussama Tannane.
– Bournemouth are still in for Napoli midfielder Jonathan De Guzman, according to reports in Italy.
– Borussia Dortmund coach Thomas Tuchel is keen for the club to bring in a replacement for the recently departed Adnan Januzaj.
– According to reports in England, Stuttgart are interested in signing Chelsea defender Papy Djilobodji.
photo credit: Ben Sutherland
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode
– Eden Hazard’s father has denied that the Belgium international is seeking a move away from Chelsea and said his current injury problems are down to playing too many games.
– Arsenal are looking to bid for Schalke defender Benedikt Howedes, according to reports.
– Borussia Monchengladbach are set to sign RB Salzburg defender Martin Hinteregger, according to reports in Germany.
– Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic is keen on a move to Galatasaray, according to reports in Turkey.
– Caen defender Damien Da Silva has rejected an approach from Premier League side Sunderland this month, according to L’Équipe.
– Aston Villa defender Joleon Lescott is a target for Major League Soccer side LA Galaxy, according to ESPN Soccernet sources.
– Wolfsburg left back Ricardo Rodriquez says he has “not heard” anything about Real Madrid’s interest.
– Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has ruled out leaving Borussia Dortmund as the club announced that there were no plans for any January sales.
– Rayo Vallecano coach Paco Jemez has confirmed his interest in signing Ghanaian midfielder Thomas from Atletico Madrid.
– According to reports in Germany, Liverpool are interested in Bayern Munich attacking midfielder Mario Gotze.
– Bournemouth will complete a £10million deal to sign Benik Afobe from Wolves, this weekend, according to reports.
photo credit: Rory
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode
– Alan Pardew has denied Crystal Palace are interested in Emmanuel Adebayor.
– Slavisa Jokanovic has sworn to fight to keep Moussa Dembele at Fulham, according to reports.
– Sunderland manager Sam Allardyce has turned his attentions to bringing in a new striker and a right-back, according to reports.
– According to Le Parisien, AS Monaco are in active negotiations for the signing of Ajax’s 19 year old defender Jairo Riedewald.
– Sporting director Cristiano Giaretta warns Udinese have “no intention” of selling Silvan Widmer in January.
– Lorient defender Lamine Koné is the subject of two offers from Premier League sides, Norwich and Aston Villa, according to various reports in France.
– Felipe Melo’s agent rubbishes rumours of a January transfer – “he wants to win the Scudetto with Inter”.
– Reports in the United States claim Roma’s Ashley Cole is close to joining MLS side LA Galaxy.
– Napoli and Torino have reportedly agreed on the terms for the loan of defender Nikola Maksimovic.
– Mauricio Pochettino says Harry Kane will not leave Tottenham, despite reports linking the striker with a move to Real Madrid.
– Sevilla midfielder Grzegorz Krychowiak has admitted he has heard of transfer speculation regarding Arsenal but insisted he will leave such matters in the hands of his agent.
photo credit: Marc Puig i Perez
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/legalcode
– New Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane says there is no chance Cristiano Ronaldo will leave the club while he is in charge.
Football tit bits:
– Barcelona have confirmed that they will appeal Luis Suarez’s two-game Copa del Rey suspension after the Uruguayan’s alleged involvement in a tunnel bust-up with Espanyol’s players.
– UEFA Team of the Year: Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich); David Alaba (Bayern Munich), Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid), Gerard Pique (Barcelona), Dani Alves (Barcelona); James Rodriguez (Real Madrid), Paul Pogba (Juventus), Andres Iniesta (Barcelona), Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid), Lionel Messi (Barcelona), Neymar (Barcelona).
– Argentina and Uruguay will form a joint bid to co-host the 2030 World Cup, the presidents of the two South American countries said on Thursday.
– Spanish prosecutors have reportedly requested that Neymar be charged on two counts of fraud and corruption relating to his move to Barcelona during the summer of 2013.
photo credit Football.ua
https:::creativecommons.org:licenses:by-sa:3.0:legalcode
– Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure has reacted angrily to losing out on the CAF African Footballer of the Year award, saying the decision is “pathetic”, “indecent” and “brings shame to Africa”.
newfanzone 