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Daily Mirror
26-06-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Rafael Leao gets fans excited as Arsenal prepare bid for target
Mikel Arteta led Arsenal to a third successive runner-up finish in the Premier League last season and is after reinforcements as the Gunners chase the league title Arsenal are in no apparent rush to get deals done this summer, but the wheels are in motion on multiple fronts. Andrea Berta is expected to be a busy man after taking over as sporting director, and there has already been some movement. Jorginho and Kieran Tierney have already completed summer exits, while Thomas Partey looks increasingly likely to do the same as his contract nears expiry. A new signing also appears to be just around the corner, with Kepa due to join from Chelsea in a cut-price deal. Elsewhere, the big questions concern Arsenal's attacking recruitment. A lack of depth cost Mikel Arteta's team dear last season, and a new number nine appears to be a must. Benjamin Sesko and Viktor Gyokeres remain the two key men in that role. It still looks like an either-or situation, with Sesko remaining the more likely at the time of writing. There has also been talk of a move for a new left winger, though long-term target Nico Williams looks to be Barcelona-bound. Another left-sided option is among the topics of discussion as Mirror Football brings you the latest from around North London. Leao gets fans excited Rafael Leao has sparked excitement among some Arsenal fans after posing in a Thierry Henry t-shirt in a social media post. Some fans have interpreted it as a come-and-get-me plea, though others aren't as sure. Portugal international Leao would be an option on the left, and Milan's failure to qualify for Europe has sparked questions over his future. Even so, Milan sporting director Igli Tare remains optimistic about keeping him at the San Siro. 'I consider him an important pawn in our project: he has everything to become a true champion," Tare said earlier in the window (via Sempre Milan). "He has always shown it but I think he hasn't shown what he really can yet. Offers? We haven't received anything yet: the interests are all market rumours.' Norgaard bid on the horizon Arsenal's interest in Christian Norgaard has ramped up, with the Gunners lodging a £9.3million bid for the Brentford star. The Gunners had been linked with a free transfer for the Dane as his contract neared expiry, and haven't given up despite him agreeing new terms with the Bees. Norgaard currently captains Brentford, and has two years left on his deal, but Arsenal's interest comes off the back of the West London club losing manager Thomas Frank to Tottenham. His arrival would allow the Gunners to add depth and experience after Jorginho's move to Flamengo. Any move for the 31-year-old would not impact the club's pursuit of Martin Zubimendi, Spain star Zubimendi is still expected to complete a £51m move from Real Sociedad. Gunners learn Rodrygo price Real Madrid are not in any mood to come down on their valuation of Rodrygo. If the Arsenal-linked Brazilian is to leave the Bernabeu this summer then it will come at a cost of £77m. With the 24-year-old having three years left on his deal, Madrid are in no rush to drop their asking price. However, according to Cadena SER, they would be prepared to let him leave if Arsenal produce the big money. "I know what happened, that the end of the season was not easy for him. He took some time that was good for him, to reset his head," Madrid's new boss Xabi Alonso recently said when asked about the forward. "We talked from day one and I see him looking forward to enjoying himself with his quality." Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Daily Mirror
19-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mirror
Alexander-Arnold opens up on mixed emotions after making Real Madrid debut
Trent Alexander-Arnold made his Real Madrid debut as they were held in their Club World Cup opener and admitted he was disappointed not to get a win in his first outing Trent Alexander-Arnold confessed making his Real Madrid debut is "something every player dreams of" but their failure to win in the Club World Cup meant there was "some disappointment". The former Liverpool right-back has long been linked with Los Blancos and made the move recently with his contract at Anfield expiring. He's now rubbing shoulders with pal Jude Bellingham as well as Vinicius Jnr and the Arsenal-linked Rodrygo. They ran out for their opening game in FIFA's Club World Cup but underwhelmed as they were held by Saudi outfit Al-Hilal. New manager Xabi Alonso is still getting to grips with his squad but Real were firm favourites to down the Middle Eastern side. Gonzalo Garcia's opener was cancelled out by a penalty from Ruben Neves as Dean Huijsen, formerly of Bournemouth, was another ex-Premier League star to make his debut for the Spanish giants. Alexander-Arnold admits that he must deal an expectation that tips Real to win "every game you play in" and that clearly soured his first outing as he thanked his new employers and his team-mates for their early show of support after he made the switch. He said: "Incredible day to have made my debut for Real Madrid. It's something almost every player dreams of so to be able to achieve it is huge for me. There's some disappointment not to have won the game but it's the mentality you need to have as a Real player is to want and expect to win every game you've played in. "I've felt the support from the moment I signed the club. Absolutely sensational. The fan base is truly global all around the world and you feel it every day. "I've been learning Spanish a couple of months. I want to adapt and give myself the best start possible. It's important to show the intent that I want to embrace the culture and adapt as best as possible. That was important for me to do so." After a trophyless season last term Alonso, who replaced the iconic Carlo Ancelotti, maintains that the changes he's looking for won't happen overnight. "I knew it would take time," he said. "There are things we have to change. We'll have to correct them, and we'll keep doing that. Everything takes time, we've had nine days, and some players have had just three training sessions. It's demanding, we're in a competition, but we want to learn, and what we want to do will take time." Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Daily Mirror
