Juventus
Man City renewing pursuit of this 28-year-old attacking gem would help prepare for life without Leroy Sane
Why Manchester City should make a move for Douglas Costa in January
In a recent interview, Bayern Munich CEO Karl Heinz Rummenigge confirmed that his club are not pursuing the services of Manchester City winger Leroy Sane anymore.
Leroy Sane, 23, is set to undergo surgery on his torn anterior cruciate ligament injury in Austria.
The Germany international – strongly linked with a move to Bayern Munich before the Premier League’s transfer window closed – sustained the injury during the Community Shield defeat of Liverpool on August 4.
The 23-year-old jet-heeled winger is expected to be out for six to eight months, leaving Manchester City without the German for the majority of the 2019-20 campaign.
Seeing Leroy Sane damage his knee ligaments, Bayern Munich have quickly brought in the likes of Ivan Perisic and Philippe Coutinho from Inter Milan and Barcelona respectively.
While it is good news for City that Bayern have dropped their interest in Sane, Pep Guardiola will be without the injured winger the majority of the 2019-20 season as he works his way back to full fitness.
The 23-year-old’s long-term injury has reduced the City manager’s options out wide, with Riyad Mahrez, Raheem Sterling and Bernardo Silva the only players fit and available now.
Back in March, the ESPN had claimed that City were interested in signing Juventus winger Douglas Costa during the summer transfer window. However, no move materialised and the Brazilian has since stayed with Juventus.
Often criticised for his inconsistency and unpredictability of the pitch, Douglas Costa, 28, can be a gem of a player on his day. He had a poor last campaign with Juventus, producing a paltry goal and two assists in 25 appearances across all competitions.
Nevertheless, Guardiola knows the speedy Brazilian’s quality having managed him at Bayern and that should prompt him into reigniting his interest in the winger and going for him in January.
Costa boasts blistering pace, which allows him to make some penetrative runs down the wide areas. Be it on the left or right, he can beat his marker with ease using his speed and trickery in the final third. The 28-year-old possesses quick feet and his build-up play is magnificent.
The ex-Bayern man can control the ball well when a defender marks him tight and bring others into play, whilst possessing the ability and awareness to lay it off for midfield runners to benefit.
Verdict
The explosive Brazilian enjoyed the best year of his career under Guardiola at Bayern, producing 18 assists for the Bundesliga champions in his debut campaign. The City manager knows Costa’s strengths and weaknesses and could well bring the best out of his abilities.
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Costa is currently 28, an age at which the attacking players like him are at their prime. Truly, he could reignite his stuttering career by reuniting with Guardiola, and hence, City should make a move for the Brazil international when the winter transfer window commences.
Juventus Femminile hosts Wolfsburg Women at the Allianz Stadium on Monday evening in the Women’s Champions League knockout phase playoff second leg. The tie is finely poised at 2-2 after a dramatic first leg in Germany, with the winners progressing to face Lyon in the quarter finals.
Massimiliano Canzi’s side were cruising towards a stunning upset victory in Wolfsburg before it all fell apart in the final 10 minutes. Juventus led 2-0 thanks to goals from Ana Capeta and Amalie Vangsgaard but conceded a late penalty before Sarai Linder fired home a spectacular equalizer deep into stoppage time. The Italian champions will be absolutely gutted to have thrown away such a commanding advantage.
Kick-off: 18:45 CET, February 19, 2026
Venue: Allianz Stadium, Turin
TV: DAZN
Juve Must Overcome Heartbreaking Collapse
This is a massive opportunity for Juventus to reach the Champions League quarter finals for the first time in years. They were so close to taking a two goal cushion back to Turin, but now face a nail biting second leg with everything to play for. Canzi’s counterattacking game plan worked brilliantly for 80 minutes in Germany, and they will likely adopt similar tactics at home.
The big concern is midfielder Lia Wälti, who was forced off with an injury in the first leg. Her status remains uncertain, and losing her would be a huge blow given how crucial she has been in European matches this season. Paulina Krumbiegel is pushing for a start after impressing off the bench.
