Carlo Ancelotti has turned down the chance to return to AC Milan.
Ancelotti, 55, sacked by Real Madrid last week, held talks with Milan chief executive Adriano Galliani about a potential return to the club where he won two Champions Leagues.
Milan finished 10th in Serie A under current boss Filippo Inzaghi.
Ancelotti said: “Thanks to AC Milan for their interest. It was hard to say no to such a beloved club to me, but I need some rest. I wish them the best.”
Former Chelsea boss Ancelotti had recently indicated that he was considering taking a year’s sabbatical and having surgery on a back problem following his dismissal.
“I must have an operation because of spinal stenosis that for some time creates a tingle in my hands,” he was quoted as telling Il Giornale.
“I don’t know how long the period of recovery will be,” he added. “I can assure you that I’ve had plenty of offers from Italy, England, Germany. I’m sure they will not be lacking from here until next year.”
Ancelotti coached AC Milan from 2001 to 2009, winning the Italian league title in 2004 and two Champions League titles in 2003 and 2007.
He also twice won the old European Cup as a player with the club in 1989 and 1990.
“Blatt’s all folks”. As news broke that Sepp Blatter is to resign as president of Fifa amid a corruption scandal, delighted opponents looked to tear apart some of the most controversial decisions of his regime.” (Daily Express)
The Daily Telegraph back page
“This way out Sepp! (and let’s slam the door on sleaze after you).” (Daily Mail)
“A great day for football. FA boss celebrates overlord’s downfall.” (Daily Mirror)
“Russia and Qatar World Cups in doubt as Blatter forced out.” Both nations’ hosting rights for the 2018 and 2022 World Cup tournaments were thrown into doubt last night. (Daily Telegraph)
“Downfall: Blatter walks away.” His exit sparked a flurry of speculation over the future of world football. (Guardian)
“Blatter walks and leaves World Cup in meltdown.” (Times)
“Blatter’s exit from Fifa could be due to ‘smoking gun’, says Dyke.” (Independent)
“Got him”. Sepp out… Dyke wants re-vote on World Cups. ( Sun)
Transfer gossip
Manchester United have had an offer of £110m for Real Madrid’s Wales international forward Gareth Bale, 25, and defender Raphael Varane, 22, rejected by the La Liga club. (Daily Express)
Real Madrid are confident of signing 24-year-old Manchester United keeper David De Gea, who has one year left on his current contract, for £30m. (Sun – subscription required)
Tuesday’s Mirror back page
De Gea has already said his goodbyes to his Manchester United team-mates as the Old Trafford club brace themselves for a £20m bid from Real Madrid for his services. (Daily Star)
Manchester City want £32m-rated Real Madrid midfielder Isco, 23, as they line up a successor to the playmaker’s fellow Spaniard David Silva, 29. (Daily Mirror)
Chelsea are planning a £30m move for 27-year-old Argentina striker Gonzalo Higuain, who has been linked with Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United. (Daily Star)
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho was less than impressed with the performance of 19-year-old midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek in a win over Sydney FC. Mourinho said: “He was saying he had a pain in his back but what I was feeling was that he only had this pain when Sydney had the ball.” (Daily Mail)
Mourinho has also played down reports that striker Diego Costa, 26, is unhappy at Chelsea and wants to return to Spain. (Sun – subscription required)
West Ham will meet Sevilla boss Unai Emery, 43, this week in a bid to convince him to become their new manager rather than opt to join Italian side Napoli. (Daily Telegraph)
The Sun back page
Aston Villa boss Tim Sherwood has told Andreas Weimann he can leave and the 23-year-old Austria international could become new Derby County manager Paul Clement’s first signing. (Daily Mail)
Manchester United’s Dutch striker Robin van Persie, 31, has one year left on his contract and says he will have to “weigh up what is the best solution” as he wants to be at a club where he can “play every week”. (Daily Mirror)
Chelsea and Manchester United are competing to sign 30-year-old Atletico Madrid central defender Joao Miranda, whose contract with the Spanish club expires next summer. (Daily Telegraph)
Tottenham’s France international goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, 28, has refused to rule out a move away from White Hart Lane. (Guardian)
Best of social media
Conference side Macclesfield Town launched their bid to host the 2026 World Cup as they believed it was “time Fifa gave the World Cup to a sensible bidder”.
