BY DAN KARELL
Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, known for his lavish spending on the club’s players, as well as his quick trigger-finger when something goes wrong, has made an offer to Pep Guardiola that would make him the richest manager in the world, according to reports in the Spanish publication Marca.
The report states that Abramovich is presenting the former Barcelona man with a three-year contract worth €66 million total, or €22 million a season.
In contrast, Guardiola’s former rival Jose Mourinho gets paid €15.3 million per season at Real Madrid, which is currently the highest managerial salary in the world.
Guardiola announced his intention to return to coaching next season while speaking to reporters in Zurich at the FIFA Ballon D’or award ceremony, but was coy on what destinations he was favoring.
Here are some other stories to get your Saturday started:
GERRARD UP IN ARMS WITH MANAGER’S YOUTH POLICY
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers spoke this week about his desire to focus on developing local talent in the Liverpool youth academy, as opposed to paying massive fees to bring in foreigners.
Today, club captain Steven Gerrard spoke out on Rodgers policy, creating a PR mess for Liverpool, and in the meantime wedging an ocean between the manager and his coach on the field.
Gerrard stated that he didn’t believe it was right to only focus on youth players when there are plenty of talented players available, even if they are approaching or past the age of 30, when most footballers talents begin to decline.
Liverpool last August rejected a chance to acquire American midfielder Clint Dempsey, reportedly because of liabilities about his age.
COLOCCINI REQUESTS TO LEAVE NEWCASTLE
Newcastle look set to lose yet another key cog in their starting XI, as center back Fabricio Coloccini has rocked the club with a request to return to his native Argentina, reportedly for personal reasons.
Rumors of the move have been traveling around the last few weeks, but it seems now more than ever that the 30-year-old is going to leave Tyneside before the end of the January transfer window.
Coloccini has played in 18 matches in all competitions for Newcastle this season, suffering at times with a hamstring injury, as well as a three-match ban for a sending off.
HOSTS ARGENTINA DROP SECOND MATCH IN A ROW IN SOUTH AMERICAN YOUTH CHAMPIONSHIP
One of the favorites to hoist the title in the South American Youth Championship have just dug themselves a deep hole.
Argentina, hosting the tournament that features the best U-20 talent in CONMEBOL, lost their second match in a row, this time a 2-1 defeat to Paraguay. Argentina took the lead in the 37th minute with a goal from Luciano Vietto, but two second half goals from Paraguay gave the Guarani a win and sent Argentina to the bottom of their group, with just two games left to play.
Argentina must now beat Bolivia and Colombia, and hope that those two, as well as Paraguay, drop points, or else they will not progress into the final round of the tournament for the first time since 1992, when they were banned from the tournament by FIFA.
QUICK KICKS
Liverpool terminates loan contract of midfielder Nuri Sahin, who returns to former club Borussia Dortmund on 18-month loan from Real Madrid (REPORT)
Lyon is rumored to sell either forward Bafetembi Gomis or his strike partner Lisandro Lopez in a wage-cutting measure. (REPORT)
Arsene Wenger doesn’t earn himself any praise, defending ticket hikes as only way for club to stay competitive. (REPORT)
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What do you think of these reports? Do you see Guardiola actually getting the kind of money Abramovich is offering, regardless of where he goes? Surprised to see Gerrard contradict Rodgers so publicly?
Please leave your comments below