Man Utd ready to pay €70m for PSG defender Marquinhos

Jose Mourinho's side are willing to splash out big money to land the Brazil international but face strong resistance from the Ligue 1 champions

Manchester United are ready to splash out €70 million to sign PSG centre-back Marquinhos as they look to bolster their defence ahead of the 2017-18 campaign.

Ligue 1 champions PSG are, however, reluctant to sell one of their key players and understands they will not consider a sale in the summer, even for a bid of €100m.

Jose Mourinho's side would be willing to offer €10m per year in wages to attract one of the top young defensive players in Europe as they look to build a team capable of winning the Premier League title.

Doubts remain over Chris Smalling and Phil Jones, who have both struggled with injuries since Mourinho's arrival, while Daley Blind is likely to be moved on in the summer window.

Marcos Rojo and Eric Bailly have performed impressively in recent weeks as United deal with something of a defensive injury crisis and Marquinhos's potential addition would add depth and quality at centre-back.

Goal understands that no official bid has yet been made and PSG will resist any attempt by the Red Devils to sign the Brazil international, who they signed from Roma back in 2013.

Indeed, Unai Emery's side will open contract negotiations with Marquinhos in the summer as a priority, as the club look to keep hold of one of their star names.

Nevertheless, United retain a big interest in Marquinhos, with the player's wage demands potentially a stumbling block for PSG, who are currently unwilling to meet his demands.

The 22-year-old's demands would make him one of the top earners at Parc des Princes and, despite contract negotiations having broken down last summer, he still has two years remaining on his current deal.

His father, however, maintains that a renewal with PSG is not solely to do with money. Marcos Barros told Goal: "It's not just a matter of money. It's a matter of how he can be one of the best players in the team.

"PSG needs to show him that he is one of the most important players in the team."

The defender, who has 17 caps for Brazil, remains happy in Paris, where he has won three successive Ligue 1 titles, and outline intention to stay put back in March 

Along with Adrien Rabiot and Marco Verratti, Marquinhos is seen as a key player for the club's future.

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VALVERDE LEADING THE RACE TO BE NEXT BARC BOSS

The Athletic Club coach played at Camp Nou for a brief period, has long been admired by the Catalan club and is the favourite to succeed Luis Enrique

Ernesto Valverde is leading the race to be the next Barcelona boss as the Blaugrana look ahead to to be a new era in the summer.At the beginning of March, current coach Luis Enrique announced his decision to leave at the end of the season and the Catalan club have been looking at a number of candidates for the role ever since then.

Sevilla boss Jorge Sampaoli was initially installed as favourite, but was ruled out by the Barca board after a dip in form and results, while it is now common knowledge that the Argentine is negotiating to take over his national team after the Albiceleste sacked Edgardo Bauza earlier this month.

Everton manager Ronald Koeman, a Barcelona legend in his time as a player at the Catalan club, was another name considered, but his unsuccessful spell at Valencia makes him something of a risk and the Blaugrana board have long admired Valverde - who has twice been shortlisted for the job in the past.

The 53-year-old spent two years at Barca as a player under Johan Cruyff and has a wealth of experience in La Liga as coach with Athletic (two spells), Espanyol, Villarreal and Valencia.

Out of contract in the summer, he has been contacted by Barca and is now unlikely to sign a new deal at San Mames for next season, although the Basque club are keen for him to stay in Bilbao.

Valverde is happy at Athletic and led the club to their first trophy in over 30 years by beating Barcelona in the Spanish Supercopa in 2015. However, he is well aware that it will be extremely difficult to take the team much further due to the side's policy of only fielding Basque-born footballers and also the advanced age of key players such as Aritz Aduriz and Raul Garcia.

In the meantime, Barca have explored the continuity option of Luis Enrique's assistant Juan Carlos Unzue, who hinted in a recent interview that he will be working next season, even if Luis Enrique is not.

However, Barcelona's poor performances in recent weeks have led the board to believe that a fresh face with new ideas is needed to rejuvenate a team relying far too heavily upon its three famous forwards - Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar.

Another name in the frame is former Barca player Oscar Garcia, current coach of Red Bull Salzburg in Austria and a student of Cruyff (with whom he worked when the Dutchman was in charge of the Catalunya national team).

Oscar's ideas are the closest to those of the Dutch legend and that makes him a left-field choice for the Catalan club, but Valverde's greater experience in La Liga means he remains the leading candidate to replace Luis Enrique this summer.

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MAN CITY TO BREAK WORLD RECORD FOR MBAPPE

Manchester City are ready to break the world transfer record to sign Monaco wonderkid Kylian Mbappe, according to the Daily Express.

The French star has scored five times in seven Champions League games this season, with City willing to spend more than the £89 million Manchester United paid to acquire Paul Pogba.

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REAL LINE UP DYBALA SWAP DEAL

Real Madrid are willing to swap two players to sign Juventus attacker Paulo Dybala this summer, according to Don Balon

Zinedine Zidane's side are ready to offer both James Rodriguez and Alvaro Morata to the Serie A side in a bid to lure the Argentine to Spain.

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Why Arsenal must build their team around Ramsey with Cazorla's days numbered

The Wales international is an intelligent player blessed with excellent technique who deserves a regular run in Arsenal's midfield

There are a handful of players in the current Arsenal squad who have yet to fulfil their potential and Aaron Ramsey is undoubtedly one of them.

