Lewandowski and Cavani to Man City?
Despite Raphael Honigstein, the Guardian's go-to guy for all things football-related and Germanic, stating last week that there was only a very slim chance of Borussia Dortmund striker Robert Lewandowski going anywhere other than Bayern Munich this summer, speculation continues to abound that the Poland international has already agreed a deal to go to Manchester United, while yesterday's Star mooted the possibility that he could be off to Manchester City, who are ready to pay a total of £75m to pair him up front with Napoli striker Edinson Cavani.
Should Lewandowski end up in Lancashire, it will set in motion a ridiculously complex chain reaction that will result in a ball-bearing rolling down a chute, dropping on to a weighing scales. which will consequently tip up and prompt Luis Suárez to join Bayern Munich from Liverpool, who will replace the Uruguayan striker with his QPR counterpart Loïc Rémy for £8m, at which point Valencia striker Roberto Soldado will inquisitively amble towards an unconvincing piece of giant plastic cheese and get captured by Tottenham Hotspur's Rube Goldberg-style mousetrap.
Meanwhile in The Sun, there's good news for Roberto Mancini, who will be pleased to learn that he won't be handed his P45 by Manchester City, even if they fail to win the FA Cup. The tabloid also reports that Mancini's employers are busy "monitoring the situation" of Santos striker Neymar, who everybody in Europe used to think was really good until they saw him have one poor game against England and wrote him off as an over-hyped young flat-track bully. The Brazilian prodigy with the controversial hair is apparently available after "snubbing" the offer of a new contract from Santos, in a state of affairs that is likely to put assorted clubs in Europe on a state of red alert.
Having failed to set the world on fire since realising his dream of moving back to his boyhood club of Barcelona, Cesc Fàbregas is being linked with a return to Arsenal, who are also believed to be interested in rescuing Iker Casillas from Real Madrid, where the goalkeeper's relationship with his manager José Mourinho is reported to be strained at best. Of course, should Mourinho leave Madrid during the summer as expected, Casillas may very well decide to stay put. In a busy morning on the idle transfer speculation front for Arsène Wenger, the Arsenal manager is also interested in bringing Sevilla's France Under-20 midfielder Geoffrey Kondogbia to the Emirates, but will have to fight off interest from Chelsea, Manchester City and Real Madrid to land the £17m-rated enforcer.
Having pulled off the impressive feat of managing to look excellentdespite playing in Sunderland's porous defence all season, it's little wonder that the Wearside club are hoping to keep Danny Rose in the north-east once his loan spell from Tottenham Hotspur has expired come season's end. In January, the 22-year-old, Doncaster-born full-back said he was settled at Sunderland and had no desire to return to Spurs, but André Villas-Boas is believed to see the boy's long term future as being at White Hart Lane.
And finally, Barcelona striker David Villa and Manchester City central defender Joleon Lescott are both rumoured to have conceded that they'll have to leave their current clubs to get the regular first team football required to give themselves a chance of booking their respective berths at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
Matija Nastasic deserved to be nominated for PFA Young Player of the Year says Manchester City team-mate Joleon Lescott
Joleon Lescott has expressed amazement Manchester City team-mate Matija Nastasic was not nominated for the PFA Young Player of the Year prize. Gareth Bale walked away with the honour on a night of personal glory at a plush London ceremony last night.
That Nastasic did not even make the six-man nominations list left Lescott stunned, particularly as the 20-year-old Serb is responsible for him spending so much time on the sidelines this season
"I have no gripe with him. You don't begrudge someone who comes in and does well," said Lescott.
"It was a bit harsh he was not nominated for PFA Young Player of the Year.
"He plays beyond his years and if he was English he would have had a lot more recognition.
"He's not a glamorous sort of player who comes out with the ball. He just does his job exceptionally well."
Yet Nastasic's presence, along with that of skipper Vincent Kompany is sure to focus Lescott's mind about whether to remain at City for the final year of his contract.
The 30-year-old has set his sights on a place in England's 2014 World Cup squad.
But his failure to gain selection for Roy Hodgson's initial party for the two most recent games against San Marino and Montenegro - even if he did end up starting both - has given Lescott something to ponder.
"It would be tough to have another season like this," said Lescott.
"I've only started 14 games and that is not great going into a World Cup.
"If my place in the squad was secure at international level then it would be a little bit easier.
"But I only got into the last squad by default.
"It was a reality check and made me realise I need to make a decision and it needs to be the right one for my career."
