Liverpool to offer Skrtel a new deal

The 30-year-old Slovakian has made over 200 appearances for Liverpool since joining from Zenit Saint Petersburg for £6.5m in 2008.

The centre-back, who is now in the final year of his current contract, had been linked with a move to Italian giants Inter Milan after he stated his offer from Liverpool earlier this year was ‘unacceptable’.

Skrtel’s contracts situation has become yet another talking point at Anfield, the Slovakian international, 30, followed team-mates Jordan Henderson, Raheem Sterling and Jon Flanagan in rejecting the club’s opening offers.

But the Liverpool Echo report that Skrtel has now agreed personal terms for a contract extension, with details to be finalised next week.

The two best teams at Copa América 2015 are in the final with plenty of merit

Hosts Chile take on Argentina in the Copa América 2015 final on Saturday, with both nations desperately looking to end lengthy trophy droughts.

La Roja have finished as runners-up on four separate occasions in the competition's 99-year history, but have never been crowned champions.

La Albiceleste, meanwhile, are looking to win a senior international title for the first time in 22 years - it would also make up for their World Cup 2014 final defeat to Germany last year.

Gerardo 'Tata' Martino has a wealth of attacking talent at his disposal to achieve that objective, something which was evident in their 6-1 dismantling of Paraguay in the semi-final.

Defender Marcos Rojo - who produced a memorable rabona cross in their final group stage outing against Jamaica - was among the scorers in Concepción on Tuesday.

He has stated that Argentina will be looking to control the match, while also warning Chile against doing the same.

"We want to get hold of the ball and the match, as Tata likes to," Rojo told Olé.

"I have seen all of Chile's games. They like to attack and put on pressure. This leaves them neglected a little in defence, but I think this time they will be more cautious. It will be a heated game, but we are prepared for any type of match. On the pitch we are 11 against 11. If Chile comes looking for the game, they should take care."

Chile were pushed all the way by 10-man Peru at the Estadio Nacional in their semi-final, with an Eduardo Vargas putting them into the final as they secured a 2-1 victory.

They have played every match at the Santiago venue - the venue for Saturday's event - and will once more have the backing of the home crowd.

And despite Rojo's suggestions, Chile defender Gary Medel has insisted that they will not change the attacking brand of football they have been playing throughout the competition, while still acknowledging the quality of the opponents they will face.

"The two best teams at Copa América 2015 are in the final with plenty of merit,"

Medel said in a press conference; "we have to repeat what we have been doing and not give up on being the protagonists. We have to be focused in order to give a great joy to Chile. La Roja has to be champion to achieve the dream of this group and all of Chile. We will have a great opponent in front of us. This game has to be played and then we will see."

Victory for Argentina - who failed to lift the trophy on home soil in 2011 - would see them equal Uruguay's record of 15 titles.

However, they may be forced to enter the game without first-choice centre-back Ezequiel Garay. He has been struggling with illness, meaning experienced defender Martín Demichelis may retain his place in the starting line-up.

Chile have yet to beat La Albiceleste in any Copa América edition and their task will be slightly more difficult due to the absence of Gonzalo Jara, the defender being ruled out through suspension.

But Jorge Sampaoli's men will have been boosted by Alexis Sánchez's efforts in training after suggestions that he was carrying a knock 

Allegri targets Chelsea's trio

Massimilano Allegri is keen on acquiring the services of three Chelsea players. The Italian cha,pions are preparing to launch a bid for Oscar, Salah and Willian.

Do you think Mourinho would release any of this players? Leave your comments below.......

Chile plans to stop Messi with Play Station

Lionel Messi was once described as a Play Satation player by Arsene Wenger and now the Chilean national team coach, Jorge Sampaoli wants to employ the use of Play station to stop the four time Ballon d'Or winner.

Sampaoli said; ''We have a simulation program that uses Play Station technology and allows players to move the team around the pitch using a joystick. We can tell a player we are going topress in 4-4-2 and the software shows us how that will work against our rival''.

Barcelona goal keeper who happens to be the number goalie of Chile, Claudio Bravo said;''It's not easy to control Messi. He has so much talent you don't know what he is going to do next''.

''He futher said we will not man-mark him because the strongest thing about our team is that we are a unit. We all have to concentrate and make sure we neutralise Leo''.

''But we also have to be aware that they have other good players. We have to take care of the entire Argentine team and not just Messi. Argentina have played well as a team in this tournament and we have totry to beat their whole team''.

