SALTCITYSOCCER

Reduced to ten at the hour of the match, Lille never really dreamed during their perilous trip to Liverpool (1-2) this Tuesday. The Lille goalkeeper, however, retains the fighting spirit of his team.

Euro 2024 is coming soon. Although he continues to play for club at Los Angeles FC in MLS, Olivier Giroud ended his international career last summer, after the elimination of the Blues against Spain in the semi-final. The end of a long chapter for the man who is still the best director in the history of the France team (with 57 goals and 137 caps).

Under the tricolor jersey, the 38-year-old striker has known two coaches: Laurent Blanc from 2011 to 2012, and Didier Deschamps, with one note won the 2018 World Cup. A coach for whom he maintains a lot of respect, even if their collaboration has sometimes been complicated, particularly with the return of Karim Benzema for part of Euro 2021.

Olivier Giroud defends Didier Deschamps

“The fact is as long as it is at the top. (…) You can say what you want, all the same, Deschamps, respect. He takes the French team to the top, so frankly respect”he confides in an interview with First teambefore discussing the few difficulties encountered and the numerous criticisms suffered by “DD” for several months.

“Today there are a lot of people who think we need to change but it’s not easy for him. It’s a new generation arriving on the page with the parts of Hugo (Lloris), Raph’ Varane, Blaise (Matuidi), Steve (Mandanda), Grizi (Antoine Griezmann) and me. The simplest moment of the day, says the former AC Milan striker.

“The results are very, very positive”

“Nowadays, there is no need to go beyond the box and we want to move forward. Despite the enormous potential that there is in the French team, it simply takes time for the guys to have experience.adds the ex-Gunner. This is a nice game for kids who have lots of selections and lots of high level experience. It’s an alchemy that finds balance. »

“Tactically too, how should we play, or should we put certain playershe said. The defeated leaders in this team could go before the temporary workers. He is one of his patients. We’ve become so accustomed to seeing ourselves at the top that now it’s the last square minimum. In the end, what are we looking at? The results. And the results are very, very positive. »

Commitment on the second attempt?

After rumors about this emerged this weekend (see article), things could now move quickly: according to consistent information from France, Elye Wahi (22) is the object of desire of the Eintracht Frankfurt to replace top scorer Omar Marmoush (25 years old). According to “RMC Sport” and “(Site notre blog d’information) Mercato”, the Hessians have reached an agreement with the striker himself.

Wahi was supposed to come to Eintracht as early as 2023, he himself confirmed that Frankfurt was “hot”. In place of Hesse, the French U23 international joined RC Lens and a year later at Olympique de Marseille, where he is under a long-term contract until 2029. The Phocéens could begin negotiations with the team from Frankfurt with so much confidence.

According to certain reports, OM do not want any transfer losses in addition to the 25 million euros invested this summer. This transfer fee would represent a record sum for Eintracht, but Marmoush would also receive the second highest income in the club’s history, around 75 million euros. According to the sports newspaper “L’Équipe”, a loan with a purchase option is also possible.

Wahi’s market value has decreased over the last year and a half, from 40 million to 25 million euros currently. In Marseille this season, he only played seven starters during the first eight days. In 14 games, he contributed three goals and one assist. More recently, the player from Montpellier HSC was absent twice due to thigh problems. Coach Roberto De Zerbi said this weekend: “Unfortunately, the absence of Elye Wahi this week put a lot of pressure on us in the sequence of matches. As for the transfer market, we will see what happens in the next two weeks. This remains an open question.

A former Bavarian becomes a globetrotter

“I’m going to have a lot of pressure here, but I like it,” said James Rodríguez during his presentation at Club León FC. The top Mexican club, with which the former Bayern Munich playmaker initially signed until the end of the year, is the twelfth stop in the eleventh country for the 33-year-old. Rodríguez has become a (Site notre bureau spécialisé) globetrotter, especially in the last four years, like Keisuke Honda or Lutz Pfannenstiel before him.

