ROUND-UP

"QUOTES"

"Today, begins a new chapter of his career in the world of football, as it was said almost a week ago: from Maestro to Mister. From today he will be THE coach for people of Juventus, as the club has decided to entrust him with the technical leadership of the First Team, after having already selected him for the Juventus Under 23."

-Buffon’s reaction to his former teammate Andrea Pirlo becoming Juventus manager.

"If you put Celtic and Rangers down in England, you’re talking about the top six. Those two clubs, if they got the money that the English clubs have coming in, they would spend it… I don’t think about Man City or Livepool, I think they’re way ahead – but I think the rest below that, Man United, Chelsea, I think Rangers and Celtic would more than cope with that."

-Neil Warnock believes that the two Old Firm clubs would do well in the Premier League, consistently competing for a top six finish.

"You are a spectacular goalkeeper and it was really hard to have you as an opponent. But, looking back, I also think that it was a pretty nice rivalry that made us have to outdo ourselves every time we faced each other."

-Lionel Messi paid tribute to Iker Casillas after the Spanish legend retired from football aged of 39.

I'M NOT LEAVING

According to reports, Gareth Bale has no intentions of leaving Real Madrid and is planning to run down his contract with Los Blancos. During LaLiga’s resumption Bale pretended to fall asleep on the bench and was even filmed golfing the day Madrid faced off against Manchester City in the Champions League after asking not to be part of the squad for the big match. Despite this “enthusiasm”, the Welshman wishes to remain at the club for the foreseeable future. Bale has two years left on his contract at the Santiago Bernabeu, where he will reportedly pocket close to £60 million from salary and bonuses. Apparently, Bale is upset with the club for blocking his proposed move to Jiangsu Suning of the Chinese Super League where he would have earned £1 million a week and is now refusing to play for the club.

ROMA HAS NEW OWNER

AS Roma have new ownership as James Pallotta has agreed to sell the club to fellow American Dan Friedkin. The two have been in talks since before coronavirus shut everything down and have finally struck a deal. Pallotta released a statement confirming that billionaire Friedkin signed an agreement to purchase the club for a reported £532 million. Pallotta bought the club with a group of US investors back in 2012, but was unable to celebrate any silverware, recording a few second placed finishes in Serie A and reaching the Champions League semi-final a few years ago. The former owner has had a frustrating time trying to build a new stadium for the club as progress kept stalling amid planning issues and red tape.

THE VOICE

A female voice will feature in the popular video game series, FIFA 21. Nira Juanco, who works as a presenter and reporter for Gol Television, will make history in the Spanish edition of the game. For those familiar with the game, Nira will be in a similar role of Geoff Shreeves, making important announcements regarding substitutions and injuries. As for the English version of the game, it’s expected that Martin Tyler will return alongside Alan Smith, with Derek Rae and Lee Dixon commentating on the UEFA competitions.

THE SCENERY IS NICE, DARLING

Football Manager has curated a community of diehard fans. From taking a laptop to a wedding to complete transfer deadline day, to setting off a flare in your bedroom after winning a league title, to someone being offered a job at an actual football club after applying with a list of his virtual achievements in Football Manager. There have been some incredible stories of Football Manager players. The latest story to come out is of a man by the name of Tim Pyke who persuaded his wife to honeymoon in Bulgaria so