Mourinho hopeful of five contract extensions

Republic of Ireland boss Martin O Neill hopes Stoke City goalkeeper Shay Given can make the most of an unexpected chance of first-team action before the end of this season.

Veteran stopper Given, who came out of international retirement in 2014 to help guide Ireland to a place at Euro 2016, has not played a competitive match since suffering a knee injury in the qualifying win over world champions Germany last October.

The 39-year-old s club team-mate Jack Butland had his Euro 2016 dream shattered over the weekend when a fractured ankle sustained during England s 3-2 victory against Germany in Munich left him facing around three months on the sidelines.

Jakob Haugaard is expected to make his Stoke debut against Swansea City this weekend as Given continues to build…

Milan are keeping close tabs on Corinthians defender Fabio Santos, .

The Rossoneri sporting director Ariedo Braida has made a check on the highly rated full-back, who could arrive at San Siro as a replacement for Djamel Mesbah.

Santos, 27, has been playing at a very high level over the last couple of years and even made three friendly appearances for Brazil national team.

The left-back is widely tipped to make a move to Europe in the near future, with Milan looking to pounce.

Fabio Santos is valued at around €5 million and he wouldn’t take up a non-EU spot at San Siro considering he holds a Portuguese passport.

He is currently contesting a Club World Cup final with Corinthians as the Brazilian club battle Chelsea for the coveted trophy.

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Manchester United striker Dimitar Berbatov is upset over his treatment at Old Trafford and has confirmed he is looking to leave the club.

The former Tottenham man was brought to the club four years ago, but has struggled to earn a regular place in the team in recent times.

Despite finishing the 2010/11 season as United s top scorer, the mercurial Bulgarian has featured mainly as a substitute over the past 12 months as his side finished the campaign empty handed.

Berbatov told Bulgarian television channel BTV: My time at Manchester United is running out. I no longer feel like a valuable part of this team.

I think I did well in the few opportunities that I received. But I am a little frustrated by the way this happened, I do not think I deserved it.

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Paul Pogba needed a year to recover from winning the 2018 World Cup but will bounce back for Manchester United next season, according to Youri Djorkaeff.

The France international has endured a largely difficult campaign at Old Trafford, initially thriving under Jose Mourinho s successor Ole Gunnar Solskjaer but ending the season in poor form.

He was involved in a confrontation with some United fans on Sunday as players walked around the pitch following their final-day 2-0 home loss to relegated Cardiff City.

Despite the criticism, Pogba ended 2018-19 with 13 Premier League goals and a further nine assists – more than any of his United team-mates managed – and earned a place in the PFA Team of the Year.

And Djorkaeff, who was part of the France team th…

There will be plenty of fireworks when England and Italy square off in the second match of Group D, with the two sides set to meet the third time in just two years. And while the Three Lions won the friendly game in August 2012, they had been beaten by the Azzurri in the Euro 2012 quarter-finals.

Chances are Roy Hodgson s charges will be very motivated to prove the doubters wrong and edge closer to the knockout stages, whilst Italy will be under pressure as well following the 1-1 draw with weak Luxembourg, which was their seventh straight match without a win.

Taking all this into account, it is important to note that placed on Correct Score, First Goalscorer, Last Goalscorer, Anytime Goalscorer, Half-Time/Full-Time, Scorecast and Spincast markets if a penalty is scored…

Harry Maguire believes he still has a crucial role to play at Manchester United despite falling out of favour under Erik ten Hag this season.

Maguire helped United reach the Europa League quarter-finals on Thursday, making a rare start as they built on a 4-1 first-leg lead with a 1-0 win at Real Betis in the competition s last 16.

In the Premier League, Maguire has made just five starts all campaign, with Raphael Varane and Lisandro Martinez anchoring Ten Hag s favoured United backline.

While Maguire s lack of regular minutes has led to suggestions he may leave Old Trafford at the end of the season, the England defender remains determined to have an impact on and off the pitch.

I have an important role on and off the field at this club and every day I tr…

Andrea Bertolacci is desperate to make a fresh start at AC Milan after an underwhelming 2015-16 campaign.

The 25-year-old joined Milan from Roma in June 2015 for a transfer fee in the region of €20 million, but failed to live up to the high expectations at San Siro.

Bertolacci refuses to make excuses, though, and wants to set the record straight in 2016-17.

I don t want to make excuses. I must learn from the past experiences, both positive and negative, and start again with the will to train hard, the midfielder told the official Milan website.

In the past seasons I always scored four to six goals. Scoring only one, last season, was a real disappointment for the team and for myself.

This year I want a fresh start and I am sure that with dedic…

Arsene Wenger does not expect midfielder Jack Wilshere to return for Arsenal until October at the earliest.

The England playmaker and product of the club s academy has not featured in a competitive game for the Gunners since the July 31 friendly with New York Red Bulls following a series of ankle and knee injuries.

Hopefully, we will get Wilshere back playing for October, Wenger said.

With Abou Diaby returning, it will be like signing two new players. This season, the squad will be strong and competitive.

Wilshere, 20, first suffered the troublesome ankle injury in the Emirates Cup game against the MLS side, hobbling off after just seven minutes and he has since required a number of operations to correct the ligament damage.

More recently, he …

Starting with Wednesday s guests, while Bayern Munich might have continued to show some glaring inconsistencies since opening the 2019/2020 Bundesliga campaign, the reigning champions are coming off the back of arguably a season-best display. Along with booking their spot in the knockout stage of this year s Champions League with a 3-1 win over Tottenham last week, the Bavarians really caught the eye as they hit six past Werder Bremen over the weekend. One man who really shined on Saturday and is enjoying his brightest spell since making a loan switch from Barcelona over the summer is playmaker, Philippe Coutinho. Putting in a Man of the Match display at the Allianz over the weekend, the Brazil international has now bagged five goals in as many appearances and has also found the net in …

Sevilla chairman Jose Castro says Barcelona have not made an offer for defender Mariano but confirmed the club will consider selling Yevhen Konoplyanka for the right price.

Barcelona saw Dani Alves leave for Juventus on a free transfer in the off-season, prompting suggestions they might seek to recruit another Brazilian right-back from Sevilla in the form of Mariano.

But the 30-year-old, who only moved to LaLiga from Bordeaux in July 2015, has not been the subject of a bid from the reigning champions.

We don t have any offer from Barcelona to sign Mariano, Castro told a news conference.

Castro also claimed clubs are yet to make a bid for Ukraine international Konoplyanka, but acknowledged a suitor has made their interest known in rumoured Sunderland targ…