that Victor Wanyama is stalling on a new contract at Southampton amid interest from North London duo Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur.

The Kenya international has been linked with a move away from St Mary’s over the past few transfer windows but has as yet remained on the South Coast.

The Saints have put a five-year deal on the table for the twenty-four year old, with the club desperate for him not to enter the final twelve months of this current contract, which could lead to them losing the player for a reduced fee.

Since signing from Celtic in the summer of 2013, Wanyama has racked up eighty-eight appearances in all competitions, scoring three goals.

He played as Ronald Koeman’s side held title chasing Arsenal to a goalless draw at the Emirates St…

Al Ahli plan to attack Al Hilal despite holding an away goal in their AFC Champions League semi-final.

A 1-1 draw in Riyadh in September gave Al Ahli the upper-hand heading into Tuesday s second leg.

Lima had appeared set to give Cosmin Olaroiu s men an even better first-leg result when he opened the scoring, but the hosts – who missed a second-half penalty – equalised late on.

Speaking after that game, Olaroiu promised his side would still push forward in front of their home faithful in Dubai.

We will not go into the second leg thinking of a draw because we could lose especially because we are playing against a strong team like Al Hilal, the Al Ahli coach said.

Al Ahli are aiming to reach the Champions League final for just the third time an…

Central Coast Mariners chief executive Shaun Mielekamp has stressed it is too early to tell if Usain Bolt s two-goal showing in a friendly on Friday has persuaded the A-League club to offer him a full-time deal.

Eight-time Olympic champion Bolt, who retired from the track in 2017, is currently on trial with the Mariners as he bids to fulfil his dream of becoming a professional footballer.

He made his first start against Macarthur South West United and, despite missing several routine chances, the 32-year-old found the net twice in the second half to stake his claim for an offer ahead of the Mariners A-League campaign beginning next weekend.

[It] just puts more attention on the discussion we would already have had, Mielekamp told ESPN.

It was always pa…

Marc-Andre Ter Stegen is adamant he is happy at Barcelona amid speculation linking him with a move to Manchester City.

The 24-year-old moved to Camp Nou from Borussia Monchengladbach in 2014 and was initially second choice behind Claudio Bravo – now with ex-Barca boss Pep Guardiola at City – in LaLiga games.

He has been the Catalans undisputed number this term, though, and is not thinking about a transfer at this stage.

I am happy here, with my team-mates and my friends, Ter Stegen told La Vanguardia.

I hope to win many more titles here. That is my objective.

I do not know whether I will stay at Barcelona for many years. You never know what happens in the future. 

I just try to give my all and do what s best for me and for the …

Market: Shelbourne win

Odds: 6/5 @

Smelling the chance to secure back-to-back Premier Division victories on Friday night, Shelbourne will welcome Sligo Rovers to Tolka Park.

Starting with the hosts, putting in an action-packed display earlier in the week as they secured a 3-2 victory at home against Drogheda, Damien Duff’s men have impressed many across Ireland since opening the 2023 campaign. Knowing that another win on Friday night could move them within touching distance of the top-three, the Dublin-based outfit will be smelling the chance to make another statement here. In fact, on a run that stems all the way back to March 31st, Shelbourne have lost just one of their last 12 straight domestic appearances. With their extended purple patch highlighted by a …

Best Odds: 4/7

Bookmaker:

Looking to extend on their remarkable Premier League romp this weekend, Arsenal will make the trip to Elland Road on Sunday afternoon.

Leeds

Starting with the hosts, while Leeds might have opened the 2022/23 campaign enjoying a Premier League flurry, the Yorkshire-based outfit have rather drastically failed to keep up that momentum. Crashing back down to earth after their bright start, it appears there could be some growing pressure on Jesse Marsch s shoulders at Elland Road. Continuing to slip their way down the table, there is no doubt that the former RB Leipzig boss will know that his downbeat squad face a huge task this weekend. Heading into September s international break with a nightmare display as they were hit with a 5-2 drummi…

A former star goalkeeper for Brazil s Flamengo football club, Bruno de Souza, was Tuesday sentenced to four years in jail for kidnapping and beating a pregnant girlfriend who later went missing and is now presumed dead.

A Rio court found him guilty of abducting the woman, Eliza Samudio, in October 2009, physically assaulting her and forcing her take abortion-inducing drugs before releasing her.

The judge sentenced him to four years and six months for the crime.

De Souza was undergoing a separate trial in the city of Belo Horizonte for the murder of 25-year-old Samudio, who disappeared in June this year after she was taken to the goalkeeper s home after giving birth.

Prosecutors suspect the footballer had Samudio killed and disposed of the body. They say …

League One club Charlton Athletic have been taken over by businessmen Michael Slater and Tony Jimenez.

Slater and Jiminez s company CAFC Holdings Limited took control of the club on Friday after purchasing it for an undisclosed amount, with lawyer and businessman Slater to become the club s new chairman.

Jiminez will also sit on the board, along with outgoing chairman Richard Murray and former chief executive Peter Varney.

Charlton are currently third in League One after being relegated first from the Premier League in 2007 and then the Championship in 2009.

And while Slater said the takeover was good news for the club, he urged fans not to get ahead of themselves.

We are delighted to have taken control of Charlton, Slater told the club s offic…

It would be hard to sell Chelsea s Premier League title triumph as anything approaching a feel-good story or a tale of against-the-odds success, particularly in light of who they deposed to be crowned champions.

But while the Blues may have restored a more familiar order of things in England s top flight, the way in which Antonio Conte has masterminded that feat offers much to admire – and a few lessons for his fellow super-coaches Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho and Jurgen Klopp to take heed of.

It can t be denied that Mourinho s title-winning Chelsea vintage – back-to-back between 2004 and 2006, then once more in 2014-15 – failed to inspire much love from the neutrals, many of whom balked at the Portuguese s overt arrogance.

Conte stands in stark contrast. I…

Sergio Aguero made the 2016-17 campaign his most prolific in Manchester City colours with a first-half brace on the final day of the Premier League season at Watford.

Aguero netted his 32nd and 33rd goals in all competitions in between efforts from defensive duo Vincent Kompany and Fernandinho, with Pep Guardiola s men running riot to establish a 4-0 half-time advantage at Vicarage Road.

The 28-year-old s return outstrips his 32 strikes from the 2014-15 season, a figure he reached in 42 appearances. He has played 45 times across the Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup and EFL Cup this time around.

Aguero s second of the game made him the fifth player to score 20 times in three consecutive Premier League seasons after Alan Shearer, Thierry Henry, Ruud van Ni…