Latest news with #Olympiacos
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Man United and Arsenal 'fall behind Premier League rival' in race for £34m-rated Greek wonderkid, 18
Manchester United and Arsenal have reportedly dropped behind Brighton in the battle to sign Olympiacos wonderkid Charalampos Kostoulas. The forward, who turned 18 on Friday, scored six goals and provided two assists this season as he helped the Greek champions to a domestic double. Kostoulas has represented Greece at under-21 level and won the youth Champions League last year before regularly featuring in the Greek Super League and Europa League this season. The young star is contracted at the Greek giants until 2030 but has been linked with a Premier League switch, with United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham and Aston Villa reportedly all interested, as well as Bayern Munich and Real Madrid. But Brighton have raced into the lead and could be forced to smash their transfer record to secure his signature, according to The Sun. Olympiacos are said to be holding out for a large fee, in the region of £42-£46million, and will insist that a significant release clause is included in any transfer. Brighton's current transfer record is a £40m fee - which they paid for Georginio Rutter from Leeds last summer. The Seagulls previously offered Olympiacos around £30million plus Abdallah Sima for the in-demand attacker which was rejected, with the Greek side reluctant to lose one of Europe's hottest talents. But Brighton are pressing ahead and could complete a transfer as soon as next Wednesday, with the summer window opening for ten days on Sunday. It comes as a blow for Man United, who are looking to bolster their attack, with Rasmus Hojlund misfiring and Alejandro Garnacho and Marcus Rashford set to leave. Arsenal are also desperate for a striker after an injury-ravaged campaign which saw midfielder Mikel Merino forced to deputise as an emergency striker. Kostoulas could become the most expensive Greek footballer ever, pipping Kostas Manolas' £30m move to Napoli in 2019. Earlier this year, Fabian Hurzeler's side paid £22m for 19-year-old Stefanos Tzimas from Nuremberg, making him the second most costly Greek player ever. Christos Mouzakitis, another young talent from Olympiacos, is also reportedly being targeted by Brighton. While United, Villa, Wolves, Atletico Madrid, Juventus and Borussia Dortmund are also said to be monitoring the 18-year-old.
The Sun
a day ago
- Business
- The Sun
Brighton jump ahead of Man Utd and Arsenal in £34million transfer race for Greece wonderkid Babis Kostoulas, 18
BRIGHTON have moved ahead of Manchester United and Arsenal as well as a raft of other suitors for Olympiacos wonderkid Babis Kostoulas. And the Seagulls could sign the teenage sensation as early as Wednesday. 2 2 Kostoulas, 18, burst onto the scene this season, which saw him amassing six goals and one assist in 21 league appearances with the Greek champions. The versatile striker played a crucial role in the Piraeus outfit winning the Double and making it to the Last 16 of the Europa League, where they finished in the top eight during the league phase. That came after another stunning 2023-24 campaign that saw the Greece Under-21 international leading the club's Under-19s to Uefa Youth League glory, which marked the first ever European trophy won by a Greek team. SunSport reported the forward's stunning performances have led to interest from a number of Premier League clubs, such as Man Utd, Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham and Aston Villa. United even made contact with Olympiacos but have also been facing competition from Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Juventus, AC Milan and clubs from Spain - while there were also links with Real Madrid. But it is Brighton who have stolen a march on all of the above and are willing to splash the cash on the young prospect. SunSport can reveal Wednesday will be "crucial" regarding Kostoulas' future and the Seagulls' hopes of landing him. Olympiacos won't sell on the cheap and will insist on a major resale clause for their star player, who has a contract until 2030. Negotiations have reached a fee of €40million (£34m), which Fabian Hurzeler's side are currently not willing to meet despite their willingness to pay good money. SunSport, though, understand Kostoulas' fee could climb even higher to €50-55m (£42-46m). That would make Kostoulas the most expensive Greek transfer of all time as he would eclipse Kostas Manolas' £30m move from Roma to Napoli in 2019. Brighton recently completed the second most expensive Greek transfer of all time when they landed Stefanos Tzimas from Nuremberg following a £22m deal. That would see the Seagulls continuing their impressive run of snatching some of the world's best young talent after signing the likes of Yves Bissouma, Moises Caicedo, Alexis Mac Allister and more. Kostoulas is among Olympiacos' biggest wonderkids along with Konstantis Tzolakis and Christos Mouzakitis, who is also targeted by Brighton as SunSport recently reported. But Brighton face competition from Arsenal, Man Utd, Villa, Dortmund, Milan, Juventus, Wolves, Villarreal and Atletico Madrid for midfielder Mouzakitis, 18. Tzolakis, 22, on the other hand, has been ranked as the goalkeeper that's most ready for a top-five league competition under the age of 23 following stunning performances in the Europe League and last season's Conference League.
