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Juventus and Lazio are scheduled to face each other at the Allianz Stadium in Turin on Sunday evening, in what s set to be the final match of the 15th round of the Serie A season, indeed the final match of the Italian top flight before the World Cup in Qatar starts, and the final match of the calendar year. It is only one of the big games of the round, which also includes Napoli facing Udinese and Atalanta playing host to Inter Milan.

Juventus

When Juventus exit from the Champions League became a mathematical certainty even with a game left, there was a lot of talk about what had gone wrong for the Old Lady this season, and speculation about the possibility of head coach Massimiliano Allegri losing his job. However, it seems Allegri an…

Arsenal remain in contract talks with striker Eddie Nketiah.

Nketiah s deal expires at the end of this month and the 23-year-old has been linked with London rivals Crystal Palace.

Arsenal released their retained list on Friday, revealing the Premier League club are in ongoing discussions with academy graduate Nketiah after offering him fresh terms.

Nketiah, who spent a loan spell with Leeds United in the 2019-20 season, has made it clear he wants regular first-team football.

He forced his way into the side towards the end of last season, scoring doubles against Chelsea and Leeds before finding the back of the net in a 5-1 final-day rout of Everton.

Fellow striker Alexandre Lacazette left the Gunners as a free agent and has rejoined Lyon.

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According to a recent report from Gazzetta dello Sport, Dries Mertens could be looking into the possibility of a move to either Major League Soccer or the Chinese Super League during the January transfer window. The Napoli star could have a deal to make the jump over to China already on the table, but even if he doesn’t, many clubs around the MLS are said to be more than willing to put the groundwork in to get a deal off the ground.

Mertens, 32, is widely considered to be one of the greatest players in the recent history of Napoli and as such, they aren’t likely to let him go without a fight.

The money that is being offered outside of European football these days is utterly unbelievable, but even with that being the case, Mertens has many fans believing he will rema…

Premier League success has increased Liverpool s hunger to win trophies and enter a period of sustained success , says chairman Tom Werner.

Liverpool were crowned champions of England on Thursday after Manchester City s 2-1 loss at Chelsea left Pep Guardiola s side 23 points adrift of the Reds with seven games remaining.

Jurgen Klopp masterminded the end of the club s 30-year wait for top-flight glory and will now turn his attention to surpassing City s single-season Premier League record of 100 points.

It is the fourth trophy Liverpool have won since Klopp arrived at Anfield in October 2015 – they won the Champions League, UEFA Super Cup and Club World Cup last year – and Werner believes there is a significant appetite for more silverware.

We certai…

According to a recent report from Gazzetta dello Sport, Olivier Giroud’s proposed switch from Chelsea to Inter Milan has hit a few stumbling blocks. For a while now it’s been reported the Frenchman was in talks with the Serie A giants over the potential of making a deal happen, following a frustrating start to the new campaign in which he hasn’t really featured all too heavily for the Blues. In terms of the stumbling blocks that are currently in place, one is believed to be the £6.8 million per year salary that Giroud has – and that Inter cannot, or perhaps will not, match. 

The second is that Giroud wants a deal that is longer than 18 months, which is what Inter are currently believed to be offering. While it’s not impossible to picture the two parties mov…

Olympique Lyon are in talks with Chelsea over the possibility of signing left-back Emerson Palmieri, according to Sky Sports.

The Brazil-born Italy international, who started the Euro final against England this year following the injury sustained by Leonardo Spinazzola, joined Chelsea from AS Roma in 2018 for a reported fee of €20 million, but he hasn t been able to nail down a regular starting spot. Chelsea signed Ben Chilwell from Leicester City last summer and they still have Marcos Alonso in their ranks too. Emerson was brought on late as a substitute by manager Thomas Tuchel in their win over Crystal Palace in the Premier League opener on Saturday.

Overall, the 27-year-old has 71 appearances for the London Blues in all competitions to his name, with two goals and…

Celtic defender Boli Bolingoli has joined Turkish champions Istanbul Basaksehir just weeks after he faced stiff criticism for breaching coronavirus quarantine rules.

Left-back Bolingoli has left the Scottish champions on loan initially, but the Super Lig switch could lead to a permanent deal.

Celtic manager Neil Lennon confirmed this week that the club had imposed the maximum fine allowed on Bolingoli after he left the Hoops embarrassed in early August.

The 25-year-old Belgian travelled to Spain without Celtic s knowledge and did not follow coronavirus quarantine rules when returning to Scotland, going on to play in an August 9 match against Kilmarnock.

Scotland s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon expressed dismay over the episode, and Celtic at the time sa…

Burnley boss Vincent Kompany has asked Pep Guardiola to stop talking him up as a future Manchester City manager while he is still in the early stages of his coaching career.

City legend Kompany, who won 10 majors honours during an 11-year spell at the Etihad Stadium, faces off against his former side in Saturday s FA Cup quarter-final tie.

It will be Kompany s first return to the ground, where a statue honouring his time at the club was erected in August 2021, in what is set to be an emotional reunion.

After two seasons coaching Anderlecht, Kompany has had huge success in his first season in charge of Burnley, who are cruising towards promotion from the Championship.

Guardiola reiterated on the eve of the game that he fully expects the 36-year-old to mana…

Cristiano Ronaldo s time at Manchester United is surely up.

Following an explosive interview with Piers Morgan in which the superstar forward said he feels betrayed by senior figures at Old Trafford and does not respect manager Erik ten Hag, Ronaldo s departure seems certain.

Having tried and failed to join a new club in the past transfer window, Ronaldo may be granted his wish in January once the World Cup is done and dusted.

If that is the case, there are only a few likely destinations for the Portugal international, who is reportedly eager to continue his career at the highest level despite turning 38 in February.

Napoli

A return to Serie A has been touted for Ronaldo, with Napoli being named as potential suitors earlier this year after losin…

Harry Winks scored a last-gasp winner as Sky Bet Championship leaders Leicester beat West Brom 2-1 in a dramatic finish to give manager Enzo Maresca a winning first return to The Hawthorns.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s 72nd-minute header – his sixth goal of the season – gave Leicester the lead and the midfielder then set up Winks in the fourth minute of stoppage time after substitute Josh Maja looked like he had rescued a point.

Maresca, who started his professional career at West Brom and played 47 games there between 1998-2000, will have been relieved as there was little between the teams, who both hit the goal frame in the first half.

West Brom had a penalty claim turned down when Grady Diangana went down after it appeared he was pushed over in the box; VAR m…