MOURINHO FED UP
It’s been a full 24 hours since The Sun broke a Jose Mourinho exclusive, but fear not, Friday bears the fruitiest of fruit. And it isn’t Neil Custis with the report. What a glorious day.
Nope, this comes from Phil Cadden, who claims that Mourinho is ‘fed up of waiting’ for Manchester United to appoint him as manager. So ‘fed up’ in fact, that he’s arranged a meeting with Inter Milan co-owner Massimo Moratti this weekend. The Portuguese will consider an offer to return to the club he managed to Champions League glory in 2010, Cadden writes.
Now, describing Moratti as an Inter Milan co-owner is fine. It’s great. No problem. We do prefer minority owner, however; Moratti owns less than 30 per cent of the Italian club. Majority owner Erick Thohir would probably have some sway as to whether Mourinho is appointed manager.
Cadden adds that Mourinho has already refused offers from Real Madrid and Roma to take over this season as he waits for the United job, but the former Chelsea manager is ‘growing impatient’. United appear to be intent on keeping Louis van Gaal at the helm regardless of which European minnow they lose to, but Cadden adds: ‘The prospect of seeing Mourinho slip through United’s fingers may prove the straw the breaks the camel’s back.’
Basically, it suits Moratti to lavish praise on a former friend and colleague, and it suits Mourinho to have his meeting with a club other than United become public knowledge. We just wonder who gave Cadden the information?

ICARDI BREEZER
Corriere dello Sport obviously have not received the Mourinho memo. The Italian daily reports that Jose Mourinho has identified Inter Milan striker Mauro Icardi as his main transfer target for when he takes the Manchester United job. That’s presumably what the meetings with Moratti have been about.
Not only that, but Inter have made a counter-offer to United. If they want Icardi, they must offer right-back Matteo Darmian in exchange. Well, that’s new.

SMALL MATA
Despite being unemployed, Mourinho is certainly a very busy man. We return to The Sun for more news of the players he has lined up for when he takes the Manchester United job (although we thought he was headed to Inter Milan?)
Gary Stonehouse reports – not exclusively – that Atletico Madrid are looking at completing a ‘sensational swoop’ for Juan Mata, with their forward Antoine Griezmann potentially headed the other way. Tasty.
The Mata reports emanate from Spanish bulls**tters Fichajes.net, and revolves around the whole ‘Mourinho hates Mata’ thing. Which is fine. Whatever.
But on top of that, Diego Simeone has ‘reportedly resigned himself’ to losing Griezmann this summer. The Frenchman is a long-term target of United’s, and has scored 19 goals in 33 games this season. The 24-year-old is believed to have a £60m buy-out clause in his contract.

CITY WANT GRANIT
Granit Xhaka wants to move to the Premier League. We know this because he makes a point of telling us.
On February 18: “Everybody has a childhood dream and that’s my childhood dream.”
On February 5: “England is my dream. I do not hide it.”
On January 20: “I have a childhood dream, and that is the Premier League.”
And so on. He didn’t have many childhood dreams, did he? Well, the Swiss midfielder might realise it, as German daily Bild reports that Manchester City want him for £39million. Still. We heard this ages ago. Arsenal and Liverpool are also supposedly interested.

AND THE REST
Manchester United are considering selling striker and captain Wayne Rooney in the summer after receiving a bid for the 30-year-old from a Chinese Super League club. Rooney could earn £500,000 a week as part of the deal…New York Red Bulls and Orlando City want to take Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure, 32, to MLS. The Ivorian is expected to leave the Etihad when Pep Guardiola takes over as manager in the summer…Swansea hope to sign Ghana defender Jonathan Mensah, 25, from French club Evian on a free transfer…Chelsea have met with representatives of Italy coach Antonio Conte, 46, as they search for a permanent successor to the sacked Jose Mourinho…Luis Cavani, father of Paris St-Germain striker Edinson, would like his son to move to Real Madrid, Manchester United or Juventus. The 29-year-old has been played out wide in the French capital…Former Arsenal striker Nicklas Bendtner, 28, could treble his £35,000-a-week wages at Wolfsburg by moving to the Chinese Super League…Inter Milan will try to renegotiate with Manchester City to avoid triggering a permanent deal for 26-year-old striker Stevan Jovetic, who has been on loan at the San Siro since July…Incoming Bayern Munich coach Carlo Ancelotti wants AC Milan’s Colombia international Carlos Bacca, 29, to replace Robert Lewandowski if the 27-year-old Poland international leaves the German champions…Liverpool are considering triggering the £6.2million release clause for Real Betis goalkeeper Antonio Adan.

EVERY POG HAS ITS DAY
Google Translate is our friend.
‘Paul winks to Guardiola, knowing that Mourinho and Zidane did not lose sight of.’
That’s the opening line of a report in Gazzetta Dello Sport on the back of Paul Pogba’s fawning quotes about Pep Guardiola. The crux of the story is that Pogba is very much keeping his options open – knowing that Manchester City would love him at the Etihad (though reports in Spain suggest Toni Kroos could be Guardiola’s chosen replacement for the surely outgoing Yaya Toure), while Jose Mourinho would love him at Manchester United if he takes over there. Meanwhile, there is always Real Madrid, and the Italians tell us that ‘Zizou will do the crazy to take him to the Bernabeu’. And so he should.

