Down to Ten Men

Merseyside club Everton have reportedly joined the race to sign AC Milan forward Rafael Leao this summer. Italian football publication Corrieredello Sport revealed that the Toffees are the latest club keen to sign Leaoin time for the start of the new season.

Milan attacker Leao has been attracting the interest of several teams throughout the summer. Apart from Everton, fellow Premier League team Wolverhampton Wanderers are also keen on the 22-year-old player.

German Bundesliga giants Borussia Dortmund have also identified Leao as a potential replacement for Jadon Sancho who has returned to the Premier League after four years in Germany. The Red Devils paid around £73m to secure the signing of the England international. He had joined Dortmund from Manchester City four years ago.

Brazilian fullback Henrique Dalbert has completed his loan move to Cagliari from fellow Italian football team Inter Milan according to various media sources in Italy. Inter Milan left-back Dalbert has signed for Cagliari on loan for the new season with the option for it to turn to a permanent transfer for €7m.

Dalbert, 27, joins Italian football side Cagliari shortly after returning from a loan spell with Rennes in the French top flight this summer. Various Italian media outlets such as Sports Italia, Sky Sports Italia confirmed the loan move for Dalbert and that an official announcement is expected in a matter of hours.

RB Leipzig have made a big statement after completing the transfer of striker Andre Silva fromfellow German team Eintracht Frankfurt in a €23m deal. The signing was made official by Champions League campaigners Leipzig on Friday.

Portuguese international Silva scored 28 goals in 32 appearances for Eintracht Frankfurt in the German Bundesliga and he has penned a five-year deal at new club RB Leipzig. Only Bayern Munich talisman Robert Lewandowski scored more than Silva in the German top flight last season. Polish striker Lewandowski scored 41 goals to set a new Bundesliga record for goals scored in a single season asBayern retained their league title. Apart from Lewandowski, only Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo scored more than Silva in the top five European leagues last season.

Sassuolo midfielder Manuel Locatelli was one of the best midfield players in the Italian Serie A last season and he has shown that it was not just a flash in the pan after his impressive performances for the Italian national team at the ongoing Euro 2020 tournament.

Locatelli had a lot of suitors before a ball was kicked at Euro 2020 and the number of those keen to sign him would have increased following his good performances for his country at the ongoing continental football competition. The Sassuolo player and his national team colleagues have been able to show the world that Italian football is back on the international stage after the heartbreak of missing out on the last edition of the FIFA World Cup in Russia three years ago.

Hosts Italy are the first team to book their place in the knockout stage of the ongoing Euro 2020 tournament after Switzerland were emphatically dispatched by the Italians. Italy thrashed the Swiss 3-0 to underline their credentials as one of the favourites for the tournament.

Italian national team manager Roberto Mancini deserves huge credit for the way he has been able to turn Italy into one of the best teams in European football and world football. Former Inter Milan and Manchester City boss Mancini was appointed at a time when Italian football was struggling but he has been able to rejuvenate the team. He took charge of the team shortly after Italy failed to make it to the 2018 FIFA World Cup tournament in Russia.

Atalanta manager GianPieroGasperini says the focus is on securing a place in the Champions League next season and not the Coppa Italia final clash with Juventus next week. He was speaking in his pre-match presser ahead of the Italian Serie A clash at Genoa on Saturday. According to him, his players are not distracted by the Coppa Italia final with the Old Lady and that the immediate focus is on the league.

Gasperini has been able to build Atalanta into one of the best teams in Italian football. They have represented Italian football in the Champions League in the last two seasons and a third successive campaign in Europe's premier club competition is on the horizon.