Serie A games postponed after death of Pope Francis
Pope Francis was elected to lead the Catholic Church in 2013, replacing Pope Benedict XVI. The 88-year-old was a known football fan and had supported Argentine side San Lorenzo since he was a child. A number of Serie A clubs posted tributes to the Pope following his passing."A loss that deeply saddens our city and the entire world," a Roma statement read."His faith, his humility, his courage and his dedication have touched the hearts of millions of people, making him a moral reference of our time."
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Scotsman
10 minutes ago
- Scotsman
Scott McTominay's Napoli given 'clear sign' over £65m move as in-demand Scotland teammate handed boost
A major European transfer is edging closer to being completed. Sign up to our Football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Scott McTominay and Billy Gilmour are set to wave goodbye to one of their Napoli teammates this summer after the Italian giants reached an agreement with Galatasaray for the £65million sale of Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen over the weekend. According to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, the 26-year-old hitman gave the Serie A giants a 'clear sign' that he wants to join the Turkish club this summer, having enjoyed a goal-laden spell in the Super Lig last season, scoring 26 goals following his arrival at the club on loan last August. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Out-of-favour at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium since the arrival of head coach Antonio Conte last summer, Osimhen rejected a lucrative move to the Saudi Pro League a year ago in order to join the Turkish giants, and went on to play a massive role in helping Okan Buruk's secure a domestic double, scoring twice against Trabzonspor in the Turkish Cup final. Scott McTominay has flourished under Antonio Conte at Napoli last season - meaning the Serie A giants didn't feel the loss of Victor Osimhen. | Getty Images His departure from the Serie A giants did not harm his parent club though, with the McTominay-inspired Napoli winning the Scudetto for the first time since 2023, which has paved the way for a permanent exit for the forward this summer. However, despite Osimhen's 'clear desire' to return to Galatasaray, it was reported that Napoli had rejected four offers from the Turkish champions for theNigerian over the summer, before finally accepting a deal worth around £65million over the weekend. Conte has been linked with a £50million move for Liverpool striker Darwin Nunez recently, having already added Manchester City icon Kevin DeBruyne, Noa Lang and Sam Beukema to his squad this summer. However, despite rejecting multiple offers for Osimhen, reports of a strained dynamic between Conte and the 26-year-old meant he was never likely to return to Naples ahead of the 2025/26 campaign. Writing on his official X account, Romano wrote: 'Galatasaray and Napoli are now checking and proceeding with all formal documents for Victor Osimhen deal. He's been clear since day one of the window: only Galatasaray. No chance for other clubs.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Elsewhere, McTominay's international teammate Ben Doak has been given a boost in his hopes of impressing Liverpool boss Arne Slot this summer, after being included in the club's squad for their pre-season tour of Asia. The 19-year-old forward was subject of big money bids from Crystal Palace and Ipswich Town in January having impressed on loan to EFL Championship side Middlesbrough last season, but is hoping to play a part at Anfield this coming season, despite reported interest from AFC Bournemouth, Brentford, Crystal Palace, Everton, PSV Eindhoven and Nottingham Forest.
