Man City and Chelsea remain in talks over Maresca

Enzo Maresca was an assistant to Pep Guardiola during Manchester City’s Treble-winning 2022-23 campaign

Manchester City and Chelsea remain locked in negotiations about Enzo Maresca replacing Pep Guardiola.

Guardiola announced on 22 May he would step down as City boss after a trophy laden decade in charge, and Maresca was quickly identified as the leading contender to be his replacement.

Talks are at an advanced stage, with senior figures at both clubs discussing a compensation package for Maresca.

The 46-year-old won the Club World Cup and Conference League during his time at Stamford Bridge but left in January and is keen to take the City job.

Chelsea feel they are due compensation under the terms of Maresca’s departure as he was contracted to the club until 2029 and left just six months ago.

The London club have been exploring their legal options and expect a compensation package to be paid, though it remains unclear both how much that might be, or when it will be resolved.

Maresca was an assistant to Guardiola during City’s Treble-winning 2022-23 campaign and played a key role in the club’s academy prior to joining the first team.

The former West Brom and Juventus midfielder left City in 2023 to manage Leicester, whom he guided to promotion to the Premier League in his only season.

Maresca’s final six months at Chelsea were marked by a fractured relationship with the club’s ownership.

Compensation negotiations have been made more complex as Chelsea became aware of City’s potential interest early in October and December.

Chelsea sources also claim they were aware of complaints from Maresca about the transfer policy at Stamford Bridge.

It is not known whether this played any role in Maresca’s departure, but the relationship continued to further deteriorate over a number of issues, including medical staff and team selections.

Despite the tension, Chelsea sources say the hierarchy still respected much of Maresca’s work with the players and he remained popular with the majority of the dressing room.

The club feel the upheaval played a major role in the club’s drop in form after his exit, with them not ending up qualifying for Europe.

Maresca had been open to renewing his contract early in the season amid interest from Serie A side Juventus.

City last week had an opening bid for midfielder Elliot Anderson rejected by Nottingham Forest.

The 23-year-old England international tops the club’s list of midfield targets following the departure of captain Bernardo Silva, and sources say they are expected to make another bid.

City have long admired Anderson, and they will not be swayed from paying a significant fee which could become a record fee for a British player.

Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis is known to be a tough negotiator and is understood to want more than the £105m Arsenal paid to sign midfielder Declan Rice from West Ham in 2023.

Anderson is currently at the World Cup, but England boss Thomas Tuchel has said squad members will have permission to finalise transfers provided it does not significantly affect the team’s preparations.

BBC Sport has previously reported Anderson is leaning towards a move to City over rivals Manchester United.

Mourinho set for Real after Perez re-elected

Jose Mourinho’s last trophy was the Europa Conference League with Roma in 2022

Jose Mourinho is set to be confirmed as Real Madrid’s new head coach after Florentino Perez was re-elected as the club’s president until 2030.

Mourinho, 63, signed a three-year deal last month to become head coach of Real, but his contract would only be valid if Perez retained his role.

The 79-year-old, who obtained 65% of the vote, has been in office since 2009 and announced the election during an extraordinary news conference last month.

“We have won the elections and will continue working to keep winning titles,” Perez said. “I am still here and I am here to defend Real Madrid.

“We will continue working so that Real Madrid keeps winning titles, and we will fight until the end to achieve the 16th European Cup.

“We will continue to take pride in the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, the best stadium in the world.

“Proud to have the best players in the world, proud to welcome back one of the best coaches in the world, a Madridista like Jose Mourinho. And rest assured, with me as president, Real Madrid has been, is, and will always remain owned by its members.”

Perez appointed Mourinho as Real Madrid boss in 2010

Real Madrid is owned entirely by members who elect the president, with this the first presidential election in 20 years to feature a challenger - renewable energy magnate Enrique Riquelme.

Perez was expected to win and promised to make a club record offer for an unnamed “great player” if re-elected.

He took 100% of the in-person and postal votes counted, gaining 21,741 votes to Riquelme’s 11,814 (35%).

Mourinho is leaving his role as manager of Benfica, where he took charge in September and led them to third place in the Primeira Liga this season.

