Ince set for Monaco move.

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Jan 20, 2014

Blackpool winger Thomas Ince is set to sign a pre contract agreement with oil rich French side AS Monaco, with a view to a move in the summer.

The youngster travelled down to London to hold talks with the Ligue 1 side, and a transfer looks done and dusted, leaving several Premier League clubs fall short.

Welsh clubs Swansea City and Cardiff City were rumoured to be interested in the young winger, who had stalled on a new contract at Bloomfield Road.

Cardiff had agreed to pay the £8 million buy out clause, however, Monaco have stepped up their efforts to sign Ince, in recent weeks.

Ince has been one of Blackpool’s star performer since signing for the Tangerines from Liverpool in the summer of 2011.

And with Paul Ince’s long term future in doubt, the possible move has strained relations between father and son, and infuriated the Blackpool board.

Ince has been in fine form for an underperforming Blackpool, but a move to the tax free haven looks the most likely outcome, were Ince would be joining an ambitious rich side, including the likes of Falcao, and a whole host of other top players.

Blackpool could have cashed in on Ince a year ago when they rejected a £5 million offer from his first club, Liverpool, however, they declined a deal.

Monaco have assembled a superstar squad since the takeover of Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev.

Manager Paul Ince’s future has been cast into further doubt, following a 2-0 defeat at Barnsley on Saturday, and the fact he is willing to let his son go, with reports suggesting Ince junior has submitted a written transfer request.

By Ben Reardon

@BenReardon1

Arsene Wenger set for new contract

By

Alex Batt

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Jan 20, 2014

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Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is set to be offered a new deal worth around £24million a year after owner Stan Kroenke arrived in London from America during the weekend.

Wenger is expected to be offered a three-year extension to his current deal, which expires in the Summer, and it is believed that Kroenke will meet with Ivan Gazidis and the manager at some point this week to discuss the contract being offered.

There was wide speculation that this could be Wenger’s last season at the club after years without a trophy, but after a fantastic campaign so far, it is becoming more likely that Wenger will in fact stay at the Emirates Stadium and reject interest from Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid.

The Gunners manager is completely focused on his side at the moment however and recently admitted that he doesn’t want contract talks to distract him from the season, however, it now looks like he is ready to hold talks and put pen-to-paper with a three-year deal being offered.

Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt – @AlexsArticles

GARTH CROOKS’ TEAM OF THE WEEK

By

Alex Batt

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Jan 20, 2014

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After another thrilling weekend of Premier League football, BBC pundit Garth Crooks has once again put together a ‘Team of the Week’ and below you can see who made the cut this time!

Do you agree?

GOALKEEPER – JACK BUTLAND (Stoke City)

A worthy mention must go to Sunderland’s Vito Mannone, who after an early error recovered very well to play his part in a credible 2-2 draw against Southampton. But my selection goes to Stoke goalkeeper Jack Butland, who made three consecutive saves that were out of this world in the 1-0 defeat by Crystal Palace. Even Eagles manager Tony Pulis had to acknowledge the Butland triple save in his post-match interview.

DEFENDER – BACARY SAGNA (Arsenal)

A player very much in keeping with Arsenal’s traditions, dependable in defence and adventurous in attack. Former Arsenal full-backs who have held the position with distinction include Kenny Sansom, Lee Dixon, Lauren and Ashley Cole. I suspect Bacary Sagna will be spoken of in those terms eventually.

DEFENDER – LAURENT KOSCIELNY (Arsenal)

Those of you who follow my Team of the Week will know that earlier in the season I criticised Koscielny for his often reckless challenges and irrational behaviour. Fortunately, the calming influence of Per Mertesacker seems to have had a profound effect on the France defender. Together they looked a formidable partnership against Fulham.

DEFENDER – RON VLAAR (Aston Villa)

Aston Villa’s Ron Vlaar was hugely impressive in defence against Liverpool and could not have done any more to keep Uruguay international Luis Suarez at bay.

