Theo Hernandez has decided that he wants to leave AC Milan this summer, according to a report that has emerged from his home country France.
Today’s edition of L’Equipe (via Radio Rossonera) has a segment dedicated to French players who could be on the move this summer, which includes Theo but also Marcus Thuram (who could be sold by Inter for a capital gain), Ibrahima Konaté, Adrien Rabiot and Jonathan Clauss.
Theo has made decision to leave Milan when the summer mercato opens after five years at the club. The motivation, as per the paper, is linked to the player’s desire to take the next step in his career, a career which so far has seen Atletico Madrid B, Alavés, Real Madrid, Real Sociedad and Milan.
With his contract expiring in 2026 and with renewal discussions still at a standstill, rumours about the departure of the French left-back are becoming more and more insistent.
To secure the signing of a player considered among the best in the world in his position, a bid of at least €80m must be sent to Milan in order to make them change their mind.
That is because while the player himself may be open to departing, Geoffrey Moncada and his collaborators do not want to sell him, aware of the value and importance of the 26-year-old.
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Arne Slot was taken aback by one question which was put to him at his press conference on Friday morning ahead of Liverpool’s weekend fixture. The 47-year-old faced the media to preview the Reds’ Premier League game against Aston Villa tomorrow night, with the reigning champions badly in need of a morale-boosting win after a horrific run of six defeats in seven matches across all competitions. The dramatic collapse in form has even led some pundits to speculate whether the Dutchman will still be in charge by Christmas, and ex-Everton CEO Keith Wyness recently claimed that talks over a new contract for the LFC head coach are ‘on hold’ amid the losing run. Slot surprised by contract question During this morning’s press conference, Slot was asked if negotiations are ongoing over his contract (which currently runs to June 2027) being extended at Anfield, a topic he was unsurprisingly keen to dismiss. The Liverpool head coach replied (via Liverpool FC on YouTube): “That’s the last question I was expecting! My focus is completely on getting Liverpool back on winning ways. Contract talks, if they are even there, we never speak about this here. Let us first start winning again; that’s my main focus.” Slot is always coy about contractual matters in public Slot’s refusal to speak publicly about contract matters was a recurring them throughout last season when he constantly batted away questions about the futures of Mo Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold. It was therefore incredibly unlikely that he’d talk openly about his own situation today, and it’s preposterous that he should be fielding queries about his status at Liverpool even amid their current slump. We’ve already seen with several clubs this season – not just the Reds – that their fortunes can switch drastically, for better or for worse. Tomorrow’s opponents Villa are a perfect example – 17 places and 12 points adrift of LFC just five weeks ago, they’re now level on points with the champions. If we can return to winning ways this weekend and follow it up with positive results against Real Madrid and Manchester City, the mood music over the November international break will be far more cheerful, and questions over Slot’s future will fade into the background once more. As far as we’re concerned, the Dutchman is here to stay at Liverpool for the foreseeable!
The Washington Nationals were one of a handful of teams heading into the offseason needing a new manager. The Nats fired former manager Dave Martinez, who helped lead them to their first World Series title in 2019, ahead of the All-Star break. They then had to decide if they wanted to keep interim manager Miguel Cairo or head in another direction. The Nationals decided to go in a different direction, announcing on Thursday that they are set to hire the youngest MLB manager in over 50 years. Nationals will hire Blake Butera to be their next manager After going 29-43 after taking over for Martinez, the Nationals decided that Cairo wasn't the man to lead them forward. Washington is hiring 33-year-old Blake Butera to be its next manager, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan. Butera will be a new voice to pair with the new president of baseball operations, Paul Toboni, who took over for former executive Mike Rizzo. According to Passan, Butera will be the youngest manager in more than 50 years. Butera joins Oliver Marmol (39) of the St. Louis Cardinals as the only managers in baseball under 40 years old. In his four-year career as a minor league manager in the Tampa Bay Rays organization, Butera accumulated a 258-144 record. That should bode well for him going to Washington, especially after six straight losing seasons. A former 35th-round draft pick of the Rays, Butera is also a former two-time minor league Manager of the Year in the Rays organization and was the bench coach for Team Italy in the 2023 World Baseball Classic. Nationals need to give Blake Butera everything he needs to be successful Being so young and "inexperienced," Toboni and the Nationals organization will need to surround Butera with a veteran coaching staff. In particular, an experienced bench coach to help guide him through being a big league manager. Someone like former Los Angeles Angels manager Ron Washington would be a good hire to help guide Butera, given his managerial experience and longtime coaching. Coming from the Rays organization, Butera can bring over things he's learned there to help the Nationals improve as an organization. The Rays are consistently at the forefront of analytics and new, innovative ways to build a successful baseball team. Having a young roster and only two players with a decade in the big leagues (Josh Bell and Trevor Williams), Butera should find it easy to connect with some of his younger players, given his age. However, veterans may find it hard to listen to someone as inexperienced as Butera, which he’ll need to work on if the Nationals add any more to help mentor their young core.
LeBron James may be out due to sciatica, but Charles Barkley is not buying it. He thinks he knows what is really going on with the Los Angeles Lakers star. Barkley was goofing around during “Inside the NBA” on ESPN Wednesday and talked about the Lakers, who had several players out for their game at the Minnesota Timberwolves. James was listed as out due to sciatica, which is a nerve issue. Barkley thinks the sciatica injury is a cover for something else. “First of all, LeBron doesn’t have a sciatica. They just put ‘old.’ O-L-D, with an extra ‘D,’ too,” Barkley joked. An update on James’ condition came out this week, saying that the Lakers forward could return in a few weeks. The Lakers have seemed to suggest that there is no urgency to rush James into action. However, Luka Doncic also getting hurt recently may have changed things for the team. For now, the Lakers are 3-2 and have been relying on Austin Reaves to do plenty of scoring. He is averaging 34.2 points per game this season. James is 40 years old and entering his 23rd NBA season. He’s allowed to have “old” or sciatica as an injury issue. As Barkley knows and often says, Father Time is undefeated.
George Springer’s status for Game 6 of the World Series is becoming more clear. Springer has missed the last two games of the World Series after hurting his side on a swing in his Toronto Blue Jays’ 18-inning loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 3. The Blue Jays were able to win Game 4 on Tuesday and Game 5 on Wednesday despite the outfielder’s absence. On Thursday, Blue Jays manager John Schneider said that Springer is physically ready to play in Game 6. “He’s checked every box physically so far,” Schneider said of Springer. Getting Springer back would be a nice boost to the Blue Jays’ lineup, which has performed well even without him. Springer went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts in Game 3 before leaving the game. He’s batting .246 with an .884 OPS this postseason and has mashed 6 doubles and 4 home runs in 57 at-bats. Springer went 1-for-3 in Game 2 against Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who is the Dodgers’ scheduled starter for Game 6. Springer’s double was the Blue Jays’ only extra-base hit of the game, and he scored their only run that contest. His presence would be a big help for Toronto.
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