Roma midfielder Amadou Diawara is attracting interest from West Ham and Leicester, with the Premier League pair prepared to pay up to €20m for the 23-year-old.
Diawara moved to Roma from Napoli in 2019 in a €21m deal, but after featuring 22 times in Serie A for the Giallorossi last season, he has played just 193 minutes this term.
Diawara has featured sporadically this term | MB Media/Getty Images
The Guinea international finds himself behind Jordan Veretout, Lorenzo Pellegrini, and Gonzalo Villar in the Roma pecking order – but his lack of first-team football is in part explained by the fact that he was forced to miss seven matches in October and November after testing positive for coronavirus.
According to Italian news outlet Calciomercato, Roma are keen to sign Cagliari midfielder Nahitan Nandez in January – but if they are to make a move for the Uruguay international, they will first have to sell Diawara.
West Ham and Leicester are two interested parties, and the pair would be ‘ready’ to pay up to €20m for the midfielder.
Diawara was linked with Leicester in the summer | ALBERTO PIZZOLI/Getty Images
The Hammers have enjoyed a strong start to the season under David Moyes but are slightly light in central midfield, with 33-year-old Mark Noble the only really serious competition for Tomas Soucek and Declan Rice in the middle of the park – and the latter is frequently linked with a move away from the London Stadium.
Leicester currently have Wilfred Ndidi, Nampalys Mendy, and Hamza Choudhury on their books, but adding further squad depth seems logical given how the Foxes struggled during the congested Christmas period in 2019 and the heavy fixture schedule they now have due to the Europa League.
Diawara was linked with a move to the Premier League in the summer of 2020, with Leicester, alongside Tottenham and Newcastle, all said to have made an enquiry about the Roma man in July, while he was also mentioned as a target for Arsenal had the Gunners failed to land Thomas Partey.
The very best players stand up to be counted in the most important moments. It is what separates them from the rest and what elevates them to world class status.
Sergio Ramos has been ticking that ‘clutch’ box for most of his career and continues to do so. With longevity and consistency, it has so far delivered him five La Liga titles and four Champions Leagues.
Ramos was won four Champions League titles in his career | VI-Images/Getty Images
Perhaps his single most famous moment came in the 2014 Champions League final that helped bring about the elusive Decima for Real, ending a 12-year wait for the historic milestone.
That the final was against city rivals Atletico in the same year Los Rojiblancos had been newly crowned champions of Spain for the first time since 1996 only added to the occasion. Atletico led for more than half the game after going ahead in the first half and were seconds away from victory.
Ramos, as he has done so often in his career, intervened to change the course of the final. His 93rd bullet header flew into the bottom corner to break Atletico hearts and send the game to extra-time, during which Real went on to comfortably win 4-1.
Ramos scored the key goal in the 2014 Champions League final | Jean Catuffe/Getty Images
“There are defenders with extraordinary technical ability, others have unique defensive qualities – like Cannavaro, brilliant at marking. Others, like Baresi, can command a back line while others influence with strong personalities. But factoring everything together to evaluate a defender then Sergio Ramos is the most complete. He’s got a bit of everything: technical ability, strength, personality and leadership.”
– Carlo Ancelotti,
In 2016, Ramos was at it again against Atletico in the Champions League final. This time, he scored the opening goal, which was later cancelled out, but also converted in the penalty shootout.
Key goals as well as defending have put him on a pedestal as one of the all-time greats. It is easy to reel off his goal numbers, over 120 for club and country to date, a return that plenty of midfielders and even some forwards would be proud of. But it is so often the nature and timing of his goals. The boost to others that then comes from that impact makes him even more unique.
His Champions League final goals side, Ramos has also scored twice in four minutes in the 2013/14 semi-final second leg against Bayern Munich, irreversibly turning the tie in Real’s favour. At the time, it was the fastest brace in Champions League semi-final history.
The first time he reached 10 goals in all competitions in a single season it was a late header to help his team beat Real Betis. Los Blancos went on to win La Liga by just three points from Barcelona and it is those kind of small margins where Ramos has so often made the difference.