18-06-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Benjamin Sesko's agent moves to 'clarify a few things' amid Arsenal 'agreement'
Slovenia and RB Leipzig striker Benjamin Sesko is one of the most in-demand strikers this summer and his agent has spoken about the future of the Arsenal-linked frontman Benjamin Sesko's agent Elvis Basanovic has denied putting any pressure on RB Leipzig to lower their asking price for the striker. Sesko is understood to have agreed personal terms with Premier League side Arsenal, but the Gunners still have work to do. Leipzig are prepared to sell Sesko after missing out on Champions League qualification, but only if they receive a hefty fee - thought to be north of £60million. Basanovic believes all will become clear in due course, but moved to "clarify" the situation and insisted he wouldn't push for a lower fee out of respect for the Bundesliga side. 'This is far from truth!" he told Givemesport when asked about rumours of leaning on Leipzig over their asking price "We respect RB Leipzig and I am 100% convinced RB Leipzig will also respect our decision for the next step when we decide to do it." He addedL "Even if there may be - or will be - a strong desire of the player to move to a certain club, we will never force or blackmail RB Leipzig. I believe this is not the right way, because the way you actually exit from the club shows your values. Values that you are bringing into a new club. "I can understand in very big transfers, there are a lot of different interests but no matter what, I believe in football world should be more respect. So that's why we do things in the right way or we don't do them. It's very simple, even maybe in the media it looks very complicated." Sesko scored 21 goals in all competitions for Leipzig last season, with 13 of those coming in the Bundesliga. That was enough for him to finish the season as his team's top scorer, but a late-season collapse saw their European hopes go up in smoke. With five games to go, Leipzig sat in the fourth and final Champions League qualification place. They won none of those last five, though, and that saw them miss out on European qualification altogether. Sesko was linked with an Arsenal switch in the summer of 2024 as well, only to instead sign a new contract at his current club. That deal runs until 2029, though he could yet leave sooner. "We have a team with great potential and a balanced mix of young and experienced players. I'm really looking forward to taking the next steps with this team," Sesko said when his extension was confirmed. "We've already achieved a lot in my first season and often shown the amount of quality and outstanding football we can bring to the pitch. But there's still a lot more to be done and that's now our common goal." Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
RTÉ News
13-06-2025
- Sport
- RTÉ News
'To this day one of the best moments I've ever had' - Stephen Kelly and Richie Towell go down an Ireland youth nostalgia trip
This is a big year for the Republic of Ireland Under-17s. In November, they will feature at the World Cup where they have been drawn in an eclectic group alongside Panama, Uzbekistan and Paraguay. Preparation for the tournament, which has been expanded to 48 teams and will be held in Qatar, revved up this month as Colin O'Brien's side took on the Under-18s from Norway, Turkey and Croatia in friendlies. The first two of those ended in defeats (4-1 and 2-0 respectively) but on Monday, goals from Rory Finneran, Jaden Umeh and Shamrock Rovers striker Michael Noonan fired the Boys in Green to a 3-0 victory in Croatia to end the window on a high note. There is plenty of talent in the squad, with the aforementioned trio as well as Noonan's Arsenal-linked Rovers team-mate Victor Ozhianvuna and Dundalk defender Vincent Leonard in the latest squad. The one complication for head coach O'Brien to navigate in the autumn will be the fact that the tournament will fall outside of a FIFA window, which means clubs would not be obligated to release players. The timing of the competition also coincides with the climax of the Irish domestic season and with youth very much to the fore, including at the leading clubs, there could be a dilemma or two. However, former Shamrock Rovers and Dundalk midfielder Richie Towell, who represented Ireland at the Under-17 European Championships in 2008, is unequivocal about whether club or country should come first for the current crop of youngsters when it comes to the World Cup. "The clubs have to let the players go," he said on this week's RTÉ Soccer Podcast as he and former Ireland senior and Tottenham Hotspur defender Stephen Kelly reminisced about their major tournament memories at underage level for the Boys in Green. "As Stephen will tell you, for any Shamrock Rovers player to go and - no disrespect - to play against a Drogheda, or a Derry, or whoever it is for the