Fabiano rubbishes Al Rayyan link

Chelsea s bids for Wesley Fofana have come nowhere near Leicester City s valuation of the defender, according to Foxes manager Brendan Rodgers.

Since Chelsea missed out on Jules Kounde to Barcelona last month, they have been credited with a strong interest in Leicester s 21-year-old central defender.

Fofana made just seven Premier League appearances for the Foxes last campaign after suffering a fibula fracture, but impressed when playing 28 league games as Leicester finished the previous season in fifth.

It has been suggested Chelsea could break the world-record fee for a defender – currently the £80million paid by Manchester United for Harry Maguire – with a move for Fofana, as reports claim the Blues have already seen two offers knocked back.

And …

Alan Pardew insists he is unconcerned by the prospect of being sacked by West Brom as the club inches closer to Premier League relegation.

Troy Deeney delivered a hammer blow to the bottom-placed Baggies  survival hopes by firing Watford to a late 1-0 win at Vicarage Road on Saturday.

The goal left the visitors eight points adrift of safety, a margin that could increase if Crystal Palace upset Manchester United on Monday.

Reports suggested Pardew would be sacked if he failed to avoid a fifth successive defeat, but the former Newcastle United manager is untroubled by the speculation.

It is about West Brom, it is not about me. If the consequences are that I lose my job then that will be what it is, Pardew told reporters.

All I can hope for is …

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 …

Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone says he will not stand in the way of Radamel Falcao if the striker chooses to leave the club.

The Colombia international has been linked with a move away from the Spanish capital, with a host of Europe s biggest clubs and Ligue 2 champions Monaco said to be vying for his signature.

I don t know anything official yet, Simeone told Marca.

I ve known him since he was a child and I wish him all the best. If he feels that he needs to make a move, I ll be happy for him.

If he stays with us, I ll be happy too.

Falcao moved to the Vicente Calderon from Porto in 2011 and Atletico to the UEFA Europa League title last season, before lifting the European Super Cup and Copa del Rey this term.

It was believed he h…

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…