The Guardian
11 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Marcus Rashford and the Manchester United transfer boffins
The transfer boffins at Manchester United didn't have a great record last summer when it came to the club's departures. Scott McTominay was deemed not good enough for Ruben Amorim's squad, sold for around half of Manuel Ugarte's fee, and went on to win Serie A Footballer of the Year, leading Napoli to a historic Scudetto. Antony couldn't trap a beanbag in the first half of the season, registering one goal (a penalty in a 7-0 Fizzy Cup win over Barnsley in September) and no assists in the first five months of the campaign in United colours, yet went on to be one of the standout players in La Liga in the second half on loan at Real Betis, scoring nine goals, registering five assists and helping the Seville side reach a European final. Aaron Wan-Bissaka, now of West Ham, was crowned last season's Hammer of the Year for his performances at right back, and despite being named United's Under-23 Player of the Year in 2022, Álvaro Carreras departed Old Trafford for Benfica last summer for just £5m without making a first-team appearance, despite the club desperately needing a good, fit left-back. Make that make sense. This is the same Álvaro Carreras who, this summer, is now worth £43m after signing with Real Madrid to become their first-choice left back. Another player deemed unsuitable for a team that finished 15th in the Premier League but seemingly good enough for a Spanish superclub is Marcus Rashford, who is next on the gilded conveyor belt out of Old Trafford's door marked 'Do One', with the 27-year-old currently in Barcelona finalising a loan (with option to buy) deal with the Spanish champions. Just why Rashford would want to swap Manchester for Catalonia and play on the left wing of an attack that also numbers Lamine Yamal, Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha is anyone's guess, although Ruben Amorim's very public declaration he would rather play a 63-year-old goalkeeping coach over the England international earlier this year is probably quite a good place to start. Recent history tells us – and hopefully the transfer gurus behind each and every one of the above transfer blunders – that Rashford might not be the problem but rather, the club's seemingly unquenchable desire to be a lurching behemoth of a bin fire. Football Daily isn't an expert (in anything, really) but might suggest to Big Sir Jim and his lieutenants that falling out and ostracising the club's best young, home-grown talent probably isn't the best way to get Manchester United back on track. It feels a whole lot more likely that Rashford will have a brilliant season with Barcelona than Manchester United having a brilliant season without him. Sure, Rashford as the 2026 Ballon d'Or winner does seem like a bit of a stretch at this point, but then again, 12 months ago, we didn't expect to see McTominay crowned as the new king of the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium. Good luck, Marcus! Representing our country is the greatest honour. It is not right that while we are doing that, some of us are treated differently simply because of the colour of our skin. Until now, we have chosen to take the knee before matches. It is clear we and football need to find another way to tackle racism. We have agreed as a squad to remain standing before kick‑off on Tuesday. Those behind this online poison must be held accountable' – England's players release a joint statement to show solidarity with Jess Carter, who revealed that she has been subjected to racial abuse online during the Euros in Switzerland. I am glad that Mike Walsh and Stuart Maconie ((Friday's letters) have definitively answered the question of where the north of England starts and am confident that is the end of the matter' – Bryan Paisley. You can cite Howlin Studs Maconie all you want, Mike, but though he may have coined the phrase 'Britpop', he also claimed Bob Holness played the saxophone solo on Baker Street. The north starts at Sheffield, indisputably, as did football, also undisputedly. (I'd love to say this is the one thing Noble will agree with me on, but he'd probably email in and say it's bloody Woodhall, or something)' – Jon Millard. So it's really come down to this has it then? Literary choices from a footballer copying their look from John Oates circa 1981. How long till the Premier League starts again?' – Noble Francis. Julien Stéphan has said that the Championship is the most difficult league in the world. Could the grownups decide once and for all? This is all too confusing' – Krishna Moorthy. The mural of Big Sam and his mountain of chips is fine (Sam's Town – Friday's full email edition). But what we all want to see is an artist's rendering of him downing that infamous pint of wine. Larger than life' – Mike Wilner. If you have any, please send letters to Today's winner of our prizeless letter o' the day is … Mike Wilner. Terms and conditions for our competitions, when we run them, can be viewed here. Max Rushden is joined by Lucy Ward, Jonathan Wilson and Philippe Auclair in the latest Football Weekly podcast to discuss the Euros and unwanted Manchester United players. Paul Gascoigne is in hospital after reportedly being found semi-conscious in his bedroom at home in Poole, Dorset. His condition is described as stable. Mikel Arteta says he is '100%' confident Arsenal followed the correct processes in dealing with Thomas Partey, who was charged this month with five counts of rape and one count of sexual assault. Good news for England's Lionesses: Leah Williamson trained on Monday before Tuesday's semi-final against Italy. The captain was forced off with ankle-knack in the quarter-final with Sweden. Liverpool are to take their summer spending to almost £300m after agreeing to pay £69m plus £10m in add-ons for the Eintracht Frankfurt hotshot Hugo Ekitike. Elsewhere in transfer land, Nottingham Forest are working on a deal to sign Dan Ndoye from Bologna as they seek a replacement for the departed Anthony Elanga. And James McAtee, who Manchester City somewhat cheekily value at £35m, is another option for the Big Vase side. And this will give you all the good feels. A fan travelled 5,000 miles from Kolkata to see Lincolnshire team Brigg Town play a friendly against Hull Utd after becoming an avid online follower during the Covid pandemic. 