The Irish Sun
a day ago
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
Brighton jump ahead of Man Utd and Arsenal in £34million transfer race for Greece wonderkid Babis Kostoulas, 18
BRIGHTON have moved ahead of Manchester United and Arsenal as well as a raft of other suitors for Olympiacos wonderkid Babis Kostoulas. And the Seagulls could sign the teenage sensation as early as Wednesday. Advertisement 2 Brighton could sign Olympiacos wonderkid Babis Kostoulas by Wednesday 2 Kostoulas has also been targeted by Manchester United and Arsenal Kostoulas, 18, burst onto the scene this season, which saw him amassing six goals and one assist in 21 league appearances with the Greek champions. The versatile striker played a crucial role in the Piraeus outfit winning the Double and making it to the Last 16 of the Europa League, where they finished in the top eight during the league phase. That came after another stunning 2023-24 campaign that saw the Greece Under-21 international leading the club's Under-19s to Uefa Youth League glory, which marked the first ever European trophy won by a Greek team. Advertisement Read More on Football But it is SunSport can reveal Wednesday will be "crucial" regarding Kostoulas' future and the Seagulls' hopes of landing him. Advertisement Most read in Football Olympiacos won't sell on the cheap and will insist on a major resale clause for their star player, who has a contract until 2030. CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS Negotiations have reached a fee of €40million (£34m), which Fabian Hurzeler's side are currently not willing to meet despite their willingness to pay good money. SunSport, though, understand Kostoulas' fee could climb even higher to €50-55m (£42-46m). Advertisement That would make Kostoulas the most expensive Greek transfer of all time as he would eclipse Kostas Manolas' £30m move from Roma to Napoli in 2019. Brighton recently completed the second most expensive Greek transfer of all time when they landed Stefanos Tzimas from Nuremberg following a £22m deal. That would see the Seagulls continuing their impressive run of snatching some of the world's best young talent after signing the likes of Yves Bissouma, Moises Caicedo, Alexis Mac Allister and more. Kostoulas is among Olympiacos' biggest wonderkids along with Konstantis Tzolakis and Christos Mouzakitis, who is also targeted by Brighton as Advertisement But Brighton face competition from Tzolakis, 22, on the other hand, has been ranked as the goalkeeper that's most ready for a top-five league competition under the age of 23 following stunning performances in the Europe League and
Scottish Sun
a day ago
- Business
- Scottish Sun
Brighton jump ahead of Man Utd and Arsenal in £34million transfer race for Greece wonderkid Babis Kostoulas, 18
Brighton may sign the Man Utd and Arsenal target by Wednesday WORTH THE KOST Brighton jump ahead of Man Utd and Arsenal in £34million transfer race for Greece wonderkid Babis Kostoulas, 18 Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) BRIGHTON have moved ahead of Manchester United and Arsenal as well as a raft of other suitors for Olympiacos wonderkid Babis Kostoulas. And the Seagulls could sign the teenage sensation as early as Wednesday. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 2 Brighton could sign Olympiacos wonderkid Babis Kostoulas by Wednesday 2 Kostoulas has also been targeted by Manchester United and Arsenal MAN UTD TRANSFER NEWS LIVE: All the latest deals and rumours from Old Trafford Kostoulas, 18, burst onto the scene this season, which saw him amassing six goals and one assist in 21 league appearances with the Greek champions. The versatile striker played a crucial role in the Piraeus outfit winning the Double and making it to the Last 16 of the Europa League, where they finished in the top eight during the league phase. That came after another stunning 2023-24 campaign that saw the Greece Under-21 international leading the club's Under-19s to Uefa Youth League glory, which marked the first ever European trophy won by a Greek team. SunSport reported the forward's stunning performances have led to interest from a number of Premier League clubs, such as Man Utd, Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham and Aston Villa. United even made contact with Olympiacos but have also been facing competition from Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Juventus, AC Milan and clubs from Spain - while there were also links with Real Madrid. But it is Brighton who have stolen a march on all of the above and are willing to splash the cash on the young prospect. SunSport can reveal Wednesday