Liverpool to sign another teenager

Liverpool are lining up a £500,000 bid for Brazilian starlet Allan Rodrigues de Souza.

The Reds have already bought talented teenagers Joe Gomez and Bobby Adekanye and are now eyeing up Allan.

Allan, 18, plays for Brazilian side SC Internacional and is regarded as one of the best prospects in his homeland.

Liverpool are also set to continue their clear-out by offloading Spanish winger Luis Alberto to Deportivo La Coruna.

Alberto, 22, has failed to establish himself at Anfield since his £6.8million switch from Sevilla in 2013 and spent last season on loan at Malaga.

Do you think Liverpool signings can get them into Champions League football? Leave your comments below.......

''Chelsea would be the team to beat'' - Gary Nevile

The 2015/2016 Barclays Premier League is five weeks away and former England and United right back, Gray Nevile has tipped the reigning champions, Chelsea to retain the title.

While speaking with Sky Sports he said; ''we are in July when teams haven't completed their business yet; that's something I think you've got to be very careful about at this stage''

''But as I stand here today, I think it would be very difficult to look past Chelsea. However, who knows what is going to happen in the next month in terms of signings and how those signings will then come in and adapt.

''Things can always happen and you could look at a team in a month's time and think they are going to take some stopping with the people they have signed, we haven't seen the transfer market flush itself out yet.

''But certainly now, without business having been done, you aren't as informed as you  would like to be, but Chelsea would be the team to beat and I think everyone would say that''.

Can Mourinho and Chelsea revive Falcao's career?

It acquired the reputation as a strikers' graveyard. Stamford Bridge, the place where the most potent players on the planet became laughing stocks. First Andriy Shevchenko, then Fernando Torres. Roman Abramovich's dream signings were exposed as hubristic follies.

So Radamel Falcao threatens to complete an unwanted hat-trick of supposed superstars who became sorry substitutes. Except there are two significant differences. The Colombian is the manager's choice, not the owner's. And, unlike Shevchenko and Torres, Falcao's decline seemed to begin before Chelsea even entered the bidding.

The statistics were damning. He scored 155 goals in 200 games for Porto, Atletico Madrid and Monaco. He mustered a mere four in 29 for Manchester United. He looked a player transformed by last year's cruciate ligament injury, one deprived of the sharpness to escape defenders and the confidence to find the net. By the end of his stint at Old Trafford, United were in effect only playing with 10 men whenever Falcao was on the field.

So if Mourinho, winner of two European Cups and eight domestic league titles in four countries, can restore him to past glories, it will rank as one of the finest achievements of his storied managerial career.  As it is, this is one of his greatest gambles.

Falcao's scoring record, prior to his arrival in England, might suggest there is little risk and Mourinho's need for a replacement for the departing Didier Drogba is obvious. Yet a glance at the Portuguese's past shows he is at his best when fashioning and forging formidable attackers, not signing the finished article. Drogba arrived at Stamford Bridge in 2004 as a rough diamond, with the force but not the finesse. Mourinho improved him. 

Diego Milito joined Inter in 2009 as a journeyman with an eye for goal. In a year under Mourinho, he became a world-beater, the man who fired Inter to an extraordinary treble.

Even Diego Costa, a Champions League finalist and La Liga winner with Atletico Madrid in 2014, was a player whose career trajectory was on the up when Mourinho bought him. He has prospered with others' striking discoveries, most notably Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Samuel Eto'o, but his most successful spearheads have tended to be ruthless, aggressive and indelibly associated with Mourinho. Falcao cannot fall into that category.

And the job description makes it a strange fit. Falcao became frustrated that he had a bit-part role at Old Trafford. Unless Costa spends much of next season injured, suspended or both, he threatens to have the same status at Stamford Bridge.

Moreover, while Costa's existing deputies were clearly inferior players to him, they had attributes that suited Mourinho's blueprint. While Falcao seems to need a team ready to service a penalty-box poacher to be built around him and was a passenger when United were not in possession, Loic Remy brought the counterattacking pace the Portuguese prizes, Drogba the hold-up play, capacity to waste time and ability to win free kicks that rendered him useful.

If Falcao can replicate the ageing Ivorian's contribution - seven goals in 14 starts, including a vital strike at Old Trafford – then it would be a distinct improvement on his efforts at United, if nothing like his prolific spell on the European mainland, and could give valuable back-up to Costa.

