A.C. Milan Transfer Rumours: More news on Lucas Biglia

Earlier Soccer City FC posted on the Lucas Biglia to A.C. Milan transfer rumour.

Now it appears, via Italian website Footballpress.net, that Napoli, Bologna and Sevilla are also targeting the Argentine.

The site notes that Biglia's agent Enzo Montepaone is the one hailing this transfer news.

A.C. Milan: Luis Fabiano Wants Sevilla To Ok Milan's Bid

Confederations Cup hero Luis Fabiano has asked his club, Sevilla, to ok his transfer to A.C. Milan after the Italian giants sent an offer to the La Liga squad.

Fabiano's agent, Jose Fuentes, claimed that Milan made an official offer for the striker only days ago.

Fabiano hopes that Sevilla will accept the offer; speaking with ABC:

"I know that Milan have made an offer and I would like for Sevilla to consider it."

"Until now I've preferred to stay on the sidelines, because Milan had not made me any proposals, but now I understand this is an incredible opportunity for me.

"I am happy at Sevilla, but I realise that at the age of 28 there will be few other chances like this for me. Milan are one of the best clubs in the world."

Heurelho Gomes Reinstated To Brazil National Team, Ronaldinho Absent

Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper Heurelho Gomes, last capped by the Seleção in a friendly encounter with Ecuador in 2006, has returned to the Brazilian national team for the latest round of FIFA World Cup qualifiers and the Confederations Cup. Coach Dunga has also opted to call on the services of an uncapped trio of Gremio goalkeeper Victor, Corinthians' Andre Santos and Ramires of Cruziero. Dunga declared that his squad announcement revolved around sticking to his guns and selecting "players who are doing well at club level", leaving a bench-ridden Ronaldinho to recuperate and forge ahead to break back into the Milan starting lineup.

The Confederations Cup will be contested between June 14 and 28 in South Africa, with Brazil facing first-hurdle opposition in Italy, United States and Egypt in Group B.

Goalkeepers: Julio Cesar (Inter), Gomes (Tottenham), Victor (Gremio)

Defenders: Maicon (Inter), Daniel Alves (Barcelona), Lucio (Bayern Munich), Luisao (Benfica), Alex (Chelsea), Juan (Roma), Kleber (Internacional), Andre Santos (Corinthians)

Midfielders: Gilberto Silva (Panathinaikos), Josue (VfL Wolfsburg), Anderson (Manchester United), Felipe Melo (Fiorentina), Elano (Manchester City), Julio Baptista (Roma), Kaka (Milan), Ramires (Cruzeiro)

Forwards: Robinho (Manchester City), Alexandre Pato (Milan), Luis Fabiano (Sevilla), Nilmar (Internacional)

Worldwide Results On 22 April

On Wednesday 22nd April 2009, Manchester United moved one step closer to protecting their control of the English Premiership with a home victory over Portsmouth while Barcelona's spectacular triumph over Sevilla allowed them to rise six points ahead of Real Madrid in the race for the Spanish Primera Division title.

Bulgarian A Professional Football Group
Lokomotiv Sofia 1-2 Lokomotiv Plovdiv
Vihren Sandanski 1-4 CSKA Sofia
Pirin Blagoevgrad 0-0 Spartak Varna
Cherno More Varna 0-0 Lovech

Croatian First Football League
HNK Hajduk Split 5-0 NK Croatia Sesvete
NK Slavan Koprivnica 2-1 NK Varteks Varazdin
HNK Sibenik 0-1 HNK Rijeka
NK Osijek 1-1 NK Inter Zapresic
NK Zagreb 4-0 HNK Cibalia Vinkovci
NK Dinamo Zagreb 2-0 NK Zadar

Danish Superligaen
Randers FC 5-1 AC Horsens
SonderjyskE 0-3 AGF Aarhus
FC Kobenhavn 2-1 FC Midtjylland

