Lionel Messi doubts Barcelona ‘did everything they could’ to re-sign Neymar from PSG

Lionel Messi has expressed his doubt that Barcelona ‘did everything they could’ to re-sign Neymar from Paris Saint-Germain.

The Brazilian star had been heavily linked with a return to Barcelona this summer as an exit from the French capital had appeared to be looking increasingly likely.

“I would have liked that Neymar returned to the club,” Messi told Catalan media outlet Diario Sport as cited by Football Espana.

“Honestly, I’m not sure if Barca did all they could to sign him but I know how it can be very difficult to negotiate with PSG.

“I am not disappointed. We have a spectacular squad that can challenge for every title, even without Neymar here.

“Neymar is one of the best in the world. With his level and the sponsors he has, it would have been a big gain for the club.”

England boss Gareth Southgate tells Tammy Abraham to keep faith with Three Lions as Nigeria circle

Gareth Southgate has told Tammy Abraham that he wants him to commit to England and reject any pleas from Nigeria.

Chelsea starlet Abraham, who has scored four goals in his last two Premier League games, hit 26 while on loan at Aston Villa last season, helping them to promotion to the top flight.

The 21 year old has already played for England at Under 18, 19 and 21 levels, and has made two appearances for the senior team in friendly matches against Germany and Brazil in 2017.

But Nigeria, who he qualifies to play for through his father, have made attempts to poach the Chelsea youngster.

Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) president Amaju Pinnick stated earlier this month that Abraham would have a better chance of getting games with his country than with Southgate.

But Abraham has told friends that he has no intention of switching his allegiance from England.

Southgate said: “Tammy is a young player that we’ve always liked, we know he’ll score goals. We felt it was a bit early this time to call him up, but we really can see that he can offer us something moving forward.

“We gave him a cap back in November of 2017.

“For sure, we need to make certain that he feels that the opportunity is going to be there. I’m pretty sure he does, he knows us well enough.”

REVEALED: How Paul Pogba’s massive £429,000-a-week deal with PSG was scuttled by Neymar

Reports have emerged that Paul Pogba agreed a staggering £429,000-a-week deal with Paris Saint-Germain before deadline day but the move fell through because Neymar’s proposed return to Barcelona didn’t materialise.

Beside Neymar’s failed move, Adidas are also Adidas are also believed to have, according to the Sportsmail, played a major role in making sure Pogba remained in Manchester.

Pogba was linked with a move to Santiago Bernabeu, with Real Madrid boss Zidane openly expressing his interest in the Frenchman.

Meanwhile, Ligue 1 giants were reportedly keen to hijack Real Madrid’s move for Pogba by dangling huge £429,000-a-week deal to facilitate the move.

PSG’s decision to hand the player such massive salary was neccessary as there were reports that Los Blancos had told the Manchester United star he would have to take pay cut for the move to Spain to materialise.

According to Italian outlet Calciomercato, United agreed a deal to sell him to the French champions days before the transfer window closed shut.

But Neymar’s desired transfer ultimately collapsed as Barca couldn’t meet PSG’s valuation of him.

As a result, Pogba missed out on the the £22million annual salary that had been put on the table by Thomas Tuchel’s side.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was reportedly open to the idea of selling Pogba, provided the transfer occurred at the start of the transfer window and the midfielder’s fee was used to bring in more signings

Tammy Abraham reveals the number of goals he wants to score for Chelsea this season

Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham has set himself a target of 26 goals for the London club this season.

The youngster netted four in his last two Premier League games after firing blank in the first matches against Manchester United and Leicester City.

Speaking to the Mirror, he said: ” [Lampard’s] always believed in me. He’s believed in the youngsters and believed in me.

“A lot of players have downsides to the game but even when I was going for that little spell, he still believed in me, and that goal mean a lot to me.

“I looked over, I saw him celebrating as well. So I just said to go share my emotions.”

Abraham – who netted 26 goals on loan at Aston Villa last season – added: “I always say to myself, you know, I want to hit close to what I got last season in terms of goals

“If I get anywhere near to what I got last season, it’s a fantastic year for me.”

Chelsea reveal why Ajax supporters were handed just 833 tickets to watch Champions League clash

Chelsea have explained the rationale for handing only 833 tickets to Ajax fans to watch their club inside Stamford Bridge for their Champions League clash.

According to the Premier League club, it is in a bid to head off the kind of violence which marred their run to the semi-final last season.

Four Ajax fans were arrested during violent disturbances before the their Champions League match with Tottenham in April.

Scotland Yard reported Ajax fans breaking up pieces of pavement and wall and throwing them at police and Spurs fans before the game.

Three police officers were assaulted as they tried to intervene but they did not suffer serious injuries.

Four other men were charged in connection with separate incidents before Ajax’s 1-0 victory in the first leg of the semi-final.

The Blues usually offer around 3,000 tickets to visiting supporters for big European matches in the Shed End.

