Milan have announced the signing of midfielder Juraj Kucka from Genoa.

The Slovakia international arrives at San Siro on a four-year contract, with the club yet to reveal details of a fee.

Having started his career in his homeland, Kucka secured a move from Sparta Prague to Genoa in 2011.

His early performances in Serie A brought him to the attention of the competition s bigger clubs, with reports in 2013 linking him with a move to Milan.

Two years later, that transfer has come to fruition, and Kucka joins Carlos Bacca, Luiz Adriano, Andrea Bertolacci, Alessio Romagnoli and Mario Balotelli as one of a host of new arrivals under coach Sinisa Mihajlovic.

Kucka scored two goals in 34 league appearances for Genoa last term.
 

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Eden Hazard believes Chelsea s problems this season are partly due to the team s participation in the Champions League.

Antonio Conte led the Blues to the Premier League title in his first season in English football, Chelsea having failed to qualify for Europe after finishing 10th in the 2015-16 campaign.

But with European commitments adding to their domestic duties, Chelsea have struggled to maintain their form from last season, sitting fourth in the Premier League after successive defeats against Bournemouth and Watford.

Chelsea were also beaten by Arsenal in the semi-final of the EFL Cup last month, with Hazard citing extra games as a reason for Conte s side finding life harder this term.

I think the Premier League is difficult, he told ESPN FC. It s …

Mathieu Debuchy has joined Saint-Etienne until the end of the season after his contract was terminated by Arsenal.

The right-back joined the Gunners in 2014 but injuries were a contributing factor to him making only 13 Premier League appearances for the club.

The 32-year-old, who began his career and came to prominence at Lille, spent the second half of the 2015-16 season on loan at Bordeaux.

Debuchy made four appearances in the Europa League for Arsenal this season but did not feature in the Premier League.

He joins Yann M Vila, Paul-Georges Ntep and Neven Subotic among the arrivals of a productive transfer window at Saint-Etienne.

— AS Saint-Etienne (@ASSEofficiel)

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RB Leipzig gained a measure of revenge for their 2019-20 Champions League semi-final loss to Paris Saint-Germain, coming from behind to claim a potentially crucial 2-1 win in Group H.

PSG, despite being without both Kylian Mbappe and Neymar through injury, started brightly at Red Bull Arena and took an early lead through Angel Di Maria.

However, the game turned on a tale of two penalties, with Di Maria failing to make it 2-0 from 12 yards before former PSG midfielder Christopher Nkunku levelled in the 41st minute.

Leipzig were then given a chance to complete the turnaround from the penalty spot and it was one Emil Forsberg did not waste, sealing a victory that moves them level on points with group leaders Manchester United and three points clear of PSG, who finis…

Verdict: Gabriel Jesus to score anytime

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Putting together their final preparations before their Copa America campaign gets underway, Brazil will host Honduras on Sunday night.

Brazil

Starting with the hosts, while Brazil may have been disappointed to have only managed a quarter-final finish out in Russia last summer, the Yellows have refound their momentum before the Copa America gets underway next week. Despite Thursday s 2-0 win over Qatar being overshadowed by captain and talisman Neymar limping off injured and being ruled out of their upcoming qualifiers, Tite s men once again impressed and are unbeaten in their nine post-World Cup appearances, winning eight of those contests. Continuing to shine in the final third with a sq…

Andre Villas-Boas expects to leave Marseille at the end of the season after the former Chelsea and Tottenham boss admitted to an abysmal failure.

The 43-year-old, who was appointed by OM in May 2019, will see his two-year contract expire at the end of this campaign.

Marseille sit 13 points behind Ligue 1 leaders Paris Saint-Germain heading into the latest round of fixtures, occupying sixth place having lost their last three games in the competition.

Their Champions League performance was also far short of expectations, with Marseille finishing at the foot of their group with just three points.

Asked whether it looked as though he would leave in June, Villas-Boas said on Friday:  Yes, I think so. I don t have other information.

But I m not asking…

Is Erling Haaland s future becoming clearer?

Haaland s exploits for Borussia Dortmund have attracted interest from far and wide.

But Manchester City appear to be the frontrunners for his signature…

TOP STORY – CITY LINING UP BIG HAALAND BID

Manchester City are confident of landing Borussia Dortmund star Erling Haaland in a £100million (€114m) deal, according to the front page of Friday s Mirror.

Haaland is one of the most sought-after players in Europe, having been linked with the likes of Real Madrid, Liverpool, Barcelona, Manchester United and Juventus.

But City believe winning this season s Premier League will help them sign Haaland at the end of the campaign.

Friday s back page: Pep s in ha ha land

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Ghana coach James Appiah is pleased his side reached the Africa Cup of Nations semi-finals despite aiming to win the tournament.

Burkina Faso surprisingly eliminated Ghana on Wednesday, winning their semi-final in Nelspruit 3-2 on penalties after the encounter had finished locked at 1-1.

Ghana will be aiming to secure third spot when they take on Mali on Saturday and Appiah said his inexperienced squad had done well in South Africa.

It s a long time – 31 years – since we last won the cup, Appiah said.

I took over the position around 10 months ago and coming into this competition I came in with 11 players who have never played in this competition before. I m trying to build a new team for the nation.

For me, they did very well in getting …

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After enduring the heartbreak of conceding a last-minute goal in the final of the previous season, Fiorentina is set to make their comeback in the Europa Conference League. This Thursday, they are scheduled to compete in the initial match of their playoff series against Rapid Vienna, at the Allianz Stadium.

Despite their disappointment of falling short against West Ham United in June, La Viola is determined to seize another opportunity for European success. Yet, their path to securing a spot in the group stage is obstructed by the challenge posed by Rapid Vienna.

Rapid Vienna

Although the season has just kicked off for Fiorentina, Rapid Vienna is already four matches deep into the latest Austrian Bundesliga season. Their imp…

Sampdoria coach Vincenzo Montella stated he sees shades of himself in Juventus forward Paulo Dybala.

During his playing career, Montella consistently found the back of the net in Serie A at Sampdoria and Roma, who he helped to the Scudetto in 2000-01 with 13 goals.

Dybala already has nine in his maiden season at Juve following a big-money transfer from Palermo, proving a capable replacement for the departed Carlos Tevez.

The Sampdoria boss confessed to trying to sign the 22-year-old Argentina international when he was coaching at Catania in the 2011-12 season and is reminded of himself when watching the striker.

Dybala is a great player – he reminds me a bit of myself when I was a youngster, said Montella.

When I was the coach of Catania we …