And finally
Manchester United defender Marcos Rojo, 25, is on international duty with fellow Argentine and Valencia defender Nicolas Otamendi and favourited a tweet asking him to tap-up the 27-year-old. (Metro)
Barcelona forward Lionel Messi is “an extra-terrestrial who plays with us humans”, according to Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon.
The duo go to head-to-head in Saturday’s Champions League final, with Argentina’s Messi bidding to become the first player to score in three finals.
“We hope that on 6 June he returns to earth and becomes a human too,” added Buffon, 37, ahead of the Berlin final.
Messi, 27, has scored 58 goals for Barcelona this season.
His partnership with Brazil’s Neymar and Uruguay’s Luis Suarez has brought Barcelona 120 goals this season, helping the Catalans to the La Liga title and the Copa Del Rey.
Buffon, who has won 147 Italy caps, added: “I think it’s the strongest attacking trio in the world. They have an offensive power which is certainly scary but we also have weapons, not maybe to stop them with but to limit them a bit.”
Juventus defender Leonardo Bonucci said: “What do I think about when I see that front three? Applauding. No, obviously the front three scare anyone but Barca isn’t just those three up front but a collective of footballers which play for each other.”
Serie A champions Juventus have not won the Champions League since 1996, while four-time winners Barcelona last lifted the trophy in 2011 when they defeated Manchester United 3-1 at Wembley.
Robin van Persie admitted he is in a “strange” situation at Manchester United amid doubts surrounding whether he will remain at Old Trafford.
The striker mustered just 10 goals in a season when he lost his place as manager Louis van Gaal’s first-choice forward to captain Wayne Rooney and even saw the out-of-sorts Radamel Falcao picked ahead of him at times.
Van Gaal has refused to confirm that Van Persie, who has one year left on his contract, will be at United again next season.
The 61-year-old manager, who has arranged to buy Holland winger Memphis Depay and is expected to try and sign another forward, held meetings with several players to inform them where they stand in his thinking before he went on holiday to Portugal.
Van Persie told reporters in Holland: “It’s a strange, difficult situation. A new situation, that’s a better word. I have to think in a realistic way. It’s my ambition to play the next years. I’m thinking about my family and my children with every decision I take.
“These are very important for me. I’m a real family guy. I think it’s fantastic to see how happy my children and wife are. That’s something I take into consideration when I’m thinking about my future.”
Van Persie, who was a £24 million signing from Arsenal in 2012, scored 30 goals in his first year at Old Trafford and another 18 in their difficult 2013-14 campaign.
He admitted his return under Van Gaal, which was his lowest goal tally since his injury-hit 2007-08 season, fell way below par.
“That’s at least seven goals short, but I think it’s a compliment people don’t accept it,” he explained.
“Manchester United is a beast and that has two sides. Manchester United is viewed and followed by more people than at other clubs, and also more media. I have to deal with that. I made that choice and must accept the consequences.”
UEFA president Michel Platini was among those to praise Sepp Blatter’s decision to resign as FIFA president on Tuesday.
Platini had personally asked his former mentor to resign last week in the wake of indictments against top FIFA officials on U.S. racketeering charges, but Blatter declined and went on to be re-elected to a fifth term as president on Friday.
But Platini was placated on Tuesday after Blatter revealed his decision to step down as soon as a successor can be found.
“It was a difficult decision, a brave decision, and the right decision,” said Platini, who is the bookmakers’ early favourite to replace Blatter in a special election.
Platini also got an early endorsement from the Russian Football Union’s acting president Nikita Simonyan, who said he “suits the role of president of FIFA better than anyone else… [He is] a more prepared and experienced person.”
