Author: David Great

Manchester United have found a middle ground with Chelsea over a deal for England midfielder Mason Mount, with the 24-year-old close to a £60m move. (Mirror)  Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta believes England midfielder Declan Rice, 24, is the club’s future captain and the Gunners are preparing a third offer closer to West Ham’s demands. (Mail)  Rice remains keen to join Arsenal despite Manchester City planning to enter the race and the Treble winners also being able to meet the £100m asking price. (Guardian) AC Milan are hoping to beat arch-rivals Inter to the signing of Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku, 30, despite the Belgium forward spending last season on loan with the Champions League finalists. (Gazzetta dello Sport…

The five people aboard a missing submersible died in what appears to have been a “catastrophic implosion,” a US Coast Guard official said on Thursday, bringing a grim end to the massive international search for the vessel that was lost during a voyage to the Titanic. “These men were true explorers who shared a distinct spirit of adventure, and a deep passion for exploring and protecting the world’s oceans,” OceanGate Expeditions, the US-based company that operated the Titan submersible, said in a statement. “Our hearts are with these five souls and every member of their families during this tragic time.”…

At least 45 universities accept cryptocurrency for tuition fees, a new worldwide study has shown. Bankless Times in a report stated that though a plethora of online and in-person cryptocurrency courses are available for students to study, the adoption of cryptocurrency by universities remains scarce. For instance, Cornell boasts the most cryptocurrency-related courses on offer to students, with a staggering total of 38 courses, yet does not accept cryptocurrency. The study revealed that the University of Nicosia became the first university to accept Bitcoin payments ten years ago in 2013. The leading country for Bitcoin payment as tuition fees in…

Manchester United have joined Arsenal in wanting to sign 24-year-old England midfielder Declan Rice from West Ham, with the Red Devils considering a player-plus-cash deal involving England defender Harry Maguire, 30, or Scotland midfielder Scott McTominay, 26. (Telegraph – subscription required) West Ham are keen on bringing McTominay to the club should Rice leave. (Talksport) Manchester City are also competing for Rice, with West Ham preferring a deal which would see England midfielder Kalvin Phillips, 27, move to London Stadium. (ESPN) City’s Portugal midfielder Bernardo Silva, 28, is nearing a move to Saudi Arabia. (Marca – in Spanish) Bayern Munich are open to Senegal forward Sadio Mane, 31, leaving the club…

Ilkay Gundogan will join Barcelona on a free transfer from treble winners Manchester City, the BBC and Sky Sports reported on Wednesday. Gundogan will leave City after captaining the English club to the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League last season, ending a successful seven-year stint in England where he won 14 trophies, including five league titles. Gundogan was Pep Guardiola’s first recruit when he took over at City in 2016 despite the German being sidelined with a knee injury when he was signed from Borussia Dortmund. He proved to be the man for the big occasion at City,…

Arsenal have agreed a deal in principle to sign German forward Kai Havertz from Chelsea for around £65 million, The Athletic reported on Wednesday. The report said personal terms with Havertz have been agreed and the 24-year-old’s move across London will see Arsenal pay an initial fee of 62 million pounds with a further three million pounds in add-ons. Havertz would be Arsenal’s second-most expensive signing after they paid a club-record fee of around £72 million for Ivory Coast forward Nicolas Pepe in 2019. Germany international Havertz was signed by Chelsea on a five-year contract in 2020 for around 71…

The Lagos State Taskforce has carried out a follow-up eviction operation and also served a five-day eviction notice to squatters and suspected miscreants around Lekki Coastal Road and Marwa Gardens. The operation which was led by the chairman of the agency, CSP Shola Jejeloye in the early hours of Tuesday lasted about 5 hours. Jejeloye disclosed that the Lagos State Taskforce had visited the axis times without a number but the squatters remained defiant and kept returning after the dust settles. “We have said it times without number that the clearing of the axis will be a continuous one until…

The Investors and Exporters (I&E) window will determine the exchange rate when applying for Form A with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), a commercial bank disclosed. Globus Bank in a memo to customers on Wednesday revealed that the apex bank will not set the exchange rate for Form A applications. “Based on the recent changes by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to its foreign exchange policy, kindly take note of the following updates on all pending and new Form A applications,” the bank said. “The exchange rate from naira to foreign currency is no longer fixed by the…

Arsenal have made an improved offer of £60m for Chelsea and Germany forward Kai Havertz, 24. (Mail) West Ham United are “far from impressed” with the lack of progress in negotiations with Arsenal over a move for England midfielder Declan Rice, 24. (90min) Arsenal will return with a third offer for Rice, with the Hammers holding out for a minimum £100m fee. (Mail) Fulham want to sign Brazil midfielder Fred, 30, from Manchester United. (Telegraph – subscription required) Everton are interested in a move for Crystal Palace and England goalkeeper Sam Johnstone, 30, if Jordan Pickford leaves the club. (Sun) Leicester City want more than £50m for England midfielder James Maddison, 26, amid interest from Tottenham and Newcastle. (Sky Sports) Manchester City are close to…

Mateo Kovacic is close to joining Manchester City after they agreed a deal with Chelsea worth up to £30m. The Croatia midfielder, 29, is set to join the Premier League champions for an initial fee of £25m, with £5m in potential add-ons. Chelsea are continuing to sell players as they look to trim their large squad for new manager Mauricio Pochettino. Fellow midfielder N’Golo Kante is also on his way out, having agreed to join Al-Ittihad in Saudi Arabia. Kovacic joined Chelsea from Real Madrid 2019, initially on loan, before signing a five-year permanent contract. The arrival of Kovacic will…