Franck kessié

There is no doubt that Liverpool will have to bring in multiple midfield reinforcements this summer. They have reportedly completed the deal to sign Alexis Mac Allister from Brighton & Hove Albion. But Kessie is clearly not on their list. What does the future have in store? (Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images) Liverpool are now looking at Manu Kone from Borussia Monchengladbach and Khephren Thuram from OGC Nice. While Kessie has the physicality to thrive in English football, he might not be such a good fit for Liverpool. Jurgen Klopp prefers technically gifted midfielders with agility and flair. Meanwhile, The move has clearly not worked out for him and he has struggled for regular game time under Xavi Hernandez. The Ivory Coast international needs to leave in order to play regularly and moving to the Premier League would be ideal for him. It will be interesting to see where he ends up eventually.

Despite making their jobs harder by conceding an own goal, Barcelona have likely all but wrapped up La Liga on Sunday with a 2-1 victory in El Clasico against rival Real Madrid at the Soptify Camp Nou. A 92nd-minute goal by Franck Kessie gave him his first La Liga goal and Barcelona a 12-point advantage atop the league. Real Madrid started quickly registering their first shot on target less than a minute into the match but they wouldn't get another one for over 70 minutes as Barcelona's defense continued to impress. Real Madrid had hope after a Ronald Araujo own goal in the ninth minute but after asking all the questions in attack, Barcelona finally found their breakthrough right before halftime via Sergi Roberto. Scoring his first goal in an El Clasico, Roberto took advantage of a ball pinging around the box, driving it past a helpless Thibaut Courtois. Then Barcelona withstood waves of Real Madrid pressure before Kessie called game in stoppage time. In a game where Real Madrid needed nothing less than a victory, the team didn't show fight until a triple change in the 76th minute which didn't leave them with enough time to fend off a dominant Barcelona team. Has Xavi arrived? Coaching his first El Clasico at home, it was a victory that had to feel good for Xavi in his third straight win over Real Madrid. This season has been a struggle for Barcelona with the team crashing out of Champions League and Europa League which has created financial uncertainty but Xavi has kept f...

Editor Kessie will provide back up to aging veteran captain Sergio Busquets in the pivot role moving forward, in an area of the pitch which Frenkie de Jong has acknowledged is his favorite. In some ways, Kessie's arrival could speed up the Dutchman's potential exit to Manchester United, but there are conflicting reports on whether De Jong will accept a contract offer from the Red Devils after it was said that they and Barca are nearing a €65mn ($68mn) plus add-ons transfer agreement. Though Kessie has finalized terms with Barca, registering him for La Liga and other competitions is a different matter entirely due to the club's negative salary limit of -€144mn ( $150mn) amid debts of $1.5bn. Ahead of last season, some players including Gerard Pique had to take paycuts so that new acquisitions such as Memphis Depay could be registered, and De Jong has also reportedly been told that he must reduce his wages if he wants to stay in Catalonia as is his apparent wish stated both publicly and in private.

He showed why he is one of the stars to watch in the Olympic tournament after scoring the decisive goal in the Elephants' 1-0 win against Saudi Arabia on July 22. With his contract with AC Milan set to expire in 2022, there is already high interest in the lanky midfielder from several clubs including Italian champions Inter Milan and Premier League giants Liverpool. But the 24-year-old is not letting that distract him from his biggest goal of the season. He’s on a mission to help his nation clinch their first football medal at the Olympics. Cote d’Ivoire plays Brazil on July 25 in the second match of the Group D before their final group match against Germany three days later. Here are five things you should know about the Ivorian star touted for his ‘calm and composure’ as he showcases his talent at the biggest stage in global sports. Franck Kessie of AC Milan and Cote d'Ivoire. (2019 Getty Images) 1. Kessie ‘The President’ We know of a footballer-turned-president, George Weah, the Liberian legend who is currently serving as his country’s head of state. But there’s only one active footballer-cum -president currently featuring at the Olympic Games - Franck Kessie! The Ivorian player who joined AC Milan in 2017 earned his sporting nickname from his teammates in the dressing room. "Why do they call me 'The President'? Because I'm the president of the team, the head of the locker room,” he told Italy’s Sky Sport. “I like it. It’s a nickname given as a joke, but as long as they...

According to the latest reports in Spain, Inter Milan are preparing to sit at the table with Barcelona to discuss a potential transfer for Franck Kessié, with the Italian club eyeing a player exchange. The 26-year-old rose to fame at Atalanta before joining AC Milan in 2017. After winning the 2021/22 Scudetto title, he left Italy to join Barcelona on a free transfer. Nonetheless, his first campaign at Camp Nou hasn’t been too inspiring. The Ivorian contributed with three goals and as many assists in his 43 outings across all competitions. But he mostly served as an understudy to the likes of Sergio Busquets, Frenkie De Jong and Pedri. So according to Catalan newspaper Sport via FcInterNews, The Blaugrana have already warned the midfielder about his expected lack of playing time next season, advising him to start searching for a new club. Therefore, Inter could be the favorites to land Kessié, as they hope to strike an exchange deal with Barcelona. As the source explains, the Nerazzurri will struggle to come forward with an offer that exceeds 30 million euros. Thus, they’ll be looking to reduce the costs by offering one of their players as a bargaining chip. However, finding a formula that satisfies all parties could be a complicated task for the Italian giants. The report claims that Inter have offered the services of Denzel Dumfries and Joaquin Correa, but neither player would fit in Xavi’s tactical system. On the other hand, Marcelo Brozovic could be a more enticing coun...