
Celtic and Rangers make 'contact' to sign Monaco left-back
The 20-year-old played 12 times in Ligue 1 last season and twice in the Champions League.
Scottish Premiership giants Celtic and Rangers have both made 'contact' with Ouattara's agent over a potential move, claims footmercato.net.
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It is said that Monaco prefers a permanent exit rather than a loan move for the player, who will 'choose the sporting project that will give him the most playing time'.
Augsburg, PSV Eindhoven, Toulouse, Metz, and Torino have also been mentioned as potential suitors.
New Rangers head coach Russell Martin has been using Max Aarons at left-back early on in his tenure.
Across the city at [[Celtic]], Kieran Tierney has replaced Greg Taylor, with Hayato Inamura, at least in pre-season, appearing to be an able deputy.
Both clubs begin their respective Scottish Premiership campaigns this weekend. Rangers travel to face Motherwell on Saturday night, whereas Celtic welcome St Mirren to Glasgow's east end on Sunday as they unfurl yet another league flag.
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Scotsman
26 minutes ago
- Scotsman
Hearts 2-0 Aberdeen: Player ratings, new signing debuts, power and pace, top of SPFL Premiership
Storm Floris engulfed the country on Monday but Storm Jambos took charge of the Scottish Premiership as Hearts ended their first fixture of the season top of the league. The opening game brought a 2-0 home victory for new head coach Derek McInnes, who watched a powerful display from his team to set a tone for the campaign ahead. Graeme Shinne's early own goal and Stuart Findlay's second-half header were sufficient for Hearts to earn full points. They have now won nine competitive games in a row since the end of last season and began this one looking confident. Pace and power were important factors in the win. Aberdeen troubled their hosts for a period at the start of the second half without capitalising, and McInnes effected a tactical change moments before Findlay scored the second goal. Brighton and Hove Albion chairman Tony Bloom looked on from Tynecastle's main stand as Hearts' new £9.86m investor took in his first game in Gorgie. He declared at a Foundation of Hearts fan meeting on Sunday evening that the Edinburgh club can win the Premiership title in future years. Although fans chanted Bloom's name as the game began, the immediate task was to start season 2025/26 positively with McInnes taking charge of Hearts in the league for the first time. The home performance was strong, although there is doubtless room for improvement. New Hearts signing Tomas Bent Magnusson was cleared for a place on the bench following his arrival from Valur Reykjavik. He would make a debut as an injury-time substitute. Other new recruits Christian Borchgrevink, Claudio Braga, Stuart Findlay and Oisin McEntee made their league debuts in Hearts' starting line-up. Albanian winger Sabah Kerjota was suspended after two yellow cards in his final league game in Italy for former club Sambenedettese. Yan Dhanda was also banned following a red card in Hearts' final league game last season against Kilmarnock. Aberdeen deployed Adil Aouchiche, Kusini Yengi and Nicolas Milanovic as new recruits in their line-up. A sellout crowd produced a deafening din whenever Hearts attacked in the opening stages. McInnes wanted a raucous Tynecastle and the locals responded, as did the home players. It took less than 11 minutes for them to breach Aberdeen's rearguard through relentless pressure and direct balls forward. Oisin McEntee's header from Claudio Braga's cross was parried by visiting goalkeeper Dimitar Mitov and cleared by Alexander Jensen, but Cammy Devlin returned a shot which struck McEntee and spun out to Harry Milne near the byline. His low cross struck Shinnie and ricocheted into the unguarded Aberdeen net from close range. Tynecastle erupted, and moments later Milne lashed a vicious 22-yard effort off Mitov's crossbar. Aberdeen responded with Milanovic's cross and Yengi's