Jordan’s Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein, who lost last week’s election to Blatter, repeatedly declined to say if he’d run again but told CNN that the president’s resignation was “the right move.”
“I think we have to look to the future,” said Ali. “I am at the disposal of all the national associations who want a change, including all of those who were afraid to make a change.”
Jordan’s Prince Ali Bin Al-Hussein, left, and UEFA president Michel Platini, right, could run to replace Sepp Blatter.
Former Portugal star Luis Figo also ran against Blatter but withdrew before the election. Of all the candidates he spoke out most fiercely against Blatter and rejoiced in a statement following the resignation.
“A good day for FIFA and for football. Change is finally coming,” he wrote on Facebook. “I said on Friday that the day would come sooner or later. Here it is!
“Now we should, responsibly and calmly, find a consensual solution worldwide in order to start new era of dynamism, transparency and democracy in FIFA.”
Netherlands FA chief Michael van Praag, the other serious candidate leading up to the election, said the resignation is a good start.
“I wanted change for the FIFA and this may be a very big step in the right direction,” he said.
U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati was a staunch supporter of Prince Ali’s bid to unseat Blatter. He called the resignation “an exceptional and immediate opportunity for positive change within FIFA.”
“I commend him for making a decision that puts FIFA and the sport we love above all other interests,” Gulati said. “This is the first of many steps towards real and meaningful reform within FIFA. Today is an occasion for optimism and belief for everyone who shares a passion for our game.”
England’s Football Association chairman Greg Dyke had floated the idea of a boycott of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups if FIFA continued under the structure that led to the indictments.
Speaking on BBC Radio Five Live, Dyke said: “It is a good afternoon! I think it’s brilliant for world football. This is the start of something new.”
The president of the Qatar FA slammed Dyke’s efforts in a statement — along with a swipe at England’s national team.
“Mr Dyke’s instinct to immediately focus on stripping Qatar of the World Cup speaks volumes on his views concerning what will be the first FIFA World Cup to take place in the Middle East,” said Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Bin Ahmed Al Thani.
“Having already co-operated fully with [Michael] Garcia’s investigation — and been subsequently cleared of any wrong-doing — we welcome the office of the Swiss attorney general conducting its own work into the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.
“We would urge Mr Dyke to let the legal process take its course and concentrate on delivering his promise to build an England team capable of winning the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.”
Former Manchester United chief executive David Gill, who said last week he intended to resign from the FIFA executive committee if Blatter remained, has indicated he will now reconsider after Blatter’s departure.
“Naturally, I fully welcome today’s news as a major step forward for FIFA on the road to proper reform,” he said in a statement released by the FA. “As I announced following the election at FIFA congress, I simply could not countenance serving on the FIFA executive committee alongside Mr Blatter. I respect his decision but am pleased he is standing aside and by the clear determination for real change within FIFA. This in turn allows me to reconsider my position.
“Having yet to confirm formally my resignation, I am more than willing to play my part in helping to bring about a positive future for FIFA and to work with the many people within the organisation who are only committed to developing and promoting the game around the world.”
SEPP BLATTER TO RESIGN
In Parliament, culture secretary John Whittingdale had also called for Blatter to step down. He said FIFA now had to implement its promised major reforms.
“Governments, national associations and international confederations, along with players and fans have all called for Sepp Blatter to resign in recent days,” Whittingdale said. “We welcome his belated announcement today but this is only the beginning of the process of change we need to see from FIFA. I sincerely hope this is the first step to a new FIFA that can command the confidence and respect of the football world once again.”
Much of the U.S. investigation focuses on bribes connected to tournaments in North and South America, and the presidents of both North America’s CONCACAF and South America’s CONMEBOL were among those arrested last week.
CONMEBOL vice president Wilmar Valdez of Uruguay called the resignation “a shock for the football world.”
“What we were convinced of is that either on the long or short term, Blatter’s presidency was not going to hold,” he told TyC Sports in Buenos Aires. “FIFA needed changes and now we will have to see how the pieces fall together.”
