Crystal Palace will make a £15million bid for Chelsea midfield starlet Conor Gallagher as they close in on a new boss.
The Eagles are keen on Gallagher, 21, for the second summer running and hope to put in an offer that would tempt Stamford Bridge chiefs.
And that would then put Gallagher on the spot as he wants to stay at Chelsea and try to impress boss Thomas Tuchel so he can be part of his long-term plans.
If Blues’ money men are willing to sell Gallagher that will mark his card and could push him towards his fan club at Palace.
Gallagher showed he could handle the Prem in a loan season at West Brom.
They won the chase for him when Palace took Chelsea’s Michy Batshuayi instead and were unable to buy or loan him at the time.
Denmark star Christian Eriksen is unlikely to play football again and Italy may ban the Inter Milan player from competing again if he has suffered a cardiac arrest, according to a leading cardiologist.
The 29-year-old collapsed on the pitch during Denmark’s Euro 2020 match with Finland on Saturday afternoon with a suspected cardiac arrest – with reports claiming the midfielder’s heart stopped for five minutes on the pitch.
The Denmark captain needed to be resuscitated and was stabilised by the time he was transferred to hospital, though there are still fears over his long-term health and his playing career.
Dr Scott Murray, a leading NHS consultant cardiologist specialising in prevention of heart problems, claims Italy pride themselves on their record of preventing cardiac arrests in football – so the Danish player’s problems will likely spell the end of his time in Serie A.
He told the Daily Mail: “It probably is (the end of his career) for him. The Italians stop people participating in sport if they are found to have a significant cardiac abnormality, it’s in law.
“They’ve been doing that for a long time, beyond 20 years and they’ve reduced the death rates from cardiac arrests in sport from beyond 3 per cent down to below one per cent.’
Dr Murray claims Italy, where Eriksen plays his club football with Inter, have one of the best systems in the world for checking and predicting potential heart problems – and the fact that Eriksen still suffered a cardiac arrest having shows how dangerous and unsuspecting heart problems can be.
He continued: “He (Eriksen) comes from an Italian club so he must have had all of the tests before he started. The Italians are the best at screening for heart disease in competitive athletes.
“Italy has the greatest pre-participation screening in the world which tries to reduce events, but he still has an event on the pitch. So even if you screen, it can still happen.
“It’s going to be difficult for him to eliminate, he’s still going to have that 0.01 per cent of people who will still have something happen.”
Romelu Lukaku admitted it was ‘difficult to play’ after hearing the news that his Inter Milan team-mate Christian Eriksen had collapsed on the pitch.
Lukaku, the former Manchester United and Chelsea striker, said he “cried a lot” after being “scared” about the wellbeing of his friend – with whom he won the Serie A title this season – who had been resuscitated during Denmark’s Euro 2020 defeat to Finland.
Eriksen was conscious when he was stretchered off and was reportedly able to speak to his Denmark team-mates before they returned to complete the postponed fixture later on Saturday night.
Despite this, Lukaku confessed it was tough for him to go out and play for his country, even if he scored two goals for Belgium – the first of which he dedicated to Eriksen, shouting ‘Chris, I love you’ into a TV camera – and was named man of the match in a comprehensive 3-0 win over Russia.
“Well I’m really happy with the win but for me it was difficult to play because my mind was with my team-mate Christian,” Lukaku said after Belgium’s 3-0 win.
“I hope he’s healthy and I dedicate this performance to him.
“I cried a lot because I was scared obviously.
“We lived strong moments together for a year and a half. I spent more time with him than my family.
“My thoughts are with him, his girlfriend, his two kids and his family.”
On the game itself, the striker added: “I think we’re a confident team. We put in a great performance.
“I’m really happy for the team and hopefully we can grow into the tournament.”
Belgium forward Romelu Lukaku inspired the Red Devils to a 3-0 win in their Euro 2020 opener against Russia.
Lukaku gave the Red Devils an early lead against Russia and ran to the camera to deliver a message to Inter teammate Christian Eriksen.
