Achraf Hakimi dreams of wearing the white shirt of Real Madrid again one day, according to Antonio Conte.
Conte coached Hakimi at Inter Milan last season after the Nerazzurri bought him off from Real for a fee believed to have stood at around €40 million. Together they won the Serie A title before Conte left the club at the end of the campaign and Hakimi moved on to Paris Saint-Germain in the summer transfer window, for close to €70m.
As relayed by , Conte recently spoke to Sky in Italy about the Algerian right-back.
Psychologically, Hakimi suffered a little bit from last year s games against Real Madrid, the Italian tactician said.
His dream is to play for that club again as a key player.
Hakimi spent two extremely successful seasons on…
Gabriel Martinelli and Emile Smith Rowe struck in the second half to earn Arsenal a 2-0 win over West Ham at the Emirates Stadium to move the Gunners into the Premier League s top four.
Following a keenly contested first half in which Kieran Tierney struck the bar, Martinelli raced into the box in the 48th minute to slot a classy finish into the bottom corner.
The Gunners continued to assert their dominance in the second half as Alexandre Lacazette won a penalty, with Vladimir Coufal receiving a second yellow and a red for the challenge, but the France international s spot-kick was saved by former Arsenal goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski.
However, substitute Smith Rowe lashed home late on to secure an important result that sees Arsenal leapfrog the Hammers into fo…
Mikel Arteta has confirmed Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is not available for selection against Leeds United, having been left out of the squad for the club s last two Premier League games.
Aubameyang reportedly returned late from a trip to France and was not involved as the Gunners beat Southampton 3-0 at home on December 11.
The Gabon striker was subsequently stripped of the captaincy and was omitted again on Wednesday as Arsenal clinched an important 2-0 London derby victory over West Ham to leapfrog the Hammers into fourth.
The Gunners success in the absence of Aubameyang suggests the team is moving on from their reliance on the 32-year-old, who has managed just four league goals in 14 appearances so far this season.
Arteta s men travel to Elland Road …
Schalke striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar has revealed a number of English clubs enquired about his availability earlier this winter.
The Netherlands international has been linked with clubs such as Liverpool and Arsenal in the past few months, but he eventually decided to sign a two-year extension to his expiring contract.
A number of clubs from England enquired about me. However, I never opened contract talks with any of those teams, Huntelaar told Welt.
I asked myself whether I wanted to stay put or make the move to England. The Premier League is the only top league in Europe where I have not played yet.
The most important thing for me was that my family feels well, though. And we have everything we need here at Schalke.
The 29-year-old then we…
Newcastle United defender Steven Taylor insists his team are too good to be relegated from the English Premier League.
Alan Pardew s side suffered a 4-0 defeat to Manchester City on Saturday, leaving them just three points clear of the relegation zone.
But centre-back Taylor is not worried about the potential to repeat their demotion from the top flight in 2008/09.
I am confident in my team-mates, Taylor told reporters.
I look around the dressing room at the players who I train with every day and what I am sat around is top class.
This definitely makes me believes we are going to do well.
We are not looking down we are looking up. We are looking at who we can catch and chase.
Taylor feels the quarter-finals of the UEFA Europa …
Dries Mertens insists he never considered leaving Napoli prior to signing a new deal, despite suggesting there was interest from Barcelona and Chelsea.
The Belgium international enjoyed an outstanding season in Serie A, scoring 28 goals in the league, and renewed his contract with the club last week.
Mertens has now revealed that a number of clubs were chasing his signature, but the 30-year-old is adamant that there was never any doubt about where his future lay.
Discussions on my contract were always going to happen, there was no real pressure, he told the media on international duty.
The Premier League is the best competition for me, but I am happy at Napoli.
My past, my present and my future!
— Dries Mertens (@dries_mertens14)
Premier League giants Liverpool have joined the race for Borussia M gladbach midfielder Granit Xhaka, .
The Reds are not exactly spolit for options in the middle of the park and manager Jurgen Klopp plans to address the issue in the summer transfer window.
Sport Bild has learned that the German coach is a big fan of Granit Xhaka, who has become one of Bundesliga s hottest commodities.
Klopp reportedly already met with the player s representative Andy Gross and chances are he will step up his interest in the summer.
Considering that a €30 million release clause will become active in the summer of 2017, Borussia may be ready to negotiate the sale at the end of the season.
After defeating Stoke on penalties to reach the Capital One Cup final, Live…
Barcelona head coach Ronald Koeman insists his players are not worried by the club s financial situation amid concerns around spiralling debts.
Barca s latest financial figures, dated August 17 but only released this month after their previous AGM was postponed, indicate their total debt has now exceeded €1.1billion.
Their short-term debt has risen to €730m, having increased by €225m since the 2018-19 season largely due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic: specifically, the lack of matchday revenue as games continue to be played behind closed doors, and the reduction in tourists visiting the Camp Nou facilities.
Although Barca top the 2021 Deloitte Football Money League with total revenues of €715.1m, the stark numbers released by the club paint a c…
Ricardo Gareca gave nothing away over his future plans as captain Paolo Guerrero urged the popular Peru boss to remain in charge after the World Cup.
Already eliminated following back-to-back losses to France and Denmark, Peru will conclude their campaign with a Group C fixture against Australia in Sochi on Tuesday.
As Peru try to end the World Cup on a high, there is uncertainty over Gareca s future amid links with Argentina – the place of his birth – with pressure mounting on Jorge Sampaoli.
Asked about what will happen following the match in Sochi, Gareca, who was appointed in 2015, told reporters: Once this World Cup is over, yes I ll have to make a decision.
The whole country wants an answer. The national team wants an answer. I have …
Luis Enrique wants the home crowd to be the difference for Spain against Sweden in their final qualifier for the 2022 World Cup on Sunday.
La Roja moved top of Group B after beating Greece 1-0 on Thursday, taking advantage of Sweden s shock 2-0 defeat in Georgia.
A first-half penalty from Pablo Sarabia was enough to secure victory for Spain in Athens and meant they now have their fate in their own hands, needing just a point to secure qualification for Qatar 2022.
Speaking before the crucial game in Seville, Luis Enrique said: It is very important to focus on the difficulties we can expect, which will be many. They defend very well. I hope that [the fans] will help us in the delicate moments.
This will not be a party until the game is over. …