In his previous spell in charge of Real between 2010 and 2013, the Portuguese won La Liga, the Copa del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup.

Mourinho will replace Alvaro Arbeloa, who only took charge in January following Xabi Alonso’s departure as boss.

Real ended their 2025-26 campaign without silverware, with rivals Barcelona sealing the La Liga title with a 2-0 El Clasico victory.

Wolves sign Trippier and in Jimenez talks

Raul Jimenez was among the scorers in a 5-1 win against Serbia in Mexico’s final World Cup warm-up match on Friday

Wolves have signed former England full-back Kieran Trippier and are in talks to re-sign former striker Raul Jimenez on a free transfer.

Trippier left Newcastle at the end of the season when his contract expired and has signed a two-year deal at Molineux.

The 35-year-old played 160 times for Newcastle after joining from Atletico Madrid in January 2022, and made 54 appearances for England between 2017 and 2024.

“We know what we’ve lacked this year, and we know what we need next year - experience, leadership, resilient characters and strong characters,” said head coach Rob Edwards.

“That’s what we’re going to need in abundance, and Tripps ticks every box.”

Jimenez, 35, was listed by Fulham on Monday among a group of players set to leave the Premier League club when his contract expires at the end of the month.

It is understood negotiations have begun over a return to Molineux, where he scored 57 goals in 166 games between 2018 and 2023.

His 40 Premier League goals make him Wolves’ top scorer in the English top flight.

Jimenez is on international duty with World Cup hosts Mexico, who begin the tournament against South Africa on Thursday.

Wolves are looking to rebuild after finishing bottom of the Premier League last season and being relegated to the Championship.

Brighton agree £21.5m deal for winger Yohanna

Brighton have agreed to sign winger Zadok Yohanna from AIK Stockholm in a deal worth £21.5m.

The 18-year-old Nigerian is set to join the Seagulls on a five-year contract in a move which will be finalised when the summer transfer window opens on Monday, 15 June.

“I’m looking forward to working with Zadok,” said Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler. “Having seen his games and his attributes, he is a player that can impact games in the final third.

“He’s still young, and will need time to adapt to the club and Premier League, but he’s an exciting player to watch and he brings the kind of creativity we know our fans will enjoy.”

Yohanna joined AIK Stockholm from the Ikon Allah Football Academy in Nigeria and has five goals and four assists in 18 appearances for the Swedish club since his debut in August 2025.

Lightning halts pre-World Cup friendly in Texas

Saudi Arabia’s World Cup warm-up game against Puerto Rico in Texas was halted for nearly two hours because of extreme weather.

The match at the Q2 Stadium in Austin was stopped in the 21st minute as thunderstorms and lightning forced players off the pitch, with messages telling fans to seek shelter.

There were a number of lightning strikes before the match eventually resumed, with Saudi Arabia winning 3-0.

The 2026 World Cup, which is being held across Canada, Mexico and the United States, starts on 11 June.

It is taking place at the peak of the thunderstorm season in several host cities, and if a lightning strike is detected within eight miles of a stadium the game will be stopped.

A mandatory 30-minute countdown then begins and, each time there is a lightning strike inside the distance, the countdown clock resets to 30 minutes again.

While the Q2 stadium will not host any matches during the World Cup, two stadiums in Texas will be used during the tournament.

There will be seven matches at the Houston Stadium, while the Dallas Stadium will host nine matches, including England’s group game against Croatia, although both venues have retractable roofs which can reduce the impact of the weather.

Last year, the Club World Cup took place in the US and Chelsea’s last-16 tie against Benfica in Charlotte lasted for four hours and 39 minutes as it was one of a number of games halted because of seasonal summer thunderstorms.

Heat is also expected to be an issue at the World Cup, with researchers warning temperatures at 14 of the 16 stadiums being used could exceed dangerous levels.

Saudi Arabia play their final warm-up game against Senegal on Tuesday (Wednesday 00:00 BST) before they start their World Cup campaign against Uruguay at the Miami Stadium on 15 June (23:00 BST).

They have further Group H games against Spain in Atlanta on 21 June (17:00 BST) and Cape Verde in Houston on 26 June (27 June, 01:00 BST).