will be "crucial" regarding Kostoulas' future and the Seagulls' hopes of landing him. Olympiacos won't sell on the cheap and will insist on a major resale clause for their star player, who has a contract until 2030. CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS Negotiations have reached a fee of €40million (£34m), which Fabian Hurzeler's side are currently not willing to meet despite their willingness to pay good money. SunSport, though, understand Kostoulas' fee could climb even higher to €50-55m (£42-46m). That would make Kostoulas the most expensive Greek transfer of all time as he would eclipse Kostas Manolas' £30m move from Roma to Napoli in 2019. Brighton recently completed the second most expensive Greek transfer of all time when they landed Stefanos Tzimas from Nuremberg following a £22m deal. That would see the Seagulls continuing their impressive run of snatching some of the world's best young talent after signing the likes of Yves Bissouma, Moises Caicedo, Alexis Mac Allister and more. Kostoulas is among Olympiacos' biggest wonderkids along with Konstantis Tzolakis and Christos Mouzakitis, who is also targeted by Brighton as SunSport recently reported. But Brighton face competition from Arsenal, Man Utd, Villa, Dortmund, Milan, Juventus, Wolves, Villarreal and Atletico Madrid for midfielder Mouzakitis, 18. Tzolakis, 22, on the other hand, has been ranked as the goalkeeper that's most ready for a top-five league competition under the age of 23 following stunning performances in the Europe League and last season's Conference League.
New York Times
3 days ago
- Business
- New York Times
Nottingham Forest Conference League explainer: Dates, potential opponents and prize money
Nottingham Forest will be playing in Europe next season for the first time since 1995-96. Though Nuno Espirito Santo's side narrowly missed out on the Champions League football they and the fans craved, their seventh-place finish confirms their spot in the final qualifying round for the league phase of the UEFA Conference League. Here, The Athletic gives you the lowdown on how that competition works, who Forest might face in that play-off and what the overall schedule looks like. The tournament has been running since the 2021-22 season, when it was introduced as UEFA's new third-tier European competition — below the Champions League and Europa League. Roma of Italy won the competition in its first season, to secure their only major UEFA trophy. This prompted the club's manager at the time, Jose Mourinho, to observe that they had 'made history'. David Moyes then led West Ham United to a nail-biting win in 2023, calling it one of the biggest moments of his long career. The following year, Forest's sister club Olympiacos became the first Greek side to win a major UEFA trophy. In the 2024-25 edition, which Chelsea won earlier this week, the Conference League — after the completion of four qualifying rounds — followed the Champions League and Europa League in adopting a league phase with all 36 competing teams in together instead of the pre-existing eight-groups-of-four. This format will be used next season, too. Advertisement Each side played six different opponents (three games at home, three away), rather than the eight matches in the Champions League and Europa League, with the top eight in the final table advancing directly to the round of 16 and those sides who finish from ninth to 24th entering knockout stage play-offs, with the eight victors from those ties completing the last 16. The bottom 12 after the league phase are eliminated. After the league phase, it is a straight two-leg, home-and-away knockout competition all the way to a one-off final in May. Forest's play-off round tie will be held over two legs on August 21 and August 28, which is after the start of the new Premier League season. They will not find out who their opponents will be until the draw on August 4. All 36 teams entering the league phase will do so by qualifying, with none being directly placed into the competition proper. The stage at which teams begin qualifying is based on their domestic association's club coefficient ranking, which is calculated by UEFA. England currently tops these rankings, ahead of Italy, Spain, Germany and France — which is why Forest will enter qualifying in the last round before the league phase. Before that, three qualifying rounds — which will decide who Forest might face in that play-off — will take place. First qualifying round: June 17 Second qualifying round: June 18 Third qualifying round: July 21 Play-off round: August 4 First qualifying round: July 10 and 17 Second qualifying round: July 24 