Lescott is phlegmatic about his chances of being selected for the FA Cup final against Wigan on May 11, knowing Nastasic was the man called upon for victory over Chelsea in the semi.
"I have played in the majority of the earlier rounds but it is up to the manager to decide on the day," he said.
"Obviously my future has been well documented but this is a special club to me.
"I feel like we've done a lot together and I'd love to stay.
"But I am not naive enough to think I'm definitely going to.
"If at the end I can say I've won two FA Cups, the Premier League and a Community Shield during my time at City then it wouldn't be too bad would it?"
Manchester City's owners reportedly close to finalizing deal to buy MLS expansion franchise
New York Times is reporting that Sheik Mansour bin Zayed al-Nahyan is prepared to pay $100 million expansion fee, build stadium in Queens and name the team New York City FC.
It's looking more and more like Manchester City's owners joining the ranks of MLS is getting closer to reality. The latest report comes from the New York Times, which adds some detail to previous rumors.
New York City expansion all about the money
Sure, other cities may have more developed soccer markets, but no one offers the financial upside of New York City
Some of the more relevant details include:
●Sheik Mansour bin Zayed al-Nahyan's group is prepared to pay the long-rumored $100 million expansion fee
●The team will likely be called New York City FC and could begin play as early as 2016
●Their home games will be played in Queens, where plans for a $350 million, privately-financed stadium are close to being approved
●MLS is hoping to make the announcement on May 25, when Manchester City is playing Chelsea in an exhibition at Yankee Stadium
None of this is necessarily "new" but it is the strongest indication yet that this is all but a done deal. MLS Commissioner Don Garber recently said he hoped to have an announcement on the league's 20th team sometime in the next 4-6 weeks, which fits nicely in this timeline.
It would also be a rather massive investment. At $100 million, al-Nahyan would be paying more than twice as much as the previous round of expansion. The stadium would also immediately become the most expensive soccer-specific facility in North America, topping the $200 million the New York Red Bulls and Sporting Kansas City spent on their stadiums. CD Chivas' Estadio Omnilife also cost about $200 million.
This will be an entirely different kind of challenge, though. Unlike when he bought Manchester City, al-Nahyan's riches will not play quite as powerful a role in terms of attracting talent. There are those that believe the MLS team will be used as a farm club for Manchester City, but the league's salary cap and allocation rules will make that very difficult as even relatively cheap Premier League players would count as Designated Players in MLS.
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[/spoiler]GOLDEN BOLLOX 29-4-2010
Roberto Mancini tells Carlos Tevez to shape up or ship out of City
'If a top player is not happy then it's better to go'
• Further talks planned at the end of the season
Roberto Mancini's uneasy relationship with Carlos Tevez is threatening the player's future at Manchester City after the manager confirmed they had clashed behind the scenes. The Italian said the forward should leave the club if he is unhappy with his coaching methods.
Mancini confirmed he had summoned Tevez to his office to ask for an explanation about the player's recent criticisms of his training regime. The Italian told his leading scorer he would not tolerate any more of this, regardless of the fact that Tevez has scored 28 goals this season and is the overwhelming choice to be named City's player of the year. The two men shook hands at the end of a largely one-sided conversation and agreed to focus on City's remaining three games of the season but stories have emerged this week of the Argentinian considering his future.
Asked if he thought Tevez might be unhappy, Mancini replied: "I don't know. Tevez has four years left on his contract. But I don't know. If he's not happy, it would be better [for him] to change squads. If a top player is not happy to stay here, then it's better for him to go to another team."
Tevez upset Mancini by complaining about the manager's habit of arranging double training sessions. Mancini does this every Tuesday if there is no midweek game and Tevez said: "The players are not happy with this. We are at the end of a long season, we have big matches, we are tired, but there are still double training sessions, morning and afternoon. "
This was in an interview in the Daily Mail in the week preceding the Manchester derby, when Tevez had been specifically asked not to speak to the media. He went on to say he was "OK" with Mancini but the former Internazionale coach felt his authority had been undermined by a player he has repeatedly talked up as being one of the best in the world.
At the time Mancini said he did not want to take issue with the former United striker before such an important game. The timing is still bad from a City perspective, with important games coming up against Aston Villa and Tottenham Hotspur in the next few days, but Mancini was willing to explain his irritation as he shaped up for the most critical phase of City's season.