jabbed effort at goal, which bounced off Zander Clark's left post. It was a signal that they were not prepared to simply wilt and soon some uncompromising tackles began flying in from both sides. There were jersey pulls and bodychecks which referee Nick Walsh didn't punish with cards amid rising tension. Hearts were denied a second goal at the end of the first half after Lawrence Shankland sent a roaring effort into the top corner. VAR confirmed Craig Halkett and Frankie Kent were offside in the build-up, but the need for a second goal to capitalise on the hosts' superiority was obvious. Indeed, another scare arrived early in the second half when Yengi side-footed Leighton Clarkson's free-kick wide of target from four yards. It was Aberdeen's clearest chance and the proverbial sitter for the giant Australian. Moments later, Clark parried Milanovic's powerful 22-yard drive. The petty fouling continued, Hearts players Craig Halkett and Cammy Devlin were cautioned, and Aberdeen gradually grew in confidence. Milanovic was their main threat, running at Hearts and tempting opponents into challenges. Shinnie stepped into midfield from left full-back to good effect and, with Aouchiche's creativity, there was clear and present danger to Hearts' slender advantage. McInnes made a quadruple change on 70 minutes hoping to change the flow of play. He introduced striker James Wilson, wingers Alan Forrest and Alexandros Kyziridis, and defender Michael Steinwender. Hearts changed from a 3-5-2 system to 4-4-2 in the process. Within seconds, they moved 2-0 ahead. Milne's free-kick into the visitors' penalty area spun up off the head of Mats Knoester and Findlay arrived at the back post to nod it past the advancing Mitov. That killed the game as a contest. Aberdeen didn't look like scoring twice and Hearts simply needed to see out the rest of the evening. They did that. It is only one game and McInnes is too experienced to get carried away, but he will have liked plenty aspects of his team's deserved victory. Here are the Hearts player ratings from Tynecastle: 1 . GK: Zander Clark 6/10 Important save to stop Milanovic's shot early in the second half. Not tested too often during the night. | SNS Group Photo Sales 2 . RCB: Frankie Kent 6/10 Booked for fouling Yengi in the first half. Otherwise steady before being substituted. | SNS Group Photo Sales 3 . CB: Craig Halkett 7/10 Commanding in the air against Yengi. Booked for a foul on Nilsen which he disputed. Superb sliding tackle on Aouchiche to stop him shooting. | SNS Group Photo Sales 4 . LCB: Stuart Findlay 8/10 Comfortable on the left of defence and offered a security which let Milne attack down the flank to good effect. Well positioned to take his goal. | SNS Group Photo Sales


Glasgow Times
26 minutes ago
- Glasgow Times
Rangers new boy reveals Mohamed Diomande transfer advice
The Finnish winger joined from the Netherlands' Go Ahead Eagles and is hopeful of being registered in time for the Champions League qualifier against Viktoria Plzen. Antman has completed a full pre-season with his former club and is ready to hit the ground running. He told [[Rangers]] TV: "When I first heard [[Rangers]] were interested, I was excited because it is a huge club, and you don't get these kinds of opportunities many times in your life. "I have trained with Go Ahead Eagles now for over a month, I have had five training matches, and also a 90-minute game, so I'm fully fit and ready." The 23-year-old is excited to experience Ibrox for the first time and is eager to settle in quickly. He said: "The last couple of days have been really busy and stressful but now I am ready to settle in. "I am excited for tomorrow, the first match at Ibrox. "I have heard it is a special place, but I haven't even seen it yet, so I am excited for everything that is to come." Antman, who played alongside Mohamed Diomande at Nordsjælland, sought advice from his former teammate before making the move to Glasgow. He said: "I asked him 'Should I come? "Is it a nice place?'. "He said only nice things about it."


