Category Sports News

Real Madrid plot £90m move for Manchester United midfielder Bruno Fernandes, Manchester City are interested in Barcelona midfielder Pedri and Chelsea are keen on Barcelona defender Jules Kounde.

Manchester United’s Portugal midfielder Bruno Fernandes, 30, is a £90m transfer target for Real Madrid. (Star)

Incoming Arsenal sporting director Andrea Berta will have the task of completing a deal for Real Sociedad’s Spain midfielder Martin Zubimendi amid interest in the 26-year-old from Real Madrid. (Mirror)

Manchester City view Spain international Pedri as an ideal option for their midfield but Barcelona have no intention of selling the 22-year-old. (Fichajes – in Spanish)

Manchester City have held initial talks about signing 20-year-old Sweden midfielder Hugo Larsson, with Eintracht Frankfurt holding out for at least £50m. (Sky Sports Germany)

Chelsea have made Barcelona’s France defender Jules Kounde, 26, their primary target for the summer window. (Sport – in Spanish)

Barca are close to agreeing a contract extension with 34-year-old Polish keeper Wojciech Szczesny until June 2026. (Fabrizio Romano)

Bournemouth are keen on signing Spain goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga on a permanent deal from Chelsea this summer. The 30-year-old is currently on a season-long loan with the Cherries. (Fabrizio Romano)

Atletico Madrid want Chelsea’s Argentina midfielder Enzo Fernandez, 24 – with the Spanish side preparing an offer of about £25m, plus 21-year-old Spain midfielder Pablo Barrios, for the World Cup winner. (Fichajes – in Spanish)

RB Leipzig hold a serious interest in Sunderland midfielder Jobe Bellingham, 19, but consider the Black Cats ‘ current asking price for the England U21 international too high. (Sky Sport Germany)

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola says his performance as manager this season has been “really poor”.

City, Premier League champions in each of the last four seasons, are fifth in the table and 22 points behind leaders Liverpool with nine matches remaining.

Guardiola, who has guided City to six Premier League titles since joining in 2016, has never finished a season lower than third with any club during his managerial career.

Asked how he rates his own work as manager this term, Guardiola, 54, said: “This season? Really poor.

” The opponents never gave us a red carpet to win the titles that we won in the past. My duty was to overcome the situation much better than I have done]this season]. “

City are hoping to reach the semi-finals of the FA Cup for the seventh consecutive season when they take on Bournemouth in the quarter-finals on Sunday at the Vitality Stadium (16: 30 BST).

But Guardiola says even victory in the competition and qualifying for the Champions League by finishing in the top four would not make amends for their failed Premier League title defence.

” Of course it would be nice to arrive in the final of the FA Cup and win it, and qualify for the Champions League, “said Guardiola.

” That would be a big success but the season has been poor and it’s not going to change.

“Our standards and many things were not good, this is the reality. That’s not going to change for the fact we win one title or qualify for the Champions League.

World number one Aryna Sabalenka claimed her second title of the year by beating Jessica Pegula 7-5 6-2 in the women’s Miami Open final.

There were seven breaks of serve in a hard-fought first set, which swung the way of both players, before the Belarusian won a game to love on Pegula’s serve.

Sabalenka’s power got her out of trouble on a number of occasions while Pegula’s struggles to hold her own serve, along with her inability to deal with the force of her opponent’s game, proved the world number four’s downfall.

Her frustration grew as Sabalenka took control of the second set. The 26-year-old broke Pegula at 5-2 up to win the tournament without dropping a set as she hit 31 winners in the match, compared to 12 from her rival.

Sabalenka won the Brisbane International in January but had gone into the Miami Open final having lost her previous two finals, with defeats by American Madison Keys at the Australian Open and Mirra Andreeva at Indian Wells two weeks ago.

“I’m speechless”, said Sabalenka, who beat Pegula in last year’s US Open final. “The last couple of finals were really tough and tight and close ones for me, so going into this one I was so focused on myself.

” I was super focused and playing point by point. It feels super special and really happy with the title – the first in Miami.

“It was back and forth the whole match. I was fighting no matter what and, even after each game she broke, I was fighting back and breaking her back”.

Could the FA Cup have a new winner this season?

The way the draw is shaping up, either an original name or one without a win in generations could well be etched on the famous old trophy.

Crystal Palace are one of those looking to lift it for the first time after they breezed into the semi-finals by beating Fulham 3-0 on Saturday.

Nottingham Forest are also into the final four, beating Brighton on penalties in the quarter-finals, having last won the competition in 1959.

Meanwhile, Bournemouth are eyeing a maiden FA Cup win, although they face a tough task against last year’s Premier League champions and seven-time winners Manchester City on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Championship side Preston North End and Aston Villa – who play each other on Sunday – are looking to clinch the trophy for the first time since 1938 and 1957, respectively.

“I think every team left in the draw will fancy their chances”, former Middlesbrough and Fulham goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer said on BBC Radio 5 Live.

“Manchester City will be a really tough one for Bournemouth, but if that does go in Bournemouth’s favour then all of a sudden the draw looks very different.

Of course, there could well be a familiar winner of the FA Cup this season, with seven-time champions Manchester City still very much in contention – three of those coming since 2011.

But should they be upset by Bournemouth on Sunday then the final four would be absent of City, Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United – the sides who have hogged the FA Cup trophy in recent decades.

The table above shows how such sides have dominated in the modern era, with only Aston Villa of the remaining clubs in the competition able to compete in terms of wins, although all seven of theirs came before 1958.

It isn’t actually that long ago since a side who hasn’t lifted the FA Cup before – or won it for the first time in a long time – last clinched it.

That happened just four years ago, when Leicester City triumphed over Chelsea.

However, that Foxes win is just the third time since Everton won the FA Cup 30 years ago that a side other than Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City and Manchester United won it.

The others were surprise triumphs for Wigan in 2013 and Portsmouth five years earlier.

That 2008 showpiece was also the last time a final did not include one of the aforementioned five Premier League sides, with Harry Redknapp’s Portsmouth beating Cardiff.

” I think it could happen this season, “former Everton midfielder Fara Williams said on Football Focus.

” If you look how the Premier League has unfolded this season, there have been some real surprise packages.

Preston North End are looking to achieve something no team has managed in 45 years – win the FA Cup as a team playing outside the top flight.

They have won twice before – in 1889 and 1938 – and were beaten finalists in 1964.

The last team to win the competition who did so when not playing in the top tier of English football was West Ham in 1980.

“It will be a huge ask”, former Liverpool and Aston Villa full-back Stephen Warnock said on Football Focus.

“The only thing is if you can be very difficult to play against, very organised and maybe score a wonder goal or a set piece. I just don’t see it happening”.

Schwarzer added: “This is what the FA Cup is about – being able to dream.