last two or three games of the season, they need to go and play in a World Cup for Ireland. That's 100% more important. Most definitely." Kelly recalled being in a similar boat in 2003 when Ireland had qualified for the FIFA World Youth Championships - equivalent to the modern day Under-20 World Cup. Already on the books at Tottenham Hotspur, he was adamant that he would go the UAE to play alongside fellow future senior internationals like Stephen Elliott, Kevin Doyle, Glenn Whelan and Keith Fahey. "The World Cup came around and it was played in Abu Dhabi, so it was played in October, so middle of the season and I was on loan at Watford in the Championship at the time from Spurs," he said. "And they were like, 'You're not going (to the World Cup)'. And I'm like, 'I am going, I'm 100% going'. There's no way I'm missing out on this, to play at a World Cup. "There was one player that didn't go, Sean Thornton. He was at Sunderland at the time and he said he was going to stay at his club. "But for the rest of us, it was 'no chance, we're not missing this'. It's a World Cup and I never got to another one." That Boys in Green side managed to top their group and get to the knockout stage in the UAE, with Kelly scoring the second goal in a 2-0 win over Mexico. But beyond the results, it's the lifetime bonds that he has with those team-mates like Doyle, Whelan etc that remain most cherished. "They were the best times. It was so much fun. It was just hilarious," he said, adding that the memories were sprung back again last Friday at the Aviva Stadium when he bumped into Ireland senior coach Paddy McCarthy, who was one of his defensive partners in the youth ranks. "You have a special bond with them and you know them inside out. They're great times, they really are great times and you need to cherish them. "And if you can grow together and move on together where you end up in the senior team, it does create a little bit of cohesion and a connection that helps the senior team because you understand each other." While Kelly ended up playing 39 times for Ireland and also captained his country in a 2011 friendly against Uruguay, arguably his fondest memory in green dates back to his time in the Under-19s when he scored the winner against England at the 2002 European Championships, capping a comeback from 2-0 down against a side with numerous future Premier League stalwarts. "It's still to this day one of the best moments I've ever had in football which is crazy because it's a youth level," he said. "But we're Irish. Scoring a goal against England is like everything you dream of and I was in England at the time with Spurs. "We were 2-0 and I remember at half-time, the team talk Brian Kerr gave us, it was like tears in the eyes. I can't actually say what he said because we'd probably get in trouble but tears in your eyes stuff. "And the range of lunatics after half time, I'm not joking, it was unbelievable. "(My goal) was edge of the box, ball dropped in, I got up a looping header and it lobbed the goalkeeper from the edge of the box. I don't know how it went in and we just went mental. It was unbelievable." Towell, meanwhile, experienced the 2008 Euros for the Under-17s where he featured in a proverbial group of death against Switzerland and a Spain side which had Thiago Alcantara in it. Similarly to Kelly, he found his time at the tournament in Turkey to be a bonding experience in a side with future senior internationals Robbie Brady - still going strong as the newly-crowned FAI Men's Player of the Year - Conor Hourihane and Galway United captain Greg Cunningham. "You go away and you're playing with your mates. I knew all the lads that you mentioned. I'd known Robbie for years and years... Conor Clifford, players like this," he said. "So to go and literally play with your mates and test yourself against the best players in the world at that time, at that age, it was absolutely incredible."
Metro
08-06-2025
- Sport
- Metro
Chelsea sent transfer demand after Borussia Dortmund reject £29.5m bid
Borussia Dortmund have rejected Chelsea's opening £35m offer for Jamie Gittens, according to reports in Germany. Chelsea are targeting Gittens, 20, as they look to bolster Enzo Maresca's attacking options ahead of the 2025-26 season. The Blues already have a number of talented forwards at Stamford Bridge but are open to offers for many of those, including England international Noni Madueke. Chelsea also decided to pay a £5m penalty to Manchester United in order to avoid signing Jadon Sancho on a permanent transfer. Gittens just enjoyed his best season to date at Dortmund, scoring 12 goals in all competitions. Wake up to find news on your club in your inbox every morning with Metro's Football Newsletter. Sign up to our newsletter and then select your team in the link we'll send you so we can get football news tailored to you. The England U21 star had a brief spell in Chelsea's academy as a youngster before spending time at Reading and Manchester City. Gittens is keen to return to England and has verbally agreed a deal with Chelsea. But the Premier League club's initial offer of €35m (£29.5m) has been knocked back by Bundesliga side Dortmund, according to Sky Sports. More Trending Despite the disappointment for Chelsea, negotiations are ongoing and the Blues are preparing to return with an improved bid. Borussia Dortmund have indicated they are holding out for €50-60m (£42-50m) for the winger. More to follow… MORE: Retired Chelsea icon favourite for major international job ahead of World Cup MORE: Man Utd and Spurs turn attention to Arsenal-linked Roma centre-back MORE: Man Utd and Chelsea dealt transfer blow after missing out on £32m star
