Football transfer news

Atlanta United are set to take on CF Montreal in an Eastern Conference showdown on September 23 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Following their impressive showing against Inter Miami, Atlanta United then traveled to the nation’s capital to take on DC United at Audi Field in a contest that ended in a 1-1 draw. Although Atlanta looked the better side early on, they have have been fortunate to come away with a point seeing how the latter stages of the game unfolded.

On the other hand, Montreal are coming off back-to-back draws against Chicago Fire (0-0) and FC Cincinnati (1-1). The Canadian side are just about in a playoff position in the Eastern Conference standings in eighth place with 37 points, and will be hoping to avoid defeat in the Peach State.

Will the Five Stripes prevail at home in front of their supporters, or will the Canadian side pick up an all-impressive road victory to boost their playoff hopes?

Atlanta United vs CF Montreal H2H record

Winger Saba Lobjanidze picked up right where he left off against DC, notching a goal in the 14th minute to give Atlanta the lead. The Georgia international was lively throughout the first half and the goal was coming for the 28-year-old.

Atlanta also came away from the draw with no fresh injuries, while Osvaldo ‘Ozzie’ Alonso is still recovering from a leg injury and is unlikely to feature.

Atlanta United predicted lineup vs CF Montreal ( 4-2-3-1 ): Guzan; Lennon, Robinson, Abram, Wiley; Muyumba, Rossetto; Lobjanidze, Almada, Silva; Giakoumakis.

Aaron Herrera is expected to be back with the team early next month as he’s recovering from an ankle injury, while Robert Orri Thorkelsson’s groin injury also sees him sidelined until early October.

Another ankle injury in the camp has Jules-Anthony Vilsaint out of action until late October, when Montreal hope to be in the mix for MLS Cup playoffs.

With the Five Stripes back at home, it seems that they have all the tools necessary to cook up a win as they look qualify for the playoffs. If the likes of Thiago Almada, Giorgos Giakoumakis, Xande Silva and Lobjandize continue their excellent ways, there’s no reason as to why Atlanta shouldn’t walk away from the game without scoring three or four goals.

However, their defense (that has been improved in recent weeks) is still a weakness and was on display at various parts against DC and could keep the visitors in the game. Should Montreal’s Kwadwo Opoku and and Mathieu Choiniere be on point, they could have enough to give Atlanta’s backline some trouble here and there.

But at home, Atlanta should have enough in their ranks to pull off a comfortable win against Montreal.

Prediction: Atlanta United 3-1 CF Montreal

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After a dull 1-1 draw in the nation’s capital with DC United, Atlanta United head coach Gonzalo Pineda may be looking to bring some players back to the starting lineup when they play host to CF Montreal.

Given that the clash with DC was a midweek matchup, Pineda rotated some of his lineup with Tyler Wolff, Saba Lobjanidze and Ajani Fortune all featuring from the start at Audi Field.

Now, back at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Pineda just might call on the likes of Matheus Rossetto and the back-flipping Xande Silva to take their place in the starting XI in the Eastern Conference clash.

GK: Brad Guzan – No surprises here. The veteran shot-stopper had a decent night against DC and shined when playing out from the back.

RB: Brooks Lennon – He didn’t get involved much going forward at Audi Field like he usually does, and he’ll be hoping to be back amongst the goals against Montreal.

CB: Miles Robinson – In what might be his final season with Atlanta, Robinson has consistently held his own in the backline.

CB: Luis Abram – Could Abram be left out due to playing so many games recently? Maybe. But he’s been in solid form as of late, so Pineda might not want to take that chance just yet with bringing Juan ‘Juanjo’ Purata back in the XI.

LB: Caleb Wiley – The young full-back has continued to improve his game week after week in a back-four and his skills going forward haven’t been to shabby, either.

DM: Tristan Muyumba – Like several other players in the lineup, Muyumba hasn’t really got the chance to catch his breath since joining Atlanta, but he is needed in just about every game.

DM: Matheus Rossetto – The former Athletico Paranaense player has looked like a new player in the midfield when paired with Muyumba.

RW: Saba Lobjanidze – After coming off the bench vs Inter Miami and playing 60 minutes against DC, Lobjanidze is in line for a start at home.

AM: Thiago Almada – Who else? Almada has been in impeccable form in 2023 with nine goals and 15 assists.

LW: Xande Silva – The electric wide player looks set to feature from the jump and hopes to be back-flipping with the fans again in Atlanta.

ST: Giorgos Giakoumakis – Although he played the full 90 against DC, the Greece international is key to how Atlanta wants to play as he continues his charge for the Golden Boot.

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Jurgen Klopp set a new Liverpool record with his team’s 3-1 Europa League group stage victory over LASK on Thursday evening, having now won more games in European competitions than any other manager in the history of the club.

Last season’s 2-0 win over Napoli in the Champions League group stage was Klopp’s 49th for Liverpool in Europe, equalling the record held by Rafa Benitez.