DEFENDER – DANNY ROSE (Tottenham)

Seeing Mousa Dembele miss the target, much to Emmanuel Adebayor’s disgust, after impudently ignoring the unmarked striker when well placed to put Spurs 3-0 up against Swansea was frustrating. Danny Rose showed the Belgian precisely how it should be done minutes later when, in exactly the same position, he squared the ball to Adebayor to put the game beyond the hosts. It just goes to show that you don’t have to be an expensively acquired midfielder to make the right decisions.

MIDFIELDER – YOHAN CABAYE (Newcastle)

This lad is playing out of his skin, and what is more, he is scoring some fabulous goals. Last week, Newcastle felt so aggrieved because of a disallowed goal that they allowed their game to fall apart. Not so this week. Manager Alan Pardew and his team kept it together, and look what happened – three points in the bag against West Ham.

MIDFIELDER – YAYA TOURE (Manchester City)

I do not always agree with Robbie Savage. In fact, I seldom agree with anything he says, but on Saturday he said on Final Score that he thought Yaya Toure was currently the best midfield player in the world. Having seen another super display of pace, power, goals and control from the BBC African Footballer of the Year against Cardiff, I find myself agreeing with every word. Scary!

MIDFIELDER – JASON PUNCHEON (Crystal Palace)

Anybody who has the mental capacity to miss a penalty so badly against Spurs and recover so quickly to produce a stellar performance the following week against Stoke clearly has something about him.

MIDFIELDER – SANTI CAZORLA (Arsenal)

When you have as many football technicians as Arsenal, it is only a matter of time before one of them unlocks the most stubborn of defences. Santi Cazorla’s first goal was so beautifully constructed by his team-mates that they practically undressed Fulham.

FORWARD – SAMUEL ETO’O (Chelsea)

A few people questioned the wisdom of Jose Mourinho bringing the Cameroon international to Stamford Bridge, particularly having let Romelu Lukaku go to Everton on loan. But a fit Samuel Eto’o finally appears to be making a world of difference to Chelsea’s attack. His hat-trick against Manchester United may convince Mourinho that his strikers are capable of scoring. Manchester United, on the other hand, are in desperate need of some inspiration.

FORWARD – EMMANUEL ADEBAYOR (Tottenham)

A colleague said to me recently that he got the distinct impression that “some people in the game” felt that Tim Sherwood’s 4-4-2 approach to football showed him to be tactically inept. Considering Sherwood has won five of the six games since he took over – the latest a 3-1 win at Swansea – suggests to me that ‘those people’ don’t know what they are talking about – whoever they are. That apart, he’s one of the very few coaches that can get Adebayor to perform to his potential.

What are your thoughts? Write your comments below!

Written by Alex Batt – @AlexBatt – @AlexsArticles

Fernando Torres ruled out for weeks

By

SteveMilne

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Jan 19, 2014

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The 29-year-old suffered the problem in the closing stages of the 3-1 win over Manchester United on Sunday.

Torres was a 79th-minute substitute for Samuel Eto’o, who scored a hat-trick in the victory at Stamford Bridge.

Mourinho said Senegalese forward Demba Ba would now come into contention for a place in his starting line-up.

The Portuguese added: “It’s time for Demba. It’s a pity because Torres is in a good moment.

“Demba had a fantastic week, it was very difficult for me to leave him out of selection because he worked very, very well.

“The next matches are for Demba or Samuel.”

Chelsea have home games against Stoke in the FA Cup and West Ham in the Premier League before a trip to Manchester City, a home game against Newcastle then a visit to West Brom in the next month.

Written by Steve Milne

Manchester United will not give up

By

SteveMilne

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Jan 19, 2014

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David Moyes refuses to give up on retaining the Premier League title, despite a defeat at Chelsea that left them 14 points adrift of leaders Arsenal.

A Samuel Eto’o hat-trick guided Chelsea to a comfortable 3-1 win at Stamford Bridge and handed United a seventh league defeat of the season.

Moyes said: “What we don’t do is throw the towel in until we can’t get there.

