Football rumours: Saudi clubs join growing interest in Thiago Alcantara

Inter manager Walter Mazzarri is hoping the club can bring in a wide player before the start of the new season.

Mazzarri moved to San Siro in May, taking over from Andrea Stramaccioni after winning the 2011-12 Coppa Italia with Napoli and helping them to finish second in Serie A last season.

Inter have made a host of signings during the transfer window, with the likes of Mauro Icardi and Ishak Belfodil joining from Sampdoria and Parma respectively.

The duo will help to boost a forward line that scored 55 league goals and finished ninth under Stramaccioni last term.

However, Mazzarri believes his squad still needs width if Inter are to challenge at the top end of the table.

It would be better if one arrived, he told Corriere dello Sport.

Everybody know…

Barcelona boss Xavi maintains the club will not expect too much too soon from teenager Vitor Roque.

The 18-year-old Brazil forward has been training with his new team-mates after arriving in Catalonia to complete a 40million euro (£35m) move from Athletico Paranaense, but has yet to be officially registered with LaLiga.

Xavi, though, played down suggestions of any complications over Barcelona’s financial fair play restrictions and suggested Roque could be involved for Thursday’s match at Las Palmas.

Xavi: We don t want to burden Vitor Roque with too much responsibility. He is very young and he has to adapt. He is fine, but we will be cautious.

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona)

Barcelona put a buy-out clause of 500million euros (£432m) in hi…

French media outlet Le 10 Sport has revealed that Real Madrid are weighing up a summer move on PSG star Marco Verratti.

It is no secret the Italian is one of Carlo Ancelotti s favourite players and it appears the los Blancos coach is ready to try and lure the talented midfielder to Santiago Bernabeu at the end of the season.

However, while the player himself would probably consider a summer switch to Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain chiefs are unlikely to sanction a sale, considering they see Verratti as an indispensable member of the squad.

The 22-year-old quickly proved his worth at Parc des Princes having joined from Pescara in the summer of 2012 and he has so far featured in 67 Ligue 1 matches.

The Saints, who sit four points behind league leaders Marseil…

Sheffield United have retracted an offer for convicted rapist Ched Evans to train with the club.

The League One club opted not to retain the striker following his conviction in April 2012 and he was released from prison last month after serving half of a five-year sentence.

United subsequently published a statement on November 11 saying that the 25-year-old had been invited to train with the club at the request of the Professional Footballers Association.

That has proven highly controversial, though, with Olympic heptathlon champion Jessica Ennis-Hill stating she would want her name removed from United s Bramall Lane stadium if Evans were to be re-hired.

Four club patrons also resigned over the decision to allow Evans to train, and the team s two main kit…

Vissel Kobe midfielder Andres Iniesta has  no regrets over his departure from Barcelona after facing his former team in a friendly.

Iniesta has been at the J.League side since 2018, when he left boyhood club Barca after a trophy-laden 16 seasons at Camp Nou.

The 35-year-old played a half as Vissel Kobe suffered a 2-0 loss to Barca in a friendly on Saturday.

Iniesta said he had no complaints about his departure from Barca, whose win marked their first of pre-season.

No, no regrets. It s a very strong word to label it as that, he told reporters.

I ve always said it. If I had felt the desire or the strength to continue playing in Barcelona I would ve loved to come here a year later playing for Barca against Vissel, but my moment ended.

…

Manchester United got back on track after their defeat against Liverpool as the League Cup holders moved into the quarter-finals with a 2-0 win over Barnsley on Tuesday.

Sir Alex Ferguson s side suffered only their second loss of the season at Anfield on Sunday, but there was no hangover at Oakwell as goals from Danny Welbeck and Michael Owen saw off the Championship outfit.

United played the last 27 minutes with 10 men after United captain Gary Neville was shown a red card by referee Chris Foy for his lunge on Adam Hammill.

The Tykes are managed by Mark Robins, the former United striker whose winning goal in an FA Cup third round tie against Nottingham Forest in 1990 is widely held to have saved Ferguson from the sack.

But there was never any chance of …

Jose Mourinho saluted Paulo Dybala after his late equaliser paved the way for Roma s dramatic extra-time victory over Feyenoord in the Europa League quarter-finals.

The Giallorossi set up a semi-final showdown with Bayer Leverkusen after coming from behind to defeat Feyenoord 4-2 on aggregate at Stadio Olimpico.

Trailing 1-0 from the first leg, Roma were on the brink of elimination after Igor Paixao s header cancelled out Leonardo Spinazzola s earlier strike.

But Dybala, who was introduced as a substitute after missing Sunday s victory over Udinese through injury, levelled the tie with a sharp turn and finish forcing extra time, in which further strikes from Stephan El Shaarawy and Lorenzo Pellegrini sealed the deal.

It was the former Juventus forward s 1…

Bayern Munich made German football history by winning the treble two seasons ago, and Franck Ribery is eyeing a repeat.

Bayern Munich winger Franck Ribery has set his sights on a repeat of their historic treble this season.

The Bavarians became the first German team to do the treble in 2012-13, as then-coach Jupp Heynckes guided them to success in the Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal and UEFA Champions League.

Bayern were on course to repeat the feat last season before being demolished 5-0 over two legs by Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-finals.

Pep Guardiola s men have once again dominated the German top flight again this term, leading the league by 11 points at the halfway stage, and are still very much in contention on all fronts.

A Champions …

Alan Pardew praised Hatem Ben Arfa s attitude after he was left out for Newcastle United s 2-1 victory at Cardiff City on Saturday.

The Frenchman started in Wednesday s 3-2 defeat to Everton, but Papiss Cisse was selected ahead of him for their trip to Cardiff.

Loic Remy scored both goals for the visitors, while Ben Arfa was limited to just four minutes of action from the bench.

Hatem is a great player for us, said Pardew. His application and his acceptance of the decision was spot on and he s growing as a person.

The Frenchman has been the subject of reports questioning his work-rate of late, but Pardew was quick to quash those rumours.

I don t think some of the things that are said about him are actually true, he added.

He s been very good this wee…

Empoli midfielder Riccardo Saponara has all but confirmed that he would love to join Napoli at the earliest opportunity.

The new Azzurri coach Maurizio Sarri attempted to take the midfielder with him to Stadio San Paolo this summer, but the two clubs ultimately failed to agree on a transfer fee.

Saponara, nevertheless, hopes he will eventually join Napoli and continue his career at the club challenging for major honours.

Napoli has been the only possible operation of my summer, Saponara told La Gazzetta dello Sport.

Empoli refused and I did not have to decide, because it would be difficult to refuse. Empoli s fine, but Napoli is a great place.

Ricardo Saponara came through the youth ranks at Empoli and went on to make 89 league appearances, sc…