West Ham United are closing in on a permanent deal for Barcelona midfielder Alex Song, .

The Cameroon international spent last season on loan at the Boleyn Ground, racking up thirty-one appearances for the club in all competitions.

New Hammers manager Slaven Bilic has been keen to sign the former Arsenal man though an injury has delayed proceedings.

However, he is now set for a medical and could finalise a switch before the transfer deadline passes on September 1st.

Before moving to Spain in 2012, Song spent seven years with the Gunners, where he played two hundred and twenty-seven times, scoring ten times while he also had a brief loan spell with Charlton Athletic in 2007.

He has been capped forty-nine times for Cameroon, and was part of th…

Michy Batshuayi has criticised UEFA after European football s governing body dropped racism charges against Atalanta.

The Borussia Dortmund striker, on loan at the club from Chelsea, accused Atalanta fans of racially abusing him during last month s Europa League tie.

Batshuayi tweeted after the game: 2018 and still racists monkey noises in the stands…really?! Hope you have fun watching the rest of the Europa League on TV while we are through. #SayNoToRacism #GoWatchBlackPanther .

UEFA subsequently opened disciplinary proceedings against Atalanta, but they confirmed on Thursday no punishment will be levied against the Serie A side.

Atalanta were fined €34,000 for other charges from the game including the throwing of fireworks and stairways being blocke…

Arsenal have reportedly been given a boost in their pursuit of Club Brugge s Noah Lang.

The Gunners have been linked with the 22-year-old for a while now, and they ve apparently made his potential signing one of their priorities for the January transfer window. According to the , the Belgian side would like to keep the winger for the rest of the season, but head coach Philippe Clement says they need to be realistic about the situation.

Lang, who has two senior international caps with Netherlands to his name to date, came through the ranks at Ajax and had a loan spell with FC Twente, before joining Brugge on an initial loan on the last day of the summer window in 2020. The move was made permanent this year for a reported fee of £5 million.

Arsenal are believed t…

Bolton manager Dougie Freedman has ruled out a permanent move for Liverpool’s Jay Spearing, claiming his price tag is too high.

The 24-year-old midfielder spent last season on loan at the Reebok Stadium, making 39 appearances in total as Bolton narrowly missed out on a play-off place in the Championship.

Spearing has been linked with a return to Bolton but Freedman distanced himself from that speculation when answering questions from fans on the club’s official Twitter account on Tuesday.

When quizzed on Spearing, Freedman tweeted: We spoke to Liverpool and their valuation was too high. Please do not believe the price that some journalist makes up.

Newspaper reports have suggested that Bolton’s rivals Blackburn are keen on Spearing, who has also spent time…

Stephen Warnock is eager to make up for lost time and produce an FA Cup upset when Derby County take on Manchester United in the fourth round on Friday.

Despite being named in England’s squad for the 2010 World Cup, the 34-year-old left-back’s career came to a stuttering halt six months later when then Aston Villa manager Gerard Houllier deemed him unworthy of a first-team place.

Warnock has been unable to reproduce the form that enabled him to win two international caps but feels he has the opportunity to rebuild his reputation with a shock win in the cup.

I had a difficult time at Villa when Gerard Houllier came in,  the former Liverpool defender said.

I thought I was playing well at the time, but all of a sudden I was left out of the squad and …

Rangers have signed Mexico internationals Eduardo Herrera and Carlos Pena to take their tally of signings to eight ahead of the new season.

Forward Herrera, 28 and midfielder Pena, 27, have both signed three-year contracts at Ibrox after joining from Pumas and Guadalajara respectively.

Neither player is in Mexico s squad for the Confederations Cup, but both appeared for the national side as recently as last year.

Herrera previously played under Rangers boss Pedro Caixinha in a loan spell with Santos Laguna, with he and Pena joining Bruno Alves, Ryan Jack, Dalcio, Fabio Cardoso, Daniel Candeias and Alfredo Morelos in making moves to Rangers.

I am very happy to become part of this great club that has such great supporters, Pena told Rangers TV.

I…

Croatia midfielder Ivan Rakitic expects Barcelona team-mate Lionel Messi to be uber-motivated when his side face Argentina at the World Cup on Thursday.

Messi came in for criticism after Argentina were held to a shock 1-1 draw by Iceland in their opening Group D match, in which the forward missed a second-half penalty.

Failure to beat Croatia in Nizhny Novgorod could strike a damaging blow to Jorge Sampaoli s side in their quest to go one better than in 2014, when they lost the final to Germany.

But Rakitic insists there is no player more proud to represent their country or more determined to get them back on track towards success than his club team-mate Messi.

My impression is not just that he s motivated, but that he s uber-motivated, he told a news co…

Pep Guardiola told Manchester City players to show me the money, guys as they prepare to start their Champions League campaign among the tournament s favourites.

City have never progressed further than the semi-finals of the competition, reaching that stage in 2015-16 before losing to eventual champions Real Madrid.

Guardiola s first season in charge saw City eliminated by Monaco in the round of 16 and last term they lost to Premier League rivals Liverpool in the quarter-finals.

The Catalan won the Champions League twice while in charge of Barcelona but could not deliver European success during his time in charge of Bayern Munich before arriving at City in 2016.

And with City hosting Lyon in their first Group F game on Wednesday, ahead of pool fixtures …

Raheem Sterling was England s hero as a turgid Nations League encounter with Iceland exploded into penalty drama in the final minutes, with Gareth Southgate s men emerging as 1-0 victors.

Harry Kane had an early goal incorrectly ruled out but it soon became a tale of frustration for England against the side who famously humiliated them against the odds at Euro 2016.

Kyle Walker s red card teed up the prospect of another ignominious outcome, but Sterling won a spot kick in the final minute when Sverrir Ingason – who, like Walker received a second booking – handled his shot following a right-wing corner.

The Manchester City forward rolled his effort home before a further stoppage-time sting in the tail.

Joe Gomez clumsily fouled substitute Holmbert Fri…

Leicester City have confirmed the club will commission a memorial statue in tribute to their late owner and chairman Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha after his death in a helicopter crash.

Srivaddhanaprabha was one of five people killed when his private helicopter crashed outside the King Power Stadium after a Premier League draw against West Ham last month.

Various tributes are planned for Saturday s visit of Burnley, Leicester s first home game since the death of Srivaddhanaprabha, whose leadership inspired the club to their unlikely Premier League title triumph in 2015-16.

Supporters will march through Leicester to the King Power Stadium, where fans will be given commemorative scarves and pin badges ahead of a video tribute to Srivaddhanaprabha being shown on the big …