English Premiership
Chelsea 0-0 Everton
Manchester United 2-0 Portsmouth

Romanian Liga I
Gaz Metan Medias 3-0 CS Otopeni
Pandurii Targu Jiu 1-0 FC Gloria Buzau
FC Timisoara 3-0 FC Politehnica Iasi
FC Brasov 1-1 FC Universitatea Craiova
FC Steaua Bucuresti 1-1 CFR Cluj

Swiss Super League
FC Aarau 0-3 FC Zurich
FC Basel 1-1 AC Bellinzona
FC Luzern 1-0 FC Sion

Serbian Super Liga
FK Hajduk Kula 1-0 FK Napredak Krusevac
FK Jagodina 2-1 FK Rad Beograd
FK Javor Ivanjica 1-0 FK Crvena Zvezda Beograd
OFK Beograd 1-3 FK Cukaricki
FK Vojvodina Novi Sad 4-1 FK Banat Zrenjanin

Spanish Primera Division
Barcelona 4-0 Sevilla
Deportivo La Coruna 2-0 Almeria
Osasuna 2-3 Malaga
Real Betis 1-2 Valencia

The AFC Champions League and Copa Libertadores will be covered over the weekend.

Poli Ejido Devastate Espanyol's Copa Del Rey Hopes

Segunda B outfit Poli Ejido have struck yet another blow to the hopes and ambitions of top-tier clubs in Spain's Copa Del Rey as Espanyol fell to a 3-2 defeat in the first leg. Villarreal fell victim to Poli Ejido's exploits in the first round and goals from Jorge Molina, Julio and Chico ensured that logic was to defy the odds once again as the third-tier Spanish club enter the return leg in Barcelona next week with a crucial advantage.

The only other non-Primera Liga team remaining at this stage of the competition was Real Union but they were defeated at home to Real Betis. Defending holders Valencia pulled off a 1-1 draw at Racing Santander and Omar Bravo’s late strike rescued Deportivo La Coruna's dreams of progressing to the next hurdle after Luis Fabiano and Frederic Kanoute had stretched Sevilla's lead to two.


Copa Del Rey Fifth Round, First Leg Results
Poli Ejido 3-2 Espanyol
Racing Santander 1-1 Valencia
Sporting Gijon 3-1 Real Valladolid
Real Union 0-1 Real Betis
Sevilla 2-1 Deportivo La Coruna
Atletico Madrid 1-3 Barcelona

What Next For Javier Saviola?

It is no secret that the key to unlocking a striker’s true potential is by clocking up the minutes on the field, and this combined with the diminutive ‘shelf-life’ of a career in the sport, means that eyes will surely scour in the direction of Real Madrid striker Javier Saviola when the window opens for business in January. Few strikers have diminished beyond the apparent face of the earth in the same manner as Saviola – once recognised as the youngest inclusion in Pele’s list of the greatest-ever footballers, 'The Rabbit' he has been tagged the forgotten man of Argentine football.

Approaching an age many would argue to a prime, Saviola needs to reacquaint himself with the basic need of regular first-team action before he can plot his arrival back on the international stage. Over a decade ago, Saviola made his professional debut for River Plate and had reached dizzying heights at the very naïve age of 19. Nobody would have dared predict such a rapid ascendancy to stardom – neither would such a dramatic fall from fame have been anticipated. Here was an exciting, young striker with limitless potential and a rare potency from almost any position, finishing at the peak of the goalscoring charts in the Argentine Primera Division - River Plate’s prized possession led them to glory in the championship. Virtuous displays swayed the heads of European giants in the direction of South America, and a move to Barcelona was signed, sealed and delivered at the FIFA U20 World Cup – the tournament which announced Saviola’s arrival on the international stage. Eleven goals in seven matches proclaimed him as the record goalscorer in World Youth Cup history and Argentina won in rapturous style.