“The job is to try to finish first and we’ll try to do that.”

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho also refused to rule United out of the title race – but said it would need a dramatic loss of form from those teams ahead of them to revive the reigning champions’ hopes.

He said: “I am sure David won’t be upset with me if I tell the reality. It is a 14-point difference to Arsenal, then 13 to Manchester City and 12 to us.

“They can recover to one of those teams but to recover three of them, it needs three teams to almost have a collapse, so the title will be difficult for them.

“What I hope is that they beat all the other teams to finish in the top four.”

Moyes’s side started the match strongly but were guilty of poor defending as Eto’o became the fourth player to score a treble against them in the Premier League era and extended the Scot’s wait for an away win against the ‘big four’.

In 48 away matches at United, Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal – encompassing his time as Everton and United boss – he has drawn 18 and lost 30.

His side are six points off the Champions League places with 16 matches remaining.

Moyes said: “This is a project. I know what I’m going to do and there will be changes as we go along the journey.

“It is a massive challenge. I hoped we’d be in a better position than we are, but we are not.”

United were without injured strikers Wayne Rooney and Robin van Persie and their problems increased when captain Nemanja Vidic was sent off for a challenge on Eden Hazard in the closing moments.

Vidic is now out of Wednesday’s Capital One Cup semi-final second leg against Sunderland at Old Trafford, where they will try to overturn a 2-1 deficit, and he could have been joined on the sidelines by right-back Rafael, who was only booked for a two-footed lunge on Gary Cahill.

Moyes said: “I thought Nemanja’s was a yellow card but I thought on another day the one afterwards when Rafael got a yellow card could have been a red card.”

Written by Steve Milne – Have your say below

Palace boss Pulis targets Brondby frontman Makienok

By

SteveMilne

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Jan 19, 2014

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The former Stoke boss has challenged Palace’s board to deliver a host of new faces to reinvigorate the Selhurst Park club’s bid to avoid the drop.

Palace edged out Stoke 1-0 at home in league action on Saturday, Jason Puncheon netting the winner to shake off his horror-show penalty miss in last weekend’s 2-0 defeat at Tottenham.

The Southampton loanee provided a calm second-half finish to light up an otherwise opportunity-light afternoon.

Pulis said Puncheon’s resolve never wavered in the wake of his penalty nightmare, but the 27-year-old’s palpable relief at full-time suggested otherwise.

Palace are yet to strike in the January transfer window despite being linked to a host of targets, including Brondby’s towering Denmark international forward Simon Makienok.

Pulis has called on co-chairman Steve Parish and sporting director Iain Moody to deliver a nucleus of new arrivals to bolster their drive away from the foot of the table.

‘We’re hoping and praying we can bring some players in. We really need to bring some players in and that will strengthen us,’ said the manager.

‘The lads are waiting for a few to come in as well and we’ll kick on from there.

‘That’s not for me to say, that’s for Steve and Ian to continue to handle.’

Palace make the trip to Wigan for the fourth round of the FA Cup on Saturday, before Hull at Selhurst Park on Tuesday, January 28.

Pulis was able to toast his 56th birthday with victory over former club Stoke, one he admitted was tinged with emotion for his whole family.

‘I was there for a long time and during that time it was my family supporting the club just as much as it was me working for it,’ he said.

‘So it was certainly surreal for me, the whole day, but I am sure it was extremely surreal for them too.

‘We were all in it together there and so we all felt this, as a family.

‘It was fantastic to get the result and I was pleased for Punch (Jason Puncheon) because he just had to get back on that bike as soon as possible and start pedalling.’

Expecting a host of twists and turns in the drop zone between now and May, Pulis said: ‘This is not the defining moment of that (relegation) battle, that’s in the future, so we’ve got to keep our feet on the ground.

‘The time to be out of the relegation zone is by no means upon us. There are still 16 games to go, so there is a huge amount to happen yet and we’ve just got to stay calm and keep on working.’

Deflated Stoke boss Mark Hughes admitted his side have no excuses for the defeat.

