Alexis Sanchez insists he’s happy at Arsenal but that his contract negotiations will depend on whether the club wants to “show confidence” in him.
The Arsenal striker has yet to sign a contract extension with the Gunners and is holding out for an offer of more than £200,000 a week – a deal that would shatter the club’s wage structure.
“It really doesn’t depend on me so much as it does the club, if they want to show confidence in me,” Sanchez said.
“I’m very happy at the club. I love It here, I love all the staff, I love the coaches. I’m very grateful for everybody here. So it depends more on Arsenal.”
We have to control emotions – Koeman
Ronald Koeman has stressed the need for his Everton players to keep their heads as he prepares for his first Merseyside derby.
The Toffees have not beaten Liverpool since 2010, but go into tomorrow’s clash at Goodison Park buoyed by victory over Arsenal in midweek.
Koeman said: “It’s not a normal match, we know about the derby rivalry between Everton and Liverpool, but my position is to prepare the team and always in these kind of derbies you have an emotional part, and that you need to control.
“The derby is all about the fans and we understand that, but we need to be calm and stay with 11 on the pitch.”
Pulis anticipates Berahino saga
West Brom boss Tony Pulis is braced for another Saido Berahino transfer saga - despite the striker’s lack of action. The 23-year-old has not played since September but is out of contract at the end of the season.
“It’s happened before and it’ll happen again, there will be people talking to him and telling him what he should and shouldn’t be doing. It’s up to him to work it out, he’s big enough now to make decisions for himself,” Pulis said.
“It’s a three party one, there were deals 18 months ago for Saido to leave and it didn’t suit the club so it wasn’t done. It has to be Saido, ourselves and the club who want to buy him.
“The window opens again and you don’t know what’s going to happen.”
Rafinha pens new Bayern deal
Bayern Munich right-back Rafinha has signed a one-year contract extension.
The 31-year-old has penned a deal with ties him to the Bundesliga giants until June 2018.
The former Brazil international, who moved to Bayern from Genoa in 2011, said: “I’m very pleased about the contract extension. I’ve been here for almost six years.
“FC Bayern is like a second family to me and it’s one of the best clubs in the world. I want to win as many more trophies with FC Bayern as possible.”
Drogba wants better working conditions
Ivory Coast legend Didier Drogba has spoken out in the defence of professional footballers in Africa, demanding change to improve working conditions.
Drogba, 38, is the honorary president of the African division of FIFPro, the global professional footballers’ union. With the online publication of a map detailing the working conditions of footballers around the world, the former Chelsea striker said Africa’s players were being let down.
“Professional footballers in African countries do not have the clearly defined status they deserve – or any status at all,” Drogba said.
“Many African footballers have no holiday entitlement and are left without the medical care they need to do their jobs. This has to change. Africa’s footballers must be treated as proper employees.”
Infantino defends video replays
FIFA chief Gianni Infantino has defended the use of video replays despite a shaky debut for the new system at the Club World Cup.
The replay system allows referees to halt play to review footage of “game-changing decisions,” but its introduction has had a mixed reaction from players and coaches at the tournament.
“The results are extremely positive,” Infantino said.
“Of course there are learnings, of course there are a few topics that we have to look into and discuss in more detail, but the result is extremely positive. Why? Because the referee has been able to take the right decision and justice and transparency have been brought to the game.”
Seat swap may have saved player’s life
A Brazilian footballer who survived the air crash that killed most of his team in Colombia last month changed seats at the last minute after a team-mate encouraged him to sit beside him, he said yesterday.
Chapecoense full back Alan Ruschel was sitting near the back of the plane when club director Cadu Gaucho asked him to move on the journey to play in the Copa Sudamericana final.
“Cadu Gaucho asked me to sit further forward and let the journalists sit together at the back,” Ruschel told reporters. “I didn’t want to but then I saw (Jackson) Follman and he insisted that I sit beside him,” he added.
“Only God can explain why I survived the accident. He grabbed me and gave me a second chance.”