On the eve of a Manchester Derby that could decide the Premier League title, Pep Guardiola has revealed some pretty destabilizing claims concerning Paul Pogba’s past, present and future at Manchester United. According to Guardiola, Pogba’s agent, Mino Raiola, offered his client to the Citizens over the January transfer window.
With Bayern Munich attacker James Rodriguez returning to Spain to play Sevilla in the Champions League this week, the Spanish media turned its attention to the Real Madrid loanee with a staple of the country’s football coverage: unsubstantiated transfer rumors.
The rumor wasn’t all that juicy, just that Bayern will certainly move to make his loan permanent this summer by activating a clause that was included in the initial two-year loan contract signed last July.
When Alex Ferguson was scouting for talent in 1992, he had eyes on Leeds United Irishman Denis Irwin. Ferguson returned to Old Trafford with Irwin, picking up the fiery Frenchman Eric Cantona with him. Still convinced these miraculous transfers are nothing more than a coincidence? Nothing more than a marvelous yet inexplicable choice like your parents magically agreeing you can sleep over at Jimmy’s because you’ve been a good lad?
Zlatan Ibrahimovic arrived in Los Angeles last week and has wasted no time in reaching peak levels of Zlatanocity.
To start, there was the full-page, five-word ad he took out in the LA Times to announce his arrival. Then there was his first training session with the club, during which he had to be dragged away from shooting practice so that he might remain fresh for this Saturday's LA derby.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic is coming to MLS. After previously stating that his aim was to eclipse Napoleon by crossing the Atlantic and conquering the States, the Swedish striker is now en route to Los Angeles and aiming for a spectacular debut on March 31 against LAFC (“El Tráfico”) at an already sold out StubHub Center.
For the last two months, Zlatan Ibrahimovic has reportedly been on the verge of joining Major League Soccer. For the last two months, he has not. However, with less than four months remaining on his Manchester United contract and with Jose Mourinho more than obliging with regards to letting the Swede go, it’s only a matter of time until we see Ibrahimovic in MLS (the Los Angeles Galaxy being the ultimate destination).
According to the latest rumors from Sky Sports, Real Madrid president Florentino Perez is interested in signing Christian Pulisic from Borussia Dortmund this summer for around $100 million as he “sees the value in having the poster boy for football in America at his disposal.”
Is the move all that far-fetched? No.
Joan Gaspart, the former FC Barcelona president from July 2000 to Feb. 2003, used some pretty choice words with regards to former players Luis Figo and Neymar when speaking with Radio Marca on Monday.
Gaspart was a hugely successful vice president when serving under Josep Lluis Nunez at Barca, but his short-lived stint as president was immediately rocked by the departure of club captain Luis Figo to eternal rivals Real Madrid.
Colombian forward Jackson Martinez was one of the first Europe-based players to make a lucrative move to China. The former Porto and Atletico Madrid player was snapped up by Guanzhou Evergrande for an amount of money that seemed like far too much at the time.