Chelsea target Lamine Camara (Picture: AFP) Monaco midfielder Lamine Camara has lifted the lid for the first time on his failed move to Chelsea on transfer deadline day. Having sanctioned Enzo Fernandez’s £120million move to Manchester City, Chelsea identified Camara as their replacement for the Argentina international. After failing with two offers earlier on deadline day, Chelsea finally reached an agreement with Monaco worth €55million (£47.1m) in the closing stages of the transfer window. Monaco had also agreed a £40m deal with Everton to sell Folarin Balogun but the Premier League club raised concerns during the striker’s medical which threatened to scupper the move. Sign up for In The Mixer, Metro's football newsletter Get exclusive analysis and previews of the biggest games every Friday. Sign up now for free. Everton eventually decided to push on with their deal to sign Balogun, which then prompted Monaco to pull out of their agreement with Chelsea over their deal for Camara. Balogun then opted not to join Everton due to their concerns during his medical, but with no time left in the window, Camara’s move to Chelsea was unable to be revived. Now speaking for the first time since the dramatic turn of events, Camara insisted he has tried to ‘turn the page’ and let his performances on the pitch do the talking. Camara saw a deadline day move to Chelsea collapse (Picture: Getty) ‘It’s true that it was a hectic moment, but as you know, that is part of being a professional footballer. I tried to be professional and not think too much about it,’ he told reporters. ‘Did I want to leave? That makes you think that I wasn’t living in the present with the team. ‘There was the possibility [of me joining Chelsea]. At the last minute, it didn’t happen […] if another chance [to leave for a big club] doesn’t come up, it is because I threw in the towel or didn’t work hard enough. Chelsea failed to land a replacement for Enzo Fernandez (Picture: Getty) ‘Football moves quickly and maybe other chances will come. For now, I am focused on what I can bring and on the season at Monaco.’ Seperately, Camara revealed he had confided in former Chelsea midfielder Denis Zakaria following the failed transfer move. ‘He is always there, always in his leadership role as a big brother,’ the Senegalese midfielder added. ‘He spoke to me a lot the day after about what happened with the transfer. They helped me a lot to focus on the match versus PSG. Denis has played at top clubs; he says that these things happen.’ Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso (Picture: Getty) Speaking shortly after the window closed, Camara’s agent, Former Premier League forward Diomansy Kamara, struck a less diplomatic tone about the failed move. ‘We have to get out of this logic where the African player can sometimes give the feeling that he is just a commodity: you buy it, you set its price, you negotiate its future and, too often, your will seems to go to the background,’ Kamara wrote on Instagram. ‘Our African players deserve respect. The respect of their work. The respect of their career. Respecting their ambitions. The respect of their voices. ‘A transfer shouldn’t just be a matter of two clubs and numbers. Behind every contract, there’s a man, a career, dreams and life choices. ‘The fact that clubs can sometimes have the final word is a reality of professional football. But one question remains: what about the career and the will of the player? ‘The player must be able to be heard and respected in the decisions that determine his future. Let’s never forget what’s important: behind every success, it’s the players who write history first.’ For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Comment now Comments Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google Add as preferred source
⚽️ News and updates before the weekend’s football action⚽️ Premier League: 10 things to watch out for | Mail JohnMatthias Jaissle revealed that summer signing Matias Fernandez-Pardo is edging closer to starting for Newcastle.The 21-year-old forward arrived on Tyneside from Lille on deadline day and has featured as a substitute in Newcastle’s last two matches. Speaking ahead of Monday’s clash with Leeds, Jaissle said: “Yeah, he’s getting closer. I said that we need to be smart with his load management. Now he’s getting more and more minutes. Continue reading...
LEWIS STEELE: At the end of a turbulent transfer window, most observers were in agreement. Everton had the worst summer of any Premier League club and were a team in crisis.
Teddy Sheringham believes neither Man Utd nor Man City are ‘top teams’ right now (Photo: talkSPORT) Teddy Sheringham believes Manchester United’s best hope of beating Manchester City is if Michael Carrick starts one star in Sunday’s huge Premier League derby. Under new manager Enzo Maresca, City have made a 100 per cent start to the Premier League season and are just ahead of Arsenal at the top of the table. United meanwhile have won just one of their opening three games, but Sheringham isn’t convinced by either side and thinks the big match is too close to call. ‘It’s a tough game, but I still think it can go either way,’ the former Red Devils striker told talkSPORT. Sign up for In The Mixer, Metro's football newsletter Get exclusive analysis and previews of the biggest games every Friday. Sign up now for free. ‘I don’t think either team are top notch these days. When you look at top teams now, I hate to say it, but Arsenal are the top team in the division and they’re the ones to beat. ‘I think everyone else is chasing them. I think both teams have got a lot of very good players, but still not top teams at the moment. ‘So, it could go either way on Sunday. Let’s hope it goes the Manchester United way, the red way. But it’ll be a tough game. I would probably go for a draw, but obviously I’ll be wanting Man United to win.’ Who will win the first Manchester derby of the season? (Photo: Getty) Carrick’s first-choice starting XI looks pretty set with the exception of the attack. In the last two league games, Matheus Cunha has started at centre-forward, with Marcus Rashford on the left. However, against Sabah in the Champions League on Thursday, Benjamin Sesko was the No.9 with Cunha on the wing. The decision paid off, with both finding the back of the net in a 4-0 win. Sesko scored nine in 17 games under Carrick last season and came off the bench to net what was nearly a late winner at Everton last week. Benjamin Sesko has started on the bench for Man Utd’s opening three games (Photo: Getty) Carrick has suggested he will rotate depending on the opposition, but Sheringham believes that United’s best chance of victory is when Sesko is in the team. ‘I like Sesko. I think he leads the line, brings other players into play and he can score goals. When you look at a centre-forward, that’s what you want from someone. ‘Back in the day, we used to have two centre-forwards. You used to work off each other. Playing that lone role is such a difficult one to play. POLL Poll Who should start at centre-forward for Man Utd? Benjamin SeskoCheck Matheus CunhaCheck OtherCheck Insight that cuts through the mountain of noise. Get expert analysis and fresh perspectives on the football stories that really matter. Email I agree to receive newsletters from Metro I agree to receive newsletters from Metro Sign UpSign UpThis site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Your information will be used in line with our Privacy Policy ‘Didier Drogba was probably the best at it. Samuel Eto’o had a way of playing it years ago. It’s very hard to score goals when you’re that lone player and I would find it very tough to do it. ‘What do you do? Put other players around him. Bruno Fernandes goes and joins in, Bryan Mbeumo joins in, Cunha joins in. ‘But there’s no real focal point if Sesko doesn’t play. So, I would like to say that he’ll be playing and give Man United a good chance of scoring goals as well as not conceding.’ For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Comment now Comments Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google Add as preferred source
Plenty of managers are due to speak today ahead of a busy weekend of Premier League action. Daily Mail Sport brings you all the key news here...
David: Lewis Hall should be made vice captain now. Matthew: He is exactly the type of player 'Newcastle 2.0' should be built around. The interest from Manchester United was disconcerting so I'm delighted we've got him on a long, solid contract now.
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