Villa deny Benteke-Defoe swap reports

Aston Villa have rejected claims that they are preparing to offload Christian Benteke to Tottenham in a deal involving Jermain Defoe moving the other way.

PA PhotosAston Villa are determined to keep hold of Christian Benteke

Reports on Wednesday morning suggested that Spurs have offered Defoe, along with a transfer fee, to Villa in exchange for the Belgium international, who has been a revelation since his £7 million signing from Genk last summer.

The Midlands club have categorically denied receiving any offers for the 22-year-old from Spurs, or any other of the interested parties that have been tracking Benteke since the end of the season.

A Villa source said: "There has been no bid from Tottenham. In fact we have not had an official offer from any of the many clubs mentioned in connection with Christian."

Atletico Madrid have been leading the race to sign Benteke and have indicated that they are prepared to use half the £50 million received from Monaco for the transfer of Radamel Falcao.

Villa, however, remain relaxed over their striker's future and believe he will remain with the club next season.

Paul Lambert’s side have already held one round of discussions over a lucrative new contract extension for the striker, who has three years remaining on his current deal, and negotiations are expected to continue over the next couple of weeks.

Benteke and his representatives have stated that they will resume talks this month, after the player finishes his international duties with Belgium.

Villa have been labeled a selling club over the last couple of seasons, due to the departures of James Milner, Gareth Barry, Ashley Young and Stewart Downing.

Barry and Milner left for Manchester City, while Young moved to Manchester United and Stewart Downing attracted a £20 million fee from Liverpool.

Villa, though, have no record of selling players to clubs they perceive to be on a similar level to themselves, and Lambert maintains it will take a huge bid in excess of £30 million for the club to even consider allowing Benteke to leave.

Even if they are unable to persuade the striker to sign improved terms this summer, they still believe he will be part of the squad next season.

Jose: Ronaldo thinks he knows it all

Jose Mourinho has suggested his former Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo no longer listens to tactical instructions as he thinks he has nothing left to learn.

GettyImagesReports suggest Jose Mourinho would like to take Cristiano Ronaldo with him to Chelsea

• Musa: Money over sentiment
• Real profit from Perez term?
• Perez: Zidane could coach Real
• Corrigan: Third term for Perez

The Portuguese pair previous enjoyed a close relationship but it has apparently fractured since Ronaldo reacted angrily to criticism from the bench during a Copa del Rey win over Valencia in January.

After that, Ronaldo refused to speak publicly in support of his boss or tie their fates together.

Spanish lipreaders claimed the player told his manager to "f¨¨ himself" during Madrid's win over Malaga last month, and he did not then start any of the club's remaining three La Liga games.

Mourinho told Spanish TV show Punto Pelota that it was now difficult to coach the former Manchester United man as he reacts badly to any criticism.

"Cristiano Ronaldo maybe thinks that he knows everything and that the coach cannot improve him anymore," Mourinho said. "I had a very basic problem with him: criticise him from a tactical point of view, in that moment he did not accept it very well."

Ronaldo missed Madrid's final game of the season last weekend with Mourinho claiming the attacker - as well as team-mates Iker Casillas and Pepe - had been ruled out due to unspecified back complaints.

Pepe subsequently tweeted a photo of himself surfing just a few days later, Casillas told Spanish reporters that he had been ready to play, while A Bola and ASclaimed Ronaldo now has no intention of signing a new contract at the Bernabeu as he was disappointed Madrid president Florentino Perez had not publicly denied the 'fake injury' claims.

The returning Chelsea manager nevertheless stuck to his version of events.

"Those two games in which he did not play, have been almost the only ones because he has given everything for Real Madrid," he said. "He felt a pain in his back. I do not doubt the injuries of the players."

Mourinho also claimed that Ronaldo's phenomenal goalscoring record for Madrid over the last three years had been facilitated by a tactical scheme which had been specifically designed [by Mourinho himself].

"He played three fantastic seasons with me, I do not know if the best of his career," the Special One said. "I think we discovered a fantastic tactical set-up so that he could express all his potential and express it in goals."

Meanwhile, Radio Marca has claimed that Mourinho plans to sell both Fernando Torres and Juan Mata as he shakes up the Chelsea squad for next season.

Torres however told reporters as he joined up with the Spain squad ahead of the upcoming Confederations Cup that he was not yet thinking about next season, but he was looking forward to working under the Blues' new "demanding" boss.