Leaving Buenos Aires with a new-found glorious reputation, Barcelona fans were quick to show their delight of the new signing, dubbed as the ‘New Maradona’, as shirt sales bearing Saviola’s name soared. The hype however, for whatever given reason, failed to elate beyond his first season at the Nou Camp as Saviola failed to sustain his position in the starting eleven and was forever embattled in a losing fight to stay there – but by no means was it down to a lacklustre goalscoring record, an aspect of his career he could never be accused of. Three initial seasons at Barcelona boasted a healthy 44 goals in 105 matches but a loan move to Monaco was agreed for 2004/2005. 12 months had swiftly passed before Barcelona again opted to shun the services of the Argentine, sending him to Sevilla under the guidance of Juande Ramos. Goals in the league came at a strike rate of around one in every three, a very respectable figure but it was in European competition where he thrived - four goals in seven Champions League appearances for Monaco and 5 in Sevilla’s victorious UEFA Cup campaign. Returning for a spell on the bench with Barcelona was a clear indication that he was never going to fit into their plans despite retaining an able forward’s touch and prowess when he was infrequently called upon. Barcelona, having declared their interest in bringing further firepower for the upcoming season, signified their lack of desire to retain Saviola by offering a contract extension of an insulting nature, which would have halved his salary.

The perfect situation arose when Saviola ran down his contract at Barcelona and was thereby eligible to move to any interested club on a free transfer. With the knowledge that prolonged spells on the bench result in anything other than a footballer’s career being stunted, the choice of Real Madrid as his next club was naturally all the more surprising – and assumingly regretful. Did the temptation of a €2.5 million per-season contract prove too great to resist?

There was every hope that Real Madrid could give flight to Saviola’s ambitions, starting with the competitive fight for places and with genuine optimism about the future – one he had hoped would resemble more than a mere squad number. "I have great hopes, to play a lot, to move forward and succeed here". Hopes of breaking apart the partnership of Raul and Van Nistelrooy in the Spanish capital, though, fell confounded and ended in the same vein as the expectations of him replacing Samuel Eto’o at Barca. Despite an array of beautiful clubs to his honour, Saviola found that any hopes of consecutive starts were once again written off and the bitter reality demonstrated he had never been further away from a much-desired starting eleven place.

His CV may boast the global powerhouses of River Plate, Barcelona and Real Madrid, but another La Liga winner’s medal is not the antidote needed to revive his flailing career. At Real Madrid, even the position of ‘squad player’ seems to have overlooked him as another former River Plate striker Gonzalo Higuain has surpassed him in the pecking order. Looking back in years to come, Saviola could sport prestigious medals left, right and centre but deep inside he will have contributed rarely to them and there will be a sense of remorse unless the situation soon changes. The timing has never been more critical for him to wave goodbye to life at the Santiago Bernabeu, before he becomes entailed in complete anonymity.

Unless there is a staggering change in thought amongst Bernd Schuster and the Real Madrid management team, Saviola will be celebrating his 27th birthday in December with the familiar routine of watching from the sidelines. His feet may well and truly cemented to the Real bench, but the best Christmas gift for the former marvel would be to pack his bags and depart from Madrid to any destination who seek the services of a talented frontman. Even the most deluded optimist would struggle to visualise Saviola in a Real jersey for the forthcoming seasons.

Real Madrid may finance a lavish lifestyle for Saviola, and there are few other clubs in the world who possess the same glitz and glam, but a transfer to an aspiring, adoring UEFA Cup outfit would be a match made in heaven for all concerned – it would be Javier’s saviour. The Rabbit needs to dig deep if he wants to sparkle again, which is only remotely possible away from the starry lights of the Spanish capital.

UEFA Cup First Round Draw: Favourites Milan drawn Zurich

UEFA Cup favourites AC Milan have been drawn against FC Zurich in the First Round of the competition. AC Milan finished a disappointing fifth last season and consequently missed out on any involvement in this year's UEFA Champions League - a fact that fans will hope and expect is a one-off occasion. Another match to look out for is Borussia Dortmund vs Udinese.

