Verratti extends PSG contract

Chelsea star Eden Hazard aimed a dig at former manager Jose Mourinho, praising Antonio Conte for treating his players well.

Mourinho s time at Stamford Bridge came to an end before Christmas last year after his team lost nine of their opening 16 Premier League games.

The Portuguese tactician s relationship with key players, including Hazard, came under the spotlight.

Hazard s form dipped in 2015-16, but he has started this season under Conte on fire with two goals in three league games.

Speaking to L Equipe, Hazard said: Conte puts trust in his players and now we are good after an ugly season last year.

I ve always been the same player but Conte knows how to treat players having played at the highest level himself.

Now at Manchester Unit…

Juventus have completed the signing of Dinamo Zagreb winger Marko Pjaca for €23million.

The 21-year-old featured for Croatia at Euro 2016 and was soon linked with a move to the likes of Inter and AC Milan.

However, Serie A champions Juve emerged as front-runners and the club confirmed on Thursday that Pjaca has penned a five-year-deal.

Juventus Football Club can today confirm that Marko Pjaca has completed a permanent switch from Dinamo Zagreb for a fee of €23m, to be paid over two financial years, a club statement read.

The 21-year-old has signed a five-year contract with the club.

OFFICIAL: Marko signs for Juventus on a five-year deal:

— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen)

Pjaca s move to Juventus Stadium had been expecte…

Roma midfielder Miralem Pjanic has stressed that he does not want to leave the club despite speculation surrounding his future.

Pjanic, 23, joined Roma from Lyon in 2011 and has two years remaining on his contract at the Stadio Olimpico.

The Bosnia and Herzegovina international has been linked with moves to Arsenal and Tottenham in the close-season.

However, he insists that he has no desire to leave Roma.

I don t want to leave. Everyone at the club knows that, he told the club s official website.

I ve always wanted to stay here. I want to give everything to start the season well.

I don t know about the financial situation at the club. A new contract? It doesn t happen overnight. We re talking about it.

The desire is there and we ll see what hap…

Phil Jones wants to establish himself as a centre-back for Manchester United this season.

The England international has proved a versatile asset for the Old Trafford club since joining from Blackburn Rovers in 2011, playing at full-back and in midfield.

But the 21-year-old believes that he is best suited to playing in central defence and is keen to nail down a regular berth in the position.

I have said from day one I see myself as a centre-back, he said.

But if I am asked to play in midfield or at right-back I am happy to do so. As long as I am in the team, it doesn t matter whether I am in goal.

Of course, towards the middle and end of my career I will want to start cementing a place in a certain position but at the moment I am happy.

Jones featured…

Anderlecht player Axel Witsel became public enemy number one here Monday a day after putting Standard Liege s Marcin Wasilewski in hospital with a broken ankle and facing a year out of football.

Wasilewski, 29, underwent an operation after the 1-1 league draw on Sunday to reduce the fracture but, with an injury similar to the horrific one suffered by Arsenal s Eduardo in February 2008, he is expected to go under the knife again next week.

His club Standard, the defending league champions from the French-speaking city of Liege, said the defender could be out for a year meaning he will miss the World Cup finals if Poland manage to qualify.

Witsel meanwhile was put through the wringer by the country s press, which is believed to be partly because he is considered a…

Aston Villa have completed the signing of Nice full-back Jordan Amavi for an undisclosed fee.

The defender, who has represented France at Under-21 level, has penned a five-year deal at Villa Park.

Amavi joins the likes of Idrissa Gueye, Mark Bunn and Micah Richards in moving to the Premier League club during the close-season.

I m delighted to have secured the services of someone we consider to be a terrific young player, manager Tim Sherwood told Villa s official website.

Jordan has been one of the outstanding players in Ligue 1 and is still very young and can become even better.

There were a lot of clubs after him this summer so we are really pleased to welcome him to the club.

Amavi broke into the first-team at Nice in the 2013-14 …

Manchester City have joined Chelsea in the race to sign John Stones from Everton, .

Manuel Pellegrini’s men, who finished in second place eight points behind the Blues last season, have been steadily adding more home grown players to their squad this summer with Patrick Roberts, Fabian Delph and Raheem Sterling all securing moves to the Etihad Stadium.

However, they are now ready to move for England international defender Stones, who has recently been the subject two big money bids from Chelsea, both of which have been rejected by the Toffees.

Stones moved to Goodison Park from Barnsley in the summer of 2013, and has since racked up fifty-four appearances for the club, scoring his one and only goal for the club so far in a 3-0 win over Manchester United bac…

Nabil Fekir has left Lyon and joined Real Betis, potentially paving the way for Giovani Lo Celso s departure.

France international Fekir, 26, entered the final 12 months of his deal at the start of July and LaLiga club Betis swooped to complete a transfer that could cost them €29.75million, with the deal also including a potential 20 per cent sell-on bonus for Lyon.

His younger brother, Yassin Fekir, has also moved to the Benito Villamarin, and Lyon will receive 50 per cent of any future transfer fee for the 22-year-old.

The versatile attacker, who has hit 36 Ligue 1 goals in the last three years, almost moved to Liverpool in 2018 and was linked to Arsenal after declining to discuss new terms with Lyon, the club he captained for two seasons.

Fekir prog…

Carlo Ancelotti described Pep Guardiola as a genius despite admitting Manchester City s levels have dropped since last season as he prepares to take his Everton side to the Etihad Stadium.

Former Chelsea and Real Madrid boss Ancelotti has overseen victories in both of his matches in charge of the Toffees since taking over from caretaker manager Duncan Ferguson, but he said facing the champions on New Year s Day would be a stern test.

Third-placed City are 14 points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool after suffering two defeats in their last five league outings, but Ancelotti said he still regards Guardiola as a master of the game.

Pep is a fantastic manager, Ancelotti told reporters. I have a good relationship with him. 

We met some times, not a …

If ever proof was needed of the renaissance enjoyed by Tottenham Hotspur under the guidance of Harry Redknapp, it could be writ large in the English Premier League table on Saturday.

The north Londoners could move joint top with a home win over Stoke City, almost a year to the day since Redknapp assumed control of a club in freefall.

Their stay at the summit might be brief Chelsea could overtake them with a victory over Blackburn later Saturday, while Manchester United do not play against Liverpool until Sunday and given Stoke s dogged reputation, it might not even happen at all.

But, either way, there can be no doubting the extraordinary effect Redknapp has had on Tottenham in the space of 12 short months.

The extent of Spurs woes in October 2008 can ha…