Indeed, it’s likely one of the reasons he’s now at Aston Villa. Pretty much ostracised at AS Roma after months of issues, which certainly weren’t all of his own making, Zaniolo was sold to Galatasaray.

That then saw his summer move to Aston Villa, in a deal which is initially a loan but expected to be turned into a permanent transfer.

The recent gambling drama in Italian football inevitably involved Zaniolo, but his insistence that he only gambled on non-football related issues, and no evidence suggesting otherwise, has seen him escape a ban.

Italy’s latest Zaniolo drama is claiming he’s been prepared to move to Napoli in the past, and therefore an insinuation that he could in the future.

Experienced journalist Claudio Vigorelli is covered by AreaNapoli, and it’s stated the idea of a move to Napoli ‘did not displease’ Zaniolo or his family.

The player’s family are often featured in the Italian media and believed to have a big say on his career.

Regardless of all of that, it’s Aston Villa who hold the power for now, even if the Italian media are keen on another drama.

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The midfielder arrived at the Premier League side from Atalanta in 2022 and made 28 league appearances last season.

Despite being a regular under Steve Cooper, the 31-year-old has told Gazzetta dello Sport that he wasn’t happy at Nottingham Forest towards the end of his debut season.

Bologna technical director Giovanni Sartori knew the Nottingham Forest owned player well from his time at Atalanta. In fact, it was Sartori who brought the Switzerland international to Italy for the first time in 2016, when he signed him for La Dea.

Freuler has revealed it was easy for him to leave the Tricky Trees when Sartori called him in the last window.

“When he called me with the prospect of Bologna it wasn’t difficult to say yes, also because I wasn’t happy anymore at Nottingham Forest,” he said.

“I had played a lot of matches, almost all of them, then in the last five I disappeared from the radar. I didn’t understand. I asked but only received non-answers. And I understood. Among other things, my wife wasn’t happy either: Italy was better. And today I am even happier than the day I accepted.”

Freuler was an unused substitute in Nottingham Forest’s last six league games in the 2022/23 season, where they finished four points above the relegation zone.

Cooper had also left him on the bench for the first three games this season, before he arrived at Bologna.

The midfielder has made 10 appearances for the Serie A side.

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The centre-back has been restricted to a limited role under Mikel Arteta as he has made 17 appearances for the Gunners, and it includes seven league starts.

AC Milan are keen on bringing the Arsenal player back to the Serie A in the winter market and it has been regularly reported in Italy for the past few weeks. Calciomercato provides the latest on this case.

Stefano Pioli is currently without Pierre Kalulu, Mattia Caldara, Malick Thiaw, Simon Kjær and Marco Pellegrino due to injuries. This has forced the Rossoneri to start preparing for the winter market as they are trying to bring in two new centre-backs.

It’s said the ‘first name’ on the list is Kiwior and a ‘concrete attempt’ will be made to sign him in January.

Milan technical director Geoffrey Moncada and sporting director Antonio D’Ottavio like the Poland international. Calciomercato state the two officials have been ‘working intensely for a few days’ to try to sign him on a loan deal with an option to buy.

As things stand, Arsenal don’t seem convinced to let go of the defender. Despite this, the report explains that ‘discussions will continue’ for a potential deal in January.

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It was also explained that the Serie A side’s technical director, Geoffrey Moncada, made a trip to England to watch the defender live in action against Burnley.

He has over six months left on his deal and January will be Bournemouth’s last chance to cash in from the 25-year-old’s sale.

Gianluca Di Marzio state the Cherries ‘don’t want to sell’ the centre-back in the next window and are ready to risk losing him for free next summer.

The firm stance maintained by Andoni Iraola’s side will force the Rossoneri to change their plans. The Englishman continues to be on their radar and will be the priority target after this season, when Milan can sign him on a free transfer.

This claim is also backed up by Sky Italia, who state the Bournemouth player will be on top of the Italian club’s list for next summer. The Premier League side’s refusal to sanction Kelly’s transfer has seen Milan focus on other targets for January.

Kelly has made 10 appearances this season and if he were to be available for free, Milan may face competition from other clubs to secure his services.

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The attacking midfielder has seven months left on his deal and there’s no clarity on his future beyond this season.

Calciomercato.it provide the latest on this situation and also mention Liverpool’s interest in the 29-year-old.

It’s said the Naples club will have scheduled more than one meeting with Zieliński’s agent Bartlomiej Bolek before the end of this month, to discuss his client’s renewal.

Napoli chairman Aurelio De Laurentiis believes the proposal offered is ‘important’, taking the player’s age into account. There’s still a gap between the two parties and it remains to be seen if it can be reduced during the upcoming meetings.

Inter, on the other hand, have made an offer worth €4m per year plus bonuses. The former Udinese man is also wanted by other clubs, and this is when Liverpool are mentioned.

It’s claimed the Merseyside club are in the picture, where Jürgen Klopp is an ‘old admirer’. In addition to the Reds, Juventus are also in the mix, given he’s liked by former Napoli sporting director Cristiano Giuntoli.

With a deal expiring in 2024, Liverpool and other clubs could be in contention to take him away from Napoli for an affordable price in January or for free next summer.

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Pep Guardiola’s side have enjoyed a good start to the season and are still thinking about strengthening the squad for the near future.

That’s according to TV Play, who state Manchester City are looking to bolster their midfield and defence.

For midfield, the Citizens’ idea is to bring in a young player who can immediately start to feature under Guardiola. Therefore, they have set their sights on the 22-year-old, who has impressed for the Ligue 1 side this season.

The Serie A side are also interested in the France international, with a contract until 2025.

Club Brugge’s Tajon Buchanan is the ‘first name’ on Manchester City’s list for defence.

