SPORTS FOR ALL...: July 2014

Official: Chelsea sign Croatia youngster Pasalic

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DONE DEAL: Suarez joins Barcelona for €88m

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The Catalan giants will imminently announce the capture of the Uruguay star after agreeing to meet the release clause inserted in the striker's new Liverpool contract last December.

DONE DEAL: Suarez joins Barcelona for €88m

Luis Suarez is on the brink of officially completing his sensational transfer from Liverpool to Barcelona after the terms of a deal worth just over €88 million were agreed on Wednesday night.

The agreement comes after a week of negotiations between the clubs, with an announcement expected in the coming days - perhaps even within 24 hours.

Barcelona have captured Suarez in a straight cash deal after agreeing to meet the release clause in the Liverpool contract he signed last December.

It is believed that Suarez will undergo initial medical examinations from Barca doctors in his native Uruguay, where he has been staying following his country's elimination from the World Cup.

Officials from the Catalan club have been negotiating with their counterparts from Merseyside in the last week over the structure of payments in the deal, with Liverpool pushing for a higher initial sum.

An agreement has now been reached and the final formalities will be completed before Suarez is announced as Barcelona's marquee signing of the summer.

The 27-year-old is currently serving a four-month ban - which runs until October 26 - for biting Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini while playing for Uruguay in his nation's final World Cup group stage match.

Under the terms of the suspension, Suarez is not allowed to train with his club or enter the confines of any stadium during his ban.

Barca will partly fund the signing of the 27-year-old by selling Alexis Sanchez to Arsenal. The Chile World Cup star will move to Emirates Stadium after Arsenal agreed a package worth €40m (£31.8m) with the Spanish club.

Liverpool will now look to strengthen their squad using some of the money from the Suarez deal. The Merseysiders are on the verge of completing a triple swoop for Benfica winger Lazar Markovic, Lille striker Divock Origi and Southampton defender Dejan Lovren.

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Arsenal Complete Signing of Barcelona's Alexis Sanchez

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Arsenal have completed the signing of Barcelona winger Alexis Sanchez.

The Gunners have revealed the news on their official Twitter account and have beaten a host of other top European clubs to the signature of the coveted star, who impressed for Chile at this summer's World Cup after netting 19 goals in 34 league appearances for Barcelona last season.

The 25-year-old is believed to have agreed a four-year deal with Arsene Wenger's side, with the option to sign for an additional year.

Liverpool showed concrete interest in the player and had hoped to secure him as part of the deal that is soon to take Luis Suarez to Barcelona, but the winger had preferred to move to London so Barcelona successfully negotiated the deal with Arsenal instead. It is thought that Arsenal have paid around £35 million to Barcelona, though the official figure was not announced by either club.

Sanchez will wear the number 17 shirt at the Emirates.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has expressed his excitement about what the Chilean star will bring to the club, saying: “As many people have seen during the World Cup this summer, Alexis is a fantastic footballer and we are delighted that he is joining us at Arsenal Football Club.

“Alexis will add power, creativity and much quality to our squad and we are all looking forward to him joining up with us in a few weeks. He has consistently produced top-quality performances at the highest level for a number of seasons now and we are all excited to see him integrate into the Arsenal squad. I’m sure all Arsenal supporters will join me in welcoming Alexis to our club.”

Sanchez himself has revealed how happy he is with the move to the Emirates as he said: “I’m so happy to be joining Arsenal, a club which has a great manager, a fantastic squad of players, huge support around the world and a great stadium in London. I’m looking forward to meeting my new team-mates and to be playing for Arsenal in the Premier League and Champions League. I will give my best to Arsenal and want to make all the supporters happy.”

His signing is another major coup for Arsenal after years of disappointment in the transfer market, which seemed to change following their £42 million capture of German international Mesut Ozil on transfer deadline day last summer.

The Gunners are also close to the signing of Mathieu Debuchy from Newcastle.

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Sergio Aguero: Argentina Proved People Wrong by Reaching the World Cup Final

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SAMBAARGH! Big Phil takes the blame for Brazil's semi-final hammering

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BRILLIANT Germany battered Brazil to seal a place in Sunday’s World Cup Final.\

An incredible opening 30 minutes saw Joachim Low’s side storm into a 5-0 lead.
The shell-shocked home nation were simply blown away by the biggest win in a World Cup semi and their worst ever humiliation.
And after their first competitive home defeat in 64 matches and more than 38 years, Brazil boss Big Phil Scolari said: "We ask for forgiveness from the Brazilian people."
Thomas Muller sparked the rout in the 10th minute when he sidefooted in Toni Kroos’ corner.
Brazil were then swept away in the next 20 minutes. Miroslav Klose made it two to become the alltime record scorer in World Cup finals, beating Brazil star Ronaldo’s record of 15.
And there were further goals from Toni Kroos (2), Sami Khedira and a double from sub Andre Schurrle before Oscar pulled one back.
Scolari refused to quit but admitted: "Who is responsible for this result? I am, it’s me.
The blame for this catastrophic result can be shared between us all, but the person who decided the line-up, the tactics was me. It was my choice.
"We tried our best but we came up against a great German team. My message for the Brazilian people is this: please excuse us for this performance.
"This is a catastrophic loss, the worst ever for the Brazil team, and the worst day of my life." As to his future, Scolari said: "This is not a subject for me to talk about. I have to prepare for the third- place match in Brasilia on Saturday.I don’t have any regrets about my choices for this match. We panicked after the first goal."
Former Chelsea defender David Luiz had a shocker and left the field sobbing.
He said: "Apologies to all the Brazilian people. It’s a very sad day but a day from which to learn."
Stunned keeper Julio Cesar added: "It’s hard to explain – you can’t explain the inexplicable. After the first goal we had a blackout.”
Man of the match Kroos said: "We delivered a marvellous performance. If someone had said we were going to win 7-1 I would not have believed them.
"It is the best international match I have played in. Of course I feel sorry for Brazil. We have pressure on our shoulders but not as much as them, being the host nation. But they have great players and will come back from this.
"I don’t think it will be difficult to prepare ourselves for the final. We know we will have to deliver another top performance or else we will lose the final."

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