Spurs linked with Damiao

Tottenham have renewed their interest in Leandro Damiao, according to Internacional president Giovanni Luigi.

Spurs have been linked with the Brazil international for some time and came close to signing him in January only to miss out on him at the last minute.

With the summer transfer window due to open in the coming weeks it has been reported that Spurs are hoping to lure the 23-year-old to White Hart Lane and Luigi admits that he is likely to be a Premier League player come the new season.

"If a club want a player, they must talk to the president of the club at which that particular player plays, and not just deal with the agent - that is not correct behaviour," Luigi said.

"Recently we talked with Tottenham, Leandro is very likely to play games in England in the coming year. On the other hand, we can exclude Napoli."

STUBBORN SHAKHTAR TELLS CITY TO PAY THE CASH FOR FERNANDINHO

Manchester City will have to meet Shakhtar Donetsk's demands if they want to sign star midfielder Fernandinho this summer.

Tottenham and Chelsea are both failed to sign the Romanian in the last 12 months and now City are preparing a bid, believed to be in the region of £30million.

Shakhtar Donetsk boss Mircea Lucescu, however, has warned the Blues that they will need to meet the release fee in his contract if they wish to bring him to the Etihad and he does not believe a move is imminent.

"If City want to [sign Fernandinho], the clause is €50 million [£42.3 million]," Lucescu said.

"If our players receive offers from teams higher than Shakhtar, we do everything possible to help them.

"Currently, I think Manchester City are not at our level."

Fernandinho is contracted to Shakhtar Donetsk until 2016.

BENFICA VS FENERBAHCE

Benfica beat Fenerbahce 3-1 at the Stadium of Light to set up a UEFA Europa League final showdown against Chelsea.

CHELSEA VS FC BASEL

A superb David Luiz goal helped Chelsea came from behind to beat Basel 3-1 on Thursday, booking a place in the Europa League final.

Basel, trailing 2-1 from the first leg in Switzerland, led on the night thanks to a neat goal from Mohamed Salah just before half-time at Stamford Bridge, but there was always the sense that Chelsea could come back.

KLOPP IS THE BEST CANDIDATE TO SUCCEED SAF

Manchester United top brass see Borussia Dortmund gaffer Jurgen Klopp as an ideal candidate to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson.

United’s hierarchy are impressed by the job Klopp has done at Borussia Dortmund and he is the hot favourite to take over from Fergie when he decides to step down.

They are not jumping on the Klopp bandwagon as he has been earmarked for some time, with insiders revealing it is openly discussed among Fergie’s staff that he is the manager in waiting.

Insiders believe Ferguson approves of Klopp as the kind of candidate who would be ideal to pass the reins to - and consult him if he stays on in some capacity as seems likely.

GUNNERS IN THE HUNT FOR GONALONS

CAMP NOU DESTROYED BY THE BAVARIANS

NIGERIA NATIONAL LEAGUE

POOL B

CLUBS	PT	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
Crown FC	31	17	10	1	6	20	14	+6
Remo Stars	28	16	9	1	6	18	14	+4
Unicem Rovers	26	17	8	2	7	14	15	-1
Gateway  FC	25	17	8	1	8	16	13	+3
C.O.D Utd	25	16	8	1	7	16	16	0
Akwa Starlet	25	17	8	1	8	16	19	-3
Prime FC	25	17	8	1	8	18	17	+1
MFM	24	17	7	3	7	19	14	+5
Abia Warriors	23	16	7	2	7	18	16	+2
Gabros Utd	23	17	7	2	8	20	19	+1
Abia Comets	22	17	6	4	7	18	19	-1
Rising Stars	22	17	6	4	7	15	19	-4
Bendel Insurance	21	16	6	3	7	16	16	0
Apa Utd	21	16	6	3	7	16	20	-4
Fountain FC	17	17	4	5	8	14	25	-11

NIGERIA NATIONAL LEAGUE

POOL A

CLUBS	PT	P	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
Giwa FC	31	18	8	7	3	14	6	+8
Plateau Utd	30	17	9	3	5	21	9	+12
Niger Tornadoes	28	18	9	1	8	21	16	+5
Spotlight FC	28	18	9	1	8	18	18	+0
Mighty Jets	27	17	8	3	6	15	12	+3
FC Taraba	27	18	9	-	9	21	20	+1
Sokoto Utd	25	18	7	4	7	15	12	+3
Adamawa Utd	25	18	6	7	5	14	12	+2
TEAP FC	25	18	6	7	5	14	16	-2
DSS	25	16	8	1	7	18	21	-3
Ranchers	25	18	8	1	9	13	17	-4
Kogi Utd	25	18	8	1	9	17	22	-5
Jigawa G’ Stars	23	18	7	2	9	13	18	-5
JUTH FC	22	18	6	4	8	15	12	+3
FC Abuja	19	18	5	4	9	14	20	-6
Zamfara Utd	16	17	4	4	9	11	22	-11

MOU COY ON HIS FUTURE

Jose Mourinho has added to speculation surrounding his Real Madrid future by refusing to guarantee he will remain with the club next season.

A 2-0 win against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League semi-final return fixture on Tuesday was not enough for Real to overturn a 4-1 deficit from the first leg.

When asked if he would still be with Madrid next season, Mourinho, who has been consistently linked with a move away from the Santiago Bernabeu, told ITV: "Maybe not. I want to be where people love me to be."

"I have a contract, respect for the club and the president. I want to play the (Copa del Rey) final, finish the season, finish second," the Madrid coach later told Sky Sports, before strongly hinting a return to Chelsea could be a possibility.

"I know I'm loved in England. Loved by the fans, the media. I know I'm loved by some clubs - especially one. In Spain it's different - some people hate me. It's difficult to make a decision because I like the club. I like the president."

KLOPP IN CLOUD NINE

Borussia Dortmund coach Juergen Klopp was delighted to see his side reach the Champions League final with a 4-3 aggregate win over Real Madrid.

The Bundesliga outfit went into the second leg at the Santiago Bernabeu with a 4-1 lead, but two late goals from Jose Mourinho's men set up a tense finale.

THE CLASH IS NOT OVER- BASTIAN

Bayern Munich midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger believes Barcelona are more than capable of reaching the UEFA Champions League final.

AFC Champions League Wrap: Quartet book last-16 place

Central Coast Mariners, Beijing Guoan, Bunyodkor and Al Hilal have all secured a safe passage into the last 16 of the AFC Champions League.

Last season’s semi-finalists, Bunyodkor, drew 1-1 against three-time champions Pohang Steelers to progress into the knock-out stages for the sixth season running.

ZANETTI SET FOR LENGTHY TIME ON THE SIDELINE

Inter defender Javier Zanetti is set for six months on the sidelines following successful Achilles tendon surgery.

The club captain, who has made close to 850 appearances for the Italian side, ruptured his Achilles during Sunday’s Serie A defeat to Palermo.

But, after operating on the 39-year-old, Professor Franco Benazzo has revealed that everything went to plan.

"The operation was a complete success, it lasted around an hour, an hour and a quarter," he said.

"How long will it take him to recover? He'll have his foot in a cast for the next three weeks and won't be able to walk on it, then he will start to walk in phase two of his physiotherapy.