"There had been talk about this for a while and now it is confirmed," Torres said. "But first we have a very nice challenge in front of us, the Confederations Cup, which requires 100% [attention]. Once that is over we can think about starting t

Schurrle switch to Chelsea 'under threat'

Andre Schurrle's propose moved to Chelsea could be in jeopardy amid reports in Germany that he could remain at Bayer Leverkusen for another year.

EmpicsSchurrle had looked certain to join Chelsea

According to German newspaper Die Welt, the failure to resolve the transfer saga involving Kevin de Bruyne, Schurrle, Bayer Leverkusen, Chelsea and Borussia Dortmund means a conclusion currently appears unlikely.

Chelsea are keen to buy Schurrle, 22, from Leverkusen, who in return want to take Kevin de Bruyne, 21, on loan from Stamford Bridge, but the Belgium international would prefer to join Champions League runners-up Dortmund on a permanent deal. It is up to incoming Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho to resolve the situation.

In April, a deal looked in place for a swap between Leverkusen and Chelsea. Both parties had reached an agreement for Germany international Schurrle and De Bruyne. Schurrle was to be sold to Chelsea and in return Leverkusen would take de Bruyne on a year-long loan. But only hours after reaching the agreement, Leverkusen asked for a two-year loan deal and Chelsea refused, Die Welt reports.

Then followed Dortmund's interest after it was revealed that their midfield star Mario Gotze is headed for Bayern Munich in a €37 million transfer this summer.

Late last week, Leverkusen tried to resolve the matter when CEO Wolfgang Holzhauser made public they already had reached an agreement with Chelsea and he hoped Stamford Bridge officials would stick to what has been agreed upon.

Holzhauser also hit out at Borussia Dortmund for making eyes at the Belgium international while Leverkusen general manager Rudi Voller called the club's behaviour "hypocritical".

Dortmund general manager Michael Zorc replied earlier this week, when he toldkicker that "de Bruyne only wants to join us". Meanwhile, the Schurrle deal has been in gridlock as Leverkusen do not want to sell the player before they have a replacement lined up.

It is now suggested that Chelsea could withdraw their offer within the next couple of days, according to Die Welt, who also report that the Blues and Leverkusen will meet for further negotiations later this week.

Holzhauser, meanwhile, has had another jibe at Dortmund. “I don’t care what Zorc says. They have said a lot. In January they tried to lure our coach Sascha Lewandowski away from us, without talking to us," Holzhauser said.

"They have also lured one of our youth players away from us. And they have taken Sokratis away from us. Everyone in Bundesliga, including Dortmund, knew we had agreed a deal with the player. It is worth considering to find a new definition for Dortmund’s conception of the world.”

The player's agent, Ingo Haspelt, reiterated: “Andre Schurrle wants to join Chelsea by all means, no doubt about that."

Sagna talking with Arsenal over deal

Bacary Sagna has revealed he is in talks with Arsenal to extend his contract, but the France international did not rule out a move away from the Gunners this summer.

PA PhotosSagna's contract at Arsenal expires next year

Sagna's current deal at Emirates Stadium expires in June 2014, and media on both sides of the Channel have reported the former Auxerre defender could quit the club he joined in 2007 in the upcoming transfer window. Though he is currently withLes Bleus in South America, Sagna still has one eye on his club future with negotiations at Arsenal on-going.

"There are [talks], but I still haven't extended my contract. I'm talking. I'm not at a bad club either," Sagna told L'Equipe before replying with a simple "Oui" when asked whether he could return to France.

"It's possible. We'd have to see in which conditions and, in sporting terms, what they propose. I won't go just anywhere," he said. "If I stay at Arsenal, I'll try to have a good season, there's the World Cup at the end of it. If I'm to leave, it'll be a new challenge."

After enduring his country's painful 2010 World Cup campaign in South Africa, an injured Sagna watched from afar as Laurent Blanc's France squad, ridden with ill-discipline, left Euro 2012 with their tails between their legs.

Having returned to the international scene, Sagna said Blanc's successor, Didier Deschamps, 44, had restored order and commanded respect as a result of his trophy-filled playing career.

"He had a clear-out. There were players who were at the Euro who are no longer in the team," Sagna said, seemingly referring to Newcastle United's Hatem Ben Arfa and Rubin Kazan midfielder Yann M'Vila. "His charisma has everyone behind him. He's won everything, he was captain of the French national team. There's no outrage [that Deschamps is coach]."