'I have always had a fascination with non-league football in England,' cheered Rohan Chowdury. '[Football] brings people together and makes the world a much smaller place.' Oscar Wilde believed the most frightening words in the English language are 'I had a very interesting dream last night'. In the year 2025, yet scarier are '[insert player here] is in my fantasy team', 'I've double-captained [insert player here]' and various other dreaded phrases to make proper football people shudder. Still, for many, including some who read venerable daily emails, fantasy football is a good thing. There has, though, been a disturbance in the force after official Fantasy Premier League rules changes for the new season were announced. Social media disgraces groaned all weekend about various amendments to bonus points, the location of goalkeeping saves, and goal-line clearances now being worth three times as much. Seismic stuff, though the biggest fuss has come because 'managers' 'will be given extra free transfers in Gameweek 16 to help plan around this season's Africa Cup of Nations'. Sam Allardyce and Jamie Carragher would doubtless approve. What that means in practice is that everyone picks Mo Salah then swaps him out in Gameweek 16. 'FPL is about planning for situations like this – not getting it gifted to you,' raged a leading FPL YouTuber among many similar fresh and funky complaints. The imaginary game's gone, Clive. The Euro 2025 semi-finals are upon us. So, here are Sophie Downey's power rankings. It's definitely worth revisiting Saturday night's quarter-final between Germany and France. Jonathan Liew has been talking about that save from Ann-Katrin Berger. On the domestic front, David Hytner was at the – checks notes – Select Car Leasing Stadium as the Thomas Frank era got under way at Tottenham. Julien Stéphan is the new man at the helm at QPR. Ed Aarons has been getting to know the Frenchman a bit better. And here's Jonathan Wilson's breakdown of the summer transfer window includes references to Frankenstein and the World Cup draw you'll be glad to hear. 14 August 2006: Andriy Shevchenko, ripped jeans and all, gets his pose on in front of the houses of parliament shortly after joining Chelsea. Good to see the sun was out for the occasion.
Scotsman
33 minutes ago
- Scotsman
Scott McTominay's Napoli get 'green light' for £50m move as mega deal puts Scotland teammate's future in doubt
Two major European deals are edging closer to completion Sign up to our Football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Scotland duo Scott McTominay and Billy Gilmour could be set to welcome a new teammate to Napoli this summer after the Serie A giants were 'given the green light' to begin talks with Liverpool striker Darwin Núñez. According to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, the Uruguayan forward is on Antonio Conte's shopping list this month, and the Italian champions have now made direct contact with Liverpool over a megabucks move for the 26-year-old striker that could be worth £50million. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Having already secured the signing of Manchester City icon Kevin De Bruyne on a free transfer earlier in the month, Conte is now looking to step up his summer recruitment, and is hoping to add further firepower to his frontline as he looks to mould a squad that can mount a serious challenge both domestically and in the Champions League next season. Scott McTominay has flourished under Antonio Conte this season at Napoli - and he could be given a new striker to work alongside next season. | Getty Images Writing on his official X account, Romano wrote: 'Understand Napoli and Liverpool will have direct contacts today to discuss conditions of Darwin Núñez deal. Negotiations still at early stages but Napoli have green light from Núñez as revealed in the recent days. The deal depends on financial requests now.' Romano has also confirmed that Liverpool have sealed a £40million deal for AFC Bournemouth left-back Milos Kerkez, throwing the future of Scotland captain Andy Robertson into serious doubt at Anfield amid reports of interest from Atletico Madrid. The Italian transfer guru reported the La Liga giants had serious interest in Robertson earlier this month, claiming head coach Diego Simeone had made the Liverpool defender his 'top target' this summer, with the 31-year-old fallen down the pecking order at Anfield amid the impending arrival of Hungarian international Kerkez. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Robertson is entering the final year of his contract on Merseyside and has a tough decision to make on his future, with Robertson having to weigh up whether to stay and Anfield and fight for his place, or move on in search of more regular game-time ahead of Scotland's potentially participation in next year's World Cup.