The Dane had collapsed in the first half of the other Group B match between Denmark and Finland and Lukaku screamed: “Chris, Chris, I love you!”
Thomas Meunier made it 2-0 after 34 minutes and Lukaku was at it again in the 88th minute of the match, making sure Belgium got a great start to the tournament.
Belgium lead Group B on goal difference over Finland, who eventually beat Denmark 1-0 at Parken Stadium.
The match in Copenhagen resumed after the players had talked to Eriksen, who reassured them he was fine.
Denmark centre-back Simon Kjaer has been branded a ‘hero’ for his actions after team-mate Christian Eriksen collapsed during his side’s 1-0 defeat to Finland on Saturday afternoon.
The Inter Milan playmaker fell to the floor in the closing stages of the first half at the Parken Stadium in Copenhagen, with medics spotted attempting to resuscitate the 29-year-old as he lay motionless on the pitch.
The match was quickly suspended, with both sets of players heading down the tunnel in distress.
Eriksen then left the pitch on a stretcher and was pictured with his eyes open and his arm in the air as he was transported to hospital.
It was promptly revealed by UEFA and the Danish Football Union that he had been stabilised and was awake, with the match resuming at 7.30pm upon the request of both teams.
Finland eventually sealed a narrow 1-0 victory thanks to Joel Pohjanpalo’s second-half strike, which was their only attempt of the entire contest.
Although the medical staff will deservedly receive the plaudits for helping Eriksen to emerge from the incident, it was Kjaer’s contribution that gained the attention of many onlookers.
The 32-year-old ran towards the midfielder upon seeing him collapse to the ground, before stabilising him on his back and clearing his airways.
Kjaer then began to resuscitate Eriksen as he waited for the medics to arrive, with his crucial intervention potentially stopping the situation from reaching a tragic conclusion.
As the medical staff went to work, the defender was seen comforting Eriksen’s partner, Sabrina Kvist Jensen, who had raced to the side of the pitch.
Kjaer was widely praised for his efforts on social media, with viewers in awe of his quick reactions and ability to deal with the situation effectively in the heat of the moment.
Denmark playmaker Christian Eriksen reportedly called his teammates from hospital and asked them to play the game against Finland tonight.
The match between Denmark and Finland was suspended after Eriksen collapsed on the pitch and the TV images showed the Inter midfielder was given CPR on the pitch.
UEFA then confirmed he was transferred to hospital and stabilised, where he spoke to his teammates in the dressing room at Parken Stadium.
SportStudio reports he face-timed his teammates and asked them to finish the game against Finland in Group B.
The teams were tied at 0-0 then the dramatic incident occurred and resumed the match at 19.30 UK time.
Atalanta full-back Joakim Maehle and Milan centre-back Simon Kjaer are still on the pitch, completing the match for their No. 10.
Eriksen, who moved to the Nerazzurri from Tottenham Hotspur in January 2020, has played 109 games for Denmark, contributing 36 goals.
Gini Wijnaldum has insisted that he didn’t join Paris Saint-Germain over Barcelona for the money.
The Dutchman revealed that the French giants were ‘faster’ and ‘more decisive’ than the LaLiga side.
Wijnaldum elected to leave Liverpool upon the expiry of his contract, after five successful seasons at Anfield.
And after weeks of of speculation, he chose Parc des Princes as his next destination.
However, his move to Paris came after Barcelona and Bayern Munich had both been trying to sign the midfielder, with the Spanish side locked in talks with the Netherlands captain for up to four weeks.
“I made another choice. It was very difficult. I was negotiating with Barcelona for four weeks, and we never reached a final decision,” Wijnaldum revealed ahead of Netherlands’ Euro 2020 opener against Ukraine on Sunday.
“Paris Saint-Germain were a bit better in making a decision. They were quicker. And the project that they have at PSG it really appealed to me.
“It was a difficult choice I have to be honest. I thought I would be moving to Barcelona because they were the only team who were really interested in me, but we did not reach an agreement together.