Ramos scored a milestone winner against Real Betis in 2017 | Power Sport Images/Getty Images
In 2019/20, when Real wrestled the Spanish title back from Barcelona, he scored double figures in a league campaign for the first time. His team won nine of the 11 games in which he found the net and picked up 29 points from a possible 33. Without him, it wouldn’t have happened.
More specifically, Ramos got four goals in five games in a run towards the end of the campaign that directly drove Real to the title – all four were in the second half of narrow wins.
This is a player who knows no fear and is driven by an unyielding desire to win. Before emerging as a Champions League hero for Real Madrid in the mid-2010s, Ramos scored a Panenka penalty in a Euro 2012 shootout win against Portugal as Spain went on to retain their title – he had previously been part of the sides that won Euro 2008 and the 2010 World Cup, his first taste of real dominance.
What made that moment more remarkably courageous is that Ramos had missed a decisive penalty in a Champions League semi-final shootout against Bayern Munich mere months earlier.
Ramos has never shied away from a challenge | PIERRE-PHILIPPE MARCOU/Getty Images
“”I get up every day with the same desire to keep improving which I’ve had since I was a kid. I’m not looking for recognition. All I want to do every year is do even better, forget what we’ve won and set new challenges.”
– Sergio Ramos
Ramos will never shy away from a challenge and backs himself every time. In his own mind, mistakes earlier in his career were important learning opportunities that have shaped him since.
Asked in 2014 during a FourFourTwo Q&A whether he thinks the world is for the brave, the player responded, “That’s what they say. I’ve never had a problem in that sense. I believe that you learn the most during the bad times and that mistakes make you stronger.”
These days, his reputation as a hardened winner comes before him. This was reflected in 2018 when he shook off the claims levelled at him following Real Madrid’s victory over Liverpool in another Champions League final, having been accused of deliberately injuring Mohamed Salah, ending his participation, and giving goalkeeper Loris Karius a concussion before his catastrophic mistakes.
Speaking about it soon afterwards, Ramos implied that he would have played on had he been in the same situation as Salah that night, pushing through the pain barrier.
“[Salah] grabs my arm first and I fell to the other side, the injury happened to the other arm and they said that I gave him a judo hold,” he commented.
Ramos’ reputation as a born winner reached new heights in 2018 | Etsuo Hara/Getty Images
“After, the goalkeeper said that I dazed him with a clash. I am only missing [Roberto] Firmino saying that he got a cold because a drop of my sweat landed on him.
“[Salah] could have played if he got an injection for the second half, I have done it sometimes. But when Ramos does something like this, it sticks a little bit more. I don’t know if it’s because you’re at Madrid for so long and win for so long that people look at it a different way.”
The trophies set Ramos apart from most. But the mentality makes him stand alone.
For more from Jamie Spencer, follow him on Twitter and Facebook!
Manchester United’s pursuit of qualification to the knockout stages of the Champions League will go down to the wire after Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side fell to a 3-1 loss to Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday.
Goals from Neymar and Marcus Rashford had the score level at the break, but shortly after Marquinhos put PSG ahead midway through the second half, Fred was shown a second yellow card. United threw everything they had at PSG, but Neymar’s stoppage-time strike ensured no comeback was to be made.
Here’s what Solskjaer had to say after the game.
United had their chances to win the game | OLI SCARFF/Getty Images
“I think you look back at that game and the chances we created and you feel we deserve to go through,” he said (via the club’s official website). “But you need to be more clinical, you need to take your chances, definitely.
“But you’ve got to say the boys did create those moments and chances, that’s the big positive. We should have been more clinical, of course, we know that. More quality with the finish and then you’re celebrating. But that’s football. It’s always decided in the boxes with that quality. Sometimes it goes for you, sometimes against you and definitely tonight it went against us. We didn’t deserve to lose.”
Fred was shown a soft red card | Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images
Midfielder Fred was fortunate to stay on the pitch during the first half after he was caught pushing his head towards Leandro Paredes, whom he also appeared to tread on in a separate incident. He was only given a yellow card for the headbutt, but was eventually dismissed when he picked up a very soft yellow later in the game for a tackle on Ander Herrera.
