Davide Santon

?Tottenham Hotspur have been linked with a move for Inter’s Ivan Perisic and are prepared to offer €25m for the Croatian international.

The 30-year-old has had his eye on a Premier League for several years, with Manchester United long-term admirers of Perisic, but it is Spurs who appear most interested in acquiring his services this summer.

According to ?TuttomercatoWeb, ?Inter have reduced the asking price for their winger to €35m, but Mauricio Pochettino is said to only be willing to offer €25m.

?Perisic was a star player for Croatia in the 2018 World Cup as they went all the way to the final in Moscow, losing 4-2 to winners France.

The former ?Borussia Dortmund man hasn’t lit up Serie A to the same extent this season, scoring just four goals and assisting three in 24 games, but a Premier League move may still beckon.

?Spurs are likely to have limited transfer funds in the next transfer window as the long road to paying off the brand new £1bn Tottenham Hotspur Stadium begins.

Pochettino famously didn’t sign a single player last summer – a move which hasn’t turned out too badly with Spurs in the quarter final of the Champions League and in third place in the Premier League – but it looks like Daniel Levy may have to fork out this time around as they look to retain their place amongst England’s elite clubs. 

The suggestion is that neither club are willing to compromise their valuation, but Perisic’s future could rest on any move for Inter teammate ?Mauro Icardi, who has been linked with ?a move to Real Madrid this summer.

Perisic has been with the Croatian national team during the international break, beating Azerbaijan 2-1 before a surprise 2-1 defeat at the hands of Hungary in Group E of the Euro 2020 qualifiers.

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Speculation surrounding Ivan Rakitic’s potential move away from Barcelona could be brought to an end in the forseeable future, as reports in Spain suggest that manager Ernesto Valverde is prepared to extend the midfielder’s contract.

The Croatian has been linked with a move away throughout the season, with Manchester United and Inter named as the primary interested parties, and the impending arrival of Frenkie de Jong to Camp Nou only seemed to add fuel to that fire. 

The 31-year-old, however, has been an increasingly central player for Valverde throughout the campaign, scoring or assisting in each of his last four La Liga appearances, and ?AS say the boss is keen to reward his contributions rather than sell up.

Though he is contracted until 2021 as things stand, Valverde is reported to have given ?Barca his ‘blessing’ to offer the player renewed terms, something that would act as a deterrent should another European powerhouse come in with a bid. 

It adds further that he is a ‘staunch admirer’ of the player, and it comes after ?quotes from Rakitic earlier this month which suggested he is in no rush to move on. 

“I like living in Spain,” he said. “Unfortunately, I can’t ask for another passport because I already have two, otherwise I’d also ask for a Spanish one because I’m fine here and I’m happy. 

“My family are happy here too and my daughters are doing well in Barcelona because we’re close to Seville. Therefore, staying here is perfect for me.”

In ?United’s case, it seemed as if the interest was cooling off regardless. It was ?recently reported that Paul Pogba’s reassurances over his future at Old Trafford saw the club step off in their pursuit of Rakitic, feeling perhaps as if there would be no room for both players in their side. 

All the reports seem to indicate that the Croatian isn’t entirely likely to move on this summer, though things can change quickly in football.

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1. Goalkeeper & Defenders

2. Midfielders

3. Forwards

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?Manchester City are preparing to go head-to-head with rivals Manchester United in the race for Inter defender Milan Skriniar, and are ready to lodge a bid of €100m to beat the Red Devils.

Both sides have been heavily linked with a host of top centre-backs, with Skriniar’s name one of many to have been suggested. The 24-year-old has excelled since his move to Inter in 2017, with both Manchester clubs said to have tried to sign him in the past, and it appears as though they could reignite their interest this summer.

News of? City’s imminent bid comes from AS (via ?Calciomercato), who state that Pep Guardiola is ready to blow his rivals out of the water with a huge €100m offer.

Skriniar’s agent has recently claimed that ?Inter ?rejected a bid of €55m from City in January 2018, adding that the club would need an offer closer to €100m to part ways with their star defender, who is also being targeted by both ?Real Madrid and ?Barcelona.

Jose Mourinho was thought to be a huge fan of the Slovakian, and now Ole Gunnar Solskjaer appears set to continue his interest into the summer, as he looks to bolster his defensive options. However, with City reportedly preparing to flex their financial muscle, ?United may be forced to look elsewhere.

?Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly has also been the subject of reported interest, whilst Ajax wonderkid Matthijs de Ligt remains high on the wish list for both sides.

Should City secure the expensive signing of Skriniar, it would likely smash their current transfer record which stands at £60m, after the signing of ?Riyad Mahrez from ?Leicester City last summer.

Guardiola is looking for younger defenders to cement City’s place as one of Europe’s top sides for the foreseeable future, with both Nicolas Otamendi and ?Vincent Kompany approaching the latter stages of their careers.

He is said to be infatuated with De Ligt, but any deal for the Dutchman would certainly be tough, with the likes of ?Bayern Munich and Barcelona keen on a summer move. As a result, Guardiola has set his sights on Skriniar, and is seemingly not prepared to accept defeat.

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Italy manager Roberto Mancini has backed striker Ciro Immobile and praised full debutant Moise Kean following the Azzurri’s 2-0 win against Finland on Saturday night. 

The Italians sit joint top of their Euro 2020 qualifying group with Greece after both sides enjoyed two-goal wins in the first match of the qualifying campaign. Nicolo Barella and Moise Kean both got on the scoresheet for Italy as they had to fight through an organised Finish defence throughout the whole match. 

Mancini spoke to Rai Sport via Football Italia after the match, stating: “It wasn’t easy, as Finland clammed up straight away with five defenders, so it was difficult to break them down. We made a few mistakes early on, but did far better in the second half and created many more scoring opportunities.

“We have a lot of work to do, but it’s natural after five months that we’d make a few mistakes. We need to keep working, aware that every match is difficult.”

The manager had high praise for Kean following his full debut for the squad, in which the ?Juventus youngster scored his first goal for the national team. 

“Kean has quality, enormous potential and it all depends on him. It’s not difficult to see talent in Kean and Nicolò Zaniolo, so it’s not a risk to pick them.”

Immobile did not score in the match, taking his goalless drought to ten straight matches in international competition, but Mancini came to the defence of the striker by saying: “When a striker seeks the goal, it doesn’t arrive, so it’ll happen. It wasn’t easy for Immobile, as he always five or six players surrounding him. If anything, we should’ve spread the play better to create spaces.” 

Mancini will hope Immobile can bring his Serie A form to the next match for Italy and build off his 17 goals in all competitions for Lazio this season. 

Gli Azzurri continue their qualifying campaign when they host Liechtenstein on Tuesday in Parma and will look to build off their initial win and stay top of Group J. 

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