Copa cliffhangers from CONMEBOL

We're down to the final four in South America's premier club competition. Atletico Mineiro, Newell's Old Boys, Olimpia and Independiente Santa Fe secured their places in the semifinals of the Copa Libertadores last week in circumstances that were variously nail-biting, comfortable and heart-in-mouth. Let's take a look at how the four semifinalists reached this stage.

APNewell's Old Boys celebrate their penalty shootout win over Boca Juniors

Newell's Old Boys haven't had to travel outside Argentina since the group stage ended, having taken the relatively short trip down to Buenos Aires twice, to take on Velez Sarsfield and Boca Juniors. In the round of 16, Velez won 1-0 in Rosario but were dispatched 2-1 in the second leg back in BA for an away goals victory that might have looked more convincing had Newell's domination of possession not been so well marshalled by their opponents.

In the quarterfinal, there was a 0-0 aggregate draw -- two of Boca's best performances of 2013 combining with two of Newell's worst -- before Newell's saw off their 10-man opponents on penalties (Argentina left back Clemente Rodriguez had been harshly sent off for having a word with the referee after being booked). The shootout saw 26 kicks (a Copa record), with Juan Roman Riquelme scoring his second after missing first time round, and Maxi Rodríguez, back at his first club, hammering in the winner.

One coincidence about Newell's two ties was that in both cases they played their opponents in the league in the same week. A 4-0 thrashing of Boca's reserves last weekend but one means they're still well situated to potentially secure both league and Copa -- no side has managed that double since the short championships were introduced in Argentina, in 1992.

Ronaldinho's Atletico Mineiro were the best first-place team from the groups. Atletico thrashed Sao Paulo 6-2 on aggregate in the first knockout round, but had things much harder against Club Tijuana Xoloitzcuintles de Caliente, whose name -- mercifully -- can (and henceforth will) be shortened to Xolos. Atletico fell asleep in the first leg, in Mexico, and were 2-0 down before halftime, rallying in the second half to a 2-2 draw thanks to a stoppage time equaliser from Luan.

That goal was crucial in the return, as Duvier Riascos gave Xolos the lead 25 minutes in only for Rever to hit back before halftime, making it 3-3 on aggregate. Atletico were going through on away goals, but Xolos peppered the Atletico goal during the second half (Fernando Arce hit the woodwork with 10 minutes to go).

Then came the heart-in-mouth moment. Two minutes into stoppage time, Leonardo Silva took Pablo Aguilar out in the box, and Xolos had a penalty. Riascos, the man who'd put them ahead earlier in the night, stepped up to take it, Atletico goalkeeper Victor dived, saw it going past where he'd come from ... and flicked out a foot to prevent the goal. No time for anything more; that was full time. By the slimmest of margins, many people's favourites for the Copa were in the semis.

Newell's and Atletico face each other, with the other semifinal between sides from less traditionally powerful nations: Olimpia of Paraguay (who it should be said, especially after that introduction, have actually won the Libertadores on three occasions) and Independiente Santa Fe of Colombia, who are in the semis for the first time in 52 years.

Santa Fe scraped through the round of 16 on away goals over Gremio, but had a comfortable win in the quarters, 5-1 on aggregate over Real Garcilaso of Peru (who'd qualified from the same group as Santa Fe). Santa Fe's route to the semis hasn't been the hardest, but given their previous semi appearance was in only the competition's second-ever edition, it's to be applauded.

APRonaldinho's Atletico Mineiro saw off Tijuana on away goals

Olimpia -- who won the Copa in 1979, 1990 and 2002 -- beat Tigre of Argentina in a thrilling first knockout round tie; Tigre (last year's Copa Sudamericana finalists) won the first leg 2-1 in the northern Buenos Aires suburb of Victoria, only to be outplayed and go down 2-0 in the return in Asuncion. In the quarters, after a 0-0 in Rio, Olimpia fell behind early in the second leg to a goal from Fluminense midfielder Rhayner, but rallied, went in 2-1 up at halftime, and didn't let the lead slip.

After so much breathless excitement, everyone will no doubt be delighted to now have a month off before the semifinals begin. Yes, that's right; like a TV executive or a good thriller writer, CONMEBOL is giving us a cliffhanger; its putting the competition on hold until the Confederations Cup is over.

This is far from the first time. Prior to the 1990s, the Copa was played year-round, as opposed to February-July(ish) as is now the case, so the long gaps came at the end of the first phase -- effectively a preliminary round. In World Cup years more recently, though, things have got rather silly.

