Atletico Madrid forward Antoine Griezmann has hailed Jan Oblak as the best goalkeeper in the world following his strong performance against Arsenal in the Europa League. The Spanish giants had found themselves a man down within 10 minutes of their semi-final first-leg clash at the Emirates and it required a series of saves from Oblak to ensure the teams went level at the break.
Spanish giants Atletico Madrid have confirmed goalkeeper Jan Oblak has undergone a series of scans for a groin injury which may keep him sidelined for the near future. The Slovenia international missed the first-leg of the Europa League clash with Lokomotiv Moscow last week and Marca suggested that he could miss the weekend league game versus Celta Vigo.
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has reportedly identified Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Jan Oblak as a potential replacement for Petr Cech in the summer. The Gunners are expected to bring in defensive recruits at the end of the campaign, but the shot-stopper position is also under consideration. According to Evening Standard, the Gunners have set their sights on a potential move for Oblak, who is seen as the perfect player to replace Cech as the club’s number one. The Slovenia international joined Atletico Madrid from Benfica shortly after Thibaut Courtois’ return to Chelsea, and he has since transformed into one of Europe’s leading goalkeepers.
Despite the interest, the Gunners are expected to have a tough time negotiating with their La Liga counterparts with Oblak presently contracted to the club until 2021. The former Benfica man also has an £88m, and this could prove a huge stumbling block for a club of Arsenal’s calibre, who remain reluctant to spend over proportions in the transfer market. Cech, now 35, was expected to help Arsenal close the gap on their Premier League rivals, but the veteran’s career appears to be on the downslide with his kicking ability at the least after gifting goals to Cesc Fabregas and Jordan Ayew with mistimed passes over the past 18 months.
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Atletico Madrid could step up their interest to re-sign Thibaut Courtois from Chelsea next summer, should Jan Oblak pursue a fresh challenge elsewhere. The Slovenia international has been linked with a big-money move to Paris Saint-Germain, who are prepared to trigger the £89m release clause in his contract.
According to Spanish outlet AS, the Madrid giants are preparing for the worst situation, if Oblak refuses to commit to a new contract which would include an increased escape clause. The Slovakian has been the backbone behind Atleti’s improved defensive record in recent years, but the former Benfica man has yet to taste anything in terms of trophy success. As a result, the 24-year-old is likely to re-evaluate his future at the end of the season with Les Parisiens on the search for a new shot-stopper who can take over the gloves from Alphonse Areola, who is still prone of making mistakes.
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Manchester City midfielder Fabian Delph has had to pull out of the World Cup qualifiers against Slovenia due to an injury.
England are closer to confirming their top spot in the group with the victory over Slovenia, who have reinvigorated the chances of qualifying for the World Cup 2018 by picking up three wins in the last five group matches. The recent victory for the Slovenia team game against Lithuania as they thrashed the opponent’s 4-0 at home. However, managerKatanec will be aware that it will be a difficult game for Slovenia when they travel to the English soil for a match at the new Wembley stadium. Continue reading
Paris St Germain do not appear to be satisfied with the spending spree so far, as the club have been linked with a move for Atletico Madrid goalkeeper Jan Oblak.
Up until now, Gianluigi Buffon was the world’s most expensive goalkeeper after having cost £ 32 million for his transfer several years ago to Juventus. Manchester City broke this record by signing Edersonfrom Benfica for around £ 35 million. Now, PSG are reportedly ready to pay around £ 90 million for Atletico Madrid’s Jan Oblak. Incidentally, this is the release clause in his contract and this would help PSG do away with any negotiations just like in the case of Neymar. Continue reading
Serie A side Atalanta has succeeded in luring Slovenia star Josip Ilicic from rivals from Fiorentina, according to reports.
Ilicic scored five times last term in 30 appearances. He was crucial to Atalanta returning to European football after they finished fourth in the league. They would be playing in the Europa League for the first time in 26 years.
The club also signed Under 21-Belgian star Timothy Castagne to replace former right back Andrea Conti who moved to Milan. Thomas Foket of KAA Gent was the preferred replacement but after the player pulled out Atalanta had to move ahead with the deal for Castagne. The player helped Genk reach the quarter finals of the Europa League, contributing two goals in ten games. Continue reading
Atletico Madrid will reportedly keep hold of goalkeeper Jan Oblak after they failed to have their transfer embargo overturned at the Court of Arbitration of Sport.
The Slovenia international had been recently linked with an exit from the Capital outfit after his representative MihaMlakar hinted that the 24-year-old is attracting big club interest including one from the United Kingdom, he said, via Goal: “It is true that there is a lot of interest in the best goalkeeper in the world. There are two clubs especially interested in Oblak for next season. One is in the United Kingdom.”
Oblak had been identified as a potential replacement for Manchester United’s David de Gea, who has recently attracted interest from Real Madrid, while Paris Saint-Germain are said to have also quoted an interest in the shot-stopper. Atletico were seemingly confident of having their embargo overruled just as their cross-city rivals Real, but the judgement did not go in their favour. Continue reading
Slovenia coach SreckoKatanec said that he had been impressed with the performance of Scotland in the World Cup qualifiers.
SreckoKatanec believes that Scotland was the better team in the match against England at Wembley and it was unfortunate for them to lose the game 3-0. He believes that this is down to bad luck and that with a bit of chance they could have got a positive result from this game.
He said that he has watched the game against England and that he thinks that Scotland did not to be beaten 3-0. He said that the Scots cause the England team a lot of problems on the pitch and they even created some interesting opportunities.
He said that Slovenia has had a decent performance in a tough group and that he is proud of what his players have achieved. He said that there were not a lot of expectations after being drawn in a group comprising of England, Slovakia and Scotland but he feels that his players have given their best on the pitch. Continue reading
Hearts FC have moved to replace injured player [knee ligament damage] Callum Paterson and bolster their defensive options by signing Slovenia international Andraz Struna.
The right back joined Hearts from Greek club PAS Giannina, and he says he is optimistic about the style of play at the club.
“I’m an attacking full back and I think I’ll be a good fit based on the ideas presented to me by the club and the head coach. I like possession football and I understand that is the way Hearts want to play, so I’m optimistic,” the Slovenian was quoted saying. Continue reading