“That’s not a yellow card, we know that. The referee, when he sees it, he knows he’s made a mistake. That’s something that sometimes happens. You can’t do anything about it unfortunately, but it was a clear and obvious error. Very frustrating. [It’s] a clean challenge, a fair challenge.
“He played really well. Fred is so energetic out there. He’ll hold his hands up and say sorry, but you can’t be sorry for winning the ball, can you?”
Solskjaer has been blasted for not taking Fred off while he still had the chance | ADAM DAVY/Getty Images
“Yeah [I did consider it],” he added (via The Guardian). “Fred has played really well. We spoke about staying calm and on your feet [at the break]. The second yellow card was nowhere near a foul. Ander knows that. Fred shouldn’t put his head towards Paredes but I don’t think he touched him. He was a bit lucky to stay on.
“Fred played really disciplined in the second half and when he makes a tackle like this you can’t really fault the boy. But after the decision the ref made you maybe look back and say you should have [taken him off]. The referee made a mistake there but that’s allowed. Fred knows he shouldn’t put his head towards someone even though he doesn’t touch him.”
Rashford picked up a shoulder injury | Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images
A visibly uncomfortable Rashford made his way directly down the tunnel when he was forced off the pitch midway through the second half, suffering what appeared to be a shoulder injury.
“It’s just niggling him, that shoulder injury. Let’s see how quickly he can recover. Let’s hope he can be ready for the West Ham game. But we don’t know.”
ℹ️ Group H…
? Predict who’ll go through!#UCL
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) December 2, 2020
United will travel to Leizpig on Tuesday in need of a point to ensure they qualify for the next round of the Champions League.
“We go into a game of football wanting to win it. I think these games against PSG and Leipzig at home have showed how much we’ve developed. I think the team has developed in these types of games and it’s just about some finishing today and we’d be smiling.“
Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud has insisted that he is not interested in discussing his future after putting four goals past Sevilla on Wednesday.
In what was just his second start of the season, Giroud stole the show with a perfect hat-trick – left foot, right foot, header – before adding a fourth goal from the penalty spot.
We’re still not over Olivier Giroud’s display last night! ?
He scored FOUR goals as Chelsea hammered Sevilla in Spain! ? pic.twitter.com/SlNpb3hHSj
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) December 3, 2020
He’s had to make do with limited opportunities this season, finding himself behind Tammy Abraham and Timo Werner in the pecking order, and with his contract up at the end of the season, rumours of a January exit have been growing for a while now.
“Let me enjoy the night and that great win,” he told BT Sport when asked for his thoughts about his future after Wednesday’s game. “After that we will rest and we will see what the gaffer’s plan is.
“When you win 4-0 in a Champions League away game it’s always a great feeling and a good performance from the team. We took the game from the front foot and we were efficient up front, especially for me because I scored four goals.
Giroud proved his worth to Chelsea yet again | MB Media/Getty Images
“I didn’t know until two years ago that you called it a perfect hat-trick, when I scored against Kiev in the Europa League I said, ‘What do you mean?’ It was good.
“I will try to carry on like that to finish the good job of the team and it’s always nice to be in the club history and we play football to mark our history, so I’m pleased to help the team to win and to score the four goals.”
Antonio Conte’s Inter remain heavily linked with Giroud, but talk of staying in England or returning to France has also been rife, but the 34-year-old insisted he is simply focused on playing football.
Conte is keen on Giroud | Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images
“It’s always nice to be a part of club history,” he added (via the club’s official website). “You play football to write great stories. I’m proud. I had great assists from my teammates and I just tried to finish the job.
“When I’m on the pitch I’m the happiest man. I just try to be patient, keep the faith and bring something else to the team. It is always special to play in the Champions League and it was an important game to finish first in the group, so I’m pleased to help the team to win. Sometimes you feel anything can happen, and that was one of those times.”
Chelsea sealed top spot in their Champions League group on Wednesday by storming to a fantastic 4-0 win over Sevilla.
