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Football News: Man Utd Midfielder's "Legs Have Gone" And 9 Other Stories From Today

Man Utd Midfielder's
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1. Liverpool academy graduate breaks Indian record
A graduate of Liverpool's international academy has become the youngest player to score for India in a match against Nepal. Lallianzuala Chhangte hit a left footed corker into the top corner to break a record previously held by Bhaichung Bhutia.

2. Rangers to keep Gideon
American youngster Gideon Zelalem will stay in Glasgow until the end of the season. The 18 year old arrived at Rangers on loan at the start of the season from Arsenal, and has started ten league games so far this season. With Rangers top of the Scottish Championship on goal difference over Hibernian, manager Mark Warburton has moved to extend Zelalem's loan.

 

3. Zlatan hints at Qatar move
Up until now, it has always been assumed that Zlatan Ibrahimovic would join the likes of Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard and David Villa by beginning his retirement in the MLS at the end of the season when his Paris Saint-Germain contract expires. Now the Swedish enigma has dropped hints that his retirement could well lead him to the Qatari Stars League where Xavi is also happily plying his trade in front of 20 or 30 people on a weekly basis. "My current situation is new to me. I have an expiring contract and that is a new experience. I am free to do what I want," Ibrahimovic was quoted as saying by L'Equipe. "I am focused on PSG for now. I still have six months to go on my current contract and I want to give my best for the team. I do not have a next destination in mind. A move to Qatar? I have a good relationship with [PSG president] Nasser Al-Khelaifi and with the people of Qatar, but I cannot say anything at this stage. Let's just say that a move to Qatar is an option. I am enjoying my football at the moment and I'm feeling well both mentally and physically. I am enjoying myself each game. We will see what happens."

4. Poch rules out Kane sale
With constant speculation surrounding Tottenham Hotspur's England striker Harry Kane, Mauricio Pochettino must be fed up to the back teeth of being asked about his future. Last season Kane was Spurs' shining star as he notched 21 league goals and all but carried the North London club through the season. This season, after a slow start, Kane has got right back in the groove and has begun racking up the goals once again, including a brace against Norwich City at the weekend. Once again Pochettino was left dealing with repetitive questions about Kane's future, despite the player himself constantly denying any intention to leave his boyhood team. "There is no price. No-one can buy him," Pochettino told BBC Sport. "He is not for sale. There is not a value because it is impossible to put a price," he added.

 

5. Pacheco gunned down
El Salvador's most capped player, Alfredo Pacheco, has been shot dead outside a petrol station. The 33 year old had racked up 86 caps before being banned for life for match-fixing in 2013. Police report that a man approached Pacheco and fired a number of shots. Two other people were injured after the attack.

6. Even Wenger is not sure when Wilshere will be back
With Arsenal having a history of players going out injured for a short period and then spending the next few years missing through injury, even manager Arsene Wenger is struggling to put timeframes on injury returns these days. Having initially said regular injury victim Jack Wilshere would be back in February, now Wenger is having to admit he is unsure when the England international midfielder will be back playing. 23 year old Wilshere was injured during pre-season with a fractured fibula, which was expected to keep him out for three months, but then, as is usual with Arsenal, he required surgery, pushing back the return date a further few months to February 2016. Now Wenger is casting doubt on that return date, with Wilshere now looking certain to miss out on England's Euro 2016 campaign. "I said February but honestly I don't know," the Arsenal boss said when pushed on the timescale for Wilshere's return. "I let him do his recovery. It's going slowly. Once he goes again, goes outside to train, once he is back again into sharp, hard work physically, you count five or six weeks, so at the moment he is not there yet."

 

7. Keita Balde admits Barcelona desire
Lazio's young star Keita Balde has been linked heavily with a move to AS Monaco in the January transfer window, but now the 20 year old has admitted he would like to go elsewhere. Having been born and brought up in Barcelona, he has set his sights on earning a move to Barca in the future. Keita represented a Catalonia select side last week and his comments were given to the Catalan press following the game, so perhaps he was just merely saying what they wanted to hear. ¨Someday I'd like to return to Barcelona," Balde told journalists. "It's where I grew up in and I have always been identified with those colours."

8. Sullivan admits Benitez nearly became Hammers manager
West Ham United co-owner David Sullivan has admitted that the East London club were very close to getting Rafael Benitez as their new manager in the summer. Sullivan has claimed that the Hammers were just two hours away from Benitez signing a contract when Real Madrid stepped in to lure the Spaniard away. Sullivan has also admitted to an approach to another manager with Liverpool connections, the Reds current manager Jurgen Klopp, but he rejected them to have a break from football. Despite clearly not being the first choice, Sullivan has said he is very happy with the man they did get, Slaven Bilic. "We were two hours from getting Benitez and then Real Madrid came in. We had agreed a contract," Sullivan said. "He is a top manager whatever anybody says, and I think he'd have done a wonderful job for us. We tried Klopp as well but he wouldn't come because he said he wanted a break. But I'm glad with the manager we have got," added Sullivan.

 

9. James Rodriguez has skills
James Rodriguez plays a delightful outside of the foot pass during a Real Madrid training session:



10. Schweinsteiger's legs have gone
BBC pundit Chris Waddle has said on Radio 5 live that he believes Manchester United midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger's legs have gone. The German international was fresh from a 3 match ban to face Chelsea, but Waddle felt he was struggling by the end of the game. Waddle told BBC Radio 5 live that "he's getting on now and I have to say since I've watched him, he's still a good footballer, he can pass the ball, but his legs have gone. You can't say they haven't." Schweinsteiger completed the full 90 minutes as the Red Devils drew 0-0 with Chelsea.

Written by Tris Burke December 28 2015 21:38:21