Mancini said today: "I've spoken to Tevez. What we said was private but I did remind him that there had been only one time when he had to train twice in a day.We have trained twice four times in the five months I have been here. On two of those times Carlos was in Argentina and one time he was here but didn't train. So I don't know why [he's unhappy]. When we don't have a midweek game I always train two times on Tuesday because it's the only way I know."
Mancini added: "It's important that when a manager or player works in a team, he must be happy. If he's not, it's not good for the club, for the squad, or for the player. This is not just for Tevez but for all the players; for Tevez, for Manu [Emmanuel Adebayor], for me, for everyone.
"I don't know if Carlos Tevez is unhappy. He must be content, though, because we have to play three important games. For the players it is a crucial moment. They must put everything they have on the pitch."
Tevez, whose English is still limited, did not offer an apology. "When I speak to a player, I don't need an apology," Mancini said. "I've played football, I know players very well and I know these situations. I think he's happy because he's worked very well the last two weeks. I hope Carlos can score three or four goals in the next three games and afterwards we can decide if he has a problem."
Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini is ready to offload Emmanuel Adebayor, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Wayne Bridge and Stephen Ireland and will make a £50m move for Liverpool striker Fernando Torres.The Sun
Real Madrid are preparing to launch a £20m move for Manchester United's France defender Patrice Evra, with Arsenal's Gael Clichy, Chelsea's Ashley Cole and Fiorentina's Juan Manuel Vargas the other left-backs on Real's summer shortlist. Daily Mail
Barcelona are ready to make a summer bid for Newcastle defender Steven Taylor, who is valued at around £8m.
Daily Mirror
Manchester City could make a move for Bayern Munich's 32-year-old striker Luca Toni, who is currently on loan at Italian side Roma. imscouting.com
Manchester City and Aston Villa are competing to sign PSV Eindhoven's Bulgarian international right-back Stanislav Manolev, 24, for £5m. Daily Mail
Argentina striker Carlos Tevez is on the verge of demanding a transfer away from Manchester City with Liverpool ready to pay £18m. footylatest.com
West Brom have put a £12m price tag on sought-after midfielder Graham Dorrans. West Ham have had a £4m bid rejected while Arsenal, Manchester City and Everton are also interested in the Scotland international. Daily Mirror
OTHER BOLLOX
Barcelona's Spanish striker David Villa, 31, will try to force a move to save his chances of playing in the 2014 World Cup but may have missed a chance to join Arsenal. Daily Mirror
Sunderland will offer Tottenham £8m to sign full-back Danny Rose, 22, permanently. Metro
Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger wants to sign Sevilla's £17m-rated Geoffrey Kondogbia, although the France Under-20 midfielder is also on Chelsea, Manchester City and Real Madrid's radar. Sun
West Brom striker Shane Long, 26, is prepared to turn down the chance to move to Germany to stay at the Hawthorns. Metro
Defender Joleon Lescott, 30, admits he may have to leave Manchester City in the summer to safeguard his World Cup ambitions. DSSC
Middlesbrough boss Tony Mowbray wants to sign Real Madrid striker Javier Acuna, 24. The Paraguayan is currently on loan at Girona and available on a free transfer this summer. DSSC
Harry Redknapp fears QPR will never get back in the Premier League after their relegation was confirmed on Sunday. Daily Mirror
Liverpool could strike a deal with Qatari company Ooredoo to rename Anfield. DSSC
Newcastle manager Alan Pardew claims his future is out of his hands after his side lost 6-0 at home to Liverpool on Saturday. Guardian
Former Liverpool and Scotland defender Alan Hansen says Newcastle will finish in the top half of the Premier League table next season - if they survive.
Daily Telegraph
Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has promised that he will not allow Sir Alex Ferguson to sign any more players from the club. Daily Telegraph
Schalke midfielder Julian Draxler, 19, has pledged his immediate future to the club, ending rumours he will move to Borussia Dortmund to replace Mario Gotze, 20, who is joining Bayern Munich next season. Kicker
Barcelona goalkeeper Victor Valdes, 31, has clarified his refusal to assume the captaincy after the substitution of Xavi, 33, in Saturday's game against Malaga, saying the armband was too small for him to wear comfortably. Mundo Deportivo
Coldplay singer Chris Martin and American rapper Jay-Z watched Arsenal v Manchester United on Sunday. DSSC
Sunderland boss Paolo Di Canio says he improved his English by using a karaoke machine and listening to Oasis. Sun
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