Supporters’ groups warn against ‘dangerous precedent’ Governing body to rule on La Liga call for Miami game Fifa has been urged by leading supporters’ groups to block domestic league matches from being played abroad and avoid “a Pandora’s box of disarray for football”, as the prospect of major European fixtures taking place on different continents looms large. World football’s governing body is likely to be tasked with deciding whether Villarreal face Barcelona in Miami in December after La Liga’s request to make the switch was approved and submitted by the Spanish football federation. Milan and Como are also looking to play a Serie A fixture in Perth, Western Australia, in February. Continue reading...

German club have £56m option to buy striker Milan will pay £36m for Nkunku Bayern Munich have agreed a deal to sign Nicolas Jackson on loan from Chelsea. Bayern are paying a €15m (£13m) loan fee for the striker with a €65m (£56m) option to buy, while there is a sell-on clause. Chelsea have also announced the sale of Christopher Nkunku for £36m to Milan. The 24-year-old Jackson is out of favour at Chelsea after the arrivals of Liam Delap and João Pedro. He joined from Villarreal in 2023 for £32m and scored 24 goals in 65 Premier League appearances. Continue reading...

Club agree £23.4m fee for Toulouse’s Jaydee Canvot Approach made for Manchester City’s Manuel Akanji Oliver Glasner has made clear that Crystal Palace must not sell Marc Guéhi before Monday’s transfer deadline because finding a replacement for the England defender will be “almost impossible”. Palace, who confirmed the signing of Spain forward Yeremy Pino from Villarreal on Friday, have agreed a fee worth up to €27m (£23.4m) with Toulouse for Jaydee Canvot, with the France Under-20 defender expected to sign a five-year contract. Palace have been desperate to add defensive reinforcements amid uncertainty over Guéhi’s future and Canvot is seen as a player with huge potential having made his breakthrough in Ligue 1 last season. But the FA Cup winners have been frustrated so far in their attempts to find a more experienced option. Continue reading...

Today’s fluff is staring into the middle distance With only 10 days left in the transfer window, the rumour mill is in overdrive, churning out gossip faster than a manager can find an excuse for a poor performance. Eberechi Eze, a man beloved in south London, is having a bit of a moment. A few weeks ago, it looked as if he was heading to Tottenham. But then, Arsenal, with a dramatic swoop, hijacked the deal, leaving Tottenham at the altar with a bouquet of wilted ambitions. Eze’s medical for his switch to the Emirates Stadium is reportedly imminent. For Arsenal, it is brilliant business, securing a player who can pull the strings in their push for a Premier League title under Mikel Arteta. For Palace, it’s a wake-up call. They have lost their prized possession and need a replacement. Palace are now scrambling through a frantic game of musical chairs, and they’ve just lost their most comfortable seat. Their first port of call? Yeremy Pino, the 22-year-old who registered four goals and 10 assists for Villarreal in all competitions last season. The player has a £67m release clause, but Palace will hope to pay less than that to secure his signature. Palace have reportedly made contact, trying to understand what it would take to lure him away from La Liga, but Villarreal are not keen on selling. Continue reading...

Madrid urge Spanish federation to withdraw request Uefa to begin procedure to obtain authorisation from Fifa Real Madrid say they are opposed to plans by their bitter rivals Barcelona to play a league match in the United States this season, saying the move “sets an unacceptable precedent”. Barcelona and Villarreal are seeking permission from the football authorities to play in Miami in December. Fan groups of the clubs have already threatened legal action if the plan progresses, and now Real have expressed their opposition to the move. Continue reading...

Midfielder signs in week when he appeared in court Club says it ‘firmly condemns … gender-based violence’ Villarreal have confirmed the signing of Thomas Partey on a free transfer after the expiry of his contract with Arsenal. The move was announced two days after the 32-year-old appeared in court charged with six sexual offences. Partey was bailed to appear at the Old Bailey for trial later this year, charged with five counts of rape relating to two women and a charge of sexual assault against a third woman. The alleged offences are said to have taken place in 2021 and 2022 when Partey was playing for Arsenal. Continue reading...