Thanks to goals from Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah to come from behind in Austria, Klopp moved on to 50 to stand alone and set a new benchmark.

It is more than club legends Bill Shankly and Bob Paisley, the latter of whom won three European Cups during his nine years at the helm. However, a respectful Klopp was quick to point out that the modern nature of European football means his team have played far more games.

The German coach also said it will mean nothing if Liverpool don’t keep winning to progress from the group stage in a competition they have vowed to take seriously this season.

“Let me say it like this, if I still have 50 after the group stage then I’m still the most successful Liverpool manager [in this regard] and everybody will hate the fact!” he said.

“[It’s] nice [to have the record]. We played quite a lot of games in Europe. It’s good that we won that many, we have qualified for four finals. It’s great but probably it’s because in European competition there are just much more games than in the past. I’m pretty sure that’s the reason.”

Liverpool reached the 2016 Europa League final within a few months of Klopp taking charge, before then getting to the Champions League final two years later. They lost on both occasions, but then beat Tottenham to lift the Champions League trophy in 2019.

A fourth European final with Liverpool followed for Klopp in 2022, with Champions League final defeat to Real Madrid, the same side they had lost to in 2018.

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Joao Cancelo has admitted it was a “risk” to join Barcelona from Manchester City during the summer transfer window, but insists it was an opportunity that was impossible to turn down.

Cancelo completed his loan move to Barca on deadline day, having not featured for City since pre-season. The defender had unexpectedly spent the second half of last season on loan at Bayern Munich after becoming dissatisfied over losing his place in Manchester.

In the circumstances, another move away was always likely and Barca got the deal done.

“[City] are the best team in the world and coming here was a risk. But it is Barcelona – when the opportunity comes to you from Barca, you have to come,” Cancelo told Mundo Deportivo.

“My family, all my friends know that I wanted to play here for a long time, it is a club that always excited me because my idols played here,” he added.

“Now, I want to show people the player I am, lately I haven’t had the performance I wanted and I want to give my best version to help this club get back to where it deserves.”

Barcelona sporting director Deco has already confirmed that the club has no option to buy as part of Cancelo’s loan deal. The situation is the same with fellow new arrival Joao Felix.

“Neither Cancelo nor Joao Felix have a purchase option. It is a simple one-year loan. If they do well, we will try to retain them,” Deco recently said on the matter.

It means there are no guarantees that Barca will keep either beyond this season. For Cancelo, the task is simple in that he is fully aware he is playing for his future.

“What I want is to perform, and at the end to speak,” he explained.

“First, perform, win titles with this club, be an important player on the team, and at the end talk about staying or not. It will depend on the club, on how I performed.

“In the end they measure you by performance, if you don’t perform, you don’t stay. If you perform, they will love you. So I want to perform, work and enjoy this club.”

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Juventus are advancing talks with Federico Chiesa over a new contract, 90min understands, with sporting director Cristiano Giuntoli’s influence also playing a role in a potential new deal for Dusan Vlahovic.

Juve poached Giuntoli from Serie A rivals SSC Napoli in July, with the sporting director putting pen to paper on a five-year deal at the Allianz Stadium after miraculously building a Scudetto-winning team in Naples last season.

Giuntoli’s first task as Juventus’ new sporting director has been to help balance the books and he has already had a positive impact on that front – Calciomercato recently revealed that through player sales and the reduction of wages, the club has already saved €70m.

Juventus have also looked much more competitive on the field, making a strong start to the 2023/24 season. They have won three of their opening four Serie A games, defeating Lazio in impressive fashion at the weekend.

Chiesa was a central figure for Juventus in that win, as was Vlahovic, and the pair combined to score all three goals in a 3-1 win for Massimiliano Allegri’s side.

And 90min understands that committing Chiesa to a new contract is seen as a priority for Juventus, with the 25-year-old having just 18 months remaining on his contract. Talks are understood to be advancing with his representatives and the club are ‘confident’ that he will commit his long-term future to Turin.

The 25-year-old has attracted interest from the likes of Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich, Chelsea and Barcelona in recent times, although the latter currently do not see the player as a priority signing after the successful acquisition of Joao Felix on loan from Atletico Madrid.

There is also hope that Serbian striker Vlahovic could follow suit and sign a new deal after being linked with a move away in the summer. Juventus proposed the idea of sending the 23-year-old
to Chelsea in a deal which would see Romelu Lukaku move in the opposite direction, but no move ever materialised.

Instead, he has become a key figure for the club once more, starting every game Juventus have played this season.

90min understands that while Vlahovic wouldn’t have considered signing a new deal at Juve during the summer, the arrival of Giuntoli has had a hugely positive influence on the striker’s willingness to stay at the club.

With that in mind, Giuntoli has been keen to strike while the iron is hot and feelers have been put out to Vlahovic’s representatives in recent days over extending his stay.

Juventus forked out a huge £62.8m fee to sign Vlahovic from Fiorentina back in January 2022, with the Serb returning 21 goals in 46 Serie A appearances for the Turin giants to date.

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