Inter have yet to reach an agreement with Real Madrid to acquire Brazilian midfielder Casemiro, according to the player’s agent.
Casemiro has been strongly linked with a move to the San Siro outfit this summer.
“I know that Inter are talking to Real Madrid,” Casemiro’s agent Joseph Lee said.
“Inter are willing to acquire my client but now the Nerazzurri must find a way to please Real Madrid’s demands.”
Casemiro joined Real Madrid’s reserve team from Sao Paulo in January 2013.
Abidal, Carvalho pen new contracts
Eric Abidal and Ricardo Carvalho will be staying at Monaco next season after both players penned one-year contract extensions.
The duo were thought to be considering retirement, with Carvalho now 36 and Abidal 34, but new boss Leonardo Jardim has decided to keep the pair until June 2015.
“AS Monaco is pleased to announce contract extensions for an additional season for Eric Abidal and Ricardo Carvalho,” read a statement on the club’s official website.
Record audience for Belgium-US match
More people in the United States tuned in to the US-Belgium World Cup soccer match on Tuesday than they did for the World Series of baseball.
ESPN said it was the second highest rated men’s soccer game, with about 16.5 million viewers, and that it bested its record for its streaming video app WatchESPN, with 1.1 million viewers.
Spanish-language broadcast network Univision said 5.1 million watched Belgium beat US 2-1 in the knock-out match.
The more than 22 million watching on Tuesday beat the number of viewers – some 19 million – who tuned in to see the Boston Red Sox win the World Series last year.
Serbia want Italian Zenga as coach
Serbia want former Italy goalkeeper Walter Zenga to take over as coach for Euro 2016 qualifying.
“We spoke to Zenga for several hours on Saturday but I still can’t say whether we are close to a deal,” FA chief Tomislav Karazdic told a news conference.
“Zenga wants to come back to Europe and make an impact here and in the next few weeks we will know whether we will be able to recruit him.
“We’ve had great offers from several other high-profile foreign coaches but we have a limited budget to which we have to adhere and it will be the decisive factor when we make a decision at the end of this month.”
Gilardino pondering China move
Genoa president Enrico Preziosi has revealed Italian striker Alberto Gilardino is considering an offer from Chinese club Guangzhou Evergrande.
The 31-year-old has been strongly linked with a move away from Genoa this summer with Guangzhou and Major League Soccer side Toronto FC keen to acquire his services.
When asked about Guangzhou’s offer to acquire Gilardino, Preziosi said to Italian TV station Telenord: “We don’t know whether Gilardino will accept or not.
“If he does, then we already have some alternatives and we will certainly give coach (Gian Piero) Gasperini a worthy replacement.”
Celtic swoop for keeper Gordon
Celtic have completed a deal to sign former Sunderland goalkeeper Craig Gordon.
The 31-year-old has not played professionally for two years following his release by the Black Cats in 2012 following a series of arm and knee injuries.
But he will now have the chance to resurrect his career at Celtic Park, having been handed a two-year contract with the option for a third.
“Celtic have signed goalkeeper Craig Gordon on a two-year contract with the club having the option of a third year,” read a statement on the club’s official website.
Schuerrle targets starting role
Andre Schuerrle is hoping his strong performance for Germany against Algeria will lead to a starting berth against France in the World Cup quarter-finals today.
Schuerrle, who scored Germany’s first goal early in extra-time in their 2-1 victory in the round of 16 on Monday, sparked his struggling team-mates after coming off the bench at half-time. He had played just 29 minutes before that in two group matches.
“I feel much better as a starter and everyone wants to be on the pitch at the kick-off,” the Chelsea forward said.
“I’d be delighted to have the chance to start. I’m really fired up.
“I feel good, I feel in form and I’m really glad I finally got the chance to play more in the last match.”