Inter Milan striker Mauro Icardi is top of Jose Mourinho‘s five-man transfer wish list, according to Miguel Delaney of ESPN FC.

Delaney reports “there has been initial contact between the London club and Inter over the 22-year-old.” Further information is provided on Mourinho‘s possible transfer plans for the summer: “Sources also told ESPN FC that the club will try and sign a full-back, two back-up goalkeepers in the event of Petr Cech’s likely departure and maybe another midfielder depending on exits.”

Icardi has been linked with Chelsea for some months, per the Express (h/t Mirror). He has netted 16 in 29 Serie A appearances this campaign, per WhoScored.com, despite Inter’s struggles in mid-table. The Argentinian possesses a combative nature, not too dissimilar to Chelsea’s Diego Costa, and he is the type of player Mourinho loves to challenge himself with. B/R UK’s Matteo Bonetti previously discussed the possible transfer:

Gazzetta dello Sport (h/t Football Italia) recently reported that Inter postponed a meeting in which Icardi was meant to ink a new deal. “The reason the newspaper gives is that one of the player’s representatives, Abian Moreno, is in Milan, but wishes to talk with either sporting director Piero Ausilio or president Erick Thohir, who are both unavailable,” wrote Football Italia.

While this isn’t thought to be a serious development, Chelsea could press home their rumoured interest during the delay.

It’s interesting to consider Mourinho is allegedly hunting a full-back, per Delaney. John Cross of the Mirror reported word from the Spanish press that left-back Filipe Luis could be used in a player-plus-cash deal for Atletico Madrid’s Koke. This would open up a move for West Ham’s Aaron Cresswell, according to the Daily Mail (h/t Anthony Chapman of the Express).

Should these plans come to fruition, Koke would represent the midfielder Mourinho is said to be considering, per Delaney.

The aforementioned report also suggests two back-up goalkeepers could be hunted after Petr Cech’s departure. Jonathan Johnson of Bleacher Report reported comments from former Chelsea coach Ray Wilkins, who spoke after Paris Saint-Germain’s recent home defeat to Barcelona:

Thibaut Courtois is set to dominate between the Stamford Bridge sticks for years to come, so any new arrival will most likely need to make peace with staying on the bench. Fulham youngster Marcus Bettinelli is linked to the club by Simon Jones of the MailOnline, with Chelsea previously letting veteran Mark Schwarzer join Leicester City in January.

Mourinho has undoubtedly built one of the strongest squads in Europe, but there’s still room for Chelsea to improve if they’re going to become Champions League contenders next season. Icardi remains an interesting prospect and would offer quality cover for Costa, whose injury problems persist. Loic Remy and Didier Drogba have played their parts this season but continue to struggle with problems of their own.

As such, it would make sense for Mourinho to add further firepower. The west London club have relied on Eden Hazard for much of their inspiration this year and could use additional options in the final third.

When you look at the attacking players on show at Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern Munich, Chelsea are still playing catch-up. Mourinho often buys well and sells for a high price, so supporters are likely eager to see what he can concoct.

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Napoli boss Rafa Benitez could be ready to take the Manchester City job for next season if Manuel Pellegrini is let go. 

That is at least according to Wednesday’s Daily Star, who suggest that the former Liverpool manager could take a similar role to the one he had at Chelsea. 

That will “plug the gap” until 2016, when City could then go after their number one target—Bayern Munich boss Pep Guardiola—who will have a year left on his contract come this summer. 

Elsewhere, there is speculation that Yaya Toure could be ready to quit City and join Inter Milan or PSG. 

While Manchester United look the firm favourites to sign Memphis Depay from PSV.

And in the least surprising news of the day, Newcastle fans are unhappy with Mike Ashley.

[Twitter: @hendopolis]

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It would seem Yaya Toure‘s days as a Manchester City player may be numbered after the midfielder suggested he “no longer belongs” at the Etihad Stadium.  

Speaking to French outlet Foot Mercato (via the Daily Telegraph‘s Mark Ogden) this week, the Ivory Coast international insisted money would not motivate him to remain somewhere he feels out of place:

Today, I am living the dream of thousands of little boys. I represent my continent, Africa, and that has no price. No amount of wages will make me stay at a club if I feel that I no longer belong there or if no challenge exists for me. It would be unjust on my part.

For the future, I don’t know more than you do, because I will always go where I am offered new challenges. That is in my nature. When things are not necessarily going well in a club, the key players take the fall. I am not the only one to have been attacked even if there is tendency to be harsher with me.

Football is my passion, my job and that gives me two good reasons to do as well as I can. I accept criticism if it helps me to improve and I ignore them when their aim is simply to break me.

Toure has encountered criticism this season after failing to reach the form of previous seasons, particularly as Manchester City’s Premier League title defence fell apart in the campaign’s latter half.

