Football rumours: Joao Palhinha in the sights of Bayern Munich for January swoop

Jorginho has a five-year contract waiting for him at Manchester City if he completes a move from Napoli to join the Premier League champions, his agent has claimed.

The Italy international is widely reported to have been identified by Pep Guardiola as the ideal midfield addition for the Citizens, but a transfer has yet to be agreed with the Serie A club.

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has already said that the club have rejected a €50million offer from City for the midfielder, who has been capped eight times by Italy.

But it appears as though Jorginho is keen on making the move.

2860 completed the most passes (2860) in the top-5 European Leagues in 2017-18. Crucial.

— OptaPaolo (@OptaPaolo)

Speaking to Radio Kiss Kiss, Jorgi…

Cadiz were 0-2 down at home against Barcelona with around five minutes of the match left to play when a medical emergency broke in the stands.

Goalkeeper Jeremias Conan Ledesma used his pace to help the medical team by bringing a defibrillator they obviously needed to save the life of a fan.

El arquero del Cadiz, Conan Ledesma corrió por un desfribilador, ya que un aficionado en el partido sufrió un ataque.

De momento el partido se encuentra pausado.

— ESPN Deportes (@ESPNDeportes)

…

Market: AC Milan win

Odds: 

Hoping to briefly reclaim their spot in the top-six, a resurging AC Milan will make the trip to the Stadio Mario Rigamonti on Friday night.

Starting with the hosts, while Brescia may have managed to scrap a 2-2 draw off of fellow strugglers Cagliari last weekend, it does no cover what has been a growing rut for Eugenio Corini s men. Still sat in the drop zone and without a win to their name over the past five weeks, the Serie A returners also have a reputation for their recent struggles on home soil. Including being hit with a 2-0 defeat against Sassuolo at the Stadio Mario Rigamonti last month, Friday s hosts have managed to record just a single Serie A victory in front of their own supporters and it should also be noted that when Br…

Serie A outfit Bari claim they have reached an agreement with Scottish giants Celtic regarding Italian midfielder Massimo Donati.

The Italian midfielder has spent the last two years at Parkhead, but now looks set to head back to his homeland.

Donati began his career at Atalanta, before moving on to AC Milan in 2001, and struggled to make an impact at the Giuseppe Meazza, though, and was often sent out on loan, taking in spells at Parma, Torino, Sampdoria, Messina and back at Atalanta.

The 28-year-old then moved to Scotland in 2007 and helped Celtic to the SPL title in his first season at Parkhead.

Donati soon fell out of favour under Gordon Strachan, though, and was tipped to be on the move during the 2009 January transfer window.

He ultimately r…

Swansea City manager Michael Laudrup believes his side s Premier League encounter against Stoke City has taken on must-win status.

The Liberty Stadium club conceded an injury-time equaliser in their 1-1 UEFA Europa League draw at Kuban Krasnodar on Thursday, and have won just one of their last five fixtures in the English top flight a run that includes last Sunday s 1-0 defeat to fierce rivals Cardiff City.

And, with Swansea having won both home fixtures against Stoke since their promotion in 2011, Laudrup knows his side need a positive result again this time around.

The game on Thursday was the first game after the derby so that was always going to be special, he told The Daily Mail.

But Sunday is the next game in the Premier League. So a combination of that and…

Mattia Perin has acknowledged trying to emulate Gianluigi Buffon s success at Juventus might be an impossible challenge.

Iconic goalkeeper Buffon brought an end to his illustrious 17-year stay at Juve, which included nine Serie A titles and four domestic doubles, when his contract expired following the 2017-18 season.

The 40-year-old will continue his career at Paris Saint-Germain, where he has signed for the upcoming campaign with an option to extend for another.

When asked if Buffon s legacy in Turin weighed on him following his €12million switch from Genoa, Italy international Perin said: To emulate what Gigi did will be difficult, if not impossible.

He is the most gifted goalkeeper in football history. He is the reference point for all goalkeepers.…

Kylian Mbappe has committed his future to Paris Saint-Germain amid links with European champions Real Madrid.    

Mbappe won the FIFA Young Player award for his performances at Russia 2018 after helping France claim the World Cup on Sunday.    

The 19-year-old forward scored in France s 4-2 victory over Croatia in Moscow as he took his tournament tally to four goals.    

Mbappe – who completed a permanent transfer to Ligue 1 champions PSG from French rivals Monaco during the off-season having spent last term on loan in Paris – has no plans to leave the capital as Madrid attempt to replace Juventus-bound Cristiano Ronaldo.  

MY LOVE 

— Kylian Mbappé (@KMbappe)

I will stay with PSG, continuing on my path wi…

Swede Lars Lagerback, has been named as Nigeria s coach on a five-month contract through until the World Cup in South Africa, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) announced on Saturday.

The 61-year-old was interviewed on Friday and named after a meeting of the NFF board here early Saturday.

He takes over from Shuaibu Amodu, who was sacked after Nigeria lost 1-0 to Ghana in the Africa Cup of Nations semi-finals last month.

Lagerback began work with the Sweden Football Association in 1990, concentrating on the the country s junior teams.

In 1996, he took over the Sweden B team and stayed there until 1998 when Tommy Soderberg took him on as assistant coach for Sweden.

In 2000, he was promoted to the position of joint-coach, a responsibility he woul…

One bright spark

I am wondering if Sir Alex Ferguson is beginning to feel a little worried about things at Manchester United.

Competitive

His first team is still competitive in the race for the Premier League title although Chelsea are looking good for that. They have lost to Chelsea and Liverpool and been somewhat fortunate to beat Arsenal and Manchester City. Whilst they are clearly still in the top two or three, they do not seem to have compensated for the loss of Cristiano Ronaldo.

In Europe, United have been less than impressive despite qualifying with games to spare. They have looked vulnerable at the back and less decisive in front of goal than they have been for a long time.

Shadow

At the back, Nemanja Vidic looks like a pale shadow…

Marcelino has signed a new three-year deal at Villarreal, the Liga club have confirmed.

The former Spain youth international – whose contract was set to expire at the end of this season – arrived at Villarreal in January 2013 and guided the club to second in the Segunda Division, sealing a return to the top flight.

In their first two campaigns back in La Liga, Villarreal finished sixth on both occasions, securing qualification to the Europa League.

They reached the last 16 in 2014-15 before being knocked out by eventual champions Sevilla.

This season, Marcelino has led the club to fifth in La Liga after 11 matches, while once again they look well placed to reach the knockout stages of the Europa League.

An official presentation to an…