But it is a matter of Costa and of cost. Every expensive signing brings a question: could the funds have been spent better? United's fans were remarkably forgiving of Falcao, considering his €370,000-a-week wages and sizeable loan fee.  His four goals cost United €6.8 million apiece. He is proof that, in the modern football economy, borrowing can be as expensive as buying.
Monaco, who have Falcao under contract until 2018, would have been desperate to find a buyer. Financially Falcao is the biggest liability on their books. The reality is there are probably a maximum of 10 clubs in the world who can afford his salary. Falcao is paid like a Galactico but scored fewer goals this season than Ashley Barnes. The fact that he has ended up at Stamford Bridge only serves to highlight the cosy relationship between Mourinho and Falcao’s agent Jorge Mendes and Chelsea.

Because those who don't believe footballers should be judged on the basis of their transfer fee and wages are being naïve. Reserves are rarely as pricey as Falcao. Chelsea have developed a reputation as the savviest sellers in England, but Falcao needs to prove they are not squandering the money they have squirrelled away.

Chelsea's history enables them to testify that funds do necessarily translate into goals. Before Costa, only Drogba and, to a lesser extent, Nicolas Anelka were successful striking signings in the Abramovich era. There is no doubt who were the two worst.

Shevchenko and Torres cost a combined €109 million. They left without Chelsea recouping fees and after only delivering 29 goals in 158 games. If Falcao looks like a possible successor, another brilliant finisher who became a blunt force at a comparatively early age, it is worth remembering there is often method to Mourinho's seeming madness. Perhaps there is again.

Source: Goal

Neymar disobeyed - Gilmar

Brazil's technical coordinator Gilmar Rinaldi claims Neymar disobeyed instructions from the coaching staff when he confronted the referee after receiving red against Colombia.

“I told him to be careful because he is responsible for his own actions,” former World Cup winner Gilmar toldL'Equipe.

“Neymar told me it was fair for him to talk to the referee, but I told him that it wasn’t the right time.

“But this is a learning process. I participated in his nomination as captain and I have no regrets. I have to prepare a great captain.”

Fiorentina to sue Salah

Fiorentina have announced they are willing to take legal action against Mohamed Salah over his refusal to remain at the Artemio Franchi.

The Viola signed the Egypt international on loan from Chelsea in January and it was reported at the time that the Serie A side retained the option to extend the agreement for another year and buy the forward for an agreed fee at the end of the 2015-16 season.

However, Salah and his agent maintain that the 23-year-old did not sign any contract committing himself to Fiorentina beyond June 30.

Consequently, the Viola - who also claim to have offered Salah a pay rise to stay in Florence - are now ready to settle the matter in the courts, with the former Basel ace having refused to turn up for pre-season training.

"The player, through his representative, rejected the offer of improvement of his contract and he has even expressed his intention to be transferred to another club and not answer a call-up that had already been submitted," read a statement released on Fiorentina's official website on Friday.

"Our lawyers will now work to evaluate lawsuits aimed at defending Fiorentina."

However, Salah's agent Ramy Abbas claimed before Fiorentina's public announcement that Salah will not be at the Franchi next season - no matter what happens.

"There is a document that proves that Salah can decide his own future," he told Radio Bruno Toscano.

"The contract with Fiorentina expires on June 30. Now the boy will return to Chelsea and await other offers.

"Salah will not remain with the Viola. All of the offers that the club made him have been rejected. The situation has been clear since February.

"Fiorentina knew the facts. They are a great club and they know what it means to sign a contract.

"I have explained also to Chelsea that the contract with the Viola is finished.

"Fiorentina cannot exercise any rights because the player didn't sign a permanent contract."

Abbas added that he now expects his client's future to be resolved in the coming days - and that the winger could end up lining up for another Serie A side next season.

"I can only say that he belongs to Chelsea but that he's liked by Italian clubs, among others," the agent added.

"Some of these clubs have shown great interest in him. There will be news in the coming days.

"Mohamed is grateful to the city of Florence for the way in which they treated him, but I cannot speak for him: just that there will be a chance to explain everything."

Source: Goal.com

Terry's trophy cabinet

With football in the off-season, Chelsea captain John Terry has used his holiday time to reflect on the success of his trophy-laden career to date.

The defender posted a picture on Instagram on Thursday of his trophy cabinet, the latest addition of which is the Premier League title he led Chelsea to by playing every minute of every game in the 2014-15 season.

The 34-year-old Terry will no doubt be chomping at the bit to add to his collection when the season starts on August 8 against Swansea at Stamford Bridge.