Former Premier League star Mario Balotelli was involved in a car accident in Brescia and it is reported that the footballer walked away from the accident with difficulty. 

The striker has often appeared in the media for the wrong reasons and it looks like this is another story to add to his collection.

According to a local Italian police official, Balotelli refused to take a breathalyser test in the aftermath of the crash and it is believed that the Italian walked away from the accident with great difficulty, reports El Partidazo de COPE.

The former Man City star was thankfully not seriously injured as more details will likely be released involving his crash soon.

? Mario Balotelli was in a car accident in Brescia! ???

According to a local police official, the Italian refused to take a breathalyzer test.

Balotelli was unhurt, but walked with difficulty after the accident.

(?? @partidazocope)
pic.twitter.com/BcVBEkuabr

— Transfer News Live (@DeadlineDayLive) November 23, 2023

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The post Video: Mario Balotelli refuses to do breathalyser test as footballer struggles to walk away from car crash appeared first on CaughtOffside.

Speaking to Squawka, Glen Johnson has said Romelu Lukaku is “an absolute goal machine” but he wasn’t right for the Premier League in his opinion.

Johnson believed Lukaku was trying to be too involved in the build up play at Chelsea, and games would “fly past him a bit”, instead he believes Lukaku should’ve focused on being a “dangerous front man”, who is there to score goals.

He called Lukaku “strong” and a “beast in front of goal”, before saying he is better suited to Italy due to the slower nature of the game, giving him more time on the ball.

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Lukaku has made 14 appearances for Roma since joining the club on loan in summer, scoring nine goals and totalling 1,139 minutes of football.

Despite Johnson saying Lukaku wasn’t suited to the Premier League, the Belgian still managed to score 121 goals in the Premier League in 278 appearances, playing for Chelsea, West Brom, Everton and Manchester United in that time.

Lukaku has scored 63 goals in the Serie A after just 107 appearances though, playing for Inter Milan and Roma.

He also has a very impressive international record, scoring 83 goals in 113 caps for Belgium, and he is now their top goalscorer.

The post Ex Premier League defender says Romelu Lukaku wasn’t right for the Premier League appeared first on CaughtOffside.

This article was originally published on Fabrizio Romano’s Daily Briefing, a subscription service. If you would like to receive Fabrizio Romano’s exclusive articles via email ahead of publication on caughtoffside.com, please sign-up for the service here: thedailybriefing.io

Is Antoine Griezmann really a target for Manchester United?

There have been many rumours during the international break about the future of Antoine Griezmann. I’ve been receiving a lot of questions about him since there were some reports in Spain linking Griezmann with Manchester United.

While it’s true that Griezmann has a release clause at Atletico Madrid, but it’s also the case that the player is only focused on Atletico Madrid – he is in love with the club. He already left once in the past, joining Barcelona in 2019, and then he wanted to return. Now he’s back and he has a great relationship with manager Diego Simeone and his teammates – his idea is not to change clubs in January, there is no plan at all to leave, there is absolutely nothing going on with Manchester United.

And as I’ve previously reported on Griezmann, back in June he had the possibility to accept a life-changing contract proposal to move to Saudi Arabia, but he wasn’t interested because he only wanted to stay at Atletico Madrid. So it’s not just Man United, there is no desire for Griezmann to leave for any club, he wants to stay at Atletico Madrid.

Staying with Man United, there’s no concrete update yet on Donny van de Beek, but he is one player who is very much expected to leave in January. United and Van de Beek will find a solution for sure, though there is no clarity yet about a specific club, it’s still too early.

Chelsea still backing Mykhaylo Mudryk despite Khvicha Kvaratskhelia links

I’m aware there have been some stories about Chelsea having an interest in Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, with reports that he’s a player they really like, but I wouldn’t read too much into this for now. Of course we can all see Kvaratskhelia is a superb talent – he’s been a joy to watch for Napoli and so I think it’s normal to see stories like this.

The key point with Chelsea, however, is that they still believe Mykhaylo Mudryk will be the future in that position, so nothing has been decided in terms of investing big money there for another player after they fought hard to sign Mudryk ahead of Arsenal in that tense battle last January.

Also with Napoli there is the reality that they could be forced to sell Victor Osimhen in the summer – I’ve reported on interest in him several times recently, and there’s been no progress on a new contract with Napoli, so they will hope to keep Kvaratskhelia if they lose another of their important players.

A lot can change in football and it’s too early to know for sure what will happen, but my understanding remains that it’s not a concrete thing with Chelsea so far.

In other news…

Pablo Fornals – There have been some surprise links between Pablo Fornals and Barcelona, with the West Ham midfielder supposedly mentioned as an option to cover for the injured Gavi. Still, I’m not aware of concrete talks for Fornals so far, there’s still nothing decided in terms of new midfielder; as Deco said, the situation is still very quiet. Barcelona’s priority is to use funds on Financial Fair Play to register Vitor Roque.