Chile football federation president Harold Mayne Nicholls said Blatter’s resignation “took some time but the gesture was worth it.”
“This is what the football world is asking for,” he added. “More transparency is needed, more democracy in decision-making. They are very important points, that the re-election has dates, for example.”
Former Brazil forward Romario also saluted Blatter’s exit, writing on his Facebook page: “It is the best news of all time. Joseph Blatter’s resignation as FIFA president is the beginning of a new era for world football.”
FIFPro, the world players’ union, called for professional footballers to have a significant say in the future of FIFA and the sport as a whole, calling for “flawless governance.”
It said in a statement: “The world’s professional footballers, through FIFPro, have a pivotal role to play in the structural overhaul of football. We are deeply committed to achieving this critical outcome in conjunction with all of the game’s key stakeholders.”
Rafael benitez will take charge of Real madrid next season after the club announced he had signed a three-year deal with the spanish giants on Wednesday.
Benitez would give a press conference at 1100GMT at the club’s Bernabeu stadium.
Lionel Messi, Jurgen Klopp, Paris St-Germain – Saturday in Europe
Lionel Messi inspired Barcelona to the double, Jurgen Klopp said farewell to Borussia Dortmund, while Paris St-Germain won a domestic treble. What a Saturday it’s been on the continent.
PSG’s French Cup win over Auxerre strengthened their dominance in France, while Barca can still add a third trophy on 6 June with the Champions League.
Standing in their way are Juventus – double winners themselves in Italy.
But in Germany Wolfsburg went against the general trend of the big European teams sweeping up the trophies with their German Cup triumph.
The Wolves spoiled Klopp’s party by claiming their first ever DFB Pokal with a 3-1 victory, ending a dominance of the major German honours by Dortmund and Bayern Munich that had extended back to 2009.
“My emotional state is now below average”
Klopp’s Dortmund were beaten 3-1 by Wolfsburg in the German Cup final in Berlin
It also meant Nicklas Bendtner – an unused substitute for Dieter Hecking’s Wolfsburg side in Berlin – added to his Serie A success with Juventus in 2013 and the 2014 FA Cup victory with Arsenal, with his third major honour in a row.
And for Klopp, who is stepping down as Dortmund manager, “the departure is starting to be painful”.
“I know everyone wants to know about how I feel,” said the 47-year-old. “But if I start with that, then the tears come. We lost a game and I cannot make as if I am the most important person in the world.”
Junior Malanda was killed in a car accident in January, aged 20
Meanwhile, Wolfsburg fans unfurled a banner in a poignant tribute to the memory of Junior Malanda, the former Wolves midfielder who was killed in a car accident aged 20 in January.
Another Messi masterpiece
Messi was in majestic form yet again, beating several defenders before firing home to open the scoring
Over in Barcelona, Messi was the talk of the town as his opening goal set the tone for their first Copa del Rey victory since 2012.
The Argentina forward jinked his way towards goal, leaving defender after defender trailing in abject pursuit before firing home the first goal of a 3-1 victory.
Xavi, Barca’s 35-year-old midfielder, was also saying his goodbyes.
Club president Josep Maria Bartomeu, said: “Messi’s goal is one of the best of his career. He is the best in the world and for me in history.”
Xavi is to leave Barcelona after 17 years with the club at the end of the season
When is a treble not a treble?
PSG won their fourth trophy of the season with victory over Auxerre in the French Cup final
And in France PSG made it into the record books by becoming the first French club to win a domestic treble, beating second-tier Auxerre 1-0 at the Stade de France.
Laurent Blanc’s side secured the Ligue 1 title earlier this month, beat Bastia 4-0 in the French League Cup in April and Edinson Cavani’s goal ensured they ended the season on a high.
In fact, they also made the history books by becoming the first French club to make a clean sweep of all the domestic trophies – including the Trophee des Champions.
So if you are including the French equivalent of the Community Shield, which Zlatan Ibrahimovic and company clearly are, then that makes four.