Wolfsburg Riding Wave of Momentum
Stephan Lerch’s side snatched victory from the jaws of defeat thanks to Linder’s heroics. The dramatic comeback has given Wolfsburg huge momentum heading into this second leg, though they know they were extremely fortunate to escape Germany with a draw after such a poor performance for most of the match.
Lineth Beerensteyn admitted afterwards that Wolfsburg did not create many big chances and were frankly lucky to get the result. They will need to be significantly better in Turin if they want to progress.
Predicted Lineups
Juventus (4-2-3-1): Peyraud-Magnin; Calligaris, Harviken, Kullberg, Carbonell; Caruso, Schatzer; Bonansea, Krumbiegel, Pinto; Vangsgaard
Wolfsburg (4-2-3-1): Schult; Linder, Kleinherne, Wedemeyer, Pujols; Minge, Peddemors; Huth, Popp, Bussy; Beerensteyn
Wolfsburg face defending Serie A champions Juventus in the playoff stage of the Women’s Champions League on Thursday evening. The first leg will be played at the AOK Stadion before the return fixture in Turin next midweek, with the winners progressing to the quarter finals.
The Frauen Bundesliga side has only played one competitive match in 2026, with weather conditions leading to postponements of two encounters, including last weekend’s matchday 17 fixture away at Werder Bremen. Stephan Lerch’s side is currently second in the league standings with 12 wins from their 15 games.
Kick-off: 17:45 UTC, February 12, 2026
Venue: AOK Stadion, Wolfsburg
TV: DAZN
Beerensteyn Returns to Face Former Club
Lineth Beerensteyn, who is the top scorer for She Wolves this season with 13 goals in all competitions, will play against the club she spent two seasons with after leaving Bayern in 2022. This adds genuine spice to the encounter, with the Dutch international eager to prove a point against her former employers.
In Europe, Wolfsburg started their campaign with a couple of wins, but losing the final league phase games to Real Madrid and Chelsea led them to enter the playoff round instead of automatic qualification to the quarter finals. This is frankly disappointing for a club of Wolfsburg’s stature.
Juventus Riding High After Five Straight Wins
Since losing 2-1 to Inter, Massimiliano Canzi’s team won each of their last five games in all competitions. Paulina Krumbiegel will return to her home country after the German international finally scored her first Serie A goal of the season in Saturday’s 2-0 win in Como.
Defender Camilla Kuver will be unavailable after a minor knee injury against Koln.
Predicted Lineups
Wolfsburg (4-2-3-1): Johannes; Linder, Kleinherne, Wedemeyer, Pujols; Minge, Peddemors; Huth, Popp, Bussy; Beerensteyn
Juventus (4-3-3): de Jong; Calligaris, Harviken, Kullberg, Carbonell; Walti, Schatzer; Bonansea; Pinto, Beccari, Girelli
Brighton have rejected three bids from Juventus for Fran Kirby as the Serie A club intensifies their pursuit of the former England international.
Despite the player’s reported openness to a switch to Italy, the WSL outfit remain unwilling to negotiate, viewing the 32 year old as irreplaceable in their attacking ranks.
Italian reporter Mauro Munno claimed that Kirby has given the green light for a move to Juventus, but Brighton are determined to keep their star asset. The club considers Kirby non transferable at this stage of the season, with transfer negotiations showing no signs of progressing.
Why Juventus Came Calling
Juventus are desperate to address their goalscoring problems in Italy. The Bianconeri sit second in the Women’s Serie A behind Roma but have only scored 10 goals in nine games, a record worse than six other clubs in the eleven team league. This defensive vulnerability has left them five points adrift of leaders Roma, despite maintaining the league’s best defensive record.
Kirby presents an experienced solution to their attacking woes. Since joining Brighton in summer 2024, she has scored 11 goals and provided three assists in 30 appearances. While her output is lower than her Chelsea days, when she netted 105 goals in 192 matches, her presence would still significantly boost Juventus’s second half campaign and their upcoming Champions League playoff against Wolfsburg.
Brighton’s Stance Remains Resolute
Brighton cannot afford to lose Kirby given their current injury concerns. Michelle Agyemang’s season ending ACL injury has depleted their attacking options, and losing another key player would seriously damage their hopes of maintaining last season’s top half finish. Manager Dario Vidosic has made clear his desire to keep the experienced attacker at the Amex.
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