Demanding far sharper defending, the former Manchester United striker also feels his side have lost their attacking edge to boot.

‘We struggled in the final third and we lacked any real quality,’ he said.

‘It was not where we should be at all and we’ve got to turn it round quickly.’

Stoke face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in fourth round FA Cup action next weekend, with Hughes mindful of the need for rapid improvement.

‘You cannot afford to defend like that in Premier League matches,’ he said.

‘Certain things will come and we have some new players who will improve a lot as they settle in and get more training time into them.

‘But there are certain elements we just have to sharpen up.’

Written by Steve Milne – Have your say below 🙂

Mauricio Pochettino to be offered bumper new contract

By

SteveMilne

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Jan 19, 2014

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Pochettino was close to quitting after chairman Nicola Cortese walked out last week following a row with Liebherr over the Swiss businesswoman wanting a bigger say in how the club is run.

The Argentinian, who has 17 months left on his contract, worth more than £1million a year, has said he will remain in charge until the end of the season before reviewing his options.

But a Saints source said: “The owner wants some stability at the club and the best way of ensuring this is by getting the manager tied into a contract. It would send out a message that despite Nicola leaving, nothing has changed.”

Cortese’s departure sparked fears of a mass exodus, but skipper Adam Lallana said: “The new owner has said nobody is for sale, which is good.”

Written by Steve Milne – Have your say below 🙂

Blackpool set to sack boss Paul Ince

By

SteveMilne

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Jan 19, 2014

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Blackpool are set to sack boss Paul Ince – and make veteran skipper Barry Ferguson their new player-manager.

Ince’s relationship with chairman Karl Oyston is at an all-time low because of bad results and the future of his son, Tom.

Now Ince, who refused to meet the media after the defeat to Barnsley, is poised to be chopped and replaced internally.

Ferguson – a former Scotland captain – is a respected voice in the dressing room and will be asked to take charge with coach Steve Thompson.

It will be an ironic twist as Ferguson was banished on loan by Oyston last season and only brought back during Ince’s reign. Ince and assistant Alex Rae both look set to go as the Seasiders try to halt their slide.

Written by Steve Milne

Swansea City look to sign Middlesbrough star Rhys Williams

By

SteveMilne

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Jan 19, 2014

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Swansea City hope to push through a £1.5m deal to bring Middlesbrough’s former Wales defender Rhys Williams to the Liberty Stadium as Michael Laudrup’s injury crisis worsened.

Jonjo Shelvey became the latest name to be ruled out of action after limping out of the 3-1 defeat to Tottenham with a hamstring problem that is expected to keep him out for at least two weeks.

He joins Jose Canas and Jonathan de Guzman in the midfield absent list leaving Leon Britton as the only fit central midfielder at the club while others including Nathan Dyer, Pablo Hernandez, Michel Vorm and Michu remain sidelined.

Williams had been a previous target for the club having been identified by the club’s recruitment set-up and it appears there is a confidence at Swansea that they will be able to reach an agreement over a move for the 25-year-old.

Williams has been at Boro since breaking through as a teenager, swapping nationalities when he quit Wales after Under 21 and senior squad representation to play for his native Australia.

He can operate both in defence and in midfield and while Laudrup would not comment on the proposed move last night, it is thought Swansea were keen to press ahead after initial interest was thought to be rebuffed and Scottish giants Celtic monitored the situation.

Swansea are still keen on adding further options despite Laudrup’s refusal to expand on transfer hopes, the Dane stressing the side’s current loss of form would not be solved by splashing the cash in the remaining two weeks of the window.

Laudrup said: “The club is working on things but I don’t know what stage things are at. (Rhys Williams) is one more name to add to the rumours. of a player who can play different positions. He is someone who can play different positions but I don’t it’s much use me talking about players not here because the most important are the ones here.

“Just getting a player is not the only solution. Things will only change for our team when we win a game or two out of three. That would give the boost that we need.”

