Rumour Has It: Man City eye Inter´s Martinez, Barca willing to sell Dembele amid Man Utd links

Marco Asensio was considering leaving Real Madrid on loan before Carlo Ancelotti told the midfielder to stay with the LaLiga leaders.

The Spain international was concerned that his first-team opportunities would be limited this season due to the options at Ancelotti s disposal in his second spell as Madrid boss.

Liverpool were among the clubs linked with Asensio, but the 25-year-old was still with Los Blancos when the transfer window closed at the end of last month.

Asensio, who missed most of the 2019-20 due to a knee injury, marked his first start of the season with a hat-trick in a 6-1 LaLiga hammering of his former club Real Mallorca on Wednesday.

Horacio Gaggioli, Asensio s agent, has revealed it could have been a very different story.

 L…

After an international break that seemed to go on for months rather than days, the Premier League was back with typical gusto this weekend.

Tottenham and Liverpool earned impressive wins over Manchester City and Leicester City respectively to sit top of the pile on 20 points, with Chelsea and the Foxes hot in their wake.

But away from the more obvious facts and figures there are always some hidden gems that you may have missed.

With help from the geniuses at Opta, we have delved into some of the quirkier things to emerge from the Premier League these past few days.

Reds pass the test

Diogo Jota made history by becoming the first Liverpool player to score in each of his first four home top-flight appearances for the Reds.

More impressively, h…

Frank Lampard said he believes the standards at Chelsea have dropped after he signed off as interim manager with a 1-1 draw against Newcastle.

The result means Lampard failed to register a single home victory during his second spell in charge, with his last win as manager at Stamford Bridge still a 3-1 triumph over West Ham in December 2020.

It took a Kieran Trippier own goal, the defender deflecting the ball into the net midway through the first half, to cancel out Anthony Gordon’s early strike.

This was at least an improved performance from Chelsea, particularly in the second half where they played with an attacking initiative rarely seen under Lampard.

The young trio of Noni Madueke, Lewis Hall and substitute Carey Chukwuemeka especially played with …

Erik ten Hag wants to concentrate on building a better version of Manchester United rather than growing talk of a Premier League title challenge.

United are five points behind Premier League leaders Arsenal, albeit having played a game more, after cruising to a 3-0 win over Leicester City on Sunday.

Marcus Rashford scored twice for United to take his tally for the season to a career-best 24 goals, giving the Red Devils control in a game that saw David de Gea twice prevent Leicester from taking the lead with fine first-half saves.

Jadon Sancho came off the bench in the second half to seal the points, sending United into a huge week on a high.

Ten Hag s men face Barcelona in the second leg of their Europa League play-off on Thursday, having drawn the first …

Borussia Monchengladbach have confirmed Denis Zakaria will leave the club at the end of the season.

The announcement comes less than 24 hours after Germany international Matthias Ginter revealed on Instagram that he will be letting his contract expire in 2022.

Switzerland international Zakaria has been with the club since joining from Young Boys in 2017 and has largely been a regular throughout his time with Die Fohlen.

The 25-year-old defensive midfielder, who can also play at centre-back, has been linked with several of the world s biggest clubs, such as fellow Bundesliga side Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Barcelona and Juventus.

While no club has yet emerged as the favourite to land Zakaria, he has at least provided clarity to Gladbach as he prepares to en…

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp faces a hugely-significant January without talismanic top scorer Mohamed Salah but is confident he can find an acceptable solution among the attacking options at his disposal.

Salah will leave for the African Cup of Nations after Monday’s visit of Newcastle, the first of at least six matches which includes an FA Cup tie at Arsenal and a two-legged Carabao Cup semi-final with Fulham.

The 16-goal forward, second behind only Erling Haaland in the Premier League goalscoring stakes with 12 in the top flight this season, will link up with Egypt as they head to the Ivory Coast next week and will potentially be away for over a month.

Klopp has had to deal with it in the past and remains confident his side will do so again as they seek to …

It has been another Premier League season full of drama and entertainment.

Manchester City wrapped up another title, with Leicester, Leeds and Southampton relegated to the Championship.

Here, the PA news agency looks at 10 of the most memorable moments of the 2022-23 campaign.

Fireworks at the Bridge

TUCHEL VS CONTE: ROUND TWO!!!

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL)

When Tottenham made the trip to rivals Chelsea on the second weekend of the season, the early talk was of both being able to challenge City but what transpired on a hot day in August was tempers boiling over between Antonio Conte and Thomas Tuchel. The pair were involved in two heated exchanges and the now memorable handshake at the end of a 2-2 draw. It has largely been dow…

Best odds: 3/5

Bookmaker:

Liverpool have a steep hill to climb in their second-leg clash with Real Madrid in the Champions League quarterfinals which is being played on Wednesday at Anfield. The Spanish giants won the first leg last week at the Alfredo Di Stefano stadium by 3-1, courtesy of a brace from Vinicius Junior and a strike from Marco Asensio in between, along with Mohamed Salah scoring the only goal for the Premier League champions.

Liverpool

Much has been said about the season Liverpool have had so far, particularly in terms of the injury crisis that has hit their back line pretty hard. Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip have all been ruled out for the rest of the campaign, as has captain Jordan Henderson in midfield.

The search for the…

Wembley will become the UK’s first dementia friendly national stadium in a bid to keep sports fans affected by the condition “at the heart of the action”.

The Football Association and official charity partner Alzheimer’s Society have collaborated to improve the match-day experience for people living with dementia, who can find sporting venues disorientating and overwhelming.

Football’s governing body has also backed Alzheimer’s Society’s new Dementia Friendly Sports Clubs and Venues guide, while both the Premier League and the Racecourse Association have pledged their commitment to becoming dementia friendly.

Alzheimer’s Society chief executive officer Kate Lee said: “We want to see all sports showing their commitment to giving fans with dementi…

Market: Kaoru Mitoma to score anytime

Odds: 7/5 @

Looking to extend on their remarkable Premier League flurry, Brighton will welcome Bournemouth to the Amex on Saturday lunchtime.

Starting with the hosts, extending on their FA Cup adventure last weekend after snatching a last-gasp 2-1 victory at home against Liverpool, Brighton are in the midst of what has been a famous campaign at the Amex. Only continuing to shine since appointing new boss Roberto De Zerbi, the Seagulls now have their sights firmly set on securing a maiden European finish. With the mood in their camp at a red-hot high, the one-time Sassuolo boss will be smelling the chance for his side to lay down another marker here. In the midst of a five-match unbeaten run across all formats, Brighton have …