Midfielder has denied rape and sexual assault charges Hundreds sign petition urging club to halt transfer News that the former Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey is poised to join Villarreal has roiled fans of the Spanish club, with hundreds signing a petition urging the club to halt what has been described as the “darkest day in the club’s history”. Partey appeared in a London court on Tuesday, charged with five counts of rape relating to two women, and a charge of sexual assault against a third woman. The alleged offences are said to have taken place in 2021 and 2022 when Partey was playing for Arsenal. Partey’s lawyer has said he denies all the charges. Continue reading...

Former Arsenal midfielder has denied rape charges Partey has agreed contract and taken medical The former Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey is poised to join Villarreal on a controversial free transfer this week. Partey is due to appear at Westminster magistrates court on Tuesday after being charged with five counts of rape and one count of sexual assault last month, a few days after he left Arsenal having failed to agree a new deal. He has denied all the charges. Continue reading...

Club captain on coming back from injury, the importance of his family and Trent Alexander-Arnold fitting in well Dani Carvajal misses his family. The good news is that in return he’s about to become reacquainted with something he has missed as much. For some players, this is a competition too far, played on poor pitches in half-empty stadiums and suffocating heat, something they could do without, but it has been good for Real Madrid’s captain, something to aim at. Now, 270 days later and 4,400 miles away, just as the Club World Cup gets real, he is back to face Juventus in the last 16 in Miami. “And I know what I’m like: if they let me loose, there’ll be no fear,” he says. Carvajal has not played since October 2024, when in the final moments of Villarreal’s visit to the Santiago Bernabéu he tore the anterior cruciate ligament, the fibular collateral ligament and the popliteus tendon in his right knee. At 32 years old, a European champion with club and country, fourth in the Ballon d’Or three weeks later, it came at the worst time, or so it seemed; Carvajal though believes it came at the best, personally and professionally – which, in the end, go together in a long process that has been psychological as well as physical. Now here he is at Madrid’s Palm Beach HQ before training. Just one more session before he is back in the squad. Continue reading...

Former Atlético Madrid executive is replacement for Edu‘I cannot wait to get started in my new role’ Arsenal have confirmed the appointment of Andrea Berta as their new sporting director, with the Italian expected to attend their game against Fulham on Tuesday as he begins his new role immediately. Berta emerged as Arsenal’s leading candidate to replace Edu after he resigned from the post in November to join the network of clubs spearheaded by Evangelos Marinakis, the Nottingham Forest owner. Berta left Atlético Madrid in January after 12 years in the Spanish capital and has been credited with being behind a string of successful signings including Jan Oblak (€4m from Benfica in 2014) and Rodri (€25m from Villarreal in 2019). Continue reading...

The future of Watford manager Tom Cleverley was bizarrely - but perhaps not unsurprisingly - thrust into the spotlight this week amid reports that former Villarreal boss Jose Martin Rojo was being lined up

Few Premier League players divide opinion like the Chelsea striker but his scoring record stands up to scrutiny By Matt Furniss for Opta Analyst Football is a game of opinions, but Tim Sherwood could maybe do with analysing the data before stating his. Speaking as a pundit on an international broadcast following Chelsea’s win over Brentford on Sunday, Sherwood declared that “at times [Nicolas Jackson] looks like someone playing in Soccer Aid who’s not a footballer.” It’s fair to say that Jackson has divided opinion more than most players since arriving in the Premier League in the summer of 2023. The Senegal striker displayed raw talent in his 18 months in the first team at Spanish top-flight club Villarreal. Continue reading...

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Former Barcelona youth starlet Iker Goujon was "inseparable" from Chelsea attacker Nicolas Jackson during their time together at Villarreal and both he and former Mirandes coach Pablo Gomez Rubio, who worked with the 23-year-old during a loan spell, are not surprised by the Senegal international's exciting evolution

Villarreal and former Arsenal ace has been rumoured to be in a relationship with American adult film star Teanna Trump and the couple have now been pictured together in a restaurant