Written by Steve Milne

Liverpool to make a formal bid for Basel winger Mohamed Salah

By

SteveMilne

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Jan 19, 2014

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Liverpool will make a formal bid for Basel winger Mohamed Salah this week. The club have been planning a move for the Egyptian since the January transfer window opened, but the valuation of £12 million has been prohibitive.

However, negotiations will step up with the Swiss side in the next few days, with manager Brendan Rodgers hoping to make a significant purchase. Ideally, he would like to add a defender to his squad, too, the 2-2 draw with Aston Villa on Saturday highlighting the major lingering deficiencies at the back.

The impressive, composed debut of Aston Villa’s Ryan Bertrand – who is on loan from Chelsea and has been a long-term target for Rodgers – was in contrast to Liverpool’s problems at full back over recent weeks.

Salah, 21, is an attacking midfielder with an eye for goal who shone in the Champions League, scoring in the group stages against Chelsea.

Written by Steve Milne

West Ham keen on Arsenal’s Thomas Vermaelen

By

SteveMilne

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Jan 19, 2014

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Vermaelen has found himself unable to displace either Per Mertesacker or Laurent Koscielny from the Gunners’ starting XI, and has only made 11 appearances in all competitions this season.

This has led to speculation the Belgian could be making a move away from the Emirates, but Allardyce is convinced Arsenal have no intention of selling.

‘I think under the circumstances at Arsenal, in the position that they’re in, in the Champions League and cup matches, they’ve had to use him as soon as any of the two defenders have been injured,’ he said.

‘So I don’t think there’s any chance we’ll get somebody of his quality. It would be nice if I we could.

‘I’ve had targets and I haven’t got one yet apart from Roger Johnson, so I’ll keep going and hope we get some.’

Written by Steve Milne

Morata rules out joining Arsenal, Liverpool or Spurs

By

SteveMilne

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Jan 19, 2014

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Morata is a reported target for Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham in the January transfer window.

And while the 21-year-old is also interesting clubs in Italy, he has spoken with Carlo Ancelotti about his desire to remain at the Bernabeu.

Morata had previously suggested he could be open to a move, but after helping Madrid thump Real Betis 5-0, revealed he has changed his mind.

“Despite all the stories that have emerged, I am happy here,” he said.

“I have spoken with the club and the coach and told them I want to stay here.

“This is the team I have spent my entire life at and I will stay here and do whatever the club asks of me or needs of me, even if it’s to play a minimal amount of games.”

Spurs asked Real to include Morata as part of the £85million world record deal that saw Gareth Bale leave White Hart Lane last summer.

Recent reports suggested Arsenal and Liverpool had made loan enquiries for the Spaniard, who now looks to set to stay in Madrid.

Written By Steve Milne

Juan Mata nears Stamford Bridge exit as Manchester United and Atletico Madrid express interest

By

SteveMilne

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Jan 19, 2014

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Juan Mata is edging closer to the exit at Chelsea after the club failed to give assurances over his future, writes Dean Jones of the Sunday People .

Manchester United have made contact in hope of doing a £20million deal but a loan move to Atletico Madrid seems the most likely option now for the Spanish midfielder.

Mata’s father, Juan senior, acts as his agent and made a trip to London to discover whether he will be given more game time between now and the end of the season. But Chelsea officials could not make any promises and Mata is ready to seek a move.

The Blues, who value Mata at £30m, were previously interested in a United deal if it involved a swap with Wayne Rooney but that now seems unlikely.

Chelsea would prefer to see him join a foreign club and Atletico is the most likely destination. They have enjoyed a great season so far, challenging giants Barcelona and Real Madrid at the top of La Liga.

Mata is frustrated with his current situation at Stamford Bridge. He is desperate to be a more integral part of Jose Mourinho’s side to ensure he is in the best possible form for Spain’s World Cup bid in Brazil this summer.

Written by Steve Milne

Sam Allardyce concedes it is ‘unlikely’ that Lacina Traore will sign for West Ham

By

SteveMilne

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Jan 19, 2014

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Allardyce watched on Saturday as his side were beaten 3-1 by former club Newcastle, a result which saw them return to the relegation zone.