In 1990, the group stages ended in late April, and the knockout rounds didn't begin until early August. In 1994 (when the spectacularly named Venezuelan Stalin Rivas finished as top scorer), the first leg of the quarterfinals was played in the week of the April 4, and the second legs played around the July 24; 1998 saw a gap of just over a month between quarters and semis, 2002 brought almost two months between the same stages, 2006 saw quarterfinal first legs played in the week of May 9, and second legs in that of July 20, whilst 2010 was another with two months between quarters and semis.

Of course, this has a big effect. One example: in 2006, during the gap between the two quarterfinal legs, River Plate lost Daniel Montenegro -- the competition's top scorer at that point -- to Independiente.

Who knows what changes await the squads of this year's semifinalists? Newell's already know they'll lose manager Gerardo Martino and top goal scorer Ignacio Scocco, and though both have expressed a desire to stay until they either win or are knocked out of the Copa, whoever next employs them could easily insist they're not made to wait so long.

So, look forward to the semifinals, by all means; just don't ask me for any predictions on them based on how the competing sides have done so far.

Liverpool plan Mkhitaryan move

Liverpool are weighing up a move to bring in Armenia international Henrikh Mkhitaryan from Shakhtar Donetsk, ESPN understands.


GettyImages
Henrikh Mkhitaryan was Armenia’s player of the year in 2009, 2011 and 2012
Mkhitaryan, who scored 25 goals from midfield in the Ukrainian Premier League last season, is likely to cost more than £20 million.

The 24-year-old is under contract with Shakhtar until 2015, but suggested in March that he would be looking to move on after his side were knocked out of the Champions League in the last 16 by Borussia Dortmund.

Mkhitaryan reportedly said at the time that he “will do everything this summer to join one of the strongest clubs in the world”, although he later back-pedalled via a statement on Shakhtar’s official website claiming he had been misquoted.

The attacking midfielder has since been linked with Chelsea, Manchester City and Barcelona, but Liverpool have been tracking him too.

It is understood that owners Fenway Sports Group have not been put off by the player’s price tag, and are prepared to sanction an offer for Mkhitaryan, who was Armenia’s player of the year in 2009, 2011 and 2012.

Such a bid does not depend on Liverpool bringing in money by selling Luis Suarez, who declared at a press conference in his native Uruguay last week that he wants to leave Anfield. Liverpool have yet to receive a bid for Suarez, who has still to submit a transfer request.

Meanwhile, Liverpool are hoping to complete the £7.7 million signing of Celta Vigo forward Iago Aspas this week.

'Pope' Perez geared for third term

The news of Florentino Perez's four more years as Real Madrid president has come as no surprise to anyone in Spain. The question now is what Perez, whose first period was dominated by the business success but sporting failure of his 'galacticos', and second spell overshadowed by Jose Mourinho's various controversies, has planned for term three.

GettyImagesFlorentino Perez's time at Real Madrid has been polarised by success and failure

Changes to the club's election statutes made last September - all candidates must be socios for at least 20 years and stump up a €76 million bank guarantee - meant Perez was a shoo-in this year. Annoyed at this apparent pretence at democracy, some fans groups - and AS editor Alfredo Relano - tried to mount a campaign to find an alternative, but to little real effect. His pretty poor record of only five major competitions won during ten years in charge was hardly mentioned.

For many in Spain, Florentino was the only viable candidate anyway. He certainly thought so. "[Perez] felt about Real Madrid the way Pope John Paul II felt about the Roman Catholic Church," John Carlin wrote in 2004. That remains the case. And you do not vote out - or even challenge - the pope.

This bishop of the Bernabeu has also shown a certain blind faith in his running of the club. He first attended games as a boy with his father in the 1950s, and remembered watching Di Stefano, Puskas, Gento and company dominate the European game. So his first term 'galacticos' policy of signing Luis Figo, Zidane, [Brazilian] Ronaldo and David Beckham was an [conscious or not] attempt to recreate the days of his youth when all the world's best players played for Madrid. And won the European Cup every year.

This worked - at first at least. Vicente del Bosque's calm hand delivered the 2002 Champions League trophy, as well as two league titles in three years. Revenues also soared, helping to remedy the club's ailing finances, but even still this was not enough. Del Bosque was sacked in 2003 with Perez saying the club needed a "more modern" coach, and then trophies dried up under a string of failed replacements, leading to his stepping down in 2006 having apparently been drained by the failure of his 'project'. The 12 months during which Del Bosque departed, Beckham signed, and no trophies were won, is now the defining year of the Florentino I period.