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Pascal Gross – The Brighton star is a player Eintracht Frankfurt really like, as has been reported. Eintracht love Gross, but they also know nothing will happen in January, he’s a dream target for June but very difficult as Gross is very happy at Brighton and there are no problems between Brighton and Gross, at all.

Jose Mourinho – Al Hilal wanted Jose Mourinho in June 2023, but he decided to respect AS Roma and so he turned down the proposal. He’s now suggested he will manage in Saudi Arabia one day, but it’s too early for anything concrete, as nothing will happen until at least next summer.

The post Transfer news: Griezmann Man United links, Kvaratskhelia Chelsea rumours, Mourinho Saudi Arabia & more appeared first on CaughtOffside.

Arsenal defender Jakub Kiwior is reportedly ready to reject interest from three Serie A clubs this January as he wants to win over Gunners boss Mikel Arteta and fight for his place in the team.

The Poland international only joined Arsenal from Spezia last January, and it seems his future could be in some doubt less than a year into his stay at the Emirates Stadium.

However, even if there is some interest from AC Milan, Roma and Napoli in bringing Kiwior back to Italy, it seems his preference is to try winning Arteta around, according to Fichajes.com.

Kiwior could surely be a fine signing for those clubs, and it could boost his chances of getting more playing time, but Arsenal fans will surely be glad to see he wants to stay in north London for a bit longer.

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Arsenal have an excellent central defensive pairing in the form of William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes, but there’s surely also a role for Kiwior to play over the course of the season as Arteta will need to rotate from time to time.

AFC were also hit hard by some injuries last term, so won’t want to be without backup options in case that happens again.

The post Arsenal star eyed by three Euro giants but is prepared to snub transfer to win round Arteta appeared first on CaughtOffside.

Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher has claimed that Newcastle United deserved to feel a degree of hurt after getting it wrong with the summer transfer window signing of Sandro Tonali.

The Italy international joined Newcastle from AC Milan over the summer but played just eight Premier League games for the club before receiving a lengthy ban from playing, related to a gambling addiction.

Speaking in the video clip below, Carragher made it clear he had an issue with the idea of Newcastle now being able to replace Tonali with a loan signing like Ruben Neves this January, as they deserve to be punished for failing to do their due diligence on the player properly…

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Newcastle will certainly feel they could have perhaps done more to find out about issues in Tonali’s private life, but at the same time it is surely reasonable for Eddie Howe to feel he now needs to strengthen his midfield.

The Magpies will perhaps argue that Tonali could just as easily have picked up a serious injury that might also have kept him out, and in that situation there would be a bit more sympathy if they were to sign someone as cover.

The post Jamie Carragher says Newcastle United deserve punishment for Sandro Tonali transfer error appeared first on CaughtOffside.

Transfer news expert Fabrizio Romano has provided some insight into Jose Mourinho’s situation as the Roma manager has hinted he could be open to a move to managing in Saudi Arabia some time soon.

The Portuguese tactician has done well at Roma following a difficult spell in charge of Tottenham, and one imagines he could still be of interest to a lot of top clubs in the Premier League and elsewhere in Europe.

However, the emergence of the Saudi Pro League as a major force in the game has changed things, and it seems likely we’re only going to see even more big names moving there soon, both players and managers.

Mourinho is just the kind of name one imagines they’d love to have in Saudi, and Romano says that Al Hilal have previously tried to lure the Special One over, only for him to reject them to stay at Roma this season.

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It’s still a bit early to know for sure what Mourinho will choose to do, but Romano says we can expect to know a bit more by next summer.

“Al Hilal wanted Jose Mourinho in June 2023, but he decided to respect AS Roma and so he turned down the proposal,” Romano told CaughtOffside for his Daily Briefing column.

“He’s now suggested he will manage in Saudi Arabia one day, but it’s too early for anything concrete, as nothing will happen until at least next summer.”

The post Exclusive: Fabrizio Romano on when to expect news on Jose Mourinho Saudi Arabia move appeared first on CaughtOffside.

Tottenham are in the market for a new centre-back and the North London club have come out of their meeting this week having identified two Premier League stars. 

Spurs lost Mickey Van de Ven to a hamstring injury during their defeat to Chelsea earlier this month and the Dutch defender has been ruled out of action until 2024.

Ange Postecoglou was already short in this area of the pitch as the Australian coach is not a fan of Eric Dier – who is expected to leave in January.

According to the Daily Mail, Spurs have identified Crystal Palace’s Marc Guehi and Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite as potential targets for January; whilst alternatives come in the form of AC Milan’s Malick Thiaw, Morato of Benfica and Sporting Lisbon’s Goncalo Inacio.

