A round-up of the biggest football stories from around the world.
Bayern Munich
Bayern Munich midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger will be given the choice of whether to stay or leave the Bundesliga champions, manager Pep Guardiola has said. The 30-year-old German World Cup winner has been linked with a move to Manchester United, where he would be reunited with manager Louis van Gaal, who converted him from a wide player into a central midfielder during his time at Bayern. “He must decide what he does alone,” Guardiola said. “I told him, the future depends on you.”
Inter Milan
Brazilian defender Joao Miranda has completed his move from Atletico Madrid. The 30-year-old centre-back passed a medical before putting pen to paper on a three-year deal. The South American, who made 23 starts for the Spanish club in the Primera Liga last season as they finished third, said he was delighted to have arrived at the San Siro. “It’s a pleasure to be here,” Miranda said on the club’s website. “I really like these colours and I’m very happy to have joined Inter.”
Roma
Spanish midfielder Iago Falque has signed on a season-long loan deal from Genoa, the Serie A club announced. Roma will hold an option to acquire the 25-year-old player on a permanent transfer next summer for a fee of €7 million (Dh28.5m). Falque, a youth product of Barcelona, joined Genoa from Tottenham Hotspur last summer and enjoyed an impressive debut season in Serie A. He scored 13 goals and set up three more in 32 league appearances for Genoa.
Mexico
Striker Javier Hernandez is expected to miss this month’s Gold Cup after suffering a fractured collarbone in the first half of an international friendly against Honduras at Houston on Wednesday. The 27-year-old Manchester United forward, who spent last season on loan at Real Madrid, collided with a Honduran defender five minutes before half time in the scoreless draw and was immediately substituted. Hernandez, who has 40 goals in 73 appearances for his country, will be a significant loss as they bid for a seventh title at the July 7-26 Gold Cup in Canada and the United States.
Marseille
The Ligue 1 club has completed the signings of Dutch international defender Karim Rekik and Argentina winger Lucas Ocampos. Rekik moves from Manchester City after spending last season on loan at Dutch champions PSV Eindhoven. Ocampos joins from Monaco, having already spent the second half of the last campaign on loan at the Stade Velodrome.
Celtic
Saidy Janko said there was no way he could resist joining Celtic after listening to players such as Lionel Messi and Xavi rave about Celtic Park. The 19-year-old full-back, who penned a four-year deal with the club after quitting Manchester United, said the lure of potential Uefa Champions League action and the chance to work with manager Ronny Deila were all decisive factors in his move north. But it was the words of Barcelona’s superstar duo following the Catalan outfit’s 2-1 Parkhead defeat in November 2012 that convinced him to kick-start his career north of the border. Xavi claimed he had “never seen anything like the Celtic fans”, and four-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi said the Scottish club’s home ground produces the best atmosphere anywhere on the continent. “Even players like Messi and Xavi dream about the atmosphere at Celtic Park, so I’m looking forward to that,” Janko said.
Sevilla
The Europa League winners have agreed to sell Colombia striker Carlos Bacca to AC Milan pending a medical. Neither club announced any details of the deal, although Spanish media reported that Milan will pay €30 million and that Bacca will sign a four-year contract.
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