Roberto Carlos close to Chelsea

Roberto Carlos has revealed that he was ‘very close’ to joining Chelsea in 2007.

The Real Madrid legend spent 11 setons at the Bernabeu Stadium – winning four La Liga titles and lifting the Champions League on three occasions.

“I had two proposals, Fenerbahce and Chelsea,” Carlos told Goal. “Chelsea didn’t work out so I signed for Fenerbahce.

“But, with Chelsea, it got very close. It was literally agreed and I just had to go there and sign the contract. It was just a week before I signed for Fenerbahce and I had been to Paris to meet both Roman Abramovich and (former chief executive) Peter Kenyon.

“Unfortunately, in the final moments something didn’t work out just before finalising, which happens a lot in football. There was an issue with the lawyer.

“It was all agreed, though, and I am 100 per cent sure I would have done well in the Premier League and it would have suited my characteristics.”

Ismael Bennacer eyed

AC Milan playmaker Ismael Bennacer is Pep Guardiola’s ideal replacement for Manchester City legend David Silva.

Bennacer, who is a product of the Arsenal academy but only made one appearance for the Gunners’ first-team, has enjoyed a terrific debut season at the San Siro, having signed from Empoli for £14.5million last summer.

The youngster is a box-to-box midfielder and while he is for the most part being played in a defensive position for Milan, the Algeria international has excellent attacking talents.

According to FootMercato, Guardiola has been following the Bennacer for a long time and has already opened a dialogue with the player’s representatives.

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Impressive Victor Osimhen

Manchester United are showing interest in Victor Osimhen.

The Lille forward, 21, has attracted interest from several clubs after a tremendous debut campaign in Ligue 1 – netting 18 goals and providing six assists in 38 appearances.

The Nigeria international’s progress has seen several European heavyweights linked with his services and Lille believe they can break their club-record sale that currently stands at the £72million Arsenal paid for Nicolas Pepe.

Liverpool and Chelsea have both been linked with Osimhen, but ESPN claim United have already dispatched scouts to watch him earlier this season and they were ‘impressed’ with his displays.

ESPN claim that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is looking for ‘something different’ to Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial with Wissam Ben Yedder and Moussa Dembele also on the radar.