A reinvigorated Perez returned in 2009 after successor Ramon Calderon resigned following allegations of voting fraud. More than €250 million was immediately spent on Kaka, Karim Benzema, Xabi Alonso and also Cristiano Ronaldo, although that deal with Manchester United had been agreed beforehand. Manuel Pellegrini was coach for the first year, but Florentino II really began when Jose Mourinho was installed in summer 2010.

Perez had learned in his first term that a succession of weak coaches was no good, so Mourinho [a galactico on the bench] got a free hand no Madrid boss had ever been given. He used it to grind out just one Copa del Rey and La Liga trophy while bit by bit obliterating all signs of traditional Madrid 'senorio' from the Bernabeu. Important club figures from Raul to Jorge Valdano to Iker Casillas were sidelined, and Mourinho fought with journalists, referees and many of his own club's fans. But Perez pursued a see no evil hear no evil policy - even when UNICEF was libelled or Tito Vilanova poked in the eye.

There were a few calls for "unity" as things got worse and worse, but even when Mourinho's exit "by mutual consent" was announced last month there was no excommunication for the Portuguese. Meanwhile three European Cup semi-finals in three years were hailed as "bringing the club back to where it belongs" by Perez. Presidential infallibility would be one name for it. Trying to rewrite history would be another.

So now to Perez III. The initial impression is more along the lines of his first term, and an [unacknowledged] quick moving on from Mourinho. Carlo Ancelotti - called last week an 'Italian Del Bosque' by Marca - is clearly first choice as coach. Zidane seems set to be his superior, in overall control of the 'sporting project'. How this idea will work in practice nobody yet knows.

GettyImagesThe arrival of Carlo Ancelotti could get Perez III off to a good start

The construction magnate appears to have more 'concrete' ideas of how the club should progress off the pitch. There was no Figo-style present for Madrid's socios during this year's election, but there was a €30m-a-year shirt sponsorship deal with Emirates Airlines. Work on a €250m remodelling of the Bernabeu, to include a new retail and hotel complex, is due to start in summer 2014. A long mooted Disney-style theme park is still being talked about, although there has been less said recently about the proposed €1 billion Real Madrid Island in Dubai.

These developments are all designed to secure the club's financial security. And the figures do look much better now than when Perez replaced Lorenzo Sanz in 2000. Deloitte said last year Madrid was the first football club anywhere to raise its annual turnover past the €500 million mark, due to Perez's marketing nous. When big money spent on players can be recouped through increased sponsorship deals, even the over €100 million in total spent on Kaka can be seen as a success.

But the financial picture is not all positive. While last September's AGM heard of an annual profit of €24.2 million, Madrid's debts remain pretty high at €124.7 million. News 'leaked' last week that 'the club' [i.e. its president] was considering selling naming rights to the Bernabeu to finance its remodelling. If the idea of sidelining 'Don Santiago', overseer of those 1950s glory years, is serious, money for new galacticos must be tight.

Blancos fans are currently excited by possible signings like Gareth Bale, Luis Suarez, Edinson Cavani, Isco, Thiago Alcantara and Robert Lewandowski, but they also know the biggest deals of the last two summers were for Fabio Coentrao, Nuri Sahin and Luka Modric. Perez had long coveted Neymar, but after Barca won that race, he claimed the €150m the Brazilian starlet would have cost was too much.

Madrid may now need to sell before buying big, and Juventus-bound Gonzalo Higuain [a Calderon signing] is unlikely to be the only big name to leave. A new deal for Cristiano Ronaldo is more important than any new signing, but no closer to appearing, as Madrid seemingly cannot match the terms on offer elsewhere. Xabi Alonso's contract situation - with just 12 months left - is also worrying.

The most likely summer window scenario for Madrid now looks like one big headline signing covering a lot of wheeling and dealing. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing. A sensible transfer policy which saw, say, Cavani, re-signed young-right back Dani Carvajal and maybe Marco Verratti and Isco arrive, while the likes of Kaka, Angel Di Maria, Coentrao and Raul Albiol were quietly moved on, might be ideal. Prospective new players [and hard-bitten journos] will enjoy talking to Zidane. Ancelotti's laid back style might be just what is required to heal the Bernabeu dressing-room.

Madrid supporters expecting such sensible decisions are hoping Florentino III has learned from the mistakes of terms one and two. Madrid do not need new galacticos, in the team or on the bench, a few clever tweaks could make a side capable of finally achieving 'la decima'. Deliver that between now and 2017 and Perez will have fans falling at his feet. Fail and it will not matter how shiny the new Bernabeu is, or how profitable the theme park. The pope would have to go.