Bristol City boss Lee Johnson has distanced himself from the vacant Aston Villa job.
The 35-year-old is being tracked by Villa as they look to replace Roberto Di Matteo after sacking the Italian following a poor start to the season.
Johnson is on the club’s list along with caretaker boss Steve Clarke, Brentford manager Dean Smith, Huddersfield’s David Wagner and Steve Bruce.
Johnson only joined the Robins from Barnsley in February and insisted he is happy at Ashton Gate.
“I dreamed of being here and earning my stripes as a coach, so why would I want to leave when I’m so happy,” he said.
Icardi deal
Inter striker and captain Mauro Icardi is set to sign a new contract at the club by the end of this week, reports said yesterday.
SportMediaset said the new contract will last until 2021 with Icardi’s wife and agent Wanda Nara saying that the deal was closed earlier this week.
“An announcement should be made this weekend that will see the Nerazzurri star remain until 2021,” SportMediaset reported.
The contract is expected to be worth €5.5m per season, making Icardi the third-best paid player in Serie A behind Gonzalo Higuain and Daniele De Rossi.
Cahill is keen to silence his critics
Chelsea defender Gary Cahill is eager to iron out the “easy to correct” errors in his game to prove doubters wrong.
Cahill has come under intense scrutiny in recent weeks following a number of high-profile mistakes.
“The only people I have to prove myself to is the manager of the club and my team mates that I’m playing with,” the 30-year-old said yesterday.
“I made a few big errors and we all know that... it gets noticed. I basically made my own mistakes out of nothing, so as ridiculously as bad as they were, they are also easy to correct.”
FIFA relocates summits venue
FIFA’s new leadership has decided it will no longer use Zurich’s Baur au Lac as its hotel of choice.
When the 33 FIFA Council members gather next week for their second meeting since dropping the name ExCo, they will stay at Zurich’s Park Hyatt and not their usual rooms.
Football’s bosses have been using the Baur au Lac since 2004 but the five-star hotel became inadvertently associated with world football’s crisis when senior officials were arrested there in two dawn raids.
Rooms at the Park Hyatt, a modern five-star hotel, are typically £450-500 a night, whereas the Baur au Lac’s would cost £700 a night.
Cazorla eager to stay at Arsenal
Spanish midfielder Santi Cazorla would be happy to sign a new contract with Arsenal despite the media linking him with a move to Atletico Madrid.
The 31-year-old, who exten-ded his contract with the London club last year, has scored 25 goals for the Gunners since joining from Malaga in 2012.
“I am happy here. I am trusted by the manager and my team-mates. I am feeling important here, and if they’ll offer me a new contract, I’ll sign it because I am very happy with this great club,” Cazorla said.
Guendogan shocked by Schweini snub
Manchester United would be better off having midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger in the side, Manchester City’s Ilkay Guendogan has said of his fellow German, who remains unlikely to figure in manager Jose Mourinho’s plans.
After making 18 league appearances last season, 32-year-old Schweinsteiger has failed to turn out for United since the Portuguese coach replaced Louis van Gaal in the close season.
“I believe that Manchester United could 100 per cent benefit from a fit Bastian Schweinsteiger,” Guendogan said.
“He’s not just some player, and also not only 18 or 19.”
Origi to wait for his chance at Liverpool
Liverpool striker Divock Origi is not too worried about his lack of starts this season and knows that with the club just two points off the top he will have to wait for his chance.
The 21-year-old has been restricted to five league appearances from the bench in the new campaign, but has scored in each of his two starts in the League Cup against Burton and Derby.
Origi scored 10 goals for the Reds last season.
“A manager never changes his winning team. Juergen Klopp believes in me and says I have to be patient. He asked me to stay calm, which is not easy for a footballer,” Origi said.
“I want to play and be the decisive player that I was last season… everything can turn quickly in football.”
Liverpool host Manchester United on October 17.