Former victors Sevilla are faced with Austrian club Salzburg, Valencia travel to Portugal's Maritimo in their first leg while Tottenham face very difficult opposition in Poland's Wisla Krakow. England is the most represented country in the UEFA Cup this season as Tottenham, Everton (v Standard Liege), Manchester City (v AC Nicosia), Portsmouth (v Guimaraes) and Aston Villa (v Litex Lovech) are participating in the First Round.

The winners from each fixture will advance to the Group Stage and the full draw is displayed below:

AC Milan (Italy) v FC Zurich (Switzerland)
Politehnica Timisoara (Romania) v Partizan Belgrade (Serbia)
Hertha Berlin (Germany) v St Patricks (Ireland)
Banik Ostrava (Czech Republic) v Spartak Moscow (Russia)
Metalist Kharkiv (Ukraine) v Besiktas (Turkey)

Portsmouth (England) v Guimaraes (Portugal)
Kayserispor (Turkey) v PSG (France)
Sevilla (Spain) v SV Red Bull Salzburg (Austria)
Wolfsburg (Germany) v Rapid Bucuresti (Romania)
Sampdoria (Italy) v FBK Kaunas (Lithuania)

Maritimo (Portugal) v Valencia (Spain)
Dinamo Zagreb (Croatia) v Sparta Prague (Czech Republic)
Man City (England) v Omonia Nicosia (Cyprus)
Young Boys (Switzerland) v Club Brugge (Belgium)
AS Nancy (France) v Motherwell (Scotland)

Everton (England) v Standard Liege (Belgium)
Napoli (Italy) v Benfica (Portugal)
AC Bellinzona (Switzerland) v Galatasaray (Turkey)
NEC (Netherlands) v Dinamo Bucuresti (Romania)
Racing Santander (Spain) v FC Honka (Finland)

APOEL Nicosia (Cyprus) v Schalke 04 (Germany)
Litex Lovech (Bulgaria) v Aston Villa (England)
FK Austria Magna (Austria) v Lech Poznan (Poland)
Vitoria Setubal (Portugal) v Heerenveen (Netherlands)
SK Brann (Norway) v Deportivo La Coruna (Spain)

Slavia Prague (Czech Republic) v Vaslui (Romania)
Slaven Koprivnica (Croatia) v CSKA Moscow (Russia)
Brondby (Denmark) v Rosenborg (Norway)
Cherno More (Bulgaria) v VfB Stuttgart (Germany)
Rennes (France) v FC Twente (Netherlands)

Ajax (Netherlands) v Borac (Serbia)
Tottenham (England) v Wisla Krakow (Poland)
FC Copenhagen (Denmark) v FC Moscow (Russia)
MSK Zilina (Slovakia) v Levski Sofia (Bulgaria)
Borussia Dortmund (Germany) v Udinese (Italy)

Braga (Portugal) v Artmedia Petrzalka (Slovakia)
Feyenoord (Netherlands) v Kalmar FF (Sweden)
Hamburg (Germany) v Unirea Urziceni (Romania)
Hapoel Tel-Aviv (Israel) v Saint Etienne (France)
FC Nordsjaelland (Denmark) v Olympiacos (Greece)

Abdoulay Konko Signs with Sevilla

Former Genoa right-back Abdoulay Konko signed for La Liga side Sevilla on a five-year contract. Konko looks like the replacement for Daniel Alves who recently moved to Barcelona.

Midfielder Kim Källström could also be on the move to Sevilla according to this report.

The former Genoa right-back is moving to La Liga.

Image details: Genoa v Roma - Serie A served by picapp.com

Juventus Looking at Defender Tomáš Ujfaluši

Juventus now appears to be the front runner in the race to land Fiorentina defender Tomáš Ujfaluši. Ujfaluši decided against renewing his contract with Fiorentina and appears ready to move to another club via free transfer.

Reports from several media outlets are stating that he has committed to the Bianconeri with a verbal agreement. Spanish sides Atletico Madrid and Sevilla FC have also been rumored to covet the Czech defender.

Juventus has already added Swedish international Olof Mellberg to the back line for the upcoming 2008-2009 season.