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Both Guehi and Branthwaite have been two standout defenders in the Premier League this season and either one would be a great addition to Postecoglou’s squad.

Both are young and will develop into even better players than they are now but the problem for Tottenham is the fact that clubs will not want to sell mid-season.

Everton’s financial situation makes the 21-year-old an easier signing but if Spurs want either of the two, they will have to fork out a large chunk of money.

The post Tottenham identify two exciting Premier League defenders for January during meeting this week appeared first on CaughtOffside.

Chelsea have been linked with Napoli playmaker Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, but Fabrizio Romano isn’t convinced about anything concrete to the stories for the moment.

Speaking exclusively to CaughtOffside, Romano explained that Chelsea are currently very happy with Mykhaylo Mudryk in that position, with the Blues spending big money on him last January as they remain convinced he will be ‘the future’ for them in that area of the pitch.

Kvaratskhelia is another top talent who has really caught the eye during his time in Serie A, and Chelsea would surely be stronger for having him in their team, but another issue raised by Romano is that Napoli surely won’t want to let him go while there is also uncertainty about another of their star players in Victor Osimhen.

Chelsea are one of the teams to have been linked with Osimhen in recent times, and one imagines a striker of that mould will still make sense as being more of a priority for the west London giants than an attacking midfield player like Kvaratskhelia, even if the Georgia international is the kind of talent most elite clubs around Europe would love to have on their books.

Discussing the situation for his latest Daily Briefing column, Romano said: “I’m aware there have been some stories about Chelsea having an interest in Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, with reports that he’s a player they really like, but I wouldn’t read too much into this for now.

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“The key point with Chelsea, however, is that they still believe Mykhaylo Mudryk will be the future in that position, so nothing has been decided in terms of investing big money there for another player after they fought hard to sign Mudryk ahead of Arsenal in that tense battle last January.

“Also with Napoli there is the reality that they could be forced to sell Victor Osimhen in the summer – I’ve reported on interest in him several times recently, and there’s been no progress on a new contract with Napoli, so they will hope to keep Kvaratskhelia if they lose another of their important players.

“A lot can change in football and it’s too early to know for sure what will happen, but my understanding remains that it’s not a concrete thing with Chelsea so far.”

The post Exclusive: Chelsea feel they have “the future” in key position as expert addresses transfer links with Serie A star appeared first on CaughtOffside.

Arsenal have made the decision to sign a new striker in 2024 but the Gunners may be making a mistake by waiting until the summer to address the issue. 

Mikel Arteta is in need of a proper number nine and according to Football Insider, Juventus’ Dusan Vlahovic and Brentford’s Ivan Toney top the Spanish coach’s list of forward targets.

The North London club have been long-term admirers of Vlahovic and have tried to sign the Serbia star on numerous occasions. It is believed that Juve may need to sell the 23-year-old next year due to their financial situation, but a mid-season move will be very difficult to complete.

Closer to home, Toney is expected to leave Brentford in 2024 and the Bees will ask for huge money in January for their star man, according to the report.

Therefore, it would be best to wait until the summer as the Gunners would get to see how the 27-year-old performs upon his return from a long ban.

Arsenal are once again competing at the top of the Premier League and a criticism that has been thrown their way is the lack of firepower up top.

With both Man City and Liverpool stacked in this area, it could see the Gunners punished as the season progresses.

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Eddie Nketiah and Gabriel Jesus have managed just five and four goals this season, and although they have plenty of talent, they lack the presence of a proper number nine in the box.

With the likes of Chelsea, Tottenham and Man United also on the lookout for a striker, could one of these clubs swoop in and sign some of Arsenal’s top targets in January? It makes sense for the North London club to wait until the summer to address this issue but could it be a mistake with so much on the line during the current campaign?

The post Arsenal could be making a mistake by waiting until the summer to address key issue appeared first on CaughtOffside.

Chelsea are long-time admirers of Napoli and Georgia winger Kvicha Kvaratskhelia.

That’s according to a recent report from TEAMtalk’s Fraser Fletcher, who claims the Blues have been scouting the Napoli winger for quite some time.

Kvaratskhelia, 22, has enjoyed a wonderful breakthrough in top-flight European football.

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Not only did the Georgia international help fire Napoli to their first Serie A title in 33 years last season, but having directly contributed to eight goals from just 15 games already this term, it is clear the 22-year-old is on course for another fine individual campaign.

Of course, with fine form comes unwanted attention though, and according to Fletcher, Mauricio Pochettino’s Chelsea are among those strongly interested.

Whether or not the Blues will make an official offer for Napoli’s number 77 remains to be seen, however, now with less than four years remaining on his contract, Napoli will soon be forced into considering selling if the winger does not agree to an extension.

The post Chelsea continuing to scout highly-rated Serie A winger appeared first on CaughtOffside.