DOUGLAS COSTA TO CITY?
Never mind the supposed agreement not to take any Bayern Munich players with him to Manchester City, there are reports in Brazil suggesting that Pep Guardiola will attempt to take Douglas Costa with him to the Etihad. Costa cost £21m last summer from Shaktar Donetsk and has been Bayern’s most impressive performer, creating chance after chance from the left wing. Bad luck Raheem Sterling.
Globoesporte admit that Bayern would be reluctant to allow Costa to leave. Damn right they will. No player in the Bundesliga has notched more assists this season.

WHO DOES SIMEONE WANT AT CHELSEA?
Guus Hiddink says that the rebuild at Chelsea is “not a small job” and the talk from Spain is that Diego Simeone has already identified Ivan Rakitic has a solution in central midfield if he leaves Atletico Madrid for Stamford Bridge. Which is all very well, but would Barcelona sell a player who has featured in 23 of 24 La Liga games this season? Other names mentioned as potential Simeone targets are Marco Reus and Edinson Cavani.  Wow. Now that trio would certainly make Chelsea contenders again.

Head coach of Ikorodu United Football Club of Lagos, Edema Benson has declared that his wards are battle ready for the new Globacom Premier League season due to kick off next month. Speaking to Sports Vanguard at the club’s launch in Ikorodu yesterday, the former Nigeria international who guided the team to promotion within a season said, “we are aware of the challenge ahead of us and I will say without equivocation that we are ready. This is our first season in the top flight but we are not scared of any team as big names don’t play football.”
Drawing inspiration from what is happening in the Barclays Premier League, where a relatively ‘small’ club, Leicester City is topping the table at the moment, Benson said, “we want to replicate what Leicester City is doing in England here in Nigeria. We played Enyimba in Otta a few days back, it was tough for them as we drew the game 2-2. We are not going into the league as second rate. We will justify our place in the Premier League as worthy representatives of the good people of Lagos state, and Ikorodu in particular.”
Benson showered encomiums on his players as he recalled their struggle for promotion: “The beginning was not easy. We lost the opening game and from then on we never looked back again.”

The Chairman of the League Management Company, Shehu Dikko, on Monday gave the Super Eagles $10,000 for defeating Niger Republic 4-1 in the ongoing African Nations Championship (CHAN) group C clash played on Monday.
Sports Minister, Solomon Dalung, Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) President, Amaju Pinnick and Dikko were among the spectators that watched the match at Stade Régional Nyamirambo, Kigali and the trio rejoiced after the final whistle, allnigeriasoccer.com reports.
The players also earned $2,000 each for the victory against Niger Republic, while coach Sunday Oliseh pocketed $4,000

•Fourth round draw to be held today

Nigerian international Mikel  Obi was rested by manager Guus Hiddink in the FA Cup Third round win against English League One side Scunthorpe United yesterday at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues continued their resurgence under the Dutch caretaker manager with a comfortable 2-0 victory but Mikel who has been a mainstay for the former UEFA Champions League winners was given a deserved rest after featuring in all Hiddink’s three previous games.
The former Lyn Oslo midfielder watched from the bench as Spaniard Diego Costa escaped Scott Laird and impressively directed Branislva Ivanovic’s cross past Luke Daniels in goal for the visitors inside the first 13 minutes.
It did not turn out a whitewash as expected as the Blues waited until the second half to double their lead courtesy of substitute Ruben Loftus-Cheek who blasted a shot past the keeper after receiving a pass from Cesar Azpilicueta

Arsenal manager,  Arsene Wenger, had kind words to say about his young Nigerian forward, Alex Iwobi after the Gunners 3 – 1 triumph over Sunderland in the FA Cup on Saturday.
The teenager sparkled in his first start at the Emirates Stadium and was involved in the equalizer netted by Joel Campbell in the first half .
“I liked the timing of his passes. In the middle of the park that is a vital quality and that fact he plays forward and sees [things].
“As a young boy he is not afraid to come on and that is not easy, ” Wenger told reporters, according to arsenal.com.
If the Community Shield is thrown into the mix, Iwobi has been included in Arsenal’s 18 – man squad 14 times this season by the Frenchman.

.

Kelechi Iheanacho   is celebrating his FA Cup goal during  Manchester City’s 3 – 0 triumph over Norwich City in the third round. Sergio Aguero was instrumental in the fifth goal Iheanacho scored in a City shirt in all competitions this season, setting him up just after the half – hour mark , as the visitors gave themselves a two – goal advantage.
“I am very pleased playing with him in the FA Cup. I am very happy and he is a professional. It was a great goal and a good pass from Sergio. I was about to control the ball but I said I should take it first time. I think nothing is enough in football, I will keep working hard and keep giving my best and working hard as a player, learning from the professionals in our team.
As a young player you need to work hard at every training and if you are given the chance to play you have to work hard and really show to the manager that you are deserve to be in, “ he added