And here I thought today was going to be a slow news day. Zlatan Ibrahimovic announced Thursday his next destination will be Manchester United, where he will be reunited with his coach at Inter Milan, Jose Mourinho.
The move has been speculated for quite a while, basically since he announced he was leaving PSG, but Zlatan made it official Thursday on Instagram. Premier League center-backs are on notice.
Twenty-nine-year-old Brazilian striker Hulk is set to smash the Asian transfer record fee, previously held by Brazilian Alex Teixeira, as he completes his $61.2 million move from Zenit St Petersburg to Chinese Super League club Shanghai SIPG.
Hulk will reportedly earn in excess of $42,000 per week with the Chinese club.
When Arsenal triggered Jamie Vardy’s £20 million release clause on June 3, it was easy to envision the beginning of the end for the Leicester City fairytale.
They’d just won the Premier League title, something Arsenal haven’t managed for 12 years, and qualified for the 2016-17 Champions League, but surely the uncertainty surrounding Leicester’s ability to do it all again come August could’ve majorly influenced Vardy.
After a pair of successful seasons in Italy with Juventus, Spanish striker Alvaro Morata is set to return to Real Madrid this summer.
“Real Madrid C. F. have informed Juventus FC of their decision to salvage the federative rights on the player Álvaro Morata, who will join up with the first team for pre-season training under the command of Zinedine Zidane,” read a statement on Real Madrid’s official website Tuesday.
West Ham announced the signing of Algeria international Sofiane Feghouli today. The 26-year-old was signed on a free transfer after six years at La Liga side Valencia.
We are delighted to confirm the signing of Algeria winger @sffeghouli on a three-year contract! #FeghouliIsAHammerhttps://t.co/YbBZdRdzs9
Miguel Herrera's tenure at Club Tijuana has not gone to plan so far, but as usual "El Piojo" has found a way to capture our attention.
Club Tijuana finished 14th in the 2016 Clausura, and that, evidently, was not good enough for management. You hear of clubs needing offseason "overhauls" but we've never seen it taken quite this far: Tijuana have transfer-listed every single player on the roster.
Here's the full release on Club Tijuana's website:
Mexico international Hector Herrera could be on his way to Napoli, if reports from Calciomercato are to be believed. The midfielder, who currently plays for Porto in the Portuguese Primeira Liga, has reportedly agreed to personal terms with the Vesuviani and the deal currently hinges on whether the two clubs can reach an agreement on price.
A week after Bayern Munich was knocked out of the Champions League, ending their hunt for the one trophy capable of satisfying them, the club has announced they have signed both Mats Hummels from Borussia Dortmund and Renato Sanches from SL Benfica. The transfers, both reportedly worth around €35 million, are a reminder that Bayern Munich are still the kings of Germany, and arguably the highest profile club in the world. Order, you could say, has been restored.
Outside of Leicester City, one of the most improbable feel good stories of the year is the rejuvenation of French winger Hatem Ben Arfa's career. On January 4, 2015, Ben Arfa was released from his contract with Newcastle United, making him a free agent. Now, a little over a year later, he’s on the verge of signing for Barcelona as a vital back-up for their heralded front three of Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez.
It's pretty safe to say that unless you're a Chelsea fan, you probably hate Diego Costa. His mastery of the dark arts of football tends to rub a lot of people the wrong way. He is the pantomime villain of the Premier League, the Loki of the world's game, the Iago to the Othello that is the Premier League referee.