Football transfer news

Inter striker Diego Milito has expressed his admiration for Mattia Destro’s abilities as the Serie A side continue their search for a supplementary attacker.

The Nerazzurri are currently without a back-up target man, and Inter’s top scorer last season appears to have reached his own conclusions about who to sign, hailing Roma’s Destro as an up-and-coming striker to look out for.

“I really like Mattia Destro,” Milito told Inter Channel.

“I watched him play three years ago before he left us. He’s young, he has plenty of time to grow and has his whole career in front of him.”

The two strikers were together at Inter in 2010 and Milito saw first-hand the potential of the young man before he left the Inter youth setup for Genoa.

The 22-year-old Italian, who is currently on loan at Roma, is fast becoming one of Italy’s brightest attacking prospects, having scored four goals in 10 appearances this season.

But while Milito praised the Roma forward, he added that the lack of attacking options is not affecting his side.

“The sub striker issue has turned into a drama,” he said. “There is talent all around us.”

Liverpool’s former director of football, Damien Comolli, has urged Raheem Sterling to sign a new contract with the Anfield outfit.

As Goal.com exclusively revealed on Tuesday, the 18-year-old is set to confirm a five-year deal in the New Year, starting at a basic £30,000 per week.

“My advice would be sign the contract and stay at Liverpool unless there is something which makes him really uncomfortable,” Comolli told TalkSPORT.

“We tried to look after Raheem as much as we could – he was really a long-term project – and I think he should commit.

“I really don’t think money should be an issue. He is 18 and it is going to be one of many contracts he is going to sign and he is going to end up being a wealthy individual.

“The important contract, if you are money-orientated, is the one you sign when you are 31 not 18.”

Reports have linked the Reds with a move to re-sign Tom Ince in January, the Blackpool youngster having been sold from Anfield two years previously.

“When I arrived [at Liverpool in November 2010] Tom was at the end of his contract,” Comolli continued. “One of the first things I did was meet him and his dad and Paul was concerned the style of play [under Roy Hodgson] was not suited to his son, who was a quick winger.

“When Roy went I think we made four or five contract offers to Tom which he kept turning down. He didn’t feel it was the right place for him to stay.

“The last offer would have made him the highest-earning player beneath the first team but to be fair to him I don’t think money was the issue.

“We never released him. You don’t release a player like this, you can’t force him to stay.

“I am very pleased that he is doing well. If they buy him back, good for him and good for Liverpool.”

Jack Wilshere, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Aaron Ramsey are among five Arsenal players to agree new long-term contracts as Arsene Wenger aims to build a strong future team around a young British core.

The three Gunners have all committed their futures to the north London club by signing new deals, with Kieran Gibbs and Carl Jenkinson the other two players who have joined in agreeing extensions.

The quintet of young internationals have between them made over 350 first-term appearances for the Premier League side, with Wilshere in particular labelled as a future club captain and England star.

Wenger revealed the extensions are part of his long-term plan to build a team around a core of young, British players, insisting that stability now will help them in the future.

“We are delighted that these five young players have all signed new long-term contracts,” he told the club’s official website. “The plan is to build a team around a strong basis of young players, in order to get them to develop their talent at the club.

“Jack is certainly the best known, the leader of this group – but the other four players are exceptional footballers, and we’re very happy that we could conclude their new deals at the same time.

“Gibbs, Jenkinson, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Ramsey and Wilshere represent a core of the squad and it’s an extension for a long period for all of them.

“I’m a strong believer in stability and I believe when you have a core of British players, it’s always easier to keep them together and that’s what we’ll try to achieve going forward.”

All five of the players to agree new contracts have represent their respective countries at international level. Ramsey, 21, captains Wales and has made 24 appearances for the national team, while the other four have all won senior caps for England.

Wilshere, 20, and Oxlade-Chamberlain, 19, are well-establish members of Roy Hodgson’s Three Lions’ squads, while 23-year-old Gibbs has made two appearances and 20-year-old Jenkinson made his debut in the friendly against Sweden in November.

Wenger will be hoping that he can sucre the continued services of one other young English international, however, with contract-rebel Theo Walcott’s future still in the balance.

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Karim Benzema has insisted that he has no intention in leaving  Real Madrid any time soon as he wants to win the Champions League with the Santiago Bernabeu side.

The France international has recently been linked with a move to Paris Saint-Germain, but Benzema is unaware of any interest from the Ligue 1 giants as he is focused on winning silverware with his current club.

“I don’t know anything about that [PSG’s interest]. I’m happy at Real Madrid, I want to be at this club. It’s the biggest club in the world and our story together isn’t over,” the striker told France Football.

“I’m at Madrid to win everything. The Champions League is a big part of my ambitions. Here, everyone wants to win the decima, and I want to be part of the team that achieves it.”

Madrid last won the Champions League in 2001-02 under Vicente del Bosque.