Toulouse have completed the signing of centre-back Jean-Armel Kana-Biyik from Ligue 1 rivals Rennes.

The defender has signed a two-and-a-half-year contract at Stadium Municipal.

Kana-Biyik joined Rennes from Le Havre in June 2010 but, after initially becoming an integral part of their defence, persistent thigh problems last season saw the former Cameroon international s influence diminish. He was also suspended for confrontations with supporters in May 2014.

The 25-year-old has failed to make a Ligue 1 appearance this season after being frozen out by coach Philippe Montanier.

Toulouse will lose four players to the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations and the arrival of Kana-Biyik gives them defensive reinforcements.

A statement on the club s website r…

Memphis Depay remains Barcelona s preferred transfer option, while Manchester United want Jadon Sancho and Alex Telles in this window.

LaLiga giants Barca have been linked with numerous attackers as they rebuild under Ronald Koeman.

Depay has seemingly been the favourite to join, and it appears nothing has changed.

TOP STORY – DEPAY THE FAVOURITE TO JOIN BARCELONA

Depay is in pole position to join Barcelona from Lyon, according to Mundo Deportivo.

The report says Depay, 26, fits the profile and salary expectations at Barca.

Depay and Koeman worked together while the latter was in charge of the Netherlands between 2018 and 2020.

Depay pole

en nuestra portada de este sábado

— Mundo Deportivo (@m…

Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu believes superstar captain Lionel Messi can play until he is 45 years old.

Messi scored his 600th goal for Barca on Wednesday as the five-time Ballon d Or winner s brace helped the club to a 3-0 Champions League semi-final first-leg win over Liverpool.

The 31-year-old re-signed with Barca in 2017 – an extension that runs through to 2021 – and Bartomeu thinks retirement is still a long way off for Messi.

The day that Messi retires — well, I won t be president because he ll outlast me, Bartomeu told the Daily Mail. He has so much football still to give.

I still think it s a long way off. Look at the power in that free-kick [he scored against Liverpool]. He s a long way out and that ball really flies. He s str…

Ralf Rangnick has hinted he would consider staying in charge of Manchester United beyond the end of the season.

The new interim boss has been appointed to guide United through the remainder of this campaign after the sacking of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

He gave a first news conference as United boss on Friday morning and began to lay out a manifesto, while speaking of a long-held love affair with English football.

The 63-year-old accepts it will be difficult to make immediate changes because he is joining close to the halfway point in a season, and time on the training pitch between games is limited.

But the former RB Leipzig and Hoffenheim head coach feels he can make a difference at Old Trafford, and he is not ruling out the possibility of staying on for lo…

Leeds United are keen on signing Michael Olise from Reading in the January transfer window, according to . It has been reported by the British tabloid that Leeds, who are playing in the Premier League this season after winning automatic promotion from the Championship at the end of the 2019-20 campaign, wanted to sign the 19-year-old midfielder in the summer of 2020 and remain keen on securing his services.

However, Leeds are not the only club who are interested in the talented and promising young midfielder this month. The report has claimed that Premier League rivals Crystal Palace want him too and are actually leading the race for his signature.

Olise has made 16 starts and six substitute appearances in the Championship for Reading so far this season, scoring four go…

Ipswich Town missed the chance to move into an automatic promotion spot as play-off-chasing Hull City came from behind three times in a thrilling 3-3 Championship draw at The MKM Stadium.

Ipswich knew a victory would take them second after Leeds United were surprisingly beaten 4-0 by Queens Park Rangers on Friday, and they led on three separate occasions, George Hirst opening the scoring before Omari Hutchinson produced two brilliant strikes from the edge of the area.

However, buoyed by slip-ups from rivals Norwich City and West Brom earlier on Saturday, Hull dug deep to fight back on each occasion, Ozan Tufan and Liam Delap scoring their first two equalisers.

With Liam Rosenior s men 3-2 down with just four minutes to play, substitute Noah Ohio blasted his shot …

Luis Enrique described Gavi s abilities as out of the ordinary following his scintillating World Cup debut for Spain.

Barcelona teenager Gavi marked his major tournament bow by scoring an exquisite volley as Luis Enrique s team thrashed Costa Rica 7-0 on Wednesday, becoming the third-youngest goalscorer in World Cup history.

Only Brazil great Pele in 1958 (17 years, 239 days) and Mexico s Manuel Rosas in 1930 (18 years, 93 days) have hit the net at the tournament when younger than Gavi, who did so at the age of 18 years and 110 days.

Asked about Gavi s abilities during a Twitch livestream on Thursday, Luis Enrique said: It s not very normal, it s something out of the ordinary.

We all realise how difficult it is to do it at the age that he does it.

…

England under-21 boss Stuart Pearce says he has no concerns about his long-term future despite his contract expiring next year.

Pearce has been in charge of the England under-21 side since 2007 and has also had spells as caretaker manager of the senior team and coach of Team GB during the London Olympics.

During Fabio Capello s time as national team boss, Pearce doubled up as under-21 manager and a senior team coach but he has not reprised the latter role since Roy Hodgson s appointment.

However, despite rumours that the snub has come about because the Football Associate may not renew his contract, Pearce insists he does not have any fears over his future in the national team setup.

I don t think there is any real issue in respect to my future, the 50-…

Greek giants Panathinaikos have announced on their official website that the contract of captain Kostas Katsouranis has been terminated by mutual consent.

The Greece international has been heavily criticized for his form at the start of the new season, with club president Giannis Alafouzos reportedly unhappy with his attitude.

This has led to the club canceling the contract of Kostas Katsouranis, who is now free to negotiate to other clubs.

The news comes just a day before Panathinaikos’ is set to take on Tottenham in a Europa League match.

The 33-year-old midfielder joined PAO in a €2.5 million deal from Benfica in the summer of 2009 and has enjoyed a lot of success at Olympiako Stadio Spyros Louis.

Despite operating as a holding midfielder …

Ibrahim Afellay has declared manager Mark Hughes the most important factor in attracting the likes of Xherdan Shaqiri and Bojan Krkic to the Britannia Stadium.

Since Hughes took over from Tony Pulis as Stoke s manager, the Staffordshire-based club have been able to lure players who were previously rated some of the hottest prospects in Europe but are now looking to reboot their careers.

Afellay fits that mould exactly, with the ex-PSV captain having joined Barcelona midway through the 2010-11 season but never having settled at Camp Nou.

At the Britannia, the 29-year-old midfielder is part of a squad that includes other Barca alumni in Bojan and Marc Muniesa, as well as ex-Chelsea midfielder Marco van Ginkel and former Bayern Munich forward Shaqiri.

It…