Frank Lampard made nine changes from the side that drew with Tottenham at the weekend, and Olivier Giroud made the most of a rare start by bagging all four of his side’s goals, in what was a dominant performance from the Blues.
Here’s what head coach Lampard had to say after the game.
Left foot, right foot, header and a penalty! ?
The PERFECT hat-trick… +?! ? @_OlivierGiroud_ pic.twitter.com/cj0JChquUH
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) December 3, 2020
“It was an amazing performance,” Lampard said in his post-match press conference (via football.london). “To score four goals at this level, Champions League level, against a really good opponent, then the individual quality of all his goals, I know the last was a penalty, but the team quality and his individual input, rightly he gets a standing ovation as he comes off the pitch. And I’m delighted for him.
“When you play him you know his attributes, it’s important we get a lot of energy around him, people that can run off him and support him. He has qualities to hold the ball up obviously and to convert balls in the box like N’Golo puts in. So I loved all those parts of us at the top end of the pitch.
“He is the ultimate professional, and I think he’s done that in his career. And I think that’s why with Oli you see his numbers for France and in the Champions League.
“When I came in he wasn’t always a regular before I got here, but as soon as I came in I could feel the positivity off him as a player, how he wants to train, how he wants to affect people whether he starts or not. And he’s started a lot for us now and been very impactful in terms of how he was in restart and performances like tonight.”
Lampard wants players to give him tough decisions to make | Soccrates Images/Getty Images
It’s been a testing time for Giroud, who has had to watch on from the sidelines while Tammy Abraham and Timo Werner predominantly rotate the role of striker. But Lampard was keen to stress the modern game being about having a squad, admitting that he was delighted by the performance of those who came into the team.
“[Giroud is] a great sign for younger players and for other players when they are not always playing in the squad of 20-plus we have. They keep training well, and when they come in they perform like they did tonight.
“To make nine changes in the game and I said before, players were deserving to play, because I’ve seen them training well. Some players can get their heads down if they’re not playing lots of minutes, and that’s always the worry when you make that level of changes.
“But the focus and concentration of the team, the moments to suffer which we always will do against a team like this in the first half. We dealt with things, we defended well, we were organised, and some of our play was great, whether it was our comfort on the ball, our counter-attacking at pace to cause a threat to them. There were so many big pluses from tonight and we need to continue with that.”
Chelsea have improved massively this year | CRISTINA QUICLER/Getty Images
“It is a collective thing and there’s a lot of aspects to it. We have worked. The lads have gone away and worked in a short off season. Myself and the staff did analysis on a lot of areas of our game which we wanted to improve.
“My job is to put them into action through work on the training ground. The other aspect is working with the players to make sure the push, drive and spirit of the players is good. The biggest thing is the players; the players have to go out and perform like they did today.
“The recruitment we did and the competition has started to be really positive in the group. Players trying to get in the team and train at the top level every day. I have to put a small warning next to that because people will get excited, particularly after a result like tonight but, as always, consistency is what wins you titles. We can’t play like tonight and drop the level. Sustaining that level is what will bring success.”
Chelsea matched a record from 2012 | ADRIAN DENNIS/Getty Images
The win against Sevilla was Chelsea’s fourth consecutive victory in the Champions League – something the Blues have not managed since they went on to win the whole competition in 2012.
“I wasn’t aware of that, I do like superstitions, but I also don’t like talking about things or tempting fate. I’m pleased with where we’re at, but the levels obviously go up at the next stage, which we’ve qualified for and we’re thankful for that. That’s great for our confidence, but the levels will go up, and we found that out last year.
“But we’re in a different place now, we are improving, I feel that. I’ll never be the one to get carried away but I knew at the start of the season with the players, with time to bed in, the younger players to mature and we are seeing that, the young players are reacting to competition and experienced players are affecting things and reacting to competition too.
“Look at Oli today, but you can look around at other performances in that team too, in Jorginho and Rudiger and Azpilicueta. So it’s important we keep this spirit, but I’ll leave that superstition one away until we get closer to where we want to be.”
For more from Tom Gott, follow him on Twitter!
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