Now the Colombia international will have chosen León as it gives him the biggest stage possible with the FIFA Club World Cup this summer. The stations of Mexico and previously Rayo Vallecano, ninth in La Liga, Brazil, Greece and Qatar were also all known. However, Central and North America now constitute the fourth continent on which Rodríguez will appear, after South America, Europe and Asia.

The continent record holder remains Pfannenstiel with six. For the former goalkeeper and current sporting director of MLS club St. Louis CITY, “this globe-trotting existence” has become a rhythm “that I have gotten used to”, as he explained in an interview with (Site notre blog d’information) in 2020. « I wasn’t chasing it, but in the end, the last continent (South America; editor) was definitely a bit provoked, also because I wasn’t really convinced to do it until the very end and I didn’t realize how important it was and the impact on my life would be great.

5 continents, 22 countries, 36 transfers: the biggest migrants in (Site notre bureau spécialisé)

Keisuke Honda, a 98-time Japanese national player, almost reached the Pfannenstiel in the fall of his career. The 38-year-old played for CSKA Moscow and AC Milan in his prime. From Italy, he then went on a world tour and stopped off in Mexico, Melbourne and Rio de Janeiro.

According to a query in the TM database, there weren’t many other players playing on at least five continents besides Honda and Pfannenstiel. Among them: Zeljko Kuzmic, Nicolás Abot, David Low, Alain N’Kong, Paulo Cézar, Luiz Júnior, Flávio Barros Souza and Ignacio Giampaoli, but also the Brazilian legend Romário and the former Aachen goalkeeper André Krul . Some of them are even still active, the stories of the first three mentioned are told in detail in the photo gallery.

As in 2020, it is Honda’s compatriot, Dan Ito, who holds the country record. The former playmaker was active in 22 different countries, and some clubs were only created for Ito in the TM database. “I thought it would be an interesting career and good experience to play in a different Asian country every year,” Ito told (Site notre blog d’information). “It also led directly to my second career.” He started this in 2019 as coach of the Clark High School (Site notre bureau spécialisé) club in his home country and a staff member of Japanese first division club Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo.

Uruguayan Sebastián Abreu should be virtually unassailable at the top of transfers in the years to come. “El Loco”, as the striker is called, ended his career in 2022 at the age of 45. The 2002 and 2010 World Cup participant has played for 32 clubs in eleven countries and three continents, including big names such as Deportivo La Coruna, CF América and River Plate. The scorer changed a total of 36 times.

Defeat on the pitch of Eintracht Frankfurt (2-0) won and 10th in the Bundesliga 20 points behind the leader, Bayern Munich, Dortmund is going through a very complicated period. The coach, Nuri Sahin, said he was in danger and would have a chance to join the BvB.

I don’t really understand why Neumann is signing today. It is not certain whether Birmingham will be promoted to the Second Division. If things go wrong, he will be promoted to the Bundesliga, only to move to England’s 3rd League for a slightly higher salary (if at all). In one of the ugliest cities in Europe – but that’s subjective and irrelevant.

If Neumann had only played halfway through the second half of the season, he would have had no problem finding a place at a Bundesliga club like Augsburg or any English second division club. Well, he will have his reasons. I’m curious to hear what he himself has to say about this.

Negotiations with Davies are at a standstill again

Difficult contract negotiations with top players like Jamal Musiala, Joshua Kimmich and Alphonso Davies require FC Bayern sporting director Max Eberl to have a quality he doesn’t actually have. “Basically, patience is not one of my qualities. I say this very honestly. I can’t wait. If I want to achieve something, then I want to achieve it,” Eberl said of “all the conversations that we’ve been talking about for weeks.”

The first domino has not yet fallen for the Bundesliga leaders ahead of Saturday’s home match (3:30 p.m./Sky) against VfL Wolfsburg. Negotiations with full-back Davies are currently at a standstill again, whose contract expires at the end of the season, as do the contracts of Kimmich and Leroy Sané, among others. After good negotiations, the Davies side again demands much more money.

