Simeone will not block Falcao exit

Goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny has completed a season-long loan move to Roma from Arsenal, the clubs have confirmed.

The Poland international, who made 42 appearances for the Serie A side in 2015-16, has agreed to a second spell in the Italian capital.

The club can confirm Wojciech Szczesny will be a Roma player in 2016-17 after an agreement was reached with Arsenal FC to extend the Polish goalkeeper s loan deal until June 30, 2017, Roma announced in a statement.

Speaking to the club s TV channel, Szczesny said:  I m very happy. After a good season last year I had possibility of coming back and I was very happy that the coach wanted me.

I m delighted to be back and I hope that we can improve on what we did last season.

UFFICIALE L’ annuncia …

Luis Fabiano has denied claims made by Al Rayyan sporting director Ali Salem Afifeh that he will leave Sao Paulo for the Qatari outfit.

The club official announced that the Brazilian striker would fill in the last foreign player slot and that an agreement had been reached for a transfer.

The striker, however, has acted quickly to dismiss such notion and vowed to stay at Sao Paulo until 2014.

Luis Fabiano would like to deny what was released on Friday, August 17, that there has been any agreement between the player and Al Rayyan of Qatar, a statement from the Brazil Serie A club read.

There have not been any negotiations between Al Rayyan and Sao Paulo. The striker has a contract with Sao Paulo until the end of 2014.

The 31-year-old joined the …

Jurgen Klopp has no clue whether Virgil van Dijk will be able to overcome illness to feature in Liverpool s Club World Cup final against Flamengo on Saturday.

Van Dijk missed Wednesday s 2-1 semi-final victory over Monterrey, as the Reds needed a stoppage-time winner from substitute Roberto Firmino in Doha.

With Joel Matip and Dejan Lovren already absent through injury, Liverpool deployed captain Jordan Henderson, nominally a central midfielder, in an unfamiliar centre-back berth alongside Joe Gomez.

Those two may have to play together again against Flamengo if Van Dijk cannot return, though Klopp s squad is due to be reinforced by young stars who were beaten 5-0 by Aston Villa in the EFL Cup on Tuesday.

Asked whether Van Dijk would be back for the fin…

Manchester United are interested in signing Yann Sommer from Borussia Monchengladbach in the summer transfer window, according to . The report in the British tabloid has claimed that the Red Devils watched the goalkeeper in action for his German club Monchengladbach in the Bundesliga on Friday evening.

Premier League giants United are looking for a new goalkeeper to compete with their number one custodian David de Gea. De Gea is a very good goalkeeper, but he has made mistakes recently and is not particularly great with his feet.

The report has claimed that United would find it hard to convince Sommer to move to Old Trafford as cover for De Gea. That’s because the 33-year-old Switzerland international goalkeeper wants to play regularly in the coming weeks and months t…

Jose Mourinho has challenged record signing Paul Pogba to kick on from his derby day heroics for Manchester United.

The £89.3million France midfielder has often fallen short of such billing since returning to Old Trafford from Juventus in 2016 but he turned last weekend s match against Manchester City on its head with a quick-fire second-half brace before the Red Devils closed out a stunning 3-2 comeback win.

Pogba had found himself benched by Mourinho last month and the United boss believes the 25-year-old – whose future was the subject of speculation in the build-up to him spoiling City s planned title party – can be more consistent.

I ll tell you what I told him after the match, Mourinho told reporters ahead of facing rock-bottom West Brom on Sunday, whe…

Douglas Costa has been surprised by how quickly Carlo Ancelotti has managed to put his stamp on Bayern Munich.

Ancelotti took over from Pep Guardiola, who guided the Bavarian giants to three successive Bundesliga titles, ahead of the new campaign.

Bayern have operated in a 4-3-3 formation and begun the season with a bang, scoring 13 goals without reply in their first three matches.

Costa was not expecting Ancelotti s impact to be so sudden, but is enjoying the way the Italian has the team playing.

Me personally, I was very surprised to be able to see his mark already so distinctly. I could see the differences clearly on the pitch, he told Kicker.

We play very aggressively and we press a lot. The transition [from Guardiola to Ancelotti] was ver…

Monaco coach Leonardo Jardim says many of his squad could go elsewhere due to financial reasons, but insists Anthony Martial will not be one of them.

Teenage forward Martial joined Monaco from Lyon in June 2013 and has been heavily linked with a move to Premier League side Tottenham.

The France Under-21 international netted 12 goals for Monaco last season as they finished third in Ligue 1 and reached the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League.

Jardim told L Equipe: I know about everything that could happen. I would just like it all to be done with as soon as possible.

With [vice-president and CEO] Vadim [Vasilyev] and [technical director] Luis [Campos], it was quite clear: Bernardo Silva and Martial will stay, as will [Nabil] Dirar, [Danijel] Sub…

Juventus duo Kwadwo Asamoah and Daniele Rugani will be out for between six and seven weeks due to knee injuries, the club have announced.

The pair both pulled up with problems during the 1-0 victory over Palermo on Saturday, which saw the champions maintain their one-point lead at the top of Serie A.

Juve have now confirmed that the duo will be sidelined for 45 days, with Asamoah requiring surgery to correct a meniscus rupture.

The extent of the injuries sustained by Daniele Rugani and Kwadwo Asamoah were clarified following medical examinations today, a club statement read. 

The tests revealed that Asamoah has ruptured the meniscus cartilage, while Rugani has strained the lateral collateral ligament, both in the right knee. 

The former is ex…

Stewart Downing has no intention of leaving Liverpool ahead of the new Premier League season.

The England international has been consistently linked with a transfer away from Anfield after struggling to adapt since his reported £20million move from Aston Villa in 2011.

Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers has already signed two attacking players this close-season Iago Aspas and Luis Alberto and is said to want to bring in further reinforcements, which has increased speculation that Downing could be heading for the exit.

However, the winger forced his way into manager Rodgers’ first-choice XI last season and has insisted he is only interested in fighting to retain his place.

Speaking to Liverpool’s official website, he pledged: I m here to stay. I m enjoying it esp…

Jermaine Pennant has been unable to obtain a work permit to join Stoke City on their tour of the United States for a second year running.

A club spokesman confirmed to OMNISPORT that the 30-year-old has not travelled with the team and will continue his own preparations back in England with the club s Under-21 side.

The winger, who joined Stoke permanently in 2011 following a previous loan spell, was unable to obtain the necessary permission to head to America following a previous criminal conviction for admitting driving home drunk from a nightclub.

It is the second successive year that Pennant has been denied entry to the US and comes after Stoke manager Mark Hughes decided to show faith in him by offering him a new one-year deal, having slipped down the pecking ord…