Scottish Sun
26 minutes ago
- Scottish Sun
It's easy to forget just how good Dele Alli was – unfortunately other talented stars could soon follow his sad decline
Alli is another name in a list of similar career trajectories in modern football DELE-CATE SITUATION It's easy to forget just how good Dele Alli was – unfortunately other talented stars could soon follow his sad decline Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) NEWS that Dele Alli's career as an elite footballer may be over comes as no great surprise but with genuine sadness. And ever since Dele revealed the full extent of his traumatic childhood, in an interview with Gary Neville, there should only ever be empathy and understanding about the way his career has nosedived. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 5 Dele Alli has experienced a difficult career since breaking through with Tottenham Hotspur as a youngster in 2015 Credit: Getty 5 Alli was just a teenager when he took his first steps in the Premier League Credit: Getty - Contributor Yet Dele's career trajectory — five outstanding seasons, followed by a long descent — is not unusual and will become more commonplace. Because elite modern football is no country for either free spirits or troubled souls. Dele is adamant he wants to continue his career having been banished from the squad at Italian club Como after one Serie A appearance — a nine-minute cameo as a sub in March which ended in a red card. But at the age of 29 — and six years after the last of his 37 England caps — Dele is surely finished at the top level. An increasing number of players burn brightly for a short period of time before they either implode or suffer serious downturns. From Dele's generation of England players alone, Marcus Rashford, Jack Grealish, Raheem Sterling, Jesse Lingard, Ross Barkley, Jadon Sancho and Harry Winks were all regular internationals who, for various reasons, have struggled to last the course. The intensity of the modern game, with its demand for extreme athleticism and utter mental dedication, means that those like Harry Kane, who play at the top for ten or 15 years, are going to become the exception rather than the rule. Add in the increasingly congested fixture list for leading players — the nonsense of the Club World Cup only adding to it — and many will break down physically as well as psychologically. 5 Alli was red-carded almost immediately in his one Serie A appearance for Como Credit: Getty It is easy to forget quite how good a player Dele was. Not many players score 18 goals in a Premier League season from midfield, reach a World Cup semi-final and a Champions League final by the age of 23, win the PFA Young Player of the Year award as well as Match of the Day's Goal of the Season. Dele Alli hailed for opening up on mental health battles as Everton star joins Monday Night Football panel In that Neville interview, in 2023, Dele revealed he had been sexually abused as a six-year-old and was dealing drugs by the age of eight. He is estranged from both of his birth parents and was adopted by a school friend's family as a teenager and has more recently been in rehab to tackle addictions. During his early years at Tottenham, Dele was well looked-after by a supportive and tight-knit dressing room under the guidance of Mauricio Pochettino. Those Spurs team-mates were hugely fond of Dele — regarded as a likeable but wayward kid rather than a bad egg. They knew many of his issues and there were many positive influences on him, especially Eric Dier. Dele's career trajectory — five outstanding seasons, followed by a long descent — is not unusual and will become more commonplace. Elite modern football is no country for either free spirits or troubled souls. Yet since Pochettino's sacking in November 2019, Dele's career has been in a downward spiral from Jose Mourinho to Everton to Besiktas to Como — and a serious renaissance now seems highly unlikely. Other elite players who have crashed and burned may also have suffered extreme personal circumstances. Others are simply not built with the one-track mind now essential to a lasting career at the top. Up until the 1990s, it was perfectly possible for elite footballers to enjoy sex and drugs and rock-and-roll lifestyles and still enjoy sustained success. Now that levels of athleticism have increased, players' lifestyles are monitored so stringently by their clubs and their chances of a sly night out are wrecked by the advent of camera phones and social media, free-spirited players like Grealish will struggle. 5 Alli spent an ill-fated stint with Everton in an attempt to revive his Premier League career Credit: PA 5 Alli managed 37 senior international caps for England, but there is little hope of him adding to that tally now Credit: Getty Nothing can be done about this trend. The internet won't be uninvented and ultra-professionalism will never go into reverse. In an ideal world, every top footballer would have the mindset and stable background of Kane. In theory, they should all be able to live like monks for 15 years and enjoy their multi-million-pound rewards once they hang up their boots. Which is all well and good until you factor in the fact they are fallible human beings, often from tough backgrounds, who are subjected to huge temptations. Being a professional footballer in the 21st century is far more lucrative, but far less fun, than it was in the 20th. Addictions suffered by elite footballers are now less likely to be booze and recreational drugs but online gambling, gaming, porn as well as sleeping pills — secretive, lonely ways to alleviate pressures and problems. Nobody is playing violins for these young multi-millionaires. But, in its move towards extreme professionalism and 365-days-a-year seasons, football will lose more wonderful players like Dele.