Real Madrid have confirmed that Zinedine Zidane has decided to depart the club for a second time.
A club statement read: “Real Madrid announces that Zinedine Zidane has decided to end his current stage as coach of our club.
“It is now time to respect his decision and show him our appreciation for his professionalism, dedication and passion in all these years, and for what his figure represents for Real Madrid.
“Zidane is one of the great myths of Real Madrid and his legend goes beyond what he has been as a coach and player of our club.
“He knows that he is at the heart of Real Madrid and that Real Madrid is and will always be his home.”
Chelsea midfield maestro N’Golo Kante has indetified the Blues former midfielders Claude Makelele and Lassana Diarra as his inspiriation.
Perhaps the most admired holding midfielder in modern football, Kanté’s workrate has stunned Thomas Tuchel since the coach arrived at Stamford Bridge in January; “if you play with N’Golo you have half a man more,” he said.
As he tells UEFA.com, he was rejected by numerous academies in France before starting his career in the second tier, and only became a major name after he – and current Manchester City midfielder Riyad Mahrez – helped Leicester to win the 2015/16 English title.
His words: “Nine years ago, when I was playing for the reserves at Boulogne and made my professional debut in Ligue 2, I was very hungry and very hopeful in football. I didn’t know how far I could go; I just wanted to turn pro and do my best. To have got where I am today with Chelsea and to be lucky enough to play in a Champions League final, bearing in mind everything that’s happened in the meantime, is amazing.
“That said, it’s happened little by little, season after season, with wins, with losses, with joy and with disappointment. It’s shaped me as a player, and I think that it’s helped me become the player that I am today.”
“I wasn’t necessarily the best or the most talented player in the team, but I gave my best with the attributes I had. Growing up, I started watching videos of great footballers like [Diego] Maradona, Ronaldo and Ronaldinho. My friends and I sometimes tried to imitate them, to score like they did. However, I haven’t ended up playing like them or in the same position. I was also less gifted than them.
“I had a good number of trials growing up. I was turned down several times by academies. I didn’t see those as failures, personally, but as opportunities to see how I compared to the academy level. At that time, I wasn’t telling myself that I had to go through an academy to turn professional. I was just thinking that I had to give my best, no matter what happened and that I’d succeed at a later stage or in a different way. I think being turned down has shaped me as well.”
“Growing up, coaches or team-mates might tell me that I resemble such-and-such a player. I was just someone who watched football; I would watch the games which interested me, without necessarily focusing on players in a similar position to mine. Whenever the international break came around, I would obviously watch France play. And getting to watch the likes of [Claude] Makélélé or Lassana Diarra, I drew inspiration from them at some point.
“But in the end, I’m not like them. I was lucky to be in touch with them and they’re great players with their own career, and I have my own career and path at my side. I have had some chats with Claude since I came to Chelsea. He was here to give me advice on my play, and the impact I can have on the game. Being able to talk with him about that is beneficial for me because he knows the position.”
The 30-year-old’s tireless midfield effort has anchored Chelsea’s run to the UEFA Champions League final, making it all the more remarkable that it took so long for Kanté to make his way to the top of the game.
On facing former Leicester team-mate Riyad Mahrez in the final, the Frenchman said: “We’ve spoken about it. We both realise that it’s exceptional. It’s taken a lot of work from before being in Ligue 2 until now, and a lot of perseverance on the pitch and in training.
“So to be playing a match like this is fantastic. But we both want to win, so we won’t be friendly on the pitch. I hope it works out for me, and he’s hoping it’ll work out for him, of course!”
Reports in Italy claim Olivier Giroud has agreed a two-year contract with Milan as a free agent and it’ll be announced after Chelsea play the Champions League Final.
This is hardly the first time that Giroud has been linked with a Serie A switch, as he had previously also been of interest to Inter, Juventus, Roma and Lazio.
Calciomercato.com insist the France international has accepted a two-year contract with Milan worth €4m per season.
There are still a few details to be finalised and it will only be announced after Chelsea have faced Manchester City in the Champions League Final.
Meanwhile, according to Football Italia, Giroud is already seeking a new home in Milan.
The Rossoneri had to wait until they had secured Champions League qualification before taking the plunge
Inter ultras urge President Steven Zhang to ‘take responsibility or leave our city’ over Antonio Conte’s exit.
The Scudetto celebrations have already been forgotten, as the focus turns to next season and the scaling down of their ambitions.
Conte walked away from the club after being told the club needed to raise €100m from player sales as well as cut wages by 20 per cent.
Curva Nord ultras hung up two large banners outside the Inter headquarters.
‘Zhang, take responsibility or leave our city’ was one, while the other read ‘Scaling down champions is for idiots. Coach, staff and players are untouchable!’
According to FCInter1908.it, a delegation representing the Curva Nord ultras was then accompanied into the building by a chief of security for a meeting with club directors.
Following that encounter, ultras leader Franco Caravita spoke to the same site.
“What had been said was that they’d do everything to keep the coach and the most important players. This downscaling might be down to the lack of funds, but with the Scudetto and Champions League qualification, we assumed those difficulties could be overcome.
“As the Curva, we ask for consistency in the project, and clearly without Conte, the consistency is lost.”
Tottenham will reportedly demand a world record £200MILLION for Harry Kane this summer.
The Spurs striker signalled his desire to leave last week, during an interview with Gary Neville.
Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea are all interested in signing the England skipper.
But Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy won’t make it easy.
Kane, 27, wants to have an ‘honest conversation’ with the Spurs chief ahead of a potential transfer.
Levy, however, has other ideas.
According to The Independent, via The Sun, the 59-year-old will demand ‘at least’ £200m to ‘even consider’ letting his side’s No10 go.
Levy even values Kane as more important to the club than Gareth Bale was in 2013, prior to his then-world record move to Real Madrid.
But the report also claim that Levy’s stance isn’t as ‘sure-footed’ as before – because of the financial pressures brought about by the pandemic, as well as Spurs’ new stadium.
Tottenham will also have to pay for a new manager in the coming weeks, having still not named axed former boss Jose Mourinho’s successor.