The 31-year-old goes on to talk of what this summer holds in store for him, with Ogden’s report insinuating Toure could be one of six senior players offloaded at the end of this season:

PSG is a great club who, I think, is not finished growing and also a big club where any great player can find a place for themselves and make a contribution. 

Mancini is a mentor for me, he is a special coach. It is no secret that I loved the time when he was boss here [at City]. But I have arrived at the point where I am more interested in the sporting challenge a club has to offer me than anything else.

I owe it to the City fans to fight just until the end of my career at this club, just as much as I owe it to myself and my continent. My decisions will not be affected by changes in management, but more by the challenges that will be offered to me.

One could debate whether Toure may hold a deeper passion for City had they managed to defend their Premier League crown with a little more vigour, but all signs currently point to the exit door.

At his age, the versatile playmaker is hardly at his peak, and this summer may have been considered the optimal time for the club to cash in on their player in any case.

Toure arrived at the Etihad from Barcelona in July 2010 and has regularly featured as one of the Premier League’s highest powers, nominated for two PFA Team of the Year selections in his four full seasons to date.

The Independent‘s Jack Pitt-Brooke recently jested that manager Manuel Pellegrini’s midfield does look like it could do with some fresh faces:

This wouldn’t be the first time Toure has been mentioned involving a move away, having last summer become closely associated with a transfer amid his infamous birthday cake mishap, per BBC Sport.

City’s shortcomings this season would appear to be the last straw for the star midfielder, however, with the wheels now set in motion geared toward executing his departure.

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Suso had never played in front of that many people before. More than 70,000 crowded into the San Siro, even for the poorest of derbies.

The moment could have been too much. It was his first official start for AC Milan, and it came in a big game against Inter—an introduction to a historic rivalry and a new league all at once.

Instead of crumbling under the pressure, Suso thrived. He was the best player on the team. He was the one doing most of the attacking. He was hungrier than the rest.

“I think he was a great signing,” coach Filippo Inzaghi told Sky Sport Italia (h/t Football Italia) after the match, which ended in a 0-0 draw. “He’s also a very professional player and you can see he wants to learn.”

The way he played on Sunday, the 21-year-old could have taught some of his teammates a few things.

Suso had two of Milan’s three shots on goal—both coming in the first half. He cut in from the right wing, burning Inter defender Juan Jesus several times, and he found a lot of space against a team that probably did not know what to expect.

That is exactly how he likes to draw up his plays.

“Playing on the right I have the opportunity to score goals or provide assists, depending on the situation,” he told Milannews.it (h/t Football Italia). “Cutting in from the right it’s easy to shoot with the left.”

Every time he took on the ball, he intended to do something with it. There was some sharp interplay with right-back Ignazio Abate as well, with the Italian often overlapping Suso.

Naturally, Milan’s attack went through that side of the pitch. Jeremy Menez had a poor game—he was dispossessed a game-high five times, per WhoScored.com—and Giacomo Bonaventura was not effective in an advanced position. That meant the team’s only meaningful threat came from Suso.

Just look at his numbers, relayed by Squawka:

Suso’s first half by numbers vs. Inter: 100% shot accuracy 89% pass accuracy 3 tackles won 2 take-ons http://ift.tt/1O6oeUQ

— Squawka Football (@Squawka) April 19, 2015

The second half was not so fruitful. Milan sat back and defended. From the 45th minute to the 85th, they had no shots. Suso was sacrificed for Mattia Destro during that poor stretch, but it was not exactly his fault. He was no longer being used the right way.

It was in the first half that we saw the impact Suso can have on a game. For the final 25 minutes of the first half, Milan ran there counterattacks through Suso, perhaps identifying the space he had down that channel.

Even when he lost the ball, he tracked it down. That is a rare feature in this Milan attack. When Menez lost possession, he just stopped and walked back. The same drive was not there.

You could tell Suso wanted to make a good first impression.

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Inter Milan and AC Milan played out a 0-0 draw in their final derby of the Serie A season, with the performance by both sides largely proving why they both lie in mid-table this term.

Both Alex and Rodrigo Palacio had goals ruled out as the whistle had gone for infringements in the build-up. There were few real moments of quality at either end, and a draw always seemed the likely outcome.

Here are the biggest winners and losers from Sunday’s match.

Begin Slideshow

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Giuseppe Meazza, Serie A

Inter Milan 0-0 AC Milan

Lineups:

INT—Handanovic; D’Ambrosio, Ranocchia, Vidic, Jesus; Gnoukouri, Medel, Kovacic; Hernanes; Palacio, Icardi.

ACM—Lopez; Abate, Alex, Mexes, Antonelli; Poli, de Jong, van Ginkel; Suso, Menez, Bonaventura.

Follow @karlmatchett

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