At 26-years-old, Ramsey is entering into almost a decade playing under Arsene Wenger where he has struggled to pin down a regular spot in the Gunners starting XI. The infamous foul from Stoke defender Ryan Shawcross in 2010 which broke Ramsey’s leg goes some way to explaining why his career progression hasn’t gone as smoothly as planned, but it certainly doesn’t tell the full story.

Monday’s game against Middlesbrough saw Ramsey notch a 91 per cent passing accuracy rate from his 67 passes, 11 recoveries and one assist for Mesut Ozil which helped secure the vital three points. It was an improved performance from a player who made only his eighth start of what has been an incredibly frustrating season for him. Perfectly weighted passes, intelligent running and an ability to break through the final third of the pitch make Ramsey a crucial player for an Arsenal team currently ravaged by low confidence.

Ramsey’s movement across the pitch was intelligent and helped Arsenal’s attacking moves. He can combine as a link-up player with the likes of Alexis Sanchez and Ozil, both of whom enjoy playing with the former Cardiff man. His availability makes him a key cog in the team and Man of the Match performances for Wales at Euro 2016 finally established his name on the European stage where he thrived in his favoured ‘No.8’ position.

Wenger has previously compared Ramsey to former Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard and while his goalscoring prowess has been limited this season, an ability to play in a number of positions is likely to work in the Welshman’s favour over the coming games. 

“He is a player who is box-to-box so overall he pushes the team forward,” said Wenger.

“That is what we want in our side. He can play in holding midfield, he can play if needed on the flanks as well. That’s where he is not happy but he can play there as well.

“He has a tremendous drive, he’s a bit Lampard-ish you know, where he likes to get in the box, likes to shoot from distance and has similar quality.”

A total of 373 days, 72 games. That’s how long Ramsey has spent on the sidelines since his injury at Stoke seven years ago and while he has now fully recovered from the leg break, there is no doubt that it came at a devastating time for a player who was flourishing in the Arsenal midfield at the time. This season, Ramsey has found games difficult to come by and his preferred ‘No.10’ role is a position which will permanently be filled by Ozil until the German eventually departs north London.
Santi Cazorla is a two-footed, skilful, technically gifted midfielder who has spent the campaign out injured. Gunners boss Wenger will keep him at the club for next season but his unreliability when it comes to keeping fit means it’s unlikely that he’ll play more than 10 to 15 games for Arsenal, opening the way for Ramsey to firm up that midfield spot. The 3-4-2-1 formation against Boro suited the Welshman’s game and he had clear licence to contribute at both ends of the pitch.

Ramsey’s superb engine gives him an advantage over the likes of Mohamed Elneny and Francis Coquelin because of the way he channels that energy. He ran a jaw-dropping eight miles during the win over Swansea in January - the furthest distance covered in a league match by any Arsenal player all season. However, the defensive side of his game has certainly been lacking at times and confidence was previously identified as an issue - Ramsey regularly gets singled out for abuse on social media, particularly from high profile supporters such as Piers Morgan.

Wenger gave Alexis the opportunity to prove himself as a striker despite several barren performances through the middle. The freedom given to the Chilean is a mark of the Frenchman’s trust in his talismanic forward and it should also be shown to Ramsey, a player whose bursting runs into the opposition half can provide the progression in Arsenal’s attack which has been lacking in recent games.

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Arsenal win race to sign Sead Kolasinac

The Gunners have beaten off interest from the likes of Chelsea and Juventus to secure the 23-year-old's signature

Schalke left-back Sead Kolasinac has undergone a medical at Arsenal and agreed personal terms ahead of joining on a free transfer this summer, 

The Bosnia & Herzegovina international will become Arsene Wenger’s first signing of the upcoming transfer window, with the Frenchman prioritising the left-back position as an area he needs to strengthen.

Kolasinac, who will arrive on a free when his contract at Schalke expires on June 30, was in London two weeks ago for a sponsorship event and underwent medical tests during his short stay in the capital.

Wenger insisted in his pre-match press conference ahead of Sunday's FA Cup semi-final clash against Manchester City that no deal had been agreed for Kolasinac, although Goal understands that the defender will become an Arsenal player once his contract with Schalke expires this summer.

AC Milan, Chelsea, Everton, Juventus and Manchester City have all expressed concrete interested in the 23-year-old who has been involved in eight goals this season - twice as many as in his first four Bundesliga seasons combined.

Known for his marauding runs down the left flank and ability to win one-on-one duels, Kolasinac has made almost 125 senior appearances for Schalke since joining from Stuttgart in 2011 and is likely to become a regular in the Arsenal defence next season, where he can also play in central defence or defensive midfield.

Arsenal are open to offers for Nacho Monreal following a decline in the 31-year-old’s form throughout the current campaign, while second-choice left-back Kieran Gibbs could also leave amidst his contract expiring next summer.

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Ibrahimovic injury: Shaw says Zlatan was walking around in changing room

Alarm bells were ringing when Zlatan Ibrahimovic went down with a gruesome-looking knee injury Thursday, but his team-mate Luke Shaw says the Swede was walking around the changing room after the match.

Manchester United's top scorer on the season landed awkwardly near the end of regulation in the Europa League quarter-final second leg against Anderlec

However, Luke Shaw was much more optimistic, telling reporters: "He's fine. He was walking around in the changing room."Marcus Rashford went on to score an extra-time winner for United, who advanced to the semi-final with a 3-2 aggregate success. 

Ibrahimovic has scored 28 goals in all competitions this season, including five strikes in the Europa.

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