Bayern Munich youngster Joshua Kimmich has revealed he drew inspiration from Barcelona legend Xavi growing up and has nothing but praise for the for the iconic ex-Spain midfielder.
Kimmich, 21, has developed into an important first-team player at Bayern since joining the club from Stuttgart in 2015 and has already netted seven goals in 12 appearances this term.
Xavi was my role model growing up, Kimmich told the official UEFA website.
He was a very, very good footballer, technically very good, a leader. He can lead a team and he is an absolute team player.
He knows exactly how to combine with his team-mates and always puts himself at the service of them.
And I also see him as a role model because he did not have the same physical presence as…
Stoke City manager Mark Hughes insisted he never doubted Wilfried Bony after the on-loan striker scored his first goals for the Premier League club.
Without a goal since making the temporary move from Manchester City for the 2016-17 season, Bony finally opened his account with a brace in Monday s 3-1 win over Swansea City.
Bony came back to haunt his former club, whom he left for City in 2015, scoring in each half to lead Stoke to a third consecutive victory.
Speaking in a news conference post-match, Hughes praised the 27-year-old Ivorian.
I think his general play has been really good over the past few weeks, and all his game was missing was a goal or two to his name, Hughes said.
Thankfully he is up and running now, and, if my memory serves me …
Nantes head coach Antoine Kombouare labelled his players a sh***y team on Sunday as he took a dramatic swipe at the group two weeks ahead of the Coupe de France final.
There will be glory in their sights at the Stade de France on April 29 when Nantes tackle Toulouse for cup honours.
However, former Paris Saint-Germain boss Kombouare tore into his side in a television interview after the 2-1 loss at Auxerre on Ligue 1 duty that left Nantes 15th in the table.
The 59-year-old told Prime Video: Today the players aren t concerned by survival because, up to now imagine, you got to the 16th finals of the Europa League, you re going to the Stade de France in two weeks.
But apparently they would prefer for us to be up the creek and find ourselves 17th to be able …
What the papers say
Tottenham will have to battle Bayern Munich to sign their top defensive target Radu Dragusin from Romania after the German giants tabled a late offer, the Telegraph reports. The 21-year-old defender plays for Genoa in the Serie A and has scored two goals and added an assist in 19 games in the competition this year.
The Mirror says Jadon Sancho, who was confirmed to be in negotiations with Borussia Dortmund, will return to Manchester United after a loan deal with the German club as they can not afford the transfer fee. The 23-year-old has only played three games this year for Erik ten Hag’s side.
Newcastle United will staunchly reject any offer from Paris St Germain for their Brazilian midfielder Bruno Guimaraes, the i reports.
Tottenham wil…
Manchester United have made a check on Sporting Lisbon hotshot Eric Dier, according to Portuguese daily Record.
The Red Devils have long ago been alerted of the player’s potential and they are closely monitoring his progress.
Record understands that Manchester United scouts watched the England Under-19 defender as he starred in Sporting’s 2-1 win over Academica.
The 19-year-old has broken into the first team set up at Estadio Jose Alvalade and has already made 11 league appearances for the Lions this term.
Dier is regarded as one of England’s hottest prospects and he has spent six months on loan at Everton last season as Sporting officials believed such a move would benefit his development.
The talented stopper has been at Sporting since 20…
AC Milan have secured the services of David Beckham until the end of the season after finally agreeing with LA Galaxy on a timeshare -like loan deal, according to BBC Sport.
Beckham will continue to play for Milan until the summer and will rejoin LA Galaxy on the 15th July 2009. The former Manchester United star will then appear for Galaxy until the end of the MLS season at which point he will rejoin AC Milan on loan in November 2009, where he will stay until July 2010 and return to LA Galaxy yet again on a new deal.
The deal means that Beckham has increased his chances of making a fourth successive World Cup for England, a feat achieved only by Sir Bobby Charlton previously.
AC Milan president Adriano Galliani remains tight-lipped about the deal, telling press:…
Shanghai Shenhua boss Gustavo Poyet admits he would love to sign Boca Juniors striker Carlos Tevez.
Club president Wu Xiaohui said this week that a breakthrough in negotiations with the former Juventus and Manchester City star had been reached.
The 32-year-old has reportedly been offered €40million per year to make the move to the Chinese Super League.
There s nothing to confirm, Poyet told ESPN. Obviously there is interest from the club in signing him and it s being negotiated.
It would be a pleasure to have him.
Tevez made his return to boyhood club Boca in July 2015 having spent the previous two seasons with Juventus.
The Argentina international has scored twice in nine Primera Division appearances in 2016-17 and netted in Sunday…
Everton manager Roberto Martinez understands he will have further fights to keep John Stones, but insists the defender is at the perfect place.
Stones, 21, stayed at Goodison Park despite handing in a transfer request after ongoing interest from Chelsea, who had numerous bids rejected.
Martinez said the decision to keep the England international was based on what Everton needed in 2015-16, with a fight for Stones set to be ongoing.
At the moment you are not making a decision only to delay it for another window. You don t do that. You make a decision based on what do we need now, can you replace a player now, can we get a stronger squad by losing a player now? he said.
Clearly, it s that John is in a perfect position to be important for how we want to pl…
According to Sport.es, Spanish giants are getting closer to landing the signature of Frenkie de Jong. The Ajax youngster has been linked with a move to Spain throughout most of the summer transfer window, as the 21-year-old s stock continues to rise. He first broke into the mainstream during his time with Willem II, before switching over to Ajax where he played a big role in leading the club to the Europa League final.
There is said to be a deal in place with the player regarding the move, with de Jong clearly being interested in the idea. However, Ajax are asking for €50 million from the Spanish champions, which could prove to be a stumbling block depending on just how willing they are to invest in him.
de Jong continues to rise up through the ranks of The Netherlan…
Dele Alli insists England fear no one at the World Cup and wants to bring his big-game reputation to bear on Russia 2018.
Gareth Southgate s men face Colombia in the last 16 on Tuesday in Moscow, with a quarter-final against Switzerland or Sweden the prize on offer.
It presents the Three Lions with a chance to win a knockout game at a major tournament for the first time since 2006, when another South American opponent, Ecuador, went down 1-0 to a David Beckham free-kick.
A feel-good factor remains around the current squad, despite a much-changed XI going down to a limp 1-0 defeat against Belgium in the final Group G game, although Tottenham midfielder Alli has endured a stop-start tournament.
A thigh injury sustained during the opening 2-1 win against Tu…