The 24-year-old has mainly been used as a right-back this season, scoring three goals and registered four assists from 18 games. The Canadian has been on the Juventus and Inter Milan radar for some time.

The Serie A duo will continue to monitor him, but are aware it’s ‘very difficult’ to compete with Manchester City.

It’s claimed the English champions are ‘ready to invest’ €60m to secure the duo’s services and hand a ‘double blow’ to Juve and Inter in the process. The figure is out of reach for the two Italian clubs, for whom the ‘disappointment of the missed shots is ever closer’.

TV Play, however, don’t specify the fee requested/needed to sign the Frenchman and Buchanan.

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That’s according to TuttoMercatoWeb, who say Juventus ‘continue to work’ on convincing Daniel Levy to let him leave on a loan.

Højbjerg has been heavily linked with a move away from Tottenham in the winter window after barely featuring under Ange Postecoglou in the first half of the season.

Several clubs in Europe are believed to be eyeing up a move, including Juventus, who need midfield reinforcements after losing Paul Pogba and Nicolo Fagioli to long-term bans.

However, reports over the last week have indicated that a sale has been ruled out after the unfortunate injury to Rodrigo Bentancur against Aston Villa threatened to leave Tottenham short int the coming months, particularly when players leave for the Africa Cup of Nations.

Injuries and suspensions have seen Højbjerg return of late too, further strengthening the idea that he won’t be leaving in January.

TMW say otherwise, though, and argue that he ‘can still leave’ in the winter window but Tottenham won’t sanction a loan deal and are only interested in a permanent exit.

That’s something Juventus are yet to commit to and so they are simply remaining ‘attentive to developments’ at this point, perhaps hoping to convince Levy to change his mind.

Højbjerg is one of several options they are looking at as they plan for January, with no firm decision made on any as yet.

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The winger has not been in a matchday squad since the 3-2 win over Nottingham Forest at the end of August, and doesn’t appear to have a future at Old Trafford.

That’s why some sort of exit plan is allegedly being worked on behind the scenes at Manchester United, with Juventus one of the clubs interested in relaunching the England international’s career, as per Rudy Galetti.

The journalist took to X to bring the latest on the situation, explaining that the Serie A side are ‘still in contact’ with the Red Devils to find a solution for the player.

The Italians are also in talks with Sancho’s entourage, and are said to be open to considering a purchase clause in any loan deal that may take shape.

However, things aren’t close to being finalised just yet, as a ‘new round of discussions’ is expected to take place in the near future to ‘deepen the topic’.

Prior to being frozen out at Manchester United by Ten Hag, Sancho had scored 12 goals and assisted another six in 82 appearances for the club, a far cry from his 50 goals and 64 assists in 137 games for Borussia Dortmund.

#ManUTD and #Juventus are still in contact to find a solution for Jadon #Sancho.

The – also in talks with the player's entourage – are open to consider a buy clause in the loan deal: a new round of discussions is expected soon to deepen the topic. #Transfers https://t.co/npV8wMK5K4 pic.twitter.com/jqMRaHlTLO

— Rudy Galetti (@RudyGaletti) December 1, 2023

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That’s according to journalist Blessed Ekene, who details the winger’s failed move to Arsenal, after he starred in the Champions League for Milan this week.

The winger joined the Italian side in the summer but has endured a difficult time so far, with the loss to Borussia Dortmund this week seeing him bag his first goal for them.

He had been the star of the show for former club Villarreal for several years after joining them from Diamond Academy in 2017 in a €500,000 deal.

He went on to make 207 appearances for the club in the intervening years, managing 37 goals and 31 assists in total and plenty of attention from around Europe as a result.

Before his move to Spain, he had been close to joining Arsenal, who had scouted him at the Under 17 World Cup in 2015 and been left impressed by what they saw. That move never happened and he instead ended up in Spain two years later.

After bagging his first goal he’s very much looking forward than back, with Ekene insisting that failed move to Arsenal has not dampened his ambitions in the slightest.

“Playing there (Villarreal) was an important step in his development because it gave him the opportunity to do his job without too much pressure,” he said.

“If you remember, after Nigeria’s triumph at the 2015 Under-17 World Cup he was about to join Arsenal, but the deal didn’t go through.

“In hindsight, it was better this way for him: he faced high-level teams like Real Madrid and Barcelona and showed that he could very well compete in that important top flight.

“I believe that even then he knew that he was destined for the top, because the negative epilogue of the negotiations with Arsenal had no negative repercussions on him, and even if there had been he didn’t have any negative repercussions. he never showed: he remained focused and continued training with the other boys until he moved to Villarreal.”

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The Italian has been speaking to Sky Sports in Italy ahead of Tottenham’s clash with Manchester City this weekend.

The goalkeeper has established himself as the number one since joining from Empoli in the summer, replacing Hugo Lloris, who had been expected to leave the club.

He’s now the undisputed starter under Ange Postecoglou and has earned that place too, with a series of impressive performances and stunning individual saves as Tottenham have impressed at the start of the season.

While he’s been starring and earning the plaudits, there’s one thing about the club that left him particularly impressed, and that’s New White Hart Lane.

Tottenham have been solid at home this season, establishing their stadium as a tough place to go to once again and currently joint sixth in the home form table alongside Brighton and Manchester United.

They’ve been boosted by a revitalised Spurs support, who have fully embraced life under Postecoglou and backed their team, something that hasn’t gone unnoticed by Vicario.

“I will always be grateful to that that Empoli and the Castellani stadium have left me in these two years, have allowed me to live my English dream,” he said.

“In the transposition to two completely different contexts, and to two completely different clubs. The positive shock I had on the first day I joined entered the new White Hart Lane, it was incredible.

“Every time we are lucky enough to play at home the emotions are never the same, there is always something to go and get and something to take away.”

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