#player-transfers

#player-transfers

There were few positives for Sunderland fans in the 2016-17 season as they finished rock bottom and 16 points from safety, but the emergence of one of their own - Jordan Pickford - was a highlight. Initially second choice to Vito Mannone, Pickford was promoted to the first team after an injury to his colleague and never gave up the No.1 spot. He ended the year with the PFA Young Player of the Year award.

The pinnacle of competition for professional footballers is Tuesdays and Wednesdays, facing off against Europe's best teams. If the opportunity to play against the best isn't there next season, it could cause some discontent.

The 18-year-old La Masia graduate, who had made his first-team breakthrough earlier this season under Hansi Flick, signed for French champions PSG in the winter. Dro's contract had a €6 million release clause, and he decided to make use of it to secure a move away, even though in the end PSG ended up paying Barça around €8.5 million - thanks to the good relationship between the two clubs.

After Marseille's 1-0 win over the European champions in September their first at the Velodrome in the league in 14 years the word finally was the word scrawled across the front page of local paper La Provence. That victory brought relief, but also hope and optimism: the Empire could be toppled. But it struck back on Sunday night. Rubbish, read the front page of La Provence on Monday.

Karim Benzema's move to Al-Hilal has cast fresh doubt on the future of Cristiano Ronaldo at Al-Nassr. The 40-year-old was missing from Monday's 1-0 Saudi Pro League win at Al-Riyadh, the day Benzema's move from Al-Ittihad to Al-Hilal was confirmed. Ronaldo is reportedly dissatisfied with how Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, which also has a stake in Newcastle, is controlling the affairs of both Al-Hilal and Al-Nassr, unhappy that a rival club have signed his former Real Madrid teammate.

The 28-year-old won six Champions League titles with OL Lyonnes. Her most recent club was the NWSL side San Diego Wave, with whom she parted ways on Sunday by mutual agreement, having wanted to move back closer to home. She scored seven times in 34 games for San Diego after joining in the summer of 2024, and helped them win the second edition of the World Sevens Football tournament in December, but it is her time with OL Lyonnes that built her reputation.

I'm very happy to sign a new contract and stay in San Jose,

"I don't want to sound cocky, but I won most of them," Gower tells ESPN. Their last round was in early June. "All of our futures were up in the air and we knew it might be the last one for a while, but we didn't know where we were going or what anyone was doing at the time."

Rangers have "initiated negotiations" with French midfielder Pierre Ekwah, but any deal could be complicated by a legal dispute between the player and Saint Etienne, who he has refused to play for since their relegation from Ligue 1. (Daily Record, external via Sport) Celtic are weighing up a move for Ivorian winger Jocelin Ta Bi, who is on loan at Hapoel Petah Tikva from fellow Israeli side Maccabi Netanya. (Daily Record), external

Rangers are in danger of losing Bailey Rice for free, with Aston Villa and Sunderland tracking the 19-year-old midfielder's progress, while West Bromwich Albion and Cardiff City are preparing pre-contract offers for him in January amid no indication that the Ibrox club are discussing a new contract. (Daily Mail, print edition) Rangers are considering recalling Oscar Cortes from his loan at Sporting Gijon in January because of his lack of game time,

We're building Swedish youth. The sign adorning the main stand at Brommapojkarna is simple, authoritative and accurate. Beneath it, in the lashing rain, the men's side are training. But while their top-tier status is important, that is far from the primary focus. Twenty-four hours before the men's game, BP's 5,000-capacity Grimsta IP stadium hosted a celebration of the under-19s, who secured a first national title since 2008.

The transfer release clause is a multi-purpose contract inclusion that could be set to be the catalyst for the upcoming January transfer window. Release clauses, ubiquitous in the transfer markets of some major leagues around the world and increasingly common in others, can be used to protect a player's value or indeed to persuade them to sign the deal in the first place.