Perez joins Valencia
VALENCIA, Spain – Valencia officials have unveiled new midfielder Enzo Perez three days after the Argentina international completed his transfer from Portuguese club Benfica. Perez helped Argentina reach the final of the World Cup. Perez says he agreed to join Valencia during the summer, thanking “the board and (owner Peter) Lim for believing in me.”
Duo resume training
PARIS – Attacking duo Ezequiel Lavezzi and Edinson Cavani finally returned to the Paris Saint-Germain training ground on yesterday afternoon after missing their team’s first training. The South Americans were the notable absentees from training yesterday morning, having already missed a training camp in Morocco which culminated in a 1-0 friendly win over Inter Milan.
Kimmich joins Munich
BERLIN – Bayern Munich have snatched rising German star Joseph Kimmich from under the noses of Bundesliga rivals VfB Stuttgart. Highly-rated defensive midfielder Kimmich, 19, a member of Germany’s under-19 European championship-winning side, was due to leave RB Leipzig at the end of the season to return to his former club Stuttgart.
Swansea new sign
LONDON – Swansea have won the race for the signature of teenage Exeter midfielder Matt Grimes, the Premier League club announced yesterday. Grimes, 19, had been linked with a number of Premier League clubs, but has agreed a four-and-a-half year deal at the Liberty Stadium. Grimes will not be eligible for Swansea until the visit of West Ham on January 10.
No problem
LONDON – West Bromwich Albion’s new head coach Tony Pulis insists he has no problem with his position in the Premier League club’s hierarchy. Pulis was hired by Albion on a two-and-a-half year deal to replace the sacked Alan Irvine earlier this week. But the managerial structure has come under fire with Terry Burton may have too much influence on signings and team selection.
Taylor out with injury
LONDON – Steven Taylor confirmed yesterday that he will miss the rest of the season with a ruptured Achilles tendon. Taylor sustained the injury during his side’s 3-3 draw with Burnley at St James’ Park in the Premier League yesterday. In his social media website Sportlobster Taylor says: “Gutted to say I’m going to be out for the season.”
Huth investigated
LONDON – Stoke defender Robert Huth is being investigated by the Football Association after apologising for a series of explicit interactions he made on Twitter. The account invites users of the social media site to guess from cropped photographs of people in explicit poses whether those pictured have male or female genitalia.
Schwarzer joins City
LONDON – Mark Schwarzer has reportedly agreed to terms on a move to struggling English Premier League club Leicester City from Chelsea. Various UK media outlets have reported the deal has been done and will become official tomorrow, with The Telegraph saying 42-year-old Schwarzer has said his goodbyes to Chelsea players and team management.
