Football News: Review Of The Day 6th April 2019

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Review of the Day

Contracts

Ipswich Town have extended Alan Judge's contract until 2021. The midfielder also has an option for a further year.

Gillingham's veteran full-back Barry Fuller's contract has been extended until 2020.

16 year old midfielder Ilaix Moriba has signed a new deal with Barcelona which runs until 2022. His new deal has an exit clause of 100m euros, more expensive than a lot of the first team squad. Moriba has become the highest paid player at La Masia, which was revealed when Barca accidentally sent the final offer to the wrong e-mail address, which belonged to local rivals Espanyol. Espanyol have revealed that, in order to beat off interest from Manchester City, Chelsea and Borussia Dortmund, Moriba is being paid more than some of the Espanyol first team.

Lukaku Drops Move Hints

Manchester United striker Romelu Lukaku may have a new agent in Federico Pastorello, but his modus operandi seems to be exactly the same as his previous one. Everton fans will no doubt recognise the comments coming from him as Lukaku drops hints about a move away from United, the way he constantly did while an Everton player. Pastorello said: "At the moment he is very focused on finishing the season. The competition for third and fourth place in England is very tight so let's see what will happen in the future at the end the season. It's his second season here and he will still have three years on his contract until the end. Let's see. He's someone who loves to know a different culture, a different football. He sees a way to have a career playing in different countries because he would like to win some trophies and prove himself and say to his children 'I won there and I won there and I won there' and 'I was a very good player in all the top championships' so let's see, the future is really very open but, at the moment, we don't discuss about that because really the season is in a big moment. He likes Italy. When he was a child he followed a lot the Italian league... Teams like Real Madrid and Barcelona of course attract any champion so he sees also in LaLiga one day. Bundesliga for sure is a very good championship." So basically, he wants to play in Italy, or Spain, or Germany. Subtle.

Bolton Game Back In Doubt

After finally getting their game the go-ahead from the local area Safety Advisory Group, Bolton Wanderers have admitted their game against Ipswich Town is in doubt again. The Trotters have revealed that engineers "will be working through the night to resolve the issue" after a "critical IT failure" at the ground. I hope they are at least paying those staff now that former Watford owner Laurence Bassini is set to take over the club, according to him.

Mendyl Punished By Schalke

Moroccan international defender Hamza Mendyl has been dropped to the under-23 side at Schalke 04 for a breach of discipline. Caretaker coach Huub Stevens has not revealed why the 21 year old had been dropped but Stevens said: "Everybody gets a second chance. For Hamza Mendyl it's a disciplinary measure that he is currently training with the U23. But he too can open the door again". Algerian midfielder Nabil Bentaleb has already been dropped down to the under-23s there.

Zidane Drops Hazard Hints

With Eden Hazard constantly batting his eyelashes at Real Madrid, it has been a long-running source of speculation about whether or not he would move there each transfer window. Returning manager Zinedine Zidane has made sure this summer will be full of 'will he, won't he' stories once more, as he talks up the Belgian winger. Zidane said: "He's a player I have always appreciated. He is fantastic. I will not give my personal opinion about what may happen because the season has not ended. He has played in France, I have watched him a lot and I know him personally." Zidane has also been dropping hints about signing Paul Pogba from Manchester United.

Rafa Denies French Talks

Rafael Benitez has dismissed rumours he had been talking over a move to a new club in France last month were false and that he is only speaking to current club Newcastle United. Rafa said: "The only club I'm talking to about my future now is Newcastle. I'm waiting for an answer. They [Newcastle] were coming with something, we are coming with something, that's it. The ball is in their court. It was [managing director] Lee Charnley with my people. I will not talk too much about that. You have the clarification. The ball is in their court."

Hennessey Gets Away With Nazi Salute

Bizarrely Crystal Palace's goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey has got away with being pictured making a Nazi salute despite the most ludicrous and convoluted explanation as to why he was making the Nazi salute at the time and how it was not actually a Nazi salute, despite being exactly like one. However the Football Association found a charge against him "not proven".

Crouch Wins After His Appeal For Votes

Peter Crouch has suggested he won the award for 'best acrobatic goal ever scored in the Champions League' (catchy title that) over Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Mario Mandzukic due to his appeal on social media for votes. Crouch had said: "These players have won loads. Give me a break. I could tell the kids who I beat." After winning the vote with over 54% of the votes polled choosing his goal from 2006 for Liverpool against Galatasaray as the winner, Crouch told the BBC: "I'm sure I won because I was the most desperate one and appealed for help. Those boys have won loads, and you've got to spread the big trophies around."

Israeli Sets Eldest Footballer Record

An Israeli goalkeeper has set a new record for oldest player ever in a professional team after turning out for Israeli 4th tier side Ironi Or Yehuda yesterday at the age of 73! Isaak Hayik played the full 90 minutes and is said to have made a number of saves during the game, despite losing 5-1. The previous record was held by Uruguayan Robert Carmona at a youthful 53.

Silva Publicly Criticises Pickford

After a video of Everton keeper Jordan Pickford on social media which showed the 25 year old getting involved in a public incident outside a Sunderland pub on Monday night, Marco Silva has confirmed he is unhappy about Pickford's conduct. Silva said: "No-one is happy with the situation - it was not a good thing. If you ask me as a manager I am not happy with what happened. Everything we must do we already did. It is my expectation it won't happen again. The first chat of the week I was clear with [Pickford]. Everything is clear in his mind about his obligations. The matter is finished in this moment."

Written by Tris Burke April 06 2019 06:38:23