And, when asked afterwards if 23-year-old Traore would be signing, he said: ‘It’s unlikely.

‘We’re finding it extremely difficult (to bring players in).

‘We had a terrible day yesterday (Friday) when I thought a player was signing for us and then I found out he wasn’t.’
Allardyce also ruled out a loan approach for Arsenal defender Thomas Vermaelen but admitted it was his side’s weakness at the back which cost them against Newcastle.

The Magpies cruised into a two-goal lead courtesy of strikes from Yohan Cabaye and Loic Remy before a Mike Williamson own goal in stoppage-time halved the defecit.

The Hammers did threaten parity after the break but Cabaye made sure of the away win with a late free-kick.

And Allardyce went on: ‘Our defensive frailties were exposed in the first half and unfortunately a spirited fight back in the second half hasn’t got us anything.

‘But we’ll keep our chins up because we’ve got 16 games to keep ourselves in the Premier League.

‘There comes a time when the players have to realise that it doesn’t matter about performances any more and it just becomes about results.’

Written by Steve Milne

David Moyes given £150million Manchester United transfer money

By

SteveMilne

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Jan 19, 2014

0

The Man United boss was informed of his spending power at a top-level transfer summit with chief executive Ed Woodward and other directors.

And the Daily Star Sunday can reveal that Uruguay’s Cavani is eyeing a move to the Premier League, placing United on alert for a summer swoop.

Cavani, 26, only joined PSG last summer from Napoli for £55m.

But while he is happy in Paris and with the club, he is not impressed with the French League and wants to be a star in the Premier League – like his Uruguay team-mate at Liverpool, Luis Suarez.

Cavani is also wanted by Chelsea – United’s opponents today – and possibly Arsenal and Manchester City.

But he would be a ready-made replacement for Wayne Rooney if United lose the England striker – who only has a year left on his contract – in the summer.

Another potential target for United is Schalke midfielder Julian Draxler, who has a £37m buy-out clause in his contract.

Draxler, 20, is already an Arsenal target but the Germany international is unlikely to move in this transfer window as he has a ruptured muscle and is out until March.

Moyes is eyeing a host of midfield players, including Borussia Dortmund’s Ilkay Gundogan, 23, and Marco Reus, 24, plus Atletico Madrid’s Koke, 22.

And he is also tracking Porto’s £40m-rated France centre-half Eliaquim Mangala, 22.

A left-back is a priority with Southampton’s Luke Shaw, 18, and Everton’s Leighton Baines, 29, in the frame.

Moyes confirmed he is poised to spend on a major scale, either now or in the summer, when he said: “The amount of big players wanting to join Manchester United is incredible.

“Maybe players want to go to other clubs for the money but if you ask them where they really want to be, what club they really want to wear the badge of, they want to wear the badge of Manchester United.

“It’s because of the club and what it stands for in world terms.”

Written by Steve Milne

SillySeason.com

Ince set for Monaco move.

Arsene Wenger set for new contract

GARTH CROOKS’ TEAM OF THE WEEK

Fernando Torres ruled out for weeks

Manchester United will not give up

David Moyes refuses to give up on retaining the Premier League title, despite a defeat at Chelsea that left them 14 points adrift of leaders Arsenal.

Palace boss Pulis targets Brondby frontman Makienok

Mauricio Pochettino to be offered bumper new contract

Blackpool set to sack boss Paul Ince

Swansea City look to sign Middlesbrough star Rhys Williams

Liverpool to make a formal bid for Basel winger Mohamed Salah

West Ham keen on Arsenal’s Thomas Vermaelen

Morata rules out joining Arsenal, Liverpool or Spurs

Juan Mata nears Stamford Bridge exit as Manchester United and Atletico Madrid express interest

Sam Allardyce concedes it is ‘unlikely’ that Lacina Traore will sign for West Ham

David Moyes given £150million Manchester United transfer money

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