and 31 Third qualifying round: August 7 and 14 Play-off round: August 21 and 28 There are many possibilities. The teams guaranteed to be in the play-off round — other than Forest — are Fiorentina, Germany's Mainz, Rayo Vallecano from Spain and France's Strasbourg. The top five nations in the association club coefficient rankings only have one team each in the competition, with all of them starting their involvement in the play-off round. However, Forest will be seeded for the play-off round so will face, in theory, a side from the weaker half of the pot. This will not influence whether they have a home or away match in the tie's second leg, though. There are places in qualifying given to clubs from all across the continent, ranging from AZ (the Netherlands), Santa Clara (Portugal), Dundee United (Scotland) and AEK Athens (Greece) to some genuine minnows, such as Araz-Naxcivan (Azerbaijan), Astana (Kazakhstan), St Patrick's Athletic (Republic of Ireland), Haverfordwest County (Wales), Calpe City Magpies (Gibraltar) and La Fiorita (San Marino). La Fiorita play in a town called Montegiardino, which has a population of around 1,000. Advertisement Teams eliminated in certain qualifying rounds for the Champions League and Europa League will also join the party at various stages of the Conference League's qualification process. So in short, Forest have no idea who they might be up against in that play-off. The league-phase matches will take place on the following dates: Matchday 1: October 2 Matchday 2: October 23 Matchday 3: November 6 Matchday 4: November 27 Matchday 5: December 11 Matchday 6: December 18 The knockout-stage ties will take place on the following dates: Knockout phase play-offs: February 19 and 26 Round of 16: March 12 and 19 Quarter-finals: April 9 and 16 Semi-finals: April 30 and May 7 Final: May 27 League phase: August 29 Knockout phase play-offs: To be determined Round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals and final: February 27 The draws for the league phases of all three UEFA club competitions are now done via computer, to speed up the complicated process. All roads for the 2025-26 competition lead to the Red Bull Arena in Leipzig, Germany. Home of Bundesliga side RB Leipzig, it has a capacity of just under 48,000 and hosted games at the 2006 World Cup and Euro 2024. As well as the glory of a European trophy, the Conference League's winners are guaranteed a league-phase place in the following season's Europa League — unless they have already qualified for the Champions League by virtue of their domestic league position, as Chelsea have done this time. As for the prize money, reaching the league phase of the 2024-25 Conference League earned you an estimated base fee of €3.2million (£2.7m; $3.6m), while each win in that league phase worth €400,000 and every draw €133,000. Teams who secured a top-eight finish in the league phase received another €400,000, while finishing from ninth to 24th earned €200,000. There was an €800,000 bonus for reaching the round of 16, €1.3m more for getting to the quarter-finals and €2.5m if your challenge ended in the semis. Runners-up Real Betis took €4m home to Spain and Chelsea received €7m. Advertisement Some optimistic Forest fans have already been booking flights to, and hotels in, Leipzig for the dates around the final, on the off-chance that their team do play in that fixture in a year's time. There is no possibility of Forest's sister club, Olympiacos, dropping down into the Conference League to potentially face them, as they will be in the Champions League as Greek title winners. This means there will be no conflict of interest for Evangelos Marinakis, who owns both clubs. He had placed his shares in Forest in a blind trust and had planned to step away from having any influence in the running of the club, in preparation for both teams potentially being in the same European competition and in order to adhere to UEFA's rules on multi-club ownership, but this will no longer be necessary. The bottom line is that Forest are playing in European competition for the first time since Frank Clark led them to the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup (now the Europa League) in March 1996 where they lost to eventual winners Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals. The prize money and kudos may not be on the level they would have been if Forest had qualified for the Champions League, but the fans will be determined to enjoy the ride wherever on the continent it takes them. And as we have seen with other English teams in recent years, the chance to compete for a European trophy is not to be sniffed at.