Paris St-Germain became the first French side to complete a domestic treble thanks to Edinson Cavani’s headed winner against a dogged Auxerre in the French Cup final.
The Uruguay striker settled the outcome midway through the second half when his effort struck the bar, then the back of goalkeeper Donovan Leon.
“We won the rest of the trophies,” said PSG’s top scorer Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
“No other team has done this and I’m very proud of the team.”
PSG coach Laurent Blanc added: “We finished the season very well. We wanted this cup and it was hard to win it.
“Auxerre played very well and you have to take your hat off to them. They played to their strengths.”
The Ligue 1 and French league cup champions also went close through Thiago Motta, who hit a post with a 25-yard drive, while Cavani had a header saved and a shot blocked near the goalline.
Gossip column: Sterling, Falcao, Lloris, Afellay, Van Persie
For a list of all the latest deals, check out the transfers page.
Negotiations between Liverpool and Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich to sign unsettled forward Raheem Sterling, 20, appear to have broken down. (Bild – in German)
The back page of the Sunday Telegraph
Bayern’s failed attempt to sign Sterling suggests Chelsea and Real Madrid will have to fight each other over the signing of the England international. (Sunday Express)
Liverpool are exploring alternatives to Brendan Rodgers, in case the Reds’ boss fails to convince owners Fenway Sports Group at his end-of-season appraisal that the club is progressing under his management. (Sunday Times – subscription required)
Liverpool goalkeeper Simon Mignolet wants the club to bolster the Belgian contingent at Anfield by signing Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke, 24. (Liverpool Echo)
Premier League champions Chelsea hope to beat Liverpool to the signing of the in-form Belgium international. (Sunday Express)
Chelsea have missed out on signing Japan striker Yoshinori Muto after the 22-year-old opted to join Mainz in Germany from J-League side FC Tokyo. (Star on Sunday)
Is Newcastle the next club on Steve McClaren’s managerial CV?
Steve McClaren is expected to take over from John Carver as Newcastle United manager after the club made a third approach to the former England boss. (Sunday Telegraph)
But Manchester City development coach Patrick Vieira is also understood to be in talks over taking charge at St James’ Park. (Sky Sports)
Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino insists goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, 28, wants to stay at White Hart Lane despite interest from Manchester United. (Mail on Sunday)
However, the France international is thought to want to leave Tottenham to fulfil his ambition of playing in the Champions League. (Sunday Mirror)
Former Manchester United loan striker Radamel Falcao, 29, looks set to agree a move to Premier League champions Chelsea from parent club Monaco. (Sky Sports)
West Ham United will wait a few more days to see whether they can convince outgoing Borussia Dortmund manager Jurgen Klopp or Real Sociedad boss David Moyes to become their new manager before moving on to other candidates . (Sunday Telegraph)
Out-of-contract Real Madrid midfielder Sami Khedira, 28, has settled on a move to join Serie A champions Juventus, according to one of the Italian club’s directors. (Star on Sunday)
Juventus are favourites to sign Manchester United striker Robin van Persie, 31, with the Premier League club ready to listen to offers for the Netherlands international. (Sun on Sunday – subscription required)
Wolves and West Brom’s hopes of signing Newcastle United winger Sammy Ameobi, 23, could be hampered with the player set to be offered a new contract at St James’ Park. (Wolverhampton Express & Star)
Stoke City are showing interest in Netherlands winger Ibrahim Afellay, 29, who is out of contract at Barcelona this summer. (Mail on Sunday)
Nacho Monreal looks set to leave Arsenal with an FA Cup winners’ medal
Reports in Spain suggest Arsenal defender Nacho Monreal, 29, has rejected a new deal at Emirates Stadium and looks set to join La Liga side Athletic Bilbao. (AS English)
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said the only thing he would be buying was “drinks for his players” as he refused to discuss potential summer signings following their FA Cup final victory. (Sunday Mirror)
The Gunners may make a summer move for Swansea City’s South Korean international Ki Sung-Yeung, 26. (Sunday Express)
SOCCERglobal 