Football News: Review Of The Day 23rd September 2020

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Review of the Day

Contracts

Aston Villa striker Keinan Davis has signed a new 4 year contract.

Teenage Ajax forward Sontje Hansen has signed a 3 year deal.

Transfers

Idris El Mizouni has returned to Cambridge United from Ipswich Town on a season-long loan.

Morecambe have signed Liam Gibson on a free transfer from Newcastle United.

Cardiff City have sent former Manchester United youngster Tom Sang to Cheltenham Town on loan until January.

Luke Garbutt has left Everton to sign for Blackpool on a free transfer.

Arsenal defender Mark McGuinness has signed for Ipswich Town on loan for the season.

Derby County have signed Jordon Ibe following the former Liverpool winger's release from Bournemouth.

Crystal Palace have sold Norwegian striker Alexander Sorloth to RB Leipzig for £18m.

Edouard Mendy has had a medical ahead of a move to Chelsea from Rennes.

Inter Milan have paid less than £1m to sign Arturo Vidal from Barcelona.

Atlanta United have signed their 6th ever Designated Player in the shape of Marcelino Moreno from Argentine side Atletico Lanus for a fee of around $7m.

Villareal have paid around £2m to sign Jorge Cuenca from Barcelona. The fee could rise up to about £6m, with Barca also having a buy-back option and a 20% sell-on clause for the 20 year old centre-back. The Spaniard has immediately been sent on loan to UD Almeria. Also leaving Barca is young midfielder Monchu, who is joining Girona on loan.

Leeds United have paid £18m for Real Sociedad centre-back Diego Llorente.

Nottingham Forest have signed Harry Arter from Bournemouth.

Espanyol have paid less than £2m for the signing of Keidi Bare from Malaga.

Nimes Olympique have received a fee of under £500,000 for experienced French midfielder Romain Philippoteaux from Stade Brest 29.

Real Madrid right-back Sergio Lopez has signed on loan for Valladolid.

Grasshoppers Zurich have taken Leo Bonatini on loan from Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Spezia have signed Alessandro Deiola and Diego Farias on loan from Cagliari.

Atalanta have paid a £450,000 loan fee to take Colombian left-back Johan Mojica on loan from Girona. They have also paid over £8m for Dutch forward Sam Lammers from PSV Eindhoven.

Elche have signed Miguel Cifuentes from Malaga on a free transfer.

Lecce have sent Romanian right-back Romario Benzar on loan to FC Viitorul.

Theo Valls has made a free transfer move to Servette FC from Nimes Olympique.

Benevento defender Jean-Claude Billong has signed for Turkish Super Lig side Hatayspor.

Ascoli have signed teenage winger Gianmarco Cangiano on loan from Bologna.

Former Chelsea striker Alvaro Morata has joined Juventus on loan after they paid a £9m loan fee to Atletico Madrid.

Injury Round-Up

The Carabao Cup tie between Leyton Orient and Tottenham Hotspur was called off after a number of the Orient players were found to have Covid-19 after being tested following their draw on Saturday against Mansfield Town. Mansfield are unhappy after finding out that a number of the Leyton Orient players had been displaying symptoms ahead of their match.

West Ham United manager David Moyes and two of his players have tested positive for Covid-19 and will now be required to self-isolate ahead of the Carabao Cup match against Hull City. Defender Issa Diop, midfielder Josh Cullen and Moyes were all asymptomatic but assistant manager Alan Irvine will take charge of the Hull game and will have to take charge of the forthcoming game against Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League. A West Ham statement read: "The manager and both players immediately left the stadium and have returned home."

Managerial Changes

Disciplinary Charges

West Bromwich Albion manager Slaven Bilic has been charged with improper conduct over his red card against Everton. The FA stated: "It is alleged that the West Bromwich Albion FC manager's language and/or behaviour on the field of play at half-time of the Premier League fixture against Everton FC on 19 September amounts to improper conduct." Bilic said: "As a manager I should be in a situation to ask the referee what's going on. It's not like the game was going on, it was half-time - nobody was around. I didn't swear. I asked him in a frustrated way but I didn't go over the line. But he just ignored me and gave me red. As a manager you have that right if you are not crossing the line. I told him if you want to kill us, kill us. That's all."

Luis Suarez's Italian citizenship test is being investigated by Italian authorities due to alleged "irregularities". Perugia's prosecutors office and the financial police are looking into the exam the Uruguayan striker took last week as he attempted to complete a transfer from Barcelona to Juventus. Five University of Perugia officials, including the dean, are under investigation as the player is alleged to have known the subjects in the test before he took it and had agreed on a final score he would receive before sitting down to take the test. It is also alleged that Suarez "demonstrated only an elementary knowledge of the Italian language". Suarez is eligible to apply for an Italian passport as his wife is Italian.

AS Roma's 0-0 draw with Hellas Verona on Saturday has been changed to a 3-0 defeat for the Italian capital club. Roma made an administrative error by including 23 year old Amadou Diawara in the under-22 section of their squad and the Guinea international played 89 minutes of the match. The Romans are expected to appeal as it was a simple error with the club having spaces in the squad Diawara could have have been placed in.

Fan Return Pushed Back

The return of fans in the ground in the Scottish Premiership has been delayed. It had already been pushed back from an initial date of 14th September until 5th October, but has now been put on hold once more. It also means that Scotland's Euro 2020 play-off against Israel on 8th October will take place behind closed doors, as will the Nations League match versus Slovakia three days afterwards.

In England the planned return of fans on 1st October has also been pushed back. Prime minister Boris Johnson said: "We will not be able to do this from 1 October and I recognise the implications for our sports clubs, which are the life and soul of our communities. The chancellor and the culture secretary are working urgently on what we can do now to support them. We have to acknowledge the spread of the virus is now affecting our ability to reopen large sporting events."

Bale Could Stay Longer

Gareth Bale could stay longer than the season-long loan agreed between Tottenham Hotspur and Real Madrid according to his agent Jonathan Barnett. Barnett said: "I'm sure that if things really worked out well, we'd have no problem. This is the club he wants to play at. I don't see any problems if he wants another year. Hopefully the subject [of returning to Real] won't come up. He will be so successful at Tottenham he'll want to stay and it will be a simple deal to do the rest. What I hope is he'll get his love back for the game and play the way he can, but it's up to him. And he's not on trial anywhere. He's achieved more than any other, I think, British footballer abroad, so I think he's fine." I wonder what the golf courses are like in the area?

Silva Not Worried About The Pace Of The Prem

Chelsea's new veteran defender Thiago Silva is not worried about the breathless pace of the Premier League as the Brazilian is set to become 36 before he makes his debut. Silva arrived on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain in August and said: "Age is just a number on your document. I don't worry [about the speed of the Premier League] at all. Physically, I feel very young and I'm very well prepared for this. People who know me know how much I love my work; how I put in 200%. This is a great opportunity that Chelsea and Frank Lampard have given me and I don't want to let them down. I'm coming here as an older player so I see that as Chelsea and Frank Lampard wanting a player with my experience. I'll use the words of how [Everton boss] Carlo Ancelotti described James Rodriguez: 'If you want someone to run we could sign Usain Bolt.' I hope to help these young players with this new adventure."

Written by Tris Burke September 22 2020 23:01:19