“We always try to act on the basis of facts,” Eberl emphasized. In public, on the other hand, things constantly come and go according to the motto: « Failure, now rapprochement again, but failure again, but rapprochement again, but failure again, but emotionality again », as the 51-year-old says. listed. In fact, both the club and the players’ agents are trying to « finalize a contract that is good for everyone involved. » There are often opposing points of view. And that’s where you try to get closer. This is what we do. But Eberl wants to remain persistent: “My patience is always very, very strong, even if it is not my strength. »

FC Bayern: Musiala expected to sign new contract in January

The poker extension also takes more time for Kimmich, who is waiting to see what his previously mentioned teammates decide, and Musiala, whose working document, unlike the others, is still valid until 2026. It was recently announced that a first offer would soon be made to the offensive lineman. According to the “Kicker”, probably with the desired exit clause. This claim does not raise major concerns among FCB bosses.

This was also confirmed by “Bild”, which assumes that a new contract will be signed in January. If Musiala extends for five years, the exit clause should rise to the already announced level of around 175 million euros two years before the end of the contract, then to around 100 million euros one year before the end of the contract . In terms of salary, the DFB kicker will not be ahead of former top earner Harry Kane. We are talking about 24 to 25 million euros per year, about as much as the Englishman. For Musiala, this would represent a salary increase of 15-16 million euros. With a market value of 140 million euros, the Stuttgart native is, together with Leverkusen’s Florian Wirtz, the most valuable German (Site notre bureau spécialisé)er.

Leaders on duty

Nuri Şahin showed no stress or worry. Even in crisis mode, the Borussia Dortmund coach remains calm – at least outwardly. With plenty of ruthless internal discussions, painstaking work and the certainty that the bosses have the support, the 36-year-old is trying to somehow get the fragile BVB back on track. But he hardly has time for that.

The 2:4 debacle against newly promoted Kiel deeply affected Şahin and kept him busy for a whole night. However, the coach won’t let his faith in his team be taken away ahead of the hugely important match against Eintracht Frankfurt. “I know the boys will be here tomorrow. I know we will get a reaction. “I continue to trust my players,” said the ex-professional with combativeness. A problem was solved before the match on Friday evening (8:30 p.m./DAZN): Borussia Dortmund survived the flu wave, which recently led to numerous cancellations. Apart from central defender Niklas Süle, all players are available for Şahin. But even if everyone is in good shape, many question marks remain.

The BVB recently had not only an illness problem, but also a leadership problem on the pitch. Experienced professionals like Julian Brandt, Marcel Sabitzer or captain Emre Can were unable to coach the team. Professionals who were actually supposed to be top performers struggle with their own flaws. In matches like in Kiel, when nothing was going well for BVB, he wanted to see the main players « take control », Şahin said. He also expects “clear language” on the ground. Regarding national player Brandt, he also said: “It is of course clear that Jule is one of those players. He is aware of the situation. He wants to lend a hand.

Şahin reported that he had seen his team depressed in recent days, but also very self-critical. The row over the remarkably poor performance and analysis is now over. Everything else doesn’t help. “This has to continue for me and my coaching staff,” he said. Of course, the coach knows that his position is also under discussion after the weakest first half of the season in ten years. It is possible that Şahin will survive another defeat as BVB coach. But things are not certain in the rapidly changing (Site notre bureau spécialisé) sector. A lot probably depends on how Dortmund performs at Eintracht.

How long will the confidence of BVB leaders in Şahin last?

Another (Site notre bureau spécialisé)-related revelation oath would put even more pressure on BVB officials around sporting director Lars Ricken – even if the bosses actually have great confidence in Şahin. The failure of a coach would also be a big blow for them. The former BVB professional, who also enjoys great support within the team, is expected to continue to develop the team. However, Şahin must meet the minimum target of qualifying for the Champions League – simply because of the revenue associated with it. Before the start of the second half of the season, BVB was already five points behind fourth place. In the event of a loss to the third-placed team in Frankfurt, it would likely continue to grow.

Given the strength of the opponent and Dortmund’s glaring away weakness, an end to BVB’s crisis seems unlikely at Eintracht. The Revierklub have only managed one away victory this Bundesliga season. Şahin also considers the Hessians to be “leading adversaries”. But the coach also says: « Maybe he’s exactly the opponent we need to make up for what we’ve done. » »