But the official Ajax website stated on Wednesday that London officials had restricted their allocation to 833 after initially wanting no tickets given to away fans for the match on November 5.

A statement on the club website said: ‘The reason for this decision is, according to the authorities, disturbances with Ajax supporters in Europe in general and in Great Britain in particular.

At the end of last week, Ajax was informed that it was the intention not to admit Ajax supporters to Ajax matches in Great Britain, the Daily Mail report.

‘Last Monday a delegation from Ajax was present at its own request at a scheduled meeting in London about the organisation of the match in question. It was decided today that the lower part of the Stamford Bridge branch will be made available to Ajax. Which means that unfortunately only 833 Ajax fans can attend the match. ‘

Willian explains why Chelsea can still win titles despite difficult start to season

Blues star Willian has assurred Chelsea fans that the club possess the squad to challenge for “titles” this season despite suffering a difficult start.

Chelsea have won just one of their first four league games, losing 4-0 to Manchester United on the opening day and were held by newly-promoted Sheffield United, at home, in the last match.

A transfer ban has ensured new manager Frank Lampard has had his options limited at the start of his tenure, but veteran forward Willian, in an exclusive interview with Sky Sports, is adamant the club’s young players can carry them forward this campaign.

“I think Chelsea can win some titles this season,” Willian said. “I know it will be hard this season to win titles, as usual, it is always hard.

“It is difficult when you lose players like David Luiz, Eden Hazard, but we have some quality young players here who can improve a lot and in the future become one of the best players in the league. I think we have a great team.

“But Chelsea is a big club and this shirt is heavy. When Chelsea go into a competition we go to win.

“It does not matter the players, it does not matter the coach, every year we want to win something, and I think this year we can do it again.”

Willian also praised the work Lampard has put in so far, believing the club need time to adapt to his methods.

“It has been good to work with him,” Willian added. “He is a great man. The quality of training has been good.

“Of course we have to give some time to adapt, it is a new profile, a new philosophy, but I think we will adapt.”

With less than a year left on his current contract, 31-year-old Willian’s long-term future at Chelsea remains uncertain, especially given the fact the Brazilian is yet to start a competitive match under Lampard.

However, Willian feels his fitness is back and he is raring to go, should he be called upon.

“I had an injury when I was at Copa America and I needed some time in training to recover, but now I am 100 per cent,” Willian added. “I have to continue to train hard and when I have time to play I have to play well.”

Thibaut Courtois’ agent arrested in Belgium

There are reports in Belgium and Spain that Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois’ agent has been arrested for money laundering and corruption.

Christophe Henrotay is also the agent of former Atletico Madrid winnger Yannick Carrasco among his clients alongside other Belgian internationals such as Kevin Mirallas (Antwerp) and previously, Youri Tielemans (Leicester City).

“The events mainly affect money laundering and private corruption operations in the context of transfers of football players,” read a statement from the Belgian federal prosecutor, as cited by Marca.

The statement has added that two of the people investigated have been arrested, a player agent in Monaco and his assistant in Liege, Football Espana report.

Belgian news agency RTBF television has claimed that Henrotay is the agent involved in the case.

Former Chelsea managers Conte, Sarri are highest-paid coaches in Serie A (Check what they and others earn)

Reports in Italy claim Antonio Conte is the highest-paid Coach in Serie A history on €11m per year at Inter, double the salary of second-placed Maurizio Sarri of Juventus.

La Gazzetta dello Sport drew up a list of this season’s top-earning tacticians and found that not only was Conte leading the way for the 2019-20 campaign, but also the history of Italian football.

Conte is believed to pick up €11m per year net to sit on the Inter bench, which is double the €5.5m that Sarri earns at Juventus.

Carlo Ancelotti of Napoli is in third with €5m, while Sinisa Mihajlovic (Bologna) and Paulo Fonseca (Roma) get €3m.

Gian Piero Gasperini’s astonishing march with Atalanta, finishing third in Serie A and qualifying for the Champions League, got him a new contract worth €2.5m.

Coppa Italia winner Simone Inzaghi only earns €2m per season at Lazio, on a par with Marco Giampaolo at Milan.

Walter Mazzarri will soon boost his €1.8m salary with a contract extension at Torino, but for the moment he’s on the same wage as new Sampdoria boss Eusebio Di Francesco, Football Italia report.

Vincenzo Montella picks up €1.5m at Fiorentina, while Roberto De Zerbi (Sassuolo) and Rolando Maran (Cagliari) are on €1m.

Fabio Liverani is rewarded for Lecce’s surprise promotion with €900,000, while Roberto D’Aversa has €750,000 at Parma, Eugenio Corini (Brescia) and Ivan Juric (Verona) €600,000.

Bottom of the pile is Igor Tudor, who only earns €500,000 per year plus bonuses to be Coach of Udinese.